New ATI 785g [HD4200 onboard]

[whurlston]

I disagree. I prefer both Vista and Win 7 to XP. Although Vista had it's issues (most of which were solved by the first Service Pack), it had far fewer problems than XP did when it was first released. XP was not a truly viable OS until it's first Service Pack and had far more driver issues than Vista or Win 7. Win 7 is an absolutely gorgeous media OS platform.

[hoborg]

I disagree. I prefer both Vista and Win 7 to XP. Although Vista had it's issues (most of which were solved by the first Service Pack), it had far fewer problems than XP did when it was first released. XP was not a truly viable OS until it's first Service Pack and had far more driver issues than Vista or Win 7. Win 7 is an absolutely gorgeous media OS platform.

Sorry, but i must disagree.
Of course i am talking about XPSP3.
For example DVD playback - there is no way to have DXVA + DVD navigation working with EVR, some software decoder needs to be used (that mean different then MS one) = you must have 2 MPEG-2 decoder, one DXVA (becouse of HW deinterlacing) + one to play DVD's - no problem on XP.

Another problem is MS h.264 decoder (win7) if you have ATI GPU. If you will try to play h.264 5.1profile with more then 5ref. frames, you will see coruptions/artefacts. You need to use different h.264 decoder (for example MPC video dec.), but to do that, you need to modify Win7 registry to be able to use it - no problem on XP.

Same with Vista/Win7 audio decoder - it is not capable to decode various audio formats and it is forced to be in use by OS. To fix that, it needs to be disabled and replaced by some "working" one - no problem on XP.

Yes, you can say Vista and Win7 have EVR! - i personaly didnt notice no difference between VMR9 and EVR at all...

Of course it is on user which version of OS to take.
I still prefer XPSP3 (some latest version with integrated updates,frameworks,etc...), becouse i have no problem with them at all - simply all is working just fine

[whurlston]

Sorry, but i must disagree.
Of course i am talking about XPSP3.
For example DVD playback - there is no way to have DXVA + DVD navigation working with EVR, some software decoder needs to be used (that mean different then MS one) = you must have 2 MPEG-2 decoder, one DXVA (becouse of HW deinterlacing) + one to play DVD's - no problem on XP.

I use the MPC-HC MPEG 2 decoder and have both DVD navigation and DXVA2 deinterlacing.

Another problem is MS h.264 decoder (win7) if you have ATI GPU. If you will try to play h.264 5.1profile with more then 5ref. frames, you will see coruptions/artefacts. You need to use different h.264 decoder (for example MPC video dec.), but to do that, you need to modify Win7 registry to be able to use it - no problem on XP.

The only 5.1 profile videos that I have ever seen are torrents (which IMO should not have been encoded at Profile 5.1 in the first place... 4.1 should have been used). The only H.264 encoded material that I watch are Blurays and things recorded with my HD-PVR so Profile 5.1 problems are a non issue for me.

Same with Vista/Win7 audio decoder - it is not capable to decode various audio formats and it is forced to be in use by OS. To fix that, it needs to be disabled and replaced by some "working" one - no problem on XP.

I don't use the built in decoders at all and I've never had to disable them. You only have to do that if you are playing things in Media Center or Media Player (or another Media Foundation application). I use GBPVR to play all my media so it is not an issue. I simply install the decoders I want (ffdshow and MPC standalones are all I use).

Yes, you can say Vista and Win7 have EVR! - i personaly didnt notice no difference between VMR9 and EVR at all...

Big picture quality difference for me. Also EVR is required for DXVA2. I love having 6-11% CPU usage when playing Blurays.

Of course it is on user which version of OS to take.
I still prefer XPSP3 (some latest version with integrated updates,frameworks,etc...), becouse i have no problem with them at all - simply all is working just fine

With this, I agree completely! Rule number one for HTPCs: Find what works for you and leave it alone. Win 7 just works the best for me. All my above points are for my particular viewing habits and may not work for everyone.

I wasn't knocking XP by the way. I was just pointing out that it had issues at release just as Vista did. Service Pack 1 fixed a lot of them and Service Pack 2 made it a really sweet OS (and I'm talking about both XP and Vista). I don't have much experience with XP SP3. I had quit using XP by then.

