Disc Workshop

1. Install and set up

1. Download DiscWorkshop-Setup-1.8.3.exe from the website distributing this release. Save it, then double-click it.
2. Read the setup information. Choose an installation folder, select a desktop shortcut if wanted, and click Install. The default location is %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Disc Workshop.
3. Open Disc Workshop from the Windows Start menu. The Start menu also contains this User Guide.
4. Set up the tools below before converting. The installer contains the application and guide; it does not contain the conversion, authoring or burning tools.

This build is not digitally signed. Windows may show an unknown-publisher or reputation warning. Check that the download comes from the publisher you intended and matches any SHA-256 checksum supplied with that release.

Tools you need

• FFmpeg, FFprobe and FFplay: go to FFmpeg's download page, choose a Windows build, download and extract it. Keep ffmpeg.exe, ffprobe.exe and ffplay.exe in the same folder. FFplay provides video and sound in the break editor; still-frame scrubbing can work without it. In Disc Workshop, use the FFmpeg row's Locate .exe button to select ffmpeg.exe. FFprobe is found beside it. HDR conversion needs a build with the zscale and tonemap filters.
• VCDImager: needed for burnable images. See the VCDImager project. A Windows distribution used during development is the cdrtfe 1.5.9.1 portable package. Extract the package completely, keep its support DLLs with the tools, and locate vcdimager.exe using its Locate .exe button. Do not select cdrtfe.exe. This is an older tool; test your player's compatibility.
• ImgBurn: needed for burning from the app. Obtain and install it from the ImgBurn website, then locate ImgBurn.exe in Disc Workshop.

Tools may be detected automatically when installed in supported locations or on PATH. Each tool has its own license. Installing Disc Workshop does not install these tools for you. You need a drive that can read the source disc and a drive that can write CD-Rs; they may be different drives.

2. Make your first movie discs

1. Choose a readable, unencrypted movie file. Starting with one complete movie file is easiest.
2. Click Add files. For several clips, arrange them in the order they should play. They are joined into one movie.
3. Choose an output folder with plenty of free space. The job keeps converted clips, intermediate movie files and disc images; these can take several gigabytes. Copying the original files needs additional space equal to their size.
4. Choose VCD, SVCD or XVCD. Choose NTSC or PAL to match your player and TV. Choose a 74- or 80-minute CD size matching your blank media.
5. Select the audio stream number. 0 is the first audio track, 1 the second, and so on. Each input must have that track number. Check the language in a video player first.
6. Enable HDR → SDR only for HDR10/HLG material. Leave it off for ordinary SDR material.
7. Choose your widescreen setting below. Leave Fit whole film on one CD off for normal multi-disc output. Keep disc-image authoring enabled if you want burnable images.
8. Click Create Video CDs. Wait for the ready-to-burn message. The progress bar reports the current clip or scan, not one overall job percentage. Copying and authoring may show a moving activity bar.
9. Read DISC-PLAN.txt in the output folder. Preview the end of each disc-*.mpg and the start of the next one in a video player, listening as well as watching.
10. Burn each completed image as described below.

Using files from discs

DVD: browse to VIDEO_TS. Select the numbered VOB files for one movie title, such as VTS_01_1.VOB, VTS_01_2.VOB, etc. Exclude the _0.VOB menu file. The main movie is not always title 01.

Blu-ray or UHD: browse to BDMV\STREAM and select the correct M2TS clips in playback order. File numbers do not necessarily give the movie order. The app does not read title menus, IFO titles or MPLS playlists. For branching or multi-angle movies, use a correctly assembled, unencrypted movie file. Separate clips can produce small discontinuities at joins.

Keep copies of source files copies only the selected files into the job folder. It is not a complete disc backup. Sources are not modified or deleted.

3. Choose a format

Default profiles use 224 kb/s, 44.1 kHz stereo MP2 audio. Advanced XVCD/SVCD parameters can change audio bitrate, sample rate and channel count. The default profiles downmix surround sound to stereo. XVCD uses the default VCD picture sizes unless you choose custom dimensions in advanced parameters. HD and 4K sources are reduced to standard definition. A higher bitrate does not make the output HD.

4. Automatic and manual movie breaks

Disc Workshop balances the movie across the required discs and searches within five minutes of each proposed break, while respecting capacity. The preference order is:

1. A black screen inside a sustained quiet audio passage.
2. A sustained quiet passage without a matching black screen.
3. A black screen without sustained quiet audio, clearly marked as a fallback.
4. A decodable video boundary near the balanced split, clearly marked as a fallback.

Quiet means audio below −35 dB for at least three seconds, with at least one second of quiet before and after the chosen boundary. Both stereo channels must be quiet. Black-screen detection looks for an almost entirely black picture lasting at least 0.35 seconds. Cuts use video keyframes so each disc can decode independently. Automatic break detection does not remove scenes. New silence or fades are added only when you enable the optional black-screen or fade settings.

