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Windows 7 Media Center : Setup Guide, Knowledge Base & Support - Page 43

post #1261 of 4573
8/10/10 at 10:22pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by CynicalCS84 View Post

Followed your guide for playback within 7mc, and I am having terrible artifacts playing some avi files. They show up in 7mc and wmp but not in mpc... any ideas?

Try changing the decoder for AVI in the Shark Pack config, try using the ffdshow decoder instead of the MS one.

What do you mean they don`t show up in MPC? MPC can`t play them ?
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post #1262 of 4573
8/10/10 at 10:27pm
Now that I can, I have been listening to HD audio streams in their native format. I find that I have to work my remote a lot more than I had to when listening to them converted to LCPM. UP for the dialog DOWN for the action scenes. UP DOWN UP DOWN ... Because, when converted to LCPM, dialog normalizations are removed (-27db) making the dialog louder. I still need to work my remote a little bit but not nearly the same as bitstreamed formats.

So my question is - Of those that have to deal with neighbors and rip their HD disks, who listens to bitstreaming and who listens LCPM?


i3 530 G0 CPU
Saphire HD 5670
G.Skill DDR3 1600
ASRock H55M/USB3 rev 1.02
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB
PC Pwr & Cooling Silencer Mk II 500w

W7 ultimate
Intel IME (what installs from windows
update)
DirectX Runtime
TMT3 Platinum .180
ffshow 3517
Reclock 1869
madFlac 1.8
MPC-HC 1.3.1249.0
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post #1263 of 4573
8/10/10 at 10:29pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by 5TANGER View Post

Some people in the Clarkdale thread are reporting that they get 23.976 with the 23Hz preset, but it doesn't work for me. It may have to do with the HDMI path to the TV (i.e. AVR in between PC and display may be interfering in my case).

Alas, I do have 23.976 on my Clarkdale. I hacked the registry using DTDCalc and tweaked the timings for the 24Hz preset, so I am covered. I get smooth motion and a flicker free refresh rate (72Hz) on my plasma. My question was whether the scripts change the refresh rate on any GPU or just ATI.

As for Media Control, I do have all those checked, and the proper entries are in the refresh rate table.

My bad then, i`m not up to speed with the latest developments in the Clarkdale 24p issues, so i didn`t know about that hack.
The Ati Hotkey scripts work only for ATI, the others work for any GPU.
But if you have a 72Hz capable plasma, why not set the default frecquency to 72Hz? This way you should get smooth playback since your TV will be doing correct 3:3 pulldown on 24p material.

PS: When you used MPC for switching, have you set MPC to switch back to your default rez after playback?
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post #1264 of 4573
8/10/10 at 10:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lostclusters View Post

Now that I can, I have been listening to HD audio streams in their native format. I find that I have to work my remote a lot more than I had to when listening to them converted to LCPM. UP for the dialog DOWN for the action scenes. UP DOWN UP DOWN ... Because, when converted to LCPM, dialog normalizations are removed (-27db) making the dialog louder. I still need to work my remote a little bit but not nearly the same as bitstreamed formats.

So my question is - Of those that have to deal with neighbors and rip their HD disks, who listens to bitstreaming and who listens LCPM?


i3 530 G0 CPU
Saphire HD 5670
G.Skill DDR3 1600
ASRock H55M/USB3 rev 1.02
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB
PC Pwr & Cooling Silencer Mk II 500w

W7 ultimate
Intel IME (what installs from windows
update)
DirectX Runtime
TMT3 Platinum .180
ffshow 3517
Reclock 1869
madFlac 1.8
MPC-HC 1.3.1249.0

Depends on the movie. For example Inglorious Basterds or Gladiator had very crism and clear dialogues even on lower volume. Repo Man for ex had low dialog volume, so changing the volume up&down was a necesity.

