Encoding PSP video using non-standard resolutions

[runtime]

Following the work marlov74 started, I did a bit more research and found that the PSP is able to support most resolutions provided they are a multiple of 16. I've tried several so far including 320x176, 368x208, 384x160 and 416x176.

Temporary Link:
http://runtime.dyndns.org/psprez-b1.zip

PSPREZ is a small utility that will enable your Sony PSP to accept MP4 files encoded using 'non-standard' resolutions.

As marlov74 pointed out, the maximum resolution appears to be limited to around 76800 pixels so I wouldn't advise you go beyond this (unless you're interested in creating a buffer overrun exploit!).

More info inside the README.

cheers,
runtime

Team XBMC
www.xboxmediacenter.com

[Guest]

As a development site, many here are typically interested more in the details of the hows and whys of making something compatible, rather than simply using the end product.

Would you by chance be able to explain more details of why this works, or how the program makes it work ?

Looks like cool work, just would be better if we can know more I think.

[runtime]

The hack basically patches the three locations within the first 0x1000 bytes of the .MP4 file, essentially forcing the file to appear as a 320x240 res file when the PSP makes its check. This appears to be sufficient to get the PSP to playback the remainder of the file at the appropriate resolution.

Code: Select all

	pBuffer[0x0A8] = 0x01;
	pBuffer[0x0A9] = 0x40;
	pBuffer[0x0AA] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x0AB] = 0xF0;

	pBuffer[0x180] = 0x01;
	pBuffer[0x181] = 0x40;
	pBuffer[0x184] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x185] = 0xF0;

	pBuffer[0x286] = 0x01;
	pBuffer[0x287] = 0x40;
	pBuffer[0x288] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x289] = 0xF0;

[MomDad]

Hey hey! Nice work :)

-MD

[beatwho]

good find, cept that 76800 pixel resolution limit sux :( I sure hope Sony fix this (not to mention the picture viewer)

[runtime]

Yup sucks big time - its a shame Sony crippled playback in this way, but on the upside it does seem as though there may be some way to exploit their fixed size buffer ;)

Have a go encoding horizontal resolutions greater than 320, should result in a sharper widescreen image as not so much horizontal detail will be lost due to compression into 320 pixels.

[dlrm42]

Hi everyone!

I want to take this first post of mine as an oportunity to introduce myself. I'm a great fan of this forum besinde that my understandings in coding are poor but it's somehow exciting to follow the progress and watch other people what they can achieve with such little information.

so anyway, i just wanted to throw some random thoughts in.

I read somewhere else that the umd movies will use the full resolution of the psp ( 480x272 ) which would result in 130560 pixel. now I'm wondering if sony cheats on us on the resolution and just scaling the umd movies to the full resolution or if the psp caps the playback of movies from the memory stick. ( as long I understood the problem with the buffer size limitation right )

beside that, I added the settings for 416x176 and 480x272 in the config files for the 3GP convert and also that it runs the psprez.exe right afterwards. so if someone is interested I can post the lines here.
shame on me, I can't test the playback by myself because I can't effort an import and have to wait until the end of march :(

last question goes to the encoding guru's which might read this post. has anyone information about the configuration file of the QT3GPPFlatten.exe. because I think it's important in terms of quality to adapt those ini's for the custom resolution. I'm just thinking ahead so I can prepare things to the day I hold the psp in my fingers and enjoy my anime with best possibly quality :)

thanks for your time
-delirium
p.s.: please excuse typos

[uspual]

The hack basically patches the three locations within the first 0x1000 bytes of the .MP4 file, essentially forcing the file to appear as a 320x240 res file when the PSP makes its check. This appears to be sufficient to get the PSP to playback the remainder of the file at the appropriate resolution.

Good job! Thanks for your effort. :)
I've tested some mp4 files.

Code: Select all

	pBuffer[0x0A8] = 0x01;
	pBuffer[0x0A9] = 0x40;
	pBuffer[0x0AA] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x0AB] = 0xF0;

1. Patch for the only first location (as above) worked well. PSP recognized mp4 files of non-standard resolutions.
2. 480x160, 400x192, ... <= 76800 pixels played well, but screen aspect(normal, full screen, zoom) could not be changed whiile playing the movie.
3. Playing >76800 pixels leads to black screen and I had to power off PSP.

