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Skiz
12-21-2009, 06:39 AM
I'm moving to a new house and will no longer be able to use one computer for all my media needs. I need to buy a computer that will be dedicated solely for downloading and watching movies and TV shows in the living room.

It does NOT need:

A hard drive. I will be buying a TB drive for it.
An optical drive. No need for one.

It DOES need:

To have the ability to handle any variation of 1080i/p movies.
HDMI output.

Since it will be sitting in my living room, I don't want a big tower. No way. I'm thinking a Shuttle or something. I've priced the Shuttle systems on their website and they're way more than what I want to spend, but I like the idea of the small machine. Anyone have any experience with a Dell Zino?

What are my best options? Price is a factor this time around.

colt45joe
12-21-2009, 07:27 AM
WD TV:

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/index.asp?cat=30

Play a world of HD media on your TV

HD video, photos and music - they're on your computer, on your USB drives, on the Internet, but how do you enjoy them on your TV? Now it's easy! Play a whole world of Full-HD, 1080p media on your big screen TV with the WD TV Live network-ready HD media player.

Detale
12-21-2009, 08:51 AM
hoi bud. Whay can't you use 1 computer? What are your current system specs. What is your current budget looking like?

The WDTV Live is great but it will not Download movies as Skizo said. It could be an option if you could DL movies on your computer and play them over Ethernet or even wirelessly. I have both the WDTV and the "Live" version get the Live one (http://www.wdc.com/en/products/index.asp?cat=30) ;) the option is a wireless USB adapter will work with it well.

I have tried almost every option when it comes to watching movies on the TV and the WDTV Live is BY FAR the easiest,most reliable and cheapest. It plays EVERYTHING DUDE. The original was good but didn't play about 75% of the X264/MKV rips we get this one plays em all.

EDIT: looked up the price on New egg- $119.99 Free Shipping

Skiz
12-21-2009, 09:03 AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ui30UGYagpo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7JLGACMBGs

Looks/Sounds like I would have to download data onto a portable drive with my PC and then take it into the living and plug it in to the WDTV machine. That is not something I am interested in doing at all.

I would like to have a machine like a Shuttle or something that I can put beside (or behind or whatever) the TV. Then put a wireless card in it and download the content directly via my home wifi.

EDIT:

I just updated my original post to be a tad more specific.

There isn't anything at all wrong with current computer but my new house is going to have the office on the other side of the house as my living room, thus the current PC will no longer work for that purpose.

ckrit
12-21-2009, 10:19 AM
My workmate just bought one of the new eee boxes, one with a dual core atom, and ion for graphics.

That's supposed to be able to handle full-hd.

EDit: Wait - he didn't buy one, he got an MSI DE200, instead. That's pretty much the same hardware, but with an ati chip for graphics and with a different casing, though.

It comes with a wireless card, hdmi and 7.1 sound, and it's pretty cheap.

Link (http://www.msi.com/index.php?func=proddesc&maincat_no=134&prod_no=1911)

They also come with 320GB drives, if you need the space and are willing to pay a little more.

His came with Win 7 Home Premium as well, the one on newegg only shows XP home.

Detale
12-21-2009, 04:09 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ui30UGYagpo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7JLGACMBGs

Looks/Sounds like I would have to download data onto a portable drive with my PC and then take it into the living and plug it in to the WDTV machine. That is not something I am interested in doing at all.

I would like to have a machine like a Shuttle or something that I can put beside (or behind or whatever) the TV. Then put a wireless card in it and download the content directly via my home wifi.

EDIT:

I just updated my original post to be a tad more specific.

There isn't anything at all wrong with current computer but my new house is going to have the office on the other side of the house as my living room, thus the current PC will no longer work for that purpose.


