AVS › AVS Forum › Gaming & Content Streaming › Networking, Media Servers & Content Streaming › "Official" (well, firsthand anyway) TViX M6600N discussion
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

"Official" (well, firsthand anyway) TViX M6600N discussion

post #1 of 85
9/20/09 at 9:37pm
Thread Starter 
I've had a beta-test M6600N (actually, an M6620N) to play with now for several weeks and I thought that there may be some value in opening up a discussion here now that Digital Connection has posted a pre-order page for the dingus.

Although the firmware for it is still in flux (What else is new, huh?) I've been favorably impressed by the box. It's quieter, cooler, and (by my impression) a little more stable than previous TViXes. Like its brothers, the R-3310 and R-2210 TViXes, it uses a Realtek A/V CPU and low-level firmware, which I've found to be better at playing HDTV TS files than any of the Sigma-based players that I've tried (including IO-DATA, Zensonic/Ziova, DViCo, and ioBox). It also plays the various test clips that I've accumulated during prior TViX testing. (But, as yet, no BD menus--supposedly that's in the works)

The built-in WiFi adapter is an N and, while I've not thoroughly wrung it out with my D-Link DIR-825 router, it is better at streaming HD video over WLAN than I've seen previously with G adapters.

This puppy is definitely worth a close look if you're in the market for a streamer.
Reply
Reply

AVS Top Picks

post #2 of 85
9/20/09 at 10:58pm
Besides built-in wireless, what exactly differentiates this from the half-dozen other realtek-based streamers that cost 1/2 to 1/3 as much?
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 85
9/21/09 at 8:06am
Thread Starter 
Hmm...the first difference is that I've no firsthand experience with them. The second difference is that the 6600N exists. Please name some names of these "half dozen" as Google doesn't seem to have heard of any beyond the Xtreamer and the Mvix Ultio, neither of which is currently available in the U.S. and which evidently cost considerably more than "1/3 as much" as the 6600N (including WiFi-N and shipping to U.S.)
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 85
9/21/09 at 9:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TPeterson View Post

Hmm...the first difference is that I've no firsthand experience with them. The second difference is that the 6600N exists. Please name some names of these "half dozen" as Google doesn't seem to have heard of any beyond the Xtreamer and the Mvix Ultio, neither of which is currently available in the U.S. and which evidently cost considerably more than "1/3 as much" as the 6600N (including WiFi-N and shipping to U.S.)

The Asus O!play HDP-R1

Astone Media Gear AP-100

to name a couple. Not "1-2 to 1/3" but considerably less. the Asus retails for $169, dont know exact price on the astone, but its similar to the asus.
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 85
9/21/09 at 11:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TPeterson View Post

Hmm...the first difference is that I've no firsthand experience with them. The second difference is that the 6600N exists. Please name some names of these "half dozen" as Google doesn't seem to have heard of any beyond the Xtreamer and the Mvix Ultio, neither of which is currently available in the U.S. and which evidently cost considerably more than "1/3 as much" as the 6600N (including WiFi-N and shipping to U.S.)

ACRyan Playon!Hd is available in US for 169$ (without wifi) and 208$ with wifi.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 85
9/21/09 at 12:26pm
The Briteview Cinematube is $99, which is 1/3 of the $300 that the Tivx costs. The Mvix Ultio was only about $160 including shipping from Mvix USA in Virginia. The Xtreamer is about $150 shipped. The Egreat M34A is only $150 before shipping (uses a Sigma chip, but functionally similar). The ACRyan PlayonHD is $170. Even at $200, devices like the Myka and SageTV are a full $100 cheaper than the Tvix.

So again, other than built-in wifi, what exactly differentiates the Tvix from all the significantly cheaper alternatives? Does it do web browsing? Does it have Netflix/Hulu support? Will it play BD ISOs with menu support? Does it do cover art / metadata scraping or have a significantly better UI? Those are all features that might make it worth the $100-$200 price premium.
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 85
9/21/09 at 12:36pm
Looking at the Asus HDP-R1 (O!Play) prices on google, it looks like it will be readily available for about $100 or so in a few weeks. That is going to be tough to compete with since it includes ethernet support.
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 85
9/21/09 at 9:27pm
Thread Starter 
Some of these boxes (such as the ASUS, I think) don't support any internal HDD at all. AFAICT, none of the others support HDTV tuners and PVR functions, so I guess that's the real differentiator.