Now, there are 2 options i could think of:

-> Using the Audissey Auto-Volume option on your receiver.
-> Bumping up the volume on your center speaker
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post #1265 of 4573
8/10/10 at 11:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

Depends on the movie. For example Inglorious Basterds or Gladiator had very crism and clear dialogues even on lower volume. Repo Man for ex had low dialog volume, so changing the volume up&down was a necesity.

Now, there are 2 options i could think of:

-> Using the Audissey Auto-Volume option on your receiver.
-> Bumping up the volume on your center speaker

Yes that's a fact. But even with a Denon 5308, I have and am using even more options. Dynamic Volume, and Dynamic EQ, in addition to what you mentioned.
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post #1266 of 4573
8/11/10 at 8:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

DC2R714 - I installed K-Lite last night and indeed it does play mov files in WMP, i`ll test a graph filter to see what splitter is used for quicktime mov from the pack, sry for the delays, was out all day long and i`m dead tired.

PS : Don`t try to install Klite over your existing Shark install, it will botch up your sistem.

Thanks man. Ya if you find out what filter it is I can probably register it and use filter tweaker.
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post #1267 of 4573
8/11/10 at 11:56am
guys, quick question.

what tool do you use to identify audio/video codecs info on a file?
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post #1268 of 4573
8/11/10 at 12:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

But if you have a 72Hz capable plasma, why not set the default frecquency to 72Hz? This way you should get smooth playback since your TV will be doing correct 3:3 pulldown on 24p material.

PS: When you used MPC for switching, have you set MPC to switch back to your default rez after playback?

The only way to get it to 72Hz (or 71.928) is to feed it 23.976fps, and at that refresh rate it's not doing any pulldown - it's frame tripling.

When I used MPC I never set it to switch the refresh rate because I didn't need it to. The desktop resolution was set at 1920x1080@24Hz in the Intel utility, so the desktop and everything that ran outside of 7MC was displayed at 72Hz on my screen. But as soon as it popped back into 7MC it forced the display to 59.94Hz.

Anyway, the ATI GPU produces "sparkles" for me. I believe that's an issue my receiver has had forever, but I never encountered because it's only apparent with certain devices (PS3 was a problem). I had far fewer sparkles with the Intel GPU, but a lot more with the ATI card. Considering that automatic refresh rate switching is not restricted to the ATI card I will go back to Intel with the hack to see if I get better luck with automatic switching there. Intel gets better reviews in terms of PQ anyway.
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post #1269 of 4573
8/11/10 at 12:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by smokarz View Post

guys, quick question.

what tool do you use to identify audio/video codecs info on a file?

MediaInfo is pretty much the standard for standalone files:

http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net/en
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post #1270 of 4573
8/11/10 at 1:07pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC2R714 View Post

Thanks man. Ya if you find out what filter it is I can probably register it and use filter tweaker.

I come bearing news, wierd X-Files type news, lol.

I installed Quicktime alternative + Klite basic. Downloaded a movie trailer (for Step Up 3D) of Apple Trailers using the MOV download tool that pops up when you have Quicktime alternative installed. When asked, i said to rename it to HDMOV.
Trailer downloaded fine, played fine in WMP12. Opened up GraphEdit and i saw that the splitter used was the MPC MP4 splitter.

Now the wierd part :

Then i uninstalled Klite, cleaned up my sistem with CCleaner, rebooted. upon reboot, i tried to play the video again....and it worked. Tried a graphEdit, no dice, the app can`t load the graph, so i presume it`s now using an internal MS splitter or smth.

What are you using to download those trailers from Apple Trailers ? Try Quicktime alternative with the option to rename the files to HDMOV, the way i did, and see if it works (ofc, don`t install Klite or anything) and report back.
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post #1271 of 4573
8/12/10 at 8:40am
Greeneyez,
I tried QT alternative and changed mov to hdmov with no luck. Now I downloaded another mov file not from apple and it works fine. It has to be something with the way Apple encodes the new trailers. Perhaps when a newer version of QT Alt comes out it will fix this problem.
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post #1272 of 4573
8/13/10 at 12:57am
Hi, I've followed the instructions here on installing and using 7MC to play media files (mkv, etc). Did it on a freshly new installed WIndows 7 32bit.

