Just found this on the Hauppauge site. Is this an evolution to an SD Vomp box or something else?
http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_mediamvp-hd.html
It could be. We will have to wait for it to come out before we can find out if it is hackable.
Quote
Hauppauge 1340 MediaMVP-HD Digital Media Player by Hauppauge
Buy new: $149.99 $139.99
that's @amazon.com
could be someone's taken a look at it already .. somewhere out there :)
eats allegedly 6 watts _while_ playing an HD stream.
cheers
Harry
Heh, why didn't I check amazon.com...
The way it doesn't require a computer to boot means it could be a problem to hack. I wonder if anyone at mvpmc has taken a look at it..
From the website:
QuoteMediaMVP-HD's CPU engine (a Sigma 8655 processor) runs the Linux operating system, and has built-in multimedia hardware for decoding high definition MPEG-2 and H.264 videos, digital audio and digital pictures. The MediaMVP-HD application can be reloaded through it's Setup menu.
It has a sigma, that means, it is the same situation like the popcornhour (which has similar processor, maybe the same), that there is no way at the moment to get open source software having control over the mpeg and h264 decoder. (Sigma SDK is only availiable under NDA)
I tried a port of vomp to the popcornhour, since there was hope of a open lib for mpeg/h264 playback, but at the moment is still not resolved.
So I am checking out other alternatives, which do not allow a port of vomp/but a rewrite with new protocoll and will be more flexible. In a few month we will know more.
Marten
P.S: I am very frustrated, that most/all plattforms video decoders are locked down, I am searching for a while and I really want something vomp like with HD support.
Have you guys seen the developer documentation linked from the US Hauppauge page?
http://hauppauge.lightpath.net/software/mediamvp-hd/mediamvp-hd_developers_faq.pdf
That doesn't sound so bad from a first read...
Well, it is. They state that they provide only access to media playback through command line tools.
That the same things as the popcorn hour familiy.
With this api support the things how vomp streaming works will not work.
Marten
What about the WD TV HD Live Media Player. It has a network port, HDMI, ...
Although it uses the same sigma chip - there is a extended firmware available (http://b-rad.cc/wdlxtv-live/ (http://b-rad.cc/wdlxtv-live/)). It seems to be debian based.
GPL Source code seems also be available at WD. I don't know whether this also includes controlling the sigma chip.
Maybe someone can throw an eye on it.
Well it is the same sad story as with all sigma based devices.
All I can say that I have a potential target for something like a HD Vomp, I am working on it since April/May, but I am still unsure if it will work.
It will not be the vomp software or protocoll (due to technical reasons, I would have loved to use the our old mature code), but something similar.
I will post details, when I get the first video playback, here but it will take a couple of additional months.
Marten
Thanks, will wait for your "i got it - its alive" ;-)
Hello,
you wrote:
Quote from: MartenR on September 02, 2010, 19:16:03
Well it is the same sad story as with all sigma based devices.
All I can say that I have a potential target for something like a HD Vomp, I am working on it since April/May, but I am still unsure if it will work.
It will not be the vomp software or protocoll (due to technical reasons, I would have loved to use the our old mature code), but something similar.
I will post details, when I get the first video playback, here but it will take a couple of additional months.
Marten
Any news ?
Merry Christmas.
P.S.: If this device you are working on also supports HDMI-CEC it would also be great.
At the moment recordings playback of mpeg2 pes recordings playback without audio works. (In an emulator on a windows pc so far).
So far no problems, but if live tv works is in the moment not sure.
Once pes mpeg2 recordings with audio work, I will go public and ask for help of other developers.
Actually, I am programming for a whole family of devices, most of them will support HDMI-CEC.
The future is blue.
Marten
Is that (CE 3100 Media Processor) Intel blue?
Stu-e
No.
Ok, an update, I am now able to playback pes recordings with Mpeg2 and ac3 audio.
Mpeg audio has to be transcoded I am working on this.
