resolution too low

Hello, and welcome to the forum. If you are using the "Pro" version of DivX 5, enable bi-directional encoding (B-frames), if you are not already using them. B-frames improve compressibility. You might consider noise reduction (temporal smoothing) to improve compressibility. This does remove detail, but may help compression. You might consider going to 3 CDs. You might consider encoding a small test at a lower resolution, to see if 400w is acceptable.

thank you for answer. i need to be reassured by an expert that i'm not going the wrong way... i'm using divx pro 5.1 so the settings should be on by default but i'll try that noise reduction and see if it helps. anyway i understood that it's more a matter of visual checking of the compressed video than having the settings just correct and fine. then even a very low resolution might look acceptable.

you're pretty right about the defaults ;) i never thought of disabling that profile stuff rather expected they (at divX networks) tried to make things easier but still with maximum quality... what shall i do with the rest: gmc (guide says yes), quarter pixel (guide omits), psychovisual enhancements fast/slow? please have patience with me :)

Your questions, in the main, are answered by Doom9's . As to fast/slow ... if you are using DivX 5.05, follow Doom9's guide. But, if you are using DivX 5.1 ... then you'll need to read the discussions about the different encoding modes of 5.1 in the DivX 5 forum. The general consensus, if I'm not mistaken, is to use Slow or Slowest only for the final pass, and only when you don't mind the time it takes.