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Home Theater & Entertainment => General Discussion => Topic started by: CJ138 on October 16, 2011, 01:28:15 PM
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After seeing my buddy's Apple TV setup, I decided I wanted to invest in a media player. I bought a WDTV (Western Digital). I only spent about $40 and hooked up an external HD to store my dvd files on. I am pretty frustrated because the sound loses sync. Not every movie, every time, but enough that it is a pain in the ass. I should note that this sync issue occurs after I compress the movie to an MKV file. Also, mp4 formated files have a sort of stutter to the video. I did not buy an Apple TV because (sigh) none of my televisions have an HDMI hookup. Has anyone here used and endorse a particualr media player?
Conor
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I used my PS3 for a long time .. But now I just use a computer that has an HDMI out and run the program Boxee on there and I love that. Boxee will play anything I throw at it except for bluray ISO's .. dvd ISO's play perfectly .. But something about a bluray ISO it wont read .. But MKV, AVI whatever it does it and the best part is if you already have a PC the program is free!! :)
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Old thread - but I'd recommend a small PC and a copy of XBMC which is an excellent piece of free software. It has a sound synch control so that you can adjust the sound to re-synch where necessary. Either that or buy a new surround sound amp which with a sound delay/synch control on it.
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Old thread - but I'd recommend a small PC and a copy of XBMC which is an excellent piece of free software. It has a sound synch control so that you can adjust the sound to re-synch where necessary. Either that or buy a new surround sound amp which with a sound delay/synch control on it.
Yes, I even stopped using my PS3 and have a PC thats running Boxee (software that uses XBMC) .. Its free and really a great product .. I share all of my drives from multiple computers across my network and it will stream the data from those computers .. That way you do not have to invest in multiple external hard drives.
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At the moment I am spending time building a standalone playing device putting a collection of movies together for an older person. I am after a simple box/component to put alongside the dvd player.
I am thinking of (WD TV Live SMP). This is a new version to what CJ was using (in first post) I believe so hopefully it will work better. I will plug in a 4TB USB3 drive. This will be a non network set up as the person is not tech savy. There will be 300-600 movies and about 50 music albums on it.
I am also planning on setting up a networked version for myself (pc to tv). I think I will use XBMC software and am currently prepping all the media using software: ThumbGen (to create metadata, covers, movie sheets).
No real question here, just maybe someone is doing something similar...?
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I've been a big fan of the WD-TV product for a while. I had the original (non-networked) version, the WD-TV Live and the WD-TV Live Plus. I loved their simple design, straight forward interface, the ability to stream via SMB from my servers and the fact that they could play practically anything. I haven't purchased the newer model, since the Live Plus worked fine for me, but I've heard that it's interface is much more....cluttered and it is more locked down, but I can't say for certain.
In any case, about three months ago I picked up a Roku 3. The first thing that I noticed as that it couldn't really stream local media like the WD-TV could. As I am a big downloader, that was a problem for me. After doing some research, I came across Plex Media Server. It's a free media server software package that is just amazing. Not only can it transcode depending on the client device capability, but it automatically indexes, pulls IMDB data, will track watched/progress, auto-categorized, etc. etc. The server software even runs on Linux, a big plus for me, and they have client software out there for almost every OS/device, including the Roku.
So the conjunction of Plex + Roku has really made me consider retiring my other WD-TVs.
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Thanks Enki, I will investigate your set up
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I used to use a WDTV, but have since bought a small pc (revo 3700) and use XBMC...it's a terrific bit of software. The scrapers do everything for you in terms of cover art and metadata (no need for thumbgen), the UI is responsive and customisable, it plays everything and it has some really useful features such as being able to adjust soundtrack timings for lip synching issues.
It's not for everyone (the simplest option suits some folk) and the WDTV option is an excellent piece of kit too, but XBMC is really excellent.
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Thanks Tob. A pc component with XBMC sounds a good way to go as I guess I could display any internet site on the tv and use a tablet as the interface. Better still if I could cram in a couple of 4TB disks.
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I am very interested in all this. I desperately want to be a cable cutter, I am fed up of spending over $100 a week on Satellite for 200 channels of crud and six channels I actually watch. I am also an ex-pat and sorely miss my BBC fix and Radio 4 Panel shows. The future seems so close but it is still a swirling mess of almost-there solutions.
