# Sticky  PS3 Video Server, Media Server Preliminary Setup and Tests



## wbassett

The mission I chose to accept is one Jim Phelps would probably have turned down! 

Here is the objective outline.

I have a substantial DVD library, somewhere in the neighborhood of 1200-1300 DVDs. A lot of these are movie series boxed sets, or TV series on DVD. The PS3 is much more than just a game console, so I decided to put it to the test and see what this thing can really do.

Most are aware that it can be used as a media server- You can store photos, music, movie clips or even full movies on the internal hard drive, but 60GB can fill up quick. Those four USB ports on the front of the PS3 are for more than just joysticks and open up the door for a lot of add on devices.

I picked up a 320GB My Book external USB drive. One thing to keep in mind is that the PS3 uses the FAT32 system. That imposes a file size restriction of 4GB, so until NTFS is an option it doesn't look like any major High Def content will be practical, but for what I need to do that is not a problem. USB drives come preformatted in FAT32 so this worked out nicely.

The first test was to check if the PS3 could recognize the drive and play a movie from it. That worked like a champ, Sony even fixed the sub folder problem people were complaining about. 

The problem I did run into though... how to get the DVD over to the hard drive with the best quality conversion?

I first used DVD to PS3 Converter. It took HOURS to convert one DVD. When I say hours I mean set it up at night and go to bed. I can say I definitely was not pleased with the video quality. It looked like a worn VHS tape- This was a major setback. I can try the setting that converts to 1080p, but I am skeptical at this point if that will really do anything. Also the audio quality wasn't DVD quality either.

Next I downloaded PS3 Video 9. This looks pretty much like DVD to PS3 Convertor but it's free. It too took over eight hours to do just ONE .vob file. Seeing that my test movie has four, this obviously is too time consuming to be practical to anyone. I am still checking out both of these programs, there is probably some settings that will improve the PQ, but they are still slow.

Next up is a trick that I am going to check out. You can rename a .vob file to .mpeg and it will play on Windows Media player and supposedly the PS3 will play it as well. Theoretically this should be the exact same image quality as the DVD source. Problem #2... As of now the PS3 does not support play lists. What this means is it plays one video file at a time. So you would have to go back to the drive and select the next file of the movie, and do this four times which is unacceptable.

I am going to run a test where I rename the .vobs and then join them. Also DVD Decryptor will output a single .vob file. 

Now, I want to state this and make it perfectly clear. This is NOT a topic for pirating and no questions will be allowed on that topic. I own all the DVDs I am working with, I just want to consolidate some of the series onto a drive for convience and the coolness factor.

So far for this project, if it can be done easily it would definitely be a 9.5 rating. The ease factor is definitely a 4 rating as of now, and the coolness factor is probably a bazillion or something like that. 

Anyone out there that has done this? Specifically with a USB HD? So far the preliminary test are promising... the PS3 will recognize the drive and it will play movies from it. Now the problem is making this easy and keeping the quality good.


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## wbassett

*Round 2*

This round is looking even more promising. I figured out how to get my DVD VOB files on the hard drive and by simply renaming them the PS3 will play it back. 

In the time it took me to encode one movie with PS3 Video 9 or DVD to PS3 Converter I converted and moved over 18 Bond movies to the hard drive. Again I want to clearly state that nobody is to do this unless you actually own the titles. 

I should have all 22 Bond movies setup in my 'media server' by tomorrow.


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## wbassett

I found a way to make this work and do it realtively painlessly. Anyone can do this with a few simple steps that does not require hours of conversion time required by using two of the predominate software programs out there.

I will provide a detailed step by step tutorial tomorrow on exactly how to set this up.

In the mean time, I successfully transferered all the Bond movies (which I own on DVD) to a My Book USB HD and it *is* DVD quality, not the sub par VHS quality I got with the other programs. No offence to them, but they are more for converting small video clips to be played on the PS3.

This is setting the PS3 up as a true media server and I can report that the playback gets upconverted to 1080p. The video is just as stunning as playing the actual DVD because it isn't a conversion from the DVD vob format. I will explain this in detail tomorrow!


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## wbassett

First I apologize about the delay... it's been a busy day.

Okay first things first. The PS3 can act as a media server several ways.

One way is to have it connected to your home network and run a video server/streaming program on your computer such as Red Kawa's PS3 Media Center X. With the firmware 1.81 update it adds in a lot of features including the ability to accept video streams. 

The other way is to use an external USB mass storage device and store your movies and media content on it. Storage capacity is only limited to your budget. 

I opted for the second method since I don't have a network connection available in my HT room and I wouldn't recommend wireless, at least not in a 160 year old lathe and plaster walled house- connection reliability is horrible even with a repeater.

Using an external USB drive is much easier than I thought it would be from reading through countless websites. What I did is three easy steps that anyone can do, and best of all it doesn't require hours of conversion time to end up with PQ that wasn't up to par in my opinion. Granted there are probably settings I didn't try that would have provided a better image, but the time factor was something I just didn't like. This method is much easier and faster too. It took me less time to setup 20 movies than it did to re-encode one movie to mp4, and the video quality is better this way in my opinion- it is still the same DVD file as you will see, so it is still DVD quality!

*Step one *is getting your movies from DVD to the hard drive. Again this is only for movies that you already own. I tried several programs and ended up using DVD Shrink 3.2.1 (3.2.0 will work too). 

Normally most programs separate the VOB files into 1GB chunks. This won't work since the PS3 doesn't have a play list and in order to watch a full movie at the end of each VOB file it would require selecting the next file, and so on... not a very appealing way to watch a movie. So the movie needs to be in one complete VOB file for this to work. DVDShrink handles this task nicely.

