Mediagate MG-35 -- new firmware available [Text View] - Page 14

nhousty

01-05-07, 05:16 AM

Here is picture of the setting section of my current version of the web page.

http://i10.tinypic.com/2a7e5wo.png

Here is a current picture of the network information page that i have been working on.

http://i16.tinypic.com/2lntj49.png

I pretty much have the information that you can change on the setup screen being displayed on the web page.
I have a few tricks to do with xml backend files so we could have a browseable web page. that uses javascript and is all done by the web browser not the server. (But this would require a hand edited xml file).

(I should work out how to make a video of my desktop to show all the features I have done)

BitBasher

01-05-07, 12:38 PM

Fantastic. The MG25 firmware usually runs one rev number ahead of the MG-35 and perhaps 3 months earlier. So I was considering cross-flashing my MG-35 to see if any bugs (critical to me) were fixed. Obviously I would lose the network stuff missing on an MG-25. And given Al Tech has not responded to my question regarding cross-flashing, we need to split and join an MG-25 firmware version such as 1.4.7 without the bootloader. That would allow us to recover via serial if cross-flashing bricks the MG-35. Note that cross-flashing an MG-35 with MG-350HD firmware is not possible because it's nearly twice as big as MG-35 firmware and the MG-35 doesn't have enough memory. :(

Done! I've quickly hacked MG25 support into mg35tool. I've tested it briefly, but not extensively. It does seem to split the MG25 upgrade file into the boot, linux, and cramfs files properly. Also, I can re-join the pieces and get a binary match to the original upgrade file (if I use -v to set the correct version). If you are splitting an MG25 upgrade file, make sure to use the "-t mg25" option.

The headers for the MG25 are different from the MG35 and MG350HD, so I just hacked in new structures and duplicate functions - it's brute force but it should be acceptable.

The special MG25 version is here: MG35TOOL with MG25 upgrade file support (http://bitbasher.net/mg350hd/mg35tool_mg25.rar)

Please feel free to incorporate these changes into the mg35tool's SVN repository, if you so desire.

Bit.

TheKrell

01-05-07, 02:14 PM

Done! I've quickly hacked MG25 support into mg35tool. Very nice, BB. I successfully split the MG-25 1.4.7 firmware using the -t mg25 option, and joined it again using -t mg35.

What do you think the probabililty is that this cross-flash will work in an MG-35? I'm worried about various NV memory items, such as the MAC address, which might get overwritten by the MG-25 firmware with something else, such as the repeat-folder on/off state. When the killer jpeg does this, it renders an MG-35 (using MG-35 firmware) unbootable.

BitBasher

01-05-07, 02:53 PM

Very nice, BB. I successfully split the MG-25 1.4.7 firmware using the -t mg25 option, and joined it again using -t mg35.

What do you think the probabililty is that this cross-flash will work in an MG-35? I'm worried about various NV memory items, such as the MAC address, which might get overwritten by the MG-25 firmware with something else, such as the repeat-folder on/off state. When the killer jpeg does this, it renders an MG-35 (using MG-35 firmware) unbootable.
I don't know how fundamentally different the hardware is between the 25 and 35, so I can't say how successful it'll be. Chances are better if the source the firmware is built from is shared between the two units (but we don't know that).

I don't know much about a killer jpeg, I assume that some jpeg files mess up the software which can cause it to go crazy and eventually write junk into NVRAM - not good. Was this bug ever fixed? I wonder it there's a killer jpeg for the MG350HD too? (gulp)

It seems that the firmware doesn't have code to detect corrupted NVRAM and re-init it when corruption is detected. When the NVRAM becomes corrupt, can the unit be booted up into the serial port monitor or is a 100% brick?

Bit.

TheKrell

01-05-07, 04:25 PM

I don't know much about a killer jpeg, I assume that some jpeg files mess up the software which can cause it to go crazy and eventually write junk into NVRAM - not good. Was this bug ever fixed? Nope. Exists in 1.4.5 and 1.4.6, the versions that crossfade jpegs. Does the MG-350 crossfade jpegs during it's slide show? Anyhow, it's code base is substantially different. Somebody claimed they saw evidence of CVS within the firmware, which may be a hopeful sign that a professional is in charge. :rolleyes:
When the NVRAM becomes corrupt, can the unit be booted up into the serial port monitor or is a 100% brick? It can. One user had his MAC address smashed, and Supraeon was able to reset it via serial and restore full operations. The other user running 1.4.6 returned his and got another unit. So we don't know whether his killer jpeg did the same thing.

martp

01-06-07, 06:22 AM

Hello all,
I really do apologise for being the random person that arrives in a forum to ask a probably already well known and well discussed question but....
I hope you might be able to advise on my media player choice...
I have just had a nightmare with the Maplins £39.99 media player as it took upto 500GB but only as FAT32 (formatting problems over 32GB etc.)
Anyway, I'd really like a network player and I've been very keen on the Sweex one which seems the cheapest option. From what I have read that and the Freecom one are based on the Mediagate am I right?
I just need to confirm with you guys that if I bought the Sweex media player it could have all the same firmware updates as the mediagate?

Really appreciate it if anyone could let me know...

animatt

01-06-07, 12:26 PM

I second the feelings of nhousty.

It would just be so awesome if mythfrontend got ported to the mediagate. Being that it can play mpeg4 it should run laps around the media Mvp.

A mythfrontend that only uses about 6-7 of power watts during playback would be amazing.

The hardware should be plenty capable of turning it to a very snappy and inexpensive frontend.

Wish I had more tech skills to make it happen.

Just imagine if the company officially supported the device and let mythfrontend be ported to it. The hardware would sell out all over as almost everyone running mythtv would want one.

===============================Edit========================= ====

Can the media gate follow symbolic links?

Could you mount the /myth/pretty folder and play files from there? Still not great navigation but I think those files names are accurate and could make playback much better if supported.

hanhub

01-09-07, 01:43 PM

nhousty

01-11-07, 03:31 AM

Can the media gate follow symbolic links?

Could you mount the /myth/pretty folder and play files from there? Still not great navigation but I think those files names are accurate and could make playback much better if supported.

I use Gentoo and the script looks like it is default with knoppixmyth. I might have a look to see if it isn't to hard to port to using in Gentoo.

Cheers

Nick

tim-atl

01-11-07, 06:06 AM

Been using the MG-35/NDAS for almost 1 year now. Still love it. Has anyone tried it yet with Vista? Wondering if the NDAS driver will run on Vista. The Vista Upgrade Advisor prog. says I can expect difficulties with NDAS.

I tried and it was a NO GO. Driver seemed to load fine but the MG never showed up as a drive letter. I always hated that NDAS crap anyway.

miguelal008

01-16-07, 05:19 PM

Has anybody looked into the OKFW project at Sourceforge. This is a firmware for a KiSS player with a Sigma EM85xx chip. Could any of that code be reused for the MG-35 player?

Any ideas?

vesper8

01-17-07, 06:20 AM

I tried and it was a NO GO. Driver seemed to load fine but the MG never showed up as a drive letter. I always hated that NDAS crap anyway.

I emailed ximeta inquiring about a new ndas software and they said it was in the works. They also emailed me a beta version (version 3.20) and I have installed it on Vista RTM and it is working.

if you want it you can pm me your email and ill send it over. Or you can try emailing ximeta and asking them for it.

teddystacker

01-17-07, 06:43 AM

@vesper8

Please cpuld you upload v3.20 to www.rapidshare.com , and post the link here , many thanks.

regards

Teddy

I emailed ximeta inquiring about a new ndas software and they said it was in the works. They also emailed me a beta version (version 3.20) and I have installed it on Vista RTM and it is working.

if you want it you can pm me your email and ill send it over. Or you can try emailing ximeta and asking them for it.

miguelal008

01-18-07, 11:15 AM

For those using a firmware that supports m3u files, and using WMP under Windows to manage their songs.
I wrote a little command line tool for Windows, NET 2, that will export your W playlists to an extendend m3u format that the MG35 is able to play without problems.
- Supports WMP 10 and 11
- Works with regular playlists and auto
- Skips files with Unicode characters
- Makes sure all the paths are relative
- Converts backslash to foreward slash
- Includes the duration of the song
- Adds the song title from the tags
- Optionally randomizes the order of the songs
The tool arguments are the playlist name and whether you want to shuffle the songs or not.
I have not had problems with playlists sizes so far, but if I do it should not be very difficult to add a splitting function to the code to split a WMP playlist into multiple m3u playlists.

Let me know if anybody is interested on this.
Where should I upload the code?

teddystacker

01-18-07, 03:48 PM

Let me know if anybody is interested on this.
Where should I upload the code?

If you could upload a complied binary to www.rapidshare.com , and post the link here , I will then make some room at the MG35 yahoo group and upload.Please could you include a read_me file with instructions and description of functions..

Thanks VERY much for your efforts on this one..

Teddy

miguelal008

01-19-07, 12:33 PM

I do not think I can post links yet.
This is the one for WMP10, I will post the one for WMP11 later on.
I have not done much testing, so let me know if you find any problems.

rapidshare files 12427224 wmp2m3u_WMP10. zip. html

I am now trying to figure out the playlist size limit, I think it is around the 1015 songs, but I am not sure. I am able to load and play a randomized 1000 songs playlist without problems.

One thing I have noticed is that once you get an error trying to load a playlist, the player enters into a corrupted state and I am not able to load any other playlists. Best workaround is to restart it.

miguelal008

01-19-07, 12:58 PM

Could somebody please send me the latest cramfs file? I have somebody interested in looking at this file, and perhaps he may be able to help us adding some extra functionality to the MG-35.
Thanks.

miguelal008

01-19-07, 01:05 PM

For anybody using the MG-35 with an HDD, and that connects it to a Windows PC via USB to add more media files, take a look at Microsoft's SyncToy tool (free download).
I cannot post the link, so just do a serach on MS's website.
This tool works really well for me. It helps to keep the MG-35 content synchronized with my PC everytime I connect them via USB (I use it in 'echo' mode).

teddystacker

01-19-07, 01:26 PM

@miguelal008

Thanks once again for your efforts , I wil try and get your program on thwe Yahoo group over the weekend.

Ref the latest Cramfs , think you can find this over at the MG35 WIKI

Regards

Teddy

TheKrell

01-19-07, 03:40 PM

The wiki is here. (http://mediagate.pbwiki.com/) Note the very fine MG35tool that does all the checksum calculations necessary to join the pieces into a valid .upgrade file. It will also split out kernel, cramfs, and bootloader. The "split" function will allow you to get the cramfs from the firmware of your choice (such as the latest: 1.4.6).

jbyram2

01-19-07, 05:52 PM

I am currently running GB-PVR (http://www.gbpvr.com/)on my PVR/media server, and am using Hauppauge MediaMVPs as a thin client media players on top of my TVs. {more info on my system} (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=786788) Unfortunately, the MVP does not play HD content.

Since several PVR softwares talk to the Media MVP, the MG-35 could run an MVP emulator, and then would be able to work with any PVR software like GBPVR, BeyondTV, etc., and could take advantage of all the plugins, appearance managers, etc. that those packages offer, and would be able to play HD content as well.

There is an MVP emulator already written for the MVP as part of mvpmc (http://www.mvpmc.org/), so a lot of the work may have been done already, and just needs box-specific adjustment to create the emulator.

Thoughts?

Vauxhall95

01-19-07, 07:52 PM

I have a MG-35 and the MG-350. When I connect the two via USB, the blue light on the MG-35 will not stop flashing (I've turned off the LED in the SETUP menu). Has anyone else encountered this? Is there a solution as the blinking is driving me nuts!

Also, I've tried powerline networking the two units and the MG-350 cannot read my video files from the MG-35 without skipping. I've tried the wireless route as well with powered antennas on my routers and I still cannot get a smooth picture when trying to watch MG-35 vob's on my MG-350. The only way I can watch my MG-35 vob's smoothly is via the USB cable; however I get the annoying LED blinking described above. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

:)

teddystacker

01-19-07, 08:05 PM

I have a MG-35 and the MG-350. When I connect the two via USB, the blue light on the MG-35 will not stop flashing (I've turned off the LED in the SETUP menu). Has anyone else encountered this? Is there a solution as the blinking is driving me nuts!

:)

Sorry , but the only soloution for this is to remove the bulbs or cover them , crazy design I know , but we are dealing with Al Tech Engineers here , logic does not always follow..

Ref Networking , I only have Wireless B,and I cant play Vobs over the network either (without stuttering) , I presumed Wireless G would be ok , as others have done it with no problems..

sorry I cannot be of more help...

TheKrell

01-19-07, 08:17 PM

Also, I've tried powerline networking the two units and the MG-350 cannot read my video files from the MG-35 without skipping. You cannot view MG-35 files from an MG-350 directly, except via USB cable. Is there something else in between the two that you're not telling us about?

emedwhat

01-20-07, 04:25 PM

Hi folks.

I plan to upgrade my MG-35. But I am a little bit confused about which firmware I should install. :rolleyes:

Firstly, I am not a developer. I would like to connct Mg-35 to my network as NAS. And I want to use new GUI as well.

Which firmware should I install?

Thanks

teddystacker

01-20-07, 06:18 PM

This is the one you want , this is the one I use myself...

http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/8J6yRaX4189hodgrwsQZMrx3jl-yWwPyuWAaCJqxtgEpypFTXK-hgTsAcbH8_x063hq40UuAUODE6p5oJlMqTA/MG-35%20Beta%20Firmware/Non-Developer%20Releases/MG35-1.4.4.4-pre4/MG35-1.4.4.4-pre4-LC-RB/MG35-1.4.4.4-pre4.zip

Regards

Teddy

Hi folks.

I plan to upgrade my MG-35. But I am a little bit confused about which firmware I should install. :rolleyes:

Firstly, I am not a developer. I would like to connct Mg-35 to my network as NAS. And I want to use new GUI as well.

Which firmware should I install?

Thanks

davei1

01-21-07, 11:48 AM

I just installed 3.20 NDAS version from Ximeta Website and it does not work with the MG-35 under Windows XP Home. You can register the MG-35 and it shows it online but there is no option to mount or dismount. Only to deregister or properties and resetting the connection in properties does not connect you to the hard drive in the MG-35. This was like the last version of NDAS software from Ximeta as well. The new version as well as the last version works fine with my NetDisk but it does not work with the MG-35 (Under XPHome). In order to have both the Ximeta Netdisk and the MG-35 recongized and be able to mount/dismount on the network under NDAS you have to still run version 3.10.1230

If it does infact work under Vista with the MG-35 and not XP that would be surprising...Maybe the beta version that was sent to you was a modified one from what is on the Ximeta Website...

I emailed ximeta inquiring about a new ndas software and they said it was in the works. They also emailed me a beta version (version 3.20) and I have installed it on Vista RTM and it is working.

if you want it you can pm me your email and ill send it over. Or you can try emailing ximeta and asking them for it.

alfa

01-22-07, 06:07 AM

i'm confused will this play run of the mill Divx and Xvid files? ISO files? ripped DVD files?

hotfuzz

01-22-07, 06:37 AM

i'm confused will this play run of the mill Divx and Xvid files? ISO files? ripped DVD files?

Yes it does, but i would like to know, what is better, for my DVD's to be ripped and transfered as a .ISO file or as the 2 folder VIDEO_TS/AUDIO_TS and let the mediagate play the .VOB files.

Ta for any advice,

teddystacker

01-22-07, 08:18 AM

I have found that if you use the "Dvd Decrypter " and "Anydvd" Combo to rip DVDS to a .iso file they ALWAYS play FLAWLESS on both the MG-35 and the 350..

http://www.dvddecrypter.org.uk/

http://www.slysoft.com/en/anydvd.html

Yes it does, but i would like to know, what is better, for my DVD's to be ripped and transfered as a .ISO file or as the 2 folder VIDEO_TS/AUDIO_TS and let the mediagate play the .VOB files.

Ta for any advice,

gadgetmind

01-22-07, 09:15 AM

for being a bit quiet lately.

Yes, I did bust myself up pretty badly before Christmas. Best guess is that I hit some discarded fish and chips while cycling at about 25mph in heavy traffic. Broken arm, broken rib or two, and all that.

Then two drives failed in my home four drive 1TB raid5 array, which caused me a fair amount of grief.

And I was also feeling that we were starting to hit a bit of a brick wall with this project without loads more developers and/or some more source access.

However, the new firmware does deserve the new GUI, and the ac3 fixes for MPEG are simply brilliant!

I'm musing on how to proceed.
The 1.4.4.5 alpha stuff had problems towards the end, and I really don't know why.
The web interface was never really that useful.
Neither is ftp without a writeable HD.

So I might grab the 1.4.6 firmware, try and get the new GUI working, add just enough extra bits to get telnet etc. going, and also see if the ac3 fixes can be applied to this firmware.

Thoughts?

