2008-04-22, 16:24
Hey folks,
I have two xboxes that I'm thinking of soft-modding to turn into media center devices. I was planning on building my own media center PC's for this task, but happened to come across xbmc while doing some research.
The primary use for each will be DVD ISO playback from a network share of a decent sized DVD libary (nearly 1000 titles) hosted on a central media server. The xboxes would be connected via the HD AV pack (component video and digital optical audio) to a 19" 720p HDTV in one case, and a 46" 1080p HDTV in another.
My questions:
- Can xbmc handle viewing 8gb+ ISO files over the LAN?
- Can I run xbmc and it's DVD playback at native 720p, 1080i, or 1080p?
- Will the Dolby Digital and DTS audio make it out to my HD AV pack optical out?
- How good is the software scaling compared to say TheaterMaster, PowerDVD or WinDVD?
- Is there any feature of XBMC that will allow a "playlist" of these videos to be created, or can it scan the share and create it's own library w/ DVD case images downloaded from the net, or similar navigation enhancements?
- Any pointers before I begin? I was planning on following this tut:
http://www.productwiki.com/microsoft-xbo...nutes.html
As you can see, my major concerns are video/audio quality, and navigation. With such a large library, navigation is a real concern, as these units are going to go in the kids play room and guest bedroom where non-techies will (hopefully) be able to use them.
Thanks in advance for any help.
- Rhino
I have two xboxes that I'm thinking of soft-modding to turn into media center devices. I was planning on building my own media center PC's for this task, but happened to come across xbmc while doing some research.
The primary use for each will be DVD ISO playback from a network share of a decent sized DVD libary (nearly 1000 titles) hosted on a central media server. The xboxes would be connected via the HD AV pack (component video and digital optical audio) to a 19" 720p HDTV in one case, and a 46" 1080p HDTV in another.
My questions:
- Can xbmc handle viewing 8gb+ ISO files over the LAN?
- Can I run xbmc and it's DVD playback at native 720p, 1080i, or 1080p?
- Will the Dolby Digital and DTS audio make it out to my HD AV pack optical out?
- How good is the software scaling compared to say TheaterMaster, PowerDVD or WinDVD?
- Is there any feature of XBMC that will allow a "playlist" of these videos to be created, or can it scan the share and create it's own library w/ DVD case images downloaded from the net, or similar navigation enhancements?
- Any pointers before I begin? I was planning on following this tut:
http://www.productwiki.com/microsoft-xbo...nutes.html
As you can see, my major concerns are video/audio quality, and navigation. With such a large library, navigation is a real concern, as these units are going to go in the kids play room and guest bedroom where non-techies will (hopefully) be able to use them.
Thanks in advance for any help.
- Rhino