First start DVD Shrink. From the Edit menu select Preferences. This is where you will set the program up to do one continuous VOB instead of breaking it up.








[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/DVDShrinkPreferences.jpg[/img]







When the Preference window opens, remove the check mark in the box next to the option "Split vob files into 1GB chunks" and click 'OK'. Even though it says 'recommended' don't worry about that you need one continuous file. It is much easier to let the program do the work than to try and reassemble them later.










Next 'Open' the DVD with the 'Open Disc' button on the top. A window will come up and from there select the drive that the DVD is in.









The program will go through a short disc read and pull in the contents. If you want you can enable the video preview option and watch the disc scan. When it is done you will be at the main window again but now you will see the entire contents of the DVD.







The one possible negative factor is this is only to play the movie. The DVD menus will not work from the Media Server, but this isn't really why we are setting this up. Besides, later on I will explain how to do the special features if they are desired. To get just the movie select the Re Author button at the top menu bar. 

It will bring up this next view:







Usually there is only one main title which is the movie itself. Special features are normally listed under the 'Extras' listing. In this example we see two titles under the main section. Don't panic, it's usually easy to tell which one is the main movie, it is the larger file and the running time is also listed. If you are not sure, you can highlight the title and click the DVD style play button on the lower left portion of the program window and the movie will actually play, complete with sound in the little window. This is a nice way to make sure the right audio track is associated with the movie. Usually this isn't a problem though.

Now if there are two titles the same size and same running time, typically it is a DVD that has both wide-screen and Pan and Scan versions on the disc. The playback option at the lower left of the screen is a good way to determine which version each title is- select the version you want... I personally only go with wide screen.

Now as was mentioned earlier, FAT32 has a 4GB file size limitation. You will need to make sure the VOB file is 4GB or less in order for this to work. Select the 'Compression' option that is directly above the file listing. 

It will bring up the Compression screen:







The program is set to do automatic compression, but you can select custom compression from the drop down options. In this case the movie is fine and under the 4GB limit. If it were bigger than 4GB, the custom compression is a slide bar setting- just slide it until you get the file the right size. Also deselect all the subtitles and audio commentary tracks. This will reduce any compression needed and raise the bit rate that the movie is encoded in, which means a better picture. If you want to listen to the audio commentary, well the nice thing is since you own the DVD you can put that in and watch it the conventional way!

I know right about now some people are raising and eyebrow about compression. Most DVDs movies are not the full disc size, and as seen here it is already under 4GB in size. The ones that are over 4GB are usually 5.5GB to 6.5GB, so the compression is slight and the PS3 handles up-conversion exceptional well so it really doesn't look any different than playing the DVD.

[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/DVDShrinkTarget.jpg[/img]




Once the title is selected, all subtitles and alternate audio and commentary tracks are deselected, click the backup Button on the top menu bar.

This is the window that will come up. From here select the destination drive. Ensure there is enough room on the drive to hold the movie. The program provides an option to create a new destination folder or it will create a new folder and name it the disc name. This will be the new default folder, so I just created one called DVDShrinkFiles.

This is the only setup that needs to be done. We aren't burning a DVD, we just want the VOB file to load onto our Media Server drive. Once the destination directory has been chosen, click 'OK' at the bottom of this window.






[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/DVDShrinkEncoding.jpg[/img]



The encoding window will come up. If you want, you can enable the video preview. For slower computers I would leave it off. If your computer is fast enough it's kind of cool to watch the first couple of times but after awhile it gets boring so you'll probably leave it unchecked after a few times through.

Depending on the compression setting required, it can take anywhere from 15 to 40 minutes to encode it to the hard drive. CPU speed is also a factor. My system is a Pentium IV 2.8GHZ processor with 512MB of ram, nothing fancy or exceptionally fast and this compression setting (none required) takes around 15 minutes to run.





That's the end of Step One. It may have seemed like a lot of intermediate steps to go through, but it is actually very easy and quite intuitive.




*Step Two* getting the VOB file converted to something the PS3 will recognize. On all the sites I scoured, this step was usually the most daunting and required third party software to re-encode the movie to mp4 at the expense of enormous amounts of time and even image quality. So is everyone ready? All you really have to do is to rename the file from .vob to .mpeg. Pretty intense wasn't it? Wait though, there is one thing that needs to be done. You can't just change the file extension from Windows Explorer, it won't remove the .VOB extension. If you tried it that way you'll end up with something like this- 'moviename'.mpeg.VOB, and that's not going to work

[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/Rename.jpg[/img]

Open a Command Prompt window and navigate to the target directory where DVD Shrink stored the encoded files to. It will look similar to this-->

The movie will typically be listed as VTS_01_1.VOB, if it is not, it will be the largest VOB file listed. Now you could just rename the file extension, but that would make it hard to tell what the movie is on the Media Server, so pick a name that makes it easy to identify, but adhere to the FAT32 file name length restrictions. As it can be seen I went with 00701DrNo.mpeg because the name of the movie is Dr. No of course  but why did I append 00701 to the beginning? Simple, the Bond movies all have different names and the PS3 will list them all alphabetically, which of course would put everything out of order. Dr. No is the first Bond flick, hence the 01 after 007. 




That was it, the end of Step Two!


*Step Three:* Putting the movie on the external Hard Drive.

Any external USB Hard Drive can be used. Make sure it is pre-formatted in FAT32. Most are, but if you are buying your own external USB case and adding a large internal Hard Drive, they may not be formatted in FAT32. Do not use Windows XP to format the drive in FAT32 because it won't recognize the full drive capacity. If you have to format, use the utility disk that came with the drive, or a third party program that will properly format the drive in FAT32.

