- May 9, 2006
- 57
- 4
Hello,
I've been struggling with stuttering playback for years now, and struggling with reclock aswell. There has always been issues with it and it never worked 100%.
I've written this post because i've finally solved all my issues, and can enjoy 100% stutter free playback of both DVDs and h264/x264 content.
[size=+1]What is reclock?[/size]
Reclock is a audio renderer and it solves the problem with stuttering playback because it matches the speed of your video to the output HZ of your monitor/tv. Many TVs also lack the support for 24p, making content with speed 23.976 a pain to watch (almost all movies, TV series and NTSC DVDs). Reclock speeds up the playback of this content (to 24fps or 25fps depending on your TVs capability) and adjusts the sound accordingly. If you don't want the pitch to go up (chipmunk effect) there is options to pitch correct it aswell. Works like a charm for me!
Reclock version 1.6 have a manual which i suggest you read, very helpful.
[size=+1]What problems have I had?[/size]
I've had stuttering playback in many forms. Sometimes, it goes well for a while, then stuttering begins and never stops. Or stuttering is there from the start and the only solution is to pause and play again. Or sound and video get out of sync. These problems have been going on for years, with different TVs, hardware (2 completely separate HTPC setups) and software. Reclock have solved all of these issues for me.
[size=+1]What solutions have I tried?[/size]
I've basically tried different players, codecs, hardware, filters, renderers, OS's and alot of configuration. Nothing would suffice.
[size=+1]What is smooth stutter free video?[/size]
For me it is when each and every frame of the content is being rendered perfectly in time. It also means that there is no frame that is being displayed twice, or thrown away. A camera panning should be a smooth motion, without any hint of stutter och hickup, or even unsmooth motion. To show 24p content on 50hz TV without reclock makes this impossible.
[size=+1]What settings is working for me now?[/size]
Right now, im using Reclock 1.8.x and Mediaportal 1.0 RC2.
[size=+1]Why do VSYNC solves alot of problems?[/size]
VSYNC seems to be very important because without it playback that starts at the wrong time will stutter and never break free from it. The VSYNC signal will be at different places every time you start playback and if you are unlucky you'll get stutters. For me, it was about 1/3rd of the times i started/resumed playback. Only solution was to pause and play again. And even when the movied played OK it would drift into this state again. Very annoying.
[size=+1]How to adjust VSYNC?[/size]
There is a good explanation for this in the Reclock 1.6 readme, but following the instructions there did not solve my problems. Here's how i got it to work.
Start Mediaportal, start a movie. Press Shift+Ctrl+Alt+F9 and F10. This will show VSYNC onscreen and a tearing test (which is good to observe if you are looking for stutters).
The VSYNC indicator consists of a small horizontal line moving up and down, and small dots forming a vertical line. These will eventually form a small cross after a while. (If nothing is showed when pressing f9, check reclock for error, probably you need to disable DXVA).
To find your jerky spot, switch VSYNC OFF (for the moment)
Every time i unpause, the cross will end up in a different spot. For me, if the cross ends up close to the top of the screen, i get jerky playback, forever. Because vsync correction is off, the cross will not move at all.
So i pause and unpause, and if the cross ends up somewhere on the bottom half, i get smooth playback. Now i've confirmed that my jerky spot is close to the top. This will be different for everyone.
Now, below the setting for VSYNC in Reclock there is a slider. This slider will force the cross to a certain spot. And because i know that the top gives me jerky playback i adjust the slider so the mark is as far from it as possible (including wrapping).
|--V--------------------X-------------|
The V marks where my VSYNC gives me jerky playback (as in: start of slider = top of screen, end of slider = bottom of screen).
The X marks where i put my VSYNC correction slider. Of course now VSYNC must be switched on again.
Now, if i start the same content again and pause and unpause until the cross is at the top (which gives me jerky playback, remember) observe the magic! The cross moves! ^^
The cross will slowly crawl into the preset area (marked by two small dots left of the cross). And it's evident that if my cross starts out at the top after unpause, i can see small jerks for less then a second, and after that the cross has begun to crawl towards the marking, and video becomes smooth. And it never leaves the marking!! Heavens!
