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Apple TV owners' thread. - Page 49

post #1441 of 2060
3/25/12 at 8:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

Goodplayer has some great reviews. I see in the specs, it says this:

- DTS/AC-3 5.1 audio is supported, but mixed to stereo

Can anyone confirm any of these apps that can output DD5.1 when Airplay'ed to Apple TV?

I have not checked out apps for the past few months but when I did, there were no free players / streamers that could output DD5.1 via Airplay. It was all downmixed to Stereo. Hence, that was why I suggested JB + XBMC.

btw, for all those trying to re-wrap / re-encode your current media to m4v's, isn't that just a waste of space to have the same movie in both formats? Ouch for those with a large collection.

I thought I had done it before with Air Video but apparently the ability to airplay surround sound (for DD only) was just recently added and the Air Video guys are working on it. Can't seem to find anything else currently that does it either. Maybe Stream to Me does, but I haven't tried it.
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post #1442 of 2060
3/25/12 at 10:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by xcrunner529 View Post

I thought I had done it before with Air Video but apparently the ability to airplay surround sound (for DD only) was just recently added and the Air Video guys are working on it. Can't seem to find anything else currently that does it either. Maybe Stream to Me does, but I haven't tried it.

That's exactly it. I was in contact with one of the app developers asking about this before I made the purchase and they mentioned (at least 6 months ago), it was a limit put on them by Apple. Non-Apple apps can only use Apple's HTTP Live Streaming protocol, which is limited to stereo sound. Apple's own AirPlay, however, does not use Apple's HTTP Live Streaming protocol. That is why (again as of 6 months ago, not sure about now), the only way that I could find a way to use ATV2 to play MKV and dish out 5.1 / DTS to the receiver was with JB + XBMC. If anyone is looking for a good media streamer and like to tinker with technology, ATV + JB + XBMC is a powerful device. Plus, as a bonus, you get native support for photos, slideshow, streaming music from iTunes.
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post #1443 of 2060
3/26/12 at 12:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

Unless you JB + XBMC. Then you get the best of all worlds. Which is what I was suggesting for the user who was looking to re-encode everything. No need with JB'ing.

Well it's been a while since iOS5 came out and I don't see any jailbreak. Not cool for a main media player.

If one is going to be in the Apple world I don't quite get mkv or xvid.

philip
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post #1444 of 2060
3/26/12 at 5:04am
Hmm...maybe I should jailbreak again.

I wouldn't mind remuxing all of my stuff to mp4, but I would miss not having DTS.
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post #1445 of 2060
3/26/12 at 5:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

That's exactly it. I was in contact with one of the app developers asking about this before I made the purchase and they mentioned (at least 6 months ago), it was a limit put on them by Apple. Non-Apple apps can only use Apple's HTTP Live Streaming protocol, which is limited to stereo sound. Apple's own AirPlay, however, does not use Apple's HTTP Live Streaming protocol. That is why (again as of 6 months ago, not sure about now), the only way that I could find a way to use ATV2 to play MKV and dish out 5.1 / DTS to the receiver was with JB + XBMC. If anyone is looking for a good media streamer and like to tinker with technology, ATV + JB + XBMC is a powerful device. Plus, as a bonus, you get native support for photos, slideshow, streaming music from iTunes.

It seems like from this document AC3 should definitely be supported now. Hopefully the app developers are working on it.

http://developer.apple.com/library/s...011045-CH4-SW1
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post #1446 of 2060
3/26/12 at 10:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by xcrunner529 View Post

It seems like from this document AC3 should definitely be supported now. Hopefully the app developers are working on it.

http://developer.apple.com/library/s...011045-CH4-SW1

We can all hope. And we can also hope that some free players show up that is fully functional, not a crippled version. Annoying.

JB'ing is not easy for everyone and it takes time to release JB software. Right now, iOS5 is not easily JB'en for the ATV. For ATV2 running 4.4 or so, it is possible. Just be sure to enable "no updates" once you JB to keep the system nice and happy. btw, the latest XBMC on ATV runs like a gem. Smooth as butter.
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post #1447 of 2060
3/26/12 at 10:55am
Yes, I'm eagerly awaiting the jailbreak myself for iOS 5 for the ATV so I can put Plex back on. From the developers twitter feeds, it seems like they're close.
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post #1448 of 2060
3/26/12 at 1:35pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

We can all hope. And we can also hope that some free players show up that is fully functional, not a crippled version. Annoying.

