WMC video "blanking" out - Why? How to fix?

[bradders]

I have recently swapped out my amp and took that opportunity to go all HDMI. My WMC goes into a Denon 1913 and out of the Denon into the Sony Bravia TV..........in going all HDMI, I needed also to switch the video card in my old, media ONLY, WMC, as the supplied card only had DVI-out. It was an Nvidia card and so I swapped it out for an Nvidia GeForce GT630 card. Latest drivers blah blah......

Net:Net is I am now faced with occasional "blanking" of my video feed to the TV - ie the TV just goes completely BLANK for 2,3,5 seconds, with no loss of audio at all - just NO VIDEO!!!! I cannot predict when it will happen, I cannot make it happen - I just sit in despair ...............Then, after a while, it comes back.

I was looking into various forums about possible causes/related issues and tried the NVidia control panel "fix" for the 29/59 frame rate issues but this made my resolution worse and didn't help.

Anyone got any idea what might be going on here, what might be causing this and ultimately, how can I fix this annoying "blanking?" .....................thanks
DB.

[barnabas1969]

The "newest drivers" are not always the best to use for an HTPC. There's a guy here who goes by the handle "Newfiend" (that's fiend as in a devilish person, not friend). Search around for his posts, and I'm sure you'll find his recommendation on what drivers to use with your GT630.

BTW, why didn't you try using a DVI-HDMI adapter or cable before you replaced your video card? Many video cards will output video AND audio via the DVI port, even though we were all told for years that DVI does not support audio. The fact is that DVI-D and HDMI are exactly the same signals.

Also, you can try updating your Denon AVR to the latest firmware. There are many reports of AVR's causing problems with HTPC's when connected by HDMI, especially Denon and Yamaha.

You may also want to try changing various settings in your AVR (one at a time so that you can narrow it down). I've read that some people have found that the solution is to turn off the passive "pass-thru" switching in the AVR. This is the feature that allows HDMI signals to pass through the AVR even when the AVR is turned "off".

[bradders]

thanks barnabas for the quick reply.

"why not try a DVI-HDMI converter" - because I thought going natively HDMI would be better than a conversion - simple as that - call it blissful ignorance?

I had been running a Yamaha, with no issues by the way, but it's center amp began to fail/distort, but running separate Audio and Video - DVI-HDMI into the Sony TV and digital audio into the amp form the MCE.....I though consolidating this would be better.......

The Denon has the latest firmware and I went Denon after running into all sorts of weird HDCP issues with a recently "Craigslisted" Pioneer Elite VSX-430 and learning from a friend, after the fact, that he'd run into issues with Pioneer on HDCP and had no issues with Denon - go figure, eh ?!?
thanks for the suggestions.....I will scour on newfeind's posts.

[barnabas1969]

It's an HDMI-DVD adapter, not a converter. There is no conversion. The adapters just connect pins on the HDMI connector to pins on the DVI connector. It is still "native" HDMI. The cables and adapters can be found cheap online (e-bay, Monoprice, etc).

The problems only begin when you use the AVR as an HDMI switch, connected between the HTPC and the TV. If you simply connect your HTPC directly to the TV, and use optical/coax audio, you won't have the problem. However, you won't be able to get the newer audio formats from Bluray movies. To be honest though, I can't hear the difference between Dolby Digital and Dolby TrueHD or DTS and DTS-HD. And... if you don't watch Blurays (or Bluray rips) that contain an "HD" audio track on your HTPC, then you truly do not need to connect the HDMI cable from your PC to your AVR.

Does your screen go blank only at the beginning, right after you start watching a program, or does it happen in the middle of the program? Mine goes blank for a second or two at the beginning of a program, and I've found no way to stop it from doing that. It's not much of a problem though, so I didn't try very hard to fix it. My AVR is a Yamaha RX-A2010, and I'm running a GT-430 with fairly old drivers (no reason to update drivers unless you're experiencing a problem that is fixed by the newer version).

[bradders]

Mea culpa on the "converter" sttement- I understand it's an adapter etc - I was using one from the MCE into the Sony when I went directly into the TV in my previous set up.

the blanking can happen at any time - it's random and not specifically at any given point.

