deuce9498 6 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 I've been interested in getting an android set top for quite awhile to replace my roku3 because it'd be more flexible for customization. But so many devices on the market with mixed reviews I haven't wanted to mess with one. Another Android TV device is finally going to ship How does this hardware compare to android set top devices that are already available? Should Emby just work? Android 5.0, Lollipop Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 805 Quad-Core Krait 450 CPU - 2.5GHz per core Adreno™ 420 GPU 2GB RAM 16GB of Storage Bluetooth 4.1 + HS Wireless 802.11ac 2X2 Gigabit Ethernet HDMI 1.4 output USB 3.0 DC Power 105mm X 105mm X 17mm TV with HDMI input HDMI cable Internet connectivity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14913 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 Yes, Emby should just work. Since no one has seen the hardware yet, we're not sure if it will be any better or worse than the other options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reluctantflux 38 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 (edited) Just a few things of note. The Razer Forge hasn't specified what kind of content it can natively play. As whatever Android TV box I get will be my new main tv consumption device, I need something more appliance like than a real HTPC. I also need it to play blu-ray rips with HD audio tracks, and I'm just not sure the Razer Forge can handle that. The Nvidia Shield Android TV, on the other hand, can handle both 4k content and specifically mentions handling 7.1 HD audio streams. The Forge doesn't come with a remote. The Shield comes with a remote that has an audio jack to plug headphones into for late night listening like the Roku has. (Bye bye stupid inconsistent bluetooth audio headset I've been using). The Shield is expected to cost $200, where the Forge is $100 ($150 with controller). It's up to you to decide if you think the extra cost is worth it. For me, it is. I think both are great devices, I just think the Forge should have come out 5 months ago if it wanted to clean up the market in sales. The Shield is due to be released in May, but no firm date has been made, so there's that, too. Great thing about Emby is that no matter the hardware, if there's an app for it, Emby should work no problem, it just might have to transcode the media in order to play it. Edited April 24, 2015 by reluctantflux Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reluctantflux 38 Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 (edited) For comparison, here's the Shield specs. One other big thing for me is that the Shield has IR, so I can keep the device hidden from view, and still use my universal remote. I'll still keep the Shield remote around, too, as it is bluetooth connected (no line of site needed), voice search, and has headphone capabilities. I prefer that over having to use my phone and open an app like the Forge. I know I'm touting the Shield highly, and I was super excited for the Forge when it was first announced as well, but with both devices being released in the same month, I think the Shield is a much better device, despite the price increase, and I just want everyone here to be able to make an informed decision on their own. One big win on the Forge side, is that it's game streaming from a home PC is hardware agnostic, whereas the Shield requires you to have an Nvidia card. I hope that changes, but I've played PC games in the living room, and I prefer playing them at a desk, so that isn't a feature I'll use a lot. Processor NVIDIA® Tegra® X1 processor256-core Maxwell™ GPU with 3GB RAM Video Features 4K Ultra HD ready4K playback at 60 FPS (VP9, H265, H264)4K capture at 30 FPS (H264, H265) Audio 7.1 and 5.1 surround sound pass through over HDMIHigh-resolution audio playback up to 24-bit/192 kHz over HDMI and USBHigh-resolution audio up-sample to 24-bit/192 kHz over USB Storage 16 GB (Note: portion of storage occupied by system software) Wireless 802.11ac 2x2 MIMO 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz Wi-FiBluetooth 4.1/BLE Interfaces Gigabit EthernetHDMI 2.0Two USB 3.0 (Type A)Micro-USB 2.0MicroSD slotIR Receiver (compatible with Logitech Harmony) Weight and Size Weight: 23 oz / 654 gHeight: 5.1 in / 130 mmWidth: 8.3 in / 210 mmDepth: 1.0 in / 25 mm Operating System Android TV™, Google Cast™ Ready ETA: As much as a jerk move as it would be, if Nvidia is really going to release the Shield in May, it'd be the smart move for them to announce a hard release date, even if it is May 31st, so that people in the market for an Android TV don't purchase the Forge and be removed from the market pool. The fact that they haven't gives me concern that the Shield might not be as ready to ship as they would like you to believe. Edited April 24, 2015 by reluctantflux Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 I dont really mind purchasing both, as a cheaper ForgeTV for our downstairs playroom might be nice for multiplayer / multicontroller Android gaming with my kids, but I certainly would also want that unit to be able to play all of my Emby served Blu Ray rips without transcoding. Not the end of the world if it does transcode, but since there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel with respect to having both Silicondusts HDHR DVR *and* Emby server running on my Synology nas at the same time, adding the overhead of transcoding to that might be a little much. What spec do we need to know from the ForgeTV to know whether it will need transcoding to play BD MKV rips? