Box hard disk players

[Frankenstein]

Hi ben, cheers for joining the thread.

I have no doubt the TviX 6500 is the best machine to get, but the step from 7700 baht to 18,000-19,000 (the TviX 6500 without HD) is a rather significant one.

If I could shell out the money for the TviX 6500 I would do so too. But in this situation the Popcorn Hour offers the best compromise - especially since I have to do a TV upgrade and buy myself a set of decent speakers as well before I have something that can be called a home theatre system.

[benlovesnuk]

oh yeah i know i totally agree otherwise there would only ever be one make and one machine because it does what everyone wants at the cost everyone can afford!!!!!

You're right to get the popcorn it sounds pretty spot on, in fact the only reason in my thinking towards the tvix is because i want a better sound performance, and when applicable hd content, hd sound output which i think is worth the extra money in the long run.

However there is so much choice from consoles like xbox 360, ps3 even the wii and psp, to pc's with wireless sound video high def, it's about getting something that can encompass them all with out restriction. Im happy to say we're are definitely getting closer!!!!!

Frankenstein your knowledge is unsurpassed and much needed thank you for your help through out the forum.

However i would most enjoy a review of your popcorn when you receive it?

If people want to ask me questions about hi-fi related, or video,plasma lcd etc they can pm me if they have problems with setup or general inquiries, i dont mind at all. it's all free!!!!!!!!! If you want help on what to buy, where to buy prices then i am more then happy to talk!!!!!!!! Im by no means a know it all, i just enjoy all things electrical and will be happy to offer advice on the matter, or up for discussion if the put it as a forum topic!!!!!!!!!


Can't wait to try all that gear out next year it should be quite a hoot if anyone is up for a beer and a listen and muck about with electrics then reserve your seats now........near chiangmai

[buad hai]

Frankenstein, are you planning to pop a hard drive into the popcorn?

I signed up on the site and may order when (and if) my name comes up.

Keep us posted.

[Frankenstein]

buad hai - my plan is to place a laptop drive in the popcorn - i.e. a 2.5" drive rather than a 3.5", and a 5400 rpm rather than a 7200rpm one - that will reduce noise, energy consumption and heat to some extent. I will also extend the feet underneath the player to get better airflow.

The Popcorn Hour A-100 player does have some heat issues, especially with a hard disk inside, and if you check out the forum networkedmediatank.com you'll find many people modify their players by installing fans, raising the height etc.

Others claim they don't have any problems, but I think there's enough people who claim they do, to take it seriously. Apart from modifying the player, some people have also reported using a notebook cooler (a pad with two fans in) with the unit.

It seems the company were intent on creating a completely silent player, and without a hard disk inside, it is. There are no moving parts, and the CPU is cooled by means of a fanless metal heatsink only.

[benlovesnuk]

I think that the issue of heat and noise seem to be an issue for most in this arena, however if using a fan to decrease heat then you should find a way to contain both the popcorn and hdd in multi-fanned case unit to make this possible as these are best for cooling and noise reduction (if that serious a problem).
Without question putting legs on it will stabilize sound, picture performance and flow of air which is important, but also reduce noise by resonance too. Placing the unit on spikes will guarantee a much greater success, specifically if placed in a tripod configuration (2 front and 1 back, center)! This can be done at a minimal cost (even using bullet shells if you like d.i.y)???!!!!!!!!!!!
The TNT-Bullet Equipment Spike - An Easy DIY Project [English]

The popcorn seems a beast, and as a first dip into this market i don't think anyone would be disappointed as long as they understand the issues as said above and make attempts to configure as stated above and heed Frankenstein's hd practicalities of slower spinning laptop hd to boot.

always remember to mirror your content in case of hd failure, as this can be more common with higher capacity drives, it gives you peace of mind.

Alternative to an exposed hd internal with plastic covers, is an alloy based enclosure that dissipates heat and does not need a fan at all this are commonly found on external drives and make little to no noise appreciable when listening to music indeed!!!!!!!!!

[mrsquirrel]

Does the popcorn have a USB hub capabilities?

If so a second external drive might be better than using one inside the machine.

A decent external can be had cheaply with good cooling

[Frankenstein]

Yes, the Popcorn Hour supports using an externa USB 2.0 drive, and the reading speeds are similar to an internal HDD, so that should be another good option to keep the temperature down.

From what I have read recently though, the firmware has had some issues with reading all formats from an external USB drive (remember that this player promises to read pretty much everything you throw at it and often does), but they'll be able to sort those issues out within 1-2 months come new updates of the firmware.

Syabas is working hard with improving the firmware and the huge amount of players already sold as well as the high demand should ensure they don't abandon the project too quickly.

I still think that anyone who has the cash to shell out on the Dvico Tvix 6500 should do just that as a first option because they will get a unit that is more finished than the Popcorn Hour.

The Popcorn Hour A-100 has huge potential but hasn't quite got there yet at the point of writing this.

