Gateway "Connected" DVD player - DVDfile.com forum for DVD, Blu-Ray, and HD-DVD

tomdkat · 09-25-2003, 10:59 PM

Has anyone here tried this DVD player out:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=278336

If so, do you like it?

Peace...

queequeg2 · 11-18-2003, 10:09 PM

I also thought about picking this one up. However, I remembered seening something about the maximum bit rate of the mpeg streams it could handle (something like 3mbps) which caused me some concern, since I would use the device to view ripped DVDs.

I ended up picking up a Hauppauge MediaMVP for $90 at Circuit City. It does a great job of playing mp3s from my computer, as well as streaming mpeg1 files that I created for svcd purposes. Mpeg2 streaming has been a little more difficult. A file I created from a ripped Fifth Element DVD played fine. Note I did not reencode the DVD. I just demuxed the VOB, converted the AC3 to an mpeg2 audio file, and remuxed. So the video was still the original bitrate. I did the same thing with the first Harry Potter dvd with less satisfactory results. About every 10 minutes or so there would be some stuttering in the sound and video. Very annoying. Hauppauge offers a TCP/IP registry optimization to reduce stuttering with high bit rate files which I will try using this evening. Reencoding to a lower bit rate (with reduced video quality) is not an acceptable option, if only because of the time involved.

I'm also not sure what this process does to the sound. I have a simply two-channel stereo set up so getting rid of 5.1 sound really isn't a big deal to me. However, I don't know if coverting the AC3 to mpeg2 audio would be an unacceptable solution to someone with a kickass multispeaker stereo system.

tomdkat · 11-19-2003, 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queequeg2

A file I created from a ripped Fifth Element DVD played fine. Note I did not reencode the DVD. I just demuxed the VOB, converted the AC3 to an mpeg2 audio file, and remuxed. So the video was still the original bitrate. I did the same thing with the first Harry Potter dvd with less satisfactory results. About every 10 minutes or so there would be some stuttering in the sound and video. Very annoying.

I'm sure you created these files while you were making "backups" of those DVDs which you own since we don't allow discussion of bootlegging or any other copyright violation here.

Thanks for posting the info about the Hauppage card!

Peace...

queequeg2 · 11-19-2003, 01:31 AM

If I wanted to bootleg, I'd go out and buy a burner and pirate away. I purchased the device because my significant other is getting pretty pissed off at having to look at 600+ CDs and 100+ DVDs on a shelf in our great room (more often than not in large piles focused around the media center). With hard drive space being as cheap as it is, storing everying on a drive could potentially be cheaper than any reasonably affordable and attractive storage solution (the media cannot be visable -don't argue on this point, you will not win). With very few exceptions, I could care less about the extras on DVDs so the inconvenience of having to dig out the actual disk to watch them is not significant.

The mp3 solution is a piece of cake. She works at home so it is a simple matter for her to rip a dozen or so disks a day. Musicmatch auto sorts and titles everything so they are ready to play with no further modification. The Hauppauge device does have some limitations in the way it accesses folders in that a folder must have audio files in it to show up on the on-screen menu. You cannot have the screen show a holder for "Green Day" which you could then open to see additional folders for their albums. Instead, each folder needs to have the name of the band as well as the album. This can make things a bit unwieldy if you have a lot of albums. My hope is that something will be done in future software upgrades. If not, I can easily live with the current set up. In the meantime, I've got the damn cds put away while a more robust solution is being developed by someone else.

With resspect to the video, I'm not completely convinced that it preserves the proper aspect ratios on mpeg2 files. The FBI warning on Fifth Element was clearly cut off on the sides. I ripped the widescreen version and there were the black bars when watching the main portion of the movie but for some reason I don't think I was seeing as much picture as I do when I use my stand alone player. I'll have to check this out more carefully, switching back and forth between sources. I may be imagining things. I must say again though that I was very surprised at the quality of the picture (albeit on an older 27 inch CRT).

tomdkat · 11-19-2003, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queequeg2

If I wanted to bootleg, I'd go out and buy a burner and pirate away.

Just as long as you don't discuss it here, that's none of my business...

Storing your CDs and DVDs on a hard disk is an interesting idea.....

Peace...

queequeg2 · 11-19-2003, 05:15 AM

Just a follow up:

The tcp/ip optimization file located on the hauppauge website completely fixed the stuttering problem with mpeg2 files. I also determined that the aspect ratio is shown correctly.

However, I've run into another problem that might be universal with regular mpeg2 files (I haven't researched enough to know): no chapter stops. This can be a problem if you want to start a long movie about 3/4 into it. You have to fast forward and the hauppauge's fast forward is not all that fast. So you had better watch the entire movie in one sitting (pausing is no problem).

So far, my assessment is that as far as music is concerned, playback is perfect, although accessing files could be more convenient. As for video, playback is also excellent, but working within videos can be a pain (i.e. fastforwarding). I don't have any superbit DVDs to get even higher bit rate files to test out.