Code: Select all

	pBuffer[0x0A8] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x0A9] = 0xA0;    // 160
	pBuffer[0x0AA] = 0x00;
	pBuffer[0x0AB] = 0x70;    // 112

4. Effect of the above patch(160x112) was the same as original patch. mp4 files of <=76800 pixels played well.
5. I'd tried some other patches (including 320x112, 160x240, ...) but they didn't work.

[uspual]

I read somewhere else that the umd movies will use the full resolution of the psp ( 480x272 ) which would result in 130560 pixel. now I'm wondering if sony cheats on us on the resolution and just scaling the umd movies to the full resolution or if the psp caps the playback of movies from the memory stick. ( as long I understood the problem with the buffer size limitation right )

Some facts..

1. Quality of UMD movies are far from user-encoded memorystick movies. Their resoultions must be above 320x240.
2. mp4 only supports I, P pictures. B pictures are ignored. (MPEG4 simple profile)
3. .pmf (short movie clip from save data) files are encoded with AVC. So there must be a possibility that we could play AVC movies on memorystick. :)

[weak]

3. .pmf (short movie clip from save data) files are encoded with AVC. So there must be a possibility that we could play AVC movies on memorystick. :)

furthermore the 'manual' on the fcc site says:
Compatible Codecs: Video - H.264/MPEG-4 AVC Main Profile Level 3 Memory Stick (TM)

[DigitalFoundry]

When I read the manual it said that memory stick playback was limited to ASP, not AVC. AVC is the preserve of the UMD movies.

I think the PSP was just designed to playback low-res clips from the likes of MPEG4 'dv' camcorders and suchlike, not playback ripped movies.

I'm sure that in the fullness of time there will be hacked firmwares and maybe even an alternative media player run off the memory stick.

In the meantime, the best you can do is get a 1gb memory stick and figure out the best possible settings. The last couple of pages of the discussion below has some great observations, excellent configs and intelligent discussion: http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread ... ge=1&pp=50

[marlov74]

I dont think the 76800 pixel limitation is coded in to the player.
But we have to remember we tricks it to believe it only need that amount.
We have tried all the different resolution and none is much better than 320*240.
The best with this discover is that it is now for sure that SONY have put in the resolution limit in the menusystem, not the player.
As for the black screen with to high reolution you can try a just to high resolution and it actually shows "pictures" of the memory it overlaps. The less it overlaps the more time it works before hanging.

/m

[DigitalFoundry]

Good work on this Marlov. I agree that there is not much difference between the custom resolutions and 320x240, although I am seeing some interesting results on native 16:9 resolution encodes. I'm also doing some tests on 480x160, simply because it's nice to have native resolution on at least one axis.

If you're saying that the PSP software is limiting the playback, then there is the chance that hacked firmware could re-enable it. However, I guess it all depends on whether we can get hold of the new firmware in an accessible form once it becomes available (if it ever becomes available!). And of course if it is stored on memory stick, I'm willing to bet that MagicGate could be employed.

In terms of running executables from the memory stick, I'm willing to bet that the likes of Datel and Fire International are looking at this right now for their Gameshark/Xploder/Action Replay products, so we might be seeing some unencrypted executables at some point...

[DigitalFoundry]

Marlov, a couple of things to add - firstly, I love your filter because now I don't have to switch to 'full screen', it does it automatically :)

Secondly, I feel that the next innovations in video encoding for PSP will be...

1. A converter that makes Nero Digital and other files work on the PSP
2. An avisynth filter that compensates for the ghosting effect on the PSP screen

I think that both of these steps would result in massively superior video playback... you can already see the difference between ImageConverter and 3GP encoding, and I can't help but think that better MP4 encoders are available than ffmpeg...

[works]

Nice little proggie there runtime, thanks for it. But, when I encode movies with 416x176 and patch them the framerate is choppy on PSP, it works but stutters alot. Same file on PC is perfectly ok before and after patching.

Encoded with 3gp_converter with self modified .ini, 2pass xvid. Framerate conversion and resizing done with AviSynth/Virtualdub before importing to 3gp_converter, resulting file has fps of 29.97.

[romhacker]

Thanks a lot, it works great! XBMC is the only thing I use my xbox for.