I wish all the sub-standard free players would be replaced with working pay versions.
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post #1449 of 2060
3/26/12 at 7:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bodosom View Post

I wish all the sub-standard free players would be replaced with working pay versions.

Then we would be missing the best free player of all, XBMC.
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post #1450 of 2060
3/26/12 at 8:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

Then we would be missing the best free player of all, XBMC.

Touche!

and BTW: Eden was released on Sunday! A long way from the XBMP roots and hardware mod chipped xboxes. Some of those xboxes are still in service.
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post #1451 of 2060
3/26/12 at 10:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sean_w_smith View Post

Touche!

and BTW: Eden was released on Sunday! A long way from the XBMP roots and hardware mod chipped xboxes. Some of those xboxes are still in service.

I am still on Eden Beta3 and am hesitant to upgrade. It's just so smooth now, lol. We will just have to wait for iOS5 to be rolled out.
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post #1452 of 2060
3/27/12 at 1:38pm
Does anyone know if MLB At Bat '12 works with Airplay? Or is it like HBO Go and is disabled?
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post #1453 of 2060
3/27/12 at 1:48pm
the '11 version did... i don't think they would eliminate that feature, but you never know...
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post #1454 of 2060
3/27/12 at 2:18pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by bowmah View Post

Then we would be missing the best free player of all, XBMC.

If XBMC is sub-standard and or barely working then my comment applies. However in the context of free versions being limited versions of pay versions I don't see the connection.
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post #1455 of 2060
3/27/12 at 6:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mjconnor10 View Post

Does anyone know if MLB At Bat '12 works with Airplay? Or is it like HBO Go and is disabled?

Just curious - what would be the reason to use Airplay for the MLB At Bat app when MLB is built into ATV? To be able to use the extra ipad app features that don't exist in the ATV app?
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post #1456 of 2060
3/27/12 at 7:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by met_fan View Post

Just curious - what would be the reason to use Airplay for the MLB At Bat app when MLB is built into ATV? To be able to use the extra ipad app features that don't exist in the ATV app?

Because At Bat is $15/year, and gives you just a game a day (pretty much all I'm interested in), and MLB.tv is $130/year for every game every day.
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post #1457 of 2060
3/27/12 at 7:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mjconnor10 View Post


Because At Bat is $15/year, and gives you just a game a day (pretty much all I'm interested in), and MLB.tv is $130/year for every game every day.

Ok...I just assumed you were buying the whole package
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post #1458 of 2060
3/27/12 at 9:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bodosom View Post

If XBMC is sub-standard and or barely working then my comment applies. However in the context of free versions being limited versions of pay versions I don't see the connection.

I think you missed the point. XBMC, by far, is one of the better players available. I have tested many and still go back to XBMC on the ATV and PC. Simple, smooth and just works - as long as you know how to set it up. Plus, it's completely free since it was released way back.
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post #1459 of 2060
3/28/12 at 8:02am
I am not much into media streamers; I am old school. But, I just purchased the new Apple TV 3 and I kind of like it. From my PC in the garage, I can stream my music and movies. I had to convert a test movie into apple compatible format using Handbrake, but it worked. I added the 5.1 track when converting the movie and it played through my Apple TV3 into my receiver and over my 5.2 home theater. It actually showed up as Dolby Digital on the front of my receiver. I looked at the audio info on my receiver and it showed DD5.1 in and DD5.1 out, both at 48khz. The sound and video quality of the conversion was outstanding. I could not tell that I was streaming my movie over my network. Playback was silky smooth with no judder and artifacts. I guess that 8 gig buffer in the new Apple TV was added for a reason. After adding my movie into Itunes, I could add, edit, and enter all the info I need for my movie. On the Apple TV, I could search by genre, year, cast, actor, and all sorts of different fields. The Apple TV UI is really cool and shows way more info than my Sony 400 disk Blu-ray mega changer. I like the fact that I can stream my Apple Lossless music over my network into my home theater. Also, I really like the Internet radio part of the Apple TV. I can listen to dozens upon dozens of internet radio streams all over the world. I was listening to an 80's station from the UK yesterday and the sound was really good. One other thing I like is that I can mirror the screen on my iphone and wife's ipad on my 65ich plasma. It does not go full screen, but it works good. If family comes by, I can show them my pictures that I have taken on my iphone over the Airplay. Very cool.

