Tips for media sharing/streaming

[jonathan1107]

bump for the 4x questions in bold black. still need some answers if u know em

 

[rtwjunkie]

1.Well, to answer your question about not lagging when streaming from Wi-Fi, the answer is, you can't guarrantee it. Wi=Fi is a gamble when streaming. At least Cat 5 LAN cable is needed from the movie origin pc to the HTPC to guarrantee that you have lag and stutter free viewing. My server is on the end of a good 25 feet of CAT 5 from the HTPC (which is hooked to TV by a short HDMI cable), and my movies play beautifully.

2. Newtekie1 rcommends Kodi. I use a paid program called MyMovies. This allows me to scroll thru my movie collection based on movies or tv series, and each movie, when selected has all the appropriate information and pictures you would expect for a title. This however is not anything exclusive to the program I use.

 

[Jetster]

IF your looking for an easy way to share an external drive. Get a Router with a USB. Right now I have a Netgear WNDR4300 with a USB and I can plug an external drive into it and share it across the network. I'm getting ready to upgrade my router so ill be selling mine.

 

[st2000]

IF your looking for an easy way to share an external drive. Get a Router with a USB.

Stick to wired or powerline

stable connection + shared hdd for movies(i prefer wired connections cause they are not so dependent on weather, closed/opened doors etc)
for 4K - you need 35Mbit(it's standart) of bandswitch - better go for wired connection(even cable from router to HTPC/NAT/Pc(you can go for simple 2-core, 2-4GB ram and integrated grafics)
also, as i mentioned wait a bit/order for 100$(win 8.1 is more comfortable than laggy android)

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/compute-stick/intel-compute-stick.html
noname sticks with win 8.1 on board(3735f+2Gb RAM+32Gb eMMC) from allknown resources cost about 100$

thats all for non-laggy use,with all sub/audio chanels/blackjack&wh*res;
if you want to save money - go for media server program on PC and use laggy TV app

 

[jonathan1107]

Another question:

About wall plugs to create a "wired" connection between the TV and the Router any particular ones to recommend?
And let's say I'd like to try and Game using my PC (in my office) with a long HDMI cable running to my HT receiver (using audio drivers from my gtx +970):
do you guys think I'd lose some quality due to the 24 feet hdmi cable? Is it feasable to play in the living room (off of my office desktop) using maybe a bluetooth keyboard and mouse? or do you think that would be too much input lag introduced into the system?

 

[Aquinus]

How does the HTPC manage NOT to lag when streaming movie files I have on my main PC (office) if it's also using wi-fi? Didn't we establish that wi-fi was the problem? Isn't it better to download the said movies straight to the HTPC hard drive? And then again, if I do that I'd expect the transfers to be too slow correct? we're talking 15-25b files here

As long as you have enough bandwidth and the connection isn't flaky, streaming should be fine. 1080p might be pushing it over 802.11g because 54Mbps is the max aggregate bandwidth which would in reality be 27Mbps which is barely within reason for streaming 1080p video. All in all, I would go with a HTPC on something like AM1, but that's me.

Do you have any free "multimedia" software to recommend for usage with the HTPC to make navigating my files and playing them easier? (or paid software)

Kodi/XBMC is good.

as for the future of entertainment (4k+ movies and eventually 21:9) should I consider anything else for the HTPC?

Yeah, a bigger budget that $250 USD.

I'd like my HTPC to be able to display info such as (minutes, file name, bit rate, sound type, file type etc...) as it's playing the files. Whilst I know it can do this using some overlay from some streaming software, I'd like it to be able to do that in a seperate led screen or something like that. is it possible to achieve?

Kodi/XBMC should be able to do this.

do you guys think I'd lose some quality due to the 24 feet hdmi cable?

HDMI doesn't degrade the way analog ones do since it's a digitial signal. If the signal is so bad that HDMI is having trouble reading it, you won't get a picture. 25 feet is the upper bound of what HDMI can do. I would try to keep it under 20ft without an HDCP compliant amplifier.

