Does anyone here use Emby on an SmartTV running Android?

[lulzyatlas 20]

Just a general inquiry for the board, with literal Android TVs rolling out I'm wondering if anyone has successfully loaded Emby on one, and how it performs with the various resolutions and contents.

 

Not Android TV boxes or plugins, but the Smart TV's running Android TV as their smart interface, I imagine not being a dedicated streaming device could slack on certain media processing hardware, yet at the same time being built into a TV could offer some perks of its own.

 

So is there anyone in the crowd running this kind of setup yet?

[ebr 14913]

I know we have at least one person in the Beta group that runs the ATV app on a Sony TV.

 

I don't recall him making any specific comments about performance and I know he also has a NP so it would be great to get a comparison there.  I imagine performance is on par with a current gen Fire TV and must be better than the FTV Stick (which does not perform that well) but hopefully some folks will chime in with actual experience.

 

@@raven-au

[Heuer 76]

They are not many TV's running Android. Phillips have given up on TV's as they think the future lies with dental hygiene which leaves Sony and Sharp and their implementations are still "planned":

 

 

[ebr 14913]

No they aren't.

 

The current crop of Sony TVs have Android TV in them.  We have at least one user with one and I was looking at one in BB just yesterday.

[Steven Giles 4]

I have a Sony TV running emby. I had to go on the beta version so it would direct stream other then that I havnt had many problems. A couple of times it has started playing sound with no video but a TV restart fixes that. Its in the bedroom so only use the built in speakers so no 5.1 or anything I highly recommend. I'm even thinking of getting rid of htpc and getting one for the lounge.

Edited September 25, 2015 by Steven Giles

[raven-au 17]

Yes, I have a Sony KD-55X8500C with Android TV at version 5.1.1.

 

I have to say the Android TV Lollipop really makes the Android 4.x (MINIX NEO X8-H Plus) box I have look a bit sick in terms of application usability and presentation. The sacrifice is a lot less apps certified as Android TV compatible in the play store, but then, after the X8-H Plus experience I don't want'em.

 

I'm currently using Kodi 15.<something>, <something> being that it can't decide what version it is when you look at the app, system info. says 15.1 and startup says 15.2. But Kodi does work well, and it does on the Nexus also.

 

In terms of performance I can't help but think the Sony is faster than the Nexus Player by a good margin, the Emby for Kodi plugin seems to do a full sync quicker on the TV.

 

In terms of playing things I think the Sony has more hardware decoder support than the Nexus too, as you'd expect as the TV broadcasts are MPEG-2 here so I believe it has hardware decoding for that.

 

The Emby for Android TV app has really good features and I very much like the design but struggles a bit, as ebr says, LibVLC appears to be a bit immature on Android TV 5.x. Consequently, with quite a bit of my SD content I get sound but no video. But then I get the same on the Nexus too, so it isn't the TV.

 

It plays 1080p content effortlessly, as does the Nexus.

Both have 5Ghz ac WiFi, I think both are up to 867 mbit (so 2x2 ac) and thankfully it works well on both devices.

 

The other thing that people are sensitive to is multi-channel audio pass-thru via HDMI ARC or optical (since we're really only talking Dolby Digital and DTS).

 

That was quite an annoying limitation of the initial firmware (can't remember now, perhaps 5.0), it's much improved in the 5.1.1 release but is still broken.

 

For example Play Movies and TV, Emby for Android TV and the Plex client cannot send multi-channel audio to my receiver, only Netflix and Kodi do this OK, at least that's my experience.

 

I believe there will be a further update but Google is slow (to accept that changes are needed ) and Sony is slow to release updates, again IMO.

 

It's not surprising though as TV manufactures have been poor at pass-thru (and have tried to pretend it isn't needed) for a long time anyway. It has improved a lot though fairly recently, last 12 to 18 months.

