I'm beginning to think that nobody has Vista Media Center working as it should

Originally Posted by sneals2000

I am able to watch ...

Originally Posted by captain_video

Maybe your problem stems from the fact that Microsoft still doesn't have Vista working the way it's supposed to. I don't have any of the problems you do and I'm using Windows XP.

Originally Posted by nintari

I've not noticed stuttering on mine yet for 1080i programming, on either HTPC. However on one I do notice on SD snd DVD a problem with colors like red having a pixelated look to them. I haven't had time to mess around with drivers yet though.

I also don't lose my HDMI connection nor sound on either setup. I can get stereo and DD 5.1 to pass through but not 5.1 PCM (again, haven't had too much time to mess with different drivers but was told that the ATI 8.10 w/ hotfix do work, I'll find out this weekend).

Both setups are near identical with the exception of one using a 4850 and a 37" 720p LCD and the other with a 4870 and a 52" 1080p 120Hz

Gigabyte EP35-DSR3 (I think)
e8400 @ 3.6
320GB SATA
4GB mem (3.25 usable by OS)
16x DVD-R/RW
Cat 8.11
Vista 32bit
One HTPC has a PVR 500 the other has a 250 I think....
Both are using a HD Homerun
No TV Pack installed

Originally Posted by sneals2000

I should add that I have had problems with my HD4550 when it is running into an AVR, that when I switch away from the AVR to another input on my TV, and then switch back, sometimes I don't get a decent display back (though reloading a display profile usually kicks it)

None of this is QUITE yet perfect. I don't have codec issues (though sometimes it takes a second or two for the de-interlacing to correctly switch from 25p to 50i sources - meaning you get a short burst of combing on channel changing - though oddly not on content changes in the show IME) but I have had level and audio issues. Most are nearly sorted.

I'm very careful to only install what I need - and take frequent Acronis True Images of my OS partition so I can revert to a known-good set-up if I hit a problem. (Don't trust System Restore)

In the main I'm almost happy!

Going to do a bit more nVidia level investigating this weekend if I get time. (Am in discussions with Gigabyte tech support to try and demo the issue to them)

Originally Posted by rajdude

IMHO your problem is NOT Vista related.....we have hundreds if not thousands here who use Vista MC without any problems (including me). I would NEVER even think of Tivo or any other DVR.

-- Me too. My workstation runs 24-7. Reboot only for updates. Perfectly happy with it as an OS. It's MC. And I'm pretty happy with the whole thing.

I think your problem is that you are dealing with two technologies which are still in their infancy in the PC world...........fortunately both have easy workarounds which works 100% fine!

-- Maybe. But MC has been around for a few years. And I bought my first HDMI card over a year ago. But two of them for $269 each! All based on the propaganda. I think the cards are probably fine. It's the drivers most likely.

PROBLEM: ATI's HDMI drivers.
Drivers are one thing but HDMI itself has issues too......if you switch HDMI inputs some devices (TVs, AVRs) they cant sync back or cant sync fast enough.

-- Sure. But MY TV (LG) and my DirecTV DVR seem to never sneeze. Although I nearly returned the TV because of OTA HD sound. That was solved at the last minute (of my 30 day return period) with a firmware update.

Personally I have a DVI (on my PC) to HDMI cable to my plasma.........I NEVER have any HDMI related issues. But then I am not switching anything.....and I am NOT sending audio over HDMI.

-- Agreed. Before I added the HD DVR on HDMI 2, it never lost picture.

Solution: Use DVI to HDMI on a DVI video card
dont use a HDMI video card.
Try not to switch using your AVR. Can your TV do HDMI switching?

-- Actually I'm not running the HDMI through the AVR. Just the opposite. Running the two HDMI sources to the TV on HDMI 1 and HDMI 2. Using TV speakers for news and most programs. TV has optical out that goes to the AVR. When watching sports or movies, get whatever format comes out of the HTPC or HD DVR. I found surround sound-- even "Hi Fi" annoying when just watching news, etc.

I realise it is easy for me since I have only one source....everything is done on my HTPC....DVD, OTA TV, Dish network, Blu-ray playback ...EVERYTHING!
For you it may be different.

Problem: audio over HDMI
Here we come to another thing.....audio over HDMI is still in its infancy in the PC world. some stuff works, others dont.

-- infancy? Arguable. Some works and some doesn't-- definitely.

Solution: Just feed spdif from your HTPC to your AVR....why bother with HDMI right now?

-- HDMI is the only way to get sound in with DIGITAL picture. I could use component video but not with the HD 3450 card. If I switch to my other cards, I get media center stutter.

-- Actually, today I hooked up the TV using a standard VGA cable and PC stereo cable. To extend it, I'm using a KVM switch. Picture is great. Probably because the RGB-PC input on the TV just maps the PC's 1920 x 1080 pixels 1:1. HDMI inputs requiring scaling with CCC depending on which driver version. I wanted to test it before buying a 10 ft. high-quality cable. Also, my short VGA cable has all 15 pins in it. The 10 ft. cable I will buy is missing one pin. The same pin as the KVM switch. Apparently it is not necessary.

