Hardware requirments

Hi, I was looking to see if there any hardware requirements specially on a Microsoft Laptop. I am running in to a issue where I get buffering or I cannot connect to certain stream but others work. I am beginning to wonder if the laptop is the issue. I also run into this issue with the 2 Android on a USB stick I have, they can stream media on the laptop just fine but not video streams such a BBC, which works fine on my TV.

Spec for the laptop:

Processor / Chipset

CPU Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 / 2.53 GHz
Number of Cores Dual-Core
Cache L2 cache - 3.0 MB
64-bit Computing Yes
Front Side Bus 1066.0 MHz
Chipset Intel P45 Express

Memory

RAM 4.0 GB
Technology DDR2 SDRAM
Speed 800.0 MHz

Anyone run into this issue?

Thanks

Saad

[atc98092]

Your specs should be fine for streaming. I run two Serviio machines (I use one for testing), and my test box is similar to your hardware (but not a laptop). You didn't mention what version of Windows you are running. XP, 7 or 8, or a Server version?

What you also didn't mention was if you are using wireless to connect the laptop to your network. If so, that's probably your bottleneck. Depending on the bit rate of your streamed video, 802.11g could not be enough. I have a few HD videos that stream over 40Mbps, and .11g would not be enough. I have 802.11n wireless on my network, but even so my laptop still only connects at 65Mbps.

I run most of my players (and of course the server) on wired gigabit, and I can easily stream multiple HD movies at the same time. Even though each player can only connect at 100 Mbps, the server is at 1000 Mbps, so no issue there. Your laptop most likely has .11g wireless and 100BaseT wired network cards. I've noticed that many fairly new laptops still don't have gigabit network cards.

Thanks for the response:

I am running Win 7.

On the two TV's I am using powerline plugs ( I tried 802.11N with the same results). The N router is 100MB, the throughput on the powerline plugs is about 5MB. So the Laptop is wired in the N Router and then I have the main powerlin plug, plugged into the router too.

I will assume that the reason why I get some streams and not others is due to the bandwidth?

Regards

Saad

[atc98092]

Yeah, network speed looks like a possibility. The power line network option is very convenient, but I'm not sure if it supports that high of a bit rate. I have no experience with them, so it's all based on (admittedly old) information I've read.

Also like I said, it depends on the bit rate of the video itself. Even on a hard wired network, I have some devices that can't handle a few of my HD rips. My Panasonic TV seems to handle almost everything I throw at it, while the Sony media boxes have varied results. I have one movie that streams over 50Mbps, and it's ok, while another that streams at 35Mbps will stutter. If I keep the overall bit rate under 30, they all seem to do OK. Even the Roku boxes, which aren't real powerhouses, can do some of my HD video with no problem. They work the best with MP4, as that's a native format for them. Everything else needs transcoding, and that becomes dependent on your server power.

Thanks. I'll see if I can tweek stuff, I'll play with packets sizes to see if that helps out.

[NX3]

Homeplugs are great and recommented over Wifi for streaming. However you've not mentioned the make / model / spec of yours ? Realistically you need 200mbps models or faster and then a wiring system that supports good speed. Homeplugs started out at 85mbps and then you reduce down to the real through put they are going to stuggle.

Can you post those details of your homeplugs ?

NX3,


It TRENDNET TPL-307E/A (200MBPS):

IEEE 1901, HomePlug® AV, IEEE 802.3, IEEE 802.3x, IEEE 802.3u
Interface

1 x 10/100Mbps Auto-MDIX RJ-45 Port
1 x electrical power socket with noise filtering (12A max. load)
Power prong:
A: North America Type B (NEMA 5–15)
EU: Euro Type C (CEE 7/16)
FR: French Type E (CEE 7/5)
UK : United Kingdom Type G (BS 1363)

Frequency Band 2 ~ 28 MHz
Modulation OFDM Symbol modulation on link synchronization, 1024/256/64/8 - QAM, QPSK, BPSK, ROBO carrier
Protocols TDMA and CSMA/CA
Speed

Powerline: up to 200Mbps**
Ethernet: up to 200Mbps with Full Duplex mode

Utility OS Compatibility Windows 7 (32/64-bit), Vista (32/64-bit), XP (32/64-bit)
Nodes Up to 6 (max.)
Overlapping Powerline Networks Supported Up to 4 (per electrical system)
Coverage Up to 300 m (984 ft.)

http://trendnet.com/products/proddetail ... 7E&cat=101

[NX3]

They should be more than fast enough to play HD over ...easily. You've got them plugged into the wall socket directly and not off a extension socket ?

[atc98092]

Sorry for the delayed response. Just flew home from London late last night.

TrendNet sells some good products at affordable prices. However, I have had issues with some products in the past, such as Ethernet switches that would lock up and need a power cycle to restore. I know nothing about their Power Plug products, so I am in no way saying they are a cause for concern. Just wanted to point out my less than perfect history with them, enough so that I avoid them when possible. Some of my issues happened a number of years ago, so it is entirely possible that more recent products have shed the issues I encountered.