[size=+1]So no DXVA?[/size]
For me, i had to disable DXVA (in Mediaportal options) or VSYNC would not be available for DVDs. CPU increased from ~30% to ~40%, but it is well worth it for me.
[size=+1]But sometimes my CPU can't handle the content, will it play on perfect after the hard part?[/size]
Observe the VSYNC cross. If playback is good, the small dots forming a vertical line will be close, forming a solid cross. This is likely to give you good playback. On some videos where my CPU is not enough (or if i postprocess too much) the small white dots will start to scatter to a much wider area (vertical that is). But as soon as the hard part is over, the dots will appear close again and the video will be smooth. No need to pause and unpause. I think the same applies if there is errors in the content etc, so no more holding your HTPC's hand, it'll pick up by itself.
Im not an expert, i just have years of struggling with this and a very sensitive eye for jerky video. Please feel free to correct me where im wrong and provide even more information to this thread so we all can get absolute stutter free playback in mediaportal!
Thanks for a great software Mediaportal team!
/Erik Larsson
MediaPortal Version: 1.0 RC2
MediaPortal Skin: BlueTwo
Windows Version: WinXP Media Center Edition
CPU Type: Amd 2800+
HDD: 120gb seagate IDE
Memory: 2gb ram
Motherboard: Asus A7N8X
Video Card: Geforce 6800
Powerstrip: No
Video Card Driver: 177.66
MPEG2 Video Codec: Nvidia purevideo
MPEG2 Audio Codec: ffdshow
DivX / Xvid codex:: ffdshow
x264 codex:: CoreAVC
Audio renderer: Reclock
Remote: MS MCE remote
TV: Sony KDF-e2010 50" RPTV
TV - HTPC Connection: DVI - > HDMI
VRM9 Exclusive mode:: Yes
VMR9 VSYNC: YES!
EDIT:
I've switched HTPC computer, the new one is Windows 7 and different hardware. Same TV though so i still want to have the same solution with reclock. I'll post how i did it once i succeed.
I've been struggling with stuttering playback for years now, and struggling with reclock aswell. There has always been issues with it and it never worked 100%.
I've written this post because i've finally solved all my issues, and can enjoy 100% stutter free playback of both DVDs and h264/x264 content.
[size=+1]What is reclock?[/size]
Reclock is a audio renderer and it solves the problem with stuttering playback because it matches the speed of your video to the output HZ of your monitor/tv. Many TVs also lack the support for 24p, making content with speed 23.976 a pain to watch (almost all movies, TV series and NTSC DVDs). Reclock speeds up the playback of this content (to 24fps or 25fps depending on your TVs capability) and adjusts the sound accordingly. If you don't want the pitch to go up (chipmunk effect) there is options to pitch correct it aswell. Works like a charm for me!
Reclock version 1.6 have a manual which i suggest you read, very helpful.
[size=+1]What problems have I had?[/size]
I've had stuttering playback in many forms. Sometimes, it goes well for a while, then stuttering begins and never stops. Or stuttering is there from the start and the only solution is to pause and play again. Or sound and video get out of sync. These problems have been going on for years, with different TVs, hardware (2 completely separate HTPC setups) and software. Reclock have solved all of these issues for me.
[size=+1]What solutions have I tried?[/size]
I've basically tried different players, codecs, hardware, filters, renderers, OS's and alot of configuration. Nothing would suffice.
[size=+1]What is smooth stutter free video?[/size]
For me it is when each and every frame of the content is being rendered perfectly in time. It also means that there is no frame that is being displayed twice, or thrown away. A camera panning should be a smooth motion, without any hint of stutter och hickup, or even unsmooth motion. To show 24p content on 50hz TV without reclock makes this impossible.
[size=+1]What settings is working for me now?[/size]
Right now, im using Reclock 1.8.x and Mediaportal 1.0 RC2.
- Nvidia VSYNC is set to Let application decide.