The new vomp like client will be completely skinable and will allow animated menu. (This does not mean that I programmed an animated menu)
To uncover the mystery, it will be a streaming cleint based on BD-J, so in theory it should run on any bluray player with BD live.
In the moment, I am using a PC software player, so I can not tell, how compatible, it will be.
Anyway, anybody, who wants to buy a bluray player, should postpone this, until we know whichone will be compatible.
In two-three months, I will have alll bits and pieces, so that I can setup a git or svn and other may join me.
Marten
This sounds extremly interesting ;D ;D ;D ;D
Oh goodness - yes please :D
Just an update now TS, PES playback of mpeg audio, ac3, mpeg2 and h264 is working. Only 720p is stuttering, which is caused by a bug in vdr 1.7.16 index file generator, which is hopefully solved in 1.7.17, kls already published some patches.
I now have to add some necessary function for distribution, bootloader etc. . I will probably sometime in march go online with a repository for an open development.
Btw. my current code name is VDR on bluray disk aka VOBD, but I found out that this is already used by voice of bangladesh, so any ideas?
Marten
This is very exciting but how easy is it to get to what I assume will be some kind of top level menu of the new VOMP client application?
Will it be something like this:?
Power on your bluray player
Select the HDMI input on your TV (not necessary if you have some kind of auto switching on your TV)
Select attached media playback/browser from your bluray player menu or remote control
Browse to your AVCHD file containing the new VOMP client application (USB stick or NAS I guess)
Voila! VOMP top level menu acquired.
The MediaMVP VOMP system I have gets some serious use. The fact you can press one button on a remote to get to the top level menu is very convenient indeed and gets good WAF. (2 presses if you don't have auto SCART switching).
Stu-e
It will be something like this:
Will it be something like this:?
Power on your bluray player
Select the HDMI input on your TV (not necessary if you have some kind of auto switching on your TV)
Put in the vobd disk or push the play button if it is already inside
Select the server (wait for a software update if necessary)
and there it is
So more or less the same, AVCHD does not work with BD-J. Therefore you will need a BD-R, which can update itself over network (This part is on my todo list.)
Marten
This sounds seriously impressive.
Will the firmware/disk iso work on a DVD-R etc or will we need to beg/borrow/steal a bluray writer to get it?
If it's Bluray only, can we buy the disk from somewhere, maybe a US (NTSC-60HZ HD) and a Euro (PAL 50Hz HD) version?
QuoteWill the firmware/disk iso work on a DVD-R etc or will we need to beg/borrow/steal a bluray writer to get it?
You will need a bluray writer.
QuoteIf it's Bluray only, can we buy the disk from somewhere, maybe a US (NTSC-60HZ HD) and a Euro (PAL 50Hz HD) version?
There will be no need for two different versions. (Since this can all be handled in software, the menu do not need to specify the 60 Hz or 50 hz and for the movies it will be set by the vdr file). Btw. ac3 will be native.
I will only open a repository with the source code.
If someone will offer a bluray with the software then its is likely that only builds from him will work, due to key stuff. (Since every build of a disc generates a new private public key pair and the java programs have to be signed by this key or by a leaf key)
But selling discs is something I want not to be involved with.
Marten
Just an update.
Since several weeks I have a bluray burner.
At the moment I managed to stream some data to a sony consumer player.
The thing which is crucial in the moment are several compatiblity issues and that starting a recording takes up to 5 minutes on a consumer player, I hope I can optimize this, otherwise the whole project will not be useful. Also a fast USB stick as memory for the bluray player is very crucial.
Marten
Ok, now it takes one minute to start a recording, but this is all I can get, the platform seems to be useless for a fast streaming client. The streaming is just to focussed to playing short trailers, long movies are a problem.
Anyway I found a few TV Boxes based on Marvell chips with Android 2.2. Anyway the video api is not stable and published in the moment on android, the source code of the underlying framework is published.
I will try a port of vomp in HD, it is the first time since one and a half years, that I see an realistic option for this.
