Jackie/Fan

Despite all the talk.....there are just one or two items that I like to see on the development log...

1 - 24hz option for 720p and 1080p material - this is a must!
2 - organise music by artist, type etc - nice to have
3 - ff/rr to work on all supported video formats - this is a must.
4 - Option to delete files etc - nice to have...

Those are just my thoughts.....Mark...do you have any? (bearing in mind that we don't want to sacrific Hi-Def playback?

K

Jackie/Fan

Despite all the talk.....there are just one or two items that I like to see on the development log...

1 - 24hz option for 720p and 1080p material - this is a must!
2 - organise music by artist, type etc - nice to have
3 - ff/rr to work on all supported video formats - this is a must.
4 - Option to delete files etc - nice to have...

Those are just my thoughts.....Mark...do you have any? (bearing in mind that we don't want to sacrific Hi-Def playback?

K
How do you setup the lim for viewing files across a network?, not from the lim's HDD but from multiple HDDs across a home network? I have my video files on a Linux server and on my XP PC (7 HDDs in total).

Every media player has its own shortcomings including Tvix.But if its main advantages can compensate and cover its disadvantages as Lim,that is what we want to see. LimHD200i is developing. Anyhow I like my Lim and I get lots of fun with it. I am hungry but my Lim can make me full.:D:D:D

Never said it didn't have them. Your hunger is filled by things you like to eat
which is only "very few" things :-) Anyway, i like the Tomacro too and use it
all the time for these files, and I feel every day how much I mis better
functions as there, i repeat, it doesn't matter if the source is HD or not...

Enjoy it further. :-)

How do you setup the lim for viewing files across a network?, not from the lim's HDD but from multiple HDDs across a home network? I have my video files on a Linux server and on my XP PC (7 HDDs in total).


Voila, limitation 1...
You can only share 1 source over SMB/NFS....
(You can use Junction link magic or something like that to mount the different volumes into 1... (symlinks)

Fan,
Since SMB is already supported, would be better to make it detect servers on the network and list them so they can be browsed (not memory intensive)

But SMB performance sucks too much to be useful, and how often will you really need to browse? This is a set it up once and rarely change it sort of thing. I'd rather have the ability to edit the limHD's fstab directly via shell access (or through some sort of UI) so that I can mount the NFS paths plus local USB and IDE paths into whatever structure I like on the limHD side. The current forced separation of "now I'm looking at the SMB mount", "now I'm looking at the internal HD", "now I'm looking at the USB drive" is really awkward. The limHD doesn't need to match the Tvix in this awkwardness.

But SMB performance sucks too much to be useful, and how often will you really need to browse? This is a set it up once and rarely change it sort of thing. I'd rather have the ability to edit the limHD's fstab directly via shell access (or through some sort of UI) so that I can mount the NFS paths plus local USB and IDE paths into whatever structure I like on the limHD side. The current forced separation of "now I'm looking at the SMB mount", "now I'm looking at the internal HD", "now I'm looking at the USB drive" is really awkward. The limHD doesn't need to match the Tvix in this awkwardness.
My wife browses our files all the time. I have tv shows, commercial DVD, family video converted to digital, HD ts files scattered around on various drives. I suspect that many potential users of the lim will want this as well. My $179 LP2 is SMB but I can have as many HDDs and file locations as I want. Using WIZD server software I can have multiple HDDs and folders show up as one folder on the LP2 (pooling for lack of a better term).

You are correct in that the lim SHOULD NOT MATCH the TVIX in this regard but it absolutely MUST be able to easily access HDDs and folders no matter where they are on a network.

BTW SMB is far from worthless. I use it to watch HD ts files with bitrates up to 18Mb/sec...no stuttering. However, the ability to do both SMB and NFS should be the goal with unlimited HDDs and file locations.

At the moment this is a serious limitation of the lim!

I connected a 1TB NTFS USB 2.0 external drive to the limHD this morning and tried to play that 40 Mbps file of Elephant's Dream. It played better than over NFS but not smoothly at all... so choppily that the sound remained dropped out most of the time. Gave up after a minute or two. That's crazy... I was expecting better USB performance.

I'm still having that problem with the black level too, which puts a big damper on testing at the moment. kg99, are you still seeing that problem? Reflashing the firmware didn't fix it in my case.

But SMB performance sucks too much to be useful, and how often will you really need to browse? This is a set it up once and rarely change it sort of thing. I'd rather have the ability to edit the limHD's fstab directly via shell access (or through some sort of UI) so that I can mount the NFS paths plus local USB and IDE paths into whatever structure I like on the limHD side. The current forced separation of "now I'm looking at the SMB mount", "now I'm looking at the internal HD", "now I'm looking at the USB drive" is really awkward. The limHD doesn't need to match the Tvix in this awkwardness.

The TViX doesn't handle it either in the way I proposed so you probably
mistaken me again fro promoting TViX because of remarks on the Tomacro.
we again arrive over "what you want" as if everyone knows how to perform
these things and set it up or are you now admitting it is to be developed for
a very select crowd only?

I love this thread. The more i'm here the more I am prooven right.
Please stop turning everything I say into "he preferes DviCo" stuff... as this
had nothing to do with DvICo but in general a big improvement to not limit to
1 share.

Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in :-) ( Godfather)
(I'm using 3 NAS servers and usually people have a NAS and PC and would
like to access both with different shares... There's nothing wrong with SMB.
It's there already, now let's make it usefull...

Whatever, Jack... I don't know how anything I said could be construed as being intended to provoke you. I'll grant you that SMB can be useful for low bitrate stuff, and it does have the benefit of being a little easier to set up.

I really don't want to say this...but....Hi-Jack by name, Hi-Jack by nature!

This thread is in danger of losing it's way (and we know why)......so, let's get back on track.....we know what we need to do...;)

K

Whatever, Jack... I don't know how anything I said could be construed as being intended to provoke you. I'll grant you that SMB can be useful for low bitrate stuff, and it does have the benefit of being a little easier to set up.
Define low bitrate.....I would NOT define low bitrate as being 18Mb/sec. I would define that as medium to the lower end of high bitrate.

I am not an official member of the geek squad :) and I do not have any experience with NFS but I have been running a network media player for over two years and I have followed many threads regarding network media players. The topic of SMB vs NFS comes up frequently and from what I understand NFS can support higher bitrates than SMB but in the hands of a novice, which describes the vast majority, it is no better than SMB, just more complicated.

I know this will be hard to accept but for the lim to be successful (make money) for Tomarco, it HAS to appeal to a broader audience than the geek squad. Therefore it must be able to support both SMB and NFS. For the vast majority of video formats and bitrates SMB will work simply, robustly and flawlessly. Most users will not have just high bitrate HD, even if they bought the unit for that purpose.

BTW do you have any experience with any other network media players? You may have mentioned this earlier in this thread but I can not recall if you did?

Hi, guys

I have already completed the first part of my whole test, and logged the result in a PDF document - 'Lim vs Tvix Review - Part01', you can download it as a reference.
Thank you very much for the work you've put into this. These look like very helpful tests to me. And they seem to confirm what I said earlier: Namely the TViX is currently a pos for demanding HD content while the LimHD seems to play most files just fine. Have you reported those few movies which don't play well to Tomacro? I think that would be a good test. It would show if they can actually fix those movies as well.

Now they just need to make MKV support as good as their TS support, add 1080p24 output and improve network support a bit.

I came across this thread in my search for a new media streamer to play movies and music on my various remote TV’s from shared sources on my LAN. This is the very first time I’ve ever heard of Tomarco or their media player. My overwhelming feeling after lumbering through this thread is that I need a shower… I feel dirty. If there’s ever been a thread that stands as a testament to the power of the shill I haven’t found it.

I think it would be cool to be able to stream the HD formats via a media player but not if you need to become a technician to use the damn thing. The limHD seems like it’s more of an experimental device than a consumer product. If I have to decode/encode, process or constantly do firmware updates on a product for it to work I’ll kindly pass.

Someone do me a favor and let me know when this thing hits prime time and deserves to be considered a finished consumer product. I don’t want to spend $$$$ to be part of some company beta product development.

Off to search for something that works… the Anyware MG-350HD is looking very attractive after reading this thread.

Perhaps the only thing I did get was an introduction to the DivCo product name, perhaps I’ll go look that up.

Dang. I've been following this thread closely for a long time now. I think it's time to quit. I've been cutting people slack for their opinions but after seeing the conker-pdf I feel like credibility hit a new low.
I've had a Dvico 4100SH for some time and out of the hundreds of HD movies I've played on it, perhaps 2 or 3 stuttered or froze the player up. Which makes me doubt conkers list and will to actually get an objective result. I was just about to pull all my movies out and make a counter-pdf, but hell, I don't have the time and somehow I suspect it would be a waste too.
I'm turning my back here.. Good luck to Tomacro. And you other guys: enjoy your fights :)

Dang. I've been following this thread closely for a long time now. I think it's time to quit. I've been cutting people slack for their opinions but after seeing the conker-pdf I feel like credibility hit a new low.
I've had a Dvico 4100SH for some time and out of the hundreds of HD movies I've played on it, perhaps 2 or 3 stuttered or froze the player up. Which makes me doubt conkers list and will to actually get an objective result. I was just about to pull all my movies out and make a counter-pdf, but hell, I don't have the time and somehow I suspect it would be a waste too.
I'm turning my back here.. Good luck to Tomacro. And you other guys: enjoy your fights :)

+1.
I completely agree with you, TheBrew.
I have only two movies from the Conker's list and they play perfectly, however, they were reported as mosaic in his report
I started to download other movies just to check if the test results are the same on my TViX 4100SH.
I'll provide real screenshots/video of the playback. I'll use another thread for this purpose.
I believe Conker had a very old FW in his tests.

Off to search for something that works… the Anyware MG-350HD is looking very attractive after reading this thread.

Now there in lies the dilemma....finding a network media player that actually does everything it says it can do! This 'search' is precisely why some of us hang out on threads like this one.

I would probably go with the TVIX4000 or 4100 if it were not for the convoluted way it deals with multiple HDDS and root directories and for the long stanging HDMI issue. I do agree that the lim is not ready for sale to the general public.

This thread is entertaining if nothing else!

I've been also following this since the start and I'm in neither camp (TViX nor Tomacro) (I'm still faithful to my good old Roku HD1000). But this has gotten out of hand because of blinded fan boys and resellers.

For what it's worth, even if it does play HD files, the Tomacro still lags behind in everything but that on the TViX, so it's more a matter of priorities. Bugs will be found in both device anyways.

The only positive I've seen so far is the fact that the competition that it brought manage to push the envelop a bit more on the Sigma chip.

I would not blame Hi-Jack which sees the big picture compared to most people and does bring valid points and arguments to the table. A media player is just that, a media player, thus, it needs to play all media in order to 'earn' the title. If it just plays HD files, I'd rather get a PS3 which I could bet could be a better alternative (remind me this in 2 or 3 years when all this FW dev on both platform is 'done') at that price.

Patrick S.

I'm still having that problem with the black level too,I have the same problem. Sometimes the brightness (as well as the contrast and saturation) are reset to very strange levels. The brightness usually jumps all the way to max. By adjusting it back down to a reasonable level the screen is not gray anymore. This usually happens after I have to reset the unit after a lock-up...

Now there in lies the dilemma....finding a network media player that actually does everything it says it can do! This 'search' is precisely why some of us hang out on threads like this one.

