What decoder do you use and why?

[srothwell]

I'm trying to figure out the best MPEG decoder to use with Sage.

I am currently using Intervideo decoders from WinDVD7 but I am not happy with them.

For one, they don't look as good as I think they should. Second, they cause major problems with PlaceShifter on my server (lots of stuttering when a user logs in with PlaceShifter).

I'm not happy with the quality of SageTV Decoder. It looks like it simply drops a field. Everything has aliasing in the lines and it just doesn't look good. Is there anyone who know how to tweak this? It works great with PlaceShifter.

Or.... Can anyone give me their opinion of an entirely different decoder. I'm willing to try another decoder if it will improve the WAF.

Thanks!

Stacy

[GTwannabe]

I just switched to the Nvidia PureVideo codec. Great picture quality and works fine on my ATI cards.

[Jesse]

Hi,

When I first tried sage I just used the included decoder while I test drove the app. I then tried Win DVD. It was cheap and I got a few recommendations for it. It was not bad. After reading all the rave reviews I downloaded the trial of the nvidia pure video decoders. I noticed an improvement in the pq immediately.

As GT said, it does work great with the ATI cards (9800pro to a 36" SDTV). And on my HD client (6600gt to 42" Panny HD plasma) it is just stunning.

It is pricey but worth it. You should at least give the free trial a go.

Jesse

[jimwhite]

$19.95 is pricey??

[dbfresh23]

Originally Posted by jimwhite

$19.95 is pricey??

$50 if you want DD5.1 support...

[gplasky]

Just use SPDIF for DD5.1 and your $20 is good enough.

Gerry

[stanger89]

Decoding doesn't work outside WMP/MCE/nStantmedia on the more expensive ones anyway.

[Jesse]

Hi

stanger said:
Decoding doesn't work outside WMP/MCE/nStantmedia on the more expensive ones anyway.

I was not sure about that, so I played it safe and spent the extra dough. It was still worth it, so for $20 you should jump on it srothwell.

Jesse (the big spender )

[srothwell]

Thanks everyone for the feedback regarding Nvidia decoder.

I have the trial but have a question.....

When I set DVD playback under sagetv to NVidia I get no audio at all.

I have a nvidia NForce3 motherboard with realtek audio built-in. I am getting audio to my amp via coax digital from the PC to the amp.

When I go back to intervideo audio decoder, the audio works again.

What am I missing?

Thanks!

[stanger89]

You need to set the audio decoder to S/PDIF output.

[TheThumper]

I have an older version of the Nvidia decoders, is there any free upgrades to the Pure stuff if you have already purchased the older stuff? It seems I remember seeing links to upgrade URLs but everything is fuzzy now. Any help would be appreciated.

[xlr8shun]

what: ffdshow w/nvidia purevideo 4.02.150

why: best possible picture quality i could come up with

i use a very slight level adjustment, with an even slighter color adjustment, and quite a bit of sharpening (asharpen) within ffdshow to come out with a picture im pleased with.

granted the screencaps below are compressed jpeg, from a compressed mpeg stream, and ontop of that, its an sdtv image its not going to look the greatest, but some comparisons will give you an idea of what can be accomplished.


"SageTV MPEG Video Decoder"


"NVIDIA Video Decoder"


"ffdshow MPEG-4 Video Decoder"

color variations in your monitor, vs my monitor, or even someone elses tv, in combination with someone elses eyes are all subject to opinion. however the sharpness from one screencap to the next is undeniable. this was just a few caps from a commercial during this weeks airing of 24, nothing spectacular and besides the cropping, no photoshop work done here.

i primarly use ffdshow for the sharpen filter, because its hell on my eyes to see small text, things like the ticker on fox-news/cnn/espn/etc.. especially if the background isnt very contrasting to the text color. that, and imo just gives the picture a much crisper, cleaner look. the slight adjustment in color and levels could have been done in the decoders, or even sage for that matter, but i figured i'd keep all my adjustments to a single application if i could help it.

[nielm]

xlr8shun: which FFDShow build are you using, and which deinterlacing method?
Can you post your ffdshow saved preset file

(I tried using FFdshow with kerndeint for a while and liked the image a lot -- until I found that each time I FF/REW the video, the kerndeint leaked memory... )

[xlr8shun]

ffdshow is dated oct 12 2004

and, my preset is attached, i added a .txt extension for attachment purposes, should be able to import it with the txt extension, or just remove it and import that way

edit> sry, just re-read your post nielm, and i forgot to say what deinterlacing method i was using.

i have sage set on default, i dont select any deinterlacing in ffdshow, and i have nvidia decoders set on 'smart'

ive tried playing with some deinterlacing options here and there, and honestly i cant see a difference between any of them for the most part. only thing i really notice is the increased cpu usage (with some). *shrugs*

[srothwell]

Originally Posted by stanger89

You need to set the audio decoder to S/PDIF output.

Don't have that..... Here's the choices I have:

DVD Audio Decoder:
--------------------
Default
AC3 Filter
Intervideo Audio Decoder
MPEG Audio Decoder
NVIDIA Audio Decoder
SageTV MPEG Decoder


DVD Audio Renderer:
--------------------
Default
RealTEK AC97 Audio
Default DirectSound Device
Default WaveOut Device
DirectSound: RealTEK AC97 Audio

[srothwell]

OK.... did a little more reading on the NVidia site.

It says: "How do I turn on S/PDIF mode?"
Browse to the NVIDIA PureVideo Decoder Properties and select the “Audio” properties page. Click on the “Speaker Setup” button and select “a receiver” and then check “via an S/PDIF cable”. After this is done, the NVIDIA PureVideo Decoder will be in bypass mode and output all audio to an external receiver or decoder, including Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS surround sound.

Catch is, when I follow the above instructions (using Win Media Player) and open Decoder Properties, I only see a VIDEO and COLOR tab. There's no audio tab to be found.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

[stanger89]

That means some other decoder is your default AC3/MPEG decoder. Probably AC3Filter.

Radlight filter manager will let you change it for sure. Otherwise (in WMP) try Tools -> Options -> DVD -> Advanced. Will bring up your prefered audio decoder properties (hopefully nVidia).

[srothwell]

Thanks.... that did it.

If I wanted to go back to AC3 Filter, how would I do it? Once you check "Use other decoder" WMP never seems to show the AC3 Filter screen again to get back to using AC3 Filter.

Thanks for the help

[stanger89]

Radlight filter manager

[dooferlad]

I get crashes with PureVideo. I use VMR9 to display in Sage. Anyone had any similar problems that they have solved?