VLC Player CoreAVC and x.264

[djmadness]

My system setup is as follows:
Dell Precision 470 Dual 3.0GHZ XEON HT 2MB L2 (Not Dual Cores)
WInXP 64-Bit SP2
12GB DDR2-400 ECC memory
2x 74GB Seagate 15k.5 SCSI in Raid 0 on Adaptec U320 SCSI Controller
2x 500GB Seagate 7200.10 in Raid 1 on Adaptec SATAII Raid Controller
Nvidia NVS285 128MB PCI-E 16 Vid Card
All PC's have gigabit NICS
Switch is 10/100/1000 Cisco Catalyst 2960

I am running the latest stable build of VLC and V7 CoreAVC x.264 Codec
VLC is Configured to play x.264 files with the CoreAVC Codec

I am playing from .MKV files

I can play 720P with no probs on a 22" LCD 1680x1050
When I try to play 1080P it is extremely choppy and pauses at times before resuming after a period of time
With 1080P I am peaking at 30% CPU usage and all CPU threads show even activity

My understanding is the vid card is irrelevant with CoreAVC codec

I want to use this machine to broadcast to my HTPC that only has a P4 2.8 - 1GB DDR400 - Nvidia FX5200 128MB and Gigabit Nic
The HTPC is connected via DVI to HDMI cable to a 42" 720P Regzia

Questions:
1) Why is the vid choppy on the dell when it has more than enough cpu to play
2) Do I require a better vid card in the Dell Precision 470 to play 1080P
3) Will 1080P play on a screen that is not 1920x1080 resolution?
4) Once I get the issue fixed on the Dell will it provide all the processing needed to decode the file to stream to the HTPC thereby not requiring alot of processing on the HTPC end?
5) I have an ATI HD3450 512MB PCI-E 16x card coming in for the Dell Precision. Should this resolve my problem?
6) Are there any settings in the CoreAVC codec configuration in VLC I need to change from stock?

Thanks in Advance
Madness

[VLC_help]

VLC is Configured to play x.264 files with the CoreAVC Codec

That isn't possible. VLC only uses build-in codecs. So it can't use external codecs. And VLC build-in H.264 decoder doesn't support multithreading decoding nor GPU decoding so specially HD videos cause slowdowns. CoreAVC supports multithreading decoding but it doesn't support GPU decoding so your display adapter doesn't matter.

You can also play 1080p on even 480p output, but you either lose details or only see small part of the image.

EDIT:
http://wiki.videolan.org/WindowsFAQ#H.2 ... s_too_slow
this might help a little.

[djmadness]

That isn't possible. VLC only uses build-in codecs.

Then why is CoreAVC listed under the codecs for h.264? FFDShow is listed under other codecs

[djmadness]

Also FFDShow uses Direct X - DirectDraw which does use the GPU, Doesnt it?

[Alexsource]

I remember someone requesting a wrapper or loader for CoreAVC, don't remember if it was worked upon or not. Latests nightlies offer some support for external Real codecs now, and it works, but you have to manually copy some files to the plugin folder.

Also note that using the GPU to output (as in: after it's been decoded) the video using overlay acceleration or whatever it's called is not the same as decoding the video with the GPU.

[Arite]

That isn't possible. VLC only uses build-in codecs.

Then why is CoreAVC listed under the codecs for h.264? FFDShow is listed under other codecs

ffdshow is different to the FFmpeg project. VLC uses libraries from the FFmpeg project, as does ffshow. ffdshow can be used as DirectShow filter for decoding/encoding on Windows, whereas FFmpeg itself is a set of libraries (as well a standalone commandline program). The H.264 codec used in FFmpeg is a part of libavcodec. CoreAVC is a proprietary Windows-only H.264 decoder which is (currently ) faster/more efficient than the one in libavcodec. VLC doesn't support it since there is no DirectShow/DMO wrapperfor it (and not much need since the one in libavcodec works well too).

Arite.

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

That isn't possible. VLC only uses build-in codecs.

Then why is CoreAVC listed under the codecs for h.264? FFDShow is listed under other codecs

ffdshow is different to the FFmpeg project. VLC uses libraries from the FFmpeg project, as does ffshow. ffdshow can be used as DirectShow filter for decoding/encoding on Windows, whereas FFmpeg itself is a set of libraries (as well a standalone commandline program). The H.264 codec used in FFmpeg libavcodec is x264, a VideoLAN project. CoreAVC is a proprietary Windows-only H.264 decoder which is (currently ) faster/more efficient than x264. VLC doesn't support it since there is no DirectShow/DMO wrapperfor it (and not much need since x264 works excellently too).

Arite.

Ouch... x264 is an encoder. CoreAVC is a decoder.

[Arite]

Oops - thanks. Fixed.

Alan.

[Elijah]

You can also play 1080p on even 480p output, but you either lose details or only see small part of the image.

How do I do this? The loop filter trick did not do much for my Athlon 3200 64.

[VLC_help]

Not all computers can do, I just stated it is possible.

[lulzdude]

well, as much as i love vlc, lately its just not cutting it, eating massive amounts of cpu, freezing up, and just being a general pain, a friend showed me this http://mpc-hc.sourceforge.net/ i hate the gui, but it does support gpu decoding and doesn't bitch as much as vlc does. hopefully vlc will get its act back together

[VLC_help]

Videolan project doesn't work on H.264 decoders, so slow H.264 decoder really isn't something we can fix.

[lulzdude]

well, for me its mainly been vlc crashing and sometimes it doesnt close and sits there taking up 50% of my cpu and it has to be killed in the taskman

[robertark]

I had the same problem.. With some research, I'm now able to play full 1080p movies without a problem (whatsoever). Follow these steps:

• Uninstall all codecs (via add/remove programs)
• Install FFDShow codec pack (download from http://www.free-codecs.com/FFDShow_download.htm -- select SSE or SSE2 build -- do some research to see if your processor supports SSE2 [it should -- but double check])
• Install CoreAVC decoder pack (legit version costs $$)
• Open up the FFDShow video decoder control panel and for the "H.264/AVC" format, select "disabled" -- save & close
• Open up the CoreAVC decoder control panel and check the "Use Tray Icon" box -- save & close
• Install BSPlayer (http://www.bsplayer.org/)
• After installation, set all MKV files to open with BSPlayer (or all video files if you chose not to use VLC)

When you play MKV files in BSPlayer, the coreavc and ffdshow icons should pop up (two blue icons, one round other w/white background). If it doesn't, then you didn't configure FFDShow to disable the handling of "H.264/AVC" formats.

If all else fails, and you followed these steps, make absolutely sure all other codecs are uninstalled. Then, download graphstudio.exe (http://blog.monogram.sk/janos/tools/mon ... aphstudio/) and open the MKV file to see what decoders are being used and paste a screenshot here.

Now you should be able to play any 1080i/1080p movie without a problem -- here's my system hardware (which is OLD!)

Processor: AMD X2 4400+ Dual core
Video Card: AGP (8x) nVidia 6800 GT
HDD: 500GB WD Caviar Green - Running in SATA I mode (mobo doesn't support SATA II haha)
Sound: Onboard
Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster T220

Hope this helps

[VLC_help]

It is easier to either use Media Player Classic Home Cinema or install DivX 7, which both are free.