# Any success stories with media sharing from a NAS?



## JamesGHill (Oct 26, 2007)

Good evening,

Does anyone have a success story to share with regarding streaming music and pictures (and videos, for the cutting edge folks) from a NAS device directly to an HR20/HR21?

I've done quite a bit of research over the past few weeks on this topic, and I've yet to find a "buy this and it will work" type response.

Thanks guys!

James Hill


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

I have successfully shared photos, but not music, from a Netgear (Infrant) ReadyNAS NV+. It has a built-in uPNP media server but I find Twonkyvision (which can be installed on the NV+) to work a bit better.

Photos work fine but for reasons escaping me, all my MP3 music is listed as unplayable. No DRM here... Am not CE enough to try video.

I wish I understood what the problem was with the MP3 files.


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## JamesGHill (Oct 26, 2007)

I'm under the assumption that the HR20 requires some level of processing to be done on the server end, and the vast majority of NAS devices that include 'iTunes sharing' or 'uPNP media sharing' are only able to share files (and not process them) through a given protocol.

Since everyone is testing these protocols through computers it works, since the computer is handing the processing after the NAS serves the file. Likewise, when files are shared from a computer to a HR20, the computer handles the processing load (whatever that load is) before the file is sent over the network to the HR20.

This leaves a big hole in the idea of serving a file from a NAS to an HR20.

I'm wondering if the NAS you referenced, or a device like the DNS-323, could be hacked with a 'real' uPNP AV server that could handle this workload. I'm guessing no one has tried this.

James Hill


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

As far as I know, the NV+ has a "real" uPNP AV server - actually, several of them are options. It works with the Slim Devices series of boxes too. I'm unsure what the issue is with the HR20 - I note that Twonkyvision offers an "LPCM decoder" that can be optionally installed - it says it is needed for some "pure DLNA clients". I have not tried this yet.


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> As far as I know, the NV+ has a "real" uPNP AV server - actually, several of them are options. It works with the Slim Devices series of boxes too. I'm unsure what the issue is with the HR20 - I note that Twonkyvision offers an "LPCM decoder" that can be optionally installed - it says it is needed for some "pure DLNA clients". I have not tried this yet.


SBL,
That should fix the issue. LPCM is required for the Townky media server to work on the HR20.

This seems to be the trick with most NAS provided media server softwarem it needs another codec/decoder to work with the HR20. I am using a Linksys WRT350N router that has a USB drive plugged in and it is a NAS drive on the network. I got it working for both music/photos by mounting the drive partitions/file folder on the PC then using Nero 7 to media share them out. You can do the same with WMP11 by following instructions in the network help link in my signature and locating the document in the Alternate Media Sources section.


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## JamesGHill (Oct 26, 2007)

Spanky,

The problem is that I've yet to read any post (anywhere) where the end result is serving media from a NAS directly to an HR20.

Realistically, having to mount the NAS as a drive means you're not using the NAS itself as a server... which means the "server" software provided in these devices is nothing more than file sharing.

James Hill


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## bhelton71 (Mar 8, 2007)

JamesGHill said:


> Spanky,
> 
> The problem is that I've yet to read any post (anywhere) where the end result is serving media from a NAS directly to an HR20.
> 
> ...


I don't think you will ever see a post where the HR20 is reading a stored file from a network device. I believe some of the CE work going on could 'potentially' allow just a file share situation, but I would definitely bet against it - I believe the HR20 will remain a stream consumer.

The device sbl is referring to has the upnp server software installed already and if I understand correctly that is what you are wanting - a standalone network device with streaming cabability. It is not file sharing - the server software is tasked with transcoding the stored media to a format the HR20 can digest and serving it out as a tcp stream. And the HR20 has to connect and maintain a subscription table using the SSDP protocol. So really depending on your personal taste - the software can be on the nas, or mounting the nas on another pc and serving from there.


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## JamesGHill (Oct 26, 2007)

I've seen plenty of posts where the HR20 is reading a stored file from a network device... assuming the network device is a standard computer. The issue here is if a NAS device with UPnP software can actually act as a server, and not just a file share.

Since SBL's device already has UPnP server software on it, it should be able to do more than just share media files. However, without anyone being able to state that they've served a media file directly from a NAS to an HR20, while able to do the same from a standard computer, I'm left to assume that no one has determined if a NAS device exists that is _really_ a UPnP server or has figured out how to hack a NAS device to do this task.

This comes down to the difference between file sharing and file serving. I'm assuming that the HR20, for better or worse, isn't able to determine the differences between types of devices on a network, and is only able to determine if they are advertising themselves as UPnP servers.

James Hill


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

JamesGHill said:


> I've seen plenty of posts where the HR20 is reading a stored file from a network device... assuming the network device is a standard computer. The issue here is if a NAS device with UPnP software can actually act as a server, and not just a file share.
> 
> Since SBL's device already has UPnP server software on it, it should be able to do more than just share media files. However, without anyone being able to state that they've served a media file directly from a NAS to an HR20, while able to do the same from a standard computer, I'm left to assume that no one has determined if a NAS device exists that is _really_ a UPnP server or has figured out how to hack a NAS device to do this task.
> 
> ...


It is a hit and miss on if a NAS media server software will actually work. Keep digging, maybe someone can verify a NAS that does actually work for everything. You are correct about my NAS, it's close, but no cigar yet as it is with SBL. NAS media that gives you access to the base of the OS should be doable in the aspect of you putting Twonky on it, assuming it is a Linux based OS on the NAS. The HP media vault does give you that access and you could put twonky on it and serve it up directly from the NAS. There are instructions on how to do that via the Twonky forum on the HP media vault.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

I thought I had made this clear - the ReadyNAS NV+ is itself a media server, NOT just a file server, and will serve content to the HR20. This works for photos just fine. For MP3s, the HR20 can "see" them but not play them. It seems that perhaps a transcoder is required to be installed but what I have found so far is that this may not be feasible on the NV+.

Twonky can be installed on the NV+ - I have it. There is also a built-in uPNP media server you can enable, plus SlimServer and some other options I have not explored.


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## bhelton71 (Mar 8, 2007)

sbl said:


> I thought I had made this clear - the ReadyNAS NV+ is itself a media server, NOT just a file server, and will serve content to the HR20. This works for photos just fine. For MP3s, the HR20 can "see" them but not play them. It seems that perhaps a transcoder is required to be installed but what I have found so far is that this may not be feasible on the NV+.
> 
> Twonky can be installed on the NV+ - I have it. There is also a built-in uPNP media server you can enable, plus SlimServer and some other options I have not explored.


Doesn't Slimserver use some proprietary connection - you have to have a slim device or a web client to access it ? But oh man, oh man those Transporter boxes look sweet !!!

Little above my pay scale though.

Also slightly off topic: sbl - you are using the Infrant box for LinkPlayer or the normal one? I have tossed around the idea of buying a networked dvd player and was curious about the link player.


