Collecting PSP info

[lexor]

Hi guys, this Christmas I'm thinking of treating myself to a PSP, now that sony released a AVC/AAC support it sort of tipped the scales, but before I take the plunge I'd like to collect some info that I cannot find anywhere (can't search for PSP here, too short, and the ones I found by going back page by page don't unswer these):

I'm primarily interested in h264 encoding, but ASP is also a possibilty, so not to crosspost same questions, I'll ask for both here, xvid and x264 (and just so we clear, only official firmware support, no mods or anything please):

1) I'm not quite sure about max bitrate, I see on some sony sites that 884kbps (video+audio) is max, but some other sites say 1500kbps for video alone is OK. What is your experience with both codecs and bitrates for each?

2) Also some sites note that only supported fps is 15 and 29.97 is that true? The only reason for that statement I can find is that the tool they first used for encoding only supported those 2, so is PSP itself limited in this way?

3) How well does it handle video that is higher resolution than PSP's native 480x270? (xvid is my interest here, since I'm wondering if I'll have to re-encode my old stuff)

Thank you all :)

[Tailschao]

The following is true of firmware version 2.00, some stuff may have changed in more recent firmwares.
1) The max video bitrate for h264 is 768, although with 2-pass encoding and considering the screen size and max res (see #3) you really don't need anything above 500. Not sure about the audio or ASP.
2) This is true.
3) The PSP's official media player can only play videos with a max resolution of 368 x 208 (for 16:9 material), i heard sonly locked it to that so that you have to buy the official UMD releases if you want full res material (480 x 272).
re: XviD, I wasn't aware that the PSP could play XviD without a homebrew app of some sort?

[deets]

as a portable media device, its a fantastic bit of kit.

it 2.80 firmware + supports 23.97, 25, 29.97 as well as some others that you may or may not want to use.

as said, the max bit rate doesnt really matter for 264 as you can get really good quality at 400kbs for video :)

you will need to re encode all your stuff

[bond]

re: XviD, I wasn't aware that the PSP could play XviD without a homebrew app of some sort?xvid is asp compliant, so the psp should play it when the xvid stream is placed in mp4

[chilledoutuk]

what's the maximum size of these memory cards at the moment for these.
Also how long does a battery last playing video.

[mahsah]

I would seriously recommend using PMP-mod/ PMP-mod AVC. They handle different resolutions MUCH better then the integrated sony player. I am pretty sure sonys player wont even go up to the full res of the PSP, but perhaps this has changed with a new update...

[lexor]

wow you kidding me, I can't get 480x270 on official firmware? I'd rather not go with modded firm/software, I like the native interface pat pmp looks like something from dos era...
for max size of memory sticks, it's at least 4gb on consumer ones, I plan to get 2gb (planty for one season of whatever), though now I'm having doubts, if I can't get the full rez, kinda pointless.

[ilovejedd]

Yep, 4GB is the maximum memory stick pro duo size released so far. However, they are planning to release an 8GB one. Last I checked the 4GB sticks were retailing for around $130 online. The 2GB ones, you can now get get for as low as $40. I think several retailers will be offering 2GB Pro Duos for that price during the after Thanksgiving sale.

You will probably have to re-encode your videos in order for the PSP to play them. For widescreen content, I encode at 368x208, 512kbps AVC. Even without full resolution (480x272), all the videos I've converted and played still looked very nice on my PSP's screen.

[AnimeTheme]

Now that Firmware 3.0 is out, anyone actually tests it and sees if the resolution restriction (320x240 pixels) on user-made videos is now gone... or not?

One thing for sure (and has been confirmed) is that you can play FULL 480x272 video if it is in Motion-JPEG format. Not sure about AVC/MPEG-4 at this point (this is what we want to know)...

[deets]

Now that Firmware 3.0 is out, anyone actually tests it and sees if the resolution restriction (320x240 pixels) on user-made videos is now gone... or not?

