Which Ethernet streaming device in 2024?

[madblam 0]

Hi Everyone,

I’m planning to move my media library to a Synology NAS soon.

However, my LG OLED TV only has a 100Mbps Ethernet port, and the Wi-Fi signal in this room is not strong enough to handle 4K HDR movies efficiently.

I've tried several USB to Ethernet adapters, but none have worked. As a result, I'm considering adding a dedicated Ethernet streaming device, but I’m unfamiliar with the options available.

What would be the best hardware for this purpose at the moment? Please note that I only use Emby on this TV (no live TV, Netflix, etc.).

Thank you for your help!

 

 

[RanmaCanada 422]

Wait. Switch 2 is coming, and it's highly probable that Nvidia will release an updated Shield. It is still arguably the best device as the Amazon Firecube V3 is only 100mbit and other boxes have weird support.

 

[skank 83]

Anyone experience with the nokia streaming box?

Its rival to the shield, yet very unknown, but cheaper than the shield..

It would do passthrough too....

So maybe thats one....

[skank 83]

Or what about apple tv?

[RanmaCanada 422]

19 hours ago, skank said:

Or what about apple tv?

Head over to the Apple TV section and see just how much users hate it as HDR and DV still do not function, and subtitles are a pain.

Emby should do what Jellyfin did and just abandon the Apple TV as it's a horrible device for playing back your own media.

[skank 83]

1 hour ago, RanmaCanada said:

Head over to the Apple TV section and see just how much users hate it as HDR and DV still do not function, and subtitles are a pain.

Emby should do what Jellyfin did and just abandon the Apple TV as it's a horrible device for playing back your own media.

ok clear

 

Then only options left:

- shield tube? dated and quite expensive

- amazon fire tv 4k max

- nokia streaming box (no experience with)

 

Its so hard

[skank 83]

I just read that the new google tv streamer DOES passthrough when using kodi, vlc and nova player...

What about emby?

Can someone confirm?

This is the article:

Update 26-09: There was initially some confusion about the supported audio formats. It appeared that although passthrough for TrueHD and DTS

 

was not supported, the Streamer could decode them and output them as PCM. This turns out not to be the case. Yes, apps like Kodi, VLC, and Nova Player can process TrueHD audio, but they do so using their own internal decoders, not those of Android itself. If you use one of those apps, you can practically play video files with high-res audio. After extensive testing, we can confirm that the Streamer supports passthrough for the following formats: Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Atmos, DTS, and DTS-HD HR.

Why toggles for TrueHD and DTS-HD are visible in the software is unclear to us. It seems to be a bug. At the API level, the Streamer indicates to apps that there is support for TrueHD and DTS-HD, even though that is not the case. We have contacted Google about this, and the company says these will be removed in a future update to avoid confusion.

 

 

[ebr 15435]

5 hours ago, skank said:

I just read that the new google tv streamer DOES passthrough when using kodi, vlc and nova player..

Hi.  That's not what that article snippet you posted says...

5 hours ago, skank said:

It seems to be a bug. At the API level, the Streamer indicates to apps that there is support for TrueHD and DTS-HD, even though that is not the case.

 

5 hours ago, skank said:

Yes, apps like Kodi, VLC, and Nova Player can process TrueHD audio, but they do so using their own internal decoders, not those of Android itself

They are decoding - not passing thru.

[skank 83]

4 hours ago, ebr said:

Hi.  That's not what that article snippet you posted says...

 

They are decoding - not passing thru.

Yeah i meant that for example using the google tv streamer.. emby is able to decode on it.. so we get hd audio on the google streamer.

Right?

IT should be possible?

[RanmaCanada 422]

The problem is the Shield is the last device that was designed with home theatre in mind. All current devices are designed for streaming and the codecs that are used for streaming. Corners have been cut so that they can bring down costs while only using hardware that supports their limited choice of codecs. It might be best to wait for a possible Shield II, or compromise. The other option would be to use your PC with an Nvidia graphics card. I have tried to find a chart like this for AMD and Intel, but I have been unable to. I did find a discussion on the Intel forums though stating that DTS:X does work with UHD 630 and beyond integrated graphics.

[Jdiesel 1242]

The new Emby Theatre beta looks promising. I was running it on a i5 8500 mini PC without issue.

[ebr 15435]

On 9/29/2024 at 5:12 AM, skank said:

It seems to be a bug. At the API level, the Streamer indicates to apps that there is support for TrueHD and DTS-HD, even though that is not the case.

I picked up one of the new Google streamers for testing and confirmed this issue. It reports support for those HD codecs but does not support them (I get hissing on the TV).  With the TV app you can de-select the options to allow passthru on them to solve this.

[skank 83]

17 hours ago, ebr said:

I picked up one of the new Google streamers for testing and confirmed this issue. It reports support for those HD codecs but does not support them (I get hissing on the TV).  With the TV app you can de-select the options to allow passthru on them to solve this.