[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/mybook1.jpg[/img]

For this test I went with a Western Digital USB My Book. They are excellent drives and the price was right- around $110 at Sam Club for a 320GB external drive, and it is pre-formatted in FAT32, so it's good to go.

Plug the drive in and connect it to an open USB port on your computer. The computer will automatically detect the drive. Once it is accessible, the first thing I did was to delete all the 'bonus' software on the drive, and then I moved the Western Digital Utilities to my internal D: drive. After that you will have a clean large capacity drive ready to load up your movies and media content.


Before you just start copying movies over, the PS3 recognizes certain directories only. Create a directory on the external drive named 'VIDEO' in all capital letters. One nice update that came with firmware 1.81 is the recognition of sub folders. This is nice so that there isn't just one huge listing of every movie on the drive. It's bad enough with 22 movies plus special feature discs! Since I am doing a Bond Media Server setup, I created a sub folder called 'Bond_Dossier'.

Now that you have the VIDEO directory, and your sub folder set up, just drag and drop the movie from the target directory DVD Shrink used.

That's it! Plug the USB drive into any of the USB ports on the front of the PS3, go to the Video icon on the PS3 menu and you should see the external USB drive! Click through to your movies and have a blast!
arty:

If for some reason there is no audio, go to the setup icon on the PS3 menu and select the audio setup function and enable the appropriate audio feed. 

It really is that simple! The first step is probably the most intimidating, but DVD Shrink is actually very easy to use and very intuitive. Oh, 21 movies and several bonus discs only took up a little over 80GB, there is still around 240GB remaining on the drive for more media!

_That's all for tonight, tomorrow I'll explain how to put some of the special features on the media server as well as talk about some of the other media functions it can do._


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## mechman

Bill,

How much time did it take start to finish? Per movie I mean.

This may have to be a sticky... I'm going to do it.


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## wbassett

mechman said:


> Bill,
> 
> How much time did it take start to finish? Per movie I mean.
> 
> This may have to be a sticky... I'm going to do it.


That was the beauty of this... depending on compression, typically 15 minutes from the time I loaded the DVD until I was moving it to the USB hard drive. With PS3 Video 9 it took over eight hours to do just one VOB file, and there were still four I had to do. Some of the movies are actually already less than 4GB in size because of the special features on the disc, so no compression was needed and playback is literally exactly like having the DVD in. Even the ones that were compressed, the compresson wasn't high enough to cause any noticable degrade in play back PQ.

It took me a little over 6 1/2 hours to do 20 movies and three bonus discs. (The ones like Shaken and Stirred that Best Buy was giving away)

This really isn't a 'conversion' like PS3 Video 9 or PS3 to DVD Converter does, the VOB is already mpeg2 so it's just renaming it and making it into something the PS3 can recognize and play. This was so easy I really don't know why there isn't more information about doing it this way. I saw maybe one or two posts saying someone tried it, but no details on how they did it.


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## mechman

I think my kids need a PS3!! :sneeky::whistling::bigsmile:


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## Sonnie

This is seriously amusing and amazing... :T The problem I have is my daughter has the PS3 and won't let me have it for nothing. :dontknow:


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## mechman

Sonnie said:


> This is seriously amusing and amazing... :T The problem I have is my daughter has the PS3 and won't let me have it for nothing. :dontknow:


Doesn't she want to play it on the big screen?!?!?!?!:bigsmile:


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## Sonnie

Errrccccckkkkkk! :duh: We don't have PS3... we have XBox. :duh: :duh:


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## mechman

That can be fixed! :spend: While I don't own either I bet this would probably work with the Xbox. Doesn't it have USB ports? And the ability to play video files?


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## wbassett

I don't have an XBox either, but the principles should be similar.


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## Sonnie

I'll have to look at it and see... I'm not sure if it has USB ports or not. It's an Xbox 360


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## wbassett

Sonnie said:


> I'll have to look at it and see... I'm not sure if it has USB ports or not. It's an Xbox 360


Originally I was trying to see if the XBox 360's HD DVD external drive could be plugged into the PS3, theoretically it should work, but we're talking Sony and HD DVD sooo.... You know the saying, theoretically you can travel at the speed of light too!


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## wbassett

*Friday Night with a PS3 Media Server!*

I just loaded up around a dozen CDs on the internal 60GB hard drive... never touched the external 320GB drive and the internal still has plenty of space left.

My wife is a full blown convert now and loves this thing, and I think that says volumes! We loaded up a ton of pictures she scanned from the family photo albums, as well as pictures from the digital camera and tonight instead of just watching movies, we cued up a CD that was stored to the drive, selected a photo album stored on the hard drive, and reminisced at 1080p with some good tunes and a nice photo slide show. After that we threw in a couple DVDs and watched Evolution and Night at the Museum upconverted to 1080p.

If this thing ever accepts the XBox HD DVD USB drive the Toshiba is moving to the bedroom!

_More testing and playing to come..._


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## bob1029

The only problem I could see with using the dvds in their native uncompressed format is how quickly the harddrive would fill up. For people with hundreds of dvds in their library, you could easily start tilting the scales at the terabyte range. I would maybe take another look at reencoding the dvds... There is some more advanced software out there called meGUI combined with AVIsynth that can reencode almost any video format into x264 mp4/avc. The best part is the queue system, you could rip 10-20 of your dvds at a time to your hd, then set them all to convert, and then run the encode process at lowest priority and let it run for a few days without any interruption to your normal work.


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## brucek

Yeah, I've toyed with the idea of using one of these things as a media player also. Both my kids have Xbox 360's at their houses, but I feel from looking at them and their possibilities for myself as a media hub that these companies are missing the boat. They could unlock so many features that people want and it would move the units way past simple game machines.

