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| Topic: | what Media Players do you recommend? This thread has 36 replies. Displaying posts 16 through 30. |
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| Post 16 made on Thursday November 1, 2012 at 20:18 |
fcwilt Senior Member |
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Posts: | September 2003
1,283 |
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On November 1, 2012 at 00:20, bcf1963 said...
, but the UI is horrible. In my opinion it is far from horrible. I find it very functional and simple to navigate.
Last edited by fcwilt on November 1, 2012 23:40.
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Regards, Frederick C. Wilt |
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| Post 17 made on Thursday November 1, 2012 at 23:25 |
bcf1963 Super Member |
Joined:
Posts: | September 2004
2,767 |
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On November 1, 2012 at 06:45, drewski300 said...
Can WHS have software like DVDFab or AnyDVD loaded on it? That was always my reservation to trying it with my current setup and I have used all of my spare computers to test Vortexbox setups. Yes. Here's a link that gives directions for configuring MyMovies for use on WHS, and gives directions on how to use AnyDVD on WHS as well. [Link: wiki.mymovies.dk]
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| Post 18 made on Thursday November 1, 2012 at 23:27 |
bcf1963 Super Member |
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Posts: | September 2004
2,767 |
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On November 1, 2012 at 08:12, chris-L5S said...
the list is just ones that i found. i know there are more out there and i was just starting a discussion regarding inexpensive Media Players (Mainly focusing on movies).
I doubt that any of the sub $500 media players will do it all, but just trying to get the best bang for my buck and for my customers. with so many options out now, i want to find one that is not vaporware, easy to use, plays movies from a NAS and will integrate into my C4 projects.
the XBMC sounds like a winner for my home, but then i don't think i would want to install it in a customer's home. having a windows pc that i have to take care of would be a PIMA. i'm sure it can be locked down, but i just don't want the headaches of maintaining a PC.
the Dune sounds neat. i will take a closer look at them.
the WD Live TV Media Player without descretes could be an issue.
thanks for the feedback If you don't want to use XBMC running under Windows, you don't have to. There is a distribution of XBMC that is fully configured with Linux, and jumps directly into XBMC, so if you don't want to know there is a PC "under the hood", you don't ever have to.
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| OP | Post 19 made on Tuesday November 6, 2012 at 17:43 |
chris-L5S Senior Member |
Joined:
Posts: | August 2008
1,027 |
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On November 1, 2012 at 23:27, bcf1963 said...
If you don't want to use XBMC running under Windows, you don't have to. There is a distribution of XBMC that is fully configured with Linux, and jumps directly into XBMC, so if you don't want to know there is a PC "under the hood", you don't ever have to. thanks for the info. i will have to look at this a little more. what hardware do you recommend? also, just saw this article from CE Pro.... [Link: cepro.com]
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| Post 20 made on Wednesday November 7, 2012 at 12:39 |
MacrossZero Active Member |
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Posts: | March 2009
594 |
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There is also a thin linux distro with just the drivers for the hardware platform and xbmc called OpenElec.
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Do or Do not, There is no Try. |
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| Post 21 made on Thursday November 8, 2012 at 20:35 |
bcf1963 Super Member |
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Posts: | September 2004
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On November 6, 2012 at 17:43, chris-L5S said...
thanks for the info. i will have to look at this a little more. what hardware do you recommend? Well, I mentioned some hardware that should work very well earlier in this very thread... [Link: remotecentral.com]The hardware available changes all the time. I normally go to NewEgg, or whomever your favorite place to buy stuff is, and do a search for NetTop. Basically you will want to make sure it included whatever audio you need, and generally you'll want an HDMI output for video. Well, nobody wants HDMI, but that is what we're stuck with, if we want high resolution video that meets all the trusted platform requirements, so you can playback protected video. Some of the Atom units can be a little iffy on the ability to decode the video, and not drop frames, but anything that is i3 or better processor should have no problems. With an i5, it should do pretty well even for some gaming.
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| Post 22 made on Tuesday November 20, 2012 at 00:50 |
bcf1963 Super Member |
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Posts: | September 2004
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Saw this posting on a nice Lenovo NetTop that looks like a great choice for a HTPC. With it carrying the Lenovo name, it will have excellent driver support, and should work flawlessly. I was looking to buy a few HTPC's, but think I'll hold off and try this: [Link: pcper.com]
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| Post 23 made on Tuesday November 20, 2012 at 00:56 |
Daniel Tonks Wrangler of Remotes |
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Posts: | October 1998
28,766 |
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Hmm, I like the looks of that Lenovo! My current bedroom HTPC is a 6-year-old AOpen MiniPC, which doesn't support BD/HDMI and has great difficulty with 1080p files... and forget about 1080i (deinterlacing overloads it).
