Yet Another HTPC-advice Thread!

[superczar]

^^^ Not sure you would need them this day and age, most media player software will have an app or multiple third-party apps.

But it was certainly cool back in the day, I even remember having wired remotes for VCRs.

Because It's not fun to reach out for the phone, open an app and search for the right buttons when all you want to do it is pause a movie

I use a harmony hub with a single physical remote because an app will never match the tactile ease of a physical remote (actually I am a bit too lazy and I speak up and ask Alexa to pause the movie or resume playback when I don;t want to reach out for the remote )

However, for my BIL, whose setup is far simpler and a Harmony hub would have been overkill, I ordered an el-cheapo remote from ebay for his nuc and he is a lot happier with it than he was with the Intel NUC remote app

 

[regeHA]

Because It's not fun to reach out for the phone, open an app and search for the right buttons when all you want to do it is pause a movie

I use a harmony hub with a single physical remote because an app will never match the tactile ease of a physical remote (actually I am a bit too lazy and I speak up and ask Alexa to pause the movie or resume playback when I don;t want to reach out for the remote )

However, for my BIL, whose setup is far simpler and a Harmony hub would have been overkill, I ordered an el-cheapo remote from ebay for his nuc and he is a lot happier with it than he was with the Intel NUC remote app

Amazon Echo/Alexa is amazing, I have 2 of them and have even set up a fair bit of home automation. However, they are limited in some aspects being outside of US, especially in terms of accessing Amazon for shopping.

PS: You can always drag an app to the home screen as a widget, where it will have the play, pause, forward, rewind, stop, etc. functionality available on the home screen. I do this for both audio and video, and have never felt the need for a remote.

 

[sam9s]

Because It's not fun to reach out for the phone, open an app and search for the right buttons when all you want to do it is pause a movie

Thats not how you do it, you keep the phone close (as you would keep a physical remote), the app in all probability has a widget, and its right there on one of the home screens of your mobile. (with basic commands like pause, play, skip, volume etc) So when you run an application, the remote is right there with you, just like a physical remote.

I have a dedicated home screen no 3 on right side for all the remote widgets, yatse, DS Audio, Subsonic, Spotify, Tuinin radio and an equalizer app all neatly laid on one screen, accordingly sized (that's the beauty of Android, .. ..sorry not possible on iOS... )

Alexa is money waste ... just use the combination of tasker, and Auto voice on any android to control almost anything, in my case openelec to play and pause. With a Moto G you dont even have to press anything just say "Hello Moto - Pause Movie" .. and there you go. I have also configured in case my phone rings, the movie is paused automatically, if the phone calls goes more than 1 minute,my movie automatically skips back 30 seconds, but remain pause. When the phone call ends, it resumes automatically as well, albeit from 30 sec back ...

 

[superczar]

Thats not how you do it, you keep the phone close (as you would keep a physical remote), the app in all probability has a widget, and its right there on one of the home screens of your mobile. (with basic commands like pause, play, skip, volume etc) So when you run an application, the remote is right there with you, just like a physical remote.

I have a dedicated home screen no 3 on right side for all the remote widgets, yatse, DS Audio, Subsonic, Spotify, Tuinin radio and an equalizer app all neatly laid on one screen, accordingly sized (that's the beauty of Android, .. ..sorry not possible on iOS... )

Alexa is money waste ... just use the combination of tasker, and Auto voice on any android to control almost anything, in my case openelec to play and pause. With a Moto G you dont even have to press anything just say "Hello Moto - Pause Movie" .. and there you go. I have also configured in case my phone rings, the movie is paused automatically, if the phone calls goes more than 1 minute,my movie automatically skips back 30 seconds, but remain pause. When the phone call ends, it resumes automatically as well, albeit from 30 sec back ...

That may work for you but doesn't work for all
I may or may not have my phone lying around but the remote ain't going anywhere... Plus call me old fashioned but whether it's changing the volume or channels or navigating, i will take a tactile physical remote anyday.. In any case, the logitech harmony app provides unified control for all my devices but I just don't like using it and always reach out for the physical Logitech remote

Also, the echo is far from a waste of money - I had tried voice control via google now/tasker but somehow neither I , nor anyone else ever used it.

OTOH, Amazon echo worked out very well for me as well as for everyone in my family including parents when they come visiting..
It's a lot easier for people to just say "Alexa, play RD Burman" or "Alexa, turn on kitchen lights" or "switch on TV"
In fact it worked so well for me that I have added 2 more apart from the one in the living room, 1 for the kitchen and another for the bedroom

Amazon Echo/Alexa is amazing, I have 2 of them and have even set up a fair bit of home automation. However, they are limited in some aspects being outside of US, especially in terms of accessing Amazon for shopping.

