STV Import: SageMC Video Tools v3.0

[rsagetv99]

I enabled debug mode, but I couldn't find a zip file anywhere.

[rlvogel322]

Ok, I need a little help. I'm trying to find the right profile to put the -C switch (trying to limit it to one fo two cores -C 1) in for handbrake. I put it in the handbrake video.snip but it didn't work. It shows up as a command line option in the log (I think) but it doesn't limit the cpu to 1 core.

What is the right place to put it in a profile? It'll be nice when the Sage machine gets the Q6700 I have in my main rig.

[gveres]

Originally Posted by hammondr

ep, any ideas? I've double checked all of these options, and my favorites are still not being transcoded automatically:

1. SageMC option "use default compression": disabled
2. SageMC option "auto compression": enabled
3. SageMC Video Tools option "use default compression": disabled
4. SageMC Video Tools option "auto compression": enabled
5. SageMC Video Tools option "enable video compression": enabled
6. Favorites have "auto compress series" set, and "Auto Encode" as the profile (1/1). Wait until ... watched/comskip/archived all set to no.

I have one Dirmon2 job running SA to create .edl files first, and a lower priority Dirmon2 job to process the .qdvd files in the qdvd folder. .qdvd files are created in the folder for recordings I *manually* "send to..." compression, but they are not created automatically for favorites. (Since the manual compressions work, I'm sure the Dirmon2 piece is working fine.) I also deleted all of the old .autocompress files laying around, but sage has not recreated them or automatically kicked off *any* jobs as far as I can tell.

I've reinstalled 6.3.7a SageMC, your .k plugin version, and the .xml patch/import provided by flachbar in the other thread. All have been restarted (Dirmon2 and sage service) several times. Any advice?

p.s. As pretty much everyone else says, thank you, thank you, thank you for your hard work on all of this plugin!

I haven't seen an answer to this. I am having the exact same problem.

DirMon2 is working fine because when I use the Send To ... menu to send it to be compressed, it works like a charm. The plugin creates the qdvd file and dirmon2 picks it up and does the compression.

But none of my favourites are being compressed automatically. I have the same settings as hammondr.

Any suggestions?

I have now been through the first 15 pages of this thread. So many people have this working properly it must be a bone head setting I have missed somewhere but there are no instructions on how to setup automatic encoding ...


Thanks Greg
PS: any Mac Client help? (see my earlier post).
PPS: this really is great, btw. Thank you very much for your hard work.

[gveres]

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

I enabled debug mode, but I couldn't find a zip file anywhere.

the zip file goes in the qdvd folder. (in SageTV/SageTV directory).

Greg

[flashbacck]

I noticed sage doesn't seem to read the time correctly for files compressed to a mkv by SVT. For example, in the time bar, the initial time will be something like 9:00 and the end time will be 1:00. It still plays fine though. Does anyone know how to fix this?

[evilpenguin]

Originally Posted by flashbacck

I noticed sage doesn't seem to read the time correctly for files compressed to a mkv by SVT. For example, in the time bar, the initial time will be something like 9:00 and the end time will be 1:00. It still plays fine though. Does anyone know how to fix this?

I've heard reports that Handbrake is making bad mkv videos and it can be fixed be remuxing the video through mkvmerge. I'll be doing that automatically in the next update, but for now you'll have to do it yourself. Its really fast and the mmg GUI is very usable.

Originally Posted by gveres

I haven't seen an answer to this. I am having the exact same problem.

DirMon2 is working fine because when I use the Send To ... menu to send it to be compressed, it works like a charm. The plugin creates the qdvd file and dirmon2 picks it up and does the compression.

But none of my favourites are being compressed automatically. I have the same settings as hammondr.

Any suggestions?

I have now been through the first 15 pages of this thread. So many people have this working properly it must be a bone head setting I have missed somewhere but there are no instructions on how to setup automatic encoding ...


Thanks Greg
PS: any Mac Client help? (see my earlier post).
PPS: this really is great, btw. Thank you very much for your hard work.