Marten
Would this be an example of the sort of hardware you are referring to?
http://armdevices.net/2011/06/08/honeywld-marvell-armada-1000-88de3010-berlin-based-android-set-top-box/ (http://armdevices.net/2011/06/08/honeywld-marvell-armada-1000-88de3010-berlin-based-android-set-top-box/)
Stu-e
Yes, it can be, I found it on pearl.de http://www.pearl.de/a-PX1534-1601.shtml. It looks promising, the firmware files in the download section reveal, that libstagefright and gstreamer with special Marvell plugins are present.
(I am not sure if it was changed in a proprierity way)
If it will be possible do use them is unclear. (I do not have such a box yet)
Anyway I will try to make a port to Android without video playback first using the emulator and then get such a box and add the video part, if possible.
But it is unclear, if it will work in the end, I will just say that there is hope.
Marten
Interesting you mention GStreamer. There appears to be support for hardware decoding in GStreamer through VAAPI:
http://www.splitted-desktop.com/~gbeauchesne/gstreamer-vaapi/ (http://www.splitted-desktop.com/~gbeauchesne/gstreamer-vaapi/)
Another possible VompHD solution could be to use a VAAPI supported motherboard as the thin client e.g. AMD 785G or nVidia ION and an inexpensive low power processor.
One would need to write a GStreamer element to weave video fields at field rate in order to support interlaced output without concern for field synchronisation. This is in theory an easy thing to do and negates the need for power hungry pulldown detection and deinterlacing.
One would also need some means of changing video resolution on demand depending on the video stream using XRandR.
I am not familiar with the Vomp client source code so I cannot guess how big the challenge would be to port it to the GStreamer API.
Stu-e
Well, gstreamer on normal Linux is another story than on android. In principle it is possible to port vomp to linux using such apis. But for this already qtvomp exists.
And I prefer for a mvp replacement a device, which you can buy ready in a store with not too much deviation in the configuration in time, and I do not like the idea of a PC as replacement for the mvp. So I will not do a port to this, I will rather focus on android since it has the potential that there will be always devices, which support the corresponding apis. I do not know if I will uses the Gstreamer api or the libstagefrighthw api, both are unstable in Android and may change anytime, but at least there us hope at access the video hardware and in the future google will hopefully introduce a stable api for this.
Marten
Oh I agree a ready built device with good access to a stable API is the preferred option. It's unfortunate that such an option has not existed since the MediaMVP to accommodate HD video.
Just an update, I have ported the GUI and remote stuff to android.
I already have one device here and I will start now to port the video playback part.
The promising thing is that on the android filesystem of the device exist even c header files from marvell for the video device libs beside the gstreamer and android libs..
I also found this: http://www.raspberrypi.org/ which can provide another alternative in the future.
Marten
What about Google TV? The Logitech Revue in the US is now down to $99, Android based etc. Would the same app work on it?
Well, on the weekend I managed to get first recording playback (with a few problems still), I am using the android Mediaplayer class.
So the requirement is that the device can play TS streams over http with Mpeg2 video, h264 (high profile not baseline profile) with AC3 or mpeg audio layer 2 audio through the android mediaplayer (not third party).
So you have to test, the requirements to android based devices for mediaplayer are very vague and vary greatly between different devices.
If vdr ts recordings from sd card play back well, it is very likely.
Other incompatibilities might show up, but they may be fixable.
So maybe I do not know for sure before someone tried it.
Marten
I looked at the docs for google TV and it says that the NDK will be availiable at a future date. Therefore it might be, that it will not work on google tv in the moment. (I think the reason is that a lot of devices use x86 and not arm). Also in the moment only preinstalled apps are supported :-(
Maybe later this year...
http://code.google.com/intl/de/tv/faq.html
Marten
Just an update, exempt for Teletext, which is not optimized in the moment, everything is working in some way.
Only the MMB-322 crashes occasionally due to heat problems.
Marten
Is HDMI-CEC supported in this device ?
That would save me (at least) one remote control.
