That perception have now changed with the HEVC hardware accelerated encoding support in the newer chipset generations. Plus the release of Plex Media Player* last year with Embedded Platform app.

* Plex Media Player is currently only available for Plex Pass users.
UPDATE November 30, 2016: Plex Media Player is now available for all Plex users

UPDATE October 21, 2017: Intel has released a newer generation of NUC series (identifier: NUC7XXXXX). They no longer support booting from (micro) SD card, as shared by one of the readers. Read Brian’s notes here.

A little background

For over a year, I had been using Minix Neo Z64 running Plex Home Theater as client to browse and play media library from my Plex Media Server on my TV. It had served its primary purpose well but I started to find some limitations from it:

1. It could only be installed with 32-bit version of Windows (or any other x64 based operating system) due to limited BIOS and drivers support. This means, I couldn’t install the next generation Plex Media Player which unfortunately required 64-bit MacOS or Windows.
2. No hardware accelerated for HEVC (H.265) video format. Its Quad Core Intel Atom processor were choking to handle 1080p H.265 encoded videos.
3. Even though it had built-in IR receiver, there was no Windows driver for it. I had to use Flirc USB to control it from my Logitech Harmony remote.
4. No gigabit ethernet port, only 100 Mbps.
5. No HD Audio (Dolby TrueHD and DTS-MA) passthrough when using PHT on Windows.

So the search was on to find a hardware that would be able to fill those gaps. There is one extra requirement though: it needed to be in the sub $200 budget because I only wanted it as Plex client, not server.

The hardware: Intel NUC5CPYH

A few options came into consideration, including NVIDIA SHIELD TV and AsRock BEEBOX N3150, but I finally decided to go with Intel NUC NUC5CPYH. Primarily because of the price point, at less than $130 (barebone, no RAM, no drive) it was still quite an amazing price. While some people might doubt its processing power because it is still running on Celeron processor, but it’s already based on Braswell chipset and Braswell comes with HEVC hardware acceleration support.

Here’s the list of components to get it up and running:

• Intel NUC5CPYH Barebone Kit – $128 [link]
• Kingston HyperX Impact Black 4GB 1600MHz DDR3L SODIMM – $25 [link]
• SanDisk Ultra Fit 32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive – $10 [link]

You could go with SDXC or even hard drive/SSD instead of using USB flash drive, that one is completely up to your preference. For me, the SanDisk Ultra Fit just offered the best bang for the buck.

In addition, you also need a spare USB drive with around 1GB of storage and USB keyboard to copy and install the Plex Media Player for embedded platform image.

Plex Media Player for Embedded Platforms installation

To download Plex Media Player (PMP) for the Intel NUC, just follow these steps:

1. Go to Plex Downloads page
2. Click on Get an App button
3. Make sure Plex Pass Downloads is checked on
4. Under Choose your app, select Plex Media Player > Embedded Platforms
5. Click on Download button, then select Intel 64-bit

Plex Downloads Page (click to zoom)

Next step is to create the disk image for the USB stick by following the official tutorial.

After plugging both USB sticks (one with the disk image and another that will act as the computer’s drive) and keyboard to the Intel NUC, turn it on. The NUC should try to detect a bootable drive, in this case the USB stick with PMP disk image. Then you need to follow the on-screen installation process and select the other USB stick as the destination drive to where app will be installed.

After the installation is complete, you can unplug the disk image stick and reboot the NUC. It should load PMP and you can start using it immediately.

Setting DTS-MA and Dolby TrueHD passthrough

Plex Media Player’s Audio Configuration Guide is a little bit vague in explaining how to enable HD audio passthrough. But for Intel NUC, the key is to select the right Device type and Device under Settings > Audio panel.

• Device type: HDMI
• Channels: 7.1 (depending on your audio receiver’s input/output capability)
• Device: HDA Intel PCH, HDMI 0/HDMI Audio Out
• Normalize Downmixed Volume: No
• Show Advanced Settings: Yes
• Dolby Digital (AC3): Yes
• DTS (DCA): Yes
• Dolby Digital Plus (EAC3): Yes
• DTS-HD Master Audio: Yes
• Dolby TrueHD: Yes

Maximizing control from Logitech Harmony

If you own a Logitech Harmony IR remote*, Intel NUC5CPYH already has its own profile on MyHarmony application. Just add a new device and put these values:

• Manufacturer: Intel
• Device Model Number: NUC5CPYH

MyHarmony Add A Device screen

* Logitech remotes based on Harmony Smart Control hub such as Harmony Elite or using RF signal may require different configuration.

