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Plz, Help me pick a PCI GPU (with VDPAU, for future MythTV release)

post #1 of 43
1/27/09 at 1:32pm
Thread Starter 
I am building a MythTV system at my house (on the cheap) using Mythbuntu and 2 used pc's I picked up for short $:
2x Compaq Evo D510s - 2.4ghz P4, 1.5GB RAM, 500GB ide HD
1x HDHomeRun - To capture HD QAM channels from my cable company.

Now all I need is to purchase a PCI video card that will support VDPAU [wikipedia] [mythtv wiki].
Yes I realize that VDPAU is still in beta, and I would have to build MythTV in order to take advantage of it now (which is not my intentions), but I would rather purchase a card with VDPAU support now so when MythTV .22 is released w/ VDPAU support I will be ready to take advantage of it.

So I've narrowed it down to these cards: (click on the image to go to the NewEgg.com comparison page)

They are all similarly priced, 4x8400GS's & 1x8500GT.
Can someone please help me with this one, I don't know which to choose.

One important factor that is going to play into this is the fact that the Compaq Evo D510s's PSU is only rated for 220watts, and 2 of these video cards list 300watts or better PSU required. I plan on disconnecting the D510s's CD & Floppy drives once I get Mythbuntu installed, hopefully this will free up some room for me to run one of these GPU's.
There is a review posted on the PNY card that states that someone is using a 250Watt PSU and it runs fine for them, so I guess I could use that?
Because of this limitation, I will only buy 1 GPU for now to test on one of the machines, and if it works I'll buy a second.

p.s. this is a continuation of this thread: Building Myth System on the cheap, recommendations?
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post #2 of 43
1/27/09 at 1:55pm
Easy-

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814187042

You don't want any GPU with a fan, and you probably want 512MB to cover yourself, so that's the card.

According to

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?pag...dpau_gpu&num=1

256MB may be fine for HD/VDPAU, so the fanless 256MB Sparkle above may do the job.
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post #3 of 43
1/27/09 at 5:33pm
Yep, Rgb called it, as usual. Plus, I don't know how you got that good-looking table to format, but freakin' kudos on that!

Note that VDPAU is stable as of the 180.22 driver release. Mythtv release bumps are few and far between, but the wiki page on building from source is quite easy to follow. Guideline is here --> http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1097364. Most of us can help you if you run into snags.
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post #4 of 43
1/27/09 at 6:27pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rgb View Post

Easy-

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814187042

You don't want any GPU with a fan, and you probably want 512MB to cover yourself, so that's the card.

According to

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?pag...dpau_gpu&num=1

256MB may be fine for HD/VDPAU, so the fanless 256MB Sparkle above may do the job.

Thanks for the help Rgb,
I think I'll spend the extra $10 on the 512MB version just for good measure
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Plus, I don't know how you got that good-looking table to format, but freakin' kudos on that!

I have to give props to newegg's compare funcion,gnome-screenshot, & Gimp for helping me w/ that
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Note that VDPAU is stable as of the 180.22 driver release. Mythtv release bumps are few and far between, but the wiki page on building from source is quite easy to follow. Guideline is here --> http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1097364. Most of us can help you if you run into snags.

Thanks for the feedback mythmaster,
Although the instructions you linked to do seem fairly straight forward, I am worried that I probably shouldn't use this method for my very 1st MythTV build (yeah, I guess I forgot to mention that, I am a MythTV Newb), and while I do have some linux skills, I am no where near proficient enough to feel comfortable going this route. I do realize that it might be sometime before MythTV .22 will be released, but I am willing to wait (so long as I can get the HDHomeRun streams+recordings [non-h.264] to play smoothly).

But since you brought it up
The instructions point to; http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/Ubuntu-8.10_Source_Install
for building MythTV, but I don't see a way to do this using Mythbuntu or is there not a difference?
Is there a way to build Mythbuntu w/ VDPAU support?
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post #5 of 43
1/27/09 at 11:01pm
Seriously, that's a jammin' table, and I want you to come work for me as a graphic designer!

The method I pointed to is as easy as copy-paste, but I wouldn't try it in mythbuntu since everything mythtv is already installed with it, and conflicts would most likely occur. I'd start with a fresh install of Ubuntu, Xubuntu, or Kubuntu depending on your desktop preference and then go from there. It's easy enough to set mythtv to autoboot, and I can't think of any advantages that mythbuntu may have over the other distros besides having mythtv and its plugins immediately installed.
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post #6 of 43
1/28/09 at 7:58am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Seriously, that's a jammin' table, and I want you to come work for me as a graphic designer!

