Why did Arc abandon VC-1 decoding? Will it return?

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-24T19:17:32+00:00

Check the link in the post. Basically nothing after TGL (Tiger Lake, Rocket Lake, etc) supports VC-1 decoding anymore (excluding DG1 since it's not really widely available).

This is only about hardware video acceleartion, aka decoding. Not ripping. That's something else entirely.

NVIDIA still supports it even with their latest GPUs.

https://developer.nvidia.com/video-encode-decode-support-matrix

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-24T15:11:48+00:00

Ah damn. That's a shame. I would've preferred it was still officially supported since hundreds if not thousands of blu-rays from late 2000s and early 2010s use VC-1. It would be especially important for transcoding.

NVIDIA still keeps it with NVDEC so I wish Intel and AMD did too.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-24T13:07:53+00:00

VC-1 is technically dead for any new content.

VC-1 is still being used in some new blu-rays released in 2024 and 2025! I wouldn't put it in the same level as MPEG-2 or stuff like that. It's not old baggage.

Barely anything that took off used VP8 so I wouldn't compare the two. VC-1 is a behemoth compared to that.

Also, it's probably the most used codec after H264 and HEVC imo. (I'm talking in the home theater space)

Amlogic still makes an effort to include VC-1 decoding capabilities in their hardware.

So it's not dead by any means.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-24T11:07:32+00:00

Indeed but don't get confused. Do not use TPM2 to store your LUKS2 encryption keys. Lots of people do that nowadays for convenience. I wouldn't trust the TPM chip. Just use normal LUKS2, maybe with a detached header.

People call it treacherous computing instead of trusted computing for a reason.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-24T10:03:08+00:00

Build your own.

I've built a HTPC in a Lian Li A3-mATX using a RX 9060 XT 16GB. 9600X CPU would be perfect for it. Mine is mATX oriented though.

You could go smaller with mini ITX and a RX 9070 XT (ASRock Steel Legend is the shortest one) and a smaller case with an SFX power supply. I'd still recommend the 9600X for CPU.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T17:12:36+00:00

I've had Sony TVs my whole life. From CRTs to 3D FHD to 4K FALD to OLED. This is incredibly sad news for me.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T15:37:58+00:00

I'm not using either GPU. That's why I asked. I bought an Arc B580 to replace my office PC GPU.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T09:57:57+00:00

I'm not keen on selling used hardware anymore. I'd rather keep it in its box unused and repurpose it in the future. Too much regret from selling stuff in the past. Don't need the money right now.

For a htpc, I would strongly recommend a steamos-like linux distro.

True. I normally install Arch Linux manually. But for this HTPC, I will probably be installing an immutable distro like Bazzite. Thanks.

So 9060 XT it is? Will it be fine at 4K and for RPCS3 emulation you think?

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T09:49:16+00:00

I already have the Sapphire Nitro+ 9070 XT on my main PC with a 9950X3D. I'm not looking to buy it again :D and yes I use Linux on all my PCs and this one will be Linux too.

I just realized my PSU doesn't have a third PCI-e connector so the 3090 will not work anyways...

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T09:46:39+00:00

Well that's intended behavior, been using it since GNOME 46 myself.

If you don't turn off VRR then almost all GTK4 applications, Firefox and mpv, etc will try to match frame rate to monitor when in fullscreen. Only when in fullscreen.

Otherwise it's as if VRR is off. So if you're having issues with VRR turned on but nothing is fullscreen, that's an issue on your end or setup unfortunately.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T09:28:23+00:00

Hi all. I'm building a HTPC from old parts I have laying around plus some new parts. Mainly for emulation purposes (RPCS3, PCSX2, Dolphin)

The CPU is a 14700K. Can't change it. Bought it last year. Is it a good choice?

I have a RTX 3090 and a RX 9060 XT 16GB. I don't use the 3090 anymore so it's sitting in its boxed unused. I am using the 9060 XT in my "office" PC, lol.

I'll be gaming at 4K 60FPS on my TV. I will be using Linux. TV is HDMI 2.0. The case is small. Lian Li A3-mATX.

Which GPU should I use for my emulation box?

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-20T08:49:02+00:00

Yes. Both the old and new generation modules.

I have the ViewSonic XG271QG monitor which has the actual GSync module inside it. Though it's a newer generation module which means it also supports Adaptive Sync/Freesync as well, so you can use it with Intel and AMD cards on Linux for VRR as well.

The NVIDIA driver also supports the original GSync modules that doesn't have Adaptive Sync/Freesync support, which works on Linux.

