14 replies to this topic

[tern]

So, over in the Niigaki thread we have been discussing the strange color filtering in many H!P vids that makes them look "old" or "washed out". I know many people here have suggested FFDshow, but it's often difficult to know how to set it up properly. Here is a little tutorial put together by a friend of mine, but with updated images and a bit of editing.

Skip down to the end of the third post to see what a difference these changes make in the Aruiteru (Close-up version) video.

1. Setting up Media Player Classic and ffdshow

I've noticed how many ppl use ffdshow to watch divx/xvid videos but don't take any advantage of the many postprocessing filters ffdshow has. These filters work for any kind of videos so we can use ffdshow to make mpeg-2 videos look better. After a series of discussions on ffdshow filters on irc I decided to write a small tutorial about it. It's certainly not an easy program to use so you might face some troubles while trying to get it to work. However it can improve the image quality a lot if you're willing to spend some time with it (as can be seen in my example pictures).

First, installation and making sure ffdshow is enabled for mpeg-2 videos:

1) What you need:

FFDshow and Media Player Classic. The easiest way to get ahold of these is just to download the "k-lite codec pack". I've found the option that works best for most users is the Standard Version.

http://www.free-code...ck_download.htm

Both are freeware opensource programs. Btw you can get ffdshow to work with other players too but MPC is the best imo.

Notice! Any codec packs that you have installed can interfere with ffdshow and cause problems. I would recommend you uninstall all codec packages before since ffdshow contains codecs for pretty much all video compression formats anyway.

2) Install ffdshow and MPC, installing them should be pretty straightforward.

3) By default ffdshow is not used for mpeg-1/2 videos so we need to enable that first. From the Start menu select Programs -> K-lite Codec Pack -> Configuration -> ffdshow -> Video Decoder configuration. An ffdshow properties dialog opens. Select Codecs from the left and you'll see a list of supported codecs on the right. Scroll to tbe bottom of the list. Change the Raw video decoder to all supported :


4) I also recommend you turn the Show tray icon on so it's easier to see if ffdshow is working. Select Tray, dialog & paths from the left and then check the checkbox next to Show tray icon:


5) We're done with ffdhow for now, close the dialog by pressing OK.

6) Start MPC and go to the options:


7) Select Playback -> Output from the left and select the WMR7 (windowed) for DirectShow Video:

The other option most likely work fine too but I'd recommend this one since it's fast.

8 ) To make sure you're using MPC's built-in mpeg2-decoder select Filters from the left and make sure MPEG-2 Video Decoder is checked on the right:


9) Close the options dialog by clicking OK. Open any mpeg-2 video in MPC and see if the ffdshow icon appears in the tray. If it doesn't appear there then something is wrong.

All thanks to chromex at http://alizee-forum....opic.php?t=9920

[tern]

2. How to do proper deinterlacing using TomsMoComp deinterlacer

Ok, let's do something useful with ffdshow. Interlacing can be a problem sometimes so a good deinterlacing filter is needed. Most videos are interlaced. Generally players use blending for deinterlacing and the result looks like this:



If unblended, this is what it will look like. Many of you have probably seen this before, it's just the way video is encoded for playback on a TV screen:



Not very good really, lot's of ghosting there. With a motion compensated deinterlacing filter we can get a much better result:



Ok so how to do it:

1) First we need to turn off MPC's own deinterlacing filter. Open MPC and go to Options. Select Filters -> Mpeg decoder from the left and then change Deinterlacing method to Weave:


2) Click OK to close the dialog. Then open the ffdshow properties dialog. Check the Deinterlacing checkbox in the list on the left and then change the Method to TomsMoComp on the right:


3) Click OK to close the properties dialog. Play some interlaced video in MPC to see the difference!

Once again, all thanks to chromex at http://alizee-forum....opic.php?t=9920

[tern]

3. Fix the strange color filtering in many H!P music videos.

Here's how to do this one:

1) Open the ffdshow properties dialog. Check the Picture Properties checkbox in the list on the left and then change the Luminance gain (contrast) to 137 or so (anything higher than the default will probably look better), the Luminance offset (brightness) to 27 or so, and the first RGB gamma correction slider to the left a bit:



Try these out as the video is playing. Because the Aruiteru (Close-up version) generally has a reddish tint to it, this will remove a bit of red color from the videos and return them to more natural coloring:

Compare the original (left) and processed (right) images:





As you can see, the colors look less "warm" or "old" and more truly reflect the beauty and tone of these girls!

It goes without saying that there are many other filters and features in ffdshow such as logo-removal, noise and block removal, resizing and such that can be used on any sort of video played by media player classic. The best way to learn the program is just to play around with it.

