New media extender FAQ

[Opus4]

I've started a new SageTV Media Extender FAQ. For now, it is closed to user-submitted FAQs and I've only added a few things to get it started. Please reply here with more Qs that might go there.

- Andy

[fyodor]

Are there any plans to support DVR-MS files? I will be switching over from MCE and have some DVR-MS recordings I would like to keep.

Originally Posted by Opus4

I've started a new SageTV Media Extender FAQ. For now, it is closed to user-submitted FAQs and I've only added a few things to get it started. Please reply here with more Qs that might go there.

- Andy

[pjwerdna]

Q. What Quarter of 2008 year will the HD extender be available to those outside the US and Canada?

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by fyodor

Are there any plans to support DVR-MS files? I will be switching over from MCE and have some DVR-MS recordings I would like to keep.

If the files have no DRM, they should play. But encrypted/DRMed files can't be played on an extender.

Originally Posted by pjwerdna

Q. What Quarter of 2008 year will the HD extender be available to those outside the US and Canada?

There is no A for that Q right now.

- Andy

[evilpenguin]

I still can't find any information on 5.1 audio other than DD and DTS. For instance it states that it can only do stereo Vorbis, but it doesn't say anything aditional about mp3, aac, wma, flac. I'm not sure how to interpret that.

[edbmdave]

Will the Svideo output correctly work with a 16:9 widescreen at 720p? or are the widescreen formats only available by HDMI?

Is the quality of the SVIDEO output on a 16:9 / 720 screen similar or better than the same out put from the Media MVP?

[autoboy]

Is the quality of the SVIDEO output on a 16:9 / 720 screen similar or better than the same out put from the Media MVP?

This is a really strange question. Why would you want to use svideo, which is limited to 480i, on an HD TV? Did you run out of inputs? In this case I would guess that the output of the HD extender would be comparable to the MVP with the added benefit of increased codec support. Both are going to be better than the video card svideo output. video cards have notoriously poor svideo output. If all your content was 480i Divx then I can see why you would ask this question. The scaling options on the HD extender seem to be pretty powerful so you should be able to output anamorphic 480i and stretch it on the TV.

[Tiki]

Originally Posted by autoboy

This is a really strange question. Why would you want to use svideo, which is limited to 480i, on an HD TV? Did you run out of inputs? In this case I would guess that the output of the HD extender would be comparable to the MVP with the added benefit of increased codec support. Both are going to be better than the video card svideo output. video cards have notoriously poor svideo output. If all your content was 480i Divx then I can see why you would ask this question. The scaling options on the HD extender seem to be pretty powerful so you should be able to output anamorphic 480i and stretch it on the TV.

I can think of a good reason to use S-Video - perhaps you plan to get an HDTV sometime in the not so distant future, but for now just want to buy the new extender and use it with an old SDTV.

[Tiki]

The new remote for the HD Extender looks really nice. Is there any chance Sage will sell just the remote (for example, to use with USBUIRT or Hauppauge IR receiver, or to replace lost or damaged extender remotes)?

[jalaram]

Originally Posted by Tiki

I can think of a good reason to use S-Video - perhaps you plan to get an HDTV sometime in the not so distant future, but for now just want to buy the new extender and use it with an old SDTV.

That's why I would use it, but the first poster said that he had a 720p TV. My guess is that he ran out of inputs and/or doesn't have any HD content to stream.

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by Tiki

The new remote for the HD Extender looks really nice. Is there any chance Sage will sell just the remote (for example, to use with USBUIRT or Hauppauge IR receiver, or to replace lost or damaged extender remotes)?

Maybe in the future.

- Andy

[jasongrimme]

Will the HD Extender be able to playback DVDs stored on the HDD that are NTSC and PAL format?

[jalaram]

Any word on closed captioning/subtitles?

