Can't play SOME h.264 recordings in MPC but others work?

[Gravydog]

I have been recording some h.264 HD programs in .ts format as I believe is required. At first I could not find any way to play them back, not even within DD which I have the impression should be possible. I installed Media Player Classic and at first I still could not play the files but then I must have hit on the right codecs, etc. because now most of the recordings play fine, but not all.

I find that I get good results on recordings if I use the scheduler and also have DD already tuned to the channel that is scheduled since changing sats usually does not work on the first try (either crashes DD or just sits there without tuning even though the dish moved).

Anyway, for example I recorded 3 one-hour shows on one channel during the same day (the PC was not touched and does not ever go on sleep or standby) yet the first file plays fine in MPC but the other two play audio only and MPC reduces in size to just menus and control buttons, no video panel at all. I have had this happen on some individual recordings as well, but again, most play fine!

I have looked hard for something that can repair these .ts h.264 files and have had no luck at all. It is frustrating to know that the content is there but I just can't view it. When MPC is playing the audio it shows the correct program length and the file sizes are consistent with files that do show the video.

So, I am asking if anyone knows what is causing the unplayable files and if anyone knows how to repair them? I'd really like to avoid more spoiled recordings. Thanks!

Rob

[beagle]

Here is a copy and paste from a dvbn member:

"How to repair a H.264 recorded (with DVBDream for example) corrupted .ts file:

Download MPEG StreamClip 1.1 -

http://www.squared5.com/svideo/mpeg-streamclip-win.html

Do not use Quicktime Alternative 1.81 because we are just repairing.

Download and use an older version of Quicktime (from 7.01 to 7.1.5)

http://oldapps.com/quicktime_player.htm

When you start MPEG StreamClip, it should say something about quicktime support. OK. Go to Window > Preference and check 1)fix stream with data breaks and 2)fast decoding of data breaks.

OPEN your corrupted .ts file. A message will come up saying Quicktime 6 MPEG-2 playback component not installed. If this message doesn't come up go into your control panel and uninstall Quicktime and reinstall one of the older versions listed above. We are not using it to edit or play the .ts file so no video will actually be seen. The purpose of doing this is just to get the .ts file to play correctly in MPC.

Under FILE, click on "convert to TS" and save as a different .ts file name. You now have a good .ts file which can be played in Media Player Classic.

You can also try "convert to MPEG". If you had a good working .ts file to start with you can try to "convert to MPEG" and then open the .mpg file in DVBDream and see if it plays.

Under EDIT you can fix timecode breaks.

If you install quicktime alternative 1.81 you will not be able to open the corrupted .ts file to try to "convert to TS" (to make a good file).

MPEG StreamCLIP can also edit a .ts file. If you want to edit a working .ts file, then Quicktime Alternative 1.81 is needed and MPC (from March 07) will also be installed with it. In "external codecs" you can add coreavc 1.6 and cyberlink H.264 codec to play the .ts file. If some other filter pops up (view > filter) enter it in "external codecs" and block it.

This is easier than trying to convert the .ts to .avi with 3 other programs that are still a work in progress."

This works most of the time for me.
Here is the link to the original post: http://dvbn.happysat.org/viewtopic.php? ... highlight=


Good luck

[Gravydog]

Hey, I'm sorry I took so long to thank you for your time and effort in posting this solution for me. I tried it and it worked fine for the .ts files that I couldn't play. I would never have known how to do this on my own! I appreciate so much your help.

Rob

[xopowo]

Why bother with all that junk though? Just use mpeg2repair and re-output the file. The only reason why you can't get some to play is because the player likely doesn't know what PIDs to look for.