Best media player for streaming to TV

[rrob311]

I am in the market for a Digital media player and was wondering what is a good one all around. I am interested in recording/streaming TV shows to my TV from the Computer and recording shows on satellite and playing them back with it. Is there one that allows you to output a satellite receiver into it to record shows?

 

[the_man_one]

vlc works but not exactly the way u want it to.... i use it from a sat card to stream to other computers media player classic home cinema does too

 

[Anole]

I think the problem is, none of the stand alone receivers want to do anything beyond writing a file to an attached USB hard drive.
I used to take the drive from my receiver, and attach it to a computer on my LAN.
To do what you're talking about, you would then need a media player (box) attached to the LAN to play the files.
I've evaluated the prospect of having a computer in the living room to hook to the TV, and grudgingly given up on that idea.

I have a Western Digital Live Plus box (under $100) hooked to my TV and LAN.
It has access to several computers on my network.
One runs Vista Media Center, to record HD OTA for network and local shows.
Another has downloads and ripped DVDs.
Storage on the LAN exceeds 7tb, currently.

The WD LP also lets you attach up to two USB drives directly.
What I've done in the past is unplug the drive from a satellite receiver and hook it directly to the WD for playback.

One thing I'm not doing, but others are, is to have a dedicated back-room computer with a satellite card, recording to a local hard drive.
Those recordings would be available on the local LAN, and accessible by the WD.

Likewise, youtube and Netflix (and more) can be accessed by the WD over the internet, so that opens many more options.

I'd shied away from a media player box for years, and finally gave in after being convinced by Linuxman.
It and the Silicon Dust, HD HomeRun OTA tuner have been my favorite toys in the last year.

There are many other ways to skin the cat, so read the threads in the
Free to Air PC DVB Discussion
department for more ideas.

 

[Lak7]

One thing I'm not doing, but others are, is to have a dedicated back-room computer with a satellite card, recording to a local hard drive.
Those recordings would be available on the local LAN, and accessible by the WD.

I do that. The WDMP can handle raw TS files, even the High Bit Rate stuff.

 

[Anole]

good point

I do that. The WDMP can handle raw TS files, even the High Bit Rate stuff.

Oh, and for those who can record 4:2:2 but can't play it, the WD will.
I have some high bit rate 4:2:2, and it looks/works great. - :up

 

[Magic Static]

One of the main reasons I bought the AZBox was to play my media(movies and DVD files). So far so good

 

[Tron]

Another WDTV Live user here. The box is an extraordinary value for what it does. I highly recommend it to anyone, even those with only an old SDTV.

 

[Dee_Ann]

Ditto on the WD Live Plus box. I bought one and hacked it to get even more features out of it. It works great. I'm not the brightest bulb on the string so it took me a while to figure out how to use it but once I caught on, I like it. I can see myself buying THREE more of them for the house here.

 

[Larry1]

I have one of the older Western Digital media players, the one without the network connection, and it is particular about the files it plays. (from an external hard disk or USB stick, as there is no network connection) If there are any glitches in the file, it will lockup the player. How is the newer WD Live box performance when the stream has glitches? The Patriot Box is another option that some friends have, but I have no experiance with it. (so I do not know how well it performs or if it will play the format from the satellite boxes)

 

[trinidex]

If you can find one... http://www.maxfair.com/av.asp?brand=techgear&item=mb902
I have the earlier 901

 

[avenger]

I do not know if there is a need to start a new thread on this discussion, but I am willing to discuss and learn about how to use the Western Digital Live Plus box.

So far there are a few of us who own this type of box, and maybe are also wiliing to share some of their experiences an knowledge conserning this little black Western Digital Live plus box.

I will start by saying that I have own my box for less than a month, and have only used this box to view some pictures from my old Western Digital external hard drive. I have PM Dee_Ann and also Anole, in which he suggested to either proceed with this thread or start a new one, I believe that if there are enough of us who own this little box, then maybe we all learn something on how to put this box to a much better use in the process.

I bought this box mainly to see what things can be accomplish with it, unfortunately it came without any instructions or a manual. It came with two cables, but I am using a HDMI cable connected from the Western Digital to the Tv.

If there is enough interest on this subject then it would be best to start a new and dedicated thread for this little black box.

Thank You.

 

[rrob311]

Well so far I guess that is the best box. I want something with a hard drive so I can save whatever I want.

 

[trinidex]

Well so far I guess that is the best box. I want something with a hard drive so I can save whatever I want.

The MB902 supports an internal HDD and USB storage.

I 2nd the suggestion of a new thread for the WDTV, I did some quick reading today and there's a ton of info and options about the box.

 

[jaray]

Have a look at the Patriot Box Office. It's been one of the first ones out there and does the job real well. I've had one of these since day one and can say I've burned through more Western Digital hard drives than this Patriot unit has even flinched.
But really, at the end of the day they all do the same stuff. If one didn't play one major file type, no one would be buying that one.

 

[osu1991]

The Western Digital Live Hub has it's own 1TB internal hard drive plus usb ports for external usb drives. It also has the ethernet connection to stream and transfer files around your network. I've bought 3 of them now and my dad added a Live Plus to go with the Live Hub I gave him. They play everything I throw at them. Personally I like the GUI on the Live Hub better than the Live Plus

 

[Tron]

I was window shopping at Best Buy today, and there is a new version of the WDTV Live out there now. The new hardware is similar to the Live Hub, and it has HDMI 1.4, which would suggest possible full HD 3D uses. I'm going to try to find out more about this new version, and post here what I learn.

 

[avenger]

It looks like we are getting some interested people more involved with this box.
I have done some research but not enough to understand most of the things that it is able to do. I will keep researching and playing with it, to see what else, or what other FTA functions are possible.

Thank you all for responding to this subject.

 

[zinco]

I have Apple TV 2 with XBMC and it works great for streaming. It does not know all the formats though.

 

[Tron]

Well, I can't seem to find much info on the new incarnation of the WDTV Live. It must be brand new, just out of the factory. I know from the box that it does everything the previous hardware version does plus adds built-in B/G/N WiFi and HDMI 1.4...

 

[jaytay]

I have a TViX M-6500A in my entertainment cabinet. I seems to handle everything that I throw at it.