Thats why I recommend the WDTV Live (Live meaning WDTV v2) man. It can connect to your network via Ethernet or if you buy a wireless USB adapter you can read right from your computer hard drive. There is a list I'll find of recommended USB adapters out there but most people say you can use almost any one, even the cheapo models.

http://www.wdtvlive.com/tutorials/view/9/WD_TV_Live_Overview

EDIT:

From the WDTV Live page

Access media files on your home network - WD TV Live supports a direct Ethernet connection or a USB attached wireless connection to your home network. Click here (http://products.wdc.com/?id=wdfwdtv_live&type=wifi) to view compatible wireless-ready USB adaptors.

Trust me on this one dude. I know what you want as I chased it for soo long trying different ways of not having to physically move media from the computer to play it on the TV and this is it.

Skiz
12-21-2009, 05:06 PM
Could tell me a bit more about setting it up wirelessly? I wouldn't think that it would be able to stream 1080 content through a wireless USB adapter. :unsure:

@Snee - I'll look at those MSI machines as well. Thanks.

ckrit
12-21-2009, 08:36 PM
Have a look at the new eee box as well. He originally planned for that, to use it like you're talking about. He just went for the MSI because he got that cheaper.

Appzalien
12-22-2009, 01:54 AM
The WD Live is on sale this week at Best Buy (at least in my area), down from $149 to $119.

Skiz
12-22-2009, 04:55 AM
The more I think about it, the more I can't even see the point in WDTV. At least not for me.

If you still have to download the programs/movies with a computer, why not just use that computer to play them as well? :unsure:

Detale
12-22-2009, 06:01 AM
Price mostly. It's a great solution for a very reasonable price. For me it was exactly what I was looking for.

Skiz
12-22-2009, 08:23 AM
I looked at the EEE machine Snee. They all have Intel Atom processors and I don't see how those will run 1080. I have an Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz) in my netbook and it's not all that fast just browsing. I can't even watch YouTube "HD" with it. :unsure:

I like the Dell Zino, but its more than I want to spend. It's absolutely ideal tho'.

I don't think I'm going to be able to find what I want for what I'm willing to spend. :dabs:

ckrit
12-22-2009, 09:07 AM
It's a dual core atom combined with an ion chip, mang.

I think he looked at the EB1501.

It might have issues with downsampling, if you want to play hd content on a lower res, dunno, but playing full hd works, according to asus and a bunch of people at different forums.

-oBc81lGq1k

Advertisement type of deal^

Skiz
12-22-2009, 09:39 PM
Could you maybe expand on that first sentence as I'm a bit confused? I've gone to the EEE Box (http://event.asus.com/eeepc/microsites/eeebox/en/specifications.html) website and looked at the 5 different models. It looks like the best processor is the Atom N270 1.6, which is the exact same as my netbook has, and it can't play anything close to HD. I also Googled around and read 3 or 4 reviews for them and every one said they were OK for internet and word processing but not much else. Not saying you're wrong or anything, but I'm just not seeing what you're seeing. :unsure:

Also, I found this online and it looks pretty solid. I'd just need to buy a new HDD. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250549403064&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en

Thoughts on this one anyone?

Snee
12-22-2009, 10:17 PM
Looks ok to me. I'd prolly want to change out the graphics card for a gt 240 or something, myself (similar performance but uses less power). I like the case, have considered it myself for a future project. If he's not managed to bork something it ought to be cool.


And the Atom in the new Eee box (also shown in the video I linked above) is called the 330 or something like that, it's a later model, I've no idea why it's not possible to see anything about it on the site, then, you can already order them from here. I had a look at your newegg earlier, though, and no Eee box using it is available there, yet, iirc. The MSI I was talking about uses the same one, I think.

Edit:

On second thought, I'd like to know more about what psu is in there, before I bought it, as well.

Skiz
12-23-2009, 08:11 PM
It had a 300W psu. I put in a snipe of max $150 and it sold for $209 + $15 for shipping.

Back to the drawing board.

