ZUNE and your X360 - ZUNE HD Now in 64GB - Latest Update Now Supports AVI/XviD

[quote name='Richlough']I ashamed to admit mine does the same , way too often .

I never had trouble with my 20GB iPod .[/QUOTE]
i didnt either, until it turned south on me (the 20gb ipod)
 
I think I have found the ulta-way to convert DVD to Zune. I think I'm going to create a tutorial so stay tuned.

I also sold my DS Lite and 6 games on ebay for $210 tonight so I should be picking up a Zune 80 shortly.
 
[quote name='nyprimus4']I think I have found the ulta-way to convert DVD to Zune. I think I'm going to create a tutorial so stay tuned.

I also sold my DS Lite and 6 games on ebay for $210 tonight so I should be picking up a Zune 80 shortly.[/QUOTE]

Cliffs Notes?

Selling my phat DS and three games netted $170. I was stoked. Paid for my 30.
 
tutorialoh1.jpg


1. Go to - http://www.dvddecrypter.org.uk/ and download DVD Decrypter.

2. Go to - http://www.videora.com/en-us/Converter/iPod-classic/ and download the iPod Classic Videora Converter.

3. Put your DVD into your disc drive in your PC.

4. Open the DVD with DVD Decrypter.

5. If a small window pops up that has region protection stuff in it, just click OK.

6. Click Tools--> Settings--> then under the IFO Mode tab select the File Splitting drop down box and click None--> Click OK.

7. Click Mode--> IFO.

8. Now on the right side of the window click Stream Processing and enable it. Be sure to select only the top two options as those are your English video and audio. If you leave this option you will end up with useless subtitles and other language audios.

9. Now click that small folder icon that has a magnifying glass towards the middle a little off to the left and a little low. Set the output of the file to your desktop.

10. You can finally hit that big button on the bottom left!

11. Conversions should probably take anywhere from 20-45 minutes, maybe more maybe less. My PC is from 2004 and each movie takes about a half an hour.

12. After you are done it should say Operation Successfully Completed!

13. Open up Videora iPod Classic Converter.

14. Click Settings.

15. Output Directory, set this to whatever you want.
Leave the device to iPodClassic_6G
Set the profile to H.264 QVGA 768kps Stereo/128kps
Set CPU Usage to normal
Uncheck "Add Converted Videos to iTunes Library" and "Automatically Convert Video Downloads".

16. Click Convert on the top left and just follow the directions hereon. It will take about an hour probably a little more for converting a DVD file (.VOB file) to a Zune compatible video. I'm now 4/5 done with the Aqua Teen movie and the size of the Zune compatible file is 485MB and it has been going for 55 minutes.




*Note - With Videora I choose the best video quality and best audio quality. This didn't dramatically slow down the conversion but the conversion can be even faster. I would recommend choosing the best audio and video quality.

Videora took the Aqua Teen movie (a 3.7GB file) and turned it into a perfect Zune compatible 555MB (half a GB/.5 of a Gig) movie.

Another great thing is that both programs don't slow down my 2004 PC at all. I hate converting programs where you can't even use the computer you just have to leave it and do something else.
​
 
[quote name='paz9x']videora hangs at 99% completion for me. i was all amped for some zune movie viewing.[/quote] Because DVD Decrypter when it converts your DVD to .VOB for some reason can't determine the full length of the movie exactly.

For instance last night I converted The Manchurian Candidate and DVD Decrypter determined the full length of the 129 minute movie was 5 seconds. So when Videora converts it to Zune compatible it is going to hang at 99% for a while. Just let it be and it should finish soon enough.

Once Videora is done converting the movie's length will be fine again.

Manchurian Candidate which is a 129 minute movie took about an hour and half/hour and 45 minutes. Aqua Teen Movie which is an 87 minute movie took an hour and a couple minutes.
 
Do plays from the Zune software count for the Zune cards or only from the device?
nvm it does. I just set it up and it hadn't updated I guess.
 
i left it for 9 hours, no dice =)

tried again and it worked perfectly.
i appreciate the post.

[quote name='nyprimus4']Because DVD Decrypter when it converts your DVD to .VOB for some reason can't determine the full length of the movie exactly.

For instance last night I converted The Manchurian Candidate and DVD Decrypter determined the full length of the 129 minute movie was 5 seconds. So when Videora converts it to Zune compatible it is going to hang at 99% for a while. Just let it be and it should finish soon enough.

