Transcoding CPU requirments

[IsNull]

I tried to search and just couldn't come up with anything so here goes...

I want to be able to transcode on the fly my 1080p Bluray backups. I am currently putting together a HTPC to act as a media server and would like to use an Intel i3 2100T CPU due to its 35W TDP.

As you can see here (http://www.anandtech.com/show/4524/the-sandy-bridge-pentium-review-pentium-g850-g840-g620-g620t-tested/3) the 2100T actually does pretty good on encoding.

I am considering using Win 7 or Home Server 2011 on this build with 4GB of RAM.

Will this be enough CPU to handle what I want to do?

Thanks

[Paul]

Check here for Mezzmo system requirements: http://www.conceiva.com/products/mezzmo/faqs.asp#Requirements

Ideally, for transcoding & streaming HD video (1080p), you want something with 4 cores, but 8 threads (or more), since then Mezzmo can use 4-5 cores for transcoding and one for streaming. In case of 4 cores/threads, we can only use 3 for transcoding, since we need one for streaming.

[IsNull]

So you are claiming all that matters is 2.4 Ghz and core count? So a $80 AMD that's a quad core will work as effectively as a $200-$300 i5/i7? Unfortunately that moves us into the high heat/power area which is the bane of HTPCs. Perhaps a better solution would be an atom based server and a media player. If I go that route, what exactly does Mezzmo buy me?

I just scratch my head because I can transcode and downconvert audio in an entire movie using an i5 Sandy Bridge in 30 mins while still using my computer for other things, but I need something faster to transcode slower and send it over the wire?

I'm sure you know your product, and I'm not trying to be insulting, but when was the last time you tested your product with the newer family of chips?

[Paul]

No offense taken :)

We have not tested Mezzmo with all CPUs. Our guidance is general in nature from our own experience and from reports from our users about too slow transcoding with particular CPU configurations. If you have good experience with the performance of a particular family of CPUs, then you should go with your experience & gut feel. Mezzmo converts (transcodes) videos using FFMpeg, which takes advantages of multiple cores. Hope it helps.

[IsNull]

Would an i5 2405S work? It's a true 4 core CPU but does not support hyperthreading so only 4 threads. Runs at 2.5 Turbos to 3.3.

http://ark.intel.com/products/55446/Intel-Core-i5-2405S-Processor-%286M-Cache-2_50-GHz%29

[Paul]

I think it should be fine. The other factor when steaming HD video is your home network bandwidth. Where possible, use wired Ethernet cables to connect your PC and DLNA devices onto your home network - or if you want/have to go wireless, then choose wireless N with good signal strength. Otherwise you may see stuttering on your TV when streaming HD videos.

[jcake2000]

Dear Mezzmo,

I have been looking for a long time for a piece of hardware that does on the fly transcoding via dlna to my two panasonic tvs. I finally stumbled accross your software and downloaded the demo and was pleasantly surprised - it did everything I wanted - so congratulations on a cracking piece of software - I have tried a few others e.g. wild media server, tversity, etc - and none seem as easy as mezzmo....... enough ego stroking... to my question!!!!

So I am now in the process of building a mini pc to bcome my transcoding media server and wanted to get some steer on cpu specs - I know you have basic details on your website....Having tried your software on a netbook and another laptop, the transcoding worked, but was jekry - these machines where underpowered compared to your spec - hence the reason for upgrading - although I am trying to do this on a budget...

I am looking to build a server with a Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 LGA775 'Yorkfield' 2.66GHz 4MB-cache with 4gb of ram, I was wondering is this a sufficient spec to transcode hi def movies on the fly (both tvs are cat 5 connected) - on a post to someone else you were mentioning the number of threads for the processor?

Additionally I have been reading about the intel sandy bridge processors and was wondering does your software supprot the intel quick video? Is it worth purchasing these processors? If it doesn't support these are there any planend upgrades in future? e.g. Intel Core i3-2120 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor or Intel Core i5-2300 2.80GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail

-
Any guidance would be appreciated

[IsNull]

Basically Mezzmo itself doesn't do any of the transcoding. It is all handled through FFMpeg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FFmpeg).

The Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 (http://ark.intel.com/products/38512/Intel-Core2-Quad-Processor-Q8400-%284M-Cache-2_66-GHz-1333-MHz-FSB%29) is a 2009 4 core, 4 thread CPU with a TDP of 95W.

You referenced an i3 2120, but this cpu only has 2 cores, 4 threads so hyperthreading is enabled. (http://ark.intel.com/products/53426/Intel-Core-i3-2120-Processor-%283M-Cache-3_30-GHz%29)

The i5 2300 is a 4 core, 4 thread processor 2.8GHz turboing under load to 3.1 GHz.

