Making QMP the Greatest

[skoop]

Hello Paul & Matt,


I have more bugs and suggestions to report. I promise to keep program ideas and skin ideas separate this time. :cheeky:


1. Your WaveOut nor DirectSound playback plugins do not handle multiple audio channels. (i.e. all the channels are not recognized and the sound is not buffered.) I recommend getting QMP to the point where it will handle 9 channels of audio (8.1 surround sound). This will put QMP ahead of the power curve and it will make QMP great.

Note: I have a sound card with optical out running to my 5.1 capable receiver. I tested this with an MKV file with 6 audio channels. (5.1 to be exact) I have speakers for all channels.

2. Icons for QMP are not displayed correctly for video files in Windows Explorer. The icon shown for video files is the QMP audio icon. I have rebuilt the icon cache.

3. Explorer integration - When a user chooses to Add and Play a group of files, the group of files should be added to the current playlist and playback should start with the first file added to the list and continue playing the playlist as NORMAL. Clear and Play should work in a similar fashion when a group of files are chosen for that action. Currently, when choosing one of these options to play a group of selected files, each file is played as soon as it is added to the list; this should not happen.

4. The two line area where the song title and the artist are displayed should be user customizable. In other words, the user should be able to select what information is to be displayed there. (i.e. Title, artist, album and etc.)

5. The integration of a seamless cover art display into the main display would be nice also. This should only display when album art is available.

6. Encoder Settings - I am using the MP3 encoder. I am using the variable bit rate. I have the Encoder Quality set to Very High. The slider for quality does not stay set after I set it and press the Save and Close button.

7. Could you please add FULL AAC and MPC support? (playback and encoder)

8. Could you please add native h.264 support? (Note: I know that I can use FFDShow, but their support is weak.)

9. The media library should support video files. (Not just in playlist.)


Note: Update the picture on the BetaNews web site. :ermm:



Later,
Christopher Hall
“SkooP”

[Toe]

1. Your WaveOut playback plugin does not handle multiple audio channels. I recommend getting it to the point where it will handle 9 channels of audio (8.1 surround sound). This will make QMP great.
WTF are you playing that has 8.1 channels? I'm guessing you're playing a regular 2 channel source and trying to get your soundcard to virtualize a crapload of other channels? In that case, you need to be using DirectSound, period. Wave Out is quite explicitly designed to NOT do that, but rather to play the waveform exactly as it was input.

3. Explorer integration - When a user chooses to Add and Play a group of files, the group of files should be added to the current playlist and playback should start with the first file added to the list and continue playing the playlist as NORMAL. Clear and Play should work in a similar fashion when a group of files are chosen for that action. Currently, when choosing one of these options to play a group of selected files, each file is played as soon as it is added to the list; this should not happen.
If I'm understanding you right, works as you're describing on my comp. However, I've noticed that if I've got a lot of other stuff running on my comp, sometimes when I try to clear & play, I'll end up with it adding a file or two and starting to play for a couple seconds, then it clears that playlist and adds & plays another track or two, and keeps going that way until it's gone through the whole list. Is that what you're seeing?

4. The two line area where the song title and the artist are displayed should be user customizable. In other words, the user should be able to select what information is to be displayed there. (i.e. Title, artist, album and etc.)
This has been discussed a bit before. As it stands now, it's left up to the skinner as to what info gets displayed where. For example, artist & album can be two seperate fields, or they can be together. As it stands, though, the default skin doesn't show the album in the main display area at all, which kinda sucks. Some sort of user override would be nice.

5. The integration of a seamless cover art display into the main display would be nice also. This should only display when album art is available.
The music browser window would be the best place for this, IMHO. Hey Paul, go kick the Gracenote people who do those pages!

7. Could you please add FULL AAC and MPC support? (playback and encoder)
Q already plays both of those. MPC could be implemented via the CLI encoder (which if I'm not mistaken shaohao is planning to update once the updated plugin docs are released). AAC could be done the same way via nencode, a CLI wrapper for Nero's AAC encoder. I don't see an AAC encoder ever being bundled with Q, though, as those licenses ain't cheap.

9. The media library should support video files. (Not just in playlist.)

Paul has stated that this is coming.

[skoop]

WTF are you playing that has 8.1 channels? I'm guessing you're playing a regular 2 channel source and trying to get your soundcard to virtualize a crapload of other channels? In that case, you need to be using DirectSound, period. Wave Out is quite explicitly designed to NOT do that, but rather to play the waveform exactly as it was input.

I currently have some video files with 6 ACTUAL audio channels. (5.1 surround sound MKV files). I am not trying to do this virtually. I want QMP to be ahead of the power curve by supporting 8.1 channels of audio since there are already 5.1 audio channel files out there.


If I'm understanding you right, works as you're describing on my comp. However, I've noticed that if I've got a lot of other stuff running on my comp, sometimes when I try to clear & play, I'll end up with it adding a file or two and starting to play for a couple seconds, then it clears that playlist and adds & plays another track or two, and keeps going that way until it's gone through the whole list. Is that what you're seeing?

Yep, that is it. :calm:

Q already plays both of those. MPC could be implemented via the CLI encoder (which if I'm not mistaken shaohao is planning to update once the updated plugin docs are released). AAC could be done the same way via nencode, a CLI wrapper for Nero's AAC encoder. I don't see an AAC encoder ever being bundled with Q, though, as those licenses ain't cheap.

QMP does not play these files with the base installation. If I install the extra plugin(s), it does, but these plugins are not QMP ready. I understand that shaohao will update the plugins later, hopefully. ;)

Thanks for the feedback.

Later,
Christopher Hall
"SkooP"

[Toe]

I currently have some video files with 6 ACTUAL audio channels. (5.1 surround sound MKV files). I am not trying to do this virtually. I want QMP to be ahead of the power curve by supporting 8.1 channels of audio since there are already 5.1 audio channel files out there.
Either way, I'd say use DSound.

[skoop]

Either way, I'd say use DSound.

I have tried direct sound and it does not work properly either. The sound is not buffered and the sound channels are not identified with dSound or WaveOut.

Later,
Christopher Hall
"SkooP"

[Todd The Kiwi]

silly question part one: you do have equipment capable of this task right?
5.1, 7.1 or 8.1 (?!) soundcard and compatible/capable amplifier etc...
part two: how many ears do you have? :evolved:

[skoop]

silly question part one: you do have equipment capable of this task right?
5.1, 7.1 or 8.1 (?!) soundcard and compatible/capable amplifier etc...
part two: how many ears do you have? :evolved:

Hello,

Thanks for the reply. I have edited the original post. Please look at it.

I have two ears. Ha, ha, ha, ha, :laugh:.

Later,
Christopher Hall
"SkooP"