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View Full Version : Upgrade to XP on Legacy System, Playback Trouble..? (ffdshow)


jdoe
26th November 2005, 15:52
This week I finally upgraded to Windows XP Pro from the config of Win98SE I'd been running since at least '00 (600Mhz PIII, 192MB SDRAM, ATi Rage 128 Pro 4XL). I'd gone through a lot of different decoding methods over the course of the last three years without a reformat/reinstall (sheesh!), and had become a devotee of the miniscule DefilerPak (http://hellninjacommando.com/defilerpak/) when coming across it as a solution for playing Matroska. However, after the upgrade, I can't seem to play anything encoded in XViD/DiVX acceptably using ffdshow.

I installed naught but Media Player Classic 6.4.8.7 and DefilerPak, but while the audio plays through perfectly fine, the 640x480 XViD/AC3 video I'm using as primary for tests lags like crazy, the FPS drops to "flipbook"; upon checking the Task Manager, I find that immediately upon playing, the CPU Usage shoots to 100% and stays there. I've tried different versions of MPC, even those designated 98/ME, all the way back to 6.4.8.4, and at least ten different releases of ffdshow, I've enabled and disabled postprocessing and the 'Filters' options in MPC, but nothing helps.

After a day or two of this, I realized that, in 98SE, perhaps I'd forgotten old installs of DiVX/XViD already on the system when I found DefilerPak; the install was so cluttered that it's entirely possible. I can definitely say that DefilerPak was the last codec/filter I installed on the system before spiking it, so I uninstalled DefilerPak and tried Koepi's XViD: the video played much better than with ffdshow, but still noticeably lagged out at a few points; the CPU Usage teetering at about 98% (seriously).

What's so vexing is that when I play the same file in VLC, it plays perfectly with zero lag ANYwhere.. at ~50% CPU Usage! I use VLC for the rare instances I play DVDs directly on the computer, but have completely accustomed myself to MPC as my primary media player.

I'm a minimalist by nature and really hoped that with this new clean slate I'd be able to play video without all the bulky handlers I'd been used to in the tumultuous age between DiVX 2 and XViD, that I'd be able to use this itsy bitsy filter set to take care of everything. Almost everywhere (for example (http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t25562.html)) I read that without postprocessing, ffdshow uses a fraction of the CPU full codecs use, and have been nothing less than enchanted with such an efficient prospect.

But why won't it work?

Where along the line is this trouble being caused? Is it something I've done configuratively? Is it just the limitations of the hardware? What's all this talk about running 640x on less MHz that I've got with ffdshow, just a great lot of bunk?

The whole ordeal's given me some real headaches. Any help is much, MUCH appreciated!

Div_X Factor
28th November 2005, 16:34
A clean install rather than upgrade from 98 will likely cure the problem ;) I have xp running on a 566mhz celeron with 128Mb ram and had no problem decoding XviD at all.

TakuSkan
29th November 2005, 01:14
This week I finally upgraded to Windows XP Pro from the config of Win98SE I'd been running since at least '00 (600Mhz PIII, 192MB SDRAM, ATi Rage 128 Pro 4XL). Are you still using that AIW128 Rage card? I've just got mine set up for the 1st time on an XP based system with a 800MHz Athlon T-Bird CPU.

I can't get mine to capture at any resolution above 320x280. And until installing PICVideo compression today, could only get good output by capturing as an uncompressed AVI. Captures with Huffyuv always end up pixelated.

Were you able to capture at higher resolutions on your system? I'm beginning to wonder if this card is fixed at a ceiling of 320x240 for high resolution capture.

TS

jdoe
29th November 2005, 01:59
A clean install rather than upgrade from 98 will likely cure the problem ;) I have xp running on a 566mhz celeron with 128Mb ram and had no problem decoding XviD at all.
I did do a clean install, on a new partition!

Damn, no trouble at 566Mhz/128Mb, using ffdshow (http://ffdshow.sourceforge.net/)? What the hell could it be..?

Are you still using that AIW128 Rage card?
Yep, still using the Rage 128; I haven't even tried capturing yet, all this trouble's just playing stuff.

Pains me to think about capturing now, all the trouble I'm having just trying to watch anything yet.

Thanks for the help so far, I'm dying to get this solved!

TakuSkan
29th November 2005, 04:53
I did do a clean install, on a new partition!

Damn, no trouble at 566Mhz/128Mb, using ffdshow (http://ffdshow.sourceforge.net/)? What the hell could it be..?Have you tried downloading and trying a few other video players like PowerDVD and WinDVD? Tho' I'd guess your problems may be more likely to be related to your particular XP installation, and the software you loaded right after you got the OS installed though.

You didn't image the drive right after the basic XP installation did you? You could reload that and then just only install the XVid/DivX codecs, and then try playing your files in WMP.

Then... I've completed installations of a new Windows OS, only find it glitchy for some reason where an immediate re-reinstallation fixed the problem. Real bit** that Windows can install on the same system differently 2 times in succession.

If you don't find help here sorting out your WinXP installation problems, maybe try posting over at WUGNET Windows XP Pro-Server-2000-NT Support (http://community.compuserve.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?webtag=ws-winprohelp) in the Compuserve forums.

TS