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Video Appliance For a Large Library On a Network?
devjj writes "For the past year or so I have been trying (and failing) to figure out a reasonable solution for bringing my large media library to my living room. All of my media lives on an Ubuntu server that sits on my network. It's been very reliable and it's fast enough for streaming purposes. My content is exposed via SMB. It's the living room side where I keep running into problems. I am currently using Windows 7 and XBMC, but the case is too big and noisy, I don't particularly care for Windows, and the whole thing just seems overkill. What I want is a device that can present a decent UI that the non-Slashdot crowd would be able to use, but that is still powerful enough to stream full-fidelity 1080p. I dream of a small box that can transcode video over a network, but that's probably a pipe dream. The new Apple TV would be great if it could connect to network shares. What say you, Slashdot? Is what I'm looking for possible, or should I just give in to the iTunes/Amazon/whatever juggernauts?"
If you can afford it, get one of the new Mac Minis and install Plex. The new version that came out yesterday is incredibly slick. It'll do all you want.
No transcoding but it plays close to all formats
http://www.popcornhour.com/onlinestore/
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3767/media-streamer-platforms-roundup/5 You can read a decent (although aging) round-up of your options there, or just go buy the O!Play. It plays anything that matters.
I am literally 3000 tokens away from the chaotic crossbow --Stephen
Get a Western Digital HD Live box. It's cheap, tiny, quiet and plays videos with a large variety of codecs. Also does music of course, plus Pandora, Flicker, etc.
I've been using Tversity on my windows machine for 3 years now and I can honestly say it's the best solution I've ever seen. Transcoding to multiple devices with different codec/format requirement has never been simpler. I can stream to all the iPhones and computers in the house, as well as my 360 with minimal configuration.
You will want this: http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.asp?driveid=735
And this: http://b-rad.cc/wdlxtv-live/
Simple, effective and above all...cheap.
PopcornHour Network Media Tanks ! We own two and LOVE 'em. Xvid, mkv, iso, vob etc. Up to 1080p.
Trolling is a art,
MythTV, do all the processing on the backend server and have a lightweight (quiet) frontend it should bolt onto your existing ubuntu server
personally i use a mac mini with front row. i map my fileserver via smb, play content using sapphire, the hulu plugin for front row, boxee, etc.
it works reasonably well.
check out the nvidia ion based boards and systems.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856158009&cm_re=asrock_ion-_-56-158-009-_-Product
enough muscle for 1080p, all packed into a tiny, quiet package
I run PS3MediaServer on my fileserver. Streams (and trancodes when necessary) over the network to my PS3. Works well.
Karma: Can only be portioned out by the Cosmos.
I researched this long and hard. I wanted what is known as a "Networked Media Tank," but I didn't have the bucks to make a poor decision and try again. I just plugged the PS3 into the receiver I already had, plugged it into the network, and pointed it at the folder on the server which had all of my music/photos/movies. On the server I installed "PS3 Media Server," which is freeware, pointed it at my media folder, and that, literally, was all it took. Plus the PS3 will play your Blu Rays, and as it is Sony, the firmware updates for new releases will always be available... unlike with the dedicated BD player I had from Samsung. Over a year later and I have never regretted the decision.
Puget Systems Echo: http://www.pugetsystems.com/echo.php
There is an Atom / Ion version that may suffice for your needs (Echo I) and a more powerful Core i3 / i5 model if you need extra horsepower (Echo II). Both are very small, pretty darn quiet, and could run whatever software you'd like. I personally prefer the Windows 7 Media Center interface, but it sounds as though you aren't a big fan. Other nice options to check out are MythTV (Linux) and Boxxe (Windows or Linux).
William George
Bandwidth probably won't be your limitation. The Blu-Ray format has an absolute max transfer rate of 54 Mb/s, and only 48Mb/s for A/V bandwidth. Even movies on disc won't usually max that out, since they'll be VBR-encoded. Movies on a file server will usually be compressed all the more. Even at 50% throughput loss, a 100Mbit ethernet will still be able to keep up.