Ian

TheKrell

01-22-07, 09:24 AM

I have found that if you use the "Dvd Decrypter " and "Anydvd" Combo to rip DVDS to a .iso file they ALWAYS play FLAWLESS on both the MG-35 and the 350. Both? :confused: I've been having problems playing back iso files made by DVD Decrypter. Can you explain which you use first, and what happens if you use only DVD Decrypter?

hotfuzz

01-22-07, 11:58 AM

Both? :confused: I've been having problems playing back iso files made by DVD Decrypter. Can you explain which you use first, and what happens if you use only DVD Decrypter?

Im assuming AnyDVD to rip the DVD then DVD Decrypter to rip to an ISO.
I would assume that owuld be the best way, but you have problems ???

teddystacker

01-22-07, 01:55 PM

No,you use them together , most dvds these days are protected , so you need Anydvd running in the tray (Its a TSR App) , and then you rip the DVD DIRECTLY to a ISO with decrypter , if you are using a non protected dvd , then you DO NOT need Anydvd.. As I say, this method works flawless on even the VERY latest dvds - I do this mostly for the kids , as before we got the MG , we lost many a dvd to a scratch or they busted it taking it out of its case , and none of the studios are papared to send you another even if you send them the smashed bits of the original..

Please feel free to ask any more ?

Both? :confused: I've been having problems playing back iso files made by DVD Decrypter. Can you explain which you use first, and what happens if you use only DVD Decrypter?

teddystacker

01-22-07, 02:04 PM

Hi Ian,

Really good to see you back mate , and hope you a feeling a little better.....

Yes, from the feeback I get, the best way to proceed now (unless we get loads of the "old" developers back, along with some new ones) would be to just add the New GUI's (Both :-) ) and other bits you mentioned to 1.4.6 , as it does seem well worth using it now,as the play list stuff,AC3 and Screen saver added - (Only reason I am not using it myself is I now hate the orig GUI in favour of the superb RB One from Rob..)

Just once thing to bear in mind when adding the NEW GUI to 1.4.6, is that Al Tech added a new icon for the screen saver , so if Rob is not around to add a new one to keep in line with the two new themes , we wil just have to put up with the orig Al Tech one (No big deal in my opinion)..

Also might be a good idea to issue this as a "full" upgrade file , being as the bootlaoder changed..

At least this way them alot of people will be able to use the benefits of 1.4.6 along with the great new GUI..

Again , great to see you back

Regards

Teddy

for being a bit quiet lately.

Yes, I did bust myself up pretty badly before Christmas. Best guess is that I hit some discarded fish and chips while cycling at about 25mph in heavy traffic. Broken arm, broken rib or two, and all that.

Then two drives failed in my home four drive 1TB raid5 array, which caused me a fair amount of grief.

And I was also feeling that we were starting to hit a bit of a brick wall with this project without loads more developers and/or some more source access.

However, the new firmware does deserve the new GUI, and the ac3 fixes for MPEG are simply brilliant!

I'm musing on how to proceed.
The 1.4.4.5 alpha stuff had problems towards the end, and I really don't know why.
The web interface was never really that useful.
Neither is ftp without a writeable HD.

So I might grab the 1.4.6 firmware, try and get the new GUI working, add just enough extra bits to get telnet etc. going, and also see if the ac3 fixes can be applied to this firmware.

Thoughts?

Ian

TheKrell

01-22-07, 03:10 PM

Welcome back Ian! Glad no permanent damage was done by those nasty fish/chips. :eek: So I might grab the 1.4.6 firmware, try and get the new GUI working, add just enough extra bits to get telnet etc. going, and also see if the ac3 fixes can be applied to this firmware. I've been working with Ian S. on his AC3 patches. (I have my chin on the ground when I think about how he was able to figure out his patch...) He shipped me a patched version of mpegplayer from the official 1.4.6, and I managed to stuff this back into the original. And lo and behold, it works! But only for mpg/AC3 files on your local disk. That one little patch somehow mangles network file browsing. You can still see your network nodes, but upon selecting one, a popup tells you that "There are no shared directories, or shared mode is incorrect." Neither of us can fathom how a patch to mpegplayer can kill the network browse function, but it does.

TheKrell

01-22-07, 03:21 PM

No,you use them together , most dvds these days are protected , so you need Anydvd running in the tray (Its a TSR App) , and then you rip the DVD DIRECTLY to a ISO with decrypter Thanks Teddtstacker and hotfuzz for your help. Because this used to work! I have been using DVD Decrypter for decryption as well as iso production. I presume if a more modern DVD comes along that it can't handle, I'll have to use something else such as AnyDVD. But so far I haven't seen even one such disk; all my ripped DVDs thus far are ready to process further, e.g. into mpg files. Actually, I have a recent distribution of DVDFabDecrypter which I have at the ready, should DVD Decrypter fail. ;)

The symptom is this: When I Select or Play an iso file, I get the brief notice that it's playing the selected file, and then it simply exits without any video or audio. If I've used the Play button, it goes on to play subsequent files just fine (as long as they are not ISO files). Use of the Select button just returns to the file browser after display of the filename.

I've tried iso's I've gotten off the net, those I've made with DVD Decrypter, and those I've made with DVD Hive, all with the same result. Can either of you ship me a URL with an ISO that absolutely positively works fine in your Mediagate? That would tell us whether I've somehow wedged my firmware or else just can't produce a valid ISO file. But that seems far-fetched since these ISOs all burn to DVD just fine using Nero. :confused:

TheKrell

01-22-07, 03:26 PM

Just once thing to bear in mind when adding the NEW GUI to 1.4.6, is that Al Tech added a new icon for the screen saver... And in 1.4.5 they added a new icon for the repeat-folder function.

shawjo

01-22-07, 04:16 PM

That one little patch somehow mangles network file browsing. You can still see your network nodes, but upon selecting one, a popup tells you that "There are no shared directories, or shared mode is incorrect." Neither of us can fathom how a patch to mpegplayer can kill the network browse function, but it does.

I have a problem when I use DHCP with IPCop 1.4.13 I get the SAME behaviour, tho when I manually select an IP, it works just fine.
When I used Smoothwall for my DHCP server, DHCP worked just fine. So something is different with DHCP in Smoothwall and IPCop (which is based on Smoothwall)

MG35-1.4.4.5-alpha6

-shawjo

schroedk

01-22-07, 11:17 PM

Quick basic networking question for anyone who's willing to help. I have the MG-35 networked from my entertainment system in the family room as an NDAS drive to my office computer, which has 4 external drives providing content that I stream to the MG-35. I use a 10/100 fast ethernet switch at each end. The sequence is hard drives via USB to computer -> computer via Cat5e to 10/100 fast ethernet switch -> 10/100 fast ethernet switch in entertainment system -> MG-35. My question is this: each of my fast ethernet switches is actually a gigabit 10/100/1000 switch. If I were to get a PCMCIA gigabit card for my laptop, would I see any benefit at all with regard to stutters (few, but still there)? I ask because the ethernet port of the MG-35 is listed as 10/100 mbps (as are the ports to my PS3, HD-A2, and Griffin TuneCenter iPod dock, which are also receiving feeds from the ethernet switch), so I'm assuming if I ran everything at gigabit speed, it would basically bottleneck at the MG-35 (and other components) back down to 100 mbps, correct??? I figure it's probably a basic question, but one that I'd rather ask vs. forking over $50 for the card. Thanks!!!

miguelal008

01-23-07, 12:18 AM

wmp2m3u

Now the tool will also split your WMP playlists into the number of songs specified in the configuration file (so the MG-35 does not die loading the list). In this file you can also customize the "relative to" directory and the output directory.

Windows Media Player 10
http://rapidshare.com/files/12932174/wmp2m3u_WMP10.zip.html

Windows Media Player 11
http://rapidshare.com/files/12957602/wmp2m3u_WMP11.zip.html

supraeon

01-23-07, 03:40 AM

So I might grab the 1.4.6 firmware, try and get the new GUI working, add just enough extra bits to get telnet etc. going, and also see if the ac3 fixes can be applied to this firmware.

Thoughts?

Ian

The AC3 fix is easy - the problem TheKrell and I are having is rebuilding a working CRAMFS network-wise. I'm using Windows (I presume TheKrell is too) and I believe the symbolic link 'etc/hosts' is not compiling properly.

I'll happily supply the mpegplayer.bin executable...

Welcome back!

-Another Ian.

TheKrell

01-23-07, 09:45 AM

I'm using Windows (I presume TheKrell is too) and I believe the symbolic link 'etc/hosts' is not compiling properly. Actually I was using the Scientific Linux 4.4 Live DVD, compiling mg35tool myself, and also building the cramfsck and mkcramfs tools from uClinux 2.4 sources as recommended here by furaisanjin. All appeared to go well, and yet we can't browse network shares, be they on W2K, W98SE (yes, I still run a couple of those), or on a Mac Mini. I believe the symbolic link 'etc/hosts' is not compiling properly. As I understand it, neither you nor I compiled any part of the cramfs. You did a binary patch to mpegplayer.bin, and you and I merely substituted the patched version for the official mpegplayer.bin in 1.4.6. Correct me if I'm wrong, but neither of us modified dvdplayer.bin (I certainly didn't), so I am nonplussed as to how this patch to mpegplayer can mess with any functionality inside dvdplayer.bin! Unless somebody is carelessly reusing statically-linked variables from far outside of mpegplayer.bin.

teddystacker

01-23-07, 02:14 PM

@davei1

This is interesting,I tried 3.20 on my mg-350hd,it worked perfectly.. But not on the 35 as you rightly say..

So I can only conclude that the MG-35 uses a different NDAS CHIP TO THAT OF THE MG-350HD,and I bet that Al Tech no longer want to pay the rights for the MG-35 to Ximeta for the newer versions to be supported..

I just installed 3.20 NDAS version from Ximeta Website and it does not work with the MG-35 under Windows XP Home. You can register the MG-35 and it shows it online but there is no option to mount or dismount. Only to deregister or properties and resetting the connection in properties does not connect you to the hard drive in the MG-35. This was like the last version of NDAS software from Ximeta as well. The new version as well as the last version works fine with my NetDisk but it does not work with the MG-35 (Under XPHome). In order to have both the Ximeta Netdisk and the MG-35 recongized and be able to mount/dismount on the network under NDAS you have to still run version 3.10.1230

If it does infact work under Vista with the MG-35 and not XP that would be surprising...Maybe the beta version that was sent to you was a modified one from what is on the Ximeta Website...

supraeon

01-24-07, 04:27 AM

As I understand it, neither you nor I compiled any part of the cramfs. You did a binary patch to mpegplayer.bin, and you and I merely substituted the patched version for the official mpegplayer.bin in 1.4.6. Correct me if I'm wrong, but neither of us modified dvdplayer.bin (I certainly didn't), so I am nonplussed as to how this patch to mpegplayer can mess with any functionality inside dvdplayer.bin! Unless somebody is carelessly reusing statically-linked variables from far outside of mpegplayer.bin.

'Compiled' was the wrong word. 'Re-compressed' maybe?
You are correct that we didn't touch dvdplayer.bin, but I keep coming back to improper compressing of the package.

-Another Ian.

gkinma

01-24-07, 10:36 AM

davei1

01-25-07, 01:27 AM

Yes...That's interesting it works on the MG-350D. AlTech is still selling the MG-35 as a current product but are not updating it to work with latest NDAS software. I wrote to ALTech and nobody (Saerom Kim either) answered back about this. Previously when I wrote to Ximeta about it they said there was nothing they were doing to block the MG-35 from working with the new versions of NDAS. So it may be something ALTech can't change (or maybe won't for some reason). I wouldn't recommend the MG-35 to anybody else now because of this. I mean for most upgrading to VISTA will be something they'll probably want to do in the next year. I actually use NDAS to transfer movies to my NetDisk rather than the MG-35 as it is 3 to 4 times as fast as doing it to the MG-35 but I don't like the idea that a company is selling a product as current but have ceased to support it software-wise...

@davei1

This is interesting,I tried 3.20 on my mg-350hd,it worked perfectly.. But not on the 35 as you rightly say..

So I can only conclude that the MG-35 uses a different NDAS CHIP TO THAT OF THE MG-350HD,and I bet that Al Tech no longer want to pay the rights for the MG-35 to Ximeta for the newer versions to be supported..

supraeon

01-25-07, 04:32 AM

alfa

01-25-07, 07:43 AM

guys would anyone have a ccf file and discrete IR codes for the mediagate 35 so that i can hook it up to my pronto?

teddystacker

01-25-07, 04:47 PM

These are codes for the MG-35 , not in ccf format by KM format and work well with my URC-8910 remote.I know know much about this stuff , but maybe you may be able to find a program to convert the formats - hope this helps?

Regards

Teddy

http://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/dload.php?action=download&file_id=2684

guys would anyone have a ccf file and discrete IR codes for the mediagate 35 so that i can hook it up to my pronto?

teddystacker

01-25-07, 04:51 PM

@davei1

I VERY,VERY much doubt if we will ever get anything out of Saerom Kim on this , as I really think he knows very little , I am sure many of us know far more about these machines , as said many times its just such a shame the support is so poor...

May the "fix" for this is really really simple , but I am sure that Al Tech must use 3rd party firmware engineers,even though they strss they are in house ones.. and so dont want to pay to have this stuff addressed..

Yes...That's interesting it works on the MG-350D. AlTech is still selling the MG-35 as a current product but are not updating it to work with latest NDAS software. I wrote to ALTech and nobody (Saerom Kim either) answered back about this. Previously when I wrote to Ximeta about it they said there was nothing they were doing to block the MG-35 from working with the new versions of NDAS. So it may be something ALTech can't change (or maybe won't for some reason). I wouldn't recommend the MG-35 to anybody else now because of this. I mean for most upgrading to VISTA will be something they'll probably want to do in the next year. I actually use NDAS to transfer movies to my NetDisk rather than the MG-35 as it is 3 to 4 times as fast as doing it to the MG-35 but I don't like the idea that a company is selling a product as current but have ceased to support it software-wise...

TTFN

01-25-07, 05:37 PM

nhousty

01-25-07, 06:01 PM

Can some one tell me the version of uclinux on the 350HD?

Is it possible to swap the compiled kernel module for the 350HD onto the 35?

Nick

J. L.

01-25-07, 08:55 PM

been using 1.4.4.5alpha5 with no problems for a while - mostly for the enhanced graphics and for the setnas function.

just changed my router so everything got new ip numbers.

tried to reset the ip number for my remote server with setnas and got the following message:

"mgnv: can;t write NV - no room and erase not yet implemented."

have reflashed the drive with 1.4.4.5alpha5 but problem remains. Any ideas?

TIA

TTFN
This was predicted... The advice at the time was something like this...
Use the on-screen "setup" function to disable the blue LED. Then use the on-screen setup functions once more to re-enable it. This will cause the MG-35 to use the next block of data in the NV ram. If it needs to erase the previous block, it will to make room.

Although the mgnv program can't erase, the built in routines can.

Joe L.

godinste

01-26-07, 01:49 PM

teddystacker

01-26-07, 03:24 PM

I only have a 27" CRT TV , but cannot see any difference from a regular dvd player..

although we all knock Al Tech for that poor support , for the $ the MG-35 is still the best one for the money By Far.At $119.00 delivered,and the New gui installed, your friend will not get better.

Hello, I've got the MG350(I enjoy it). One of my friends want to buy a MG35 and he wants to know if the picture quality for playing video: IFO, AVI.... , is very good by the component 480P connection, he does'nt have a digital connection on his Projector. Is the picture quality can be compared with playing a DVD on a player. Thanks

Michel

J. L.

01-26-07, 03:33 PM

Hello, I've got the MG350(I enjoy it). One of my friends want to buy a MG35 and he wants to know if the picture quality for playing video: IFO, AVI.... , is very good by the component 480P connection, he does'nt have a digital connection on his Projector. Is the picture quality can be compared with playing a DVD on a player. Thanks

MichelAt 480p you will be limited in quality by the projector, or possibly the video file you are playing, but not the MG-35. It is OK if he does not have a digital connection on his projector, the MG-35 does not have a digital output, it has component, composite, and s-video outputs.

I have two MG-35s. Both are connected at 720p (via component inputs) to HDTVs.
The picture when playing high-quality ISO images of DVDs is very very good. In many cases, it can look almost as good as a lot of the OTA HDTV content. The video scaler in the MG-35 does a very nice job and image quality is much better than when playing a DVD at 480i. It would probably look exactly like that produced by an good upscaling/progressive output DVD player.

Joe L.

Note: there are many DVDs that look poor when upscaled and viewed on a large screen. Your friend has probably already seen quite a few on his projector... They are simply poor transfers at very low bit rates. Their poor quality ISO images won't magically get better on the MG-35.

godinste

01-26-07, 04:22 PM

OK Thank you so much, it's very well explained, I appreciate the time you put in this repky, Bye and have a good day.

Michel

TTFN

01-27-07, 05:08 PM

This was predicted... The advice at the time was something like this...
Use the on-screen "setup" function to disable the blue LED. Then use the on-screen setup functions once more to re-enable it. This will cause the MG-35 to use the next block of data in the NV ram. If it needs to erase the previous block, it will to make room.