One thing for sure (and has been confirmed) is that you can play FULL 480x272 video if it is in Motion-JPEG format. Not sure about AVC/MPEG-4 at this point (this is what we want to know)...

im just updating now :) ill try a 30 second test video at 480 and see what happpens, will report back :D

edit: nope, says unsupported data on a 480x272 clip

[lexor]

perhaps higher rez means lower settings? can you try something short with minimal of main profile (or whichever it supports), like put ref and b frames to 1 and whatnot. oh and try 480x270 (since that's the 16:9 ratio, 2 is probably cope out of overscan, can't believe it still exists everywhere)

[ilovejedd]

270 is not divisible by 16. Seeing that the PSP's screen res is 480x272, videos with resolutions of 480x272 are more likely to be supported. If anyone's interested, the PSP can play 480x272 video from memory stick. My brother has a Japanese PSP, therefore, he can access the P-TV website/option on his PSP. The (DRMed) trailer he downloaded had 480x272 resolution and uses AVC, I believe.

[lexor]

so... it's either drm that's required for full rez playback or they just screwing with NA customers...

[CruNcher]

lexor it is known that they restrict resolution for the normal customers since a long long time on the PSP the PSP is able todo 1.5 Mbit Main Profile full SD resolution but only restricted to the UMD Part.

The PSP has 3 Video Modes


Customer = 320x2xx 768 kbps
Game Videos & Online sell = 480x2xx 768 kbps
UMD Mode = 720x480 1.5 Mbits


that is confirmed by the Scene and hacked up now up to 480x2xx xxxx kbps
but not yet 720x480 tough their is a way todo such videos but it's highly illegal :P

[Manao]

Just for the record :1) The max video bitrate for h264 is 768, although with 2-pass encoding and considering the screen size and max res (see #3) you really don't need anything above 500. Not sure about the audio or ASP.Two passes has nothing to do with that. You must use --vbv-maxrate = 768, so if a scene needed a bitrate higher than 768, you'd be clamped to 768 whether you were using two passes or one passes.

[Tailschao]

Two passes has nothing to do with that. You must use --vbv-maxrate = 768, so if a scene needed a bitrate higher than 768, you'd be clamped to 768 whether you were using two passes or one passes.
Oh, well, yes, of course i knew that. Ahem.

[AnimeTheme]

Just for the record :Two passes has nothing to do with that. You must use --vbv-maxrate = 768, so if a scene needed a bitrate higher than 768, you'd be clamped to 768 whether you were using two passes or one passes.

No you don't need that parameter. In 2-pass mode, the bitrate of some scenes can be higher than 768 but it willl still play on PSP. As long as the "reported" average bitrate is 768, it will play.

[foxyshadis]

In that case, wouldn't it make more sense to determine exactly what the maximum vbv buffer size is, and use that information to determine whether the average bitrate can be higher than people assume, because it was going way over the vbv before?

[Manao]

The size of the VBV doesn't matter ( it's around a second while a complicate scene often lasts more than that )The max bitrate does matters, since it's completely correlated to the decoding time. Average bitrate doesn't ( ought not ) matter when it comes to material limitations, since it's not correlated. Finally, average bitrate isn't written in the video stream. What is written is the maximum bitrate, when there is one.

Of course, all that is true for h264 in general. PSP seems to love useless limitations, so a limitation on the average bitrate, though it makes to sense at all, wouldn't surprise me either...

[AnimeTheme]

In that case, wouldn't it make more sense to determine exactly what the maximum vbv buffer size is, and use that information to determine whether the average bitrate can be higher than people assume, because it was going way over the vbv before?

In fact, I am not surprised at all if the average bit rate of AVC can be higher than 768 and it will still play (not yet tested though). I know for sure that MPEG-4 SP with 1500 constant bit rate can play on PSP, though it may lag a bit on some scenes. Most of my AVC movies were encoded in 768 VBR (didn't set vbv max or min, just the default settings), with some scenes go as high as 1500, and they all play perfectly with no lag.

