Best "Device" for Emby Client for a 4k TV

[Dizzy49 99]

I'm looking for more open ideas.  A know the Nvidia Shield is great, but I'm not buying 5yr old tech, and we will never see another one, they have gone 100% AI at this point. </rant>

Backstory:  I have multiple large TV across my house and my parent's house.  All 4k, all but on support HDR (not DV, but I wouldn't mind getting a DV later).
Both my house and my parent's have a nice stereo setup, I can do 7.2.2 Atmos, they can do 5.1 (just short of Atmos).

I've been using Amazon Fire devices for a while, but the last few have not been great.  I have the lates Firecube and I've had all kinds of lag/sync issues to the point where you have to restart the movie a dozen times b/c it gets so bad it is unwatchable.  My understanding is that this is due to a technical limitation within the hardware itself, and that the Google devices also have a similar issue.

So, what options are there outside of Amazon that will play damn near any format video and pass through audio (or decode)?  My big caveat is that it has to have a remote.  I admit that I love the Amazon because I can say "Alexa TV ON" and it turns on the TV, speakers, and Fire and sets all the inputs.  I can even tell it to switch to PS5 and it turns the PS5 on and changes the audio/video inputs.

I considered a miniPC since you can find decent ones for under $200, and the Amazon Firecube was like $140, BUT no remote.  It doesn't need to be Android, I just need it to work reliably.

Thoughts?

[vincen 71]

Hi

 

Unhappy your options are quite limited with Emby. I have always advised to use a NUC or SBC as player attached at a TV. Unhappy Emby having no working client for Linux, it's impossible to do so far. Out of connection a NUC running Windows with all its usual nightmare to do that, I don't see much options  You can use a basic Android stick like the Xiaomi ones that work not bad with Android Emby player (and they have a physical remote !).

 

Vincèn

[ebr 16169]

7 hours ago, Dizzy49 said:

but I'm not buying 5yr old tech

Not getting the best tool for the job based on that seems short-sighted to me.  Why does it matter?  The tech in my wrenches is centuries old but they are still the best for certain tasks.

[Kyrunner 86]

9 hours ago, Dizzy49 said:

I'm looking for more open ideas.  A know the Nvidia Shield is great, but I'm not buying 5yr old tech, and we will never see another one, they have gone 100% AI at this point. </rant>

Backstory:  I have multiple large TV across my house and my parent's house.  All 4k, all but on support HDR (not DV, but I wouldn't mind getting a DV later).
Both my house and my parent's have a nice stereo setup, I can do 7.2.2 Atmos, they can do 5.1 (just short of Atmos).

I've been using Amazon Fire devices for a while, but the last few have not been great.  I have the lates Firecube and I've had all kinds of lag/sync issues to the point where you have to restart the movie a dozen times b/c it gets so bad it is unwatchable.  My understanding is that this is due to a technical limitation within the hardware itself, and that the Google devices also have a similar issue.

So, what options are there outside of Amazon that will play damn near any format video and pass through audio (or decode)?  My big caveat is that it has to have a remote.  I admit that I love the Amazon because I can say "Alexa TV ON" and it turns on the TV, speakers, and Fire and sets all the inputs.  I can even tell it to switch to PS5 and it turns the PS5 on and changes the audio/video inputs.

I considered a miniPC since you can find decent ones for under $200, and the Amazon Firecube was like $140, BUT no remote.  It doesn't need to be Android, I just need it to work reliably.

Thoughts?

Here are your three options for the best home theater experience:

Ugoos AMB6+ with CoreELEC and CPM A14 using Emby for Kodi (Next Gen)
This is hands down the best setup—period. No debate. It supports full Dolby Vision FEL and full audio passthrough, making it the ultimate choice for high-quality playback of 4K Blu-ray remuxes.

NVIDIA Shield
This setup will get you about 90% of the way there. However, it does not support Dolby Vision FEL. Any 4K remux with Dolby Vision Profile 7.6 will fall back to Profile 8.1, which is essentially the same as the streaming-quality Dolby Vision you see on services like Netflix.

Apple TV 4K with Infuse
Similar to the NVIDIA Shield, it has the same limitation regarding Dolby Vision (no FEL support) and also does not support full audio passthrough.

Why this matters:

The main issue is that many people don’t fully understand why home enthusiasts use Emby, Plex, or Jellyfin. They’re trying to replicate a Netflix-like experience using built-in TV apps, Amazon Fire devices, or Roku. These devices work fine for streaming services but struggle with large 4K MKV files (e.g., 100 Mbps Blu-ray remuxes).