Good thread wbassset. You've shown me a possibility here that I didn't know about.....

brucek


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## wbassett

bob1029 said:


> The only problem I could see with using the dvds in their native uncompressed format is how quickly the harddrive would fill up. For people with hundreds of dvds in their library, you could easily start tilting the scales at the terabyte range. I would maybe take another look at reencoding the dvds... There is some more advanced software out there called meGUI combined with AVIsynth that can reencode almost any video format into x264 mp4/avc. The best part is the queue system, you could rip 10-20 of your dvds at a time to your hd, then set them all to convert, and then run the encode process at lowest priority and let it run for a few days without any interruption to your normal work.


I'll definitely take a look at meGUI and AVIsynth. 

I don't plan on putting my entire collection on hard drives, more like TV and movie series. It sounds like you've done this before, is it DVD quality when you're done? The two software programs I used to encode to mp4 just didn't give me what I was looking for and I spent a lot of time to find that out. I certainly have no problem or issues with re-encoding, this was just so easy to do though that I thought it was worth presenting.

Also how big are the file sizes after the encoding is done? Most of the ones I transfered were already at or under 4GB in size, and PS3 Video 9/PS3 DVD Converter were around 2GB in size. To me saving between 1.5-2GB per movie and losing PQ wasn't worth it. If these programs work better it's worth checking out.

The quick down and dirty method I mentioned will get anyone rolling with a very low learning curve and time invested. I'm actually pretty pleased, 21 movies and several bonus discs and it only took up around 80GB. I'm actually trying to think of what I want to do next, I still have around 240GB left.


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## wbassett

brucek said:


> Yeah, I've toyed with the idea of using one of these things as a media player also. Both my kids have Xbox 360's at their houses, but I feel from looking at them and their possibilities for myself as a media hub that these companies are missing the boat. They could unlock so many features that people want and it would move the units way past simple game machines.
> 
> I don't promote 'modifying' these units, but take a look at this TV program on modding an xbox into a media center and it lets you see how much these things could actually do for you if the companies would sell them this way. The answer to why microsoft and sony don't use this hardware as shown in this program must be that they're selling some very powerful hardware for cost, then hoping to make a profit on the games alone. If they sold it as a media center, perhaps there's no money to be made?
> 
> Good thread wbassset. You've shown me a possibility here that I didn't know about.....
> 
> brucek


Thanks bruce, and this was actually a lot of fun to do too. It's been awhile since I took on a project that I really had this much fun doing. I feel like a kid at Christmas at times . 

I have some friends that have an XBOX 360 that have done some playing around with for eeking out every last bit of it's capability. I'll check with them and see if they set theirs up as media players yet.

Honestly, prior to the 1.81 firmware update, the PS3 just sat there. I only used it to watch Bluray movies, and most of the titles I like are in HD DVD, since the Toshiba upconverts SDVDs exceptionally well, it is/was pretty much the work horse in my setup. Sony should have included the ability to upconvert SDVDs all along with the PS3, but I have my own personal theory why they didn't: They were trying to sell their flagship model BD player. The PS3 got reviews in some magazines that put its playback and speed up there with $1500 players, and I must say it is fast. If they had all of it's features unlocked right away, why would people have wanted to spend several hundred dollars more on their 'real' Bluray player? They would have killed their own product and marketing.

It is also a computer that is dressed as a game console, so that appealed to me as far as updating and future abilities. When I set my new system up (Kept the projector, speakers, receiver, and the Samsung DVD –HD931... ditched the 36" Toshiba CRT set, Laser Disc player, and VCR player that was never used) I toyed with the idea of an XBOX 360, but at the time the lack of HDMI wasn't too appealing to me, and the VGA input on the Sony SXRD doesn't support 1080p resolution.

I truly am format neutral and don't push one format over another, however I must say the PS3 is really a good value if you look at it's overal capabilities and the fact it has the potential to get updates that could add on features not even thought of yet.

Pioneer actually tried something similar to this years ago. They had an Elite Laser Disc player that had a drawer that you could slide in various game sytems and play cartrige based games or some special content Laser discs that were supposed to come out. It of course never made it. 

My son is coming up from PA for a week and I plan on renting the PS3 Pirates game while he's here. As much as I love my Toshiba HD DVD player, I have to conceed that it's only a player (a great one at that) while the PS3 is starting to become an entire entertainment system.

Interestingly and a finaly note for this post- Sony is very very protective of it's movie copyrights, and understandably so, however I thought it was amuzing that to load a CD to hard drive you just put the disc in, hit the triangle button, and select 'Import' from the menu that comes up. If it were only that easy for DVDs. 

(As far as CDs go, those I will probably end up deleting off the internal 60GB drive and actually rip those to smaller mp files.)


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## bob1029

With mpeg4, and moderate compression you can get a 2.5 hour movie down to about 1.4 gb with little to no detectable loss in quality.


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## wbassett

Interesting, the other software had final file sizes around 2.3GB in size and there was a dramatic drop in quality.

What settings do you use?


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## bob1029

As far as specific settings, I wouldnt know about the ps3. I believe on doom9.org forums there is a discussion about profiles for the ps3 using those 2 pieces of software, and even a gui written specifically for this purpose. The encoding time will probably be higher with this software (close to 1x or slightly slower) depending on the hardware involved.


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## wbassett

bob1029 said:


> As far as specific settings, I wouldnt know about the ps3. I believe on doom9.org forums there is a discussion about profiles for the ps3 using those 2 pieces of software, and even a gui written specifically for this purpose. The encoding time will probably be higher with this software (close to 1x or slightly slower) depending on the hardware involved.