[runtime]

Nice little proggie there runtime, thanks for it. But, when I encode movies with 416x176 and patch them the framerate is choppy on PSP, it works but stutters alot. Same file on PC is perfectly ok before and after patching.

Encoded with 3gp_converter with self modified .ini, 2pass xvid. Framerate conversion and resizing done with AviSynth/Virtualdub before importing to 3gp_converter, resulting file has fps of 29.97.

This is the config I use for my medium bitrate stuff:

Code: Select all

Title=416x176 384kbps 16:9 2-pass VBR
Command0=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -pass 1 -passlogfile "<%TemporaryFile%>" -title "<%Title%>" -bitexact -vcodec xvid -s 416x176 -r 29.97 -b 384 -minrate 32 -maxrate 384 -bt 16 -lumi_mask 0.05 -dark_mask 0.02 -scplx_mask 0.7 -an "<%TemporaryFile%>.avi""
Command1="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>.avi""
Command2=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -pass 2 -passlogfile "<%TemporaryFile%>" -title "<%Title%>" -bitexact -vcodec xvid -s 416x176 -r 29.97 -b 384 -minrate 32 -maxrate 384 -bt 16 -lumi_mask 0.05 -dark_mask 0.02 -scplx_mask 0.7 -acodec aac -ac 2 -ar 24000 -ab 32 -f 3gp -muxvb 768 "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp""
Command3=""<%AppPath%>\cores\QT3GPPFlatten" "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp" "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp" -c QT_3GPP&#40;MobileMP4&#41;_QVGA_AAC.ini"
Command4="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp""
Command5=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ATOMChanger" "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp" "<%OutputPath%>M4V<%RandomNumber5%>.mp4" "Camouflage_MP4_for_PSP.ini""
Command6="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp""
Command7=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -f singlejpeg -ss 5 -vframes 1 -s 160x120 -an "<%OutputPath%>M4V<%RandomNumber5%>.THM""
Command8=""<%AppPath%>\cores\psprez" "<%OutputPath%>M4V<%RandomNumber5%>.mp4""

Obviously, -pass 1 -passlogfile "<%TemporaryFile%>" (and the corresponding -pass 2) denote which pass ffmpeg is executing.

So I'm using -minrate 32 -maxrate 384 -bt 16 - to tinker with the rate control, in practice the max rate won't be 384kbits, more will be used if necessary - theres probably a couple of these flags which aren't necessary to stop the PSP complaining (without them PSP sometimes complains when the bitrate jumps too high), but anyway they seem to do the job (it took much experimenting to get this far so hence my reluctance to tweak them).

I use -lumi_mask 0.05 -dark_mask 0.02 -scplx_mask 0.7 - to soften the image a little and save a few bits here and there, necessary when you're using low bitrate video (I guess some people would consider 384kbit low?), the -scplx_mask is very useful in prevent too much blockiness; lumi_mask and dark_mask save bits in areas of significant brightness or darkness.

-muxvb 768 seems to be useful in preventing the PSP complaining if the bitrate exceeds the rate the movie announces (i.e. 384kbps) it was encoded at (which it will since we're doing VBR).

There loads more discussion here: http://forums.gaming-age.com/showthread ... e=11&pp=50

Note: if you're getting stuttering it could be that its the sort thats introduced when you convert footage recorded at a different framerate (typically PAL stuff) to 30fps - unfortunately I don't know how to get around this since PSP seems to be hardwired to playback at 15 or 30fps.

[works]

Note: if you're getting stuttering it could be that its the sort thats introduced when you convert footage recorded at a different framerate (typically PAL stuff) to 30fps - unfortunately I don't know how to get around this since PSP seems to be hardwired to playback at 15 or 30fps.

Yea, I'v battled with the same problem for some time now. The material that I'm using for testing is NTSC Film that is converted to 29.97fps progressive since 24fps isn't supported. The thing is, the file is perfectly ok when played back on a PC but stutters on a PSP. I'll have to look into this and get back to you.

I'v been trying to find out the "advanced" controls for ffmpeg, thanks a lot for sharing that info. Especially the _mask:s are going to come in handy.

edit: PSP seems to be able to decode b-frames aswell, so you might wan't to add "-bf 1" in your settings.