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## JamesGHill (Oct 26, 2007)

sbl said:


> I thought I had made this clear - the ReadyNAS NV+ is itself a media server, NOT just a file server, and will serve content to the HR20. This works for photos just fine. For MP3s, the HR20 can "see" them but not play them. It seems that perhaps a transcoder is required to be installed but what I have found so far is that this may not be feasible on the NV+.
> 
> Twonky can be installed on the NV+ - I have it. There is also a built-in uPNP media server you can enable, plus SlimServer and some other options I have not explored.


That all makes sense, but it leaves the question of why the transcoder wasn't present on the device to begin with (being able to see the files through the uPNP infrastructure but not being able to play them doesn't make sense).

I'd be interested to know if using Twonky on that device solves the problem, because it would be a sign that Twonky should work with the HR20 when run from a Linux-based NAS in general.

James Hill


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## CCarncross (Jul 19, 2005)

If the NAS you are interested in, will serve the media files like WMP, or Twonky, or a few other apps, then it will work. I dont believe the HR dvrs play mp3s or wma files directly, they will play files that are output as PCM from the media server app....


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## James Hill (Jul 24, 2003)

CCarncross said:


> If the NAS you are interested in, will serve the media files like WMP, or Twonky, or a few other apps, then it will work. I dont believe the HR dvrs play mp3s or wma files directly, they will play files that are output as PCM from the media server app....


That's the kind of contradictory statement I keep coming across regaring these devices out of the box, and it appears to be no one's fault other than the NAS providers themselves.

If a NAS claims to serve files under a protocol, then it should be doing the processing as part of the serving (in this case, the uPNP protocol with PCM output). That's the difference between a server and an open share.

If a NAS can only share files under a protocol that's file, though relatively worthless, and the manufacturer should label the device a "uPNP AV file share" and not a "uPNP AV server".

At this point, the path I'm looking down is taking a NAS, hacking it to run Linux and a uPNP server (Twonky), and praying that the processor has enough power to serve videos.

From a power-use perspective, this seems to be the most logical way to serve media.

James Hill


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

Please let us know how things progress James. I would love a NAS to HR20 solution.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

I wonder if the HR2x being DLNA certified would simplify any of these efforts?

DLNA is an item on the wishlist, but it's been languishing at or near the bottom.


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

James,
UPnP is not a protocol, (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPnP_Forum).

So if you are interested in supporting something that will be useful to all users in the home networking world take a look a http://www.dlna.org/en/consumer/home and ask your equiipment provider to adhere/support the DLNA guidelines.


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## James Hill (Jul 24, 2003)

Spanky_Partain said:


> UPnP is not a protocol


So you're saying I should blame the uPNP people for creating a standard with no... standards? C'mon. This isn't complicated. Either a device is a server or it's not, and in this case it's clear these NAS devices aren't shipping with either the software or the hardware to make serving media files happen.

I still hold out hope that one can be hacked to do this work, however. I'll start a new thread when I come across a solution.



Spanky_Partain said:


> So if you are interested in supporting something that will be useful to all users in the home networking world take a look a http://www.dlna.org/en/consumer/home and ask your equiipment provider to adhere/support the DLNA guidelines.


As much as I'm a fan of Playdough, I don't have much hope for DLNA. It's the right concept, but there has to be a payoff for a company to do the work, and one isn't apparent for DLNA.

James Hill


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

James,
Here is one soulution for you that can be used.

http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Boy, I'm no expert but I agree that a "Server" should "serve" (which means process) the files, a "share" should just give access. For me I realize there is a big difference in running video for HR20 to acccess and play....frankly think this is wrong avenue....a dedicated HTPC for video to the TV/PJ is much better suited. However, for pics and MP3s a NAS storage device (perhaps even a standard USB HDD hanging off a uPNP Router like Spanky has {WRT350N} is very acceptable) that can be accessed and "serves" Pics/MP3s is a real plus. I don't want to have a booted PC resident with either WMP, TVersity, Twonky, etc. client running. I'd like to have a NAS storage unit available on the network that is simple and can serve these to uPNP clients....say a XP or Vista/ViiV PC....or HR20.

I hope someone finds a true NAS and/or Router w/uPNP that supports this function.

As FYI here is a very popular solution for NAS in the HTPC market....not sure it's uPNP ability.
http://www.lime-technology.com/


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## TedBarrett (Oct 10, 2007)

A NAS is not a server. It is a Networked Attached Storage, nothing more is implied. I think the poster asking DirecTV to _please_ make the HR2x DLNA compliant is on the right track.


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## James Hill (Jul 24, 2003)

Spanky_Partain said:


> Here is one soulution for you that can be used.
> 
> http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/


That's a great resource, Spanky. Thank you! I was guessing/hoping that if someone said they were doing this, it was with a Media Vault. I'll see what I can do.

Has anyone else out there worked with the Media Vault?



thekochs said:


> I don't want to have a booted PC resident with either WMP, TVersity, Twonky, etc. client running.


That's how I feel too, mainly because I'm cheap. I don't want to have to pay for a full blown computer to do this, and I don't want to have to pay to power a full blown computer to do this.



TedBarrett said:


> A NAS is not a server. It is a Networked Attached Storage, nothing more is implied.


A NAS that includes "uPNP AV Server" in its laundry list of features is implying that it is a server, though its become increasingly clear that it is not. I agree that a NAS that does not include this type of feature shouldn't be expected to provide it, however.

James Hill


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

TedBarrett said:


> A NAS is not a server. It is a Networked Attached Storage, nothing more is implied. I think the poster asking DirecTV to _please_ make the HR2x DLNA compliant is on the right track.


Good point....I was thinking more of a NAS thru a uPNP Media router and/or a NAS that claims to also have uPNP/DLNA like the one Spanky posted: http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/ Of course in reading this I'm not sure why this unit would have to go thru a DMA....doesn't that mean it really is reallying on what is basically a PC-like unit with Tversity/Twonky/etc. to do the decode ?

Question: if the HR20 is not DLNA compliant why can it show pics on these and not MP3s ? I realize there is decoding needed to be done on MP3s so is it just that the media sharing uPNP ability of the HR20 gets you the pics ? With that train of thought the fact the HR20 can't/won't decode video is the same reason as MP3s ?....only that Tversity/WMP/Twonky is doing the decode/transcode for the lack in the HR20 for MP3s ?


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

I would guess that the HR2x cannot actually decode an MP3 - it relies on the server to do it and wants to see only LPCM down the wire. The advantage of that is that it can theoretically support any format that the server can decode. The disadvantage is that it requires decoding on the server and many of the non-PC media servers don't do that.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

I have a QNAP TS-101 NAS multi-function server. Reading this thread prompted me to go check for new firmware and they do now include Twonky 4.4.2. Unfortunately I have the same issue of needing to install the LPCM transcoder as MP3s do not play directly.

I've posted an inquiry about the LPCM transcoder on a QNAP forum. I'll let you know what I find out.

The QNAP device is great and has a lot of promise. I'll try to convince them that there would be a great market if only they could include the Twonky LPCM transcoder...


