06 Jun 2009

avisynth/mencoder transcoding for ps3 media server on windows 7

06 Jun 2009

Finally managed to get CoreAVC + Subtitles + Avisynth/Mencoder working for the PS3 Media Server on Windows 7 RC.

By right, the default usage of just Mencoder for transcoding with subtitles is just fine. However, I have some anime files that don’t size/zoom just right on the TV (i.e. there is no Zoom screen mode on the PS3, instead Normal mode displays like Zoom mode). AviSynth/Mencoder displays them fine though, with all 3 screen modes available, but of course, no subtitles. And since I have CoreAVC with CUDA acceleration, might as well make use of it for the other 1080p files.

So yes, follow the instructions for CoreAVC in PS3 Media Server’s README/FAQ files.

Then implement this hack to stop Windows 7 from using its built in DTV-DVD filter:
Replacing the Default DTV/DVD Decoder without Breaking Live TV Playback
(Take note of the different registry path for 64-bit in the comments)

Now, you should be set. I’ve tested this so far with MKV files that have built in subtitles. With vsfilter.dll in the Avisynth plugins folder, I’m expecting double subs to appear for movies with external subs (this is my assumption by logic, but might not be the case), so removing vsfilter.dll from the plugins dir might help with that.

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  1. myuu June 9th, 2009 8:53AM

    yep, vsfilter.dll is not needed in plugins dir if it’s already autoloaded as part of the directshow source.

    only remaining issue is network bandwidth. my core i7 is totally blazing through the transcode, but at some parts traffic can go up to 170Mbps (was testing with 10,000BC 1080p, during the aerial shots). the maximum bandwidth option with mencoder doesn’t seem to work.

  2. myuu June 10th, 2009 4:31PM

    So it seems that the PS3 bandwidth display can be wrong when data is not coming as much as it should. PMS bitrate display shows actual transmit of 70000kbps during stuttering. I guess I can’t expect Ethernet to be 100% efficient at 100Mbps. Will probably need to upgrade to a Gigabit network.

    But in the meantime, the maximum bandwidth option still doesn’t work. :S

  3. biatch0 November 9th, 2009 3:36PM

    Try playing around with the other switches ie. vqscale, vqmin.

    After the amount of trouble I’ve gone through with transcoding, I gave up and decided muxing beforehand is more worth it (and it saves the trouble/electricity of turning on “The Behemoth”).

    Or we could just wait for the PS3 to support MKV natively.

  4. myuu November 10th, 2009 8:55AM

    Well, what I did was just lay CAT6 from the PS3 to The Behemoth, straight to a bridged Gigabit adapter to bypass the router. 😛 Electricity use is definitely a concern, so will probably need to work out some sleep/wakeup scheme to keep my RSS torrents working.

    I wish they’d bring in the Drobo. That’s something I’d like to get my hands on.

  5. biatch0 November 14th, 2009 9:31PM

    Hows the throughput after you switched to CAT6? I’m thinking about doing the same but the price is disturbing once you multiply it by the amount of cables you need.

  6. myuu November 17th, 2009 10:54AM

    Haven’t measured its exact t/put, but so far no hiccups with all 1080p material I’ve played so far. The flying cranes scene from Planet Earth came out OK (except for some very slight jutter, which I think is just my TV).

    Pricewise yeah, it’s expensive. But ppl tell me CAT 5e works just as well.

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