This is not speech recognition. It cannot promise a dialogue-free break or understand the story. Whispers can pass the quiet threshold. A dialogue-free scene with loud music or effects will not count as quiet. Continuous music may leave no suitable quiet point. Always listen to the proposed breaks before burning.

VCD uses a conservative maximum of 70 minutes per volume. SVCD and XVCD estimate volume length from bitrate and CD capacity. A two-hour VCD movie normally breaks around one hour. The search does not add unnecessary discs just to find silence. DISC-PLAN.txt states the reason for each cut; actual-splits.csv records the actual split times. Use Preview / choose breaks to override automatic boundaries.

5. Fit the whole film on one CD

This option is off by default. Enable Fit whole film on one CD and choose the correct CD size. The app calculates a lower video bitrate and creates one unsplit volume. Default audio is stereo at 224 kb/s; enabled advanced parameters can change audio settings.

VCD selection becomes nonstandard XVCD for this job. SVCD keeps MPEG-2. Longer films lose more picture quality, and player compatibility varies. Rates cannot fall below 200 kb/s or exceed the fitting ceiling (2500 kb/s by default; adjustable with advanced parameters). Extremely long films may not fit and are rejected. Finished image capacity is checked; an oversized result is not marked ready. One-CD jobs skip break analysis.

Black screens on every disc: Enable opening black, ending black, or both, and set each duration (default four seconds). Black screens are silent. Ending black follows the video or its fade. The added time is included in disc capacity and maximum bitrate calculations. Arrow-key preview shortcuts are disabled in version 1.8.3.

Playback, accessibility and disc options

Choose MPEG-1 or MPEG-2, then choose the disc layout

Choose XVCD · MPEG-1 custom for MPEG-1, or SVCD · MPEG-2 for MPEG-2. Either choice supports Fit whole movie on one disc, Maximum bitrate per disc with a chosen number of volumes, and manual breaks. A selected VCD · MPEG-1 standard job keeps the fixed VCD profile during normal splitting; fitting or maximum bitrate switches it to MPEG-1 XVCD. For a two-disc MPEG-2 movie, select SVCD and maximum bitrate, then set the disc count to two.

Advanced XVCD / SVCD parameters

Choose XVCD or SVCD, click Encoding parameters, and save your settings. The Use advanced XVCD / SVCD parameters box enables them; turn it off to use defaults. Settings include even picture width/height, frame rate, manual video bitrate, maximum fitting bitrate, MP2 audio bitrate, sample rate, mono/stereo channels, display aspect and GOP length. Bitrate fitting budgets the selected audio rate. Manual boundaries round to the selected frame rate. The video codec stays MPEG-1 for XVCD and MPEG-2 for SVCD. Changing the format or PAL/NTSC selection disables custom settings until chosen again. Custom settings can exceed disc-format specifications and may require a compatible player. Finished MPEG and authored BIN sizes are still checked before completion. The chosen parameters are recorded in DISC-PLAN.txt.

Low vision mode

Enable Low vision near the top of the settings for 15-point bold text, a black background, white text, and yellow buttons, following MovieSeeD. The setting is remembered between sessions. Its fixed top bar stays visible and can be toggled during conversion; job settings remain locked while the text stays readable. Scroll vertically to reach all settings and results. Uncheck it to restore the regular appearance.

Maximum bitrate per disc

Check Maximum bitrate per disc and set Automatic disc count, or choose manual breaks. Select 80-minute CD for typical 700 MB blanks. Each disc receives its own calculated rate, capped at 2500 kb/s by default with room reserved for the selected audio bitrate, authoring and mux overhead. Advanced parameters can change the fitting ceiling. Short volumes may reach the cap without filling the disc. VCD selection uses XVCD for this option; SVCD remains MPEG-2. Player compatibility varies. Read DISC-BITRATES.csv for actual rates. If your chosen count cannot hold the movie, choose more discs.

Pick your own breaks

Click Preview / choose breaks. Scrub the source timeline or enter hours, minutes and seconds in the HH:MM:SS control. Press Space to play or pause the movie with sound. Arrow-key preview shortcuts are disabled in this release. Playback follows the source-file order. Click Add break here for each boundary; select a listed break to preview it or remove it. Click Save breaks. Use my chosen disc breaks enables these boundaries instead of automatic quiet/black detection. Every segment must be at least one second long. Output rounds each boundary to the nearest PAL or NTSC video frame and re-encodes each volume so it can start independently. With maximum bitrate off, a segment that exceeds capacity is rejected. Breaks belong to the current source order; choose them again if the source list changes. The preview shows the source and does not show final subtitle burn-in or HDR tone mapping.

Optional fades at disc breaks

Enable Fade picture and sound out / in at disc breaks and choose a duration from 0.1 to 10 seconds per fade. Each internal break fades the end of the outgoing disc to black and silence, then fades the next disc back in. The original movie opening and ending receive no additional fade. Short segments shorten each fade to at most half the segment length. No frames are removed, overlapped or added by the fade effect, and the chosen break times remain the same. Fade jobs use a lossless intermediate and encode each volume independently; they can take extra disk space and time. The fade setting is recorded in DISC-PLAN.txt.

