9 replies to this topic

[stripe157]

Hello all.
After spending too much money making a server from my desktop's old mb and cpu, I decided to recommend this alternative (ASUS TS Mini with the Atom N280) for my parents. Not that they need it now, but being able to stream video will be quite the selling point. Simply put, is the Atom N280 capable of streaming video? They have DVDs, but few HD movies at the moment.
Thanks!

[GaPony]

If they have a fast network, and if they stream to something like a WD TV Live or Asus O!Play, then it won't be much of a problem. If you mean stream to something like an X-Box360 or PS3, it could prove to be quite problematic.

[stripe157]

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, they would likely use an xbox as an extender. It's something they already have and so wouldnt require an additional expenditure. I find that interesting... That the receiving device dictates the "processing power" required of the sending device (to end up with an acceptable video). Unless maybe these other devices allow different file formats. Is that the difference?
Their network is wired cat5, so plenty fast I guess.

[wardog]

I think Ga was referring to doing any/the transcoding on the TS. That would, I'll assume, be very problematic for the TS.

Now, if it's just pitching native formats across the network, it should be fine(ie: to the WD Live, O!Play, or the like)

[GaPony]

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, they would likely use an xbox as an extender. It's something they already have and so wouldnt require an additional expenditure. I find that interesting... That the receiving device dictates the "processing power" required of the sending device (to end up with an acceptable video). Unless maybe these other devices allow different file formats. Is that the difference?
Their network is wired cat5, so plenty fast I guess.

The device that is receiving the movie from the server makes all the difference. Since the X-Box is very limited as far as the formats it processes natively, you'll find that most of your movies will likely require transcoding from the server. In the end, your friend can save money by buying a WDTV (WDTV Live Plus for netflix capability). O!Play or similar box. Its going to be cheaper than the hardware needed to bring the server up to the power he needs. It will give better performance than the X-Box and only uses 5-10w compared to the 130w, or so, required by the X-Box. He also won't have to mess around with the somewhat finicky extender software necessary for the X-Box. Another big plus is that the WDTV and O!Play are absolutely silent, as opposed to the jet engine background noise from the X-Box. (You can also pretty much interchange PS3 & X-Box for the purpose of this discussion)

A gigabit LAN with CAT6 cables is preferred, but the CAT5 will probably work. If he hasn't bought cables yet, definitely get the CAT6 cables. They won't cost any more.

[stripe157]

The device that is receiving the movie from the server makes all the difference. Since the X-Box is very limited as far as the formats it processes natively, you'll find that most of your movies will likely require transcoding from the server. In the end, your friend can save money by buying a WDTV (WDTV Live Plus for netflix capability). O!Play or similar box. Its going to be cheaper than the hardware needed to bring the server up to the power he needs. It will give better performance than the X-Box and only uses 5-10w compared to the 130w, or so, required by the X-Box. He also won't have to mess around with the somewhat finicky extender software necessary for the X-Box. Another big plus is that the WDTV and O!Play are absolutely silent, as opposed to the jet engine background noise from the X-Box. (You can also pretty much interchange PS3 & X-Box for the purpose of this discussion)

A gigabit LAN with CAT6 cables is preferred, but the CAT5 will probably work. If he hasn't bought cables yet, definitely get the CAT6 cables. They won't cost any more.

Ok, so the place is wired with Cat5E. The office/computer room is adjacent to the living room so it would be fairly easy to change if new wiring is required. The current weak link here (to my knowledge) is, however, the 2Wire (model 1000) DSL modem router that i'm sure is 10/100 Mbps. Previously I assumed that if it was hard wired --even if going through a 10/100 router--that throughput would NOT be one of their problems.
The few DVD's i've ripped were into .avi format. I put them on my Vail server, gave guests read access, and when I went to my XBox it recognized them and played the first 30 seconds with acceptable quality (the server was set to stream low quality). I haven't had time to really tweak it to raise the quality, but the point is: it was painless. This is why I started them down this path.
At the moment the TS is ordered, along with an additional 1TB drive. When it gets there I'll set up the computer backups, and start the sell for another device... likely the WDTV)

[stripe157]

What format is ideal for the limitations of a 10/100 Mbps bottleneck but yet are within the capabilities of this ASUS TS? My favorite program to convert with is handbrake, and what I would like to teach them to use... it's free.

[GaPony]

The router isn't really much of a bottleneck for anything except maybe a high bitrate HD movie. If it becomes an issue, you could simply run a cable from the router to a gigabit switch. Then connect the server and other PCs (and media devices) to the switch. This would provide gigabit speeds between devices connected to the switch and 100mbs connection between the switch and the router, out to the internet, which is way more than enough.

As far as best format to use for a 100mbs network... Its not a question of formats as much as bitrates. Even Blu-Rays max out at around 50Mbs, so they should play over a 100mbs network. The problem is with the formats that a particular device can play natively, without conversion/re-encoding from the server. The X-Box is horrible for supporting anything but the most basic formats. The PS3 fairs better as it can handle HD (.m2ts) natively. By far, the small digital media players are best because they handle virtually everything.

Handbrake is ok, but pretty slow. I would recommend Xvid4PSP (6.001 Beta). I thinks its a little faster, easy to use and you have alot more control over the output size/quality/format. It does require Net Framework 3.0, but most people have that installed anyway through Microsoft Updates. .MP4/ .M4v is probably the best option for the XBox, and Divx (Xvid) /.AVI would be my second choice.

Unless making fairly long runs (over 50-60ft), Cat5e is probably just fine.

I hope this helps.

[wardog]

I would recommend Xvid4PSP (6.001 Beta).

Is that the correct link GaPony?

Somehow, all it wants to do here is download(install?) MS's Silverlight when clicking on the displayed graphic?

[wardog]

Is that the correct link GaPony?

Somehow, all it wants to do here is download(install?) MS's Silverlight when clicking on the displayed graphic?

It would "appear' that they have ceased supporting the OFFICIAL XviD4PSP releases and some fervent users have taken to updating it.

http://forum.videohelp.com/threads/309490-Winnydows-is-not-supporting-Xvid4PSP-any-longer