I would probably go with the TVIX4000 or 4100 if it were not for the convoluted way it deals with multiple HDDS and root directories and for the long stanging HDMI issue. I do agree that the lim is not ready for sale to the general public.

This thread is entertaining if nothing else!
Yes, I'm just now learning that few of these network media players are mature products yet... perhaps the Tvix4100 or MG-350HD may be more refined. My search just begins I guess! :eek:

I have my unit for about a month now. The picture looks fantastic. The only problem (for my use) that I have at this time is the lack 5.1 audio over the HDMI connection.

Hello! Kevin ! I will reflect these to Tomacro. Jackie

For anyone in the U.S. looking to purchase one of these, I am putting one for sale on ebay tomorrow. Cheers,

Hello! Kevin ! I will reflect these to Tomacro. Jackie


Thanks Jackie

K

For anyone in the U.S. looking to purchase one of these, I am putting one for sale on ebay tomorrow. Cheers,Out of curiosity; why are you selling it?

maybe he misses some features?!

Yes, money aside, a HTPC still outperforms these DMS's in many ways. A Toshiba laptop with an internal HDDVD drive and external laptop BD drive I put together does it all. I expect the next generation of DMS's to do more of what I need. Even with the latest firmware, neither the TVIX or Tomacro units will play the HD material I want to play without stutter. Cheers,

Yes, money aside, a HTPC still outperforms these DMS's in many ways. A Toshiba laptop with an internal HDDVD drive and external laptop BD drive I put together does it all. I expect the next generation of DMS's to do more of what I need. Even with the latest firmware, neither the TVIX or Tomacro units will play the HD material I want to play without stutter. Cheers,

Sorry to see you go....but...have fun...

K

Sorry to see you go....but...have fun...

K
Why should you be sorry to see him go? I would think that it is Tomarco who should be sorry to see him go!

OK. After 51 pages and 3 hours of reading I can truly say with great affirmation .....

MY EYEBALLS ARE HURTING

OK. After 51 pages and 3 hours of reading I can truly say with great affirmation .....

MY EYEBALLS ARE HURTING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcH-3d-BZn4

Sorry couldn't resist :)

Oh yeah and just to brain dump before I lose it all tonight during heavy R.E.M sleep -->

oldpanless68 and Mark Fontana work well together (thanks for pushing that nfs PDF Mark)
conker2007 and hi-jack do not get along (can't count the times my eyes really hurt)
madshi and eurotrance seem to (talk like) they know thier stuff
gendvd clearly lives in China trying to sell illegal movies and units
fAN needs to get a better translator (tried babelfish?)
oh did I mention russland downloads movies (Aye Aye , you best the walk the plank)
and
hi-jack insults the very product being discussed in this thread (never heard called a fruit before or is that a vegetable)

finally for the unit my extremely squinty eye edition(tm)...

overall superb hd playback (both blue-ray [vc-1 and mpeg2] and hd-dvd [after converting to .ts])
unit comes from china so production standards not so high, hence broke buttons, faulty remotes ect
sort of big for small sigma chip whats that thing packing?
way overpriced (compared to competition) for the US market
but did I mention Hi-Def playback .. oh yeah ... d@mn thing sounds so good I want one right now, but first I must consult the oracle (wife) and hope (pray) she allows me to get (purchase) this really expensive toy (yes it stores girl movies, hehehhehheh) .. heres to wishing

nite all

sort of big for small sigma chip whats that thing packing?

And it's not just big, it is very heavy too, especially the base. The case looks like aluminum, but maybe under the silver paint, it is made from the melted down lead of old CRTs shipped over to China for disposal... better wash your hands after handling... (just kidding, Fan...)

And it's not just big, it is very heavy too, especially the base. The case looks like aluminum, but maybe under the silver paint, it is made from the melted down lead of old CRTs shipped over to China for disposal... better wash your hands after handling... (just kidding, Fan...)

Either that or the EX USSR bomb casings :D....but hey, if it means it's fanless that way....:cool:

The Lim is built like a tank....but I kinda like that...

K

And it's not just big, it is very heavy too, especially the base. The case looks like aluminum, but maybe under the silver paint, it is made from the melted down lead of old CRTs shipped over to China for disposal... better wash your hands after handling... (just kidding, Fan...)

:D:D:D


What he said seems to be not a bad idea,but I do find out that Babelfish is crazy (even stupid than I am).....

Our latest FW is supposed to be published this week, realizing ISO support, sound delay solution, and better MKV support.

Come on and beat!


Regards
Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Good to see mkv will be fixed and ISO support in a FW update later this week.
That's 2 items crossed of my list already...

:D:D:D


What he said seems to be not a bad idea,but I do find out that Babelfish is crazy (even stupid than I am).....

Our latest FW is supposed to be published this week, realizing ISO support, sound delay solution, and better MKV support.

Come on and beat!


Regards
Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Good news...Jackie/Fan...can you let me know when it's ready...

K

If this update improve the stability of the lim, the idea of starting a
buying group might finally become interesting.

I still think the ideal price point for a player like this is about $350 (without hard drive)

Including shipping, of course.

Oh well...back to waiting for a few days....:)

K

I'm still having that problem with the black level too, which puts a big damper on testing at the moment. kg99, are you still seeing that problem? Reflashing the firmware didn't fix it in my case.

Hi Mark..
Sorry for taking so long to reply.
Have you tried adjusting the brightness/contrast/saturation of the Lim?
I have managed to overcome most of my white balance problems this way without tweaking the TV.

Kevin, by transferring those 3 files to the Lim's hard drive, they play fine.

Also Fan is kindly helping me with my VFD problems. :):)

Just a warning to anyone looking to buy a new LimHD200i. Make sure you purchase from a genuine Tomacro dealer/agent. That way you are covered if any problems arise..

Cheers..

Hi Mark..
Sorry for taking so long to reply.
Have you tried adjusting the brightness/contrast/saturation of the Lim?
I have managed to overcome most of my white balance problems this way without tweaking the TV.

Kevin, by transferring those 3 files to the Lim's hard drive, they play fine.

Also Fan is kindly helping me with my VFD problems. :):)

Just a warning to anyone looking to buy a new LimHD200i. Make sure you purchase from a genuine Tomacro dealer/agent. That way you are covered if any problems arise..

Cheers..

:cool:

Oh well...back to waiting for a few days....:)

K
:)
We need a further test of the new cut of Firmware. Planning to be released this weekend and here are the current test results （MKV）:
1. 1080p MKV smooth playback
2. Solved problem of sound sync.
3. Solved problems of Time search.


Cheers

Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Hi Mark..
Sorry for taking so long to reply.
Have you tried adjusting the brightness/contrast/saturation of the Lim?
I have managed to overcome most of my white balance problems this way without tweaking the TV.

Kevin, by transferring those 3 files to the Lim's hard drive, they play fine.

Also Fan is kindly helping me with my VFD problems. :):)

Just a warning to anyone looking to buy a new LimHD200i. Make sure you purchase from a genuine Tomacro dealer/agent. That way you are covered if any problems arise..

Cheers..

Hey, your new VFD is ready and supposed to be delivered today.
Later I will email you the tracking number.

Also thanks for your kind suggestion to other customers.:D

:)
We need a further test of the new cut of Firmware. Planning to be released this weekend and here are the current test results （MKV）:
1. 1080p MKV smooth playback
2. Solved problem of sound sync.
3. Solved problems of Time search.


Cheers

Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Hitomacro , mkv will go to support subtitle files?

thanks,
Mauricio

Hey, your new VFD is ready and supposed to be delivered today.
Later I will email you the tracking number.

Also thanks for your kind suggestion to other customers.:D

Many thanks Fan.. :)
Regards
Kevin..

Have you tried adjusting the brightness/contrast/saturation of the Lim?
I have managed to overcome most of my white balance problems this way without tweaking the TV.

Thanks for the tip. Tried that tonight and that was indeed the problem... the limHD seems to occasionally lose its settings- the brightness had gotten stuck all the way up.

After a little while of messing around with the limHD, the same problem happened again.

But when the image controls are set properly (at the middle of their range), the picture looks great. Hopefully this can be fixed in a future firmware update.

I still haven't figured out why the limHD needs a volume function. The volume slider has way too much range and having it set wrong results in nearly silence or nasty distortion. The unity position for the volume slider also seems to be in a non-intuitive position around 3/4 of the way up instead of centered. This is just one more thing for my wife or kids to mess up. A config setting to disable the volume control and always output the unity (unmodified) audio level would be great. Volume Control: (Enabled/Disabled). While we're at it, how about Picture Controls: (Enabled/Disabled) so I can prevent the family from messing up the brightness/contrast/saturation, and also the ability to lock the main setup menu with a password so they can't get in there either.

:)
We need a further test of the new cut of Firmware. Planning to be released this weekend and here are the current test results （MKV）:
1. 1080p MKV smooth playback
2. Solved problem of sound sync.
3. Solved problems of Time search.


Cheers

Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Fan....that's good news!..look forward to the weekend...

K

Hi Fan

I received my LimHD yesterday and played with it all day.
First impression is very good.
Also picture quality is very good.
I use it only for HD material.
With streaming 50Hz material I get hickups and stuttering and Blu-Ray is not possible.
For me the biggest bummer is that the internal HD is nor reachable via the network.
I have a server downstairs, so I have to take the Lim downstairs to put the material onto the HD.
So I would like to see in a new firmware release:
Access to internal HD
Auto switching Pal 50Hz / NTSC 60Hz

Rob

We will add the function of file management (copy/paste/delete) in our future cut of Firmware (sorry not the coming one). Customers then can transfer files through Network more conveniently. Also a feature of auto PAL-NTSC switch will be added.


Enjoy it!

Regards
Fan
Tomacro Tech.

We will add the function of file management (copy/paste/delete) in our future cut of Firmware (soryy not the coming one). Customers then can transfer files through Network more conveniently. Also a feature of auto PAL-NTSC switch will be added.


Enjoy it!

Regards
Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Fan....don't forget the 24hz option for HD material...

K

Thanks for the tip. Tried that tonight and that was indeed the problem... the limHD seems to occasionally lose its settings- the brightness had gotten stuck all the way up.

After a little while of messing around with the limHD, the same problem happened again.

But when the image controls are set properly (at the middle of their range), the picture looks great. Hopefully this can be fixed in a future firmware update.

I still haven't figured out why the limHD needs a volume function. The volume slider has way too much range and having it set wrong results in nearly silence or nasty distortion. The unity position for the volume slider also seems to be in a non-intuitive position around 3/4 of the way up instead of centered. This is just one more thing for my wife or kids to mess up. A config setting to disable the volume control and always output the unity (unmodified) audio level would be great. Volume Control: (Enabled/Disabled). While we're at it, how about Picture Controls: (Enabled/Disabled) so I can prevent the family from messing up the brightness/contrast/saturation, and also the ability to lock the main setup menu with a password so they can't get in there either.

:eek: Mark, I did ask if you tried the setup button when you were playing a film....oh well.....at least your sorted now...:)

K

Hi Fan
We will add the function of file management (copy/paste/delete) in our future cut of Firmware (sorry not the coming one). Customers then can transfer files through Network more conveniently. Also a feature of auto PAL-NTSC switch will be added.


Enjoy it!

Regards
Fan
Tomacro Tech.

Thank's I already like your product.

Rob

Hi Fan


Thank's I already like your product.

