Kodi Community Forum

Hey everyone!

We recently purchased our first home and I am looking at doing some things I've never done before. This might be a little long but I am new to all this and trying to catch up.
With the finishing of our basement starting next week I will soon have 4 TV's (maybe 6 if I choose to do the kids rooms) that I want to be connected to a central server.
I am trying to figure out the best/cheapest way to do this.

--A main concern is simplicity for the users.
I might be double majoring in Computer Science/Informatics but my wife and kids can at best operate a bluray player and our DirecTV DVR's(seriously, they can't even use an Xbox 360).
Ideally for simplicity's sake I would have all TV's controlled by remote(not phones), which I think I read XBMC can handle this no problem.
From the look of the XBMC GUI I am pretty confident they can navigate that, with a remote at least.

---How do I go about accessing the content stored on my central media server from any TV?
This will almost entirely be content physically stored on a hard drive. Although we do have a Netflix subscription and if I could also access that somehow with the same remote/gui that would be awesome.
A few ways I have read about involve using one of these at each TV; an HTPC, an AppleTV(which I've never even seen one) or a RaspberryPi(barely know what it is).
I am pretty sure I could sell the AppleTV or RaspberryPi's sizes to the wife, but an HTPC sitting on our shelf in the living room would be a hard sell.
Have no idea how to set up either of those, which models to buy, and if they can even still be rooted/hacked to work with XBMC.

--For my central media system would it be best to run Cat5 directly to each (receiver?)(via a ethernet splitter or crossover) or to the main house modem hub and from there to each (receiver?) ?
Wiring right now isn't a problem since the basement is unfinished.

--Can each TV be watching something different than the others? (Say the kids are watching cartoons in their room, the wife American Idol in the living room, and I'm in the basement theatre watching Game of Thrones)
If possible, can Netflix also be tossed in there like say the kids were watching cartoons on Netflix and we were watching stuff from the hard drive?
Or does the AppleTV(or whatever) have the ability to play Netflix on it's own without streaming from the media server?

I'm trying to read up on this fast since I'm going to be purchasing the equipment next week also trying to price this out and get everything ready for after the basement is finished.
Thanks for all your help!!!

(2014-01-20, 19:49)sedition00 Wrote: [ -> ]--A main concern is simplicity for the users.
I might be double majoring in Computer Science/Informatics but my wife and kids can at best operate a bluray player and our DirecTV DVR's(seriously, they can't even use an Xbox 360).
Ideally for simplicity's sake I would have all TV's controlled by remote(not phones), which I think I read XBMC can handle this no problem.
From the look of the XBMC GUI I am pretty confident they can navigate that, with a remote at least.

Install it, and have them try it for themselves....

(2014-01-20, 19:49)sedition00 Wrote: [ -> ]---How do I go about accessing the content stored on my central media server from any TV?
This will almost entirely be content physically stored on a hard drive. Although we do have a Netflix subscription and if I could also access that somehow with the same remote/gui that would be awesome.
A few ways I have read about involve using one of these at each TV; an HTPC, an AppleTV(which I've never even seen one) or a RaspberryPi(barely know what it is).
I am pretty sure I could sell the AppleTV or RaspberryPi's sizes to the wife, but an HTPC sitting on our shelf in the living room would be a hard sell.
Have no idea how to set up either of those, which models to buy, and if they can even still be rooted/hacked to work with XBMC.

--For my central media system would it be best to run Cat5 directly to each (receiver?)(via a ethernet splitter or crossover) or to the main house modem hub and from there to each (receiver?) ?
Wiring right now isn't a problem since the basement is unfinished.

Wired network is always the best and most reliable for streaming HD video and audio.

(2014-01-20, 19:49)sedition00 Wrote: [ -> ]--Can each TV be watching something different than the others? (Say the kids are watching cartoons in their room, the wife American Idol in the living room, and I'm in the basement theatre watching Game of Thrones)
If possible, can Netflix also be tossed in there like say the kids were watching cartoons on Netflix and we were watching stuff from the hard drive?
Or does the AppleTV(or whatever) have the ability to play Netflix on it's own without streaming from the media server?

I'm trying to read up on this fast since I'm going to be purchasing the equipment next week also trying to price this out and get everything ready for after the basement is finished.
Thanks for all your help!!!

For sure, you can watch different shows from different sources. Another word, your wife can watch American Idol on OTA and your kids can watch Netflix through Internet streaming on another TV.....

So is it best to use AppleTV's?

(2014-01-21, 19:17)sedition00 Wrote: [ -> ]So is it best to use AppleTV's?

I don't own AppleTV, and I cannot comment on it. I saw this "KDLINKS HD700" at a friend house. It can stream and playback blu-ray file over the network, playback blu-ray file on USB anf SATA drive and everything else my friend and I threw at it. If you don't like to tingle with a media player too much and want a simple media player for your family, I highly recommend it. If you like to tingle with PC and want a nicer GUI, XBMC PC is an excellent choice....

If you are into Internet streaming, this "Roku 3 Streaming Media Player" might be the best media player out there....

I would get the OUYA (wiki) or the new Celeron NUC (wiki). Both can use normal TV remotes.

OUYA would require a USB adapter for IR, but it has internal bluetooth, and there are bluetooth remotes. The marketed focus of the OUYA is games, but it works fantastically as an XBMC HTPC.

The NUC might sound intimidating because you need to buy and install RAM, and the over all cost will be more like $150-ish per unit, but you get a lot more power for the price (it is a full PC, after all), and it's still tiny. I think it really hits the sweet spot for price, power, and size for an HTPC. The NUC also has a built-in IR sensor for remote controls. https://www.google.com/shopping/product/...scoring:tp

There are also very inexpensive RF remotes that look just like normal remotes and come with a tiny USB dongle. I bought one for $12 and now use it as my main remote control.

Both units will be fast and smooth with XBMC's interface, and both can use Netflix.

I would not get an Apple TV for XBMC.

(2014-01-20, 19:49)sedition00 Wrote: [ -> ]--For my central media system would it be best to run Cat5 directly to each (receiver?)(via a ethernet splitter or crossover) or to the main house modem hub and from there to each (receiver?) ?
Wiring right now isn't a problem since the basement is unfinished.

Ideally, you want to run a separate cable from a central hub to each room. If you want to connect more than one device in a particular room, you can run an additional cable or simply add a Switch in that room. Don't run Cat5. You want Cat5e at a minimum, or Cat6. Your central hub can be simply a router which is connected to your internet modem, or if there are not enough ports you can add a switch.

Other stuff to consider;

If it were me I'd run a cable to my garage and maybe a couple that just are rolled up in the attic, left unconnected. That allows for future added stuff like security cameras. Don't forget the kitchen either.

You can add wireless access points at any spot on your network. If you have a place like a central closet where you might want to have a WAP, run a cable there as well (don't forget you'll need a power outlet nearby).