I just hope that Apple will add HULU+ some day. I also wish Apple will give me the option of connecting my Apple TV to a NAS over the network. My Panasonic 3D Blu-ray player even connects to a Network drive, DLNA server, and media renderer. I really do not wish to leave my computer running 24/7. It uses a lot of power. A small Raided NAS only uses a few watts from the wall and I could set it up for mirroring so if one drive fails, I don't loose my data. That would be ideal. Maybe one day Apple will get their proverbial head out of their a$$ and change it.
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post #1460 of 2060
3/28/12 at 8:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeBlow74 View Post

I am not much into media streamers; I am old school. But, I just purchased the new Apple TV 3 and I kind of like it. From my PC in the garage, I can stream my music and movies. I had to convert a test movie into apple compatible format using Handbrake, but it worked. I added the 5.1 track when converting the movie and it played through my Apple TV3 into my receiver and over my 5.2 home theater. It actually showed up as Dolby Digital on the front of my receiver. I looked at the audio info on my receiver and it showed DD5.1 in and DD5.1 out, both at 48khz. The sound and video quality of the conversion was outstanding. I could not tell that I was streaming my movie over my network. Playback was silky smooth with no judder and artifacts. I guess that 8 gig buffer in the new Apple TV was added for a reason. After adding my movie into Itunes, I could add, edit, and enter all the info I need for my movie. On the Apple TV, I could search by genre, year, cast, actor, and all sorts of different fields. The Apple TV UI is really cool and shows way more info than my Sony 400 disk Blu-ray mega changer. I like the fact that I can stream my Apple Lossless music over my network into my home theater. Also, I really like the Internet radio part of the Apple TV. I can listen to dozens upon dozens of internet radio streams all over the world. I was listening to an 80's station from the UK yesterday and the sound was really good. One other thing I like is that I can mirror the screen on my iphone and wife's ipad on my 65ich plasma. It does not go full screen, but it works good. If family comes by, I can show them my pictures that I have taken on my iphone over the Airplay. Very cool.

I just hope that Apple will add HULU+ some day. I also wish Apple will give me the option of connecting my Apple TV to a NAS over the network. My Panasonic 3D Blu-ray player even connects to a Network drive, DLNA server, and media renderer. I really do not wish to leave my computer running 24/7. It uses a lot of power. A small Raided NAS only uses a few watts from the wall and I could set it up for mirroring so if one drive fails, I don't loose my data. That would be ideal. Maybe one day Apple will get their proverbial head out of their a$$ and change it.

What preset did you use in Handbrake?

Thanks.

Mark
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post #1461 of 2060
3/28/12 at 9:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by giomania View Post

What preset did you use in Handbrake?

Thanks.

Mark

There's a whole thread in the handbrake forums discussing the pros and cons of various presets for the new ATV3, I recommend you check it out. Easiest option is to choose the ATV2 preset and just bump the resolution from 720p to 1080p, but there are a few alternative options that also work well, delivering different quality and file sizes, at the cost of rendering time (and/or disc space).
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post #1462 of 2060
3/28/12 at 9:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by giomania View Post

What preset did you use in Handbrake?

Thanks.

Mark


I opened that single file in Handbrake and used the Apple 2 settings. Under the audio tab in Handbrake, I highlighted Dolby Digital 5.1/AC3 pass through instead of Dolby prologic. If you do not highlight the 5.1 DD/Dolby AC3 pass through, you will not get the 5.1 DD encoded into your movie. The reason I am doing this is because as I purchase more movies, I need to figure out how I am going to make my life better now that Sony has disccontinued making the 400 disk Blu-ray mega changer. I have 25 slots left in my player and I am worried how I am going to store my movies after I fill this unit up. If I can get the whole network streaming thing working good with my private movie collection, I can save a lot of space and maybe get rid of a few components in my entertainment center. Then I can put all my movie cases in a box and store in my garage. I like the Apple TV because it has an absolutely awsome UI. Much better than most other network streamers on the market. The only downfall is that I have to make all my private content Apple compatible to make everything work.
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post #1463 of 2060
3/28/12 at 10:09am
I am in the same situation, Joe. I have the BDP-CX960 and I'm considering upgrading to the ATV3 for the 1080P resolution and to decrease the amount of components in my system. I was waiting for an updated Handbrake preset to use, but I'll try the method your using to see if I like the results.