Rob

Hey Rob

Are you using a projector with your LimHD? (im using the 720p Hitachi pjxt200 with a 130" 16:9 screen...truely fantastic picture HD quality)

K

im using the 720p Hitachi pjxt200
K

Kevin, do you see any difference between 1080 and 720 material on your projector? I believe all content played is downsized to 720p somewhere. Is there a point to get high resolution content if output doesn't support it?
Thanks.

no brings nothing if your projector cant do it native then it wont brings you something!!

mfg cHarOn

Kevin, do you see any difference between 1080 and 720 material on your projector? I believe all content played is downsized to 720p somewhere. Is there a point to get high resolution content if output doesn't support it?
Thanks.

Hi Russland,

A 720p projector downscales a 1080p image to 720p, but if I had a 1080p projector, the Lim will output 1080p in it's native form...so, in my case, the only difference with a 720p projector for displaying 1080p source material, is that some 1080p sources use a higher bitrate, so even tho the projector is downscaling (or the Lim if you set it to 720p (as I do) you MAY notice a better quality image as most 1080p sources use a higher bitrate.....hope that makes sense.

However, if the source is 1080p, you have a 1080p display, then the LimHD will output 1080p bit for bit - so no downscaling (although, I have not tested, but both Jackie and Fan have confirmed this)

K

So.....1 or 2 days to go!.....new firmware...:eek:...like we never get that..:cool:

Can't wait!...

K

What does the lim do with the new high-definition audio formats (Dolby True HD, DTS HD-MA)?

Will it send these to a receiver over HDMI?

What does the lim do with the new high-definition audio formats (Dolby True HD, DTS HD-MA)?

Will it send these to a receiver over HDMI?

I don't think so at the moment (Jackie/Fan - any views?) I think it outputs as DTS or AC3.

K

I don't think so at the moment (Jackie/Fan - any views?) I think it outputs as DTS or AC3.

K
Now hang on here. Hold everything.
DTS-HD to DTS and, more important, Dolby TrueHD to AC3 conversion, is in my opinion a killer function. :D

Can you confirm this or is it just an unfortunate misleading guess?

J

Now hang on here. Hold everything.
DTS-HD to DTS and, more important, Dolby TrueHD to AC3 conversion, is in my opinion a killer function. :D

Can you confirm this or is it just an unfortunate misleading guess?

J

Sorry, I'm guessing....but Fan or Jackie will confirm what the situation is...the reason for the guess is that I tested the Riddick m2ts file, media info reported audio track 2 as AC3+, but, when cycling through the audio tracks on the Lim, from memory I thought track 2 came up as DTS......so, over to Fan/Jackie....

Just for info, here's the media info:

Complete name : C:\share\media\NFS test files\cr_cut.ts
Format : MPEG-1 Transport
Format/Family : MPEG-1
File size : 89.6 MiB

Audio #0
Bit rate : 224 Kbps
Sampling rate : 32 KHz

Audio #1
Codec : DTS
Bit rate : 1536 Kbps
Channel(s) : 6 channels
Channel positions : Front: L C R, Surround: L R, Subwoofer
Sampling rate : 48 KHz
Resolution : 24 bits

Audio #2
Codec : AC3+
Bit rate : 112 Kbps
Bit rate mode : CBR
Sampling rate : 48 KHz

Audio #3
Codec : AC3
Codec profile : Dolby Digital
Bit rate : 192 Kbps
Bit rate mode : CBR
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : L R
Sampling rate : 48 KHz

Mark - Just to make sure it's not me having a blonde moment - can you confirm?

I will also test again later.....but like I said...might be me having a blonde moment!

K

When I play this clip (cr_cut.ts) on the limHD, I can select these tracks:

track 0 (1536 Kbps DTS), bitstream plays fine through my receiver, limHD's analog outputs are silent since limHD does not decode dts
track 1 (AC3+), bitstream is not recognized by my non-AC3+ capable Sony 777ES receiver, limHD's analog outputs play distorted sound
track 2 (AC3), bitstream plays fine through my receiver and limHD's analog outputs

Not sure what happened to the fourth stream in your media info - is it really in the file?

In any case, it seems like the limHD doesn't know how to decode AC3+ and may be trying to treat it as plain AC3.

When I play this clip (cr_cut.ts) on the limHD, I can select these tracks:

track 0 (1536 Kbps DTS), bitstream plays fine through my receiver, limHD's analog outputs are silent since limHD does not decode dts
track 1 (AC3+), bitstream is not recognized by my non-AC3+ capable Sony 777ES receiver, limHD's analog outputs play distorted sound
track 2 (AC3), bitstream plays fine through my receiver and limHD's analog outputs

Not sure what happened to the fourth stream in your media info - is it really in the file?

In any case, it seems like the limHD doesn't know how to decode AC3+ and may be trying to treat it as plain AC3.

Just tested again - yep, I was having a blonde moment!..sorry. Same results as Mark.

K

Thank's for the tests. Result as I expected, but not as I hoped for....

/Jofa

One reason why LimHD can play some high-bitrate files better than TViX4100 is that TViX always decodes audio to analog output. LimHD cannot decode DTS at all and I believe it doesn't decode AC3 if configured to pass-through.

One reason why LimHD can play some high-bitrate files better than TViX4100 is that TViX always decodes audio to analog output. LimHD cannot decode DTS at all and I believe it doesn't decode AC3 if configured to pass-through.

Then that's a good job then....lol :)

K

Well, I don't know what I like more.
Right now I am happy with my TViX because I can watch movies with DTS audio that is decoded to stereo (I don't have an external receiver just a stereo TV).
But when I buy an external audio receiver I want media player to pass-through everything and don't decode audio to save CPU/memory.

And I want media player developers to implement any type of audio pass-through.
AC3, EAC3, DTS, DTS-HD, etc. Audio receiver will do the job of decoding, downsizing to your number of speakers, audio effects if any, blah, blah.

Well, I don't know what I like more.
Right now I am happy with my TViX because I can watch movies with DTS audio that is decoded to stereo (I don't have an external receiver just a stereo TV).
But when I buy an external audio receiver I want media player to pass-through everything and don't decode audio to save CPU/memory.

And I want media player developers to implement any type of audio pass-through.
AC3, EAC3, DTS, DTS-HD, etc. Audio receiver will do the job of decoding, downsizing to your number of speakers, audio effects if any, blah, blah.

That's pretty much where I am - I want a Hi-Def player to worry about image quality and bitrates....I'll leave the audio to a surround amp to worry about. I'm not sure (just yet) how any of these media players are going to deal with DTS-HD and EAC3 et al....maybe a HDMI passthrough?....but having spent a resonable sum of money on a THX DTS-ES and AC3-EX amp, I'm in no rush to upgrade......

K

Fan....don't forget the 24hz option for HD material...

K

Yes! +10000!
It could be great!

And direct outpout function could be great too ;)

.evo support could be nice too...

But allready, MKV 1080p H.264 will be great!

24hz option is a must......hopefully it's on the development log!...Jackie/Fan?

K

.evo support could be nice too...

But allready, MKV 1080p H.264 will be great!

.evo would be awesome.

From the TOMACRO official website(http://www.tomacro.com/english/index.htm):

The new firmware is in the test now, we'll release it next week.
TOAMCRO Tech. 8/25-2007

I have already prepared about 100 MKV movies, and want to carry on a test, thus only wait until next week.

well....a few days to wait.....

K

That's pretty much where I am - I want a Hi-Def player to worry about image quality and bitrates....I'll leave the audio to a surround amp to worry about. I'm not sure (just yet) how any of these media players are going to deal with DTS-HD and EAC3 et al....maybe a HDMI passthrough?....but having spent a resonable sum of money on a THX DTS-ES and AC3-EX amp, I'm in no rush to upgrade......

K

Good question.
What about HD sound support?
Is it ok for Dolby Digital+ and PCM 7.1, right?
What about th other audio formats?
Tnx.

Christophe CHEREL - HCFR Image Staff

well....a few days to wait.....

K
yes...
arrrghhh!!! It's to hard to wait!!!!:D

It's to hard to wait!!!!:D

Don't wait. Start getting MKV files!

There will be 1 or 2 days delay on the new cut.....ironing out a bug that was found...

K

Don't forget to test this (http://rapidshare.com/files/42906979/ArizonaDream_CUT.mkv) 720p MKV file because it has macroblocks in TViX. PC plays it without problem.

Don't forget to test this (http://rapidshare.com/files/42906979/ArizonaDream_CUT.mkv) 720p MKV file because it has macroblocks in TViX. PC plays it without problem.

Ok...will do..

K

There will be 1 or 2 days delay on the new cut.....ironing out a bug that was found...

That's great to hear the new firmware has only one bug... ;)

i was unable to place my order due to recipient is currently unable to receive money.

That's great to hear the new firmware has only one bug... ;)

:p lol

One that was found.....

K

i was unable to place my order due to recipient is currently unable to receive money.


Was this on the GenDVD site?.....is so Jackie will be able to help you...

K

only a few more days......

K

You may remember that my Lim had a VFD problem, well Fan arranged for a new VFD to be express mailed to me and I have just finished installing it.
Kept my fingers crossed as it powered up, and it looks great.. :) :) (compared to the old one which was DOA).

My kind thanks go to Fan and Tomacro for helping me with this problem.
All I need now is the next FW version.. :)

Cheers..

You may remember that my Lim had a VFD problem, well Fan arranged for a new VFD to be express mailed to me and I have just finished installing it.
Kept my fingers crossed as it powered up, and it looks great.. :) :) (compared to the old one which was DOA).

My kind thanks go to Fan and Tomacro for helping me with this problem.
All I need now is the next FW version.. :)

Cheers..

Glad to see it's been sorted...

K

Raaahhh! I can't wait!

My HD player list (in french):
http://www.homecinema-fr.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=169306858#169306858

How long till update? Kevin make it happen faster!!!!! Slacker..xD

Enrique

My HD player list (in french):
http://www.homecinema-fr.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=169306858#169306858

that's an amazing list. except , you have the lim with 8634 chip. it doesn't have it.

only a few more days......

K

Hello! kevin In recent few days the new version will be published.

Hello! kevin In recent few days the new version will be published.

Thanks Jackie

K

(sorry, my english is not so good)

I have my limHD200i since yesterday and have some problems. It is a crazy fact, that the internal HDD has no access over LAN and therefore I depend on access to other NAS drives (e.g. NSLU2 with Twonky)...

1. The limHD200i shows the Twonky NSLU2 as UPNP-Mediaserver. But only the name is visible in the main menu without functionality. Is that a bug or still in development (or my stupidity :confused:)?

2. It's not possible (for me) to have access to NSLU2 over Samba. Windows has access, Linux has access (with "smb://ipaddress/sharename") but the limHD200i failed. What's wrong with mit this address: "//ipaddress/sharename" as network path?

3. Is it planned to have access to the internal HDD over LAN in the future? If not, then (from my point of view) the internal HDD is a joke!

At the location of the limHD200i is no PC and when the NSLU2 is not accessible over LAN for streaming, then the limHD200i is useless for me and will go back to the seller. But I hope, somebody can help me that I can keep it...;)

Greetings from Germany
skylla

(sorry, my english is not so good)

I have my limHD200i since yesterday and have some problems. It is a crazy fact, that the internal HDD has no access over LAN and therefore I depend on access to other NAS drives (e.g. NSLU2 with Twonky)...

1. The limHD200i shows the Twonky NSLU2 as UPNP-Mediaserver. But only the name is visible in the main menu without functionality. Is that a bug or still in development (or my stupidity :confused:)?

