14 DAY TRIAL // YouTube has given quite an eloquent example on how valuable those home made short films are, provided they are all posted in one place. Everybody watches YouTube for multiple reasons. I for one like to browse it just to see how far human imagination can reach. Of course there are some poor examples there, but hey, they are making all the difference.
However, for a better video experience there are multiple tools that allow you to download the short films on your computer and watch them whenever convenient (you never know when your boss could catch you in the act) or having your little YouTube search tool in the form of a stand alone application connected to the Internet.
Other than these and the fullscreen mode available on the website there is almost nothing you can do. I said almost nothing because the Internet has not dried up yet and still has some aces up the sleeve. I just found a way to crank YouTube experience up one level. With video quality everything is quite nailed down as there is nothing you can do to improve it, that's for sure ("crap in, crap out" applies to video encoding as well). But with audio there is a bit more than you think.
These being said, let me introduce you to a new application built around YouTube empire that strives to input more quality into the audio experience. I am sure that your 5.1 audio system feels a little underrated when you play all those video clips. So GettySoft brings Tube HD, a SRS WOW infused program designed to give you and your audio system the necessary freedom to enjoy YouTube moments.
SRS audio enhancement technology is available on most flat panel TVs and provides a clear sound adaptable to the environment. The technology is compatible with Windows Vista and provides several options to improve the quality of the sound.
TubeHD is a simple application that connects to YouTube and renders all the video in its video window. The great thing is that you can open the movie clips in TubeHD directly from YouTube's page.
The interface is just gorgeous and fits perfectly in Vista environment. There aren't many configuration settings for the program itself. In fact, all the settings you are going to make in the application are for the SRS plugins. That is actually the core and star feature of TubeHD.
The application window displays right from the start the surround modes you have access to. At the bottom of the window there are enumerated the capabilities of your audio system: number of audio channels, frequency and number of bits.
There are two ways to play YouTube videos in TubeHD. The classic path is opening YouTube page, select the movie clip you want to watch in TubeHD, copy the shortcut and paste it in the playlist bar of displayed in the main application window. The second way involves opening YouTube page in Internet Explorer. As soon as you select your video you should see a HD SRS link right above the video window. Clicking it will cause the video to be downloaded to your computer and added to TubeHD playlist.
The key word for this to work is Internet Explorer. You will not benefit from the link in any other web browser. And if you take a look at the other video thumbs on the side you'll notice that all have been added the "Watch in HD Format" link.
If you think of getting hold of the videos, the task is not that easy if Vista's file indexing system is the default one. But where there's a will, there's a way, so don't give up just yet. The files are stored on the system partition, so go to TubeHD, right click the desired video and access its properties. Copy the name of the video and paste it in any search utility you have installed on your computer. I used TC's Find Files option and the result came fast.
Surround modes available thanks to SRS plugin include Circle Surround II (up to 6.1 channels of surround sound), SRS Xtract (converts two channel stereo content to 5.1), SRS WOW XT (improved low frequency bass) and SRS WOW HD (improved bass and definition control). All of them are configurable to meet your standards and the quality of your audio system.
All the features it comes with are definitely worthy of the most tuned ears. You have Cinema or Music modes, TruBass technology, Dialog Clarity, MegaWide sound, gains settings, 3D stereo for headphones, audio level management etc. These are all extraordinary features and great contributors to enhancing your audio experience.
The improvements are noticeable even on low end speakers and the sound is improved indeed. However, I ask myself one question: why would I need all this extra audio power when watching YouTube videos? It is more suitable to watch HD-DVDs on a home theater than short movie clips on the web.
TubeHD comes with very high recommendations in what concerns audio quality as SRS is known worldwide for its technology. But I think YouTube and SRS are not that cool of a match.
The Good
Great interface and amazing sound features. The HD SRS link on YouTube website is definitely a plus for the application.
Once you have the videos in TubeHD you can watch them whenever you want until you delete them.
The Bad
There is too much audio quality for watching web video clips. Everybody knows that quality, in both video and audio, depends on the first encoding. If the result is crappy, there is no way to improve it.
I wish the application gave the possibility of loading local video (DVD, BluRay, HD-DVD) for watching and benefiting from the amazing sound quality provided by SRS plugin.
The Truth
The truth of the matter is that the applicability of TubeHD is not great. There is only one website where you can watch the videos using the SRS plugin and you cannot view your own media in the application.
The price is overrated, considering that half of it is the cost of the plugin itself. I would love to see the application sporting more features to extend its functionality. Both the design and audio quality infusion are worth the effort of trying TubeHD, be it even for one week, the limit of the trial version.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