Although the mgnv program can't erase, the built in routines can.

Joe L.

Worked, many thanks

TTFN

nhousty

01-27-07, 06:16 PM

Thanks for the mpegplayer.bin file TheKrell. I just mounted it as an overlay of the mpegplayer.bin that I have under alpha8 and it plays vobs with ac3 audio over my network. (I have no idea about playing on the local disk as it is has no ac3 vobs on it.) Cheers to supraeon for the patched file.

So you might want to have a look at the alpha build you are using, it might be broke somewhere else.

So now I have ac3 over the net NICE!!!!

I have been using hacks with overlays instead of rebuilding a new image and every thing I have tried so far seams to work.

Nick

TheKrell

01-27-07, 07:40 PM

I just mounted it as an overlay of the mpegplayer.bin that I have under alpha8 and it plays vobs with ac3 audio over my network. Ah... :confused: AC3 audio in VOB files has always played correctly. You need to try an mpeg-2 program stream with AC3 or LPCM audio to see (or rather "not hear") this bug.

nhousty

01-27-07, 07:53 PM

Ah... :confused: AC3 audio in VOB files has always played correctly. You need to try an mpeg-2 program stream with AC3 or LPCM audio to see (or rather "not hear") this bug.

I've never been able to play the vobs that I create with mythtv encoded with AC3 and hear the sound on the MG35, now I can. I thought that a dvd used mpeg-2 program stream. Here is the header from mplayer for the file.

MPEG-PS file format detected.
VIDEO: MPEG2 720x576 (aspect 3) 25.000 fps 7500.0 kbps (937.5 kbyte/s)

Opening video decoder: [mpegpes] MPEG 1/2 Video passthrough

Opening audio decoder: [liba52] AC3 decoding with liba52

Cheers

Nick

kovacsbv

01-27-07, 10:07 PM

Keep in mind that if you want to do debricking, the FLASH will have to be erased and rewritten which involves sending multiple commands to the flash device and polling for completion. That's pretty complex for something like JTAG. One thing that is commonly used on a production line for embedded systems is to load a small image into RAM using the JTAG port that contains enough for reflashing. In a production environment this will commonly start the network interface and load the image over the network. This way, many stations can be programmed simultaneously. You would need the kernel, network drivers, flash drivers, flash file system, etc. in the JTAG image. This method would require setting up a few key CPU registers (memory controller, stack pointer, program counter with the image's entry point, etc.) via the JTAG port, then loading the JTAG image, then releasing the JTAG port's hold line.

In production the test points are connected via a bed of nails and the JTAGing is done that way. This saves the cost of populating a connector.

Having FLASH devices placed after programming is also a common practice. ALTech may be doing that, but I think a JTAG image is the best way for individuals to debrick boards.

Yup, I agree with all of that. J7 is for the EPM3032 as I have buzzed TDI and TDO from the chip to J7. This also tells us that the EM8511 isn't on this scan chain. And the CPLD doesn't have enough pins to wiggle-program the flash.

The parallel flashes have paint blobs, presumably to show they are programmed and to mark high and low.

Let's just say that I have lost interest in J7 and am now planning to sniff around the set of pads by the EM8511 marked "D" - hires pictures in the yahoo group.

There might be an on-chip ROM handling a bootstrap - interesting idea, but as you say, hard to exploit.

Ian

jkurlanski

01-27-07, 10:29 PM

Looks like the is THE MG-35 thread, my apologies if this belongs elsewhere! This thread's been a great source of help so far (no 1080i on my Panny, for instance, is not unusual!) but I can't find this answer:
I've recently setup a new MG-35 and first tested w/o HDD. I was able to see my PC (XP SP2) and play music, videos, and view pictures over the network. Today I installed an unformated 250GB Western Digital IDE HDD. For some reason I cannot see the MG-35 via USB, but I can see it via NDAS. It formatting right now. I'm still at out of the box 1.4.4 firmware (haven't braved the upgrades, but I like the idea) and I'm using the 3.1.1230 NDAS Software. Thanks to this thread I've stayed away from 3.2
I'd like the option of hooking up the drive to the USB to move some larger video over, but it won't take (I have another USB External 250GB drive that works fine). When I plug the drive's power in, but no USB (or any other cables), I get a power led and a blinking Blue Enter/Menupad. When I plug in the USB cable, the power LED goes out, and the MenuPad continues to blink. I get no sign from my computer that it sees the unit at all.
Any hints?

icabrindus

01-28-07, 01:09 PM

wmp2m3u

Now the tool will also split your WMP playlists into the number of songs specified in the configuration file (so the MG-35 does not die loading the list). In this file you can also customize the "relative to" directory and the output directory.

Hi!

Do you agree to publish your source code on the Sourceforge.net? We have a MG35 repository there. If you agree, please post the source code on rapidshare, or send me your Sourceforge id to give you write access to the SVN repository.

Regards,
Vasile

jkurlanski

01-28-07, 01:32 PM

When I plug the drive's power in, but no USB (or any other cables), I get a power led and a blinking Blue Enter/Menupad. When I plug in the USB cable, the power LED goes out, and the MenuPad continues to blink. I get no sign from my computer that it sees the unit at all.
Any hints?
Think I solved my own problem. After watching my format via NDAS run for 24hrs and get 30% through, I figured I'd just pop the drive into my PC and just format it that way. As I was removing the drive I noticed the small print on the cover of the drive that indicated that if you remove the jumper for Cable Select/Slave/Master it would rever to "Single" An RTFM moment if I ever had one, but it works now.

gadgetmind

01-29-07, 09:35 AM

The easiest way for my to quickly get out some firmware with the ac3 fixed is to work from a 1.4.4 and just add the new file. So if someone can point me at mpegplayer.bin for 1.4.4, 1.4.5 and 1.4.6 ...

There are then some other jobs -
1) Why did the last 1.4.4.5 Alpha firmwares I made have smb browsing issues? My MG-35 at home has been happy for months and then suddenly stopped browsing shares. Clearly something is dodgy!
2) To add the new gui to 1.4.5 and 1.4.6 (probably just the latter) I need to find the palette in the new dvdplayer and change some scripts. I also need two new graphics.

I'm tempted to not bother too much with the 1.4.4.5 firmware tree - it was only for development, and unless we find more we want to develop ...

TBH, I might even rip out some stuff to get it all booting faster!

Ian

shawjo

01-29-07, 12:22 PM

1) Why did the last 1.4.4.5 Alpha firmwares I made have smb browsing issues? My MG-35 at home has been happy for months and then suddenly stopped browsing shares. Clearly something is dodgy!

I have a problem browsing shares when using DHCP on MG-35 and DHCP Server from IPCop on my MG-35. When I used DHCP on MG-35 and Smoothwall for DHCP server, I don't have this problem. I don't exactly know what is different with the DHCP Server from Smoothwall and IPCop, but it definately makes a difference. I've tried going back to Smoothwall and it all of the sudden started working. If I manually set the IP, then browsing shares works with either DHCP server.

-shawjo

Rexxy

01-29-07, 10:54 PM

hi guys,

1st time poster, 2nd time reader...hehehe

Just wanted to ask "what may seem a dumb question", but i got my mg-35 3 days ago and have loaded up all my family photo's and movies, which are approx 20,000 files. Is there any chance that a firmware update will affect the data on the hard-drive ??

also, the firmware on the al tech site is now v1.4.6, but the f/w rev being mentioned here is v1.4.4.#. Have al tech created the new firmware using any of the improvements made by you guys, and if there any improvements with your v1.4.4.# over their v1.4.6 ??

thanks guys,

Rexxy

supraeon

01-30-07, 03:15 AM

The easiest way for my to quickly get out some firmware with the ac3 fixed is to work from a 1.4.4 and just add the new file. So if someone can point me at mpegplayer.bin for 1.4.4, 1.4.5 and 1.4.6 ...

Ian

Try here:
mpegplayer.bin for 1.4.6 with AC3 (http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/APu-RUM9_L9mPsRABzyY5cETXocQhmkVOiy_Ue_6GbyGBtL07ZrKpLeF2neZTrpQ k_-PokHHHZwpnKmBsc88qglVuG-P80c/MG-35%20Utilities/mpegplayer.bin)

-Another Ian.

miguelal008

01-30-07, 11:01 PM

Do you agree to publish your source code on the Sourceforge.net? We have a MG35 repository there. If you agree, please post the source code on rapidshare, or send me your Sourceforge id to give you write access to the SVN repository.

Sure, feel free to publish the source code. It does not have much to it. But I do not have a SourceForge account.
http://rapidshare.com/files/14191622/wmp2m3u.zip.html

jjsaustin

01-31-07, 12:12 AM

teddystacker

01-31-07, 11:05 AM

Just saw this posted on another board , not too sure if this is anything new - or what we already have Maybe Someone like Ian tell let us know , if you have the time?

http://www.services.digitus.de/data/download/firmware/gpl/GPL_DA-70900.tar.gz

jkurlanski

01-31-07, 11:29 AM

Sorry for the noob questions, but here goes:

1) Are there any functions that this player can not do unless it has an internal disk? I am planning on replacing my networked dvd player (goVideo 2730) and hooking this up to a wired network to my PC that has my music and photos. I don't want to have to buy and internal disk if not needed.

2) I also want to rip DVD movies and stream them across the my wired network. From what I can tell this should work.

3) I want to convert my miniDV tapes into ".dv" files (I think this is mpeg2). Each 60 min is about 12G of space. Would there be any problem streaming these files over a wired network and would it look as good as the original? I know these are large files, but dont' want to lose any PQ.

Thanks

I'll give you my best from a fellow noob
1) I found no differences between using the local drive over streaming from the computer. I did get my hands on a 250GB HDD from $40 (after rebate) at Staples that seemed worth it to throw in there to use the NDAS functionality. After some fiddling I finally got it working right. Just nice to have another storage option, and others use it as a "Media on the Go" sort of thing.
2) I've been busy ripping my DVD's myself. I've had no problems playing them back from either across the LAN or from the internal HDD.
3) Can't be positive, but I would guess that wouldn't be a problem. I'm not sure how it moves the data from the PC over and displays it, but its clearly not copying it all over at once and then playing it. There's a buffering that happens so I would THINK that the size of the source file is irrelevant.
Hope that helps!

TheKrell

01-31-07, 01:24 PM

http://www.services.digitus.de/data/download/firmware/gpl/GPL_DA-70900.tar.gz This appears to be the SDK for a Sigma Designs 8620, not an 8511 as exists in an MG-35. Good for an MG-350HD perhaps?

teddystacker

01-31-07, 02:06 PM

This appears to be the SDK for a Sigma Designs 8620, not an 8511 as exists in an MG-35. Good for an MG-350HD perhaps?

Thats what I was thinking , its just know Nada about this stuff and did not want to say anything ,thats for confirming Krell, I will post at the 350 group , as u never know someone there may know something..

alfa

01-31-07, 10:02 PM

....
2) I've been busy ripping my DVD's myself. I've had no problems playing them back from either across the LAN or from the internal HDD.
....
what do you sue to rip the DVD's?

jkurlanski

01-31-07, 10:18 PM

As recommended earlier in this thread (I think it was this thread...could've been another MG35 one...soooo many read lately) RipIt4Me is a great tool. Very easy "One Click" interface, or a lot more detail if you want/need it. The install guide is a cinch to follow. There's some supplemental programs you need to install, but the guide walks you through that as well.

http://www.ripit4me.org/

(edit- added hyperlink)

160bpm

02-01-07, 03:42 AM

Hi All,

I have read most of this topic. Have try the latest firmware: remade.upgrade.
I have a problem with playing .VOB files. Have download DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 trailers but when i play them i do not get the 5.1 or DTS sound... (this must be solved in the remade.upgrade firmware....

I have found a different between the official and mod firmware. Can someone tell me why these option is removed in the mod firmware:

- Select a .mp3 to play, with next you can skip in mod firmware you must stop the track and then can select a new mp3

Then follow would be nice to have in a new firmware:
- R/W FTP on ntfs and fat32
- support of the 100Mbit up/download speed for FTP
- option with MP3 select above back in the firmware

Nice things to think about to put in new firmware:
- Webshell to control your MG-35 when remote is broken :) haha....
- PC program to create your own background/images and safe them in a upgrade.firmware

EDIT:

Second some DVD-rips have not smooth playing after skip some chapters.
(this is for official and mod firmware) Does somebody know how this happend?

timdorr

02-01-07, 02:11 PM

I'm about to send this MD-35 back, so maybe someone can help me out here...

I've got a video file with the following specs:

Video: XVID 960x528 23.98fps 1829Kbps [Video 0]
Audio: Dolby AC3 48000Hz stereo 448Kbps [Audio 1]

The audio plays, but I get no video. Doesn't matter if I'm using component or not, I don't see a thing. From what I've been reading, this thing is limited to 720 pixel width video? Will it not even try resizing the video? Is there no way to get this video file running? That's all I'm asking for.

12marshall

02-01-07, 02:35 PM

I would use any one of the large number of converting tools and convert the video width to 720 by XXX (scaled) but keep the bit rate the same and try it again. Alternatively you can also cconvert it to another file TYPE and see if it runs.... i.e. AVI or MPG or TS....

timdorr

02-01-07, 03:32 PM

I can't introduce another conversion step into the process, unfortunately. It comes in already in that format, and another conversion would reduce quality again. I like having good quality source material, so I'm not going to try that method.

12marshall

02-01-07, 03:43 PM

then you might as well send it back.
I've made many conversions without loss and it has everything to do with the quality of the program and the bitrate you set. Yes...if you were going from HD to xvid or HD to mpeg2 you will see some losses...but you aren't doing that.
The quality of your file as stated is low to middle-low at best. Conversion should be simple without loss and if you have loss then you're not using the right program.

You need to determine if it's a video size issue and you should be able to create the same xvid file but with a 720pixel width to at least FIND OUT if you are limited by resolution.

Another check is to make sure the file plays without problems with a few different media players you have on your pc. Make sure VLC plays it (although it tends to play everything but .evo files).

160bpm

02-03-07, 03:07 PM

Hi there,

Does somebody have problems with some MP3 files? I have some files that will play in slowmotion. I see these files have 192kbps.

Greets
160bpm

Bytre

02-05-07, 09:53 PM

I don't believe you'd get any gain out of it. The switches will downgrade the connection to the MG35 (and the other components), but from a GigE->GigE switch it should go high speed.

Now, if you're pulling down content from the office computer from multiple devices/computers at once, you may exceed the bandwidth coming from the computer (if its Fast Ethernet). In fact, you might make the problem worse by saturating the wire more from your laptop than you can now. Anyway, try it out. Buy from a place you can do returns to if it doesn't solve your network problem.

Quick basic networking question for anyone who's willing to help. I have the MG-35 networked from my entertainment system in the family room as an NDAS drive to my office computer, which has 4 external drives providing content that I stream to the MG-35. I use a 10/100 fast ethernet switch at each end. The sequence is hard drives via USB to computer -> computer via Cat5e to 10/100 fast ethernet switch -> 10/100 fast ethernet switch in entertainment system -> MG-35. My question is this: each of my fast ethernet switches is actually a gigabit 10/100/1000 switch. If I were to get a PCMCIA gigabit card for my laptop, would I see any benefit at all with regard to stutters (few, but still there)? I ask because the ethernet port of the MG-35 is listed as 10/100 mbps (as are the ports to my PS3, HD-A2, and Griffin TuneCenter iPod dock, which are also receiving feeds from the ethernet switch), so I'm assuming if I ran everything at gigabit speed, it would basically bottleneck at the MG-35 (and other components) back down to 100 mbps, correct??? I figure it's probably a basic question, but one that I'd rather ask vs. forking over $50 for the card. Thanks!!!

Bytre

02-05-07, 09:59 PM

Welcome to the thread. A firmware update "shouldn't" affect the data on the drive, but it always "could". You should not have single copies of anything irreplaceable on this machine, or on any hard drive for that matter (keep a copy on this and a copy on another hard drive).

1.4.4.x are the hacked versions we've been working with, hacked off al tech's 1.4.4. Some of the guys are working on updating the Al Tech 1.4.6 with the community UI and feature set.

hi guys,

1st time poster, 2nd time reader...hehehe

Just wanted to ask "what may seem a dumb question", but i got my mg-35 3 days ago and have loaded up all my family photo's and movies, which are approx 20,000 files. Is there any chance that a firmware update will affect the data on the hard-drive ??

also, the firmware on the al tech site is now v1.4.6, but the f/w rev being mentioned here is v1.4.4.#. Have al tech created the new firmware using any of the improvements made by you guys, and if there any improvements with your v1.4.4.# over their v1.4.6 ??

thanks guys,

Rexxy

xlrate

02-08-07, 07:03 AM

Need help, i just bought Vista and the shared a folder and went to play on Mg-35, plays ok for around a minute or two then it says network connection lost.

It was setup and working fine on XP sp2 no issues what so ever, have disabled firewalls, turned guest account on, static ip, share folders properly, i can transfer files via computer to computer with no problems but the mg-35 keeps doing the same thing.