Don't know what your experience has been, but when I was using Samba, it often bogged down and caused the stream to stutter. I made my movies available over Apache w/DAV instead and the problem went away.
Not a typewriter
I run an AppleTV and have done the following non-standard things with it:
-Hacked it to enable SSH and read/write FS
-Installed Mplayer and XBMC
-Made it so a folder called ATV on my desktop computer automatically syncs with the ATV using rsync regularly so whatever I have downloaded is always on the ATV
-Ordered and installed a Broadcom CrystalHD mini PCI card that renders video and takes processing that away from the ATV's limited CPU
-Installed kexts that support the above and a nightly build of XBMC so I can now play 720 and 1080p media using XBMC
Works perfect for me. I could install Linux on it but both myself and my partner love Apple's movie rental system and the iTunes integration for our music. So by applying the above hacks we get everything we need.
It does also support network shares with a bit of hacking.
If you want to roll you own, use XBMC on an Acer Aspire Revo R1600 ($200). It uses the Nvidia ION LE chipset that supports h264 offloading. I would use these myself, but I already have three Popcorn Hours.
PCHs are nice, quiet, and cheap, but the UI is awful. It will require some tinkering to make nice. YAMJ is your friend (Yet Another Movie Jukebox).
Option 1: ReadyNAS Duo (built in torrent client) + WD TV Live (simple remote)
Option 2: Ubuntu server on network + PS3MediaServer + Sony PS3 (enable HDMI CEC for use with TV remote)
Option 3: Fritz!Box 7270 + USB HDD + PS3 as DLNA client / built in DLNA client on TV
Option 4: ASRock ION330 + Ubuntu
Option 5: Mac Mini + Apple Remote + Plex / XBMC + NAS/USB HDD
The key bottle neck is the network, if you can run LAN cables no worries, if you decide to go wireless 802.11n will do fine for 720p, 1080p is pushing it
XMBC Live on a Atom + Ion machine.
Something like the Acer R3610 ( http://www.acer.co.uk/acer/productv.do?LanguageISOCtxParam=en&kcond61e.c2att101=68913&sp=page16e&ctx2.c2att1=17&link=ln438e&CountryISOCtxParam=UK&ctx1g.c2att92=242&ctx1.att21k=1&CRC=2669969291 )
It can process 1080P h.264 without breaking a sweat.
After 12 years and a few days, I finally gave in to the dark side and joined slashdot.
The beauty of a PC is that it's no big deal if a new codec comes around, and if you don't like the interface you have others to choose from.
Appliances have limitations, may not allow new codecs to be installed etc.
Find a quiet PC
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
I just hooked up a LG BD570 for <$200 that plays Blu-ray discs, Netflix, Vudu, Pandora, other online content, files on a networked CIFS share from a Windows box and has built-in wifi. Only issue I've noticed is that it doesn't play .vob files from a network share.
http://www.geexbox.org/ Its a mini Linux install using Mplayer. I had been using it for years with out issues. You can install it to a USB flash stick or LiveCD to test it out be for install
I spent a couple hundred bucks on Newegg, put together a MicroATX box in a home theater case (looks like a DVD player, virtually silent.) I've run Linux on it and played videos with Xine, and I've had XP on there with the Mega Codec Pack's Media Player Classic. Plays everything I've ever thrown at it, including Quicktime videos (hell, it even plays Real's media, as if anyone still uses it.) I used a $35 ATI Radeon with HDMI out, and plugged it into a 65" Samsung DLP TV. Plays everything in 1080p, smooth as silk. Better even than the upsampling Samsung DVD player I bought with the TV.
The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
The Shuttle XS35GT is a fanless box with the new NVIDIA ION2 GPU, if you put a SSD drive in it it's 100% silent. It should be able to handle H.264 1080p without a problem. You can run Linux (e.g. XBMCbuntu) or Win7 with XBMC on it. It also supports a DVD, DVD-RW or Bluray drive.
