It's difficult enough to get a wireless network configured well enough for HD broadcasts. I seriously doubt that you will be able to get a clean enough signal for BD bitrates.
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Can it be done? WiFi Blu-Ray movie server.
I would like to build a nas or server that can stream blu-ray files for viewing over my 802.11g network. I have tried streaming from my 3.0ghz dual core htpc (hard wired to the router) to my turion 64 x2 1.61ghz laptop (connected via wifi) by just sharing the file on the htpc and loading it in powerdvd on the laptop and it was a bit choppy. SD DVDs were fine however. I was just wondering which, my network, laptop, or my method was the weakest link. Can it even be done?
I was also wondering if i could auto launch a bd movie file directly from vista mce to play on powerdvd.
Thanks,
Jason
I was also wondering if i could auto launch a bd movie file directly from vista mce to play on powerdvd.
Thanks,
Jason
1 - 20 of 38 Posts
Nope NOT gonna happen. B/G is absolutely way too slow for HD streaming, hell its almost way too slow for DVD streaming.
Your weakest link is the G wireless. What CAN be done is if you want to stick with wireless is move up to 802.11N draft 2.0 equipment. which is the ONLY way you will be able to stream HD over a wireless network.
Check out MyMovies Plugin, you can set mymovies to auto launch third party dvd apps outside of MCE.
- Josh
Quote:
Originally Posted by pichon /forum/post/12914877
I would like to build a nas or server that can stream blu-ray files for viewing over my 802.11g network
Nope NOT gonna happen. B/G is absolutely way too slow for HD streaming, hell its almost way too slow for DVD streaming.
Your weakest link is the G wireless. What CAN be done is if you want to stick with wireless is move up to 802.11N draft 2.0 equipment. which is the ONLY way you will be able to stream HD over a wireless network.
Quote:
I was also wondering if i could auto launch a bd movie file directly from vista mce to play on powerdvd.
Check out MyMovies Plugin, you can set mymovies to auto launch third party dvd apps outside of MCE.
- Josh
Thanks,
It will work hard wired though, right?
It will work hard wired though, right?
I've had a different experience with wireless HD. Last summer, we brought our projector out by the pool for some outdoor movie action. I plugged in a USB Linksys 802.11g adapter into my HTPC and a watched few HD movies. This was content that was ripped from my HD-DVD collection or taken from my old transport stream recordings. I did not re-encode the HD-DVD video streams so we are talking about video streams with 15Mbit/s or more streaming down.
Your experience may vary as others have not been successful. You can help narrow down the cause by first plugging in via ethernet and disabling wireless. Then, try watching the movies again. I suspect your dual core 1.61ghz CPU is the weakest link here and you might find that you get the same choppiness while connected via Ethernet.
Your experience may vary as others have not been successful. You can help narrow down the cause by first plugging in via ethernet and disabling wireless. Then, try watching the movies again. I suspect your dual core 1.61ghz CPU is the weakest link here and you might find that you get the same choppiness while connected via Ethernet.
This is kind of my original suspicion. I will try it out today an post an update.
Theoretically it is possible. The bandwidth on 802.11g is 54Mbits, BUT I never seem to get more than 5-7Mbits from any of the connections that I have when testing on the internet. I think the 54Mbits is a peak or spike but not the average maximum for non stop use. My wired PCs always get 18-20 while the Wifi get 5-6. This would be fine for SD, but HD is not really going to run on that. From what I remember the actual bandwidth used by most movies is around 20Mbits (It can go much higher, but this the average).
Now wireless N? I don't know. I really depends on what your ACTUAL bandwidth is.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pichon /forum/post/12914877
I would like to build a nas or server that can stream blu-ray files for viewing over my 802.11g network. I have tried streaming from my 3.0ghz dual core htpc (hard wired to the router) to my turion 64 x2 1.61ghz laptop (connected via wifi) by just sharing the file on the htpc and loading it in powerdvd on the laptop and it was a bit choppy. SD DVDs were fine however. I was just wondering which, my network, laptop, or my method was the weakest link. Can it even be done?
I was also wondering if i could auto launch a bd movie file directly from vista mce to play on powerdvd.
Thanks,
Jason
Theoretically it is possible. The bandwidth on 802.11g is 54Mbits, BUT I never seem to get more than 5-7Mbits from any of the connections that I have when testing on the internet. I think the 54Mbits is a peak or spike but not the average maximum for non stop use. My wired PCs always get 18-20 while the Wifi get 5-6. This would be fine for SD, but HD is not really going to run on that. From what I remember the actual bandwidth used by most movies is around 20Mbits (It can go much higher, but this the average).
Now wireless N? I don't know. I really depends on what your ACTUAL bandwidth is.
It sounds like you are mixing up bits and bytes.