Am not sure what home automation hub you use - You should look up HABridge which acts as a local hub between the echo and your home automation server - So that has enabled me to automate practically all lights/fans/media activities in the house

 

[sam9s]

That may work for you but doesn't work for all
I may or may not have my phone lying around but the remote ain't going anywhere...

usually its the other way round, for most of us anyway I may or may not have my physical remote lying around, but phone isnt going anywhere ...anyway what ever floats your boat.

Also, the echo is far from a waste of money - I had tried voice control via google now/tasker but somehow neither I , nor anyone else ever used it.

Am not sure what home automation hub you use - You should look up HABridge which acts as a local hub between the echo and your home automation server - So that has enabled me to automate practically all lights/fans/media activities in the house

well I can understand where you coming from, for me as a tech guy, Alexa kind of things are waste of money, when same can be achieved from an Android phone. For some more complex automation, I use zwave modules, but yes, its not just plug and play like alexa might be. So in that regard, I'd say it might be good for people who dont want to dive in to technicalities. Like tasker didnt work for you, but if you know how to use it, configure it, it can automate practically eveything, from home, to phone to media players and all electronics like TV, STB etc etc, ...yes it DOES take time and effort, but its much cheaper. .....To automate any thing on your mobil, tasker is God send. For a bit more home automation, I prefer veralite with zwave protocol. I have not done any extensive home automation, I will sooner or later, that will also include my dedicated Home theater automation, but there are couple that I just had the need to do, like to be able to switch on my AC, before I reach home to get the room precooled ..... and things like that.

 

[regeHA]

Alexa is money waste ... just use the combination of tasker, and Auto voice on any android to control almost anything, in my case openelec to play and pause. With a Moto G you dont even have to press anything just say "Hello Moto - Pause Movie" .. and there you go. I have also configured in case my phone rings, the movie is paused automatically, if the phone calls goes more than 1 minute,my movie automatically skips back 30 seconds, but remain pause. When the phone call ends, it resumes automatically as well, albeit from 30 sec back ...

Apples to oranges actually I have Tasker, and I use it too.

However, my Alexa can order pizza from Domino's with a single voice command, play any song from Spotify, etc.

 

[saikatbiswas82]

usually its the other way round, for most of us anyway I may or may not have my physical remote lying around, but phone isnt going anywhere ...anyway what ever floats your boat.

True that. I always loose my remotes. But my universal remote (read mobile) is always by my side. [emoji3]

well I can understand where you coming from, for me as a tech guy, Alexa kind of things are waste of money, when same can be achieved from an Android phone. For some more complex automation, I use zwave modules, but yes, its not just plug and play like alexa might be. So in that regard, I'd say it might be good for people who dont want to dive in to technicalities. Like tasker didnt work for you, but if you know how to use it, configure it, it can automate practically eveything, from home, to phone to media players and all electronics like TV, STB etc etc, ...yes it DOES take time and effort, but its much cheaper. .....To automate any thing on your mobil, tasker is God send. For a bit more home automation, I prefer veralite with zwave protocol. I have not done any extensive home automation, I will sooner or later, that will also include my dedicated Home theater automation, but there are couple that I just had the need to do, like to be able to switch on my AC, before I reach home to get the room precooled ..... and things like that.

Are you talking about going branded way in Home Automation. Or are we talking about DIY approach?


Sent from a handheld device. Some typos might creep in.

 

[superczar]

well I can understand where you coming from, for me as a tech guy, Alexa kind of things are waste of money, when same can be achieved from an Android phone. For some more complex automation, I use zwave modules, but yes, its not just plug and play like alexa might be. So in that regard, I'd say it might be good for people who dont want to dive in to technicalities. Like tasker didnt work for you, but if you know how to use it, configure it, it can automate practically eveything, from home, to phone to media players and all electronics like TV, STB etc etc, ...yes it DOES take time and effort, but its much cheaper. .....To automate any thing on your mobil, tasker is God send. For a bit more home automation, I prefer veralite with zwave protocol. I have not done any extensive home automation, I will sooner or later, that will also include my dedicated Home theater automation, but there are couple that I just had the need to do, like to be able to switch on my AC, before I reach home to get the room precooled ..... and things like that.

