A Gamebreaker - Stuttering TV under RC2 & RC3 (1 Viewer)

[druid9]

Just thought I would post a thread to let everyone know how important this is to some (at least one, me) of us.

In the transition from RC1 to RC2, The change in TV server has made the TV aspect of MP unusable.

I have tried all of the fixes in the stuttering on Live TV thread, the TS writer posted by Ambass, the relaxed TS Reader for Bad Reception fix, the StreamingServer.dll, just about everything that has been posted.

Have tried every codec combination imaginable.

All was fine under RC1. I confess to being in a relatively poor reception area, but it worked before, why can't it work now

Why oh why could there be such a fundamental difference in the TV Server from RC1 to RC2. Is there any chance I can continue to use RC1 TV server with RC3 MP so I can keep up with all of the cool new stuff, or am I now at the end of the road.

This is an absolute gamebreaker for me, I would love to help sort it out as I can not believe the problem is only confined to me.

 

[Paranoid Delusion]

Did you try a reformat\reinstall xp all updates including .net3.0\3.5 and latest Bios\drivers for motherboard, any stutter i may have had, has always proven to be a windows problem.

And of course setup MP from scratch (TV logo's are the exception).

 

[druid9]

Thanks For The Tips P.D..

Problem is that without reinstalling XP, if I go back to RC1, the problem is gone, uninstall RC1 and install RC2 or RC3 (clean), its back. Seems to me something to do with the newer versions.

I can see that maybe something in my existing version of XP (not clean) could be causing a problem with the newer versions that it does not with the older, but I must say I am a little reluctant to do a reinstall on the machine's operating system to fix a maybe.

Have gone back to RC1 for now, and am back in MP heaven, but sadly looking at all of the new work going on which I can't play with.

She who must be obeyed just muttered "If it ain't broke why fix it", I think I better heed the message at least for now, but thanks anyway.

 

[Lotsofjazz]

I had the same problem as you..

Use Radlight to remove the MPA and MPV codecs that are automatically installed when installing mediaportal(unregister) this worked for me to use RC2, In stead use the cyberlink codecs or ffdshow. No matter if you select ffdshow or cyberlink in mediaportal configurator, when these codecs are still there they keep on being used by mediuaportal because of their idiotic merrit settings. What also helps is installing .Net 3 Framework and start using Enhanced Video Rendering (EVR) in stead of VMR9

You do not show your hardware setup, but if you use cable TV, check your coax cables, replace them with Hirschmann cables and fully shielded metal connectors, installing a cable signal amplifier (just a cheap one from your nearest home electronics shop) is also a good idea. You see when your system uses too much of it ooomph to filter out the TV signal out of your garbled input signal, you will end up with problems using a revised but allso heavier release of mediaportal.

I had the exact problems as you had, and with each step above it got better, but the best improvement i got was from replacing the crappy hardware in my house, the coax from the utilities cabinet to my TV and the coax plugs at each end of that cable. You see I could not watch certain HD channels anymore when going over from RC1 to RC2, also blaming Mediaportal and all, but in the end it was just that crappy cable. RC1 was just not that sensitive for a bad signal.

Just keep on trying things, in the end you must be able to use RC3, I would focus on improving your antenna input as you said you are in a poor reception area, well, that area may be confined in your own house.

 

[druid9]

Thanks for t he tips, will give evr a try, and also uninstall the codecs mentioned.

I was also thinking about a signal booster, may try that as well.

 

[druid9]

An update,

Took a while to get everything back to RC1, in a condition where it could be used by she who must be obeyed.

Installed .net3.5 and tried evr. All looks great with it, the pq is exceptional, but I am getting some tearing. I am about to try forcing v-sync to see if that solves the issue.

I am using pdvd8 codec, but don't seem to have any specific settings available for it within MediaPortal. Do I need to register the codec? Others appear like PureVideo, MPV, etc., but no entry for PDVD8.

The main benefit it seems is that instead of 50% cpu usage, I am now sitting around 10-15%

I will tinker with this for a while to get it just right before I try to break it again by upgrading to RC3. Report back soon.

 

[tourettes]

If you are using XP, then the tearing is there to stay with EVR (EVR is not officially supported by MS not MP on XP). If you are using Vista then enable Aero and set v-sync always on in display driver's settings.

 

[Lotsofjazz]

I dont agree.

.NET3 is supported for XP, but you have to download and install it from the MS Windows Update website.. and if you can download and install it from the official Microsoft website it IS supported, otherwise they would not have made this possible.

In Mediaportal it is also supported, it is specifically mentioned below the EVR selection button.

To get rid of tearing, make sure "wait for vertical refresh"or "Vsync" or something similar, is set to ALWAYS ON in your graphics card driver. Beside that, make sure your HDMI-OUT or DVI-I OUT on your graphics card is set to the PAL refresh rates like 720@25Hz or a multiple of 25Hz.. If your video output is set to 30Hz or 60Hz, this is for NTSC programs. I know it does work a little, because most TV's can handle NTSC as well as PAL signals, but when the incoming 50 or 25 Hz PAL signal has to be translated into a 30Hz or 60Hz NTSC signal, your graphics card has a hard time to keep up with that, specially when there is a lot of horizontal movement, resulting in the tearing you experience.