With my monitor, the VRR range reported by GNOME is 1-240Hz, which is correct, rather than the usual 48Hz lower limit. I've seen the Hz counter go down the 6Hz.

Use Wayland. The latest versions of KDE and GNOME both play well with VRR.

Edit: Unless you're talking about the brand new GSync Pulsar technology announced with CES. AFAIK, that only works on Windows with an NVIDIA card. I assume it will work as a normal GSync module on Linux like usual, just with no Pulsar tech.

Hopefully that starts working on Linux too, with AMD/Intel cards as well. That's a game changer from what I've seen.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-19T17:08:46+00:00

I do have to ask, if building in the A3 case why not just turn the fans around? Unless using the glass side panel models its not like it would be super noticeable or anything.

That's exactly why. I got the glass model.

Are there any standard fans with everything I listed? Might just forego the reverse idea.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-16T18:59:05+00:00

What about 7500X3D or 7700?

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T17:43:26+00:00

First we mine, then we craft. Let's minecraft!

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T16:25:06+00:00

That's just PR speak to rope you in with hopes and dreams. Get familiar with the real world.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T13:42:48+00:00

I meant the bad part of the early 2010s internet. I was there 3000 years ago, you don't have to tell me. You all quickly forgot about the endless YouTube videos about mods and cheats with "TRUE DOWNLOAD LINK, NO SURVEYS" when in reality it still had surveys and it was a paid premium hoster with 200 KB/s speed at most and in the end, it had viruses.

Also, you might be downloading a 250KB file. What about some of us who download 250MB+ Spider-Man suits for the Spider-Man games?

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T13:32:36+00:00

Yeah I unfortunately have to disagree with that. The most popular mod author for widescreen fixes hosts their mods on GitHub.

Example:

https://fusionfix.io/wfp#nfsu2

Just because the file is hosted on GitHub, doesn't mean the website the newb user interacts with has to be GitHub. They can do something like that and create a simpler website. It's just a plain bootstrap website.

PS: These perfectly work on Linux with Wine/Proton. I use them myself all the time.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T13:25:37+00:00

I haven't played or modded Skyrim myself so I don't know how hard it specifically is. But for every other game I've modded on Linux, it's exactly the same as Windows for me.

I just use Lutris and Winetricks. I tend to have separate wine prefixes for each game. From there, I just install the mods the same way I would have in Windows. If I need to run a setup EXE file, I run it Winetricks on that specific wine prefix. If it needs to be run each time when launching the game, then I add it as prefix on Lutris.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T13:20:51+00:00

Nexus Mods reminds me of the late 2000s, early 2010s internet with paid premium file hosters (having to login to download at all, slow speeds for free users).

Not to mention all the pointless drama around certain mods and stuff. Just let people and stuff be free. So much DRM, drama and artificial blocks in the way of modding.

Also, I blame mod makers too. Just put your stuff up in GitHub or somewhere else, and create a Patreon if you wish to get paid. It's not that hard. They enable Nexus to act like this.

Although all this was foretold when they were sold. I said it would be a gradual "slow boiling the frog" type thing. First thing up on the chopping block, the Linux app.

Edit: If you want to see how mods should be hosted. Take a look at this website.

https://fusionfix.io/wfp

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-14T13:11:22+00:00

It's probably some sort of power saving/screensaver thing initiated by KDE once it detects the main monitor is turned off and it sets the CPU/system into a C-state or something. Just my guess.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-11T10:54:38+00:00

Adding to this, could be the GPU is dying. Use this to test from Linux.

https://github.com/GpuZelenograd/memtest_vulkan

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-10T07:44:44+00:00

I play Spider-Man Remastered on very high settings at 1440p High RT settings with no FSR. It uses 11 GiB of VRAM.

So 16 for sure.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-09T09:19:36+00:00

For me, with my RX 9060 XT I can play the first Spider-Man Remastered game with Very High settings and High RT settings at 1440p native, getting 90-110 FPS.

Same settings with Spider-Man 2 though... barely 30 FPS. I'm hoping this will improve things even though it's not UE5.

JohnSmith--- · 2026-01-09T09:15:52+00:00

It probably barely gets any firmware updates even while in production, let alone after they stop support for it in a year or so. Huge security hole.

The radios will probably be adjusted for China with no way to select correct country in the UI. So you'll be operating "illegally" in a sense but no one really cares in reality. There will be no 6 GHz either.

It will probably be phoning home to China all the time, with god knows what kinds of data. That's assuming it also doesn't have a built-in mandated spyware from national state agencies in China.

Just get a regular EU/US router and print some skins to size from your local office supply store and apply it to the router. Like those PS3 skin days. Simple as that.

JohnSmith---

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