2. It's not possible (for me) to have access to NSLU2 over Samba. Windows has access, Linux has access (with "smb://ipaddress/sharename") but the limHD200i failed. What's wrong with mit this address: "//ipaddress/sharename" as network path?

3. Is it planned to have access to the internal HDD over LAN in the future? If not, then (from my point of view) the internal HDD is a joke!

At the location of the limHD200i is no PC and when the NSLU2 is not accessible over LAN for streaming, then the limHD200i is useless for me and will go back to the seller. But I hope, somebody can help me that I can keep it...;)

Greetings from Germany
skylla

Hi

I will try to answer your questions:

1 - Dont know (Mark/Jackie/Fan?)

2 - Not to sure about NSLU2 over Samba, but SMB is //ipaddress/sharename, NFS also works

3 - File transfer over lan is on the development log according to Fan....so once MKV is perfected, I would expect to move onto this one next

K

that's an amazing list. except , you have the lim with 8634 chip. it doesn't have it.

OOops! It's because of too much players ;):D

I hope this firmware makes it before the weekend! :S

The limHD200i shows the Twonky NSLU2 as UPNP-Mediaserver. But only the name is visible in the main menu without functionality. Is that a bug or still in development (or my stupidity :confused:)?

I stumbled across the UPNP network port being open a while back, but as far as I know, Tomacro hasn't advertised UPNP support yet, and it isn't mentioned in the manual. That's cool that your server shows up, though. Maybe we'll see full support in a future firmware release.

2. It's not possible (for me) to have access to NSLU2 over Samba. Windows has access, Linux has access (with "smb://ipaddress/sharename") but the limHD200i failed. What's wrong with mit this address: "//ipaddress/sharename" as network path?

skylla

The lim does not allow you to set a username/password to access the Samba share. This means that Samba must be set up to allow anyone to read the share. You may have to configure the NSLU2 to allow anonymous access.

The anonymus access is allowed!

Access from Linux PC: "smb://ip-of-nslu2/sharename" - works fine without username/pass.
Access from a Reelbox: "mount -t cifs -o username=guest,password= //ip-of-nslu2/sharename /mnt/net1" - works fine.

Only limHD200i has a problem with "//ip-of-nslu2/sharename" (no message, but shows an empty folder). NFS is not installed yet on the NSLU2, but I have planned to install it and trial in the next days...

PS:
I think, a running busybox and/or ssh on the limHD200i would be helpful...

"Oldpainless68 sits twiddling his thumbs…….ZZZzzzzzz"

:cool: :eek:

zomg....The new release is STILL not out? :(

Guys, just wait.
It's better to get stable FW release than some alpha version to test.
You paid for a mature device not an experimental box.
Let's hope that next FW could play MKVs smoothly.

Guys, just wait.
It's better to get stable FW release than some alpha version to test.
You paid for a mature device not an experimental box.
Let's hope that next FW could play MKVs smoothly.

I know...just messing about whilst we wait...Tomacro are really working hard to spot as many bugs as possible...

K

Madshi

The MKV test files also went to Tomacro...so I'll test those too as soon as I get the new cut...

K

My Limhd200i just arrived today.
I quickly installed the latest beta firmare and a harddisk to test dvd navigation and playback. I must admit the picture quality compared to my snazio s1350 is superb.
I do experience some vibrating noises / resonance, presumably from the harddisk. Do any of you experience the same and/or have a solution for this problem? It's driving me crazy!

My Limhd200i just arrived today.
I quickly installed the latest beta firmare and a harddisk to test dvd navigation and playback. I must admit the picture quality compared to my snazio s1350 is superb.
I do experience some vibrating noises / resonance, presumably from the harddisk. Do any of you experience the same and/or have a solution for this problem? It's driving me crazy!

MMmm....no problems like that with me...the Lim is virtualy silent....

Check

1 - are all the rubber feet there...
2 - take bottom off and make sure the hard disk is secured in the cady with all four screws...
3 - lastly....you say you installed a HD...is the HD ok?...is it new?..sounds like a noisy drive if 1+2 don't fix it....in which case replace the HD

That should sort it...

Lastly, welcome to the forum....now try it with some good hi-def stuff...:)

K

Thanks.

Yep, feet are all there and the drive is secured with six screws in the caddy.
I guess the problem is that the caddy is only secured by two screws in the bottom plate. It slides in a rail that might not be tight enough?
If I apply a little pressure to the back plate, or some more to the sides, the vibration dissappears.
Maybe I should take the whole thing apart and apply some foam or tape or something.

Thanks.

Yep, feet are all there and the drive is secured with six screws in the caddy.
I guess the problem is that the caddy is only secured by two screws in the bottom plate. It slides in a rail that might not be tight enough?
If I apply a little pressure to the back plate, or some more to the sides, the vibration dissappears.
Maybe I should take the whole thing apart and apply some foam or tape or something.

Not sure what you mean when you say the cady is secured by two screws.....see what you gonna done!...now I'm gonna have to take mine apart to see what what your on about...lol...

But on a serious note....not had any noise issues with mine at all....I'd still try changing the hard drive....just sounds odd (excuse the pun!)

K

Not sure what you mean when you say the cady is secured by two screws.....see what you gonna done!...now I'm gonna have to take mine apart to see what what your on about...lol...

But on a serious note....not had any noise issues with mine at all....I'd still try changing the hard drive....just sounds odd (excuse the pun!)

K

Of course it's the HD that causes the vibration. It works like a charm (it's a 250 GB Hitachi).
I just can't figure out what is resonating. It's not the harddrive itself.

O well. Maybe tomorrow i'll take it apart and have a close look.
At the moment i'm trying to figure out why NFS is not working. The samba share from my server works ok. I guess i'm missing something.

By the way, my suggestion for the next firmware:
FTP access to the harddisk! That would be a quick and easy win.

Of course it's the HD that causes the vibration. It works like a charm (it's a 250 GB Hitachi).
I just can't figure out what is resonating. It's not the harddrive itself.

O well. Maybe tomorrow i'll take it apart and have a close look.
At the moment i'm trying to figure out why NFS is not working. The samba share from my server works ok. I guess i'm missing something.

By the way, my suggestion for the next firmware:
FTP access to the harddisk! That would be a quick and easy win.

For NFS see Mark's pdf guide...

Mark...can you repost it?

K

I already found the guide.
Thing is, I'm using Ubuntu as server os, not windows.
I made some progress, but it doesn't work some shares

I already found the guide.
Thing is, I'm using Ubuntu as server os, not windows.
I made some progress, but it doesn't work some shares

Ok

K

I already found the guide.
Thing is, I'm using Ubuntu as server os, not windows.
I made some progress, but it doesn't work some shares

Mophun,

I'm running NFS from a linux box to the Lim, don't know if this will help, but:

In my etc/exports I have:


/mnt/disk1/share/MOVIES 192.168.1.40(ro,no_root_squash,no_all_squash,sync,nohide,no_ subtree_check,anonuid=0,anongid=0)
Where 192.168.1.40 is the address of the Lim.

I also noted that if I had the server plugged into my 1G switch that the Lim couldn't play the files -although it would see them-, once I plugged both the server and the Lim directly into a my 10/100 router all was OK.

Mine has arrived, very nice. Picked the player as company is working on it and improving it.

MKV is new you can tell, but when it works its great. Easy to crash the unit, but thats what betas are for.

Remote has "Moive", but I live in japan, so thats nothing unusual :)

Samba did not want to work. Using \\192.168.11.10 for example, and running tcpdump showed no packets at all, so it wasn't even trying. Has to use LMN? But I run OsX so NFS was easy, and probably preferable.

That I can FF sometimes is nice, old player can not. But I must admit I really like the old players way of entering a percentage to jump to.Perhaps one day it can be added.

Composite/SVHS is US NTSC, so no colour in Japan NTSC, but, seriously, who uses component/SVHS with this device.

Not being a NDAS is a shame, but should just be a matter of adding NFSD or SMBD to Busybox. I'll look at that when I have time, and maybe DeCSS.

This is a nice device though. Excellent work.

MKV is new you can tell, but when it works its great. Easy to crash the unit, but thats what betas are for

MKV "should" be completely sorted with the new firmware cut...720p & 1080p...(H.264/Mpeg2/AVC+AC3/DTS), plus DVD ISO support.

K

Mophun,

I'm running NFS from a linux box to the Lim, don't know if this will help, but:

In my etc/exports I have:


/mnt/disk1/share/MOVIES 192.168.1.40(ro,no_root_squash,no_all_squash,sync,nohide,no_ subtree_check,anonuid=0,anongid=0)
Where 192.168.1.40 is the address of the Lim.

I also noted that if I had the server plugged into my 1G switch that the Lim couldn't play the files -although it would see them-, once I plugged both the server and the Lim directly into a my 10/100 router all was OK.

Thanks phew!
That did the job. Including all those export options fixed it!

BTW. Is it possible to have the internal Harddisk formatted as ext3?
It's easier handling under linux.

MKV "should" be completely sorted with the new firmware cut...720p & 1080p...(H.264/Mpeg2/AVC+AC3/DTS), plus DVD ISO support.

K

If the firmware ever comes out....:confused: So it looks like next week for new firmware?

Thanks,
Enrique

If the firmware ever comes out....:confused: So it looks like next week for new firmware?

Thanks,
Enrique

It will be out soon....just ironing out bugs that they have found...hopefully it will be here this weekend...

K

Kevin, sounds like you have a little insider info... can you list some of the changes in the next rev?

Kevin, sounds like you have a little insider info... can you list some of the changes in the next rev?

:) I think I've said all I can....:cool:

K

Hah, I attached a USB DVD Drive, and played a disk (not encrypted of course) and all is well.

Then I wanted to eject the disk.... since the drive is locked, it wont let me. I pushed most buttons on the remote (including the eject icon one, but thats just for virtual CD I guess). There was nothing I could do to make it unlock the drive, short of powering the LimHD200i off. (Off on the unit, not remote).

Could we have it so we can eject a mounted DVD drive? Or is there some trick I don't know...

Hah, I attached a USB DVD Drive, and played a disk (not encrypted of course) and all is well.

Then I wanted to eject the disk.... since the drive is locked, it wont let me. I pushed most buttons on the remote (including the eject icon one, but thats just for virtual CD I guess). There was nothing I could do to make it unlock the drive, short of powering the LimHD200i off. (Off on the unit, not remote).

Could we have it so we can eject a mounted DVD drive? Or is there some trick I don't know...

Are you saying the Lim locked the dvd-drive so that the eject button on the usb dvd drive would not work?

K

See if the physical eject button works after you use the eject button on the remote. The remote's eject button unmounts the filesystem (but doesn't trigger a physical eject). And I believe most Linux systems are set to disable the eject button on removeable disks until a filesystem is unmounted.

Correct, the physical eject button on the player would not eject. Pushing remotes eject in sll screens i could think of in LimHD seemed to do little beyond showing the unmount popup. I suspect it does not unmount. Rolled my own fw with telnetd but i think that busybox has it not compiled in. Guess I try dropbear and see if it gets unmounted.

