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[jmone]

LAST UPDATED: 27 April 2011 ***Now Locked as MC17 onward includes BD Support***

The following brings together and update a bunch of posts regarding Blu-ray / HD-DVD playback in MC.  While many of these posts discuss how to play content from your HDD that you may have created from your blu-ray authoring SW, I don't want to get into the whole legal/moral issue of decryption the content of your own commercial Blu-ray disks.  If you want to go down this path then the you will need a tool like AnyDVD HD that you can get at www.slysoft.com and can discuss it's use over in their forum.


1: Basic Blu-ray Playback in MC or Blu-ray "Lite" Playback

Background:  From MC 16.0.75 onwards and in conjunction with LAVSplitter, MC supports Blu-ray "Lite" Playback.

What it does:  It is pretty simple, you can now play your Blu-ray discs (and ISO) from within MC.  Currently it will play the longest playlist on the disc and work is underway to let you select the disired playlist as well.  You can also select the desired Audio and Subtitle stream if you right click on the Playing Now window.  What you don't get is any on the fancy menu support.  Currently you can:
1) Disc Playback:  When you insert a Blu-ray (or mount an ISO) you can press TheaterViews "DVD" button and it will play the longest playlist on the disc.  All the usual controls of FFD, RWD, Chapter Skip etc works fine. or you select the "Blu-ray" MC TheaterView button, it:
2) Importing Blu-ray Structures on the HDD:  If you rip the Blu-ray structure to your HDD, you can now import the Index.BDMV file and tag, add coverart etc using the Movie Lookup function just like other media.  You can also import and tag up the MPLS Playlist files so you can access Alternative Endings, Specific Eps etc

Requirements:  Your going to need to have installed and working in their own right:
1) For commercial/encrypted Blu-ray Discs you will need an on the fly Blu-ray decrypter (like AnyDVD HD)
2) LAVSplitter (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=156191)
3) Your favorite Audio and Video Decoders / Renderers (see for more suggestions http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=63282.0)
4) JR Media Center of course!

What you need to do:  Here is how to configure the lot to work together:
1) In MC "Tools --> Options --> Filetypes --> Video --> Blu-ray" and ensure that LAVSplitter is selected as the Source Filter.  

[jmone]

1a: Integrating a 3rd Pary Player within MC

Background:  While Blu-ray "lite" support has now been added in MC from V16.0.75, at the moment there is no full menu support when playing Blu-ray or HD-DVD disks in MC especially for us Remote Control TheaterView users!  Caveat Emptor - While it works for me you are going to have to have to edit the script to get it working the way you want.

What it does:  It is pretty simple, you can how your Discs managed and "Played" from within MC:  
1) When you insert a Blu-ray (HD-DVD) Disk (ISO) or you select the "Blu-ray" MC TheaterView button, it:
     - Closes MC (it's alright it will come back later but it frees up resources)
     - Sets the graphics card to 24hz (note most Blu-ray & HD-DVD are in 1080p/24 so this helps avoid judder IF your TV and Graphics card supports 24hz or a multiple of this)
     - Run your favorite Blu-ray playback SW (eg Archsoft TMT or PowerDVD)
     - Moves the mouse off the right hand side of the screen (some programs leave the mouse visible sometimes....)
2) Just like with DVD Playback, when you press the "STOP" button on your Remote Control you end up back in MC TheaterView, as it:
     - Closes Archsoft / PowerDVD
     - Sets the graphics card back to 50hz (or 60Hz for you NTSC types)
     - Runs MC

Requirements:  Your going to need to have installed and working in their own right:
1) Blu-ray (HD-DVD) Player
2) Arcsoft TMT (my preferred playback SW) / Cyberlink PowerDVD HD (you should have the SW with the purchase of your drive)
3) AutoHotkey ( http://www.autohotkey.com/ this is a freebie scripting app that does all the work, there will be others apps like Girder but you will need to create your own script)
4) JR Media Center of course!

What you need to do:  Here is how to configure the lot to work together:
1) In MC "Tools --> Options --> Theaterview --> Add (Items To Show) --> External Program" and in the three fields enter --> Name: Blu-ray  Program: "C:\Program Files\CyberLink\PowerDVD\PowerDVD.exe" d: (note: including the ", the path for your Archsoft / PowerDVD install and the drive letter that is your Blu-ray Drive)
2) Install AutoHotKey
3) Using the following script as a template, Edit (to suit your needs) and save as "BluRay.ahk" to your Windows Start-Up folders so it loads when Windows Starts Up.  Now this is where you need to be careful especially that you specify resolutions and refresh rates that you equipment support (Monitor/TV, Graphics Card etc) - make sure it works as the script will try to force your settings and I've read that you can apparently damage equipment that does not support it.  Also there is no "reverting in 15-Sec routine".  To help, look for the you can change to suit your requirements comments in the script.  If you don't want to make any changes to refresh rates at the moment OR your equipment dislikes having the refresh rate changed on it (I had a older plasma that used to object) then you should change the variables in both sections to that of your current video settings (that way nothing will happen).