You should already be able to use the remote for basic commands. However if you really want to have more control, you need to create your own inputmap. To save you the trouble of capturing each of the Button Name from the default NUC5CPYH profile, you can refer to my notes below from my Harmony One remote.

Button Name     Harmony Button
==============================
KEY_SLEEP       Power Toggle
KEY_RED         Red
KEY_GREEN       Green
KEY_YELLOW      Yellow
KEY_BLUE        Blue
KEY_TUNER       LiveTV
KEY_TV          MyTV
KEY_VIDEO       MyVideos
KEY_AUDIO       MyMusic
KEY_CAMERA      MyPictures
KEY_RADIO       MyRadio
KEY_DVD         DVDMenu
KEY_INFO        Info
KEY_EXIT        Exit
KEY_EPG         Guide
KEY_VOLUMEUP    Vol+
KEY_VOLUMEDOWN  Vol-
KEY_UP          Ch+
KEY_DOWN        Ch-
KEY_MUTE        Mute
KEY_REWIND      Rewind
KEY_FASTFORWARD FastForward
KEY_RECORD      Record
KEY_OK          OK
KEY_LEFT        Left
KEY_RIGHT       Right
KEY_UP          Up
KEY_DOWN        Down

Now that you know which buttons are recognized as which by PMP, all you need to do is to create a custom inputmap file to your preference and upload it using SSH/SFTP to the NUC under /storage/.local/share/plexmediaplayer/inputmaps/ directory. By the way, the remote is recognized as LIRC.

Here is how I set mine:

{
 "name": "LIRC IR",
 "idmatcher": "LIRC*",
 "mapping":
 {
     "KEY_LEFT": "left",
     "KEY_RIGHT": "right",
     "KEY_UP": "up",
     "KEY_DOWN": "down",
     "KEY_MENU": "unknown",
     "KEY_DVD": "home",
     "KEY_SELECT": "enter",
     "KEY_OK": "enter",
     "KEY_BACK": "back",
     "KEY_EXIT": "back",
     "KEY_PLAY": "play",
     "KEY_STOP": "stop",
     "KEY_PAUSE": "pause",
     "KEY_SEEKFWD": "seek_forward",
     "KEY_FASTFORWARD" : "seek_forward",
     "KEY_SEEKBCK": "seek_backward",
     "KEY_REWIND": "seek_backward",
     "KEY_CAMERA": "step_backward",
     "KEY_RADIO": "step_forward",
     "KEY_SUBTITLES": "cycle_subtitles",
     "KEY_INFO": "host:toggleDebug",
     "KEY_NEXT": "step_forward",
     "KEY_PREV": "step_backward",
     "KEY_HOME": "home",
     "KEY_NUMERIC_([0-9])": "%1",
     "KEY_SLEEP": "host:suspend",
     "KEY_RECORD": "toggle_subtitles",
     "KEY_RED": "cycle_subtitles",
     "KEY_GREEN": "cycle_subtitles_back",
     "KEY_YELLOW": "increase_subtitles_delay",
     "KEY_BLUE": "decrease_subtitles_delay",
     "KEY_TUNER": "cycle_audio",
     "KEY_TV": "cycle_audio_back",
     "KEY_VIDEO": "increase_audio_delay",
     "KEY_AUDIO": "decrease_audio_delay"
 }
}

Once you done that, restart PMP. The final step is to reflect the changes on your Harmony devices and activities settings. You probably want to change the labels on the screen buttons.

Performance

This tiny device works like a charm! Thanks to hardware acceleration available on Braswell and newer chipsets, the NUC handles all video format I have been throwing at it like a boss.

It has no problems in handling 1080p HEVC (8-bit) videos. Over a dozen videos, only one which had one dropped frames occasion, but I think that was caused by network hiccup and not because the CPU/GPU was out of breath. Since this is an embedded app, I could not measure the hardware usage. What I can tell is the NUC never gets hot, or even warm, so it is certainly not stressed when decoding those movies.

The NUC Blog says that it should be able to handle 4k HEVC videos. My TV is not 4k yet, so not something I wanted to try, but good to know that it has some future-proofing.

Audio passthrough is perfect also. I can finally see the HDSUR. icon showing up on my Yamaha YSP-2500 Soundbar.

