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Author Topic: DVD player upgrade  (Read 7186 times)

Jonathan Johnson

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #10 on: October 27, 2014, 03:02:42 PM »

VLC uses an independently developed codec (libdvdcss) not licensed by the DVD Copy Control Association to play encrypted DVDs. Most commercial players use a licensed codec.

Many Linux-based players use DeCSS, also not licensed.

Non-encrypted DVDs should not require these codecs.

In the past -- I haven't tested recent versions -- I've found that VLC seemed to have lower video quality than commercial players.
« Last Edit: October 27, 2014, 03:10:17 PM by Jonathan Johnson »
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George Friedman-Jimenez

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #11 on: October 27, 2014, 04:53:08 PM »

I find VLC 2.1.4 and 2.1.5 make the noises and yield poor sound quality on my original unencrypted wav file audio recordings I have recorded live, which is mostly what I play. It also occurs on commercial audio recordings. I rarely use VLC to play DVDs and can't comment on them. What other PC and Mac dual platform DVD player software do people recommend that is simple to use for performances / presentations, reliable and multiformat?
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Tommy Peel

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #12 on: October 27, 2014, 05:34:01 PM »

I find VLC 2.1.4 and 2.1.5 make the noises and yield poor sound quality on my original unencrypted wav file audio recordings I have recorded live, which is mostly what I play. It also occurs on commercial audio recordings. I rarely use VLC to play DVDs and can't comment on them. What other PC and Mac dual platform DVD player software do people recommend that is simple to use for performances / presentations, reliable and multiformat?

Question: Are you running the audio levels above 100%(white line on the volume slider)? That will cause distortion. It's best to put the volume slider at or below 100% and use your system volume control or the volume control on your mixer/speakers.

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George Friedman-Jimenez

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #13 on: October 27, 2014, 06:50:33 PM »

Yes, I know about gain stages. No, the noises are independent of the position of the VLC gain control, which I usually keep around 50-70%. The noises are not distortion, they are just loud noises for about 1/2 - 1 second before the recorded music begins and after it ends. Older versions before version 2.0 start with a pop but not the same noise. Foobar2000 does not produce the pop or noises. These are 16/44 or 24/44 wav files not MP3s. I am running Win 7, Intel i7, Dell Optiplex 990. I don't see any noise on the waveform beginning or end in Audacity. This has definitely gotten worse in the last 2 versions of VLC.
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Tommy Peel

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #14 on: October 27, 2014, 06:57:18 PM »

Yes, I know about gain stages. No, the noises are independent of the position of the VLC gain control, which I usually keep around 50-70%. The noises are not distortion, they are just loud noises for about 1/2 - 1 second before the recorded music begins and after it ends. Older versions before version 2.0 start with a pop but not the same noise. Foobar2000 does not produce the pop or noises. These are 16/44 or 24/44 wav files not MP3s. I am running Win 7, Intel i7, Dell Optiplex 990. I don't see any noise on the waveform beginning or end in Audacity. This has definitely gotten worse in the last 2 versions of VLC.

Just checking. I'll try some similar wav files on my MacBook Pro and see if I have any trouble; I use VLC as my main player of anything audio or video and haven't experienced any issues.
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George Friedman-Jimenez

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #15 on: October 27, 2014, 07:22:43 PM »

Pilot error here! I uninstalled v 2.1.5, tried a bunch of versions back to 1.1.9 and got pops at the beginning and a wavering sound level during the songs. Finally I went through all the settings in Tools > Preferences > Show settings (All) and under > Audio > Filters I found Volume Normalizer was checked! I swear there is no way I would have checked that box, I don't know how it got checked, it wasn't me, honest! After I unchecked it, the sound quality improved greatly, the noises went away and I am back to being happy with VLC. Apologies to VLC and the forum for the false alarm, sometimes you just have to take the time to systematically start from scratch when there is a problem. Reinstalling keeping the same settings may seem easier but sometimes keeps the same problem.
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Tommy Peel

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Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #16 on: October 27, 2014, 07:24:37 PM »

Pilot error here! I uninstalled v 2.1.5, tried a bunch of versions back to 1.1.9 and got pops at the beginning and a wavering sound level during the songs. Finally I went through all the settings in Tools > Preferences > Show settings (All) and under > Audio > Filters I found Volume Normalizer was checked! I swear there is no way I would have checked that box, I don't know how it got checked, it wasn't me, honest! After I unchecked it, the sound quality improved greatly, the noises went away and I am back to being happy with VLC. Apologies to VLC and the forum for the false alarm, sometimes you just have to take the time to systematically start from scratch when there is a problem. Reinstalling keeping the same settings may seem easier but sometimes keeps the same problem.

Interesting, glad you found and fixed the problem. I'll have to remember not to use the normalizer.  ;D
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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: DVD player upgrade
« Reply #16 on: October 27, 2014, 07:24:37 PM »


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