GeForce 6 series video processor OFFICIAL THREAD

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: Genx87
Well written.

We need to have the reviewers put pressure on Nvidia to come up with an answer and solution to this. It doesnt matter to me because I have an AIW card. But to ship something that has a known defect is not good business practices.

Unfortunately it thus far appears to be an excellent biz practice, because they haven't been brought to task for it...yet Meanwhile, it appears the 6800series retail sales are brisk. Anand reiterated in the comments section of the article that he intended to get to the bottom of this one way or another so I'm confident some progress will finally be made.

E-mailing our card makers with our questions and concerns is the only recourse it would seem we have @the moment, so the more of us that participate the better our chances of getting some action, or at least reaction from the manufacturers and nV.

 

[lordtyranus]

Thnx guys. If someone could point out a few edits that would be great.

Punisher, I think if we all send them a letter like this it could have more effect than a few of us sending individual emails.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: lordtyranus
Thnx guys. If someone could point out a few edits that would be great.

Punisher, I think if we all send them a letter like this it could have more effect than a few of us sending individual emails.

Something along this line perhaps? Text

 

[ponyo]

Very disappointing news. The video processor was the part I was looking forward to most from my 6800 GT card.

Either Nvidia or BFG will replace my GT with working PVP when they get functional one manufactured. BFG can expect a call from me once I hear the functional ones are available in the marketplace. :thumbsup: to lifetime warranty.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: Naustica
Very disappointing news. The video processor was the part I was looking forward to most from my 6800 GT card.

Either Nvidia or BFG will replace my GT with working PVP when they get functional one manufactured. BFG can expect a call from me once I hear the functional ones are available in the marketplace. :thumbsup: to lifetime warranty.

Yes sir, that is the sole saving grace should the present one prove borked and a 6800GT with functional PVP be manufactured. I don't want their cheesey in-house cooler but what ya gonna do?

I too recall that some of us were pumped about the PVP perhaps making our decision to go A64 even better by negating the advantage P4s were showing in encoding. Damned shame that here we are months later with no benefits and less hope than ever

Any feedback on starting a petition via the link provided using lordtyranus' work as the basis for it?

 

[seemerun]

Originally posted by: Naustica
Very disappointing news. The video processor was the part I was looking forward to most from my 6800 GT card.

Either Nvidia or BFG will replace my GT with working PVP when they get functional one manufactured. BFG can expect a call from me once I hear the functional ones are available in the marketplace. :thumbsup: to lifetime warranty.

Does it say any where on your BFG box that your card has a built in VP i have a PNY 6800 GT and i don't see it on the web site?

sorry it's there


Industry's first on-chip video processor
Full MPEG support with features such as advanced adaptive de-interlacing, video scaling and filtering, deliver smooth video and DVD playback.

 

[ponyo]

Any feedback on starting a petition via the link provided using lordtyranus' work as the basis for it?

I've no problem signing the petition once it's up but that's about it. I don't have the time or the interest to start the petition drive. I'll leave that up to more dedicated individual who actually have the writing skills and the time to follow through. I have neither. The most you'll likely get out of me is signing the petition, whining in the forums, and conversing with the BFG tech to RMA my non-working PVP 6800GT.

 

[seemerun]

I just got off the phone with PNY in regards to the VP issue the TECH stated thay were very aware of the issue and that they have been getting calls from NVIDIA STATING THERE WORKING ON A FIX FOR THIS
I TRIED TO GET MORE OUT OF THE TECH BUT HE KEPT SAYING PNY WAS TOLD BY NVIDIA NOT TO COMMENT BUT THEY ARE WORKING ON A FIX





I then ask the PNY tech if nvidia doesn't resolve this are you going to replace or refound my money he stated that PNY will have to honor every 6800 that that has this issue

hope this helps

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: seemerun
I just got off the phone with PNY in regards to the VP issue the TECH stated thay were very aware of the issue and that they have been getting calls from NVIDIA STATING THERE WORKING ON A FIX FOR THIS
I TRIED TO GET MORE OUT OF THE TECH BUT HE KEPT SAYING PNY WAS TOLD BY NVIDIA NOT TO COMMENT BUT THEY ARE WORKING ON A FIX





I then ask the PNY tech if nvidia doesn't resolve this are you going to replace or refound my money he stated that PNY will have to honor every 6800 that that has this issue

hope this helps

Thanks but this is nothing new, no offense What would be new if if we knew for certain if the fix will be in software or hardware form. I already had no doubt a reputable company would honor the RMA if the PVP is proven to be defective.