Wow, I've finally read all 55 pages of this thread and have been on the verge of purchasing a LimHD on a couple of occasions, even running searches through ********* and ebay.co.uk

I've owned a few MMPs (multimedia players) now, selling my Aqua MMP shortly after purchasing one as I wasn't satisfied with the audio/visual quality - picture and L/R audio via composite, were fed from one 3.5mm port. I've also owned two Freecom MMPs (which are just rebadged Mediagate MG-35s), which offered much better connectivity options, but I encountered remote control problems with the original device and the replacement device. The first device worked fine for a while but would only accept remote control commands on occasion. The replacement device, wouldn't accept remote control commands at all, when I had it connected to the TV via S-Video - it worked fine on another TV though. So I replaced that with a Sweex (another rebadged Mediagate MG-35, with slight differences), which I returned shortly afterwards due to the video stuttering during playback. So I've currently got a 500GB PATA hard drive, lying about unused and I need the space - what little free space it's still got left anyway.

If it weren't for Hi-Jack, I probably would have purchased a LimHD by now, but Hi-Jacks comments are representative of my own views. When I purchase a product, I'd like it to do everything it can do and do it well, not just one aspect. I feel that in its current state, it's not the product for me. I don't have a HD display, nor do I have any HD content right now - I'd rather download standard def content, which provides me with good a/v quality and not consume too much disk space. However, that doesn't mean I'll forever be watching SD content, so I'd like a product that's a little future proofed.

From what I've read, products containing the Sigma 8634 chips aren't far off, but will they be able to accept PATA drives, or only the newer SATA drives? Will they be significantly more expensive? Will the products be as 'incomplete' or buggy as the Tvix and LimHD devices and improved over time through firmware upgrades, or can these companies include everything their current gen MMPs have and then some, with added extras through firmware upgrades? Or is it all too early to tell? Are there any Sigma 8634 devices, people are keeping a close eye on right now

I'm still not sure what to do. If the developers at Tomacro can increase the functionality of the LimHD to match that of the Tvix, or as closely as possible, as I don't know if it's possible to include a TV-Tuner and thus a record function, without an add-on - see below;

http://www.mpcclub.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=292

I believe the above table was created a few firmware revisions ago, because if my memory serves me right, DVD ISO/IFO support has now been implemented. So does anyone have an up-to-date list of features and functions for the LimHD?


- Why does FF/RW take 30 seconds to start spinning and 30 seconds te resume playback? Just like Pause/Play often.


Have the above problems been resolved yet? Any other similar bugginess in terms of basic (and more advanced) user operations?

If the above can be fixed, a few more features implemented (which hopefully don't dramatically reduce the image quality, as a result of taking up more memory, as some of you fear it might) and the Sigma 8634 devices are way off and far more expensive, then I might purchase a LimHD... I think. I used to be indecisive, but now I'm not so sure.

Finally you guys running NAS's, what are you running exactly? I've got experience of HP NAS's as I work as a server administrator in the UK. Was the setup expensive, as disk space is such a problem for me?

The Movie button actually reads "Moivie" but we don't let that be a problem.

Jackie/Fan, are you aware of the typographical error on the remote control, "Moivie" should be spelt "Movie"? ;)

So no sign of the new firmware revision yet?

So no sign of the new firmware revision yet?

Hopefully it will be ready soon...

K

Besides Ebay? Who are some retailers in China? HK? Or US?

Perry

Hi everybody,

greetings from Hamburg, Germany (where all HDTV is h264/AC3).

I only bought my HD 5100 (as it is called in Europe) for its h264 capabilities. But like many others here, when I tried playing my content, it was indeed a cold shower. Amongst the many problems I incurred (several of them described already on this site):

- DVB-S2 .ts streams (h264/AC3, e.g. Premiere HD, Discovery HD) don't get processed at all, instead TVIX skips them, flashing "unsupported" in the upper right corner and loading/rejecting all files in the directory one after the other

- occasionally, it would recognize a .ts file and play it very well, however, with no sound at all. File info then says something like "Audio AC3 0ch 0/0".

- the TVIX will recognize ALL these .ts files after having them sent through VLC's "Streaming Assistent" and rewrapped (without transcoding!) into .mov or .mp4. However, still no audio

- in the very latest beta-release, Matroska container will work fine (with the streams from aforementioned .ts files), however, audio will constantly break down

- so: for European HDTV-fans, who I am sure are - like me - interested in the TVIX only for its h264-capabilities (because otherwise we have plenty of good mediaplayers in the market), quite a disappointment.

BUT:

- here is how I finally (last night at 3 am or so) got it to work:

a) You have to install very latest Beta-release (or perhaps latest official 43 does the job as well, I haven't tried that)

b) You have to indeed remux the .ts files using TSREMUX or Elecard XMUXER. It is irrelevant whether you remux to 188 Byte .ts of 192 Byte .m2ts, both will work.

At least this works just fine for my .ts files, which have been captured from Premiere/Discovery HD from a Technisat Skystar S2 HD using DVBViewer. The files were cut using h264TSCutter or TSConverter, both seem to work.

I hope this will work for others experiencing similar kind of issues, too.

Good luck.

Wrong thread, pixeljunkie.
Try this (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=825089) one.

... too bad. Sorry. That was indeed ment to show up in the TVI 5100 thread.

Besides Ebay? Who are some retailers in China? HK? Or US?

Perry

Hello! You can order directly on www.gendvd.com, we will try our best to supply you the best service. And if you have any questions, please email to us. We are very glad to help you.
Jackie

Hah, I attached a USB DVD Drive, and played a disk (not encrypted of course) and all is well.

Then I wanted to eject the disk.... since the drive is locked, it wont let me. I pushed most buttons on the remote (including the eject icon one, but thats just for virtual CD I guess). There was nothing I could do to make it unlock the drive, short of powering the LimHD200i off. (Off on the unit, not remote).

Could we have it so we can eject a mounted DVD drive? Or is there some trick I don't know...

Hello! I think you had better first refer to the English version of the instruction book and find the little hole there then use a fine wire to open it. If it does not work, please let me know.
Jackie

So no sign of the new firmware revision yet?

Maybe we still should wait for one or two days.
Jackie

In another week or two, we're going to overtake the Tvix 4100/5100 thread in number of posts... (of course, a hefty portion of those posts are "Is the new firmware ready yet?" but still...)

This thread is probably the biggest source of feedback for the tomacro-guys. I hope they really take our suggestions into consideration for the following firmware-release.
Do you guys know what's on the list for the next firmware, firmware +1, firmware +2, etc..?
On my whishlist:
- mkv playback
- dvd (and possibly .iso containing dvd) playback
- ftp access to the internal harddisk of the LIM

This thread is probably the biggest source of feedback for the tomacro-guys. I hope they really take our suggestions into consideration for the following firmware-release.
Do you guys know what's on the list for the next firmware, firmware +1, firmware +2, etc..?
On my whishlist:
- mkv playback
- dvd (and possibly .iso containing dvd) playback
- ftp access to the internal harddisk of the LIM

Been in this biz for a while...and I have say Tomacro (Jackie/Fan..thanks!) are one of the most responsive compaines I've come across....

K

In another week or two, we're going to overtake the Tvix 4100/5100 thread in number of posts... (of course, a hefty portion of those posts are "Is the new firmware ready yet?" but still...)

:):p:)

I have a problem:
I'm trying to play a file from an USB key or a portable HDD and no success.

The hdd file system is NTFS and the USB key is FAT32.

I cannot seem to be able to open any of these two devices for browsing or playback (pressing the movie button on the remote or the ok button when USB is selected on screen).

How does one acess files from the USB drive and do they need to have a certain extension ?

I've put a .vob file and a .avi file in the root of the us drives and it didn't work out.

Also regardless on what and where I plug the 2 USB devices repeatedly pressing "device" on the remote only goes to the second USB icon on the viewfinder skipping the first one.
Do i need to do something special in order to hook up the USB drives as it seems they are not recognized?

Limhd software is 1.60 Beta 2 - 070803

thanks

Hello! I think you had better first refer to the English version of the instruction book and find the little hole there then use a fine wire to open it. If it does not work, please let me know.
Jackie

Hah! Thanks but that's ok. You can turn off the unit, or indeed, just unplug the USB cable to the drive to force it to unlock the drive.

In software, you can umount the drive, and issue eject. But looks like you didn't compile busybox with the eject command.

Also, when the unit is attached to PC, and you mount it. Can you really not use it to play video? Even though I "eject" the drive on the PC, the unit does not return until I unplug the USB cable. But then I use it with OsX so there might be something there. I don't intent to use the USB cable anyway.

Keep up the good work!

Ok an update to my previous post. It seems that USB works onky if I plug in an external DVD unit but no luck with the mem stick and the portable hdd. Also my projector reports 1080i when the limd feeds it 480i, any idea why ?

Hmm Andrei, haven't had any problems playing from a 2GB PNY USB flash drive (formatted FAT32) or a 1TB Fantom external hard drive (formatted NTFS). I assume you've tried rebooting the limHD? Also, have you tried navigating to the devices onscreen instead of using the Device button? (Now that you mention it, I don't think I've ever used that button on the remote.)

On the resolution issue, is your limHD connected directly to your projector or going through a scaler/processor of some kind? Are you seeing 480i in the limHD's onscreen menus or on the VFD?

It seems everything works fine with the external dvd (navigating onscreen). The other two sources don't seem to work (as in they don't show in the USB list at all).


The projector displays 1080i while the limhd vfd and onscreen displays 480i.
I read that for hdmi the 480i resoulution is weird so it gets doubled for bandwidth requirements, so maybe the software in the projector displays it as 1080i who knows...


No scaler in between the limd and te proj...

It seems everything works fine with the external dvd (navigating onscreen). The other two sources don't seem to work (as in they don't show in the USB list at all).


The projector displays 1080i while the limhd vfd and onscreen displays 480i.
I read that for hdmi the 480i resoulution is weird so it gets doubled for bandwidth requirements, so maybe the software in the projector displays it as 1080i who knows...


No scaler in between the limd and te proj...

Correct....if I set the lim to 480i, it gets doubled...I think someone said that a scaler will correct this if it's an issue for you (although I suspect It's not)..

K

This thread is probably the biggest source of feedback for the tomacro-guys. I hope they really take our suggestions into consideration for the following firmware-release.
Do you guys know what's on the list for the next firmware, firmware +1, firmware +2, etc..?
On my whishlist:
- mkv playback
- dvd (and possibly .iso containing dvd) playback
- ftp access to the internal harddisk of the LIM

Thank you very much for your attention and all good suggestions, I will reflect them to Tomacro.:)

What is the maximum capacity for the inside hard disk? 500 Go? 750 Go? 1 To?
Tnx.

Thank you very much for your attention and all good suggestions, I will reflect them to Tomacro.:)

Hi Jackie

Any view on when the new cut will be out? (I'm asking for Mark....lol..;))

Cheers

K

It seems everything works fine with the external dvd (navigating onscreen). The other two sources don't seem to work (as in they don't show in the USB list at all).

If you're using a USB hub, try connecting the devices directly. I'm not sure the Tomacro knows how to traverse a hub yet.

This thread is probably the biggest source of feedback for the tomacro-guys. I hope they really take our suggestions into consideration for the following firmware-release.
Do you guys know what's on the list for the next firmware, firmware +1, firmware +2, etc..?
On my whishlist:
- mkv playback
- dvd (and possibly .iso containing dvd) playback
- ftp access to the internal harddisk of the LIM

On a serious note - your 1st two points I would expect the next cut of firmware to solve.

Jackie - FTP was mentioned some time ago....any news?

K

I'm not using a hub I've just used 2 USB sources simultaneously or separatedly as the limd has 2 IN USB ports on the back.

Also is there a plan to get also dvd subtitles working. It would be very very useful for foreign movies in my case.

I'm not using a hub I've just used 2 USB sources simultaneously or separatedly as the limd has 2 IN USB ports on the back.

