Bluray playback problem - Aspire 8930

I have an Aspire 8930 with Bluray Player.

Using the Acer Arcade software I can play DVD perfectly, however when I play BD the playback is jerky.

I have just updated the software to the latest version.

Has anyone else experienced this, or know how I can improve the playback??

 

From the lack of response I wonder if I am the only one who suffers this problem.

It has been suggested that as I can play DVD ok, and the problem is only with BR, the problem is probably being caused by low system resources, and I should look at this area first.

As my laptop is the standard Acer install with a few of my own programmes added (MS Office, Trend Anti-virus and a couple of other things for DVD/Cd copying etc) I am sure others must have suffered the same issues with BR playback if it is indeed a resource problem.

I'd be interested to hear from anyone who plays BR on the Aspire and what results they are geting.

 

I'l check this evening on my system when i get a chance and get back to you.

 

Hi, was it ok before you installed any software? Try removing the Trend and see what happens...
Chris

 

Bluray is more intensive on resources than DVD. The bluray playing software that is pre-installed on the 8930 is not the greatest but I have not seen too many issues myself regarding jerkiness. When you say you have updated to the latest version, what version is that? As a matter of interest can you still use the six speakers or are now forced to 2.1?
One thing I would say is that the disk itself can be part of the problem. So can you pin down the jerkiness to a particular title or is it all bluray discs? When asking a question like this it is a good idea to include the disc(s) details, so others who may have tried that disc can comment more accurately.
Bear in mind the 8930 comes with a wide range of components, and a T6400 might not be able to cope as well as a higher end CPU, for this reason it might be a good idea to include your hardware details with the question.

 

Thanks guys.

With regard to the Trend software, disabling this has no effect on the playback problem.

I have only recently got the Laptop, and have only so far tried 2 Bluray movies -
- Slumdog Millionaire
- Benjamin Button

Both have jerky sound and picture.

The machine is an Aspire 8930
4MB Ram
Intel Core 2 Duo P7350 2HZ
Nvidia GEForce 9600M GT
Hard Drive is Western Digital 300GB partitioned (at factory) to A-150gb (98GB free) and D:-150gb (35GB free)

The Acer Player is their Arcade V 2.1.5814, which as far as I can tell is still using 5.1 Surround.

I have also tried TotalMedia 3 which has the same playback problems.

I also 'ripped' the discs to the hard drive to eliminate reader problems, and the playback is still the same with both players.

Hope this throws some more light on the possible reasons for the problem

 

Hi, when you use task manager what is the cpu usage?
Chris

 

Both Task manager and Memboost show memory useage fluctuating between 20 and 30% before playing BD.

When I launch the player it jumps to 95 to 100%, and remains at 100% when the movie is playing.

 

Hi, CPU usage, not memory, should be at 0-2% when at idle, can you see what process is using the 20-30%?
Chris

 

The fact that you are seeing the problem with TM3 as well suggests it may be a resource problem. I would check the following things at this stage
1/ Ensure you perform a complete powerdown restart, not a suspend or hibernate restart.
2/ Ensure system is plugged in and powered and that it has power options set for maximum performance.
3/ Get the movie playing and use task manager to see which processes are using memory and CPU. If there are processes using a significant resource which are not required for playing the movie then disable them if you can.
4/ particularly with arcade the juddering may improve if you pause and un-pause play when it happens, I am not suggesing this as a fix or workaround, but as a test to perform to see what happens.

 

I have tried various changes to the system to try and improve playback, with no success.

So I have ordered a second hard drive and I am going to clone the existing drive to the new one using Casper. I will restore that to the default factory installation and try sorting it from there.

One question I have. To restore to the factory settings do I use the 'empowering technology' programme to burn some default back CD/DVD discs, then use the programme again to restore from the discs, or is there another way. (I have seen some posts about using F10, but not sure if this needs the backup discs or if it uses some hidden partition to restore from).

Any advice and/or pointers appreciated.

 

Hi, alt f10 doesn't require any disks but I'd burn them anyway just so you've got a second backup, don't forget to verify them too...
Chris

 

Thanks Chris.

I have now copied my original hard drive to the new one, changed them over, booted from my new drive and using alt/F10 have restored to the default Acer installation.

And BluRay appears to work OK (only ran a brief test on a movie).

So it appears that something I installed may have created the original playback problem.

So my next step is to clean up the Acer installation and get rid of all the things I don't need. Is it best to then run a reg cleaner, or will uninstalling be sufficient??

Then I will install my programmes one at a time and test playback as I go.

 

Hi, personally I do not subscribe to reg cleaners, sometimes they can make more of a mess than what it is, attempting, to fix. I know that sometimes they completely screw up ATI drivers..
Chris

 

I decided to do a clean install of vista, then installed Acer Arcade and a few of my other programmes, and so far the results are encouraging.

The CPU idles at 2 - 4% and Bluray movies play OK.

I have installed all the drivers I needed but wonder if someone can tell me what programme I need to install to implement the use of the media control on the left of the keyboard.

 

Hi, probably it is either the launch manager or maybe the touchpad drivers. You now seem to have a laptop that is the same as my bog standard Acer supplied software one..
Chris

 

Thanks - I'll try these.

Having done a clean install, adding the drivers and arcade and a few other things, the system now runs more smoothly - and a lot faster - than when it first arrived with the Acer system on it.
It is also faster than when I first restored the Acer installation and just deleted the 'Bloat' installed by Acer - ie all the games, McCafee, the trialware etc.

 

Hi, I've left all the Acer software on mine, with 640gb of hard drive space it is hardly taking up free space...
Chris