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Set up a streaming media network You know the problem, your TV’s in the living room and the PC’s upstairs. Simon Pickstock shows you how to get your music, pictures and video, from your PC, onto your TV
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Streaming media network hanks to superfast internet speeds and cheap hard drives, we’ve never had access to so much digital media. Many people’s music collections run to tens, if not hundreds of thousands of songs, and while most methods of downloading TV shows and movies are generally not exactly legal, you can bet that most technologically aware consumers have a healthy library of AVI and MPG files. However, while the various forms of digital media can all be viewed or played on a PC, few people choose to have a PC located in the living room. Microsoft’s persistent vision of the PC as the centre of your digital living room has generally failed to materialise. Although it’s now easier than ever to connect a flat-screen digital TV to a PC, few of us actually want an ugly, noisy and generally large box in our living rooms. PCs were never intended as media delivery platforms, and although they now excel at that task, they are generally found in studies and bedrooms. Even if you do have a PC in your lounge, the chances are that it’s tucked away in a corner, probably connected to printers and other peripherals, and nowhere near your TV and surround-sound amp. There’s also the issue that if you use your TV as your PC’s monitor, the display is going to suck for anything other than watching video, because a horizontal resolution of 720, or if you’re lucky 1080 lines, is frankly horrible for standard Windows operation. Laptops are perhaps more suited to connecting to your TV as they are by their very nature portable, and if you have a relatively new one, it is likely to have an HDMI output and maybe even a Blu-Ray drive. Still, it’s not the most elegant solution, so we’ll look at what options you have for streaming your media around your home.
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HOT AND BOTHERED A couple of years ago, before Vista’s storm cloud darkened the horizon, there was a flurry of enthusiasm for the socalled Home Theatre PC. The idea was to take the PC out of its native environment, and stick it next to your TV, to serve up music, films and TV, and if you were really advanced, use it as a
PVR, too. The problem is, no matter how much you spend on a small-form factor case, finished in aircraft-grade aluminium with blue LEDs and a VFD display, it’s still essentially a PC, with all the drawbacks that implies. If you want to use it as a PVR, it needs to be left on 24 hours a day, which Windows was never designed to do. If you don’t, it can take an age to startup. On top of that is the noise that most PCs generate, which can ruin the ambience during quiet parts of your favourite film. In terms of PVR functionality too, Sky and Virgin offer much better solutions. The original version of Windows XP Media Center was also not without its problems, although the version within Vista is much improved. Still, do you really want to use Vista, unless you really have to? The solution then, is not to put your PC next to the TV, but rather get the media files from your PC onto your TV, stereo or laptop that’s situated in another room of the house. Although there have been devices round for a few years to do this, most have them have been pretty limited. As the technology has matured, things have improved significantly, and there’s a wealth of media streamers and media extenders to choose from. Most will require some sort of network connection, but some make use of internal hard drives, or have USB ports so that you can plug in an external drive. We’ll look at two ways of streaming media, either to your TV or to another PC or laptop, and the software and hardware you’ll need to do the job.
GIVE US A SQUEEZE When it comes to connecting your PC to your TV or stereo, there are some devices that just stream audio, while others can stream audio, video and pictures. Most of the best ones will be of a similar form factor to a hi-fi separate, or DVD player, so that they won’t look out of place in a hi-fi rack, or under your TV. One of the first audio streaming devices was the Squeezebox, from Slim Devices (now part of Logitech), which used an Ethernet connection to stream audio to any hi-fi source. It had a basic remote and display, but just about did the job. Squeezboxes now use 802.11g wireless, and can stream pretty much any music format from your PC, as well as connect to a number of internet radio stations.
“Microsoft’s persistent vision of the PC as the centre of your digital living room has failed to materialise” November 2008
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Streaming media network
Vista actually proves itself useful, when it comes to sharing media with Media Center. Well, it has to do something right
“Apple TV is one legal way to to watch and download HD movies” Terratec has the Noxon which does a similar job, although it has to be said, it not only looks odd, the menu is pretty hard to use, which makes it a bit of a chore to use. The latest streamer from Slim Devices is the Squeezebox Duet, which consists of a base unit, and a handset, complete with colour LCD display. The base unit is connected to your stereo or portable speakers, and the rechargeable handset is then used to control your music, in a very similar way to how you would control an iPod. The handset uses WiFi to control the server software, but it will also work with Direct Access Storage devices, such as NAS drives with media server support, so you don’t even need to leave your PC on to use it. You can even control older Squeezebox devices, if you purchase the handset on its own. At around £250 it’s not exactly cheap, but it does represent the ultimate boy’s toy when it comes to music control.