Artemis
12-27-2009, 05:00 PM
If you are prepared to build a machine rather than buy a box then look at Zotac, they have a new series of atom based ITX boards using the NVidia ION chipset. This chipset is a huge advance over the Intel ICH7 based atom offerings, it supports dual channel RAM has an integrated NVidia 9400M IGP with DVI & HDMI connectors. The 9400M fully supports PureVideoHD so can
can decode HD codecs on the card. It also has wireless N built in:
http://www.zotacusa.com/zotac-ionitx-a-u-atom-n330-1-6ghz-dual-core-mini-itx-intel-motherboard.html

and if you want a stunning case to wrap around the M/B you can't go past the Luxa2 mini 100:
http://www.luxa2.com/products/enclosure/lm100-mini/design.html

all you need is RAM and a hard drive and your good to go :D

Detale
12-28-2009, 02:07 AM
Well and a case, keyboard, and mouse as well :P

Artemis
12-28-2009, 03:10 AM
Well and a case, keyboard, and mouse as well :P

errr no the case is listed in my last post speshal boi, or at least my suggestion on an excellent htpc case, and it includes a VFD display
and remote controller with the kit, so if it is purely a media PC then
the keyboard & mouse are strictly optional ?????? (apart from during the set up ofc)

Detale
12-28-2009, 04:13 AM
YOU EDITED.... then slickly removed the "Last edited by Artemis" bit from the bottom! Well either that or I just missed that completely, damn I suck :(

What I will say is that remote sucks. The same one shipped with my Thermaltake DH-102 HTPC case and i hated the thing. I ended up getting this adesso wireless mini keyboard with a trackball on it. That worked out well

http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/peripherals/adesso_WKB-3000UB/images/009.jpg

I also just looked up that case and it's nice and all but the cheapest version is $300 :shutup:

Artemis
12-28-2009, 10:53 AM
Luxa 2 is a division of thermaltake and yes they use the same medialab software and remote.

I actually have two htpc's one in the lounge and a 2nd one I stream media to in the bedroom. The main htpc I have has the Microsoft ehome blaster with the MS beanbag remote and the MS multimedia keyboard, but the second PC I bought a little no name brand chinese remote which is a. very small and b. has a mouse built into it and it works brilliantly, I paid $28 for it so I would be surprised if the thing was $10USD, and when I need a keyboard I plug a USB one in (which is infrequently).
Back to Skiz's build, I suggested the Luxa 2 mini ITX case because it is a very high quality case but there are many other mini ITX cases out there, most manufacturers are now building desktop htpc & mini tower ITX cases, Aywun is a very cheap but good alternative, or for another take on an ITX htpc case look at the OriginAE mini ITX case.

It depends what you are after really, if you do not want a VFD or LCD display on the case then any mini ITX case will do, I just think that the Luxa 2 design is one of the best I have seen.

Detale
12-28-2009, 08:25 PM
The Luxa2 is a nice case but the TT DH-102 is nicer:naughty:

Artemis
12-28-2009, 11:10 PM
The Luxa2 is a nice case but the TT DH-102 is nicer:naughty:

That's right, I forgot about your A.D.D. , we are talking about a mini ITX solution here, remember skiz wanted something SMALL, a DH102 isn't exactly small, it is nice but it's not even remotely small :whistling

megabyteme
12-28-2009, 11:22 PM
I only glanced through this thread and it seems you are interested in some form of HTPC, which is what I thought I needed. So I build one. It has been just fine, but I had to find a way to turn it on remotely, and then navigate to folders, etc.

I recently bought an Asus O!Play. It does everything I need it to in the living room. Actually, I will be moving the rest of my PCs around, because I have found I don't need the HTPC in the living room anymore.

The Asus has the ability to hook up to a network. And has USB along with eSATA connections. I am really happy with it. It is entirely capable of 1080p and I have not found, or heard of a codec it does not have. Firmware upgrades also add future functionality, ofc.

