BakaBT Wiki - User contributions [en]

Windows Video Playback

2010-02-01T11:31:53Z

Theholyduck:

This article is aimed at providing useful information regarding playback on Windows based computers.

==A List of Commonly Used Players==

===Recommended===
;[http://sourceforge.net/projects/guliverkli/ Media Player Classic (MPC)]:This player is included in [[CCCP]]. It is recommended that you use this player, however it must be configured correctly. Refer to [http://forums.bakabt.com/index.php?topic=13746.0 this] guide.
Please note that this player has been superseded by Media Player Classic Home Cinema (MPCHC). Please use this newer version of MPC bundled with the newest CCCP (which contains a custom build of the player).

;[http://www.inmatrix.com/ Zoom Player]:This player is '''no longer''' included in [[CCCP]] because the free version of it is no longer being developed and it may have playback issues in Vista. Very nice, relatively easy to use interface. Do not download the Professional versions, download the standard edition. The professional versions are trials, they stop working after a while. Has an installation center that installs all CCCP codecs for you.

===Acceptable===
;[http://www.mplayerhq.hu/ MPlayer]:This player only utilizes internal codecs & filters. It will play videos as well as [[CCCP]] can, but the keyboard orientated interface can be confusing to people used to menu driven players.

;[http://www.allplayer.org/ ALLPlayer]:This player will utilize CCCP, but has a confusing interface and useless features. It is also rather homely.

;[http://coreplayer.com/ Coreplayer]:Developed by the same team that developed the CoreAVC codec. It does not uililize [[CCCP]], meaning it only uses internal filters. Also it will not render subtitles.

;[http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/jetaudio/ JetAudio Player]:Supports 57 file formats and it includes tools for ripping, burning, external recording, file conversion, and broadcasting. Features are highly customizable, but it has no built-in MP3 encoding.

;[http://www.corecoded.com/ The Core Media Player (TCMP)]:Not to be confused with the Coreplayer (see above). It will work fine if you don't use the included filters.

;[http://www.winamp.com/ WinAmp 5]:Will work fine if configured correctly. Subtitles must be loaded manually.

;[http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/ Windows Media Player]:Not to be confused with Media Player Classic (see above). Will play fine, but will sometimes crash. Various other issues.

;[http://www.kmplayer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4094 The KMPlayer]:Reasonably allright player with internal and external filter support, It has quite alot of bugs though, and requires [[KMPlayer| tweaked]] settings to display styled subs and ordered chapters properly.
===Not Recommended===

;[http://www.bsplayer.org/ BSPlayer]:We don't suggest anyone uses this player. It is filled with bugs.

;[http://www.divx.com/ DivX Player]:This player is semi-compatible with [[CCCP]]. It will play MKV, OGM, and MP4 files, but it cannot play audio files. Not recommended for use. Tends to pixelate the image in certain instances.

;[http://ffmpeg.mplayerhq.hu/ FFPlayer]:Doesn't utilize vsfilter.

;[http://www.apple.com/quicktime/ QuickTime]:Will play AVI and MP4 files (depends on installed QT codecs), but cannot handle MKV or OGM files. Ignores [[CCCP]]. To play QuickTime files, it is recommended that you use the [http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm QT Alternative] which works in conjuction with Media Player Classic.

;[http://www.real.com/ RealPlayer 10]:Loads [[CCCP]] with AVI files, but won't load MKV or OGM files. To play Real files, it is recommended that you use the [http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm Real Alternative] which works in conjunction with Media Player Classic.

;[http://www.videolan.org/vlc/ VLC Media Player]:This player supports nearly every media filetype one may encounter, but is not recommended for use. It does not utilize external codecs, and might not support some new features of the MKV container. It is currently still under development, but BakaBT does not recommend its use for the purpose of watching most fansubs (especially more recent ones). Only recommended to keep around as a last-ditch effort for playing stubborn video files.

