MakeMKV rip - MKV vs MP4

[WolfR1der]

Hi,

I'm somewhat new to ripping my discs and I have a question pertaining to whether or not the MKV file that MakeMKV creates is the raw movie+audio (aka as it comes from the disc) or if it's compressed/encoded like Handbrake would do with an MP4 file. There are a few discs that I would want full quality and if the MKV file is compressed I would assume doing the 'disc backup' then sending through Handbrake's super high quality would be a better option, yes? I apologize if this has been answered before, I cannot find the answer. Only that an MKV file is simply a container. While I would assume that it's not compressed I can't be certain.

[Woodstock]

MakeMKV copies what is on the disk to an MKV file, with no changes to video. You can do SOME changes to the audio, but that is limited.

MP4 is a more limited container than MKV, so some changes often need to be made, and handbrake can do them. My personal "workflow" is to rip with MakeMKV, then process EVERYTHING through handbrake to make it smaller, and usually make an MP4 copy for devices that cannot handle MKV files.