There are some great freeware solutions out there, as mentioned XBMC and all sorts of ways of making the Internet or downloaded content more transparent. The legitimate services like Netflix, Hulu, Crackle, Vudu etc are close but no banana, content is still being jealously hoarded by the old media. The illegitimate services like Torrents, Usenet and streaming can work really well but I am a big girls blouse and would prefer to not have to so heavily rely on something illegal. There are some great devices, Roku, Tivo, Boxee and a emerging group of Android or Raspberry Pi based commercial implementations of XBMC.
All of it is close but won't mean anything until somebody comes up with the one-device-to-bind-them that my parents, my wife and the 12:00 blinking VCR people can cope with. It's all still way too techie. I enjoy it, but XBMC can be frustrating, along with all the backend, frontend and witsend apps like Sickbeard, tvheadend, mezzmo, etc, etc, etc. The killer app is not there yet, XBMC is close but still takes too much fishing around in wikis to make work properly. I no longer need a VPN thanks to Uno Telly but I suspect that DNS loophole may get closed sooner or later.
In my opinion you have to have one device as the portal to it all, that meets what the Cable Cutting websites call the Wife Acceptance Factor (WAF). For some people this is an Apple TV, a boxee or in my case a Tivo. I have a Antenna on my roof and a Tivo taking care of time shifting all the broadcast US TV. Up until recently all I had was a small footprint Shuttle XPC always on and connected directly by HDMI to the TV, serving torrent downloaded Brit TV to my Tivo with Streambaby. I can of course get to everything directly using a wireless mouse and Windows 7 on the PC, but I have found that doesn't meet the WAF. It is much more harmonious in the house if it all gets integrated together more or less seamlessly by the Tivo with no change of HDMI input required and One True Remote. This has its problems, Tivo has not kept up with the times well and their native apps are useless. There are a lot of free Apps out there though, like streambaby, that make it work the way it should. I don't think you can beat the Tivo as a DVR on the normal broadcast TV, plus it is a good portal to Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and You Tube which it makes all searchable. However, if Boxee gets their act together and comes up with a decent Cloud DVR, or someone else does, then I think the Tivo is toast long term.
There are almost there solutions circling the vortex of confusion like Alki David's media defying Filmon.com which is bound to end up in the courts sooner or later. It very nearly does everything I want, including being able to record UK TV to the cloud. I think the cloud, or Video Napster II will eventually kill the DVR as it itself did the VCR.
Interesting times...meanwhile the MPAA/RIAA industry resists to the bitter end.
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My gawd that was hard to read!! :)
After getting through it .. i have to say that I don't think there will ever be "one device to rule them all" .. and that's just because all of the networks want their $$ .. They will black out certain channels and programs across certain parts of the country so that advertisers get what they want and they get paid. So far the safest, cheaper all around solution is a combination of Usenet and something like Sickbeard/NZBDrone/Couchpotato/Headphones and XBMC on a HTPC. The cheapest would be torrents but you run the risk of your ISP banning you for illegal content.
Short of that there will never be an all in one solution .. because everyone wants their cut of the pie and they will not let someone else get more money than they feel that they deserve.
Even Boxee sold out when they stopped updating their PC app, it was a nice software and then they just kept adding "buy from me" apps to their line up and eventually stopped supporting their free PC app and went to working only with the DLINK Boxee Box.
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My gawd that was hard to read!! :)
After getting through it .. i
OK then.
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So, what you're saying...this is no good?
(http://www.rewindmuseum.com/images3/1500clock.gif)
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So, what you're saying...this is no good?
Brilliant! I love that some people are taking the innards out of Olde radios, music centers and huge but beautiful examples of cabinet making from when valves kept the room toasty and putting digital inside them as servers, players and streamers. I wish I had kept some stuff like this around.
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I agree that the only way to really cut the cord and get ALL the content an average person would want would require illegal downloads.
Even if one is willing to pay for the standard streaming offerings (ie: Hulu Plus, Netflix), you still can't get access to some channels/shows without having a cable subscription (ie: HBO Go). In that case, the parent company (Time Warner - go figure) has refused to allow people to just pay for that service. Will that stance change in the future? I believe so. But expect to pay a premium. And even if you have the full tier of cable channels and get the add-on streaming offerings, you still can't watch everything on a media streamer.
And don't get me started on those BS "over 500 channels!" claims by devices like Roku. First, half of them are craptacular religious broadcasts. Out of the remaining ones, about half of those are low-quality podcasts. Out of the remainder, half of those are obscure movies that 99.9999% of people have no interest in. And then you have the crappy channels like SciFi which only gives clips and previews of upcoming shows. On the Roku, out of their hundreds of "channels", there might be a dozen that are worth watching.
