@ torrieborrie
If you can post the template information and any logs we can try to help you out. Basically, you need to tell MP to use a certain codec for video and another for audio. Certain codecs don't work (or don't work well), and most others work with significant compromise.
I got my software card to work using Divx as the video codec, and PCM for audio. Your results may vary.
RE your P.S.... the MP devs have a limited amount of time to work on this project, so they have to allocate their time towards the features/requirements that satisfy the most users. HW cards are the way to go, now and in the future. SW cards used to be less expensive (and more common), but you can get a Hauppauge PVR150 MCE for <$70 now so there isn't much reason to not have a HW card unless you previously owned a SW card (legacy) and want to continue using it. In that case you will have to continue using an older version of MP and deal with the limitations.
If you have the $$$ to drop on a new card its definitely worth it. On my system, recording with DivX used up about 60% processor which meant I couldn't use my computer for anything else while recording (i do not use this as a dedicated HTPC). With a HW card, there is no CPU usage, so I can continue to work on anything else that I want to without worrying about my recording haveing dropped frames or skipping.
If you can post the template information and any logs we can try to help you out. Basically, you need to tell MP to use a certain codec for video and another for audio. Certain codecs don't work (or don't work well), and most others work with significant compromise.
I got my software card to work using Divx as the video codec, and PCM for audio. Your results may vary.
RE your P.S.... the MP devs have a limited amount of time to work on this project, so they have to allocate their time towards the features/requirements that satisfy the most users. HW cards are the way to go, now and in the future. SW cards used to be less expensive (and more common), but you can get a Hauppauge PVR150 MCE for <$70 now so there isn't much reason to not have a HW card unless you previously owned a SW card (legacy) and want to continue using it. In that case you will have to continue using an older version of MP and deal with the limitations.
If you have the $$$ to drop on a new card its definitely worth it. On my system, recording with DivX used up about 60% processor which meant I couldn't use my computer for anything else while recording (i do not use this as a dedicated HTPC). With a HW card, there is no CPU usage, so I can continue to work on anything else that I want to without worrying about my recording haveing dropped frames or skipping.