Me, Graphic Designer, yeah, I wish I had those skills
Thanks for the complements thou.
I'll let you in on a little secret, take a look at the screenshot again, specifically between "Cooler" and "Dual-Link DVI Supported", notice the alignment, not quite perfect
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

The method I pointed to is as easy as copy-paste, but I wouldn't try it in mythbuntu since everything mythtv is already installed with it, and conflicts would most likely occur. I'd start with a fresh install of Ubuntu, Xubuntu, or Kubuntu depending on your desktop preference and then go from there. It's easy enough to set mythtv to autoboot, and I can't think of any advantages that mythbuntu may have over the other distros besides having mythtv and its plugins immediately installed.

Alright mythmaster, I think your in for a world of hurt (barrage of questions), you've convinced me to build MythTV using the instructions you pointed to...
Just wait for it, you will soon be bombarded with newb questions. I warned you thou

I guess if your gonna learn, it's better to learn from the ground up as opposed to learning with a crutch (Mythbuntu).

Wish me luck...
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post #7 of 43
1/28/09 at 8:09am
You can handle it.

Just remember to add the configure options "--enable-vdpau" and the gl vsync one - I can't remember what it is offhand.
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post #8 of 43
1/29/09 at 5:43am
Why would you goi with a dedicated card, vs something like this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131348

I am just curios as I am trying to piece together my build, and I thought the integrated graphics that support VDPAU would be a better solution.

Am I wrong?
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post #9 of 43
1/29/09 at 6:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mastiff34 View Post

Why would you goi with a dedicated card, vs something like this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131348

I am just curios as I am trying to piece together my build, and I thought the integrated graphics that support VDPAU would be a better solution.

Am I wrong?

Assuming he already has an acceptable CPU, RAM, etc, adding an upgraded GPU on a card (PCI or PCIe) for less than $40 makes sense.

If you are building from scratch or upgrading a CPU/motherboard anyways, then getting a mobo with IGP that supports VDPAu makes sense.

However, you must be careful and do the research to ensure the latest Nvidia driver works well with the IGP you plan to buy. There are reports here that the Nvidia 8200 IGP has CPU utilization issues with Flash video using the latest Nvidia driver, for example.

I don't know if the 9300 IGP has any issues with the latest Nvidia driver, or if it properly supports HDMI audio out.
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post #10 of 43
1/29/09 at 7:10am
I have been reading this forum extensively as well -> http://xbmc.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=52

They appear to be having very good success with this board, tho the xbmc project is not yet doing VDPAU support yet, I hope that will be something that changes in the future.

I'd like to setup a myth backend and an xbmc frontend to play everything, i'm still a bit scared about hardware compatibility, so I been reading these threads pretty closely before making a decision.
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post #11 of 43
1/29/09 at 8:44am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mastiff34 View Post

Why would you goi with a dedicated card, vs something like this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131348

I am just curios as I am trying to piece together my build, and I thought the integrated graphics that support VDPAU would be a better solution.

Am I wrong?

mastiff34,

As Rgb pointed out,I had already purchased the Compaq Evo D510s's so it didn't make sense to replace the mobo (i am not even sure that would have fit in my Evo's case).
Quote:
Originally Posted by mastiff34 View Post

I'd like to setup a myth backend and an xbmc frontend to play everything, i'm still a bit scared about hardware compatibility, so I been reading these threads pretty closely before making a decision.

Does XBMC have integration w/ MythTV ?
Can you still setup recordings etc... ?
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post #12 of 43
1/29/09 at 9:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by BassKozz View Post

Does XBMC have integration w/ MythTV ?
Can you still setup recordings etc... ?

You can watch live and recorded tv (without vdpau). XBMC uses opengl to display its ui and video playback, so porting to use vdpau is a major undertaking. There appears to be some interest in porting, but I don't know if anyone is working on it.