I totally hear you as I used to be (and in some ways still am ) a hard core techie who loved nothing more than figuring out a hackable solution as long as it could be done for cheaper
But as we get older, we start preferring a little more convenience over cost (and I am sure you will too)

Alexa isn't plug & play either for Home automation - I have approx 20 switches, 8 full spectrum lights, 7 weather sensors , 4 IP cameras, 3 motion sensors, Power usage sensors, full AV control and 4 zone streaming setup - They are all managed via a Linux based server (look up domoticz) that allows me to run things whichever way I want (e.g. dim living room lights to a blue hue if it is past sunset and I switch on the TV/restore them to my preferred warm yellow when I pause) -
or to send me alerts with pics on my phone if there is motion on my porch on a weekday between 10AM to 7 PM
or any combination between a sensor and actuator (physical or virtual)
Apart from the obvious like switching on lights in selected zones after sunset etc.

What I would suggest to you is that Z-wave is expensive and If I would have used Z-wave , it would have cost me significantly more than what I have...
Try taking a look at
- lighting equipment like LIFX (where you need full spectrum)
- ESP8266 (instead of z-wave) modules for building your own actuators/sensors for a fraction of the cost
- Milight bulbs (chinese) for low intensity lighting (washrooms etc)
- Basic IP cameras with mjpeg support
- Harmony hub for AV equipment automation (although you can use a spare phone also but the HH works extremely well and is easily worth the $90 odd it costs)

The Echo for me was an afterthought and was added recently only as a remote of sorts for the HA hub as not everyone would want to pull out the phone for controlling any equipment but it worked out really well

 

[sam9s]

Apples to oranges actually I have Tasker, and I use it too.

However, my Alexa can order pizza from Domino's with a single voice command, play any song from Spotify, etc.

No I cannot order pizza, Alexa wins here (or maybe I can, will google), play any song from Spotify can be achieved ..... its not apples and oranges, but more so oranges and Kinnow

 

[sam9s]

Are you talking about going branded way in Home Automation. Or are we talking about DIY approach?.

Both. With Tasker and gazillions of modules, plugins, scripts and Raspberri Pi you can automate lots and lots of home stuff, including almost everything on your phone (a samll example, increase the brightness to full and change the screen orientation to landscape the moment youtube app is launched OR automatically switch bluetooth on connect to my car bluetooth, switch off screen guard and pattern lock, as I dont want to unlock my phone to use it while driving, wifi off, data on, ...etc while driving, when I am home I have a different set of rules that apply....

But if you wanna go branded way, veralite is what I use,(well not that extensively as of now, but planning to expand) ALEXA, also is another approach that @superczar prefers .....

 

[regeHA]

No I cannot order pizza, Alexa wins here (or maybe I can, will google), play any song from Spotify can be achieved ..... its not apples and oranges, but more so oranges and Kinnow

I'm sure it could be automated with Tasker (eventually at least) and provided Domino's Pizza opened up access, but the thing with Alexa is your mom/my mom could use it from day one. Cannot see that happening with Tasker.

Also in a way Alexa is very liberating because you don't need to always keep it close by or in your pocket, it stays out of the way and responds only when spoken to.

 

[superczar]

Both. With Tasker and gazillions of modules, plugins, scripts and Raspberri Pi you can automate lots and lots of home stuff, including almost everything on your phone (a samll example, increase the brightness to full and change the screen orientation to landscape the moment youtube app is launched OR automatically switch bluetooth on connect to my car bluetooth, switch off screen guard and pattern lock, as I dont want to unlock my phone to use it while driving, wifi off, data on, ...etc while driving, when I am home I have a different set of rules that apply....

But if you wanna go branded way, veralite is what I use,(well not that extensively as of now, but planning to expand) ALEXA, also is another approach that @superczar prefers .....

Alexa is just another interface to the core HA platform
I use Domoticz as the core..
FWIW, veralite has some major constraints and you may want to choose openhab or domoticz or something similar as the core platform

To regeHA 's point, Alexa is very liberating in the sense you don't have to do anything other than invoking the name - Whether it is to simply convert 10 oz in a recipe to gms or to set a new alarm timer when you don't want to get out of the comforter on a Saturday morning

or moderately complex like playing coldplay while you are basting some grub in the oven

or more complex like switching on the movies to invoke what was an otherwise tedious task of switching on the TV, AVR, Subwoofer, setting the right inputs etc

Oh, and my FIL who was over for dinner yesterday was thoroughly enjoying a game of akinator with Alexa - Not something I would imagine him doing on the phone - so extra brownie points for me there

 

[saikatbiswas82]

Both. With Tasker and gazillions of modules, plugins, scripts and Raspberri Pi you can automate lots and lots of home stuff, including almost everything on your phone (a samll example, increase the brightness to full and change the screen orientation to landscape the moment youtube app is launched OR automatically switch bluetooth on connect to my car bluetooth, switch off screen guard and pattern lock, as I dont want to unlock my phone to use it while driving, wifi off, data on, ...etc while driving, when I am home I have a different set of rules that apply....

