Upscaling DVD software?

dirtydog

dirtydog

dirtydog

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Is there any mainstream software DVD player for Windows which will upscale DVDs? Do WinDVD or PowerDVD do this yet? The last time I tried them, they didn't.

Is the only way to do it, still to fiddle around with FFDShow and obscure players like ZoomPlayer?
 
Nobody?
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dirtydog said:
Nobody?
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If you have a HTPC connected via DVI/HDMI/VGA at 1360X768 then the graphics card is already scaling it to panel Res (its just that FFDshow does it better)

The image is also being converted to progressive scan. I compared the quality between a xbox via component to htpc via HDMI and even using standard software like theatertek the quality difference is insane.

sid
 
sid said:
If you have a HTPC connected via DVI/HDMI/VGA at 1360X768 then the graphics card is already scaling it to panel Res (its just that FFDshow does it better)

The image is also being converted to progressive scan. I compared the quality between a xbox via component to htpc via HDMI and even using standard software like theatertek the quality difference is insane.

sid
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what he said. besides ffdshow is a piece of cake. plenty of people here can help if you need it. im currently using ffdshow to upscale to 720p with my 40w2000 connected via vga. its not the perfect solution because the 40w is a 1080p panel, but the only way to get my 8800 outputting a 1080p signal that my 40w will accept is by using powerstip which currently doesnt support the card lol

anyway as said, its far better. its better than using my 8800 to output component at 1080i as well.
 
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sid said:
If you have a HTPC connected via DVI/HDMI/VGA at 1360X768 then the graphics card is already scaling it to panel Res
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No it isn't :) Filling the screen is not upscaling.

james.miller said:
what he said. besides ffdshow is a piece of cake. plenty of people here can help if you need it. im currently using ffdshow to upscale to 720p with my 40w2000 connected via vga.
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What software player are you using then?

I use ffdshow to upscale DivX/XviD movies and it works well. I have not found it a piece of cake to do the same with DVDs, far from it unfortunately. Even following the well-known guide on HTPCnews to the letter. It makes me curious why the mainstream players like WinDVD haven't made this easy for people.
 
dirtydog said:
No it isn't :) Filling the screen is not upscaling.
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Yes it is. What else can "upscaling" ever mean? Either your screen does it (if you play a DVD using a conventional DVD player on an HDTV), or your DVD software does it, or you get something else like FFDShow to do it first. The idea of it as some magical quality-improvement process is a myth. Of course, the quality of the algorithms in each of these cases varies - in particular, TVs tend to be relatively poor at it because of limited processing capability onboard, and software like FFDShow tends to be good at it. All DVD software does it. FFDShow gives you more flexibility and potentially better enlargement. Of course recent versions of major DVD software always claims to have improved picture quality and so on - though enthusiasts maintain that on large displays FFDShow still beats any of them.
 
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it really is the best solution. mainly because you can tweak the image to your need which you cant do with the hardware scalers in your video card or the tv:)
 
PinkPig said:
Yes it is. What else can "upscaling" ever mean? Either your screen does it (if you play a DVD using a conventional DVD player on an HDTV), or your DVD software does it, or you get something else like FFDShow to do it first. The idea of it as some magical quality-improvement process is a myth.
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No, it isn't a myth :) Clearly you do not know what you are talking about.

And no, WinDVD et al do NOT upscale unless they have started doing it in a recent version.

I probably should have asked this on an HTPC forum where people could be expected to know about this stuff - my fault :)
 
actually he's right. they will all scale the picture to the desktop size. the idea of using ffdshow is to get there first and do it with better quality. But if you dont use ffdshow, the software will scale to fit the desktop. If the card insn't outputting the screen's native res,, the tv will then scale it as well. its better to have ffdshow scaling and the card outputing the native res so no other scaling is involved.

i have a question. when you play a dvd with your software, what happens? it opens in a small window. There, no scaling is involved. what happens then when you maximise the window or go full screen? ;) you can work it out
 
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Unfortunately the graphics card and/or display device make a crap job of it, which is why it needs to be done properly in software. This is why computers make good HTPCs. I just wonder why there isn't a mainstream, user-friendly piece of software to do this. Considering what things like WinDVD cost, and what little they provide for the money, it's not a very good state of affairs. Especially with flat panel monitors and TVs nowadays which really need good upscaling for standard definition DVDs not to look poor.
 
james.miller said:
i have a question. when you play a dvd with your software, what happens? it opens in a small window. There, no scaling is involved. what happens then when you maximise the window or go full screen? ;) you can work it out
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That is not what is commonly understood as 'upscaling', even if technically it could be called such. The form of upscaling you are talking about is rubbish :)
 
james.miller said:
ffdshow? how hard is it, really? it takes all of a minute to set up.
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Did I not already say that it didn't work for me. I also see lots of people have problems so just because it may have been easy for you, and I'd be interested to know how you did it, don't assume it is for everyone.

What software player do you personally use, and will it play back commercial protected DVDs direct from the disc, or do you have to rip the DVD to your HDD first?
 
it is upscaling. the definition of upscale it to make something bigger than it originally is. let's move on from telling me how bad other methods are, obviously i already know this because i use ffdshow. now back to my question, why is ffdshow so hard to use?

dirtydog said:
Did I not already say that it didn't work for me. I also see lots of people have problems so just because it may have been easy for you, and I'd be interested to know how you did it, don't assume it is for everyone.

What software player do you personally use, and will it play back commercial protected DVDs direct from the disc, or do you have to rip the DVD to your HDD first?
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media player classic. using ffdshow is as easy as ticking the 'raw video' check box when installing. also yes, it does play dvd's straight from the disk. its easy, its free. if you get stuck, there are loads of guieds around such as this one: http://www.tweaksrus.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7034&pid=82329&st=20&#entry82329.
 
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Funny, there's the same HTPCnews guide which I already referred to, and other people agreeing it is awkward and having problems. I thought it was 'easy' and could be done in a minute! :rolleyes:
 
i was going to say dont use that guide because its old and its for an old version. do you want help, or are you going to be an arse?

ffdshow: http://www.free-codecs.com/download_soft.php?d=2841&s=50
media player classic : http://downloads.sourceforge.net/guliverkli/mpc2kxp6490.7z?modtime=1142869777&big_mirror=0

thats all you need. remove any previous ffdshow installs before you start.


1) installed ffdshow. during the installation, on the addition tasks page make sure you check 'RAW video' (scroll down a bit). check that and continue through to the end of the installtion

2) unpack the mpc program to a folder. it doesnt need installing. run it, and play something. tell me what happens.
 
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james.miller said:
i was going to say dont use that guide because its old and its for an old version. do you want help, or are you going to be an arse?
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dirtydog said:
What software player do you personally use, and will it play back commercial protected DVDs direct from the disc, or do you have to rip the DVD to your HDD first?
Click to expand...
 
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