Do these cards have the same problems in Windows or is this just a linux issue? I find it hard to believe that Microsoft would let this card run its Windows Media Center encoding.

Sorry, I had to laugh...

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cesman

When the source is open, the possibilities are endless!

I know, I know. But seriously, isn't this supposed to be production quality stuff?

sorry but I can't answer as I have never tried using it in windows, and certianly not in mce cause I'm not about to pay 2k for a media box that has less functionality than mythtv

I'll try it out in Windows later today and let you know what it looks like. If the quality is better, then I would assume that the ivtv drivers need work.

Ok, I was ready to pull the tigger on a PVR250. I currently have an extra PC w/a 2Ghx intel chip and a nVidia GeForce FX 5200 w/ TV out.

Since i have plenty of power in the the CPU should I about the PVR250 to avout this banding. which capture board should I get to use software encoding. I'll need remote control as well.

Or should I go with the 250 w/ HW encoding and live with the banding described above.

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R5F1 - Dell P4 2.4Ghz 500MB - PVR250 x 2 - GeForce FX 5200 - Onboard sound/NIC 80GB ATA/250GB ATA/400GB SATA

Banding issue?

_________________
cesman

When the source is open, the possibilities are endless!

The first page of this thread includes comments:







Is this an issue or not?

I guess my question is "Given a PC with sufficient CPU power would I be better off with HW or SW encoding"

Given the HW option, the PVR250 w/ remote seems to be the solution.
What is the best recommended capture board for a SW solution?

Thanx,
Chris

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R5F1 - Dell P4 2.4Ghz 500MB - PVR250 x 2 - GeForce FX 5200 - Onboard sound/NIC 80GB ATA/250GB ATA/400GB SATA

well if you are a true video conesure then you are not going to be satisfied period. hardware has these interlacing issues very rarely during high motion, so if you are a sports fanatic and a videophile then this may bother you. It's not as bad as the people on this board make out. I have a pvr card and I can verify that it does do this on the rarest of occasions. Having said that I also have a software card, and the picture is just plain and simple not as good as the pvr. So if you are looking for perfection you will not find it sorry. My suggestion is go for the pvr card.

Thanx, im not a perfectionist, but since I still need to buy the capture board, I just wanted to ask. Looks like im in the market for the 250.

Ive never used (or seen video recorded by) a tivo. Do Tivos exhibit similar, less then perfect, recordings?

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R5F1 - Dell P4 2.4Ghz 500MB - PVR250 x 2 - GeForce FX 5200 - Onboard sound/NIC 80GB ATA/250GB ATA/400GB SATA

I have a tivo and the picture is pretty much broadcast quality. There is every so slightly a bit of compression artifacts, but they are almost impossible to notice. Having said that, I also have the pvr 250 and I would have to say that I am absolutely disappointed with the picture quality. If there is almost no motion, the picture is very good. But any quick motion (especially sports) makes the picture unwatchable. I have probably shown it to 20 people and everyone agrees, so he problem is very easy to see. I can't even use my mythtv box because of it.

If your problem is that noticeable your deinterlacing filter is not working, because the problem should only show up VERY rarely.

If the deinterlace filter is not working or not turned on I could definitely see why you would have a problem with it, but turning that filter on should eliminate 99.5% of all the problems.

Just wanted to comment on the PVR-250's quality and interlacing issues (both of which I know a whole lot more about than Linux).

When the PVR-250 records an MPEG2 file, it preserves the interlaced signal that it's receiving. In my mind, that is A Good Thing. TV is still broadcast as interlaced, at least analog TV is. If you ever want to play that signal back on an analog TV, retaining that proper interlacing is necessary to have the program look correct.

As far as I can tell, the MPEG2 files that the 250 or 350 records does just that. If I take a recorded program from MythTV, move it to my Windows box, and author and burn a DVD, and play that back on a set-top box and TV set, it looks exactly as it should: interlacing is all correct for live video (the easiest way to tell if interlacing is present and correct).

Now, if you're going to be playing that MPEG2 file back on computer, since the display is NOT interlaced, you'll see interlacing artifacts if you don't deinterlace, or don't deinterlace properly. Since (if I'm correct) the 250 doesn't handle MPEG2 playback, any interlacing artifacts aren't really the problem of the 250.

As for other 250 MPEG2 quality issues, it'd be completely dependent on the bitrate and resolution you've set up.

well to complicate things more here is the other problem the nvidia drivers tvout does not support interlace modes so you cannot output the file to the tv interlaced for normal playback and you still have to use the deinterlacing filters.

so, if I'm following along at home correctly...

1) The 250 seems to handle capturing the interlaces signal fine (assuming proper configuration).
2) The output of the mpeg2 file through my nVidia tvout needs to be converted to a non-interlaced mode.
3) This is then displayed on the TV which is expecting interlaced, no? But the TV can handle this.

Seems most folks have good performance with the 250/nVidia config with the exception being 'Fast Action" (again, once properly configed)

Is the all correct?

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R5F1 - Dell P4 2.4Ghz 500MB - PVR250 x 2 - GeForce FX 5200 - Onboard sound/NIC 80GB ATA/250GB ATA/400GB SATA