Info and forum posts by 'Superted'

RE: DLNA Help needed!

Yes it was £45 more for the 5`s over the 3`s. Sound is amazing from such small boxes.

At the moment it is playing from the PC, a NAS is on my shopping list but will have to wait until after Christmas for that.

I`m using the iPad and PC to control them which works really well as the PC software and iPad app appear to be identical.

I`ve had one issue so far, after setting them all up I went to use them a bit later but the Kitchen & Conservatory (both wireless) 5`s would not play and disappeared off the list.

I tried re-syncing them and while the software could detect them they would not re-appear on the list.

We had to pop out for a few hours so decided to have another look when I got home, upon our return both the Kitchen & Conservatory were back on the list and have worked perfectly ever since.

If it happens again I may run a cable to the kitchen one, it is unlikely to move from there and will hopefully boost the wireless signal for the one in the conservatory as it is a lot closer than the connect in the living room.        

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: DLNA Help needed!

I think so, looks like while other kit tries to do what Sonos does, none actually achive it.

Decided to go for the 5`s as was only £45 difference in the price on amazon, I thought they would give a bigger, deeper sound and fill the room better.

The connect is going in the living room connected to my Denon receiver, one 5 in the kitchen and the other inthe conservatory/garden both running wirelessly. If I get any problems it will be easy enough to cable them up to the switch unde the stairs.

Only dissapointment is that I paid extra for Saturday delivery and they`ve been sent by City Link, last Saturday delivery I had from them turned up the following Wednesday  

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: DLNA Help needed!

Thanks SJ, have done a lot of research, umming & ahhing and wondering if I can afford it over the last month.

But just bit the bullet and ordered 2 x Sonos 5`s and a Sonos Connect for my home cinema amp

Hopefully they will be here tomorrow, will let you know how I get on

   
All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Torrent Help

Thanks for not, not had chance to take a look as yet but will do over the weekend

All the best

Gerald.



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Torrent Help

Can anyone help me out with which are the best torrent sites at the moment.

Purely for research purposes of course

I last used Demonoid which was probably a year or 2 back but it doesn`t seem to exist anymore.

Cheers,

Gerald.



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RE: XBOX controller on PC, best way?

There is a wireless receiver for the PC, I`ve got one here & it works perfectly.

Had an issue with Grand Theft Auto, the original, as it used keyboard controls, then found Xpadder which will convert Xbox controller movements into keyboard buttons.    
 
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Xbox-Wireless-Gaming-Receiver-Windows/dp/B000MGVAAQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1348229948&sr=8-1&tag=myrev09-21
   

All the best

Gerald.



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DLNA Help needed!

Hi everyone, just wondered if there are any DLNA experts out there that can help me.

At the moment I`ve got Twonky running on my PC to share music, photos and video etc around the house which is working great but want to take it to the next level.

Long story short, we are having a party/bbq saturday and was hoping to be able to have the same music playing in our living room, conservatory and (weather permitting) garden at the same time using the magic of DLNA, but this is where I am stuck.

I`ve searched the internet, tried all different programs on the PC and apps on the iPad but so far not been able to find anything that will me do it.

The best I can find so far is either Windows Media Player on the PC or iMediaControl on the iPad which will let you play the same playlist on multiple devices but you have to send it to each device separately so the music is way out of sync!

Other than running a very long phono cable from the living room to the conservatory, is there anything else I can do?

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Help needed ripping some DVD`s

Have given it another go now following some settings and a guide I found online.

File size is down to 2.69Gb but the film is still unwatchable, could it be caused by some form of copy protection?

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Help needed ripping some DVD`s

Didn`t think of downloading them, would TVTorrents still be my best source? not used it for years!

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Sky Fibre?

You`d hope so as I like to do the same, just waiting for somebody to take the plunge and try it before I part with my cash.

Currently have a 24 port gigabit switch in the cupboard under the stairs, we are in the process of re-wiring the house but only half of it is currently connected to the new switch. 

At the moment the main PC, printers and conservatory TV kit are all connected to an old 8 port 100Mb switch which is then connected to the router, and then goes on to the new gigabit switch.