[edbmdave]

Originally Posted by autoboy

This is a really strange question. Why would you want to use svideo, which is limited to 480i, on an HD TV? Did you run out of inputs? In this case I would guess that the output of the HD extender would be comparable to the MVP with the added benefit of increased codec support. Both are going to be better than the video card svideo output. video cards have notoriously poor svideo output. If all your content was 480i Divx then I can see why you would ask this question. The scaling options on the HD extender seem to be pretty powerful so you should be able to output anamorphic 480i and stretch it on the TV.

Actually, I am out of inputs. I have the Current MVP hooked up via SVIDEO and it provides some level of ghosting on the screen. My DVD player using SVIDEO does not, as this seems to be the case on all the MediaMVPs I have always felt it was due to an inferior signal or quality of signal available from the MVP.

If the HD Extender works out well, I may use it's component inputs and retire some of my other stuff hooked up.

[bastafidli]

Does it allow to choose the sound track (language) from an mp4 file? Does it allow to choose which subtitles to display? E.g. Nero allows to create mp4 files with two sound tracks (e.g. 2 different languages, or 5.1 + stereo, or regular movie soundtrack + director's commentary). The same goes for subtitles.

Does it allow to disable the front panel buttons or at least lock them? E.g. to prevent kids to messing up with the system I would like to disable the buttons and allow to use the system only via remote or perhaps configure that I have to hold home button for 10 sec before the front panel buttons are enabled.

The same goes for remote. Is it possible to configure pint which needs to be entered to unlock the keys on the remote (similar to the cell phones).

[autoboy]

Originally Posted by edbmdave

Actually, I am out of inputs. I have the Current MVP hooked up via SVIDEO and it provides some level of ghosting on the screen. My DVD player using SVIDEO does not, as this seems to be the case on all the MediaMVPs I have always felt it was due to an inferior signal or quality of signal available from the MVP.

If the HD Extender works out well, I may use it's component inputs and retire some of my other stuff hooked up.

You may consider a Video Switch. You can even make your own from a KVM switch.

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by jasongrimme

Will the HD Extender be able to playback DVDs stored on the HDD that are NTSC and PAL format?

I don't know if it can play both on the same system or not, but I think it can play PAL DVDs. Do you have an MVP & does it work there? The answer may be the same.

Originally Posted by jalaram

Any word on closed captioning/subtitles?

This should also work the same as on the MVP -- meaning I don't believe it can show closed captions. Look for the CC plugin in the List of available customizations. Edit: I added this as a FAQ. I'm sure someone will correct me if that turns out to be wrong...

Originally Posted by bastafidli

Does it allow to disable the front panel buttons or at least lock them? E.g. to prevent kids to messing up with the system I would like to disable the buttons and allow to use the system only via remote or perhaps configure that I have to hold home button for 10 sec before the front panel buttons are enabled.

The same goes for remote. Is it possible to configure pint which needs to be entered to unlock the keys on the remote (similar to the cell phones).

No. You could probably reassign the buttons on the front panel to act as some other command or no command at all, but the power button will still turn it off.

----------------

An aside to no one in particular, since this happens a bit too much lately: Please don't PM me (or post) to ask if I've seen your question and/or whether I've got an answer for you. If you've posted something, then yes, I've seen it, unless I simply haven't been on the forum since it was posted. If I didn't post a reply, then that could mean: 1) I don't know an answer & don't feel like posting "I don't know" all over the forum, or 2) I might have an answer, but I've got other priorities at the moment and can't try things out yet, or 3) someone else answered and I don't have anything better to add, or 4) some other reason(s), probably good one(s), that I can't think of right now. If you are looking for tech support, please see the bottom of my sig lines. Thanks.

- Andy

[VikingCrown]

Will it be possible to remap the existing buttons on the Remote? For example, if I wanted the Videos button to take me to my imported videos folder instead of recordings is there a way to do this?

[tch65721]

What resolutions are natively supported?

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by VikingCrown

Will it be possible to remap the existing buttons on the Remote? For example, if I wanted the Videos button to take me to my imported videos folder instead of recordings is there a way to do this?

As usual: Setup -> Detailed Setup -> Commands -> Link IR/Keystroke to SageTV Command

- Andy