Mac Mini home theater redux

I am using the Intel Mac Mini as HTPC but the main issue is having a readable 1080i signal out of MacMini. Using SwitchResX I was able to get a 720p but not a 1080i.

My Plasma is an old one, which receives RGBHD signals, but I never even get to see an 1080i on it (PS3 works with no flaw).

I am stuck with 720p... I my kids love OSXBMC.

Additional notes:

- Don't sleep the mini, just turn off your TV when not in use. (EyeTV tuner issues, for one thing; I also use a dynamic DNS and DMZ the machine so it's accessible from work. So having it on all the time is not an issue - it's a 110 W power supply, fhs. ;)

- The Pye stuff for integrating EyeTV and FrontRow is nice.

- The Infrant ReadyNAS NV+ is an excellent way to have up to 4 TB (though I'd use RAID 5, which it does out of the box, for closer to 2.75 TB, with 4 x 1 TB drives) and stores backups of movies and also networked time machine stuff on another share (there's a 'defaults write' pref to enable 'unsupported' networked devices for Time Machine and it works fine.) More hackable than drobo.

- As far as 'control' of the system for a long time I was trying to use iRed and a PySerial bridge to interpret custom IR remote commands, then AS -> shell script -> PySerial -> device commands (TV, Receiver) and then I switched to using a Crestron system and a touchpanel to control this stuff.

- I wish I knew of a plugin for Front Row that would let me write custom scripts for interacting with my devices, e.g. to control my stereo or TV via the serial port. Then it'd be the true 'one remote' solution.

Otherwise you may want to check out the Home Theater Master remotes (I have the MX 700 or 850 or something) - just make sure you get one good enough to have a serial cable.

They can learn from other remotes, and there's PC software for custom programming and saving/reloading your configs. Some models can send RF, and a receiver base station then resends the proper IR commands.

My setup:

- Intel Mac mini
- Gefen DVI Detective
- Sharp Aquos 37" (1366 x 768, 720p)
- Optical cable out to Sony STR-DA2100ES receiver
- 5 port Gig-E hub
- Infrant ReadyNAS NV+
- APC SU 1400 and 500 (for the NAS)
- KeySpan USA-49 (Mini can talk to TV, Receiver, and UPS)
- AEBS (n)
- Bluetooth mouse/kbd and the mini's IR remote
- EyeTV (I have a 200 and 2x500, but would get a hybrid now. And EyeTV 3 is much more AppleScript-able now, FWIW)

I highlight the DVI detective because it was absolutely the most important piece of the whole setup. I messed with SwitchResX and DisplayConfigX for hours and got them working fine, but if you turn the TV off or even switch to the TV tuner then back to the DVI input, it makes the computer think a monitor has just been plugged in.

Because the native resolution of the TV is not represented in its own #%Q$%# EDID, it wants to drive the TV at some dumb non-16:9 resolution like 1280x900, which scales horribly.

Khasha at Gefen was able to program a custom EDID into the DVI Detective product so it would always make the mini think that the monitor was plugged in. The first one they sent me didn't work properly and they replaced it right away. Never had a problem since then, though.

Stay away from Equinux.

Their software is great but their licensing scheme - for every software title they produce - is an absolute nightmare.

I've purchased iSale and CoverScout from them, and I have a friend who bought MediaCentral. Neither of us use any of these products anymore because of their horrible licensing. Do yourself a favor and don't bother with them.

I recently migrated from a Windows based DVR to a Mac Mini system. I choose a refurbed 1.83GHz CD mini with 1G RAM, 80G disk, Superdrive. This was augmented with a firewire connected WD Studio 750G drive and an Elgato 250 Plus tuner with the QAM capability. My provider is Charter cable.

The W2K box was tucked away in a closet, with two Hauppauge PVR-150 (analog) tuners with a total of 850GB disk space. I've been running this PVR on the free GBPVR software since 2005. I had an Hauppauge MVP connected to the TV in the living room tied back to the PVR machine via ethernet cable. Overall, that solution worked fairly well. I had some issues ... but mainly I didn't like the fact that the machine (AMD 64 3000+) generated a fair amount of heat and was pretty loud.

Moving to the Mini provided several benefits. First - there is only one machine involved, and it is directly connected to the TV in the living room. My external FW drive is tucked away inside the media cabinet rendering the solution extremely quiet. Second - the 750G drive on the Mini acts as a TimeMachine storage solution for two other Macs. Third - the Mini pulls podcasts from iTunes daily and the media is directly viewable on the living room TV. Lastly, I can easily view media from other sources - like Hulu - on the big screen.

