[Helioy]

For everyone who considers to add CEC functionality have a look here:
https://www.pulse-eight.com/p/154/intel-...ec-adapter
http://blog.pulse-eight.com/2015/03/27/n...intel-nuc/

Edit: I've placed a preorder now.

[nucmaster]

For everyone who considers to add CEC functionality have a look here:
https://www.pulse-eight.com/p/154/intel-...ec-adapter
http://blog.pulse-eight.com/2015/03/27/n...intel-nuc/

Edit: I've placed a preorder now.

I was under the impression that the new Broadwell NUCs (this thread) don't have the Custom Solutions Header anymore. You'd better check on that.

[DocG]

For everyone who considers to add CEC functionality have a look here:
https://www.pulse-eight.com/p/154/intel-...ec-adapter
http://blog.pulse-eight.com/2015/03/27/n...intel-nuc/

Edit: I've placed a preorder now.

I was under the impression that the new Broadwell NUCs (this thread) don't have the Custom Solutions Header anymore. You'd better check on that.

That is confirmed. The only way to make that Adapter work is by soldering the CEC wire to the board directly. That's the reason why I've canceled my pre-orders.


On a different note, I've now received my other i3H and the i5. i3 will stay in the box until I've figured out what I want to do with it, and I've just set up the i5 as a new desktop PC for my wife. It still needs a little bit of fine tuning, but it looks pretty nice already.

[Helioy]

Well yeah. I mailed them and they said:

It will work, but you may need to solder the CEC wire directly to the PCB, we are still discussing with Intel

I have send them the findings from reviews etc. and still waiting for reply.

[nucmaster]

Well yeah. I mailed them and they said:

It will work, but you may need to solder the CEC wire directly to the PCB, we are still discussing with Intel

I have send them the findings from reviews etc. and still waiting for reply.

Doesn't give me enough onfidence to preorder I'm afraid. It might be easier just to buy the standard external box version.

[Helioy]

You're right. I still havn't heard from them ~2 days. First reply was within 15 mins.

[DocG]

Finally have my i3 set up and did a preliminary HEVC test run. Used the samples from divx.com. For some reason, Tears of Steel 4K only plays audio, all the other files play without noticable issues. When I've got some more time I'm going to try and get my hands on a better range of test files and have a closer look at CPU loads and settings. It's quite promising thus far, though.

Edit: Figured I'd better add that I was testing this on Kodi 15.0 alpha 2 running on Windows 8.1 with the NUC conncted to my Sony UHD TV over HDMI. Video settings are at 3840x2160@30fps, and display refresh rate is set to match the video. I did a quick test with the latest OpenELEC before and had issues with all 4K files.

Damn, damn, damn, it wasn't just going to be that easy!!!

So, I've finally properly set up my i3 as a Windows box, installed a proper version of 8.1 Pro with licence and all, installed all the latest drivers, used the exact same settings I've used previously, and 4K HEVC is a complete no go. Stutter all over the place.

Went back to my test setup, which was simply me putting the SSD I've removed from my HP Mini into my NUC for testing, and 4K HEVC is back at playing beautifully. Double checked, same version of Kodi, same settings, same resolution, same Windows resolution, but yes, of course, different graphics drivers. Not sure what else is different, but why, oh why, can't things just work

Well, I guess I'll be spending some time figuring out how to make my new setup work just like my test setup.

[Edit]
Must've been too early. Finally realized with my second coffee that I did change something else (should have realized sooner), and yes, it does make ALL the difference.

RAM!!!

1 x 4GB/8GB --> Terrible video stutter playing 4K HEVC
2 x 4GB Samsung (what I had a matching pair of) --> Watchable 4K HEVC with occasional stutter
2 x 8GB Crucial, i.e. this --> No noticable issues with 4K HEVC, only minor frame skip/drop even with high bitrate content like Kazu

[Note]
There are certain 4K HEVC files that still do not play without issues, not even with the Crucial, like one of the Big Buck Bunny encodes I've got, so there most definitely still is a limit to what can be played and it doesn't seem to be dependent solely on bitrate. My Kazu file definitely has a higher reported bitrate than most of the Big Buck Bunny encode, but the Big Buck Bunny file is skipping like crazy, while Kazu plays at 10Mb/s seemingly buttery smooth, so I'd say it depends on the particular encode and settings, not just the bitrate.

[nucmaster]

Damn, damn, damn, it wasn't just going to be that easy!!!

So, I've finally properly set up my i3 as a Windows box, installed a proper version of 8.1 Pro with licence and all, installed all the latest drivers, used the exact same settings I've used previously, and 4K HEVC is a complete no go. Stutter all over the place.

