Western Digital - WD TV Live Media Player (WDTV2) - Page 119

No I go to video / then network shares and click my PC and then it asks for user/pass and I get the "Media Server can not be accessed" message

Is anyone else having a problem where the WDTV2 plays your .mkv's out of sync when using Dolby Digital surround but will play them fine when set to stereo?. I'm wondering if its my receiver or the wdtv itself

I rebooted the computer then unplugged and plugged in WDTV. Was then able to access.

I just got the WD Live. Haven't even opened the box et but want to find out what my options are. Obviously I can stream files from my PC to the device. It will be connected via hdmi to my receiver. That part is straightforward. I'm just curious about alternate means of storage. I have read some things about a NAS. I am really not familar with how to incorporate that into my system. Does anyone use a NAS (or something similar) and care to share how everything is connected? For example, do you download files/copy directly to the NAS? Does it have an interface?

I have a spare 750GB hard drive I wouldn't mind using for storage at the unit. But I am confused on how to incorporate it with the WD Live. I don't want a regular enclosure because I would have to connect it to my PC and copy the files over and then move it to the WD Live, right? That would be more troublesome.

I ill search the thread but wanted to ask in case someone has a quick response. Any help is appreciated.

A NAS is basically a specialized computer with a lot of storage, a built in O/S (usually Linux or Free BSD, etc.), an ethernet port, and a simplified user interface. You just plug it into your ethernet network and its shares appear on the network just like any other computer. It's usually configured via a browser based interface.

Thanks for the info. SO, for files that I already have on my current system I would have to copy them to the NAS. How about future files? Can I download them straight to the NAS via my PC? Or can I set the NAS up to do the download?

Not trying to derail this into a NAS thread, just want to know the best way to utilize this WD Live.

And if NAS is the preferred way (other than streaming) what is a recommended NAS? I've seen some inexpensive ones and some very $$$ ones.

Yes. Shares on the NAS are just like shares on any other computer connected to the network. If you have write access to them you can copy to them from any computer on the network. The basic idea behind a NAS is that it's a simple way to add storage to your network. You plug it in and all your computers see a new share. More advanced NAS devices will allow more customization.


That would depend on the software/firmware supplied with the NAS. Some go as far as to have bit*torrent clients built in.


I don't have any specific recommendations but the prices vary based on the number of drive bays, whether the drives are included (and thier size), RAID support, and other advanced features (hot swapping a RAID 5 drive, for example).

I've owned this unit for a week now and everthing is working great except there's one flaw. Streaming HD movies across my computer under window 7 isn't smooth. Once awhile, I lost audio and the picture start jiggling. I have tried powerline adapter(200mbps), and high end usb network adapter, but the media player can't stream any 1080p video without losing signal. However, I have no problem streaming standard digital video. Accessing the internet and youtube works fine too.

The only way to watch 1080p without any problem is to wire your media player directly to your router(n-type) via ethernet cable. There's no other way. If you only stream standard digital movies, there shouldn't be any problem. However, if you are a fanatic about HD, then then you cannot rely on wireless connection.

It's a known bug with .mkv and Dolby Digital. I think it's OK
when if stop and then resume play.

It doesn't happen with DTS.

Here's hoping y'all had a Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah and wishing you a blessed and prosperous New Year.

I searched and googled and its seems im the only one who has this problem.

I have a colored flashing line on the bottom of my TV. I have a Pioneer 507-cmx 768p tv hooked up via HDMI. I tried changing the video to 720p @ 60 and 50hz and i still have that line.

Any ideas?

Has anyone set their WD TV Live up to be controlled with a Harmony remote? Looking into setting my WD up early next week and wanted to go ahead and add it to my Harmony account but don't see WD Live anywhere.

also would love to see what your "activity" settings are if possible.

Nevermind, got it. My vertical position was out of wack. I fixed it in my TV settings.

You can learn the commands. There are not that many. There are like 15 buttons on that little remote.

In the Harmony set up tool WDTV is listed under "Computer" -> "Media Center PC"

The only little extra thing you get over the original remote, is the ability to switch inputs. So if you set up an activity "Watch Video" or "Listen to Music", the WDTV will select that function.

