Mygica U6012 HDTV Stick (QAM) and Windows 7 -- cannot locate device

[ak1i]

Hi there,

I am using U6012 HDTV Stick with gbpvr 1.4.7 to watch QAM channels and it runs fine in Windows XP. However, in Windows 7 I am seeing the following:

- in Windows 7 when I clicked on the GBPvrTray icon in the Windows taskbar the pull-down menu did not show the options to Restart/Stop Recording Service. Was that normal? Could that be an install problem? I could see the GBPvrRecording service installed and started in the Windows 7 Services panel though. I could see these menu items in the GBPvrTray fine in Windows XP.


- GBPvr 1.4.7 was not able to locate the U6012 TV tuner device in Windows 7 (it worked fine in Windows XP). I could watch TV using Windows Media Center 7 and TotalMedia 3.5 in Windows 7 however.

In Config.exe when I enabled 'Only show devices detected in this machine', a dialog w/ the message 'No known cards detected in this machine' came up. Device number was set to 1. The U6012 is the only TV capture device on the machine.

The default set up in bda.ini is this:

[Mygica U6012 HDTV Stick (QAM)]
TUNING_TYPE=ATSC
TUNING_SPECIAL=2
FILTER_TUNER=HDTV Stick Digital Tuner
FILTER_CAPTURE=HDTV Stick Digital Tuner
PIN_TUNER_IN=Input0
PIN_TUNER_OUT=MPEG2 Transport
PIN_CAPTURE_IN=MPEG2 Transport
PIN_CAPTURE_OUT=MPEG2 Transport



I ran filtercheck and it did see the Mygica U6012 USB stick:

10:48:36.616 INFO Checking AM_KSCATEGORY_VBICODEC filters
10:48:36.617 INFO
10:48:36.617 INFO
10:48:36.617 INFO Checking KSCATEGORY_BDA_NETWORK_TUNER filters
10:48:36.623 INFO found: Microtune Dongle Digital Tuner
10:48:36.630 INFO - (input) Input0
10:48:36.630 INFO - (output) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.630 INFO
10:48:36.631 INFO found: Microtune Dongle Digital QAM Tuner
10:48:36.635 INFO - (input) Input0
10:48:36.635 INFO - (output) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.635 INFO
10:48:36.635 INFO
10:48:36.635 INFO
10:48:36.635 INFO Checking KSCATEGORY_BDA_RECEIVER_COMPONENT filters
10:48:36.642 INFO found: Microtune Dongle Digital QAM Capture
10:48:36.646 INFO - (input) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.646 INFO - (output) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.646 INFO
10:48:36.647 INFO found: Microtune Dongle Digital Capture
10:48:36.649 INFO - (input) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.649 INFO - (output) MPEG2 Transport
10:48:36.649 INFO


I am seeing the following in the config.exe-native.log:

2010-05-31 19:44:00.993 VERBOSE FindFilterByName failed to locate filter: HDTV Stick Digital Tuner
2010-05-31 19:44:00.994 ERROR Failed to find BDA tuner filter: H


Config.exe.log showed the following:

2010-05-31 19:44:01.010 ERROR [1] Error starting preview window: Failed to locate configured BDA capture device
2010-05-31 19:44:01.019 ERROR [1] at NativeUtilities.BDARecorder.StartRecording(String cardType, Int32 board, String filename, IntPtr hwnd, ChannelTuning channelTuning, Int32 lnbLOF1, Int32 lnbSwitch, Int32 lnbLOF2, Int32 diseqc, Boolean powered, Boolean previewMode, Int32 commonInterface)
at NativeUtilities.BDARecorder.StartRecording(String cardType, Int32 board, String filename, IntPtr hwnd, ChannelTuning channelTuning, Int32 lnbLOF1, Int32 lnbSwitch, Int32 lnbLOF2, Int32 diseqc, Boolean powered, Int32 commonInterface)
at Config.Plugins.x501d1ffea8b79320.x692a1118e1794d77(Object xdf2e3583f942db7b, EventArgs xc4f45905cb1fc7ba)
2010-05-31 19:44:01.107 WARNING [1] Unexpected error scanning: System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.
at NativeUtilities.BDARecorder.GetPsiParserTransponderInfo()


I have also attached the various logs.

[sub]

Try adding:

[Mygica U6012 HDTV Stick (QAM) type2]
TUNING_TYPE=ATSC
TUNING_SPECIAL=2
FILTER_TUNER=Microtune Dongle Digital QAM Tuner
FILTER_CAPTURE=Microtune Dongle Digital QAM Capture
PIN_TUNER_IN=Input0
PIN_TUNER_OUT=MPEG2 Transport
PIN_CAPTURE_IN=MPEG2 Transport
PIN_CAPTURE_OUT=MPEG2 Transport

[ak1i]

This works--thx Sub!

