The end of the road for me

[asm495]

Hi All,

I've been posting on here or predecessor sites on and off since I first built my first Media Center PC back in 2004. My first HTPC if I remember correctly was an Athlon XP2500+ with 512MB RAM, 200GB HDD and 2 analogue TV tuners running XP Media Center. Since then I have been through numerous hardware upgrades and through XP, Vista, Vista with TV Pack and finally Windows 7 for Media Center. I also ran up to 3 Extenders and was using two dual DVB-S2 PCI-E tuners most recently.

About 18 months ago I finally got fed up of the noisy and bulky Xbox 360s as Extenders and replaced them all with mini computers running XBMC/Kodi (2x Raspberry Pi 2s and 2x DN2820FYKH NUCs) and using the excellent ServerWMC to connect to my main Media Center PC running dedicated as a server. Based in the UK with no encryption this was an excellent solution and continued to operate well.

However, I became slightly tired of having such a large PC (needing 2 PCI-E slots for tuners) for my server and began to investigate alternative options. It was during this that I discovered the SAT>IP standard that is intended to stream satellite TV over ethernet. I then purchased the EyeTV Netstream 4c (£130 on Amazon) which is an implementation of SAT>IP which you can then plug in to up to 4 DVB-S2 feeds and then into your router: https://www.elgato.com/en/eyetv-netstream-4c

I was then able to setup a new mini PC (http://www.gigabyte.com/products/produc ... id=5328#ov) as a server within Windows 10 that I installed DVBLink on from DVBLogic along with their TV Adviser service. This is a paid for service but it is actively supported, unliked Media Center. This connects to my EyeTV and handles all the TV guide, recording aspects and will distribute it to clients throughout the home. I changed my Kodi boxes to connect to this instead of my Windows Media Center for the first time and they picked up everything. The only thing I am currently missing but hope to rectify is TV channel logos.

So for the first time in 11 years I am now running my distributed TV system without Media Center. It has been a good journey and all as such all good things must come to an end. As we all know there is no future in Media Center unfortunately and Microsoft really missed a trick in not promoting it harder earlier or releasing dedicated small hardware sooner. I noticed that Sky TV have just announced their "Q" system that has the proper multiroom benefits that Media Center had with Extenders 10 years ago. Or maybe it was just because like Microsoft's original concept of the Tablet PC that it was just too soon for most people.

In any case I am now happily running my new setup using SAP>IP, DVB Link and Kodi and it all just works. Obviously a bit of technical knowhow is required to get it setup but it was not difficult at all.

Thank you to anyone who gave me help or advice over the years and I hope everyone at some point is able to find their replacement system as I have now done when the time is right!

[holidayboy]

It's always sad to see people move on - especially people who have a big impact over the years (hacking the old beta tv pack codec etc )

I myself moved over to MediaPortal a while back but still see Media Center as a product that could have been so much more....

You will be missed

[STC]

Moving on to newer tech (that works) is part of the whole journey. Glad you found your way forwards.

[billroden]

Thanks for your post as it gives me hope in the future with my tv setup due to a discontinued WMC product. I do have a few questions.

1. Does DVBlink provide simultaneous broadcast of live TV to all their clients/TV's? What I mean by that is under WMC and their extenders, there was always a slight lag between the picture from the HTPC machine and the extender when watching a live event. What I would like to do is have multiple TV's playing a live sporting event and the TV's showing the same picture as if I were in a sports bar.

2. What I've read on the DVBlink web site was that you can set up timed recordings. Sounded like the old days of VHS recording. Does DVBlink allow you to click the guide to start a recording. Does it allow for series recording through the guide? I cant imagine it not working like a DVR.

3. Would you happen to know of any device like EyeTv that works through Comcast or any cable provider rather than satellite?
Thanks

Bill

[adam1991]

Moving on to newer tech (that works) is part of the whole journey. Glad you found your way forwards.

I said that almost 5 years ago with respect to ReplayTV. Still the finest DVR ever built, but alas, the world moves forward.

[asm495]

Thanks for your post as it gives me hope in the future with my tv setup due to a discontinued WMC product. I do have a few questions.

1. Does DVBlink provide simultaneous broadcast of live TV to all their clients/TV's? What I mean by that is under WMC and their extenders, there was always a slight lag between the picture from the HTPC machine and the extender when watching a live event. What I would like to do is have multiple TV's playing a live sporting event and the TV's showing the same picture as if I were in a sports bar.

2. What I've read on the DVBlink web site was that you can set up timed recordings. Sounded like the old days of VHS recording. Does DVBlink allow you to click the guide to start a recording. Does it allow for series recording through the guide? I cant imagine it not working like a DVR.

3. Would you happen to know of any device like EyeTv that works through Comcast or any cable provider rather than satellite?
Thanks

Bill

To answer your questions:

1. I've not tried as that is not a use-case that I need. The previous times I did it with ServerWMC and Kodi you could hear a slight different in the sound. I would've thought the best way to achieve this would be a HDMI splitter and then sending the signal over ethernet cable.

2. Yes, full guide including scheduled recordings. The guide is much improved from what I had previously using the Media Center information.

3. No clue - not something that I've looked for. Sorry.

For anyone in the UK who uses free-to-air TV I'm unfortunately not sure why anyone would stay on Media Center now.

[wally007]

I stay with MCE/DVBLink due to rock solid recordings, effortless timeshifting (and i use sky uk - dreambox)
Kodi as a player and GUI is awesome (i made number of skins for Kodi fork - Plex HT) but its nightmare to maintain.
If anything EMBY is the way forward, Kodi devs with their single library approach missed the millennium.