Went back to my test setup, which was simply me putting the SSD I've removed from my HP Mini into my NUC for testing, and 4K HEVC is back at playing beautifully. Double checked, same version of Kodi, same settings, same resolution, same Windows resolution, but yes, of course, different graphics drivers. Not sure what else is different, but why, oh why, can't things just work

Well, I guess I'll be spending some time figuring out how to make my new setup work just like my test setup.

[Edit]
Must've been too early. Finally realized with my second coffee that I did change something else (should have realized sooner), and yes, it does make ALL the difference.

RAM!!!

1 x 4GB/8GB --> Terrible video stutter playing 4K HEVC
2 x 4GB Samsung (what I had a matching pair of) --> Watchable 4K HEVC with occasional stutter
2 x 8GB Crucial, i.e. this --> No noticable issues with 4K HEVC, only minor frame skip/drop even with high bitrate content like Kazu

[Note]
There are certain 4K HEVC files that still do not play without issues, not even with the Crucial, like one of the Big Buck Bunny encodes I've got, so there most definitely still is a limit to what can be played and it doesn't seem to be dependent solely on bitrate. My Kazu file definitely has a higher reported bitrate than most of the Big Buck Bunny encode, but the Big Buck Bunny file is skipping like crazy, while Kazu plays at 10Mb/s seemingly buttery smooth, so I'd say it depends on the particular encode and settings, not just the bitrate.

This is because the GPU uses system RAM I suppose. I hope this problem gets fixed when Skylake appears with onboard GPU Cache.

BTW: Nice hot pink/magenta top cover in photo above - I guess that one's for the wife.

[PLAY911]

HI there I am planning to buy a NUC 5010U to install W8 and Android...could please someone tell me what Android ia Versión do I have to install. The last one posted is for Haswell and not sure if it's compatible with Broadwell

Thank you in advance

Regards

[robo989]

Finally have my i3 set up and did a preliminary HEVC test run. Used the samples from divx.com. For some reason, Tears of Steel 4K only plays audio, all the other files play without noticable issues. When I've got some more time I'm going to try and get my hands on a better range of test files and have a closer look at CPU loads and settings. It's quite promising thus far, though.

Edit: Figured I'd better add that I was testing this on Kodi 15.0 alpha 2 running on Windows 8.1 with the NUC conncted to my Sony UHD TV over HDMI. Video settings are at 3840x2160@30fps, and display refresh rate is set to match the video. I did a quick test with the latest OpenELEC before and had issues with all 4K files.

Damn, damn, damn, it wasn't just going to be that easy!!!

So, I've finally properly set up my i3 as a Windows box, installed a proper version of 8.1 Pro with licence and all, installed all the latest drivers, used the exact same settings I've used previously, and 4K HEVC is a complete no go. Stutter all over the place.

Went back to my test setup, which was simply me putting the SSD I've removed from my HP Mini into my NUC for testing, and 4K HEVC is back at playing beautifully. Double checked, same version of Kodi, same settings, same resolution, same Windows resolution, but yes, of course, different graphics drivers. Not sure what else is different, but why, oh why, can't things just work

Well, I guess I'll be spending some time figuring out how to make my new setup work just like my test setup.

[Edit]
Must've been too early. Finally realized with my second coffee that I did change something else (should have realized sooner), and yes, it does make ALL the difference.

RAM!!!

1 x 4GB/8GB --> Terrible video stutter playing 4K HEVC
2 x 4GB Samsung (what I had a matching pair of) --> Watchable 4K HEVC with occasional stutter
2 x 8GB Crucial, i.e. this --> No noticable issues with 4K HEVC, only minor frame skip/drop even with high bitrate content like Kazu

[Note]
There are certain 4K HEVC files that still do not play without issues, not even with the Crucial, like one of the Big Buck Bunny encodes I've got, so there most definitely still is a limit to what can be played and it doesn't seem to be dependent solely on bitrate. My Kazu file definitely has a higher reported bitrate than most of the Big Buck Bunny encode, but the Big Buck Bunny file is skipping like crazy, while Kazu plays at 10Mb/s seemingly buttery smooth, so I'd say it depends on the particular encode and settings, not just the bitrate.

Interesting information on the RAM, thanks for sharing.
Don't spose could trouble you further for the part number of the Samsung 2 x 4GB kit you were using.
Asking because it seems strange that 16GB vs 8GB would make a difference for HEVC 4K and I'm more inclined to believe that it's down to the RAM being low speed or something more to do with the actual RAM rather than it being a case of 8GB vs 16GB.