When you say 'close to 1x or slightly slower' are you refering to it taking the same amount of time it took me to do the 21 plus DVDs (between 6-7 hours from start to finish and actually watching them) or the same amount of time that PS3 to DVD Converter took, which was 9 hours for one movie?

I can definitely see a benefit for file sizes that are half the size or smaller, especially when I am looking at doing the complete Highlander TV series which has six seasons with between 6-9 DVDs per season. I must say though that I don't relish the idea of it taking me 6-9 months to do it.  I'll have to do a test run and see how long it takes to do one DVD.

Oh question, do you need one continous VOB file for the conversion or do you do them individually and then recombine them after the encoding is done? For me personally, hard drive space isn't an issue at all. If I have to extract one continuous VOB file first anyway, since drive space isn't an issue I'm fine with just the simple rename method. I can see though that others would be very interested in conserving hard drive space and possibly getting twice the amount of movies on the same drive.

Would you be willing to do up a tutorial for the method you're talking about, that way people will have more than one option to go with, and I am all for people having options.


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## bob1029

Yeah I can probably work on a tutorial here in a few days when I get some downtime. About the 1x thing, I was referring to it taking about the same amount of time it would be to play back the dvd. Also, it would be best to have all of the vob files you want combined together, BUT if you are trying to do a tv series and not a movie, typically you have multiple episodes per disc, so it would be best to see if the vob files are split by episode, then just encode them seperately and name the files as needed.


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## wbassett

bob1029 said:


> Yeah I can probably work on a tutorial here in a few days when I get some downtime. About the 1x thing, I was referring to it taking about the same amount of time it would be to play back the dvd. Also, it would be best to have all of the vob files you want combined together, BUT if you are trying to do a tv series and not a movie, typically you have multiple episodes per disc, so it would be best to see if the vob files are split by episode, then just encode them seperately and name the files as needed.


Yep that is exactly how I am going to tackle TV series, split the VOB files out into their individual episodes.

So the conversion time for your method doesn't sound bad at all. No where near what I experienced with the other two software methods. Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking them, and in actuality PS3 Video 9 is meant more for smaller clips than it is for an entire DVD.

Still if you can do a tutorial (no rush, whenever you have the time) that would be excellent. That way people can have a variety of ways to pick from and decide what works best for them. Some may only feel comfortable with a simple rename method while others will want to conserve maximum hard drive space. This would satisfy both sets of users.

Thanks for providing your input and this is starting to become an interesting topic with lots of potential and a variety of ways of achieving it.


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## bob1029

Ok, ive been messing around with a lot of x264 encoding tools, and so far the quickest and least buggy one is handbrake. During my preliminary tests, I encoded minority report (2:25:04 length) to a 2000 meg file, which includes a 320 kbps (44.1kHz) 5.1 channel audio track. The video quality was more than acceptable in my opinion, but that is for everyone else to decide. The best part about it is that the encode time was about half the movie run time. I am unable to confirm that the generated mp4 file actually plays on a ps3 as I do not have one available right now, but it plays back wonderfully on a pc, so if you simply have a htpc setup, this is still something to seriously consider. 

A quick cost analysis (assuming the 2000 meg file avg):

To store 1000 dvds on a hdd setup:
4 drive esata enclosure: 200$
4x500gb: 520$

720$ for enough storage to maintain a 1000 dvd collection seems to be a fair deal to me. If you dont need the external enclosure and can mount the drives internally, you could cut the cost to 520$... This sounds very tempting to me. If you are concerned about data integrity, you could always store 500 dvds with the assurance that your collection is 100% safe by using raid 0+1 on the external enclosure.

I will post more details later.


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## mechman

Excellent work Bob! The only thing that would convince myself would be how it looks on my 100" screen. That's where any problems with the video compression would reveal themselves to me. I'll have to give it a shot sometime and report back.


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## wbassett

My son came home to visit for the week and him and a friend are over tonight playing games on the big screen. His friend happens to have an XBOX 360!

So of course I had to hook up the USB drive to it and check it out. It detected the drive and we were able to navigate through the directories, but it won't playback mpeg2 files. I'll have to check what format the 360 uses, but it can also be used as a media server with an external HD.

My son's friend though said after seeing the PS3 running through a 1080p set and how easy it was to put flicks on the external drive that he may sell his 360. I told him I wouldn't if I was him, but if he does to let me know and I might buy it! :bigsmile:

Format neutral and console neutral!


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> if he does to let me know and I might buy it! :bigsmile:
> 
> Format neutral and console neutral!



yeah, let us know if he decides to sell, I wouldn't mind having a 360 around too!

I broke down and picked up a PS3, loving it so far, although from an integration standpoint, I still want a way to power it on without using a controller or the bluetooth remote.... I am using the USB-PS2 adapter with the PS2 remote and it works great, learned all the codes into my T2+ and can do pretty much everything, except I need that stupid PS code that allows you to power on and off the unit and such.

I could see the PS3 becoming a main hub for entertainment in the HT realm, with some minor tweaks and whatnot.

I was able to get my photos and music streaming via the net with no big issues, so I am happy with that.


----------



## wbassett

What did you use for the server streaming side?


----------



## Guest

I haven't gotten that far yet, but I will most likely just use my external HD and plug directly in to the PS3 to watch any stored movies.

As for my clients, I will stick with using either KScapes or other DVD management devices for movies. The whole encoding process would be too much for them.


----------



## Guest

:yay: did my first one pn my ps3 . all i can say is awsome.

thank you so much:jump:


----------



## ALIENWARE

Thanks for the tutorial,is the best thing I ever learn,but you skip one verry good thing,when I played the movies on PS3,they have 5.1 dolby digital sound,I was impresed.I will never use any convertrer again,they only convert sound to 2.0 stereo.I have a 2.01 firmware ps3 upgraded w/a 115 GB HDD (not to mention my FAT32 formated 150GB external HDD)


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## wbassett

You're right Alienware, I didn't mention that it retains the original sound track that the DVD has. Essentially it is just like watching the DVD but without the menu just the movie.