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

James Hill said:


> ....
> 
> As much as I'm a fan of Playdough, I don't have much hope for DLNA. It's the right concept, but there has to be a payoff for a company to do the work, and one isn't apparent for DLNA.
> 
> James Hill


I think the point here is that if the HR2x was DLNA compliant, you should be able to use the HP media vault without an issue. If the HP media vault did not work like it was advertised to, then you could have a case for HP to work and get it fixed. Currently without any guidelines to say this is what we do and support then everyone will point the finger at the other OEM. The ultimate payoff here is a happy customer.


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## bhelton71 (Mar 8, 2007)

sbl said:


> I would guess that the HR2x cannot actually decode an MP3 - it relies on the server to do it and wants to see only LPCM down the wire. The advantage of that is that it can theoretically support any format that the server can decode. The disadvantage is that it requires decoding on the server and many of the non-PC media servers don't do that.


I *think* they are trying to enable 'native' decoding for some codecs (specifically mp3 was mentioned) in the lastest CE rounds. Don't know if you are trying those out - I missed the last one (the whole thanksgiving thing) so I can't comment on how that is progressing. So there is a possibility that may be working in the next NR - which may change how media share works in general.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

bhelton71 said:


> I *think* they are trying to enable 'native' decoding for some codecs (specifically mp3 was mentioned) in the lastest CE rounds. Don't know if you are trying those out - I missed the last one (the whole thanksgiving thing) so I can't comment on how that is progressing. So there is a possibility that may be working in the next NR - which may change how media share works in general.


This would be good news !!!

I have a theory that the posters on this thread are very savy techno-geeks (it's a complement), the folks having WMP/Tversity/Twonky are a superset of that group, the folks hooking up HR20 for just DOD is larger superset. However, my POINT is I think the ENTIRE macro group above...call it novice-to-guru would not really want a Media PC Server but a simple way to put their pics/MP3s tru the network to run on the HR20. Video (be it DVD VOBs/IFOs or family AVIs) is another deal entirely. I think a simple call-it uPNP/DLNA NAS or uPNP/DLNA Router that could bolt up standard USB HDD that would "serve" (not just create access) type product would be a smashing success for the HR20 community. I think personally even beyond DOD it may be one of the #1 WAF items in using/accepting the HR20 past the obvious DVR function it was made for.

Anyway, my two cents.....just think a dedicated PC is too much for the masses to deal with.


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## Mike_G (Jan 21, 2007)

sbl said:


> As far as I know, the NV+ has a "real" uPNP AV server - actually, several of them are options. It works with the Slim Devices series of boxes too. I'm unsure what the issue is with the HR20 - I note that Twonkyvision offers an "LPCM decoder" that can be optionally installed - it says it is needed for some "pure DLNA clients". I have not tried this yet.


The ReadyNAS uPNP AV service and the HR20 do not play well together. I can sometimes see the server from the HR20, occasionally browse the directory tree but never display photos.

Twonky does work for photos but the CPU on the NAS isn't powerful enough to transcode music to LPCM so the plugin is not available for the NAS platform.

I ran some tests with a uPNP AV client with the uPNP AV service and Twonky and noticed that Twonky was much faster to respond - particularly for directory listings - than Infrant's own software. I believe the HR20 may just be timing out waiting for the uPNP AV service.

The v4 ReadyNAS firmware was supposed to include improvements to the uPNP AV service but the debacle around that release makes me wonder if we'll ever see any further updates for this device.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Guys, any updates ? Wanted to bump the thread. I think this type solution would be the winner.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

No news on the ReadyNAS NV+ side. On the other hand, I've been seeing something about the HR2x being enhanced to natively decode MP3s rather than requiring LPCM so that may help.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

sbl said:


> No news on the ReadyNAS NV+ side. On the other hand, I've been seeing something about the HR2x being enhanced to natively decode MP3s rather than requiring LPCM so that may help.


That would help tremendously. Here's hoping native mp3 decoding becomes a reality.


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## duffin (Aug 21, 2002)

I got tired of not being able to play music from my ReadyNAS NV+ so I went and sold it and used the funds to pay for this ASUS with the new Window Home Server.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816110015

So far, I am much happer, expect for:
- photo quality the HR20 can serve up
- figuring out how to make music play lists work

The WHS actually is based on WIN Small biz Server 2003 and even backs up all the PCs on the home network and does other cool things.

Haven't tested streaming video yet since it isn't a priority.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

So, I have a Linksys WRT54G router that the HR20 goes thru. While I have a PC I don't want to have to use it to serve PICS (JPEGs) and Music (MP3s). I'd like to just have some type of HDD hanging off the router I could access and the HR20 would stream pics/music. I've been reading on DLNA, uPNP, Digital Media Adapters, Digital Media Players......all a little confusing. I understand from this thread I need a device that has a playback uPNP function/capability...ala a PC running Windows....since the HR20 isnn't/won't do the decoding...because it is not DLNA compliant. So, I'm looking for a HDD with uPNP/DLNA that will decode my MP3s and JPEGs and the HR20 (DMA ?) will show. I really don't want to buy a $$$$ Digital Media Player...eg. NetGear EVA700: http://www.netgear.com/Home/Products/Entertainment/DigitalMediaPlayers/EVA700.aspx)

Why wouldn't a product like this work ?
http://www.buffalotech.com/files/downloads/HS-DxxxGL DS_122905.pdf


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## dminches (Oct 1, 2006)

I have 2 ReadyNas NV+s with over 3 TB of music on them. I am running Tversity on my PC which acts as my music "server." I am able to play music on both my HR20-100 and HR20-700. FWIW, the NASs are also supplying media to my Slimserver.

Why do people not feel this is a good solution? Why does the NAS also need to act like a server? I assume most people have PCs and can use them as the server.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

My NAS runs at 55W, the PC 210W. Why should I need a second device? There are many media players that will play music directly from my NAS (ReadyNAS NV+), but not the HR20.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

dminches said:


> I have 2 ReadyNas NV+s with over 3 TB of music on them. I am running Tversity on my PC which acts as my music "server." I am able to play music on both my HR20-100 and HR20-700. FWIW, the NASs are also supplying media to my Slimserver.
> 
> Why do people not feel this is a good solution? Why does the NAS also need to act like a server? I assume most people have PCs and can use them as the server.


My PC is not booted all the time. My network is up 100% of the time. I have a HTPC to serve movies to my TV/PJs (through component siwtch) I just want a *simple* way to "feed" my HR20 with pics & music. I could run Tversity but frankly with my HTPC I can serve the music and pics better than Tveristy with no/zero transcoding. So it's not a better mouse trap thing....it's a EASE of use for the Wife...WAF.



sbl said:


> My NAS runs at 55W, the PC 210W. Why should I need a second device? There are many media players that will play music directly from my NAS (ReadyNAS NV+), but not the HR20.