Once Videora is done converting the movie's length will be fine again.

Manchurian Candidate which is a 129 minute movie took about an hour and half/hour and 45 minutes. Aqua Teen Movie which is an 87 minute movie took an hour and a couple minutes.[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']Videora never worked for me, thus I'm very happy with Cucusoft.[/quote]

WOW! Cucusoft frickin' rocks. I see 2 advantages and 1 disadvantage of the Cucusoft Solution:

1. Rips directly from DVD
2. converts into .wmv -- no re-transcoding more video quality loss for me since I'm a gen 1 Zune owner

Pretty big disadvantage: It costs $40. Anybody got a discount code?
 
I used the $30 version.

One other tip, I was having trouble straight from DVD, so I use DVD Decrypter to rip, then use Cucusoft as normal.
 
I know my Zune is dying...its just a matter of time...too bad since my warranty expires today. I lost all of my music on Friday and called in Zune support, which by the way, they are very nice, friendly and Americans :D...so anyway, everytime I tried to play a song, it just cycled rapidly through my library saying that "item is not found or can't no longer be played", so after rebooting, syncing and then formating it...yeah I had 22GB full...ouch. It finally works again. I added about 7GB of music so far, most of my other gigs were movies, but its cool, its working again for now.
 
[quote name='hufferstl']This new firmware has increased my 30's battery life a TON. Thank you Microsoft![/QUOTE]

I agree I noticed this too. I tend to listen to music/podcasts when I go to sleep and normally with the old Zune firmware the Zune wouldn't turn off if I had fell asleep. Now with the new firmware it seems to turn off.
 
Hmm... I need some advice on this Cucusoft software.

I can buy it from the MFGR and get what I want for $40 or $60 depending on which version I buy. I love that you can make a straight Zune file right off of a DVD. Looks like this site is not run out of the USA.

If I buy from another site, el-software.com, it's 30% less--or I'm paying only $42 for the $60 version of the software. Looks like it's a Russian site, but the payment is run through a company in the US that looks legit.

The manufacturer says that they have an affiliate program, so it's not inconceivable that the discount version is legit.

Any ideas here guys?
 
so, im beginning to become aggrevated at the zune just shutting off. especially when i have to fast forward through 60 minutes of a podcast to get back to the spot before it had shut off.
i need to get a harness for it wired into my car. maybe ill get some gift certs for xmas.
 
[quote name='paz9x']so, im beginning to become aggrevated at the zune just shutting off. especially when i have to fast forward through 60 minutes of a podcast to get back to the spot before it had shut off.
i need to get a harness for it wired into my car. maybe ill get some gift certs for xmas.[/QUOTE]

If you still have the receipt and its been within 30 days, maybe swap it out? The HD might be going bad already unfortunately.
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']All you really need is the DVD to Zune software, which runs $30. I did not have any problems buying direct.[/quote]

Yeah, I understand that--but I would like to be able to do other stuff with conversion for other mobile devices and for my PC/360, etc. So I figure I'll just buy the top-of-the line bundle.

Wish I knew if El-Software.com was legit or not, though... Maybe I'll risk it.
 
[quote name='A Happy Panda']If you still have the receipt and its been within 30 days, maybe swap it out? The HD might be going bad already unfortunately.[/QUOTE]
yea, ive got til january 31st to return it. its done it id say maybe 4 times. but it really aggrevates me.
 
Aww man this must be a bad christmas for me and zunes. One of the zunes i bought for a present from buy.com has a deep scratch in the back so now i need to call microsoft to get it fixed. On top of that i got an email today saying that my black zune that i ordered a month ago when in stock is no longer available from their supplier so it's cancelled. ON Christmas day!! I want my black zune, now i'm not getting it at all. I was willing to wait as long as i get it but i guess not anymore. This sucks, what a bad christmas email.
 
Here's an update for those interested in saving money on Cucusoft. I did buy the full Ultimate Suite through El-software.com, and I got an email about 20 minutes later directly from Cucusoft with my full version download link and my registration code.

If you get any Cucusoft from them, then you save 30% over the cost of buying it direct.
 
