Xtreamer media extender

[mvallevand]

There are so many new media extenders these days it is hard to keep track of them, here's the Xtreamer with a reasonable first review http://www.mpcclub.com/modules.php?name=...le&sid=794

It's noteworthy because the company is talking about open source and help for developers so it might be a potential client. I didn't order one yet since I am skeptical.

Martin

[martint123]

I get the impression there are lots of these devices popping up and within a group they are mainly differentiated by the on-board software - which must be quite a large portion of the development cost. So if they are muttering about open source, then I would be sceptical as well.

[pBS]

i do see it's not a sigma chip inside...Chipset * Realtek 128X (Special Edition)
tho with it being realtek, curious as it still doesn't have a gigabit networking...lol
[i assume that needs a real processor to keep up]
so am curious as to how much 'faster' the cpu chip is.....

and am wondering how different it would be to mvpmcx2? wouldn't it mean lots of changes?
[the different cpu/media play chip] require total rewrite?

it certainly *sounds* promising, definitely something to keep an eye out for..

[mvallevand]

I just put it as an FYI for people looking for cheap HD. At the current time I have no desire to try and port to the Xtreamer or any of the new Realtek RTD1283 devices. I will certainly read what about what is released and if I decide I can actually do better than PCH2 mode I might try. The same applies to the MediaMVP-HD and other new devices, I really have to be convinced it is worth the significant effort for sub and I.

Martin

[bavan]

Hi Martin,

the market today is overwelmed by RTD1073 devices with or without build in HDD or external HDD only. Any change those devices will be able to interface towards GBPVR as client or NMT alike player?

They are so cheap and full HD that it must be worth having a look at it.
This site has some more info on the latest models http://www.mpcclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21322

PS: I tried to find some info on this on the GBPVR forum without succes so correct me if I'm wrong but they are not supported yet as client, like the Hauppauge mediamvp, towards GBPVR?

[mvallevand]

My position hasn't changed too much since I wrote those posts in July or wrote to HtV here http://forums.nextpvr.com/showthread.php?t=42940

Martin

[bavan]

My position hasn't changed too much since I wrote those posts in July or wrote to HtV here http://forums.nextpvr.com/showthread.php?t=42940

Martin

Hi Martin, for me to understand this better, will the RTD1073 devices technically be able to interface as a NMT? They are available as from around 100€ in Europe.

If not should I use something like the Egreat EG-M34A HDMI Network Player
based on the SIGMA SMP8635 instead?

I know your favorit is Popcorn but they are at least twice the price of the above and refurbished very hard to get in Europe.

BR

[mvallevand]

No, the Realtek players will function only as media players but they won't have the GBPVR interface. They currently are also not as good at playing media as the NMT. They also aren't cheaper if you factor in my time in creating a GBPVR interface and I don't even own one. It doesn't make a lot of sense for me to spend $200 to buy a machine and then 200+ hours, wait six months so that GBPVR users can save $20 to have a machine that won't be as good as an NMT.

Actually the EGreat M34a is my "choice" recommendation because it has the power of the best NMT's and it is also affordable. The downside is the remote is missing a few keys, but I think in GBPVR now the only useful key missing is "Green", and I haven't had any support from the vendor. Popcorn Hour has been good to me and they are they only machines I test on.

You can't beat the price of the A100 refurb's especially in North America, but they don't have DTS downmix, or a power off switch and they aren't "new" with a full warranty, still with tight budget it's a good choice. I would have though GBPVR users would have bought out their stock.

Martin

[bavan]

Martin,

thanks for the explanation. I'm not sure whether your financial (ROI) calculation uses the same criteria as seen from a user point of view but I do appreciate very much the effort and number of hours you have spend in putting a master piece of software available to the mass public (as goes for SUB too). And just like that, as what a lot of people might take for granted and for free, which ofcourse I hope will remain unchanged.

I suppose taking your vision into account I then have to do some research on available NMT devices based on the Syabus firmware functionality to be able to use it as a GBPVR client. Unfortunately in Europe the Popcorn is about double the price of a RT1073 based device and some stated that NMTs typically based on the Sigma SMP8635 are inferior to the RT1073. One might wonder ... so much noise (comments, reviews, personal views ... wanna be the expert vision) on the internet is confusing people like myself so I'll follow your advice and go for the Sigma Syabus concept as if I understood your message correctly this is the best functioning NMT solution available towards GBPVR.

In the end we depend on a lot of goodwill of people like yourself and SUB who have the knowledge and willigness to put something together which is above the standard of mass consumption and profitability (big boys ...:p). I would like to thank you both very much for your contribution and good advice.

Just to make sure, is it correct to state any based SMP8635 device based on the Syabus firmware can be used as a NMT towards GBPVR? Maybe also the new upcoming Sigma chipset versions 864x/865x and higher (http://www.eminent-online.com/producten_...75&pg=27)? Just to make sure when searching the internet I select the best state of the art price/quality device available on the market at the moment. Remark: I hope I'm not simplifying things to much now.

To be continued ... development ...

[mvallevand]

No you cannot assume that any NMT will run GBPVR. I have the new Syabas C-200 NMT and it won't support GBPVR via mvpmcx2. Be careful when you use the term "NMT" some people use it to mean media extender, I use it to mean software using the Syabas Networked Media Tank firmware. That Eminent model is not an NMT.

So you should note that with the original NMT you won' be getting state-of-the-art. you probably are closer to end-of-life. With the exception of HE-LATM issue which is a sour point for me, I think the NMT can be a GBPVR client for broadcast media for years.

Martin