Smooth DCP playback and ingest: a troubleshooting checklist

Smooth playback

NeoDCP Player decodes JPEG 2000 in software, so the CPU sets the limit for what plays in real time. The system requirements list the processor classes for 2K, 3D and 4K. Work through this list from the top; each step rules out one cause.

1. Watch the CPU indicator in the player. Orange or red means that the PC is at its limit.
2. With a license that plays 4K DCPs, limit decoding to 2K: Playback › Resolution Limit › limit resolution to 2K. The player then plays a lower-resolution version in real time and scales it to full screen. A lower full-screen resolution in Menu › Settings › Video settings also lightens the load.
3. Close other programs, and pause antivirus scans and cleanup tools while you play. Close remote-access tools after a support session.
4. Install the latest graphics driver from the vendor’s website (NVIDIA, AMD or Intel), not only through Windows Update.
5. Play the DCP from a fast local drive, not from a slow USB disk or the Windows system drive. Keep the DCP library on a separate fast drive.
6. Check that the copy is complete: File › Verify DCP Hashes… compares every file with the DCP’s packing list (Studio, Studio PT, Cinema and Cinema PT; an add-on for Starter).
7. Check the output resolution and refresh rate in Menu › Settings › Video settings, for example 24 Hz for 24 fps DCPs, and tick Enable vertical sync.
8. Set the Windows power plan to high performance. Optional, for advanced users: in the plan’s advanced settings, set the minimum processor state to 100 %, and turn off core parking.
9. Compare windowed and full-screen playback; Alt+F switches between them. On a PC with both a graphics card and integrated graphics, for example a laptop, compare the two as well: the Windows graphics settings let you choose which one NeoDCP Player uses.
10. Still not smooth? Write to us with the details listed under Before you write to us.

Display messages

ERROR Current display mode is not supported by Direct3D.

The full-screen display mode doesn’t suit the display or projector. In Menu › Settings › Video settings, choose the display’s native resolution and a refresh rate it supports, then install the latest graphics driver from the vendor.

Open and ingest DCPs

When a DCP doesn’t open or ingest

When opening a DCP shows “An error occurred while opening”, or ingest stops between 80 and 99 % with “Encountered a problem with the file…”, a file of the DCP is usually incomplete or differs from the original. Copying is the most common cause, especially from portable drives.

1. Check the hashes on the source drive: File › Verify DCP Hashes…, then choose the ASSETMAP (Studio, Studio PT, Cinema and Cinema PT; an add-on for Starter).
2. If the source passes the check, copy or ingest the DCP again. If it doesn’t, ask the sender for a new copy.
3. Open the DCP again.

Supplemental DCPs (VF) and KDMs

Ingest in this order: the original version (OV), then the VF, then the KDM. Supplemental DCPs play with Cinema and Cinema PT. Step by step: Supplemental DCPs: play a VF with its OV.

The current license does not allow ingesting

DCP ingest is part of the Cinema and Cinema PT licenses. License Information (Ctrl+L) shows what your license includes; more in Activate, re-issue and move your NeoDCP Player license.

DCPs that don’t follow the specifications

Some DCPs don’t follow the DCP specifications, for example with incorrectly labeled audio channels or MP3 or MP4 files inside the package. Ask the DCP’s creator for a corrected package.

Start a fresh DCP library

If a VF still doesn’t ingest although its OV plays, start a fresh DCP library and ingest the OV and the VF again:

1. Open Library › Manage DCP Libraries…, click Create DCP Library…, give the library a name and choose a new, empty folder, preferably on a separate fast drive.
2. Click Select Library for the new library, so that new DCPs are copied into it. The Ingest Target column shows which library that is.
3. With Library › Ingest DCPs…, ingest the OV first, then the VF.
4. Open the VF from the new library with Library › Open Ingested DCP… and choose the composition (CPL) of the version.

Your other libraries stay as they are.

Before you write to us

If the steps above don’t help, email [email protected] with:

• your NeoDCP Player version and your Windows version;
• the exact message, or a screenshot of it;
• whether the DCP is SMPTE or Interop, and encrypted or not;
• what you did, and which steps of this checklist you tried;
• an issue report saved right after the message: Menu › Help › Create Issue Report… (Ctrl+E) saves it as a text file.

Support comes directly from the developer. All the ways to reach us are in the FAQ: How do I get support?

Next steps

Choosing a new screening PC? The system requirements list the processor classes, and the free 14-day trial lets you test the PC with your own DCPs before you order.

More step-by-step help is in the NeoDCP Player guides, for example Set up a Windows PC for DCP screenings and DCP quality control on a Windows PC: a checklist. The FAQ answers common questions.