For true home theater quality—full Dolby Vision FEL and lossless audio—the Ugoos AMB6+ with CoreELEC and Emby for Kodi is unmatched.

I would recommend a Google or ChatGPT search for FEL VS MEL.  

[vincen 71]

4 minutes ago, Kyrunner said:

Ugoos AMB6+

A device running Android 9 ? Seriously ? For the audio format in all matters it's the amplifier you use that'll decode it (the video player is transparent for that !).

[RanmaCanada 494]

I use a firecube myself and have none of the issues you claim to be having. Have you tried to hardwire them with the NIC kit? It honestly sounds like you might have a ton of interference in your household and that is what is causing your problems. If you have a standard android device, download wifi analyzer and check to see just how many access points are in your area.

A NUC with LibreElec will handle everything just fine. Install the Emby plugin and you're pretty much done, as long as you skip DV. The hardest part will be getting a remote, but you can probably get by with an airmouse.

Nothing is as powerful as a PC, and it's pretty sad that every single box that is available sucks, especially when it comes to rendering subtitles.

[Dizzy49 99]

16 hours ago, Kyrunner said:

Here are your three options for the best home theater experience:

Ugoos AMB6+ with CoreELEC and CPM A14 using Emby for Kodi (Next Gen)
This is hands down the best setup—period. No debate. It supports full Dolby Vision FEL and full audio passthrough, making it the ultimate choice for high-quality playback of 4K Blu-ray remuxes.

That's funny.  I started my home theater journey with Kodi many, Many, MANY years ago

[Dizzy49 99]

5 hours ago, RanmaCanada said:

I use a firecube myself and have none of the issues you claim to be having. Have you tried to hardwire them with the NIC kit? It honestly sounds like you might have a ton of interference in your household and that is what is causing your problems. If you have a standard android device, download wifi analyzer and check to see just how many access points are in your area.

A NUC with LibreElec will handle everything just fine. Install the Emby plugin and you're pretty much done, as long as you skip DV. The hardest part will be getting a remote, but you can probably get by with an airmouse.

The Firecube I have has a NIC built in.  It's only 100Mbps, which I can't understand why that would do that with a GB connector is like 3 cents more.  With a speed test I get 90Mbps wired, and 485Mbps wireless.  I have tried both Wired and Wireless and experienced the same issues.

I picked this MiniPc up on Black Friday for $140.  The problem is the wife factor.  If I'm home and set it up it's great, but the second I leave the house she tries to watch something and all hell breaks loose and I hear about it for MONTHS about what a waste of money everything was if she can't ever use it.

[vincen 71]

2 minutes ago, Dizzy49 said:

I picked this MiniPc up on Black Friday for $140.  The problem is the wife factor.  If I'm home and set it up it's great, but the second I leave the house she tries to watch something and all hell breaks loose and I hear about it for MONTHS about what a waste of money everything was if she can't ever use it.

Install Home-Assistant and makes the whole technical thing something easy to use out of emby part unhappy that can't be controlled in a reliable way

[Apotropaic 41]

I would suggest the Homatics Box R 4k Plus, it’s Google certified so has most of the streaming apps (Netflix, Disney+) available. Supports DV HDR formats (although I can’t test it) and all the audio formats including TrueHD Dolby Atmos pass through.

You’ll need to update it to Android 14 though.

[ALLSTAR1986 15]

Hi everyone I am currently using the Zidoo Z9X Pro so you can use emby yes, but I have to use the internal exoplayer to get 24p. When using the emby player the refresh rate stays at 60 Hz.

 

Since emby and Zidoo are always passing the buck back and forth, I'm fed up.

 

I asked Gemini and was told Homatics Box R 4K Plus or the copy dune r 4k plus.

 

Both are supposed to be the same in terms of hardware, just optically white/rose gold and black. Homatics is probably faster with the update, some users are said to have received ATV14 via ota, with Dune there is still no ATV14 only ATV12.

 

I only want to use the emby player and only need 4K HDR with 24p support, both should be able to do that.

The Dune has like Zidoo such a modified media player with media center possibly Kodi? I don't need that.

 

What bothers me most about the Homatics version is this rose gold, I could puke it looks ugly.

 

Which of the two is the better one for pure emby media consumption including all picture and sound formats?

 

Thanks in advance.

[ALLSTAR1986 15]

@Dizzy49

Forget an HTPC, Windows 11 can only do HDR10, so no HDR10+ and certainly not Dolby Vision. 