I wouldn't mind paying for legal content if I got what I wanted from that. But that will never happen, so I'll just stick to torrents.
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OK then.
Out of everything I said that all you commented on? :) I really wasn't trying to offend.. just different writing styles I guess.. I even said it with a :) !! :) :)
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Well. I read this whole thread and didn't understand 99% of what was said. But my cell phone is so old it has a hand crank and I solved the blinking 12:00 with a piece of black vinyl tape I'm just not a techno savage I guess :P.
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In a perfect world I'd like a media server that I can dump all my DVDs onto which I can then access from any TV that is connected to this 'media server'. I haven't looked in a while as yet I haven't found anything that has a UI (User Interface) that looks nice and is easy to use by (say) my 80 year old ma-in-law when she visits (actually my wife too who is almost as much of a Luddite). Also ripping DVDs to computer is ridiculously slow.
So if someone has a solution that...do post
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In a perfect world I'd like a media server that I can dump all my DVDs onto which I can then access from any TV that is connected to this 'media server'. I haven't looked in a while as yet I haven't found anything that has a UI (User Interface) that looks nice and is easy to use by (say) my 80 year old ma-in-law when she visits (actually my wife too who is almost as much of a Luddite). Also ripping DVDs to computer is ridiculously slow.
So if someone has a solution that...do post
Honestly XBMC is really easy to use.. You just have to get it set up and scan your media files. Then it just list or shows thumbnails of all your movies and you select on and go. You can use Windows Media Center Remote controls to make it more like "Watching TV" rather than using a computer.
The way mines set up all I have to do when I get home is turn on the tuner and TV and my computer is already running.. I can open my TV shows section and go through all the new stuff that downloaded over night or I can go into the Movies section and go though the poster art of all the movies that I have, until I find something I want to watch.
As for ripping a DVD ... I gave up on that.. its easier and WAY faster to download a bluray rip of the movies that you own and better quality than any DVD rip that I'd make.
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I thought I would add to this. I have since retired the old WDTV. I currently have an Apple TV 3 hooked to my projector and a Sony SMP N100 hooked to my non-hdmi tv. They both work well but I prefer the Apple tv. I have had virtually no problems with the Apple tv, however, some occasional stuttering with the Sony.
Conor
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Well. I read this whole thread and didn't understand 99% of what was said. But my cell phone is so old it has a hand crank and I solved the blinking 12:00 with a piece of black vinyl tape I'm just not a techno savage I guess :P.
I am hearing you Lyn. I reckon I am not far from putting computers in the all to hard basket, and I'll add a waste of time/life too.
The way mines set up all I have to do when I get home is turn on the tuner and TV and my computer is already running.. I can open my TV shows section and go through all the new stuff that downloaded over night or I can go into the Movies section and go though the poster art of all the movies that I have, until I find something I want to watch.
So you point the remote at the computer to navigate the tv?
Well I am planning for two setups as mentioned:
1.) One setup is for a friend who cant figure out which remote is for what, and
2.) The other will be something for me more technical
For:
1.) I have now bought a WD TV Live SMP box for about $120. I will attach a hard disk(s) to it with the movies put on it. That can sit amongst my friends other components ie dvd, set top box. He can just use the included remote to look up a movie to watch (or listen to music albums if I add them too). Inbuilt wifi can connect to internet to show some internet sites on the tv like ABC iView or youtube. The wifi connection can also connect to computers for access to more movies if desired. I think its the best bang for the buck and easy(ish) to use - turn on the box and use the remote control navigation to find a movie.
2.) Not to sure about this but due to quite a number of people have streaming issues (wifi), I prefer the HTPC component solution (similar to above) with hard disk directly connected however I envisage quite a large stack of connected hard drives in the near future (e.g. 3 x 4TB disks).
Well, I am just concentration on 1.) at the moment.
Currently I have XBMC installed on my pc with a HDMI cable to the tv (then optical from tv into amp). However currently I just use potplayer (video software) installed on the pc and I open the video file and press play (wireless keyboard to control it). I have a web page listing movies I can send to a friend they can look at and click the link to read up on it on IMDB and then choose one in advance of arriving rather than deciding on the night if they like. The web page is generated mostly automatically so is easy to update.
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So you point the remote at the computer to navigate the tv?
Yes, but I have completely cut the cord .. So I don't use my TV for anything other than accessing XBMC. I do have a friend that has an OTA HDTV antenna that he uses with Windows Media Center and a MCE iR remote. You have to have a TV tuner card in the PC as well but he can pull in live/local channels pretty well with that too. My firend pretty much uses MCE exclusively though, I tried that but my movie library is so large it seemed to lock up MCE trying to pull all the data and list it for me, so, I stuck with XBMC.