-- I'll run VGA and analog stereo for a while. Had it with HDMI, DRM, HDCP, and all that. (I'll get over it!). Only minor problem is that the volume has to be turned up a bit for the HTPC via VGA and analog. When switching back to DTV DRV, it blasts. Wife wakes me up when I'm snoozing and she takes over the remote.

But bottom line....if it does not work for you......go Tivo!

-- Obviouse issue with Tivo is subscription cost. We had a Tivo/DirecTV DVR. It worked well until the drive crashed. Got a few years out of it. Now DTV and Tivo have parted company of course.

Originally Posted by cybrsage

I have no problems with 1080i OTA, though there is precious little of that in Harrisburg, PA. PBS is the one I know about, and it works fine.

No studders, etc.

I can change the input source on my AVR from the HTPC (HDMI connected) to the Wii (component connected) and back without losing the handshake. Only using one HDMI input, though, so that might be why.

My specs are in my signature.

Originally Posted by elvisizer

you know, you don't have to go brick and mortar if you are thinking you might return the video card. A few weeks ago I was curious how big an upgrade an nividia GTX 260 would be in my mac pro under windows. I ordered it from amazon, set it up, and used it for 2 weeks. In the ned, I decided it was too much of a hassle having to disable my original 8800gt every time I booted windows, and the GTX's fan was too loud under OS X. Returned it to amazon, and got a full refund to my credit card within a week.

Originally Posted by jhoff80

I think I might have fixed my problem. If you go into Vista's task scheduler, and then do "Task Scheduler Library" then "Microsoft", "Windows", and "Mobile PC", you'll see something called TMM, disable that, and reboot. This prevents Vista from automatically messing with things when monitors change.

I'm not sure if it'll fix your problems, but for me now, it seems that as long as I turn the receiver on first (so that it detects an audio device), things are working perfectly for me.

No stutter, no issues whatsoever. (Well, one of the tuners on one of my HVR-2250 cards doesn't appear to be working, but I'll be sending that to Hauppauge for a replacement.)

q6600, 8GB RAM, AMD 4850, 2xHVR2250 dual tuner cards (one set QAM, one analog), Denon AVR1909 receiver, Westinghouse LVM-37W3 monitor.

Originally Posted by gazebo

The last time I used VMC for playback of HD recordings I noticed some serious overscanning and cropping done by VMC where 1920x1080i HDTV recordings had some significant percentage of the edges trimmed and the resulting cropped images were zoomed to full screen. The results were simply awful! The playback outside of VMC was perfect when using WMP, PowerDVD, VLC and just about any other player. The PC was connected to a 1080p HDTV via HDMI cable and the TV was set up for 1:1 pixel mapping.

For those who are truly happy with VMC, how did you work around this known issue? If you were not aware of the problem, then all I can say is: ignorance is bliss

Originally Posted by gazebo

I think you were referring to a different issue.

-- Very possibly.

The issue you were referring to is the result of a ATI CCC default setting and is not really an issue. For an HDTV that's capable of 1:1 pixel mapping over HDMI, setting the ATI over/underscan to 0% percent (ATI's CCC defaults to some percentage of underscan - i.e. your desktop does not fill the HDTV's screen) will give you perfect 1:1 pixel mapping on the full screen. In other words, your desktop should fill the full screen and your text should be crystal clear on a 1080p set (1080i is a different story; you'll probably see come color fringes). This is true in XP or Vista desktop.

-- This is a little wierd as far as the LG TV. When I connect over HDMI, I can pick several different devices for the input label, Satellite, PC, DVD, etc. When I set PC, it shrinks the "raster" by about 1" all the way around. I then have to adjust the overscan setting to make it fill the screen. "Set Top Box", makes it so the Vista Desktop is "overscanned" so you can't see the edges. Again adjustment is required. In any case, PC is set to 1920 x 1080 x 32 @ 60Hz. When connected over VGA, there is no choice. The desktop fills the screen properly. And the fonts are much more readable. It is likely that the MC image is an inch bigger all around. If it is, it doesn't bother me (yet).

Now the VMC issue I mentioned is entirely different. In Vista, the desktop is perfectly clear and fills the screen, and playing HD videos using any software outside of VMC (including Vista's own Windows Medial Player) would show them unaltered. But once you are VMC and launch a video from there, you'd see that the video is being cropped and then zoomed to take up the full screen. You can easily tell this is happening if your video has some points of reference, like the TV show rating in the upper left corner, or station identification in the lower right corner; you'll see these are being cut off. Since this alteration to the original video is being done by VMC, no amount of under/overscanning outside of VMC will compensate for this.

Vista performs different amounts of overscanning/cropping depending on the display device you select. I've tried all of them but none gave me 0% cropping. Hence I asked the question in the forum if anyone manages to come up with a solution for this.

-- Ok now you've done it. I'll have to check for the reference point. I can easily compare to OTA and DirecTV HD.

Sorry if I burst anyone's bubble if you never knew this problem existed.

-- Your gonna make me crazy ;-)