Burn subtitles into the picture

Select one assembled movie file, then click Scan subtitle tracks. Choose the language and track from the list, or use Browse subtitle file for SRT, ASS, SSA or WebVTT text subtitles. Choose No subtitles to disable burn-in. Embedded text and DVD/PGS bitmap subtitles are supported through FFmpeg. Text rendering needs an FFmpeg build with the subtitles filter (libass). A browsed file uses its first subtitle track and must match the movie's timing. Subtitles become permanent parts of the picture. Multiple input clips require assembling the movie first for subtitle burning.

One-disc fitting, maximum bitrate, manual-break and custom-parameter jobs keep a lossless intermediate before encoding each disc. Allow extra disk space and processing time. Cancellation retains partial files, which must not be burned.

6. Widescreen squeeze playback

Anamorphic squeeze for 16:9 TV is enabled by default. A 16:9 picture is squeezed horizontally into the encoded 4:3 frame, similar to squeeze-style widescreen releases. It looks narrow on a display set to 4:3.

For correct playback, set your TV to Full / Wide / 16:9 stretch, not zoom. Apply the stretch once; avoid stretching in both the player and TV. The output is marked 4:3, so automatic widescreen switching is not expected.

Films wider than 16:9 keep top and bottom bars to preserve their shape. 4:3 sources retain side bars within the widescreen canvas. Existing bars in the source are not cropped automatically. Turn squeeze off for conventional 4:3 letterbox playback. The job's PLAYBACK.txt records the setting.

7. Burn each CD

1. Wait for successful completion. Select a completed CUE image in the results list.
2. Click Burn selected CD. ImgBurn opens with the image selected and verification enabled.
3. Insert a blank CD-R. Choose your CD writer and click ImgBurn's Write button.
4. Wait for ImgBurn to finish writing and verifying. Repeat for each volume, then test it in your player.

Keep each .cue file with its matching .bin file. Burn the CUE image. Do not create a data CD containing the BIN/CUE files, and do not burn the MPEG as an ordinary data file. Use Open existing CUE to reopen finished images later. Disc Workshop does not itself track physical burn completion.

8. What it can and cannot do

• Converts selected readable video files locally. No video is uploaded.
• Creates VCD/SVCD/XVCD movie images; it does not author DVD or Blu-ray discs.
• Does not remove encryption, DRM, region restrictions or other source-access protection.
• Does not automatically identify the main title or assemble complex Blu-ray playlists.
• Does not retain disc menus, chapters, alternate audio tracks or surround sound. Selected subtitles are burned into the picture, not kept as switchable tracks.
• Does not explicitly support Dolby Vision processing. HDR conversion requires compatible FFmpeg filters.
• Uses software encoding. The break editor provides still-frame scrubbing and FFplay video/audio playback of the source picture.
• Requires a compatible source reader, CD writer, media and playback device. UHD readability depends on the drive. Not every DVD player supports VCD, SVCD, XVCD or CD-R.

Automated checks cover encoding, audio, break detection, segmentation, decoding and authoring. Physical optical-disc reading, burning and standalone-player playback have not been verified for this release. Test a short movie on your own player before processing a large collection.

9. Troubleshooting

• Missing FFmpeg or FFprobe: extract the Windows build fully and select FFmpeg. Keep FFprobe next to it.
• Missing VCDImager or DLL: extract its full Windows package and keep required support files. Select the executable in that extracted package.
• Wrong language or missing audio track: choose a different audio stream number. The chosen number must exist in every input.
• Break crosses dialogue: inspect the cut reason in DISC-PLAN.txt. Quiet detection is approximate, and a fallback may be necessary. Use Preview / choose breaks to select a different boundary.
• Wrong picture shape: match your TV stretch setting to PLAYBACK.txt. Check the source's aspect ratio and baked-in bars.
• Disc will not play: confirm the player supports the format and CD-R; check NTSC/PAL; burn the CUE as an image. Try standard VCD with one-CD fitting off.
• Conversion fails: read job.log in the job folder. Check disk space, selected audio, readable sources and tool paths. A failed or cancelled job keeps partial files; do not burn them.
• Cancel or close: click Cancel and wait for processing to stop before closing the app. Delete unwanted partial output manually after the job stops.

Update, uninstall and saved settings

Close Disc Workshop after any running job finishes, then run a newer installer in the same location. Installed shortcuts continue to use the stable application filename. Old portable shortcuts pointing to versioned executables still open that old version.

Uninstall through Windows Settings → Apps → Installed apps → Disc Workshop. Movie output and original sources remain. Tool paths are stored in %LOCALAPPDATA%\DiscWorkshop\tools.txt and remain after uninstall. Reinstalling can reuse them.

Support development

The green Please donate button in the app offers PayPal and Venmo. It opens the selected provider in your browser; the app does not collect payment details or make a payment automatically.