So, is the answer that no *enhanced* uPNP NAS's or Routers "serve" (ie. decode) music and photos that the HR20 will play/see? What about this device from Buffalo ? It says it has a built in DLNA server. 
http://www.buffalotech.com/files/downloads/HS-DxxxGL DS_122905.pdf
or 
http://www.buffalotech.com/files/products/LinkStation-Live_DS.pdf

Since the HR20 sees uPNP devices would it not work or does the HR20 have to be DLNA ? I guess I'm not clear on the difference between uPNP & DLNA from an inter-operability sense. Is DLNA it's own protocol or just a certification of some sort of uPNP ? I see where uPNP is referenced but just not sure: http://www.dlna.org/en/consumer/learn/technology/ I assume using the jardon the HR20 is a digital media adapter (DMA) which should be able to connect to a uPNP compliant client....all the above and this Forum talks about a PC running WMP/Tversity/Twonky. Guess I'm lost why a NAS/HDD unit that has media server abilities but needs a DMA could not use the HR20 as such ? The ReadyNAS NV+ you mention states *Media Streaming with UPnP AV.*

Thanks for any tutorial in advance !!!


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## jmahone (Mar 4, 2007)

Forgive me if I have missed the obvious, but I have the following setup, and have not had success in getting the media files to show up on the HR20.

Sony HDTV <---HDMI--> HR20 <----e'net---> Linksys Game Adapter WGA54G <---wireless G WEP--->
Linksys WRT54G Wireless router <---e'net---> Linksys NAS NSLU2 <----USB 2.0---> Maxtor 250GB external HDD

I can see my photos (haven't tried music yet) from my laptop over the wireless network on the HR20, but I do not see the Maxtor HDD attached to my NAS. Is this a hopeless cause? I don't want to add a separate media center PC (yet). Instead, I was hoping to get a big COOL feature from my existing parts (wireless network, HR20, NAS, extHDD, zillions of pics/music files).

Does this configuration work for seeing the external HDD's photos and music files on the HR20?

TIA,
Jerry


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## bhelton71 (Mar 8, 2007)

jmahone said:


> Forgive me if I have missed the obvious, but I have the following setup, and have not had success in getting the media files to show up on the HR20.
> 
> Sony HDTV <---HDMI--> HR20 <----e'net---> Linksys Game Adapter WGA54G <---wireless G WEP--->
> Linksys WRT54G Wireless router <---e'net---> Linksys NAS NSLU2 <----USB 2.0---> Maxtor 250GB external HDD
> ...


Couldn't find any definitive data to suggest your nas has a built-in server and I am not seeing a server listed in your setup - I am guessing it will not work.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

The NSLU2 definitely is not a media server - it is a simple NAS device. However, TwonkyMedia is available for the NSLU2 here. I have not tried it on the NSLU2 (which I no longer use.)


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

dminches said:


> I have 2 ReadyNas NV+s with over 3 TB of music on them. I am running Tversity on my PC which acts as my music "server." I am able to play music on both my HR20-100 and HR20-700.
> Why do people not feel this is a good solution? Why does the NAS also need to act like a server? I assume most people have PCs and can use them as the server.


As others have indicated, PC not always on, NAS uses less power and is always on. In my case, the only desktop PC that I would consider using is also my gaming PC and I don't want it to be "cluttered" with other duties while I'm looking to maximize my FPS... 

I would turn the question back in reverse, why should anyone feel that it's an acceptable solution to have to have a media server? If the HR2x receiver can natively support various audio and video codecs then it opens up the possibility of directly connecting a USB drive and serving media up more directly as well as from any NAS device.

Edit: I hold out hope that with the promise of native MP3 support on the horizon we'll "soon" have a NAS media server based solution that doesn't require transcoding on the server to support the HR2Xs.


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## Slump Buster (Oct 10, 2006)

Thaedron said:


> I would turn the question back in reverse, why should anyone feel that it's an acceptable solution to have to have a media server? If the HR2x receiver can natively support various audio and video codecs then it opens up the possibility of directly connecting a USB drive and serving media up more directly as well as from any NAS device.


I think a lot of it depends on what you are trying to do. If you're just looking to stream pics and audio, a NAS solution might someday be really viable with some improvements to the HR2X. However, many of us are looking to to stream audio/video from the internet.

My solution was to get an older (read: cheap) pc and installed a stripped-down version of windows and TVersity running on it. I don't do anything (yet) that requires a lot of cpu so this works perfect. The pc is sitting in my basement and running "headless" (no monitor or keyboard - I access it using PCAnywhere via another pc). I do have network storage on the other part of my network although it is not acting as a server.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

Some media devices (not the HR20, but for example, the Roku Photobridge 1000) can access SMB shares directly without requiring any sort of media server software on the server side, so a simple NAS would work well. That requires the playing device to do any decoding necessary. The disadvantage is that this generally locks you out of protected content (iTunes store, etc.).

If a Series 2 TiVo can decode MP3 natively, I'd think an HR20 should be able to as well.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> The NSLU2 definitely is not a media server - it is a simple NAS device. However, TwonkyMedia is available for the NSLU2 here. I have not tried it on the NSLU2 (which I no longer use.)


Well....VERY interesting post....thank you. Since I had not tried to enable WMP or Tversity or Twonky on my PC for HR20 I wan under impression that the Tversity/Twonky software (media server) was only for Windows. Looks like you can install it on Linux based NASs....cool. For PICs and MP3s I wouldn't mind this (only $29 for license). I might have to try to find a Buffalo Home Server NAS at Retail Store and try to load Twonky and see....make sure it is returnable. Any thoughts to if and how this may work with HR20 ?

http://www.twonkyvision.com/Download/TwonkyMedia/TM4Technicians.html
http://www.buffalotech.com/files/downloads/HS-DxxxGL DS_122905.pdf

SBL, I see Twonky has one for NetGear DG834GT....did youy see if there is one for ReadyNAS NV+ to try ?


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

As I mention earlier in this thread, I run Twonky on my NV+. It works for photos but not for music. The HR20 wants the media server to transcode to LPCM and the NV+ doesn't have the oomph to do that.

The NV+ can be seen by the HR20 without Twonky, but just photos and I like Twonky better.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> As I mention earlier in this thread, I run Twonky on my NV+. It works for photos but not for music. The HR20 wants the media server to transcode to LPCM and the NV+ doesn't have the oomph to do that.
> 
> The NV+ can be seen by the HR20 without Twonky, but just photos and I like Twonky better.


So, suffice to say that unless you are running a PC or the HR20 decodes MP3s natively, that a NAS/HDD product doesn't have enough juice to transcode ? 

Out of curiosity does the NV+ see the music and try to play but just hang/bog ?


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

Another option that I have gotten to work in a NAS is by mounting the NAS drive to my windows box then using Nero 7 to export the mounted drive. That works, but you still have to have the PC up and running in this scenario. Not all media server software will let you share mounted drives from other sources. You have to do some registry edits for WMP11 to share mounted drives as well.

HP has a media vault NAS system that gives access to the OS and file system. Twonky can be added to it, I have a link to these instructions to do this.

For more information on this, you can click on the network help link in my signature and look for the title "Alternate Media Sources".


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

thekochs said:


> So, suffice to say that unless you are running a PC or the HR20 decodes MP3s natively, that a NAS/HDD product doesn't have enough juice to transcode ?
> 
> Out of curiosity does the NV+ see the music and try to play but just hang/bog ?


When served by the NV+, the HR20 sees the music (artists, albums, titles, etc.) but shows all the track lengths as zero and shows an X next to them rather than a music note. They will not play.

