Do you use a dedicated dvd/bd player most or a game console (360/ps3)?

[yoda313]

So for disc playback do you use a dedicated dvd or bd player or a game console like a xbox 360 or ps3?

In my main media room I have both a ps3 and an xbox 360. I do not have a "regular" settop dvd or bd player in that room (the one with my surround sound).

I would say I use my ps3 more for movies and bluray and avchds. But I do still use my xbox 360 for dvds on occasion. Its weird it tends to handle lower bitrate dvdrs from my liteon dvd recorder better than my ps3 (those recorded in 6 hour slp mode).

So do you use a non gaming settop player or one of the current gen game consoles for disc playback?

[redwudz]

Neither. I use a PC for DVD and BD disc playback. It's hooked to my video projector and LCD monitor via HDMI and the audio is output through coaxial S/PDIF to my surround sound amplifier.

I have a couple of set-top DVD players and DVD changers but I rarely use them. No set-top BD player yet.

[Noahtuck]

This summer when i finally break down and replace my 54" big screen SD with a 65" HD with an HDMI connection then i will probably hook my quad core up to it, maybe throw in a bluray drive & for playing games, hopefully i will have built my 6 core by then, then i can use my quad as a dedicated HTPC

That's in my living room, i have a dvd/xvid player in my room & i use my original modded xbox when i feel the need to play xvids in my living room as my standalone in there is region free & plays DVD Audio but not xvid's.

[yoda313]

original modded xbox when i feel the need to play xvids in my living room as my standalone in there is region free & plays DVD Audio but not xvid's.

Original as in xbox 1? Hows it running these days?

I had traded in my original a long time ago. For awhile I was only using a ps2 for gaming. Then when I bought my 32" hdtv about three years ago I bought an xbox 360 and have loved hd gaming ever since. I have a Wii (barely use the darn thing) and a ps3 (use it less than the 360, more for movies/bluray but love the uncharted series and play the assassins creed series on it - I had first played ac2 on it so I'm more comfortable on the ps3 and stuck with it for ac1 and brotherhood - finished 2 and brotherhood but have yet to get far in the first game - backwards I know but whatever).

I might suggest if you don't do a ton of digital files to consider doing a ps3 for dvds and blurays for your new set when you get it.

My tv is not 1080p but upconverted dvds through my ps3 look really really good as do blurays - over hdmi of course.

Of course there is nothing wrong with doing an htpc. I have my dual core hooked up to my hdtv. But more for cable hd dvr caps with my hauppauge hd dvr than anything else. I burn those to avchd to watch on my ps3.

I did finally start using my gen 1 wdtv media player after fooling with it on and off for a long time. I'm using it for dvd rips of tv archives I've made on a dvd recorder. I also use it for a bunch of internet video that i've remuxed from flv (fortunately the couple of series I"m watching with it were h264 so I was able to simply remux with winff instead of reencoding the flvs - thanks again to bat999 for walking me through that).

I did get a remote for my pc and I do have a bluray rom on the pc but I really don't watch much on the pc itself. I do have it hooked up for streaming to my xbox 360 and ps3 (all are in the same room on the same set hardwired through a router).

But I actually like watching with just one unit on and the tv on. It gets more cumbersome watching with the computer. And actually I'm something of a hoarder (not detrimentally yet) so I like having collections on dvd still even when its more practical to rip or encode for my wdtv. I guess part of it is too I don't like the idea of a drive failure and losing all the videos on that drive. I still backup to disc what is on that drive but I don't like having just one source for the videos. I'd hate to reacquire those net videos. That would be a long laborious process if I hadn't backed em up to dvdr.

[stiltman]

I use my modded WDTV for everything now

[yoda313]

I use my modded WDTV for everything now

What kind of mod?

What generation is it?

I have a gen 1. Any mods I should check out? What are the risks of bricking it?

I've been tempted by the idea of the dvd hack to run a dvd drive. I have a lot of mkv files and stuff burnt on dvdr. That way I could just run them off the discs instead of filling up a harddrive. But I'm gutless on that hack right now. Also the only usb dvd drive I have is my xbox 360 hd-dvd drive and I doubt it would recognize that in the hacked mod.

[stiltman]

1st and 2nd are modded with http://b-rad.cc/

[yoda313]

1st and 2nd are modded with http://b-rad.cc/

Thanks stiltman.

It looks like the vast majority of that site is dedicated to gen 2 and the live models.

It still looks like the dvd mod to run dvd-roms is the only one that is remotely interesting to me.

