Sage & ZBox HD-ID11-U - Not a match made in heaven?

[ChaOConnor]

Good morning!

Last week NewEgg had a great deal on the ZOTAC ZBOX ZBOXHD-ID11-U Intel Atom D510 1.66 GHz Dual Core All-in-One Mini-PC with a "free" 250GB, 7200 RPM Seagate Hard Drive. I bit the bullet and put a 4 gb SO-DIMM in it. Now I'm starting to think I need to sell this piece.

I installed Windows 7, the latest beta nVidia drivers (supposed to take care of the flash issue), CoreAVC codec (for h.264 playback) & a Sage 7 Client. I can't seem to get it working without stuttering, albeit I have many different types of encodes.

Essentially I have two HDHomeruns that pull in Clear QAM from Fios, and one for OTA, I have a lot of DVD Rips in various format (VC-1, h.264, anything MediaShrink puts out) and now I'm into BluRay rips, which I think are all h.264.

I've read the threads on getting HW Acceleration on IONs, and poured over the forums here, but I can't seem to get any combination to work.

What's the general consensus? Should I be Craigslist'ing this? Appreciate any inputs you can provide!

- Cha

[LehighBri]

This may sound simple, but have you tried turning on Fullscreen Exclusive (FSE)? It's under the Detailed Setup section.

And what encoder do you have set for MPEG4 playback?

[ChaOConnor]

Not sure on the MPEG4 encoder, what do you recommend? i'll have to check tonight when I get home.

I've tried FSE, which helps definetely (especially for things like the BluRay Avatar rip), but then it gets goofy if i switch to desktop and back, freezes up the screen.

[LehighBri]

Originally Posted by ChaOConnor

I've tried FSE, which helps definetely (especially for things like the BluRay Avatar rip), but then it gets goofy if i switch to desktop and back, freezes up the screen.

I use for Windows 7's built in encoder for MPEG4. And re: FSE and going to your desktop, yes it's definitely finnicky but if it works, just don't toggle back and forth.

[ChaOConnor]

Built in, meaning Sage encoder or the Microsoft one? Thanks!

[LehighBri]

Originally Posted by ChaOConnor

Built in, meaning Sage encoder or the Microsoft one? Thanks!

Microsoft

[ChaOConnor]

So your Acer has been solid for you? No issues? I hope I can get there, thanks for your inputs!

[LehighBri]

Originally Posted by ChaOConnor

So your Acer has been solid for you? No issues? I hope I can get there, thanks for your inputs!

Rock solid, silky smooth. Just took me a while to figure out things like FSE and which decoders to use.

[ChaOConnor]

What nVidia drivers are you using? Thanks!

[LehighBri]

Originally Posted by ChaOConnor

What nVidia drivers are you using? Thanks!

Latest ones on their site. And I'm using Sage 7 as well. Keep playing around with different combinations of decoders and see what works for each of the following:

MPEG4
H.264
DVD (either ripped or disc)

[Taddeusz]

On Windows 7 I would think that the builtin Microsoft video decoder would work better than CoreAVC for hardware acceleration. Rather than using DXVA or EVR for hardware acceleration like every other decoder on the market CoreAVC requires a GPU with CUDA support. Of course, according to their web site nVidia ION should provide CUDA acceleration for CoreAVC.

Still, not a fan of CoreAVC. They've essentially shut out most of the market since only those with a supported nVidia card can really take advantage of CoreAVC's hardware acceleration. I suppose it differentiates their product from everyone else's. Not necessarily in a good way since they decided to break from the "industry Windows standard" and not use DXVA or EVR for acceleration. Just rubs me the wrong way. They may have a good product but I'd never know it because I like ATI/AMD cards.

[ChaOConnor]

@LehighBri: Okay, what are you using, EVR, VM9?

Also, what's the MPEG4 decoder, the h.264 one?

What do you have set for MPEG2 & DVD?? I think i'm getting crashing on VC1, that's DVD right? Back to the drawing board.

@Taddeusz: I hear you on CoreAVC... I'm going to try not using it, see if it's any better.

Thanks!

EDIT: When ever I try playing a file, details are AVI[MPEG4-Video 632x266@24fps, MP3/112Kpbs@48kHz Stereo, I get a Playback Exception Error: (-4,80004005) Any ideas what that's about? Plays fine on the HD-200. No matter what I change, I can't seem to isolate this bug.

[Taddeusz]

Originally Posted by ChaOConnor

EDIT: When ever I try playing a file, details are AVI[MPEG4-Video 632x266@24fps, MP3/112Kpbs@48kHz Stereo, I get a Playback Exception Error: (-4,80004005) Any ideas what that's about? Plays fine on the HD-200. No matter what I change, I can't seem to isolate this bug.

The whole MPEG4 and H.264 thing is so confusing. I wish they would have just included a single video standard in MPEG4 but alas. MPEG4 by SageTV's definitions is Divx or Xvid. Otherwise it is listed as H.264 even though both are technically MPEG4. For playback of "MPEG4" in SageTV you'll need either Xvid or Divx codecs.

[ChaOConnor]

Okay, so I should uninstall CoreAVC and just go w/ the MS decoder, but I also have into install a Divx or Xvid decoder?

I know codec packs are usually anathema, but should I consider one to handle all this crap?

[Taddeusz]

No, it's best to install the individual codecs that you need. It all works best that way.

[ChaOConnor]

I un-installed CoreAVC last night, switched it to the Microsoft decoders, most is working.

I still am getting that playback exception, Divx didn't take care of it, I didn't try xvid, guess I'll try that tonight.

I'm just getting frustrated on making this all work. Think I should just ditch it? I really though this would be a perfect system for an HTPC.

[paulbeers]

I'm just gonna say it: Extender. I used to mess with this kind of stuff, but frankly I got tired of it. I just wanted to watch TV! If I wanted a Gaming/Internet/Etc rig, I would just have a PC sitting next to my extender that I would turn on only when needed. Frankly those issues just frustrate me too much..... I fought with full clients for a long time.

[ChaOConnor]

Funny thing is I have an extender already. My intent with the client was to have it mimic the extender, and then when SiliconDust comes out w/ their CableCard device, I could use Sage 99% of the time, but for those few shows we want to watch not OTA or Clear QAM, I could switch into WMC and watch them. I'm beginning to think my dream is not going to work out. lol

[ChaOConnor]

How come all these files I have trouble with in Sage, play fine in MPC-HC or VLC? Should I be using something like the External Apps plugin to feed video files to MPC?