You can't set up recordings, but you can do all that from mythweb.
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post #13 of 43
1/29/09 at 11:33am
Yah, I was going to use mythweb to setup my recordings, I believe one guy is trying to port it to vdapu, but right now he's sitll got a lot of work to do. Looks of good information in the xbmc linux forums. Thanks for all the help guys.
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post #14 of 43
1/29/09 at 11:39am
Thread Starter 
Ok my SPARKLE SFPC84GS512U2LP GeForce 8400 GS 512MB just came in, and I've followed the *Official* Nvidia VDPAU thread and I've managed to get the Stable: 180.22 Nvidia driver installed successfully.
But now I am stuck, my display resolution is SHOT, now (after the driver install) it's only displaying at 640x480

I've already ran:
Code:
sudo nvidia-xconfig
and it's still at 640x480.
I also ran:
Code:
sudo nvidia-settings
Which displays the NVidia X Server Settings
<--- Click to see larger
This confirms I am running v180.22 of the drivers. But there is no way to adjust the resolution from here.

I assume and am prepared to whip out nano and modify /etc/X11/xorg.conf (as I have done sooo many times in the past ), but I don't know what to modify exactly?
Here is what it looks like:
Code:
# nvidia-xconfig: X configuration file generated by nvidia-xconfig
# nvidia-xconfig:  version 1.0  (buildmeister@builder63)  Tue Jan  6 10:03:02 PST 2009


Section "ServerLayout"
    Identifier     "Layout0"
    Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
    InputDevice    "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
    InputDevice    "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
EndSection

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "Module"
    Load           "dbe"
    Load           "extmod"
    Load           "type1"
    Load           "freetype"
    Load           "glx"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

    # generated from default
    Identifier     "Mouse0"
    Driver         "mouse"
    Option         "Protocol" "auto"
    Option         "Device" "/dev/psaux"
    Option         "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
    Option         "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

    # generated from default
    Identifier     "Keyboard0"
    Driver         "kbd"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "Monitor0"
    VendorName     "Unknown"
    ModelName      "Unknown"
    HorizSync       28.0 - 33.0
    VertRefresh     43.0 - 72.0
    Option         "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Device0"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    VendorName     "NVIDIA Corporation"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Screen0"
    Device         "Device0"
    Monitor        "Monitor0"
    DefaultDepth    24
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       24
    EndSubSection
EndSection
I am testing this setup on my monitor (Dell 1905FP) for now until I get it up and running 100% then I'll move it to my TV. My monitor is correctly setup on another rig using the following xorg.conf file:
Code:
# nvidia-settings: X configuration file generated by nvidia-settings
# nvidia-settings:  version 1.0  (buildd@palmer)  Mon Nov  3 08:46:46 UTC 2008

# xorg.conf (X.Org X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the xorg.conf manual page.
# (Type "man xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# Note that some configuration settings that could be done previously
# in this file, now are automatically configured by the server and settings
# here are ignored.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
#   sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "ServerLayout"
    Identifier     "Layout0"
    Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
EndSection

Section "Module"
    Load           "glx"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
    Option         "Xinerama" "0"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "DELL 1905FP"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 80.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
    Option         "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "Monitor0"
    VendorName     "Unknown"
    ModelName      "CRT-0"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 80.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Configured Video Device"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    Option         "NoLogo" "True"
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Device0"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    VendorName     "NVIDIA Corporation"
    BoardName      "GeForce FX 5200"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Default Screen"
    Device         "Configured Video Device"
    Monitor        "DELL 1905FP"
    DefaultDepth    24
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       1
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       4
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       8
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       15
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       16
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Screen0"
    Device         "Device0"
    Monitor        "Monitor0"
    DefaultDepth    24
    Option         "TwinView" "0"
    Option         "TwinViewXineramaInfoOrder" "CRT-0"
    Option         "metamodes" "1280x1024 +0+0"
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       24
    EndSubSection
EndSection
But that was created after much tweaking from another rig, and it has alot of unnecessary junk in it....
Is there an easier way to do this?

Don't say I didn't warn you mythmaster
-BassKozz
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post #15 of 43
1/29/09 at 12:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BassKozz View Post

Don't say I didn't warn you mythmaster
-BassKozz

Hehe

There's a resolution setting in nvidia-settings. Are you not able to change it there? Mine is on "auto":
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post #16 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:25pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Hehe

There's a resolution setting in nvidia-settings. Are you not able to change it there? Mine is on "auto":

Yup, mine is set to "auto" as well, and it only gives me options for 640x480 or 320x240:
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post #17 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:30pm
Thread Starter 
I copied the working xorg.conf from my other rig and now it's working @ 1080x1024...