[DocG]

This is because the GPU uses system RAM I suppose. I hope this problem gets fixed when Skylake appears with onboard GPU Cache.

BTW: Nice hot pink/magenta top cover in photo above - I guess that one's for the wife.

Quite likely, and I guess we're all hoping Skylake fixes everything with respect to HEVC. Color is indeed hot pink (or at least that's what it's called), and while my wife prefers different pink tones she quite likes it. I've put a white cover on my i3, but am just in the process of reprinting that bright orange.

Interesting information on the RAM, thanks for sharing.
Don't spose could trouble you further for the part number of the Samsung 2 x 4GB kit you were using.
Asking because it seems strange that 16GB vs 8GB would make a difference for HEVC 4K and I'm more inclined to believe that it's down to the RAM being low speed or something more to do with the actual RAM rather than it being a case of 8GB vs 16GB.

Samsung RAM is M471B5173DB0, and if I remember correctly, these were individual sticks of the same model, i.e. not a kit. It is quite possible that it comes down to memory speed, and I believe I still have 2 x 2GB as kit of that same Crucial memory somewhere, so I'd be interested to see how it goes with only 4GB of the same Crucial. I'll do another test run when I get around to it next. I've also found two sticks of Kingston KVR16LS11/4, individual sticks again not a kit, and I may have a test run with those as well.

[Edit]
Found the 2 x 2GB Crucial kit (it's this one) and currently doing a more comprehensive test run. If you've read my previous edit, please ignore what I've said, for the time being I'll take it back. Results to follow later.

[Talos77]

Id say it's also related to the fact that your 2x4gb/2x2gb runs in dual channel vs single channel for 1x8gb.

Atm I have a single stick of 8gb Kingston 1600mhz in my i3 nuc but will probably add a second 8gb shortly to get it running dial channel.

[fritsch]

For HEVC hw decoding support try a recent nightly. It was added ~ 2 weeks ago. For the future capabilities of kodi's decoder and render, use the DX11 builds, that you find in the testing thread.

[DocG]

For HEVC hw decoding support try a recent nightly. It was added ~ 2 weeks ago. For the future capabilities of kodi's decoder and render, use the DX11 builds, that you find in the testing thread.

Can't tell a difference between alpha 2 and the latest nightly. Unless I am missing something?

Id say it's also related to the fact that your 2x4gb/2x2gb runs in dual channel vs single channel for 1x8gb.

Most definitely.

Samsung RAM is M471B5173DB0, and if I remember correctly, these were individual sticks of the same model, i.e. not a kit. It is quite possible that it comes down to memory speed, and I believe I still have 2 x 2GB as kit of that same Crucial memory somewhere, so I'd be interested to see how it goes with only 4GB of the same Crucial. I'll do another test run when I get around to it next. I've also found two sticks of Kingston KVR16LS11/4, individual sticks again not a kit, and I may have a test run with those as well.

[Edit]
Found the 2 x 2GB Crucial kit (it's this one) and currently doing a more comprehensive test run. If you've read my previous edit, please ignore what I've said, for the time being I'll take it back. Results to follow later.

Did a quite comprehensive test run, and as suspected earlier, memory speed seems to be the deciding factor. I can tell very little difference between the 2 x 8GB Crucial kit, the 2 x 2GB Crucial kit, or even the 2 x 4GB Kingston RAM of the same model and same batch. I consistently get more skips with the 2 x 4GB Samsung, I even get skips in scences where there wasn't a single skip in any test run with any of the other modules. I rechecked the Samsung RAM, and while these are the same model, these actually do have different batch numbers. Could be due to slight differences due to being from a different batch, or could be due to the Samsung just not being as good as the others. I'd have to recommend a kit at this point, and if not a kit, at least modules from the same batch.

Nowhere during playback did any CPU core hit 100%. Even during certain scenes where there was a lot of skips, the most I ever saw was 70% on a core. I did see one or the other CPU core go above 90% in the Kazu file, but at those points there wasn't a single skip. The reported framerate jumped in a very regular fashion between two particular values, around 23.4 and 24.4, but playback was seemingly unaffected. For particular 4K HEVC encodes (at least 23.98/24 fps with reasonable bitrate) the i3 will absolutely do.

[JSLee]

Need help...

Can someone with a Gen5 running OpenElec please test something for me please..

I am pretty sure I have worked out that it's my TV HDMI not picking up the HDMI signal.. But wanted to one last test..

I have not been able to duplicate my issue when I have my NUC plugged into my PC Monitor.. But on my Panasonic TV I can duplicate this issue every time..

TEST: While you're in Kodi set it to restart.. Does it come back up on screen?