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-Play-Media-Player-Black/dp/B002MCZJ3C

Or

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16815293008

I paid $87.99 w/ shipping and a free HDMI cable right before Christmas.

ryan20021982
12-29-2009, 02:44 AM
I only glanced through this thread and it seems you are interested in some form of HTPC, which is what I thought I needed. So I build one. It has been just fine, but I had to find a way to turn it on remotely, and then navigate to folders, etc.

I recently bought an Asus O!Play. It does everything I need it to in the living room. Actually, I will be moving the rest of my PCs around, because I have found I don't need the HTPC in the living room anymore.

The Asus has the ability to hook up to a network. And has USB along with eSATA connections. I am really happy with it. It is entirely capable of 1080p and I have not found, or heard of a codec it does not have. Firmware upgrades also add future functionality, ofc.

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-Play-Media-Player-Black/dp/B002MCZJ3C

Or

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16815293008

I paid $87.99 w/ shipping and a free HDMI cable right before Christmas.

I second that I just got one for my parents for christmas cause I'm tired of burning discs for them and its perfect. Only thing it don't have is the ability to decode 5.1 dts but it can pass it to a a/v receiver.

Skiz
12-29-2009, 07:27 AM
I only glanced through this thread and it seems you are interested in some form of HTPC, which is what I thought I needed. So I build one. It has been just fine, but I had to find a way to turn it on remotely, and then navigate to folders, etc.

I recently bought an Asus O!Play. It does everything I need it to in the living room. Actually, I will be moving the rest of my PCs around, because I have found I don't need the HTPC in the living room anymore.

The Asus has the ability to hook up to a network. And has USB along with eSATA connections. I am really happy with it. It is entirely capable of 1080p and I have not found, or heard of a codec it does not have. Firmware upgrades also add future functionality, ofc.

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-Play-Media-Player-Black/dp/B002MCZJ3C

Or

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16815293008

I paid $87.99 w/ shipping and a free HDMI cable right before Christmas.

Looks nice, but like the WDTV it isn't for me. I need an all in one solution and not extra components to go along with a PC.

brightsid
12-31-2009, 08:56 AM
If you want something in a small size that can play everything I suggest to check ION solutions. For example something like that
http://www.asrock.com/nettop/spec/ION%20330.asp

P2PDog
01-04-2010, 08:58 PM
Are any of you guys with the WDTV Live Media Player using it to connect to a linux box? If so, could you explain your Samba setup? I'm a complete noob when it comes to windows networking, and I can't seem to get a proper network share set up. I've got everything installed and running OK by the looks of things, I can connect to the box, but I'm getting a message that there's no media in the shared folder. Any tips, tricks, or sample samba configs would be great :)

Detale
01-05-2010, 01:59 AM
Sure man. Now I'm not using Linux I'm using Windows 7. Start a new thread so we don't hijack Skizo's and let me know your exact setup. If you are using Win7 though you just have to right click on the shared folders then select share with>specific people then from the pulldown menu at the top select "everyone" and click "add" then "everyone will appear at the bottom make sure you have the permissions there set to read/write. If you have more questions start a new thread and I'm sure I can help you figure it out.

P2PDog
01-05-2010, 02:17 AM
Whatever the error was I think I broke enough things until I fixed it :) I'm up and running now, and I have to say, this thing really rocks! I was going to go with the base model, but I'm glad I spent the few extra bucks for the Live version. Thanks for the recommendation (and the offer to help). Much appreciated!

Detale
01-05-2010, 02:34 AM
No problem man.

Hoi Skizo what did you wind up doing anyway?

Skiz
01-09-2010, 06:16 AM
Still shopping on/off. :dabs:

I've been moving and working on my new house for the past two weeks. I'm also in the process of building two desks for my office so I haven't even setup my PC. Right now I'm just on the netbook.

I do want to get something put together but I can't seem to find just the right thing.

I like those ASRock ION 330 machines but they take 2.5" drives and use the minimum specs for driving 1080p.

I'd really like to get a Shuttle but they want too much money these days.

