Does anybody have any recommendations as to which is the best codec pack to use for MCP or WMP. Am using VLC at the moment but it's not renowned for it's quality. Mainly for x264's but good overall Video and Audio quality for most commonly used codecs. DTS is a must. Would also be interested to know if there were individual codecs that would produce better quality Image/sound. For instance I know that not all MP3 player's firmware will decode the same MP3 as well as others.
K-Lite's isn't too bad and IIRC CCCP had a good few selections that allowed for decent codecs. I actually don't mind VLC, the only gripes is the occaisional odd audio issue and sometimes momentary image corruption.
I quite like VLC and am very used to the interface, but there are some things that are worth that bit extra. CCCP looks interesting, does anyone have any experience of using it? Have used K-lite in the past and seemed better than VLC but I'm looking for something better than 'isn't too bad' if possible.
Woah there, can you tell me why it is so much better? Edit: It does look very much like what I'm looking for I know it hasn't been in the past, but are 64 bit extensions worthwhile yet?
OP mentions best pack for WMP, and Shark works fantastically with it. Just a no fuss, plays anything codec pack that never lets me down, and always forces everything to the GPU.
Not sure If I want everything forced to GPU, have noticed that CPU is better quality in the past. Will give it a try though, still open to suggestions.
Depends what CPU you have. If you have a power hungry CPU then it's nice to have it drop right back to 1200MHz and 0.8v when watching a movie. I can't say I've noticed any difference in quality whether the GPU or the CPU is handling it.
Shark007. Without a doubt. -> 32 and 64-bit codec -> Well tested and well supported, with often updates -> Developer on forum for support -> Plays everything -> Follows Windows guidelines for 100% compatibility, and doesn't screw up anything from your system or create conflicts, ever. -> Does not overwrite Windows excellent codec packs, so that, if you remove the codec pack, you are not screwed -> Easy to install, and get started -> Unified Control Panel to configure your codes -> Ability by one click of a mouse, to change all file association from Windows media player 12 32-bit to the 64-bit version. -> 1-click Option to change shortcuts from Windows Media Player 12 32-bit to the 64-bit Why are we arguing with this, is crushes K-lite and CCCP. The only reason why people still use the other is because that is what they used for XP. Both (CCCP and K-lite) screwed my Windows 7 and Vista back then so badly, I had to re-install.. Tried several times, with different versions. They sucks! Shark007 is already Windows 8 ready, and works perfectl
I love the way you can just reset it to Shark defaults if you feel you've clicked too many things and not sure what you've done.
Shark007 is really good, especially for use with Windows Media Centre. However, I mainly use XBMC for watching videos and I have only found one encoding format that it doesn't support so far, and for that I use MPC-HC. I have a general dislike for "codec packs", to be honest; things may be different these days, but in the past I found that they caused more problems than they fixed. I did use Shark007 for a while when I ran WMC as an HTPC front-end, but I've long since switched to XBMC - WMC is relegated to very light PVR duties these days.
I tend to use VLC when I want a nice and clean installation. K-Lite for installations that I want to tweak. As for Shark, I've never tried it. Looks interesting though
I've never had a video that can't play, is there any point in getting this shark007. I have MPC installed which has it's own codec pack also divx player also with it's codec pack then windows 7 has it's own codecs. Is shark007 just if your having problems playing really obscure file types?