Now I'm on to viewing TV... .

A couple of things:

1. How to start PVRX2 w/LIVE TV right away instead of going into the main menu every time?


2. Video Codecs.

- PDVD8 Decoder: I see stuttering w/ PDVD8 Decoder.
- MPC - MPEG-2 Video Decoder (Gabest) : no stuttering *
- Microsoft DTV-DVD Video Decoder: no stuttering *

3. Renderer: Is EVR Renderer recommended with any of the above codecs?

If I use EVR Renderer,

with MPC and Microsoft DTV-DVD video decoders, whenever I moved the mouse around the CPU % jumped up to 70%. This was on a P4 2.8GHz w/ hyperthreading.

What caused the CPU % jump on mouse movement w/ EVR Renderer?

[sub]

A couple of things:

1. How to start PVRX2 w/LIVE TV right away instead of going into the main menu every time?

You can create a shortcut that runs: PVRX2.exe -direct "Live TV"

2. Video Codecs.

- PDVD8 Decoder: I see stuttering w/ PDVD8 Decoder.
- MPC - MPEG-2 Video Decoder (Gabest) : no stuttering *
- Microsoft DTV-DVD Video Decoder: no stuttering *

GB-PVR has no control direct say over whether a video decoder will stutter for you. It'll pretty much come down to your combination of operating system, video card (and its drivers), and the video renderer being used.

3. Renderer: Is EVR Renderer recommended with any of the above codecs?

If I use EVR Renderer,

with MPC and Microsoft DTV-DVD video decoders, whenever I moved the mouse around the CPU % jumped up to 70%. This was on a P4 2.8GHz w/ hyperthreading.

What caused the CPU % jump on mouse movement w/ EVR Renderer?

I personally use EVR, and it works pretty well with most video decoders. This renderer works very well on Windows 7.

Your machine maybe struggling a bit with OSD graphics generated when moving the mouse. The extra CPU is probably the mixing of OSD graphics and video, and also the CPU usage to generate those graphics. If this is the case, a lower resolution will probably suffer less.

[ak1i]

I changed to 'VMR9 Custom' for the Video Renderer in Gbpvr in Windows 7 and the CPU% was not affected by the mouse movement anymore--CPU % stayed around 26%-36% which was very reasonable (even w/ 1080i TV program).

When I tried MPC - MPEG-2 Video Decoder (Gabest) + EVR in Gbpvr in Windows 7, w/ mouse movement it had the most immediate effect--CPU % jumped to 70% almost immediately. Not only that, but I started seeing major video stuttering. Audio was broken up and eventually disappeared altogether. When mouse movement stopped video/audio began to play out smoothly again. This was an amazing observation.

So for my situation it seems 'VMR9 Custom' gives the most stable video w/ moust movement.

I tried Media Center (Windows 7) on this PC and I did notice a slight influence with mouse movement (+10 CPU%). Total CPU % was around 50% w/ mouse movement -- still video/audio was smooth and reasonable. I suppose MC uses EVR Renderer in Windows 7. So don't know what caused the much higher % w/ Gbpvr (70 CPU%). I couldn't tell the difference of EVR over VMR9 Custom. Is EVR supposed to give better image and performance? I am using a 22inch 1680x1050 dpi monitor so perhaps won't tell the difference?

BTW, since TotalMedia also played the TV channels smoothly, so I tried Arsoft Video Decoder. There is an option w/ DXVA 2.0 in the Video Decoder options dialog in Config. I tried enabling DXVA 2.0 from Config but there was no effect--when I re-selected the options dialog for the Arsoft Video Decoder the DXVA 2.0 option was unchecked again. Perhaps I need to enable this in the Registry like we did for the Cyberlink Video Decoder? Because of this issue DXVA was not enabled so CPU % was pretty high (60%) when watching TV in Gbpvr using Arsoft Video Decoder. In TotalMedia 3.5 I was able to enable 'hardware acceleration' and so CPU % was kept quite low (11-26%) on this P4 2.8GHz PC--the lowest CPU % among all other combination I tried so far. Video/audio was also very smooth all the times (even with mouse movement--no effect on CPU %).

Signals
BTW, A reviewer said when using Volar Max QAM TV Tuner USB Stick adding a High-pass filter would help eliminate interference from the return signal from the cable modem. I wonder if anyone has seen similar benefit for a more stable QAM signal by using a high-pass filter.


I am aware that there is no one-button record right now. I wonder if there is a one-button-stop to stop the current recording for a channel I am currently watching? I still love to see one-button-record/stop (on current channel) if these are ever possible... .

[ak1i]

A question on QAM channel scan. I often see this when channel scan is complete for a channel:

KPIX-DT*(000)
KPIX-DT*(000(AC3))

In preview, I can hear that the first channel's audio has stereo, but the second channel (w/ the 'AC3') is mono. So I always select the non-AC3 channel.