Mission accomplished. The Intel NUC5CPYH is a wonderful upgrade from Minix Z64 for a small budget dedicated HTPC.

Reader’s tip: Stuttering Issue

In case you are seeing stuttering with during video playback, and not related to audio output configuration, you may want to try enabling Allow Display Mode Switching under Settings > Video. Thanks for the note, Joe!

Shop for your Plex Media Player setup

The post Intel NUC as Plex Media Player Client: Setup Guide appeared first on Michael Sunarlim.

However if you are still contemplating and need justification in making the decision, I hope this post could help you settle with the dilemma. Note that I am not endorsed by Plex whatsoever and the content is purely my own point of view.

1. Supporting the developers

As a free application, Plex is already amazing. It is a result of countless hours of development and concept designs. These all take dedication and commitment and require financial support to keep the great job going. By subscribing, you are ensuring that the application will be continuously developed with all new features and improvements over the years.

2. Mobile Sync is awesome

Not everyone uses super high-speed Internet connection on their home that allows them to stream the content from Plex Media Server flawlessly anytime and anywhere. This is where Mobile Sync, a Plex Pass-only feature comes in handy as you can download your favorite movies or TV shows to your portable devices for watching them offline. Even if you have a very good broadband plan at home, you probably still cannot stream your movies when you are on a plane or travelling abroad.

3. It is a high quality software with fair pricing

Plex Pass starts at $5/month which seems high for something that you believe you can use without the added features. But even if there are 1 or 2 Plex Pass features that you think will be good to have, then it is still worth it. Why? Because you are getting a quality app. Consider how much time you’ll save over time just because you have those features built-in on your media ecosystem, instead of trying to find workarounds that may or may not work. If you go with the Lifetime subscription, in my calculation, after 5 years you’d be only spending $0.08 a day which is practically nothing.

4. It costs only a fraction of your media hardware setup

Just consider it. You probably invested $500+ for a good media server (ie. Mac mini or good NAS), a few hundred bucks more on the hard drives, then you have a few tablets and media players (Apple TV, game console, streaming devices, smart TV, etc) which could easily total in more than $1,000. Not to mention you need to replace or upgrade these components every few years. When you compare that to $150 for a lifetime of subscription, you will only spend less than 10% on the software that can make bring your entertainment experience to a higher level.

5. Plex is actively developed

Nothing bums customers out for paying a premium only to get occasional updates. This has not been the case for me, at least during 1.5 years after signing up to my Plex Pass Lifetime subscription. I constantly receiving news of new worthy features which are available for Plex Pass subscribers at first. It’s a geek’s dream. I never feel like I paid for an application which had been done before signing up, instead it was for new ones in the future.

There you go. That would be my top 5 reasons for subscribing to Plex Pass. Please feel free to share your comments below.

About Plex

Plex gives you instant access to your media collections—your home videos, photos, music, TV shows, and movies—so you can quickly find and stream what you want to any device, any time.

Platforms include Macs, PCs, smartphones, tablets, Xbox and PlayStation gaming consoles, Smart TVs, Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Nvidia Shield, and more. Whether it’s your movie and TV collection or your music library, Plex makes your media look beautiful by automatically adding movie posters, plot summaries, cover art, and descriptions. Plex also allows you to share it all with your friends and family.

http://plex.tv |

Recommended Plex players/clients for your home

The post Why you shouldn’t hesitate to get Plex Pass subscription appeared first on Michael Sunarlim.

Background

First of all, this is not an audiophile’s review. My ears are not that well trained to be able to recognize the “sound colors” using different setups. I can only share a subjective conclusion and a little bit story of how they are set.

Here is my setup:

• Laptop: Apple Macbook Air 13″ (Mid 2012)
• DAC: FiiO E10K Olympus 2
• Headphones: Philips Fidelio X1
• Cable: 3.5cm Custom Connector Cable – Canare Aluminum Foil Shield (L-2B2AT) + Rean NYS231BG
• Music Player: VOX

What is a DAC?

DAC stands for digital-to-analog converter, or a component that converts digital data into analog signal so you can hear the audio through your speakers or headphones. Basically it is a sound card or sound chip that is integrated into almost all computer motherboards to produce audio output. However not every on-board DAC has the same quality, caused by many factors which I am not going to discuss here.