Also, my HTPC is just below my Tuner which is just below my TV. So pointing a remote at the TV or Computer is pretty much the same thing. I also have multiple ways of controlling my HTPC, two of which are Bluetooth so it doesn't matter what I point it at it navigates the PC.
I have this Nuvi by Logitech.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0011FOOI2
Also this Logitech "PS3" Bluetooth Keyboard that works just fine on a PC.
http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-PlayStation-3-Cordless-MediaBoard-Pro/dp/B000W5RBQE
And XBMC can work with many of the iR Windows Media Center Remotes like these. (some take some configuring others do most actions with no help from configs or other softwares)
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=windows+mce+remote&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Awindows+mce+remote
Here is my living room set up.. you can see the TV with the Tuner/speakers, Wii and the HTPC just below everything.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-L6HOA1Vec_w/UXc1rnFSaII/AAAAAAAAI4U/QnMYb1-U_As/w731-h548-no/IMG_0536.JPG
In my home theater room the tuner and projector are above and behind us and the PC is to the left and behind us. To turn the projector and tuner on and to adjust the volume I have to point those remotes back but the Bluetooth keyboard (Nuvi) I don't have to worry about any of that.
As for your first set up .. does WDTV not have an Ethernet port for network streaming? I have tried streaming with PS3 over WIFI and it works most of the time but when you get into HD content I ran into issues with stutter and freezing. So I hard line everything in all the time now. I know the Roku has an Ethernet port.. but I am not sure it can see network shares without any additional software/plug-in though. My mother-in-law watches Netflix all the time and we got her a Roku so that she could watch it on her TV and she loves it. The new Roku 3 is only $99 IIRC.
As for your setup, depending on the size of your movie collection and if you download new content frequently. I'd suggest having two PC's one tucked away somewhere that is your file server (has tons of big hard drives) and then you can buy (or build) a smaller/cheaper HTPC. That's how I have mine set up, I currently have ~5-6TB worth of data storage with movies and TV shows on them. Cramming all that into a HTPC would make it noisy and/or you'd have a ton of external HDD's all over your your HT cabinet/table.
If you have any issue getting Ethernet to your HTPC for faster streaming, I'd suggest one of these.. I have the cheaper/slower one and it works for me. They didn't have the faster one when I bought mine or I'd have bought it instead. (Gotta have the bestest and fastest) :P
http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Powerline-Network-Adapter-XAVB5004/dp/B004PA9PBQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1372263041&sr=1-2&keywords=XAVB1004
http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-XAVB1004-100NAS-Theater-Internet-Connection/dp/B002FB684E/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1372263041&sr=1-1&keywords=XAVB1004
Also, I needed multiple Ethernet ports due to my Wii, HTPC and the TV being hooked up tot he internet. If you only need 1 port for the HTPC there are cheaper versions with the faster speed. It just depends on what all you'd like to connect.
Also, you mentioned a web page that you/your friends can look at movies.. I just happened to find this add on that can make your HTPC accessible from anywhere..
http://htpc.io/
Now i haven't used or tested that, so I have no idea how well it works vs. how easy it is to setup and maintain.
If you are really wanting a project, I've been meaning to setup a new File Server with Amahi, it replaces windows and it's sole purpose is to store/maintain media files and make them accessible from anywhere. The Amahi install takes the place of whatever OS you have (Windows/Linux) so you need a PC to install it on. That's the only reason I haven't tried it.. I don't have a spare PC to test it on and I don't want to wipe out my current file server on the off chance that I don't car for Amahi.
www.amahi.org
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Great, thanks for all the information fallen. The WD TV Live SMP does have one ethernet port to connect a cable to the NAS/computer. Connecting to the pc network via the house power supply also sounds a good way to declutter cables. I'll have a good reread of the above again.
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Well after about 8 hours I got the WD TV Live box setup reading movies from my pc over wifi (I have no ethernet cable at the mo) and now testing playing The Raven movie (small 800MB) and using the remote all sitting in front of the telly, yeah.
Heaven help those that are not IT gurus to figure it out. Not only did I have to make lots of undocumented (no instructions in the box) changes to Windows Network settings (after reading the interweb inside & out), but also had to find the IP address of the box on the network (in the router software) and add it as a trusted zone in the pc Firewall software...
So now I can start testing the creation of some nice background graphics and cover/box art so it all looks pretty on the screen when reading about each movie in the navigation. When I tested it, I can then move the movies to an external drive and cabled together with the WD TV Live box, give it to a friend.
