Best video file player?

[gifi4]

Hey everyone, I was wondering what is considered the best video player, something that plays all formats and is fluent in watching. I have noticed VLC doesn't handle everything perfectly and was hoping to upgrade. Also, what codecs will I need if I take someones advice on the video player to use...

 

[FAST6191]

"something that plays all formats and is fluent in watching"

Although you have programs like VLC that do bundle codecs inside them that is not generally considered the best method by which to do it (indeed VLC is not the fastest and occasionally clunky as you have probably seen) and instead the better methods will have you install codecs and splitters to your computer which then allow just about anything coded properly to play it at least.

I could spend ten minutes of my time and cost about an hour of yours to grab and install it all piecing together the various codecs and splitters (vsfilter for subs, ffdshow tryouts for decoding most things, MPC-HC for the basic player, Haali Media Splitter for MKV and it goes on before configuring the lot) but http://www.cccp-project.net/ have pretty much already done that more than acceptably.
The only things I tend to add to that for most people are maybe selecting a few filters in FFDshow (normalise audio and maybe some picture enhancement), a copy of a faster H264 decoder if the machine is on the lower end and some codecs if they encode videos using the old VFW methods (about the only thing still using VFW that I still rate is virtualdub and most others will use directshow or something else entirely) and maybe find a blu ray player but nobody I meets tends to watch blurays for long. I treat proper encoding stuff as a separate task these days but we can go there as well if you want.
MPC is a bit old school for some people but it is very fast, has all the necessary options (and what it does not FFDshow does) and above all does the job not to mention those that dislike how bloated windows media player and itunes have become usually find it a breath of fresh air.

After this we head into home cinema territory (the windows port of XBMC works for me) or attempting to bash a usable windows frontend for mplayer (probably the best general purpose player out there but end user windows frontends for it are lacking to say the least).

 

[Deleted member 473940]

I have been using Media Player Classic(MPC) for the last few years.
Works perfectly fine for me for everything I throw at it.(Alongside k-lite codec pack)

 

[porkiewpyne]

IMHO just get either K-lite Codec Pack or CCCP. It comes with Media Player Classic. Just google either one. Download whichever pack suits you (K-Lite may have several variations so just skim through or if you are like me, get the most complete one). Install. Enjoy whatever video it was you wanted to watch. Pretty sure if you were to google, some may say that it involves a lot of tweaking and what not but AFAIK, that is long gone. Yea that's pretty much it.

EDIT: Snap! Got ninja'ed. Anyway, if your vid still doesn't play I would assume there MAY be something wrong with the file, though this is not necessarily the case.

 

[HaniKazmi]

http://haruhichan.com/wpblog/index.php/205/hi10p-info-guide.html#guide

Takes time to set up the first time, but you wont get anything better than that.

 

[nryn99]

just mpc and cccp. haven't had any problems with it.

 

[Fellow]

Media Player Classic
VLC Media Player

 

[chains_of_androm]

VLC for 95% of files, CCCP everything else.

 

[Fellow]

What in the hell is CCCP? Off to Google I go.

 

[qlum]

Install mpc-hc (mediaplayer classic home cinema), follow this guide.
This should bring good compatibility but more importantly the best possible video quality.

 

[Cyan]

I'm still using an old BSPlayer (which a lot of people think it's crap), but it plays everything except .ts (Mpeg Transport Stream), and 10bit 4x4x4 (future format).
It's compatible with CCCP, FFDshow, subtitles, etc.
I like how easy it is to use, and it works perfectly with my IR remote, while Media Player classic doesn't

For me, my remote's compatibility has a big importance in choosing a player.


I think Media Player Classic (with codec FAST told above) is still the best player if you want to play all file format.


PS:
CCCP is "Combined Community Codec Pack".
It's the evolution of "codec pack" which are always bad, wrong versions, allowing people to install MANY conflicting codecs together, with bad options, etc.

CCCP fix that. It installs ONLY the 3 required program which plays everything : FFDShow, Haali spliter, and Vobsub/VSFilter.
In addition, it's configured correctly and it works with all (most) media players*. (they are using all the options I used for years, I confirm it's well done )
Just remove all previously installed codec to prevent conflicts.

* They even have a wiki with all existing media players and how to configure them correctly. some are easier than other. Some are not recommended.