I would think that few, if any, dedicated NAS products have the horsepower to do transcoding, but there might be one out there. A server which is DLNA-compliant might do the job. I don't yet know of one.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Thaedron said:


> I have a QNAP TS-101 NAS multi-function server. Reading this thread prompted me to go check for new firmware and they do now include Twonky 4.4.2. Unfortunately I have the same issue of needing to install the LPCM transcoder as MP3s do not play directly.
> 
> I've posted an inquiry about the LPCM transcoder on a QNAP forum. I'll let you know what I find out.
> 
> The QNAP device is great and has a lot of promise. I'll try to convince them that there would be a great market if only they could include the Twonky LPCM transcoder...


Please keep us informed.....I'm a true believer most users of HR20 would like this solution to a PC Server. The $100 question I think is Twonky seems to have NAS support for alot of these products BUT..........
1) LPCM decoder ?
2) Even if above does this NAS have enough CPU power to do the decode+transcode of an MP3 ?


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

Twonky does have an LPCM decoder that can be optionally installed. However, I was informed that the ReadyNAS NV+ can't use it.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> Twonky does have an LPCM decoder that can be optionally installed. However, I was informed that the ReadyNAS NV+ can't use it.


So, I've been re-reading the Tversity thread http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75287 and I'm wondering since it obviously does LPCM transcode natively....and if you believe the posts faster than Twonky....if I should be looking for a NAS that can run Tversity ?


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

As far as I know, TVersity requires a PC. It's mainly Java-based.


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## Spanky_Partain (Dec 7, 2006)

thekochs said:


> So, I've been re-reading the Tversity thread http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=75287 and I'm wondering since it obviously does LPCM transcode natively....and if you believe the posts faster than Twonky....if I should be looking for a NAS that can run Tversity ?


Also keep in mind that Twonky has some open source based development software. Sometimes turn around time for implementation of fixes or enhancements can come very quickly depending on the "mother of invention" needs. Twonky is also DLNA logo software. That means it will play well in a lot of network environments that are submitting to this type of home network.

Just as a side note, DLNA.org will be at the CES show this year with a lot of support from big name home network environment companies.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Spanky_Partain said:


> Also keep in mind that Twonky has some open source based development software. Sometimes turn around time for implementation of fixes or enhancements can come very quickly depending on the "mother of invention" needs. Twonky is also DLNA logo software. That means it will play well in a lot of network environments that are submitting to this type of home network.
> 
> Just as a side note, DLNA.org will be at the CES show this year with a lot of support from big name home network environment companies.


All good points......especially the show-stopper of Tversity being Java. The issue still seems to come down to two three items..........

1) NAS/HDD/Router with embedded uPNP Media Server
2) The above being able to host Twonky AND to be able to have the LPCM add-on installed too.
3) The above having enough CPU power to decode & transode and stream MP3s

I guess until DirecTV ever gets MP3 native decode and/or DLNA the above 3 items will be the proverbial *needle-in-haystack *device search.

P.S. I'm going to CES....think I'll checkout Twonky and/or DLNA.org booth....thanks for heads-up !!!


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## Flores (Nov 25, 2006)

This may be begging the question, but why not just build a NAS box out of a PC and be done with it. problems all solved.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Please keep us informed.....I'm a true believer most users of HR20 would like this solution to a PC Server. The $100 question I think is Twonky seems to have NAS support for alot of these products BUT..........
> 1) LPCM decoder ?
> 2) Even if above does this NAS have enough CPU power to do the decode+transcode of an MP3 ?


Unfortunately the response that I received back from Qnap support indicates that the processor doesn't have the horse power to support the LPCM decoder... sigh.

DirecTV, please expande the MediaShare capabilities of the HR2x DVRs to include support for other video and audio codecs.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

Flores said:


> This may be begging the question, but why not just build a NAS box out of a PC and be done with it. problems all solved.


A PC running Windows? And then have to deal with updates, patches, and a much higher power consumption?

My ReadyNAS NV+ is a tiny box I have stuck on a shelf in the basement. All management is done through a web interface and it takes a third the power of even a low-end PC.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Question.....on the PC side......does WMP11 have transoding to LPCM built in or is this the reason for Tversity and/or Twonky ? I know WMP11 is sharing for pics but not sure about MP3 playback.

Thx.


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## oenophile (Dec 1, 2006)

thekochs said:


> Question.....on the PC side......does WMP11 have transoding to LPCM built in or is this the reason for Tversity and/or Twonky ? I know WMP11 is sharing for pics but not sure about MP3 playback.
> 
> Thx.


WMP11 works fine for MP3's and for JPGs. (Can of worms opening: My understanding is that the CE's are working on video but that the video will require Twonky/Tversity.)


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

WMP has this built in.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> WMP has this built in.


SBL, I've gone to the dark side and enabled media sharing on my PC: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=114861

Right now I'm only WMP11 and I'm hoping that DirecTV future firmware releases will enable video playback of more than just MPEG. I'm not clear why Tversity is required since WMP11 will run MPEG if you had the codecs loaded (eg. say via Software DVD player).....but then again I've not tried since I don't have the National release yet. I'm hoping future version of the firmware will allow of Video_TS.IFO launch of corresponding VOB files for movie playback.

Anyway, my question to you is about NAS. I'm not a RAID fan and never used so gun shy. I'm worried about the upgradability limits and more importantly in RAID1 mirror mode if say the NAS electronics fail the drive data of all HDDs are corrupted. I would much rather just two large HDDs in enclosure that I manually copy/script one to the other of data. Any thoughts on this ? My second question is in regards to Media Sharing thru WMP11. If my PC is going to be booted can I access a standard "non Media Share" NAS unit like the SC101TStorage http://shop2.outpost.com/product/5223907?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG (assuming I've enabled the registry key DWORD EnableRemoteContentSharing for remote sharing on the PC) and have the HR20 see the PICS/play-MP3s ? I know I could od this via two USB attached HDDs but I realy want a network box for many PCs to share.

Thanks !!!


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

If you're going to do NAS and be serious about it, then RAID5 (or a variant) is the way to go. But really, with any RAID system, if the electronics fail, you can be hosed no matter what. However, disk failure is far more common and RAID protects against that. The advantage of RAID compared to your periodic backup is that you have zero downtime should there be a failure and will always have an up to date copy of your data. Also, the backup you do can take considerable time and you may not know if it fails without testing it.

What I like about the ReadyNAS series (was Infrant, now Netgear) is that it offers what they call RAID-X, where you can expand and swap drives (hot swap!) and never lose data or have to backup and restore. You can even have a mix of capacities, though this limits you somewhat. I run three 500GB Seagate Enterprise drives for 1TB of storage with RAID5-like protection. 

The ReadyNAS, like many other NAS boxes, allows you to connect a USB hard drive and do a backup, so you can have an independent copy of your data for added protection. I don't do that - yet.

I also run Acronis TrueImage on my PC and do live, incremental backups to the NAS. I don't have to remember to plug anything in - it's always there.

Using WMP or similar to share media on a NAS works fine, assuming proper configuration.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

To those still hoping for a NAS solution... no, I havent' found one, but I remain optimistic.