Code:
# nvidia-xconfig: X configuration file generated by nvidia-xconfig
# nvidia-xconfig:  version 1.0  (buildmeister@builder63)  Tue Jan  6 10:03:02 PST 2009


Section "ServerLayout"
    Identifier     "Layout0"
    Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
    InputDevice    "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
    InputDevice    "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
EndSection

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "Module"
    Load           "dbe"
    Load           "extmod"
    Load           "type1"
    Load           "freetype"
    Load           "glx"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

    # generated from default
    Identifier     "Mouse0"
    Driver         "mouse"
    Option         "Protocol" "auto"
    Option         "Device" "/dev/psaux"
    Option         "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
    Option         "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

    # generated from default
    Identifier     "Keyboard0"
    Driver         "kbd"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "DELL 1905FP"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 80.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
    Option         "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "Monitor0"
    VendorName     "Unknown"
    ModelName      "CRT-0"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 80.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Configured Video Device"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    Option         "NoLogo" "True"
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Device0"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    VendorName     "NVIDIA Corporation"
    BoardName      "GeForce FX 5200"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Default Screen"
    Device         "Configured Video Device"
    Monitor        "DELL 1905FP"
    DefaultDepth    24
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       1
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       4
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       8
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       15
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       16
        Modes      "1280x1024" "1200x800" "1152x864" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
    EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Screen0"
    Device         "Device0"
    Monitor        "Monitor0"
    DefaultDepth    24
    Option         "TwinView" "0"
    Option         "TwinViewXineramaInfoOrder" "CRT-0"
    Option         "metamodes" "1280x1024 +0+0"
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       24
    EndSubSection
EndSection
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post #18 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:32pm
Thread Starter 
Now on to my next problem, I can't get the vdpau info tool to work:
Code:
:~/Desktop/vdpinfo$ make
g++ -O3 -g   -c -o vdpinfo.o vdpinfo.cpp
In file included from vdpinfo.cpp:37:
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:44:22: error: X11/Xlib.h: No such file or directory
In file included from vdpinfo.cpp:37:
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:122: error: typedef VdpDeviceCreateX11' is initialized (use __typeof__ instead)
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:122: error: Display' was not declared in this scope
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:122: error: display' was not declared in this scope
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:123: error: expected primary-expression before int'
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:125: error: expected primary-expression before *' token
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:125: error: device' was not declared in this scope
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:126: error: expected primary-expression before *' token
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:126: error: get_proc_address' was not declared in this scope
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:134: error: VdpDeviceCreateX11' does not name a type
/usr/include/vdpau/vdpau_x11.h:158: error: Drawable' has not been declared
vdpinfo.cpp: In function int main(int, char**)':
vdpinfo.cpp:358: error: Display' was not declared in this scope
vdpinfo.cpp:358: error: display' was not declared in this scope
vdpinfo.cpp:360: error: XDisplayName' was not declared in this scope
vdpinfo.cpp:361: error: XOpenDisplay' was not declared in this scope
vdpinfo.cpp:367: error: DefaultScreen' was not declared in this scope
vdpinfo.cpp:374: error: vdp_device_create_x11' was not declared in this scope
make: *** [vdpinfo.o] Error 1
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post #19 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:35pm
Which model of monitor or tv are you using, and how is it connected (dvi,hdmi)? You might have one with bad EDID. Look through /var/log/Xorg.0.log for anything suspicious.
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post #20 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:36pm
OK, you'll need xorg-dev installed.
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post #21 of 43
1/29/09 at 1:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Which model of monitor or tv are you using, and how is it connected (dvi,hdmi)? You might have one with bad EDID. Look through /var/log/Xorg.0.log for anything suspicious.

Current connected via VGA, for now, but when I move to the TV I will run out from S-Video, unless I can get a DVIcomponent adapter, unless you have a better suggestion?
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

OK, you'll need xorg-dev installed.

Nice, Thanks that did the trick, vdpinfo:
Code:
./vdpinfo 
display: :0.0   screen: 0
API version: 0
Information string: Unknown

Video surface:

name   width height types
-------------------------------------------
420     4096  4096  NV12 YV12 
422     4096  4096  UYVY YUYV 

Decoder capabilities:

name          level macbs width height
------------------------------------
MPEG1             0  8191  2032  2032
MPEG2_SIMPLE      3  8191  2032  2032
MPEG2_MAIN        3  8191  2032  2032
H264_MAIN        41  8191  2032  2032
H264_HIGH        41  8191  2032  2032
VC1_SIMPLE        1  8191  2032  2032
VC1_MAIN          2  8191  2032  2032
VC1_ADVANCED      4  8191  2032  2032