[hoborg]

I use the MPC-HC MPEG 2 decoder and have both DVD navigation and DXVA2 deinterlacing.

- not true, MPC-HC MPEG 2 decoder is software decoder only and causiong coruption on end of chapters

The only 5.1 profile videos that I have ever seen are torrents (which IMO should not have been encoded at Profile 5.1 in the first place... 4.1 should have been used). The only H.264 encoded material that I watch are Blurays and things recorded with my HD-PVR so Profile 5.1 problems are a non issue for me.

You are lucky then.

I don't use the built in decoders at all and I've never had to disable them. You only have to do that if you are playing things in Media Center or Media Player (or another Media Foundation application). I use GBPVR to play all my media so it is not an issue. I simply install the decoders I want (ffdshow and MPC standalones are all I use).

You should check used decoders by GraphStudio - maybe you will be surprised they are not in use even if you select them in GB-PVR configurations on Win7

Big picture quality difference for me. Also EVR is required for DXVA2. I love having 6-11% CPU usage when playing Blurays.

No need to have DXVA2 to play bruerays (VC-1) or h.264, VMR9 (DXVA1) will do the same.

[shimshady]

Pardon the naive question....how do 4550 support VA and not 4650? Do the 4650's also have to have Aero turned off? Im running Xp with a 300W PSU, and will purchase a graphics card if it saves me time trying to get 1080i playback perfect.

[whurlston]

It was due to a bug in the drivers. As I mentioned on the previous page though, the bug only seems to affect Vista and Win 7. The hardware itself in a 4650 is quite capable of VA deinterlacing. You should be fine with XP.

[shimshady]

I misread your post. Thanks for the input. Ill let you know how it goes.

[highflyer875]

I just set up a new HTPC using a ECS Black Series A785GM-M mother board. 1.5 TB HD, 4 gig ram and 3 ghz ADM Phemom II 545 running 64 bit Windows 7. The on board HD4200 works great connected to a 56 in DLP. No shutter and great sound. What are you complaining about this works great and priced under $600.

[whurlston]

- not true, MPC-HC MPEG 2 decoder is software decoder only and causiong

Wow. I actually said that I had DXVA2 with the MPC MPEG2 decoder? I really need to stop posting at 3:30 AM. You are correct that it is software only. I use the ArcSoft decoder (with DXVA2) for all my recorded 1080i content but I use the MPC for DVDs so that the navigation works.

You should check used decoders by GraphStudio - maybe you will be surprised they are not in use even if you select them in GB-PVR configurations on Win7

I have. In both the Win7 RC and in Win7 RTM, GBPVR loads and uses the decoders that I specify when watching DVDs, TV or recordings. When playing from the video library (where no decoders are specified) all my filter merits are honored.

No need to have DXVA2 to play bruerays (VC-1) or h.264, VMR9 (DXVA1) will do the same.

I get much better decoding performance (as well as better picture) with DXVA2 and EVR, expecially with 1080p H.264 encoded content.

[pBS]

i get vector adaptive on even a hd3450...so not quite true...can be checked with dxvachecker..[at least in xp w/vmr9]
pretty sure i didn't even have to tweak it to get it..
evr only looks better cuz it has better color processing, all else the same quality wise, but the color does make a noticeable difference..
since i installed mp10, my 3450 has been simply perfect...i have to use cyberlink 7.3 for 264, but i get under 10% with it..
and i'm using ati avivo for dxva mpeg2, but ffdshow works even more reliably with around same cpu..[avivo uses almost 30%x2 cpu for true dxva, ffdshow uses 40% on 1 cpu for software decode]
too bad this card doesn't have quite the horsepower for mpchc 264..
[works nice, but occasional glitches,tho newest ver is almost perfect]

my *only* complaint with evr is the lack of zoom...too many shows letterboxed still...
[even on HD] well, that and the slower skips..
can even get half accell in xp with evr..[just deinterlacing] and ffdshow only uses 40% of 1 cpu and it looks as good as vista/win7 evr...

but the lack of zoom makes it a no-go for me...
[am i mistaken or didn't the old evr have zoom in gbpvr at one time? as did overlay]

sure wish he could pull off that trick again....