Below iTunes can stream music to your laptop or to accessories, such as the Airport Express Adaptor
AirTunes from your PC, unless you have a set of speakers that enable direct control of your iTunes library. Still, if you have a laptop, it’s probably easier to use AirTunes than it is to connect your laptop to your hi-fi, but it’s still not an ideal solution. Rather than just listen to our music collections though, most of us want to be able to watch downloaded video on our TVs. There are two main types of device that enable you to do this, pure streamers and units that contain an internal hard drive. Perhaps one of the best known is the Apple TV. The Apple
TV looks much like the Apple Mini, is devoid of buttons and comes with the same dinky remote that is supplied with the Apple MacBook. The unit contains a hard drive (either 40 or 120GB), 802.11n wireless and a variety of connection methods for attaching to your TV and stereo. The interface is pretty slick (it’s the same one used in Leopard for Front Row), and the latest update enables you to download video directly onto the internal hard drive, rather than the previous method where you had to download videos to your PC using iTunes, then sync with the Apple TV. Although MPEG4 video is supported, it is only in Quicktime or H.264 format, so you won’t be able to playback any DivX or XviD content. TV shows and films can now be both bought as well as rented, although it has to be said the selection is pretty limited. Still, it’s one of the few legal ways to download and watch highdefinition movies, which counts for something. Though it pains us to say it, being an Apple product, it does tend to just work. However, while it may appeal to less technical users, it has too many limitations to recommend to the more savvy PCFormat reader (i.e. you).
DUAL BAND EQUALS WIN There are plenty of alternatives to choose from though, pick any major brand associated with networking, and the chances are that the company has a solution. We’ve tested a number of them over the last couple of years, and it has
LOW HANGING FRUIT If you’re more of an Apple fan, then you can stream your iTunes music library using AirTunes and an Airport Express adaptor, which will work with any router, and not just Apple’s. The Airport Express adaptor plugs into a wall socket, and then into your speakers or stereo. The only issue with this is that you either need to set iTunes to just play a load of music, or you will need to control 82
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Streaming media network comm file types, such as DivX, XviD, common H.264 encoded video, MP3, AAC, WMV audio, JPEG, GIF and BMP image formats. Due to Apple’s proprietary forma DRM, you probably won’t be able to play any music m in your music library that has purchased from the iTunes Music been p Store, although some manufactures Store have cclaimed compatibility in the past.
VISTA VIS PROVES USEFUL
Above If you can’t run an Ethernet cable to your streamer, then you could try powerline network adaptors instead
to be said that a lot of them have had some serious flaws, from a lack of HD outputs, to slow, or even no, wireless connections. Usability is a key issue with media streamers and many of the devices produced by networking companies have tended to fall down on this front in the past. The main issue is usually the interface, it’s not uncommon for menus to have too many levels, so just choosing a song to play back involves several minutes of buttonpushing on the remote. In addition, any device using an 802.11g wireless connection is going to suffer when it comes to video and you can forget about HD video entirely. This year’s CES show saw a raft of new media streamers released, and while most have moved to 802.11n, some are using 802.11n dualband, which uses both 2.4 and 5GHz spectrum to provide the extra bandwidth needed for HD video. You will, of course, need a compatible router. When choosing a media streamer, look for a good range of outputs, including HDMI, Component, S-Video, digital audio output via coaxial or optical ports, and analogue stereo RCA plugs. File format supports is one of the most important aspects, make sure the device you choose can play all the
While some media adaptors come with their o own server software, others rely on Wi Windows Media Center, or Windows Media Player 11. Some software is better than others, but the best will enable you to select a series of folders to share, sha and the server software will then monitor the folders for changes, so that even when you add new files, they are accessible on your media streamer. The problem is that as the software has to be installed on your PC, you need to leave it on if you want your media streamer to be able to connect to it. Some NAS devices come with a built-in media server and this can often be accessed by a media streamer, but you’ll need to check the specs to find out if this feature is supported. The advantage of this system is that you can simply copy all your media to the NAS, and you don’t have to keep your PC on 24 hours a day. Media Player 11 tends to work best when sharing between Vista machines, but can be used to share media with other PCs running Windows XP and some media streamers. However, we’ve found it can be notoriously fickle, often refusing connections, and it doesn’t seem to update the library with any consistency when you add new files.