I downloaded the sample of DTS-HD on the 1st page also. Played it to no success. My receiver (marantz 5003) detects no DTS-HD audio passed through it. All is silence....

Anything that I could check ? Or anything that I should do to make DTS-HD on 7MC works ?

FYI, my video card is Ati 5850, using cat 10.7 and the default ATI HDMI Audio driver inside that catalist version....Connected through HDMI to my marantz 5003 and from there, to my LCD Samsung 37A550.

Helps are greatly appreciated....Thanks guys...
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post #1273 of 4573
8/13/10 at 1:50am
Thread Starter 
Get graph edit from here : http://www.digital-digest.com/dvd/do...hedit_141.html

After you start it, drag&drop an MKV in the program window and post a screenshot. Also, make sure DTS-HD & TrueHD are selected in the ffdshow audio options, the Output tab.
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post #1274 of 4573
8/13/10 at 1:52am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC2R714 View Post

Greeneyez,
I tried QT alternative and changed mov to hdmov with no luck. Now I downloaded another mov file not from apple and it works fine. It has to be something with the way Apple encodes the new trailers. Perhaps when a newer version of QT Alt comes out it will fix this problem.

Strange, the Step UP 3D trailer was recent. What trailers have you downloaded from Apple that don`t work ? So i can try them on my sistem.
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post #1275 of 4573
8/13/10 at 2:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

Get graph edit from here : -.edited.-
After you start it, drag&drop an MKV in the program window and post a screenshot. Also, make sure DTS-HD & TrueHD are selected in the ffdshow audio options, the Output tab.

But the dts-hd sample on 1st page is not mkv. Something like m2ts ? I can see the picture when I pressed play, but No Sound...
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post #1276 of 4573
8/13/10 at 2:52am
Thread Starter 
MKV, M2TS, doesn`t matter, they all should work fine. Drag & drop that sample onto graphedit and post the screenshot so we can see what decoders are being used.
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post #1277 of 4573
8/13/10 at 2:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

MKV, M2TS, doesn`t matter, they all should work fine. Drag & drop that sample onto graphedit and post the screenshot so we can see what decoders are being used.

Okay then, once I get my hands on my setup at home I will do what you told and post it here. Still at work now Thanks GreenEyez...
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post #1278 of 4573
8/13/10 at 3:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by congpay View Post

Okay then, once I get my hands on my setup at home I will do what you told and post it here. Still at work now Thanks GreenEyez...

The best way to test out bitstreaming is to use MPC HC as your player first. Once it is working there then move on to 7MC
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post #1279 of 4573
8/13/10 at 3:15am
I have just installed Media Browser TMT3 and some test ISO files. But when I select a movie to start playing I get a new "page" were I can select if I want to play it with WMP or TMT3. It would have been nice if the selected player already was on default so I had one less step before the movie plays.

Any suggestions?
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post #1280 of 4573
8/13/10 at 3:38am
Thread Starter 
In the Media browser config, External Players tab, associate DVD& ISO with TMT3. This may force TMT3 to be loaded by default, but i`m not 100% sure, heven`t tested this.
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post #1281 of 4573
8/13/10 at 3:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by congpay View Post

But the dts-hd sample on 1st page is not mkv. Something like m2ts ? I can see the picture when I pressed play, but No Sound...

For M2TS, first you have to disable Media Foundation (why and how [use Win7DSFilterTweaker]).

Edit: Never mind. This thread uses Shark007 codec pack.
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post #1282 of 4573
8/13/10 at 4:17am
Thread Starter 
News Update : the ImagesByName People pack has been added as a plugin for Media Browser.

So no more need to manually download and copy the folder to the IBN folder. just install the plugin.
LL
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post #1283 of 4573
8/13/10 at 6:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by renethx View Post

For M2TS, first you have to disable Media Foundation (why and how [use Win7DSFilterTweaker]).