To get the true 4 core 8 thread CPU you've got to get into the i7s which just seems like total overkill for such a project. Running servers consume a lot of electricity and generate a lot of sound and heat. This is why I'm trying to look at CPUs that have a lower TDP and support turboing so they naturally clock down when not under load. But to be under load, the system has to be able to maintain the power and heat requirements along with using all the cores. Since Conceiva has verified that FFMpeg will use all available cores, that should be ok.

Using the i5 2405S, the TDP is 65W that will turbo to 3.3GHz and can be gotten for $220 which is around $40 more than the 2300 at a TDP of 95W. It also lets me use a Seasonic fanless PSU (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151097&Tpk=SS-400FL).

But on a CAT-5 Gigabit network, does the i5 have the juice to do what I want? If not I've literally wasted the $220 for the chip as I don't really have anything else to put it in....

[IsNull]

Paul,

Transcoding load is dependent on what you're encoding to correct? If so, is there a good format to use as a base to transcode from 'on the fly'?

How do you determine the number of threads to send to FFMpeg?

[Paul]

Transcoding load is mostly dependant on whether we're remuxing (copying video/audio into a new container) or fully transcoding. After that, depending on the output format, it may be more or less CPU-intensive.

Ideally, your files would mostly remux, thus you'd get low CPU usage and high transcoding (remuxing) speed.

The number of threads is defined in the device profile - see the "ffmpegadditional" section there. You can adjust it to suit your particular system, just keep in mind that it's a good idea to leave one thread for the server itself (so, if you have an i7, set "-threads 7", leaving the 8th for Mezzmo and other software). FFmpeg will manage load internally as well, so you can specify more than you have and it'll still work of course.

At the moment FFmpeg doesn't use any hardware acceleration, such as using your GPU or advanced architecture, but we're looking into this as well.

[kitsunegari]

I am looking to build a server with a Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 LGA775 'Yorkfield' 2.66GHz 4MB-cache with 4gb of ram, I was wondering is this a sufficient spec to transcode hi def movies on the fly (both tvs are cat 5 connected) - on a post to someone else you were mentioning the number of threads for the processor?I will be able to tell you in a few days time if you can hold fire..

[kitsunegari]

I am looking to build a server with a Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 LGA775 'Yorkfield' 2.66GHz 4MB-cache with 4gb of ram, I was wondering is this a sufficient spec to transcode hi def movies on the fly (both tvs are cat 5 connected) - on a post to someone else you were mentioning the number of threads for the processor?
Right here are my experiences. Don't take this as a definitive yes, but here is my setup and what I've done.


Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 LGA775 'Yorkfield' 2.66GHz 4MB-cache
4GB Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1000mhz
Transcoding HDD: Western Digital 180GB Caviar Blue
Gigabit Ethernet: HP Switches over Cat5e cabling
Sony Bravia 32" 5th Generation Engine
No surround sound - sound is output via a valve amplifier


Now I have a variety of bluray rips that have varied in size as I've been experimenting between getting high quality video, reasonable audio (I don't as yet have a super surround sound system), and reasonable file size. My average rip so far is 10GB, and that is with 5.1 DTS.

It runs very hot, but it copes fine. We watched Saving Private Ryan last night; full 1080p, 5.1 DTS surround sound. Looked gorgeous, and had no problems. I then tested Bourne Ultimatum; 1080p, 5.1 DTS and managed to seek without problems - something I could not do before my upgrade! Wall-E 1080p, 5.1 DTS had some problems, but then my server was backing up two computers over the network at the time, so I don't consider that a fair test!

[PTown]

I have a E2200, 2gb DDR2 800, and 4 WD blacks on Server 2008R2 and can stream+transcode 720p mkv rips over my wireless network to the ps3 at about 50% cpu load on core 2.
I don't think huge h/w power is necessary to achieve good results.

[Sepen]

I put together a system with parts I had laying around today. AMD Athlon x2 4000 with 2 gigs ram, using wired ethernet, it can stream fine to any of my media devices. But when my daughter transcodes a mkv through her Directv box it always crashes after a minute or so. The mkv files are 720p. I even tried reducing the quality of the video to about half way and it still crashes. But for streaming, perfect. Oh well, guess I will have to continue using my I5-750 system. Love Mezzmo.

[Paul]

To check transcoding speed, please enable logging (see this thread: http://forum.conceiva.com/showthread.php/419-FAQ-How-to-turn-on-diagnostic-logging) then try playing the file that crashes and once it does that, stop the server and send the logs to support. Most likely it's not fast enough, but we'll check.