Custom IP control command according to aspect ratio
Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2023 9:16 am
I have a feature request that would be especially useful for projector owners, either those with an Anamorphic lens and a scope screen, or those who (like myself) like to shift the picture to the top or bottom of their 1.78 screen when it's wider, so that there is only one black bar that can easily be masked manually.
Some VP (Envy, Radiance) and renderers (like madVR) can do this automatically, but other renderers (like JRVR) don't. JRVR is supposed to implement a picture shift feature based on their black bar detection feature, but it has no ETA and a few downsides:
1) It doesn't support DVDs (and there is no plan to do so)
2) It's not real-time detection, so the whole collection has to be scanned in advance and results have to be saved per title, which is very time-consuming and inconvenient for large collections. It also means that you have to scan each new title, even when you don't use jRiver's collection (which is pointless for CMC users).
I propose to implement in CMC what I had helped Brian to implement in WMC with MyMovies, which is an aspect ratio command based on the aspect ratio metadata for each title (as MyMovies CM allows to specify the A/R for each title).
Brian had done it for JVC projectors, so JVC commands were sent over IP to select the correct configuration (as we both had JVCs) but I suspect that it would be more useful (and easier) to do a generic implementation, where a batch file is executed according to each aspect ratio detected.
That way, any projector with IP control could use this feature, not just JVCs. Of course, I'm happy to help implement direct JVC control as we did with MyMovies, but that would be a larger task, as you'd have to implement to IP control for JVC (documented) and the commands themselves (not difficult, I have them, it's just more time).
If we go for a batch files implementation, it sounds like a straightforward task and shouldn't be too difficult:
- When the title is selected, look for the aspect ratio for that title in the metadata
- If present, execute the corresponding batch file (1.78.bat, 2.40.bat, 2.35.bat etc.).
- If not present, do nothing or launch the default A/R (to be specified in the settings)
- Optional delay before starting the player, to avoid conflict if the player is also sending commands, for example I often send commands about aperture to set the peak brightness according to content (SDR or HDR). The JVC is notoriously bad at stacking IP control commands, so if you send one while another is being executed, it can be lost, and changing the installation mode (what you have to do to change the A/R on the JVCs) can take a few seconds depening on what it implies (fairly fast if only a vertical shift, but longer if it also zooms).
I'll be happy to provide a set of batch files for JVC projectors, along with the utility allowing to send the commands from CMC. I could ask the author of the utility if he'd be okay if it was included with CMC (with credits of course). That way CMC could ship with support for JVC projectors, as an example for other projector brands.
That's the only feature that I miss from MyMovies. I had not needed it until now because I was using madVR, but I'm having lots of issues with madVR (wrong HDR mode, black screen) that mean that I'm using JRVR most of the time. That means I have to switch installation mode manually, and even if I use Roomie Remote on the iPad to do it (much faster than using the JVC menus), it's still somehting that CMC could do automatically when the title is selected.
Along with Vera Lights and WOL, this would complete the WMC transition
Thoughts?
Some VP (Envy, Radiance) and renderers (like madVR) can do this automatically, but other renderers (like JRVR) don't. JRVR is supposed to implement a picture shift feature based on their black bar detection feature, but it has no ETA and a few downsides:
1) It doesn't support DVDs (and there is no plan to do so)
2) It's not real-time detection, so the whole collection has to be scanned in advance and results have to be saved per title, which is very time-consuming and inconvenient for large collections. It also means that you have to scan each new title, even when you don't use jRiver's collection (which is pointless for CMC users).
I propose to implement in CMC what I had helped Brian to implement in WMC with MyMovies, which is an aspect ratio command based on the aspect ratio metadata for each title (as MyMovies CM allows to specify the A/R for each title).
Brian had done it for JVC projectors, so JVC commands were sent over IP to select the correct configuration (as we both had JVCs) but I suspect that it would be more useful (and easier) to do a generic implementation, where a batch file is executed according to each aspect ratio detected.
That way, any projector with IP control could use this feature, not just JVCs. Of course, I'm happy to help implement direct JVC control as we did with MyMovies, but that would be a larger task, as you'd have to implement to IP control for JVC (documented) and the commands themselves (not difficult, I have them, it's just more time).
If we go for a batch files implementation, it sounds like a straightforward task and shouldn't be too difficult:
- When the title is selected, look for the aspect ratio for that title in the metadata
- If present, execute the corresponding batch file (1.78.bat, 2.40.bat, 2.35.bat etc.).
- If not present, do nothing or launch the default A/R (to be specified in the settings)
- Optional delay before starting the player, to avoid conflict if the player is also sending commands, for example I often send commands about aperture to set the peak brightness according to content (SDR or HDR). The JVC is notoriously bad at stacking IP control commands, so if you send one while another is being executed, it can be lost, and changing the installation mode (what you have to do to change the A/R on the JVCs) can take a few seconds depening on what it implies (fairly fast if only a vertical shift, but longer if it also zooms).
I'll be happy to provide a set of batch files for JVC projectors, along with the utility allowing to send the commands from CMC. I could ask the author of the utility if he'd be okay if it was included with CMC (with credits of course). That way CMC could ship with support for JVC projectors, as an example for other projector brands.
That's the only feature that I miss from MyMovies. I had not needed it until now because I was using madVR, but I'm having lots of issues with madVR (wrong HDR mode, black screen) that mean that I'm using JRVR most of the time. That means I have to switch installation mode manually, and even if I use Roomie Remote on the iPad to do it (much faster than using the JVC menus), it's still somehting that CMC could do automatically when the title is selected.
Along with Vera Lights and WOL, this would complete the WMC transition
Thoughts?