==Codecs and Codec Packs==

===Codec Packs===

;[[CCCP]] (Recommended):
* [[CCCP]] stands for Combined Community Codec Pack and was created to consolidate the filter packs of many different fansub groups into a single reliable filter pack that is shared by all of the fansub groups.
* Stability is high, [[CCCP]] claim to be bug free.
* Lightweighted (it only includes what you really need).
* Bundled with Media Player Classic Home Cinema, the newest build of MPC since the original developer retired the project. Much more efficient than MPC.
[http://www.cccp-project.net/ CCCP Homepage]

;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Mega_Codec_Pack.htm K-Lite Mega Codec Pack]:
* Plays almost every video available, even rare (for playback of anime you don't need most of them).
* Comes bundled with Media Player Classic.
[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Mega_Codec_Pack.htm K-Lite Mega Codec Pack on Free-Codecs.com].

;[http://www.xpcodecpack.com/ XP Codec Pack]:
* Plays many different formats, it's like a little heavier pack than [[CCCP]].
* Gets regular updates (this means it may not be stable all times).
[http://www.xpcodecpack.com/ XP Codec Pack Homepage]

===Codecs===
;[[CoreAVC]] Professional (Recommended if you have trouble with h264 encodes):
Refer to [http://forums.bakabt.com/index.php?topic=8513.0 Psyren's guide]

;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm Real Alternative]
Allows you to play Real Media (.rm) files in a media player without the need to install Real Player.
;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm QuickTime Alternative]
Allows you to play QuickTime (.mov) files in a media player without the need to install QuickTime. It also allows you to stream video and sound from the Internet using QuickTime.

Windows Video Playback

2010-02-01T11:31:00Z

Theholyduck:

This article is aimed at providing useful information regarding playback on Windows based computers.

==A List of Commonly Used Players==

===Recommended===
;[http://sourceforge.net/projects/guliverkli/ Media Player Classic (MPC)]:This player is included in [[CCCP]]. It is recommended that you use this player, however it must be configured correctly. Refer to [http://forums.bakabt.com/index.php?topic=13746.0 this] guide.
Please note that this player has been superseded by Media Player Classic Home Cinema (MPCHC). Please use this newer version of MPC bundled with the newest CCCP (which contains a custom build of the player).

;[http://www.inmatrix.com/ Zoom Player]:This player is '''no longer''' included in [[CCCP]] because the free version of it is no longer being developed and it may have playback issues in Vista. Very nice, relatively easy to use interface. Do not download the Professional versions, download the standard edition. The professional versions are trials, they stop working after a while. Has an installation center that installs all CCCP codecs for you.

;[http://www.mplayerhq.hu/ MPlayer]:This player only utilizes internal codecs & filters. It will play videos as well as [[CCCP]] can, but the keyboard orientated interface can be confusing to people used to menu driven players.

===Acceptable===
;[http://www.allplayer.org/ ALLPlayer]:This player will utilize CCCP, but has a confusing interface and useless features. It is also rather homely.

;[http://coreplayer.com/ Coreplayer]:Developed by the same team that developed the CoreAVC codec. It does not uililize [[CCCP]], meaning it only uses internal filters. Also it will not render subtitles.

;[http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/jetaudio/ JetAudio Player]:Supports 57 file formats and it includes tools for ripping, burning, external recording, file conversion, and broadcasting. Features are highly customizable, but it has no built-in MP3 encoding.

;[http://www.corecoded.com/ The Core Media Player (TCMP)]:Not to be confused with the Coreplayer (see above). It will work fine if you don't use the included filters.

;[http://www.winamp.com/ WinAmp 5]:Will work fine if configured correctly. Subtitles must be loaded manually.

;[http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/ Windows Media Player]:Not to be confused with Media Player Classic (see above). Will play fine, but will sometimes crash. Various other issues.

;[http://www.kmplayer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4094 The KMPlayer]:Reasonably allright player with internal and external filter support, It has quite alot of bugs though, and requires [[KMPlayer| tweaked]] settings to display styled subs and ordered chapters properly.
===Not Recommended===

;[http://www.bsplayer.org/ BSPlayer]:We don't suggest anyone uses this player. It is filled with bugs.