Is anyone running a NAS device with Twonky 4.4.4? The reason I ask is that QNAP just released a new version of it's NAS device that has Twonky 4.4.4 included. I started looking around at Twonky to see what was new in 4.x and can't find their LPCM transcoder anymore. It used to be on the Twonky site, but I can't find it along with any of their 4.x software (though I also can't find "LPCM transcoding" in any of the 4.x release notes).

I guess I could download and install Twonky 4.4.4 on my PC and see if the HR20 works with it.


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## t_h (Mar 7, 2008)

Sounds like you guys might want to look into a newer PC. My Core2duo desktop with integrated graphics pulls about 70 watts with a single drive spun up and under 100 with a mirrored raid pair. With the single disk it can spin the disk down when I'm not using it as either a PC or actively accessing the media on it and then its around 60-65 watts.

Running tversity I'm having no trouble with photos, music or video and mediocre success streaming stuff like youtube through the server to the hr20.

Thats not too far powerwise from a NAS type box, a lot more flexibility, and more than enough power to push a video transcode.

An even lower power option would be a seldom used laptop. Even the ones that are 5 years old have more CPU horsepower than most NAS devices.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Spanky_Partain said:


> James,
> Here is one soulution for you that can be used.
> 
> http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/


Spanky/SBL, did you see the new generation (MV2) ? I'm puzzled it says Twonky but no NFS Server. How can a NAS not be a NFS Server ? Can/will it share files and transcode ? I like the footprint...more acceptable as a NAS for sure. Let me know your thoughts on if this would work ?
http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/mvgen2/

Interesting at bottom of FAQ............._Twonky is factory installed on the MV2 series so it will work with either the PS3 or the Xbox 360,_


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

I have no interest in that product.


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Spanky/SBL, did you see the new generation (MV2) ? I'm puzzled it says Twonky but no NFS Server. How can a NAS not be a NFS Server ? Can/will it share files and transcode ? I like the footprint...more acceptable as a NAS for sure. Let me know your thoughts on if this would work ?
> http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/mvgen2/
> 
> Interesting at bottom of FAQ............._Twonky is factory installed on the MV2 series so it will work with either the PS3 or the Xbox 360,_


The NAS could use Samba instead of NFS for file sharing. Since the HR20 doesn't directly access any shares on the NAS, it doesn't need either one. Twonky will access the files directly from the linux internal file system on the NAS, so it could care less which file sharing method is used.

The problem with Twonky is that the current version does not support transcoding. Twonky even pulled the lame addon from it's website. There is a beta out there which supports transcoding, but I doubt the 500MHz ARM CPU can do much with video, but it should work OK with audio. This beta has been out for 3 months, but Twonky does not respond to questions asked on their message board and will not answer emails concerning the beta. This shows me they are not serious about the beta. Also, they have stated that if/when version 5 is released, it will not be a free upgrade.

Your best bet is to see if MediaTomb can be installed on it.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> The NAS could use Samba instead of NFS for file sharing. Since the HR20 doesn't directly access any shares on the NAS, it doesn't need either one. Twonky will access the files directly from the linux internal file system on the NAS, so it could care less which file sharing method is used.


Good to hear !



boilerjt said:


> The problem with Twonky is that the current version does not support transcoding. Twonky even pulled the lame addon from it's website. There is a beta out there which supports transcoding, but I doubt the 500MHz ARM CPU can do much with video, but it should work OK with audio. This beta has been out for 3 months, but Twonky does not respond to questions asked on their message board and will not answer emails concerning the beta. This shows me they are not serious about the beta. Also, they have stated that if/when version 5 is released, it will not be a free upgrade.


That's what I was afraid of....even though Twonky installed it only a shell to make things pretty/easy for file share. Note, the ARM is AMR9...not ARM7....thoughts ? It says it does video.....see page 94 of their manual.
http://www.k0lee.com/hpmediavault/mv2manual.pdf



boilerjt said:


> Your best bet is to see if MediaTomb can be installed on it.


Metatomb ? Not sure what it is.....also wouldn't the issue still be CPU power for video transcode ?


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> I thought I had made this clear - the ReadyNAS NV+ is itself a media server, NOT just a file server, and will serve content to the HR20. This works for photos just fine. For MP3s, the HR20 can "see" them but not play them. It seems that perhaps a transcoder is required to be installed but what I have found so far is that this may not be feasible on the NV+. Twonky can be installed on the NV+ - I have it. There is also a built-in uPNP media server you can enable, plus SlimServer and some other options I have not explored.


SBL, what do you think about the horsepower of the new Netgear ReadyNAS Duo ?
They claim streaming video but not sure what that means ?
http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/06/netgear-launches-readynas-duo-storage-lineup/


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## Bushwacr (Oct 31, 2007)

Flores said:


> This may be begging the question, but why not just build a NAS box out of a PC and be done with it. problems all solved.


Actually there is an article in PC Magazine(?) that describes doing that out of old computer spare parts. The software is open source "Free NAS" and runs on Linux.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

thekochs said:


> SBL, what do you think about the horsepower of the new Netgear ReadyNAS Duo ?
> They claim streaming video but not sure what that means ?
> http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/06/netgear-launches-readynas-duo-storage-lineup/


No idea, really. You can ask about it in the ReadyNAS forum. The ReadyNAS NV+ I have is capable of streaming video fine - since that's just moving bits. It doesn't know how to transcode audio files to LPCM that the HR2x wants.

For streaming audio files, I now use the Pioneer SC-05 AVR that was delivered to me this morning. Works a treat with the ReadyNAS NV+. Doesn't do video, though, so I can use the HR21 for that.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

sbl said:


> No idea, really. You can ask about it in the ReadyNAS forum. The ReadyNAS NV+ I have is capable of streaming video fine - since that's just moving bits. It doesn't know how to transcode audio files to LPCM that the HR2x wants.
> 
> For streaming audio files, I now use the Pioneer SC-05 AVR that was delivered to me this morning. Works a treat with the ReadyNAS NV+. Doesn't do video, though, so I can use the HR21 for that.


Isn't the LPCM transcode needed for not only MP3s but for the audio in the MPEG2 video files ?


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Isn't the LPCM transcode needed for not only MP3s but for the audio in the MPEG2 video files ?


No, the audio in an MPEG2 video can also be mp2 audio or ac3 (in an MPEG2 transport stream).


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> No, the audio in an MPEG2 video can also be mp2 audio or ac3 (in an MPEG2 transport stream).


So, you could stream video (MPEH2) with its AC3 or MP2 audio with no transcode needed from a NAS ?....however for MP3s which need to be transcoded to LPCM for HR20 cannot be done since 500Mhz CPUs can't cut it ?

SBL, can you stream MPEG2s from your ReadyNAS NV+ to HR20 ?


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> So, you could stream video (MPEH2) with its AC3 or MP2 audio with no transcode needed from a NAS ?....however for MP3s which need to be transcoded to LPCM for HR20 cannot be done since 500Mhz CPUs can't cut it ?
> 
> SBL, can you stream MPEG2s from your ReadyNAS NV+ to HR20 ?