Also is there a plan to get also dvd subtitles working. It would be very very useful for foreign movies in my case.

Are the two usb devices plugged in when you switch the Lim on? I'm running two 1T USB drives - mine are always pluged into the Lim. I switch the two USB drives on 1st, then the Lim - no problems with the Lim picking them up....

K

Ha ha ha, it gets even better on the USB front:

I've connected a big half terabyte harddrive which, together with a dvd drive is behind a powered USB hub and voilla: the limd can see both of them.

As I can see now the only difference is that the devices that were working are powered (as in they have power bricks) and the other ones don't, and I remember somebody complaining about the USB ports not having enough juice to power a small notebook harddrive (although the led goes green on mine).

As it is the setup goes like this: limd > powered USB hub through 2 cascaded 10 feet active USB extension cables > My book hdd and dvd drive. This is a good setup for me so far.

p.s. Hooking up the notebook hdd to the USB hub still doesn't show it.
p.s.s. Stoping a movie while playing zooms in the image a lot and starting stoping (re boot) the limd results in a quite strong thump being sent throught the stereo analog outs to the amplifier.

Stoping a movie while playing zooms in the image a lot and starting stoping (re boot) the limd results in a quite strong thump being sent throught the stereo analog outs to the amplifier.

I've had both of those problems too. Pretty sure they both appeared starting with the 8/3 firmware. I reported them to Fan a few weeks ago and I hope they've been addressed in the supposedly-any-day-now release...

p.s.s. Stoping a movie while playing zooms in the image a lot and starting stoping (re boot) the limd results in a quite strong thump being sent throught the stereo analog outs to the amplifier.

Does this apply to all (eg hi-def) sources, or just DVD ifo?....I only get this issue sometimes with DVD ifo, but I cant recall ever getting it with HD material (ts/avi etc)...

K

Still nothing? Can we get a update on the new firmware Jackie/Fan?

Thanks,
Enrique

Breaking news - no new firmware yet....:)

K

Update - I should be putting the new cut through it's paces on Friday....:)

K

Sweet, I'm in Japan and it is Friday right now!

Sweet, I'm in Japan and it is Friday right now!

LOL....not sure who's Friday (i'm UK).....

K

I have a question to all those who decided to buy this SD 8623-based device.
Please tell me what's the point to throw away the money on this stuff if just in a few weeks new 8634 based players are coming fully equipped both from h/w and s/w point of view???
In the specification of this Tomacro device I see nothing which will not be supported by 8634 based devices besides of SATA (but see below)

And there is no question that the 8634 will have much better potential...
- MKV (Matroska) will be fully supported
- at least 40 Mbit/s bit rate granted for any format inc. VC-1, H.264 and of course MPEG2.
- both HDD and DVD loader in one device
- full DVD playback support for any kind of material (with menus, subtitles, for original and "copied" DVDs)
- UPnP
- bit torrent
... so on, so off
- and the price should not be much higher than for this 8623-based device…

And besides, none of Sigma chips really supports SATA, only IDE is supported. Think about it too (it's only possible to get SATA through IDE->SATA adapter (which can be of course integrated into the main board), but it gives NOTHING for the speed of working with HDD!!!)
So I wouldn't recommend to think about SATA connector presence as about a big advantage!

And what is _really_ important is that only 8634/5 chip, but not 8622/3 one has a _real_ Linux OS (not ucLinux!) and _real_ memory management. Only this gives virtually unlimited possibilities for adding more and more "tasty" features in the future.
(programming for 8622/23 chip is a real nightmare, believe me, I write software for both 8622 and 8634...)
I know a company which tried to make a DVD player software for 8622 for a year and didn't succeed because of too many bugs in the h/w itself... So they just skipped this chip version and jumped from 8620 to 8634 directly
(this company is mentioned several times in different threads on this site, but I will not confirm the name, so don't ask ;))

So again, what's the point to buy now the device based on the chip which is used by serious companies only for DVB-T (really low demand) area, and which is more than 1 year old??

And please be warned for ANY 8622/3 products like this one or Tvix: their remaining life time is 1-2 month, at most!!!! (the latest for the first 8634 based devices to come is the beginning of November 2007)

And answering one obvious question (concern) on the price: for any "fair" company the price for 8634/5 based devices should not be much more than for 8622/3 (with similar equipment of course). 8634 chip is really more expensive but it has much more included functions. It means that some of the additional electronics on the main board disappears. And it compensates the chip price difference significantly...

LOL....not sure who's Friday (i'm UK).....

K

They have 7 Fridays a week :D

Please tell me what's the point to throw away the money on this stuff if just in a few weeks new 8634 based players are coming fully equipped both from h/w and s/w point of view???

Oh, boy.
Clearly, you don't understand how fast such devices become mature. Here is a timeline:
1) 6 months giving news that work is started on player XXX. This includes showing a prototype on an important exhibition
2) 3 months delay in production
3) 9-12 months fixing bugs in FW and implementing new features

You can verify it based on posts for older devices such as TViX 4000/5000.

So, in total we have 18-22 months until you have the device you like.
Tomacro and Dvico didn't say anything about their next devices yet, so the first step hasn't started yet.

In general, the problem can be described like this - 'Do I wait for the next generation devices or buy what is in the market already'. In every point of time there will be development on a new device that has more functionality, more power, better usability will be less expensive etc, etc.

Hello! Everyone!In order to further perfect limHD200i decoding, the new firmware has been postponed its release till today.　　　
The test results of the latest version decoding perfectibility:
For the built-in hard drive, limHD200i decoding capabilities through further perfectibility can be achieved:
1. The average rate of H.264 HP@L4.1 can reach 40Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach the 60Mbits / s;
2. the average rate of VC-1 can reach 40Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach 60Mbits / s;
3. The average rate of Mpeg2 can reach 42Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach 60Mbits / s.
Because the Blu-ray standards regulates that the biggest blue coding rate should only reach lower than 40Mbits / s, while the maximum HD-DVD coding rate should be below 40Mbits / s, so for the future BD and HD remux source, there are no problem for limHD200i to play all of them perfectly.
:):D

That good news. I assume these firmware changes involve tuning disk I/O, buffering, file parsing etc. since all of the actual decoding is done in hardware, and its capabilities have remained unchanged since day 1.

Btw, Dvico recently confirmed (http://www.mpcclub.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=96842#96842) that TViX4100/5100 won't be able to pass through HD audio. So, can LimHD do it? Does anybody have a fancy HD audio receiver to test?

Jackie,

1. The average rate of H.264 HP@L4.1 can reach 40Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach the 60Mbits / s;

This also applies to high profile 5.1 too.....

K

They have 7 Fridays a week :D

Monday...:eek:, Tuesday...:eek:, Saturday...:eek:, Wednesday...:eek:, Sunday...:eek:, Thursday...:eek:.....and.....FRIDAY!!!....:D:D:D:

LOL

That good news. I assume these firmware changes involve tuning disk I/O, buffering, file parsing etc. since all of the actual decoding is done in hardware, and its capabilities have remained unchanged since day 1.

Would not be too sure about that...watch this space re MKV 1080p (bearing in mind Divco said the sigma chip had a bug....)

K

I have a question to all those who decided to buy this SD 8623-based device.
Please tell me what's the point to throw away the money on this stuff if just in a few weeks new 8634 based players are coming fully equipped both from h/w and s/w point of view???

Because we live in the NOW not the 'what if' or the 'it's coming soon' future - been there, done that. And for most of us, both this player and the Tvix boxes play 95% of what we need.

Sure, there's h264 stuff coming, but it isn't that prevalent now (unless you're ripping BD/HD discs).

Because we live in the NOW not the 'what if' or the 'it's coming soon' future - been there, done that. And for most of us, both this player and the Tvix boxes play 95% of what we need.

Sure, there's h264 stuff coming, but it isn't that prevalent now (unless you're ripping BD/HD discs).

Completely agree with you....just one point tho....H.264 decoding is already here....AVC (H.264 720p and 1080p) no problems....720p & 1080p MKV (H.264) last (hopefuly) bugs being ironed out......so what could a 86X4 chip offer me?.....well it can do picture in picture etc....but for straight forward HiDef single image playback....I think all we need is here already....

Just my 2 cents

K

In the famous words of Homer Simpson "HTPC...codecs?....D'oh!"

Oh....and here's what HTPC's will do to you....

http://www.gifmania.ph/Simpsons/homer_eating/index.htm

K

I know a company which tried to make a DVD player software for 8622 for a year and didn't succeed because of too many bugs in the h/w itself... So they just skipped this chip version and jumped from 8620 to 8634 directly
(this company is mentioned several times in different threads on this site, but I will not confirm the name, so don't ask ;))


Ziova. What do I win?

Would not be too sure about that...

You are right, Kevin... it isn't all hardware-based, according to the Sigma datasheet-- some of the decoding is done in updatable microcode:

The video decoder engine consists of a proprietary 16-bit RISC CPU which is augmented by a number of hardware functional units. These functional units perform the most compute-intensive portions of the video decompression algorithms supported by the EM8623L. The video RISC CPU executes certain portions of the algorithms, and prepares the data for, and coordinates the execution of the hardware units. This architecture represents a carefully engineered trade-off between the hardware complexity, operating clock frequency and adaptability. Appropriate microcode (supplied by Sigma) is loaded into the video RISC program memory from the DRAM to perform the required video decompression.

I was also wrong about the lack of a 2D graphics accelerator. Turns out the EM8623 does include a fairly capable 2D accelerator that could display a more interesting UI than we are seeing on the Tomacro and Tvix boxes. Animated? Probably not, but definitely one that is more visually complex.

You are right, Kevin... it isn't all hardware-based, according to the Sigma datasheet-- some of the decoding is done in updatable microcode:



I was also wrong about the lack of a 2D graphics accelerator. Turns out the EM8623 does include a fairly capable 2D accelerator that could display a more interesting UI than we are seeing on the Tomacro and Tvix boxes. Animated? Probably not, but definitely one that is more visually complex.

On your last point....I've picked up a little background noise on this one too.......we will see what the new cut brings....

K

H.264 decoding is already here....AVC (H.264 720p and 1080p) no problems.
If I buy a limHD200i, hook it up to my Gbit LAN and stream AVC 720p/1080p from my SMB/NFS/UPnP NAS boxes, I will have no problems?

Oh, boy.
Clearly, you don't understand how fast such devices become mature. Here is a timeline:
1) 6 months giving news that work is started on player XXX. This includes showing a prototype on an important exhibition
2) 3 months delay in production
3) 9-12 months fixing bugs in FW and implementing new features

You can verify it based on posts for older devices such as TViX 4000/5000.

So, in total we have 18-22 months until you have the device you like.
Tomacro and Dvico didn't say anything about their next devices yet, so the first step hasn't started yet.

In general, the problem can be described like this - 'Do I wait for the next generation devices or buy what is in the market already'. In every point of time there will be development on a new device that has more functionality, more power, better usability will be less expensive etc, etc.

everything depends on the manufacturer's policy. Some like Tomacro and Dvico start showing empty cases at all the possible exhibitions many months before having something really in hands.
Others never participate in any exhibitions and just silently do their job.
You'll see the new 8634 based product in 2 months on the shelves (at least in some countries). Believe me, I know what I'm talking about...

1. The average rate of H.264 HP@L4.1 can reach 40Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach the 60Mbits / s;
2. the average rate of VC-1 can reach 40Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach 60Mbits / s;
3. The average rate of Mpeg2 can reach 42Mbits / s, the peak rate can reach 60Mbits / s.


