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Video codecs on the HDR
- Thread starter parish
- Start date
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Interesting. What codecs? I didn't know there were any new codecs.
jsrobo
Member
Nothing recent, just the ones that have been there for a while. The only video files I can't play are .mkv so I have to use my computer for these. BTW xbmc will play these without subs, the only one which will that I've found. Avis even xvid avis they are no problem..
fenlander
Active Member
So far as I'm aware, no codecs have ever been provided or updated as part of the firmware/software developments on this site. When the subject has arisen it has been the general view that the Hummy does its video decoding in hardware and that adding codecs is not likely to be possible.
There are some things you can do. For example, passing .mkv files through tsMuxer produces (very quickly) a .ts file that is playable on the Hummy, though without ff/rwd control. Avi files may work, or not, depending on the codecs used in them for the video and audio streams. Until recently, avi was mostly seen as the home for Xvid and DivX-encoded files, but nowadays they're as likely to contain x264 streams.
If there is some mystery about why some files play and others don't when copied to the Humax, the ins and outs of which DLNA clients work on which OS and which files can be played via DLNA verges on black magic.
There are some things you can do. For example, passing .mkv files through tsMuxer produces (very quickly) a .ts file that is playable on the Hummy, though without ff/rwd control. Avi files may work, or not, depending on the codecs used in them for the video and audio streams. Until recently, avi was mostly seen as the home for Xvid and DivX-encoded files, but nowadays they're as likely to contain x264 streams.
If there is some mystery about why some files play and others don't when copied to the Humax, the ins and outs of which DLNA clients work on which OS and which files can be played via DLNA verges on black magic.
jsrobo
Member
I think there are some misunderstandings here. My understanding was that borise couldn't play xvids, no mention of copying to the hummy. Just plug in an external drive to the hummy and then play them on the hummy off the external drive. Before the updated firmware was introduced xvid avis did not play this way. so if its not a codec that's been added like ffmpeg or what ever what is it??? Incidentily why would you want/need to copy a video onto the hummy hard drive (sheer waste of time!)
fenlander
Active Member
Not everyone owns an external drive - some people might download files on a PC and then transfer to the hummy using ftp or samba. Anyway, it doesn't matter whether you physically copy the file to the hummy or use an external drive, you're still playing the file 'on the hummy' - using the hummy's hardware and firmware - and the hummy will play some media files and not others. If you're playing the files on the PC and encounter a file that won't play you can download extra codecs or switch to a different media player, but so far you can't do that with the hummy.
oijonesey
Hummy.tv SEO Guru
It does take time, yes, but not as much time as explaining to SWMBO how to find the kids vids collection on the NAS drive - especially when navigating the whole song and dance of press Media>press the Blue button>Select Network>select the NAS drive> navigate the DLNA path to Videos>Folder>Kids>Blah>Blah. If we can get the code to mount the network drives like a USB drive it might get better but for now it's just a lot easier to stick the Fireman Sam collection back on the Hummy and I move all my stuff onto the NAS cos I know where and how to find it!! Of course in a years time once the kids are at primary school age it won't matter because they'll not only know how to find all the stored content themselves anywhere on the home network, they'll also probably be able to reverse engineer the original firmware and sell it back to Humax!!!
jsrobo
Member
At 500gb I don't think I call an external hard drive small or even miss-name it as a flash drive, ha ha! And boy aren't they cheap.
Just use your hummy hard drive to record too. And store all other obtained videos on an external Hard Drive, the internet is a large place, one needs a lot of storage space for stuff from there, don't we.
Just use your hummy hard drive to record too. And store all other obtained videos on an external Hard Drive, the internet is a large place, one needs a lot of storage space for stuff from there, don't we.
fenlander
Active Member
borise said:
"Well as for setup the box runs standard firmware and the files were on an 8gb flash drive." (This thread, post #40.)
People will use their kit as they see fit. We might suggest alternative ways of doing things, but it's best not to be prescriptive. Also, have you checked out hard drive prices since the Bangkok floods?
"Well as for setup the box runs standard firmware and the files were on an 8gb flash drive." (This thread, post #40.)
People will use their kit as they see fit. We might suggest alternative ways of doing things, but it's best not to be prescriptive. Also, have you checked out hard drive prices since the Bangkok floods?
fenlander
Active Member
Never thought they were. But when there's a shortage, prices rise. Here you can still get a Toshiba 2.5" 750GB for <£60, but a WD with similar capacity will set you back around £100 (Amazon UK prices). A few weeks ago, the prices were comparable. If the shortage persists in the run-up to Christmas, a lot of people's gift plans could be affected. Humax prices on the up, maybe?
Obviously, we should all pop across to Florida for Christmas shopping. Or perhaps you could be persuaded to take orders and bring a few dozen drives back in your carry-on.
jsrobo
Member
Can do, I'm back for Xmas!Obviously, we should all pop across to Florida for Christmas shopping. Or perhaps you could be persuaded to take orders and bring a few dozen drives back in your carry-on.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Another reason to copy files onto the Humax (as I have just done with a couple of films): to stream them to another device using the standard DLNA server.