(@hammondr also)

When you go into a favorite to enable compression you need to

1) Enable Compression
2) Set a profile
3) Save the favorite

If you're doing all those things and the properties are sticking but no auto qdvd files are being created

1) Update to the latest SageMC. The version is still 6.3.7a but he the newest download includes a patch I sent him a week or so after the initial release. The version number should be 6.3.7a-fix (or something like that)
2) If that doesn't work follow the instructions in Dirk's signature to enable debugging quit/start a SageTV instance, wait until the UI pops up and is usable, then quit and email me the "sagetv_0.txt" at perl2dvd(at)gmail(dot)com.

Originally Posted by rlvogel322

Ok, I need a little help. I'm trying to find the right profile to put the -C switch (trying to limit it to one fo two cores -C 1) in for handbrake. I put it in the handbrake video.snip but it didn't work. It shows up as a command line option in the log (I think) but it doesn't limit the cpu to 1 core.

What is the right place to put it in a profile? It'll be nice when the Sage machine gets the Q6700 I have in my main rig.

That command doesn't work like you'd think it would. Do a quick search on the handbrake forums and you should be able to find some details.

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

Hey Evil, I noticed on your instructions you say DVD burning is iffy, is this still the case?

I can get a single DVD to process and burn, but when I go to play it in a DVD player (even the one in the Sage computer that burned it) it won't playing saying that the disc is not valid or something to that affect. I think it has to do with the disc not being formatted correctly for a DVD player, but I don't know for sure.

Any ideas, or is this still a work-in-progress?

AFAIK some people are having success with DVD this so i'm not sure what the problem could be. You're best bet is to enable debugging and post a log file for me. (The logs will be in the qdvd folder)

[rsagetv99]

Originally Posted by gveres

the zip file goes in the qdvd folder. (in SageTV/SageTV directory).

Greg

I looked in that folder, but I did not find it, all I found were .txt files with the path to the .img files for the DVDs that I created.

[larryf]

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

Hey Evil, I noticed on your instructions you say DVD burning is iffy, is this still the case?

I can get a single DVD to process and burn, but when I go to play it in a DVD player (even the one in the Sage computer that burned it) it won't playing saying that the disc is not valid or something to that affect. I think it has to do with the disc not being formatted correctly for a DVD player, but I don't know for sure.

Any ideas, or is this still a work-in-progress?

A few weeks ago, while other were reporting success with DVD burning, I was the unfortunate one that had the same problem (DVD was unplayable, invalid media type) and I reverted back to an older version. I found out later the recording I was trying had a lot of 'noise', sound dropouts, etc. My cable was split eight times without an amp

I reinstalled the latest version again and tried some clean recent recordings and the DVDs burned OK. My only failure came with a 3 hour show that I tried, this also had the 'invalid media type' on 3 different DVD players. Is it possible there is some type of 'compression to DVD' problem?


Hope that helps... Thanks again for all your hard work!

Larry

[rlvogel322]

Originally Posted by evilpenguin

That command doesn't work like you'd think it would. Do a quick search on the handbrake forums and you should be able to find some details.

I did do a search on their forums before I posted but wasn't searching for the right thing. I went back and finally found what I was looking for.

For the x264 option it will spawn 1.5 * # of cpu threads. So when I was setting it to 1 it would allow 1.5 threads to spawn for the process. Time to get that quad core in! In the mean time, I just set a blackout period for perl2dvd to run only between 10pm and 7am.

BTW, the autocompress has been working fine for me.

I have been using the commmercial cut option in the advanced autoencode profile. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Any clue there? Is there a way to delete the edl file if it was successfull? The edl file messes up play back when it has been compressed and cut. I can turn of autocomskip but if the edl file is not there it works just fine.

I also don't have a problem of doing the commercial cut after the compression but I am not sure how to set that up to automatically run. It looks like the commercial cut profile is the same as the autoencode.

[hammondr]

Originally Posted by evilpenguin

IWhen you go into a favorite to enable compression you need to

1) Enable Compression
2) Set a profile
3) Save the favorite

If you're doing all those things and the properties are sticking but no auto qdvd files are being created

1) Update to the latest SageMC. The version is still 6.3.7a but he the newest download includes a patch I sent him a week or so after the initial release. The version number should be 6.3.7a-fix (or something like that)
2) If that doesn't work follow the instructions in Dirk's signature to enable debugging quit/start a SageTV instance, wait until the UI pops up and is usable, then quit and email me the "sagetv_0.txt" at perl2dvd(at)gmail(dot)com.