Good Luck and here is hoping that the JR Lads have inbuilt Blu-ray support soon!
Nathan

Code: [Select]

; ========================================================
; JR Media Center Integration Script for PowerDVD or Total Media Theatre BluRay / HD-DVD playback
; --------------------------------------------------------
; The following sets the initial display config (if needed) from boot-up to your prefered default
; --------------------------------------------------------
cD = 32   ; bits (quality) - you can change to suit your requirments
sW = 1920 ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
sH = 1080 ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
rR = 50   ; Hz (frequency) - you can change to suit your requirments

ChangeDisplaySettings( cD, sW, sH, rR )

; --------------------------------------------------------
; The following script will detect if PowerDVD / Total Media Theatre starts up
; --------------------------------------------------------

#NoTrayIcon
#Persistent
#SingleInstance, Force

TargetWindow = ArcSoft TotalMedia Theatre 3 ;- you can change to suit your requirments
TargetWindow1 = CyberLink PowerDVD 8.0 ;- you can change to suit your requirments
TargetWindow2 = TotalMedia Theatre 5 ;- you can change to suit your requirments

Gui,+LastFound
hWnd := WinExist()
DllCall( "RegisterShellHookWindow", UInt,hWnd )
MsgNum := DllCall( "RegisterWindowMessage", Str,"SHELLHOOK" )
OnMessage( MsgNum, "ShellMessages" )
return

ShellMessages( wParam,lParam )
{
   ;Local k
   global
   If (wParam = 1)
   {
      NewID := lParam
      WinGetTitle, Title, ahk_id %NewID%
      WinGetClass, Class, ahk_id %NewID%
      If Title =
      {
         sleep 2000
          WinGetTitle, Title, ahk_id %NewID%
          WinGetClass, Class, ahk_id %NewID%
      }
        If Title = %TargetWindow%
          gosub ActionLabel
If Title = %TargetWindow1%
          gosub ActionLabel
If Title = %TargetWindow2%
          gosub ActionLabel
      return 1
    }
}

; --------------------------------------------------------
; The following script will run when PowerDVD or Arcsoft TMT Starts up and then will close MC, Set Freq to 24hz and "Hides" the mouse
; --------------------------------------------------------
ActionLabel:
cD = 32   ; bits (quality) - you can change to suit your requirments
sW = 1920 ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
sH = 1080  ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
rR = 24   ; Hz (frequency) - you can change to suit your requirments

ChangeDisplaySettings( cD, sW, sH, rR )
Run MC15.exe /close
Mousemove 4000,0
return


; --------------------------------------------------------
; The following script will (if PowerDVD is running) Close PowerDVD, Set Freq back to 50hz, Run MC when the MCE "Stop" button is pressed
; --------------------------------------------------------
#IfWinExist CyberLink PowerDVD  
Media_Stop::  ; This is the STOP button (Media_Stop) - you can change to suit your requirments

Send {Media_Stop}
WinClose

Run "C:\Program Files\Elaborate Bytes\VirtualCloneDrive\VCDMount.exe" /u  ; This will unmount an iso from VCD, remove it you don't use VCD

Run C:\Program Files\J River\Media Center 15\Media Center 15.exe

cD = 32   ; bits (quality) - you can change to suit your requirments
sW = 1920 ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
sH = 1080  ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
rR = 50   ; Hz (frequency) - you can change to suit your requirments

ChangeDisplaySettings( cD, sW, sH, rR )

return

; --------------------------------------------------------
; The following script will (if Arcsoft TMT is running) Close TMT, Set Freq back to 50hz, Run MC when the MCE "Stop" button is pressed
; --------------------------------------------------------
#IfWinExist TotalMedia Theatre 5
Media_Stop::  ; This is the STOP button (Media_Stop) - you can change to suit your requirments

Send {Media_Stop}
WinClose

Run "C:\Program Files\Elaborate Bytes\VirtualCloneDrive\VCDMount.exe" /u ; This will unmount an iso from VCD, remove it you don't use VCD

Run C:\Program Files\J River\Media Center 15\Media Center 15.exe

cD = 32   ; bits (quality) - you can change to suit your requirments
sW = 1920 ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
sH = 1080  ; pixels - you can change to suit your requirments
rR = 50   ; Hz (frequency) - you can change to suit your requirments

ChangeDisplaySettings( cD, sW, sH, rR )

Process, Close, uDigital Theatre.exe ; Needs to close the process as WinClose just minimises TMT

return

; --------------------------------------------------------
; The script that makes the DLL Call to change the resolution - Don't Change
; --------------------------------------------------------

ChangeDisplaySettings( cD, sW, sH, rR ) {
  VarSetCapacity(dM,156,0), NumPut(156,2,&dM,36)
  DllCall( "EnumDisplaySettings", UInt,0, UInt,-1, UInt,&dM ), NumPut(0x5c0000,dM,40)
  NumPut(cD,dM,104),  NumPut(sW,dM,108),  NumPut(sH,dM,112),  NumPut(rR,dM,120)
  Return DllCall( "ChangeDisplaySettings", UInt,&dM, UInt,0 )
}  

; --------------------------------------------------------
; Credit to shimanov and Skan for the ChangeDisplaySetting script - see http://www.autohotkey.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8355
; Credit to Conquer for the script to monitor for PowerDVD's startup - see http://www.autohotkey.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26429


2: ISO Playback in MC

Background:  You can manage and launch playback of you Blu-ray ISO in MC just like with DVDs.

Requirements:  You are going to need the following:
1) Blu-ray / HD-DVD in ISO format on your HDD

2) Install an ISO Mounter (I like Virtual Clone Drive that you can get for free from http://forum.slysoft.com/forumdisplay.php?f=21 )

3) Configure MC:  As per the instructions at http://wiki.jrmediacenter.com/index.php/DVD_Library_in_Media_Center - Firstly, change how MC13 handles the launching of ISO's: Under "Tools --> Options --> File Types", scroll down to the "Data" Section, Select "Disk Image Files" and change the Playback Method to "External Program (default). MC13 will now use Windows default setting to "mount" your ISO's with your default mounter (eg Virtual Clone Drive / Daemon Tools etc).

4) Tag your ISO Files: More on tagging in a post below but you now need to tag each of your ISO files as Video, Audio etc pending on what view you want them to appear in. To do this select you ISO file(s) and change the "Media Type" Library Field to the correct type (eg, "Video" but could be "Audio" if you ISO your CD's). All your ISO's should now appear in the correct area of TheaterView and will Mount, Launch and Play just as you would expect.

[jmone]

3: File Playback in MC

Most of the "content" of a Blu-ray / HD-DVD (the Video, Audio etc) is stored in one or more M2TS / EVO files on each disk.  For those interested you can play back these files within MC using DirectShow filters just like other formats (eg MPG).  The purpose of this post is on how to play these M2TS (Blu-ray) and EVO (HD-DVD) files in MC not how to get them onto your HDD from a commercial disk.  

M2TS / EVO Containers: The M2TS container format typically found on Blu-ray Disks and AVCHD based camcorders (the TS stands for Transport Stream but I've no idea that the M2 stands for).  EVO (Enhanced VOB) is a container format typically found on HD-DVD Disks.  Both formats hold the Video (H.264/MPEG-4 AVC, VC-1, or MPEG-2), audio (AC-3, E-AC3 aka DD+, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS-HD, PCM, and MPEG-2) subtitle, etc.

Playing:  Playback of the raw M2TS or EVO is just like any other file in MC in that you will need the compatible filters installed, such as:

Source Filter: Haali or LAV Splitter
Other Filters: FFSDHOW Video /  Audio Filter or LAV Audio Decoder
Video Renderer: madVR, EVR

The original thread on how to playback these raw files was developed at AVS http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=892527

There are some issues with playback of these raw M2TS / EVO, including that they may be in several parts and that they do not contain any Chapter of Subtitle information.  For these reasons many users re-author these into a MKV format as it can also hold the Chapters, Subtitles as well as the desired Video and Audio Stream(s) in one file (see next chapter of Converting).  Similar Filters can be used as above but you may also need to add:
Other Filters: DirectVobSub to get the subtitles showing (pending on the subtitle format that is in the MKV file)

[jmone]

4: Converting

Background:  There are a couple of reasons you may want to convert your Blu-ray / HD-DVD to another format and I've covered a few of these below:

HD-DVD to Blu-ray:  While HD-DVD is dead as a format, there is thankfully a set of tools that allows you to extract, convert, remux the content to a Blu-ray structure ensuring ongoing compatibility with SW and HW players.  A simple GUI front end called "ClownBD" that brings all the required tools and process together can be found at http://forum.slysoft.com/showthread.php?t=25818

Blu-ray/HD-DVD to MKV:  These sames tools can also be used to create a single MKV File containing your preferred Video, Audio, Chapters, and Subtitles that can then be played in MC like any other file without any loss of quality.  A simple GUI front end called "Another EAC3to GUI Plus" can be found at http://www.curtpalme.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=17002&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0 though this seems to be less actively supported than ClownBD

[jmone]

5: Tagging & Coverart

There are a number of options here in the Third Party Board - I like MoviesSeriesInfos http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=52898.0 as in addition to adding the relevant Movie Based meta data and coverart it also changes the "Media Type" Library Field to "Video" (one less thing to remember to change)

[jmone]

6: HD-DVD and Windows 7

MS have removed in Win7 the the option to set what program to run when a HD-DVD is inserted or mounted (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Features_removed_in_Windows_7)

Here is a simple AHK script to add this functionality back: http://www.autohotkey.com/forum/topic48201.html

Thanks
Nathan

PS - For new AHK users, all you need to do is:
1) Install AHK
2) Copy the code in the link to a text file, modify the "run" details for the program you want, save with an AHK extension and place in your startup folder.

[Daydream]

Here's another thought. MPC-HC will play a Blu-Ray disc (unencrypted) via Open DVD option, with original subtitles (I think one needs Haali for that). I don't know what magic is at work there, if there's anything advanced or not, but it picks the main movie. Ffdshow will play any audio, lossy or lossless. That makes a complete playing solution without any paid software and, of course, any advanced features - no menus , no BD-live, PiP, etc.

If MPC-HC can detect a Blu-Ray disc why not MC? And then we'll just use existing DShow filters to make things play smoothly.

And great idea Jmone to get all things Blu-Ray together!

[morrison]

excellent description jmone, thank you very much

[audunth]

Here's another thought. MPC-HC will play a Blu-Ray disc (unencrypted) via Open DVD option, with original subtitles (I think one needs Haali for that). I don't know what magic is at work there, if there's anything advanced or not, but it picks the main movie. Ffdshow will play any audio, lossy or lossless. That makes a complete playing solution without any paid software and, of course, any advanced features - no menus , no BD-live, PiP, etc.

If MPC-HC can detect a Blu-Ray disc why not MC? And then we'll just use existing DShow filters to make things play smoothly.

And great idea Jmone to get all things Blu-Ray together!

And even if MC doesn't play a Blu-ray disc, it should be able to detect it under Drives/devices, which would easily let you assign an external program and play it selecting the drive in Theater View.

[jmone]

I'm fully aware of how to import and manage ISOs in MC, but my imported DVDs and Blu-ray/HD-DVDs are stored in hard drive folders in their original folder structure (VIDEO_TS for DVDs etc.). Now, the DVDs are handled fine, I just import the VIDEO_TS.ifo file into MC and fill in the correct tags, and it behaves just like any other media file. My question is if the same is possible with the HD formats, in other words, is there a start file in a HD-DVD/Blu-ray folder structure equivalent to the VIDEO_TS.ifo on a DVD, and will MC now, or in the near future, be able to recognize it and execute the appropriate external program?

I know one option is to make images of my imported HD-discs, but I'm just enquiring about the ability to catalog Blu-ray/HD-DVDs stored in their original folder structure without the need for virtual drives to play them back, which means one less piece of software on my computer.

Unfortunately, the problem is that at present there is no (that I know of) free third party Blu-ray Navigation Filter that MC can use or any immediate plans for MC native support (also while you can see the contents, even play a file, without the Navigation Filter there is no way of playing the "Movie" in MC).   So for now we are stuck with either ripping the movie to a single file MKV/TS etc that will play in MC (but you will lose the extras, alternative endings etc) or play the DISC (disk, ISO, or structure) in another prog like TMT.  

Now the good news for what you want to do, is that on the root of the Blu-ray disc is a "index.bdmv" file.  If you double click on this, Windows will ask you what file you want to associate it with - pick TMT (the only one that will play a Blu-ray structure) and it will launch the blu-ray for you!  Can can now import this file into MC, tag, add Coverart etc and it will launch TMT when you "play" it.

[rick.ca]

Can can now import this file into MC, tag, add Coverart etc and it will launch TMT when you "play" it.

How do you import a file type that's not supported? It's something I like to do for other reasons, but I didn't think it was possible.

[audunth]

Thanks, that's what I was looking for. I'll try it tomorrow, as it's getting pretty late now over here in Norway.

Do you happen to know if a HD-DVD structure has a similar start file? By the way I use an early version of PowerDVD 7, one that came out before they removed the feature to play from a hard drive. I've also tried TMT.

[jmone]

How do you import a file type that's not supported? It's something I like to do for other reasons, but I didn't think it was possible.

Ahhh I just dragged the file into the MC Toolbar and you get the "Play, Import etc" options came up.  Once imported I changed the Media Type tag from Data to Video so it will show up in the correct view...

[jmone]

Thanks, that's what I was looking for. I'll try it tomorrow, as it's getting pretty late now over here in Norway.

Do you happen to know if a HD-DVD structure has a similar start file? By the way I use an early version of PowerDVD 7, one that came out before they removed the feature to play from a hard drive. I've also tried TMT.

the \HDDVD_TS\HVA00001.VTI file works the same way on HD-DVD discs - you should be all set to go (at least in TMT - no idea about PDVD, I left it when they dropped HD-DVD and Folder Support for TMT   )

EDIT - Audunth, if you can confirm this works for you I'll add the instructions to one of the Playback Posts.

[jmone]

Here's another thought. MPC-HC will play a Blu-Ray disc (unencrypted) via Open DVD option, with original subtitles (I think one needs Haali for that). I don't know what magic is at work there, if there's anything advanced or not, but it picks the main movie. Ffdshow will play any audio, lossy or lossless. That makes a complete playing solution without any paid software and, of course, any advanced features - no menus , no BD-live, PiP, etc.