Another option is the Xtreamer, I don't know much about it but it's cheap ($99, that's without a HD) and according to the site it can play 1080p (the new Apple TV only supports 720p). It has an option ("SideWinder") to attach external heat sinks to make it fanless.
A good place for more information is the XBMC hardware forum.
You'll need two things:
1. A computer that stores your movies. This computer must run some sort of UPnP media server software like PS3 Media Server on Windows or fuppes on Linux. It must be powerful enough to transcode in real-time your movies. Think Core 2 Duo 2GHz for 1080p, or P4 3GHz for 720p.
2. A Playstation 3 or XBox 360. This will be your display device hooked to your TV. Both are cake to use for non-computer experts and can do other fun things as well, like games, the Internet, Netflix, etc. I prefer the PS3 since it can handle Netflix without paying Microsoft a subscription fee, but if you already have an XBOX 360 with and Xbox Live account, then that may be a better idea.
All other answers to this question are lame and/or missed the point. Seriously. Making some crap computer out of spare parts and hooking it up to your TV just doesn't make sense when you probably already have a PS3 or Xbox 360 and a computer good enough to transcode on-the-fly and large enough (storage wise) to hold your media. Hell, that computer probably sits in the same spot all day, every day and never gets turned off, so put that wasted power into good use. If you're really just trying to shoehorn some old, piece of shit computer into something useful, then what you really have is a solution looking for a problem. Fuck that. Sell the POS on craigslist and be done with it.
I have been using SageTV and their Media Extenders for a couple of years now, and I am very happy with it.
The basics:
1) You set up a "server" PC loaded with hard drives and tuner/capture cards, running the SageTV software.
2) At the TV, you connect a small, low-power Media Extender, which presents an identical user interface to the SageTV software.
I am using this to record broadcast TV from an antenna, watch DVD and Blu-ray rips, and (with the addition of PlayOn) watch Hulu and Comedy Central streaming.
Their website: http://sagetv.com/
I used to use MythTV, and I find that SageTV has pretty much identical functionality, but I could remove a computer from the living room and use the small extender device instead.
Reading Slashdot is ruining my spelling and grammar.
Plex running on a MacMini is what I use. The mini is a solid low power platform that you can easily hook up external disk or access your NAS with. Has HDMI output for connecting to your stereo/tv etc.
Plex is made to use the apple remote control, so you don't need a keyboard/mouse after the very initial setup. There's also a iPhone/Pad/Touch app so you can control Plex or stream from the plex app to your iPhone/Touch/Pad. The main application for your mac mini is free and the iOS component is $5.
Great community of support for the app definitely better than XBMC.
I am currently using a Box Office by Patriot purchased thru CompUSA (TigerDirect) and it supports Linux kernal 2.4.1.0 or above as well as various Windows flavors and Mac 9.0 and above. The box supports a good number of video formats including MPEG-1 (MPG/MPEG/DAT) up to 1080p, MPEG-2 (MPG/MPEG/VOB/IFO/TS/TP/M2TS) up to 1080p, MPEG-4 (MP4/AVI/MOV) up to 1080p, DivX 3/4/5/6 & Xvid (AVI/MKV) up to 1080p, H.264 * AVC (TS/AVI/MKV/MOV/M2TS) up to 1080p, Real Video 8/9/10 (RM/RMVP) up to 720p, FLV, WMV9 (1080p) and ISO (1080p). Many audio formats including the regulars plus OGG and FLAC. Image formats include JPEG, BMP and PNG. The box has fast Ethernet, 2x USB 2.0 ports and internal 2.5" SATA HDD connections. (HDD sold seperately, but very easy to install.) A USB wireless adapter is available, but came included in my package. You can stream video from network storage devices. Best of all, it is small, quiet, has a remote control, HDMI output as well as composite A/V and S/PDI outputs.
The Apple TV won't do 1080p
I highly recommend MediaPortal http://www.team-mediaportal.com/
The setup is significant, but once you have it going, it's great. You can use hardware accelerated h264 decoding (whereas Boxee, XBMC and many others are software only). The plugins for it have great, poweful support for automatically matching Movies and TV shows based on regexps and online lookups of the filenames.
