Fix improperly recorded movie/tv show.

[Gilgamesh_48 943]

I have a few VERY old tv shows and at least one old movie that were  somehow improperly recorded when they were originally digitized and the original is long gone. The "problem" is that the two channels of the audio were both recorded on only one channel. (left if it matters) I would like to somehow get what is recorded on the left channel onto both channels.

I have a few options but the ones I know work require real time playback and rerecording. I was just wondering if there are some options for any of the standard tools like HandBrake or FreeMake or MakeMKV or any other tool that will simply place the audio from the left channel onto both channels. I have discovered that my old brain does not process options as well as it did 20 years ago and I have not been able to find out exactly how to do this. It would be good if it could be automated so that I can just start it on a bunch of files and then wait for completion but, if that is not possible, I can process each file individually.

I used to be able to read instructions and then find a combination of actions that would accomplish what I need but as I approach 80 I find my problem solving skills are diminishing like the rest of my body.
Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Just to add: As many here know I inherited a library almost as large as the one I created. That inherited library is where all the improperly recorded files exist.  That is why I do not have the original of the shows involved. Some of the "improper" files were recorded on a reel to reel video recorder and many were on early Betamax. Most are very old and also not very good. But I do have the complete "My Mother the Car" in that group so not all are horrible, some are much worse than that.

Thanks

Edited December 5, 2022 by Gilgamesh_48

[One2Go 98]

Here is how I would approach it and just to let you know I am 6 months away from 80. The steps below assume that your inherited library exists in a digital format.

1. Search if better copies are available on Usenet or P2P trackers. On the BTN P2P tracker there is a complete season 1 (DVD Rip 12GB) of "My Mother the Car" available with Dolby Digital 2.0 as audio.

2. If that doesn't work for you then for the video content that I want to keep I would demux the video & audio tracks, open the audio in the free Audacity Audio program and watch the YouTube video "audacity  how to create stereo from mono" and create a new stereo audio track.

3. Use the MKVToolnix program to mux the existing video and new audio in creating a new MKV file.

Granted it depends on how much you value your inherited content and how much time you would want to spend. Some of the demuxing could be done with batch files but the audio creation would have to be one by one. Therefore for me the 1st stop would be find a better copy on line.

If you care for listing what shows you are searching for I will use my resources to tell you what can be found online.

Edited December 7, 2022 by One2Go