Petric
No, I do not think so, but I am 100% sure.
Exciting stuff.
Any idea yet on how portable this is to other Android set-top-box hardware?
I did not use any device specific function.
So it should work in theory with every android device, which supports a TS playback with mpeg2,h264 and mpeg1 layer 2 audio and ac3.
And it should also support the android ndk.
If it works in real life, we have to try.
Marten
There are few Android set-top-boxes out there to choose from, at least for now.
Sounds like the Flexiview FV-1 is one to avoid:
http://androidforums.com/3111461-post310.html (http://androidforums.com/3111461-post310.html)
Marten
Does your MMB-322 support 1080i and 576i output (essential for watching interlaced source video)?
I see at least one Android set-top-box supports only progressive output:
http://androidforums.com/google-tv/419483-g-box-rockchip-2918-gingerbread-really-plays-outputs-fullhd.html#post3255228 (http://androidforums.com/google-tv/419483-g-box-rockchip-2918-gingerbread-really-plays-outputs-fullhd.html#post3255228)
That would make it impossible to watch 1080i or 576i video without interlacing artifacts.
Stu-e
I do not think so, I think only 720p and 1080p is supported.
So far I only hooked a SD PAL TV to it, since this tv is sitting next to my computer.
All I can tell you, that it uses a bluray player chipset with the android stuff as osd and the video playback below the osd.
Because of the thermal problems, I am looking for myself if one of the cheaper android boxes with another chipset does a better job.
Marten
Just one comment to the box:
http://androidforums.com/google-tv/419483-g-box-rockchip-2918-gingerbread-really-plays-outputs-fullhd.html#post3255228
please look also on the remote control, it has not enough button for vomps normal functionality.
Marten
This sounds extremely interesting... and hopefully we will have a nice replacement to the mvp's.
The last couple of years I have played around with htpc's as vdr frontends. Sadly enough the solutions have not turned out to be enough WAF nor have as good picture quality as the four mvp's in our household deliver.
A few posts above you refer to the Android NDK. Is the solution developed dependant on the NDK or is it sufficient to build the android Vomp using the Android SDK?
A box that looks promising is the Dvico Tvix XRoid A1. Its equipped with a Sigma Design SMP8657 SoC. Its a bit expensive but appears to have good performance. Some complaints about stability and missing features in the firmware/s but it is slowly improving with every firmware released.
QuoteA few posts above you refer to the Android NDK. Is the solution developed dependant on the NDK or is it sufficient to build the android Vomp using the Android SDK?
90% is NDK code (It is the old vomp code, so it looks more or less identical), so you need the NDK. (It is not availibale for all android platforms.
QuoteA box that looks promising is the Dvico Tvix XRoid A1. Its equipped with a Sigma Design SMP8657 SoC. Its a bit expensive but appears to have good performance. Some complaints about stability and missing features in the firmware/s but it is slowly improving with every firmware released.
This one is mips based, I think. The ndk is so far only availiable for ARM and may be in a few month for x86.
So vomp will not work.
Marten
Just an update: my Marvell based Android Player MMB-322 annoys me getting a frequently system crashs (black screen), since it depends on the type of video (h264 crashes faster), I thought it is thermal.
I bought a fan, but still with 25 °C instead of 45°C it does the same.
May be a bad device, maybe a fault of my programming....
So I bought a skyviia based media player MMB-22 which costs only 70 euros (instead of 150 eur).
But the people from skyviia did not implement the media player through the documented android classes, so vomp does not work...
Interestingly I did not find the modified mplayer source code...
Maybe I find another way around it,(it uses mplayer using the slave mode) but I am bit frustrated.....
Marten
Hi MartenR,
have you dropped the BD-Live thing completly? Using my LG BD 390 Bluray-Player as an VDR-Frontend would be awesome ;D
But anyway, keep on working, there is no better VDR-Client than VOMP (even SD-Only)
Odin4242
Yes I dropped it completely due to performance reasons.
Marten