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Well after about 8 hours I got the WD TV Live box setup reading movies from my pc over wifi (I have no ethernet cable at the mo) and now testing playing The Raven movie (small 800MB) and using the remote all sitting in front of the telly, yeah.
Heaven help those that are not IT gurus to figure it out. Not only did I have to make lots of undocumented (no instructions in the box) changes to Windows Network settings (after reading the interweb inside & out), but also had to find the IP address of the box on the network (in the router software) and add it as a trusted zone in the pc Firewall software...
So now I can start testing the creation of some nice background graphics and cover/box art so it all looks pretty on the screen when reading about each movie in the navigation. When I tested it, I can then move the movies to an external drive and cabled together with the WD TV Live box, give it to a friend.
Haha .. yeah the undocumented "issues" are always the best to deal with trouble shooting! ;) At least we have google now-a-days! Its a great resource!
Just out of curiosity .. do you have any larger HD files? I would be interested in knowing how it performs streaming a 4-8GB 720/1080p movie over the WIFI signal.
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Just out of curiosity .. do you have any larger HD files? I would be interested in knowing how it performs streaming a 4-8GB 720/1080p movie over the WIFI signal.
Ok I am streaming Gone With The Wind which is a 18.3GB single 1080p .mkv file. During the 20 mins of viewing, the video and audio are as smooth as silk, the picture so sharp it looks real, I want to dive in! I gotta get a bigger tv! (this is 46")
The following picture shows the WD TV Live box on the floor next to the remotes for scale, and I moved the pc's antenna into view with scissors for scale. The antenna (http://www.premiertek.net/products/networking/PL-18N.html) connected by USB you can see is huge. The modem/router (http://www.fritzbox.com.au/product-fritz-wlan7390.html) is also a goodie, so the wifi streaming infrastructure is quite good. The modem is in the room behind the brickwall a few meters.
(http://www.mysterycorp.com/temp/wdtvlive_P1110380_1400.jpg)
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Ok I am streaming Gone With The Wind which is a 18.3GB single 1080p .mkv file. After 20 mins the video and audio are as smooth as silk, the picture so sharp it looks real, I want to dive in! I gotta get a bigger tv! (this is 46")
The following picture shows the WD TV Live box on the floor next to the remotes for scale, and I moved the pc's antenna into view with scissors for scale. The antenna (http://www.premiertek.net/products/networking/PL-18N.html) connected by USB you can see is huge. The modem/router (http://www.fritzbox.com.au/product-fritz-wlan7390.html) is also a goodie, so the wifi streaming infrastructure is quite good. The modem is in the room behind the brickwall a few meters.
Awesome! Thanks for the pic! That is a HUGE WIFI antenna! ;) I guess that goes to show that WIFI can handle large HD files IF you have the right equipment. I know I am running an older WIFI AP and the PS3 does not have any external antenna. So that could have factored into my issues with stutter and freezing.
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At about 40 min mark it had three one or two second thinking pauses in quick secession but since has been smooth. I guess it will do the same every 40 mins or so. I'll see from watching other movies (which could be years haha) if it happens again/ is annoying, but worst case I can use an Ethernet cable instead of wifi. Nearly all my movies are of smaller than 18GB file size so they should be ok.
Next I will try a blu ray, which can have single files up to around 40GB. I have some decrypted uncompressed blurays copied to pc to test.
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Steve.. ......ay, ay
the blu ray for Gone with the Wind is soooooooooooooo good you should get the blu ray one... trust me on this. Yes. I have all kind of versions all for that film. Including mkv and VHS. Blu Ray is the best one for this film.. top lollipop
re media players. I will investigate other set ups, though I am in love with my IOMEGA, simple to use, 1TB (PLUS 1TB extra memory), and chus chus, it plays anything ISO files, mkv... ETC any time, any day :)
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re media players. I will investigate other set ups, though I am in love with my IOMEGA, simple to use, 1TB (PLUS 1TB extra memory), and chus chus, it plays anything ISO files, mkv... ETC any time, any day :)
Care to elaborate on what piece of IOMEGA equipment you have? As well as what the heck Chus Chus is? I googled it and couldnt find anything about a media player.
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I bought the Iomega ScreenPlay 1TB Director Multimedia Drive. USB 2.0/AV/HDMI/Ethernet. And I use it with the IOMEGA Wi-FI adapter, so it is wireless, which is one thing that I really wanted - hate cables. I bought it for £150 2 years ago... And like most of you, I have extra memory so can watch everything .. one box does it all...
