MCE performance

  Is anyone having trouble with Windows Media Center (WMC) in Vista ultimate?  
Open ended question.  I just purchased a HP m9080n system.  Sometimes while
watching TV the video and sound will start jerking as if the system can't
keep up.  I replaced an old MCE 2004 that didn't have this problem.  Kind of
hard to believe a quad core system couldn't keep up.

Sorry for the bland description.  Just not sure where to start debugging
this one.  WMC isn't failing so there aren't any events generated.

Thanks in advance.

S,
Allen

HP MCE m9080n
Quad  Q6600
3GB Ram
500GB
GeForce 8800 GTS
Hauppauge WinTV HVR-1600
2 - LG L226WTQ Monitors
MS Natural 4000 Keyboard
Vista Ultimate 32bit with SP1 RTM (problem there with and w/o SP1)

 The MC video decoders only use one core at a time since it cannot split the
decoding into two threads since the resulting frame content is dependent on
the content of the previous frame. Since the core the decoder is using may
change after each I/O so you get the appearance of it using multiple cores.
However a second and third  core can be used a small amount just to double
the input of the data buffers to the disk I/O routine to support time
shifting.

Following are some questions that may assist in finding the cause of your
stuttering problem.
What decoder are you using for MC?
Does the stuttering depend on what type of TV you are watching  (SD, 720PHD.
1080iHD)?
What make/model graphics card are you using?

  I would like to add because the reason I am making my entry is because I have
invested quite a bit of time and money in the MCE system integrating with my
Home Entertainment System.
 I have an in house hardwired network which has a NAS drive in my bedroom
closet connected to directly to my Fios Router. The router is connected to
the wall network which, in my livingroom is my HP Slimline PC which works as
the brains of my Entertainment System. My movies are stored on my NAS drive
while my recorded TV shows are recorded onto my Slimline PC. My issue is
sometimes (not all of the times) I get a very weird lag, where the video at
certain times stops and then speedsup in order to catch up with the audio. I
have experienced lip sync issues with other non related media recordings, but
for the most part I am extremely satisfied with the current setup. My system
consists of  an AMD X2 4200+ 2.2Ghz dual core processor, 3gigs of Ram, 750
SATA HD and Vista MCE. I am willing to invest in upgrading my network in wall
wiring to Cat6 and upgrading my AMD Processor to a 5200+ which would give me
4096k on die memory, but only if it will increase performance, if not what do
you suggest? I am strongly considering upgrading to a 1 gig network
interface, but is it really neceessary for movies? or is 100 mbs enough?


"JW" wrote:

 When the video can not keep up with the audio it is normally because the
graphics card can not process the input buffers are the rate they are being
received due to an underpowered graphics processor, low amount of graphics
card memory, or due to trying to output on multiple displays.
The biggest load on a graphics card comes from watching 1080i HD programs
and the least load comes from SD 480i programs.   Also it is critical that
the drivers for your graphics card are the latest from the graphics chip
manufacturer or laptop vendor and not the ones from WinUpdate.
What make/model graphics card are you using with what driver release for it?
Also what resolution TV programs are you trying to watch with it?
If using MCE2005 what MCE compatible decoder software are you using?

 System is as follows
Processor - AMD X2 4200+
Video Card - EVGA GeForce 8400GS 256Mb
RAM - 3Gig
This is sort of odd, but I think you are pointing inot the right direction.
I am thinking about buying a better unit. The size is so convenient, and I
will be looking for another HP Slimline device. I did upgrade my video card
drivers directly from the site, as well as a bios upgrade from HP.
I upped my resolution to 720P (oddly enough before the system was using 420P).
I have been having problems with my PC, which is why I bought a graphics
card to begin with. The more I get familiar with the interface the more I am
really liking MCE especially for my home theater setup.
Since I hooked up the in wall network wires, I bought a Marantz receiver,
new Monster Cable wires and had Fire Dog place My TV on the wall. Everything
really works well with MCE, the skip thing is only happening on rare
occassions and onlt with certain mvies at a certain time so it may also be
other services that are running.
"JW" wrote: