Beastie Boy
7th May 2008, 16:04
These 2 devices have got my interest at the moment. I currently use my PS3 to stream HD movies off my PC, but playback options are quite limited, ie. no VC1 unless it's in a WMV container, but that doesn't support multichannel audio, mp4 files can contain AAC, but there is a file size limit.
So currently, I am using the .ts container with x264 video and AC3 audio. This works well, but does mean that VC1 video has to be re-encoded (which I hate) and I cannot make use of the lossless audio formats without resorting to WAV which I feel takes up too much space. Also, chapters and subtitles are not supported.
With the PCH/iStar, I would have the option of mkv which supports everything I need, but will these devices play back HD video straight from HD DVD/BluRay at 1080p inside an mkv container. I've read that this isn't possible due to the fact that the mkv format takes too much power to parse. If it does work, does anyone have 1080p video in mkv with FLAC audio, chapters and subs (srt) working correctly?
If mkv is a no go, I could put both h264 and VC1 into .ts without re-encoding, and add in mutichannel AAC audio at high bitrate. Will the PCH/iStar read an external chapter and sub file if I use this format?
Lastly, is there a better way to watch HD native video, with HQ audio (not WAV) with the option for chapters and subs, streamed off a server.
I know I'm asking a lot, but surely this must be the goal for anyone who wants centralised storage for their video library.
Cheers, Beastie.
So currently, I am using the .ts container with x264 video and AC3 audio. This works well, but does mean that VC1 video has to be re-encoded (which I hate) and I cannot make use of the lossless audio formats without resorting to WAV which I feel takes up too much space. Also, chapters and subtitles are not supported.
With the PCH/iStar, I would have the option of mkv which supports everything I need, but will these devices play back HD video straight from HD DVD/BluRay at 1080p inside an mkv container. I've read that this isn't possible due to the fact that the mkv format takes too much power to parse. If it does work, does anyone have 1080p video in mkv with FLAC audio, chapters and subs (srt) working correctly?
If mkv is a no go, I could put both h264 and VC1 into .ts without re-encoding, and add in mutichannel AAC audio at high bitrate. Will the PCH/iStar read an external chapter and sub file if I use this format?
Lastly, is there a better way to watch HD native video, with HQ audio (not WAV) with the option for chapters and subs, streamed off a server.
I know I'm asking a lot, but surely this must be the goal for anyone who wants centralised storage for their video library.
Cheers, Beastie.