Problem with DTS-HD Master Audio in WinDVD Pro 2010

[wbm56]

I recently installed WinDVD Pro 2010 on my self-built Windows 7 Pro PC with Intel DH57JG motherboard.
I updated to WinDVD Pro 2010 version 10.0.5.819 - see my first post to this web board for details.
The speakers attached to my system are Logitech Model Z4. They connect to the motherboard analog audio output, just use the green jack, which connects to the subwoofer. The left and right speakers connect into the back of the subwoofer. My motherboard has a SPDIF optical connection but I have never used that and don't have any equipment that can use it.
I updated to the latest Intel BIOS for my motherboard and Realtek High Definition Audio driver 6.0.1.6363 (on Intel's download site).

I have a fairly recent Blu-ray movie release. The previews play great on my system... they are encoded in Dolby Digital / 640 Kbps
The movie menu that comes up after the trailers are finished also plays great... Dolby Digital / 224 Kbps

But when the main feature starts, it kicks into DTS-HD Master Audio / 1536 Kbps ... and while it plays fairly well, there is noticeable "choppyness" "glitches" in the audio, hard to describe exactly, but the sound gravitates from OK to obviously not OK. I checked the audio options on the BD menu, and this is the only audio format offered for the main feature. I think this may be the case for most new blu-ray movies going forward.

DTS-HD Master Audio BD's are supposed to automatically down-mix to analog stereo on systems without digital audio support, or for sound going through the analog audio jacks. WinDVD Pro 2010 supposedly supports DTS-HD Master Audio.

From a PDF document I found online: DTS-HD Audio Consumer White Paper for Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD Applications

5.5.6 High Definition Player with DTS Digital Out to HDTV display or to External A/V Receiver or Amplifier
As part of the Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD standards, all players are required to down-mix DTS encoded multichannel
soundtracks to 2.0 channel stereo. Connect the stereo analog outputs of the player to the stereo analog inputs of an
HDTV display, A/V receiver, amplifier, or television.

Any ideas? Thanks

[wbm56]

Well I've tried 3 different BD movies now, with mixed results.

The first movie, For Colored Girls, (Lionsgate) is in 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, and the sound was 'choppy' a lot of times, especially when the audio track was more complex. Picture mostly OK, maybe a few 'skips' but not as bad as the audio.

The second, I tried The Dark Knight (Warner Bros.) since it's an earlier release and is in Dolby Digital / 640 kbps. Well the sound on it was choppy too. Picture may have been a bit choppy at times too (again not so bad as the sound).

The third movie, Piranha (Sony) played great. Interestingly enough it is in DTS-HD MA, but 5.1 rather than 7.1 - both picture and sound were good.

So is the 'choppyness' of the first two a symptom of copy protection schemes for Blu-ray disks, or a sign of limitations in my system. I'm using a Matshita (Panasonic) BD-CMB model UJ-120 blu-ray drive, which is 2x speed. I think this should meet the minimum read speed requirements.

Disappointing that good movie playback is so hit-and-miss. Are more "compatibility updates" needed? Is there a list of movies that are "compatible" with WInDVD somewhere?

[wbm56]

I tried two more BD movies, and both had audio skips or choppiness, either in Dolby TrueHD/5.1 or DTS-HD MA/5.1

But had an insight: the light on my BD drive is on hard steady while the movies are playing. If I pause the movie when audio skips, I see the light continue on for several seconds, filling an audio/video buffer I assume. Then the light goes out. I resume the paused movie, and it plays great for several seconds, I assume while reading from the buffer. Then it starts skipping again. I pause it again, the buffer catches up and it plays great for a few more seconds. rinse and repeat.

So it seems my 2x BD drive may not be fast enough. Any ideas about how this problem might be fixed with software settings tweaks appreciated.

Are there any specs somewhere for the minimum BD read speed required to support Blu-ray playback in WInDVD Pro 2010? Thanks

[wbm56]

http://www.blu-ray.com/faq/#bluray_speed

How fast can you read/write data on a Blu-ray disc?
According to the Blu-ray Disc specification, 1x speed is defined as 36Mbps. However, as BD-ROM movies will require a 54Mbps data transfer rate the minimum speed we're expecting to see is 2x (72Mbps). Blu-ray also has the potential for much higher speeds, as a result of the larger numerical aperture (NA) adopted by Blu-ray Disc. The large NA value effectively means that Blu-ray will require less recording power and lower disc rotation speed than DVD and HD-DVD to achieve the same data transfer rate. While the media itself limited the recording speed in the past, the only limiting factor for Blu-ray is the capacity of the hardware. If we assume a maximum disc rotation speed of 10,000 RPM, then 12x at the outer diameter should be possible (about 400Mbps). This is why the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) already has plans to raise the speed to 8x (288Mbps) or more in the future.


I wish they would update this information, which seems dated to me. Has the BDA implemented plans to raise the speed yet?

http://www.dts.com/DTS_Audio_Formats/DT ... Audio.aspx
DTS-HD Master Audio uses bit rates up to 24.5 Mbps. I assume that is just for audio, and video is additional. The 54Mbps (stated above) doesn't say how much is for audio and how much is for video. If I assume 54Mbps for video and add 24.5Mbps to that, the total is 78.5Mbps which exceeds the 2x BD-ROM maximum of 72Mbps.

http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/ ... bview=tab4
Corel's WinDVD Pro 2010 system requirements simply says:
Windows-compatible BD drive for BD playback
without specifying a minimum read speed.

My local computer store is currently selling a 6x BD-ROM Read Speed External USB 2.0 Blu-ray Reader. Is 6x fast enough for the forseeable future, or will 8x be needed for next year's blu-ray movie releases?

[wbm56]

A couple of FOX releases- Unstoppable (2010) and Big Mommas (2011) both give this message upon disc startup:

This Blu-ray disc has been manufactured to the latest Blu-ray Disc standards. Which are??

To ensure the best possible viewing experience, your Blu-ray player may require an update. If you experience problems playing this disk, please visit
http://blu-raydisc.com/ForBestResults for more information on updates or consult your Blu-ray player manual for details on updating your Blu-ray player.

The website helpfully directs me to a page on Corel's site: http://www.corel.com/bd
where I can buy another copy of the software I already have! argghhhhh!

Both these BD movies have the same issues as others I've tried: choppy sound, BD light on nearly constantly, if I pause it (to fill a buffer I assume) the BD light goes out after a few seconds and the movie plays good for a few seconds before going choppy sound again.
Encrypted H264/speed varies from around 26Mbps up to around 36Mbps
DTS-HD MA / speed constant 1536 Kbps
Should a 2x player support these speeds? Hardware or software issue?

[nalawod]

2x read speed does indeed seem slow. Even my original LG bd drive I bought 4 years ago (not slim laptop version like you have) was 8x read. This could indeed be the problem -- but there is something else you should look into. Make sure your GPU is supporting BD hardware acceleration. If it's not, your CPU will be pegged at 90-100%. If in task manager you see very high CPU, you're going to get all sorts of choppy audio (and video) playback.