 

[seemerun]

Originally posted by: DAPUNISHER

Originally posted by: seemerun
I just got off the phone with PNY in regards to the VP issue the TECH stated thay were very aware of the issue and that they have been getting calls from NVIDIA STATING THERE WORKING ON A FIX FOR THIS
I TRIED TO GET MORE OUT OF THE TECH BUT HE KEPT SAYING PNY WAS TOLD BY NVIDIA NOT TO COMMENT BUT THEY ARE WORKING ON A FIX





I then ask the PNY tech if nvidia doesn't resolve this are you going to replace or refound my money he stated that PNY will have to honor every 6800 that that has this issue

hope this helps

Thanks but this is nothing new, no offense What would be new if if we knew for certain if the fix will be in software or hardware form. I already had no doubt a reputable company would honor the RMA if the PVP is proven to be defective.

ok so if it's software all were waiting for is a driver if not i feel sorry for PNY

 

[bpt8056]

After Anand published his article and informed us about the borked PVP in the NV40, I started to examine how Xbitlabs got their GeForce 6800GT working. After reading the whole page here, they were testing the PCI-Express version of the 6800GT and indeed it is working. Before some of you say that it was not in WMV format, they used it to test the PVP of the 6800 when it first came out:

Like in our S3 DeltaChrome review, we decided to try the NV40 at decoding MPEG-2/4 and HDTV ? we don?t like to rely on the manufacturer?s words only. For the latter format, we used the same video clips as with the DeltaChrome, written in the HDTV WMV format. Alas, our testing ended without really starting out. When trying to play any video with BSPlayer, we saw a blank gray window, although with sound. It turned out that the NV40 with the current version of its drivers didn?t support the Overlay Mixer mode. The problem disappeared when we switched to the VMR-9 mode, but only to be followed by another. When playing a HDTV WMV video clip with Windows Media Player 9, we had the central processor loaded to the full 100%, and the video went on convulsively, although the image quality was all right.

Apparently the NV45 has the video processor fixed while we're stuck with a half-baked PVP.

 

[HardWarrior]

I ran the video and experienced high CPU utilization, in the 80-90% range. I called BFG and was surprised to hear that my call was the first they'd heard of the problem. :Q

 

[fbrdphreak]

I have sent another e-mail to BFG (as I was still waiting for a second reply), and I will write back when I get a response.

 

[HardWarrior]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
I have sent another e-mail to BFG (as I was still waiting for a second reply), and I will write back when I get a response.

According to the support tech I just spoke with BFG doesn't have a clue about this... I just read an article written by Anand that indicates the the entire is issue is nVidia's fault in that the feature simply hasn't been correctly implemented across the board. Though strangely it is functional on the 6600 GT PCI-express cards. The good news is that if it is an architechture problem BFG will replace defective units. What REALLY gets my eyes red is that no one in the chain seems to have noticed that 20-million transitors of core logic wasn't working correctly.

 

[Auric]

The last paragraph of the letter requires a re-write. No offense, but mentioning a lawyer is laughable. Users are not customers of NVIDIA. Any compensation must come from the "manufacturer", or more specifically the brand company as some of them don't even really assemble cards (and it is up to them pass any costs on to NVIDIA if they can). I though the AT article was a bit silly when I read it too. AT pressuring NVIDIA? Ho ho.

Y'all are correct to be peeved at NVIDIA though as I doubt their customers were in collusion but almost as ignorant as end-users waiting on a magic driver. Well, a magic driver is unlikely to appear for defective hardware. It's looking very "Savage 2000" at this point (the broken HW TCL was eventually enabled but often performed slower than in software). NVIDIA similarly rushed the product out in an attempt to stay competitive.

NVIDIA decoding hasn't really been on par with even S3, let alone ATI. It is really the encoding that is the beeg deal, especially if it could be used in conjunction with PVR cards that lacked hardware encoding.

 

[rbV5]

The last paragraph of the letter requires a re-write. No offense, but mentioning a lawyer is laughable. Users are not customers of NVIDIA. Any compensation must come from the "manufacturer", or more specifically the brand company as some of them don't even really assemble cards (and it is up to them pass any costs on to NVIDIA if they can). I though the AT article was a bit silly when I read it too. AT pressuring NVIDIA? Ho ho.

If I'm not mistaken, at least the early 6800 cards were manufactured by Nvidia, not just the chips. I'm almost positive my eVGA is just a NVidia reference card, it looks just like all the other 6800 with Nalu on the HS.

 

[Auric]

Yes, and? You bought it from eVGA (the brand company but not necessarily the manufacturer in the strictest sense) so they are liable to you.

 

[rbV5]

Originally posted by: Auric
Yes, and? You bought it from eVGA (the brand company but not necessarily the manufacturer in the strictest sense) so they are liable to you.

and thats who I contacted (eVGA) just pointing out that Nvidia did manufacture a large number of 6800 cards themselves.

 

[fbrdphreak]

ME "Hello,
In a discussion between myself and other nVidia 6800 series card
owners, we are wondering about the status of the acclaimed on-chip
video processor that is supposed to be built into all nV4x cards.
nVidia's information on this feature can be found here:
http://www.nvidia.com/object/feature_on-chip-video.html
During tests using a WMV HD Trailer entitled "Step Into Liquid,"
several dozen users measured CPU utilization while playing the HD
Trailer. Theoretically, if the on-chip video processor was working CPU
utilization would be very low. The group of us have conducted these
tests using several different versions of nVidia's reference drivers,
from the 61.xx versions to the current 66.71 and even the un-released
66.81 drivers. NONE of them work and everyone's systems run between
80-100% utilization (This applies to Pentium 4 HT systems with HT
disabled, as HT "incorrectly" reports utilization in that regard). Any
information you could provide on this situation would be greatly
appreciated, up to and including any communication you may be able to
have with nVidia on this directly.
I also wanted to add that your product has been excellent, as the
proud owner of a 6800GT OC, and it is great to see a good AMERICAN
company providing true customer service. Thank you for your time."

