Error: "Failed to connect to avsproxy. Is it running?"

[Mikey32]

Hi.

This is my first post here, so if I have missed something that should be obvious, please be kind :-)

I have some editing experience using virtualdub and Avidemux, which until now have produced quite acceptable results. However, having promised a friend I would transcribe a VHS tape of his sons first baby steps onto DVD, something I have done numerous times before. Unfortunately, from this particular tape I cannot produce a satisfactory copy that does not show traces of interlacing, ie 'comb' effect.

Despite trying all my usual tools I can't eliminate it, or reduce it to an acceptable level. The time pressure to complete this is on, since the DVD output will form part of the story that will played out at my friends sons wedding next Saturday, (the VHS tape is now 27 years old).

I see that QTGMC Interlace filter has a number of very positive recommendations, and I'd like to try this out.   

So, I see that this filter needs AviSynth to function from Avidemux. I have installed AviSynth, and if I open the 'version.avs' script (from the examples folder), in MS Media Player I see the appropriate video. I presume from this that Avisynth is installed correctly.

From what I have read I need to access AviSynth from Avidemux using the 'Connect to avsproxy' function. However when I select this I receive an error message to the effect that the attempt to open ::ADM_AVS_Proxy::failed, and on the following screen another message saying 'Failed to connect to avsproxy. Is it running ?'

The port used is the default of 9999.

There is no sign of process called avsproxy in Windows task manager, or anything showing in services.msc but then I don't know if there should be anyway.

I have searched for a solution, and tried a number of possible solutions including reinstalling the applications, the results are always the same.

The computer is running 64bit Windows 10, version 2.6.1 of Avidemux (64bit) together with version 2.6 of AviSynth (64bit).

Realising I am out of my depth here, I would like ask you guys for some help so I can access the QTGMC Interlace filter from Avidemux, via AviSynth.

Any help you can provide will be appreciated.

Thanks.

Mike

[AQUAR]

That means that you didn't create the proxy for ADM to connect to.
In the avidemux folder there is a program called avsproxy.
You run that program with your avisynth script as an input parameter (in a command line interpreter -  ie command prompt).

[eumagga0x2a]

The computer is running 64bit Windows 10, version 2.6.1 of Avidemux (64bit)

Did you mean 2.7.1? 2.6.1 is ancient. Apart from that, the native yadif deinterlacer is good enough, methinks. What kind of source video stream do you try to deinterlace? Is it uncompressed / losslessly compressed digitized VHS video? Or is it already mpeg2- or H.264-compressed? Depending on the (hardware) encoder, the latter can make good quality deinterlacing impossible.

[Mikey32]

Hi AQUAR.

Thank you for your comments.

If I run avsproxy from a command prompt with a script as you suggested, then avsproxy does appear to run, I don't have a developed script yet for QTGMC, (that battle is yet to come), so I don't see a 'real' output.

It seems my expectation of the interactions between the two programs may be unrealistic. I thought I would be able to control QTGMC through Avidemux, if a CLI is required that clearly is not the case. Which leads me on to ask what is the purpose of the 'Connect to avsproxy' function in Avidemux ?

My apologies if the question appears a bit dense, I am exploring new ground with this.

Thanks again.

Mike   

[Mikey32]

Hi eumagga0x2a

Thanks for your comments.

I have tried a number of deinterlacing filters, none have been as effective as they usually are, and it seems to be confined to this particular VHS tape.

To answer your questions, I do have 2.7.1 installed which produced identical results. I used 2.6.1 as this forum is named Main version 2.6 and I recall reading a post that said 2.7 is used "...at your own risk". Though this was dated April, so perhaps things are more stable now.

The source video stream is the raw capture from the tape, and has some huffyuv compression applied. I want to resolve the interlace issue before I do anything else to it.

Thanks.

Mike

[eumagga0x2a]

I have tried a number of deinterlacing filters,

There is only a single one good native deinterlacer in Avidemux for Windows — yadif. No need to try anything else from the collection offered by Avidemux.

none have been as effective as they usually are, and it seems to be confined to this particular VHS tape.

Bottom field first, maybe?

I used 2.6.1 as this forum is named Main version 2.6

My apologies, please ignore outdated and confusing forum titles and descriptions. Anything older than the last release (currently 2.7.1) is severely outdated or outright legacy and unsupported. You are better off using the latest nightly builds as they contain fixes which were added after the release, e. g. the last nightly has fixes for two significant regressions (playback / decoding broken after going to previous picture when this picture is already in the cache + "fade to black" filter broken when applied at the end of video and saving not from the beginning) which slipped past QA.

and I recall reading a post that said 2.7 is used "...at your own risk". Though this was dated April, so perhaps things are more stable now.

As a rule, latest developer builds are (much) more stable than releases. Exceptions confirm the rule. If things are expected to get bumpy for a while, there will be a notification which may outlive the return to relative stability and reliability by years :-D

The source video stream is the raw capture from the tape, and has some huffyuv compression applied.

OK, this is the optimal starting point.

I want to resolve the interlace issue before I do anything else to it.

This is right.

[AQUAR]

May not give you an answer but I was just thinking about your post.

Being VHS video of baby's first step, the source must be from an old camcorder. This means its truly interlaced with each field recorded at a different point in time. There were different camcorder formats (8mm, VHS, beta etc ) and (PAL, NTSC).

With that in mind, if there was any resizing done in re-recording the video (analogue copying or digital capturing) the subsequent de-interlacing to play the result on a progressive monitor will be "stuffed". Very little you can do about it after the fact.

I too would play around with QTGMC.
Or could even be brutal by deleting all odd or even fields and rescale the left over half frames (lower resolution, same frame rate and no combing  artifacts!).
Or keep all fields and rescale each to become frames (doubles the frame rate though!).
Or try some blurring to soften the combing artifacts.

Play the captured video in VLC and play around with the deinterlacing settings to get instant feedback on looks.

Just have to try various ideas and pick the best result - good luck.