 

[newtekie1]

1. How does the HTPC manage NOT to lag when streaming movie files I have on my main PC (office) if it's also using wi-fi? Didn't we establish that wi-fi was the problem? Isn't it better to download the said movies straight to the HTPC hard drive? And then again, if I do that I'd expect the transfers to be too slow correct? we're talking 15-25b files here

Kodi uses buffering. On a slow network connection when you play a file it won't start right away, it buffers some of the file. Usually it is pretty smart about how much to buffer to get a smooth playback, but it isn't always perfect. The issue you were having is DLNA streaming is different than what Kodi would be with a HTPC. DLNA is very sensitive to network bandwidth and in my experience suffers more from slower network connections like wireless. Straight file sharing through windows file sharing works a lot better over wifi than DLNA, and that is what you would be using with Kodi and a HTPC.

• Do you have any free "multimedia" software to recommend for usage with the HTPC to make navigating my files and playing them easier? (or paid software)

Kodi.

• as for the future of entertainment (4k+ movies and eventually 21:9) should I consider anything else for the HTPC?

Not right away. Worst case is if 4k starts to overload the computer just throw a more powerful video card in it. Since Kodi(or any good media player) uses GPU hardware acceleration to playback the video, simply adding a more powerful GPU will allow you to continue to play higher and higher resolution movies.

Another question:

About wall plugs to create a "wired" connection between the TV and the Router any particular ones to recommend?

Any of the 500Mbps ones should work. I use the trendnet micro adapters in my house.

And let's say I'd like to try and Game using my PC (in my office) with a long HDMI cable running to my HT receiver (using audio drivers from my gtx +970):
do you guys think I'd lose some quality due to the 24 feet hdmi cable? Is it feasable to play in the living room (off of my office desktop) using maybe a bluetooth keyboard and mouse? or do you think that would be too much input lag introduced into the system?

Going over that length I'd say there is definitely some input lag introduced. There wouldn't be a quality loss due to HDMI being digital, but I'd definitely say there would be some input lag.

You know, another alternative for all of this might be the NZXT DOKO. It might just take care of everything you need.

 

[jonathan1107]

Kodi uses buffering. On a slow network connection when you play a file it won't start right away, it buffers some of the file. Usually it is pretty smart about how much to buffer to get a smooth playback, but it isn't always perfect. The issue you were having is DLNA streaming is different than what Kodi would be with a HTPC. DLNA is very sensitive to network bandwidth and in my experience suffers more from slower network connections like wireless. Straight file sharing through windows file sharing works a lot better over wifi than DLNA, and that is what you would be using with Kodi and a HTPC.



Kodi.



Not right away. Worst case is if 4k starts to overload the computer just throw a more powerful video card in it. Since Kodi(or any good media player) uses GPU hardware acceleration to playback the video, simply adding a more powerful GPU will allow you to continue to play higher and higher resolution movies.



Any of the 500Mbps ones should work. I use the trendnet micro adapters in my house.



Going over that length I'd say there is definitely some input lag introduced. There wouldn't be a quality loss due to HDMI being digital, but I'd definitely say there would be some input lag.

You know, another alternative for all of this might be the NZXT DOKO. It might just take care of everything you need.

DOKO does sound nice... but... if it's using Wifi like other streaming devices... I suspect it can't be as good as "claimed"
It is true that I "already" have a PC and don't feel like having another one in my living room... but yeah, I can see myself getting a HTPC somewhere down the road...

As of right now, my wife and I just had a child and are living on a tighter budget (we're buying a house this summer) so yes I have the money for an HTPC but as of right now every dollar is going towards the house project

if DOKO proves to be what it says it can be, I might be interested, I'm definitly gonna look into it
thanks for letting me know

 

[newtekie1]

Yeah, I think using WiFi it is limited to something like a resolution of 1366x768, but if you are willing to run a 25ft HDMI cable from your office to your living room, why not a 25ft network cable. At least the network cable should be a lot cheaper than the HDMI, and not as thick as a 25ft HDMI.