And I haven't found a 24p switch in the emby app yet. And this start animation of emby under Windows is incredibly annoying for about 5 seconds, you can't do anything and skipping doesn't help to get into emby faster.

 

You also can't use an external player, I recently started running MPC-HC incl madVR for testing, but as I said I only get static HDR10.

[ALLSTAR1986 15]

Hey @ebr, the Nvidia Shield can't do HDR10+, which I think is a knockout for people who can't use Dolby Vision.

 

I had also looked at it and the box was then of no interest to me.

[ebr 16169]

2 hours ago, ALLSTAR1986 said:

Hey @ebr, the Nvidia Shield can't do HDR10+

If it doesn't have a capability you need then that's fine.  My response was to someone not purchasing it just because it was x years old.  How old it is shouldn't matter as long as it supports what you need.

[Apotropaic 41]

6 hours ago, ALLSTAR1986 said:

Hi everyone I am currently using the Zidoo Z9X Pro so you can use emby yes, but I have to use the internal exoplayer to get 24p. When using the emby player the refresh rate stays at 60 Hz.

 

Since emby and Zidoo are always passing the buck back and forth, I'm fed up.

 

I asked Gemini and was told Homatics Box R 4K Plus or the copy dune r 4k plus.

 

Both are supposed to be the same in terms of hardware, just optically white/rose gold and black. Homatics is probably faster with the update, some users are said to have received ATV14 via ota, with Dune there is still no ATV14 only ATV12.

 

I only want to use the emby player and only need 4K HDR with 24p support, both should be able to do that.

The Dune has like Zidoo such a modified media player with media center possibly Kodi? I don't need that.

 

What bothers me most about the Homatics version is this rose gold, I could puke it looks ugly.

 

Which of the two is the better one for pure emby media consumption including all picture and sound formats?

 

Thanks in advance.

I could be wrong but they are the same device, just the Dune one allows you to install the Dune app but is then limited in the android firmware updates.

If you want to use emby then there’s no reason to go for the Dune version.

As for ATV14 if you look hard enough you can find the image to install yourself. ATV12 has a bug which affects PCM multichannel.

I have a 5.1.4 Atmos setup with a 120 inch projector screen, it’s fast and smooth enough for me, and has played whatever I’ve thrown at it.

I have mine behind a dark glass cabinet so all I see is the LED

[nodiaque 62]

8 hours ago, ALLSTAR1986 said:

@Dizzy49

Forget an HTPC, Windows 11 can only do HDR10, so no HDR10+ and certainly not Dolby Vision. 

And I haven't found a 24p switch in the emby app yet. And this start animation of emby under Windows is incredibly annoying for about 5 seconds, you can't do anything and skipping doesn't help to get into emby faster.

 

You also can't use an external player, I recently started running MPC-HC incl madVR for testing, but as I said I only get static HDR10.

Not true.

 

https://www.elevenforum.com/t/enable-or-disable-dolby-vision-hdr-mode-for-display-in-windows-11.36784/

 

You can enable Dolby Vision in Windows 11. I currently have a PC waiting for the TV to make it work. Using shark007 codec and MPC-BE customize for it, you can obtain DV quite easily. There's even post about it on people doing it on Windows 10

 

https://shark007.net/forum/Thread-Dolby-Vision-playback

One thing I remember is to install the Dolby Atmos and DTS Apps to get Dolby TrueHD Atmos and Dolby DTS HD-MA working in Windows 11. Wasn't needed in 10 but it is in 11.

In the tool menu of shark007, you got this:

https://shark007.net/tools.html

 

For me, the only problem is that Emby Theater is no more and the Emby Windows App (I hate windows app, why they moved to that shit...) doesn't allow external player. I loved Emby Theater, it was working properly with no hickup.

 

edit: Funny things is there's a lot of thread about Dolby Vision in Windows 11. Like being stuck on when you turn it off and reboot

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/3847307/windows-11-keeps-forcing-dolby-vision-every-time-i

 

Edited August 6, 2025 by nodiaque

[RanmaCanada 494]

On 03/08/2025 at 03:57, Dizzy49 said:

The Firecube I have has a NIC built in.  It's only 100Mbps, which I can't understand why that would do that with a GB connector is like 3 cents more.  With a speed test I get 90Mbps wired, and 485Mbps wireless.  I have tried both Wired and Wireless and experienced the same issues.