I think the best option is going to be some sort full size horizontal type case. I'm pretty much still at square one though.

Detale
01-09-2010, 11:34 PM
orsum then. I still vote for a WDTV Live dude :P You could have been watching movies easily by now.

P2PDog
01-10-2010, 04:12 AM
orsum then. I still vote for a WDTV Live dude :P You could have been watching movies easily by now.

I'll second that.

I'm quite happy with mine. It's the best purchase I've made since I started torrenting. For price/functionality/convenience it just can't be beat. It's tiny, completely silent, and it's played every single thing I've thrown at it so far, including the .avi files from my Canon camera which neither of my divx players would play.

Skiz
01-11-2010, 10:08 PM
orsum then. I still vote for a WDTV Live dude :P You could have been watching movies easily by now.

Not without running all of the wiring down a hallway, through the doorway, and across my living room. :dabs:

I've been watching eBay and Craigslist pretty closely and I'll find something on one of those soon enough I suppose.

Detale
01-12-2010, 04:16 AM
You can get the WDTV Live to run wirelessly man with many different USB wireless adapters dude. I do hope you find what you are looking for though. Why not build what you want? What budget are you working with?

Skiz
01-12-2010, 05:33 AM
I was trying to keep it under $400, but it looks like $600 is a more realistic price.

Detale
01-12-2010, 05:11 PM
$400 no prob :)

LITE-ON Black 24X DVD Writer (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106334) 29.99

APEX MI-008 Black Steel Mini-ITX Tower (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811154091) 39.99

Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136098) 47.99 (could go smaller for less $$)
G.SKILL 2GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098) 49.99

ZOTAC IONITX-A-U Atom (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500027) 184.99(-$20 rebate, bringing it down to $164)



Grand total $352.95 and shipping to me is only 13.99. The assembly is NOTHING dude most anyone here can talk you through it shit I'll even write a tutorial for you. as for a keyboard/remote you will have to pick what you want but the adesso one I recommended is great and about $50 most places ;) so there's your $400 price.

Skiz
01-14-2010, 08:17 PM
I wrote up a long post yesterday but it was during the "downtime" tesco mentioned. :dabs:

Anyhow, the short story is that ION330 is what I'll end up going with and probably the "ZOTAC IONITX-A-U Atom" that you linked. The 330 is what Snee was suggesting from jump street but I just couldn't see how that would push 1080. Though I'll admit that everywhere I look is another positive review of the 330.

I won't be finished building my desks until probably Sunday, so after those are done and I get my office all set up, I'll start on this project. Pics to follow, I suppose. :)

EDIT: Can I put a 1TB drive in it? :unsure:

Detale
01-14-2010, 10:16 PM
Sure bud, drive size shouldn't matter one bit. The ram however does it will only use 800 Mhz so if you buy anything faster it will "underclock" the ram.

Artemis
01-15-2010, 01:16 AM
The zotac board can take standard 3.5" SATA Drives so you could put whatever size drive you wish in. If you looked at the different specs though the Zotac f-e board also gives you an e-sata connector in addition so this maybe something to factor into the build: http://www.zotacusa.com/zotac-ionitx-f-e-atom-n330-1-6ghz-dual-core-mini-itx-intel-motherboard.html i.e. having the ability to add an external drive.
The f-e board also takes a standard case mounted psu as an added bonus.

Detale
01-15-2010, 02:31 AM
Hoi Art, good to see you. I look at it having an on board psu as the added bonus in this case. One less component to install/worry about.

Skiz
01-19-2010, 10:07 PM
$400 no prob :)

LITE-ON Black 24X DVD Writer (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106334) 29.99 - Don't need. I'll install Windows 7 from a USB.

APEX MI-008 Black Steel Mini-ITX Tower (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811154091) 39.99 - Bought

Western Digital Caviar Blue 320GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136098) 47.99 (could go smaller for less $$) - Bought Samsung TB drive (7200 rpm / 32 MB) for $79.