Personally I kind of look forward to playing around with different solutions and apps to see what works best and to learn more about the whole thing, the same way building my own PC from scratch was an interesting project in itself because I learned so much along the way... but I realize many people will want a player that just works seamlessly out of the box, and at this stage, the Popcorn Hour is not quite the right solution.

[mrsquirrel]

Things is for 17-21k for the TiVX you could build a PC for that price that would do the same job if not better.

You only need a basic processor, motherboard will have surround sound built into it or you could buy a sound card for a bit extra, a fairly powerful graphics card with DVI out is fuck all if you want to use HDMI on your TV, a DVI to component cable is $20.

Acer even produced a tiny little machine that was about 10k pretty sure it had a DVI out on it. All depends though if the graphics card can run at 1080p or not. I know that the 7600gs can't but the 8800 series can.

I was reading on one of the Korean forums about a lad who built himself a Hackintosh for under 400,00Won ~$400 and is running it as a media server.

Small form case is next to nothing as well.

[buad hai]

All depends though if the graphics card can run at 1080p or not.

Most of the stuff I end up watching isn't 1080p anyway. What do you watch that is?

[mrsquirrel]

Nothing at all but no point in building something if it's not going to run the high end stuff.

Graphics cards that can do it are fairly cheap.

[buad hai]

Nothing at all but no point in building something if it's not going to run the high end stuff.

Well, I just want an easy way to watch the junk I download without having to burn CD's all the time. I've been using my laptop, which has DVI out along with a DVI/HDMI converter. Maybe I'll save the $$ and stick with that.

[mrsquirrel]

^ That will do the job.
I presume you have a mini cinema system or such like.

Really BH you could build a setup for under 10k with a 500GB drive at least.

[buad hai]

I presume you have a mini cinema system or such like.

Just a 1080i TV with a cheap "home theater" TV. Does the job. My DVD player can handle most AVI files, so that's pretty easy, too.

Really BH you could build a setup for under 10k with a 500GB drive at least.

I wouldn't know where to start. What? Cheap motherboard with a good graphics card and Linux?

[Frankenstein]

That is true squirrel, for somebody who has the know-how it is a definite option to build a HTPC at the same price as the TviX 6500, but that means somebody who is either willing to learn a fair bit about building a PC if they haven't done it before, or somebody who has already built one or more machines. Not that it is too hard, just that there is quite a bit of info to digest for somebody who is starting out.

I've built one machine already, even though that was a desktop I know enough now not to be worried I could put together at HTPC as well.

For me, the inconvenience is that Chiang Mai lacks high-end shops with reasonably skilled technicians (so, you can not trust anyone's advice), and the availability of components is not too good either - for anything out of the ordinary (i.e. basic desktop systems or finished laptops) you end up paying a lot more when shopping locally and you need to rely on your own research and the advice of savvy friends.

So I have the option of ordering the components online (definitely possible but will have to use different online shops), or choose the parts by doing research online, and then fly to Bangkok in person to shop for them.

To get a silent HTPC that can handle 1080p comfortably though, are you sure just 10,000 baht would be enough? If so, I would love to see some spec suggestions and I might build one similar just for the hell of it.

At the moment I have a Panasonic 29" flatscreen CRT TV, supposed to be able to handle 1080i, which is not too bad, connected to a Pioneer 585K-S DVD player that accepts most avi files without complaining, some 5% or so need to be re-encoded though. No home theater speaker system either.

[mrsquirrel]

What is the import tax like on parts.

I know a lot of Americans over here user Tiger Direct to get parts shipped into them cheaper than they can buy here or just for more exotic parts.

[mrsquirrel]

I have no idea on price of parts in Thailand but going by what people pay out here and as far as I know it's actually more expensive out here 300-400 dollars should be about right.


8500GT
58,000 Absolute ÁöÆ÷½º 8500GT BAXTER 256MB GDDR2

78,000 HD2600 XT ASUS ¶óµ¥¿Â HD 2600XT EAH2600XT 256MB

40,000 ASUS ¶óµ¥¿Â HD 2400Pro EAH2400PRO MAGIC 256MB (S:1GB)

50,000 AMD 64-x2 3600+ AMD ¾Ö½½·Ð64-X2 ºê¸®Áî¹ø 3600+ ±×·¹À̹úÅ©

~40,000 Inteld P4-D 3.0 ÀÎÅÚ ¼¿·¯·ÐD ½Ã´õ¹Ð 347 Á¤Ç°

55,000 gigabit AMD or Intel Mother board GIGABYTE GA-M61SME-S2
GIGABYTE GA-945GCM-S2L

~16,000 for a case 2MONS F-22 ºí·¢·¹µå

14,000+ - xx for powersupply.Çູ¼îÇÎÀÇ ½ÃÀÛ ! ´Ù³ª¿Í (°¡°Ýºñ±³) - Danawa.com

~100,000 500GB disk drive.

