FE41Z / Vista / Delays in Media Player / "Media Changing"

[thevinster]

Hi Thalamus / everyone else.

I've come across a new problem that I think we might have to collectively put our heads to. A number of FE41 users have reported a problem similar to what I'm having:

When I start a MP3 or a Video File on Windows Media Player, there is a huge delay, sometimes up to 6 seconds, before loading the file. Even if your song is already in the Media Player library, or on a playlist, there is a significant delay when moving between songs on a playlist. There is also a jarring to the file playing towards the end of the file.

This problem however seems to be absent when I load a WAV file or when I load an AVI file.

The delay is accompanied by Windows Media Player displaying a sign saying "Media Changing" near the controls at the bottom.

Has this issue been posted before on this forum? Unfortunately, the search function isn't working, so I had to repost. It however has been reported on other forums, both on Microsoft Communities as well as the Sony forum on NotebookReview.

Are there others facing this problem? Could you please chip in?

[wheresmybeaver]

I'm experiencing something like this too, although it might not be directly related. Whenever I load up a video in Windows Media Player, such as a divx or xvid file, there's a noticable delay, then the video stutters for about the first 5 seconds. After that, all is perfect. However, this doesn't happen if I load the media in VLC mediaplayer. My own guess is that the codecs working behind the scenes haven't been optimised for Vista yet. VLC media player drops Vista to Aero Basic (no transparency) and thus the video works fine. But Windows Media Player stays in Aero, and then the codec problems begin. Pretty soon we'll have improved codecs released that address this.

So in conclusion, I think your MP3 problem could be codec related. Or, we'll just have to wait for a fix to appear for WMP. It seems a little buggy to me, performance wise.

[andrewmeikle]

It is the audio driver installed which causes the delay.

I fixed it by uninstalling the driver from add/remove programs and then restarting the computer so that windows installs its own audio driver.

I don't have particularly good hearing so can't tell if these drivers have less quality but they work fine for me.

[thevinster]

It is the audio driver installed which causes the delay.

I fixed it by uninstalling the driver from add/remove programs and then restarting the computer so that windows installs its own audio driver.

I don't have particularly good hearing so can't tell if these drivers have less quality but they work fine for me.

Wonderful! This did the trick. Thanks a lot Andrew. I guess we just have to wait for an optimized driver to come from Sony soon, as Sigmatel don't give out drivers to end-users.

[thevinster]

It is the audio driver installed which causes the delay.

I fixed it by uninstalling the driver from add/remove programs and then restarting the computer so that windows installs its own audio driver.

I don't have particularly good hearing so can't tell if these drivers have less quality but they work fine for me.

I just realised there is a downside though. Windows Media Player doesnt recognize a headphone when it is plugged in, so only the laptop speakers work. The headphone jack doesnt on WMP. Does anyone else have this problem?

[andrewmeikle]

I just realised there is a downside though. Windows Media Player doesnt recognize a headphone when it is plugged in, so only the laptop speakers work. The headphone jack doesnt on WMP. Does anyone else have this problem?

Yep headphones don't work for me either, good thing I don't use them. Hopefully Sony will get some good audio drivers out that will fix the delay problem.

[franco1957]

Try this (FE41S)

Control Panel - Sound - Speakers / Headphones - Properties - Effects

disable system effects

[OK]

Systemsteuerung/Sound/Lautsprecher-Kopfhörer/Eigenschaften/Effekte/Systemeffekte deaktivieren anklicken/mit OK bestätigen!


Alles wird gut :-)))))

Hab die Lösung in einem anderen Threat gefunden

[mdp31]

@franko1957

hat funktioniert, hervorragend, danke

your tip works fine, thank you

[franco1957]

mit dem neuen treiber vom 21.03.07 von der downloadseite ist alles ok!

[CJJE]

The new audio driver I was "given" by VAIO update yesterday seemed to have made things a lot beter on my FE41Z. The hiccup at the end of MP3 tracks (when it seemed to be looking for the next track) has gone, but it still stutters slightly in the first minute or so. I had been monitoring the processor activity with a sidebar gadget, and it looked like the processor was maxing out when the media player hiccupped. Setting the power settings to max power (and to hell with the battery life!) also seemed to help.

Chris