 

But the Nexus box isn't a lot better with pass-thru either but it's connected differently (in my case Nexus - AMP - TV) so I expect it to behave differently. The recent Nexus update to 5.1.1 brought Dolby Digital pass-thru but it passes DTS as multi-channel which results in poor audio. I believe it's because the DTS sound field processing isn't being done (even though DTS decoding is supposed to just decompress the audio) because, as with a receiver in pure direct mode, the volume level is way lower indicating that enhanced sound processing isn't being done.

 

So that probably doesn't really answer your question and there's more I could say too, it's more of a rant about my current thoughts on the devices I have, 

Edited September 25, 2015 by raven-au

[raven-au 17]

Not Android TV boxes or plugins, but the Smart TV's running Android TV as their smart interface, I imagine not being a dedicated streaming device could slack on certain media processing hardware, yet at the same time being built into a TV could offer some perks of its own.

 

Yes, being a TV does bring extra functionality on the home screen.

 

The Sony is unmistakably Android TV, no question about that, and there are some extras to support the TV function.

 

For example, the home screen has the expected flyout of suggestions like the Nexus, below that is a flyout of recommended apps, next is a flyout of connected devices (including live TV) which can be selected (not sure how non-cec devices would go with this) for use, following that is the apps flyout as on the Nexus except on the Sony it has two rows instead of the one row on the Nexus. Below all that is a thing called game hub and below that is the settings icon.

 

Here in Australia the catchup TV apps aren't actually available for Android TV but they are present on the Sony and are integrated well with the TV function, and do work. Unfortunately the TV providers here in Australia appear to think no-one uses HD and the catchup TV is quite poor quality.

 

There are some expected TV functions that aren't there (I believe Sony is working to provide them in updates but who knows) like PIP and timeshift.

 

One thing I really like is Sony have implemented the shifting of most recently used apps to the left of the apps bars so the things you use most are always close to the left side of the flyout. Can't understand why Google are resisting adding that feature to Android TV.....

 

Being a Sony, receiver control (you get usual HDMI-CEC integration with non-Sony devices, of course) is only available via the Android TV menus for selected Sony receivers (quite a few really) and that works well, and I like it a lot.

 

What else is there ...... nothing comes to mind ... sure I've missed something ....

[CBers 6771]

What else is there ...... nothing comes to mind ... sure I've missed something ....

Screenshots?

[ebr 14913]

Thanks raven for the thoughts.  Sounds very promising and I'm glad to hear that the TV has at least as good of a processor as the dedicated boxes.

[raven-au 17]

Screenshots?

 

TBH I find getting screen shots a hassle so what specifically would you like to see?

 

I also have quite a bit of trouble getting access to the Sony as it's the family TV, and we have children in the house, and it's school holidays.

 

It may not have been clear in what I wrote but one key point of what I was saying is that Android TV version 5 is far superior to what I've seen of version 4. But I haven't seen many of these devices, really only the MINIX box I initially got to check out Android on a TV, and later the Nexus box.

 

What's really funny is that I actually got the TV based on what I saw on the MINIX box but then got the Nexus because I liked the Sony Android TV v5 implementation so much compared to the MINIX, in spite of the pass-thru difficulties, 

 

That might not apply to all vendor implementations but it certainly does apply to the current Sony Android TVs and that interface can be easily seen on inexpensive devices, the Nexus being the easiest to get and least expensive (AFAICS).

 

Ian

[raven-au 17]

Thanks raven for the thoughts.  Sounds very promising and I'm glad to hear that the TV has at least as good of a processor as the dedicated boxes.

 

It's probably worth keeping in mind that different models may have different processors.

My TV is mid-range in the models, and perhaps a little towards the low end (I think there's only one model below it) so the larger screen models could likely have somewhat faster CPUs, not that it would make a difference to what I need as it works fine.

 

I would need to do more testing on recorded TV (MPEG-2 decoding) if that becomes important to the OP.

[raven-au 17]

That was quite an annoying limitation of the initial firmware (can't remember now, perhaps 5.0), it's much improved in the 5.1.1 release but is still broken.