[ZippyTheChicken]

i use Kodi as a player and GUI is awesome but its nightmare to maintain.

Yeah Kodi.tv development team is a really closed minded set of people not to mention some of them are pretty rude.

Its a great app maybe but its interface needs a lot of redoing...

Addons should be maintained from one area not all over the place.

just the front screen where they decided to have only a few addons displayed under each category is a drag .. they waste most of the desktop with empty space then you have 4 addons for your TV Stuff or have to go into the backend to get to the rest.. they should be paged on the full screen so you can go through a few dozen to find a channel..

Everyone who develops an addon is basically out on their own..
There is no set rules on how to display your plugin and required literature on how to use it.. and some plugins really need a few pages of info to get working while others just work pretty much.

There is no backup of plugin developers so if a plugin goes dormant because someone loses interest or their job or gets sick then that plugin doesn't have backup people who can jump in and takeover for a short period or completely...

As a group they are just out there doing their thing.. there is nothing eventual out of it.. they are just playing with it as a pastime and not as a major project...

I had been a developer for some large open source projects.. I worked on Redhat's Document Project in the 90's and maintained most of their stuff and then moved on to WordPress where I was a contributor early on and then a support person for a few years.

Those projects are large successes because of the organization of all of their developers helps them build off of what others have done before and continue on or make new advancements.

Kodi.tv is the darling of pirate streaming tv and is distributed on most android boxes now...

I am completely against pirating and as a matter of Statement so is Kodi.tv they don't like it.. but it fosters their continuance..

Pirating will always happen but Kodi.tv needs to get a grip on that because its going to come down to a fight with the content developers..

They are more than happy to go after Napster and piratebay even though they never hosted content.. things like that get pushed into bad people's hands and then situations arise that aren't good for everyone.

It also means Kodi can't really hook up with any major company like Hulu Netflix or Sony because as soon as a major company looks at their product they know they can't be associated with it in any major way. Then again you have the rogue companies like SiliconDust that just don't care and want to partner with anyone that will lead to hardware sales.

very early on when torrents started I tried them.. I actually had to because some linux software I needed for my servers was only distributed by torrents and then I took a look at some of these other offerings.. I saw where most of the IP addresses were .. mostly in USA and Europe but some of those seeds were in countries that are killing our people.. and you can bet that every one of those seeds in the middle east, africa, asia, russia where ever know exactly where you are when you're downloading a manual for an electronic gadget or something else.

I got off of that really quick and never looked back.. its not worth it..
For $50 and a CableCard Rental I have been harvesting more stuff than I know what to do with..
but it will serve me well in the future as it will be a legal archive of content...

Kids .. hell Adults don't care about that today.. and I can see if you live in a 3rd world country where you are dirt poor that scraping torrents or websites might be your only option but it probably isn't... but for people in 1st world countries there is really no excuse today.

If you are poor then you buy a TV and an Antenna and be happy.. because you're likely to get a lot of content if you are reasonably near a metropolitan area.. If you can pay a bit more and get basic cable even for a few years and you have the ability like I do to afford a computer and a CableCard Tuner and a couple cheap after rebate drives you can get all the content you want .. more than you can watch .. I can get 50 shows and 20 movies in an average day with ease.

I don't know where the future leads us..

Most people are saying that Cable Companies are now moving to streaming boxes.. which means you can no longer capture shows and that they will allow you DVR type access but it will be linked to their server farm which will store the content and simply serve it out on demand.. they will record every network all day long and then offer it as an index dvr service.. but you won't be able to keep or record any of it.

right now for this transition period you still can harvest shows and movies off cable..

I am not sure what ATSC 3 will bring.. maybe it will be better for all of us but the technology will change from Analog TV Signal represented in Digital Packets to a IP type Packet format which will mean new tuners.. new encoding.. new copyright protection.. probably even Pay Television over the air.

Its going to be a new world in 5 to 10 years .. I don't think I will be joining it unless my old antenna and maybe a discount single tv for my home will be enough because I will be retired by then and on a tight budget. Not to mention not willing to go through the hassles I am now to create my archive of stuff..

We will see... But those prices eventually drop..

A 36" LCD tv that cost $2500 now costs $250 and has better resolution and built in streaming
Its bridging that transition period which is difficult.. and then when you do buy in what is the life expectancy of your purchase.

Its hard to believe that just a short time ago we all transitioned to digital which meant buying all new TVS
Now we will be asked to do it again.. new devices for cable tv.. new tuners .. new tvs ..

it just never ends.. they always have their hand in your pocket...

And they are more than happy to kill off perfectly good things so they can force you into a transition..

Thats how they stay in business.. but

Years ago those businesses use to be in the USA.. then they went to Japan.. Now Japan has made their last TV and its Korea and China

its a bad deal when billionaires like Gates think its fine to take all the money .. not give any to his kids... so if he isn't giving any to his kids why the heck would he reinvest in America who made him who he is...

He will take his money and squander it on stupidity.. .. same with Buffet and all the rest..
They don't understand responsibility to those who got them where they are..

Gates should own dozens of tech companies that manufacture tomorrows Hardware and Software in the USA and then those companies should reinvest in other companies.. to provide jobs for the children of the workers who built microsoft and everything else...

But these people do not care about honor and duty and responsibility .. even to their family let alone their neighbors..

They are more than happy to fire all the american workers in America and bring in Indian workers.. and turn the control of the company over to an Indian... Hey no problem with indians here but they need to build their own .. not displace us and our kids in our own country..

Its sad.. but we have no control over it.. and its unlikely those that do will ever wake up and understand what they have done.