Help with Media Center

Type RSA said:
Thanks DJ, I will have to consider everything carefully. At the moment the box will be used mainly for playing movies and series' off an HDD. I might look at Netflix or Hulu at a later stage but this is not a requirement for me. The reason I am looking to get a media center is I moved my PC from the lounge and the PC used to double up as a "media center". So I just need something to replace that. So like I said, will mainly be used to play movies, series' and sometime music (MP3) through my home theater. I will most probably be using XBMC as I am quite familiar with it.

What worries me most is the wide range of different format movies and vids I have. I just want something that can play it all :) A lot of my vids are YIFY "1080" mp4's with some full HD 1080p vids (20GB+ per movie).

I am not too clued up on the Linux OS, but have some experience with it.

Thank you for the detailed reply :)
Click to expand...

My suggestion for your requirements:

If you need a browser (i.e. no addon support in XBMC for subscription-based content available via a browser) then Openelec is not for you, and if the stream is a Flash stream, an Android OS is not for you.
If all that you want is a hassle-free setup, then Openelec is your friend. Or the Droid boxes.
If you can stretch your budget by R1k, you can have a fantastic setup that you can build yourself, that is forward compatible and powerful. I will PM you the specs if you'd like?*

*The reason I won't disclose them yet is that I am testing these setups as custom boxes for retail...
 
Ancalagon said:
Batista, what is happening with XBMC is that it renders the 1080p movies, and then outputs in 720p. So, it is powerful enough to decode them. And if you install Linux XBMC, it decodes and outputs 1080p. And more recent releases of XBMC, such as Gotham, also output 1080p. So, again, it has nothing to do with the power of the unit and everything to do with the software, which is improving rapidly.
Click to expand...

Yup, which is why i wrote "unless you got the new 1080p version".I personally hate upscaling :)
 
syntax said:
I dont think it would work, as I would want to select certain historical videos as well as select to watch the live stuff.
The site is http://www.psasquashtv.com/

My wife hates the idea of a full sized pc near the tv, but I am starting to think it's what I need to do
Click to expand...

No need for a full sized PC. Organise a mini-ITX or micro-ATX form factor motherboard and build from there. It's actually rather simple...
 
DJ... said:
My suggestion for your requirements:

If you need a browser (i.e. no addon support in XBMC for subscription-based content available via a browser) then Openelec is not for you, and if the stream is a Flash stream, an Android OS is not for you.
If all that you want is a hassle-free setup, then Openelec is your friend. Or the Droid boxes.
If you can stretch your budget by R1k, you can have a fantastic setup that you can build yourself, that is forward compatible and powerful. I will PM you the specs if you'd like?*

*The reason I won't disclose them yet is that I am testing these setups as custom boxes for retail...
Click to expand...

Please go ahead thanks
 
Batista said:
Yup, which is why i wrote "unless you got the new 1080p version".I personally hate upscaling :)
Click to expand...

Its not upscaling! Flip, its downscaling.

Right now, it is 1080p -> 720p
What you are describing is 720p -> 1080p. This is not what happens.
With XBMC Linux:
1080p -> 1080p
With XBMC Gotham:
1080p -> 1080p
 
Ancalagon said:
Its not upscaling! Flip, its downscaling.

Right now, it is 1080p -> 720p
What you are describing is 720p -> 1080p. This is not what happens.
With XBMC Linux:
1080p -> 1080p
With XBMC Gotham:
1080p -> 1080p
Click to expand...

Shoot me for using the wrong word, you know what i mean :D
 
Type RSA said:
Fantastic!!
Click to expand...

There is one thing that I noticed with the DroidTV. I didnt bother to investigate this too much, so there might be a solution.

XBMC has the option to pass through things like DTS and DTS HD to the receiver. With some videos that use DTS (but seemingly not all of them), if I try to play them with DTS passthrough on it, the audio is garbled. If I turn passthrough off, it works fine. In other words, the DroidTV box decodes the audio instead of the receiver. Makes no practical difference to me.

I have a Denon AVR X500, so pretty sure it supports all of that DTS stuff.
 
Just make sure that the software support is there before you do. The advantage with the DroidTV is that although it is slower and older, the software on it is well optimized and does everything you need.

Its not much of a gamble to buy the quad core version. I mean, the latest XBMC supports hardware acceleration on it. Its just that, the latest XBMC version might have to be installed manually.
 
Ancalagon said:
Just make sure that the software support is there before you do. The advantage with the DroidTV is that although it is slower and older, the software on it is well optimized and does everything you need.

Its not much of a gamble to buy the quad core version. I mean, the latest XBMC supports hardware acceleration on it. Its just that, the latest XBMC version might have to be installed manually.
Click to expand...

Thanks Ancalagon

Our quadcores are installed with Beyond XBMC, which is one of the only few XBMC versions that support hardware acceleration on Rockchip devices. Development is lacking on the quadcores, but a recent firmware update has greatly improved its speed and capabilities. The quadcore is now able to play 1080p movies and output DTS over HDMI and the Optical port.
 
WD TV Live - and your external hard drive of choice, it has 2x usb ports.

Plays Blu Ray iso's up 45GB without an issue.

Supports DTS-HD Master Audio pass-through with latest update, interface is a tad sluggish though but I have yet to find a file it will not play.
Not as pretty as some like xbmc but get the job done.
 
Ancalagon said:
Just make sure that the software support is there before you do. The advantage with the DroidTV is that although it is slower and older, the software on it is well optimized and does everything you need.

Its not much of a gamble to buy the quad core version. I mean, the latest XBMC supports hardware acceleration on it. Its just that, the latest XBMC version might have to be installed manually.
Click to expand...

Thank you! For now if it can stream via Plex (local media), Netflix and Hulu then I'm sorted. I'm guessing it would be more future-proof than the DroidTV as well.

AVSupply said:
Thanks Ancalagon

Our quadcores are installed with Beyond XBMC, which is one of the only few XBMC versions that support hardware acceleration on Rockchip devices. Development is lacking on the quadcores, but a recent firmware update has greatly improved its speed and capabilities. The quadcore is now able to play 1080p movies and output DTS over HDMI and the Optical port.
Click to expand...

So I should spend the extra R50 then :D

Hemps said:
WD TV Live - and your external hard drive of choice, it has 2x usb ports.

Plays Blu Ray iso's up 45GB without an issue.

Supports DTS-HD Master Audio pass-through with latest update, interface is a tad sluggish though but I have yet to find a file it will not play.
Not as pretty as some like xbmc but get the job done.
Click to expand...

Yeah the WD TV was my initial default choice but these Android media players just seem to be able to offer much more and at not much more of a price either. Hmmm...
 
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