[lexor]

OK new question, if all it does is check for average bitrate, is it written somewhere in the bitstream (i.e. psp is unlikely to calculate it directly before it loads the movie), can it be faked? hex edit maybe?

Also, what do you guys think are the chances for Sony to up user created video resolution to native 480x272? Have they made any damning statements for or against?

[foxyshadis]

Average bitrate is just filesize divided by time, on the PSP or anything else, sorry. If it does check that, well, that's just another of the things that give people such a love/hate for sony products. So good, but always so crippled.

[deets]

i would like the option of 480x272 of course, but that would mean chucking more bit rate at the video to keep the quality up.

i dont know if they would ever add it, firmware 3.00 and still no sign, so im not holding out much hope.

[lexor]

i would like the option of 480x272 of course, but that would mean chucking more bit rate at the video to keep the quality up.
why? 786 is about 2CD encode, standard for a good movie (at least with the quality I like) with SD DVD (720x480) resolution, that max bitrate is overkill for current resolution and still plenty for 480x272. If anything, the added resolution will improve quality of picture at no extra cost.

[deets]

why? 786 is about 2CD encode, standard for a good movie (at least with the quality I like) with SD DVD (720x480) resolution, that max bitrate is overkill for current resolution and still plenty for 480x272. If anything, the added resolution will improve quality of picture at no extra cost.

well personally I dont go anywhere near 786 for a film, even 300 is a lot for my use.

if your just putting one movie on your memory stick, no problem.

[ilovejedd]

786 is about 2CD encode, standard for a good movie (at least with the quality I like) with SD DVD (720x480) resolution, that max bitrate is overkill for current resolution and still plenty for 480x272. If anything, the added resolution will improve quality of picture at no extra cost.If that quality is acceptable to you, then I'm thinking even 320x240 (fs) or 368x208 (ws) @ AVC 384kbps would be good enough, too. Remember, the PSP only has a 4.3" screen. If you're not watching your encodes on anything other than your PSP, 480x270 isn't really a must...

[IceFiend]

Has anyone gotten XVid to work with PSP? I know it plays h264, but I'm unsure about XVid.

[ilovejedd]

Yes it does, in mp4 container and same restrictions as h264. In fact, PSPs with firmware below 2.00 can only play MPEG4 SP (DivX, XviD, etc). It wasn't until 2.00 was released that MPEG4 AVC (h264) was supported. Although for low bitrates, I would recommend using h264 instead of XviD.

[TooRealGuy]

Lexor, and others...

I cant' add much [anything] to the hypothetical, or the code-basis behind Sony's limitations for the PSP, but I can speak simply to the practical.

I had to make some of the same decisions facing you....here's how I approached it and what I got in return: I picked a healthy xvid from an action movie I knew well. Then I started a transcoding iteration, upping the H/V res [keeping a constant 16:9 screen aspect ratio.] I stared with a "minimum" Max BS rate of 284kbs (supported by my iriver clix hardware...just a starting place mind you.)
Once I got to 400x225 res. and 1000kbs max vbs rate, I was satisfied with the storage size and playback quality on my new PSP....so there I stopped...

It was originally MPG-4 w AAC-LC, now I just went back (for you and the group) and tried h264 instead. I was successful transfering each of these via mem stick and playback on the PSP.

Now I read I'm not supposed to be able to, or there may be some dispute as to whether there are provisions in place to restrict higher res.

If interested, I'll go back and up it to SD-DVD res and some whoppin' max vbs if we wanna see what happens...but where's it gonna end?

[GrndZero]

psp can only mpeg-4 format ,you can bur convert DivX, XviD, MOV, rm, rmvb, MPEG, VOB, DVD, WMV, AVI, MP3, WMA, OGG, AAC, M4A, WAV,MPG, AC3 to mp4 format with <<spam>> to play on your psp
Would much rather use pspvideo9 which is completely free to do any encoding for the PSP. pspvideo9 has always been a quality product that surpasses any paid program that I have seen.