Using Codec Tweak Tool to fix Rendering

Hi,

I am a reasonably experienced programmer, but am new to Codecs and need some help. I have an app using the Windows MCI API (MCI open, MCI play, MCI close) which works fine on Win 10 and XP but will not play on my Win 7 (x64) machine. I get sound with a blank screen.  I use AMD Radeon graphics and the latest driver pack is installed.

I have installed the K-Lite Mega codec pack and tools, and using GraphStudioNext, have been able to establish that all my different video file types use the VMR renderer. If I change the renderer in the tool to  EVR or madVR, the files play fine.

I have tried using the Codec Tweak Tool to force the selection of a different renderer, but cannot see how to do this. (I can change the priority of the different filters, and I see this being effective in the GraphStudio, but cannot  find  a way to change the selection of VMR.)

My questions:

1) Any suggestions as to how I can fix the VMR renderer. (Are there some settings somewhere?)
2) Is there a way to force the automatic selection of a different renderer?

Many thanks,
Craig

This should work:
GraphStudioNext menu > Graph > Insert Filter > Enhanced Video Renderer > Change Merit > 0x00800001
Then log off or reboot.

Subtitles may not work when doing this. I expect to have a solution for that later.

Thanks. I tried this and it indeed the EVR loaded instead of the old VMR. Strangely, even though this configuration with EVR ran fine when using GraphStudioNext to test my video files, my MCI based App was still plaing sound but with no video at all. However using the same approach as you described, I raised the merit of the madVR renderer instead, and this seems to work well in both GraphStudioNext, and with my app. I don't use subtitles at this stage, so I'm not sure if this works or not.

I am happy with this outcome. My only remaining question is whether there are likely to be adverse side effects from making this change.

Many thanks.

Subtitles should not be a problem with MadVR.

This change will affect all applications that use DirectShow. Including games that use it for video cutscenes. So it could potentially give some issues as this is not really a common and tested scenario.

Have you tested other MCI apps? The default renderer should normally just work fine (as it does on your other systems). It could also be some kind of graphics driver issue. Try a newer/different version of the driver.

You could try embedding a video in PowerPoint or use this MCI player:
http://www.datafilehost.com/d/bd22c5ec

Here is a MCI related registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\MCI Extensions
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\MCI Extensions
Adding the file extension there with value "MPEGVideo" might help. Although that is usually not needed.

Using the original codec configuration with VMR, I cannot get video with any of my test video files, even when using GraphStudioNext, yet all these files play on my win XP and Win 10 machines. In GraphStudioNext, I can change the renderer to EVR or madVR, and they play, so I don't think the problem of playing with VMR is specific to my app. I do have the Radeon drivers updated using the "update tool" that AMD provide, however I will look further into that and see if there are any individual driver updates that can be applied.

I am happy that I now have a working system, even if it is not 100% healthy, and the side effects you mention do not look too serious to me. I will look further at drivers and the other suggestions you have made, but am happy to close this topic. Many thanks for your assistance. What a great product with great support.

You can download the driver here:
http://support.amd.com/en-us/download

Before installing remove the current driver with Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU):
http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/display-driver-uninstaller-download.html

Does GraphStudioNext fail to create the graph with VMR, or does only playback fail?

In order to test, I reverted the madVR Merit back to "Do not use".

The registry keys for the MCI extensions were "MPEGVideo" for virtually all video file extensions. The only exception was .avi which used "avivideo". I changed both of these to MPEGVideo and rebooted, but this did not seem to help. I therefore reverted them back to the original settings.

I removed the video driver using the tool and reinstalled from the suggested link. The version installed is 17.4.4. The problem using VMR remains.

When using VMR, the GraphStudioNext tool displays the graph correctly. I can insert the madVR renderer and connect it and then all my test video files play. When playing back with VMR, there is sound, but a black screen.

My Win7 PC is 64 bit. My app is 32 bit, and therefore the version of GraphStudioNext I am testing with is 32 bit, in case that information is helpful?? It certainly seems to be an obscure problem, and any further suggestions would be welcomed.

Thanks,

"avivideo" is correct for avi files. This key is for MCI only, and since it also happens with GraphStudioNext, you can forget about it.

Here is some documentation for the video renderer:
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee492726.aspx
You could try adding SurfaceTypes with value 0

Also disable hardware acceleration in the video decoder in case that is enabled.

Thanks. I'm away for a week but will look further as soon as I am back.