 

[erixx]

After having had HTPC, AndroidTV. now I just use a laptop or Surface tablet next to my tv to access my shared drives with movies. All run Windows 8.1, easier is impossible.

You can use WiFi or Ethernet (powerplugged or real) with them, you can plug a USB ethernetport to the Surface...

Ethernet is much more stable of course. And i dont need a mini PC collecting dust in the livingroom (although fun when you have guests)

 

[jonathan1107]

Yeah, I overstated, simply because as an enthusiast I usually overdo everything. Newtekie is right, 4GB of RAM is fine, and my i3-4130 is stronger than you will need.

I built mine in a wooden case that had plenty of room and ventilation, and it blends in well in the living room: http://www.nmediapc.com/htpc8000.htm

For an HTPC, what OS software you recommend using?
windows 8.1 or 7 ?
linux or free based OS ?

 

[Jetster]

Kodi makes a Linux OS for an HTPC

http://kodi.tv/download/ otherwise 7 would be my choice

 

[jonathan1107]

• Is any of them OS free?

• I know windows is not but the upcoming windows 10 will be (at least that's what I've heard)

• I'd also like to know if there are any disadvantages to getting kodi OS rather than windows?

• Can I still browse the Web, use a program like utorrent on the htpc and transfer files to usb drive or external hdd as well as import them?

EDIT: Omg I'm such an idiot lol. I just remembered that I have a mobo laying around and a CPU (from my brother's PC which I just upgraded for him a few months back, I had forgotten I still had his older parts)

Do you guys think I could make a decent HTPC out of these 2x parts (of course I'd buy the missing parts to complet it):

• http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=12200BD6142&vpn=BX80637I53350P&manufacture=INTEL
• http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130653

 

[newtekie1]

Is any of them OS free?

The Kodi Linux distro is free. However, I'd recommend Windows because it works best with connecting to Windows file shares. You can just map a network drive and then point kodi to the drive letter and it reads all your media files.

It is possible to connect to a network share inside of Kodi, however I've had less than perfect results with that. Often times requiring me to completely delete the connection and re-create it. This problem is actually why I switched to all Windows based HTPCs in my home.

I know windows is not but the upcoming windows 10 will be (at least that's what I've heard)

Windows 10 won't be free, just a free upgrade if you already have Windows 7/8. Of course for a basic HTPC, even Vista is fine. If you've got a key laying around for Windows, just use that.

I'd also like to know if there are any disadvantages to getting kodi OS rather than windows?

I already addressed the issue with network shares. But also updating Kodi and be more of a pain. Since the KodiOS is really just Ubuntu modified, you occasionally have to have some Linux knowledge to get Kodi updated properly. With Windows it is just as easy as downloading the latest version and installing it.

Can I still browse the Web, use a program like utorrent on the htpc and transfer files to usb drive or external hdd as well as import them?

Yes, since a HTPC is just a PC in your living room, you can do anything you would normally do on a PC with it.

Do you guys think I could make a decent HTPC out of these 2x parts (of course I'd buy the missing parts to complet it):

Yep, those would make a very good start to a HTPC. The motherboard being ATX size might mean the computer will end up a little big, but if you're fine with that then I say go for it.

You can even use the onboard video as it should be enough for what you need right now.

 

[jonathan1107]

The Kodi Linux distro is free. However, I'd recommend Windows because it works best with connecting to Windows file shares. You can just map a network drive and then point kodi to the drive letter and it reads all your media files.

It is possible to connect to a network share inside of Kodi, however I've had less than perfect results with that. Often times requiring me to completely delete the connection and re-create it. This problem is actually why I switched to all Windows based HTPCs in my home.