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14913 Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 What spec do we need to know from the ForgeTV to know whether it will need transcoding to play BD MKV rips? Well first, that is way too broad of a definition. A "BD MKV rip" could contain almost anything. Transcoding will depend on the actual video (assuming h.264 here) and audio codecs and bitrates involved. But, also, until we have some hardware in hand, we probably won't really know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 Sorry, yes most likely h.264 and DTS MA with a bit of TrueHD / Atmos... basically whatever ends up being natively on the majority of BD releases. I do full rips with no re-encoding to another format. Just putting whatever was there into an MKV container. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 I have one of these, it works with Emby. Downloaded the android TV app and haven't had an issue yet. Just I wish there were more poster layouts options Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deuce9498 6 Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 If you have a Razer Forge TV box, what remote are you using with it? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 If you have a Razer Forge TV box, what remote are you using with it? Thanks. I use my phone mostly as it pairs up and works fairly well for both the keyboard and navigation. This works for voice input as well. Sometimes I use this guy when that doesn't work. http://www.ebay.com/itm/iClever-IS11-BT05-Mini-Wireless-Bluetooth-Keyboard-Handheld-with-Mouse-Touchpad-/321465599580 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Is it natively playing your rips? What are they (MKV with h.264 or VC-1, or something else?) --- Is it passing through all HD audio codecs as a bitstream? TrueHD (and Atmos) and DTS MA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Is it natively playing your rips? What are they (MKV with h.264 or VC-1, or something else?) --- Is it passing through all HD audio codecs as a bitstream? TrueHD (and Atmos) and DTS MA? It is direct streaming most of my MKVs that are H264, DTS however it seems to transcode. Not sure what the issue is there, device profile issue or device itself not sure. I'm using KODI as my main client though so it seems to play everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Thanks. Have you also tried playback through just the EMby Android TV app? This is what I want to use and what I want to avoid transcoding h.264 and HD audio with (when set to bitstream). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 (edited) No that was through the android TV app. I just play through the android TV app and look to see if it says direct stream or not from the server. KODI seems to play everything directly, which I would expect. Edited May 12, 2015 by archangelz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Was it only DTS that transcoded, or Dolby TrueHD as well? And just to verify, you had the Forge set to bitstream the audio out, not decode? Ebr - Any idea why the Android TV app would transcode DTS instead of direct? Does that mean that the hardware is not reporting to the Android TV app that it can playback that data natively? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14913 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Can someone with one of these boxes please connect to their server with it and then go to your server program directory and under data\devices search for the most recently modified device.json file and post it here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Can someone with one of these boxes please connect to their server with it and then go to your server program directory and under data\devices search for the most recently modified device.json file and post it here? Will do, I'll drop the logs here when I get home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blauter78 4 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 I am very curious to know how it handles mpeg2 de-interlacing on 1080i streams for live TV, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Mpeg 2 covered a good bit over in this thread.... https://www.silicondust.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=89&t=19810 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blauter78 4 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Mpeg 2 covered a good bit over in this thread.... https://www.silicondust.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=89&t=19810 Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangelz 13 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 (edited) Here you go. Razer TV devices.json. Had to rename because of issues uploading. Looks like AC3 and Dolby passthrough do not work. Booo!! XDA is reporting the same thing. Looks like I may be buying a new device sooner rather than later or wait and hope Razer is smart enough to add support device.txt Edited May 13, 2015 by archangelz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hifiaudio2 47 Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 That is really unfortunate. I guess its up to Nvidia now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now