[weak]

actually i have a lot of pal stuff (dvb-c). i'm encoding it with 24 fps currently which works perfect. no stuttering, no asynch sound.

dunno if the stuttering is caused by the diffrent resolutions you're using, but you could give it a try :)

here's an example of my ini:

Code: Select all

Title=Video: 900kbps 24fps// Audio:128kbps // 2 Pass
TitleE=Video: 900kbps 24fps// Audio:128kbps // 2 Pass
Command0=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -pass 1 -passlogfile "<%TemporaryFile%>" -title "<%Title%>" -bitexact -vcodec xvid -s 320x240 -r 24 -b 900 -acodec aac -ac 2 -ar 24000 -ab 64 -f 3gp "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp""
Command1=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -pass 2 -passlogfile "<%TemporaryFile%>" -title "<%Title%>" -bitexact -vcodec xvid -s 320x240 -r 24 -b 900 -acodec aac -ac 2 -ar 24000 -ab 64 -f 3gp "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp""
Command2=""<%AppPath%>\cores\QT3GPPFlatten" "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp" "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp" -c QT_3GPP&#40;MobileMP4&#41;_QVGA_AAC.ini"
Command3="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>.3gp""
Command4=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ATOMChanger" "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp" "<%OutputPath%>M4V<%RandomNumber5%>.mp4" "Camouflage_MP4_for_PSP.ini""
Command5="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>_2.3gp""
Command6="rm "<%TemporaryFile%>-0.log""
Command7=""<%AppPath%>\cores\ffmpeg" -y -i "<%InputFile%>" -f singlejpeg -ss 5 -vframes 1 -s 160x120 -an "<%OutputPath%>M4V<%RandomNumber5%>.THM""

[runtime]

Seriously 24 fps and no sound sync issues? Gotta try this when I get home! :)

[works]

Yea, gotta try that aswell.

runtime: you wouldn't know how to turn VHQ on and set it's level? or is it enabled and =1 at default?

edit:

Ok, tried that 24fps thing and it doesn't work. PSP plays the video in 29.97fps so the audio is _totally_ out of sync. To get perfect framerate conversion I did this:

DVD2AVI to frameserve the mpeg2 and demux the AC3 track to wav. Then use AviSynth to deinterlace, resize, change the framerate and mux.

Code: Select all

LoadPlugin("mpeg2dec3.dll")
LoadPlugin("GreedyHMA.dll")
video = Mpeg2Source("movie25fps.d2v")
audio = WavSource("audio25fps.wav")
AudioDub(video, audio)

ConvertToYUY2()
GreedyHMA(1,0,2,0,0,0,0,120)
ConvertFPS(24)
BicubicResize(416,176)

Playtested in MPClassic, all ok. Since 3gp_converter doesn't like .avs nor "fake" .avi files (that basically just point to the .avs) I had to encode the resized clip with VDubMod to Divx 5.1.1 onepass 8Mbps and then import that to 3gp_converter. The now PSP-ready file plays nicely in sync in Nero Showtime and MPClassic, but not in PSP.

[DigitalFoundry]

3GP Converter runs AVS files fine for me... at least it does for me with version .25...

Trying a 24fps encode now. I would like to see it working but strongly suspect that the PSP will exactly what it does with a 25fps file - ie, playback the video at 29.97 fps and de-sync with the audio.

I would kill for 24fps playback as I strongly suspect that it would diminish the ghosting effect that is the bane of PSP movie-playing at the moment.

[weak]

seems i was mistaken and indeed using 29.97 fps. sry, thought i tried both settings.

[works]

3GP Converter runs AVS files fine for me... at least it does for me with version .25...

heh, whaddya know, upgrading to the latest version sometimes does help :)

thanks for the tip.

[DigitalFoundry]

seems i was mistaken and indeed using 29.97 fps. sry, thought i tried both settings.

Yup, definitely get the same loss of sync with 24fps. A real shame.