Windows 10 won't be free, just a free upgrade if you already have Windows 7/8. Of course for a basic HTPC, even Vista is fine. If you've got a key laying around for Windows, just use that.

I already addressed the issue with network shares. But also updating Kodi and be more of a pain. Since the KodiOS is really just Ubuntu modified, you occasionally have to have some Linux knowledge to get Kodi updated properly. With Windows it is just as easy as downloading the latest version and installing it.
Yes, since a HTPC is just a PC in your living room, you can do anything you would normally do on a PC with it.

Yep, those would make a very good start to a HTPC. The motherboard being ATX size might mean the computer will end up a little big, but if you're fine with that then I say go for it.
You can even use the onboard video as it should be enough for what you need right now.

atx means mid size pc case right ?
that i5 i linked doesnt feature integrated graphics right?
I'd be using the onboard (mobo) graphics features. mobo good enough to handle playback of 1080p 40+gb files coorect?

 

[Jetster]

atx means mid size pc case right ?
that i5 i linked doesnt feature integrated graphics right?
I'd be using the onboard (mobo) graphics features. mobo good enough to handle playback of 1080p 40+gb files coorect?

There is no more "Onboard graphics" The Intel i5 has integrated graphics. It will be sufficient for streaming

ATX is the size of the board and PSU and is considered standard

 

[newtekie1]

atx means mid size pc case right ?

ATX is the size of the motherboard. Yes, you'd need at least a mid-sized PC case.

that i5 i linked doesnt feature integrated graphics right?
I'd be using the onboard (mobo) graphics features. mobo good enough to handle playback of 1080p 40+gb files coorect?

You are correct, that i5 doesn't have integrated graphics, I didn't realize that. That means the onboard graphics on the motherboard won't work. You'll have to get a dedicated graphics card.

Also, why do you have 40+GB 1080p videos? Even straight blu-ray rips aren't that big...

 

[Jetster]

You are correct, that i5 doesn't have integrated graphics, I didn't realize that. That means the onboard graphics on the motherboard won't work. You'll have to get a dedicated graphics card..

My bad didn't realize what i5 he was talking about. Just get one with integrated graphics

 

[newtekie1]

My bad didn't realize what i5 he was talking about. Just get one with integrated graphics

I think the point is he already has it.

 

[jonathan1107]

ATX is the size of the motherboard. Yes, you'd need at least a mid-sized PC case.


You are correct, that i5 doesn't have integrated graphics, I didn't realize that. That means the onboard graphics on the motherboard won't work. You'll have to get a dedicated graphics card.

Also, why do you have 40+GB 1080p videos? Even straight blu-ray rips aren't that big...

So if I got this right, if I were to use the mobo and CPU I linked, I'd have to consider getting a dedicated graphics card to compensate for the lack of "integrated graphics" in the i5 3350p.

• If I do this, I need to get a graphics card that includes audio drivers as well Correct? (in order to get video and sound through my 1x HDMI cable running from the Graphics Card HDMI out to my Marantz Receiver)

• And If I get a dedicated graphics card for that HTPC, which one would you suggest? (considering I'll do NO gaming, only playing movie files locally and streaming and web browsing)

And yes some full hd 1080p movies I have are Lossless video/audio @ 35+gb

• Which is why I ask again: Would the 2x items I linked along with a dedicated graphics card (prob add an SSD and a decent HDD) allow me to play them large video files without issues?

I'm a gaming/movie enthusiast... so yeah... that explains lossless formats

 

[jonathan1107]

Honestly, the HTPC streaming media directly from your computer would be the best option.

I'm not sure what you consider a lot of money, but you can build a pretty good HTPC for around $250, maybe even less if you use some spare/used parts.

Example: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/VWzMK8

Last thing I'm tryin to figure out is if I stick to my current Mobo/CPU combo (lga 1155 i5 etc...) or go with a small tiny PC like the ONE LINKED by newtekie1 just above this sentence. Thing is, I checked those parts on pcpartpciker.com and I wonder: How does that PC handle graphics? That amd processor, couldn't find mention of integrated graphics. Am I missing something?