It is very similar to WD, though I find that this one plays everything, all mkv files, etc. AND AUDIO files as I have lots of films from places like Hong Kong, etc so the audio is a real bugger for some of these films.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/computers-accessories/dp/B002R03ZDU
chus-chus = off you go, ready to go/ use/ watch .. :)
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That Screenplay seems pretty nice, my only issue with it would be the inability to add more drive space to it and by more I mean 5+ TB. :)
lol @ Chus-Chus hitself
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The WDTV also plays everything. MKVs, etc. Even ISO files from DVD/BR rips.
Gone with the Wind has a ~4 hour runtime, so a 18.3GB file is still only averaging less than 10mbps. Any 802.11g/n AP and network card should be easily able to handle that amount of traffic. Assuming of course that you have a good signal and low contention.
One of the biggest factors for home media streaming is conversion. The WDTV doesn't need it, but the Roku (w/Plex Media Server) does. The server needs to convert the media on the fly. This does take a lot of CPU resources, but isn't too bad on newer hardware. But if your computer is doing other activities at the same time, it could cause stuttering.
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Well playing an uncompressed bluray is not watchable via wifi streaming on this setup with my configuration. It is playing a 43GB .m2ts file from Titanic and stutters stopping for a 2 second think about every 10 seconds.
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Well playing an uncompressed bluray is not watchable via wifi streaming on this setup with my configuration. It is playing a 43GB .m2ts file from Titanic and stutters stopping for a 2 second think about every 10 seconds.
That sucks, I was getting my hopes up for wifi! :(
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That sucks, I was getting my hopes up for wifi! :(
Yeah, well, nearly all my movies are compressed to around 5GB so they should be ok. Networking through the power supply would be the next best no cables (sort of) solution.
Maybe there are settings I can tweak in the router or elsewhere to improve it, but that will likely take half a day or more searching the web for clues.
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Just watched my first movie (Airport 1970) on the now setup HTPC thingy using the WDTV Live streaming media player which sits in the home entertainment system (connected via USB to 4TB harddisk).
That sure was a lot of work, but now I have about 600 movies each with .xml and .nfo files for movies metadata/details (plus a thumbGen software metadata file), various images for cover art/poster, background fanart, moviesheet (fanart with embedded/overlaid movie info/details). So these movies are ready for use by both XBMC and also WDTV Live. I chose country of origin poster images to be the cover art for each movie (unless they were really hideous like some USA posters I used another country like Italian).
Here is a screen grab of the movies carousel in one of the movie folders:
(http://www.mysterycorp.com/temp/WDTV_Live_P1110440_1400.jpg)
I am using the default theme with the WD TV Live box which has its limitations such as the rating (star icons) system not working as it doesnt align to the IMDB ratings.
I embedded the IMDB rating into the end of the description field
followed by some of my own made up codes such as f:(foreign language), b:(black and white), c:(separate audio commentary track), plus others for levels of sex and violence, an alternate english audio dub for foreign language films, cinavia protection, animation. There is also a video technical quality scale I added: q2 (almost unwatchable),q3,q4 (dvd),q5,q6 (bluray). These codes tell me quickly a lot of info about the film.
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Awesome looks great! I am working on putting together another centrally located storage device at the moment. I'm not sure if I want to stick with an independent computer sharing folders or if I want to go with a Synolody/Drobo or other NAS device.
I just got these in the other day. :) I havent had time to take them apart, we've been doing some remodeling on the house, so at this time I cannot even get into the theater room or my office! :P
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-GuLaSsPCUNs/UfL7xqTK2RI/AAAAAAAAKEI/Bv8OAU4IAFo/w343-h574-no/IMAG1962.jpg)
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Thanks
I just got these in the other day. :) I havent had time to take them apart
That's a lot of disk space, 15TB. Will they be for one off copies of data (15TB) or will you use them to duplicate your data (7TB + 7TB ish - I dont know the terminology... RAID?)
So you will pull the drives out of the Books and stick em in either PC or NAS? If so, why did you buy them as Books rather than just the drives, I guess it is the odd situation where the package is cheaper than just a drive. You sound like you know your stuff, I'm sure you media sharing setup will end up very impressive thumbup
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Yeah, it was cheaper to buy them like they are than it was to buy basic internal hard drives. They were on sale for $99.99 each and I got an extra $20 off at check out so it was only $480 for all 5 and now i have some USB 3.0 cases to put my old drives in if I want.
