[mythtv-users] vdpau problem

[Brian Wood]

On Friday, June 25, 2010 09:29:16 am James Orr wrote:
> I think this is a hardware problem ...
> 
> About a month ago I started getting stutters on 1080i recordings.  720p is
> fine.  Sometimes it would start about 10 minutes into a show, other times
> not for 30 or 40 minutes.  If I stopped playback for a few minutes and then
> came back it would be ok but after a short while would start stuttering
> again.  The recording would play back fine through my PS3 via mythtv's upnp
> media server, so the original file is ok.
> 
> Checking the frontend load I was only showing about 0.2 during the
> stuttering.
> 
> I also updated the nvidia drivers from 190 to 195 but still happening.
> 
> So, time for a new video card?


Perhaps thermal?

Is the video card being well-cooled? Check the fan is working (if you have one), and also check for any dust buildup that 
might impede airflow.

The nVidia setting application lets you check the temperature of the GPU.

If you're using VDPAU you won't push the CPU much, which explains the low load, but you are pushing the GPU, and it will 
throttle itself back if it gets too hot.