Output surface:

name              width height nat types
----------------------------------------------------
B8G8R8A8          8192  8192    y  Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 
R10G10B10A2       8192  8192    y  Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 

Bitmap surface:

name              width height
------------------------------
B8G8R8A8          8192  8192
R8G8B8A8          8192  8192
R10G10B10A2       8192  8192
B10G10R10A2       8192  8192
A8                8192  8192

Video mixer:

feature name                    sup
------------------------------------
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL             y
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL_SPATIAL     y
INVERSE_TELECINE                 y
NOISE_REDUCTION                  y
SHARPNESS                        y
LUMA_KEY                         y

parameter name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
VIDEO_SURFACE_WIDTH              y         1     4096
VIDEO_SURFACE_HEIGHT             y         1     4096
CHROMA_TYPE                      y  
LAYERS                           y         0        4

attribute name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND_COLOR                 y  
CSC_MATRIX                       y  
NOISE_REDUCTION_LEVEL            y      0.00     1.00
SHARPNESS_LEVEL                  y     -1.00     1.00
LUMA_KEY_MIN_LUMA                y  
LUMA_KEY_MAX_LUMA                y
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post #22 of 43
1/30/09 at 10:34am
Just a heads up for anyone wanting a good quality, silent 8400GS PCIe card for VDPAU-

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ption=en8400gs

THere's a $10 rebate through tomorrow. These are name brand Asus cards. If they're as good as Asus motherboards, then these are good deals on a silent VDPAU upgrade if you gurrently have a non-VDPAU GPU or IGP.
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post #23 of 43
1/30/09 at 11:06am
Thread Starter 
Ok, I got everything up and running and I ran a few VDPAU tests using the patched version of mplayer and this blog post: http://blog.mymediasystem.net/avchd/...cceleration/3/
and all of the tests ran flawlessly w/ the patched version of mplayer. I was amazed to see TOP reporting CPU usage below 10% on HD H.264 video

So then I moved on to installing MythTV, and after an issue getting the HDHomeRun to play nice w/ the backend I got that up and running (should've looked closer at the frequency table [Cable-HRC])

Now I should note that I didn't build from source (sorry mythmaster, I pussed out, trunk scares me ), I did however use Mythbuntu's Weekly Fix Builds as well as a VDPAU patch to install Mythbuntu.

Now the problem is the video is VERY jerky/choppy/unwatchable, nothing like the results I got from the patched mplayer, and after reviewing TOP my CPU usage is above 80% while watching LIVE TV. So it looks like VDPAU is not enabled/working with this configuration.

What can I do to get it working?
Should I try upgrading my Nvidia driver from Stable 180.22 to Pre-release 180.27?
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post #24 of 43
1/30/09 at 11:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by BassKozz View Post

Now the problem is the video is VERY jerky/choppy/unwatchable, nothing like the results I got from the patched mplayer, and after reviewing TOP my CPU usage is above 80% while watching LIVE TV. So it looks like VDPAU is not enabled/working with this configuration.

What can I do to get it working?
Should I try upgrading my Nvidia driver from Stable 180.22 to Pre-release 180.27?

Yes, there's a post in another thread that says you'll need at least pre-release 180.25 for the patched fixes branch. Also, I believe that the mplayer patches were updated for the pre-release, so you'll have to rebuild that against the new patches, as well.

I can understand your fear of trunk (fixes often break things that were previously working), and I never recommend using svn trunk for anything unless {a} I've tried it and it feels stable, and {b} it's required for a spiffy new feature.
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post #25 of 43
1/30/09 at 1:08pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

Yes, there's a post in another thread that says you'll need at least pre-release 180.25 for the patched fixes branch. Also, I believe that the mplayer patches were updated for the pre-release, so you'll have to rebuild that against the new patches, as well.

I think I might have missed a step here... am I supposed to replace mplayer with the patched version mplayer?
Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

I can understand your fear of trunk (fixes often break things that were previously working), and I never recommend using svn trunk for anything unless {a} I've tried it and it feels stable, and {b} it's required for a spiffy new feature.

Maybe I do a format and retry using trunk, but first I just want to see if I can get it working.

I just upgraded to 180.27, and I tested out mplayer again, and I can play all the HD samples w/out any sweat from my CPU. Now do I need to replace my normal mplayer with that one?
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post #26 of 43
1/30/09 at 1:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BassKozz View Post

I think I might have missed a step here... am I supposed to replace mplayer with the patched version mplayer?