You are right about RAID, there are different types of RAID though. The 7/7 as you mentioned is called Mirroring (Raid 1) and is the least efficient use of drive space. I will probably do a RAID 5 or RAID 6. With RAID 5 one of the hard drives is used as a "spare" so in this case with all 5 drives installed I would have 12TB usable and at any time I could lose 1 hard drive and I would not lose any data. I would just have to replace it ASAP, because if you lose a 2nd drive at the same time, you lose everything. That's where a RAID 6 comes in, with RAID 6 you have 2 "spare" drives. But in this case I'd only have 9TB of usable space. But if there was any failures I could lose 2 drives at the same time and I would still have all of my data.
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WoW, that's an incredible set up.. i am not keen on streaming, i dont want to rely on the internet to watch my films but i gather that it works well? It certainly looks quite good. I might give it a try.
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WoW, that's an incredible set up.. i am not keen on streaming, i dont want to rely on the internet to watch my films but i gather that it works well? It certainly looks quite good. I might give it a try.
That would be one downfall to only streaming and one reason I back up most of my movies. I think with my current HDD setup I have ~700 movies and a ton of TV shows. (I really have no idea how many TV shows are there) So if my ISP blew up for a week I'd still have things to watch, although I'd miss out on any new TV shows! :P
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WoW, that's an incredible set up.. i am not keen on streaming, i dont want to rely on the internet to watch my films but i gather that it works well? It certainly looks quite good. I might give it a try.
It works great so far... One movie and counting! No stutters, smooth as. It also streams from certain internet sites too, you can surf youtube, facebook through the tv interacting with the remote or by using a keyboard (plugin or wireless). Not sure what applications come with the boxes sold in UK but USA boxes have access to Netflix, Hulu (I think they are subscription based movies streaming services?), and a handful of others. In Oz of most interest is access to a government tv station called ABC which allows you to stream to catch up on programs you might have missed on tv (its called iView service)
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WoW, that's an incredible set up.. i am not keen on streaming, i dont want to rely on the internet to watch my films but i gather that it works well? It certainly looks quite good. I might give it a try.
Or... you could save yourself a ton of headaches (not to mention cash) and just get one of these... which is all most people will ever need.
http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromecast/#netflix
My brother-in-law's team helped develop this...
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From what I see that's essentially just a screen sharing device? You have to have another piece of equipment (phone or another computer/tablet) that will play or stream what you want to watch and all that this appears to do is let you play it on the TV like a secondary screen. Not to mention it only supports certain apps? Which at this point looks to be limited to Netflix, Chrome and Youtube? And it's only good for streaming from the internet on WIFI? So how would one go about playing large HD files from local storage??
I think they missed the boat on that device, had they marketed it as a screen sharing device I think it would be a major hit for $35, but you would have to be able to share any window, not just supported apps. Hell if all someone wants to watch is Netflix and Youtube, most Smart TV's have that built in and you can stream that over ethernet and avoid any WIFI lag/connectivity issues.
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From what I see that's essentially just a screen sharing device? You have to have another piece of equipment (phone or another computer/tablet) that will play or stream what you want to watch and all that this appears to do is let you play it on the TV like a secondary screen. Not to mention it only supports certain apps? Which at this point looks to be limited to Netflix, Chrome and Youtube? And it's only good for streaming from the internet on WIFI? So how would one go about playing large HD files from local storage??
I think they missed the boat on that device, had they marketed it as a screen sharing device I think it would be a major hit for $35, but you would have to be able to share any window, not just supported apps. Hell if all someone wants to watch is Netflix and Youtube, most Smart TV's have that built in and you can stream that over ethernet and avoid any WIFI lag/connectivity issues.
It wouldn't because most people don't need to do it. My comment wasn't directed at the two of you, it was for her and people more casually interested in such things.
BTW, it's a pretty big hit already.
You can share any window you want (as long as you are using a Chrome browser) although there is a slight delay. Wired dubbed this the 'pornslinger'. Their list of apps will greatly expand in the very near future, as will the number of sites the will direct stream (as Netflix/youtube already do). Like anything else Google does, this product should be considered in its infancy.
Here is a nice breakdown of why this could matter...
http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2013/07/5-reasons-google-chromecast-will-transform-tv
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Well.. all of you have given me food for thought.
I like what Steve has but with a backup option- as fallenangel1 says better to be ready. And I do agree with him that streaming can be a bit ''on the dark side''.