Oh perfect you have one.

 

Can you confirm passthrough using emby app on it? Dts-HD, dts-x, atmos... Truehd...

Would thank you a lot !

 

Options for me:

- Fire cube 4k (3d gen)
- Nokia streaming 8010
- google tv streamer.
- amazon fire stick 4k max
- shield tube

Which one should i get?
Its really hard for me cause i never own a fire cube, or amazon or nokia.
Its not for me but for someone i know, i dont want hassle... so it should just work
70% for netflix 30% for own movies.

 

Edited October 1, 2024 by skank

[Jdiesel 1242]

If you want passthrough of all the HD audio formats the only options are the Shield TV, something running Kodi, or a PC running Emby Theatre. All the new streaming devices are targeting streaming services and not BluRay rips. The best you will get is Dolby Digital Plus with Atmos.

 

Since you mentioned Netflix, your options are really only the Shield TV as the other options are really practical with Netflix and have their drawbacks.

 

Also the Shield TV Tube isn't recommended over the Pro version due to the lack of Ram.

Edited October 1, 2024 by Jdiesel

[skank 83]

But the shield doesnt do DV right?

Everything works using emby on shield?

[Jdiesel 1242]

9 minutes ago, skank said:

But the shield doesnt do DV right?

Everything works using emby on shield?

I believe that is true. My projector doesn't support DV so I can't confirm. There is no perfect player that does every and supports Netflix and other Streaming services that I know off. If you rate what you need in order of importance we might be able to provide the best option.

DV Profile 7

HD audio pass through (DTS:X, True HD Atmos)

Netflix (1080p+)

Native Emby App/experience 

Remote Control interface 

[Jdiesel 1242]

You may have already seen this during your research, while 10 months old now, is still a good representation on the current situation

 

 

[skank 83]

Im not sure if my benq w2700 supports DV

But i have a few titles that are DV and when i watch on my other projector, i get ugly green colors using vero 4k

So not sure about the new benq

 

So important:

- Netflix HD and audio passthrough (true hd atmos, dts-hd)

 

[ebr 15435]

5 hours ago, skank said:

Can you confirm passthrough using emby app on it? Dts-HD, dts-x, atmos... Truehd...

Hi.  That's what I just posted about...

23 hours ago, ebr said:

I picked up one of the new Google streamers for testing and confirmed this issue. It reports support for those HD codecs but does not support them (I get hissing on the TV).  With the TV app you can de-select the options to allow passthru on them to solve this.

 

[skank 83]

9 hours ago, ebr said:

Hi.  That's what I just posted about...

 

Yeah but at your last sentence you say it allows passthrough.. so it works?

You get losless dts-hd , losless truehd etc etc on your receiver..

 

[ebr 15435]

7 hours ago, skank said:

Yeah but at your last sentence you say it allows passthrough

Sorry, no, I said you need to disable the options in the app to allow passthru on those codecs.

On 9/30/2024 at 5:39 PM, ebr said:

With the TV app you can de-select the options to allow passthru on them to solve this.

 

[skank 83]

Ok i'm sorry then if i keep misunderstanding you...

Questions remains , does it play Dts-HD, dts-x, atmos... Truehd...  when using emby app on the device.

You have the device, so maybe its easy to tell?

 

[Jdiesel 1242]

2 hours ago, skank said:

Ok i'm sorry then if i keep misunderstanding you...

Questions remains , does it play Dts-HD, dts-x, atmos... Truehd...  when using emby app on the device.

You have the device, so maybe its easy to tell?

 

The Google Streamer does not support bitstreaming (passthrough) of DTX-HD, DTS:X, True HD Atmos but will convert those formats into 7.1 LPCM audio instead. You must disable those formats in the settings until Google releases an update that fixes this bug in the current release firmware. In short, yes it plays those formats, no your audio receiver won't light up showing those formats but will show LPCM instead, and TrueHD Atmos and DTS:X meta data will get stripped and be treated as TrueHd or DTS-MA.

This comes down to a licensing decision on the Google's part. Those formats only exist on Blurays and these devices are not made with the goal to playback bluray rips. They are made with the intention of playing back Netflix, Prime, Apple TV, etc all of which only support DD+. The Shield TV is the exception to this, which when you consider the licensing fees, may factor into the reason for the higher cost. This is why after 8 years the Shield TV is still the most popular device for home theatre enthusiasts, it's unlikely that we will see another streaming box release, other than by Nvidia, that does this all.

Edited October 2, 2024 by Jdiesel

[ebr 15435]

1 minute ago, Jdiesel said:

but will convert those formats into 7.1 LPCM audio instead

I haven't tested connected to a receiver yet but, connected to my TV, sending DTS results in hissing instead of audio.  You have to de-select the options in the app to get audio.

[skank 83]

ok think i will go shield way then