First GBPVR experience - NZ Freeview green screens

[dale77]

Hi,

I found the install and configuration reasonably straightforward. Unfortunately GBPVR has an issue or two playing Freeview HD.

My config:

GA-MA78GPM-UD2H, X2 4850e, Hauppage HVR 2200, Corsair 2x1Gb, ATI HD3200, LG GGC-H20L, WD750AACS, Vista-32, Catalyst 9.4

I selected EVR and Cyberlink PCM45 h.264 codec, and there are two issues:

1. TVNZ 6,7,8 are green screen unwatchable, although there is obviously something going on, and audio is present.
2. After a little while of watching TV3, audio goes on the fritz

Issue one is also present in MediaPortal. I can resolve it by reverting to the VMR9 Custom renderer in GBPVR, but this disables hardware decoding, a single core is at near 100% while watching HDTV. In mediaportal, I could get good playback by selecting a different codec (PCM h.264), but this option is not available in the GBPVR configuration options for h.264. Is there a way to make this available?

Thanks

Dale

[psycik]

Your first issue is something to do with ATI's hardware decoding. There are numerous threads about it on http://www.geekzone.co.nz. Have a look in there for some resolution.

What audio decoder are you using? have you downloaded Monograam? And with TV3 are you using monogram or ac3?

[dale77]

Thanks for your reply. Regarding my first issue I did have a solution for it in MediaPortal, namely to use the PCM h.264 codec, which is selectable in that software. Unfortunately, MediaPortal has other issues, unrelated to playback. So here I am trying out GBPVR. My solution (that I know works in MediaPortal for my ATI hardware) is to choose the PCM h.264 codec. I don't know how to do that in GBPVR. Why is the option not available in GBPVR?

For audio I was using the "system default" then I switched to the monogram codec, which presumably came with the HVR 2200.

Currently I am searching for working PVR software, more fully featured than PowerCinema 6, which is the only completely working solution on my hardware, right now. PCM6 does not have all the nice features of MediaPortal and GBPVR though.

[Graham]

The list of supported decoders is in config.xml. There are seperate lists for MPEG and for H.264 and for audio. It is my understanding that GBPVR searches the computer for each of the decoders listed in config.xml. The decoders from the lists in config.xml that are found on the computer are then listed in the drop down lists in config.exe.

I have been able to add decoders to the list in config.xml and they have then appeared in config.exe.

Hope this helps.

[dale77]

Thanks. I'll give that a try and report back.

[dale77]

That worked. I added "PCM H.264/AVC Decoder" to the h.264 decoders in config.xml and now video playback is fine.

Audio still does go strange after a while though, I wonder whether it is caused by a signal quality drop-off? (I see 97% average quality with minimum 5% quality from my aerial). Once the audio is fritzed, it seems to stay that way. Switching away from the channel, and back again seems to cure the bad audio.

[Etacovda]

thats a pretty big swing, id sort your aerial either way.

[griffy]

"I selected EVR and Cyberlink PCM45 h.264 codec"

This Codec is old and doesn't work for SD hardware decoding with 'newer' ATI video drivers- hence green screen (still works with my nVidia).
This is why 'Powercinema' is useless for ATI hardware decoding.
As a side note some early PDVD 7 and 8 codecs also did this however they have of course been updated regularly so no problems.

[dale77]

This is why 'Powercinema' is useless for ATI hardware decoding.

The good news is that this is now fixed with the "PCM h.264/AVC" codec that comes with Powercinema 6. So ATI users can happily use this codec with GBPVR, at least with my limited testing.