Capturing GBA games with the Gameboy Player and a GV-USB2

2016-07-23 09:17:11 pm

My main goal is to stream GBA games through my Gamecube, and so far I've gotten the video itself to look good but there's always a problem. If I pick up the video straight through OBS, I get noticeable stutter and if I try to go through Amarec I believe it doesn't capture at a consistent frame rate since at the bottom of Amarec where it says "Cap" it's always hanging around 20 when I'd think it should be 30 or 29.97 or whichever.

The video itself looks fine with the de-interlacing running at 60FPS, it's just the stutter I get makes it look pretty bad. It might make a difference, but I have been using Mario Sunshine to test (I've got the Gameboy Player, but no games yet). I know the stutter would persist, but I'm not sure if the same settings would be used.

So, my questions are:

Is there a way to get rid of the stutter if capturing straight through OBS? If not, is there a way to fix the Amarec problem by making it capture at a more consistent frame rate?

Thanks.

Thread title:

honorableJay

2016-07-24 12:56:26 am

The Dork Knight himself.

Could you please post screenshots of your video capture settings in both OBS and Amarec? Knowing what you have both programs set to will help determine if you're having a software or hardware issue. Next to the Post/Preview buttons below, there's a paperclip button that will let you directly attach screenshots to your post.

Also, please post the versions you're using for both Amarec and OBS.

srylain

2016-07-24 02:31:56 pm

OBS version is v0.657b, Amarec is 3.10. I've also tried the most recent build of OBS Studio (with the same settings), but the stutter was much more prominent there than it was in the other version of OBS. I've also tried all of the different USB ports in my computer (there's 8, 2 USB 2.0 and 6 USB 3.0), just in case it was a USB 3.0 problem or something. I should have a decent enough computer to run it as well (i5 4570, GTX 980), so that shouldn't be a problem.

Attachment:

settings.png

honorableJay

2016-07-25 01:16:32 am

The Dork Knight himself.

Well the first problem I'm seeing is you're deinterlacing the image twice. The first is in Amarec, the second is in OBS. Since Amarec is handling the basic deinterlacing, you should disable it in OBS. Secondly, the game in question is not a Role Playing game, so change the Deinterlacing Function in Amarec to Action Game. See what those changes give you first and we'll go from there.

srylain

2016-07-25 10:02:42 am

I haven't even tried getting Amarec into OBS yet, as I was trying to get the best possible image before that, so my OBS settings don't conflict with Amarec. Those are just the settings I used when I tried to capture straight through OBS. As for the Role Playing Game setting, I believe I found a guide somewhere that said it was the best option for more modern games. Either way, I still get the low capture rate in Amarec.

srylain

2016-07-25 04:11:37 pm

Now that I have actual GBA games I can use to test with, I've found that the only de-interlace setting that doesn't cause a shaky image is Role Playing Game. The stutter is definitely still there though, and the video I recorded in Amarec stutters a bit more than what it does in the preview, and that's using all the same settings I posted above. For comparison, I also loaded up the same game (Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories) in VBA-M (the most recent build I think) and wasn't getting anywhere near the amount of stutter Amarec was giving me (there was some stutter, but I think that's just the game). If the video would help at all, I'm not sure where I should upload it.

honorableJay

2016-07-25 05:49:31 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

You can attach a sample file here. There is a filesize limit, but I'm sure if it's under 20mb it should be ok.

srylain

2016-07-25 06:25:34 pm

Hopefully this a good showing of what's happening. At the beginning of the video there doesn't seem to be any stutter because the capture rate is what it should be (around 30), but near the end you can see the capture rate slow down and then it starts stuttering. The capture rate is usually around 20-23, and after changing damn near everything (or just even disabling everything I could) it still drops.

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-26 07:05:20 pm

2016-07-25 06:35:25 pm

Whoops, accidentally deleted video in the other post.

Attachment:

stutter video.avi

honorableJay

Edit history:

honorableJay: 2016-07-26 07:26:08 pm

honorableJay: 2016-07-26 07:24:53 pm

2016-07-26 07:23:47 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Does that happen even when you're not recording? That just seems weird, almost like the capture device is on a USB hub that's fully saturated.