Edit: Never mind. This thread uses Shark007 codec pack.

FYI that Shark has a checkbox to disable the Media Foundation.
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post #1284 of 4573
8/13/10 at 10:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

Get graph edit from here : http://www.digital-digest.com/dvd/do...hedit_141.html

After you start it, drag&drop an MKV in the program window and post a screenshot. Also, make sure DTS-HD & TrueHD are selected in the ffdshow audio options, the Output tab.

Well, I ended up using MPC-HC as external player. DTS-HD works flawlessly now. And because some says that MPC-HC has better PQ than 7MC, I decided to stick with my current MPC-HC installation anyway Thanks so much for GreenEyez and the people here who has been a tremendous help for me
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post #1285 of 4573
8/13/10 at 10:45am
Thread Starter 
Not quite, according to my teste :

MPC-HC vs WMP 12

vs
vs
vs
vs
vs

vs
vs
vs
vs
They look equal to me.
Now, this may depend on the decoder and GPU used, some decoders may play better with some GPU`s, the best thing is to compare using screenshots
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post #1286 of 4573
8/13/10 at 11:18am
Another silly question but just need to know the right answer. So I have in my installation :
1. HTPC with Ati 5850 connected through HDMI to my maratnz 5003.
2. Marantz 5003 to my LCD.
3. A 5.1 JBL speakers setup.
If I play MKV movie files now everything is ok. My Marantz decodes DTS, DTS-HD, etc, etc depending of the audio in the mkv files.

The question is if I use it to play music (MP3) using 7MC, the AVR (marantz) shows Multi-CH 5.1 on it's display. But only the 2 front speakers and the subs produces the sound. While the center and the 2 surrounds speaker doesn't produces any sound. Is this normal ? What if I want to get 5.1 music from my MP3's ? Where's the setting ? Thanks...

FYI, in my HTPC I've already set 5.1 in the speaker configuration...
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post #1287 of 4573
8/13/10 at 11:50am
Thread Starter 
Activate Dolby Pro Logic IIx on your Marantz receiver, set it (D PLx) to Music and it will "upscale" stereo to 5.1 or 7.1 . See your manual for this (but there should be a button on the remote, at leats that`s the case with Denon & Onkyo) since i have no experience with Marantz.

But 5.1 music sounds wrong to me. Music is recorded in stereo because that`s where you hear the sounds if you had a band playing in front of you. 5.1 is used in concert recordings for echoes and the noises made by the public.

Anyway try out Dolby PLx Music and see how you like the result
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post #1288 of 4573
8/13/10 at 11:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by G8rfreak View Post

I followed the guide for the setup using internal player, Shark, and spdif. I have two issues:
1. Audio is out of sync slightly with content that has surround sound (i.e. mkv files). AVI files with 2-channel audio seem ok.
2. Surround sound audio seems like the dialogue is very quiet while the other sounds are much louder. This is not the case with 2-channel audio files.

Through trial and error with Shark007 settings, I've got everything playing perfectly in WMP but the settings have not taken effect in W7MC. I have the x64 component of Shark007 but I can't seem to get it right so the same settings are working for W7MC. What's the trick?
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post #1289 of 4573
8/13/10 at 11:59am
Thread Starter 
What decoders have you set in the SharkPack config utility for h.264/VC-1 playback in MKV ?
And what`s you hardware, btw ?
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post #1290 of 4573
8/13/10 at 12:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenEyez View Post

What decoders have you set in the SharkPack config utility for h.264/VC-1 playback in MKV ?
And what`s you hardware, btw ?

H264 tab - selected:
  • FFDshow w/ multithreading
  • Do not use MPC-HC
  • Use FFDShow for DXVA

MKV tab - selected:
  • Use Gabest's splitter

Hardware - VGA out and optical digital audio out. Not sure if you wanted more detail than that.
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