Comments

ajt wrote on 9/12/2010, 7:23 PM
The M2TS file problem (empty LFE channel) still exists in v9e

M2TS file support was introduced in v7 (maybe earlier) and hasn't ever worked correctly.

Does anyone answer trouble tickets at sonycreativesoftware.com? I have put in two of them on this problem and didn't get a thing back.
musicvid10 wrote on 9/12/2010, 8:54 PM
M2TS is a container, which can wrap a number of different codecs in a BDAV compliant format.

-- Video: MPEG-2, MPEG-4/AVC, VC1.
-- Audio: Dolby Digital AC3, DTS, Linear PCM.

Just which are you talking about here?
What is the source of your M2TS files?
Can you upload an example to MediaFire so others can look at it?

It is a common new-user mistake to make generalizations without providing any relevant details. So lets start there, before blaming the software for your observations . . .
ajt wrote on 9/13/2010, 10:55 AM
The M2TS files are recorded using the Hauppauge HD PVR with S/PDIF audio input optically connected to a DVD player. The HD PVR outputs M2TS files where are the same as TS files with a different extension. Since the audio input to the recorder is S/PDIF, the AC-3 (Dolby Digital 5.1 in this case) is simply passed through to the output M2TS file.

Loading the files into Adobe Premiere or Ulead VideoStudio works perfectly with the proper LFE content included for that channel. Conclusion: the input file is fine.

In Vegas 8.0c AND Vegas 9e, importing or simply dragging the file from the Explorer pane to the timeline does in fact bring in a video and 6 (5.1) audio tracks, the latter properly labeled as L, C, R, Ls, Rs, and LFE. The LFE channel has a flat waveform and playing the file shows nothing in the LFE meter for LFE. It simply was lost as the file was loaded to Vegas.

I am not "blaming" the software but rather trying to make it work as it is supposed to since my desire is clearly to use Vegas instead of Premiere. My observations are quite clear, I think: load a known good M2TS file into Premiere or ULead and it works. Load the same file into Vegas 8 or 9 and it doesn't. I'm not looking at the video at all at this point

I have been using Vegas since v7 but only recently tried to use v8. 0c with M2TS files.

A short M2TS file and two screenshot jpgs are here:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/um347261nivvh4s/2010_9_13_12_53_57.zip

The screen shots show the file opened in both Premiere and Vegas. The LFE channel issue is clearly visible. Note this isn't just a waveform issue but the LFE content is totally missing when loaded in Vegas.

From all of this you should understand why I believe Vegas software is not working correctly and am looking for someone who can help solve the problem.




musicvid10 wrote on 9/13/2010, 4:26 PM
Thanks for providing some details and a clip. From other posts on the forums, it seems that Vegas support for Hauppage files has been sketchy in some areas. In some cases, running the files through Videoredo h264 TVSuite corrected the problems straightaway. In your case it did not; I also tried a few other remux utilities without success. It is worth noting that several of the utilities I tried did not recognize your audio stream either, yet they work fine with other AVC/AC3 M2TS/TS files.

The only other suggestion I can offer at a peer level, is that there were a number of AC3 issues reported with earlier Hauppage driver versions, but I assume you've already got the latest installed.

Maybe someone else has a more current take on this.
ChristoC wrote on 9/13/2010, 4:32 PM
Now isn't that interesting - I downloaded your file, opened Vegas9e, double-clicked on your M2TS file, and this is what I get, which looks & sounds ok to me.

[IMG=http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/6247/m2tsinvegas9e.png]

ajt wrote on 9/13/2010, 5:37 PM
Yes.. I have all the latest drivers and capture software installed. Please note that the file is fine as evidenced by the fact it opens correctly with Premiere and Ulead VideoStudio.

I have talked to Hauppage on this problem and they confirmed the files are actually TS files renamed as M2TS so as to play directly on a PlayStation (TS files have the same behavior in Vegas as you would expect ). They also told me the AC-3 is simply passed through and mux'ed to the output file.