;[http://www.divx.com/ DivX Player]:This player is semi-compatible with [[CCCP]]. It will play MKV, OGM, and MP4 files, but it cannot play audio files. Not recommended for use. Tends to pixelate the image in certain instances.

;[http://ffmpeg.mplayerhq.hu/ FFPlayer]:Doesn't utilize vsfilter.

;[http://www.apple.com/quicktime/ QuickTime]:Will play AVI and MP4 files (depends on installed QT codecs), but cannot handle MKV or OGM files. Ignores [[CCCP]]. To play QuickTime files, it is recommended that you use the [http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm QT Alternative] which works in conjuction with Media Player Classic.

;[http://www.real.com/ RealPlayer 10]:Loads [[CCCP]] with AVI files, but won't load MKV or OGM files. To play Real files, it is recommended that you use the [http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm Real Alternative] which works in conjunction with Media Player Classic.

;[http://www.videolan.org/vlc/ VLC Media Player]:This player supports nearly every media filetype one may encounter, but is not recommended for use. It does not utilize external codecs, and might not support some new features of the MKV container. It is currently still under development, but BakaBT does not recommend its use for the purpose of watching most fansubs (especially more recent ones). Only recommended to keep around as a last-ditch effort for playing stubborn video files.

==Codecs and Codec Packs==

===Codec Packs===

;[[CCCP]] (Recommended):
* [[CCCP]] stands for Combined Community Codec Pack and was created to consolidate the filter packs of many different fansub groups into a single reliable filter pack that is shared by all of the fansub groups.
* Stability is high, [[CCCP]] claim to be bug free.
* Lightweighted (it only includes what you really need).
* Bundled with Media Player Classic Home Cinema, the newest build of MPC since the original developer retired the project. Much more efficient than MPC.
[http://www.cccp-project.net/ CCCP Homepage]

;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Mega_Codec_Pack.htm K-Lite Mega Codec Pack]:
* Plays almost every video available, even rare (for playback of anime you don't need most of them).
* Comes bundled with Media Player Classic.
[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Mega_Codec_Pack.htm K-Lite Mega Codec Pack on Free-Codecs.com].

;[http://www.xpcodecpack.com/ XP Codec Pack]:
* Plays many different formats, it's like a little heavier pack than [[CCCP]].
* Gets regular updates (this means it may not be stable all times).
[http://www.xpcodecpack.com/ XP Codec Pack Homepage]

===Codecs===
;[[CoreAVC]] Professional (Recommended if you have trouble with h264 encodes):
Refer to [http://forums.bakabt.com/index.php?topic=8513.0 Psyren's guide]

;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm Real Alternative]
Allows you to play Real Media (.rm) files in a media player without the need to install Real Player.
;[http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm QuickTime Alternative]
Allows you to play QuickTime (.mov) files in a media player without the need to install QuickTime. It also allows you to stream video and sound from the Internet using QuickTime.

Linux Video Playback

2009-10-12T15:53:18Z

Theholyduck: just fixing some style things

This article explains the best video playback options for Linux and provides installation instructions.

==List of recommended players==
;* [http://www.mplayerhq.hu/ MPlayer]
;* [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/ SMPlayer]
==MPlayer==
===Compiling MPlayer from source===
The PREFERRED way of installing mplayer is compiling from source, due to the fact that every linux distro ships various levels of horribly outdated versions of it.
the reasons for compiling from a new mplayer source are many:
;* vdpau support, (gpu decoding)
;* better ffh264 asm (faster decoding)
;* newer libass (better subtitle rendering)
;* no need for external windows codecs for some files anymore
;* various bug-fixes

The preferred source repository among actual users is uau's git for the following reasons
;* It has ordered chapters support (which a lot of modern dvd/bluray rips use)
;* It can be compiled with ffmpeg-mt (multithreaded decoding)
;* It uses svn libass, (even better subtitle rendering)
;* It's easier to compile
;* It includes various fixes for bad mplayer behavior