Try this in OBS: record a sample with the deinterlacer set to Retro, fps set to 60. Record a second sample with the deinterlacer off, fps set to 30. Post both here so we can compare.

srylain

2016-07-26 07:36:21 pm

It does happen when not recording, when just watching the Amarec preview. Whenever I change a setting in Amarec, the screen flashes to black and when it comes back it's running at normal speed and then drops again a few seconds later and I think that happens also when I start a recording. I've tried all the USB ports I can, however I do have a couple USB hubs I could try as well, but when trying it the only USB devices I have plugged in are my mouse and keyboard.

honorableJay

Edit history:

honorableJay: 2016-07-26 07:38:12 pm

2016-07-26 07:38:00 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

It's best to keep a USB capture device off of a hub. You could also try disabling Amarec Live to see if that stabalizes the capture.

Btw what are your system specs?

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-26 07:53:59 pm

srylain: 2016-07-26 07:52:04 pm

2016-07-26 07:40:42 pm

Disabling Amarec Live doesn't seem to do anything different.

PC specs:
i5 4570
GTX 980
H87M Pro4 motherboard

Scratch that, was picking up the wrong feed in OBS.

srylain

2016-07-26 07:56:30 pm

Hopefully these videos are good. Choosing Retro as the de-interlace function causes shaky video, as well.

Attachments:

de-interlaced 60.flv

interlaced 30.flv

honorableJay

Edit history:

honorableJay: 2016-07-26 08:12:47 pm

2016-07-26 08:10:57 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Let's try something fun.

Load up Amarec, and change this line: *w= 720, h= 480, fps=29.97, fcc=YUY2, bit=16 (it's in the format box on top right, yes you can manually type in settings) so that fps=30.001

It should look like this when you're done: *w= 720, h= 480, fps=30.001, fcc=YUY2, bit=16

From what I was reading in this thread, the Gameboy Player doesn't use the same framerate that the actual GBA runs at. This can throw capture cards off and cause frame drops/skipping if you don't record at the same framerate being output by the console.

Next, go into the Preview window for Amarec. Change the Function to Retro Game.
Retro Game: this setting is used for classic interlaced footage from older consoles at low resolutions. There's a lot to explain, but the quick and dirty is GBA outputs video the same basic way a SNES does, so using Retro Game is the best option. The other options are designed for newer game consoles that run games at mid to high resolutions.

Swing over to the Recording tab. Change the capture framerate to 999. If you're using Amarec 3.10, using 999 as a capture framerate will tell the program to capture video at the same framerate that you have the device set to in the Device tab (in this case, 30.001).

See what you get with a short recording from these settings. Keep in mind that the preview window may not 100% be perfect though.

**Edit** I just realized, you never said what codec you're using to capture in Amarec.

Let's try something fun.

Load up Amarec, and change this line: *w= 720, h= 480, fps=29.97,  fcc=YUY2, bit=16 (it's in the format box on top right, yes you can manually type in settings) so that fps=30.001

It should look like this when you're done: *w= 720, h= 480, fps=30.001,  fcc=YUY2, bit=16

From what I was reading in [url=https://forum.speeddemosarchive.com/post/important_analog_capture_frame_rates_and_mysterious_gained_seconds.html]this thread[/url], the Gameboy Player doesn't use the same framerate that the actual GBA runs at. This can throw capture cards off and cause frame drops/skipping if you don't record at the same framerate being output by the console.

Next, go into the Preview window for Amarec. Change the Function to Retro Game.
Retro Game: this setting is used for classic interlaced footage from older consoles at low resolutions. There's a lot to explain, but the quick and dirty is GBA outputs video the same basic way a SNES does, so using Retro Game is the best option. The other options are designed for newer game consoles that run games at mid to high resolutions.

Swing over to the Recording tab. Change the capture framerate to 999. If you're using Amarec 3.10, using 999 as a capture framerate will tell the program to capture video at the same framerate that you have the device set to in the Device tab (in this case, 30.001).

See what you get with a short recording from these settings. Keep in mind that the preview window may not 100% be perfect though.

**Edit** I just realized, you never said what codec you're using to capture in Amarec.

srylain

2016-07-26 08:40:08 pm

From just changing the frame rate to 30.001, I get an error "return: HRESULT=80004005 (FAILED) Unspecificied error code: pConfig->SetFormat(pamt).

