AnimeSuki Forums

Erif · 2012-04-19, 18:57

So I'm having playback trouble (oho, wouldn't have guessed it). Let me try to explain the situation.

Only recently did I start downloading anime, around the beginning of the fall season to be exact, and after much experimentation I found that the MPC-HC + madVR video setup worked best for me (http://haruhichan.com/wpblog/?p=205, except I don't actually use madVR, that shit crashes my computer. Instead I use VMR-9 renderless). I didn't want to torrent, so I found a good direct download site index (Minitheatre) and downloaded most stuff from there. Only recently, after Megavideo, Fileserve, and every other DDL site and their mother shut down, things began to get tricky. Encoders had to reupload their encodes, but had no where to upload them too. So they either resorted to shoddy, popup-inducing DDL sites know one has ever heard of, or sites that won't load on my browser. And sure, Mediafire is still running and arguably has always been the best, but for reasons unknown to me a bunch of people of people don't seem to use it.

So, naturally, I started torrenting, and all was well (beside the 200-300MB increase in filesize). Or so I thought. For some reason the torrent files are choppy, and occasionally the sound filters out (but not very often). I know it's only for these torrented files, because I went back to watch an action-heavy Fate/Zero episode I downloaded from minitheatre, and it worked perfectly fine.

And what's the fucking problem? I have no clue. So, what, does the large filesize affect my video playback or something? I heard somewhere that seeding a video while watching it can slow down the playback, but that seems not to be true. Or can my comp just not handle it, and will I need to get a new computer? Halp me.

PositronCannon · 2012-04-19, 20:03

What's your computer specs (mainly CPU)? Minitheatre releases seem like low complexity encodes to me, plus yes, higher filesize (and thus bitrate) does mean more stuff for the CPU to handle. I'm actually trying to get one of their files to check but holy crap their download options are terrible, barely 100 KB/s.

Considering your issues with other playback setups and madVR, I'm willing to bet your computer is the issue. A fresh install of CCCP and enabling LAV Filters for H264 playback should probably be the most efficient setup, maybe replace VSFilter with xy-vsfilter to reduce lag with softsubs.

I'll ask what most likely is a stupid question, though. The torrents are properly finished when you try to play the files, right?

Incomplete files have never played at all for me, but I've heard of cases where they do.

Edit: Yeah, I get about 5-8% CPU usage from this encode as opposed to the usual ~15% from properly encoded 720p releases (for reference, CPU is a dual core i3 370M at 2.4GHz). Because really, this looks like crap and makes me wonder why they don't downscale to 480p at this point if they're going for small files... right, most people only care about resolution.

Also lol audio encoded in mono. I don't even.

Erif · 2012-04-19, 21:06

Eh? I think the minitheatre releases are pretty good, for the most part. Or maybe I'm a noob and have no fucking idea what I'm talking about (likely the latter). Seriously, I don't even know why "audio encoded in mono" would be a bad thing". And yeah, the downloads are slow as hell, as of late. But it might be my only option unless I figure out some solution.

Yeah, my CPU is an Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 2.40GHz, so from my limited knowledge, nothing special. Yes, my torrents are definitely finished when I play them. I'm pretty sure I have LAV filters installed and enabled for the setup I'm using. Do you really think CCCP would make much of a difference? That's the first setup I used, but it didn't seem to be as efficient as the setup I'm using now. What I'm saying is, sometimes the audio and video went out of sync. I could always try it again.

PositronCannon · 2012-04-19, 21:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Erif

I'm pretty sure I have LAV filters installed and enabled for the setup I'm using. Do you really think CCCP would make much of a difference? That's the first setup I used, but it didn't seem to be as efficient as the setup I'm using now.

Nevermind then, I just mentioned CCCP as an easy way to install the stuff and make sure there's no conflicts, but you should be fine. But yeah, a Pentium 4 is kind of... bad by now. It's several generations behind, in fact, a friend of mine has a somewhat newer CPU (Pentium D) and still struggles with some 720p encodes, especially openings, with 10bit H264 being out of the question.