Some screenshots can be found:
http://code.google.com/p/moving-pictures/
http://code.google.com/p/mptvseries/
Too many people here miss the fact that you want the PLAYER side of the equation, not the server.
I'd suggest something like the Patriot Box Office:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=patriot%20box%20office
http://patriotmem.com/products/detailp.jsp?prodline=6&catid=69&prodgroupid=159&id=895&type=20
Small, reasonably quiet (more so if you do a bit of work on the fan), HDMI or composite out, does 1080i, does S/PDIF, does just about every form of media I've tried, does SMB/CIFS, uPnP (not just DLNA, but also plain old uPnP), runs Linux internally, can accept an internal 2.5" hard disk, can use an external USB WiFi stick, supports external media via USB (including EXT2/3 file systems).
www.eFax.com are spammers
SO I CAN WATCH IT ON MY HANDHELD!!!
(why are we shouting?)
Seriously, there's lots of reasons to transcode. Not all movies are available for download in friendly formats. I recently got a beautiful DVD set of the silent film Greed by Erich von Stroheim and I wanted to watch it on something that didn't have an optical drive, away from home.
How else but to transcode?
You are welcome on my lawn.
I have the most recent Mac Mini. With Plex, it cannot play full-screen 1080p, even 24fps (my test is Avatar, full blu-ray file). XBMC nightly builds can do it if you have h.264 acceleration on, so maybe Plex will work soon.
All in all the Mini (even my 2.66GHz one) is probably not a good choice due to the slow CPU and high price.
It's too bad too since the Mini does HDMI audio (7.1 channels, 24-bit, 192KHz).
Also, if the Mini wakes up with no TV attached (because your amp is set to another input) it switches audio back to the internal speaker from HDMI audio out and you have to reset it.
http://lkml.org/lkml/2005/8/20/95
for the non-*crowd, set-top ready.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/electronics/home-entertainment/d3fe/
Native 1080p video output at up to 1920x1080 resolution (check)
- Analog recording of your favourite TV shows from Cable or Satelite (check)
- Time-shift and scheduled recording (check)
- Incredible variety of video and audio codec support including MKV (check)
- Built in BitTorrent client for sharing and downloading video files (check)
- HDMI, composite or component video output (check)
- Optical SPDIF 5.1 Channel Dolby Digital audio output (check)
- Takes up to 2.0 Terabyte SATA hard drive (check)
- Built in samba server with UPnP implementation (check)
- Oh and a completely sweet price! ($169, plus $35 for 1 to 3 week coming wireless N USB adapter4, plus you supply the SATA drive up to 2TB, and an external DVD burner if desired).
"I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid." -- Bishop 341-B
Why the hell would I hire a DVD? Their references are almost always terrible, have no work experience prior to 1996, and they don't do any work -- they just sit around looking all shiny.
Today is red jello day - all workers must eat all of their red jello. Failure to comply will result in five demerits.
Like an iPad!
Price? about 99 euro for a diskless streamer, my mede8ter (without disk, with ALL cables) 139 euro, for a disked station like the popcorn A200 220 euro.
(and forget those cheaper pre-2009 streamers, they are underpowered and don't eat averything you throw at them.
PS, despite the fact these boxes run linux, they have large binary blobs so i would not consider them open source NMT's
Try an Revo R3600 (~ £150 GBP) and XBMC live. The Revo is excellent, very very quite (much quieter than my sky+ PVR), about the size of an original apple tv, has HDMI and VGA output AND comes with a VESA stand that that you can use to hang it directly on the back of your TV (unless it's wall mounted). XMBC live installs very easily and quickly, once you've found a usb cd/dvdrom to boot it from :)
The only other thing I needed was a remote / usb receiver but I just bought the cheapest windows media centre one I could find.
HTH
I replaced the busybox setup with a full system using optware (ipkg), installed a cups print server, and attached a printer to the USB port. So far it has been able to serve up different movies to three different clients simultaneously over my home network without any problems.
A printer? What are you doing, making them watch movies on flick books?