I didn't get the memo. H.264+ or any "+" is...undesirable? Also, AI codec...ewww.

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I thought H.264+ was Da Thang when I started my IPCT venture. But looking through forum posts of AI codec and recording.... I now see the folks who know more about the voodoo black magic science of recordings suggest not to use any "+" even with the H.264.
Can someone explain why?
I know not to use H.265 over H.264 for...mysterious engineering rocket science reasoning (I actually didn't see much of a difference in regards to UI3 alert videos).
Also...I purchased a test camera for a client... IPC-E3541F-AS-M-2.8MM wedge dome 5MP.
Default selection was set for AI Codec for the Encoding Strategy in the Dahua GUI. I am not sure what purpose this is... but it needs some serious work. Fenderman said in a 2022 posting that AI Codec + Blue Iris does not work very well (or maybe at all). I tried to find out what AI Codec means since the AI for IVS human is so fantastic. But no joy.
 

wittaj

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It is simply that BI doesn't work well with the + or other codec variations. It says so in the manual LOL.

The general codec is the basic codec that it will comply with your settings for variable or constant bitrate and the bitrate number. This is best for BI.

AI codec will reduce the video bitstream for anything recorded that isn't AI triggered to save storage space. This is used primarily if you are using IVS rules. But it will also lower iframes, which is bad for BI.

Smart codec will reduce the video bitstream for non triggered video recording to save storage space. This is used primarily for those using smart motion detection. But it will also lower iframes, which is bad for BI.

The codec variations are ok to use with an NVR as that is what it was geared towards.
 
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It is simply that BI doesn't work well with the + or other codec variations. It says so in the manual LOL.

The general codec is the basic codec that it will comply with your settings for variable or constant bitrate and the bitrate number. This is best for BI.

AI codec will reduce the video bitstream for anything recorded that isn't AI triggered to save storage space. This is used primarily if you are using IVS rules. But it will also lower iframes, which is bad for BI.

Smart codec will reduce the video bitstream for non triggered video recording to save storage space. This is used primarily for those using smart motion detection. But it will also lower iframes, which is bad for BI.

The codec variations are ok to use with an NVR as that is what it was geared towards.
was not h264+ the hot topic item before the intro of h265?
 

wittaj

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Yes it was and it was problematic for many people in BI.
 

wittaj

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Some would get the green screen.

Some would have bad pixelation during motion.

Some had jittery or bad playback.

Some had skipped frames.

Some had iframes so slow that they missed motion. As you know the KEY in BI camera status page is a ratio of the FPS to iframes, so a KEY of 1 means the FPS and frames match. Some saw FPS of 15 and iframes of 150, which would give a key of 0,1 which meant that if an object could be in and out of the field of view in under 10 seconds, the entire object could be missed. Think of the issues with Reolink and BI - it is because of this that their cameras do.

Some had no problems or didn't realize they were having problems.
 
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Some would get the green screen.

Some would have bad pixelation during motion.

Some had jittery or bad playback.

Some had skipped frames.

Some had iframes so slow that they missed motion. As you know the KEY in BI camera status page is a ratio of the FPS to iframes, so a KEY of 1 means the FPS and frames match. Some saw FPS of 15 and iframes of 150, which would give a key of 0,1 which meant that if an object could be in and out of the field of view in under 10 seconds, the entire object could be missed. Think of the issues with Reolink and BI - it is because of this that their cameras do.

Some had no problems or didn't realize they were having problems.
then to play it safe....h264 for me. dang it... 20+ cameras to change.....
 

wittaj

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I had some cheap cams that only had H264+ or H265+.

The KEY would bounce all over the place even though I could set it.

And then every once in awhile it would get the green screen - sometimes all of it, but usually only about a quarter of the screen.

I am glad to have replaced them LOL.
 

fenderman

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+ or smart codecs generate a dynamically changing iframe interval, which BI does not play well with. h265 works just fine.
 
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Since I have the same model 5442 on my left & right driveway, I think I'll test it out. One will be h264, other h265 without the +
 

wittaj

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Since I have the same model 5442 on my left & right driveway, I think I'll test it out. One will be h264, other h265 without the +
H264 and H265 without codec will work fine. It is the + or other codec that can cause issues.

