From the sounds of it your projector can deliver some incredible detail.  Would you mind passing on which one it is?  

 

It's discontinued now, but it's a Sanyo Z2000. It's not a light gun, but gives a nice, accurate, film-like image.

If I was buying a new one today, I'd probably get a Panasonic AE-4000.

There are numerous entertaining arguments on "mine is best" over at AVS forums, each with valid points.  It all depends on what you need and what you will use most.  In my case, I have been ripping my blurays since they came out and like most turned to unraid so I could sh1tcan all the usb drives and desktop pcs I had in my mancave.  It used to look like NASA mission control with all the usb drive lights and power bricks.

 

I have had my original PCH A100 since it came out.  I signed up and waited in line for it.  Since then I have bought 3 A110s (including 2 recently in the refurbished store at the PCH site) so I can "future proof" my theatre room at least until the media streamer wars subside and a clear victor emerges as the "do everything" player.

 

Like many here, I use an HD projector.  I have a Mits HC1500 that albeit 720p does an admirable job of scaling 1080p.  I bought a spare lamp so It will probably remain my mancave display device for at least another year.  

 

As for software, the YAMJ (Aeon) jukebox just plain rocks.  I've probably referred at least 5 people to Unraid and PCH simply from my work buddies dropping by for a few beers and seeing the setup. (using unraid-web to stream via http)

 

So if your main interest and function is a movie jukebox, IMHO you just can't go wrong with the PCH/Unraid set up.  It just works.  And "It just works" is very appreciated when do what I do for a living (IT Systems Engineer).  

 

 

As for the rest of the house, I have a mixture of wired cat-5 and wireless original xboxes with XBMC for all the kids rooms (4) and the playroom.  Of course this means I have to rip my movies a second time to an acceptable bit rate and container the xboxes will handle.. but this doesnt take up that much space when you comapre to blueray rips and considering the scalability of my unraid tower.

 

As many have noted.. XBMC also "just works".. and does a great job on the old xboxes considering they have 64MB of ram.  But it's nice for the kids to be able to go to any room and turn on an xbox and get the same front-end media center with the same library of movies.

 

 

Just to chime in, I am using a $200 Acer Aspire Revo R1600 running ubuntu and Boxee.  It connects to my unRAId server with no problems, indexes all of my media, and plays back 1080p video over HDMI with no problems.  One of the main reasons I use Boxee is that it will search opensubtitles.org for subtitles for any media that does not already have it included.

I use the following: acer 3610? with xmbc live, zoltec? hdmi motherboard with xbmc live and a wdtvlive with custom firmware for the kids...

 

All work well, but I think windows xbmc is not as smooth as the linux version on the acer (horsepower related?)

Tony

Linux GPU acceleration via VDPAU is better than the windows equivalent. Also Linux is lighter in general than windows.

 

Definitely always go Linux with XBMC it is MUCH better.

Just to chime in here, I use an Acer Revo3610 as the front-end to my unRAID server - which contains all of my movies, TV Shows and Music. The Revo is running XBMC. I am yet to find a cheaper front end that will provide the versatility of XBMC. I have no problem connecting to the unRAID shares from XBMC. I am not too versed in connecting external hardware to the XBMC box but I have read a thread on xbmc.org about connecting an external BluRay player that shows great potential.

 

Hey Chanders - is this the Acer you have? http://www.notebookcity.co.nz/acer-revo-r3610-ion-tiny-pc-n330-4gb-500gb-hdmi-win7-home-premium-64&ref=pricespy

 

How have you found it? Is it running linux or win7? What remote? Any downsides? Thx

 

Hey flambot, thats the exact one that I have and I absolutely love it. The form factor beats any other tinypc IMHO and not to mention the digital audio out and HDMI, its full of win. As NAS said above, I run a minimal linux (ubuntu) on it with XBMC and I couldnt ask for anything better.

 

Before I got my unRAID box up and running, I actually opened it up and upgraded the hard drive to a WD Scoprio blue 500GB hard drive. But now that I have the unRAID box it wasnt necessary to do.

 

Ohh and did I mention that the revo had GB ethernet? 

Some of us prefer the Dune to the PCH, because up until recently, the PCH has been a hotbed of bad firmware with half-delivered capability.  In terms of "just works", the Dune just works.  Now, nothing for the Dune can compete with YAMJ, for the time being.  In terms of mature software for the front-end, it's XBMC, YAMJ, then the rest of the field.

XBMC with the nicer skins is the most beautiful media experience there is...

 

I personally like Transparency!

I've started using YAMJ again after having some trouble with older versions, and I do love it. I changed the "New" function to give me a reverse chronological (by date added to the server) view of my collection, and switched to a 4-row Movie Wall. The posters look small here, but on a 110" screen, they work well.

 

 

Looks nearly identical to XBMcs Aeon.

 

 

Looks nearly identical to XBMcs Aeon.

 

That was the intention of the dude who ripped it off!