But if you wanna go branded way, veralite is what I use,(well not that extensively as of now, but planning to expand) ALEXA, also is another approach that @superczar prefers .....

Will have to look into these.

However I've done some proof of concept on home automation like turning on/off lights using Arduino, Relays and self developed Android app.

I thought we were talking about that type of home automation where we can control all electrical appliances etc.

I think we are deviating from original topic. Can we start another thread on Home Automation please?

Sent from a handheld device. Some typos might creep in.

 

[sam9s]

I totally hear you as I used to be (and in some ways still am ) a hard core techie who loved nothing more than figuring out a hackable solution as long as it could be done for cheaper
But as we get older, we start preferring a little more convenience over cost (and I am sure you will too)

I am not that young either. I have an 8-year-old kid if that might give a perspective without actually spilling out my age ...lol, But I get what you are trying to say, and I yes I agree. I do understand "convenience over banging your head to get it for free or cheaper thing......lol" ... but I still have that zeal to do the hard techie RnD way .... even though as I said I am not that young either, but thats my passion, mu ultimate goal, that zeal is what keeps me active and interested in life actually ...

Alexa isn't plug & play either for Home automation - I have approx 20 switches, 8 full spectrum lights, 7 weather sensors , 4 IP cameras, 3 motion sensors, Power usage sensors, full AV control and 4 zone streaming setup - They are all managed via a Linux based server (look up domoticz) that allows me to run things whichever way I want (e.g. dim living room lights to a blue hue if it is past sunset and I switch on the TV/restore them to my preferred warm yellow when I pause) -
or to send me alerts with pics on my phone if there is motion on my porch on a weekday between 10AM to 7 PM
or any combination between a sensor and actuator (physical or virtual)
Apart from the obvious like switching on lights in selected zones after sunset etc.

What I would suggest to you is that Z-wave is expensive and If I would have used Z-wave , it would have cost me significantly more than what I have...
Try taking a look at
- lighting equipment like LIFX (where you need full spectrum)
- ESP8266 (instead of z-wave) modules for building your own actuators/sensors for a fraction of the cost
- Milight bulbs (chinese) for low intensity lighting (washrooms etc)
- Basic IP cameras with mjpeg support
- Harmony hub for AV equipment automation (although you can use a spare phone also but the HH works extremely well and is easily worth the $90 odd it costs)

The Echo for me was an afterthought and was added recently only as a remote of sorts for the HA hub as not everyone would want to pull out the phone for controlling any equipment but it worked out really well

Well this is proper good scale automation you have gone for, I might not go that far, I dont have house that big or spead across to go for something like 4 security cam. I have just one in my HT.. . As much as I have seen alexa advertisement seems like more of a money making gizmo than actual automation, plus looked liked plug n play to me. But I might be wrong. Z-Wave I dont know for me seems would give me more flexibility as I can integrate it with Raspberry Pi and also write my own scripts to get that full control over automation. I am less interested in lights and sensors but more in like my AC, Music distribution and automation, NFC automation, HTPC automation...and my Home Theater automation .... but its good to know you have an interest in all this too, and thanks for the information. Will definitely look in to it, and probably can exchange more with you on this ....

 

[sam9s]

Will have to look into these.

However I've done some proof of concept on home automation like turning on/off lights using Arduino, Relays and self developed Android app.

I thought we were talking about that type of home automation where we can control all electrical appliances etc.

I think we are deviating from original topic. Can we start another thread on Home Automation please?

Sent from a handheld device. Some typos might creep in.

yes controlling electrical appliance also comes under automation, see automation can be of different types and levels, a simple task written to auto switch bluetooth on and connect to car stereo, the moment you start driving is also automation, and controlling lights, fans and other home appliances like TV, STB and AC also come under automation .....

and yes by all means you can start a new thread if you want to, for Automation, we all can contribute and can be benefitted ...

I personally have not done much, (as much as superczar has done), but planning to, specially for my HomeTheater and less for my flat as such, but would love to contribute and see what other have to offer as well

 

[superczar]

yes controlling electrical appliance also comes under automation, see automation can be of different types and levels, a simple task written to auto switch bluetooth on and connect to car stereo, the moment you start driving is also automation, and controlling lights, fans and other home appliances like TV, STB and AC also come under automation .....

and yes by all means you can start a new thread if you want to, for Automation, we all can contribute and can be benefitted ...

