Periodical movie/music choppy playback issue in W 8

tomandre87

New Member
Messages
2
Location
Norway
This is a problem I've encountered on 2 totally different devices. The first was a stationary self built computer, and I figured the problem had to come from compatibility issues, maybe some kind of internal arguments between drivers and hardware, so I returned to Windows 7 and thought nothing more about it. Win 8 was still pretty new back then.

Then about half a year ago I bought a Fujitsu UH572 with Windows 8 pre-installed from the factory.
To my big surprise, the same annoying issue occurred, where around every 20 minutes there's a 5 second window with choppy playback of sound, no matter which player used. VLC, Google music, youtube, Gom player etc..

This issue is far beyond ridiculous, considering Win 8 is meant to be Microsoft's big save, re-inventing the hole user experience on PC. So far I have next to nothing bad to say about the years I've spent using Win 7 x64, in contrast to Win 8 which so far has given nothing but anger management issues.

I want to know other peoples experience regarding this issue, and hopefully any known solution will surface in this thread.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
What kind of CPU, and how much RAM and what kind of ram? It may be the same cause as with the PC.

You should try getting some content that is 720p, if it plays without skipping, then confine your purchases too 720p content if you can.

Because while this machine I am using for Media playback had Windows 7 in it, I could NOT play any 1080p content without stalls and skips and little blurps.

But once I installed 8, It played beautifully, using VLC and Media Player, PLEX and even some of the Players in the Start Screen side.

Number 1, do a full CHKDSK on your hard drive(s), use a command prompt to start it. Number 2, download Raxco Perfect Disk from

Buy PerfectDisk 12.5 Defrag & Optimization | Raxco Software

There should be a home version with a 30 day trial. Do an optimization immediately, then set it up to do it daily at Midnight each night and leave it on for a few days, the longer you leave it on, the better it will be defragged. Finally, do a "Boot Time Optimization" and that will defrag your Swap and Hiberfil.sys files - Tell Perfect Disk to handle all Windows swap files and prefetch files.

I use this program to optimize SSD drives but it works great on HDDs, but do not watch a moovie while it is defragging, not until it has run on it's own a bunch of times, the more it runs, the better it will get, it will prevent fragments from forming.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
Also when trying to play 1080p, it may help to change the power scheme to Performance.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self built
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4790
    Motherboard
    GA-Z87X-D3H
    Memory
    G.SKILL 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 F3-10666CL9D-8GBNT
    Graphics Card(s)
    Sapphire ATI Radeon R7 250
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC892
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung UN32EH5000, Dell 1703FPT
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    WD5003AZEX
    WD10EZEX
    Samsung HD103SJ
    Samsung 128 GB 840 PRO
    PSU
    SeaSonic M12II SS-500GM
    Case
    Fractal Design Define R4
    Cooling
    Zalman CNPS9900ALED
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Mouse
    Logitech M705
    Internet Speed
    16 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Avast
    Other Info
    Bose Companion 2 Multimedia Speakers
Exactly, you will have to do that in Advanced Power Settings, you can only get to it via your Power Plan, open the Plan and there should be a link to "Advanced Settings"

There will be a setting for Video, set it to "Optimize Video Quality" while Plugged In and "Optimize battery Life" for unplugged.

Also make sure the maximum CPU speed while plugged in is 100%, bring that down to 75% for battery.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
What kind of CPU, and how much RAM and what kind of ram? It may be the same cause as with the PC.

You should try getting some content that is 720p, if it plays without skipping, then confine your purchases too 720p content if you can.

Because while this machine I am using for Media playback had Windows 7 in it, I could NOT play any 1080p content without stalls and skips and little blurps.

But once I installed 8, It played beautifully, using VLC and Media Player, PLEX and even some of the Players in the Start Screen side.

Number 1, do a full CHKDSK on your hard drive(s), use a command prompt to start it. Number 2, download Raxco Perfect Disk from

Buy PerfectDisk 12.5 Defrag & Optimization | Raxco Software

There should be a home version with a 30 day trial. Do an optimization immediately, then set it up to do it daily at Midnight each night and leave it on for a few days, the longer you leave it on, the better it will be defragged. Finally, do a "Boot Time Optimization" and that will defrag your Swap and Hiberfil.sys files - Tell Perfect Disk to handle all Windows swap files and prefetch files.

I use this program to optimize SSD drives but it works great on HDDs, but do not watch a moovie while it is defragging, not until it has run on it's own a bunch of times, the more it runs, the better it will get, it will prevent fragments from forming.

The issue is not about 720 or 1080, because it happens when I listen to music as well, played from browser or stored on the HDD.
I find it hard to believe that this is just a coincidence on both my totally different computers. The problem on the computer I built happen only while using Win 8. Before and after I used Win 7, and never had an issue during music and/or video playback.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Well, consider doing the Optimising I suggested using PerfectDisk, if you are even 5% fragged, it wold cause Music to skip and jump too.

You probably have a process running that's sucking up all of your CPU. Give me a list of your Startup Programs and I'll tell you which one is interfering with your playback. For instance, any program that starts with Nero. Any Program that is doing a backup, scanning for Virii, or optimizing your drive. It could just be that your drive is completely fragmented.

I had installed a different Disk Optimizer into Windows 7, and even though it was on a schedule, it was running ALL the time. So I had to remove it, and my playback went back to normal. So if you have any programs set to do work in idle state, or during Screensaver, shut those off, until your playback goes back to normal. Usually, programs like ESET NOD32, scan when the system is Idle. Set that to scan only during Screensaver. Do it for every program that wants to do work when the system is idle, set it to work only during Screen saver mode, and then set your Screensaver to not start until afetr 45 minutes, and tell your system not to power down your hard drives until after 30 minutes.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
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