I've loaded up more and it's a breeze to do.


----------



## ALIENWARE

I have one problem,I rip and renamed the anime movie APLLE SEED,but on ps3 plays with no sound and I can't fastfoward (it freezes).I rip the movie 3 times and have the same problem,but in the pc plays fine.I'm doing evrething as you explain in the tutorial and this is the first time that have problem.
(sorry for my bad english,Im a spanish guy)


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## wbassett

Check and make sure it's not over the 4GB fat32 restriction. Also check your PS3 sound settings.

I had one that just would not play either, and not sure why. It was a Bond special feature bonus disc that Best Buy gave away awhile back. Other than that I haven't had any problems.


----------



## Guest

Has anyone else had mixed results with this process? I came across a similar approach at another forum. The only difference is instead of copying to a external USB drive I use TVersity to copy it directly to the PS3's HD. About 1/3 of the movies I copy work great. The other 2/3 have either no sound or show an incorrect time length and won't play all the way through. Multiple re-rerips all show the same issue. The confusing part is that they work fine on the PC. So I am thinking it is somehow getting messed up in the copy. I don't have access to a USB drive so I thought maybe someone else had some insight.

Rich


----------



## wbassett

That's interesting Rich. I only put them to a USB drive, and put audio CDs on the internal drive. I'll try checking it out and see if I get the same thing.


----------



## ALIENWARE

Well,well,well...with the new update the PS3 gets DivX support.DivX have a converter that converts movies in HD,with less of a gig per hour,and the same video quality of the movie you convert.I will delete all my 4g per movie and satrt converting in DivX..


----------



## EQDruid

*Building a Home Media Server*

I have about 3,500 DVD's that i want to convert, and watch on my PS3, and Computers on the fly, I was wondering if anyone knows what i will need?

Hoping to get DVD quality for a 65 inch HDTV.

Want to keep the files down to a resonable size to help save cost on the Hard drive/ Drives.

What software would be the best to convert all these DVD's.

Currently only hae a budget of about $10,000. Wife won't let me spend more then that =/

Currently have a Quad Core running a Duel Boot XP/Vista with 8 Gigs ram, and over clocked to 4.2 Ghtz

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAqNylbtpxM&feature=related

So wondering how long all this would take to complete.

Thanks for your replies, and information. New to doing this, so I'll be the first to admit I'm a Noob.

EQDruid

PSN EQDRuid


----------



## wbassett

*Re: Building a Home Media Server*

Hi Charles and welcome to The Shack!

As you know I am a fan of the .vob rename since it remaind DVD quality, but the files are of course larger. 


DivX is popular, but I think you've seen over Sony's PS3 forum there are some more more steps, mainly with conversions. What concerned me was one comment that it's 'close' to DVD quality, and I personally don't want close.

It sounds like you're planning on streaming, is that correct? You might want to test DivX though and see if it's acceptable to you as far as PQ. I'm not really familiar with it though and can't comment on whether it retains the same audio tracks.

With that many DVDs you want to make sure of a method before getting half way in and deciding to change! You're looking at 14TB if you go vob rename and I see why you want to save some space.


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## Guest

What converter are you planning on using? Have you tested it out to see what the encoding time is?


----------



## wbassett

I am with drauch... curious to hear your reports back. If it works and the quality is the same as DVD, I'll switch over too, as long as it doesn't take 20 hours to do one movie!


----------



## ALIENWARE

DivX is the best converter I tried,it converts a 2 hour movie in 1 hour(thats 30 min per hour).Just testit for yourself,go to Divx homepage,the converter is free,and have support for hd,


----------



## wbassett

does this need 2.1 or will it work with 2.01?


----------



## ALIENWARE

2.10,and I think is the best update.Also I discovered today that if you rip a dvd movie and copy to the ps3 at it is (.vob)with the new update it will play,so you dont have to reneame to .mpeg.THE PS3 NOW PLAYS .vob FILES,YEA BABY....


----------



## eugovector

*Re: Building a Home Media Server*



wbassett said:


> Hi Charles and welcome to The Shack!
> 
> As you know I am a fan of the .vob rename since it remaind DVD quality, but the files are of course larger.
> 
> 
> DivX is popular, but I think you've seen over Sony's PS3 forum there are some more more steps, mainly with conversions. What concerned me was one comment that it's 'close' to DVD quality, and I personally don't want close.
> 
> It sounds like you're planning on streaming, is that correct? You might want to test DivX though and see if it's acceptable to you as far as PQ. I'm not really familiar with it though and can't comment on whether it retains the same audio tracks.
> 
> With that many DVDs you want to make sure of a method before getting half way in and deciding to change! You're looking at 14TB if you go vob rename and I see why you want to save some space.


Divx will allow you to keep the unaltered AAC (which will obviously take up more space). I like FairUseWizard because it's what I've used in the past, but I'm sure there is better software out there.

I think DIVX is your only option if you really want to do every movie you own.


----------



## wbassett

ALIENWARE said:


> Well,well,well...with the new update the PS3 gets DivX support.DivX have a converter that converts movies in HD,with less of a gig per hour,and the same video quality of the movie you convert.I will delete all my 4g per movie and satrt converting in DivX..


Weird, I made a post earlier today but now don't see it...

Anyway, ALIENWARE can you test something for me? 

