[Gamester17]

I also have an ATI HD 3450, which as you know has x.264 hardware decoding (DXDA). BUT, know this...most videos don't even support DXDA because there is a very specific specification for this and most people aren't taking this into account when they encode a video.

I think you mean DXVA (DirectX Video Acceleration), not DXDA, and DXVA is a subset of the DirectShow framework, and XBMC for Linux/Mac/Windows does not use DirectX nor DirectShow (we can't use it as it is not cross-platform as we want XBMC to run on multiple platforms).

MediaPortal is DirectX and DirectShow based and thus uses Microsoft's DirectShow framework as its audio/video player (not its own like XBMC, instead it is fully dependent on Microsoft libraries and APIs), XBMC is not DirectShow based but uses its own FFmpeg based player (no Microsoft dependencies at all), MediaPortal only works on Microsoft Windows operating-system and will only ever work on Microsoft Windows operating-system as long as it is DirectX and DirectShow based. XBMC on the other hand is a cross-platform that works on Linux, Mac, Windows and Xbox (XBMC can not be dependent on Microsoft libraries, or any other operating-system specific libraires or API as long as we want to stay a cross-platform software, and that is what we want). There are of course workarounds but they may be more work to implement that they are worth, please read these if you really are interested:
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=32889
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=33381
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=19714
http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=Codec_and_Format_requests
http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=DVDPlayer
http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=MPlayer
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=29273

Again, XBMC does not curently use the GPU (Graphic Processor Unit) to decode video, (currently it is really the CPU that does all the work which is the reason you right now need a really fast one to decode 1080p H.264 videos), but someone is working on a cross-platform (operating-system independent) method for off-loading some of the video decoding process to the GPU, see => http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=33802

Please do not reply before you done more research and got some knowledge behind your words.

Wikipedia and Google are your friends, feel me?

[tusk]

I'm not sure if this is the reason, but there's something to be said for installing XBMC on an OS and not have to worry about codecs. It would be nice to have an option to let you choose a codec, but personally I think the developers time is better spent on optimizing what's already in XBMC for HD playback and maybe add options to choose codecs later.

That's legit. And since most people are probably not watching HD content then maybe it's ok that it works this way. However, HD content is currently dependent on a lot of different variables if you want high quality playback.

Since the program plays HD content at all, it should be playing it properly. Otherwise, they could just say "yeah, HD stuff is still in development and when it's there we'll let you know". Of course, people with monster fast computers (for their home media PC? ehhh, probably not) will have no problems with the HD content. But, as you can see from my post and the previous guys, our computers aren't Pentium III 600s or anything, they are fairly respectable machines.

Mine even has a nice fast HD decoding video card. But the CPU still isn't that great for HD x.264 decoding and I'd have to drop probably around $300 right now to get it to that point. But, other software packages allow me to play that same content better if not perfectly? I'd think the XBMC guys would not want "We'll do it, we won't do it great, but we'll do it".

And to conclude, XBMC has been around a lot longer than Media Portal - why soil their name by releasing a product that won't even do what it's supposed to? Just my opinion. I am definitely awaiting the day when the kinks are worked out. XBMC is simpler and more intuitive and I'd love to switch over to it.

[watzen]

some facts:

* The GPU isn't used at all for videodecoding.
* The XBMC DVDplayer is built using FFmpeg
* It does not use external codecs for videoplayback

[tusk]

some facts:

* The GPU isn't used at all for videodecoding.
* The XBMC DVDplayer is built using FFmpeg
* It does not use external codecs for videoplayback

Ok? I don't see that this helps at all. GPU is used for video decoding in certain situations, when the card, software and video format are all in line with each other. I have a video card that does x.264 decoding, just not in all situations, and definitely not with XBMC.

We know it doesn't use external codecs, that was what our whole conversation was about.

[kraqh3d]

And the answer is so that Xbmc can remain platform independent. That's it. Xbmc is still in its infancy on platforms other than the Xbox. Use MediaPortal in the meantime, but keep checking back every so often.

[tusk]

Sounds straight-forward enough to me. Thanks kragh3d.

[jmarshall]

And to be honest, I doubt whether we'll bother trying to use "local codecs" at anytime - at least not the current crop of developers. The code is opensource, however, so folk are free to add another player that uses DirectShow if folk wish to.

[User 34470]

anything i get a video with 1080p or with a dts track, i get lagg on the screen.
but when i use regular windows player classic and doesnt lag.

Is xbmc ever going to change the way it handles hidef video like with coreavc.

[User 34470]

i also want to know if the linux verson has this problem?

[pike]

XBMC (for any platform) doesn't do any hardware acceleration.
Our decoder isn't as quick as Coreavc either.
What this means is that XBMC needs a little more hardware resouces (mainly CPU) to accomplish the same thing that Coreavc does on less.

As FFMpeg get's better at decoding h.264, so will we

[User 34470]

is there ever going to be option to use your codecs?

[jmarshall]

We never rule anything out, but to be honest I'd consider that unlikely.

CPU is cheap and getting cheaper, and ffmpeg is already fast, and is always getting faster. It won't be long now where the free codecs will do just as well (if not better) than the closed-source variants.

Cheers,
Jonathan

[natethomas]

This thread is crazy. It's like the devs write the words, then the people ignore the words, type "how it ought to be," then, when they aren't agreed with, re-type "how it ought to be." Having just read a Discworld book, I'd say this thread is Ank-Morpork personified.

Some things everyone should keep in mind:

1. External codecs make for instant confusion and headaches to the uninitiated.

2. XBMC devs (to the best of my knowledge) do not work on ffmpeg, even if there is a fairly constant conversation between the dev groups, so asking the XBMC folk for better codecs is an exercise in futility.

3. Please, please, please, please, please do some reading before you decide to talk about hardware decoding. This is not supported and will not be supported until the ffmpeg folks can get AMD and Nvidia to open some key pieces of code.

[User 34470]

I wish i could use xbmc now instead waiting on a fix on something it should of been doing in the first place.

[jmarshall]

Thanks for your contribution to the forums. This is how it works. If you don't like it, use something else.

Cheers,
Jonathan