Andy Dixon
12-04-2009, 02:41 PM
It looks like there could be a problem with Windows 7 Media Center (W7MC) and pc's with Nvidia graphic cards. It also looks like this might only be affecting region 2 DVD users who use subtitles too which makes it even more strange. Let me explain.
My current set up is this:- I have an Acer Revo 3600 connected to my TV in the living room which I use to view movies. This is connected to the network via a wireless n connection. Upstairs I have a Windows Home Server which has a ripped copy of all my DVD's. Earlier this year when I couldn't find a DVD I wanted to watch for the sheer number of DVD cases lying around I took the opportunity to build the WHS and rip all my DVD's so they are all stored on the server. This allows me to select and watch any DVD in my collection from any PC in the house which is great. None of the DVD's are compressed to another format, they are simply straight rips to the server in vob format.
This configuration and set up worked perfectly when the Acer Revo had Windows Vista Media Center running on it. When W7 came out I took the opportunity to upgrade the Revo to take advantages of the new features in Media Center.
The problem is that while watching a DVD, playback will stop at any random point in the movie. It can be 10 secs in to the movie, it could be 1hr 20 mins in to the movie. When it stops it takes me back to the movie synopsis screen where I can select play to start it again. If I click play then the movie starts from the beginning again and I have to skip through the chapters to get to where I was when it just stopped. As you can guess, this is a little irritating.
This issue has been raised on the Green Button website where the helpful members there have established the following criteria for making this fault occur:
- It only seems to affect PAL DVD's so potentially region 2 discs only.
- It only occurs when using subtitles. I am deaf, so I do indeed use subtitles.
- It only seems to affect PC's that have an nvidia card in it. The Acer Revo uses the Nvidia ION chipset and graphics.
- Re-installing vista on the same PC cures the problem
I have done a bit more testing on some other PC's in my house and can confirm that on:
- Dell XPS M1330 laptop which has nvidia 8400 mobile graphics the problem occurs
- Custom built gaming PC with ATI 4870 graphics it does not occur
I don't have any NTSC discs to check if it really is PAL only or not so I can't really comment there.
There isn't much info regarding this problem reported on the net which makes it even more frustating as it leads you to think this is not a global problem and only a few suffer from it. There is a thread on the nvidia forums (http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=150676) where a support call has been opened but no information or fix is forthcoming. The general consensus is this is an nvidia driver problem but no-one can say for sure if it is or not.
I am curious to find out if any other forum readers have come across this problem and can confirm the issue, or has even fixed the issue. In the mean time I'll have to keep trying the latest beta nvidia drivers and patching windows in the hope that either nvidia or microsoft will fix it soon, because it really is becoming an irritating problem. Don't make me re-install Vista....please?
My current set up is this:- I have an Acer Revo 3600 connected to my TV in the living room which I use to view movies. This is connected to the network via a wireless n connection. Upstairs I have a Windows Home Server which has a ripped copy of all my DVD's. Earlier this year when I couldn't find a DVD I wanted to watch for the sheer number of DVD cases lying around I took the opportunity to build the WHS and rip all my DVD's so they are all stored on the server. This allows me to select and watch any DVD in my collection from any PC in the house which is great. None of the DVD's are compressed to another format, they are simply straight rips to the server in vob format.
This configuration and set up worked perfectly when the Acer Revo had Windows Vista Media Center running on it. When W7 came out I took the opportunity to upgrade the Revo to take advantages of the new features in Media Center.
The problem is that while watching a DVD, playback will stop at any random point in the movie. It can be 10 secs in to the movie, it could be 1hr 20 mins in to the movie. When it stops it takes me back to the movie synopsis screen where I can select play to start it again. If I click play then the movie starts from the beginning again and I have to skip through the chapters to get to where I was when it just stopped. As you can guess, this is a little irritating.
This issue has been raised on the Green Button website where the helpful members there have established the following criteria for making this fault occur:
- It only seems to affect PAL DVD's so potentially region 2 discs only.
- It only occurs when using subtitles. I am deaf, so I do indeed use subtitles.
- It only seems to affect PC's that have an nvidia card in it. The Acer Revo uses the Nvidia ION chipset and graphics.
- Re-installing vista on the same PC cures the problem
I have done a bit more testing on some other PC's in my house and can confirm that on:
- Dell XPS M1330 laptop which has nvidia 8400 mobile graphics the problem occurs
- Custom built gaming PC with ATI 4870 graphics it does not occur
I don't have any NTSC discs to check if it really is PAL only or not so I can't really comment there.
There isn't much info regarding this problem reported on the net which makes it even more frustating as it leads you to think this is not a global problem and only a few suffer from it. There is a thread on the nvidia forums (http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=150676) where a support call has been opened but no information or fix is forthcoming. The general consensus is this is an nvidia driver problem but no-one can say for sure if it is or not.
I am curious to find out if any other forum readers have come across this problem and can confirm the issue, or has even fixed the issue. In the mean time I'll have to keep trying the latest beta nvidia drivers and patching windows in the hope that either nvidia or microsoft will fix it soon, because it really is becoming an irritating problem. Don't make me re-install Vista....please?