Maybe I do a format and retry using trunk, but first I just want to see if I can get it working.

I just upgraded to 180.27, and I tested out mplayer again, and I can play all the HD samples w/out any sweat from my CPU. Now do I need to replace my normal mplayer with that one?

No, it sounds like you used the latest version of the patches, so you shouldn't have to rebuild. It's up to you if you want to replace. If you ran "make install" then the new mplayer was installed in /usr/local, so it will be called 1st since it's 1st in the path. If you're planning on using it regularly and/or from mythtv, then you'll want to edit mplayer's conf file to tell it to try the new vdpau codecs first. I haven't done this, because I set mythtv's default video player to "Internal" which is also vdpau-accelerated (and has full osd support).
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post #27 of 43
1/30/09 at 1:55pm
I didn't have to do this for some reason, but you'll probably need to setup a display profile --> http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/VDPAU#Display_Profiles

Like, I said, I haven't done it, but I know quantumstate had to, so if you run into a snag with that, hopefully he or someone else can clarify it for you.
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post #28 of 43
1/31/09 at 4:03pm
Thread Starter 
I went ahead and formatted for good measure, reinstalled Xubuntu and followed the *Official* Nvidia VDPAU thread again installing the latest Nvidia drivers (180.27) and the latest mplayer patchset (mplayer-vdpau-3402051.tar.bz2)

I also figured out why I was having the resolution problems earlier with xorg.conf, X couldn't configure my LCD display panels settings because it is hooked up via a KVM, so all I had to do was edit xorg.conf and add the following to the 'Monitor':
Code:
Section "Monitor"
    Identifier     "DELL 1905FP"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 80.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
    Option         "DPMS"
EndSection
and then I changed 'Screen' like so:
Code:
Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Screen0"
    Device         "Device0"
    Monitor        "DELL 1905FP"
    DefaultDepth    24
    Option         "VideoOverlay" "on"
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       24
    EndSubSection
EndSection
Now Nvidia X Settings had no problems finding the correct resolution when set to 'Auto'

I also tested out the patched version of mplayer with the samples from the blog post, and again playback was flawless with less then 10% cpu usage.

I then built mythtv/mythplugins/myththemes from source [r19887] using "--enable-vdpau --enable-opengl-vsync". It sure does take a long time to build on a P4 2.4Ghz machine (roughly 2hrs). After everything was all setup and configured I tried to watch live TV, :drumroll:...
Same jerky ness and high CPU usage (80+%) problems as earlier with weekly mythbuntu builds.
I also did a test record, and tried to watch the playback of that, same jerkyness high CPU usage
I am however able to playback the recording using the patched version of mplayer like so:
Code:
./mplayer -vo vdpau -vc ffmpeg12vdpau ~/mythtv-storage/1071_20090131153000.mpg
And it plays perfectly, no jerkyness and ~5% cpu usage, so this proves that it isn't an issue with my HDHomeRun, and leads me to believe that MythTV isn't using VDPAU, but how could it not, I built from source and I used the "--enable-vdpau --enable-opengl-vsync" options?