It should work...
ajt wrote on 9/13/2010, 5:54 PM
That certainly is interesting!!

I just did the exact same thing with Vegas9e and there is nothing in the LFE track. I'm off looking at how i can add a jpg to my post but until I do let it suffice to say the LFE track is a flat line. I tried it with the LFE low pass on and off, different sample rates and other settings on the Project Properties Audio tab.

Not sure what is set up differently between our systems but I sure would like to know what they are! Would you post the Project Properties Audio Tab and any other preferences that may lead to the solution to this? Thanks

BTW, I am running this on XP Pro/SP3. If it matters I have DirectX9.0c installed.


ajt wrote on 9/13/2010, 6:05 PM
PS to my last post...

I have BOTH Vegas 8.0c and 9e installed on this system.
ajt wrote on 9/13/2010, 9:35 PM
The image below is what I see with Vegas 9e. I see the same in 8.0c. This is with the exact same file as I uploaded and is displayed above. I looked everywhere in preferences and properties and cannot find the magic checkbox to make this work.

ChristoC wrote on 9/14/2010, 12:12 AM
Not doing anything unusual here with settings:





Pretty bog standard installation, WinXPproSP3, no additional or unusual codecs etc installed. I can't find any settings which prevent LFE channel appearing on my setup.

My soundcard is a Solid State Logic 128channel MX4 card (2 x 64chan MADI I/O) with 128 available ASIO Streams; that, however, would have no bearing on the problem at hand.
ajt wrote on 9/14/2010, 7:02 AM
Thanks for that, ChristoC. Same settings and OS as I am using.

I *just* discovered something! Fired up the 9e trial and in the View menu I turned off "Waveforms and Frames" and back on again... magic happened and the LFE waveform is there now and the LFE channel plays now!!

In 8.0c doing the same thing produces the waveform but no LFE audio plays (i.e. nothing on the LFE meter or if I solo the LFE channel with +12dB boost). I tried rendering to an AC3 file and also back out to an M2TS file and the LFE is still missing despite me seeing the waveform.

This is getting weirder as I go. I need this to work as advertised in 8.0c. I've got a trouble report into Sony but only got the first auto-response back thus far.
Allegretto wrote on 9/27/2010, 4:56 PM
8.0c is using a different plug-in to read your MTS file (m2tsplug.dll) than 9.0e (compoundplug.dll). Apparently the newer plug-in in 9.0e fixed the problem reading the LFE channel.

Here's the answer to your mystery:

Opening this MTS file creates two peaks files (contains data for drawing the audio data more quickly when it is not zoomed in). There is one file for each audio stream: a .sfk0 for the stereo downmix, and a .sfk1 for the 5.1. If you opened it in 9.0e, the draw data is correct for the LFE channel. Now when you load the file into 8.0c, it reuses that same drawing data file so you doo indeed see the LFE waveform. But when you play it back, 8.0c fetches the audio data from the MTS file so you don't hear the LFE channel because of the bug. Try placing the cursor to where there is LFE data and start zooming in. When you are zoomed in enough that Vegas fetches the audio data directly from the MTS file for drawing, you'll see the waveform disappear and go flat.

If you close Vegas, delete the .sfk1 file, and open the MTS file in 8.0c it will create the peaks file for the 5.1 stream with no LFE data. If you then open the MTS file in 9.0e, you won't see any LFE data but you will hear it. And if you zoom enough in the right place, you will now see the LFE data in 9.0e.

A workaround is to open the MTS file in 9.0e, and render it to Wave as 5.1 PCM with the same audio setting as the original (48,000 Hz, 16 bit). Replace the audio events in your 8.0c project with this .wav file. You'll need to right click on the video event and select Group -> Remove From to ungroup the video and audio events so you can select the audio events to delete them (or simply delete those audio tracks). Alternatively you can mute the audio tracks that the MTS audio events occupy and drop the .wav directly below them, which effectively replaces the audio. Make sure you have snapping enabled when you are dragging the .wav to the timeline so that you can properly line up the start of the audio with the video.