Mbps= MegaBITS per second
MB/s= MegaBYTES per second
802.11g = 54Mbps = 6.75 MB/s
So, it sounds like your measurements of your Wi-Fi getting "5-6" are actually 5 to 6 megaBYTES per second. This is certainly enough bandwidth for HD. Your measurements of "18-20" for your wired connection sounds like 18-20 megaBYTES per second (I take it you have a gigabit connection for that measurement). HD content can range anywhere from 15Mbps up to 30Mbps (around 2 to 4 megabytes per second).
The real problem with wireless is the ability to keep the data rate constant. Interference from other devices, bad chipsets, and other Wi-Fi clients can screw with your stream.
For reference, my equipment used in the successful Wi-Fi streaming of HD:
- Linksys WRT54GL with DD-WRT firmware
(I use DD-WRT firmware for its tweakability - including wireless settings.)
- Linksys WUSB54G
If you try this test again with wireless, try some tests with all of your other Wi-Fi clients turned off. Or, measure your bandwidth (try a file copy with robocopy or something like that. Robo copy should give you an average transfer rate after it completes).
Quote:
Originally Posted by bjmarchini /forum/post/12929304
Theoretically it is possible. The bandwidth on 802.11g is 54Mbits, BUT I never seem to get more than 5-7Mbits from any of the connections that I have when testing on the internet. I think the 54Mbits is a peak or spike but not the average maximum for non stop use. My wired PCs always get 18-20 while the Wifi get 5-6. This would be fine for SD, but HD is not really going to run on that. From what I remember the actual bandwidth used by most movies is around 20Mbits (It can go much higher, but this the average).
Now wireless N? I don't know. I really depends on what your ACTUAL bandwidth is.
It sounds like you are mixing up bits and bytes.
Mbps= MegaBITS per second
MB/s= MegaBYTES per second
802.11g = 54Mbps = 6.75 MB/s
So, it sounds like your measurements of your Wi-Fi getting "5-6" are actually 5 to 6 megaBYTES per second. This is certainly enough bandwidth for HD. Your measurements of "18-20" for your wired connection sounds like 18-20 megaBYTES per second (I take it you have a gigabit connection for that measurement). HD content can range anywhere from 15Mbps up to 30Mbps (around 2 to 4 megabytes per second).
The real problem with wireless is the ability to keep the data rate constant. Interference from other devices, bad chipsets, and other Wi-Fi clients can screw with your stream.
For reference, my equipment used in the successful Wi-Fi streaming of HD:
- Linksys WRT54GL with DD-WRT firmware
(I use DD-WRT firmware for its tweakability - including wireless settings.)
- Linksys WUSB54G
If you try this test again with wireless, try some tests with all of your other Wi-Fi clients turned off. Or, measure your bandwidth (try a file copy with robocopy or something like that. Robo copy should give you an average transfer rate after it completes).
Blu-ray allows (and has) peak bitrates close to 40Mbps.
Wireless G, on paper 54Mbps, sustainably can handle hardly half.
It can be enough for MPEG-2 files (TS or PS) that are not available to consumers
at rates above 20Mbps but won't be able to handle Blu-ray's bandwidth twice as high.
Diogen.
Wireless G, on paper 54Mbps, sustainably can handle hardly half.
It can be enough for MPEG-2 files (TS or PS) that are not available to consumers
at rates above 20Mbps but won't be able to handle Blu-ray's bandwidth twice as high.
Diogen.
I've got two N routers here in my office I am testing. First one is the EnGenius 100mW ESR-9710 the other is the TRENDnet TEW-633GR draft 2.0 router.
Both are N, MIMO routers, and both so far have been giving me anywhere from 100 - 120mbps constant speeds. I've been able to stream 3 HD movies from my server one to one wireless pc, and one to each of my laptops and so far N has faired extremely well.
Also your Internet bandwidth has absolutely NOTHING to do with the speeds as which wireless/wired networks run, so if the speed tests your talking about are tests you have done to sites like Speedtest.net or speakeasy then the tests you have done are NOT even valid speed tests because that is just showing you your internet speeds and NOT your home network speeds.
- Josh
Quote:
Originally Posted by bjmarchini /forum/post/12929304
Now wireless N? I don't know. I really depends on what your ACTUAL bandwidth is.
I've got two N routers here in my office I am testing. First one is the EnGenius 100mW ESR-9710 the other is the TRENDnet TEW-633GR draft 2.0 router.
Both are N, MIMO routers, and both so far have been giving me anywhere from 100 - 120mbps constant speeds. I've been able to stream 3 HD movies from my server one to one wireless pc, and one to each of my laptops and so far N has faired extremely well.
Also your Internet bandwidth has absolutely NOTHING to do with the speeds as which wireless/wired networks run, so if the speed tests your talking about are tests you have done to sites like Speedtest.net or speakeasy then the tests you have done are NOT even valid speed tests because that is just showing you your internet speeds and NOT your home network speeds.