You can stream MPEG2 PS (mp2 audio) or MPEG2 TS (mp2 audio or ac3 audio) directly from a NAS with no transcoding needed.

MP3s (or wmv, m4a, aac, flac, ogg, etc) do need to be transcoded to LPCM or wav (preferred because no slow/fast playback). A 400 or 500MHz CPU should be able to handle it, but you must be able to use the NAS like a linux box with shell access (to install applications and configure.) I am about to purchase a NAS (probably a D-Link DNS323) which has a 500MHz ARM9 CPU. When MediaTomb 0.12.0 is released with the ARM9 static binary, I will have a definitive answer.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> You can stream MPEG2 PS (mp2 audio) or MPEG2 TS (mp2 audio or ac3 audio) directly from a NAS with no transcoding needed.
> 
> MP3s (or wmv, m4a, aac, flac, ogg, etc) do need to be transcoded to LPCM or wav (preferred because no slow/fast playback). A 400 or 500MHz CPU should be able to handle it, but you must be able to use the NAS like a linux box with shell access (to install applications and configure.) I am about to purchase a NAS (probably a D-Link DNS323) which has a 500MHz ARM9 CPU. When MediaTomb 0.12.0 is released with the ARM9 static binary, I will have a definitive answer.


Please keep me/thread in the loop....I would love a "simple" NAS that I can put my MP3s, PICS and MPEG2s (DVD converts via MPEGStreamclip or Kids Videos from Pinnacle) and stream/access from HR20.

Thanks !!!


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Please keep me/thread in the loop....I would love a "simple" NAS that I can put my MP3s, PICS and MPEG2s (DVD converts via MPEGStreamclip or Kids Videos from Pinnacle) and stream/access from HR20.
> 
> Thanks !!!


I'm anxious to see how this works as well. If it works as planned, there will definitely be a how-to published.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> I am about to purchase a NAS (probably a D-Link DNS323) which has a 500MHz ARM9 CPU. When MediaTomb 0.12.0 is released with the ARM9 static binary, I will have a definitive answer.


Did you receive ?
Does it work ?
Inquirying minds want to know.


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Did you receive ?
> Does it work ?
> Inquirying minds want to know.


Funny you should ask  I received the D-Link DNS323 this afternoon (500MHz ARM9, 64MB memory, with 2 1TB drives). I will not be able to test out MediaTomb until someone builds version 0.12.0 for an ARM9 CPU. I will probably have to wait until it is released.

Here is what I have done so far:

1) Got telnet access to the linux OS on the NAS.
2) Installed a couple linux apps.
3) I transcoded a 5 minute mp3 to wav using mpg123. It used up 100% of the CPU and took a little less than 2 minutes. Since it is faster than playback, it will probably work, but no one else will be able to do anything with the NAS while it is transcoding. I will try to optimize some things and hopefully improve this.

I've got a lot going on this weekend, but hopefully I'll find some time to play with it a little more.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> Funny you should ask  I received the D-Link DNS323 this afternoon (500MHz ARM9, 64MB memory, with 2 1TB drives).


In case you run into some problems....older post but alot of setup info for DN323.
http://alanchard.com/dlink323/pages/page_1.htm


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> In case you run into some problems....older post but alot of setup info for DN323.
> http://alanchard.com/dlink323/pages/page_1.htm


Thanks for the link. I've got the NAS running as advertised and it works really well connecting to my computers on the network. It also works with my Mediagate MG-35 and my Audiotron which connect to the NAS via SMB. What I need to do is try to optimize the thing, such as looking at running processes and killing unneeded ones from the Linux environment. I'm convinced I can get MP3 transcoding to work on it with MediaTomb, but I just want to improve the transcode time.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> Thanks for the link. I've got the NAS running as advertised and it works really well connecting to my computers on the network. It also works with my Mediagate MG-35 and my Audiotron which connect to the NAS via SMB. What I need to do is try to optimize the thing, such as looking at running processes and killing unneeded ones from the Linux environment. I'm convinced I can get MP3 transcoding to work on it with MediaTomb, but I just want to improve the transcode time.


Have you tried to stream a MPEG2 clip from it to HR20 ?


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Have you tried to stream a MPEG2 clip from it to HR20 ?


I haven't tried yet, but this should work quite well since no transcoding is needed. As long as it's an mpeg2 video that the HR2x accepts, it should be no problem.

I think I have found a solution to the mp3 transcoding. I have transcoded a 4 min 24 sec mp3 to wav in 27 seconds using madplay. Madplay uses integer math instead of floating point math and this works so much better on a NAS. Now to find a way to convert the other audio formats...


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> I haven't tried yet, but this should work quite well since no transcoding is needed. As long as it's an mpeg2 video that the HR2x accepts, it should be no problem.
> 
> I think I have found a solution to the mp3 transcoding. I have transcoded a 4 min 24 sec mp3 to wav in 27 seconds using madplay. Madplay uses integer math instead of floating point math and this works so much better on a NAS. Now to find a way to convert the other audio formats...


I have 5,000+ MP3s.....are you saying I'd have to convert to WAV first ? Is WAV LPCM that the HR20 wants ?

Also, let me know in the video/MPEG2 playback. I'd be interested to see a previous DVD VOBs converted thru MPEG Streamclip to MPEG2.ts (renamed to .MPG)...ala http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=114861

Thanks so much !!!!


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> I have 5,000+ MP3s.....are you saying I'd have to convert to WAV first ? Is WAV LPCM that the HR20 wants ?
> 
> Also, let me know in the video/MPEG2 playback. I'd be interested to see a previous DVD VOBs converted thru MPEG Streamclip to MPEG2.ts (renamed to .MPG)...ala http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=114861
> 
> Thanks so much !!!!


With MP3s, you wouldn't have to manually convert anything. MediaTomb would transcode the MP3 to WAV "on the fly" using madplay and stream the WAV to the HR2x. The HR2x will play either WAV or LPCM, but I prefer WAV because it doesn't suffer from the slow/fast playback problem. If you are interested, I'm optimistic that I will be able to transcode flac and ogg to WAV for playback as well  Wma and MP4 audio (m4a, aac) will be a problem, though...

As far as video goes, MediaTomb can stream .ts files just fine and there is no need to rename them. MediaTomb (using a NAS) will not be able to transcode the video and will stream it to the HR2x "as is".


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

FYI 

I found a fixed point version of faad to decode non drm m4a and aac. It decodes them at 6x playback speed on the DNS-323 NAS and this should also work in MediaTomb. This should make the I-Tunes fans happy


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> With MP3s, you wouldn't have to manually convert anything. MediaTomb would transcode the MP3 to WAV "on the fly" using madplay and stream the WAV to the HR2x. The HR2x will play either WAV or LPCM, but I prefer WAV because it doesn't suffer from the slow/fast playback problem. If you are interested, I'm optimistic that I will be able to transcode flac and ogg to WAV for playback as well  Wma and MP4 audio (m4a, aac) will be a problem, though...
> 
> As far as video goes, MediaTomb can stream .ts files just fine and there is no need to rename them. MediaTomb (using a NAS) will not be able to transcode the video and will stream it to the HR2x "as is".