I can't find any other tricks or shortcuts with the remote.

The only other thing I did in my activities was to set the Chapter next and Chapter Prev commands to the channel up and down buttons so I can use that for page up and page down.

There's not too much more to do with the remote.

Hi there


Actually Western Digital Corp. started out as a semiconductor manufacturer. I still have a 2-volume set of WDC 1984 databooks. They struck a gold mine when IBM choose the WDC hard disk controller chip for the PC/AT, which later got incorporated into IDE drives. They eventually got into disk drive manufacturing, and sold off the chip divisions.

Contrary to your assertion, I know for a fact that WD had a small team developing a DVR that would incorporate a WD hard disk. This was back in 2000 or 2001, and they did have working prototypes. Someone told me that the project was shut down after the dot-com bust and subsequent recession.

I doubt that the WDTV products are OEM'd as you assert. They would have better control and security when done in-house. That's just my opinion, and I am not trying to present it as a fact.

Regards

noob question: will the wdtv play mkv files with flac audio? I have tried some, but I only get stereo not 5.1. Running the latest firmware + HDMI.

cheers

Asked and answered several times in this very thread. For instance:

errr i play mkv with flac 5.1 audio with no issues as long as its 16bit audio not 24bit.... over optical...

Congrats! I haven't been able to, myself.

Yes, I can see how the fact that they manufactured ICs 25 years ago and dabbled in DVR design 10 years ago would make them a powerhouse in digital media players today.

The fact that the last time they dabbled in video they dropped the idea because there was an economic downturn is good evidence that they would do the exact opposite today.

And the slew firmware updates with bug fixes and new features surely indicates they have a huge team of expert A/V engineers.

hmm well i dont want to spread wrong info, so i will let you know what i am doing/hearing. i mux a 16bit flac and x264 encoded video into a mkv file.

i play this on the wdtv live over my network and my onkyo shows PCM, and i hear the sound correctly. am i wrong? the wdtv is sending the flac audio to my receiver through optical cable as pass-through i suppose?

if not then i "thought" it played mkv/flac...

i hear/play this clip just fine: hxxp://*******.com/ycc5cjd

You can start your own media player company with a small budget and probably as many as 5! employees...

There is no media player company that really makes firmware, everyone is dependent on Sigma, Realtek or whatever. Sad but true...

How long has the WDTV Live been out? How many FW updates do you want, and how fast? What new features do you think you need? What do you expect from a $120 box?

If you want a high-end player, you're going to need to spend more money. I recommend the Dune 3.0 (either the Prime or the Base). Maybe for a few dollars more it will fix you dinner

Hey guys, i'm trying to decide on this as it seems like an amazing solutoin.

I just want to rip uncompressed bluray movies, just the title, no preview or extras using anydvd and clown bd. I wont' be compressing it as I want the original picture and audio. I would think I would keep it as a m2ts file so that for the future i might re-encode it to something else or even burn it. for now i just want to store and watch and taking it to mkv is another step i dont' have time for.

That being said, can the wd tv play this back easily without any stutter 100% of the time? Either thru ethernet or usb? If it's ethernet i would buy a NAS and hook it up on the same switch. If USB i was going to buy the Lacie 1TB usb 2.0 drive.

Nevermind, I think I got it.

I would go with USB. Streaming over a network of uncompressed BR rips does not seem to work well for most people.

I love my WDTV Live and would recommend it to anyone, but I have heard reports the Dune 3.0 has a Gigabit NIC adapter, and streams direct BR rips. But, you are going to pay big for it.

thats exactly what i use my wd tv for. i watch them on my external usb wd 1.5 tb harddrive. no stuttering at all. they play perfectly. i also use clown bd to demux an mux to m2ts files along with any dvd hd to decrypt.

Great! so you don't compress?

Also, does this thing do Netflix? it would be a great device to travel with as well for hotel rooms, in-laws etc..

It does netflix, Hulu, and many others, with free plugins, if you buy PlayOn for your computer.