BFG "Tim

I will look into this and get back to you once I can get more info on this
subject
Thanks again and if you have any other questions please email us back or
call or live support at 8662343499

Mike G
BFG email"

ME "Mike,
I was wondering if you had any more information on this issue.
Another user contacted PNY and PNY stated they were working with
nVidia on a fix for this issue. Also, this issue has been addressed on
a reviewer's site:
http://www.anandtech.com/video...oc.aspx?i=2238&p=2
I would appreciate any information you can provide on this issue."

BFG "Tim

We have done the same thing with the issue .
Thanks again and if you have any other questions please email us back or
call or live support at 8662343499

Mike G
BFG email"

That's where I am with BFG so far...

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: seemerun
Industry's first on-chip video processor
Full MPEG support with features such as advanced adaptive de-interlacing, video scaling and filtering, deliver smooth video and DVD playback.

From Anand's article: "The Video Processor (soon to receive a true marketing name) on the NV40 was somewhat broken, although it featured MPEG 2 decode acceleration."

The funny part is, colorspace-conversion and scaling, which is common to nearly every video card since the days of the 2MB S3 Trio64 chipset, is enough of a featureset to claim "MPEG-2 decode acceration" for a product. Not sure about how the "adaptive de-interlacing" feature is generally implemented on most cards, whether in hardware or in software. If it's done in software, then basically, the so-called "video processor" in the NV40 doesn't really do diddly-squat for video, at least not anything over and above archaic PCI video cards from the mid-90s. Basically, it sounds to me like it's totally b0rked. Time to circle-up the class-action lawyers, and lay siege to the gates of NVidia and their marketing partners.

 

[Benedikt]

For myself, I only could verify the working Video-Processor on my 6800NU under PowerDVD 5.0, and I'm still not sure if it isn't just the standard-acceleration like on the older NV GPUs. I couldn't notice any CPU load reduction under all the different drivers I tested in the last time, still with the 66.81's it's just the same CPU load unter MPEG4 (Xvid, Divx), WMV9 and MPEG2. Not to mention encoding acceleration, this doesn't work either (surpise, surprise) - not a single fps more on standard DirectShow-utilising apps like Virtualdub or others.
But there seem to be some undocumented parameters in the nv4_disp.inf file named 'VPucodeCtrl' and 'MB_Enable' (IIRC at Forceware 66.51 and 66.29). On newer driver versions they seem to be gone again. Of course, you're free to test them, if they activate anything useful...

And folks: If anyone of you wants to start that little petition - I'm your man!
For myself, the videoprocessor was definitely an important reason to buy a 6800, and I would be very disappointed if NV doesn't provide some bugfix or sth. An IHV advertising this VP thingy even on the latest launch presentations and various interviews all over the WWW and then quietly discontinuing the efforts to make it finally useable is IMO just unreliable and should be avoided.

Greetings
B. W.

 

[Genx87]

I am curious about this issue and want to see what comes of it.

 

[Auric]

fbrdphreak, what is this about WMV-HD:

everyone's systems run between 80-100% utilization (This applies to Pentium 4 HT systems with HT
disabled, as HT "incorrectly" reports utilization in that regard).

I understand disabling HT to test how the video processor fairs on a "single CPU" but even with HT enabled there should be a significant difference if the VP is working. How is utilization incorrectly reported?

In my own experience already mentioned in other relevant threads, using a Radeon and a "P2.9" with HT disabled cannot smoothly playback WMV-HD using VMR9, but instead requires using the faster Overlay Mixer, in which case CPU utilization is 70-90% However, when HT is enabled any renderer can be used and is reflected in utilization of 40-60%.

 

[johnjacobjingleheimer]

if you want to see the kind of promise in physical form i received here you go:

http://www.bjorn3d.com/read.php?cID=698&pageID=1039

click on the pic for the back of the box,if you save the pic and zoom in it is legible and then note the area that says:

"Support video processing for MPEG 1/2/4 encode/decode and WMV9 decode acceleration."

"The Industry's First On-Chip Video Processor delivers unmatched video performance and features."

this is exactly what i see on the back of my box

 

[fbrdphreak]

Here is the response I received back from BFG:
"Official response from NVIDIA.

"The GeForce 6800 models featured the 1st generation of PureVideo
technology which included support for MPEG2 h/w acceleration. While the
initial design goal was to also accelerate other video formats such as
WMV, testing showed that the 1st generation implementation still relied
on the CPU to assist with some of the processing.

As newer GPUs were introduced (GeForce 6600 models), NVIDIA was able to
implement additional enhancements to it's PureVideo technology to add
support for h/w acceleration of other video formats such as WMV." "

Ain't that some bullsh!t!! I'm taking suggestions for a reply to BFG, as I will be studying for a test all day and won't have the brain power to compose my own reply.