- Reclock is set to DirectDraw. (Direct3d gives error message when exclusive mode is on, which i need to stop tearing)
- Reclock VSYNC On for all content (Yes for VMR9)! (see explanation below)
- DirectX Exclusive Mode On (to stop tearing for me)
[size=+1]Why do VSYNC solves alot of problems?[/size]
VSYNC seems to be very important because without it playback that starts at the wrong time will stutter and never break free from it. The VSYNC signal will be at different places every time you start playback and if you are unlucky you'll get stutters. For me, it was about 1/3rd of the times i started/resumed playback. Only solution was to pause and play again. And even when the movied played OK it would drift into this state again. Very annoying.
[size=+1]How to adjust VSYNC?[/size]
There is a good explanation for this in the Reclock 1.6 readme, but following the instructions there did not solve my problems. Here's how i got it to work.
Start Mediaportal, start a movie. Press Shift+Ctrl+Alt+F9 and F10. This will show VSYNC onscreen and a tearing test (which is good to observe if you are looking for stutters).
The VSYNC indicator consists of a small horizontal line moving up and down, and small dots forming a vertical line. These will eventually form a small cross after a while. (If nothing is showed when pressing f9, check reclock for error, probably you need to disable DXVA).
To find your jerky spot, switch VSYNC OFF (for the moment)
Every time i unpause, the cross will end up in a different spot. For me, if the cross ends up close to the top of the screen, i get jerky playback, forever. Because vsync correction is off, the cross will not move at all.
So i pause and unpause, and if the cross ends up somewhere on the bottom half, i get smooth playback. Now i've confirmed that my jerky spot is close to the top. This will be different for everyone.
Now, below the setting for VSYNC in Reclock there is a slider. This slider will force the cross to a certain spot. And because i know that the top gives me jerky playback i adjust the slider so the mark is as far from it as possible (including wrapping).
|--V--------------------X-------------|
The V marks where my VSYNC gives me jerky playback (as in: start of slider = top of screen, end of slider = bottom of screen).
The X marks where i put my VSYNC correction slider. Of course now VSYNC must be switched on again.
Now, if i start the same content again and pause and unpause until the cross is at the top (which gives me jerky playback, remember) observe the magic! The cross moves! ^^
The cross will slowly crawl into the preset area (marked by two small dots left of the cross). And it's evident that if my cross starts out at the top after unpause, i can see small jerks for less then a second, and after that the cross has begun to crawl towards the marking, and video becomes smooth. And it never leaves the marking!! Heavens!
[size=+1]So no DXVA?[/size]
For me, i had to disable DXVA (in Mediaportal options) or VSYNC would not be available for DVDs. CPU increased from ~30% to ~40%, but it is well worth it for me.
[size=+1]But sometimes my CPU can't handle the content, will it play on perfect after the hard part?[/size]
Observe the VSYNC cross. If playback is good, the small dots forming a vertical line will be close, forming a solid cross. This is likely to give you good playback. On some videos where my CPU is not enough (or if i postprocess too much) the small white dots will start to scatter to a much wider area (vertical that is). But as soon as the hard part is over, the dots will appear close again and the video will be smooth. No need to pause and unpause. I think the same applies if there is errors in the content etc, so no more holding your HTPC's hand, it'll pick up by itself.
Im not an expert, i just have years of struggling with this and a very sensitive eye for jerky video. Please feel free to correct me where im wrong and provide even more information to this thread so we all can get absolute stutter free playback in mediaportal!
Thanks for a great software Mediaportal team!
/Erik Larsson
MediaPortal Version: 1.0 RC2
MediaPortal Skin: BlueTwo
Windows Version: WinXP Media Center Edition
CPU Type: Amd 2800+
HDD: 120gb seagate IDE
Memory: 2gb ram
Motherboard: Asus A7N8X
Video Card: Geforce 6800
Powerstrip: No
Video Card Driver: 177.66
MPEG2 Video Codec: Nvidia purevideo
MPEG2 Audio Codec: ffdshow
DivX / Xvid codex:: ffdshow
x264 codex:: CoreAVC
Audio renderer: Reclock
Remote: MS MCE remote
TV: Sony KDF-e2010 50" RPTV
TV - HTPC Connection: DVI - > HDMI
VRM9 Exclusive mode:: Yes
VMR9 VSYNC: YES!
EDIT:
I've switched HTPC computer, the new one is Windows 7 and different hardware. Same TV though so i still want to have the same solution with reclock. I'll post how i did it once i succeed.