Manually Remove Commercials from Windows 7 Media Center TV Recordings with VideoReDo

Andrew Gehman

Mar 21 |11:03

vide_redo_ico Nobody likes sitting through commercials do they? Ok, maybe folks in advertising. Sure, occasionally some commercials are funny. As a general rule, however, we'd rather watch a show without them. If you're someone who like to save your favorite recoded show to watch them over and over again, you may want to take a little time and edit out all the commercial breaks.

VideoRedo is a native MPEG video editor that makes editing out commercials a snap. It is a commercials product that carries a price tag of $49.99 US (or $74.99 US for a higher end edition that feature DVD Authoring Tools). If you only edit the occasional recording, that price may be a bit salty. Naturally, I prefer to do things for free whenever possible, but if you edit a lot of TV shows, VideoRedo can be well worth your investment.

So, how exactly does it work? It takes your DVR-MS file, allows you to edit it thought it's interface, then outputs it to .MPEG format.

It will edit any mpeg video, ts, .tvo, .crid, .rec, and dvr-ms files. You can use it for basic video editing, but where it really shines is in it's ability to easily edit out commercials. I've only tested it in Windows Media Center DVR-MS files, but it also claims to work on recording for all Tivo set top boxes and standalone DVD recorders.

Step 1: Converting your WTV file to DVR-MS

Since Windows 7 Media Center records all programming to .WTV files, the first step we need to take is to convert our .WTV file to DVR-MS format. Windows 7 has an easy built-in method for WTV to DVR-MS conversion.

Browse to your Recorded TV folder. If you installed it in the default location, it can be found at C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV.

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Right-click on the file you wish to convert and select “Convert to .dvr-ms Format.”

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You file will begin to convert. The process is very quick. It should only take a minute or two for typical show.

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When the process is complete, you’ll have another file in dvr-ms format.

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Step 2: Installing VideoRedo

Download and install VideoReDo if you haven’t done so already. The install can be a bit confusing, but the important step is choosing “Yes” on the screen asking if you “Will be be using VideoReDo with Windows Media Center DVR-MS?”

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Adding Recorded TV folder to your favorites is a nice features as well. When you go to browse for a file to open in VideoRedo, you'll have a handy shortcut on the browse for file window.

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When the install is complete, click Finish.

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Step 3: Editing video to remove commercials.

Open VideoRedo and click on the “Open Video” button.

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Choose the video file you wish to edit and click “Open.” (You'll notice the Recorded TV folder on the left panel if you choose to install that option)

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In Cut Mode, the scenes or clips you select will be removed or cut from the final output video file. In Scene Mode, only the scenes or segments or clips that are selected select will be output to the final output file. In other words, if you wish to select the portions of the video to eliminate, choose Cut Mode. If you want to select the portion of the video to keep, choose Scene Mode.

We will be working in Cut Mode since we will be selecting the commercials to cut from the TV show.

VideoReDo will open and you will see the first frame of your video file shown in the video display.

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The Program Curser is used to navigate along the timeline of the video. The Fine Tuning Slider will navigate the timeline in smaller increments for better accuracy. Using the right and left arrow keys on your keyboard will move the video forward or backward one frame at a time.

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Navigate across the timeline until you get to the beginning of the first commercial break. If you need more accuracy use the Fine Tuning slider or the right and left arrow keys. When you are at the beginning of the commercial, click the “Sel. Start” button. This will set a selection marker at the beginning of the commercial break.

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Now, navigate across the timeline to the end of the commercial. Again, use the Fine Tuning Slider or right and left arrow keys as needed. When you are at the end of the commercial break, click “Sel. End.” This will set a selection marker at the end of the commercials.

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Next, click the “Cut Selection” button. This will change the commercial break you selected to red and mark that section to be removed, or cut, during processing.

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Continue to navigate that time line and repeat the process of marking the beginning of the commercial break by clicking “Sel. Start,” the end of the break by clicking “Sel. End,” and then marking that section for removal by clicking “Cut Selection.”

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When you are finished and ready to process the file, click the “Save As…” button.

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A “Save As” window will pop up. Choose the output file type from the “Save as type” dropdown box. Change the file name if you wish, and then click “Save.”

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