Hardware/Software Encoding Options

[jimbruskalski]

What are the different encoders? Right now I have a nvidia GeForce 6800 256MB video card. I am only playing with this software now, though and this is not the machine it will ultimately reside on. I am debating what media center software to go with now. I want this to be high end, so I dont mind shelling out the money for a hardware decoder, as I hear these are better and mean less load to the proccessor. How do I enable hardware encoding instead of software? I also have something called nvidia PureVideo encoder that I downloaded a trial for. Is this just software encoding? Wouldnt it be better to do it in the hardware (cheaper, better quality, less load to cpu, etc.)? Does this PureVideo simply work with the hardware to enhance it? Thanks. I am struggling to get all this information under my belt.

Andrew

[stanger89]

Hardware or Software encoding is dictated by the tuner card you buy.

[jimbruskalski]

I thought the tuner card was for tv viewing, not so much for watching dvds stored on your hard drive. I want to have a server that holds the media and has the tuner. So do i need to buy a really good tuner to do the encoding on the server (hardware) and not worry so much about a good video card on the client? Sorry if I am a bother, I am a little confused. Thanks.

Andrew

[jimbruskalski]

So what is the PureVideo encoder? Is that software? Should I be looking into a hardware decoder? Thanks.

Andrew

[stanger89]

Ah, you said encoding (recording) but meant decoding (playback). I see. Actually I'm kind of lost, so I'll just hit everything.

On recording (encoding) side:
You definitely want a hardware encoder card, reatime software encoding is just not very good, and takes a lot of processor power. There are quite a few options anymore:
Hauppauge WinTV PVR line (ie 150, 500)
ATI Theater 550
But what looks the most interesting to me at the moment is the new nVidia PureVideo DualTV card:
http://www.nvidia.com/page/dualtvmce.html
What little I've heard about it seems quite good. I'd try one but I've already got 3 tuners (a PVR 250 and a PVR 500).

On the playback (decoding) side:
There really isn't anything out there for full hardware decoding (where all decoding is done in hardware), there are a couple, like the Sigma Xcard and the MyHD, but both introduce some big sacrifices, like lack of 3rd party application support, limited filetype support, etc.

What you're probably looking at, and thinking of is hardware accelleration (where the harder parts of decoding are done in hardware). This is done by the combination of video card (your 6800) and video decoders (the PureVideo decoders you have a trial of).

I'd say there's two schools of thought on playback:
Hardware accellerated (eg PureVideo) playback for the best overall playback.
Post processed software playback specialized for best film playback.

The second has lots of fans here and on AVS for it's ability to improve well-formatted film (Most DVDs) content. It's most notable for improved sharpness.

I personally opt for the first option, because I watch a good mix of Film (DVD movies) and video (recordings, TV on DVD, etc). Hardware accellerated playback can deal with video and mixed content much better than software playback, plus it's much easier to setup (no tweaking).

You've really got all you need for that, I too have a Geforce 6800 in my HTPC, as well as the nVidia PureVideo decoders. They work very well, I'm quite happy with the setup.

[mike1961]

Okay - a few things to talk about here. First, Sage is hugely customizable and does a LOT of things and I highly recommend it. Also, the Sage forums are great for support and I love the support I get. But, Sage can also be a fun but a time consuming project to set up (if you are trying to get it the way I am which I'll talk about in a moment. But, to your questions:

First - your (some stuff removed) quotes and my replies:

Originally Posted by jimbruskalski

What are the different encoders? I want this to be high end, so I dont mind shelling out the money for a hardware decoder

See - first, don't confuse "encoders" with "decoders" as they are very different. Everyone will strongly recommend that you get tuner cards with hardware encoders (usually mpeg 2 these days but we can't wait for mpeg4 which may be a while). Highly recommended are Hauppauge and/or ATI. I have 2 dual tuner Hauppauge WinTV 500 cards in my file server so that supports four cable boxes. The Win TV cards have dual hardware mpeg2 encoders on each card. This drastically reduces the load on the CPU on the file server. I have recorded 4 shows at once and my file server still has 98% resources free (AMD 3800/x2 on the file server).

Originally Posted by jimbruskalski

How do I enable hardware encoding instead of software

You don't. It's automatic.

Originally Posted by jimbruskalski

I also have something called nvidia PureVideo encoder that I downloaded a trial for.

No - PureVideo is a Decoder not an encoder. Now - let's get one thing crystal clear. The encoder is crucial because the first step to quality is your signal. So, you want good cables, good reception and then a good encoder. Most hardware encoders allow you to select a quality such as 3.2 gb/hour, 2gb/hour etc. Sage allows you to select different qualities depending on the show you record and you can easily specify a default recording quality (as do most PVRs). Once you have your mpeg2 recording if it is lousy (due to a low quality setting, bad Svideo/rca/coax cable) then your output will be lousy no matter how good of a "decoder" you have on your workstation.

Originally Posted by jimbruskalski

I thought the tuner card was for tv viewing, not so much for watching dvds stored on your hard drive. .

I know - it takes time to get all the terminology straight. The tuner card(s) I have 2 in my server that support up to 4 cable boxes. This means that I can record up to 4 shows at one time. Also, if I'm upstairs watching channel 2 and someone is downstairs watching channel 2 then only one cable box (one tuner card) is being used by Sage...Now, that's nice, I like that. I also like the idea of having all my shows stored in one place (the file server).

Watching DVDs and stuff goes back to the workstation. See, with regards to my workstations I'm trading in 3 boxes for one (instead of a TIVO, cable box, and DVD player) I have one small 12x7x7 AOPEN Cube workstation with a DVD. I'm also setting it up so that I can highly compress my movies to mpeg4 for permanent storage (about 500 megs/2 hour movie). Further, I'm setting up an Arcade game interface (there goes the playstation box...just another unneeded box). So, the computer can take place of all the other devices which is great.

Originally Posted by jimbruskalski

I want to have a server that holds the media and has the tuner. So do i need to buy a really good tuner to do the encoding on the server (hardware) and not worry so much about a good video card on the client?.

Now you are on the RIGHT TRACK. Start with your server. Why stop at "one tuner." When I got DirecTV I told them to cable ALL FOUR cables to one room where I have my file server. I staked the D10-100 cable boxes and built serial cables so that my file server running Sage can automatically change the channel on any of the four cable boxes. I decided to go with an AMD 3800/x2 dual processor, 1gb RAM which is certainly way more power than I realized when I see that I can record 4 shows at once and have so many resources free. This is obviously because the WinTV 500 cards have dual hardware encoders on them.

Once you have your server setup, then you have to start (like I did) trying to figure out what workstation to get. There was a thread I started a while back about "client workstations" because I wanted something that was QUIET. Who cares how loud the server is because you can shove that anywhere. I don't recommend running Sage client on the server. I even set up (out of Sage) WinFax and got rid of my fax machine because I got tired of junk faxes. So they now go in files on the server. The thing to consider re: the server is PCI slots which is what I liked the dual tuner WinTV 500 cards.

The AOPEN client workstations I really like. There about $300 but then you have to get a processor, RAM, OS and stuff. Otherwise, the bare bones unit is ready with motherboard, powersupply all installed. It's quiet and comes with an svideo (as well as vga of course) and network 10/100 all on the motherboard. I got mine at newegg.

Hope that helps.
Mike