G.SKILL 2GB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098) 49.99 - Bought.

ZOTAC IONITX-A-U Atom (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500027) 184.99(-$20 rebate, bringing it down to $164) - Bought.

Grand total $352.95 and shipping to me is only 13.99. The assembly is NOTHING dude most anyone here can talk you through it shit I'll even write a tutorial for you. as for a keyboard/remote you will have to pick what you want but the adesso one I recommended is great and about $50 most places ;) so there's your $400 price.

Now I need a wireless keyboard/mouse combo. Are there any that have recharging docks that won't break the bank? :dabs:

Tell me more about remotes too. :yup:

Detale
01-20-2010, 12:26 AM
orsum man. ok well as I mentioned the adesso wireless keyboard is really pretty good. The only remote I have is the one that came with my Thermaltake DH-102 case and TBH, I hated it. Navigating with it really sucked ass trying to move a cursor with a joystic type control is too weird for me. For me the trackball was waay easier getting used to.

iLOVENZB
01-20-2010, 11:09 AM
...

Artemis
01-20-2010, 12:31 PM
A remote as a media controller is different than a remote as an input device.
If you are using the computer only as a media center then the functions can all be run from a remote with a keyboard/mouse a secondary consideration for changing configuration/updating software etc.
This all depends on whether the computer is going to be used to do standard computery things as well as as a media controller, ie web surf, email, gaming etc.
If the system is just to be a media controller, ie the media center app starts at bootup then a remote control is more than adequate since all of the inputs within the media center can be run from the remote control, in which case here is one you may like: http://www.xpcgear.com/xphavistabk.html
the website itself xpcgear www.xpcgear.com has alot of different remote solutions but bang for your buck this is one of the nicest & it will work with all versions of Media Center.
If you want a more conventional keyboard/mouse etc, the Logitech S510 gives you a remote keyboard/mouse & remote in one package
www.logitech.com

brightsid
01-22-2010, 09:47 PM
I enjoy the use of remote control with media portal also . Of course I need the keysonic 540RF when I want to change the setup of the htpc but it's not an everyday job. I like the way dinovo mini looks but it's to small to be an easy to use keyboard/mouse.

I'm trying to setup Iphone as a remote but there are a few bugs that must be solved

Skiz
01-23-2010, 05:16 PM
I am not happy.

The new HTPC I've just finished building, sucks. :dry:

I've installed Win 7 64 bit as well as the the most basic necessities for downloading - Newsleecher, Winrar, Core Media Player, and CCCP (codec pack). However, 720 content is borderline unwatchable.

720 content skips a bit at the first 10 seconds or so and then clears up 99%. 1080 on the other hand is a joke. I've tried downloading one 1080 trailer online as well as two movies and all were horrific. I'm talking maybe two frames per second, if that. I've tried Core Media Player and WMP Classic Home Cinema and the results were identical.

My knee-jerk reaction right now is to sell the thing and try to recoup my money, but I'd like some opinions first. Also, here is the WEI:


Processor: 3.3
Memory: 4.5
Graphics: 4.4
Gaming graphics: 5.3
Primary hard disk: 5.9

brightsid
01-23-2010, 05:51 PM
Check the link above. It's probably a codec problem
http://nunnally.ahmygoddess.net/watching-h264-videos-using-compute-unified-device-architecture-cuda/

Skiz
01-23-2010, 06:10 PM
Only nVidia cards that supported CUDA and has PureVideo 2, 3 and 4 can use the new CoreAVC 2 with CUDA. ATI/Intel users are out of luck.

:no:

I highly doubt that it's a codec issue anyhow. I have downloaded the exact media player and exact codec pack that I use for my main desktop and everything runs flawlessly there.

CCCP is an excellent codec pack that hasn't failed me in the past. Seeing as all three 1080 videos using different codecs all played at the same level of shit, and even the 720 files to a slight extent, I'm very reluctant to point the finger at a codec.

brightsid
01-23-2010, 06:43 PM
What's the chipset of the htpc?