In fact, Macbook Air already has a very good built-in DAC according to this article. So why do I need to buy an external DAC you say? Well to be very fair, the main reason is because I am a geek and need a reason to spend money to make my computer looks cooler. But behind that, I am also hoping I can get a different experience when listening to music from my laptop.

FiiO E10K

In case you never heard of FiiO, it is a Chinese brand that has been making a reputation for making very good audio products with reasonable pricing. Their product ranges include portable players, portable amps, DACs and cables. The E10K (Olympus 2) is one of their latest products released this year, an update of their popular E10. It is a USB DAC, so you need to plug it into your computer’s USB connector for it to receive the ‘digital data’.

FiiO E10K box and unit

First Impressions

I have to say, gone are the days when Chinese brands create so-so products in not-so-exciting packaging. This was my first FiiO product and I was quite impressed in how they try to give a wonderful customer experience when unpacking their product. Fiio E10K comes in a very well designed box. Inside you will find the unit, USB cable to connect your computer, and a set of rubber feet which I decided not to use.

The unit itself is a lot smaller than I imagined. The build quality is good, the volume knob has some resistant which makes it feel like turning on a bigger device. In overall, nothing about it is cheap. If this is sold by a bigger brand, they can easily double the price tag and still get lots of customers buying.

Connecting to the Macbook’s USB slot, the device was immediately detected and can be checked under Mac OS X’s System Preferences > Sound. Although surprisingly it was shown as FiiO USB DAC-E10 instead of E10K. I do not think that would be an issue though. If you want to use it as the main output for all system sounds, you can select it instead of the Internal Speakers. In my case, I do not want this which I will explain further down.

Setting the volume at 6 (out of 8), you can already get louder sounds from the built-in output. So if you do not find your Macbook’s sound through the earphone jack is loud enough, that is more than enough reason to buy an external DAC or amp. I set the Bass to on and it delivers the extra punch in the lower frequencies that meets my taste.

Philips Fidelio X1

When talking about good headphones, the first names that comes to mind are probably Sennheiser, AKG, Sony, and so on. Philips had been making headphones and earphones for a long time but had never been considered as a serious player. That was until they introduce the Fidelio line with X1 as their flagship product.

Great sound, uber design, nice build quality, all packed with a reasonable price, what else could you ask for? I am going to hand the in-depth reviews to be masters and other references which in majority agree that these are good pair of cans in their price range:

• Head-Fi – Philips Fidelio X1 | Review & Comparison
• Headfonia – The Fidelio X1 by Philips
• Pocket-lint – Philips Fidelio X1 headphones review

Philips Fidelio X1 with custom cable

I have been using my X1 for almost 6 months now and really enjoying them even by connecting directly to my Macbook without the FiiO E10K. I got a very sweet deal on Amazon when they put them as Today’s Deal for only $150. With Amazon offering global shipping on select products, even with International delivery and customs, the amount of money I had to pay was still less than its suggested retail price of $300.

Quick facts regarding the X1:

1. They are open-back headphones, which means the music you are hearing is leaking out but gives a bigger staging feel. I personally love open-back cans. They are obviously not the choice for commuting.
2. X1 comes with detachable connector cable and the most popular suggestion from many owners of the set is to replace the one that comes with the box to get better sound quality.

VOX Music Player

iTunes had been the only music/media player I needed for over a decade, until I discover VOX by Coppertino. Is it just another music player for Mac OSX? I have to say no. Here are few reasons to love it:

1. It is a seriously developed app with pleasant interface. Kudos for the awesome guys at Coppertino.
2. Supports additional music formats including FLAC.
3. I can split my music libraries in case I do not want to sync to my iOS devices, or want to listen to a new album without permanently adding it to my iTunes library.
4. You can choose the Output Device under the preferences which works really well in my setup and only use FiiO DAC to output the music for VOX. Other system sounds will go through the internal speakers or phones if plugged in to the laptop.
5. More EQ presets.
6. Last.fm and SoundCloud intergration.

VOX is available as free download from Mac App Store or direct download on Coppertino website.

Final Thoughts

I am happy with my music setup? Yes, very much. I can honestly say that I am truly enjoying it. The idea that I can have two completely separate setups on my Macbook Air is very exciting. Now I can use my good headphones to enjoy good music, while preserving the built-in mic/output for my headset for Skype. No longer I need to switch the phones and adjusting the volume every time I get incoming call.

Gallery

The post Geek Review: Macbook Air + FiiO E10K + Philips Fidelio X1 appeared first on Michael Sunarlim.