I got a game that said it needed a firmware update, 1.9x I think but they are now up to 2.1 as we all know. I read the update and it stated a video playback file size restriction of 2GB. It read like this pertained to DivX and WMV formats, but I was leery about if it would also be for mpeg2 files. Could you test an mpeg2 video file that's over 2GB and let me know for sure? I played it safe and updated to 2.01 but if I get an actual confirmation from someone that tested this I'll be updating to 2.1

Thanks!


----------



## wbassett

*DivX test*

Well this first try was a bust.

The process was easy enough. I downloaded the trial package from DivX.com and all you have to do is drag and drop a file to the converter and it does the rest.

First it took 4 hours to convert a movie. When it was done though I got a 5124 error and I could not find that code anywhere on the DivX site. It looks like it bombed out because I can't even find the converted file in the destination folder. Four hours and it errors out, I was bummed to say the least.

I'm still playing around with it though. So far I have to say it's not playing nice on my end. I'm also concerned about playback quality. I can see where space is a real concern for some people, but for others PQ is more important.

Here is something I found while doing some research, it's from Gromkov's Software 



> Question:
> 
> Okay, DivX has greater compression than MPEG2, but how does the quality compare? I have no experience with DivX, but wonder if I'm missing out on something. If the quality is as good as MPEG2, then I'm thinking I need to get educated. I'm not interested in putting videos on CD, nor do I keep movies on my harddrive. Sure, getting 10 hours of video on a DVD would be nice, but only if I don't have to sacrifice quality.
> 
> Answer:
> 
> Sometimes, Mpeg-4 (Divx/Xvid) doesn't compare to mpeg-2. The major difference between the two is crispness. Mpeg-4 has more of a smooth, almost platic-y look. The very best Divx/Xvid encodes still don't compare to their DVD counterparts. They can come close though, and coupled with the fact they're a lot smaller than DVD's in terms of size, you're willing to live with the quality loss.
> 
> Why DivX video distributed in Internet has worse quality than DVD? The answer is very simple. DVD format (actually MPEG-2) has many distortions usually ignored by human eye. During re-compression process (DVD to DivX) DivX codec uses already distorted video signal. As a result of this fact, DivX introduces additional distortion to the original (already distorted) movie. That's why psycho-visual enhancements are visible as annoying divx video artifacts. We could say more about power of DivX codec while comparing 2 movies encoded from really original source. For example TV to DVD, and TV to DivX. But now, many movies available in Internet were ripped from DVD. So these divx movies were compressed 2 times with 2 steps of quality loss: with MPEG-2, and then with MPEG-4.
> 
> Another reason why mpeg-4 is so popular is that there are a lot of people that use only divx for watching popular movies and I don't think they can really tell the difference between DVD and DivX. To each their own.


What looks good playing on a computer monitor in a window doesn't always look good on a 55" TV and rarely looks acceptable when blown up to 106". Still if I can get the same quality as my DVDs at a smaller file size, I'm game. I am concerned with the statement, "_The very best Divx/Xvid encodes still don't compare to their DVD counterparts._" and I have heard others say it's 'close' or called it acceptable. 

EQDruid, with 3500 DVDs you want to put on your media system, I can see why space is a concern. Using the .vob rename method, you'd need 14TB of storage, and that's not very realistic even with the drop in drive prices. Time wise the rename method (or as Alienware pointed out, the PS3 now plays .vobs, but you'll still want to name the file to something you can recognize) will take you around 10 minutes per disc or 24.3 days straight to move everything to the media system.

I was hoping for some actual DivX files to use and go on, but right now it's not working. Let's go with a conservative estimate on filesize and use 1GB. This value will most likely change but for now we'll use it since people say you can get a DVD this size. That will drop the storage required down to 3.5TB which is much better but still up there. 

Also keep in mind since this is such a huge project it's not something you'll want to have to do all over if you have a drive failure, so you might want to consider a Raid setup, or at least some type of archived backup for restoring the drives. Either way you're talking more storage space.

Timewise to convert 3500 DVDs to DivX, based on the 4 hour conversion time I saw (if there is a better and faster way someone knows, let us know) we're talking 583 days, or a year and a half to move all 3500 to your media system. Bob1029 reported earlier in this thread he used and likes a program called handbrake and the conversion time was around half the movie run time, but this isn't DivX and he wasn't able to confirm if the mp4 files play on the PS3.

I am also very interested in saving storage space, but for me personally, I don't want to sacrifice PQ. Don't get me wrong, I want this to work so I can enjoy more content on the same size drive but quality and setup speed are more important to me right now. This is one where everyone will have to make their own decision as to what is more of a priority to them.

I'm not giving up, but man... seeing it took me an hour or so to do an entire season of 24, the PQ is going to have to blow my socks off to want to spend time waiting on conversions.

So far I have my USB drive setup as a 'spy' genre drive. It has 22 Bond flicks, that includes Never Say Never, and six bonus discs, season 1 of 24, all three Bourne movies, Enemy of the State, True Lies, xXx, Remo Williams, and all three MI movies and I still have 150GB free on my 320GB drive. That's not too shabby and it retains the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound track. However if I could reduce the file size and retain the same quality, I'm definitely signed up!