I just got a 30GB Zune and followed the steps to converting a movie to MP4 format and syncing it the unit. It works fine, but it seems to take a long time to sync and download to the Zune. I converted a couple AVI files to MP4 and tried syncing and it would just sit there at 0% for a long time.

Anyone have any ideas on what i'm doing wrong?
 
MP4 files are not natively recognized by the 30GB. It has to convert them to a recognizable format, which takes awhile.

Use WMV 8 or 9 encoding.
 
[quote name='vinhj']I just got a 30GB Zune and followed the steps to converting a movie to MP4 format and syncing it the unit. It works fine, but it seems to take a long time to sync and download to the Zune. I converted a couple AVI files to MP4 and tried syncing and it would just sit there at 0% for a long time.

Anyone have any ideas on what i'm doing wrong?[/quote]
H264 really varies on the converter you use. I use Xilisoft and while h264 videos made with the non-dvd converter will sync to Zune w/o re-converting, for whatever reason, the DVD to Zune converter (using same exact settings) needs to be re-converted using the Zune software.

I've given up on h264 for now. I'd much rather use WMV and take a hit in the conversion speed area not to have to worry about the Zune software needing to re-convert the file before it syncs.

I can only hope that since Microsoft has been able to put divx on the 360, a divx update for Zune will be coming soon.
 
I've had Ipods for a long time and just picked up a 80GB Zune. Love the player and especially the bigger screen for watching movies. My biggest gripes right now is the Zune software on the PC seems really weak compared to Itunes and I wish there was a clock / date on the Zune.

I rip from DVD using DVD Decrypter and then convert to Mpeg-4 using PSP-Video 9 (version 1.73 which isn't filled with ads). PSP-Video 9 takes between 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours to convert a normal length movie from the VOB format, but otherwise it works fine and as both programs are free, you can't beat the price.
 
I finally got all of my music onto my 30gb zune and I am loving it so far. I need to find a good case for it though. I need to look into the podcast features some more and figure out how to get some of the missing album art to display for some of my songs, but so far so good!
 
Isn't it funny how they won't exchange or repair my zune when it came with a big scratch in the back of it? Is there any other number i can call except zune's i think this is not right.
 
[quote name='uEih']Isn't it funny how they won't exchange or repair my zune when it came with a big scratch in the back of it? Is there any other number i can call except zune's i think this is not right.[/quote]

the manufacturer isn't responsible for your problem as I understand it. you need to contact the place you bought it from.
 
For those looking for a decent case for the Zune 80, Incipio has some nice cases. I got myself the one pictured below (only in Black). Unfortunately i ordered a few days before they started the free shipping for $20+ purchases. But its a really nice case and it has a decent screen protector (though the screen protector hovers over the screen, it doesnt actually touch it; which means dust can get in there >
 
so ive had a zune 30 since november, was excited at first, but putting videos are painfully slow. so i considered those monthly music services like yahoo to download songs, but once you cancel the songs are unuseable. i decided to pass. so i'm not really taking advantage ofthe zune otherthan some youtube videos on it and a couple ripped cd's. i havent used it in about a month. so iask, where are you getting your downloadable songs from? zune maketplace, yahoo, amazon, etc?? damn if only thhose refurb woot zune's came withthe 14 day trial, i'd be set. any help or info on downloadable songs? thanks
 
Anyone know of software that will allow me to:

A: Remove the DRM from protected AAC files (i.e. all my songs purchased from the Itunes store).

and

B: Rip DVD's to video files

I see many $30-$40 options (many suggested in this thread), but they all seem to do one or the other.
 
I could be wrong, but I think that if you burn your Itunes songs as a music CD, and then re-rip as MP3, they should work. Someone correct me if I am wrong.
 
[quote name='hufferstl']I could be wrong, but I think that if you burn your Itunes songs as a music CD, and then re-rip as MP3, they should work. Someone correct me if I am wrong.[/quote]

Yes. You can do that, but with 260 songs it would be a waste.

I ended up using QTFairUse6 for free to convert my Itunes files.
 
Question:

Typically, how large is like a movie or TV show when put into mp4 format for the Zunes?

I'm looking to get the 8 GB Flash, mainly for music and a couple videos, so I was wondering how many I could fit on there so I could watch some content while on the bus from and to campus.
 
