[internetman]

Hello all.


I've been struggling with HTPC system configurations over a week now and I can't seem to find a good solution.


I'm running Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H, 2GB ram, 500GB hdd, Win XP and AMD 4850e processor with Samsung's 40" Full HD telly.


I'm getting fps drops, tearing and stuttering with EVERY video file I play (even on low resolution formats). I can reduce the problems by turning my display to 24hz interlaced but I still get occassional "slowdowns" during panning scenes and slow movement on screen.


But it feels like something is slowing down the video once in a while. CPU usage does not go up when the stutter starts or stops, memory usage does not change.


Any help?

 

[Mr.Quiet]

What material are you playing in what media player using what codecs, etc? I'm having tearing issues too. I'm on a 60 Hz computer monitor LCD though (and realistically playing 30/1.001 Hz, 24/1.001 Hz and 50 hz on a 60 Hz display should cause artifacts on a monitor with an "incompatible" refresh rate), however I was still able to minimize tearing (day and night difference actually) by switching from Media Player Classic's built-in "VMR9 (renderless)" to the "Haali Renderer" bundled with Haali Media Splitter (download and install this one if you haven't already!). I also checked the "Lock back-buffer..." setting and forced VSync to Always On in CCC for good measure. I'm by no means an expert and still learning, but I suggest you try this combo as the change improved my experience immensely. (Of course that won't work for BR discs, don't know about that.)


Getting a HTPC to work satisfyingly is harder (takes more effort/testing and knowledge/research) than I had anticipated (OK, my computer is not a HTPC per se, but it should be the same).


There are other things you can look into as well such as using PowerStrip to tweak the video signal (CCC's 24p mode is 24.0, not the 23.976 aka 24/1.001 95% of all Blu-Ray/HD-DVD movies are enfcoded in, so you may want to look into that). There's also ReClock. I haven't tried these tools myself yet though, so I can't do more than point you towards them.


Good luck!

 

[cybrsage]

To get smooth playback on my 780G, I had to overclock the GPU in the BIOS.


Make sure you add a cooling fan (I used an 80mm fan and simply leaned it diagonally onto the chipset cooler), since you will be making additional heat.

 

[sneakerx]

Are you using Vista? What version of Catalyst are you running on? What program are you using to play the files? Not enough info here to help you out.

 

[internetman]

Windows XP.


I've been using VLC, MPCHC, MPC and SMPlayer. All with different renderer settings and codecs (Haali, Core AVC, Cyberlink etc.) None of them give me good results.


SMPlayer is the best for now since it allows me to run the videos in OpenGL mode. That plus 24hz display and vsync helps a bit but still getting some fps drops once in a while.


Also, latest Catalyst drivers.
http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_ca.../integrated-xp

 

[sneakerx]



Quote:
Originally Posted by internetman /forum/post/15461682


Also, latest Catalyst drivers.
http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_ca.../integrated-xp

That could be your problem. Roll back to Catalyst 8.9 as it was the last version to actually work with all of the features of the 780G.

 

[internetman]

Ok thanks for the tip. I'll try them tomorrow.

Can you give me a link to those said drivers, ATI's site does not have any mention about them.


It needs to be the motherboard (integrated) edition of them right?

 

[internetman]

OK I just installed the new drivers and they're not helping at all. Still getting tearing once in a while.


This is getting frustrating.

 

[GooberedUp]

You run the same basic hardware configuration that I do (identical except for the TV and hard drive size). I've experienced none of what you are describing. I don't overclock my system either and run Catalyst 8.11.


Unfortunately, I took the easy route in all of this and can't be of much help. I had a brand new system onto which I installed Vista and then the CCCP codec pack and then PDVD 7.3. Everything worked after that--MKV, DVD, BD.


Can you wipe your system clean, or do you have too much stuff on there? Starting fresh may give you some benefit.

 

[sneakerx]

I think this may be a 780G + WinXP problem. I remember another user, Ingram, having a similar problem with screen tearing and the same setup. All I can say is that with Vista and the Aero interface turned on that tearing is eliminated completely. It sounds like things are a tad better for you, though. You said you were getting frame drops, tearing, and stuttering on every file you tried before. Baby steps. Try Media Player Classic Homecinema and enable the vsync locking feature. That might help.

 

[deltronik]

I use 780G + BE-2300 + XP, latest catalyst, Media Player Classic Homecinema, and CCCP codec pack.

I experience none of said issues.

I would reinstall windows, then drivers, then CCCP and nothing else. If you still have issues, you may have some faulty hardware.

 

[internetman]

I originally had Vista installed on this machine. Started off fresh with XP because I thought Vista was causing the trouble. Looks like it's something else.


Could it be my TV? Some setting that is causing the tearing or frame drops? Is this even possible?

My TV is Samsung LE40A557.


Last time I checked, Power DVD did not want to play MKV files.

 

[internetman]

Can anyone confirm that by turning Aero on actually removes the tearing completely and fixes my problem too?

 

[sneakerx]

It's always good to have second confirmation, but let me reiterate that I've done a lot of experimenting with my setup and a conclusion I've come to is that Aero on: no tearing, Aero off: tearing. I download a lot of shows (stand def divx, WMV9, 720p x264, MPEG2 TS, etc) and they all display the same characteristics. I haven't done any such experiments with my new HD 4550, but this was all definitely true with the onboard HD 3200 of my 780G.

 

[internetman]

Thanks. I'll test it with Vista today and report back my findings.

 

[kaydee6]

How I do make sure Aero is turned on in Vista?

 

[GooberedUp]



Quote:
Originally Posted by internetman /forum/post/15473541


I originally had Vista installed on this machine. Started off fresh with XP because I thought Vista was causing the trouble. Looks like it's something else.


Could it be my TV? Some setting that is causing the tearing or frame drops? Is this even possible?

My TV is Samsung LE40A557.


Last time I checked, Power DVD did not want to play MKV files.

I doubt it's the TV.


VMC plays the MKV files well. I used PDVD only for BD/DVD and BD/DVD files that are on the hard drive.

 

[internetman]

Now I got rid of the tearing by turning Aero now but I'm facing sudden "fps drops" once in a while. Audio works fine during the drop but looks like the video is 20% slower.


Running with MPCHC, EVR renderer.


Bleh. Any ideas?


edit: what kind of internal filter settings you guys are using with MPC-HC? I have loads of filters selected, is this a good thing?


edit2: looks like Windows Media Player runs the videos smoothly but I cant get any subtitles.

 

[internetman]

Okay I just got rid of all the problems.


MPCHC, CCCP codec pack and display set to 24hz. I get fps drops with 60hz or 50hz. Any ideas why?

 

[icyfire22]



Quote:
Originally Posted by internetman /forum/post/15488444


Okay I just got rid of all the problems.


MPCHC, CCCP codec pack and display set to 24hz. I get fps drops with 60hz or 50hz. Any ideas why?

hmm, could be a driver issue. Are you running catalyst 8.9 or did you go back to the latest one?