[mythtv-users] mythtv with dlna devices like tv-sets

[Andre Newman]

On 28 Jan 2010, at 13:53, Greg Oliver wrote:

> On Thu, Jan 28, 2010 at 5:21 AM, Corne Beerse <cbeerse at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hello,
>> 
>> As a long time mythtv user (however a fresh maillist member) I was happy to
>> see my new TV set has a network connection and a dlna label. As I found out,
>> dlna has something to do with upnp what mythtv supplies. Hence I hooked up
>> my TV set and was happy to see the mythtv machine on the network, so far so
>> good. Just out of the box, it even went as far as showing recordings, that
>> is, as a directory listing or such. Even the pictures I had inserted into
>> the foto viewer in mythtv, show on tv.
>> 
>> Unfortunatly, there is no watching the recordings, the TV set came with the
>> error 'File Not Supported'. As far as I'm now, I think of reasons for this:
>> 
>> The recording is published with a bad name and/or extention.
>> The recording is effectively in a bad format.
>> 
>> My recordings come from a pinacle pvr 500 analogue tv capture card that
>> makes it mpeg2. I have dumped some recordings raw from the mythtv
>> directories to an usb device. This was not accepted byt the tv-set either.
>> However, after changing the extention to 'mpg', the recording sowed.
>> 
>> Hence my question: Can I change the extention of the recording to 'mpg'
>> using mythtv in such a way that mythtv also publishes this name on the
>> network?
> 
> You will have to do two things:
> 
> Find out what format your TV is expecting to have streamed to it.
> Usually mpeg2-ts or (unfortunately) divx/xvid, and then transcode the
> videos to that format before you try to play them.

I've tried a few of these network connected TVs, LG, Panasonic, Samsung and haven't seen one yet that can play mpeg2/4 ts recordings, even though MythTV (or MediaTomb or Windows Media player) is really only serving up exactly what the TV would receive off air, a transport stream with SD or HD mpeg2 or 4.

I have great hopes for these TV's being the very best way to watch MythTV recordings but I've only ever been able to watch low quality re-encodes so far. My local high end TV shop is very helpful in letting me try things but we haven't had a success story yet.

Very very happy to be corrected :-)

Andre