Login at Kodi Home

xbmcisbest · 2014-08-17, 18:35

Hi guys,

I am completely new to XBMC and have been considering whether to use XBMC or Plex. The reason I was originally thinking Plex was due to the fact that I already have a server running 24/7 anyway and hoped this meant that I could get away with a cheap client.

Now I am considering XBMC again due to the number of additional addons you can get. My problem is the best piece of hardware to use for installing at a cheap price. I am looking to spend around £50 but would ideally like wired ethernet, 1080p and if possible HD audio. What would you guys suggest?

Many thanks Smile

TRaSH · 2014-08-17, 22:43

Nuc ;-)

xbmcisbest · 2014-08-17, 23:03

It's more than I was wanting to spend though really. I think the cheapest is about £95 which to me is quite a lot at the moment. Are there any other cheaper alternatives? Maybe something like an Ouya?

Thanks Smile

suku_patel_22 · 2014-08-18, 03:33

(2014-08-17, 23:03)xbmcisbest Wrote: It's more than I was wanting to spend though really. I think the cheapest is about £95 which to me is quite a lot at the moment. Are there any other cheaper alternatives? Maybe something like an Ouya?

Thanks

It's more than that actually. You need to buy ram and storage. Amazon fire TV is an option as well.

Stereodude · 2014-08-18, 04:35

AFAIK, you're pretty much limited to a low end Android box or a Raspberry Pi at those prices.

**black_eagle** · 2014-08-18, 07:26

For £50 - Raspberry Pi

noggin · 2014-08-18, 11:01

Pi is the best bet for £50. Will get you 1080p, wired ethernet, but not bitstreamed HD audio. It will bitstream DTS, Dolby and multichannel PCM though (and I'm pretty certain it will do high bitrate/bit depth PCM) With some over clocking it's a lot snappier than it used to be. I'd try OpenElec first, and if you have problems it's usually the PSU's fault...

xbmcisbest · 2014-08-18, 12:58

Thanks for all of the options guys, I have looked at the Amazon Fire TV but just to confirm I don't think it's quite in this country yet is it?

I realise the Pi would probably be the best bet I just remember trying my friends one and in the menus it would lock up etc. I've read so many mixed reviews on them I don't really want to end up purchasing one and then needing to buy something else to replace it with. What do you guys think to them?

The other options I'm looking at for now are the Ouya and a custom built HTPC with second hand parts. What are peoples thoughts on this?

Cheers Smile

bobones · 2014-08-18, 13:16

You should be able to pick up a Sumvision Cyclone Android X2 for around £50-60 which is basically a Geniatech/MyGiga ATV1200 dual core AMLogic box. It has excellent WiFi, gigabit ethernet, hdmi, optical, component and composite out, 3 x USB and SD card. When you get it, put on the latest CoreTech MX Linux with Gotham 13,1 for true 1080p and DTS/DD passthrough. I don't think it does HD audio however. This is a great little box for the money and it has been out long enough that the current Android and Linux ROMs are mature and stable. I'm thinking of upgrading mine to a NUC but I'm finding it hard to justify given this box is working so well for me. I'm using it for streaming via addons and a from a NAS over SMB using the wireless connection. Again, I was going to upgrade to powerline adapters to use hardwired Ethernet, but the wireless is so good I don't need to. I am not streaming any really high bitrate stuff, but 1080p DD5.1 stuff works just fine.

This is the box http://www.pless.co.uk/product.php?productid=10327

Latest Gotham Linux ROM from first post here http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=180446

mediumdry · 2014-08-18, 14:15

As far as I'm concerned, the low cost options are, from cheap to affordable:
-Raspberry Pi: apart from the price, it doesn't have many plusses, navigating the interface is simply slow, as is starting playback. If that doesn't bother you, go for it
-Android box: personally, I prefer the FireTV to others, as it has an ok remote and doesn't look too bad. Downsides are that it takes a bit more "hacking" to get working right (boot to xbmc, etc). The only thing that keeps me from using it as my main box is that you cannot adjust the audio volume, so you'll need a tv remote just for that.
-Chromebox: some nice options. Has the same drawback as the NUC, you need a remote with it. Most chromeboxes do not have have an IR receiver built in
-NUC: the 2820 works fine for most people, apart from a few (in my opinion very minor niggles). It is my current player. Only issue I have so far is with the remote, but that's because I don't have an RC6 one yet (I dislike most of them)

Anything bigger/more expensive is to fill a specific desire (do you need 3D, high bit audio, whatnot), so if you have specific wishes, start from that. The four options here don't use much electricity and work great for "average" (whatever that means really) use, so pick your pricepoint as low as you can without running into problem areas you actually care about.

Oh yeah, the Raspberry Pi and Chromeboxes run openelec or full linux, FireTV only runs Android, so limits you somewhat. The NUC can do openelec, linux or windows. FYI.

**popcornmix** · 2014-08-18, 15:06

(2014-08-18, 14:15)mediumdry Wrote: -Raspberry Pi: apart from the price, it doesn't have many plusses, navigating the interface is simply slow, as is starting playback. If that doesn't bother you, go for it

The Pi has some unique features not supported by Android boxes:
Proper 23.97/24.0/25/29.97/30 Hz framerate switching. Very importany for smooth video (especially for Europeans)
High quality cubic scaling. Better quality than bilinear scaling on Android
CEC - remote control the Pi with TV's remote (if TV supports CEC)
Multichannel PCM output (up to 8 channels). Working DTS/AC3 passthough (often problematic on Android). Audio is in sync (again common problem on Android).
Can support 1080p VC-1 and MPEG2 (used on Blu-Rays) with a cheap licence, again not widely supported on Android.
It's not really that slow for browsing local/network. See here. Videos typically open in about a second.

xbmcisbest · 2014-08-18, 15:23

Thanks for all of the responses.

What is the Pi like when it comes to playing 1080p movies with HD audio? Or can it not work with HD audio I'm still a bit confused about this as well.

**popcornmix** · 2014-08-18, 16:26

(2014-08-18, 15:23)xbmcisbest Wrote: What is the Pi like when it comes to playing 1080p movies with HD audio? Or can it not work with HD audio I'm still a bit confused about this as well.

DTS_HD contains a 5.1 channel DTS core and that will be decoded or passed through just fine.
TrueHD support is optional on Blu-Ray players so there is always a 5.1 channel AC3 track that can be decoded or passed through just fine.

xbmcisbest · 2014-08-18, 16:29

So the Pi would support both?

Thanks Smile

**popcornmix** · 2014-08-18, 16:47

(2014-08-18, 16:29)xbmcisbest Wrote: So the Pi would support both?

The Pi can passthough 5.1 DTS/AC3 audio if your TV/receiver handles that.
The Pi can decode and output 5.1 audio to multichannel PCM if you TV/receiver handles that.
The Pi can decode and downmix 5.1 audio to stereo PCM if multichannel is not supported by TV/receiver.

With 8 channel DTS-HD, the 5.1 channel core is used and can be passed though or decoded.
TrueHD can't be passed through, but there should be a 5.1 channel AC3 track present with the same content which can be passed through or decoded.