I use XBMC Live on an Acer Aspire Revo with a cheap MCE remote.  It is everything I ever dreamed of.  See the link in my sig for more info.

I'm another Popcornhour user. It's my main media playerin the living room. Used to use Hauppauge MediaMVP - still have a couple in use in secondary rooms. They have served me well with the application below:

 

To fill up all the unRAID storage, I record TV using GB-PVR (soon to be renamed n-PVR)  since 2004. Very good application for recording TV. Nowadays all recording is DVB-C (and some DVB-T) giving good quality and large files.  It even has a client that loads as a 'native' application inside a PCH or egreat.

 

I have the WDTV Live. It has had some limitations with high bitrate blu-ray files, and not a very pretty interface. Custom firmware helps that significantly, but ultimately I just want to be able to watch the movie and went back to the official firmware. The beta firmware has improved the playback of high bitrate files. 

 

Looking to go with one of the new Dune HD Smart players. http://dune-hd.com/index.php?do=players

^^ Any reason why you  wouldnt consider XBMC on a Revo?

I use a TVIX 6500a.  It connects to my uNraid Budget Build via LAN/WIFI -N (I move it around sometimes).  This has behaved pretty well for me even when I use 1080p content via NFS.  One of the features I wish this particular model of TVIX had is the ability to detect the unRaid on its own.  I had to look up the proper mapping in the forums.  Once I  did I have been QUITE happy.  I am considering a 2nd Media device which may (or may not) be from DVICO (creators of the TVIX 6500a).

^^ Any reason why you  wouldnt consider XBMC on a Revo?

 

To be honest, when I first considered a media player - the WDTV Live was one of the most common.  I thought it is just a little over $100-why not?  Normally I spend a lot more time researching options.  I went down the modified wdtv b-rad firmware route, which provides a lot of functionality enhancements.  Still not ideal.  Ultimately, I just wanted something that would allow me to play all of my media files over the network.

 

XBMC is awesome and the interface is one of the best I have seen.  I don't know if playback of 1:1 BD rips is there yet based on the avsforum thread.  Ultimately, I really didn't want to have to "tinker" with the media server to get a nice interface and good playback. 

 

What would be the reasons to choose the XMBC/Revo combo over <enter any player>?

I'm interested in the best solution, and my priority would be:

1.  Excellent playback of all files over the network (I use mkv files)

2.  Nice interface (XBMC style)

 

I am close with the WDTV Live on #1.  And have given up on #2, which is why I'm looking for options.

So I'm in the market for a new streamer and here are the things that are a MUST.

 

1. Full DVD menu/chapter support

2. Full Bluray menu/chapter support (blurays are stored in the BDMV folders, not ISO)

3. Interfaces with unRAID

4. Plays MTS or M2TS files (raw AVCHD files from video camera)

 

So what does this leave me with? I currently have a Popcorn A-110 and I really dislike it. I also have a PS3 which gets the job done, but I HATE NOT HAVING CHAPTER AND MENU SUPPORT.

 

From my reading the Dune Base is suppose to fit my needs... can anyone confirm?? What about an Acer Revo with XBMC?

I HATE NOT HAVING CHAPTER AND MENU SUPPORT.

 

Why?  I can honestly say I have never used chapters and menus, other than changing audio and subtitle language (and those are built-in to the PCH as it will let you select from multiple audio and subtitle streams in an MKV container).

 

Indeed, having to press "yes, damnit, I want to play the move... that's why I put it in the tray" was one of my major reasons for getting a streaming player, so I did NOT have to deal with the #$%&@ menus!

snip......

 

From my reading the Dune Base is suppose to fit my needs... can anyone confirm?? snip.........

 

Yes, Dune will fit your needs.

 

 

From my reading the Dune Base is suppose to fit my needs... can anyone confirm?? What about an Acer Revo with XBMC?

 

Check out this review from mpcclub.  It is for the Dune Prime which is just adding a Blu-Ray player.

 

http://www.mpcclub.com/forum/links/reviews-2009-9/hdi-dune-bd-prime-30-176/

 

It is one of the units I am considering purchasing.  I am thinking of moving my TVIX to the bedroom and the Dune BD prime 3.0 to the living room.

I HATE NOT HAVING CHAPTER AND MENU SUPPORT.

 

Why?  I can honestly say I have never used chapters and menus, other than changing audio and subtitle language (and those are built-in to the PCH as it will let you select from multiple audio and subtitle streams in an MKV container).

 

Indeed, having to press "yes, damnit, I want to play the move... that's why I put it in the tray" was one of my major reasons for getting a streaming player, so I did NOT have to deal with the #$%&@ menus!

 

Almost everything I playback are concert Blurays that I record. So when I don't have a menu that allows me to select a certain song or skip past a song, etc is is quite annoying!!

I use J. River Media Center 15 on 4 or 5 (HT)PCs around the house. They're all networked together and can synchronise music and control one another, so I can dictate what gets played in which room, even from my iPhone. I also have two 23" touchscreens in different rooms to control media playback. It works very nicely with unRAID.