How can I get the Sandisk Media Converter?

whatchamacallit wrote:

This is the third posting in this thread of a place to download Sansa Media Converter directly.

 

http://rapidshare.com/files/316728424/ smc-4.236.zip

 

Get it before someone catches up with it. 

Its not the newest and is not 100% compatible with the fuze. But it should get the job done with videos.

Yea!!! The zipped file worked! Thanks!

Look at the SanDisk program group in Start/Programs.

Or find the file here: C:\Documents and Settings\YOURCOMPUTERNAME\Application Data\SanDisk\Sansa Updater

Message Edited by whatchamacallit on 04-28-2010 04:45 PM

Message Edited by TomJensen on 05-03-2010 05:42 PM

SpacePatroller wrote:

 

This is all well and good but it isn’t helping a bit. I just would like to know, now that I’ve got the converter, where did it light? It’s not in the start menue and I can’t find it in Program files or My downloads

This is kinda like “Honey, where are my keys?”  :smileyvery-happy:

It’s your computer; we certainly can’t look on there for you.

Yes, those three infamous words!

Of course, once the SMC is installed, you can try using it to manage video and photos on your Fuze.  It’s a good start, and most definitely it has the most straightforward interface.

The trick to successful video on the Sansa is in the conversion and packaging process.  If the SMC works, you’re good to go.  I like the handy “project” feature and the preview pane to test the video. 

Here are a few helpful hints for you:  there is more than one road to Rome, meaning that there are several alternative methods of transferring video clips to the Fuze.  In summary, there is:

  • The Sansa Media Converter
  • The Rhapsody 4 client (you can import video without having to subscribe!) Here’s a free trial link.
  • Video4Fuze, submitted by ssorgatem
  • FuzeVidz, submitted by TomJensen

The converter threads are linked here for you.  There’s also a free trial for Sansa users if you like.

If you cannot import a video file to any of the above converters, it may need a bit of tweaking first.  I like to use AnyVideoConverter to convert the video into a format that can be readily translated for the Sansa.

The Fuze is optimized for audio, but video is a handy perk, that can be enjoyed with a little diligence.  The key thing to remember with video is that once you are comfortable converting video, it’s quite easily done.  The learning curve is the only issue.

Bob  :smileyvery-happy:

Here is Sansa Media Converter 4.256.

http://sharebee.com/bc79f11f

Registering won’t cost you anything. Whether you want to provide your actual information is another question. For a dummy email address, there’s always anyname@example.com (or .net or .org). 

I have no idea what Sansa Dispatcher is. Maybe it’s for some other unit since the Updater is for the whole Sansa line.

In general it’s not a good idea to execute programs unless you need them.

SpacePatroller wrote:

 

All things considered and for what it is (a free media converter that’s quick and easy to use), I give the thing an A. I don’t know how it will do with longer vids like some of my eps of Space Patrol (29 min)

The audio tends to get out of sync with the video the longer it plays. May of may not be an issue with a half-hour program, but it certainly will be annoying trying to watch a 2 hour movie.

There are more hoops you can jump through to synchronize the A/V or you can use one of the alternatives to SMC which the programmers have compensated for this decificancy when creating them.

SpacePatroller wrote:

 

All things considered and for what it is (a free media converter that’s quick and easy to use), I give the thing an A. I don’t know how it will do with longer vids like some of my eps of Space Patrol (29 min)

The audio tends to get out of sync with the video the longer it plays. May or may not be an issue with a half-hour program, but it certainly will be annoying trying to watch a 2 hour movie.

There are more hoops you can jump through to synchronize the A/V or you can use one of the alternatives to SMC which the programmers have compensated for this decificancy when creating them.

The SMC needs more tools, install CCCP , the Combined Community Codec Pack, as well as Quicktime.  On the QT front, be sure to decline installing the iTunes frills or the Yahoo toolbar that are offered.

CCCP gives you some cool mux tools and even allows Windows Media Player to play DVDs from their main menus (including chapter functions).

For flv video, I have AnyVideoConverter and DVDVideoSoft’s suite, the combination allows conversion of flash video (YouTube) through the SMC.  Both of these software packages are free!

Audio gets out-of-sync because of the audio stream conversion and reinstallation in the completed video.  Converting from 30 frames (sometimes 24 for film) to 20fps for the Sansa, there are dropped video frames.  Over time, the two get out of sync.  I believe the Video4Fuze application does a bit better regarding the frame rate conversion. Oddly, I have many complete movies, converted via AVC > SMC, with no sync issues.

Bob  :smileyvery-happy:

For me, SMC tends to fail when converting a number of files, saying that they are unsupported. I have checked the help file, and found that many of the “supported files” just don’t work. I know they are not corrupted, since they play just fine on any DirectShow player. Even with CCCP (as well as a few Gabest codecs that I installed separately), SMC still refuses to convert properly, even though I programmed Faddish to play everything except MPEG-1 video (because I tend to have trouble seeking with MPEG-1 videos. Windows comes with MPEG-1 codecs anyway). I have completely stopped using it, in favor of the instructions posted Here.

Message Edited by halonachos117 on 05-02-2010 03:21 PM

For files that will not convert (unsupported message), run them through the AnyVideoConverter application, and select avi or MPEG-2 as your output format.  A word of caution: it will appear that the AVC appplication has frozen.  Let it churn on the file for a little while, especially if you only have 1GB RAM on the PC.

After about 20 minutes, you’ll see a message if it is switching to the next layer of decoding, the first indication of success.  I discovered this while letting several PCs crunch on video concurrently.  The output will then run through the SMC (or you can use Video4Fuze).

Bob  :stuck_out_tongue:

Message Edited by neutron_bob on 05-02-2010 06:17 PM