Ultimate aim is to put a NAS server in the cupboard with the gigabit switch and the entire house cabled up and plugged in to it. The NAS server can then be used for DLNA and a central storage/backing up point.

Just got to earn some more money first, lots of plans but not enough cash 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Sky Fibre?

Yes that`s it, you have the BT OpenReach modem, about the same size as the sky router, in white. Plugged into your master phone socket which the BT engineer replaces with a new type that has a built in line filter.

This connects to the sky modem/router by a standard patch lead into one of the 4 network ports, the ADSL port on the router isn`t used.

You can then remove all of you line filters around the house.

The router took about 10 minutes to pick up the internet connection from the modem, think it must be trying the ADSL port first, then if it gets nothing it monitors the network ports.

Have to keep it all plugged in and turned on for at least 10 days while the adjust your speed, ours stayed on a constant 40Meg. After that you can turn it all on and off as you want.

All the best

Gerald.



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Help needed ripping some DVD`s

Having never done this before I`m after a step by step guide if poss.

I wan to rip our TV series collections on to my PC so I can stream them around the house with Twonky.

My original aim was to have the episodes organised in to folders in .avi format and file sizes not too bit, but big enough for decent quality.

So far I`ve had a practice using the first DVD I picked up (Mystery Alaska) and downloaded Handbrake as recommended above but not getting on with it.

First off it doesn`t seem to have .avi as an option, only m4a or mkv (not heard of these before) but decided to give it a go. I took about 45 minutes to do it`s thing but the video file is huge (6gb) and unwatchable, picture constantly pixelated and sound cuts in & out.

Am now trying DVD shrink but this doesn`t seem to do what I want either.

Please help!

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Sky Fibre?

I`m not sure, same as you though, I bought one a few months back after our the modem in the Netgear one packed in following a thunderstorm.

BT engineer insisted on using the new one so have the old one sat here gathering dust too.

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Sky Fibre?

We`ve got Sky Fibre, had it installed at the beginning of May.

Used to be on a really poor quality 2Meg connection, now on a very reliable 40Meg.

Most pages load faster, some not so much, downloads are a lot quicker especially HD films on anytime+

If you downloaded a HD movie on the old connection, used to have to wait approx 4 hours before you could start watching, now it is less than 60 seconds as it`s downloading faster than you are watching.

Sky send you a new router in the post (Sky branded Sagecom wireless N router, no gigabit ethernet though) and BT engineer comes out to replace your NTE and install the OpenReach modem. Setup took less then 20 minutes.

All the best

Gerald.



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Pace Sky+ HD Hard Disk Upgrade

Have recently upgraded my Pace Sky+ HD hard drive from 300GB to 1TB, thought I`d post a message just in case anybody was thinking about doing the same as couldn`t find any information anywhere for Pace boxes before doing the upgrade.

I used a Western Digital WD10EARX and formatted the drive/copied over my recordings using EX PVR.

Original drive had about 26% space available, after the copy, which took just over 2 hours, I had 86% space available.

Drive has been in there for just over 2 weeks and is working perfectly, as an added bonus the box is running much faster too.

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: sky link remote

If the only reason you don`t want to run a cable is that the RF2 output is already being used, you can use a splitter.

We are using one to split the RF2 output to 3 rooms, each room has it`s own magic eye and remote.

This is the one I am using - Link

And here is the 2 way version - Link 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Need a decent Blu-Ray player which also does multi-region DVDs....

We have a Panasonic DMP BD35, multi regioned (for DVD`s only) thanks to the Harmony remote hack.

Brilliant player, we use it for everything as the picture and sound are far superior to the Samsung DVD recorder we used to use for DVD`s.

CD playback is very good too. Only gripe is it`s bloody slow but think this has been resolved on newer models.

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: F1: Season 2011.

Canada was a long race, watch the first 10 and last 10 laps if you can. Great results.

Singapore is always a favourite too 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: May be getting a snake for Christmas. Need ideas for a name.