I guess I could always go HDMI out of the MCE ==> TV and optical out of the MCE into the Denon - frankly I thought having one cable handle all had to be "better" than slitting and reconnecting (sync'ing) signals......I watch blurays from the MCE- would the digi-optical cable into the denon give me the right sound that way? Any idea?

thanks man,
DB

[barnabas1969]

Here's a link to an HDMI-DVI adapter:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/produ ... 1&format=2

And, here are links to some HDMI-DVI cables:
6 foot cable
10 foot cable

[barnabas1969]

Mea culpa on the "converter" sttement- I understand it's an adapter etc - I was using one from the MCE into the Sony when I went directly into the TV in my previous set up.

the blanking can happen at any time - it's random and not specifically at any given point.

I guess I could always go HDMI out of the MCE ==> TV and optical out of the MCE into the Denon - frankly I thought having one cable handle all had to be "better" than slitting and reconnecting (sync'ing) signals......I watch blurays from the MCE- would the digi-optical cable into the denon give me the right sound that way? Any idea?

thanks man,
DB

Either way, you are going to have to sync the audio/video signals by adjusting the delay in the AVR. There's no getting around that because different TV's process video signals at different rates of speed. Even changing settings in the TV can change how long it takes the TV to process the video signals. When the audio is being decoded inside the TV (when using the TV speakers) the TV automatically adjusts the delay on the audio, based on timing values that are programmed into the TV's firmware. But when the audio signals are being processed by an AVR, you need to manually adjust the timing. Some AVR's have "automatic" delay, but this only works if the TV has the capability to communicate the delay value to the AVR over the HDMI cable. Plus, to make things even more confusing, each TV and AVR manufacturer does this in different ways... so even if your TV is "capable" of communicating the delay, the AVR may not be able to "understand" that information. This is especially true when the TV and AVR are different brands, but can even happen when they are the same brand (but different model years, for example).

If you watch a Bluray on the HTPC, the optical audio output will still carry the Dolby Digital or DTS signal just fine. You just won't get the "HD" audio. As previously stated, I cannot hear the difference between the two. I have a fairly high-end set of speakers and a fairly high-end AVR, and I can't tell the difference. Maybe it's just my ears, but I think "HD" audio is a gimmick to get people to "upgrade" their equipment. The HD audio formats have a much higher bitrate than the old DD and DTS formats, so theoretically there should be a difference in the high frequency sounds. A higher bit rate and higher sampling rate should equate to more accurate replication of the high frequency sounds in the source material (resulting in "smoother" or less "harsh" sounding highs). I suppose it might make a difference in a music video or other Bluray content that contains a lot of musical information with high pitched sounds (cymbals, chimes, and other high-pitched percussion instruments), but I think for most movies, you won't notice a difference in sound quality between the two.

[bradders]

are you saying that driving separate Audio/video will mean I have sync issues to fix - never had them before and don't have them now - so am a little puzzled? Or are you intimating I MAY end up with sync issues that will need some remediation in the AVR "IF" I go separate audio and video?

( sorry if I'm being a little thick - and do appreciate the help)

Funny thing is I thought my last set up was overly complex and that a decent amp with HDMI only was nirvana.......................................ha ha!

[barnabas1969]

No, I'm saying that you can have audio/video sync issues either way. It doesn't matter if you use the HDMI cable to carry the digital sound, or if you use an optical cable to carry the digital sound. Either way, audio is easier to process than video. So, it takes the TV longer to process the video than it takes for the AVR to process the audio.

If you aren't experiencing "lip sync" issues, then either...
A) Your AVR came pre-configured with a delay value that just happens to work in your setup.
B) Your TV is communicating the delay value to your AVR, and your AVR is able to interpret that information correctly, and your AVR is set to "automatic" delay.

In the case of "A" above, you may or may not have lip sync issues if you switch to optical audio. If you have a "lip sync" issue, simply adjust the delay setting in your AVR until the sound matches the lips of the person speaking. It's not very difficult.

In the case of "B" above, it should work just fine when you switch to optical audio, as long as you connect the AVR to one of the TV's HDMI inputs (and connect the PC to a different HDMI input on the TV).

But first, before you go the optical audio route, try the drivers recommended by Newfiend. Read this thread. Make sure you do a "clean install" of the nVidia drivers. To do this, choose the custom/advanced install option. Then, check the box that says "clean install".

If that doesn't help, then try turning off "HDMI passthrough" in your AVR.

If that doesn't work, you might try putting your old video card back in (uninstall the nVidia drivers first) and using your HDMI-DVI adapter. If you're lucky, your old video card will output audio signals over HDMI, and your problem might go away.

As a last resort, if none of the above helps, then you'll have to use the optical audio output.

[bradders]

thanks - will give those a shot.