30,000 2GB Samsung Ram.


40,000
50,000
55,000
16,000
14,000
100,000
32,000

~300,000

Sorry about the Tetris writing on the links. Hanguel is all I can get it in.

Basically it's 1000won to $1 just now so lop of the 0's

I think it would only run up to 1080i with that graphics card.

You would probably want to buy a better set of cooling fans which might push the price up a little bit. Decent fans can be as much as the cheap processor.

No DVD drive on there either - add a little bit more for that. 10,000 might have been a bit optomistic - 12,000 was probably closer.

Çູ¼îÇÎÀÇ ½ÃÀÛ ! ´Ù³ª¿Í (°¡°Ýºñ±³) - Danawa.com

Is a link to pre built systems. You can drop down the menu bar and choose your processor etc. Gives you a good idea of what you can pick up.

I can go to the electronics equivalent of Phantip here and pick up a base system for $200. Nothing fancy - 1GB ram, 100Gb hdd etc but it works.

It can be done.

[Gerbil]

^^^ So has your Popcorn arrived yet then? I'm still waiting for my invitation email to order one

[Frankenstein]

Hi Gerbil,

Nope, not yet. Here's the progress so far according to Google Checkout:

Your order is in progress.
Apr 16
$224.00 charge - Your credit card (VISA xxx-XXXX) was charged for $224.00. "GOOGLE *Popcorn Hour" will appear on your credit card statement.

Apr 11
Order received - Popcorn Hour received your order.

Apr 11
Order placed - Your order was placed with Popcorn Hour. A confirmation email was sent to you by Google.

Have questions about this order? Contact Popcorn Hour
Order Details - Apr 11, 2008 3:43 PM GMT+07:00
Google Order #96860XXXXXXXXXX Print
Shipping Status Qty Item Price
Not yet shipped 1 Popcorn Hour A-100 $179.00
Shipping & Handling (International) : $45.00 Tax : $0.00
Total: $224.00

--
I am member number 149XX on the Popcorn Hour website. It took about 20 days from signing up until I received the pre-order invitation. It should be somewhat faster than that now I think, but still takes up to a week I think.
--
IMPORTANT: Check your junk mail/spam folder. Make sure that no-reply AT popcornhour DOT com is allowed.

[Marmite the Dog]

Playing flac is of importance for high quality music and routing this through a digital to analogue converter will make hard digital sounds smoother and more forgiving!

What a load of bollocks.

Every digital source has to be converted to analogue unless you have a digital feel into your brain bypassing your ears. Also, this myth about digital being 'harsh'. Digital has a limited bandwidth (CD quality we're talking here) which will chop off any frequencies above 20k Hz. Good analogue has a much greater bandwidth than 44khz digital audio. Your speakers will make the largest difference to how audio sounds, and unless you have good ones, your choice of D/A converter will make no noticeable difference to the sound.

[buad hai]

which will chop off any frequencies above 20k Hz

And then old age chops off everything above 10K at which point quality ceases to matter.

(There, I finally found one advantage to being an old git.)

[Frankenstein]

Playing flac is of importance for high quality music and routing this through a digital to analogue converter will make hard digital sounds smoother and more forgiving!

What a load of bollocks.

Every digital source has to be converted to analogue unless you have a digital feel into your brain bypassing your ears. Also, this myth about digital being 'harsh'. Digital has a limited bandwidth (CD quality we're talking here) which will chop off any frequencies above 20k Hz. Good analogue has a much greater bandwidth than 44khz digital audio. Your speakers will make the largest difference to how audio sounds, and unless you have good ones, your choice of D/A converter will make no noticeable difference to the sound.

I think you know a decent amount about sound Marmers, so what sound setup can I get for 15,000 - 20,000 baht that will give me decent surround sound when watching hi-definition video from my Popcorn Hour. I think I need a sound system with optical in so I can hook it up easily.

[Marmite the Dog]

Spend the bulk of your money on the front pair, then get the Bose copies for the surrounds & sub. They are about 1,000 THB each.

I helped a mate with this setup and he got a pair of JBLs. It sounds great and what's more you don't lose anything when you jut want to listen to music.

What amp will you be using? I would go for a reasonably decent amp as well. Prolly something from Denon or Marantz as they are available here and sound OK.

You could just about squeak out a decent setup for 20k, but you'd have to do a bit of bargain hunting in Bangkok to get the best for your money. I'd be happy to show you a few places if you came to Bangkok, or just have a beer of three with you.

[Frankenstein]

Sounds good, I will see when I can book a flight down there, it's been long overdue anyway.

[buad hai]

Just discovered that I can copy an AVI file to a thumb drive and plug that into my DVD player. No more need to burn CD's!

[Frankenstein]

I accidentally signed up twice to buy a Popcorn Hour and now I received the second pre-order invitation which I have no use for.

If anybody is interested in ordering one I will give you the login details. Just send me a PM.