 

For example Play Movies and TV, Emby for Android TV and the Plex client cannot send multi-channel audio to my receiver, only Netflix and Kodi do this OK, at least that's my experience.

 

Umm ... I've found this is accurate.

 

DD 5.1 is passed through via  Emby for Android TV (don't know about Plex) and DTS is sent as stereo in contrast to the multi-channel of the Nexus.

Play Movies and TV does send it's DD 5.1 out as stereo but there are so few shows with 5.1 it's not a big deal.

 

I don't use the DLNA player so don't test it.

 

Ian

[CBers 6771]

Umm ... I've found this is accurate.

 

DD 5.1 is passed through via Emby for Android TV (don't know about Plex) and DTS is sent as stereo in contrast to the multi-channel of the Nexus.

Play Movies and TV does send it's DD 5.1 out as stereo but there are so few shows with 5.1 it's not a big deal.

 

I don't use the DLNA player so don't test it.

 

Ian

Looks like it's an issue with VLC, as I don't get DD pass-through from my NP to my Sonos, whereas everything else does, including Kodi.

 

Will sideload Netflix and test.

[reluctantflux 38]

I use Emby on my Sony Android TV.  @@ebr has done a fantastic job on the app.  There's still some work to be done regarding direct play, but that's due to VLC, not anything he's done.  When bitrates are low enough, it direct plays just fine.  It really only stutters on direct play of uncompressed Blu-ray rips, which again, is due to VLC and the processor, not anything to do with the app.  And to be honest, Plex has trouble playing the same files, it just might stutter at the super fast changing scenes, whereas Emby will at fast scenes.  The transcoding on the server side is fantastic, so there's very little quality loss that average and above average users would really notice.  I'm super finicky so that's why I notice it, but even if you had to transcode everything, it's an amazing app.

 

The layout is fantastic,and I love the inclusion of the poster wall.  I've been going back and forth between Emby and Plex, and while I'm a sucker for the cool transitions between screens that Plex uses, Emby provides much more relevant content for me, with quicker access to what I want to watch.  Also, I much prefer the time jumps of Emby instead of the ff/rw of Plex in the play bar.  Also, the chapters from the play bar is much better, and always populated in Emby, whereas Plex, I get a bunch of grey boxes, and only on certain movies, and no tv shows.

 

Both start playing the shows just as fast as each other.  

 

Another bonus?  Emby has live TV!  I'm still using Kodi+Emby for live tv, but honestly, I'm cutting cable this month, so it'll just be for over the air transmissions.  I'll probably go straight Emby once I make that transition.

 

Bottom line: Emby on Sony TV's is great, but there are some limitations due to the hardware, but not enough to really be noticeable, unless you're a hardcore uncompressed direct play person..

Edited September 29, 2015 by reluctantflux

[MrWebsmith 598]

thanks for postign this... im looking at possibly upgrading our bedroom tv to this

 

http://www.sony.com/electronics/televisions/xbr-x830c-series

 

 

43 in is a good size for the room.. 4k/android tv w emby app (or kodi if needed)... i think itd be a nice choice over my older sony and the firetv i have in that room now

[MrWebsmith 598]

...and i broke (HA!) down and did it... had some giftcards and a rewardzone cert..so i went to BB today..

 

so far.. AWESOME.. setting up all the apps and everything.. amazon/youtube.. of course.. emby/kodi/etc

 

 

watched a couple of 720p mkv tv shows and it direct played them with zero issue... ill push on it harder later.. 

 

 

this thing can also stream "ps3" games from some new playstation now service.. so if i decide to check that out i need to get a dualshock pad and pair it to the tv... what??... lol

[spencerisadog 4]

For future reference, I also have a new Sony Bravia running Android. Emby works well. My only problem so far seems to be that when I delete last recorded TV show the screen goes black and I have to wait about five minutes then reload the app. Other than that, I love Emby!! It's replaced Plex.