Howto compile for various distros is comming soon
===Installing Mplayer from Distro reps===
Perform the one of the following commands as root, depending on your distribution.
====Debian based distributions (Includes Ubuntu)====
aptitude install mplayer
=====Ubuntu PPA=====
Usually the version in ubuntu default repos is pretty old, you might want to check [https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+ppas PPA] for updated versions.
====OpenSuse====
zypper in mplayer

====Fedora/Red Hat based distributions====
yum install mplayer
====Arch Linux====
pacman -S mplayer
====Gentoo====
emerge -ptva mplayer

===MPlayer codecs===
Not all distributions include the full set of mplayer codecs in their repositories. To install the full set follow these easy steps. 
1. Download: http://www4.mplayerhq.hu/MPlayer/releases/codecs/all-20071007.tar.bz2 
2. Extract with: tar xvf all-20071007.tar.bz2 
3. Copy the codecs (but not the directory) to the MPlayer codec directory. Default is /usr/lib/win32 

Debian/Ubuntu users: 
1. Visit http://debian-multimedia.org/ and add it as a package repository using the instructions in the red boxes. 
2. sudo aptitude update && sudo aptitude install mplayer w32codecs
====NVidia vdpau====
If you use nvidia GPU, be sure to install their latest binary drivers, as they offer offloading video decoding from CPU to GPU which provides far smoother playback, especially for h264 video, while keeping CPU usage at vero low level. Check your mplayer configuration to use both vdpau video codec (-vc) and video output (-vo). Type "mplayer -vo help" to list available outputs.
====ATI====
The upcoming (as of 2009.10.04) open source driver should provide hardware accelerated video decoding for R600+ based GPUs. This will happen probably sometime around linux 2.6.32 release.

===MPlayer tweaks===
These are some sample configuration files tailored for specific preferences. The MPlayer configuration file can be found at: (<tt>~/.mplayer/config</tt>)

For English audio preference, then Spanish, with 4 audio channels for surround sound files.
vo=xv
ao=alsa
channels=4
alang=en,es

For Japanese audio preference, subtitles on. SDL A/V output for performence.
ao=sdl
vo=sdl
#Note: SDL video output does not work well with xinerama. Those wishing to watch video on a TV or other display should use "vo=xv"
alang=jpn,Japanese
#Not all files use the correct tags, so sometimes it will be necessary to switch audio streams manually or from the command line with "-aid x", where "x" is the number of the audio stream.
sid=0
subfont-autoscale=1
ass=1

====MPlayer Tricks====
MPLayer has a huge collection of filters included. Some of them are magical.

* View styled subs, even if you only have plain subs:
** mplayer -ass -embeddedfonts myvideo.ext
* View external subs:
** mplayer -ass -sub mysubs.srt myvideo.ext
* Play interlaced video without combing:
** mplayer -vf pullup myvideo.ext
* Increase saturation and contrast:
** mplayer -vf eq2=0.8 myvideo.ext
* Remove "mosquito" noise:
** mplayer -vf hqdn3d myvideo.ext
* Make crappy video look good:
** mplayer -vf pp7 myvideo.ext
* Combine:
** mplayer -ass -embeddedfonts -vf pullup,eq2=0.8,unsharp=l3x3:0.2,hqdn3d myvideo.ext

==SMPlayer==
MPlayer by itself is fine but SMPlayer provides an easy to use interface to MPlayer so it is a better choice for most. It contains a couple of nice features, including autosaving the playback position so you can continue watching your anime the next time you start it (this feature can be disabled of course). SMPlayer is not a player per se, it is just a GUI (QT) frontend for MPlayer, hence you still need MPlayer to actually play the video.

===Installing SMPlayer===
====Debian/Ubuntu====
If you are using Debian Lenny/Sid or Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex (8.10), then you can simply
sudo apt-get install smplayer
Otherwise, you have 2 options:
* Download the .deb file from [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/downloads.php the SMPlayer website] or
* Add the SMPlayer repository to your /etc/apt/sources.list.
8.04 (hardy):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/rvm/ubuntu hardy main
8.10 (intrepid):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/rvm/ubuntu intrepid main

====OpenSUSE====

You can find .rpm's via [http://software.opensuse.org/search the search page].