I picked this MiniPc up on Black Friday for $140.  The problem is the wife factor.  If I'm home and set it up it's great, but the second I leave the house she tries to watch something and all hell breaks loose and I hear about it for MONTHS about what a waste of money everything was if she can't ever use it.

With windows 112H2 Microsoft has added DV and HDR support into Windows 11. You could use Emby Theatre (Emby Windows APP) on a regular PC (like the one you bought). I've tested both Intel and Nvidia and both work with HDR and DV. My 3080 shows the TV as HDR, but plays DV content ok (tested with DV Profile 5, DV Profile 7 and DV Profile 8 videos.), while the Intel shows the TV as DV. I have not tested playback on the Intel system in Emby as it's my server, but it should be fine. I did check user sessions and there is no tone mapping, no transcoding, no nothing going on but DIRECT PLAY.

Edited August 6, 2025 by RanmaCanada

[nodiaque 62]

Where did you get emby theater? Cause I don't see it on the download page anymore, only the windows app

[Luke 42077]

1 hour ago, nodiaque said:

Where did you get emby theater? Cause I don't see it on the download page anymore, only the windows app

https://github.com/MediaBrowser/emby-theater-windows/releases

[RanmaCanada 494]

2 hours ago, nodiaque said:

Where did you get emby theater? Cause I don't see it on the download page anymore, only the windows app

Is the Windows App not just Emby Theatre moved over to app format? As that is what I am using, the Windows App. Emby Windows 2.234.2.0

[Luke 42077]

1 hour ago, RanmaCanada said:

Is the Windows App not just Emby Theatre moved over to app format? As that is what I am using, the Windows App. Emby Windows 2.234.2.0

Exactly. It is the same app, just that the external player feature hasn't been ported in yet.

[ALLSTAR1986 15]

@nodiaque

It may well be that Dolby Vision works but HDR10+ does not, and DV only works with NVIDIA RTX and AMD GPUs.

And there are probably problems with DV for some users

[nodiaque 62]

From what I read hdr10 is also supported. 

And dv does work with intel igpu and discrete 

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000095693/graphics.html

 

Like said earlier, for atmos and vision to work, you need to install the Dolby vision and Dolby atmos apps

Edited August 6, 2025 by nodiaque

[RanmaCanada 494]

8 hours ago, ALLSTAR1986 said:

@nodiaque

It may well be that Dolby Vision works but HDR10+ does not, and DV only works with NVIDIA RTX and AMD GPUs.

And there are probably problems with DV for some users

My TV doesn't support HDR10+, so I could not test it. If users are having problems, they more than likely have not installed the required software that is on the Intel page linked above.

https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/dolby-vision/9MVMZ93N61T9

https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/dolby-access/9N0866FS04W8

[johncarter12 0]

On 8/2/2025 at 10:44 AM, Dizzy49 said:

I'm looking for more open ideas.  A know the Nvidia Shield is great, but I'm not buying 5yr old tech, and we will never see another one, they have gone 100% AI at this point. </rant>

Backstory:  I have multiple large TV across my house and my parent's house.  All 4k, all but on support HDR (not DV, but I wouldn't mind getting a DV later).
Both my house and my parent's have a nice stereo setup, I can do 7.2.2 Atmos, they can do 5.1 (just short of Atmos).

I've been using Amazon Fire devices for a while, but the last few have not been great.  I have the lates Firecube and I've had all kinds of lag/sync issues to the point where you have to restart the movie a dozen times b/c it gets so bad it is unwatchable.  My understanding is that this is due to a technical limitation within the hardware itself, and that the Google devices also have a similar issue.

So, what options are there outside of Amazon that will play damn near any format video and pass through audio (or decode)?  My big caveat is that it has to have a remote.  I admit that I love the Amazon because I can say "Alexa TV ON" and it turns on the TV, speakers, and Fire and sets all the inputs.  I can even tell it to switch to PS5 and it turns the PS5 on and changes the audio/video inputs.

I considered a miniPC since you can find decent ones for under $200, and the Amazon Firecube was like $140, BUT no remote.  It doesn't need to be Android, I just need it to work reliably.
Even while thinking about tech setups, I’m also noticing how home layouts affect entertainment spaces seeing properties via Remax London really highlights how much space and layout can impact integrating large screens, sound systems, and media setups.

Thoughts?

Sounds like you need a device that’s reliable, supports most formats, and has proper audio pass-through. A miniPC with a remote might be the sweet spot if you want flexibility without sticking to outdated Fire or Shield hardware.