[anthop]

Hello guys,

I'm new to this forum and to the RPi altogether.

I read the Pi was capable of stutter-free 1080p playback under certain conditions - I read this:
http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Ras...choppiness - but the playback of 720p files, stored on a SSD is not smooth.

Please note:
The Pi is connected to a Denon AVR 1909 via HDMI
The SSD has a dedicated power supply, it's connected to the Pi via USB - I was using a USB drive before that, it was neither better nor worse
Video is 720p, h264; audio is ac3
CPU usage is low during playback: around 35%
Average fps is 15-18
I'd say playback is ok 80% of the time and stutters during a few seconds the remaining time


Would you have any advice as to what I can do to make playback smoother?

Thanks in advance!

[popcornmix]

Is the video encoded at 15-18 fps (variable frame rate), or is it higher and you think you are only getting 15-18fps?
(remember the overlow only shows the gui update rate, and not the video frame rate).

Is the stutter buffering (e.g significant pause of audio and video)? Or is it "micro judder" (video not synced to display vsync, and audio okay)

If the latter, enable "Adjust display refresh rate to match video"
http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Settings/Videos

[anthop]

Is the video encoded at 15-18 fps (variable frame rate), or is it higher and you think you are only getting 15-18fps?
(remember the overlow only shows the gui update rate, and not the video frame rate).

Is the stutter buffering (e.g significant pause of audio and video)? Or is it "micro judder" (video not synced to display vsync, and audio okay)

If the latter, enable "Adjust display refresh rate to match video"
http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Settings/Videos

Hello,

Thanks for your quick reply!

I don't know whether it's variable frame rate. I tried to find out using VLC on my Windows PC but could not. What I can say though, is that playback is smooth on my PC. On the Pi, there's no buffering, it just seems the frame rate drops, much like it would in a video game. It lasts a second or two at a time. I might have misused the word stutter - English is not my mother tongue. Sorry

Here is what the overlay shows during playback:
http://[email protected]/misc/xbmc.jpg
But you're saying it refers to the GUI and not the video playback?

I've enabled 'Adjust display refresh rate to match video' as you suggested. I think it solved it.
I had to use 'video calibration' again (the image was partially off screen) and enable an option to sync audio and video (I chose the first 'video mode') but I think it's all good now.

Thanks man!