[Redrum]

Thanks for the tutorial! This is new to me.

[dat]

why i dont have MPEG decoder option on my MPC?

[Redrum]

I think the MPC used in the guide is an older version.

In version 6.4.9.0 it looks like this:


Double click the mpeg2 filter to open the options

[tern]

I think the MPC used in the guide is an older version.

In version 6.4.9.0 it looks like this:


Double click the mpeg2 filter to open the options

Yes, thanks redrum. A lot of the pictures are from the version of MPC about 3 years ago and the rest were taken by me just as I made iit.

[Barby]

Hi
I have ffdshow_rev3562_20100907.
I have it working with MPC and kmplayer.
Can I make it work with WMP11, if so how ??

[Reina!♥]

If you use any ATI card you can use its hardware to acelerate this process and use less CPU. You can make this very easy enabling DXVA in Windows Media Player Classic.

In my case, you need to go to the graphic card's settings and in video settings use the best deinterlacing method avaiable, in my case, "Vector Adaptive".

ATI settings:







In my case, without using the graphic card acceleration in my laptop it goes slow (30fps 1440x1080 resolution video).





Using DXVA in windows media player classic it does not slow down:




This does only work with MPEG-2 HD files(1280x720, 1440x1080...DVD...), AVC and H.264.
More info here: http://mpc-hc.source...XVASupport.html
AVIVO info for ATI: http://www.amd.com/u...i-avivo-hd.aspx

[krotch]

Just an FYI for other ppl who plan to follow this tutorial. It's a great way to mess up non-H!P videos too. Figured I'd throw that out there. I leave my MPC on default for that reason. It's annoying having to change settings for specific videos.

[Barby]

I have nvidia card.
I have ffdshow audio and video working fine in "Media Player Classic" and "Media Player Classic - Home Cinema".

I want ffdshow audio and video to work to play AVI and WMV in "windows media player 11".
How can I do this?

[hidey246]

I have nvidia card.
I have ffdshow audio and video working fine in "Media Player Classic" and "Media Player Classic - Home Cinema".

I want ffdshow audio and video to work to play AVI and WMV in "windows media player 11".
How can I do this?

well, It cant happen, right?
I know that while Im using windows rpeviously, I can use ffdshow in WMP (I forget the version tho)
But since M migrating to win7, it doesnt work. My wmp ALWAYS decoding the video with its own decoder.
Could I asked you what feature did wmp have that you want to use it instead of mpc?
maybe mpc have it too:p

[Teh Sushi Chef]

Okay, so--I created an account on this forum for the sole purpose of replying to your tutorial...The three adjustments you recommend here work like an absolute charm!!! I am relatively new to the world of video codec/filters. It is a world that I would describe as incredibly technical, very complex, and--in a way--artistic. I have some previous experience with MPC, and decided to use MPC-Home Cinema x64 as my primary media player for this new laptop, though I lack the technical knowledge to take full advantage of its myriad tweaks. I had been having trouble with videos in the Matroska container, and even some .mp4's. The video was laggy/glitchy, sort of like the glitches that occasionally occur in Netflix's stream, only the video would seem to rewind for a half-second, then fast forward, and repeat. Not only did this tutorial fix that issue, but now the picture quality is 2x to boot. Thank you so much tern!!!!!

[zeroyon]

Wow this thread is old, lol.

Anyways, I just wanted to chime in about the deinterlacing part. I'm sure many know this already, but if the file you have is an HD transport stream (which are usually 1080i .ts or .mpg), and if it came from broadcast TV.... it is more than likely interlaced, and needs to be deinterlaced. If you don't deinterlace it, it will look like there are sawtooth-like marks over anything that moves in your video. If you don't know what deinterlacing or interlacing is, I suggest reading this: http://www.100fps.com/

I see that TomsMoComp is the recommended deinterlacer, which is what I used around 2007 as well. There is a far better deinterlacer though called "yadif", and it has been around for a long time on MPlayer, but has only been in builds of MPC+ffdshow since a year or so ago. If you are going to deinterlace your video, I higly suggest using it over TomsMoComp

[Teh Sushi Chef]

I see that TomsMoComp is the recommended deinterlacer, which is what I used around 2007 as well. There is a far better deinterlacer though called "yadif", and it has been around for a long time on MPlayer, but has only been in builds of MPC+ffdshow since a year or so ago. If you are going to deinterlace your video, I higly suggest using it over TomsMoComp

Thanks for the recommendation dude, I will check it out. Just out of curiosity, though, what are the technical differences between Toms and yadif that make the latter a better option?