video encoding and the cell processor

[pcflynn89]

it seems to me that everything i read about the cell processor says that it is very good at doing simple, repetitive tasks very quickly. i know that video decoding is one of the areas that the cell architecture excels in, but is the cell also good at encoding video? i run handbrake on mac os x 10.5 on a core 2 duo and i have some settings that produce excellent h.264 encoded files in about 5 hours. that is the extent of my knowledge in the area of video encoding.

what i am curious about is the possibility of a cell optimized video encoder that runs on linux on a ps3 that encodes dvds to ps3 os readable files and how efficient this could be. is this an area that the cell can excel in? if so, are there any video encoding programs that exist that are specifically designed to run on the cell?

basically what i would like to do is have an external hard drive plugged into my ps3 to store large amounts of ripped dvds that can be easily read and played back inside the ps3 os. to get these ripped dvds i would like to boot into linux on my ps3, encode dvds into h,264 at a much faster speed and save them to the usb hard drive. i have a large dvd collection and am considering subscribing to blockbuster online and would like to greatly increase encode times.

if this type of program does not exist, why is that so? would it be an incredibly hard program to write due to the complex nature of the cell? are there other limitations in the ps3 (small memory size is all i can think of) that would make this a bad idea?

i just see my ps3 sitting there with all of this supposed computing potential and im stuck putting away on my x86 based laptop encoding dvds to mp4 like the little engine that could.

[patsu]

H264 Real Time encoding on Cell/B.E.:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/cell-h264/

3rd place in Region 2 here:
http://www-304.ibm.com/jct09002c/university/students/contests/cell/

[MarketingGuy]

Encoders are very tricky to characterize. You need to know input format, input frame rate, color (e.g., 4:2:0), bit depth, GOP, profile, etc. There are thousands of permutation, so read the following carefully and compare to other processors even more carefully!!

At NAB, there were at least two intended-to-be broadcast quality 4:2:0 720p/60 H.264 main profile (with CABAC) encoders running on Cell in real time. The more public one was shown both in the IBM booth and in Broadcast International's booth. In the latter booth, it was running on the equivalent of 7 SPUs with some quality degradation from the "full Cell" versions showing in both booths.

IBM has published a result of 12 SD/30 H.264 main profile (with CABAC) encoders on a Cell. IBM has also published a result of two HD H.264 deecoders (plus PIP) on a PS3.

PS Sony was showing JPEG2000 decode on Cell in their booth at NAB.

Yes -- Cell is an outstanding encoder.

[pjbliverpool]

So are there any like for like benchmarks out there that would show its relative speed to x86?

[ShaidarHaran]

So are there any like for like benchmarks out there that would show its relative speed to x86?

It would still be apples-to-oranges unless someone cares to port the exact same app to x86.

[Shifty Geezer]

At NAB, there were at least two intended-to-be broadcast quality 4:2:0 720p/60 H.264 main profile (with CABAC) encoders running on Cell in real time.It's a bit sad then that 2 years after Cell's release, there's no realtime ripping/encoding applications for Linux! Similarly a Cell-equipped media-server could provide all the data-stream and transcoding a person could want.

[ShaidarHaran]

It's a bit sad then that 2 years after Cell's release, there's no realtime ripping/encoding applications for Linux! Similarly a Cell-equipped media-server could provide all the data-stream and transcoding a person could want.

You can say that again. I don't understand why Sony hasn't made this their killer app for PS3 yet... It seems like it was built for this very task.

[Panajev2001a]

It's a bit sad then that 2 years after Cell's release, there's no realtime ripping/encoding applications for Linux! Similarly a Cell-equipped media-server could provide all the data-stream and transcoding a person could want.

Shifty, with the exception of some people using it as a firewall/cheap Internet server/etc... or to test algorithms that they intend to use on a CELL Blade or on a PS3 DevKit it is more than sad to look at the attention (or lack thereof) the OSS community has given PS3 Linux... a lot of projects develop/prototype/debug some portions on a PS3 Linux system (cheap and effective way to have lots of hardware based CELL DevKits), but none of them seems really targeted at PS3 Linux... Mplayer and other video&music players seem to run fine enough on the PPE... so the interest in working hard on SPE implementations has faded...

I recall MUCH more homebrew interest (not pirates, real homebrew coders) with PS2 Linux that the whole PS3 Linux scene feels like a barren wasteland.

[rpg.314]

I guess that's because of v. low memory (only 256 M) and no 3D on PS3. I read somewhere here that PS2 linux allowed full 3D access. If that was the case with PS3, I would have bought it and done some work on it myself as well.

[Arwin]

Yes, the main problem is the lack of RSX access. It's sad. I guess Sony is nervous about giving up their unique pirate free position, especially after what happened on the PSP. It's a real shame too, as I have Linux installed, but mainly because of RSX not being available, which in turn is a large part of the reason why 256mb isn't as comfortable as it should have been, Linux is too strongly hampered on the system to work effectively. It's still cool as you can run Firefox and whatnot on it perfectly, but even there the PS3's own Browser is more accessible. Also, wireless support having been weak in Linux doesn't help.