Fluffy

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: F1 2011

It`s coming tomorrow, £36 on Amazon

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Bloody quest for vehicular independence

Jimbo, you`re a star, I`ve been racking my brains for days trying to remember Forte.

My Mini Cooper S is idling roughly with revs dropping to the point where it could stall on you.

Going to change the fuel filter but wanted to run some injector cleaner through at same time.    

I know its probably the coil pack thats failing, but fuel filter is a fraction of the price and can`t hurt to change it! 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: South Park DVD`s / BluRays?

I did look there but it just kept saying the Region 1`s were better based on it not knowing what the Region 2`s contained.

Found some more info on wikipedia, looks like the Region 1 and Region 2 UK versions are identical but there is an R2 European version which does not have any of the extras/commentary.

Looks like the Region 2 UK versions are the ones to get.  

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: F1 2011

Mine was on Xbox, worst rule was if you were doing a 10 lap race or 25% you would have to pit but none of the other cars did. Sticking you at the back of the field.

Plus a slight bump would put you out of the race but no other cars would get damaged. 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: recommend a router?

I could never find updates for it on the netgear site as it was a one made for Sky, on the website it said updates would be applied automatically when they were available. It was on 24 hrs a day so should have received them.

We`ve had it now for close on 10 days and it is staying just over 4meg so more than happy with that, one tip the sky help desk gave was to not switch it off during the forst 10 days. If you turn it off sky`s system thinks the router has crashed due to poor connection quality so when it comes back on it connects at a slower speed.

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: recommend a router?

Just got the new Sky F[at]ts router with wireless N after a thunderstorm fried our DG834G. 

Very impressed, wireless speed/quality much better even on our old laptop that only supports G.

But best of all, our broadband speed has rocketted up from 1.8 Meg to 4.2 Meg. YEAH BABY!!! 

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: F1 2011

Oh yes!

Bought 2010 on release day; played it a bit but got annoyed with all the bugs, then read they were going to release an update for it to solve all the issues so gave up.

Had a go a few months later expecting to have to download an update, but nothing, same problems, so after half hour gave up and not picked it up since.

Big let down, hopefully this one will be better.
      
All the best

Gerald.



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South Park DVD`s / BluRays?

I`m thinking of collecting the South Park DVD`s or possibly BluRays, seen every episode but wanted to watch any special features and the intro`s from Matt & Trey as never seen them.

Remebered reading a long time ago that there was a certain region to buy as it wasn`t censored/bleeped or something but can`t remember which region it was or why it was better than the other regions.

Anybody know what the difference was and which region is best?

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Unusual Phobias....do you have one?

Clowns, its not the fact they are clowns its all the make up they put on, yuk!

Spiders with big bodies and little legs, normal spiders don`t bother me at all but when you get a fat one waddling around your kitchen I turn into a wimp.

All the best

Gerald.



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RE: Strip down rebuild a cycle...

One bonus with buying a new bike is that it will need to be maintained/serviced every so often especially in the first few weeks, this will help you teach yourself the basics like adjusting the brakes and aligning the gears etc.

From experience, the tools you want will be a good set of screwdrivers and spanners (open end and ring end). After that, good wire cutters and locking pliers/molar grips for changing over cables and allen keys.

A bike stand it a good idea, I`ve never used one but always wanted one, would make jobs much easier working at waist height with the bike the right way up.

When choosing your bike I would definatly suggest paying a bit extra for an aluminium frame, much lighter and easier to ride, avoid things like disc brakes and hydrolics, not needed for road bikes and just adds extra weight for you to pedal around.

Edit : Also use flasing led lights in the day, makes you stand out a bit better to drivers, the Korg ones are supposed to be very good.

All the best

Gerald.



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This item was edited on Tuesday, 23rd August 2011, 11:15

RE: 2010 Panasonic Viera? iPlayer cutting out? Blank EPG? Freesat HD errors?

There was a feature on WhatHifi about this a few months back, it was to do with iplayer using variable bit rates and jumping from very high rates to very low rates, the pause was when the rate changed.

Think the BBC have made some changes too so that it doesn`t make huge jumps, now more progressive like a volume control.

All the best

Gerald.



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