And ideally, i hope one day we can get all this just by the touch of small tiny, clever, cheap ever-so-wonderful device. No wires, cables or nightmares.... so something that i could just plug in as the one Archie Leach suggested- Archie- your brother in-law-is-a-genius-
And I ain't buying a Smart TV. NOPE.NO. NIET. I bought a plasma TV when they first come out and i ain't spending one more penny on telly melly...NO WAY..Got posters to buy...
So, if anyone of you have found Heaven on Earth - Media player etc wise, do let me know. i'' follow your lead yesir.
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That's just silly, they keep comparing it to a Roku and AppleTV when its nothing like either of them. Both Roku and ATV are Independent devices. You plug them in and use a remote, everything is done through the Roku or ATV.. With CCast you have to use another device to do all of the heavy lifting. So, instead of having a remote, you have to navigate the web on a laptop, tablet or even worse a cell phone and you can then use the CCast to see what you are doing on a TV screen. Sounds like basic screen sharing to me, and its limited to only 1 browser and some streaming apps.
And when I mentioned "sharing any window" I wasn't talking about surfing websites, who really wants to surf websites on their TV anyways. I meant things like windows explore (and whatever MACs version of that is) or other local media players. People (even casual users) have some kind of local content that they want to watch sometimes.. ATV and Roku know that, that's why they made their devices to accept an external HDD.
I guess I just don't get it, everything that the CCAst does I could point to half a dozen Smart TV's that are capable of viewing the exact same Apps and websites. Not to mention the Roku and ATV do all of that and more.. Sure they cost more, but those devices truly are for the low tech casual users. You hook it up and forget about it. Grab the remote to watch what you want when you want it. How many casual users do you know that want to be sitting with their laptop playing a video in their lap just so that they can watch it on the TV at the same time. Or even worse trying to surf websites and youtube on their phones.
And they kept saying how this piece is so cross platform that all the devs will jump on board and write their code so that it works with the CCast.. hahaha .. yeah right! I don't know what devs that they have been talking to but everyone that I know HATES rewriting their code to support a new device or browser! ONLY IF this thing takes off and literally takes over the market could I see the smaller groups adding this to their coding. It's easy for places like Netflix they have hundreds of employees and can just tell them to do it. But with the smaller groups it'll take time and while all those devs are waiting to see how this will fair in the market place people will get bored with it and move on to the next toy.
As for the name 'Pornslinger' its funny and good writing from Wired, but that's all I can see this being .. a toy for some college kids wanting to play around with.
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And when I mentioned "sharing any window" I wasn't talking about surfing websites, who really wants to surf websites on their TV anyways. I meant things like windows explore (and whatever MACs version of that is) or other local media players. People (even casual users) have some kind of local content that they want to watch sometimes.. ATV and Roku know that, that's why they made their devices to accept an external HDD.
I have used all three for quite a while and chromecast is by far the easiest of the three.
You can run local content through chrome...
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/07/how-to-play-torrents-on-your-new-chromecast/
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I have used all three for quite a while and chromecast is by far the easiest of the three.
You can run local content through chrome...
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/07/how-to-play-torrents-on-your-new-chromecast/
ahh ok.. well its getting "better" but its still just a glorified screen sharing device! :P
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I like what Steve has but with a backup option- as fallenangel1 says better to be ready.
All the movies I have backed up on my pc. Those on my pc I consider to be the master set and when any new movies come along, I bundle a group up and copy them over to the WDTV box
I quite like the set up I have which is a self contained system stowed away in my tv/hifi setup. The user can sit back with a remote flicking through the movies, reading about them, seeing moving ratings, and press play. Even watch the movie's trailer seamlessly through youtube on the telly.
With Chromecast (my limited knowledge):
- by the sound of it you need to also have running a pc or laptop or smart phone. Thats a big downer for me... I'm sick of switched on technology clutter!
- Also the annoying video stutter you will surely get with streaming wireless bluray quality movies, especially if your pc is thinking about something else at the same time.
- You need to first configure those devices (eg pc). ie use a specific browser plus install plugin(s). So is not an almost straight out of the box solution
- I assume there is no nice interface to navigate your media like movies and even read a bit about the movies
- but I do like that you will be able to easily show any web page on the tv, but not sure what real use that is though. I guess it pushes media to your tv rather than pulling it. I'm not interested in going over to the pc each time I want to adjust what I am watching on the telly though.
- to me the Chromecast thing seems like a toy for a pimply teenage geek with no money and a lot of patience, trying to tweak the best out of a cheap compromise!
I'm happy with my setup. I can also stream media wirelessly from the pc anyway if I want using the WDTV and can it both push or pull content to the tv from a pc, if I can figure it all out.