Anyone else got it going on Vista yet :(

teddystacker

02-08-07, 11:25 AM

Bit off topic I know , but think this is VERY important for MG-35 users to know ,that would not normally keep up with MG-350HD developments..

Today,Al Tech issued a New Firmware for the 350 that adds Net Radio support (a VERY much requested on both 35 and 350) - and I am pleased to report it actually works...

I wonder if it wil ever be possible to port this new feature to the MG-35? - would be a amazing addition thats for sure..

See my report on the new Firmware here:

http://mediagateusa.s10.forumsplace.com/viewtopic.php?t=382

klarkycat

02-08-07, 06:44 PM

Greetings all,
I need help.

After weeks of watching Freecom's website for stock availability and eventually phoning them to place an order, a Mediaplayer 35 finally fell off some boat (only 50 were coming in, apparently) and into my sweaty clutches today.

320GB Seagate drive duly installed, a few test files copied over and all's well apart from one thing.... no DivX support.

No, siree, it won't even see the files.
Is this normal?

On the box it says it supports DivX and Xvid.
The website agrees.
However, when you look at the main menu, under the Play Movie extension list, DivX does not appear.

This is a real bummer as I've encoded most of my bulky MPEGS to DivX.

Should I sent it back, or would a firmware update do the biz?
It's currently running V 1.4.6.

Thanks in advance.

KC

pendragn

02-08-07, 06:47 PM

Try renaming the extension to AVI and see if they work.

tk

klarkycat

02-08-07, 07:02 PM

Hi Pendragon,

I've had a pop at altering the extension, but XP won't seem to let me do it.

There's more to it than just right-clicking, I take it?

teddystacker

02-08-07, 07:13 PM

Hi Pendragon,

I've had a pop at altering the extension, but XP won't seem to let me do it.

There's more to it than just right-clicking, I take it?

The Mg-35 plays divx encoded files fine in most cases ,the file extn has to be avi , maybe the files are read only? , that why XP will not allow you to change them? , you will have to make them read/write 1st....

Bottom line , no need to send your unit back just yet :-)

klarkycat

02-08-07, 07:33 PM

Woo-hoo!
Success.

Twas that pesky folder option saying something like "hide known extensions" that was throwing me off the scent.
Box unchecked, Divx extension magically appears, only for it to be replaced with avi, and then Robert's your mother's brother.

Cheers guys.

Until next time...

KC

alfa

02-09-07, 08:32 AM

davidpeele

02-10-07, 10:14 AM

guys i uploaded a simple Mediagate ccf file for Pronto remote users in the Yahoo Mediagate Forum. It can easily be merged with other ccf Pronto Files. It also contains remote codes which can easily be copied using the Philips Pronto Edit. Hope this helps

alfa (or anyone)
my mg-35 remote is starting to fail.

I have a JP1 universal remote and started reading up on how to connect it to a PC and program it, but then my head exploded. It seems so complicated even for a fairly competent computer user.

Is there some simple way to get a JP1 remote to operate the MG-35?

Dave

- Royal Blue, now that's what I'm talkin' about! -

J. L.

02-10-07, 10:28 AM

alfa (or anyone)
my mg-35 remote is starting to fail.

I have a JP1 universal remote and started reading up on how to connect it to a PC and program it, but then my head exploded. It seems so complicated even for a fairly competent computer user.

Is there some simple way to get a JP1 remote to operate the MG-35?

Dave

- Royal Blue, now that's what I'm talkin' about! -
If all else fails and your JP1 remote takes too long to set up, you can always just purchase a spare MG-35 remote. (Here is one I found through google. I'm sure I saw one at a different site for a bit less)

http://www.xpcgear.com/mg35remote.html

davidpeele

02-10-07, 10:40 AM

Hay, I just connected my MG-35 to my router for the first time. I just have always used the HDD. But I found this crazy long LAN cable in a box, and thought I would try it out.

So I try to connect to it with my FTP app, Transmit. Wow look, there's all of my stuff!
Now, what can I do with it?
It seems I can only LOOK at the files not download or upload. Correct?
I see that I can streem from a PC (but not my Mac?)
I'm sure way back in the thread it is explained how to copy to and from via the network... I am sure I read it too, but...
Anybody care to post a re-cap?

Dave

julian2875

02-10-07, 12:45 PM

is any way that the radio can be added to the mg35 firmware?

if i was good with programming i would try to implement that.

anybodee knows how to do it?

swarrans

02-11-07, 01:45 PM

Hi,
I'm a Brit with a new Freecom MG35 and I'd like to update the firmware (currently 1.4.3). I don't have a HDD in it and I probably won't fit one - can I still update the firmware?
I've copied 1.4.6 onto my shared folder on my PC and I can see it from my Freecom unit under "Movies" but I'm reluctant to execute it without confirmation by those more knowledgeable that nothing hideous will happen!

Thx

Simon

klarkycat

02-11-07, 03:01 PM

Thanks Teddtstacker and hotfuzz for your help. Because this used to work! I have been using DVD Decrypter for decryption as well as iso production. I presume if a more modern DVD comes along that it can't handle, I'll have to use something else such as AnyDVD. But so far I haven't seen even one such disk; all my ripped DVDs thus far are ready to process further, e.g. into mpg files. Actually, I have a recent distribution of DVDFabDecrypter which I have at the ready, should DVD Decrypter fail. ;)

The symptom is this: when I select or Play an iso file, I get the brief notice that it's playing the selected file, and then it simply exits without any video or audio. If I've used the Play button, it goes on to play subsequent files just fine (as long as they are not ISO files). Use of the Select button just returns to the file browser after display of the filename.

I've tried iso's I've gotten off the net, those I've made with DVD Decrypter, and those I've made with DVD Hive, all with the same result. Can either of you ship me a URL with an ISO that absolutely positively works fine in your Mediagate? That would tell us whether I've somehow wedged my firmware or else just can't produce a valid ISO file. But that seems far-fetched since these ISOs all burn to DVD just fine using Nero. :confused:

This sounds very similar to a problem I've had.
Apologies if it's already been covered.

I was also having trouble playing ISOs.
I'd click on the file, but all it would play would be eternal, silent blackness.
The first time it happened I thought it was a dodgy ISO.

However... when it happened again after I'd just been watching an ISO that played successfully, I decided to investigate futher.
I'd noticed that when a movie was stopped, the player said it could be resumed later from the same point.

"Ah, ha", I thought, "perhaps the wee box is trying to play other films from the same time index..."
And sure enough, when I tried to play other ISOs, some played the famed eternal silent blackness, while some others played from halfway through the film.

"Ok then" was my next thought, "how about a hard reset (aka switching off and on?"
And wouldn't you know it... all my previously unplayable ISOs were suddenly revived!!

Now, although this is a workaround, it's rather poor that you have to switch off the machine before you can watch another film after having previously viewed another.

Is there another way?
Am I missing something?

Any help Krell?

I've a couple of my own 'monsters from the Id' that you may be able to help me with...

1. On all my ISOs, a few digital artefacts sometimes (actually most of the time) loiter on the screen, positioned about a fifth of the way in from the left and about a third of the way up from the bottom.

2. On a couple of ISOs can be heard some harsh electronic 'spitting' sounds. Each lasts, say, a fraction of a second and they are spaced about six minutes apart.
I've only heard them on two ISOs, mind you, so the problem may be rather isolated. Still, I'd be interested to hear if anyone else had heard such accoustic annoyances.

Thanks in advance.

KC

TheKrell

02-11-07, 04:46 PM

Sorry for not updating my iso problems which you quoted above. Seems that my particular problem is confined to playback of iso's from a W2K machine that used to work fine. When I copy the monsters to my Mediagate's internal hard drive, they play back fine. Other file types still play fine from my W2K machine; it is still a mystery what changed that only affects this one file type. "Ok then" was my next thought, "how about a hard reset (aka switching off and on?" And wouldn't you know it... all my previously unplayable ISOs were suddenly revived!! Well, why this workaround fixes it is anybody's guess. About 20 pages back in this thread, I originally claimed that the stopping point was not stored in NV memory. But Ian corrected me and he is right. The Mediagate stores at least one position for at least one video in NV memory and this survives a hard reset.

What version of the firmware are you running? Fiddling with the AC3 bug and a patched mediaplayer for 1.4.6, I have convinced myself that the only reason most versions of Mediagate firmware work at all is by accident! That is how buggy they are.

On your other iso monsters from the ID, ;) I can't help because I have never observed either.

TheKrell

02-11-07, 04:55 PM

I've copied 1.4.6 onto my shared folder on my PC and I can see it from my Freecom unit under "Movies" but I'm reluctant to execute it without confirmation by those more knowledgeable that nothing hideous will happen!
Many people have done it successfully. But be forwarned that there are more ways to have a disaster reflashing from a network share than there are reflashing from an internal disk. For example, power (or other failures) to PC, network, or Mediaplayer during the reflash, can "brick" it.

Good luck!

klarkycat

02-14-07, 01:39 AM

What version of the firmware are you running?
I'm running V 1.4.6.
Would you recommend I upgrade to a 'tweaked' version?
And if so, which?

Oh, and I've found the perfect avatar for you:
http://www.msu.edu/~daggy/cop/images/00000081.gif
I used this one myself on a Lost forum when I started a thread suggesting that the monster was in fact an Invisible Mechanical Dinosaur from The Future.

Some of the responses were priceless.

KC

TheKrell

02-14-07, 07:06 AM

I'm running V 1.4.6.
Would you recommend I upgrade to a 'tweaked' version? And if so, which? Well... I use 1.4.4 something-or-other with the supraeon-patched mpegplayer because most of my videos are mpeg-2 program streams w/AC3 sound. Supraeon also produced a patched version of mpegplayer for 1.4.6, but with that substituted for the original in 1.4.6, somehow network share browsing gets broken. :mad: This version also has better-looking graphics, a telnet and ftp daemon, and even a rudimentary web browser.

If you don't care about AC3 sound in mpeg-2 program streams, then the official versions might do. 1.4.5 introduced a cross-fade effect in the slide show, and also fixed the progressive jpeg display problem. It also added a folder-repeat setting. 1.4.6 added a screen saver which nevertheless comes on when it shouldn't, so it's of dubious value.

Oh, and I've found the perfect avatar for you:
http://www.msu.edu/~daggy/cop/images/00000081.gif Hehe, well, that's a pic of the monster from Morbius's ID, not The Krell themselves. ;)

teddystacker

02-15-07, 01:52 PM

Mg-35 users that also have a TIVO,may want to checkout this thread just posted at the Mediagate forums..

http://mediagateusa.s10.forumsplace.com/viewtopic.php?p=1663#1663

The Hardware loks classic MG-35,but as you can see from the screenshots in the manual the firmware is VERY different , with a TIVO feature on the main menu..

Also check out that Royal Blue GUI!! - I wonder where they got the Idea for from that?

Eat your heart out Rob!!

dexx

02-16-07, 01:30 AM

The MG35 has been around for a couple of years now. Its hardware must be a bit underpowered by todays standards. Is there a new hardware release coming?

jkurlanski

02-16-07, 07:26 AM

I think the MG-350HD would be the new release.

klarkycat

02-16-07, 04:47 PM

Hehe, well, that's a pic of the monster from Morbius's ID, not The Krell themselves. ;)

You’re right, of course.
It’s spooky, but it appears Dr Morbius foresaw this event, prompting him to comment:
“The fool, the meddling idiot. As though his ape's brain could contain the secrets of the Krell.”
Guilty as charged.

schroedk

02-17-07, 12:34 PM

klarkycat

02-18-07, 05:31 AM

This sounds very similar to a problem I've had.
Apologies if it's already been covered.

I was also having trouble playing ISOs.
I'd click on the file, but all it would play would be eternal, silent blackness.
The first time it happened I thought it was a dodgy ISO.

However... when it happened again after I'd just been watching an ISO that played successfully, I decided to investigate futher.
I'd noticed that when a movie was stopped, the player said it could be resumed later from the same point.

"Ah, ha", I thought, "perhaps the wee box is trying to play other films from the same time index..."
And sure enough, when I tried to play other ISOs, some played the famed eternal silent blackness, while some others played from halfway through the film.

"Ok then" was my next thought, "how about a hard reset (aka switching off and on?"
And wouldn't you know it... all my previously unplayable ISOs were suddenly revived!!

Now, although this is a workaround, it's rather poor that you have to switch off the machine before you can watch another film after having previously viewed another.

Is there another way?
Am I missing something?

Any help Krell?

ME

Indeed there is a better way! \o/
After the player has refused to play an ISO, just select the file again and start pressing Title on your remote for all you're worth.
The result, for me at least, is that the film starts playing, and from the beginning no less!

Now, if I could only figure out how to stop the blue light blinking when there is a USB connection...

davei1

02-18-07, 05:54 AM

Just wondering about the progress on incorporating the Enhanced menu/graphics into release 1.4.6? Of particular interest is the M3U capability of version 1.4.6 and of course incorporating the AC3 Fix...

Have been holding off on going to 1.4.6 because of just not wanting to go back to the clunky interface but the M3U capability is a real genuine enhancement...

Anybody here care to give us an update?

Super-Sean

02-18-07, 06:27 AM

Did someone say USB connection???

My MediaGate has ben sitting in a cupboard for the last six months or so while I waited for a decent firmware update to become avaliable.

Last week, I needed to go way on business for a week and not wanting to pay the stupid priced they charge for in-room movies, I dragged it out and and found that the old 40Gb HDD I had in it was dying - fair enough.. I't had a few re-incarnations so, I swapped it out with a seagate 320Gb that I had left over from another project and uploaded some movies ect via USB with no major problems.

Problem happened when I connected the MediaGate to my laptop via USB so I could transfer some more movies onto it.

The Drive was not recognised at all and the mediagate locked up whenever the USB cable was attached. Also, I can turn the unit off using either the front pannel power button or remote but the only way I can turn it on is to pull the power cable and plug it in again.

LAN connections work fine so, I Have tried to install updates both the 1.4.6 and latest community firmwares but neither fixed this problem.

I am hoping that someone can point me in the right direction to fix this problem.

Sorry if this is off topic.

teddystacker

02-18-07, 12:33 PM

Is the Hard drive in the unit set to **MASTER** or **SINGLE** ??, problems will arise if the jumper is set to SLAVE or CABLE SELECT.

No firmware fix will ever address any USB issues on the 35,as the MG-35 uses a dedicated USB chip for USB operations.In the forums I moderate,few people have had USB issues with the MG-35,and if they have 99% of the time its been the master/slave jumper thing.The other 1% it has been hardware failure such as the USB Cable /connector or the cip itself.

hope this helps a little..

Did someone say USB connection???

My MediaGate has ben sitting in a cupboard for the last six months or so while I waited for a decent firmware update to become avaliable.

Last week, I needed to go way on business for a week and not wanting to pay the stupid priced they charge for in-room movies, I dragged it out and and found that the old 40Gb HDD I had in it was dying - fair enough.. I't had a few re-incarnations so, I swapped it out with a seagate 320Gb that I had left over from another project and uploaded some movies ect via USB with no major problems.

Problem happened when I connected the MediaGate to my laptop via USB so I could transfer some more movies onto it.

The Drive was not recognised at all and the mediagate locked up whenever the USB cable was attached. Also, I can turn the unit off using either the front pannel power button or remote but the only way I can turn it on is to pull the power cable and plug it in again.

LAN connections work fine so, I Have tried to install updates both the 1.4.6 and latest community firmwares but neither fixed this problem.

I am hoping that someone can point me in the right direction to fix this problem.

Sorry if this is off topic.

supraeon

02-19-07, 03:08 AM

jkurlanski

02-19-07, 09:07 AM

supraeon

02-20-07, 03:26 AM

On my unit, I actually had to set the HDD to Single by removing the jumpers. Setting it to Master did not work. After that, I had an additional problem with formatting the drive. The first time it came up with a Type of something other than "Basic" under the Windows XP Disk Management. I don't remember (Extended?) which is was, but once I got a good format w/Basic as a type its been good to go.
Hope that helps!

Well spotted! If your drive has 'Single', use that instead of 'Master' as 'Master' assumes a 'Slave' drive is attached and will try to find it. Setting 'Single' tells the controller not to look for a 'Slave'.

TimCDN

02-22-07, 08:29 AM

Hi, I am hoping someone can help. I have installed a MG-35 (V1.4.6) and NDAS software (v3.10.1230). I cannot see the device in my computer (running Vista home premium) the device manager's status for the NDAS SCSI Controller is This device cannot start. (Code 10). Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks

teddystacker

02-22-07, 03:34 PM

This is because there is **NO** working NDAS software for the Mg-35 and Vista at this moment - Suggest you hammer Al Tech about it at their board here:

http://www.airlinktek.com/english/e_atboard.php?section1=e_qna&section2=mediagate

The more people that complain , the better chance we have of getting something done...