[ebr 14913]

For future reference, I also have a new Sony Bravia running Android. Emby works well. My only problem so far seems to be that when I delete last recorded TV show the screen goes black and I have to wait about five minutes then reload the app. Other than that, I love Emby!! It's replaced Plex.

 

That sounds like a bug that needs to be addressed.

 

To be sure I understand - this is after deleting the very last recorded TV item you have?  Or just the last one within a group or what?

[spencerisadog 4]

That sounds like a bug that needs to be addressed.

 

To be sure I understand - this is after deleting the very last recorded TV item you have?  Or just the last one within a group or what?

 

The very last one.  For example:  Just to test the LiveTV schedule recording I opened up the guide and just clicked record on whatever happened to be on, I chose two programs.  I waited about five minutes and went to the Recorded TV shows.  Wheel of Fortune and Dr. Phil were both sitting there, looking all pretty with their appropriate Metadata just waiting to be watched.  I clicked on Dr. Phil and pressed play, it did.  I stopped it and chose the Trash icon, it prompted me if I was sure and I said yes.  Then I went to Wheel of Fortune, did the same, trashed, prompted, Yes then my screen went black.  I was able to get back to the menu and scrolled down to launch Emby again.  This time, my screen went black, but it was like, active black, if that makes any sense?  My screen was not OFF, but it was BLACK.  I don't really know how else to explain it.  It did that for about ten seconds then it did finally revert to what I would consider OFF.  Still nothing, I tried hitting back a bunch.  Then I just kind of waited for a bit and watched something else for a few minutes.  Went back to the menu, launched Emby and it just came right back up to the main screen just like it does when you regularly launch it for the first time.  I could try and reproduce it and provide you some type of log if you want to direct me on how to provide you such things?

[ebr 14913]

Were both items actively recording at the time?

 

The black screen thing was a crash and, once that happens, you have to force-stop the app using the devices settings or you just return to the crashed app when you re-enter it.  I've tried every technique I can find to make the app force-stop itself in those situations but none of them have worked reliably.

[spencerisadog 4]

I figured out the force stop thing through the TV.  It's highly likely that they were both recording at the time.  I was just playing around with recording to see if it worked so I didn't have vested interest in actually watching them.  For what it's worth, we watched several shows this evening and deleted them all with no problems.  Although, none were the last thing we had recorded.

[MrWebsmith 598]

anyone else NOT getting the Google "live tv channels" app when they instill the HDhomerun app... this is the only ATV device i have out of 3 that doesnt get that app "along with" the hdhr3 prime's app...

 

 

sorry not clear enough maybe.. this is on the new Sony tv's with the ATV platform built-in  sony x830c in my case.

Edited October 28, 2015 by MrWebsmith

[spencerisadog 4]

I'm not sure I follow.  I have live TV if I press Guide on my remote, it brings up the channels, then it automatically tunes the HDHomeRun.  I have, however, noticed that I no longer have "Live TV" on my Emby dashboard, is that what you mean?

[MrWebsmith 598]

ok so my setup..

 

hdhr prime tuner is in the basement on the network.. tv is upstairs ONLY connected to network.. no cable box or coax at all.. 

 

i dl'ed the HD VIEW app from the store.. it works i can watch live tv...though i havent tried the guide remote button..(will do, thanks!)...  on my other android tv devices (nexus player, nvidia shield tv) when you do that you get the google-built app called "live channels"... automatically installed along with the HDHR View one... or it somehow enables it...   

 

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.tv&hl=en

 

anyway.. i dont get that app on my sony tv, nor can it find it searching the store.... on my other devices the google app plays a bit better/smoother and the UI is nicer, personal opinion..

 

 

i was just wondering if others with these tv's knew anything about this app 

 

 

i may have to try to sideload it or something

[ebr 14913]

I guess maybe it isn't compatible with that device or version of the OS.

 

Yes, I find the Live Channels app works better than the HDHR one too - not to mention that the HDHR app was obviously written by some command-line junky channeling his old DOS days.  I haven't seen a start-up screen like that since 1988 .