Media player to use with MBL: Need recommendations

Hello fellow MBL users!

Well, it is time to move away from my HTPC and get a media player to go along with my MBL. Any recommendations?

My requirements are:

  • Access to network shares (Not DLNA), just plain shares.

  • 720p or above

  • Any format or at least most of them

  • Ethernet 

  • HDMI

  • SRT files

So far, my research has the following:

  • Apple TV2: Need to jailbreak and install XBMC

  • Apple TV3: No jailbreak yet

  • Roku: Not friendly for local media

  • WD TV Live: seems the best fit without additional jailbreak or channels.

What are most people using out there with MBL? Happy yes/no/ok?

My current HTPC is this  Zotac Zbox with W7, XBMC as the media player

Hello, I would go with the WDTV SMP or the WDTV Live hub. 

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=570

Thank you!

Any others?

Why would you move away from your htpc with xbmc? Imho nothing can beat xbmc on a decent htpc and since yours is a zotac, there shouldn’t be an issue. I have the mbl about 3 moths now and xbmc works like a charm.

Very good question! I am actually very happy with it, no issues at all.

It is just some relative was so impressed with my htpc, made me an offer for it. Still thinking about it, so if I do sell it figure a media player might be the way to go, since they are becoming very popular. Begining to have doubts though, since it seems lots of people have issues with SRT files on just about any media player, we do watch lots of foreign films.

So anyway, wanted to find out what people are using with MBL, but it seems nothing besides WD products due to lack of responses.

Ok, now i understand:) well i do believe there are some good mediaplayers around like popcornhour ac ryan etc., but they are just not on the level of xbmc. And i don’t think srt subtitles shoud be an issue these days, but i don’t have much experience with mediaplayers. And since this is a wd forum and ichigo is not really objective on this matter, wd mediaplayers will be an answer here;).

I think I’ve found my solution… this sounds very interesting…

http://lifehacker.com/5929913/build-a-xbmc-media-center-with-a-35-raspberry-pi

Great choice but it will be slower than your previous setup i believe. Just try it out and post your thoughts about it. And technically that’s not a mediaplayer but a htpc in my eyes:wink:

Anyhow… $60 later and 1-2 hr of actual work, got it running.

Running for about a week.

Yes, browsing the menus is slower, nevertheless, while actually playing the files from MBL, all good!!!

For those who might want details:

Rasberry PI Model B 512RAM

MicroSD 16GB class 10 card

Berryboot with two OSs: OpenELEC and Raspbian  

Have not tried any add-ons.

Sounds great, though i have one question, do you use an avr for passthrough or just the rpi to your tv via hdmi?

RPI to TV via HDMI

Ok, and you don’t have issues with movies that have for example dts tracks? Because i read several times that if the rpi has to decode the dts stream it’s going to stutter.

have not run into it, but will let you know if I do