One feature I didn't mention earlier is the ability to show jpg and other types of photos. Not a great feature unless you have a high res tv.

For $80, it's a pretty neat gadget. However, I suspect that the lack of chapter stops is going to be a killer in the long run. Maybe a DVD jukebox is in my future, if they can fit enough disks. Anyone know anything about such devices?

Jay

09-25-2003, 10:59 PM	#1 (permalink)
tomdkat Official Forum Warmonger "Dial Tone" Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Hayward, CA, USA	Gateway "Connected" DVD player Has anyone here tried this DVD player out: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...hreadid=278336 If so, do you like it? Peace... __________________ My DVD Aficionado List "At last we shall reveal ourselves to the Jedi, at last we shall have revenge!"

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11-18-2003, 10:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
queequeg2 Supporting Actor Join Date: Oct 2001	I also thought about picking this one up. However, I remembered seening something about the maximum bit rate of the mpeg streams it could handle (something like 3mbps) which caused me some concern, since I would use the device to view ripped DVDs. I ended up picking up a Hauppauge MediaMVP for $90 at Circuit City. It does a great job of playing mp3s from my computer, as well as streaming mpeg1 files that I created for svcd purposes. Mpeg2 streaming has been a little more difficult. A file I created from a ripped Fifth Element DVD played fine. Note I did not reencode the DVD. I just demuxed the VOB, converted the AC3 to an mpeg2 audio file, and remuxed. So the video was still the original bitrate. I did the same thing with the first Harry Potter dvd with less satisfactory results. About every 10 minutes or so there would be some stuttering in the sound and video. Very annoying. Hauppauge offers a TCP/IP registry optimization to reduce stuttering with high bit rate files which I will try using this evening. Reencoding to a lower bit rate (with reduced video quality) is not an acceptable option, if only because of the time involved. I'm also not sure what this process does to the sound. I have a simply two-channel stereo set up so getting rid of 5.1 sound really isn't a big deal to me. However, I don't know if coverting the AC3 to mpeg2 audio would be an unacceptable solution to someone with a kickass multispeaker stereo system.

11-19-2003, 01:31 AM	#4 (permalink)
queequeg2 Supporting Actor Join Date: Oct 2001	If I wanted to bootleg, I'd go out and buy a burner and pirate away. I purchased the device because my significant other is getting pretty pissed off at having to look at 600+ CDs and 100+ DVDs on a shelf in our great room (more often than not in large piles focused around the media center). With hard drive space being as cheap as it is, storing everying on a drive could potentially be cheaper than any reasonably affordable and attractive storage solution (the media cannot be visable -don't argue on this point, you will not win). With very few exceptions, I could care less about the extras on DVDs so the inconvenience of having to dig out the actual disk to watch them is not significant. The mp3 solution is a piece of cake. She works at home so it is a simple matter for her to rip a dozen or so disks a day. Musicmatch auto sorts and titles everything so they are ready to play with no further modification. The Hauppauge device does have some limitations in the way it accesses folders in that a folder must have audio files in it to show up on the on-screen menu. You cannot have the screen show a holder for "Green Day" which you could then open to see additional folders for their albums. Instead, each folder needs to have the name of the band as well as the album. This can make things a bit unwieldy if you have a lot of albums. My hope is that something will be done in future software upgrades. If not, I can easily live with the current set up. In the meantime, I've got the damn cds put away while a more robust solution is being developed by someone else. With resspect to the video, I'm not completely convinced that it preserves the proper aspect ratios on mpeg2 files. The FBI warning on Fifth Element was clearly cut off on the sides. I ripped the widescreen version and there were the black bars when watching the main portion of the movie but for some reason I don't think I was seeing as much picture as I do when I use my stand alone player. I'll have to check this out more carefully, switching back and forth between sources. I may be imagining things. I must say again though that I was very surprised at the quality of the picture (albeit on an older 27 inch CRT).

11-19-2003, 05:15 AM	#6 (permalink)
queequeg2 Supporting Actor Join Date: Oct 2001	Just a follow up: The tcp/ip optimization file located on the hauppauge website completely fixed the stuttering problem with mpeg2 files. I also determined that the aspect ratio is shown correctly. However, I've run into another problem that might be universal with regular mpeg2 files (I haven't researched enough to know): no chapter stops. This can be a problem if you want to start a long movie about 3/4 into it. You have to fast forward and the hauppauge's fast forward is not all that fast. So you had better watch the entire movie in one sitting (pausing is no problem). So far, my assessment is that as far as music is concerned, playback is perfect, although accessing files could be more convenient. As for video, playback is also excellent, but working within videos can be a pain (i.e. fastforwarding). I don't have any superbit DVDs to get even higher bit rate files to test out. One feature I didn't mention earlier is the ability to show jpg and other types of photos. Not a great feature unless you have a high res tv. For $80, it's a pretty neat gadget. However, I suspect that the lack of chapter stops is going to be a killer in the long run. Maybe a DVD jukebox is in my future, if they can fit enough disks. Anyone know anything about such devices? Jay