Unfortunately there are also some negatives about the solution. Tops of the list are the digital audio limitations where I can only get 5.1 to function properly when playing a DVD. AC3 encoded movies provide only ProLogic decoding on my Denon receiver even after trying every solution I've found on the net.

Another dissappointment is the Elgato hardware/software issues that require the Mini to run 24x7. The Elgato forums have several message threads about issues where their tuners fail to initialize afer waking from sleep, and recordings show up with zero bytes. Evidently, their offerings were more stable in the past. Forum users aren't sure if the problem is due to Leopard or just bugs in the Elgato solutions.

Elgato has contracted with TitanTV to provide a channel guide to users in the US. But that contact expires at the end of 2008. So its unclear what will happen with the Elgato offering and existing customers if that contract is not renewed.

Overall, this solution works really well. Beyond the EyeTV v3 software, I'm running PyeTV, Sofa Control, Handbrake, MacTheRipper, Perian, Flip4Mac, VLC.

Last note ... I tried a Seagate Pro 500G connected via USB, but that drive failed to remount after the disk went to sleep. It was extremely quiet, but unreliable in my setup. For the WD to function properly, a firmware update was required.

I'm a diehard Mac guy, and was researching this for a while, but then ended up getting a PS3 and streaming my video, images, and music wirelessly from my iMac using MediaTomb.

It's a pretty elegant solution. Can't play iTunes DRM stuff, but many other video and music formats work flawlessly.

Nice interface on the PS3 to access the media servers.

XBMC for Mac OS! Nuff said.

The newest and best home theater software for Mac OS X. I've been running it on my Mini for a month and love it. It's the best at playing 1080P HD content on the Mac Mini.

http://www.osxbmc.com/

Check it out and donate to the dev, cause he's doing an awesome with the port!

I considered getting a Mac Mini for a long time and finally went with Apple TV. I am really glad I made that decision. Stock Mac Mini hard drive would be too small for my needs. I bought a refurbished 160GB Apple TV which is quite a bit cheaper than a 80GB Mac Mini. I add movies to iTunes on my Mac Book Pro and after they are copied to Apple TV, I delete the original files once a week. I also record free Over the Air TV with EyeTV on my Mac Book Pro, but frankly almost everything I want to watch comes from Netflix and video podcasts that you can so easily watch from Apple TV. Set up is really simple and as a bonus, Apple TV streams internet radio from my Mac Book Pro to the home sound system. Mac Mini would have given me some more capabilities but at the cost of simplicity of my current set up.

I had a Mac mini under my TV for a while. It worked well but the biggest problem was the noise from the external Lacie disk which looked great stacked underneath but was just too loud. I now have an Apple TV which works superbly (plus it works fine with my Harmony remote) and is super easy for my wife (who is a self confessed non geek) to use. I have Music, Podcasts, TV Shows...via an EyeTV hybrid and 100 DVD movies via Handbrake with full surround sound up there with more on the way. I'm in the UK so no rentals yet.....

The Apple TV talks wirelessly via an AEBS to the Mac Mini which is now relocated to my office (so I get to use it as a real personal computer). I've got a Drobo on the way for more storage.

The only thing I miss is being able to surf on my TV (though the text was sometimes too small to read and would need adjustment). I havent been brave enough to hack my Apple TV

This solution means I can keep any noisy storage out of the way and central, I get a Mac in my office and I can expand it while maintaining the WAF.......(Wife Acceptance Factor) in the living room.

Now if Steve was to launch an Apple TV with a Blu Ray drive (very unlikely) that could have web icons like my Touch, that'd be great.....

For intel based Apple computers you can install XP Media Center 2005 or Vista Media Center via boot camp. Set the computer to always boot into the MCE shell, coupled with both analog and digital tuners, the correct codecs and storage it will perform like a standard CE device (instant on/off).

Granted it is not an Apple solution, but I have tried EyeTV, XBMC on OSX and front row. While they all have their strengths none of them can do it all within one interface all controlled by a universal remote.

I may be in the minority here but honestly Microsoft Media Center is a great solution in bringing all your content to your television. I just wished Microsoft actually took the time to further understand the computer in your living room scenarios more and cater to this demographic rather than just having it installed on Home Premium and Ultimate versions of their software. For that matter, I wish Apple would understand this market as well and come up with a all in one solution (that Apple TV could have been if it could function as a PVR and have the ability to playback a wide range of formats).