I did notice a few items that might help troubleshoot.
  • While watching live or recorded TV, I get the following error messages in terminal of 'mythfrontend':
    Code:
    NVP(0): prebuffering pause
WriteAudio: buffer underrun
    After some googling I believe this is related to audio, but I am not quite sure how to fix.
    Any idea's?
  • Here is the full output of 'mythfrontend' when trying to watch a recorded show:
    Code:
    mythfrontend
2009-01-31 18:43:10.432 mythfrontend version: trunk [19887] www.mythtv.org
2009-01-31 18:43:10.433 Using runtime prefix = /usr/local
2009-01-31 18:43:10.795 Empty LocalHostName.
2009-01-31 18:43:10.796 Using localhost value of mythical1
2009-01-31 18:43:10.805 New DB connection, total: 1
2009-01-31 18:43:10.816 Connected to database 'mythconverg' at host: localhost
2009-01-31 18:43:10.818 Closing DB connection named 'DBManager0'
2009-01-31 18:43:10.840 ScreenSaverX11Private: Gnome screen saver support enabled
2009-01-31 18:43:10.842 DPMS is active.
2009-01-31 18:43:10.845 Primary screen: 0.
2009-01-31 18:43:10.846 Connected to database 'mythconverg' at host: localhost
2009-01-31 18:43:10.848 Using screen 0, 1024x768 at 0,0
2009-01-31 18:43:10.886 MythUI Image Cache size set to 20971520 bytes
2009-01-31 18:43:10.888 Enabled verbose msgs:  important general
2009-01-31 18:43:11.528 Primary screen: 0.
2009-01-31 18:43:11.530 Using screen 0, 1024x768 at 0,0
2009-01-31 18:43:11.532 Using theme base resolution of 800x600
2009-01-31 18:43:11.553 LIRC, Error: Failed to connect to Unix socket '/dev/lircd'
                        eno: No such file or directory (2)
2009-01-31 18:43:11.554 JoystickMenuThread Error: Joystick disabled - Failed to read /home/chris/.mythtv/joystickmenurc
2009-01-31 18:43:11.767 Using the Qt painter
2009-01-31 18:43:12.107 Loading base theme from /usr/local/share/mythtv/themes/G.A.N.T/base.xml
2009-01-31 18:43:12.983 Loading base theme from /usr/local/share/mythtv/themes/default/base.xml
2009-01-31 18:43:13.319 Current Schema Version: 1228
2009-01-31 18:43:13.332 Connecting to backend server: 127.0.0.1:6543 (try 1 of 5)
2009-01-31 18:43:13.338 Using protocol version 43
2009-01-31 18:43:13.492 Registering Internal as a media playback plugin.
2009-01-31 18:43:13.649 MonitorRegisterExtensions(0x100, gif,jpg,png)
2009-01-31 18:43:13.877 MythMusic adding CD-Writer: 1,0,0 -- CD-ROM LTN486S  
2009-01-31 18:43:13.968 MonitorRegisterExtensions(0x40, ogg,mp3,aac,flac)
2009-01-31 18:43:17.145 Loading window theme from /usr/local/share/mythtv/themes/G.A.N.T/menu-ui.xml
2009-01-31 18:43:19.271 Found mainmenu.xml for theme 'G.A.N.T'
2009-01-31 18:43:27.871 New DB connection, total: 2
2009-01-31 18:43:27.872 Connected to database 'mythconverg' at host: localhost
2009-01-31 18:43:28.068 Loading window theme from /usr/local/share/mythtv/themes/default/recordings-ui.xml
2009-01-31 18:43:28.324 New DB connection, total: 3
2009-01-31 18:43:28.326 Connected to database 'mythconverg' at host: localhost
2009-01-31 18:43:28.329 Connecting to backend server: 127.0.0.1:6543 (try 1 of 5)
2009-01-31 18:43:28.353 Using protocol version 43
2009-01-31 18:43:28.374 Preview Error: Remote Preview failed, reason given: ERROR_UNKNOWN
2009-01-31 18:43:28.375 Connecting to backend server: 127.0.0.1:6543 (try 1 of 5)
2009-01-31 18:43:28.376 Using protocol version 43
2009-01-31 18:43:28.399 Preview Error: Remote Preview failed, reason given: ERROR_UNKNOWN
2009-01-31 18:43:28.433 Connecting to backend server: 127.0.0.1:6543 (try 1 of 5)
2009-01-31 18:43:28.434 Using protocol version 43
2009-01-31 18:43:28.447 Preview Error: Remote Preview failed, reason given: ERROR_UNKNOWN
2009-01-31 18:43:29.559 TV: Attempting to change from None to WatchingPreRecorded
2009-01-31 18:43:29.561 TV: StartPlayer(0, WatchingPreRecorded, main) -- begin
2009-01-31 18:43:29.882 VideoOutputXv Error: XvMC output requested, but is not supported by display.
Xlib:  extension "XVideo-MotionCompensation" missing on display ":0.0".
Xlib:  extension "XVideo-MotionCompensation" missing on display ":0.0".
/usr/lib/libXvMC.so.1: undefined symbol: XvMCCreateContext
2009-01-31 18:43:29.894 AFD: Opened codec 0xccb1290, id(MPEG2VIDEO) type(Video)
2009-01-31 18:43:29.900 AFD: codec AC3 has 6 channels
2009-01-31 18:43:29.901 AFD: Opened codec 0xccb17c0, id(AC3) type(Audio)
2009-01-31 18:43:29.907 Opening audio device 'default'. ch 2(2) sr 48000
2009-01-31 18:43:29.908 Opening ALSA audio device 'default'.
ALSA lib control.c:909:(snd_ctl_open_noupdate) Invalid CTL /dev/mixer
2009-01-31 18:43:29.932 AudioOutput Warning: Mixer attach error -2: No such file or directory
                        Check Mixer Name in Setup: '/dev/mixer'
2009-01-31 18:43:30.130 VideoOutputXv Warning: GLContextCreatedWait: Waited 38 ms
2009-01-31 18:43:30.216 VideoOutputXv: Desired video renderer 'xvmc-blit' not available.
                        codec 'MPEG2' makes 'xv-blit,opengl,xshm,vdpau,xlib,' available, using 'xv-blit' instead.
2009-01-31 18:43:30.222 VideoOutputXv: XVideo Adaptor Name: 'NV17 Video Texture'
2009-01-31 18:43:30.527 OSD Theme Dimensions W: 640 H: 480
2009-01-31 18:43:31.030 TV: StartPlayer(0, WatchingPreRecorded, main) -- end ok
2009-01-31 18:43:31.031 TV: Changing from None to WatchingPreRecorded
2009-01-31 18:43:31.040 Video timing method: USleep with busy wait
2009-01-31 18:43:31.047 Realtime priority would require SUID as root.
2009-01-31 18:43:31.054 ScreenSaverX11Private: DPMS Deactivated 1
2009-01-31 18:43:32.425 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:33.407 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:34.297 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:35.222 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:36.245 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:37.262 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:38.523 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:38.525 WriteAudio: buffer underrun
2009-01-31 18:43:39.525 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:40.627 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:41.601 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:42.529 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:43.576 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:44.578 NVP(0): prebuffering pause
2009-01-31 18:43:45.361 TV: Attempting to change from WatchingPreRecorded to None
2009-01-31 18:43:45.364 TV: Changing from WatchingPreRecorded to None
2009-01-31 18:43:45.452 ScreenSaverX11Private: DPMS Reactivated 1