SOFTWARE STREAMING What if you only want to stream to a laptop or another PC? All you need is some software A dedicated media streamer is all well and good, but most of them cost in the the region of £100 to £200, which certainly doesn’t make them the cheapest solution. If you want to view pictures or listen to audio on your laptop, or another PC in the house, then all you need to do is set up a shared folder, then browse to it on the network and open the files in the same way that you would do on the local machine. As long as your network has the range, taking your laptop into the garden and plugging in some external speakers, is possibly the simplest way of getting music to your garden party. However, Windows networking is notoriously fickle, especially if you are mixing operating systems, so a dedicated software solution may be better. Windows Media Player 11 is built into Windows Vista and can be downloaded for XP and once set up for sharing, WMP11 turns your PC with the media library into a media server. A Vista laptop will usually automatically detect a shared library and ask whether you want to connect to it. You can also share your iTunes library, and then access it from another PC or laptop running iTunes. However, one of our favourite solutions for sharing media is Orb (www.orb.com), which enables you to share music, video, pictures and documents, not just across your local network, bu but across the internet as well. It’s a great way to li listen to your music collection when you’re at w work, a friend’s house or anywhere else that you ca can get a respectible internet connection. N Not only is Orb free, but you can use it to stream yo your files to the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, N Nintendo Wii and even some handhelds, like the iP iPod touch and mobile phones. An alternative is TV TVersity, which will also work with any internet co connected device that has a web browser that su supports Flash.
Below Some media streamers use dual-band wireless for extra bandwidth, but you’ll need a compatible router
Ab Above Stream your audio and video to pretty much any de device with a screen and an internet connection
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Streaming media network
Systems that use Media Center tend to be much more reliable. Getting content from your PC to your TV requires a network connection, and few people are fortunate enough to have network points in every room of their house. It is, of course, possible to run network cable from room to room, but unless you’re redecorating and can bury it in the wall, or run the cable under the floorboards, it’s not terribly practical or attractive. While wireless has been widely used in the home for quite a few years now, unless you are running an 802.11n system, you’ll find that streaming video is a distinctly unhappy affair, and streaming HD is virtually impossible. Even 802.11n can struggle with HD video, if your house has thick walls, or your router is a long way away from your media streamer. The latest routers and some media 02.11n dual band, where streamers use 802.11n dual-band, idth is used in order to the extra bandwidth maintain a high data throughput. If you want to stream HD content, then you
“The latest routers use 802.11n dual-band to maintain a high data throughput for HD” may want to look at these options. Some CD burning software, such as Roxio’s Creator Suite, and Nero Burning ROM also offer media sharing, but we’re not great fans of these suites, as they add a huge amount of bloat to your Windows install.
A NOISE ANNOYS If you can’t get a good wireless signal and Ethernet cable is impractical, then you could try powerline networking. There are a number of products available from the likes of Devolo and Netgear. These are basically plug adaptors, which you connect a network cable to and then plug into a three-pin mains socket. Plug another one into your router and you can use your house’s
electrical cables as an extended network. Results can be a bit mixed, depending on how old the wiring in your house is and how much ‘noise’ is on the wiring. Noise is high-frequency interference on your wiring, and is generally created by any device that contains a motor, such as a vacuum cleaner, hair dryer, washing machine or tumble dryer. If there’s a lot of noise on your powerline network, then speeds can drop, or you may lose the connection altogether, so it’s something you need to be aware of. Another issue is that there is no single standard for powerline networking, although most devices use either standards from either the HomePlug Powerline Alliance or Universal Powerline Association. If you
Above The Apple TV is probably mer to use, but the easiest streamer er of factors there are a number eal that limit its appeal
XBOX 360 Got an Xbox 360? Then there’s no need to buy yourself a separate media streamer. It’s not just a games console you know. While the Xbox 360 might have enjoyed phenomenal success as a games console, it has some other rather nifty tricks up its sleeve. Although the Xbox 360 has no builtin wireless, it does have an Ethernet connection, and there’s a wireless adaptor available, although it does only use the 802.11g standard. The Xbox 360 is designed to connect to a PC running Windows Media Center, and if you have a PC running that (either Vista, or Windows XP MCE) then the system works very well. The Xbox’s interface is pretty much the same as Media Centre and it is slick and easy to use. If you don’t have a PC running any form of media centre,