If MPC-HC can detect a Blu-Ray disc why not MC? And then we'll just use existing DShow filters to make things play smoothly.

And great idea Jmone to get all things Blu-Ray together!

Hi Daydream - your right - MPC-HC will play Blu-ray (not HD-DVD) via the Open DVD Option, or by draging the index.bdmv file into it's playing now stream.  Given playback of the streams is done by existing filters, there is no reason why MC could also not develop a simple parser to read the playlists as well.....

[rick.ca]

Ahhh I just dragged the file into the MC Toolbar and you get the "Play, Import etc" options came up.

Right—of course. Or Import using the shell extension. I was thinking the file type had to be recognized in order to set the association in MC. Not so. MC will import any "unsupported" file as Data, and any such file will be opened (i.e., "played") according to it's Windows association. That means I can re-associate specific AVI or MKV files MC cannot play to something that can—like VLC or MPC.

[JimH]

Thanks for doing this, Nathan.  It's a valuable resource.  I may copy it to the wiki later.

[jmone]

Thanks for doing this, Nathan.  It's a valuable resource.  I may copy it to the wiki later.

No probs - I figure that once we get all the good ideas down, a summary in the Wiki will be the way to go.

[jmone]

7: Blu-ray...Not Seeing and Hearing the Difference?

While the format offers a number of features (interactivity, multi angles, multi versions / alternative endings etc), most of as are after the impact of High Resolution Video and Audio that Blu-ray can deliver.  These discs usually include 1920x1080/24p Video and a choice of lossless audio in a variety of formats (some discs however are no better than DVD if the transfers are poor or low resolution). 

To be able to See and Hear these high resolution video and audio streams you must have the correct equipment. 

HD Video and 1080p:  Here is a great article you will want to read before buying you Screen and why you want to buy the biggest one you can - http://carltonbale.com/1080p-does-matter - the graph below shows the relationship between screen size, viewing distance, and your ability to perceive different resolutions (there is another one you can even put in your own visual acuity).


HD Audio:  Likewise you are not going to be able to resolve the HD Audio if you don't have the relevant amplification and speakers.  Most Blu-ray offer Lossless tracks over the DD/DTS we have become used to on DVD's.  These sound tracks alone now take up as much room as an entire DVD used to.  IMHO the jump in Audio quality is the biggest benefit of Blu-ray....but if your listening is just the TV or PC speakers you are unlikely to notice the difference.  It's a bit like trying to tell the difference between the quality of an MP3 Vs CD (or FLAC etc) on a $2 pair of ear buds.

Hooking it all up:  Ok - you have your HTPC, big quality Screen, good Receiver and quality Speakers.....but you need to connect them all up correctly to unlock that High Resolution Video and Audio:

1) Video:  In descending order of quality is HDMI --> Component --> (This is the High Resolution Cut of Point) S-Video --> Composite --> RF.  If you don't have a HDMI or Component video connection between your HTPC/Blu-ray Player and your Receiver/TV then don't bother with Blu-ray.

2) Audio:  To get Multi Channel High Resolution Audio you can only use either HDMI or Analoge connections (S/PDIF is limited to a max of 2CH PCM or plain DD / DTS), again without the correct connections I'd not bother with Blu-ray. 
   a) Analoge Connections: Most HTPC (sound card) / Blu-ray players have a 5.1 Analoge out option which you can feed into the relevant analogue in ports on your receiver.
   b) HDMI Connections:  Most recent HDMI Graphic/Sound Cards (eg ATI 4xxx series) and receivers can transmist up to 7.1 ch of LPCM sound.  Your playback software (eg TMT/PDVD) simply decodes the Blu-ray audio tracks to PCM, and transmits them over HDMI to your receiver that then amplifies them.
   c) HDMI Bitstream Connections:  The latest HDMI Graphic/Sound Cards (eg ATI 5xxx series) and selected receivers can transmit the Audio bitstream in the format it is stored on the Blu-ray disc to the receiver where it decoded and amplified.

I know a 70yo couple that got their "bonus" blu-ray player hooked up to the 42" Plasma they watch from 5meters away, and the sound comes through the TV's speakers....I'm not surprised that their Blu-ray experience is "underwhelming" and as they are unable to resolve the additional Video and Audio resolution in this environment, they may as well have stuck wit DVDs.


Thanks
Nathan

[audunth]

the \HDDVD_TS\HVA00001.VTI file works the same way on HD-DVD discs - you should be all set to go (at least in TMT - no idea about PDVD, I left it when they dropped HD-DVD and Folder Support for TMT   )

EDIT - Audunth, if you can confirm this works for you I'll add the instructions to one of the Playback Posts.

Sorry about the delay, but I've been away for work for 3 weeks.