[indianajonesilm]

Dear Mr. Runtime
I was wondering what your opinion was on what the best resloution for a 16x9 video would be. I was thinking that 368x208 would be the best since it's 16x9 and has the best pixel count.
320x240 = 76800 pixels (max psp ms resolution)
368x208 = 76544 pixels

In your opinion, does the amount of pixels in the video produce a better quality video or does the visual perception of other resolutions such as 416x176 with higher horizontal (or vertical) resolution produce better quality even though these resolutions have a lesser pixel count?
416x176 = 73116 pixels

I would also like to know your opinion about the best res for 1:2.35 videos. Please forgive me if this question is dumb, as I'm new to this and am trying to understand it. Previously I was squeezing the widescreen video down to 320x240 to take advatage of the additional vertical resoultion like my post here: http://www.psinext.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5733

Also, I would appreciate it very much if someone would be so kind as to post their favorite 3GP ini files that uses a high bit rate such as 768kbps, VBR, and 2 pass encoding for 16x9 and also for 1:2,35 videos. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[runtime]

For the PSP I would generally suggest that you pick resolutions which maximise the horizontal resolution of the screen. This translates into 416x176 for the most part, for footage with both 16:9 and 2.35:1 aspect ratios alike (although you may wish to use 368x208 to preserve more vertical detail for 16:9 sources - though the difference isn't appreciable). I would only consider 320x240 if I was encoding a 4:3 source. My guess is that the amount of scaling involved between these resolutions is so minimal that visually there isn't much difference, but if you viewed the same thing on a big screen TV then the differences would be much more perceptable.

At any non-standard res. the PSP appears to force 'full screen' mode, stretching (scaling) the image so that it fills the screen. Since the screen is 16:9 this doesn't affect the 16:9 footage adversely, but it causes an issue for any footage with a different aspect ratio. Due to this, despite 416x176 having an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 you need to compensate for the scaling - so on 2.35:1 sources this means you end up padding the top and bottom of the image with 16 pixels of black space (which fortunately uses few bits as each macroblock is 16x16).

I've mentioned a link in earlier posts which should help in maximising your video quality and still maintain a reasonable filesize. You'll also find some good tips if scroll half way down the following page:
http://www.mplayerhq.hu/DOCS/tech/encoding-tips.txt

Edit: I just viewed the link you posted and it definately shows that an improvement in vertical resolution offers a very tangible improvement in sharpness. It would be very interesting if you conducted a similar test to see how an improvement in horizontal resolution affects the picture. Since there are far more pixels horizontally, it suggest that the image is further improved, but how as humans we percieve this.... well... thats your call as to whether one is better than the other :)

[works]

As runtime said, when encoding 4:3 material you should use 320x240. Not only because this offers the correct aspect ratio, but also because PSP doesn't automatically stretch the image and the aspect ratio controls actually work on 320x240 clips.

[Syncaio]

Hi.

I'm new here but for your reference I used to help over at Doom9.org back in my PC days so I'd like to think I know my stuff. Been playing about with various encoding settings now for a good week and have tried almost every combination under the sun with a really varied source of movies. I think I've found the ultimate sweet-spot setting for owners of 1GB pro duo cards that want to fit a movie and a ton of songs as well. Basically I just want to share my settings and hope that a good few readers will agree with the results. First of all I'm on a Mac so this post will especially benefit Mac users who use ffmpegX (Virtual PC required to run psprez.exe).

Video: ffmpegX Xvid

Resolution: 368x208 (definately looks the best out of all the resolutions when scaled full-screen on the PSP, both the horizontal and vertical being scaled evenly)

Bitrate: 512kb/s (gives an absolutely astounding picture quality)

Framerate: 29.97fps

Crop: For 16:9 titles you may want to remove any black areas around the movie as the PSP will properly scale the movie full-screen anyway. For 2.35:1 it's very important to leave the black bars intact (no cropping) as the PSP needs these to display the movie in its correct resolution when forced full-screen by the PSP (using psprez.exe). You may want to tidy up the areas (to the left and right of the actual movie).

Audio: 64kb/s, 24000Hz

Options: High Quality and Two-pass encoding ENABLED!

Once encoded be sure to run it through runtime's excellent psprez.exe utility. I used Virtual PC (WinXP) here on the Mac for that bit.

--

Spider-Man 2, for example (2.35:1) worked out at 562.5MB for a 2 hour 2 minute movie and looks absolutely stunning! My jaws are still on the floor.

Cheers,
Syncaio

[somedude]

How would that look in a 3GP config?