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Registry Tweaks for Media Center

By ryan.tollefson - Posted on April 12th, 2008
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This page has been phased out, please check the new Registry Tweaks section here.

 

Here is a list of registry settings that you can use to tweak Media Center to meet your needs.  Please use caution when changing registry settings, as you can mess up your computer.  It is recommended that you backup all settings prior to making changes.

 To make changes to the registry, goto "Start" and select "Run" - then type "regedit" and hit enter.  On Windows Vista you can get to the registry by clicking the "Start" button and typing "regedit" into the search bar (then press enter).

 

Hide TV Strip

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Start Menu

  • Set "HideTV" to "1" to remove the TV Strip.
  • Set "HideTV" to "0" to show the TV Strip. 

Recording Location

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Service\Recording

Buffer Location

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Service\Video\Tuners\DVR\IO\Writer 

Skip Ahead Interval

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\VideoSettings

  • Set "SkipAheadInterval" to new value. Change value to Decimal and set 26000 for 26 seconds. Default is 29000 (29 seconds)

Replay Interval

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\VideoSettings

  • Set "InstantReplayInterval" to new value. Change value to Decimal and set 15000 for 15 seconds. Default is 7000 (7 seconds) 

Remote Code (for two MCEi computers next to eachother)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\HidIr\Remotes\745a17a0-74d3-11d0-b6fe-00a0c90f57da

The settings for this have not been verified yet. Please see The Green Button for more info. 

IR Delays for STBi (set top box)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Service\Video\Tuners\{A799A800-A46D-11D0-A18C-00A02401DCD4}\{BD307F84-4565-4260-A412-5D26DBE6427A}\UserSettings

Please note that the {A799A...}\{BD307...} number may be different depending on the tuner you are using with your STB.

Under the "STBCode" entry you can easily change the following numbers:

  • <keyinterval>150</keyinterval> This is the delay between each signal send (in milliseconds)
  • <keyduration>150</keyduration> This is how long it will send the ir signal (in milliseconds)
  • <channelpause>150</channelpause> This is how long it will pause on each channel before another change (in milliseconds)
  • <useenter>False</useenter> Setting for sending "Enter" after the channel number
  • <numdigits>3</numdigits> How many digits to send

These numbers may be different from what is listed above - they are set during the initial TV signal setup - modifying them here is a way to change the settings without re-doing the TV Setup. You may want to write down your current settings before changing these - just in case you need to go back. You might need to mess with the different delays several times to find what works best for your setup.

TV Buffer

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Service\Video\Tuners

  • BackingFileDuration the defalt is 300
  • Setting BackingFileDuration to "600" will give you 1 hour
  • Setting BackingFileDuration to "900" will give you 1.5 hours
  • Setting BackingFileDuration to "1200" will give you 2 hours

My TV with no TV Tuner

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\TVConfig\iVideoSource

  • Set the "iVideoSource" to 1 to enable "My TV"

DVD Gallery

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\DvdSettings

  • Set "ShowGallery" to "Gallery" to enable the DVD Gallery.
  • Set "ShowGallery" to "Play" to go back to the default

 

Misc Video Settings

These are unsupported video settings that Ian Kennedy posted to: http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/278264/ShowThread.aspx#278264

This will enable a more efficient scaling path in the AV pipeline. On some GPUs it may result in a sharper image, on some it may get funky:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Debug\ehPresenter.dll

  • "BoundByNativeSize"=dword:0

 

This will set your nominal range to video levels, the current defualt for MCE. Use with properly calibrated consumer displays and projectors. IE: devices set for 7.5IRE blacks.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Debug\ehPresenter.dll

  • "NominalRange"=dword:2

 

This will set your nominal rante to 0-255 (PC levels) essentially doing "expanded blacks" use this with a typical PC monitor calibrated for blacks==0.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Debug\ehPresenter.dll

  • "NominalRange"=dword:1
Thanks Richard Miller
Submitted by ryan.tollefson on April 1, 2008 - 11:45pm.

Special thanks to Richard Miller who provided a lot of the registry entries listed here.

Just my $0.02.

Some help to be back to Windows (from MCE-only mode)
Submitted by victor6303 on June 7, 2008 - 5:16pm.

Hi Ryan,

I hope you are doing fine.
As I already explained in 'The Green Button' (with no answer), in order to try the MCEi-only mode tip, I added the "/mediacenter" tag ... and now my HTPCi doesn´t work properly: no windows (at all) and the secondary monitor is dead (black screen) ! ...plus no image on primary monitor ( projector) !. When I wanted to be back to "normality" (get Windows back), there was no way: I've had to switch the HTPC off and re-start in security mode, then located the original file and removed the tag "/mediacenter" but nothing happens !!! : It is locked and the monitor remains black (even when pushing the MCE green button on the remote control). I was going to send the unit to service until I've read in 'The Green Button' a hack mentioned by Phreeze ( c:\windows\ehome\ehres.dll -using ResourceTuner- to remove the "MediaOnly" icon from Settings on the Home screen)

... but, frankly speaking, I am not sure if I've fully understood what he means (I'm a newbie, as you can imagine).
Could you help me: I'm currently 2 days without my HTPC and it hurts a lot...

Thank you in advance !

Victor
victorsanchis2005@yahoo.es

Victor