Quote:
Originally Posted by mythmaster View Post

I didn't have to do this for some reason, but you'll probably need to setup a display profile --> http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/VDPAU#Display_Profiles

Like, I said, I haven't done it, but I know quantumstate had to, so if you run into a snag with that, hopefully he or someone else can clarify it for you.

I looked at the link provided, but I am not sure exactly how to set this up, is this something that needs to be configured in 'mythtv-setup' or do I need to edit a .conf file or something?
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post #29 of 43
1/31/09 at 4:58pm
this is in the frontend end setup->tv settings->playback - in the playback profiles (second or third screen)... if it is like myth .21 - from your log it clearly isn't set to use vdpau (it's using xv-blit), but it does note that it is available.
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post #30 of 43
1/31/09 at 5:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BassKozz View Post

I looked at the link provided, but I am not sure exactly how to set this up, is this something that needs to be configured in 'mythtv-setup' or do I need to edit a .conf file or something?

In mythfrontend, go to Utilities / Setup --> Setup --> TV Settings --> Playback, and look for the screen titled "Playback Profiles" (it's the 3rd one in 0.22). Select "Add New" and give it a name ("vdpau", e.g.). Select "Add New Entry", then set "Match Criteria" to ">= W:0 H:0", "<= W:1920 H:1080" and set "Decoder" to "Nvidia VDPAU acceleration". You might want to add a fallback as suggested in the wiki. Select "Next", and then set "Primary Deinterlacer" to the recommended "Advanced (2x, Hw)" and "Fallback" to well, I don't know what is recommended for this (use your best judgment ). Then "Next" until "Finish".

I just did this, and mythfrontend says:
Code:
VideoOutputXv: Desired video renderer 'vdpau' not available.                                                                            
                        codec 'None' makes 'opengl,xv-blit,xshm,xlib,' available, using 'opengl' instead.
But I'm getting smooth HD playback with ~2% cpu (using 180.22). I AM IN THE PROCESS OF MOVING -- LOADING TRUCK TOMORROW AND MON, THEN LEAVING TUES TO GO HALFWAY ACROSS THE COUNTRY, SO I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO HELP ANY FURTHER FOR A WEEK OR SO! Sorry! Someone else here might be able to jump in. If not, check with the mythtv mailing list and the nvidia forums.

EDIT: newlinux posted while I was typing this. I wonder why mine doesn't show it as available, but it is clearly using it? Guess I should step up to latest svn.

EDIT EDIT: Nevermind...
Code:
codec 'MPEG2 VDPAU' makes 'vdpau,' available, using 'vdpau' instead.
EDIT EDIT EDIT: The recommended deinterlacer isn't working for me with my current setup, so I'll have to fool with this later.
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