Did any of these add dvd menu support from iso files? I don't know if i'd bother ripping a dvd to iso and storing it. I like having physical dvds so that is a feature I am not even obsessing over but would be nice to have.

[stiltman]

I had modded beta firmware that enables DVD menus
Insert DVD, or hit enter on iso
Hit options on remote
defaults to menu, hit enter
Goes to DVD menu about 75% of the time.
Some times it will go to the next play option.
Hit menu again and then it goes to the DVD menu
Hit the options button again (exit options) to navigate the DVD menu

It sounds like a pain, but it really isn't that cumbersome

I don't do any re-encoding any more. Everything I want on it goes straight to iso.
I would have to look back through all my firmware versions to find the right ones and the right combination to install.
The DVD menu option was only released as a beta test firmware for gen 1. The next beta disabled it, and then they came out with gen 2 with DVD menus

Now the very latest firmware disables homebrew modded firmware. My guess is that they are going to turn on that new encryption from Cinavia

[yoda313]

Thanks for the info stiltman. Sounds promising at least. But I'm not sure if I want to go through the hassles.

But like you I'm starting to slow down the reencoding hoopla.

I have a bunch of net videos that I have left as h264 and simply remuxed the flv to mp4 and it works great on the gen 1 wdtv. I am even experimenting simply leaving my hauppauge hd pvr captures as their original files instead of authoring to dvd or avchd. - I know it works I'm just experimenting whether or not I like it as a file without chapters or menu versus the regular disc route.

I'm planning on just backing up the original files to dl discs as backups. I have a 500gb drive I'm using right now and I've barely filled it even with a bunch of hdpvr caps. That will change if I start dumping more caps unshrunk to it. I'll easily be able to get a 1tb drive whenever I need more space.

@stiltman - do you know what the max is for size the gen 1 can take? I think I've read the wdtv is having issues with the newer 3tb drives. I wouldn't be needing to go that high right now. I would probably get a 1tb or even a super cheap 500gb as my extra drive.

edit - really stupid question here but regarding dvd menu and stuff - can you simply use makemkv and dump the dvd in whole into the mkv and use the full original functionality of the dvd inside the mkv? Or does makemkv strip out just the movie and not do the whole menu system?

I think I might mess with that this weekend and see if I like it.

I also looked up an old thread I posted and saw tsmuxer can insert chapters into m2ts files and I'll try that with some of my hdpvr caps.

[stiltman]

No makemkv doesn't include DVD menus
It even has problems with mkv chapters, at least with my bastardized firmware setup.

right now I have (2) 1TB toshiba laptop drives connected to it, so I don't know about the 2TB limit.

[yoda313]

No makemkv doesn't include DVD menus
It even has problems with mkv chapters, at least with my bastardized firmware setup.

Ok I won't go that route then.

right now I have (2) 1TB toshiba laptop drives connected to it, so I don't know about the 2TB limit.

That is confirmation for 1tb. That is on the gen 1 model as well right? Like I said I don't have hard evidence that they can't do 3tb i just thought I remember reading that it was an issue. Who knows about gen 1 as they seem to be the forgotten child by wd.

Thanks for the info stiltman.

edit - 2tb does seem to be the limit for wdtv players:

Solution:
At the current time a single external drive greater than 2 TB will not work with the WD TV Live HD Media Player, the WD TV Live Plus HD Media Player, or the WD TV Live Hub Media Center. Do not attempt to use these drives with your WD TV Live product because it may damage your drive's partition and cause loss of data. WD is currently working on a solution and will provide an update accordingly.

I'll post the link in a second.

http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5875

Edit - that doesn't say whether or not a 2tb would work on a gen 1 or gen 2 non live model - or mini for that matter - but mine is a regular gen1 not a mini and not a live.

[stiltman]

1TB is on both, gen 1 and gen 2. I interchange them all the time.
I have (3) 500GB and (2) 1TB drives.

Dang I need a NAS

I also still have a live plus in the box. I got it on the cheap, so if one of my others go bad, i don't have to worry about the new encryption schemes being on it LOL

[yoda313]

i don't have to worry about the new encryption schemes being on it LOL

What do you mean by encryption scheme?

Thanks for the confirmation on the 1tb on both models.

[stiltman]

They are encrypting the OS and bootloader or what ever on the newest models and latest firmware
I suspect they are going to implement Cinavia

[yoda313]

Ok so they are keeping you from changing the system. I see that now.

What is cinavia?