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Codecs and Video Playback
You’ll find until you’ve installed WinDVD or equivalent, you can’t complete Media Center setup. When you come to select the number of
speakers you have it will probably tell you that “The video decoder has either malfunctioned or is not installed”. It is not installed. You
don’t need to install a complete product like WinDVD or PowerDVD, but you do need some decoder software. I recommend downloading
K-Lite Codec Pack (I download the “Full” version but there’s a choice depending on how many codecs you want bundled with it) which
gives you a choice of MPEG decoders. You can get it here: http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Codec_Pack.htm.
If you install K-Lite Codec Pack, you’ll need to decide what to install for yourself out of the many options, but these are the options I
choose:
Profile 4: Lots of stuff
…with the following amendments:
On the “Select Components” page, I use the following settings:
• Add Xvid DirectShow video filter
• Add InterVideo MPEG-1/MPEG-2 DirectShow video filter (this is the one that makes DVD playback and Media Center work)
• Change AC3/DTS/LPCM (DVD audio) DirectShow audio filter from AC3Filter to InterVideo
• Add MP1/MP2 (MPEG Audio) DirectShow audio filter and set it to MainConcept
• Add AAC DirectShow audio filter and set it to 3ivx Pro
On the “Select Additional Tasks” page, I use the following settings:
• Reset all settings to their defaults
• Make Media Player Classic the default for: Nothing (MPC might be a good, reliable, lightweight media player but it’s just too ugly to
be my preferred media player
• Speaker setup: 5.1 (or higher)