They all look good on paper--but I know from sad experience that most have warts in person! Which ones have you folks played with in person??

candre23--The Sigma-based boxes are NOT functionally similar w.r.t. TS file play. None of them (with the exception of the TViX M6500 with very latest fw) can trick play HDTV recordings reliably to skip uninteresting parts without pre-editing.
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 85
9/22/09 at 5:06am
TPeterson,

Can you describe in more detail the trickplay with HDTV files? I record OTA with BeyondTV and this is the single biggest problem I have with my PCH A100. A 30 second (or adjustable) smooth skip through commercials would be excellent!

David
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 85
9/22/09 at 11:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TPeterson View Post

They all look good on paper--but I know from sad experience that most have warts in person! Which ones have you folks played with in person??

I've purchased a WDTV and a Mvix Ultio, though both were ultimately given away to friends with less demanding media libraries.

All these devices, realtek and sigma, are all functionally similar. They all share the same basic featureset, with only one or two minor differences between them. They all play ~95% of media formats, they all have similar, bland interfaces, and none of them are particularly customizable. The differences between any two streamers are few and mostly superficial.

If you're going to charge considerably more than the $100-$200 that all these similar devices cost, you'd better bring something new to the table. The $300 PCH C-200 plays BD ISOs with menus, and you can even add a BD-ROM drive. It's also capable of using UI mods like YAMJ, which actually load fairly quickly compared to older PCH boxes.

If the Tvix supports tuners and PVR functionality, then that's a legitimately unique selling point. It just seems odd that they don't mention that anywhere on their product page.
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 85
9/22/09 at 4:05pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave47 View Post

TPeterson,

Can you describe in more detail the trickplay with HDTV files? I record OTA with BeyondTV and this is the single biggest problem I have with my PCH A100. A 30 second (or adjustable) smooth skip through commercials would be excellent!

Yes, all of the TViX R33x0, R22x0, and M66x0N models support +/- skips of 15 or 30 seconds (length depends on model and is not [yet] adjustable) that work reliably on virtually all TS files. For me, this is a BFD, since it means that I no longer have to pre-edit HDTV shows before watching them to avoid having to sit through the parts that I don't care to see.

The latest M6500A fw also has a +/- skip (and it is adjustable) that works about 95% of the time. As you've found, the other Sigma boxes have skip features, but they often don't work correctly at all on TS files.
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 85
9/22/09 at 4:08pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by candre23 View Post

If the Tvix supports tuners and PVR functionality, then that's a legitimately unique selling point. It just seems odd that they don't mention that anywhere on their product page.

You just have to know which product page to look at: http://www.tvix.co.kr/ENG/products/PVRM6620N.aspx
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 85
9/22/09 at 4:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by candre23 View Post

If the Tvix supports tuners and PVR functionality, then that's a legitimately unique selling point. It just seems odd that they don't mention that anywhere on their product page.

That's because there are two different models:

M6600N which is the base unit (not to be confused with the M6600A which does not have either the Wifi N nor the memory card reader)

M6620N same as the above model but with a dual ATSC/QAM tuner.

As for performance and capabilities, the use of specific chip being the defining factor is too simplistic. There are other issue such as heat management, addition to the SDK, and stability. Many of the older Sigma based units had issues based on what functions were written by whom.

I believe you'll find that the next generation of chips will eliminate some of the "quirks" having to do with response to remote presses, heat and file playback problems, and error recovery (to not reboot). I have found the M6620N quite stable, ideal for me as I use the R5000 to record from Dish and both MPEG2 and H.264 file playback has been much more stable than any previous model. Of course, I have no experience with the new Sigma chips that will be in the C200 nor the Dune Base/Prime 3.0 so I cannot make that comparison.
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 85
9/22/09 at 4:31pm
very interesting.... just ran into a bad problem with Harry Potter 3 ts last night on my PCH A-110. I cannot skip to percent or FF and REW without totally hosing the box....

