Need some help setting up Freeview (noobish)

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Linkzor

13 posts

Geek

Topic # 24692 31-Jul-2008 10:06

Hey, I got an Asus P7131 Dual TV Tuner dirt cheap off a friend.

I'm getting good reception and quality for the HD channels on DVBViewer. Since the card didn't come with any Cyberlink software I've been left to use ffdshow codecs which lacks hardware decoding so my CPU usage was quite high. Worse of all it seems really buggy and unstable, I would get random black screens and be forced to restart my computer every so often.

I've also tried the Power Cinema (5.0.3902) trial version. Analog and FM radio works fine. For DVB-T I can scan and detect the channels however it doesn't seem to be able to decode the video, all I get is a black, blank screen.

What other programs could I try and what codecs should I use?

My pc specs in case they might come handy:

Phenom 9550 2.2Ghz
2GB DDR-800 Ram
Gigabyte 780G Mobo
Radeon 4850 512MB

Cheers.

mcraenz

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Reply # 152964 31-Jul-2008 12:05

If you'vewanting to setup a full HTPC MediaPortal/TVServer, Along with the cyberlink PDVD7/8 h.264 Codec are a great combination.
Otherwise for casual viewing DVBViewer + PDVD Codec is fine.

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Linkzor

13 posts

Geek

Reply # 153303 1-Aug-2008 13:36

I've more or less given up on DVBViewer. As I mentioned it keeps crashing every now and then (pesky black screen won't go away so I have to do a reboot).

I get audio on Power Cinema but no video for some reason. Is there a way to change the h.264 codec Power Cinema uses?

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1gkar

722 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 153785 3-Aug-2008 12:52

A couple of things: look at mcraenz's sig -I may be bias, but use Mediaportal. Get the latest version; RC2 here http://www.team-mediaportal.com/download.html While it's downloading, read up on the install procedures here http://www.team-mediaportal.com/manual/MediaPortal_Manual_Index & adhere to them stringently. Otherwise you will probably have configuration issues. Most specifically those relating to installing SQL server http://www.team-mediaportal.com/manual/GeneralRequirements#TV-ServerspecificRequirements

Here's a New Zealand-dedicated instruction site http://cranznz.googlepages.com/

I guess you have tried the results posted on using PowerCinema successfully http://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?ForumId=83&TopicId=22139

Finally, I notice you have a 780 mobo. I assume you are using onboard graphics. There appears to be varying reports on its compatibility with H.264 AVC broadcast streams: some mobos seem to work; others have issues. If you are the latter, then you may want to use separate graphics -eg. 85/8600GT as a minimum- for good hardware acceleration. Be careful on the card you get, as some, even higher speced cards, are not fully suited for H.264 recording/playback.

As mcraenz stated, use PowerDVD for your decoding of H.264. The trial pack is all you need if you aren't going to use the player, then don't purchase it. The only requirement with using the trial version is you have to manually register the H.264 codec.

Start>run>cmd type: 'regsvr32.exe "full path to PowerDVD folder & file".
eg. regsvr32.exe "c:\program files\PowerDVD\VideoFilter\cl264dec.ax"

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Linkzor

13 posts

Geek

Reply # 153795 3-Aug-2008 13:33

Hey 1gkar, yes my motherboard is a 780G but as mentioned above I'm currently running a Radeon 4850 on it which should be sufficient for H.264 decoding. Quite a few people recommended MediaPortal too so I'll give it a go later tonight. Cheers.

sbiddle

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Reply # 153796 3-Aug-2008 13:40

Linkzor: Hey 1gkar, yes my motherboard is a 780G but as mentioned above I'm currently running a Radeon 4850 on it which should be sufficient for H.264 decoding. Quite a few people recommended MediaPortal too so I'll give it a go later tonight. Cheers.

The issue here is an ATI one - there are definate issues with ATI cards that have H.264 hardware acceleration. Some people claim this is now resolved with newer drivers and patches for PowerDVD but others are still having issues. All NVidia cards that support H.264 acceleration (series 8 and above) work fine.

One other thing worth trying is the Arcsoft TotalMedia Theatre codec - this is not free but does have a 14 day trial. I've just installed this today with GB-PVR and find it works absolutely brilliantly. It solves some of the video/audic and sync issues that I've had with the Cyberlink codec.

charley

183 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 153982 4-Aug-2008 12:00

Who's still having issues with ATI cards and H.264 hardware acceleration after applying the newer drivers and patches for PowerDVD?
I'm looking at getting the HD4850.

Linkzor

13 posts

Geek

Reply # 154057 4-Aug-2008 17:03

Thanks for all the help. I'm currently running GB-PVR using PowerDVD8 codec for h.264 and Monogram AAC decoder. So far so good, CPU usage on TV2 is lingering around 8-15% which isn't too bad I guess. Thanks again!