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[CountryBumkin]

MC18 has two settings related to "Video Acceleration".

1) General > Video Card: Hardware accelerated graphics (choices are: Low Quality, Medium Quality, Highest Quality, Automatic, Custom (which has bunch of choices)).

2) Video > Hardware accelerated video decoding when possible. (Choices are: Yes, No (On/Off)).

What do these do - and what is the best choice for a dedicated HTPC system with i3-2100 with NVidia GT440 video card?

[glynor]

#1 controls the quality of the rendering in Theater View and other 3D accelerated views in MC (mostly the amount of anti-aliasing makes an impact on performance).  It has nothing at all to do with video playback.

The GT440 can probably handle Highest here, but if you see dropped frames and whatnot in Theater View, then turn this down.

#2 controls whether the decoding filters use GPU acceleration when decoding video for playback.

This can lower the load on your CPU during video playback and save power.  It should not dramatically impact quality (though the rendering pipelines can differ, so YMMV depending on which specific GPU/CPU combination you have).  The safest bet is to turn it off (do all decode in software on the CPU), but turning it on may allow an underpowered CPU to run higher quality settings than it would be able to with it off (assuming you have a decent GPU to match).  You're right in the "spot" for those with that CPU/GPU combo, so I'd probably try turning it on and leave it on unless you have trouble.

[jmone]

Video Decoding is just like audio decoding in that all decoders should give the same output (unless there is a bug) so the quality is the "same".  However there is a difference in De-interlacing algorithms and it is usually the HW decoder that does uses a higher quality algorithm (say Vector Adaptive VS YADIF).

[6233638]

Video Decoding is just like audio decoding in that all decoders should give the same output (unless there is a bug) so the quality is the "same".  However there is a difference in De-interlacing algorithms and it is usually the HW decoder that does uses a higher quality algorithm (say Vector Adaptive VS YADIF).

With Nvidia and madVR (GTX 570 in my system) only software decoding or DXVA2 copy-back in LAV Video give me good results. CUVID forces the GPU to run at maximum clockspeed (eliminates the power savings from hardware acceleration) and results in videos incorrectly being detected as interlaced and often using the wrong type of deinterlacing, and DXVA2 Native doesn't allow you to force film-type deinterlacing.

So in my experience at least, hardware acceleration can be good, but the option inside MC18 (which seems to use CUVID) is bad.

Even with DXVA2 Copy-Back decoding, I have some videos that display artefacts that don't appear with software decoding. (Blu-rays even) But that's rare, and using DXVA2-cb saves a decent amount of power compared to CPU decoding.

[jmone]

FYI- I've raised the Q on the Beta team to see if it is worth reviewing the RO defaults used.

[kstuart]

A number wrote:
" With Nvidia and madVR... "

You do realize that this is two limitations, which together apply to a small percentage of users (the term for which is usually "power users").

Anyone who is asking in such general terms is, by definition, not a power user.

So, your characterization "...but the option inside MC18 (which seems to use CUVID) is bad..." is counter-productive, because many readers who have no idea what "CUVID" is, will decide "hardware acceleration is bad".  This is how these wrong generalizations get started  --- and there are quite a few of them out there with regards to any tech issue, because most people are in way over their heads, and trying to narrow the possibilities with things like "hardware acceleration is bad, I remember reading that a few months ago... ".

[6233638]

A number wrote:
" With Nvidia and madVR... "

You do realize that this is two limitations, which together apply to a small percentage of users (the term for which is usually "power users").

Anyone who is asking in such general terms is, by definition, not a power user.

So, your characterization "...but the option inside MC18 (which seems to use CUVID) is bad..." is counter-productive, because many readers who have no idea what "CUVID" is, will decide "hardware acceleration is bad".  This is how these wrong generalizations get started  --- and there are quite a few of them out there with regards to any tech issue, because most people are in way over their heads, and trying to narrow the possibilities with things like "hardware acceleration is bad, I remember reading that a few months ago... ".

That would be anyone with an Nvidia card using ROHQ and MC18's Hardware Acceleration option - not power users.

[kstuart]

I think that anyone opting to use ROHQ is already a power user.

( I also have experienced that intelligent and technically capable people overestimate the intelligence and technical skills of the average person. )

[DwestSeattle]

#1 controls the quality of the rendering in Theater View and other 3D accelerated views in MC (mostly the amount of anti-aliasing makes an impact on performance).  It has nothing at all to do with video playback.

Thanks for the info glynor.  I changed this setting to "Medium" and I think my Theater view is operating a little smoother now, since I have a budget Radeon video card.