I am certainly willing to pay more for a more stable box...

Questions:

do these new boxes support some form of built in or 3rd party jukebox for scraping movie content like XBMC or YAMJ for the Sigma players?

Do these new players support streaming BD ISO?

Thanks,
Sean
Reply
Reply
post #15 of 85
9/22/09 at 5:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sean_w_smith View Post

very interesting.... just ran into a bad problem with Harry Potter 3 ts last night on my PCH A-110. I cannot skip to percent or FF and REW without totally hosing the box....

I am certainly willing to pay more for a more stable box...

Questions:

do these new boxes support some form of built in or 3rd party jukebox for scraping movie content like XBMC or YAMJ for the Sigma players?

Do these new players support streaming BD ISO?

Thanks,
Sean

Sean,

Not sure if the M6600N will fix that specific file problem, but I noticed that some files that locked on the sigma based units (normally due to some error in the file, confirmed with MPEG2Repair) played just fine on the realtek box, so there are some obvious differences in recovering from errors.

Unfortunately, I don't think the 3rd party software will work and I suspect a verion for the Realtek will have to be developed.

DVICO is currently working on BD Lite, but I don't know if it will ever do BD ISO.

Kei
Reply
Reply
post #16 of 85
9/23/09 at 4:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TPeterson View Post

The latest M6500A fw also has a +/- skip (and it is adjustable) that works about 95% of the time. As you've found, the other Sigma boxes have skip features, but they often don't work correctly at all on TS files.

Thanks! I'm using an HTPC right now since it also skips correctly. Costs a bit more than the $300 for one of these. I'd be happy if one of the cheaper Sigma or Realtek boxes skipped correctly, but I have heard no reports. I know you have been searching and testing for some time (I lurk more than I post...)

David
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 85
9/23/09 at 6:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TPeterson View Post

Hmm...the first difference is that I've no firsthand experience with them. The second difference is that the 6600N exists. Please name some names of these "half dozen" as Google doesn't seem to have heard of any beyond the Xtreamer and the Mvix Ultio, neither of which is currently available in the U.S. and which evidently cost considerably more than "1/3 as much" as the 6600N (including WiFi-N and shipping to U.S.)

There is a comprehensive list of recently launched media players based on the Realtek chipset on my site (www.iboum.com). All the Realteks perform basically the same, and most have very similar interfaces (slightly modified from the base Realtek supplied effort).

The most exciting thing about the 6600 is it's more attractive user interface, but is this worth the premium?

There's a new thread on this forum where a list of tricky media files has been listed for download (Test Files Here). It would be very useful to everyone if you could download a few of these files and see if they play on your 6600. My Xtreamer played 8/14 without fault. Since the 6600 uses the same chipset, I'd expect the same result.
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 85
9/23/09 at 10:04am
Just noticed the mpc club review of M6600N

http://www.mpcclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21255

I thought it was a well written interesting report...
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 85
9/24/09 at 6:16am
Awesome, can't wait for this. Does anyone know how long the digitalconn pre-order price will last? Is the price going to go up after it's wide release? Thanks.
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 85
9/24/09 at 1:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dEEahn20 View Post

Awesome, can't wait for this. Does anyone know how long the digitalconn pre-order price will last? Is the price going to go up after it's wide release? Thanks.

The M6600N just went on a pre-order sale, which is good through the month of September. All pre-orders placed prior will qualify for the sale price.

The M6620N is now on pre-order sale until 10/15/09.
Reply
Reply
post #21 of 85
9/25/09 at 12:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by iboum View Post

There's a new thread on this forum where a list of tricky media files has been listed for download (Test Files Here). It would be very useful to everyone if you could download a few of these files and see if they play on your 6600. My Xtreamer played 8/14 without fault. Since the 6600 uses the same chipset, I'd expect the same result.

