[mythtv-users] ECS LIVA Frontend

[Dave MythTV]

On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 3:01 PM, Calvin Dodge <caldodge at gmail.com> wrote:

>
> On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 2:30 PM, Ozzy Lash <ozzy.lash at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 2:12 PM, Karl Newman <newmank1 at asme.org> wrote:
>>
>>> On Thu, Feb 26, 2015 at 11:59 AM, Michael Wisniewski <
>>> mikewiz38 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>> If you search liva+mythtv on google you will find some results that
>>>>> should address at least some of your questions. This is the one I'm most
>>>>> interested in http://lists.mythtv.org/pipermail/mythtv-users/2015-
>>>>> January/375223.html, though that deals with a FE/BE running,
>>>>> amazingly, on that hardware.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I did see some of those threads, but I'm a little concerned about some
>>>> of the questions that I asked.  I bought a raspberry pi to use with
>>>> xbmc/kodi, and before buying it, people said it worked.  Technically, yes,
>>>> it does work, but at a subpar experience.  Menus are slow, especially when
>>>> scrolling.  Decoding h.264 works, but try throwing something else at it
>>>> (like mpeg2 without the license), and it gets sluggish.
>>>> I also bought a firetv after the pi died for use with kodi.  Just like
>>>> the pi, it works, but there's some quirks with it.  For example, it doesn't
>>>> decode mpeg2 very well, the menus are quick, but my old lirc remote doesn't
>>>> work so I'm forced to use only a few buttons with the firetv remote.
>>>>
>>>> I'm just trying to see what the consensus is on this box, now since a
>>>> month or two has passed.  It looks like it works, but there are some quirks
>>>> with it....which is kind of steering me away from it and finding something
>>>> cheap with vdpau support.
>>>>
>>>> Mike
>>>>
>>>>
>>> This does not have the same problems that the RPi or the old Atom boards
>>> have with screen navigation, etc. On mine it's just as snappy as my primary
>>> frontend/backend. MPEG-2 works fine, with VAAPI. I'm only using SD but
>>> plenty of reports say that HD MPEG-2 is fine too. I have some DVD rips in
>>> my video library which were encoded by Handbrake to h.264 which seem to
>>> play okay over the network (GigE), but I haven't watched them extensively.
>>> At the time, I said I think this is the cheap, featureful, powerful but
>>> very low energy device we've all been waiting for as an ideal MythTV
>>> frontend. If you have a requirement for top-shelf deinterlacing you'll
>>> probably need to look to nVidia for VDPAU, which will be significantly
>>> larger, more expensive and more power hungry.
>>>
>>> To answer one of your other questions, yes it's an x64 chip and boots
>>> via 64 bit UEFI only, so your install media will need to support that (I
>>> had trouble with the default Gentoo image).
>>>
>>> Karl
>>>
>>>
>>>
>> I'll agree with Karl.  I have one of these, and menu navigation is
>> snappier than what it replaced (a first generation ion system).  It plays
>> back broadcast  HD MPEG2 with no problems, and I've not noticed any
>> problems with my ripped dvds.  I don't have any ripped bluerays, but I have
>> heard reports that these are fine as well.
>>
>> When I first swapped between the two, I tried looking closely at the
>> outputs of the 2 devices, and while it did seem a little different, I can't
>> say that one was noticeably different than the other.  I don't watch a lot
>> of recorded sports, though, so perhaps that would show up the deinterlacer
>> differences.
>>
>> I have since bought a second, that I have up and running myth, but
>> haven't really used yet.  I also bough a vga to svideo cable so that I may
>> hook it up to an older tv in the office to have a frontend there.  Either
>> that or keep it around as a standby when the old bedroom frontend finally
>> goes out.
>>
>> Bill
>>
>>
> I'm very happy with the ones I set up for front ends, and will probably
> buy another when they're on sale again.
>
> Calvin Dodge <https://forum.mythtv.org>
>


One more "me too" - the LIVA has been a fantastic machine!    The thread
linked to earlier about the combined frontend/backend machine was mine, and
after two months now of 24/7 daily use, we couldn't be happier.   I use it
for ATSC broadcast HD content and AirPlay audio, and for both
playback/seeking and the menus, this is one of the snappiest machines I've
had.   It's definitely not the "technically working but subpar experience"
category.  If I needed another frontend to add on to this, I'd buy another
LIVA.

- Dave
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