I personally have not done much, (as much as superczar has done), but planning to, specially for my HomeTheater and less for my flat as such, but would love to contribute and see what other have to offer as well

So as to not hijack this thread:
http://www.hifivision.com/av-lounge/64501-automated-av-control-other-home-automation.html

 

[sam9s]

I'm sure it could be automated with Tasker (eventually at least) and provided Domino's Pizza opened up access, but the thing with Alexa is your mom/my mom could use it from day one. Cannot see that happening with Tasker.

Also in a way Alexa is very liberating because you don't need to always keep it close by or in your pocket, it stays out of the way and responds only when spoken to.

My mom and your mon can also use Tasker with android, she just has to say Hello Moto or what ever configured (with Moto G line of phones atleast) and then, what ever action android is trained with her voice , she just can not configure it, there is a difference ... but yes I am getting what you are trying to say. ALEXA kind of gadgets are catered to general home public use, and I am not denying ALEXA must be good in that department, its just I don't see myself falling down with that kinda of home automation device, what ever tech snob reason might that be (I admit ...)

 

[TheSeeker]

hello all,

could someone pls suggest a cabinet for these components?

Gigabyte H97M-D3H
Zotac GTX750ti
2 x 1TB HDDs + 1 SSD
Corsair CX500

presently using NZXT Guardian 921RB cabinet, but want to shift to a slimmer & less conspicuous one. circle lil had piqued my interest, but looks like cant accommodate more than 1-2 HDDs in it. any good offering from corsair? open to a used cabinet too, provided its in good condition internally as well as externally.

TIA!

P.S. - how about a corsair 250d? not slim, but is smaller.

 

[regeHA]

hello all,

could someone pls suggest a cabinet for these components?

Gigabyte H97M-D3H
Zotac GTX750ti
2 x 1TB HDDs + 1 SSD
Corsair CX500

presently using NZXT Guardian 921RB cabinet, but want to shift to a slimmer & less conspicuous one. circle lil had piqued my interest, but looks like cant accommodate more than 1-2 HDDs in it. any good offering from corsair? open to a used cabinet too, provided its in good condition internally as well as externally.

TIA!

P.S. - how about a corsair 250d? not slim, but is smaller.

Extremely limited options considering its micro-ATX form factor.

The Circle Lil looks good, and would be my choice. The Corsair wouldn't work since its ITX and your Mobo is ATX.

One way to go about it long term is to set up a NAS at home. You can use an old PC and put a Linux distro that takes very little resources to run, but will free up your regular/daily systems from a lot of functions.

Like right now my primary gaming rig runs on only one SSD. This eliminates a lot of heat and noise, and frees up a lot of system resources.

Likewise, an Intel NUC with another single SSD functions as a HTPC while accessing the NAS for the content.

Throw in a few Raspberry Pi's and renderer devices like Roku, Chromecast Audio and Video, etc. and you're all set.

PS: Not the advice you are looking for, but its working very well for me.

 

[TheSeeker]

Extremely limited options considering its micro-ATX form factor.

The Circle Lil looks good, and would be my choice. The Corsair wouldn't work since its ITX and your Mobo is ATX.

One way to go about it long term is to set up a NAS at home. You can use an old PC and put a Linux distro that takes very little resources to run, but will free up your regular/daily systems from a lot of functions.

Like right now my primary gaming rig runs on only one SSD. This eliminates a lot of heat and noise, and frees up a lot of system resources.

Likewise, an Intel NUC with another single SSD functions as a HTPC while accessing the NAS for the content.

Throw in a few Raspberry Pi's and renderer devices like Roku, Chromecast Audio and Video, etc. and you're all set.

PS: Not the advice you are looking for, but its working very well for me.

thanks. I will then check it out at the local PC store.

I do have an old laptop. currently relegated to downloading-duties, but on windows. would change it to some Linux distro, sure (but don't know if sharing media between my HTPC having Win 8.1 & this Linux PC would be seamless or not; currently I just play media on my HTPC by accessing files on the laptop over the network. both have same OS).

other than that also have a Seagate goflex home & a pogo pro, but not being used. was thinking of giving them away as now don't recall what all steps I used to follow to run my few debian packages on them, nor have time to do a re-setup of them (which otherwise I LOVE doing such stuff!). thinking of getting something like an RPi 3 or similar plug pc, any which has better and more guides/support.

my main (gaming) PC is one other machine which is ailing since months. some booting-issue with RAM chips, plus a corrupted boot-sector in HDD, and have to install an SSD and an additional HDD after buying a SATA port multiplier (not available locally). the paucity of time to do all this is the main issue.

P.S. - the components I mentioned in my previous post are of my HTPC.