What will be interesting to see is if you experienced what I did when I was trying to decide which one to use.

In my testing I have one camera that sees a parked car in front of my house. H265 sees that the car isn't moving, so it macroblocks the whole car and surrounding area. Then the car owner walked up to the car and got in and the motion was missed at night because of the macroblock being so large. Or if it catches it, because the bitrate is low, it is a pixelated mess during the critical capture point and by the time H265 adjusts to there is now motion, the ideal capture is missed. Now granted those would never be IDENTIFY images, but more DETECT or OBSERVE.

In my case, the car is clear and defined in H264, but is blurry and soft edges in H265.

Digital zooming is never really good, but you stand a better chance with H264 rather than a large macroblocked H265. I can digital zoom on my overview camera and kinda make out the address number of the house across the street with H264, but not a chance with H265 as it macroblocked such big chunks that you couldn't even make out that a house number block was present.

So in my use case, H264 produced a better image and I didn't see the storage savings with H265, especially if you have lots of motion.

But others have great success with H265 and save lots of storage. Every use case, field of view, camera setup, etc. is so different that what works for one doesn't for another.
 
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H264 and H265 without codec will work fine. It is the + or other codec that can cause issues.

What will be interesting to see is if you experienced what I did when I was trying to decide which one to use.

In my testing I have one camera that sees a parked car in front of my house. H265 sees that the car isn't moving, so it macroblocks the whole car and surrounding area. Then the car owner walked up to the car and got in and the motion was missed at night because of the macroblock being so large. Or if it catches it, because the bitrate is low, it is a pixelated mess during the critical capture point and by the time H265 adjusts to there is now motion, the ideal capture is missed. Now granted those would never be IDENTIFY images, but more DETECT or OBSERVE.

In my case, the car is clear and defined in H264, but is blurry and soft edges in H265.

Digital zooming is never really good, but you stand a better chance with H264 rather than a large macroblocked H265. I can digital zoom on my overview camera and kinda make out the address number of the house across the street with H264, but not a chance with H265 as it macroblocked such big chunks that you couldn't even make out that a house number block was present.

So in my use case, H264 produced a better image and I didn't see the storage savings with H265, especially if you have lots of motion.

But others have great success with H265 and save lots of storage. Every use case, field of view, camera setup, etc. is so different that what works for one doesn't for another.
macroblocks the parked car. In livestream? or recorded video via UI3 alerts?
 

wittaj

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Both. Most people don't realize the codec impacts live view as well, not just recording. All of my testing on digital zoom and what not was with the live view.

Here was a graphic showing H264 versus H265

1673926929667.png

Look at the big chunks of macroblocking on the right image - that is how is can save storage. For items further out, BI motion may miss DETECT and OBSERVE in certain fields of view.
 
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Both. Most people don't realize the codec impacts live view as well, not just recording. All of my testing on digital zoom and what not was with the live view.

Here was a graphic showing H264 versus H265

View attachment 151215

Look at the big chunks of macroblocking on the right image - that is how is can save storage. For items further out, BI motion may miss DETECT and OBSERVE in certain fields of view.
ah ok...big macroblocking vs small macroblocking.... I see the difference in reference to detection.
Me <--- small brain. Need pictures. I also know. Fire = Hot. Dog = Friend.
 

MC1987

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I think Dahua's H.265/+ and AI Codec look horrible. I rarely suggest using them. When using 3rd party decoders such as you BI system, it most likely is not going to do the job for Dahua native codecs.
 

wittaj

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FYI: @Wildcat_1 has recommended H264.H encoding in several of his reviews.
He also doesn't run BI.

Codecs are fine in most instances for SD card recording or NVR of the same brand. It is when you use VMS that is not tied to a specific brand that the codec can start to get wonky.

I didn't see BI hiccuping when I tried H264.H, but I didn't notice an improvement either, so I stick with plain ole H264.
 

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I run H264H with no issues on two systems it offers a bit more efficient compression, thus may save a little space.

To clarify, BI likes h254, h264b, h264H, h265. Nothing else. Use the one you like best in your opinion.

I never saw anyone advocate for h264+ for use with BI, ever.
 
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