CPU usage at 100% while transcoding; stops and starts

[dpetr]

Hello Dennis. I've followed a thread on CPU usage but my circumstances are slightly different.

While transcoding a video, at times the CPU usage hits 100 % and the video playback stalls. Is this normal? When it hits 100%, ffmeg.exe is at 65% which appears to be normal, but then MezzmoMediaServer goes from 3 to 5% up to 27 to 30% and stays that way for anywhere between 3 to 15 seconds, thus maxing out the CPU near %100 and consequently playback stops. Again, would this be normal or is there a tweak I can apply? Once the transcoded video is complete, and saved to disk, the video plays normal so I might presume this to be normal while generating the file.

Thanks in advance.

[Paul]

No, it's not normal to hit 100%, even when transcoding, unless you've got a single-core CPU. It's possible that you're experiencing one issue we've fixed here. Can you please send a message to support and I'll send you a patch to try.

[dpetr]

Well Dennis, here's some more information. On a THIRD PC with very little software installed (Same OS Windows 7 x64) , using just the trial version, there's significantly less CPU usage. With the patched MediaServer.exe and the revised SonyBravia.prf file you had previously sent me, everything plays great and get this, the m2ts file that would not play goes straight to the TV with no transcoding, virtually no CPU usage! So I have no idea what's hosing those other two PC's. Maybe in the log files I sent, you can give me some ideas.

[Paul]

Thanks for letting me know about it I'll get back to you via e-mail regarding the logs. We're working on fixing an issue at the moment and so I'm a bit slower to respond to support at this point unfortunately.

[dpetr]

Just when things were going great. I shut down the computer that was working fine. 4 hours later, turn it back on, wouldn't you know it. Same condition: "File not found." I'm convinced something is happening with Mezzmo. It's beyond explanation. If you want, I can send you the log files from THAT computer, but I don't see the point. 3 PC's, all not working after reboot with the new prf file.

Here's what's happening. Any file that ffmpeg reports as mpeg4 video format, the vast majority of my movies (AVI mostly), will not play (Error "File Not found"). One video file I have, ffmpeg reports the video format as msmpeg4. It requires transcoding and it plays fine. The m2ts file that had no picture is a h264 video, that isn't transcoded and plays fine. Anything else I have in the h264 format works great, no transcoding. So apparently whatever is in that prf file you sent me doesn't like the mpeg4 format! This is the case on all 3 PC's.

I look forward to a resolution. Thanks. Dale.

[RMerlin]

MPEG4 can be different codecs. For example, Xvid is considered an MPEG4 compliant codec. DivX is also considered MPEG-4, although it deviates slightly (if my memory's right, it's been a while since I've read on this) from the MPEG4 standard.

And to make matters even more confusing, MPEG4 is also referred to as a container (files with the .mp4 extension). Gotta love the Windows codec landscape

Can you post more details on files that don't work in addition to what ffmpeg reports, mention which MPEG4 codec they are using (Xvid, DivX, etc...)? This could help the folks at Conceiva pinpointing the issue. If you're not sure how, you can check the codec details using a tool such as MediaInfo (http://mediainfo.sourceforge.net/en).

[Paul]

Yes, please post FFmpeg information on that file (in Mezzmo right-click on the file and use the "Get FFmpeg Information" command).

[dpetr]

Hi Dennis. The latest Sony Bravia profile and server you sent have fixed the problem with MPEG4 format files. They now all get transcoded fine. No ffmpeg.exe crashes.

They all get transcoded into the exact same dimensions that the video in the file has and the Bravia displays them in those dimensions; that is, not full screen (like the AVC format that doesn't get transcoded) but bars top and bottom and somethines both sides. Perhaps this was intended. For me it's not an issue. I suppose it would be next to impossible to specify transcoding dimensions at the file properties level.

Thanks for fixing this Dennis! Great work.

[Paul]

Thanks for letting me know - glad it works

(I'll repeat my reply to you that I've sent via e-mail here, just for the benefit of everyone)

The transcoded dimensions are controlled by the device profile (in the .prf file you’ll see <dimensions> that list all possible combinations) – I’ve found that the Bravia TVs sometimes don’t keep the correct aspect ratio on transcoded files, if the file does not fit into one of those dimensions. However, this is still under testing, so may change. If you wish, just remove all <dimensions> from the <format> in the .prf file, restart the server and now it should transcode to the native file's dimensions. It may or may not be better Please let me know how it goes, if you do try it.

[dpetr]

Hello once again Dennis. Commenting out the <dimension> lines really didn't make any difference as far as I can see. One movie is in letterbox and has a very wide bar top and bottom, with or without <dimension>. Another has bars around all sides with or without. So evidently in my case, it's not making any difference. I left them in there based on your experience.