[karelj]

Ok..I've had to deal with some irritating and soul sucking stuff in my life hence my lack of a followup. I've been reading as many relevant topics and posts that I can, but I'm still a bit lost. I would have preferred to figure this stuff out on my own without having to ask redundant questions, but it is time to swallow my pride.
My needs:
HD Audio passthrough of Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD, DTS, DTS-HD MA
Play my Blu Ray rips, MKVs, M2TS in full 1080p
Expandable MicroSD storage up to at least 64gb and/or the ability to connect an external hard drive via usb
$100.00 max.

No 4K tv or 4K compatible AVR, so I can live without that.

Solution - use LibreELEC Kodi with....

AMLogic S905 - ODROID C2 with a Samsung EVO or Sandisk Class 10 UHS-1 micro SDHC for superior 4K R/W performance. This will run off any USB - 2 Amp Phone Charger. Only extra really needed then is a case to house the board.
The External Hard drive will have to have its own seperate power pack or a seperate powered USB Hub will need to be use for HDD reliability.

You can use Lirc to program and use you own IR remote control or simply use HDMI-CEC control with the TV or AVR's remote.

Other options in this $100 market space are the 1GB WeTek Hub that works well now we have the LibreELEC memory leak problem fixed. Its AMLogic Android Lollipop Firmware will be better than any other Android AML device on the market, you can also tinker and run a Android TV OS ROM. You get easy dual boot with the Hub, its a nice flexible little device.

Ultimately a Wireless remote control like the MINIX A2 Lite when combined with the devices above works really well. No mini lags & missed IR button presses then. Once you have gone wireless its then very hard to go back to Infra Red only control.

LibreELEC Kodi Krypton for these AML S905 devices is looking really nice, now we are in the final phases of testing.

Thank you very much, sir.

[jeffjoker]

You should have some kind of dynamic table/filter for this topic.
So people can mix their needs and see the boxes.
Would be a much shorter and simpler post and more efficient search.

I have at least 3 different needs at home, and additionnal ones at work.
For example, I need a CEC capable box, 1080p min, full HD audio, LAN and I prefer for this one pure kodi (libreelec or else)
So the main factor on your list is full hd audio, then I had to search through the listed devices for the other criteria.
Based on the lowest possible budget, I have to chose between odroid c2 and wetek hub

Thanks again, keep up the good work

[Avds]

As the nvidia shield is the best android device out there but a bit too expensive for my budget what is the next device down from this. Wetek, himedia, xiaomi etc?

[jeffjoker]

As the nvidia shield is the best android device out there but a bit too expensive for my budget what is the next device down from this. Wetek, himedia, xiaomi etc?

The nvidia shield is the best android device, but like all other android devices lacks full HD audio passthrough
The new nvidia shield is coming out, so I m pretty sur you can find the 1st version second hand quite cheap, if not now in the coming weeks

As for anyone to be able to tell you what is just after, it depends on your needs

[Avds]

As the nvidia shield is the best android device out there but a bit too expensive for my budget what is the next device down from this. Wetek, himedia, xiaomi etc?

The nvidia shield is the best android device, but like all other android devices lacks full HD audio passthrough
The new nvidia shield is coming out, so I m pretty sur you can find the 1st version second hand quite cheap, if not now in the coming weeks

As for anyone to be able to tell you what is just after, it depends on your needs

Hi thanks for your reply. I just want the box to be the best it can if you know what I mean.
I see a box out called the t8-v from a popular site online is this to be avoided?

[wrxtasy]

The nvidia shield is the best android device, but like all other android devices lacks full HD audio passthrough

The nVIDIA Shield already does lossless Multichannel PCM & HD Audio passthrough quite well in SPMC.
Koying already has an IEC passthrough option in SPMC too. I assume for Android Nougat readiness.

https://github.com/koying/SPMC/wiki/Reco...-Receivers

You should have some kind of dynamic table/filter for this topic.
So people can mix their needs and see the boxes.
Would be a much shorter and simpler post and more efficient search.

Volunteers cleverer than me can do that and then spend time dynamically updating & maintaining it as well.

The updating and maintaining will be the hard, time consuming parts if such a thing is to stay relevant and have any use at all.

I see a box out called the t8-v from a popular site online is this to be avoided?

Personally I see no sense in buying generic Android boxes with uncertain ongoing Firmware support from Ship and Forget companies, especially when there is a very competent, remote friendly $69 Android TV OS - Xiaomi Mi Box on the market with a kick ass Bluetooth Voice remote included and decent ongoing support.

Not everything (WiFi & Bluetooth especially) is guaranteed to work with cheap, generic AML Android Boxes. Don't believe the marketing and paid for reviews Hype. Its a lucky dip.

If the T8-V comes with AMLogic Android Lollipop chances are it will be more stable than a generic AML Android Marshmallow box. And you can always use LibreELEC Kodi on a S905 box if the Android included is a Dud.

[Avds]

So would you say the xiaomi is a good box for the price? It does 4k 60 etc. The t8-v is amlogic s912 running android 6 marshmallow.

[wrxtasy]

Yes the Mi Box will be a LOT better than a generic, bleeding edge, unsupported AML S912. Better value as well. Generally the Infra Red remotes on generic Android boxes are frankly crap. Its something no one tells you about.

