Windows Media Center as PVR Back End for XBMC

[slowbiscuit]

I think the best setup will be your server running:

* WMC (8.1 best)

Uh, no. Not with Win7 still available.

[jjhtpc]

I've had ServerWMC setup for several months now. I have a Windows 7 htpc as my backend running ServerWMC and I have a MyGica ATV520 that I flashed the linux build on. The ATV520 with linux runs the server wmc script perfectly and plays all channels from the infinitv4 wuithout issue (sd and hd). I will be recieving a fire tv in the next few days and will be testing all of this out on that device. I have switched over to XBMC as it offers options that neither WMC or Media browser can provide. For example XBMC can play all of my local content (Movies/Recorded TV/Music), Live tv etc., but where XBMC differentiates itself is the ability to have streaming media available as well. Apps for Pandora, Spotify, hulu, ted and so on. Essentially it is creating the ONE platform. XMBC on android has even further capabilities in that it can play the android apps natively. These are all things that are either a pain to setup wtih WMC or cannot be done by WMC and MediaBrowser.

I was a huge proponent of WMC and the use of extenders, but media consumption is changing, and I feel for the better. I think the future state of media consumption is a mixed bag of personal content and online content, and XBMC is already setup to offer this consumption up. The android platform seems poised to be the end all be all device. This is why the FIRE TV has been one of the hottest threads on the XBMC forum as of late. Oh and it's also good to point out that where an XBox 360 would run some where in the 70 watt range for power consumption during media playback the fire tv has been killawatt tested at 2.5 watts power use during media playback.

Just my 2 cents.

[Crash2009]

Yeah, me too. I appreciate all what WMC does, however I am a bit disappointed at the seeming dead end that it appears to be at. Not wanting to annoy the MB3 fanbois, XBMC was the direction I decided to go-to. I have been following that Fire thread too. Looks like I have some reading to do.....I had to take care of some spring yard stuff. I haven't looked since Page 55. I see it's now up to 120 now. Those XBMC guys don't mess around, they had that Fire Thing tore up and rebuilt in 36 hours.

[rantanamo]

XBMC doesn't do it well, and its not organized well. I feel like you'd have a better time with something like Plex Home Theater(has a WMC launcher). And I don't think we appreciate the professional nature of WMC enough. I've used enough of these other programs to know that WMC was some special software. They even had an incredible "Internet TV" interface that blew all of these streamers away. Such lost opportunity.

[EZEd]

Just a quick question regarding the few immediate posts. I'm using serverwmc and MB3. As part of that setup you have to run WMC7 so that serverwmc has something to translate the cablecard tuner from. Are you saying that by using XBMC and serverwmc that you don't have to run the WMC7 tv setup (that serverwmc sets up the tuners by itself and XBMC gets the guide data)?

If so then I can see where a serverwmc/XBMC combo would be beneficial and would help to when you completely away from WMC7. But if you still have to have WMC7 running to intermediate with the tuners as you do with a serverwmc/MB3 setup can you really say that you are moving away from WMC7? The truth is in that scenario you haven't eliminated WMC7 only moved it to the background. Please help me to understand the difference.

[JazJon]

Yes you still need WMC fully setup. It's where the guide data and recordings happen. You can still bounce back and forth between the two as needed for encrypted (HBO) channels as well. XBMC Gotham PVR is not 100% stable yet but it's getting better and better.

FYI The guy that set up nice how to thread actually just started over with a new and improved version yesterday

Check it out
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=192949

[machausta]

I've been using WMC to do the recording and XBMC for everything else for awhile now. This fire thread you guys are speaking of, sounds like I need to search it out as well.

[EZEd]

Yes you still need WMC fully setup. It's where the guide data and recordings happen. You can still bounce back and forth between the two as needed for encrypted (HBO) channels as well. XBMC Gotham PVR is not 100% stable yet but it's getting better and better.

FYI The guy that set up nice how to thread actually just started over with a new and improved version yesterday

Check it out
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=192949

Okay thx JazJon - so it sounds like XBMC/ServerWMC/WMC7 is the exact same architecture as MB3/ServerWMC/WMC7 that I am using and I certainly don't feel like I am liberating myself in any way from WMC7 since I still need it to make everything else work with live tv and cablecard. I like that everyone XBMC, MB3, Mediaportal and JRiver are trying to get there to offer an alternative and hopefully one day a replacement for WMC but again the truth is nothing does. In my estimation JRiver offers the closest to a standalone competitor/replacement but they still can't do encrypted cablecard. I haven't messed with Mediaportal in a while because when last I did they still needed a two piece handshake to make it all work as well.

