And now for another installment of "If I went to all this trouble, I might as well tell you what the heck I did."
I've been using an Avermedia AverTV Studio card... well using is a bit generous. I've had an Avermedia AverTV Studio card installed in my PC for some time, but never did anything beyond watching occasional TV or perhaps recording a few shows with it to view on my PC. The DVR features never seemd worked right anyway.
After 3 years it was time to upgrade my video card and I ultimately went with a fancy-schmancy (yes, I said 'schmancy'. Get over it.) ATI All-In-Wonder x800 XT.
Great video card. Love it. I got to free up a PCI slot (by giving up the Avermedia card) and now have combined performance with a digital tuner. Yippee! Thing is, it was a serious pain in the butt to set up.
So, the purpose of this article is two-fold:
- Share my configuration so you can get it right the first time (it took me many, many tries with generous heaps of googling), and
- Explain how I configured it for ready-to-go PMA consumption. No transcoding needed. No fuss, no muss. Well, a little muss. Muss is nice.
Please note that this is not intended to supplant the manual or other information regarding these devices, but simply to make it work, and work with our PMA. I should also note that this article, at least the recording configuration, is likely valid for all flavors of ATI TV devices, including the TV-Wonder, USB-Wonder, Small Wonder and Wonder Woman. YMMV.
Download Drivers From ATI and Install
I've mentioned in previous articles that I'm a latest-and-greatest freak. Newest is always better and no matter how well my current version works for me, I will, with haste, install anything newer the vendor has to offer. In ATI's case, this is generally a bad thing and I learned my lesson well.
I installed all the software from the included CD, which, by the way, went fine. Everything worked. Great! Then I started my mantra. Get the latest drivers, get the latest software, get the latest drivers, get the latest software..." I did, and that's when it all went to hell.
Functionality like the advertised Videosoap (for video enhancement) and Gemstar Guideplus+ (for online scheduling), went missing. The video was more pixelated and the media center interface, referred to as EasyLook just got all wonky. In order to go back I had to eradicate all that mess from my system, and start anew. Hours. Ugh. A product called DriverCleaner (link below) can assist with completed removing old versions, and is highly recommended.
Here's what works, and please, listen-up. It took me a lot of time to get a combination that works as expected, so while I'm all about adventure, I suggest you start here. Oh, and install in this order, or you'll be sorry. Muhahahahaha.... ahem.
Please install the following:
- Required Microsoft Software.
I'll assume you already have or know where to find these. Some, if not all, are available on ATI's site as well.
- Microsoft .net 1.1 or 2.0. I suggest version 2, but do as you will.
- DirectX 9.0c
- Windows Media Encoder 9.0
- ATI Software.
I wanted to provide direct links to this, but unfortunately, their downloads are session-based and I could not. If anyone has any semi-permanent links for these softs, please let me know. You should be able to find most of these by navigating to Drivers and Software > Windows XP > All-In-Wonder > Radeon > Previous Drivers and Software
- Catalyst Driver Version 6.2 (make sure you select the WDM drivers)
- ATI DAO/MDAC version 9.1
- ATI DVD Decoder. (This is only required to install the DVD player. I did, so why shouldn't you?)
- ATI Multimedia Center (MMC) Version 9.06.1
- ATI Remote Wonder Software Version 3.04 (if you have one, my card came with.)
- Gemstar GuidePlus+ EPG
This is likely on your CD, but if you would prefer not dig for it, or want the latest, you can find it on ATI's site as well under Drivers and Software > Windows XP > TV Tuners > TV WONDER ELITE >
Note: You have to log out of the site (if you're logged in) to see the link. Amazing but true.
After downloading all this digital goodness, shut down your PC, install the card, and power up. When prompted for drivers, cancel, and install the software in the order above.
Let's set up the ATI All-In-Wonder x800 XT
Here's hoping that you're up-and-running, and that all features (TV, media player, etc) are all running properly and to your satisfaction. This includes Gemstar, allowing us to get the station names, etc. Now then, let's get a profile setup for use with the PMA400.
Launch the TV application. This will provide us access to the settings/configuration panel. If Easylook opens by default, hit the [ESCAPE] key on your keyboard to exit the Easylook interface.
- From the TV application, select the checkbox on the console. Alternatively, right-click the screen and select Setup. Interface look may vary, here, so don't panic!
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- Select the Personal Video Recorder Tab.
Under Recording Preset, there are 4 choices. These are the "on-the-fly" choices you have available, but an unlimited amount can reside on your system . I will personally never make a Super Video CD again, so let's go ahead and replace that one.
Select the radio button next to Super Video CD, then click Map Preset...
- Select the preset called Home Theater, Type MPEG-4 (shown below), then click the Create New... button.
Interesting side note, here. My experience to date was that only DivX/Xvid will work with the PMA, and the transcoding software that I have found so far, pretty much supports that use assumption. I tried lots of ways to record to DivX using this interface, and not one attempt was successful with the ATI card and MMC software.