What software are you using to add metadata to your movie files. I'm on Windows 7 and am looking for good, easy to use software for my movies and tv shows.
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post #1464 of 2060
3/28/12 at 10:41am
Right now, Nothing. I am just testing the network streaming and see if I can get DD5.1 to play through my receiver. So far, as long as I comply with the Apple ecosystem, consolidating my private movie and music collection onto my computer should work good. Now mind you that I only converted the movie file, not the whole disk. If I were to convert the whole movie and all the menues and extra crap they put on the disk, in theory, all you would have to do is right click on the movie in Itunes and select get data. It should then retrieve the all the meta data. But I have not confirmed this.
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post #1465 of 2060
3/28/12 at 11:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeBlow74 View Post

Right now, Nothing. I am just testing the network streaming and see if I can get DD5.1 to play through my receiver. So far, as long as I comply with the Apple ecosystem, consolidating my private movie and music collection onto my computer should work good. Now mind you that I only converted the movie file, not the whole disk. If I were to convert the whole movie and all the menues and extra crap they put on the disk, in theory, all you would have to do is right click on the movie in Itunes and select get data. It should then retrieve the all the meta data. But I have not confirmed this.

@JoeBlow74: you should look into something called 'subler' to do what you need. It will mux other formats into an Apple-compatible container, which is just MP4, without needing to reencode. Also, subler works great to update / add meta data, as well as to add Apple specific stuff like to designate as an HD movie and to add the Apple iTunes store ID field. Google 'subler' and Apple TV for more details.

Of course, subler only runs on Mac OS X (sorry), but it works really well.
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post #1466 of 2060
3/28/12 at 11:53am
Just picked up a new ATV3 to replace my ATV2. Streaming 720p m4v from my PC via iTunes, the sound quality seems to be significantly improved, and I was looking forward to trying 1080p.

However I always lose the connection to iTunes within a few minutes. It drops back to the base GUI and in the computers view it says the usual nonsense about turning on home sharing, but my computer is not seen. If I restart iTunes I can connect once again for a few minutes. I never had this issue with my ATV2. I tried hard-wiring and that made no difference.

Googling around I saw a lot of posts with this issue, on ATV2 as well, but not a lot of solid answers. Like I said it worked fine with the ATV2 so IMO this issue is with the ATV3.

I'm running Win7 x64, 16GB RAM, i2700k cpu, the latest iTunes, and a Linksys e4200 router.

Any clues as to where to look for issues? I find this extremely annoying as streaming is my main use. I have no problems with Netflix.
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post #1467 of 2060
3/28/12 at 12:12pm
My ATV2 started doing this as well, losing connection to my computer. My guess is the latest update has a bug in it. Annoying.
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post #1468 of 2060
3/28/12 at 12:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SCOMCAT View Post

Just picked up a new ATV3 to replace my ATV2. Streaming 720p m4v from my PC via iTunes, the sound quality seems to be significantly improved, and I was looking forward to trying 1080p.

Sound quality is improved? Can you expand on that? Are you referring to the movie soundtrack audio quality, running over HDMI to an AVR, for example?

I am just curious, because I use my ATV 2 for playback of Apple Lossless music via iTunes and I am wondering if a hardware or software change was made to improve the digital transport in some manner.

Thanks, in advance.
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post #1469 of 2060
3/28/12 at 12:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Krutsch View Post

Sound quality is improved? Can you expand on that? Are you referring to the movie soundtrack audio quality, running over HDMI to an AVR, for example?

I am just curious, because I use my ATV 2 for playback of Apple Lossless music via iTunes and I am wondering if a hardware or software change was made to improve the digital transport in some manner.

Thanks, in advance.

Not that I can see. ALAC is always coming out a 48Khz just like before. Still no other sampling rates are supported from ATV.
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post #1470 of 2060
3/28/12 at 12:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SCOMCAT View Post

However I always lose the connection to iTunes within a few minutes. It drops back to the base GUI and in the computers view it says the usual nonsense about turning on home sharing, but my computer is not seen. If I restart iTunes I can connect once again for a few minutes. I never had this issue with my ATV2. I tried hard-wiring and that made no difference.

This one is tough. I had lots and lots of similar problems with hardwired XBOX 360. In the end I concluded that what influenced most the stability of the streaming was the combination of the network chipset and the drivers on the Windows server. I established that some Windows updates installed "newer" drivers, that introduced problems. In the end I added another LAN PCI card just to bypass the motherboard ethernet. Things impoved tremendously since then, no disconnects for the XBOX 360. I also purchased ATV3, it is hardwired, and haven't had a single disconnect yet.
Forgot to mention that a switch was also a culprit for losing connection with the XBOX. I had to plug it directly in the router.
Wireless introduces even more uncertainty, so I suggest you start your troubleshooting by using ethernet.
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