====Fedora/RedHat====

Build from source. See below.

====Arch Linux====
pacman -S smplayer

====Gentoo====
emerge -ptva smplayer

====Building from Source (Compiling)====

Grab the tarball from [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/downloads.php the SMPlayer download page]. Decompress it, cd into the directory, and run
./configure
make
sudo make install
If you don't have sudo installed/configured, then the last step will be instead
su
make install

===SMPlayer tweaks===
After installation you'll need to configure it a little:
Start SMPlayer, open the options (Ctrl + P), go to the subtitles section, within the section go to the SSA/ASS library tab and check the check box for using SSA/ASS library. With this you can see the subtitle's colors and fonts (Note: the used fonts must be installed on the system for this).

If you see a black screen at playing, or the colors doesn't seems to be right, or the playing is too slow or wrong you may need to change the video rendering mode. To do this go to the options, general section, general tab, output drivers, Video, and set it to <tt>x11</tt> - this will use software rendering. Alternatively you can use <tt>xv</tt> for XVideo rendering or either <tt>gl</tt> or <tt>gl2</tt> for OpenGL rendering. In general you should try these options in the following order for best quality and performance: <tt>xv</tt>, <tt>gl2</tt>, <tt>gl</tt> and finally <tt>x11</tt>.

Linux Video Playback

2009-10-12T15:46:50Z

Theholyduck: Start of the compiling from source stuff

This article explains the best video playback options for Linux and provides installation instructions.

==List of recommended players==
;* [http://www.mplayerhq.hu/ MPlayer]
;* [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/ SMPlayer]
==MPlayer==
===Installing MPlayer===
The PREFERRED way of installing mplayer is compiling from source, due to the fact that every linux distro ships various levels of horribly outdated versions of it.
the reasons for compiling from a new mplayer source are many:
;* vdpau support, (gpu decoding)
;* better ffh264 asm (faster decoding)
;* newer libass (better subtitle rendering)
;* no need for external windows codecs for some files anymore
;* various bug-fixes

The preferred source repository among actual users is uau's git for the following reasons
;* It has ordered chapters support (which a lot of modern dvd/bluray rips use)
;* It can be compiled with ffmpeg-mt (multithreaded decoding)
;* It uses svn libass, (even better subtitle rendering)
;* It's easier to compile
;* It includes various fixes for bad mplayer behavior

Howto compile for various distros is comming soon

Perform the one of the following commands as root, depending on your distribution.
====Debian based distributions (Includes Ubuntu)====
aptitude install mplayer
=====Ubuntu PPA=====
Usually the version in ubuntu default repos is pretty old, you might want to check [https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+ppas PPA] for updated versions.
====OpenSuse====
zypper in mplayer

====Fedora/Red Hat based distributions====
yum install mplayer
====Arch Linux====
pacman -S mplayer
====Gentoo====
emerge -ptva mplayer

===MPlayer codecs===
Not all distributions include the full set of mplayer codecs in their repositories. To install the full set follow these easy steps. 
1. Download: http://www4.mplayerhq.hu/MPlayer/releases/codecs/all-20071007.tar.bz2 
2. Extract with: tar xvf all-20071007.tar.bz2 
3. Copy the codecs (but not the directory) to the MPlayer codec directory. Default is /usr/lib/win32 

Debian/Ubuntu users: 
1. Visit http://debian-multimedia.org/ and add it as a package repository using the instructions in the red boxes. 
2. sudo aptitude update && sudo aptitude install mplayer w32codecs
====NVidia vdpau====
If you use nvidia GPU, be sure to install their latest binary drivers, as they offer offloading video decoding from CPU to GPU which provides far smoother playback, especially for h264 video, while keeping CPU usage at vero low level. Check your mplayer configuration to use both vdpau video codec (-vc) and video output (-vo). Type "mplayer -vo help" to list available outputs.
====ATI====
The upcoming (as of 2009.10.04) open source driver should provide hardware accelerated video decoding for R600+ based GPUs. This will happen probably sometime around linux 2.6.32 release.