I know that WMC moved away from internet based video integration but to this day no one else offers a standalone cablecard live tv dvr capability except Microsoft. I look forward to the day when that total integration happens. But until that does happen I don't see the point in anyone saying that they are trying to move away from WMC. Again JRiver is close but it only works with OTA and unencrypted cablecard or clearQAM. If you have a provider like I do (Time warner Dallas) that encrypts everything none of these other solutions work. MB3 and XBMC can only be used to provide eye candy for HDD based stored content. They provide a slightly better internet streaming integration but nothing that couldn't be done with Relaunch and a little patience.

I want something that is really going to move me away from WMC and still support cablecard. Right now internet streaming is a good nice to have. we use Netflix a fair amount but not nearly as much as our WMC dvr and stored media. MB3 provides the eye candy but its only visible while inside the MB3 environment. Most times its just as easy and sometimes more functional to just use the WMC tools that accomplish the same tasks and skip the eye candy. It sounds like XBMC would be the same. Also sounds like XBMC and MB3 work the same to provide the interface to remote hardware (tablets, phones and streamers). Looks like we've a long way to go yet.

[Crash2009]

I've been using WMC to do the recording and XBMC for everything else for awhile now. This fire thread you guys are speaking of, sounds like I need to search it out as well.

http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=191109

[JohnJ9]

I've gone through this thread with great interest. I'm trying to travel my own personal "last mile" on the video front.

I've been trying to figure out how to view recorded TV on WMC on my TV through the AVR. Most everything I watch is either live off the Comcast DVR, or things that are archived and sitting accessible through an ATV3 run into my AVR. For things that I wanted to hang onto, they went through a process to get captured and converted, but it was a bit cumbersome, so I added WMC 8.1 and a Ceton InfinTV6 to the mix. I've got an environment and a routine that I'm pretty comfortable with, even though I admit here is a hodge podge of equipment here - too many somewhat single-purpose machines, but I like what they all do. I'm not trying to cut the cable altogether. I use the WMC pathway and record a lot of baseball stuff that gets used to preserve some MLB things and sometimes edited down to use for teaching. I have a Comcast DVR, but haven't wanted to stack all this recorded stuff up there. My archived audio and video all live in an Apple Ecosphere, so things I want to keep get edited down in Video ReDo and then converted using Handbrake.

The last little bit was sometimes wanting to go back and watch something from days or weeks ago that is on WMC, but wanting to watch it on the TV through the AVR instead of sitting in front of the computer screen. I don't really have any need to try to watch live TV off the InfiniTV. I don't really need to watch something that is still being recorded. I picked up a Fire TV (I'm a Prime member, and it seemed like a fun $99 hobby experiment), and I've wavered on hooking up XBMC on it, but a) it seems like a bit of work to keep up (I've gotten lazy in my advanced age!), b) it seems in a lot of flux, c) I don't really want to do anything to mess up my WMC configuration - that thing seems way too fussy and delicate!

I have been really thinking about XBMC, though, just wondering if it fits nicely with WMC and plugs my last hole. I had really hoped there was going to be some native DLNA support in the Fire TV that just finished this off for me. My thought at this point is to maybe get a Pi and go the raspbmc direction to see how everything fits together without having to disrupt any device. I think the Pi is an interesting device anyway. This thread has me encouraged in considering that.

Someone here mentioned running off a USB flash drive instead of an SD card. I've heard criticisms that XBMC's interface is more keyboard-based. Has anyone tried a Flirc or the like?

I'm thinking that if I could get this thing all figured out on the Pi, maybe I would have a stable environment and a working understanding, Gotham would finish, and it would be available as a real app on the Fire TV instead of being side loaded, and all the experimentation would be worthwhile.

Am I seeing things? Or, am I having hallucinations about being able to see things?

[sbaeder]

yes, this *IS* one way to do things...(too bad your stuck with WMC on the one hand and AppleTV/Itunes on the other )

Basically your thinking of trying to use XBMC to transcode/convert the WTV (really a container around MPEG2) into something for the ATV3 to play...I'm not sure on XMC's ability to do the transcodes on the fly for you, but it might. You could also look into any of the media "servers" that do transcoding on the fly (Plex, UMS, etc.) - Just google them...There are many choices/articles, etc.