As for the codec, I believe it's LAGS? Under Video Compressor I have Other Codec selected with LAGS, and the Audio Compressor whines at me if I use anything other than Uncompressed.

honorableJay

2016-07-26 08:41:18 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Ah ok, looks like the GV-USB2 can't do custom framerates, looks like that test is a total bust Sad

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-26 11:03:18 pm

2016-07-26 08:55:30 pm

Is it possible that I could've just gotten a bad device? I got it from Amazon, so I might be able to get it replaced since the seller still has a few left.

I did just try out Virtualdub, and it was giving me the same thing with the GV-USB2. Hovering around 23-25 FPS. Pretty sure it's the device at this point, either that or it just doesn't like my USB ports.

honorableJay

2016-07-27 01:21:28 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Yeah sounds like it could be a bad device. Honestly I've heard people complain about stuttering issues with that device in the past. You might be better off getting an EZCap instead (not a knockoff EasyCap, but the real EZCap) since it's a bit more flexible.

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-28 04:14:11 pm

srylain: 2016-07-27 08:30:43 pm

2016-07-27 07:31:51 pm

How is the display lag with the EZCap? One thing I had no idea the GV-USB2 would be pretty good at was the lag, was pretty playable just playing through OBS or Amarec. And I'm not sure on the differences between a genuine device, do you have a link to one of the good ones?

Welp, I just tried the thing in my roommate's computer and it seemed to stay at a pretty consistent 30FPS (it was always a bit above or a bit below 30). His computer is pretty old, much weaker than my PC is. So now that we know the device isn't bad, would installing maybe a PCIe USB card maybe work? I've seen this one recommended a few times on the Vive subreddit, no idea at all if it'll actually help since I've never dealt with expansion cards before.

Even better still, I just tried it on a MacBook running Windows 7 through Bootcamp and it was giving a consistent 30FPS. It's definitely not the device.

honorableJay

2016-07-29 08:29:37 am

The Dork Knight himself.

This should be the official homepage.

The lag with an EZCap, Dazzle, and GV-USB2 *should* all be the same, but I can only confirm it with the EZCap and Dazzle.

If it's working fine through other computers but not yours, it could be a driver issue. Try uninstalling the drivers and software that came with it, then reinstall just the drivers.

An expansion USB card would not help with your computer. On-board USB controllers are fast/reliable enough. The only reason you should invest in a PCI USB card is when you're all tapped out and need more ports (and even then you should have at least 1 USB expansion plug on your motherboard).

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-29 03:10:09 pm

2016-07-29 02:38:28 pm

So the lag should be playable while using an EZCap? Stupid apartment management won't let me have A/C units in my windows, so I'd really like to cut down on heat makers and would be just fine playing through Amarec or OBS.

While looking at my motherboard, I noticed some cracks and one of the connectors I don't use popped off (got the thing used 2 years ago, from someone who obviously didn't take much care of it) so later today I'm just going to go and upgrade it since I was looking into doing that anyways. If that doesn't somehow miraculously fix this, I'll go ahead and get an EZCap assuming it is playable through OBS/Amarec. And I doubt it'd have anything to do with it, but would being a Micro ATX board have anything to do with anything? No idea if for whatever reason a normal sized board could have better connectivity.

I've also tried re-installing the drivers from both the disc and the website, no luck there either.

honorableJay

2016-07-29 05:30:46 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Yeah that computer is definitely the issue. I hope you have a Windows install disc since you can't simply swap the mobo and be done. You'll have to reinstall Windows. Being a Micro ATX board has nothing to do with it aside from having less expansion options and made for a smaller case.

Whether or not the lag is manageable is entirely up to you. Some people can play fine, others can't. Test it on another computer for a bit and see how well you can play with the lag.

srylain

Edit history:

srylain: 2016-07-29 06:16:55 pm

2016-07-29 06:15:09 pm

As long as the lag is only a few frames or so (I think the GV-USB2 was giving me about 3-4), I'll be fine.

And I'm assuming there's no difference between the two EZCap 116's? There's a "Gamer" one or something, which I'm assuming is just overpriced.

honorableJay

2016-07-29 07:12:20 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Looks like the EZGamer model comes with splitters and spare AV cables so you can capture and still play on your TV. The actual capture device is the same.