- Josh
The problem with wireless isn't the raw bandwidth, as noted, G has sufficient bandwidth to handle even Blu-ray peaks. The problem with wireless is the reliability of that connection, wireless connections just aren't very reliable/stable. When you're surfing the internet, or transferring files around the network, a glitch or dropout in the connection will go unnoticed, but when you're streaming 10, 20, 30Mbps video a small glitch in the connection is enough to interrupt the video.
i have been streaming hd content from my living room to my bedroom wirelessly for two years. i use wireless n but it has never given me problems. i even use my xbox 360 as an extender @ times to stream hd channals from time warner cable and it has no hiccups either. yes it van be done.
wow, great feedback, thanks.
It looks like it may be time for a new laptop (hate my HP) as well as a new network infrastructure (g to n) along with my server...
It looks like it may be time for a new laptop (hate my HP) as well as a new network infrastructure (g to n) along with my server...
FWIW, it's not that it can't be done, it's that there's so many variables there's a decent chance that you may fail going wireless. IMO wireless is a last resort, if you can run wires, run them, you'll be happier in the long run because it basically eliminates the network as a source of problems.
I'm in 100% agreement. My HTPC career began trying to use wireless (g). After a year of intermittent results - just trying to stream 320Kbps MP3's, mind you - I gave up. It would work most of the time, but with the amount of music I listen to, most of the time wasn't even close to good enough. I pulled a Cat 5e through my attic and I haven't spent another second worrying about it for 3 years. Now I spend that time trying to figure out my digital recording studio setup! 8) A much more worthy way to spend my time, IMHO.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stanger89 /forum/post/12946659
FWIW, it's not that it can't be done, it's that there's so many variables there's a decent chance that you may fail going wireless. IMO wireless is a last resort, if you can run wires, run them, you'll be happier in the long run because it basically eliminates the network as a source of problems.
I'm in 100% agreement. My HTPC career began trying to use wireless (g). After a year of intermittent results - just trying to stream 320Kbps MP3's, mind you - I gave up. It would work most of the time, but with the amount of music I listen to, most of the time wasn't even close to good enough. I pulled a Cat 5e through my attic and I haven't spent another second worrying about it for 3 years. Now I spend that time trying to figure out my digital recording studio setup! 8) A much more worthy way to spend my time, IMHO.
So Wireless G is sufficient for SD DVD streams? Is processor speed important? Minimums?
Is gaming decent on Wireless N?
(sorry for the hijack)
Is gaming decent on Wireless N?
(sorry for the hijack)
That would be ideal but I live in married student housing at a university. My walls and ceiling are cinder-block and concrete. I have one cat3 that carries my dsl in my kitchen and thats it. Wireless is the only way. (My wife wouldn't be too excited with cat5 or cat6 strung all over the place. She already complains about the speaker wire everywhere.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by qwertynerd /forum/post/12961732
I pulled a Cat 5e through my attic and I haven't spent another second worrying about it for 3 years.
That would be ideal but I live in married student housing at a university. My walls and ceiling are cinder-block and concrete. I have one cat3 that carries my dsl in my kitchen and thats it. Wireless is the only way. (My wife wouldn't be too excited with cat5 or cat6 strung all over the place. She already complains about the speaker wire everywhere.)
802.11N is really your only hope then.
I know this is an old thread but I wanted to solicit some help from the experts on here.
I setup a HTPC for wirelessly streaming content from a server PC in my office. I am using a D-Link DIR-825 (dual wireless-n) with a wired gigabit connection to the HTPC. In the office I have a D-Link DAP-2553 configured as a wireless client, connected with a wired gigabit connection to the server PC and then a wireless connection to the router. Both PCs are running Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
For about the last 6 months I had no problem streaming Blu-Ray movies (mounting ISO files from the server, using VCD and MyMovies as my front-end), but all of a sudden in the last couple weeks I am getting loads of stuttering. My wireless connection rates are in the 270-300 Mb/s range and signal quality ranges from 75-85%. If I transfer files using copy/paste in Windows explorer I get sustained transfer rates ranging from 7.5-10MB/s.
I feel like I have plenty of bandwidth here to stream this content, so I can't for the life of me figure out why I'm getting unwatchable movies due to the constant stuttering.
Any suggestions on what could be going on?
Thanks.
I setup a HTPC for wirelessly streaming content from a server PC in my office. I am using a D-Link DIR-825 (dual wireless-n) with a wired gigabit connection to the HTPC. In the office I have a D-Link DAP-2553 configured as a wireless client, connected with a wired gigabit connection to the server PC and then a wireless connection to the router. Both PCs are running Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
For about the last 6 months I had no problem streaming Blu-Ray movies (mounting ISO files from the server, using VCD and MyMovies as my front-end), but all of a sudden in the last couple weeks I am getting loads of stuttering. My wireless connection rates are in the 270-300 Mb/s range and signal quality ranges from 75-85%. If I transfer files using copy/paste in Windows explorer I get sustained transfer rates ranging from 7.5-10MB/s.
I feel like I have plenty of bandwidth here to stream this content, so I can't for the life of me figure out why I'm getting unwatchable movies due to the constant stuttering.
Any suggestions on what could be going on?
Thanks.
1 - 20 of 38 Posts
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