As for the mono thing, the reduction in bitrate from using mono instead of stereo is negligible, especially if you use a modern codec like AAC or Vorbis, and stereo sound is pretty much a given everywhere nowadays.

Erif · 2012-04-21, 13:50

So, I guess I need to either get a better computer, or switch to small, 480p encodes so my current comp can handle it.

2012-04-19, 18:57	Link #1
Erif It's pretty food. Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: D.C. Age: 28	Playback Trouble So I'm having playback trouble (oho, wouldn't have guessed it). Let me try to explain the situation. Only recently did I start downloading anime, around the beginning of the fall season to be exact, and after much experimentation I found that the MPC-HC + madVR video setup worked best for me (http://haruhichan.com/wpblog/?p=205, except I don't actually use madVR, that shit crashes my computer. Instead I use VMR-9 renderless). I didn't want to torrent, so I found a good direct download site index (Minitheatre) and downloaded most stuff from there. Only recently, after Megavideo, Fileserve, and every other DDL site and their mother shut down, things began to get tricky. Encoders had to reupload their encodes, but had no where to upload them too. So they either resorted to shoddy, popup-inducing DDL sites know one has ever heard of, or sites that won't load on my browser. And sure, Mediafire is still running and arguably has always been the best, but for reasons unknown to me a bunch of people of people don't seem to use it. So, naturally, I started torrenting, and all was well (beside the 200-300MB increase in filesize). Or so I thought. For some reason the torrent files are choppy, and occasionally the sound filters out (but not very often). I know it's only for these torrented files, because I went back to watch an action-heavy Fate/Zero episode I downloaded from minitheatre, and it worked perfectly fine. And what's the fucking problem? I have no clue. So, what, does the large filesize affect my video playback or something? I heard somewhere that seeding a video while watching it can slow down the playback, but that seems not to be true. Or can my comp just not handle it, and will I need to get a new computer? Halp me.

2012-04-19, 20:03	Link #2
PositronCannon Senior Member Fansubber Join Date: May 2010 Location: Spain Age: 33	What's your computer specs (mainly CPU)? Minitheatre releases seem like low complexity encodes to me, plus yes, higher filesize (and thus bitrate) does mean more stuff for the CPU to handle. I'm actually trying to get one of their files to check but holy crap their download options are terrible, barely 100 KB/s. Considering your issues with other playback setups and madVR, I'm willing to bet your computer is the issue. A fresh install of CCCP and enabling LAV Filters for H264 playback should probably be the most efficient setup, maybe replace VSFilter with xy-vsfilter to reduce lag with softsubs. I'll ask what most likely is a stupid question, though. The torrents are properly finished when you try to play the files, right? Incomplete files have never played at all for me, but I've heard of cases where they do. Edit: Yeah, I get about 5-8% CPU usage from this encode as opposed to the usual ~15% from properly encoded 720p releases (for reference, CPU is a dual core i3 370M at 2.4GHz). Because really, this looks like crap and makes me wonder why they don't downscale to 480p at this point if they're going for small files... right, most people only care about resolution. Also lol audio encoded in mono. I don't even. Last edited by PositronCannon; 2012-04-19 at 20:36.

2012-04-19, 21:06	Link #3
Erif It's pretty food. Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: D.C. Age: 28	Eh? I think the minitheatre releases are pretty good, for the most part. Or maybe I'm a noob and have no fucking idea what I'm talking about (likely the latter). Seriously, I don't even know why "audio encoded in mono" would be a bad thing". And yeah, the downloads are slow as hell, as of late. But it might be my only option unless I figure out some solution. Yeah, my CPU is an Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 2.40GHz, so from my limited knowledge, nothing special. Yes, my torrents are definitely finished when I play them. I'm pretty sure I have LAV filters installed and enabled for the setup I'm using. Do you really think CCCP would make much of a difference? That's the first setup I used, but it didn't seem to be as efficient as the setup I'm using now. What I'm saying is, sometimes the audio and video went out of sync. I could always try it again.

2012-04-21, 13:50	Link #5
Erif It's pretty food. Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: D.C. Age: 28	So, I guess I need to either get a better computer, or switch to small, 480p encodes so my current comp can handle it.