Other option is (If you have HDMI Output on the computer) is to run HDMI to the TV - even if it's a long way, there are HDMI/Cat6 solutions...Doesn't get you to the Apple EcoSystem, but something to think about (especially if you go with the Amazon solution longer term)

[JohnJ9]

I'm happy enough to keep the WTV stuff out of the Applesphere. I don't find I want to view it all that often. I just want to make sure XBMC is a decent way to view the WMC recorded material when I want to do so and experiment ahead of time until maybe the Fire TV / XBMC stuff bakes out a little more fully. If I don't want to watch live recorded material, I don't need to do a WMC add-in, do I? The reading I've done seems to indicate that, but I'm not 100% sure.

[3rob3]

I gave XBMC another shot over the weekend and wow, have things really improved! I use a WMC HTPC at my main TV, and an Xbox extender in the bedroom. The Xbox (slim) has become really frustrating to use for some reason. It is really laggy and has terrible IR reception (no idea what has changed). I have an AMD Fusion nettop I played with awhile back so I loaded Openelec Gotham beta on it, connected to main HTPC with the awesome ServerWmc program. I assume most of the improvements are Gotham related but things are really stable now and it really is a great alternative to extenders.

I am really curious now about the FireTV's, and how they do with XBMC. If it's close to the performance I am seeing it would make a KILLER $99 extender. Anyone on this board try it yet?

[Crash2009]

I am really curious now about the FireTV's, and how they do with XBMC. If it's close to the performance I am seeing it would make a KILLER $99 extender. Anyone on this board try it yet?

Frodo is working good too.
I have not tried the Fire yet. It is moving up on my priority list though.

Click the link in post #69

[3rob3]

I have (well the last ~50 pages or so). Was just curious if anyone here has tried it and what they thought.

[Crash2009]

yes, this *IS* one way to do things...(too bad your stuck with WMC on the one hand and AppleTV/Itunes on the other )

Basically your thinking of trying to use XBMC to transcode/convert the WTV (really a container around MPEG2) into something for the ATV3 to play...I'm not sure on XMC's ability to do the transcodes on the fly for you, but it might. You could also look into any of the media "servers" that do transcoding on the fly (Plex, UMS, etc.) - Just google them...There are many choices/articles, etc.

Other option is (If you have HDMI Output on the computer) is to run HDMI to the TV - even if it's a long way, there are HDMI/Cat6 solutions...Doesn't get you to the Apple EcoSystem, but something to think about (especially if you go with the Amazon solution longer term)

Looks like the XBMC boys were not too thrilled about the ATV3. http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=168421

[Crash2009]

I have (well the last ~50 pages or so). Was just curious if anyone here has tried it and what they thought.

I read the first 50. Between you and I we just about got it covered.

[JohnJ9]

I have decided to wade in. I ordered a Raspberry Pi that I'm going to use as a dedicated XBMC server and use it to pull the recorded WMC files through my AVR. Once I get to where I understand XBMC well enough and am willing to try it, I'll see where XBMC is on the Fire TV side and consider installing it there. I'd play with both, but I am disappointed to say I am out of HDMI ports on my AVR. My, how fast they go! If the Pi works and the Fire TV is too much trouble, maybe that's what gets swapped out. However, I'm really hoping the Pi is just a primer for me on XBMC while the Fire TV settles in (and folks decide whether or not it will stay side loaded, make it easier to update, figure out if they can get an app approved that can kick off the side loaded XBMC, etc). Secretly, I'm also hoping the increased memory and processor of the Fire TV will also make for a better streaming experience of MLB.tv once it gets ported. The ATV3 tends to have a hard time recovering from stream interruptions, and while I know that's really MLBAM's fault, the code ought to recover more gracefully - but it doesn't.

If the Pi becomes surplus and I load up things XBMC on the FTV, I've been curious about the Pi anyway. A fun little idea for technology. Folks have been using it to upload their weather data, and a myriad of things that used to burn an otherwise idle ancient desktop to support the processing without interruption. I find it a fascinating little device, and have been looking for an excuse to try one out. This makes things work out on all fronts for me.

Here we go!

[Crash2009]

while the Fire TV settles in (and folks decide whether or not it will stay side loaded

I'm way behind in my Fire thread reading. I have only read the first 50 pages. Are they having some trouble keeping it side loaded?

[3rob3]

Are they having some trouble keeping it side loaded?

I'm all caught up now! I think what he meant was whether it will get officially released (very doubtful) or whether you will always have to sideload it. My only outstanding question is how it handles 1080i/720p mpeg2 video (ie wtv recordings). Mpeg2 is not listed as a supported format.