Poor Picture Quality

Channels DVR Server
#1

I absolutely love Channels, but the quality of recordings isn't that great. It's good when viewed on an iPad, but when I watch on the TV in our living room, it's bad. Colors aren't that great and it becomes pixelated.

I'm not sure if this is a fault of Xfinity's streaming service or the recording quality of Channels. I have a pretty good NAS (Synology RS1221+ with 32GB of RAM). I don't think it's the NAS that is causing the issue unless Channels encoding is doing something.

Anyone else have any tips? I'm especially interested in the local channels (ABC, CBS, etc.) as that is primarily what we record.

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#2

Channels does no post-processing of recordings. The files are saved exactly as they're received. If you have a problem with quality, then you should look into your source for the recording.

#3

That's what I thought. So it's the Xfinity stream. I have gigabit service, so it must be the way they are encoding it.

#4

What device are you using to view ?

#5

Are you using a Prime, and recording from cable? Those streams are usually 12Mbps or so for H.262, and 6Mbps or so for H.264.

If not and you are using TV Everywhere sources, Xfinity has nothing to do with the situation. In that case, the streams come from the networks’ websites, and are low bitrate (2-6Mbps) H.264 with stereo audio.

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#6

the only thing that is quite poor picture quality, is Locast.
Those feeds are so low bitrate, and look so bad, its unwatchable in my opinion.
So blurry, blocky, and highly compressed, but is a stable stream.
However, for some, it the only option to get OTA stations for whatever reason, to far from transmitter, can't use a good antenna, etc.

I occasionally see some digitizing on TVE, or times where it briefly streams SD then back to HD, but it does not bother me. Its has been too long since i have had Cable and a Prime tuner, but even then, Comcast made nearly all my channels a 720p h.264 stream of about the same bit rate as TVE. Only a few channels were 1080i.

#7

AppleTV 4K

#8

I'm using TVE. Not sure what you mean "using a Prime?"

#9

I mean the HDHomeRun Prime (HDHR3-CC). It is a physical network tuner that uses a CableCARD to decode your encrypted cable feed, and transmit it across your home network.

#10

I have a TiVo now (which is why I was toying with Channels to use it as a replacement to TiVo). I could use the CableCARD from it, but would prefer to get a new CableCARD to test it. Who knows when Xfinity will stop supporting CableCARDs since the FCC voted to not require support for them anymore.

#11

Make sure the Apple TV is set to SDR mode.

You can also try changing the Channels app settings under Settings > Playback > Advanced to set Video Driver and Deinterlacer to Experimental

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#12

@tmm1 Thanks that helped the picture quality except for fast motion having a ghosting effect. The quality seems better.

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#13

Depending on where you live, and what kind of TV signal you get there, maybe consider using an HDHomeRun box with an antenna? I know it sounds old school, but that hardware integrates perfectly with your existing Channels DVR. And the picture quality of (free) local channels would be better than what you get via TVE or Locast.

#14

I have to say I really love the features of Channels (especially the commercial skip) and I foresee this as a TiVo replacement as I love the features much better. However, I cannot get a good picture quality on a big TV. I'm not sure if it's the settings on my TV, the AppleTV, or something else. Picture quality on my iOS devices is excellent.

#15

Is your Apple TV connected via ethernet or wifi? Maybe you have a poor wifi connection? It sounds like your issue is isolated to that one TV. I would do some troubleshooting there. Download the Speed Test app on your Apple TV and see what kind of speeds you're getting there.

#16

It's connected via ethernet (all of them). All devices are this way, but it seems to be worse with Locast streams. What is the bitrate of Locast? I'm going to record some TVE from Xfinity to see if it occurs with it as well.

My AppleTV's consistently get >900 Mbps downstream. Nearly all of my house is hardwired.

#17

Oh - Locast. There's your answer. :slight_smile:

Go buy an antenna and an HDHomeRun Connect and you'll be set!

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#18

Locast is ~2Mbps 720p30 w/ stereo audio.
TVE varies, but is generally either the same as Locast, up to ~5Mbps 1080p30/29.97, with stereo audio as well.

Internet streams—including Locast and TVE—will always be inferior to the broadcast quality from an actual tuner.

#19

Since switching to DirecTV Stream, Channels DVR's quality is much much improved.

#20

Improved over what, though? Locast was killed more than a year ago.

And TVE streams from DirecTV Stream and Xfinity would be identical.