Snee
01-23-2010, 06:50 PM
I don't really do forums atm, just in to check my pms, but this caught my eye, and since I had a hand in recommending it, I did a quick search for stuff to halp you.

Random thread. (http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/p/78005/386016.aspx)
The guy in there had to enable hardware acceleration and do some other tweaks, now it's cool.

From what I understand by looking around it does some horribad software-only decoding from the get-go. And combined with a couple of cpu-hungry filters (normally it's not a problem but I guess the atom is speshul) like the ffd-show included in cccp, it gets bad.

EDit:

It does have an nvidia chip, see, that's the Ion. Which afaik supports the core avc you were talking about.

brightsid
01-23-2010, 08:22 PM
It does have an nvidia chip, see, that's the Ion. Which afaik supports the core avc you were talking about.
Unless it's s330 with intel 945 chipset

Artemis
01-23-2010, 08:53 PM
It does have an nvidia chip, see, that's the Ion. Which afaik supports the core avc you were talking about.
Unless it's s330 with intel 945 chipset
It helps to read the whole thread......cuts down on guessing that way, the motherboard skiz purchased is listed earlier in this thread - an ION based mini ITX board.

Skiz, I'm really NOT trying to dance on your grave after the purchase but one of the reasons for the F-E zotac board which I suggested is that it includes a PCI-e slot, although an extra cost, this does give you an upgrade path in case the 9400m IGP sucked ( it really shouldn't suck though, it is a 9xxx series NVidia chip with PureVideoHD using hardware decode) the 16 stream processors & 4 ROPS should be more than adequate.
Snee's suggestion that hardware decode is not enabled by default seems to be one of the only logical ones, if the chipset is not using the 9400M to decode but is instead relying on the Atom CPU then playback would indeed be awful, the Atom is a low power CPU.

brightsid
01-23-2010, 09:19 PM
Unless it's s330 with intel 945 chipset
It helps to read the whole thread......cuts down on guessing that way, the motherboard skiz purchased is listed earlier in this thread - an ION based mini ITX board.
I've read the whole thread and suggested a ha setup for the ION nvidia chipset . Then he just quoted the intel/ati exception and yes after that I was just guessing :D.

Skiz
01-23-2010, 09:41 PM
Thanks for the suggestions fellas. I'm gonna start with the link that Snee posted and then one-by-one start troubleshooting with the subsequent posts.

EDIT: I noticed that when playing 1080 content, the CPU is running at 100%. I dunno how that guy got his running at only 20%...

Detale
01-24-2010, 12:11 AM
Damn dude I'm sorry your initial experience sucks. Lets not be hasty and sell it just yet. We'll figure this out toots sweet so don't panic ;)

Have you downloaded and installed the latest bios and stuff (http://www.zotacusa.com/zotac-ionitx-a-u-atom-n330-1-6ghz-dual-core-mini-itx-intel-motherboard.html) from the website yet? Usually things like chipset drivers will help.

I have and am now reading many people who love it and have no issues playing 1080 with no problems at all. I mean in the first review (http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=334&Itemid=69&limit=1&limitstart=13) I could find they said "Add to the integrated GeForce 9400m GPU a fully-native HDMI 1.3a connection, and the ION platform serves video to 1080p HDTV's better than most media players." seriously this is not a typical result as per a quick google search.

Could be the drivers at is would seem from this (http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=101015) forum post. Try what they said and get back to us bud. Hope this fixes ya up man ;)

EDIT to your EDIT: It shouldn't be running at 100% just from playing video man. Not even 1080p it's shouldn't be a system intensive thing playing 1080 Mkv's. I'll keep looking as well.

lee551
01-24-2010, 10:22 PM
I use an Acer Revo for my HTPC, which also has an Atom processor (only 230 though) and Nvidia ION graphics. I have a Ubuntu/Win7 dual-boot set up, and I did have to enable hardware acceleration in Windows to get smooth HD playback.

