Differences between software video players

[Fly-Catchers]

When I play back either native MTS films or edited (through Premiere Elements) through different software players I get different issues.

Windows Media Player while looks quite good sometimes gives a lighting or darkening of the image as if the exposure on the shot is changing. This looks a bit like flicker and is quite subtle but annoying. The exposure is manual on the camera and is not adjusting and this effect only occurs through WMP.

VLC gives good results but sometimes drops frames or you get a glitchy start to the video.

PowerDVD 10 overall gives the best results with most stable colours and exposure and few glitches. It does not however like 50p 720p recordings out of the camera at all. They are blocky full of flashing artifacts. Yet once I have resaved the file as a 50p 720p recording through PE it plays it fine!! The other two players play the native 50p 720p far better.

 

What is causing all these differences and what players do you use?

[Sean Cunningham]

VLC has become my go-to player, since you can lock in your aspect ratio, etc.  I do sometimes get glitchy playback at the beginning of a clip but I have my player default to looping a clip so that I can ensure it's a quirky playback issue and not in the footage.  Only the first play ever shows any issues, if this occurs.

[see ya]

I'd suggest trying media player classic.

As an aside VLC if configured with GPU acceleration on will not preview Nikon, Canon or GH3 MOV output correctly, it ignores the full range flag so all output looks overly contrasty.

[FilmMan]

When I play back either native MTS films or edited (through Premiere Elements) through different software players I get different issues.

Windows Media Player while looks quite good sometimes gives a lighting or darkening of the image as if the exposure on the shot is changing. This looks a bit like flicker and is quite subtle but annoying. The exposure is manual on the camera and is not adjusting and this effect only occurs through WMP.

VLC gives good results but sometimes drops frames or you get a glitchy start to the video.

PowerDVD 10 overall gives the best results with most stable colours and exposure and few glitches. It does not however like 50p 720p recordings out of the camera at all. They are blocky full of flashing artifacts. Yet once I have resaved the file as a 50p 720p recording through PE it plays it fine!! The other two players play the native 50p 720p far better.

 

What is causing all these differences and what players do you use?

Excellent question.  You're not alone.  Quicktime, Windows, VLC, etc.  give different playback look (gamma shifts).  I usually use VLC or Windows.  

[Sean Cunningham]

Hmmm, good to know on my PC.  I wonder if this quirk with VLC is the same for the OSX version.  If I'm looking at ProRes I'm generally using the QuickTime player which I've been conditioned since the DV days to not fully trust.

[Bioskop.Inc]

I've found MPEGStreamclip to be pretty reliable, well more so than QT - can't unsqueeze footage though.

[mojo43]

Splash player is the one that I use...