Hi, I am hoping someone can help. I have installed a MG-35 (V1.4.6) and NDAS software (v3.10.1230). I cannot see the device in my computer (running Vista home premium) the device manager's status for the NDAS SCSI Controller is This device cannot start. (Code 10). Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks

Bobdenar

02-24-07, 05:49 PM

Hi there,

Does somebody have problems with some MP3 files? I have some files that will play in slowmotion. I see these files have 192kbps.

Greets
160bpm

Hi , I have the same problem, I would also be interested in a solution.

Cheers

flatface

02-25-07, 04:30 AM

Hey, people.

Nice thread you've got going here. Today I was at my local Chinese mall, and I came across the MG-35. There was another box next to it, a Eureka LX350HD. I copied down these model numbers for further inspection at home. Well, it looks like the MG-35, while a few hundred dollars cheaper, might also be a much better box for me. Hackability is very important to me :D

I've scanned this thread, did a bit of reading, but please don't kill me for asking some questions that have probably been asked in the first, uh, 113 pages or so. Before I buy this box, I'd like to ask them just to be on the safe side.

1. Native resolution: I have a 480p widescreen HD projector, and I've gone through a number of mpeg4 ASP/DVD players. A common problem with them is, they don't scale to the native resolution properly. For instance, when playing a widescreen XviD file, it has a letterbox inside of a 4:3 display. So instead of scaling properly to utilize all of the resolution available, it has a letterbox on every side. I'd like to make sure that this isn't a problem.

2. USB mass storage seems like an awesome feature. If I use a USB IDE enclosure (just the controller part) to adapt a DVD-ROM drive to a USB port, will it be able to play DVDs off of it?

And some non-crucial questions:

1. Looks like you've got a web server and stuff running off of it... I understand that it is not a powerful machine by any means (My PDA has more processing power XD), but would it be able to do thin client tasks, such as running VNC, in the future?

2. What video containers are supported, besides avi and mpg? I'm mainly interested in ogm and mkv (Matroska). If they are supported, is the audio track switchable? And if they're not supported now, is there any hope of getting it added in the future?

Thanks for your time. If things go well, there's a good possibility of me becoming a regular here.

--ff

TheKrell

02-25-07, 06:46 AM

I'll take a swing at 2. 2. USB mass storage seems like an awesome feature. If I use a USB IDE enclosure (just the controller part) to adapt a DVD-ROM drive to a USB port, will it be able to play DVDs off of it? The MG-35 does not have a host USB port. It can only function as an external USB drive enclosure during which time 2 bad things happen. The blue light flashes and there is no way to turn that off. And the ARM7 microcontroller inside is held in reset, so it cannot function as a player and USB device simultaneously.

On a related note, the MG-35 has an IDE controller for playing videos off an internal hard drive, and we have discovered the phrase "decss" in the firmware, so... I plugged in a Panasonic DVD burner to see if it could play a commercial DVD, and it didn't do squat. The firmware refused to recognize a DVD-ROM (or any drive) was attached. I also tried serving a commercial encrypted DVD from my PC, and the MG-35 tried to play it, sort of. Playback stuttered horribly, and there was no real video but only single frames occasionally. On the plus side, it has no problem playing decrypted DVDs or folders containing same on a served disk or it's own internal disk.

I have no idea what the Eureka has for USB ports. But the Mediagate MG-350HD does indeed have a host USB port, if that's an important function for you. (Of course the HD version is quite a bit more expensive than the MG-35.) I thought I read that the MG-350HD would play commercial DVDs found on it's USB port, but don't quote me on that one.

Grumpa

02-26-07, 06:04 AM

The AirLinkTek site has posted new Firmware (v1.47) for the MG-35.

TheKrell

02-26-07, 10:07 AM

The AirLinkTek site has posted new Firmware (v1.47) for the MG-35. The release notes say:
The improvements of the 1.4.7 firmware are as follows:

- Screen saver error when dvd rip/iso files play. => Fixed
- When moving to the next song while playing music files, words and letters overlap on the Screen saver => Fixed
- Errors while loading .m3u file => Fixed
- Users can now reset the device back to factory defaults not only from the main menu, but from the title list menu as well. I tried it just hoping, but of course the AC3 bug is still not fixed. So I'm back to 1.4.4 w/AC3 patch courtesy of supraeon.

jeanmarc85

02-26-07, 02:56 PM

Could anyone tell me if you still need the NDAS software when your machine runs on the hacked firmware 1.4.4?

And my second question is (it is probably mentioned here :P): Does the new firmware let you transfer files at high speed now when using a ftp program?

Rexxy

02-26-07, 09:13 PM

its kind of frustrating to see that v1.4.7 is out, but it hardly does anything, especially when the latest version for the mg-350 does iRadio , has a great menu/display and see so clean and quick........seriously frustrating...wouldnt iRadio work just as well on the mg-35 via the cat6 ethernet (lan), and those menus are professional compared to the mg-35......

big deal if we can now reset it back to default from more than one place in the menu's.....useless, will v1.4.8 now have 2 places in the menu where we can pause ?? just as useless, i mean usefull.....haha

it really is the inferior little brother isnt it....

shanepowell

02-27-07, 06:52 AM

J. L.

02-27-07, 07:18 AM

Hi,

Just brought a MG-35, love it. For $200 bucks Aussie its is a great piece of gear.

I wanted to update the firmware (ships with 1.4.4), but I get a "Upgrade failed.." message about 2 seconds after I click on the file?

What am i doing wrong?

Thanks in advance for any tips.The first thing the MG-35 does in an upgrade is do a checksum on the upgrade file to verify it as valid. It sounds as if the upgrade file you are attempting to use is either corrupted, or not for the MG-35.

What file are you attempting to use for the upgrade? 1.4.7 was released about two days ago... it is the most current official release.

Joe L.

icabrindus

02-27-07, 03:06 PM

The first thing the MG-35 does in an upgrade is do a checksum on the upgrade file to verify it as valid. It sounds as if the upgrade file you are attempting to use is either corrupted, or not for the MG-35.

What file are you attempting to use for the upgrade? 1.4.7 was released about two days ago... it is the most current official release.

Joe L.

Did anybody succeeded upgrading to 1.4.7? My brother complains he gets an "upgrade failed" message, but the device still works after that. He tried downgrading to 1.4.5, and the message is the same.

ddoodler

02-27-07, 03:39 PM

shanepowell

02-27-07, 07:14 PM

TheKrell

02-27-07, 07:49 PM

Did anybody succeeded upgrading to 1.4.7? Yes. See http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9879998&&#post9879998. Went back to 1.4.4 w/AC3 patch because 1.4.7 still can't play mpeg program streams w/AC3 sound.

Now that I'm thinking about it, I had Firefox blow up on me when trying to download the file the first time. IE did OK, though.

icabrindus

02-27-07, 08:06 PM

Okay, I'm thinking about buying one of these, but I can't find answers to some of my questions, so hopefully you guys can help me out!

1.) Will this harddrive work with the MG35?

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perpendicular Recording) ST3320620A 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive - OEM (found at Newegg, but I can't post links yet)

2.) Can the MG35 use an ATA100 HDD?

3.) Does anybody have any screenshots of the explorer interface used by the MG35 on your tv?

4.) Will the MG35 play HD DVD or bluray files?

5.) Is there anything else I should know about purchasing and installing a harddrive on the MG35?

Thanks for the help! :)

1. Probably. There are reports that even 750GB drives are working with it.
2. Don't know
3. I don't
4. Not directly, but if you rip them (is this possible?) and downconvert, it may work
5. nothing special. Just make sure it's ATA and take care on the jumper setting. Also, it would be nice to use a silent one, and if possible check it's not running too hot.

rrr22777

02-28-07, 01:25 AM

1. Probably. There are reports that even 750GB drives are working with it.
2. Don't know
3. I don't
4. Not directly, but if you rip them (is this possible?) and downconvert, it may work
5. nothing special. Just make sure it's ATA and take care on the jumper setting. Also, it would be nice to use a silent one, and if possible check it's not running too hot.

So unless you downconvert the file there is no way to play the file directly?

supraeon

02-28-07, 03:57 AM

1. Probably. There are reports that even 750GB drives are working with it.
2. Don't know
3. I don't
4. Not directly, but if you rip them (is this possible?) and downconvert, it may work
5. nothing special. Just make sure it's ATA and take care on the jumper setting. Also, it would be nice to use a silent one, and if possible check it's not running too hot.

Clarification: The MG35 supports PATA drives, not SATA. I suspect that if a drive responds to normal ATA commands then the MG35 can use it.

Set the drive jumpers to 'Single' or 'Master'

Frenik

02-28-07, 04:16 AM

I am pretty sure i downloaded the correct update. The file name is;

MG35_1.4.7_ALTech_English_20070226.upgrade

Thinking corruption might be the issue I downloaded the 1.4.5 and 1.4.6 updates as well, all with the same result??

Any other ideas. I note below some other people are having the same issue.

What motherboard/hdd combo do you have in the machine you used to download the firmware?

The reason I ask, is that a little while ago I switched to SATA drives on my NF7-S motherboard, and unfortunately learned the hard way that there is a particular issue between the nForce2 chipset and Silicon Image 3112 SATA controller that can cause data corruption, unless a certain setting in the BIOS is configured the way it likes it (and not the default BIOS setting).

It wouldn't corrupt all files, and generally it was only large files, but could this be a similar problem affecting you?

shawjo

02-28-07, 10:50 AM

I have put together what I hope is our first attempt of including the new GUI in newer firmware. I am still waiting for my serial cable and as such would be shot if I accidentally bricked the family's MG-35, so I cannot at this time test this upgrade. If anyone that has a serial cable is willing to test this, PM me and I give you the file.

-shawjo

supraeon

03-01-07, 04:17 AM

Just had a peek at the mpegplayer.bin file in 1.4.7
The AC3 bug is still there, quite fixable, but in a slightly different location.
Which means this file has been modified slightly by AlTech.

About to try running it...

supraeon

03-01-07, 04:35 AM

... Just uploaded to the Yahoo Tech Groups site, under Files>MG-35 Beta Firmware>Non-developer.

Enjoy

supraeon

03-01-07, 05:32 AM

Hmmm. Seem to have had some success with NDAS and Vista.
Using 1.4.7 firmware and latest driver (3.20.1520) from the Ximeta site; just uploading a file to the Mediagate now (about 10 minutes for 750mb)

TheKrell

03-01-07, 12:10 PM

Just had a peek at the mpegplayer.bin file in 1.4.7. The AC3 bug is still there, quite fixable, but in a slightly different location... Wow, Ian, that's great! :D Does this mean that the patched mpegplayer from 1.4.7 does not inexplicably kill file share browsing as it did in 1.4.6? (I'm not home right now or I'd give it a spin.)

Edit: I've tried it and it does not. Thanks again Ian!

supraeon

03-02-07, 04:28 AM

Wow, Ian, that's great! :D Does this mean that the patched mpegplayer from 1.4.7 does not inexplicably kill file share browsing as it did in 1.4.6? (I'm not home right now or I'd give it a spin.)

Edit: I've tried it and it does not. Thanks again Ian!

Glad you tried - I'm still sorting things out in Vista (ie networking!)

Brian Surgeon

03-02-07, 08:05 PM

Can I post a general MG-35 question here? OK. Good. Here goes:

My MG-35 arrives on Monday and I can't wait to get my hands on it, especially after reading many of the entries on this thread. Thanks.

Is it possible to set the device to output the video signal to more than one monitor at a time? I want to direct the component output to my projector and the composite signal to my regular TV as a monitor. Would be nice not to have to switch back and forth.

When I set up a slideshow of JPEGs, will the system resize them to fullscreen (I hope so), or do they all have to be the correct size for whatever screen format I've set?

Thanks for your help on the first of many probably questions....

Brian Surgeon, New Zealand

cxr

03-02-07, 08:41 PM

Is there any way to get videos with GMC/Qpel to play on the Mediagate MG-35? I have a crapload of videos, and almost all of them have the GMC or Qpel in them. Is there a program or something that can get rid of it, or re-encode it? Will the quality remain the same? Someone please help, I really want to watch all my TV shows through the MG-35.

Thank You

darrenoakey

03-03-07, 12:58 AM

G'day - I just had a few MG-35 qs..

a) has anyone got the webbrowser working? I gave it a go, and it seemed to fire up, but couldn't get anything out of it

b) I have tried to telnet in and run things like mp4play/mp3play on files - but nothing really happened. from a telnet shell, is it possible to play a file such that it comes out the mediagate outputs?

c) from the mediagate telnet shell, how do I reference a network share?

*** my eventual aim is to write a web page + cgi such that my wife can login from her laptop and start music playing on the main stereo system (where the music is coming off a different NAS device).. I want it because the mg-35 is plugged into a projector, and it's a pain to have to turn the projector on just to use some menus, if you just want to play music.

Any help would be greately appreciated,
Thanks,

Darren

TheKrell

03-03-07, 12:53 PM

has anyone got the webbrowser working? Did you mean the web server? It doesn't do much due to lack of compatible cgi scripts that are useful, such as issuing commands like those below. I have tried to telnet in and run things like mp4play/mp3play on files - but nothing really happened. Ah... Were you using the commands shown here (http://mediagate.pbwiki.com/MG35Firmware#fileplayer) (and further down)? from a telnet shell, is it possible to play a file such that it comes out the mediagate outputs? That is what those commands on the wiki do. The overlay is still sitting there, so issue the CLS command first. You may also want to avoid hitting any front panel or remote buttons, since those are handled by dvdplayer.bin, and that is still running and monitoring those buttons. Hitting remote buttons while you are playing a file via command line will produce unpredictable results, to say the least.

TheKrell

03-03-07, 08:50 PM

Since nobody has answered you so far, I'll take a swing at these q's. Is it possible to set the device to output the video signal to more than one monitor at a time? I want to direct the component output to my projector and the composite signal to my regular TV as a monitor. I don't have any TV that can handle component video, so I can't check this. But from reading the manual and the web, I would guess that you will see video on the composite, the S-video component, and the YPbPr component outputs simultaneously only if you have the MG-35 component outputs set to 480i. If that's good enough for you, then you're good to go. If, on the other hand, you want to see 480p or higher (upscaled) output on your projector, then I would guess that the regular composite and S-video jacks would be disabled. But don't quote me on that! When I set up a slideshow of JPEGs, will the system resize them to fullscreen (I hope so), or do they all have to be the correct size for whatever screen format I've set? Holy smokes, Brian! Is your TV or projector running 16:9 or 4:3? Is the MG-35 set for anamorphic widescreen or something else? And what are the aspect ratios of your pictures? Portrait or landscape? For 4:3 pictures in landscape mode, you will see what is commonly referred to as "fullscreen". If the MG-35 has to display a jpeg in portrait mode, of course it does the right thing and puts black bars on either side to fill in the fixed 4:3 of the TV.

Brian Surgeon

03-03-07, 10:16 PM

Hi Krell

Thanks for your comments.

I'll have to wait until Monday and can find out for sure then if Composite output continues with upscaled Component output and whether my projected image looks better at those higher settings.

Good to know that jpegs are handled intelligently. Will report back on my progress with inevitable further questions.

enablrbro1

03-05-07, 07:12 AM

J. L.

03-05-07, 07:31 AM

Another noob query. Have tried a quick search and this seemed the best place to ask.

Just taken delivery of my MG35 (rebranded by Freecom as mediaplayer kit) have not updated firmware. I have plugged in an 80Gb Maxtor HDD and transferred a video file via USB from my PC but am getting message "MediaGate can't find HDD..." when I switch it on connected to my TV. I know I am probably not doing something very simple but the manual that comes with it is pretty unhelpful. The HDD is formatted to NTFS as my PC had no problems detecting it. Any ideas, thanks?The drive select jumper on the hard disk needs to be set correctly.
Yes, the USB controller can see the drive if set wrong, but the CPU in the MG35 cannot.

So... as per my MG-35 manual, try to set the drive to be "Master," although it also says if your drive supports "single" you may need to use that jumper setting instead.

Joe L.

enablrbro1

03-05-07, 08:07 AM

The drive select jumper on the hard disk needs to be set correctly.
Yes, the USB controller can see the drive if set wrong, but the CPU in the MG35 cannot.

So... as per my MG-35 manual, try to set the drive to be "Master," although it also says if your drive supports "single" you may need to use that jumper setting instead.

Joe L.
I knew it would be something simple. Thanks for that. Up and running now.

:)

whippy0

03-05-07, 10:09 AM

I have a problem with my mg35 ,the remote does not work properly ,it will shut the machine down when i press any of the buttons on the remote,
but not allways ,sometimes it works fine
i have bought a harmony 520 universal remote ,same thing ,has anyone had this problem, the buttons on the box work fine its just the remote
thanks

Mr.Gadget

03-05-07, 01:06 PM

Another noob query. Have tried a quick search and this seemed the best place to ask.

Just taken delivery of my MG35 (rebranded by Freecom as mediaplayer kit) have not updated firmware. I have plugged in an 80Gb Maxtor HDD and transferred a video file via USB from my PC but am getting message "MediaGate can't find HDD..." when I switch it on connected to my TV. I know I am probably not doing something very simple but the manual that comes with it is pretty unhelpful. The HDD is formatted to NTFS as my PC had no problems detecting it. Any ideas, thanks?