This (http://www.legitreviews.com/article/934/11/) ION review shows the differences in CPU usage with hardware acceleration on (15%) and off (98%).

Hope you get it solved, HTPCs are the best.

Detale
01-25-2010, 02:44 AM
Good article Lee, I do however disagree. Although HTPC's are in fact awesome the WDTV live is the best! :P I did just come across XBMC and I have never used it. I am going to scrap together an HTPC to check out XBMC for research purposes ;)

lee551
01-25-2010, 07:54 PM
Good article Lee, I do however disagree. Although HTPC's are in fact awesome the WDTV live is the best! :P I did just come across XBMC and I have never used it. I am going to scrap together an HTPC to check out XBMC for research purposes ;)

:lol: Detale. I guess I meant "the best" in contrast to not having something to sling media. I fully respect your WDTV love. In fact, I'll admit I wasn't real familiar with them when I bought my Revo. I'd probably suggest them first now to any friends due to their ease of use and ridiculously low price ($120 say whaaat??).

I just like to make things hard for myself I guess. The freedom to scrap it all and start over with XBMC/Boxee/MythTV/etc is nice though.

Skiz
01-25-2010, 10:47 PM
OK, it took a shit-ton of work but I finally got it working. :yay:

The really short story is, I reinstalled Windows 7 Ultimate 64 to properly clear out all of the codecs that CCCP installed.

Installed CoreAVC codecs and checked CUDA hardware acceleration option by going through the loooooong tutorial for setting it up. I couldn't get it to work properly though. It said the taskbar/quick launch icon would be green if being used and blue if not and I never could get it to show green, so.... :idunno:

I overclocked the processor to 2.0 (1.999 actually) and that seemed to do wonders. Now, movies that were taking 100% CPU and were completely unwatchable are now playing perfectly and only utilizing 7 - 13% CPU. :01:

Detale
01-25-2010, 11:02 PM
Fantastic Skizo! Glad to hear all is well. So it is playing 1080p now or... I ask because i am planning on getting one for my Brother soon. How does it act with general computer stuff? Internet and such.

iLOVENZB
01-26-2010, 12:07 AM
Why can't WD TV Live play RMVB?
http://www.wdtvlive.com/products/which

Detale
01-26-2010, 03:51 AM
It can with the "B-Rad" firmware ;) and honestly what the hell are you using Real formats for? Is this the 90's :P

Skiz
01-26-2010, 04:07 AM
Fantastic Skizo! Glad to hear all is well. So it is playing 1080p now or... I ask because i am planning on getting one for my Brother soon. How does it act with general computer stuff? Internet and such.

Yep. Playing 1080 stuffs just fine.

I wouldn't try playing games on it or anything but otherwise it seems OK. There's a small lag when opening Firefox or IE. Videos take a couple seconds to open, etc.

Now that I have everything tweaked, its quite nice. :)

Detale
01-26-2010, 04:31 AM
Glad to hear it bud ;)

Skiz
02-04-2010, 06:30 AM
:D


On the 46" LCD.


http://i49.tinypic.com/i50wo1.jpg



I'm still shopping for just the right keyboard though. I really want the Logitech diNovo Edge because it's rechargeable, but I refuse to pay that much. :no:

Artemis
02-04-2010, 01:04 PM
I'm still shopping for just the right keyboard though. I really want the Logitech diNovo Edge because it's rechargeable, but I refuse to pay that much.

Actually while browsing around the other day I came across this and thought of you (well me too).
http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/product_a1_1_1&lv0=3&lv1=12&no=53

It's not a rechargeable bluetooth solution like the Di Novo, but it's not an arm & a leg either ($84.99 @ newegg).

Detale
02-04-2010, 02:08 PM
Damn that things looks cool as hell, good find Artie