I'm curious, was your Xtreamer able to display and attempt to play file the DVR-MS, OGG, and RAR file types? Here's my results on the M6600N.

#1 - Plays fine
#2 - DVR-MS Not Recognized
#3 - Plays in 4:3 window
#4 - Video plays but frames are strange, no audio
#5 - Plays fine
#6 - Picture breaks up but audio is fine
#7 - Plays fine
#8 - Plays fine
#9 - Video plays, audio not supported
#10 - Plays fine
#11 - Plays fine, small font subtitle.
#12 - OGG file displays but not supported
#13 - Plays fine
#14 - Plays fine

The results were on my HDMI TV for video and both HDMI and SPDIF for audio. The files were played back from a ReadyNAS on the wired ethernet using NFS.
Reply
Reply
post #22 of 85
9/25/09 at 12:42pm
RAR is a compressed archive like ZIP. It was used in this case to split up the large videos to get around drop.io's 100mb limit. You need to extract the actual video files for them to work.
Reply
Reply
post #23 of 85
9/25/09 at 1:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by candre23 View Post

RAR is a compressed archive like ZIP. It was used in this case to split up the large videos to get around drop.io's 100mb limit. You need to extract the actual video files for them to work.

D'oh. Shows what I know. Revised the list above.
Reply
Reply
post #24 of 85
9/28/09 at 5:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by candre23 View Post

So again, other than built-in wifi, what exactly differentiates the Tvix from all the significantly cheaper alternatives? Does it do web browsing? Does it have Netflix/Hulu support? Will it play BD ISOs with menu support? Does it do cover art / metadata scraping or have a significantly better UI? Those are all features that might make it worth the $100-$200 price premium.

I would be interested to see if the M6620N would at some time play native netflix...
Reply
Reply
post #25 of 85
9/29/09 at 4:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kei Clark View Post

The M6600N just went on a pre-order sale, which is good through the month of September. All pre-orders placed prior will qualify for the sale price.

The M6620N is now on pre-order sale until 10/15/09.

Thanks for the reply. Is it supposed to go to msrp after that? Looks like the pre-sale dropped a bit more.
Reply
Reply
post #26 of 85
9/29/09 at 5:48am
Can anyone explain what the 6640N is?

http://www.tvix.co.kr/ENG/download/d...=RD&pSerial=52
Reply
Reply
post #27 of 85
9/29/09 at 11:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dEEahn20 View Post

Thanks for the reply. Is it supposed to go to msrp after that? Looks like the pre-sale dropped a bit more.

Yes, it will go back to MAP (not the MSRP) after that time. The price is $299 for the M6600N and $369 for the M6620N.
Reply
Reply
post #28 of 85
9/29/09 at 11:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dEEahn20 View Post

Can anyone explain what the 6640N is?

http://www.tvix.co.kr/ENG/download/d...=RD&pSerial=52

Not sure but if I had to guess, I think its the European (DVB-T) dual tuner model.
Reply
Reply
post #29 of 85
9/29/09 at 8:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kei Clark View Post


M6620N same as the above model but with a dual ATSC/QAM tuner.

How's the QAM tuner perform? I am some what concerned as it seems at least one person is having problem with 3300's QAM tuner. Also, since the 6620N has dual tuner, is the PVR function able to record two different program at same time? The QAM/ASTC /PVR performance is the only reason for me to consider this one over the PCH models.
Reply
Reply
post #30 of 85
9/29/09 at 9:04pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by PawPawDog View Post

How's the QAM tuner perform? I am some what concerned as it seems at least one person is having problem with 3300's QAM tuner.

The QAM tuner performs very well. The reported issues that you mention have to do with firmware and decoding the strange PAT/PMT/PSIP data on some cable systems. It's a problem that will go away eventually.
Quote:
...{I}s the PVR function able to record two different program at same time?

Yes! (And record one while watching the other)
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home

AVS Top Picks

AVS › AVS Forum › Gaming & Content Streaming › Networking, Media Servers & Content Streaming › "Official" (well, firsthand anyway) TViX M6600N discussion