 

[newtekie1]

So if I got this right, if I were to use the mobo and CPU I linked, I'd have to consider getting a dedicated graphics card to compensate for the lack of "integrated graphics" in the i5 3350p.

• If I do this, I need to get a graphics card that includes audio drivers as well Correct? (in order to get video and sound through my 1x HDMI cable running from the Graphics Card HDMI out to my Marantz Receiver)

• And If I get a dedicated graphics card for that HTPC, which one would you suggest? (considering I'll do NO gaming, only playing movie files locally and streaming and web browsing)

Correct, you'd need a dedicated graphics card.

All the modern graphics cards out have a built in audio device for outputing sound over HDMI.

You don't really need a super powerful GPU, even for high bitrate video decoding. Something like a GTX650 or R7 240 would do the job.

And yes some full hd 1080p movies I have are Lossless video/audio @ 35+gb

• Which is why I ask again: Would the 2x items I linked along with a dedicated graphics card (prob add an SSD and a decent HDD) allow me to play them large video files without issues?

I'm a gaming/movie enthusiast... so yeah... that explains lossless formats

Yeah, they should handle them no problem.

Last thing I'm tryin to figure out is if I stick to my current Mobo/CPU combo (lga 1155 i5 etc...) or go with a small tiny PC like the ONE LINKED by newtekie1 just above this sentence. Thing is, I checked those parts on pcpartpciker.com and I wonder: How does that PC handle graphics? That amd processor, couldn't find mention of integrated graphics. Am I missing something?

The processor has integrated graphics, just like all AMD APUs.

 

[jonathan1107]

Correct, you'd need a dedicated graphics card.

All the modern graphics cards out have a built in audio device for outputing sound over HDMI.

You don't really need a super powerful GPU, even for high bitrate video decoding. Something like a GTX650 or R7 240 would do the job.



Yeah, they should handle them no problem.
The processor has integrated graphics, just like all AMD APUs.

Thanks man for all them tips, really appreciated. helps a lot
was wondering (after reading your last post):

if the amd you mentionned has integrated graphics, how come the i5 3350p doesn't (even if that CPU is like 120$ more expensive).
I guess the bottom line question is:

What do I gain by going with the mobo/i5 cpu/dedicated graphics card (3350P)
that I wouldn't get should I go with the parts of pcpartspicker linked earlier?

EDIT: Thought I'd mention that I own a HARMONY smart control remote (with the app on my cell phone) I was wondering if I could use that to control my HTPC as well

 

[Aquinus]

if the amd you mentionned has integrated graphics, how come the i5 3350p doesn't (even if that CPU is like 120$ more expensive).

Intel CPUs are more expensive, period. P-edition CPUs are specifically missing the iGPU because it was removed which is why a discrete card would be required, in fact I think missing the iGPU is the only special thing about P-edition CPUs. If you got a different CPU that was a T, S, K, or regular edition CPU, it would have an iGPU on it.

 

[jonathan1107]

Intel CPUs are more expensive, period. P-edition CPUs are specifically missing the iGPU because it was removed which is why a discrete card would be required, in fact I think missing the iGPU is the only special ithing about P-edition CPUs. If you got a different CPU that was a T, S, K, or regular edition CPU, it would have an iGPU on it.

Basically I'm trying to make up my mind about the 2 possible scenarios. And I'd like to know what you guys would do:

• Would you build the htpc out of the components I already have? (i5 3350p + msi mobo that I linked)

• Or would you build the htpc from the ground up with a smaller case? (keep in mind I want enough horse power in my HTPC to handle LossLess 35gb+ 1080p movies)

• Also, if I were to go with the 1st option, what case would you recommend considering the mobo is atx? I'd like to find a rather small case even a mini one if the atx mobo can fit