I just tried importing both a Blu-ray and a HD DVD into MC using the start files you specified and it works perfectly with TMT, launching the external player and playing the movie (tried in both Standard and Theater view). So no need to convert all my folder-structure-imported HD discs to images

I also tried associating the .VTI file with PowerDVD 7, but that didn't work too well...PowerDVD launched, but didn't play the HD DVD, not even upon pressing the play button in PowerDVD. Guess I'll be using TMT only too, it's just that it had some serious hickups (lag, audio out of sync) when playing some of my discs. I'm migrating to Win7, so hopefully that will solve the issue.

EDIT: It did import the files as data, so I had to change the media type to Video. I actually have the same problem whenever I import a .TS file. Is there any way of controlling which file extensions gets recognized as video as opposed to data?

[audunth]

Hi again,

I was just thinking about something: why not add recognition for .bdmv and .vti files in MC so that when importing such a file, MC will go "okay, I know this file, thats a Blu-ray/HD DVD! Let's classify it as a video file."

Also, would it be possible for MC to take a peek inside the bdmv/vti file and see what files it's pointing too, and from there, pick out the main feature by the file size, and then put the .m2ts file(s) in the playing now playlist and play it/them? That would sort of make MC able to play a Blu-ray/HD DVD, but without the menus/features. It would be like playing the video stream files manually, but let MC automatically select which file(s) to play, thereby making it a bit easier. Just a thought.

[Daydream]

would it be possible for MC to take a peek inside the bdmv/vti file and see what files it's pointing too,

The implementation of this feature currently has a "fairy tale" status. 

[jmone]

8: Blu-ray / HD-DVD Folder Structure Playback from MC

To consolidate the few posts above.  If you have saved your Blu-ray / HD-DVD 's as an unencrypted folder structure on your HDD, you can still manage and launch playback of these from inside MC.

1. Assign Windows Association: You only need to do this once.  Navigate to where you have stored you Blu-ray (or HD-DVD) and locate the \index.bdmv (Blu-ray) or \HDDVD_TS\HVA00001.VTI (HD-DVD) and double click on it.  Windows will ask you what file you want to associate it with - pick TMT (the only one which currently plays a Blu-ray / HD-DVD structure) and it will launch the Blu-ray / HD-DVD for you!  MPC-HC may also do the same as will earlier versions of PDVD.  I'm unsure of any others.

2. Importing and Tagging and Playing in MC: For each disc that you have saved as a structure on the HDD, you now need to locate and import each \index.bdmv (Blu-ray) or \HDDVD_TS\HVA00001.VTI (HD-DVD) file into MC, Tag, add Coverart etc.  To import the files either drag them onto the MC Toolbar and you get the "Play, Import etc" options came up, or if you have the Shell Extension enabled, you can right click and Import them.  Once they are imported you need to change the "Media Type" tag from Data to Video so it will show up in the correct view...and it will launch TMT when you "play" it.

[syndromeofadown]

This is my method of playing blu ray backups in folder form(not iso's or any other disc image) with an external program
-blu ray backups have a file similar to a dvd's ifo called "index.bdmv"
 at this point in time(14.0.140) J river cannot import or play these.
As a work around do the following:
1)in your bluray backup folder create a text file.  Call it anything for now
   it will sit beside BDMV folder and CERTIFICATE folder
   this is also where folder.jpg will sit
2)Change the text file's name to whatever you want. lets say the title of your blu ray
3)change the extension from txt to swf
   leave the folder.jpg, BDMV folder, and CERTIFICATE folder sitting beside it
5)import the swf into j river and tag it just like any other video
then
You can use an external program to open index.bdmv by the following:
1)go to [options]/[filetypes]
2)set  swf(shockwave) video to open with external program (custom)
3)select the program you want to use
4)paste this, quotes included, in the arguments box:   "[Filename (path)]BDMV\index.bdmv"
   it should play just as if you had the disc inserted
note that you can substitute swf for any unused video format you want.
i have only done this with arcsoft total media theatre, so im unsure if other blu ray software can play blu ray backups.
Also, im not sure if all blu ray folders are structured the same, so far all of mine are
if some are different this will have to be modified/expanded
if you have iso's or img's you can convert them to a folder by unzipping them with archiving software
i have only tried winrar but others probably work too

[jmone]

Thanks for sharing how you currently do this.

This is my method of playing blu ray backups in folder form(not iso's or any other disc image) with an external program
-blu ray backups have a file similar to a dvd's ifo called "index.bdmv"
 at this point in time(14.0.140) J river cannot import or play these.

FYI - you can import these file into MC - and while you can not explicitly assign a playback method at this time, Windows association will do the trick (see the post above yours)

[badger]

After trying most of the options above, I believe I've decided to handle playback of my BD rips (.M2TS files...main movie) with MC14.  I'm getting really nice DTS sound and the HD video is great.  My only setbacks to playing these files in MC so far are subtitles and chapters.  Chapters I can live without, but I need subtitles.  The subtitle streams are there, because they will play in TMT, but I have'nt yet found a way to play them in MC.  Does anyone know of a filter or decoder that will give me subtitles?