Why do we continue to fill forums with answers already answered in previous posts, the WiKi or in the manual? Please Search the posts in this 3000+ thread and READ, or RTFM! :mad: I know the forums are a place to exchange (NEW) information, and ideas. HOWEVER, When you have a thread with 3000 entries and the same question has been hashed numerous times, NEW information begins to get lost between the same old same old. Most forums would ignore these repetitive posts, so please be kind and read existing information.

Sorry, I feel better now.

teddystacker

03-05-07, 03:20 PM

Why do we continue to fill forums with answers already answered in previous posts, the WiKi or in the manual?
Sorry, I feel better now.

Because this is a discussion forum I guess , also because this thread is huge and the search function , although good , does not always do the job , believe me I have tried and not got the results I wanted via the search..

I for one , am more than happy to answer basic questions over and over , as I was once a "newbie" myself.. but understand your frustration..

khanley

03-06-07, 03:26 AM

I upgraded to 1.4.7. Great result! Now it works with the new NDAS on vista. I tried the playlist feature and it worked fine the first time. On my second attempt to use an m3u file the MG-35 froze and I rebooted it.
Now the machine does not see any of my media files from the hard disk.
You can still see and manipulate and play the files from the computer over the network but the mg tells me that there are no files on the disk. I've tried all the reboot combinations I can think of.
The machine still plays files over the network with no problems.
I have also tied going back to 1.4.6 without result.
Any ideas would be welcome. TIA

TheKrell

03-06-07, 07:00 AM

On my second attempt to use an m3u file the MG-35 froze and I rebooted it. Now the machine does not see any of my media files from the hard disk. Well nuts! I think the disk either failed (unlikely) or the file system on it got corrupted when you unplugged the MG-35. Plug it into your computer as a USB drive and run scandisk on it.

khanley

03-06-07, 11:40 AM

Well nuts! I think the disk either failed (unlikely) or the file system on it got corrupted when you unplugged the MG-35. Plug it into your computer as a USB drive and run scandisk on it.
I've already run chkdsk over it via the network. There do not appear to be any problems. The disk shows up on my computer and I can play files on it with windows media player. Thanks anyway.

TheKrell

03-06-07, 12:18 PM

I've already run scandisk over it via the network. There do not appear to be any problems. Via NDAS? That's surprising that the NDAS software running on the Mediagate can see it, while the rest of the firmware does not. :confused:

This fact doesn't help any, but your original problem (crashing the Mediagate) has been reported by others on the official Airlinktek website.

khanley

03-06-07, 01:55 PM

Via NDAS? That's surprising that the NDAS software running on the Mediagate can see it, while the rest of the firmware does not. :confused:

This fact doesn't help any, but your original problem (crashing the Mediagate) has been reported by others on the official Airlinktek website.
The 1.4.7 update, the latest NDAS drivers, and vista all work very well together. The mediagate does appear to recognise that there is a hard disk installed. The message when the movie, music excetra options are pressed is that here is no suitable media on the disk. Fortunately I play most of my files from my computer via the network link so not being able to play of the internal hard disk is a relatively minor inconvenience. Just annoying :confused:

julian2875

03-06-07, 08:13 PM

how do i delete folders/drives from the mg 35 net access page some of them are not available or have changed their name?????

also where is the ximeta update firmware url if someone has it? i down the one in their website but it doesnt work so i downgraded to the orig one................................thx

TheKrell

03-06-07, 08:22 PM

how do i delete folders/drives from the mg 35 net access page some of them are not available or have changed their name????? Rather odd, isn't it? You probably figured out that such info will not survive power cycling. Plus I find that when I try to access a share or folder that has gone away, the MG-35 throws an error and then makes the whole folder disappear. Apparently, what is happening is the MG-35 does it's inventory once after you select Network and then media type. So, if you don't want to power cycle, you'll at least have to go back and select Network in order to clear out the obsolete information.

teddystacker

03-12-07, 01:36 PM

This was Just posted at the MG-35 Yahoo Group by "Wizkidshaw" - Thought it worth re-posting here,as some users may not check all the forums..

He has added the New Royal Blue GUI to the newest MG-35 1.4.7 firmware..

Its located here,at the Yahoo group:

http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/mg-35_firmware_mods/files/MG-35%20Beta%20Firmware/Developer%20Releases/MG35-1.4.7.1-alpha2-Royal%20Blue/

Please post here or at the Yahoo group if you test it , and let us know what you think.. - Thanks..

Details of the "spec" for the graphic files that are required and how to create them , can be found here:

http://mediagate.pbwiki.com/MoreOnUserInterface

He is some of the newer graphics missing however,to make it fully complete.

So if anyone can help create a few missing graphics , please post a message here or at the Yahoo group..

Thanks in advance...

EDIT:
Just loaded this on my own MG-35 and did various tests , works flawless as far as I can see , great news is that being as its based on 1.4.7 , the latest 3.20 NDAS software works perfectly with it..

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Edit: March 11th 2007 - MG35-1.4.7.1-alpha2
updated 1.4.7.1-alpha1 to include ALL of the correct new GUI graphics as
some were left out on alpha1. Some graphics still need updating. In particular they are:
rpt0.png
rpt1.png
rpt2.png
sav0.png
sav1.png
sav2.png
screensaver.png
Also added supraeon's AC3 fix into this firmware.

AaronKelly

03-14-07, 05:16 AM

[QUOTE=furaisanjin]
Flash image through serial seems to be same as MG-35 but it must be encoded by uuencode. There are 2 screen shots for this.

Hi Furaisanjin,
didn't get as far as you, trying to unbrick our MG350HD and we are at the stage of sending a uuencoded romfs file... but the MG350 is not responding to recieving anything...

Any ideas?? Could it be the Cable??/ romfs??/ MG350??/ Our Process??

Firstly: the cableseems good because we can log in eg "MediaGate", send commands eg "download"... but send function does not seem to work.

Secondly: our romfs file is made from original firmare, starts from 4byte header before linux gz kernel...

WHat are we doing wrong???

thanks in advance..
Aaron and How

J. L.

03-14-07, 08:14 AM

Just loaded this (MG35-1.4.7.1-alpha2)on my own MG-35 and did various tests , works flawless as far as I can see , great news is that being as its based on 1.4.7 , the latest 3.20 NDAS software works perfectly with it.
I loaded this new alpha version on my MG-35. Tried it on a few DVD ISO images and found it to stutter the audio and lose video frames, pixilate, and break up when playing higher bit-rate images over the LAN. These same ISO files played fine previously.

I went back to the 1.4.4 alpha6 RB version and the ISO images play fine again.

So, whatever they did to 1.4.7 to add the screen saver, it is not as efficient, and it chokes on DVD ISO images with file sizes over 5 GIg. (It was really bad on "Something's Gotta Give" with just the main title and english audio track, and no additional compression resulting in an ISO file size of 5,634,638 KB.)

I first tried to power cycle the MG-35,to see if the problem was related to a memory leak and many hours of use, but it had no effect. Even after power cycling it could not play the higher bit rate ISO images over the LAN without horrible breakup and stuttering.

After reflashing to the older developer release based on 1.4.4, the exact same ISO images played perfectly fine, so I'll stick with it. If I find some time I might try the official 1.4.7 upgrade file to see if it has the same behaviour as the alpha developer versison based on it.

Joe L.

teddystacker

03-14-07, 08:25 AM

@Aaron,

Bit confused here mate...

On March 10th you announced at your Yahoo group..

http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/mg350hd_user_upgrades/message/30

"and wait for it...
-we "UnBricked" our MG350HD"

"[So very soon I'll post the pics and hopefully How can explain how he
did it!]"

Did it somehow get "re-bricked" , and now you cant "unbrick" it again?

Just interested to know if there is something that only allows you to "unbrick" it once , being as you already announced you had "unbricked" it a few days ago?,if so,we need to pass this on to other 350 users...

Kind regards

Teddy

"

[QUOTE=furaisanjin]
Flash image through serial seems to be same as MG-35 but it must be encoded by uuencode. There are 2 screen shots for this.

Hi Furaisanjin,
didn't get as far as you, trying to unbrick our MG350HD and we are at the stage of sending a uuencoded romfs file... but the MG350 is not responding to recieving anything...

Any ideas?? Could it be the Cable??/ romfs??/ MG350??/ Our Process??

Firstly: the cableseems good because we can log in eg "MediaGate", send commands eg "download"... but send function does not seem to work.

Secondly: our romfs file is made from original firmare, starts from 4byte header before linux gz kernel...

WHat are we doing wrong???

thanks in advance..
Aaron and How

teddystacker

03-14-07, 08:29 AM

Thanks for the info Joe , I have to admit , I only did my tests with "standard" Bitrate DVDS , but all was ok...

I loaded this new alpha version on my MG-35. Tried it on a few DVD ISO images and found it to stutter the audio and lose video frames, pixilate, and break up when playing higher bit-rate images over the LAN. These same ISO files played fine previously.

Joe L.

TheKrell

03-15-07, 03:55 AM

From the official Al Tech Q&A forum in reply to an ftp question (post 336): We will add ftp server and iradio function in MG-35, soon.

TimCDN

03-15-07, 10:36 PM

Since the release of the new firmware I have been able to connect my 35 via NDAS without a problem. However, I am at a loss for the new sharing settings for PC remote access from the 35. Any help would be appreciated. BTW, my PC is not firewalled and I am getting a shared folder error when attempting to access my PC. Thanks.

julian2875

03-17-07, 12:13 PM

waz iradio?...........is it like shoutcast style web radio?

Bytre

03-19-07, 01:03 AM

yes. recently added to mg350hd beta firmware.

KAZUKI67

03-19-07, 06:08 AM

teddystacker

03-19-07, 09:54 AM

can not make my mind up between the MG35 or the MG350HD, the wireless network could be good if you can stream video from pc using VLC Player so video which the MG350 can not handle will play back is this possible?
also whats the interface like now on the MG35 with the custom graphics in the firmware any pics?
thanks

Pics of the NEW GUI are located in the "photos" section of my Yahoo group..

http://tech.ph.groups.yahoo.com/group/mg-35_firmware_mods/

Bobdenar

03-20-07, 10:02 AM

Hi all.

I have just updated to VISTA and the last 1.4.7 mod , and it seems I can't stream from the PC anymore: after a few minutes, the connection drops and the MP35 comes back to the menu (HDD/NETWORK). I have seen similar posts, but I didn't see the cure so far.
I am on wireless and the mp35 is wired to the router. However, I am able to transfer files to the mp35 without problem thanks to the XIMETA new firmware.

Cheers

teddystacker

03-20-07, 11:57 AM

@Bobdenar

Can you re-test the same streaming files with the STOCK 1.4.7 firmware , that way we wil know if its a problem with the 1.4.7 (New GUI Firmare)

Thanks

regards

Teddy

Bobdenar

03-20-07, 05:51 PM

Well, actually, just did what you said Teddy and the same movie went like a breeze using AL TEC 1.4.7, even moving forward 32X and doing time search.
Then I went back to our -most beloved- modified GUI 1.4.7, and it stumbled as soon as I pressed forward (lost connection and stop). New trial: freeze on picture.

There 's probably something need fixin' ?

Cheers

teddystacker

03-20-07, 07:06 PM

@Bobdenar

I have asked "Wizkidshaw" if he can make up a firmware made comprised of Stock 1.4.7 + the New gui , the one you used before was stock but with other "developer" functions added , these may be causing the problem.

As soon as he has made it , I will let u know and possibly you could re-test to see if it work

Thanks in advance

Teddy

Rusan

03-20-07, 08:18 PM

Just set up searching path for driver on C:\Program Files\NDAS\Drivers

dreg123

03-21-07, 01:52 AM

Can somebody confirm if MG35-1.4.7.1-alpha2.upgrade has the older black volume bar GUI or is the GUI the one that had the "Green/Yellow" theme for file info etc?

Bobdenar

03-21-07, 02:14 AM

Thanks Teddystacker.

Dreg 123, yes still the black bar (not too good I think)

Cheers

Frenik

03-21-07, 02:28 AM

Yeh, that black volume bar doesn't work so well when watching 4:3 on a 16:9 display.

BitBasher

03-21-07, 01:04 PM

Sing along with me...

This is the thread that never never dies, never never dies, never never dies...

Anyways, I updated the mg35tool to support creating the romfs.bin file which is useful for debricking. If you don't know what the romfs.bin file is, then you don't need to worry about it. :P

This version supports the mg25, mg35, and mg350.

You should now be able to download any mg350hd firmware from aitech and be able to split it to get the romfs.bin file. The romfs file will also be generated for mg25 and mg35 roms, but I don't think those unit's bootloaders make use of the romfs file (correct me if I'm wrong).

The updated file can be downloaded here:
http://bitbasher.net/mg350hd/mg35tool.rar

-BitBasher

teddystacker

03-21-07, 01:34 PM

@dreg123

Yes that volume bar bug is still there , the fw you are using is just 1.4.7 with the "old" NEW GUI added.
Since Rob (the guy that created the new GUI) stopped posting here , there is no person actually working on the Graphics , all "Wizkidshaw" did , was to take the set of graphics from 1.4.4 and added them to 1.4.7 , so intil Rob returns or we get a new graphics wizard onboard, we will be stuck with it...

Hope this helps...

teddystacker

03-22-07, 09:06 PM

@Bobdenar

Ok,here is a STOCK 1.4.7 + The Ac3 Fix + The NEw Gui complete with the 2 missing Icons.. No developer functions added this time..

Can you please test this on the same files that the other developer build was giving you problems with..

I have tested this myself and all appears ok..Download at the Yahoo group or my mirror here..

http://rapidshare.com/users/Q0O9VG

Thanks for your help testing..

Regards

Teddy

Thanks Teddystacker.

Dreg 123, yes still the black bar (not too good I think)

Cheers

dreg123

03-22-07, 09:46 PM

Thanks Teddystacker!

One more questions regarding HD divx files. Should something this size be able to play on MG-35 via component?

XVID Mpeg 4
29.970 fps
960x528 (16:9)
Video Bitrate 2842 Kbps
Audio: 64Kbps Mp3 Layer

It seems to play fine on PC but comes up black screen on LCD TV with only audio playing and then freezes after about 10 seconds.

Its the first time I've tried playing HD divx file and thought maybe something I'm doing wrong?

(PS: i did try searching the thread but couldn't find anything specific on this)

teddystacker

03-22-07, 10:11 PM

@dreg123

I honestly dont know the answer to this one , I am a Std Rez guy where tv is concerned , dont have any HD gear - sorry...

Hopefully someone else will be able to help on this one..

ayasystems

03-23-07, 07:11 AM

J. L.

03-23-07, 08:09 AM

Hi guys

I have uptdated my Sweex (clone of freecom) with MG35-1.4.4.4-pre4-LC-RB

I'm having problems with the USB connection. When I connect it to Xp
it said I connect it in USB 1.1 and speed will be slow. I have
connected it to USB 2.0 port. I've tried in two laptops and two
desktops and I have the same error.
What can be the problem?
I'm using the original cable. I don't know what is happend. It were
working fine days ago... The firmware doesn't modify it, isn't?

Can you help me about it?

Best regardsThe USB controller in the MG-35 is hardware, not software.
The MG-35 (and its clones) disable the processor when the USB cord is used and therefore transfer speed should have absolutely nothing to do with any firmware release. I would suspect the USB cord before anything else.

You can always revert back to the stock firmware to verify.

Joe L.

Easy to find out

Gary E

03-23-07, 01:07 PM

Guys,

I've read almost this entire thread but unsure of the answers to my questions. Maybe you could help?

I have a Toshiba 40H80 HDTV with component in only. (NO DVI or HDMI input)
The MG-35 or MG-350HD seems to be a reasonable alternative to building another HTPC with an ATI card that supports
a DVI to Component adapter or replacing the TV.

I have accumulated a collection of HD files (TV shows) captured from Beyond TV and edited with VideoReDo.
The finished files are MPEG2 Program Streams and are either 720p or 1080i.

Example file:
General #0
Complete name : \\Digital\high def (g)\Las Vegas\Las Vegas-Season 4-Episode 83 Pharaoh 'Nuff.mpg
Format : MPEG-2 Program
Format/Family : MPEG-2
File size : 4.59 GiB
PlayTime : 40mn 50s
Bit rate : 16 Mbps

Video #0
Codec : MPEG-2 Video
Codec profile : Main@High
Codec settings/Matri : Custom
PlayTime : 40mn 49s
Bit rate : 65 Mbps
Bit rate mode : CBR
Width : 1920 pixels
Height : 1080 pixels
Aspect ratio : 16/9
Frame rate : 29.970 fps
Chroma : 4:2:0
Interlacement : Interlaced
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 1.046

Audio #0
Codec : AC3
PlayTime : 40mn 50s
Bit rate : 384 Kbps
Bit rate mode : CBR
Channel(s) : 6 channels
Sampling rate : 48 KHz
ChannelPositions : Front: L C R, Rear: L R, Subwoofer

Can the MG-35 play these HD files from an internal HD mounted in the unit?