Should the AC3 channel work? I wonder the reason I can only hear mono audio on the AC3 channel.

When I do a recording on the non-AC3 channel, I check the recorded file (using GSpot codec app) and it does show the video file have AC3 audio however. This is a bit perplexing to me.


Recording:
Two things.

1. After I hit the Record button on the Remote, Gbpvr will show the record dialog. So when I select and hit the Record button, it will not return to Live TV, but instead go to the main menu. I have to navigate and select 'Live TV'. But then of course it will display a dialog saying 'No tuner is available' and prompt me to either 'not watch TV' or select the channel that is being recorded.

I wonder if there is a way to go straight to Live TV after I hit the Record button for manual recording. It is just too much navigation when all I want is to hit the Record button and continue watch Live TV while recording starts... .

2. Sometimes, it will create a zero size video file when I start a manual recording, and when I want to go back to continue to watch that channel, no video is displayed and gbpvr will go back to the main menu. I will need to stop the Recording service.

[sub]

A question on QAM channel scan. I often see this when channel scan is complete for a channel:

KPIX-DT*(000)
KPIX-DT*(000(AC3))

In preview, I can hear that the first channel's audio has stereo, but the second channel (w/ the 'AC3') is mono. So I always select the non-AC3 channel.

Should the AC3 channel work? I wonder the reason I can only hear mono audio on the AC3 channel.

Yes it should work. If its not, then it'll most likely be related to the audio decoder you're using.

When I do a recording on the non-AC3 channel, I check the recorded file (using GSpot codec app) and it does show the video file have AC3 audio however. This is a bit perplexing to me.

Long story, related to how things evolved over time. Basically this will vary depending on the multiplexer you're using. For example the Microsoft DVR-MS mux will only the specific audio stream you selected. The 'TS Mux' will record everything related to that channel, including multiple audio streams.

Recording:
Two things.

1. After I hit the Record button on the Remote, Gbpvr will show the record dialog. So when I select and hit the Record button, it will not return to Live TV, but instead go to the main menu. I have to navigate and select 'Live TV'. But then of course it will display a dialog saying 'No tuner is available' and prompt me to either 'not watch TV' or select the channel that is being recorded.

I wonder if there is a way to go straight to Live TV after I hit the Record button for manual recording. It is just too much navigation when all I want is to hit the Record button and continue watch Live TV while recording starts... .

2. Sometimes, it will create a zero size video file when I start a manual recording, and when I want to go back to continue to watch that channel, no video is displayed and gbpvr will go back to the main menu. I will need to stop the Recording service.

I'll get you to check this again when 1.5.x is out in a few days. If its still an issue, then I'll look into it.

[ak1i]

Thx much Sub. I'd love to try it out when the new release comes out. If recording goes smoothly it'd be really nice.

For the AC3 audio,

I tried 'ArcSoft Audio Decoder HD' and 'CyberLink Audio Decoder (PDVD8)' in Config for both the PreferredAudioDecoder and PreferredAC3AudioDecoder. In either case the AC3 stream showed no audio output when previewing the AC3 channel in Config. Which audio decoder will work with AC3 audio I wonder? Which setting should I set it for--the PreferredAudioDecoder or the PreferredAC3AudioDecoder? Or preview in Config doesn't use the audio settings?

I use ATI MPEG Mux to give me the mpeg file recording output. Perhaps the ATI MPEG Mux grabs all the audio streams?

[sub]

I use ATI MPEG Mux to give me the mpeg file recording output. Perhaps the ATI MPEG Mux grabs all the audio streams?

The ATI mux doesnt grab all audio streams. It'll only grab the single audio stream selected at mapping time. I'm not that familiar with this mux. It might not like AC3. Maybe try one of the other mux options.

[ak1i]

Right now, ATI mux gives me AC3 mpeg recording output with AC3 audio so I'm ok w/ recording.

I suppose the MUX is only for the recording file output? (i.e., selecting TS Mux vs. ATI mux shouldn't affect Live TV audio?)


As for now the only thing is in Live TV/Preview in Config I can only hear mono audio (sometimes only left audio channel has output, sometimes only the right channel has output) with some of the AC3 streams(particularly the TV channels w/ both non-AC3/AC3 streams).

I wonder if anyone can observe AC3 output (you can at least 'hear' that it's stereo sound instead of mono) on the AC3 stream for this scenario (when a particular channel has both non-AC3 and AC3 stream) in Config/Preview or Live TV (and what audio decoder you use)?

I've seen this since v1.2.9 so this is not a recent behavior I believe.

Added:
Funny as it is, when I map the channel to the 'non-AC3' stream, in Live TV when I hit Cntrl-O it shows that the audio stream is in fact AC3. What gives?