[jmone]

I've only been able to get subtitles working (and chapters) when muxing to MKV - I too would be interested if anyone has gotten subs working from M2T/M2TS. 

[Daydream]

Does anyone know of a filter or decoder that will give me subtitles?

No, there is no standalone filter yet. However, from the custom builds and development somewhere else I have strong reasons to believe support will be available in the near future. So while my current approach is still the same, dealing with OCR and making my own external subs, I also let MakeMKV embed the original BR subs in the output file, so that in the near future I could use them, should I want to. Again, mkv - I do not feel the need for another container format like m2ts. Why are you guys using it, is this PS3 related?

[jmone]

I've still not settled on how I want to store all my Blu-ray / HD-DVD material:
1) ISO: Perfect if you only want to have PC based devices playing them back - no good for streaming to PS3 (or other DLNA equipment)
2) M2T/M2TS: Good for streaming to a PS3 (less VC-1) without transcoding and fine for PC File Playback but no Subs or Chapters support at this stage
3) MKV: Good for PC File Playback (Chaps, Forced Subs, Multiple Audio etc) but needs to be transcoded for streaming to PS3 and without the ability to configure MC's DLNA Video transcoding settings it is really poor quality at present.

So what "I'd Love" is one Container format that:
- Supports all Video, Audio, Sub, Chapter streams (eg MKV),
- Will playback on the PC (M2T/M2TS or MKV)
- Will be streamable to the PS3 (M2T/M2TS) or easily transcoded and streamed (eg MKV potentially)

Given the current state of play, I'm leaning to:
1) MKV created with Original Video, converted Subs, Chapters, and converted Audio (PCM or FLAC)
2) Keep up the begging with JR on the Transcoding settings so these will stream/transcode at a reasonable quality over DLNA

Couple of notes on the conversion to MKV.  I quite like the simple EAC3 front end "Another EAC3to GUI Plus" that can be found at http://www.curtpalme.com/forum/viewtopic.php? for most discs though after a while it is easy enough to do you own EAC3 scripts. 

Couple of notes on the Converting (my preference is always to where possible, leave the streams as original and have the playback software deal with them appropriately):
* Audio Formats:  The need to convert the HD-Audio formats to more common formats is diminishing as the latest FFDSHOW devs now supports most of the newer Audio Formats with the exception of DTS-HD (which it can only playback the core from - and given the "closed" nature of this codec it may be some time before we see a non-licenced player deal with this correctly).
* Subtitles:  There is yet to be a 3rd party filter that supports these formats though many of the EACto front ends (Clown, Another EAC3 to GUI Plus, etc) will convert them to the same format used by DVD's so that FFDSHOW and other subtitle aware filters can use them.  It will be great when/if this step is no longer needed
* Chapters:  Blu-ray chapters and held in another file and are not contained within the M2TS/M2T file itself but can be converted and muxed into MKV just fine
* Seemless Branching:  You are going to lose this and need to be happy settling for the one version you want to extract and store as a single file (eg Some discs support alternative endings, director cuts with extra scenes that works by added / substituting various chapters on the disc).

If there are any other ideas I'd love to know!
Thanks
Nathan

[Daydream]

* Seamless Branching:  You are going to lose this and need to be happy settling for the one version you want to extract and store as a single file (eg Some discs support alternative endings, director cuts with extra scenes that works by added / substituting various chapters on the disc).

Ordered chapters and segment linking in MKV will probably do that. This is not for the faint of heart. On short it means you create 2-3-more chapters lists and you pick one when you begin playing in Haali properties. The chapter playlist will jump around between elements using their atom/ID identifier, which needs to be known. It's not a clap-clap-done process.

The mileage will vary regarding the process being seamless, since let's say you have the movie and the alternate ending is an extra on DVD/BR. They are not completely synced. On the other hand you may have a movie on a disc authored with seamless branching so playing with various segments later on in mkv may still result in a very nice match.

It can be done with current tools but there's not much documentation and anything complex it's very time consuming. I just go with the longest cut of the movie .

[badger]

Again, mkv - I do not feel the need for another container format like m2ts. Why are you guys using it, is this PS3 related?

My only reason for wanting to stick with M2TS is that's what I end up with after ripping the BD.  I figured if I could eliminate a conversion step and just apply a filter for subs...that would be a better process for me.  I really only need the "forced subtitles".  I hadn't noticed they were'nt coming accross until I played the main movie .m2ts from 2012.

[Daydream]

My only reason for wanting to stick with M2TS is that's what I end up with after ripping the BD.  I figured if I could eliminate a conversion step and just apply a filter for subs...that would be a better process for me.  I really only need the "forced subtitles".  I hadn't noticed they were'nt coming accross until I played the main movie .m2ts from 2012.

You take the streams you want from the original m2ts file and you mux them in a different file, which happens to be the same container type. With MakeMKV (that now knows lossless audio; and it's still free) you can pick the streams you want and it'll output one mkv file. Just a different container type (better if you ask me, PS3 support notwithstanding). Same number of steps, there is no conversion, in the true sense of the word.

