Hack status

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khobar

New member
I apologize for being bloody stupid for asking, but I've searched and have not found the sticky that details exactly where the hack stands and what the current status of "features" and "failures" is. I've just received a GH1 that has 1.22 firmware installed and I'm anxious to improve the performance. I've read hundreds of postings and seem to have missed the most obvious one: where are we with the hack?

I understand 1.34 firmware means no hack, and I read yesterday that there is a "pulsing" issue in 24pn, but later read that was a myth - that 24pn simply is unreliable and it's a hardware issue that's in the camera. A bit confusing that.

1) What are the exact advantages of applying the hack (many of these I know, but it would be useful to list the exact changes)?

2) What are the exact disadvantages of applying the hack (loss of in-camera AVCHD playback is the one I know of. Plus I read something about the amount of record time not being tracked, etc.)

3) What are the glitches that exist in the camera that may be "enhanced" with the hack (or may not be, as might be the case)?

Thanks in advance for your patience. Cheers!
 
From my use I wouldn't say the pulsing in 24pn is a myth. I have the footage that shows it. I have yet to see it since I've unticked the 24pn option in the hack.
 
1)increased mjpeg bitrate produces no artifacts (and looks stunning) Avchd bitrate increases video peformance also and no mud or breakup.
Image quality is up there with 7D and then some.

2)Go too high with bitrate settings with a low speed card (best to get a sandisk class 10)and you will get write failures.
24/25p does cause spikes in bitrate thus making write errors also (even with the fastest sdhc cards)...best not to use at present ( still being tested for max reliabilty)
muck around with risky patches could brick your cam (to be safe just avoid the skull and crossbones and read the warnings in ptool)
Increasing bitrate reduces record time with mjpeg. (70+mbs can give you 2 1/2 mins or so at a time)
btw personally I feel 4.2.2 colour ticked on in mjpeg isnt all its cracked up to be (so dont worry about it)

3)from the original firmware?
AVCHD is now "mudless"...mjpeg looks amazing (even though still 30fps).
Banding is still apparent in low light.

If you feel less confident to fiddle with settings etc its best to just download settings by users who have tried succesfully.
Currentlythe best are Ipowell's setting for stable lower bitrate or Modulr's for high bitrate (for fast sdhc cards that can handle it)
Go to the ptool sharing thread and find the best setting to download for you.

If you want to be safe...just DONT fiddle with the settings until you understand what does what.

Hope this helps?
 
Thanks - the increase in video performance (getting rid of mud, etc) is one of the main attractions for me. The 24pn is the other, though neither is a deal breaker.

I bought a Trendata 16GB Class 10 card to go along with the cam - I've read it should be good for the most part. I'm not looking to get into bleeding-edge stuff - I shoot some creative stuff, not a lot, and would very much like to ramp the quality up. But, obviously, I don't want to brick my cam!

Is mjpeg 1080p or 720p? I thought I read it had been bumped to 1080p. Then again I read the 1080p mode is simply upsampled. But that might have been on the G1 rather than the GH1. Sheesh, it's all running together. ;)

I was very interested in the 40Mbps AVCHD High Reliability thread (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=219132) but even there some have reported problems.

I will continue reading. Thanks!
 
khobar said:
Thanks - the increase in video performance (getting rid of mud, etc) is one of the main attractions for me. The 24pn is the other, though neither is a deal breaker.

I bought a Trendata 16GB Class 10 card to go along with the cam - I've read it should be good for the most part. I'm not looking to get into bleeding-edge stuff - I shoot some creative stuff, not a lot, and would very much like to ramp the quality up. But, obviously, I don't want to brick my cam!

Is mjpeg 1080p or 720p? I thought I read it had been bumped to 1080p. Then again I read the 1080p mode is simply upsampled. But that might have been on the G1 rather than the GH1. Sheesh, it's all running together. ;)

I was very interested in the 40Mbps AVCHD High Reliability thread (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=219132) but even there some have reported problems.

I will continue reading. Thanks!
Click to expand...

The problems are from folks probably using the 24/25p native patch.
Mjpeg is specualated to be a upscale...Its been discussed over and over
all I know is I use 70-80mbps 1440x 1080 (corrected in post ) and it looks a LOT better than 720p upscale with my editing programs.

Using the settings from other users in the ptool sharing thread wont brick your cam. All in all if you want to improve the peformance its worth giving it a go.
 
I suggest you return the card for one that has a proven track record if you are going to use the hack. JM2C
 
DrDave said:
I suggest you return the card for one that has a proven track record if you are going to use the hack. JM2C
Click to expand...

It's actually a Transcend 16GB Class 10. The Transcend Class 6 cards are well rated, but I just hope I have a lot more success than user "crunchy".

@mimirsan - I believe you are correct in that the "issue" appears when using 24pn. If I'm reading correctly, I can still get all the quality of the patch without using the 24pn patch - I just have an extra step (pulldown) to get the same frames (though I thought I read there was something else different, that the 24pn mode actually yielded a superior image). If you happen to know for sure, I'd appreciate some clarification on the issue.

For now, my focus is on the AVCHD. I'll take a closer look at mjpeg later.

Much appreciated.
 
khobar said:
It's actually a Transcend 16GB Class 10. The Transcend Class 6 cards are well rated, but I just hope I have a lot more success than user "crunchy".
Click to expand...

I suggest you elaborate. Because when you say what you're saying quoting someone saying:
DrDave said:
I suggest you return the card for one that has a proven track record if you are going to use the hack. JM2C
Click to expand...

This should have the meaning to who reads that you are not satisfied with that type of card.

Or then you should write it in the form of question, not a statement.

Am I wrong?

Did you ever test the Transcend 16GB and you are not satisfied?
 
khobar said:
@mimirsan - I believe you are correct in that the "issue" appears when using 24pn. If I'm reading correctly, I can still get all the quality of the patch without using the 24pn patch - I just have an extra step (pulldown) to get the same frames (though I thought I read there was something else different, that the 24pn mode actually yielded a superior image). If you happen to know for sure, I'd appreciate some clarification on the issue.

For now, my focus is on the AVCHD. I'll take a closer look at mjpeg later.

Much appreciated.
Click to expand...


As a brit I use 25p (only needs deinterlacing) but in order to get the best out of 24p it needs pulldown
(it seems the in cam pulldown patch produces a better result than via software annoyingly!).

Until the issue is sorted out its best to find a good pulldown method via software.
 
I am on holiday and not shooting charts for a change. I have been shooting 25p ever since I hacked the camera and do not recollect seeing the pulsing on my big plasma. May be I don't know what to look for or I am not a critical pixel peeper. When I return I will post the videos so someone knowledgeable can correct me. What I meant to say is pulsing may not be an issue in all cases or may not be an issue at all depending on your use.

To OP. There are no playback issues unless different format clips are present in the card. I guess I am getting clips peaking at 35-38 mbps now (can be sure only when I return) and so far only had only one instance of card error in last 2 weeks. I am shooting on tripod and shooting real life motion, near still scenes of varying details. The only time I had a problem was when I patched using PTool dated around 30 August (remember seeing Issac posting about the stability about the same release). There were some unexpected crashes in playback of images. I patched using an older PTool and things were Ok. I haven't tried any new PTool.

If your shoot is not critical stuff, 25p is still fun.
 
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