===MPlayer tweaks===
These are some sample configuration files tailored for specific preferences. The MPlayer configuration file can be found at: (<tt>~/.mplayer/config</tt>)

For English audio preference, then Spanish, with 4 audio channels for surround sound files.
vo=xv
ao=alsa
channels=4
alang=en,es

For Japanese audio preference, subtitles on. SDL A/V output for performence.
ao=sdl
vo=sdl
#Note: SDL video output does not work well with xinerama. Those wishing to watch video on a TV or other display should use "vo=xv"
alang=jpn,Japanese
#Not all files use the correct tags, so sometimes it will be necessary to switch audio streams manually or from the command line with "-aid x", where "x" is the number of the audio stream.
sid=0
subfont-autoscale=1
ass=1

====MPlayer Tricks====
MPLayer has a huge collection of filters included. Some of them are magical.

* View styled subs, even if you only have plain subs:
** mplayer -ass -embeddedfonts myvideo.ext
* View external subs:
** mplayer -ass -sub mysubs.srt myvideo.ext
* Play interlaced video without combing:
** mplayer -vf pullup myvideo.ext
* Increase saturation and contrast:
** mplayer -vf eq2=0.8 myvideo.ext
* Remove "mosquito" noise:
** mplayer -vf hqdn3d myvideo.ext
* Make crappy video look good:
** mplayer -vf pp7 myvideo.ext
* Combine:
** mplayer -ass -embeddedfonts -vf pullup,eq2=0.8,unsharp=l3x3:0.2,hqdn3d myvideo.ext

==SMPlayer==
MPlayer by itself is fine but SMPlayer provides an easy to use interface to MPlayer so it is a better choice for most. It contains a couple of nice features, including autosaving the playback position so you can continue watching your anime the next time you start it (this feature can be disabled of course). SMPlayer is not a player per se, it is just a GUI (QT) frontend for MPlayer, hence you still need MPlayer to actually play the video.

===Installing SMPlayer===
====Debian/Ubuntu====
If you are using Debian Lenny/Sid or Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex (8.10), then you can simply
sudo apt-get install smplayer
Otherwise, you have 2 options:
* Download the .deb file from [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/downloads.php the SMPlayer website] or
* Add the SMPlayer repository to your /etc/apt/sources.list.
8.04 (hardy):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/rvm/ubuntu hardy main
8.10 (intrepid):
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/rvm/ubuntu intrepid main

====OpenSUSE====

You can find .rpm's via [http://software.opensuse.org/search the search page].

====Fedora/RedHat====

Build from source. See below.

====Arch Linux====
pacman -S smplayer

====Gentoo====
emerge -ptva smplayer

====Building from Source (Compiling)====

Grab the tarball from [http://smplayer.sourceforge.net/downloads.php the SMPlayer download page]. Decompress it, cd into the directory, and run
./configure
make
sudo make install
If you don't have sudo installed/configured, then the last step will be instead
su
make install

===SMPlayer tweaks===
After installation you'll need to configure it a little:
Start SMPlayer, open the options (Ctrl + P), go to the subtitles section, within the section go to the SSA/ASS library tab and check the check box for using SSA/ASS library. With this you can see the subtitle's colors and fonts (Note: the used fonts must be installed on the system for this).

If you see a black screen at playing, or the colors doesn't seems to be right, or the playing is too slow or wrong you may need to change the video rendering mode. To do this go to the options, general section, general tab, output drivers, Video, and set it to <tt>x11</tt> - this will use software rendering. Alternatively you can use <tt>xv</tt> for XVideo rendering or either <tt>gl</tt> or <tt>gl2</tt> for OpenGL rendering. In general you should try these options in the following order for best quality and performance: <tt>xv</tt>, <tt>gl2</tt>, <tt>gl</tt> and finally <tt>x11</tt>.