Those are great numbers!

Can you tell us from inside which containers will the above work? MKV/TS (MPEG)?

It'd be really nice to get a working HD/1080P playback from inside MKV & TS.

If I buy a limHD200i, hook it up to my Gbit LAN and stream AVC 720p/1080p from my SMB/NFS/UPnP NAS boxes, I will have no problems?

Hi...good to see you are still following the thread....

that's not really what I said/meant....what I said was the decoding chip does the job.....now the LAN & USB chips....different topics. Played via the internal hard disk...I stand by what I've said...no problems...over LAN and USB?....in an indirect way, you've made a vaild point.....but, as yet, no one knows what USB and LAN chips the 86X4 will use, or what the performance over LAN & USB will be like, do they?

However, having said that, even with the LimHD usb & lan code as is, I have very few problems playing 1080p and 720p mpeg2/AVC 720p and 1080p material over NFS or USB....but, a straight BD rip over Lan or USB- Not at the moment.....but who knows what Tomacro will focus on after the new cut is perfected (as in what it's supposed to do)....

Just my 2 cents

K

Those are great numbers!

Can you tell us from inside which containers will the above work? MKV/TS (MPEG)?

It'd be really nice to get a working HD/1080P playback from inside MKV & TS.

Containers that have no issues from the internal HD at the moment are AVI, TS etc....both 1080p and 720p (H.264/AVC/Mpeg2 etc)

MKV is being perfected as we speak.....

K

Please tell me what's the point to throw away the money on this stuff if just in a few weeks new 8634 based players are coming fully equipped both from h/w and s/w point of view???

1. We want something now
2. No guarantee the 8634 based players will be available in 6 months or that they will work properly for the 1st 6 months after the release
3. Not everybody needs the features you do
4. Because we can

everything depends on the manufacturer's policy. Some like Tomacro and Dvico start showing empty cases at all the possible exhibitions many months before having something really in hands.
Others never participate in any exhibitions and just silently do their job.
You'll see the new 8634 based product in 2 months on the shelves (at least in some countries). Believe me, I know what I'm talking about...

I'd like to know a little more about how you know what your talking about......

K

no one knows what USB and LAN chips the 86X4 will use, or what the performance over LAN & USB will be like, do they?
No, but I wasn't talking about 86X4. Regardless of chipset, if a box can't do high bitrate HD AVC/VC-1 over LAN, it's useless to me and I consider it a waste of money. I don't care if the box can do gazillion Mbit/s if it can't do the same while streaming over LAN. As things stand, I've got 8 useless media players cluttering up my house at the moment and it pisses me off.

No, but I wasn't talking about 86X4. Regardless of chipset, if a box can't do high bitrate HD AVC/VC-1 over LAN, it's useless to me and I consider it a waste of money. I don't care if the box can do gazillion Mbit/s if it can't do the same while streaming over LAN. As things stand, I've got 8 useless media players cluttering up my house at the moment and it pisses me off.
FWIW I completely agree with you!

No, but I wasn't talking about 86X4. Regardless of chipset, if a box can't do high bitrate HD AVC/VC-1 over LAN, it's useless to me and I consider it a waste of money. I don't care if the box can do gazillion Mbit/s if it can't do the same while streaming over LAN. As things stand, I've got 8 useless media players cluttering up my house at the moment and it pisses me off.


Then stop buying them until you know for sure they will do what you want.
You can only blame yourself for this. I also wasted money on lots of media players until I got my first Tvix 5000 which I have been happy with and have bought a second 5000 and a 4100+tuner. Yes it would be a nice addition to have mkv support fully functional, yes it would be nice to have better network throughput, yes it would be nice to have feature X.

Hopefully the next generation Tvix boxes add the following features.
1. HD-DVD / BD playback over LAN.
2. Better tuner functionality (little things)
3. QAM tuning support.
4. Bulletproof H.264 support.
5. Gigabit networking with the ability to share its internal hard drive as a normal share.
......

Who wants my
Roku Photobridge
Media MG35
.............

Who wants my
Roku Photobridge
Media MG35
.............
No interest here....

Heck there must be something wrong with me......I am still quite happy with my two Linkplayer2's.

I can live without streaming video ... but I really would like to see FTP access to the LimHD in a future firmware cut.

Oh yeah-I forgot. Who wants my LinkPlayer2 and LinkTheater's?

... so on, so off...




The only way to deal with trolls is to limit your reaction and remind others not to respond to trolls!


PLONK! :-)

Oh yeah-I forgot. Who wants my LinkPlayer2 and LinkTheater's?
Just picked up my 2nd LP2 for $120 new in the box at my local CompUSA. I have been really close a few times to ordering a 4000 but $250 was a bit more than I wanted to invest and I am still leary of the TVIX network setup. Yea I know you have tried to help me with that issue a few times...If my second LP2 had not been so cheap I am sure that I would have taken the TVIX 4000 plunge.

Hello! Everyone!In order to further perfect limHD200i decoding, the new firmware has been postponed its release till today.　　

Does this mean the new firmware will be available today? or that is was postponed till today, meaning a new firmware will be available tomorrow?

No, but I wasn't talking about 86X4. Regardless of chipset, if a box can't do high bitrate HD AVC/VC-1 over LAN, it's useless to me and I consider it a waste of money. I don't care if the box can do gazillion Mbit/s if it can't do the same while streaming over LAN. As things stand, I've got 8 useless media players cluttering up my house at the moment and it pisses me off.

8?....oh boy!...I do understand your point...I wish I could stream a complete BD rip over LAN...maybe one day, but until then, I'll just have to watch it off the local hard drive....

K

Does this mean the new firmware will be available today? or that is was postponed till today, meaning a new firmware will be available tomorrow?

LOL....tomorrow...:D

K

I can live without streaming video ... but I really would like to see FTP access to the LimHD in a future firmware cut.

I'm sure after this new cut (providing all is OK) FTP will be next on the list.....

Fan/Jackie???!

K

Then stop buying them until you know for sure they will do what you want.
Can't do that, got to keep feeding the gadget monster with all the latest toys!

You can only blame yourself for this.
Perhaps, but I'm going to lay part of the blame on false advertising by CE manufacturers.

Taking a quick look at the device. It seems normally, the HD1 is mounted read-only:

/dev/ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 on /mnt/HD1 type ntfs (ro,noatime,nodiratime,nosuid,nodev,uid=0,gid=0,fmask=0177,d mask=077,nls=utf8,errors=continue,mft_zone_multiplier=1)

And when you plug in USB cable, it gets umounted and handled internally somewhere. (curacao?)

So even if I were to build smbd or NFSd, I would need it to be mounted rw to be of any use. However, I suspect the ntfs in the kernel only handles read-only. (Which is why it goes into that funky mode to be a USB drive).

# mount -t ntfs -o remount,rw /dev/ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 /mnt/HD1
"on /mnt/HD1 type ntfs (ro,"
# umount /mnt/HD1
# mount -t ntfs -o rw,noatime,nodiratime,uid=0,gid=0,fmask=0177,dmask=077,nls=u tf8,errors=continue,mft_zone_multiplier=1 /dev/ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 /mnt/HD1
# mkdir /mnt/HD1/test
mkdir: Cannot create directory `/mnt/HD1/test': Read-only file system

So, one would need to compile NTFS with rw, either as kernel module, or user-land, if that exists.

But for now, I was just after multiple NFS mounting, which I can now do manually.

Who wants my
Roku Photobridge
Media MG35
.............I may be interested in the Roku. Please send me a PM with the Rev (A or B) and the price. Thanks.

Jay

So, one would need to compile NTFS with rw, either as kernel module, or user-land, if that exists.


I wonder if we could just format the internal hard drive as EXT3 instead of NTFS.

Also, how did you get in? Did you just start the telnet daemon?

Can't do that, got to keep feeding the gadget monster with all the latest toys!
Amen-isnt it cool when UPS delivers toys. Just got 2 more hdhomerun network tuners today.



Perhaps, but I'm going to lay part of the blame on false advertising by CE manufacturers.
I was burned as you have been and learned to stop being gullible. Trust but verify.

Proud owner of 2 5000's & 1 4100 w/HD Tuner.

Mature wlan support won't happen until players can handle Wireless N. Until then, only the wired lan will be sufficient to stream HD files and even there, get some hickups some times....

FAN: How long does a week take in Japan? 11 days and counting for the update... :-)

I wonder if we could just format the internal hard drive as EXT3 instead of NTFS.

Also, how did you get in? Did you just start the telnet daemon?

I see ext2-fs, udf-fs, ntfs-fs, nfsd (hello?) only

and Yes.

So, one would need to compile NTFS with rw, either as kernel module, or user-land, if that exists.


The NTFS-3G driver (http://ntfs-3g.org/) is an open source, freely available read/write NTFS driver for Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X, NetBSD, and Haiku.

how did you get in? Did you just start the telnet daemon?

Yes.

How do you start the telnet daemon?

The NTFS-3G driver (http://ntfs-3g.org/) is an open source, freely available read/write NTFS driver for Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X, NetBSD, and Haiku.

Yes it is, uses FUSE kernel loadable module, so unless that one can be compiled...

Well........it's Friday.....:)

K

Are we there yet? :)

Are we there yet? :)

My eyes are fixed on my inbox.....:)

K

I'd like to know a little more about how you know what your talking about......

K

it's very simple. I participate in developing and manufacturing the new devices (exactly on 8634 chipsets).
And everything what I'm telling here is just based on my own experience, but from developer's not user's point of view...
So if everything works that fine for 8622/3 chips users then I should only say, I'm really surprised and very glad for you.
But still my own point of view remains the same: 8634/5 chip is much better for making really working and future-oriented products... I do believe that the companies like Dvico and Tomacro put really a lot of effort to force the 8622/3 chips to work normally for the current tasks. But what they do in the future for the new coming tasks when they are limited by that architecture?! Maybe they will also develop 8634/5-based players in the future and ask their users to buy _also_ those new models to have the new features?
(and if/when they do it, what kind of support they still suggest for the previous models?)

it's very simple. I participate in developing and manufacturing the new devices (exactly on 8634 chipsets).
And everything what I'm telling here is just based on my own experience, but from developer's not user's point of view...
So if everything works that fine for 8622/3 chips users then I should only say, I'm really surprised and very glad for you.
But still my own point of view remains the same: 8634/5 chip is much better for making really working and future-oriented products... I do believe that the companies like Dvico and Tomacro put really a lot of effort to force the 8622/3 chips to work normally for the current tasks. But what they do in the future for the new coming tasks when they are limited by that architecture?! Maybe they will also develop 8634/5-based players in the future and ask their users to buy _also_ those new models to have the new features?
(and if/when they do it, what kind of support they still suggest for the previous models?)

Thank you...as I suspected....

K

Thank you...as I suspected....

K

hmmm.... indeed I wrote in the very first message that I do participate in development software for both 8622 and 8634 chips. So this info should not be new for you. I didn't intend to hide this fact from the very beginning...

hmmm.... indeed I wrote in the very first message that I do participate in development software for both 8622 and 8634 chips. So this info should not be new for you. I didn't intend to hide this fact from the very beginning...

participate in development software for both 8622 and 8634 chips???

U are like more a 8634 device salesman, oh, in the future.:D

Mature wlan support won't happen until players can handle Wireless N. Until then, only the wired lan will be sufficient to stream HD files and even there, get some hickups some times....
I was talking about wired LAN. Couldn't care less about wlan support.