 

[FAST6191]

For the standard screen, encodings and what most people know about analysing video quality (others if you have ever done say any ear training or taken a couple of lessons in how to critique something/make films/create music/fonts/printing..... and noted how much difference it made it things it is probably worse for video quality) I am not entirely sure madvr is worth it. Equally just by installing madvr and mpc-hc you are left with the stock splitters and in some cases filters but I find they fall short when dealing with the output of some of the lesser encoding groups out there.

This being said the OP does have a nice monitor that is fairly big if the signature is anything to go by and if combined with FFDshow (which CCCP relies on) or some other choice filters for some parts and everything suitably set up it could be a good thing (I recognise that is closer to what you said).

re: klite- it seems it has got slightly better in recent years (not a hard thing for it to do mind) but given the option I will still not allow it near any installs/machines I am responsible for. Even if you do the low cruft installs the settings there are usually sub optimal.

Edit. Ah BSplayer. I do miss the play as desktop background and it was certainly a rival back when.
As for remote controls did you perhaps reconfigure it for a browser playback (was it foxytunes for the standard extension?)- options - player - keys and there is quite a bit of stuff there.

 

[Hyunckel]

Media Player Classic which is now Media Player Home Cinema. The player is way better than VLC's (imo, maybe cause I know all keyboard shortcuts by heart) and no problem in decoding anything (including mkv, flv and other less commun files) at full speed even HD++ formats

 

[Cyan]

@fast:
I'm using Girder to setup my remote.
I had to play with a lot of girder options to find the correct thread of MPC which I could send commands to. but then, it's still acting strange:
MPC works fine with "jump back (small) or (big)" (ctrl+shift+left) but not with "jump forward (small) or (big)". (ctrl+shift+right).


Doing the jump forward on the keyboard, it's working fine, but doing it from the remote it makes a fast forward effect and stop playing. Only left and right change in my Girder setting, so it's not the remote problem.

 

[bejiman]

Can mpchc play both audio streams? I'm using it but can't figure out how to use the other one.

If not can you recommend other players that can. Thanks!

 

[FAST6191]

Things seem to have moved on a tiny bit since the OP made the post but I will let it stand (CCCP is still just about my suggested method).
Depending upon what you are watching and assuming you do not want both streams playing at once then yeah it is quite easy.
For DVDs right click on the video as you are watching it - in the menu that pops up will be navigate and then another for audio language
For MKV and OGM right click and then you have a few options. Where you clicked navigate for DVD stuff click audio. If you want a longer winded way then click filters- audio switcher.
As it is worth knowing when you play a video like that in your system tray will be a green arrow or possibly a white square with some writing on it depending upon how you set things up. Right click on the arrow and the rest should be obvious.

Subtitles in case you get a badly muxed version of something and it autoloads Chinese or something or fancy reading it another language happen in much the same way.

 

[bejiman]

Thanks man! Found it under Filters>Haali Media source

Is there some way to set it in default?

 

[FAST6191]

I still tend to have directvobsub/vsfilter over haali these days (it would be the white and blue icon I mentioned)

In dsv/vsfilter you can set languages of subs and audio by default- you can go through menus or double click the green arrow.

Haali I just loaded up and yes you can do things- load the splitter property settings (it should have something in the start menu under whatever codec pack you installed*)
Here in the settings will be a language option where you can set things using the three letter codes ( http://xml.coverpages.org/nisoLang3-1994.html ).

*for 32 bit windows XP and CCCP the command was "C:\WINDOWS\system32\rundll32.exe "C:\Program Files\Combined Community Codec Pack\Filters\Haali\Splitter.ax",Configure".

I do have to note that computers have no clue otherwise and it all relies on the video being made properly in the first place- muxing is usually the quick and easy final step in an encode but if you have just fought with video encoders and attendant problems there, found audio is seldom that much better and seen first hand why subs are always considered a nightmare you may not be in the mood to check all the right boxes and tell the muxer to put in the right languages for everything. If it is a quick and dirty TV rip then definitely, if it is anime and not made by people on http://www.cccp-project.net/wiki/index.php?title=Support_CCCP (few exceptions and some of the "10 bit" fools do OK as well) then there is a good chance of it and if it is made by a simple encoding tool then almost definitely.

 

[Lacius]

I use VLC Media Player for everything. I've never had any issues with compatibility or quality, and it appears to be fairly light on resources. I used to use Media Player Home Cinema, but I saw no improvement over VLC Media Player. Personally, when I looked really hard, VLC appeared to have the superior quality.

 

[BurlyEd]

I have used many media players and still have several installed.
But the only one I have used for the last several months is GOMPLAYER
(http://www.gomlab.com/eng/)