A good soul at the videohelp.com forums (thanks, Scorpion King!) gave me a swift kick in the brain and reminded me that that I have completely ignored MPEG-4 as a compatible video format. This works beautifully with the PMA, and that's why we're making the selection above.
- Enter a name for the new preset. Both the name and description (description is optional) are up to you. Be sure to make the recording type ATI VCR, MPEG if it is not already selected. Then select the Next > button.
Just one comment, here if I may...
The picture is a VCR tape! And more follow throughout the wizard...
Nice one ATI. I'll assume you missed displaying a more appropriate graphic here since your sun-dial read 2 shadows past solstice, or your abacus broke. Or some other nonsense.
- Adjust Stream Properties:
- Video Stream:
- Change the Format to MPEG-4
- For the U.S., set the standard to NTSC; PAL for the U.K
- Resolution:
I set this up for viewing primarily on the PMA, so I selected 320 x 240. If you output to another viewing device, please make the appropriate adjustments.
- Audio Stream:
- Set Audio Format to '44.100 Khz, 16 Bit, Stereo
- Select 'Next >' to continue.
- Configure Frames:
I'm no stranger to digital video, but the depth of detail you can go into here is just amazing. I stuck with the defaults here (NOT pushing the Default button -- that changes it to something else!). So if this screen alone is not scary enough for you, you're a braver person than I.
Stick to what is presented here, and select 'Next >' to press on.
- Configure Encoding Parameters:
- Video Encoding Parameters:
- Select Bit Rate: Constant
I've had Variable Bit Rate files work on the PMA in the past, and although they are more efficient, some have demonstrated problems such as A/V sync issues. I'd avoid headaches and stick with CBR.
- Max Bit Rate: 1.5 M Bit/Second
This is entirely up to you. It's a size/quality ratio thing. I've found 1.5 M Bit/Second is a good compromise, but feel free to experiment here.
- Motion Estimation Quality: 90
This determines how well fast-moving scenes will render. The tradeoff is that the higher the number, the more CPU will be used to do so. I've set mine to 90 with no issues. Again, experiment and see what works.
- Audio Encoding Parameters:
- Bit Rate: 128 K Bit/Second
More user preference. This is fine for me, without eating up too much disk space.
- Next >
- VideoSoap (with still with the VHS tape. Ugh.)
Select 'Light' and then choose 'Next >' more on this in the next section. Trust me.
- VideoSoap Properties:
OK. I was as skeptical as the next guy when it came to something called VideoSoap. Yeah, right. I'm a fun guy. I'll play along. Well, I'm here to tell you, that it can make a truly amazing difference to an even slightly noisy/static-filled signal, literally washing (ok, not literally. But digitally, for sure.) the video and improving the quality immensely.
Want more? How about a realtime preview of the selected filters and adjustments made with your choice of preview area (left, right, top, bottom) for comparison. Pretty sweet. OK, ATI. This makes up for the 1982 VHS tape clip art faux pas.
- Select the Preview... button to open the VideoSoap preview window.
This will update the video in realtime as you add filters and configure sliders. You may need to slide one or two to 100% once in while just to see the updates, as some are pretty subtle. You can also adjust the preview area, but left half, for comparison, worked pretty well for me.
- Filters:
After much playing (and it was fun), I went with the following filters. Once again, feel free to play with a setting that pleases your eye. Or eyes. Who am I to judge ocular acuity?
- Soft Focus: 45%
This smoothes the overall image, reducing noice and pixelation
- Sharpen: 50%
Reduces blur and sharpens -- duh -- particularly for text and other fine detail.
- When you're happy with the results, select 'Next >'.
- Max File Size:
Select 'Windows Limit' and then Finish. This simply ensures that the file will not be cut off if it exceeds a certain file size. Unlikely with the properties I've set, but can't hurt.
- Your new profile should now be selected in the list. Select it if it is not and then select OK.
- Finally, our profile is complete.
The Archos PMA430 Preset will now be available for any recording option, including:
- On-demand/one-touch recording
- Secheduled recordings (via Schedule tab)
- Gemstar GuidePlus+ EPG Recording.
Select OK to close the TV Setup.
I've made several recordings already and they all have worked flawlessly on my PMA. I sincerely hope that this information saves you the time and headache that it cost me.
For trimming the front, end and commercials of your recorded content, please see the related article below, and scroll to the VirtualDub portion of the tutorial.
Now, you'll have to excuse me. I have lots of TV to watch. 
Links:
Driver Cleaner Pro (free): http://www.drivercleaner.net/index.php
Rage3D (ATI Help and Support Resource): http://www.rage3d.com/
Gemstar GuidePlus+ AutoUpdate Utilty: http://1flynn.net/GemAU.aspx (contact the author for info)