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then you can use Windows Media Player 11 instead. Once sharing has been setup, the Xbox is able to connect and browse the folders in much the same way as any other media streamer. It’s not nearly as good as the Media Centre Interface, and it has a nasty habit of failing to connect to our shared library, but when it works, it’s pretty good. Since Microsoft updated the firmware, the Xbox is able to play Xvid and DivX content, but cannot play some other file formats. In this case, you can use a program called Tversity (www.tversity.com) which can transcode incompatible file formats on the fly, into ones the Xbox can play. Using Tversity, the Xbox can even stream live video feeds, which is a pretty unique feature. An alternative is to use Orb (www.orb.com), which enables you to view almost any content you wish to share, by using folder
sharing. You may not think that the Xbox is a natural contender for streaming audio and video to your TV and stereo, but after testing a large number of media streamers, we have to say the Xbox is actually one of the best devices we’ve ever used, especially when you decide to use it with Media Centre. Above The Xbox works best with Windows Media Center, but you can use it with other software too
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Streaming media network
Above Some network storage adaptors can also act as media servers, so you don’t have to leave your PC on all of the time
are using devices from more than one manufacture, make sure they both use the same standard. An alternative to a networked device, is one that contains a hard drive, and which can be loaded with content by connecting to your PC using a USB cable. We’re great fans of the Tvix series of devices (www.tvix.co.kr/eng/), because they often do a far better job than most of the standard media streamers, and have menus that are more intuitive and easier to use. One of our favourites is the HD M4000. It comes in two versions, the PA and SA, to which you can fit an IDE or SATA hard drive, respectively. Although it lacks an HDMI port, HD video can be output by component, or DVI and DVI to HDMI converters are readily available. You can connect it to your PC using USB 2.0 and transfer files to the internal hard drive, plug a removable drive into one of the USB ports, or connect it to your
network using an Ethernet cable. The server software is basic to the extreme, as it’s basically just using Windows networking and Samba, but as an added bonus, you can upload files across the network to the unit, using FTP. Tvix is also one of the few companies that provides regular firmware updates, in order to add new features to its devices. Not only that, but the HD M-4000 has an expansion slot, into which you can plug an optional analogue or digital TV tuner card, and the unit has full PVR functionality; something that’s not offered by virtually any other media streamer. Even better than that though, the remote control has glow-in-the-dark buttons, so no matter how low you turn the lights down, you’ll always be able to find the right control! The final choice is to not buy a media extender at all, because you probably have one in your living room already. Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Sony’s Playstation 3 and the Nintendo Wii, can all be used as media extenders to some degree or other. Although this functionality was built into both the Xbox and the Playstation, it’s not something that was originally intended for the Wii, yet using the console’s internet connection, it suddenly becomes possible. But no matter how good tthese ese co soles aand d st ea e s aare, e, consoles streamers t’s actually your humble PC that makes it’s itt all possible. ¤
PLAYSTATION 3 Playstation 3 owners rejoice! You too can stream all your media with ease. Don’t let the Microsoft fanboys have all the fun. The last few months has seen a number of significant updates released for the PS3, all of which have increased the console’s functionality. Like the Xbox 360, you can use Windows Media Player 11 to share your media and view it using the PS3. However, just as with the Xbox, Windows Media is a temperamental beast and can cause irrational anger and the urge to chuck the controller at the TV when it stops working properly. In our expericene, you are much better off using Tversity (www.tversity.com), which also works with the Xbox (see box on the left-hand page). However, you will need to configure your router to make it work correctly, but it’s a twominute job and is pretty simple. First of all downlaod Tversity and leave all the settings at the defaults. You may want to download FFDShow (sourceforge.net/projects/ffdshow) and any other additional codecs you use regularly. You’ll need to change your Windows or third-party firewall settings to allow mediaserver.exe, which is found in the Tversity folder, access to the internet. Configure your router, by typing its IP address into your web browser’s address bar, it’s usually 192.168.0.1, but if it isn’t, run ipconfig from a command prompt to determine your PC’s IP address and use the first IP in that range for your router. Within your router’s control panel you find that you’ll need to edit the section for virtual servers or portforwarding, and allow access to port 41952. In addition, just as with the Xbox, you can use Orb with the PS3, although instead of using the folder sharing, you use the built-in browser and navigate to mycast.orb.com.
Below The Squeezbox duet is perhaps one of the most desirable gadgets we’ve seen. Ours is covered in drool
Above bove With its Blu Blu-ray ray drive and media streaming capabilities, the PS3 isn’t just a pretty games console
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