I got a Zune 80 for Christmas but it had a buff mark on the back, a dead pixel right in the middle of the screen, and there was a lot of static and blippy noises through the headphones noticeable at low volumes (is this normal?). I went to exchange it at Best Buy but they don't carry the 80 GB in stores any more so I had to order a replacement from their website and am still waiting for it.

From what little I was able to use it, I did like it a lot, more than my old iPod Video. The interface is a big improvement over the iPod Classic's (IMO) and the device itself feels very solid. I was disappointed in the screen resolution (320 x 240 on such a big screen looks a little muddy) and the static at low volumes. Overall I wish there was a HDD-based iPod Touch... that would be the killer MP3 player for me but I'm still very happy with the Zune.

[quote name='jkanownik']Anyone know of software that will allow me to:

A: Remove the DRM from protected AAC files (i.e. all my songs purchased from the Itunes store).

and

B: Rip DVD's to video files

I see many $30-$40 options (many suggested in this thread), but they all seem to do one or the other.[/quote]
A. QTFairUse6 (free): http://www.hymn-project.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1553

B. I use DVD Fab. It's very, very easy to use (unlike most of the free, open source alternatives) and has a Zune setting that works great. It's a $50 program but it has a 30 day, fully functional free trial that was enough for me to rip almost all of my collection. I've been ripping DVDs into h.264 .mp4 files with 2 mbps video and they look really good.

Typically, how large is like a movie or TV show when put into mp4 format for the Zunes?
Click to expand...
Depends on the bitrate. My movies are ~ 2 GB each on average at a bitrate of 2 mbps. At 500 kbps movies would be ~500 mb each. You probably wouldn't notice much difference on the Zune's screen but you will on your computer or through the Zune's TV out.
 
just received my zune 80, it also has a dead pixel on the screen, i'm gonna try and return it to Dell. I was impressed with the fm tuner and how it shows artist and song name, also playing my videos thru my 360.
 
[quote name='life.exe']Are the 30GB discontinued? I work at TRU and our system says we wont be receiving any more of them.[/quote]

What?

must be just at your location only, the Zune 30 is still going strong and it would be an immensely stupid move by microsoft to discontinue them seeing as how popular theyve become as of late with the price drop and being a Number 1 item in the black friday sales.

also keep an eye out on CES, the Zune department is going to be making a couple of announcements...Not expecting much.
 
[quote name='joe2187']
also keep an eye out on CES, the Zune department is going to be making a couple of announcements...Not expecting much.[/QUOTE]

Making the wireless sync more reliable would be a start.
 
id be happy with my zune not shutting off whenever it feels like it.
but i still like it. itd be hard to go back to an ipod after having my zune.
 
[quote name='life.exe']Are the 30GB discontinued? I work at TRU and our system says we wont be receiving any more of them.[/quote]

TRU is probably just going to stop carrying them. Or maybe MS will come out with a different SKU. But something tells me that they have a shitton of Zune 30's left over in some warehouse somewhere so they won't get rid of them.

But any knowledgable consumer would buy an 80 or a 4 or an 8 because of the beefier hardware inside the Zune 2.0. There's just a bunch of features I wish I had in my Zune 30 from Woot. But my Zune 30 has one feature that the others don't--it was Cha-eeep! Ah will, maybe I'll wait until the Zune v3 comes out and get one.
 
[quote name='life.exe']Are the 30GB discontinued? I work at TRU and our system says we wont be receiving any more of them.[/quote]I don't know if they are exactly discontinued (more of a we are not selling this model but we still support it). I think there is a shitload of unsold 30 GB ones and well with the new Zune v2 out I think M$ and other places are selling them for uber cheap to get rid of stock so people buy the new version of Zune. I don't see why Microsoft would try to sell two versions of the Zune though since people will probably buy the cheaper one.
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']Making the wireless sync more reliable would be a start.[/quote]

well...I knew the announcement wasnt going to be much, the only thing that was announced for zune was....Its now being sold in "Oh Canada! land"
 
Well I got my replacement 80 GB. This one has no dead pixels and no static out of the headphone port so I'm happy.

I'd say the only major disappointment I have is that watching movies on it sucks... the screen is low resolution and since it's not widescreen, 2.40:1 movies are really, really small on it. I think I would have been happier with an iPod Touch but they're too expensive for the capacity you get.
 
Would the wireless sync problems I've been having have anything to do with Live being down? I couldn't get my 360 to hook up with it either.
 
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