In some other news, check the latest ffdshow builds. I can't get the subs to work yet but... it's coming. Albain says these subs formats are a pain

[jmone]

Good find - at some point it will mean one less stream that needs to be converted/transcoded....

[jmone]

On for the purists - The latest version of TMT (.170), Reclock, and the ATI HDMI Driver on ATI 5xxx cards now supports:
1) Bitstreaming of all HD Audio or (more excitingly for me)
2) PCM Mixing at full Bit Rate / Depth

eg - You can now get the full 96khz/24-bit soundrack output as PCM so reclock can keep it all in perfect sync with the Video - very nice!

[mojave]

I integrated Media Player Classic-Home Cinema in JRiver Media Center using this guide. I also have AnyDVD HD running.

1. I installed MPC-HC.
2. I downloaded and installed the ExternalLauncher.exe file per the instructions.
3. I created the ExternalLauncher.bat file per the instructions.
4. I associated index.bdmv with ExternalLauncher.exe in Windows 7.

Now when I put a Blu-ray in the drive and select Play in MC 15, MPC-HC will launch and start playback. If I set AutoPlay for DVD's to Play then nothing happens. There needs to be an AutoPlay for Blu-rays in order to launch the default player for index.bdmv files. When you exit it puts you back into MC.

This doesn't do all the things jmone's method does, but is is fairly easy to setup.

[jmone]

9: Enabling TMT's Audio Filter for DTS-HD MA decoding in File Playback

It looks like the last piece of the puzzle is now available for being able to decode DTS-HD Steams from file playback in MKVs etc thanks to this post by renethx at http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=19370583&postcount=3 .  

In Summary it is now very straight forward thanks to the custom work by Shard at http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=154070
1) Download "checkactivate" and "ASAudioHD+" from the thread above
2) Extract the contents of both to a common folder (note there are two read me files, so you may want to rename one) and run "register.bat" to register the custom ASAudioHD+.AX filter

The Arcsoft decoder is now available for use in MC but I found that it works best with the new LAVFSplitter that you can get from here http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=156191

One issue is that the Arcsoft Audio HD Decoder does not output all possible Audio Codecs that may be in MKV (or other containers), so I've added both FFDSHOW Audio and the Arcsoft Audio HD Decoder in MC's options (see pic) but then disabled FFDSHOW's decoding for True HD, E-AC3, and DTS as this will then use the Arcsoft decoder for these formats and FFDSHOW for others like MP3, FLAC, PCM etc.  You can also use your Video Decoder and Video Renderer of choice as normal.

[fitbrit]

Thanks for posting this here. I saw Renethx's post at avs when it first came out. I actually tried the procedure a couple of days ago, but none of the codecs seemed to register. No biggie as my HTPC is up for a reformatting very soon because it's developed some issues, so it's not a real surprise this didn't work. If all goes well, it means my GT240 in my basement HTPC will not need upgrading immediately.

[jmone]

TMT 5 has been released and I've updated the AutoHotKey script in Post 1 (or attached) for anyone needing the update

[jmone]

FYI - There has been an update to the LAVFSplitter (that you can get from here http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=156191) and I've updated the instructions for "9: Enabling TMT's Audio Filter for DTS-HD MA decoding in File Playback".  I can now get from an MKV and M2TS container full bit rate audio (of any flavor), working subs, and with MKV Chapters support as well.

[Daydream]

It's not clear from the last 2 posts, is TMT5 good to use? I thought it downsamples everything to 48/16.

[jmone]

The TMT filters will output both 24-Bit and 96khz just fine IF it is connected to a compatible audion renderer (like madVR or MC's)....eg if you are useing TMT5 for Blu-ray playback and have installed Recock it will output high bitrate and depth just fine if you are decoding on the PC.

The posts above are then about how to enable the use of the TMT3 HDAudio filter for use with directshow playback.  The hacked versions referenced will let you go into the filter settings and select decoding at 24bit.  I'm pretty pleased with the results so far (but I'm sure there will be bugs!)

[Z0001]

TMT 5 has been released and I've updated the AutoHotKey script in Post 1 (or attached) for anyone needing the update

For the purposes of playing 3D blu ray iso files I like the idea of MC launching TMT5 only for 3D files (and closing MC during playback to save resources). Is there some way to configure the AutoHotkey script to do this? I want to use MC as my library and the place from which I launch al my media, I only want TMT5 to play the 3D stuff.

Thanks

[Ekpen]

Greetings:
In MC 16, I can select all type of filters. With MC 18, I only see directshow filters ,  as choice.
I have installed Lavfilters etc on this PC.
Why are these filters including Madvr not selectable any longer?

Thanks.
Ekpen.

[jmone]

This details in this thread no longer apply in MC18 (or MC17) as the good folk at JR have built most of the functionality into MC and the Red October feature so I'm going to lock it.

If you have any specific BD playback questions then it would be worth creating a new thread.