Wow, this sounds great.........I only need MP3s and MPEG2 video with its audio. Are you getting close to a How-To or more testing ?


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Wow, this sounds great.........I only need MP3s and MPEG2 video with its audio. Are you getting close to a How-To or more testing ?


I'm writing things down as I go along and you'll see a how-to when I get MediaTomb running. Actually, it has been surprisingly easy so far and I haven't had to compile anything. Everything I've done so far is just to install applications from their online repositories.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

boilerjt said:


> I'm writing things down as I go along and you'll see a how-to when I get MediaTomb running. Actually, it has been surprisingly easy so far and I haven't had to compile anything. Everything I've done so far is just to install applications from their online repositories.


Cool....because that is about all I can handle. 

Question....how does/did your HR20 see the DN323 ? I mean on my PC now I went thru the WMP11 stuff/sharing for HR20 to see/connect. How does this work on the DN323 with HR20....I'm sure it will be in your How-To but was curious.


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Cool....because that is about all I can handle.
> 
> Question....how does/did your HR20 see the DN323 ? I mean on my PC now I went thru the WMP11 stuff/sharing for HR20 to see/connect. How does this work on the DN323 with HR20....I'm sure it will be in your How-To but was curious.


The HR20 does not see the NAS (or PC). It sees the uPnP/DLNA server running on the NAS. In this case, it will see MediaTomb when I get it running on the NAS and MediaTomb will provide the connection to the actual files. In your case, the HR20 communicates with the WMP11 server, not any actual shared drives.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Hey...Boilerjt....saw this post on your NAS success:http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=140914

Thought those following this one would want to see.

Moderator.....please close this thread so allow movement (consolidation) to above link. Thx.


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

has anyone had any luck with a buffalo nas yet? i have one hooked up and running and the hr2x's see the pictures and music playlist, but it wont play them.


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> has anyone had any luck with a buffalo nas yet? i have one hooked up and running and the hr2x's see the pictures and music playlist, but it wont play them.


Is there an X next to the pictures and music when shown on your HR2x? If so, they won't play. Do you know which media server that is loaded on your Buffalo NAS?


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

yes there is an x next to the music, but not the pics. neither will play. the media server is Mediabolic(i believe)


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

is it possible to load a different media server into the NAS(im new at this NAS stuff)


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> is it possible to load a different media server into the NAS(im new at this NAS stuff)


What is the model of Buffalo NAS that you have?


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> yes there is an x next to the music, but not the pics. neither will play. the media server is Mediabolic(i believe)


The X next to the music is not surprising because the HR2x will only play LPCM or wav and all other formats require transcoding. I'm not sure about the pictures, though. Are they high resolution?


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

boilerjt said:


> What is the model of Buffalo NAS that you have?


its just a 500gb linkstation live


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

boilerjt said:


> The X next to the music is not surprising because the HR2x will only play LPCM or wav and all other formats require transcoding. I'm not sure about the pictures, though. Are they high resolution?


no, they always play fine streaming from my pc though


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> its just a 500gb linkstation live


Good news and bad news... The linkstation live will work with MediaTomb and there is a static binary available (arm9). The bad news is that the current release (0.11.0) will not work with the HR2x. The version currently in development (0.12.0) works great with the HR2x 

As far as I know, nobody has compiled and made available 0.12.0 for your NAS. From the latest I've heard, version 0.12.0 will be released before the end of the year.

Check out this link for information on your NAS:

http://buffalo.nas-central.org/index.php/Main_Page


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> no, they always play fine streaming from my pc though


It's quite simple. Your PC knows how to play MP3 (and aac, m4a, wma, etc) and the HR2x doesn't know how to play them. Transcoding converts the music file "on the fly" to a format the HR2x can play.


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

boilerjt said:


> Good news and bad news... The linkstation live will work with MediaTomb and there is a static binary available (arm9). The bad news is that the current release (0.11.0) will not work with the HR2x. The version currently in development (0.12.0) works great with the HR2x
> 
> As far as I know, nobody has compiled and made available 0.12.0 for your NAS. From the latest I've heard, version 0.12.0 will be released before the end of the year.
> 
> ...


so how do i get the beta


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

dave29 said:


> so how do i get the beta


To get the "beta" you have to download the source code and compile it for your device. You also have to compile all of the dependencies that are needed. You also have to have a cross-compile build environment for your device. This is not something for the faint of heart  The simple answer, just pray someone with the expertise and patience compiles it and makes it available... Realistically, you'll probably have to wait for the release and then the code will be provided by the MediaTomb developer.

One of the reasons I bought the D-Link DNS-323 is the user community. The users have developed a build environment directly on the NAS and this makes it a lot easier (still not very easy) to compile applications for this device. This is how I got 0.12.0 compiled for the DNS-323 and it works great for my HR20.


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## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

boilerjt said:


> To get the "beta" you have to download the source code and compile it for your device. You also have to compile all of the dependencies that are needed. You also have to have a cross-compile build environment for your device. This is not something for the faint of heart  The simple answer, just pray someone with the expertise and patience compiles it and makes it available... Realistically, you'll probably have to wait for the release and then the code will be provided by the MediaTomb developer.
> 
> One of the reasons I bought the D-Link DNS-323 is the user community. The users have developed a build environment directly on the NAS and this makes it a lot easier (still not very easy) to compile applications for this device. This is how I got 0.12.0 compiled for the DNS-323 and it works great for my HR20.


yeah.... i know i just read your other thread. wishing i would have bought the 323 instead. maybe i will anyway


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Since I won't get to this NAS until after 1st of year.....and I'm kinda faint of heart (even though reasonably technical)...think I'll wait to see if the stars line up for 0.12.0 release and my timeline to pull the trigger on buying/trying.


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## boilerjt (Jan 12, 2007)

thekochs said:


> Since I won't get to this NAS until after 1st of year.....and I'm kinda faint of heart (even though reasonably technical)...think I'll wait to see if the stars line up for 0.12.0 release and my timeline to pull the trigger on buying/trying.


Hopefully, by then, there will be a 0.12.0 release and many different NAS devices will work with the HR2x. The one thing that you'll need with any NAS to install MediaTomb is the ability to access the linux shell in the NAS (via telnet or SSH).


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## exchguy (Jan 10, 2007)

I have an Iomega StorCenter IX2 which is the new model. Media Share is not working either with it. It sees it but mp3s are X'd out. Xbox 360 sees this just fine, so I imagine the problem lies with the Media Share feature itself and not being able to perform the transcoding of MP3s.

I guess it would have to be hacked somehow with one of these smarter UPNP servers like Mediatomb on the Buffalo or Dlink. It would be nice if Media Share becomes DLNA compatible and it seems like this would be a no brainer. I guess since it still shows "Beta", i guess additions to this feature is still possible.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

All....here is thread (unofficial but well used) for Mediashare (via Mediatomb) on NAS: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=128910
Please placec your posts there.


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## thekochs (Oct 7, 2006)

Has anyone looked/tried this with DTV HRxx ? $389 for a 1T....very nice.
It says it supports any uPNP or DLNA client.
http://www.linksysbycisco.com/CA/en/products/NMH410?lid=LearnMore


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