Can the MG-35 play these HD files from an external HD connected to the unit?

Can the MG-35 play these HD files streamed across a wired network?

Or do I need the MG-350HD to view these HD files?

I understand there is little problem with DVD compliant mpeg2s or VOBs. (720X480)

I do not encode with DIVX or XVID so those file types are not an issue.

If this has been answered in a prior post, I apologize for being repetitious.

Thanks in advance.

Bobdenar

03-23-07, 02:20 PM

YIPEEEEEE !!!!!!!!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Just what I needed !! I can confirm it now works !!!

A big thumbs up for this forum and you and your friends Teddy !

Cheers

Bob

Teddy[/QUOTE][QUOTE=teddystacker]@Bobdenar

Ok,here is a STOCK 1.4.7 + The Ac3 Fix + The NEw Gui complete with the 2 missing Icons.. No developer functions added this time..

Can you please test this on the same files that the other developer build was giving you problems with..

I have tested this myself and all appears ok..Download at the Yahoo group or my mirror here..

http://rapidshare.com/users/Q0O9VG

Thanks for your help testing..

Regards

teddystacker

03-23-07, 03:46 PM

@Bobdenar

Thanks for testing , this is good news - Wizkidshaw is thinking about adding some of the developer stuff that people like, to this now working firmware , would you be willing to test each version out (He will do a initial test to ensure the firmware is safe to ooad on a 35) so we can find out what the item was that made the firmware fail on streaming?.Would be VERY grateful if you would , as you seem to have a good Benchmark setup there and we would love to find out what the problem was..

Regards

Teddy

Bobdenar

03-23-07, 05:44 PM

Sure , no problem.

Bobdenar

03-24-07, 07:16 AM

Another question Teddy: why would some of my mp3 play veeeeeryyyyy sloooooowwwww ? bitrate problem ?
Is there a known fix for this ?

Ciao

teddystacker

03-24-07, 09:46 AM

@Bobdenar

I presume this is even on the Stock 1.4.7 firmware? , if so , please email me one of the mp3's that play slow and I will pass it on to Al Tech so they can look at a fix..

I encode VBR and I dont see that problem , but have not done extensive testing on 1.4.7
I have to admit..

Regards...

Teddy

ayasystems

03-24-07, 01:00 PM

The USB controller in the MG-35 is hardware, not software.
The MG-35 (and its clones) disable the processor when the USB cord is used and therefore transfer speed should have absolutely nothing to do with any firmware release. I would suspect the USB cord before anything else.

You can always revert back to the stock firmware to verify.

Joe L.

Easy to find out
Weeks ago it were working fine so I'll try with new cord. It's fame to fame so I need find it

Best regards

icabrindus

03-27-07, 02:38 PM

Sing along with me...

...I updated the mg35tool to support creating the romfs.bin file which is useful for debricking. If you don't know what the romfs.bin file is, then you don't need to worry about it.
-BitBasher

Updated the Subversion copy.

Regards,
Vasile Brindus

stenard

03-30-07, 06:18 AM

Hi all.

Firstly can i apologise for my bad etiquette. Im a member of many other boards, and know that to ask a question that has likely been answered hundereds of times is a bit rude. However, a thread with 115 pages will take a little to long to try and pick through im afraid and this board seems to be the largest resource on this box.

Basically, im just after a users opinions on the MG-35 and the MG-35HD's capabilities. Im simply after a unit that can output all my downloads without any conversions needed, and output any HD content i choose to download.

Having read through the specs, it would appear to play all the usual MPEG, DivX, Xvid etc, but how do these really work in practice? Do typical downloads from a well known p2p source work absolutely fine?

I also noted the apparent lack of AC3 audio support from the spec. Was this the spec on launch and has since been updated, or is it still the case? With many of the higher resolution tv programs now encoded with AC3 audio, this would be a bit of a problem.

The two options i have are to buy an additional external HDD (500gb for around £100) and continue just using my laptop or get something like this (£250 for a 500gb HD version) which makes connections easier to my tv. (component rather than vga from my laptop).
The only worry i have is the inflexibilty of the codec support, as im not really savy enough to create my own Media PC from scratch so see these boxes as something of a shortcut.

Im really not interested in the UI, i just want it to play my downloaded video files correctly on my tv.

Any comments would be hugely appreciated.

teddystacker

03-30-07, 08:55 AM

Hi all.

Firstly can i apologise for my bad etiquette. Im a member of many other boards, and know that to ask a question that has likely been answered hundereds of times is a bit rude. However, a thread with 115 pages will take a little to long to try and pick through im afraid and this board seems to be the largest resource on this box.

Any comments would be hugely appreciated.

@stenard

Ok , truthful bottom line here is that my MG-35 and MG350 play about 90% of anything I throw at them - I think it would really me impossible for any "standalone player" (AS opposed to a media PC) to play 100% - being as most "standalone" players have the Codecs "built in".

There are so many variables , complicated by files sometimes being PAL or NTSC , sometimes I do have the odd problem playing PAL Xvids that have "weird" Audio Codecs , but as I said above , I think The MG's get it right 90% of the time on NEW stuff - problems sometimes turn up on some really older files..

I do also have the odd "lock-up" here and there , but this usually traces back to a BAd download and can be fixed with one of the many "media fixing" programs around..

dazrour

03-31-07, 04:29 PM

sk1n

04-03-07, 11:43 AM

dunno if it will help but u MUST have guest account active if you are using windows, Found this out when i switched it to my main PC which didn`t have a guest account setup, MG-35 just wouldn`t see pc network.

sk1n

Mr.Gadget

04-03-07, 12:35 PM

Ok any help will be greatly appreciated here, got a freecom version of this device - upgraded to 1.4.7 firmware. The problem is that the device will not connect to my router. I have a BTHomeHub which to say the least is probably the worst router I have seen, but never the less it should allow the medigate to connect to it. I can confirm that using a crossover cable and manually assigning ip’s works if the router is not included in the connection, but as soon as I connect the router neither dhcp or static ip’s work. I made sure the static ip’s were assigned by the router so that isn’t the problem. If anyone has any suggestions please do help!

dazrour,
I have a Switch/Hub that displays this problem every so often for devices I plug into it. The cure I have has been to power cycle the switch/hub. This solution may or may not apply to your problem, but give it a try.

(Switches are a little smarter than normal hubs, they keep track of MAC addresses and such. Could be some stuck bits.)

Good luck.

julian2875

04-08-07, 11:29 PM

HEY IS this ndas software conpatible with mg-35?..........i've seen some posts about upgrading it and works better???

anyone has any answers to that?

thx

MG350HD_ndas-3.11.1327-x86-ENU.msi

teddystacker

04-09-07, 01:58 PM

HEY IS this ndas software conpatible with mg-35?..........i've seen some posts about upgrading it and works better???

anyone has any answers to that?

thx

MG350HD_ndas-3.11.1327-x86-ENU.msi

Yes but only IF you are runing the very latest MG-35 Firmware v 1.4.7 - see the link in my sig - enjoy

Regards

Teddy

ForrestB

04-10-07, 08:05 AM

Looking for comments on the Mediagate MG-35 media player. I have a lot of digital video on my zippered DirecTivo's and was looking for a way to offload the shows for remote viewing. The files are MPEG2 at 480 x 480 resolution and was wondering how well they'll play on the MG-35.

teddystacker

04-10-07, 08:33 AM

@ForrestB

If you would like to upload a small Sample to www.rapidshare.com , I will gladly test it out for you and report back..

Regards

Teddy

Viewtiful

04-12-07, 01:04 PM

Hola

I've read the MG35FAQ posted at pbwiki however, I can't find any mention of whether the hard disk drive needs to formatted in a specific way e.g. FAT32, NTFS etc. If anyone could enlighten me, that would be much appreciated.

Adios

** Correction, there is mention of FAT32 and NTFS partitions in the FAQ (also it's under the SAMBA/FTP heading). There's also mention of it in the PBWiki wishlist. My bad, I should have searched the page and not skimmed it.

teddystacker

04-12-07, 01:28 PM

Hola

I've read the MG35FAQ posted at pbwiki however, I can't find any mention of whether the hard disk drive needs to formatted in a specific way e.g. FAT32, NTFS etc. If anyone could enlighten me, that would be much appreciated.

Adios

Welcome,

Its best to format it NTFS in Un-compressed mode - Make sure the jumper on the hard disk is set to MASTER or SINGLE - you can format it FAt32 , but NTFS is best..

Dont forget to use the "new GUI firmware" (see my Sig) as the GUI is just so much better than the original al Tech offering..

Regards

Teddy

Bobdenar

04-12-07, 03:11 PM

Hi teddy,

Have you got any feedback from my slow mp3 ?

Cheers

Bob

Viewtiful

04-12-07, 03:18 PM

Welcome,

Its best to format it NTFS in Un-compressed mode - Make sure the jumper on the hard disk is set to MASTER or SINGLE - you can format it FAt32 , but NTFS is best..

Dont forget to use the "new GUI firmware" (see my Sig) as the GUI is just so much better than the original al Tech offering..

Regards

Teddy

Thanks for the quick response. I was just logging on to delete my original post as I'd downloaded the Freecom manual and there was mention of FAT32 and NTFS file formats.

I've currently got a FAT32 drive with about 400GBs of data, so am a bit apprehensive about converting it to NTFS, without backing up my data first. FAT32 can't handle files over 4GB in size! Pft. My previous media player, the Aqua Multimedia player, could only use a drive in FAT32 format and it gave off a very off-putting hissing sound after about 30 minutes of play. Let's hope this Freecom MP is better...

I've been doing some reading up on firmwares and from what I've read, they're interchangeable e.g. a Mediagate firmware can be installed on a Freecom media player and vice versa. So I take it the updated GUI firmware can be installed on any cloned kit? Has the minor problem of some of the graphics looking a bit jagged on PAL screens been resolved?

I'm guessing that the media player program is part of the firmware? Just wondering if there's anything left over from the Aqua MP... different strokes for different folks I guess.

Do I have to install any kind of driver or anything, before I can start using the drive as a media player on a TV?

teddystacker

04-12-07, 03:53 PM

Yes Mg-35 Works on on Freecom media player ..

Ref the New GUI , I did not realise they was any pronlem on Pal setups , 1st time I have head that.I do know this , that compared to the Original GUI , the new one makes it look like Al Tech Used a 7yo to design the old one , check out the screen shots at my Yahoo Group...

http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/mg-35_firmware_mods/?yguid=10889628

No driver required , you just plug it into the TV..

Regards

Teddy

Thanks for the quick response. I was just logging on to delete my original post as I'd downloaded the Freecom manual and there was mention of FAT32 and NTFS file formats.

I've currently got a FAT32 drive with about 400GBs of data, so am a bit apprehensive about converting it to NTFS, without backing up my data first. FAT32 can't handle files over 4GB in size! Pft. My previous media player, the Aqua Multimedia player, could only use a drive in FAT32 format and it gave off a very off-putting hissing sound after about 30 minutes of play. Let's hope this Freecom MP is better...

I've been doing some reading up on firmwares and from what I've read, they're interchangeable e.g. a Mediagate firmware can be installed on a Freecom media player and vice versa. So I take it the updated GUI firmware can be installed on any cloned kit? Has the minor problem of some of the graphics looking a bit jagged on PAL screens been resolved?

I'm guessing that the media player program is part of the firmware? Just wondering if there's anything left over from the Aqua MP... different strokes for different folks I guess.

Do I have to install any kind of driver or anything, before I can start using the drive as a media player on a TV?

Viewtiful

04-12-07, 04:09 PM

teddystacker

04-12-07, 06:28 PM

I read about the minor GUI issue on page 30 of this forum - don't know if it's still relevant. (Was going to post the URL, but can't do as I need to make a minimum of 5 posts.)

Also read that there's a chance of bricking the media player during the firmware flashing process. Anyone have any stats with regards to the number of successful vs unsuccessful flashes?

Yep , maybe 50-80 flashes since I got my MG - never a problem for me,always update from the internal hard disk rather than trying todo it over your network , less chance of errors.

Even if there was a error , these days MG's can be un-bricked , I did one for a user just yesterday..

Regards

Teddy

Frenik

04-12-07, 09:52 PM

Hola

I've read the MG35FAQ posted at pbwiki however, I can't find any mention of whether the hard disk drive needs to formatted in a specific way e.g. FAT32, NTFS etc. If anyone could enlighten me, that would be much appreciated.

Adios

You can use either FAT32, or NTFS.

FAT32 has the advantage of being mountable as read/write if you are using the modded firmware, however FAT32 has a max file size limit of 4GB which could be a problem if you wish to use DVD ISO's

NTFS doesn't have the same file size limit, however is only mountable as read only.

mhnord

04-12-07, 10:28 PM

I have a FusionHDTV box on my PC. The problem is my MG-35 won't play either the tp files (doesn't show them) or the "Native MPEG" mpg files, it just hangs when it tries to load them. Is their software other then the DVico that I could run that would produce files the MG-35 could read, preferably while the show is recording?

note 1080i mpg hang 720p is all jagged and slow. DVD files work great.

Viewtiful

04-13-07, 01:16 PM

You can use either FAT32, or NTFS.

FAT32 has the advantage of being mountable as read/write if you are using the modded firmware, however FAT32 has a max file size limit of 4GB which could be a problem if you wish to use DVD ISO's

NTFS doesn't have the same file size limit, however is only mountable as read only.

The file system format is only relevant from a networking point of view (for both wired and wireless?) right? If I convert it to NTFS, I won't be able to write to it over the network, but I will be able to read from it? From what I've read, I'd need to contact Freecom to obtain the DeviceID and Write Key for my device. Does anyone have a specific Freecom email address I should write to, so I don't get passed, from pillar to post?

Also, can the Freecom play DVDs in *.iso and *.img format? What about DVDs in native file format of *.bups, *.ifos and *.vobs? Are menus displayed?

teddystacker

04-13-07, 01:40 PM

The file system format is only relevant from a networking point of view (for both wired and wireless?) right? If I convert it to NTFS, I won't be able to write to it over the network, but I will be able to read from it? From what I've read, I'd need to contact Freecom to obtain the DeviceID and Write Key for my device. Does anyone have a specific Freecom email address I should write to, so I don't get passed, from pillar to post?

Also, can the Freecom play DVDs in *.iso and *.img format? What about DVDs in native file format of *.bups, *.ifos and *.vobs? Are menus displayed?

If your unit did not come with a device key , you wil have to contact Freecom and possibly pay for it..

If you format FAT32 , you wil not be able to store any single one file over 4gb , is a DVD ISO..

TEe Freecom will play .iso format , NOT .img - You would have to use something like "UltraISO" to convert to .ISO.. It will also play .ifo , but only if of all the other files needed to play the dvd are located in the same folder - the dvd plays as if it were a real dvd with menus etc etc..

Kind regards

Teddy

Viewtiful

04-13-07, 04:29 PM

I've finally unboxed my Freecom and have started tinerking with it. Played a couple of AVIs, set up a photo slideshow. I then downloaded the hacked firmware to memory stick, switched on my Freecom to transfer the firmware, all in the middle of burning a DVD (I usually leave my PC well alone when burning, but it was hanging) so I tried aborting everything and shutting my PC down when it blue screened - for the first time ever. So I shut my PC down, then it wouldn't boot up. After shutting it down and switching it back on again a few more times, it still wouldn't boot up. So I unplugged everything from the PC except for the USB keyboard and mouse and it booted up. I then started plugging everything else in, one by one and finally discovered that no matter which USB port the Freecom is connected to, the PC won't boot up with it connected - even when the Freecom's power supply unit is disconnected! I don't know if this is a result of the crash or not, but restoring the Windows XP to a point in time yesterday, didn't make a difference.

I've seen this before on some PCs, whereby it won't boot if a certain USB device is connected to it - hopefully there's a fix.

With the PC on, when I connected the Freecom USB lead, Windows detected it as a new device, even though its power supply unit was disconnected. After connecting the power to the Freecom the unit comes on of its own accord - which I don't like. Does the blue light around the Enter button always flash when connected to a PC? It's rather annoying. When connected via USB, I find that the Power button on the Freecom doesn't work, nor does it work on the remote, is this right? So to power it off, I have to disconnect the power lead from the Freecom, or disconnect it from the mains - which is even more annoying. Is my Freecom faulty? I won't upgrade the firmware if I've got to exchange it. The power button on the remote works fine when connected to a TV. Can't remember if I tested the button on the Freecom itself.

Viewtiful

04-13-07, 05:04 PM

TEe Freecom will play .iso format , NOT .img - You would have to use something like "UltraISO" to convert to .ISO.. It will also play .ifo , but only if of all the other files needed to play the dvd are located in the same folder - the dvd plays as if it were a real dvd with menus etc etc..

