Samsung UB407020 vc1 encoded video problem

Hi tyrexden.
I've not found a solution yet and there appears to be no one from HDTech able to give some attention on this so far. I may have to submit another post on VC1 video (or avc1) specifically and it's apparent incompatibilty on the Samsung 40b7020 set. Last thing I want to do is transcode so I hope just a simple instruction will be coming.

Have you had any luck?

Rav.
Mac Pro, Windows Vista Ultimate, Samsung ue40b7020 tv set, PC Share Manager

Rav100,

I'm looking through the manual (for U.S. models), and VC1 is only applicable with a .wmv audio codec, and when the resolution is 1920x1080. If that's not working, I'm not sure what else I can recommend other than calling the service center in your region.

Compatibility with the Mac Pro may be an issue. As this time, we don't support the Mac interface. Not to say it can't be done, but we don't have support in place for helping you do that. The forums are a great place for those discussions, however, and I welcome the dialogue.

--HDTech

Thank you HDTech for replying.

I managed to change the audio to aac, and the video is in 1080p format. My Mac Pro, which is in Windows dual boot mode (Vista Ultimate), has been able to playback my h264 movie files so I was wondering whether vc1 is not supported. Is there perhaps a simple test to see whether vc1 is compatible on my tv set (using my PC Share Manager connection)? I was also wondering whether it is possible to encode vc1 to a compatible format losslessly.
Thanks.
Rav.

Rav100,

The only way I can think to test a VC1 is to make sure the file, audio codec and resolution are per the manual's specifications.

I don't know about transferring formats losslessly, but typically if the compression rate is higher, you'll probably still be able to enjoy your movie. A general rule of thumb is that if the file you're creating is smaller than the original file, you'll probably be satisfied.

--HDTech

Hi HDTech.
I've managed to convert the M2TS file into wmv format with Microsoft's Expression Encoder 3 (trial version) and at lower bitrates it works! My only problem is the possibility that my Samsung tv is unable to cope with high bitrate encoding. I have only managed to raise the encoding bitrate to 4 - 5 mbps so it is nowhere near the source quality. I have attempted to raise the bitrate towards 7-8 mbps but the image becomes stuttering (or jerky) when playing on my TV (using PC Share Manager).

Just to check the encoding was not at fault, I raised the bitrate on Expression Encoder to it's highest setting for encoding, to a full 20 mbps, and it played flawlessly using a software player (VLC) on my computer.

Can you possibly tell me whether there are any options to try and get around this low bitrate problem on my tv. Is there anything I can do to my tv settings for instance. I had assumed that the inbuilt capabilities of the tv for decoding of wmv, mkv, etc, and a Lan connection would be more than sufficient to cope with far more than 10 mbps.
Thankyou in the meantime for responding!
Rav.

Rav100,

There are probably people in here who could run circles around my re-encoding skills. One thing in particular is your network, as the television can support 802.11g/n formats which should support high bitrate transfers, though the files can be re-encoded a number of ways to stream to the TV.

If any forum members has expertise, it's certainly welcome.

--HDTech

Thanks for getting back HDTech. It appears there are no others with the knowledge to help me in this matter. I will try in other forum and get back hopefully with a solution. But if anyone can help in the meantime I would be very grateful.

Ravi.

Hello. I'm also struggling to find correct container/codec combination for vc1 encoded files. As I understand, Samsung only supports vc1 in asf container with wma audio and filetype must be wmv.

But to your problem. Have you tried to play the high bitrate version directly from usb/external hdd? It might be that dlna connection is the bottleneck here (are you using wireless?)

Hi tuimonen.
I did try an external usb 2 drive (1tb) but it stuttered as the same via dnla. However, I tried out a method of transcoded M2TS (VC1 encoded) material into mp4 with a software called MKV2VOB following advice and it seems to work. (http://www.bitburners.com/articles/convert-mkv-files-for-playstation-3-using-mkv2vob/4022/). If the audio is in DTS, you need to convert that into ac3 through something like eac3to. Then mux the two into an MKV container via mkvmerge.

After that, your pc should stream via dnla to the samsung tv without the stutter.

Thanks.

Rav100

Hello, this indicates that Samsung's decoder just isn't fast enough.