Okey dokey. I had performed steps 1 through 3 above for all of my favorites already (the properties "stuck" and I know they were set correctly), so I followed your instruction #1. I found and installed the SageMC update "6.3.7a-update.zip" and applied your latest video_tools stvi. I've got some scheduled favorites coming up in a few minutes. I'll post back the results (including the sage log file, if necessary).

Incidentally, I had already applied 6.3.7a STV with the .xml patch you provided flachbar in the SageMC thread. Is that combo (6.3.7a + patch + video_tools) different than 6.3.7a-update + video_tools?

[hammondr]

Originally Posted by hammondr

I'll post back the results (including the sage log file, if necessary).

Sage created a slew of .AUTOCOMPRESS files about 5 minutes ago, but nothing happening in the qdvd folder yet.... still have my fingers crossed! The .AUTOCOMPRESS files seem to match up with favorites I just double-checked and saved.

[mp328]

Originally Posted by hammondr

Sage created a slew of .AUTOCOMPRESS files about 5 minutes ago, but nothing happening in the qdvd folder yet.... still have my fingers crossed! The .AUTOCOMPRESS files seem to match up with favorites I just double-checked and saved.

if they still dont show up in the qdvd folder...

mine works 99% of the time perfect, but every now and then it creates the autocompress files, but it wont copy them over and start the encoding. at that time i usually just delete the autocompress files and restart the computer and once it restarts and sage starts up, it creates the files and moves them to the qdvd folder and starts trasconding

i never figured out why, but sometime one of the services kind of stops working and the only way to bring it up i notices is to restart the system...

hope its that simple for u....

[rsagetv99]

Well, I may have found part of the problem. I had some old Per2dvd pref and advanced pref files from old installs of this software. I tried running the process again, and it completed but the DVD still won't play. I also never found a .zip file in the qdvd folder, but at least this time there is a log file.

[evilpenguin]

Originally Posted by rlvogel322

I have been using the commmercial cut option in the advanced autoencode profile. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Any clue there? Is there a way to delete the edl file if it was successfull? The edl file messes up play back when it has been compressed and cut. I can turn of autocomskip but if the edl file is not there it works just fine.

Are you encoding and cutting the commercials in the advanced options or running the commercial cutting profile against the original mpegs?

Also, when a video is cut the .edl file should be renamed to .edlcut so if its not that's a but and i'll look into it.

edit: Damn, I had a nice long post explaining the commercial cutting problems w/mencoder but I got an error when I submitted it lost it all. If I get time later tonight I may rewrite it.

[evilpenguin]

Originally Posted by hammondr

Okey dokey. I had performed steps 1 through 3 above for all of my favorites already (the properties "stuck" and I know they were set correctly), so I followed your instruction #1. I found and installed the SageMC update "6.3.7a-update.zip" and applied your latest video_tools stvi. I've got some scheduled favorites coming up in a few minutes. I'll post back the results (including the sage log file, if necessary).

Incidentally, I had already applied 6.3.7a STV with the .xml patch you provided flachbar in the SageMC thread. Is that combo (6.3.7a + patch + video_tools) different than 6.3.7a-update + video_tools?

No patch is even nessisary, just download and install the latest full SageMC and it will contain everything you need minus my plug-in. I just did an install like this two nights ago and everything worked great.

[evilpenguin]

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

Well, I may have found part of the problem. I had some old Per2dvd pref and advanced pref files from old installs of this software. I tried running the process again, and it completed but the DVD still won't play. I also never found a .zip file in the qdvd folder, but at least this time there is a log file.

Looks like the debug option isn't sticking, i'll have to take a look at that.

In the meantime, you can start a DVD going, and while its processing go into the working folder and delete the 'delete.me' file and that will cause all the logs and temp files to be saved.

[rsagetv99]

Here are the log files from the work directory.

[evilpenguin]

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

Here are the log files from the work directory.

That should have also saved a qdvd.log file in the "SageTV\SageTV\qdvd folder", that's the file I really need.

[rsagetv99]

I think that was the only file I gave you last time, but here is the entire qdvd folder.

[evilpenguin]

Thanks, that's the log I needed.