Well...it's been delivered, as promised......off to start the tests......Jackie, I will email you when I've finished....cheers

K

K,

Hmm, I don't see anything new on the download page from tomacro yet.
Do you have a special download link?

Chris

well...good news!....according to Divco, Tomacro have done the impossible....1080p MKV playback and NO macoblocks and 720p and 1080p MKV's have prefect A/V sync(15 1080p MKV's tested)....timegoto function works flawless...so the limHD is now reading the timecodes correctly....the only small bug to iron out is that on 720p and 1080p MKV, although they play perfectly, sometimes the audio drops for a split second every now and again.....

Jackie - Great work!!!...please pass on my congratulations!.......ask Tomacro to look at the sound drop issue on MKV....

Once this has been tweaked....this release is going to make people very happy....:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

More tests later...

K

Kevin, did you test my old 720p MKV file - a sample from Arizona Dreaming?

Good to know that 1080p MKVs can be played back without macroblocks.
Now it's Dvico's turn for a firmware update.
I love this competition!

Kevin, did you test my old 720p MKV file - a sample from Arizona Dreaming?

Yes...plays perfect!....just the audio drop every now and again....and I now Tomacro will turn that around very very quickly!....

Mediainfo:

Complete name : C:\share\media\NFS test files\ArizonaDream_CUT.mkv
Format : Matroska
File size : 90.2 MiB
PlayTime : 1mn 52s
Bit rate : 6743 Kbps
Encoded date : UTC 2007-07-14 17:07:32
Writing application : mkvmerge v2.0.2 ('You're My Flame') built on Feb 21 2007 23:40:55
Writing library : libebml v0.7.7 + libmatroska v0.8.1

Video #0
Codec : MPEG-4 AVC
Codec/Info : MPEG4 ISO advanced profile
PlayTime : 1mn 52s
Width : 1280 pixels
Height : 688 pixels
Aspect ratio : 1.860
Frame rate : 23.976 fps

Audio #0
Codec : DTS
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48 KHz


K

Madshi....I will test your files too....

K

I assume that your sound configuration is pass-through?
This means that your receiver gets audio bitstream with delays, right?

I assume that your sound configuration is pass-through?
This means that your receiver gets audio bitstream with delays, right?

Tried both.....so it's just a small bug to iron out......:D

K

Now I even more don't see why anybody would want unstable 8634 device that is more expensive , produces more heat and noise.
Only when they implement all that I want (gigabit ethernet, upgradeable Wi-Fi, torrent client, full linux core, all-audio-passthrough and really perfect stability) - only then I'll consider buying one.
Right now I don't see the advantage of the future devices. Probably developers will skip 8634 devices and come with a newer chip.

Good to know that 1080p MKVs can be played back without macroblocks.
Now it's Dvico's turn for a firmware update.
I love this competition!

Picture quality is just simply awesome...

K

Does it suport MKV AC3 and DTS audio by Coaxial SPDIF?

Does it suport MKV AC3 and DTS audio by Coaxial SPDIF?

Optical out = AC3 & DTS in an MKV container....no problems...

K

And they say the HD-DVD VS Blu-Ray war is over/still going (depending on what stats you read).....biggest con going........now if they would just all move to digital distribution.......now there's a thought?..:rolleyes:

Anyways...Well done to Tomacro..

K

Optical out = AC3 & DTS in an MKV container....no problems...

K

And external .srt subtitles with mkv also?

What bitrate 720/1080 files are you testing with?

And external .srt subtitles with mkv also?

Not tried....but I suspect not at the moment...it's not really been on the radar.....prehaps after they have finished tweaking this cut......although there are some other tweaks that I suspect folks will want 1st....such as:

24 hz option!!!!!!! (jackie!!)..lol
USB and LAN speed tweaks...

K

What bitrate 720/1080 files are you testing with?

Most MKV...even 1080p, never peak above 20mbps....


As an example....here's the media info on one of the largest file size 1080p MKV I could find....

Complete name : C:\share\media\HD Movies\CXXXXX RXXXXX 1080p HD.mkv
Format : Matroska
File size : 12.3 GiB
PlayTime : 2h 24mn
Bit rate : 12 Mbps
Encoded date : UTC 2007-06-25 17:47:59
Writing application : mkvmerge v2.0.2 ('You're My Flame') built on Feb 21 2007 23:40:55
Writing library : libebml v0.7.7 + libmatroska v0.8.1

Video #0
Codec : MPEG-4 AVC
Codec/Info : MPEG4 ISO advanced profile
PlayTime : 2h 24mn
Width : 1920 pixels
Height : 800 pixels
Aspect ratio : 2.400
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Language : English

Audio #0
Codec : DTS
Channel(s) : 6 channels
Sampling rate : 48 KHz
Language : English


And it peaks at 19mbps......that's the H.264 codec for you...:)
K

Kevin,
Will you share this (beta) firmware with us?

We will receive in a couple of days new stock of the limHD200i with the new firmware already installed (with 1080P .mkv support).... wait and see

Kevin,
Will you share this (beta) firmware with us?

I would like to share this new beta....but it's not for me to release it without Tomacro or Jackie's say so.......soz

Besides....It's not ready yet...wait until the last few bugs have been ironed out...

K

We will receive in a couple of days new stock of the limHD200i with the new firmware already installed (with 1080P .mkv support).... wait and see

MMmmm....like I said....needs a tweak before I'd put this cut public....

K

Kevin, any progress in this release on enabling Sigma's motion-adaptive deinterlacing feature? You can run the waving flag demo I linked to a while back to test. (Maybe Kostya can tell us if that feature works well enough to bother with.)

Complete name : C:\share\media\HD Movies\CXXXXX RXXXXX 1080p HD.mkv
Format : Matroska
File size : 12.3 GiB
PlayTime : 2h 24mn
Bit rate : 12 Mbps
Encoded date : UTC 2007-06-25 17:47:59
Writing application : mkvmerge v2.0.2 ('You're My Flame') built on Feb 21 2007 23:40:55
Writing library : libebml v0.7.7 + libmatroska v0.8.1

K

Great movie .. better than pitch black imho. I need to buy the HD version and check it out.

I noticed a couple of bugs here. (Still 070803 here)

Playing SpiritedAway.avi, which is XviD with AC3, with TWO audio tracks. Tomacro will let you select Audio 0 or Audio 1 by pushing the Audio button on the remote, but it does not change the Audio played. (Or do I push something to 'select' it?)

Laputa.avi, XviD with MP3, dual audio, same problem.

All MP3s music sound quite bad, distorted. This is both in Optical 5.1 sound, and Stereo sound from TV. Current setting is "Encoded Digital" and "5.1 Channels".

But movies with MP3 tracks sound fine.

(Don't worry, I own all mentioned Movies)

Hah just occurred to me there is a volume on the remote, makes it better, but high-frequency is still poor. It'll do though.

Missing Dual Audio is worse. :)

Well, many people including me consider volume control on a media player useless. I don't want my wife to change audio volume through media player, it is better to use TV's audio controls. Moreover, I believe that a media player should have just minimal or no audio controls at all bypassing everything to a dedicated audio receiver as an unchanged digital bitstream. It is the purpose of a separate audio processor that will downmix to your number of speakers, control volume, apply any EQ and surround effects, etc.

Fixed my smbfs problems, OSX defaults are just stricter. NFS would not do as you only have one mount and NFS refuses to cross to a different device (including symlinks) whereas smbfs will follow symlinks if you ask it to so you can make a landing share with symlink to all places you want.

Additionally, using \\192.. seems to fail/hang. But //192.. is ok.

But this leads me to another problem. LimHD200i never umounts. (Remember my CD Eject issue?) Worse than that, it mounts every time you pick a device.


/dev/ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 298.1G 260.4G 37.7G 87% /mnt/HD1
/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/cd 7.8G 7.8G 0 100% /mnt/USB1
//192.168.11.10/Downloads 148.7G 127.1G 21.6G 85% /mnt/smbfs1
//192.168.11.10/Downloads 148.7G 127.1G 21.6G 85% /mnt/smbfs1
192.168.11.10:/ 232.6G 215.1G 17.2G 93% /mnt/nfs1
192.168.11.10:/ 232.6G 215.1G 17.2G 93% /mnt/nfs1
//192.168.11.10/Downloads 148.7G 127.1G 21.6G 85% /mnt/smbfs1


by just entering smb/nfs, pushing Exit and entering again I am slowly filling up the mount-table. Anyone know the max for uClinux-2.4?

This incidentally explains why i can't eject DVD, if I issue "umount /mnt/USB1" then I can push eject button just fine.

Kevin, any progress in this release on enabling Sigma's motion-adaptive deinterlacing feature? You can run the waving flag demo I linked to a while back to test. (Maybe Kostya can tell us if that feature works well enough to bother with.)

Not sure...any chance you could post the link again...and I'll test whilst I test the DVD ISO feature..:)

K

PS - for info, this is still a beta cut....

UPDATE: although I've not tested the files Mark, I have taken alook a SD material and it looks the same so I suspect not...

We don't need no stinking motion adaptive de-interlacing off a crummy chipset. We have dedicated tools for that :)

If the player could just output most major codecs at high bitrates from most major containers and not drop/stutter/freeze on audio video, then EVERYTHING ELSE can be fixed AFTER the player.

But if the player produces crap video/audio output, no amount of internal de-interlacing can fix that.

So, priorities right.

Playback pristine first. Gimmicks come second :)

MMmmm....like I said....needs a tweak before I'd put this cut public....

K


So how many weeks is this going to take I wonder... :(

Cheers...

So how many weeks is this going to take I wonder... :(

Cheers...

I dont know....but I would not have thought too long....Jackie or Fan may have a view.

I should finish my testing this morning and get the results back to Jackie.

K

Now I even more don't see why anybody would want unstable 8634 device that is more expensive , produces more heat and noise.
Only when they implement all that I want (gigabit ethernet, upgradeable Wi-Fi, torrent client, full linux core, all-audio-passthrough and really perfect stability) - only then I'll consider buying one.
Right now I don't see the advantage of the future devices. Probably developers will skip 8634 devices and come with a newer chip.

have you ever tested yourself ANY 8634-based devices? (that would be very surprising 'cause none are on the market yet)
What is your point (and indeed, motivation...) to tell that 8634 devices are _unstable_ and that they don't have the functionality you've mentioned even before taking a look at any of such devices?
If you think it's just because it's new then please recall that 8622 devices are only a few weeks on the market... So there is no real point to think they are already mature enough and that 8634-ones can not meet the maturity level of 8622 ones even right at the moment of their first release....

participate in development software for both 8622 and 8634 chips???

U are like more a 8634 device salesman, oh, in the future.:D

so you think that the developers do not care how the stuff they develop is used? and that they have no point to warn anybody about some problematic h/w if they are aware of this and this is not yet a public information?

if so, what's your point to answer any questions of other people in such forums when you don't need to get any info from others?

Jackie

You have mail....

K

so you think that the developers do not care how the stuff they develop is used? and that they have no point to warn anybody about some problematic h/w if they are aware of this and this is not yet a public information?

if so, what's your point to answer any questions of other people in such forums when you don't need to get any info from others?


You should open another thread to sell your mature products with 8634 inside, and show your product model number and official Website.

I think you will ask to be rebuffed here.:o

Madshi....I will test your files too....
So do they work? :)

So do they work? :)

I've only tested over LAN, so I need to test from the HD too...then I'll let you know...

K