Android TV OS and the excellent Wireless remote on the Mi Box is worth the $69 price all by itself. It makes a big difference to Android usability. Extras like Chromecasting, proper DRM for Netflix in 4K UltraHD, 10bit 4K@60Hz the list goes on....

http://www.mi.com/en/mibox/

Impressive tech Specs on bleeding edge AML Android devices should be treated with a great deal of caution. They are worthless without decent Firmware support. Cheap unsupported Android boxes come with the worst Android Firmware getting about.

They will not give you better than 480p Resolution streaming from the likes of Netflix, HBO etc. either. They simply do not have the proper licences and approvals. A Firmware upgrade cannot fix this type of problem.

[jeffjoker]

The nvidia shield is the best android device, but like all other android devices lacks full HD audio passthrough

The nVIDIA Shield already does lossless Multichannel PCM & HD Audio passthrough quite well in SPMC.
Koying already has an IEC passthrough option in SPMC too. I assume for Android Nougat readiness.

https://github.com/koying/SPMC/wiki/Reco...-Receivers

I was just quoting your first post
Good to know that a solution already exists to have full HD audio passthrough on the shield TV
On my actual setup aim it is way to expensive and overkill
Odroid C2 is a better deal
If I manage to sell my chromebox tho, I will definitely replace it by a shield tv (old or new gen)

You should have some kind of dynamic table/filter for this topic.
So people can mix their needs and see the boxes.
Would be a much shorter and simpler post and more efficient search.

Volunteers cleverer than me can do that and then spend time dynamically updating & maintaining it as well.

The updating and maintaining will be the hard, time consuming parts if such a thing is to stay relevant and have any use at all.

I have absolutely no clue on how to do this in a forum, except some kind of excel sheet
I do not think it would be that much more work to keep updated than the actual form
I would love to help you on both creating and updating

[ShinyAndy]

OK I give in, I tried my utmost best but my WeTek Play2 is going back to its maker tomorrow as I just could not get it to work with any of the LE builds, it crashed/completely locked up all the time and in Android it didn't seem much quicker to use than an old Pi

Everything nowadays seems Android based so any suggestions for a non-Android box that will run the Kodi GUI smoothly? My only requirements are simple and all LAN based (no streaming); HD playback (HEVC would be nice), HD audio passthru, optical output as well ideally, playback of 3D SBS files (not ISOs). I've used an old ASROCK ION330 for many years and it finally died so happy to replace with another PC based box.

Price isn't that important if it's going to last, I just want something that works and if it works well with Krypton even better? Am I better off waiting for Kaby Lake based stuff to drop in price a bit, something like the Cubi 2/Beebox/BRIX or is that complete overkill?

[wrxtasy]

A worthy upgrade would be...

nVIDIA Shield with a HDMI > SPDIF Audio extractor or Intel's Apollo Lake that does 10bit HEVC Hardware decoding I believe.

[ShinyAndy]

I thought the Shield was Android based - I don't think I can cope with another Android box!

So that's an older NUC type box, it all seems a tech minefield working out what is what with those? Although, I've seen I can get the i3 Cubi 2 for about 399€ with 128GB SSD and 4GB RAM - However, I understand that Kaby Lake isn't particularly well supported yet in terms of LE builds so I'd need to run Kodi via Windows?

[wrxtasy]

Android TV OS on mature Firmware with powerful Hardware that comes with the nVIDIA Shield will rival expensive Intel gear for performance.
The Android TV OS Android Apps ease of use factor alone with a simple Wireless Voice Remote has made it very popular and for very good reason. Plug N Play.

I would not discount the Shield just because you had an un-satisfactory Android touchscreen box OS experience. Android TV works much better than the touchscreen Android OS for TV and remote control Apps interaction.

Pure Kodi only then yes stick with Intel if you want something with built in SPDIF. I would ask questions in the Apollo Lake thread for recommended Apollo devices.

Have you tried the 32bit memory leakfix - Raybuntu Kodi Krypton release on the Play2 ?

http://wetekforums.com/v/index.php?p=/di...32bit-libs

I ask as the same Krypton release by Raybuntu on the S905 ODROID C2 is working nicely indeed. There are a whole bunch of AMLogic Video Sync Timing and deinterlacing patches in the most recent version. Its so good on the C2 I can use Krypton as a daily Kodi box now.

BTW: Wireless remotes make a hell of a difference to the enjoyment of any box. No line of sight and missed Keypress issues. I cannot use IR any more at all, its now like dinosaur tech.

[ShinyAndy]

SPDIF isn't a deal-breaker and would mean I could finally also upgrade my amp so silver linings and all that. I'm thinking pure Kodi as my only other requirement is to stream IPTV and I'd just as well get another MAG type box for that task. I just want something that is going to be a bit future proof as my old Pany 1080p plasma is probably going to need replacing in a year or so and would be nice to have something that could cope with the latest tech too.

Over roughly a month I tried every build possible on the Play2, Raybunto's build was the only image I could get to boot but then I got issues with LAN freezes with my shared library, then the remote didn't work and gave random key presses, pops and crackle over audio along with the A/V sync issues so I finally gave up. WeTek support were mainly useless so after a lengthy argument it's being collected tomorrow and I'm getting a refund - it's a shame as it seems like an elegant solution but it feels completely let down by the software currently, I didn't even try the tuner and that looks like it's giving even more issues for people

[karelj]

They will not give you better than 480p Resolution streaming from the likes of Netflix, HBO etc. either. They simply do not have the proper licences and approvals. A Firmware upgrade cannot fix this type of problem.

Installing LibreELEC makes this a non issue, right? Full 1080p from Netflix, Amazon and HBO?
The MI Box looks impressive, but no LAN/WiFi only kills its appeal for me.