Artefacts and bad sound since DVB-Link 5.5

[valix]

Hi there,

I've a problem with DVB-Server DVB-Source 5.5. Since that release I got artefacts in picture and sound every 1or 2 seconds in recordings and live-stream (encoded and not encoded)
I already went back form Windows 10 to Windows 8.1, I reinstalled Windows and all drivers completly, that meas it is a fresh system now.

Does anybody no how to solve that?

My system is an AMD Athlon 5350 with 16 GB Memory and a Samsung 830 SSD and I run currently Windows 8.1. The TV source is a PCTV Systems 461e Stick (DVB-S).

aWith 5.1 all works fine, the only error I got a few times was that it didn't stop to stream after closing the client, but that's not the point right here.

[the_man]

During the watching Live TV go to Monitoring tab, Are there any of Errors or Discontinuity count?
Also,Please, set log level to info, restart dvblink server, reproduce the issue and attach zipped log file here.

[valix]

ok, thank you, that's strange. Since 2 weeks I try to solve this issue and now? I cannot reproduce it. Just one hour ago it was still possible, that was when I tested if the error exists on records.

[valix]

Ok, it isn't solved. Yesterday I recorded a tv movie and after 2/3 of the time the arefactes came again.

I used the sat cable connection since 6 years without any problems and good signal. The cable is checked, and the weather was good. I never had this problem before with any other software (PCTV TV-Center, Windows Media Center 12, DVB-Link 5.1).
As far as I could check I couldn't find any raise of error or discontinuity count.

Because I could reproduce this error on demand, and I thought that it was vanished, I didn't change the loglevel to "information" until now.

Perhaps an update to the latetest build would solve it. That's the next step I will try.

[valix]

I still couln't solve the issue, even with a PCTV 460e. At the moment it is the 461e connected.

You can download the log file right here.
And here I uploaded a short "teaser" of my "great" recordings, dated 11/1/15. It doesn't matter if HD or SD. And that's what I can see in live stream too.
Meanwhile I replace the cable too.
And here a good record dated 11/2/15. It was done with the same PC and the same TV-Stick and the same TV Channel at the same SAT cabling, the only thing I change was the recording software. This time I used TVCenter by PCTV. And even the good one were made when it was foggy and the bad one when the sky were clear.

[the_man]

Sorry, no one from links you have posted can't be openned.
You can attach log files rigt here ( "Upload attachment" button)

[valix]

Right, I forgot that the links are protected by GeoIP . I changed the links and please check my update above.
DVB Link 5.1 weren't perfect but worked much better. Records were very rarely faulty, now all DVB Link records / streams are faulty. But the good record shows that it is no hardware problem.

[the_man]

Can you,please, conduct the investigation, as i wrote earlier:

...
And during the watching Live TV go to Monitoring tab, Are there any of Errors or Discontinuity count?
Also,Please, set log level to info, restart dvblink server, reproduce the issue and attach zipped log file here.

By the way, Does stuttering and pixelation happens only with recordings or with LIve TV too?
And as i remember, there was the similar issue on the forum and it was related to power management or so.

[valix]

Can you,please, conduct the investigation, as i wrote earlier:

...
And during the watching Live TV go to Monitoring tab, Are there any of Errors or Discontinuity count?
Also,Please, set log level to info, restart dvblink server, reproduce the issue and attach zipped log file here.

I appologize, but I don't understand why you ask again for that . I thought, that I already provide that information above. As you can see I already put the log level to extended info. See my uploaded files above.

The first screen below show the live encoding of a tv stream to a mobile device (Lumia 735), that means that is the situation with the highest system requirements for a IP-TV-System.

live-tv.PNG (44.51 KiB) Viewed 8108 times

dvbsetting.PNG (43.26 KiB) Viewed 8108 times

By the way, Does stuttering and pixelation happens only with recordings or with LIve TV too?#

As I wrote I got this faults everytime with both, when I got them.

Since yesterday noon I test at the moment the first time again DVB-Link Live-Stream and get no faults. The only thing I changed was, that I installed the alternative TV software TVCenter. But the temporarily vanishing of the faults isn't unfamiliar to me as you can see in the thread (Post of August 18th). I have lots of hours of records on my disk I made on saturday and sunday and they were all crap.

And as i remember, there was the similar issue on the forum and it was related to power management or so.

Um, I use the balanced power setting in Windows.

PS: In September I tested the DVB-Link 5.5 on my Synology NAS (DS214) but 5.5 didn't find my TV Sticks and 5.1 didn't offer TV-Server anymore since 5.5 is released.

[the_man]

Just for test try to set "High Performance" in power manager of windows, restart dvblink server and try to reproduce the issue one more time.

"
Go to Control Panel -> Hardware and Sound -> Power Options and click Change plan settings near your plan (e.g. I use High performance for CPU intensive tasks, such as gaming).
Then click on Change advanced power settings.
Scroll down to Processor power management and expand it.
Expand Maximum processor state and modify both On battery and Plugged in to 99%.
Then simply click Apply and OK.
Note:
Also please make sure, that Minimum processor state is not greater than Maximum processor state (in this case - 99%), because it won't wprk. I suggest you to set it to 5% or so.
And that’s it, no more Turbo Boost, no more overheating and if there is a need - these changes are very easy to revert. What you just did is created a limit, that prevents your laptop to go into such state, when Turbo Boost kicks in.
"

[valix]

Ok. I will do that, when I get the faults the next time. I'll get back

[valix]

Since yesterday evening I get again the described faulty records and streams. I tried to switch the powermanagement to High Performance, but it didn't changed anything.
Now I rebootet the PC, that restarted the DVB-Link server, but nothing changed. I bet in 2 or 3 days the fault will be gone for 2 or 3 days.
And as I already mentioned, there a no problems with TVCenter.

Update:

I guess I found a strange workaround:

When I have faulty streams or records, I need to start the TV-Center software and watch a channel for some seconds. Then I terminate TV-Center and DVB-Link works again much better.
But this is not based on a incompatibity between both software, because the DVB-Link faults even exists without TV-Center installed.
I need TVCenter to make DVB-Link work correctly - this just can't be true.

[the_man]

Ok. Can you conduct next test?
- install VLC player on the machine where the dvblink server is running
- when the issue will appear, just start VLC player and wait a few sec(~5)
- Does it help?

[valix]

Yes, the first try with opened vlc while tv streaming looks good. As soon as I close vlc the stream is faulty again.

[the_man]

The only way, i can suggest you, it's workaround with running VLC as service.
How to, look for here:
http://wiki.hobbyistsoftware.com/wiki/VLC_Remote_Tips
("Keep VLC as top window in windows and/or Start VLC automatically on Windows" Headers)

As i remember from the earlier days that users had issues with speedstep Intel technology and the Cool&Quite technology from AMD. The problem description was very comparable. This technology had to be switched off in BIOS and then errors/discontinuities have disappeared. It may be that VLC either loads the machine so that it gets disabled or disables it somehow.