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| Post 24 made on Tuesday November 20, 2012 at 11:32 |
Audiophiliac Super Member |
Joined:
Posts: | August 2006
3,294 |
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I finally got around to installing Plex on my PC and my Roku. Awesome! For what I use it for, it is perfect. I have resorted to downloading the F1 race torrents rather than pay for satellite/cable just to view them. Since my Xbox 360 croaked, I have been plugging my laptop VGA into the TV. Not my ideal solution. The Roku/Plex solution took 2 minutes to setup and was flawless in function! Booya!!!
Of course NBCSports just bought the rights for F1 broadcasting for the next 4 years. ANd they are claiming to offer live streaming of all races. Whether it will be pay per view or free is yet to be determined. Hopefully they will have a Roku channel for it. :)
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"When I eat, it is the food that is scared." - Ron Swanson |
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| Post 25 made on Tuesday November 20, 2012 at 11:50 |
Barry Gordon Founding Member |
Joined:
Posts: | August 2001
2,155 |
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I use the Dune Player, running it with TCP/IP control. I have my own software that controls my theater and has a complete movie librarian similar to Kaleidescape in appearance.
The Dune is run with "Black screen" so the Dune UI is never seen. When I select a movie the PC sends the Dune the full NAS path to the movie which has been ripped using MKV. The NAS is a 10 TB unRaid system (max capacity 33TB).
When I rip a movie (DVD or BD) I only rip the main title, forced English captions and the highest quality English audio available. What I appreciate most is that a BR movie starts within 7 seconds with no previews or dire warnings.
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| Post 26 made on Tuesday November 20, 2012 at 22:34 |
rpssat Long Time Member |
Joined:
Posts: | August 2012
241 |
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On November 20, 2012 at 00:50, bcf1963 said...
Saw this posting on a nice Lenovo NetTop that looks like a great choice for a HTPC. With it carrying the Lenovo name, it will have excellent driver support, and should work flawlessly. I was looking to buy a few HTPC's, but think I'll hold off and try this: [Link: pcper.com]Interesting... we are an authorized Lenovo reseller so no prob with getting them. I will have to play with this when they hit the market in the new year.
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| Post 27 made on Wednesday November 21, 2012 at 10:01 |
cjoneill Select Member |
Joined:
Posts: | December 2002
2,174 |
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On November 20, 2012 at 11:50, Barry Gordon said...
I use the Dune Player, running it with TCP/IP control. I have my own software that controls my theater and has a complete movie librarian similar to Kaleidescape in appearance.
The Dune is run with "Black screen" so the Dune UI is never seen. When I select a movie the PC sends the Dune the full NAS path to the movie which has been ripped using MKV. The NAS is a 10 TB unRaid system (max capacity 33TB).
When I rip a movie (DVD or BD) I only rip the main title, forced English captions and the highest quality English audio available. What I appreciate most is that a BR movie starts within 7 seconds with no previews or dire warnings. I do basically the same thing with a Popcorn Hour, UI is using YAMJ and it is controlled with Crestron. However, it usually starts up instantly.. CJ
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I'm not a pro |
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| Post 28 made on Wednesday November 21, 2012 at 10:28 |
Daniel Tonks Wrangler of Remotes |
Joined:
Posts: | October 1998
28,766 |
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Hmm... been playing around with XBMC on the old AOpen system. It just meets the very bottom specs for video capabilites (literally), and while it was a HUGE problem to get working properly with the MCE remote... it does seem to be working fairly well otherwise.
I don't think it'll put much more life into such an old system, but maybe enough until Dune gets their Max 3D out...
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| Post 29 made on Wednesday November 21, 2012 at 14:25 |
MacrossZero Active Member |
Joined:
Posts: | March 2009
594 |
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I still recommend the Open Elec build of XBMC, on the hardware platform of your choice. I use it on the Zotac Mini PC's which are the size of an apple TV.
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Do or Do not, There is no Try. |
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| Post 30 made on Wednesday November 21, 2012 at 14:47 |
vwpower44 Super Member |
Joined:
Posts: | August 2004
3,662 |
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I recommend Apple. The only is is that sometimes the computer needs to be reset in order for the connection between iTunes on a computer and the apple TV to stream from the computer.
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