[barnabas1969]

It probably wouldn't hurt to also download the file and try the 29/59 test that Newfiend mentioned in the post I linked above in post #9.

[bradders]

actually - I had scoured that post and tried the fix for the 29/59 issue but this ins't my problem - I no flickering as in frame rate issues - mine just drops out from time to time

[barnabas1969]

OK, well then try the driver version that Newfiend recommended. He's the guy on here who would know. He tests every new version that comes out from nVidia. I'm running 304.79 with a GT-430. You might try that version also.

[foxwood]

no flickering as in frame rate issues - mine just drops out from time to time

It's most likely to be something the AVR is doing. It's be worth your while just bypassing it entirely for an evening, connecting directly to the TV for both audio and video, to see if the problem is there when the AVR isn't in the mix..

[bradders]

yeah - you know, I am thinking that HDMI straight out of the MCE and into the TV and then digital audio from the MCE into the AVR then out to speakers may well be the path of least grief.........teach me to try to make things easy

[newfiend]

I have recently swapped out my amp and took that opportunity to go all HDMI. My WMC goes into a Denon 1913 and out of the Denon into the Sony Bravia TV..........in going all HDMI, I needed also to switch the video card in my old, media ONLY, WMC, as the supplied card only had DVI-out. It was an Nvidia card and so I swapped it out for an Nvidia GeForce GT630 card. Latest drivers blah blah......

Net:Net is I am now faced with occasional "blanking" of my video feed to the TV - ie the TV just goes completely BLANK for 2,3,5 seconds, with no loss of audio at all - just NO VIDEO!!!! I cannot predict when it will happen, I cannot make it happen - I just sit in despair ...............Then, after a while, it comes back.

I was looking into various forums about possible causes/related issues and tried the NVidia control panel "fix" for the 29/59 frame rate issues but this made my resolution worse and didn't help.

Anyone got any idea what might be going on here, what might be causing this and ultimately, how can I fix this annoying "blanking?" .....................thanks
DB.

Try this:
Open Control Panel
Open Nvidia Control Panel
on the left column:
Under Display select Adjust Desktop Color Settings
In the right Payne
Under #3 Set Digital Color Format to YCbCr444
Under Content Type Reported to the Display set it to Full Screen Videos.
Click Apply in the lower right corner, confirm any changes if asked.
Exit Nvidia control Panel and Windows control panel.
Open Media Center and see if the "screen blanking' issue is resolved.
newfiend~

[bradders]

Thanks man, tried this already after reading an earlier post of yours. I noted the video quality drop and no noticeable difference in the video blanking.....not flickering, but totally blanking for 2-10 seconds. No audio loss, just video. Totally random as and when it happens.

Could this be more an issue with video drivers and if so, is there a driver you'd recommend for the NVidia gt630.......I did a clean install of the latest drivers.....I hear that earlier drivers are 'better?'..........thank you.

[newfiend]

Usually the video blanking is fixed by setting content type reported to display to full screen videos. If you still have the issue try some of the older NVIDIA drivers like 304.79 while still retaining the full screen videos setting.
I'm having a few issues with the latest WHQL myself at the moment. I have a GT640.
Have you tried looking to see if your AVR has an updated firmware available? I would also update DirectX 9.0c with all the latest patches as well. While your at it check your TV for any firmware updates too.
If you still have issues, remove the AVR from the loop and run HDMI straight to the tv. See if you still have the issue with blanking. It will help to narrow down what's causing the issue.
newfiend

Sent from my Lumia 920 using Board Express.

[epayson85]

I literally just had this issue with the same exact receiver. It was driving me crazy and its honestly a very easy fix with an nvidia card.

Go into your nvidia control panel
go to "adjust desktop color settings"
go to number 3 which is "apply the following enhancements"
under "content type reported to the display" choose "full-screen video"
Click apply and you are done. I am on the latest nvidia drivers and denon firmware.

[newfiend]

I literally just had this issue with the same exact receiver. It was driving me crazy and its honestly a very easy fix with an nvidia card.

Go into your nvidia control panel
go to "adjust desktop color settings"
go to number 3 which is "apply the following enhancements"
under "content type reported to the display" choose "full-screen video"
Click apply and you are done. I am on the latest nvidia drivers and denon firmware.

I have had multiple Nvidia Cards over the years and the fix that worked on all of them for HTPC was enabling the "full screen videos" option for me as well. It has worked on My GT240, GT430 and now GT640.
If you did that and still have the issue I would check to make sure your Denon has the "latest" firmware update.
newfiend~