Emtec 8Gb USB stick for Passion+ in HD

icarusi

I just got a Passion+ yesterday and find that my Emtec 8Gb USB stick seems to work OK for HD. I've tried it at the end of a 5m USB extension cable with no apparent difference to direct into the front panel. S/W is v 1.03 06/08/08 but I have the new s/w downloaded. I'll try my USB HD enclosure with an old Win98 FAT32 drive tomorrow before upgrading so I can compare any differences.

The .ts format seems much more efficient than the mp4 option of Cyberlink Powercinema via my Nova HD S2 pc, which generates mp4 files twice the size and no options, but only Media Player Classic is playing back the .ts files, VLC and KMPlayer are not doing it. Some BBC HD sound was missing on MPC but the file properties were reporting 6 channel audio. Luxe TV was ok with it's mpeg audio.

Playing back via the Passion+ has been generally ok although sometimes the sound has gone glitchy, which a pause/play press has corrected. High and slow speed playback, fwd and reverse also the bookmark function are all working ok.

The PVR pause and timer recordings work ok, although the 'time' settings via the menu need to be correct for UK time etc. I'll double check the 'from standby' timer again as I got 1 from 2 goes OK but think the menu setting was the problem. All timer recordings from 'on' state were ok.

I still haven't found anything to edit these particular .ts files. Avidemux doesn't fully IDX them so won't load. I have previously passed files 'through' Super then edited with Avidemux but Super put a strange lo res pulse through background detail which wasn't on the original, I assume a artifact in Super's mp4 process. I'll try with a Passion+ .ts later.

HB13DISH

Nero can deal with *.ts files.
Try Nero Video Vision

icarusi

Is that part of Nero 9? I can't see 'Nero Video Vision' on their website. Will it accept Passion+ H264 .ts files? H264 seems to be a mish mash as to whose codecs will deal with whose files.

HB13DISH

I use Nero Vision 4 (part of Nero 7) and I don't have HD files. (Not Nero Video Vision)
Nero 9 should have support for HD.
Try to play the *.ts files using the Nero Showtime Player and see what happens.

icarusi

Spoke too soon on this. ITV HD and LuxeTV seem to use less bandwidth or more efficient codec (or both) than BBC HD. BBC is using 1.4Gb=12.5 mins vs ITV and Luxe 1.4Gb=20 mins approx in HD. I assume VBR for ITV as the time varies from 18-22min per 1.4Gb block.

icarusi

Seemed to work at first but then stopped recording leaving on-screen picture frozen and the drive locked in 'write' mode. I could stop the recording with the remote but needed to disconnect and hardstart the drive, which at first showed the 'not ready or not FAT32' error screen before eventually scanning/reading the drive and finding the previous successful recording. Tried again after upgrading the P+ s/w with same results.

On the PC, the drive had the correct folder written but no .nfo file and the .ts and .idx were 0. It's an older IDE drive in a USB housing so I checked the write rate and it was 9MB/s vs 0.5MB/s for the 8Gb flash drive which worked successfully. I have existing files on the drive so didn't reformat on the P+.

I'll be getting a new SATA drive and USB dock this week. If that doesn't work I may be sending the P+ back as I don't want to be forever experimenting on which USB kit will and won't work with it.

icarusi

Appeared to work at first, but the P+ is inconsistent. Perfectly good files written to disk are sometimes unrecognised, causing the 'not ready notFAT32'. Sometimes coaxing by rebooting and powering replugging in various sequences corrects this, but nothing consistent to recommend.