This way I have had it working fine on XP for a while, now I use Vista, but that was for other reasons I had (bad functioning of the X1250 GFX under XP)

Lots

Oh, to get into the directshow settings, you must select Advanced view or Expert settings or something in Mediaportal Configurator (see top RH side of the Mediaportal configuration window)

 

[tourettes]

I dont agree.

Well, everyone has their own opinions and then we have the facts

.NET3 is supported for XP, but you have to download and install it from the MS Windows Update website.. and if you can download and install it from the official Microsoft website it IS supported, otherwise they would not have made this possible.

EVR is not supported on XP by MS -> What features of the EVR work on XP? - MSDN Forums

Also when its used on XP its always software only, no hardware acceleration.

In Mediaportal it is also supported, it is specifically mentioned below the EVR selection button. HW acceleration in EVR is based on DXVA 2.0, which is only available in Vista and later MS OS.

If i remember correctly that states that EVR is only supported on Vista. At least it should say as thats the truth (I think I should know it better as I have been working with that part ).

To get rid of tearing, make sure "wait for vertical refresh"or "Vsync" or something similar, is set to ALWAYS ON in your graphics card driver. Beside that, make sure your HDMI-OUT or DVI-I OUT on your graphics card is set to the PAL refresh rates like 720@25Hz or a multiple of 25Hz.. If your video output is set to 30Hz or 60Hz, this is for NTSC programs. I know it does work a little, because most TV's can handle NTSC as well as PAL signals, but when the incoming 50 or 25 Hz PAL signal has to be translated into a 30Hz or 60Hz NTSC signal, your graphics card has a hard time to keep up with that, specially when there is a lot of horizontal movement, resulting in the tearing you experience.

Only way to have 100% tear free image in Mediaportal under XP is to use DirectX exclusive mode which is not supported by our EVR implementation. So in other words only way to get tear free video is to use VMR9 + exclusive mode in XP. On some PCs it might seem that the video is almost tear free, but its just pure luck as there is no quarantee since no code is making sure that the picture is updated in right intervals (exclusive mode is needed for this).

 

[Lotsofjazz]

I dont agree.

Well, everyone has their own opinions and then we have the facts

.NET3 is supported for XP, but you have to download and install it from the MS Windows Update website.. and if you can download and install it from the official Microsoft website it IS supported, otherwise they would not have made this possible.

EVR is not supported on XP by MS -> What features of the EVR work on XP? - MSDN Forums

Also when its used on XP its always software only, no hardware acceleration.

That is true, hardware accelleration never worked for me under XP, however I allways blamed the graphics card for that (under Vista it was the same, I have now a new GFX card).

That MSDN forum post doesnt say it wont work, it only says it is probably better to use VMR9 because it doesnt register.. there are many (small) applications that dont register and work fine, so that does not have to be a problem. It also says you can download EVR for XP from WPF, so what you say below is not completely true as well.. agree it is not fully supported in XP, but it IS available and it COULD work.

In Mediaportal it is also supported, it is specifically mentioned below the EVR selection button.

HW acceleration in EVR is based on DXVA 2.0, which is only available in Vista and later MS OS.
If i remember correctly that states that EVR is only supported on Vista. At least it should say as thats the truth (I think I should know it better as I have been working with that part ).

No thats not true, that link you provided states that it is Officially supported in Vista.. not Only
I have no mediaportal configurator here, but from the top of my head it states as follows:

"O Enhanced Video Renderer (EVR)
(Note, for this to work you need Windows Vista or .NET3 Framework installed under Windows XP)"

So I dont know. OR you have it not correct, and some other developper has implemented this without letting you know, OR hat staement in Mediaportal Configurator is wrong.. with RC3 that statement is still there. I am pretty sure about this, because this remark was for me the trigger to install .NET3

To get rid of tearing, make sure "wait for vertical refresh"or "Vsync" or something similar, is set to ALWAYS ON in your graphics card driver. Beside that, make sure your HDMI-OUT or DVI-I OUT on your graphics card is set to the PAL refresh rates like 720@25Hz or a multiple of 25Hz.. If your video output is set to 30Hz or 60Hz, this is for NTSC programs. I know it does work a little, because most TV's can handle NTSC as well as PAL signals, but when the incoming 50 or 25 Hz PAL signal has to be translated into a 30Hz or 60Hz NTSC signal, your graphics card has a hard time to keep up with that, specially when there is a lot of horizontal movement, resulting in the tearing you experience.

Only way to have 100% tear free image in Mediaportal under XP is to use DirectX exclusive mode which is not supported by our EVR implementation. So in other words only way to get tear free video is to use VMR9 + exclusive mode in XP. On some PCs it might seem that the video is almost tear free, but its just pure luck as there is no quarantee since no code is making sure that the picture is updated in right intervals (exclusive mode is needed for this).

Well for me it worked ok for a while, so maybe I have been lucky.. but I am pretty sure that the switch to EVR had a big impact on my system.. It could be that only .NET3 installation is responsible for the improvement, so it only looked like it was because of the EVR Switch.. I dont know..

Lots