Kind regards

Teddy

Thanks for the info.

TheKrell

04-13-07, 06:33 PM

If I convert it to NTFS, I won't be able to write to it over the network, but I will be able to read from it? You can do both at once over NDAS. NDAS is a proprietary low-level protocol that serves the disk (in whatever format) to your PC. If your PC can read and write to a particular disk format, then it can do so over the NDAS connection.

TheKrell

04-13-07, 06:49 PM

I've seen this before on some PCs, whereby it won't boot if a certain USB device is connected to it - hopefully there's a fix. Yeah, the fix is to change the boot order of the devices in your BIOS! My 2yo PC is probably set up just like yours. If I leave any USB disk in my PC when I reboot it, it attempts to boot first off the USB disk and then hangs. :o

Viewtiful

04-13-07, 10:18 PM

Yeah, the fix is to change the boot order of the devices in your BIOS! My 2yo PC is probably set up just like yours. If I leave any USB disk in my PC when I reboot it, it attempts to boot first off the USB disk and then hangs. :o

Of course! I was so thrown by my PC blue screening and not being able to switch the Freecom off. Disappointing how the boot order on my PC changes without prompting me - surely the best thing is for the boot order to remain the same unless I change it? Anyway...

Having had a look, it wasn't the boot order, but the USB Host Controller, which was set to automatically boot from a USB storage device. Thanks for the heads up!

So can anyone confirm if my is Freecom faulty? Should I be able to switch it off using the button on the Freecom and via the remote, and should the blue light flash all the time, if it is connected to the PC via USB?

J. L.

04-13-07, 10:43 PM

So can anyone confirm if my is Freecom faulty? Should I be able to switch it off using the button on the Freecom and via the remote, and should the blue light flash all the time, if it is connected to the PC via USB?Your unit is not defective... they all work like yours.

When connected to a PC via the USB cord the internal processor is disabled, the remote control does nothing, the front panel buttons do nothing (including the power button) and the blue light flashes constantly. You must unplug the USB cable to play any media. You must unplug the USB cable to turn the unit off.

Joe L.

Viewtiful

04-14-07, 08:41 AM

Your unit is not defective... they all work like yours.

When connected to a PC via the USB cord the internal processor is disabled, the remote control does nothing, the front panel buttons do nothing (including the power button) and the blue light flashes constantly. You must unplug the USB cable to play any media. You must unplug the USB cable to turn the unit off.

Joe L.

Thanks for clarifying that. How very odd that it can't be switched off cleanly, like any of the other external hard drives and the other media player I had. It's so brutal. Imagine having to do that to all USB devices, printers, cameras, MP3 players, without being able to shut them down via the OS first either. I don't suppose, upgrading the firmware will enable the internal processor, providing such an option? I couldn't see anything about it in

http://mediagate.pbwiki.com/wishlist

I think blue lights are cool - sad I know, but flashing blue lights, which server no purpose and indicate nothing? :confused:

Viewtiful

04-14-07, 09:29 AM

randomjesso

04-14-07, 11:02 AM

need some help

was using my mg-35 to view pics and i froze, had to unplug it to turn it of and now when i turn it on the blue light doesnt stop flashing and nothing comes up on the screen

tried the video mode sellection crap but did nothing

when i plug it into my usb (not connected to the tv) it still reads as a portable hdd and can be accessed without a problem, but the blue light still doesn't stop flashing

anyone know whats wrong ?

TheKrell

04-14-07, 12:04 PM

was using my mg-35 to view pics and i froze, had to unplug it to turn it of and now when i turn it on the blue light doesnt stop flashing and nothing comes up on the screen Congratulations! You stumbled upon another killer jpeg that renders the Mediagate unbootable. This firmware bug has twice before been reported on this forum. If you could either post that jpeg somewhere, such as Al Tech's own ftp server, we might get this fixed. The bug exists in (at least) firmware versions 1.4.5 and 1.4.6. Which version were you running?

Anyhow, if memory serves, the bug smashes NVRAM and obliterates the Mediagate NIC's MAC address. If you have a serial cable, you can rewrite a new MAC address and recover normal operation, at least until you hit another killer jpeg.

davei1

04-14-07, 02:56 PM

About a week ago I was trying to play a divx file after flashing to latest Alpha 1 mod firmware...After about 10 minutes or so I would get a network disconnect...Kept happening...Tried a different divx file and same thing...Network disconnect after 10 minutes of play or so...Flashed back to 1.4.4 and played the same divx files just fine (Infact I left it playing for about 6 hours on multiple movies...no problem. I haven't seen anybody else complain about this so maybe it's because I'm running the latest Ximeta .1520 NDAS Driver (I stream from my Ximeta Netdisk to the MG-35)...Running WinXPHome...

davidthoris

04-14-07, 04:23 PM

I've been trying to figure out why some of the videos I play seem to freeze shortly after I begin to watch them. First I thought all I needed was a firmware update and read through here and found the one Teddy released (looks great). I thought that might fix it but sure enough it didn't. I have no clue at all why this is happening so often now since I have never really had an issue like this with the mediagate.

The video starts to play.. thats what makes me wonder. I can play them flawlessly on my compture but the mediagate just refuses after about 1-2 minutes. It's been happening with Xvid - AC3 files mostly that I've noticed.. stuff that I have recently acquired as well.

Any one that can point me in the rigth direction? I tried the search and also the wiki but no answers..

Bobdenar

04-16-07, 02:44 AM

I have actually posted recently about the same problem, and I was starting to suspect VISTA, but you're right i havn't tried to switch back to 1.4.4.

Cheers

About a week ago I was trying to play a divx file after flashing to latest Alpha 1 mod firmware...After about 10 minutes or so I would get a network disconnect...Kept happening...Tried a different divx file and same thing...Network disconnect after 10 minutes of play or so...Flashed back to 1.4.4 and played the same divx files just fine (Infact I left it playing for about 6 hours on multiple movies...no problem. I haven't seen anybody else complain about this so maybe it's because I'm running the latest Ximeta .1520 NDAS Driver (I stream from my Ximeta Netdisk to the MG-35)...Running WinXPHome...

nightfly13

04-16-07, 10:54 AM

Hey guys I'll preface by admitting I haven't read all 116 pages but I'd love to hear from any Mac users who've gotten NDAS functionality to work under OS X. I only now got my share permissions set up on my Mac's external USB drive (not the MG-35) to be visible to the MG-35 across my network. This is already a huge benefit. Now I just need to know if it's possible to make the NDAS work (just downloaded the firmware mentioned in post 3451, will install it shortly).

Viewtiful

04-19-07, 06:21 PM

Well I had my Freecom replaced, due to a problem I thought I had with the unit. Initially, I could control the unit using the remote when connected to the TV, but then the remote would only work intermittantly and then stopped altogether. Now with the replacement unit, the remote control won't work at all - when the TV is on! I can switch the Freecom on and switch it off, only if the TV is switched off or in stand-by mode, but if I switch the TV on, the remote stops working, which renders the remote control useless. Upgrading the firmware didn't seem to make a difference.

So I thought I'd try and troubleshoot the problem. I'd purchased a nice svideo cable with L&R RCA connectors, so I plugged that into an svideo to scart converter and in turn, plugged that into a scart socket, but the remote still wouldn't work when the TV was switched on. I tried the original composite cable, same problem. However, hooking the Freecom up to another TV, there's no problem whatsoever! So the current ratio of TVs it'll work with is 50/50... which doesn't bode well for the future. The TV it won't work with is made by JVC - don't know the model number. I doubt the JVC has a problem, as the first player was working with it initially - as mentioned previously. I might just get my Freecom replaced with the Sweex version of the Mediagate. If that is just as problematic, I think I'll have to import the pricier Pixel Magic media player.

outthere

04-19-07, 10:04 PM

Hello

I am having trouble with subtitles when playing avis. I have the .sub and .idx files in the same folder and i can see the file from the subtitle menu but when i select the subtitle nothing displays. Anyone know what I am doing wrong ?

thanks :confused:

Ok I see that .srt files will work but not .sub and .idx

nightfly13

04-19-07, 10:46 PM

Just to follow up on my own question, I got NDAS to work in OS X and the read speed is 1.5MB and write speed is deadly slow, like 110KB - almost unusable. But I did get the MG-35 to see and log into my Mac Shares and it can stream video nicely both ways now - and I haven't applied the new firmware yet.

Bobdenar

04-20-07, 03:49 PM

Hi,

I have tried switching back to 1.4.4 tonight, well..... it hanged again ater 30mn.

This is getting disappointing

I have actually posted recently about the same problem, and I was starting to suspect VISTA, but you're right i havn't tried to switch back to 1.4.4.

Cheers

nintwala

04-24-07, 09:10 PM

Yes but only IF you are runing the very latest MG-35 Firmware v 1.4.7 - see the link in my sig - enjoy

Regards

Teddy

Hi,

What kind of performance are you getting? I have the MG35 upgraded to your firmware 1.4.7 and ver 3.20.1521 of the NDAS software running on Windows Vista. I get about ~1.3MB/sec for a 700MB avi file.

I dont think thats its any different than before, is it?

I am running it on a 100Mbit wired network.

Let me know if I am doing anything wrong.

Thanks

seeka

04-26-07, 10:55 PM

J. L.

04-26-07, 11:09 PM

Hey Guys a stupid question, all I see is people writing about is the Mediagate MG-35.
Is it better than the Mediagate MG-25? ..... why?????
Basically why I'm asking is I'm looking for a media player that I can transfer media files from the PC onto then play back on the TV what both will do.

So therefore I'm missing something here :oThe MG-25 does not have the ability to connect to your LAN and play media you have on network shares. It can play only what is stored on the internal hard disk.

The MG-35 has the ability to play media from network based storage on your LAN or from an optional internal hard disk. (you do not need to install a hard disk if you only want to play media on your LAN)

I have a linux server in my basement with over 150 ISO images of movies served up by SAMBA. My MG-35 can play any of them or any I've stored on its internal hard disk.

Last, I think the MG-25 takes a 2.5 inch hard disk (laptop size) and the MG-35 takes a 3.5 inch hard disk.

TheKrell

04-26-07, 11:16 PM

Is it better than the Mediagate MG-25? ..... why? The MG-35 is bigger, optionally takes standard 3.5" disks (making the cost/GB less), and most importantly it has a network adapter. The latter allows it to play media from any server on your LAN and potentially any server anywhere on the Internet. Because of the network capability, many customers run their MG-35 diskless. A diskless MG-25 is (correct me if I'm wrong) a useless plastic brick.

seeka

04-28-07, 11:01 PM

Thanx for that guys :)

Therefore taking it a step further the MG-350HD would be the better option as its got the later chip and the wireless option.....

Nighttime

04-29-07, 12:53 AM

The MG-35 is bigger, optionally takes standard 3.5" disks (making the cost/GB less), and most importantly it has a network adapter. The latter allows it to play media from any server on your LAN and potentially any server anywhere on the Internet. Because of the network capability, many customers run their MG-35 diskless. A diskless MG-25 is (correct me if I'm wrong) a useless plastic brick.

Yep.. Without a HD its a brick...

Have one of the clones of it. Note. If you make have a 2.5 to 3.5 adapter you can hang a cheaper desktop HD for its drive. Have a 250 on mine.

nightfly13

04-29-07, 01:29 AM

2 Quick questions, guys.

1) do any of you have decent NDAS write-speeds? I can copy over the NDAS at around 10m/bit (acceptable) but writing it very slow, basically around 1m/bit (100-120kBps) and pretty much unusable for anything but firmware updates (to copy them to the built-in hdd). I use Mac NDAS software, btw.

2) after the firmware update on the top of this page made by the 'mediageeks' (looks a lot better, btw) I've found that sometimes playback gets messed up - both over my network or from the local HDD. I can navigate like normal and when I hit play the file banner shows up on the top of the screen and then goes black and I get no audio or video, but the MG-35 thinks it's playing (because when I try to play it again it asks me whether I want to resume or not). I have to restart the machine to get this to resolved. Happens about once every 3 or 4 files I try to play. If this is a common side-effect, I'll go flash back, although I vastly prefer the newer graphic set. Also, I'd hoped that the firmware (I had stock) would give me better playback compatibility (some MPEG4 files I have don't play along with low FPS on some divx (and I know it's only the MG-35 that plays them poorly) are the issues I hoped might have been fixed).

Input appreciated!

davei1

04-29-07, 06:05 AM

I also experience network playback issues using the latest modded 1.4.7 software. However mine was complicated by the fact that I am using a Ximeta Netdisk and have NDAS running in order for the MG-35 to stream from the NetDisk. Basically with the newest modded firmware I was getting network timeout issues when playing a file from the NetDisk (times varied but would always timeout and disconnect eventually). I switched back to the modded 1.4.4 firmware and the problem went away. At least another person here has also had problems with this newest firmware and networking. However most seem to be using it fine so it's difficult to say what is causing the issue for some. You should try flasing back to the modded 1.4.4 firmware and see if that solves any issues for you.

2 Quick questions, guys.

1) do any of you have decent NDAS write-speeds? I can copy over the NDAS at around 10m/bit (acceptable) but writing it very slow, basically around 1m/bit (100-120kBps) and pretty much unusable for anything but firmware updates (to copy them to the built-in hdd). I use Mac NDAS software, btw.

2) after the firmware update on the top of this page made by the 'mediageeks' (looks a lot better, btw) I've found that sometimes playback gets messed up - both over my network or from the local HDD. I can navigate like normal and when I hit play the file banner shows up on the top of the screen and then goes black and I get no audio or video, but the MG-35 thinks it's playing (because when I try to play it again it asks me whether I want to resume or not). I have to restart the machine to get this to resolved. Happens about once every 3 or 4 files I try to play. If this is a common side-effect, I'll go flash back, although I vastly prefer the newer graphic set. Also, I'd hoped that the firmware (I had stock) would give me better playback compatibility (some MPEG4 files I have don't play along with low FPS on some divx (and I know it's only the MG-35 that plays them poorly) are the issues I hoped might have been fixed).

Input appreciated!

Fiori

04-29-07, 03:20 PM

I need firmware support Turkish divx subtitle for aivx 254.Thanks..

ari dubov

04-29-07, 11:28 PM

I am looking at purchsing either the TVisto 3500 or the MG-35, does any one have any thoughts or reviews on what is a better device to stream and host movies for my office.

Ari Dubov

iapetus

05-02-07, 06:47 AM

mypie

05-02-07, 09:18 AM

Since the new MG-350 is out is there anyone selling their old MG-35? Looking to buy one... dont really care that its used

teddystacker

05-02-07, 09:55 AM

@mypie

Ebay is always the cheapest - only $118 now delivered , cant relaly beat that

shawjo

05-02-07, 10:41 AM

Hello everybody...

I need your help with greek subtitles! Is there any way to add greek language support in my Freecom-35 player? I use external subtitles in greek when i watch some avi movies but character are shown like chinese letters.... Is it possible to make a firmware upgrade that includes greek letters support??

I would gladly participate in every efford to do that if nobody else has enough time to do that. (I have some programming knownledge at c and linux development)

Thanks for your time
I don't know much about fonts, BUT you may want to look at the fonts directory inside the firmware CramFS. I think that the two files in there MAY be linux fonts, BUT I don't use linux with GUI so I can't help much there.

-shawjo

bluesphere77

05-05-07, 12:30 PM

this forum is pretty nice...Im still a newbie here...Ive just purchased my MG35 two days ago. Ive tried the new software and it's very cool!!!

teddystacker

05-05-07, 02:52 PM

@bluesphere77

Welcome mate , feel free to ask any questions you may have

Regards

Teddy

takabanana

05-06-07, 01:09 PM

So I have a few questions:

1. What format is the HD in MG-35 formatted as? FAT32? NTFS? ext3?
2. Can I pop-out the HD, connect it to an IDE port in a PC, and read all the files directly off of it?
3. Can I pre-format a drive in a PC to whatever format MG-35 needs (question #1), then put files on it, and then put the drive into a MG-35 and let it see them?

I ask because, I'm trying to upgrade the HD within my MG-35. I currently have a 320GB in it that is pretty much full, and bought a 500GB. It would most likely be fastest for me to trasfer all the files on the 320GB via direct IDE, to another channel IDE drive (i.e. the 500GB) instead of copying through the MG-35's USB port.

Thoughts/Suggestions on how I can "upgrade" my MG-35's drive without losing my data?

TheKrell

05-06-07, 01:39 PM

1. What format is the HD in MG-35 formatted as? FAT32? NTFS? ext3? Either FAT32 or NTFS. 2. Can I pop-out the HD, connect it to an IDE port in a PC, and read all the files directly off of it? Yes.
3. Can I pre-format a drive in a PC to whatever format MG-35 needs (question #1), then put files on it, and then put the drive into a MG-35 and let it see them? Yes. Thoughts/Suggestions on how I can "upgrade" my MG-35's drive without losing my data? I don't think the USB2 speed is all that bad. I would just leave the 320 inside the MG-35 and transfer everything to your new 500GB drive in one go, and then swap.