----------



## Guest

i am a new member on here and let me start by saying hello to everybody

and now onto my question, i was looking around the internet for a way to put high quality movies on my ps3 so i downloaded ps3 video 9 since i used psp video 9 for my psp and it worked beautifally but ps3 video 9 was all pixelated on every option i chose so i found this thread and i followed all the above steps and it worked perfect on one movies i had, but i tried doing another one, which was 4.somethin gigs, then i compressed it as far as it would go and it stilll came out to around 2.6 gigs, so i chose to split the vob's like you said not to and it worked good but only the first part had sound, the other 2 parts did'nt have any, the ps3 even said it did'nt have any sound, i split the files because i only have a 2 gig memory stick, so is there any help for me to get this movie on my ps3's HDD?

can i put the full file (after your steps) on a dvd and copy them onto the ps3?

thanks for all the help


----------



## ALIENWARE

DivX and wmv or wmv-hd have to be 2gig or less to be played on ps3,but mpeg files can be any size,also the ps3 now plays .vob files so you dont have to reneame to mpeg,just rip the movie you have in a single vob file with dvd shrink or dvd decrypter,ripit with 1 audio track,no subtitles,and the ps3 will play.Agood trick I use is rip the movie with dvdshrink and compress the movie to have 4g or less,some times I compress the movie in a 75% of video compression and still look great


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## wbassett

ALIENWARE said:


> Agood trick I use is rip the movie with dvdshrink and compress the movie to have 4g or less,some times I compress the movie in a 75% of video compression and still look great


 GMTA

Now if Sony only adds a video playlist and subfolder support...


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## basementjack

Hey Guys, this topic interests me so I thought I'd subscribe...


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## wbassett

Hey jack 

Still playing/testing DivX here, but I've scrapped using the trial download from DivX.com. It errors out everytime. Probably because I'm trying to do a VOB file or a mpeg2 that's a renamed VOB file. I have no plans on converting to another format just to be able to convert to DivX. I'll do some looking around for other DivX programs and check them out before I personally say it's not something I'd want to do/use.


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## basementjack

Ok Guys, I just finished skimming this thread from start to finish.

A few things I can add:

Alternate DVD ripping program - 

It's a program called DVDFAB - you can find it at http://www.dvdfab.com

in short, DVDFab is a decent 1 click solution for going from DVD's to other formats.
They seem to update the product regularly.

Some things DVDfab can do...
- Copy a DVD to your hard drive as an ISO or a folder of files
- Copy a DVD to a blank DVD
- Copy a DVD to 2 blank DVD's
- Copy a DVD to formats like divx, mpeg4, h264 etc.


Also - for those with windows media center machines - microsoft has a dvd library feature thats disabled by default - a simple registry change enables it.

the MCE dvd library works with files copied to the HD from dvd shrink or dvd fab - the nice thing here is you have the original dvd - full quality - all sound options - full menus etc...

- Jack


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## basementjack

wbassett said:


> Hey jack
> 
> Still playing/testing DivX here, but I've scrapped using the trial download from DivX.com. It errors out everytime. Probably because I'm trying to do a VOB file or a mpeg2 that's a renamed VOB file. I have no plans on converting to another format just to be able to convert to DivX. I'll do some looking around for other DivX programs and check them out before I personally say it's not something I'd want to do/use.


Bill - 

I am with you 100% - I really have no desire to encode to one format then to another.

I downloaded the demo also - but I could not get it to covert from a DVD - it said I needed a $10 Mpeg2 add on for that. I could not find a demo of the add on.

DVDFab is an all in one that claims divx support - but technically I think it's xvid and I'm not sure of the differences.


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## Guest

i compressed the video as far as it would compress on dvd shrink, but it still comes out over 2 gigs i just need a file splitting program to split the file into 2 separate chunks, i only have a 2 gig mem stick


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## basementjack

Guys, I've made some progress on the 360, but I don't want to hijack this thread so I'll open a new one...


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## wbassett

Great thread Jack and it's good to see the 360 get some representation as a media system.


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## wbassett

Preliminary test with DVDFab..

It works so far. I was able to do a 'generic' rip/conversion and it created a 1GB xvid file on my hard drive. I played it it worked and looked okay, but I did see some artifacting but overall it is much better than anything I have used so far for DivX.

Conversion time took around 2 hours, but I did the high quality two pass option. There are options to convert to PS3 or XBox, but the PS3 conversion took almost four hours to do and the file size is the same as the Xvid. Honestly, there is no need to do a 'custom' PS3 profile since it will play most video files that a DVD player will play.

I'll be checking some test files out on my 55" set this weekend, and to me that's the real test. Sometimes things can look pretty good on a smaller computer monitor but when blown up in size is when all the flaws show up.

So far though, this is looking very promising for those that don't mind a slight drop in PQ in favor of saving storage space. 

I did have a problem with a couple of movies I have, but it also could be something with the trial version. Right now I give it a thumbs up and thanks jack for pointing this one out!


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## basementjack

Hey Bill - 

As I have time, I'm playing with different options for encoding - 
I got the divx trial to work with DVD vob files, unfortunately the converter is really, really basic - so I don't know how useable it will be long term, but I plan to do some comparisons of picture quality between the Divx pro codec, and what is included with DVD fab.
I've also tried some alterante settings in fab (Mostly higer bitrates so far) - from what I've seen, there is more quality available over the defaults.


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## basementjack

Bill, one more thought - after we both finish our reseach we should figure out if there is one file type that works universally well with both systems.


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## wbassett

Sounds good.

Xvid works, but isn't DVD quality and I see a very minor audio sync problem. It's not bad and most may not even notice it, but it is there.

I'd say it's okay if someone really needs to save space, but so far I haven't seen anything that's DVD quality aside from just using the DVD vob itself.

I think this is great that we're getting a full evaluation of the various compressions and codecs and how they preform. The more we can test the better people can decide.


----------



## ALIENWARE

Well,you just have to tweak the settings of the DivX converter,and you will get DVD quality,I know I have,and I have a HDTv.Also,Divx have released the new version that now have support for 720p and 1080p in the converter,I did a test with TRANSFORMERS MOVIE,a clip of 2min,and the 1080p conversion convert the movie in the exact quality of the dvd,but when I was to convert the entire movie,the size was more of 2 gig,and the PS3 dosnt support divx movies that have more of 2G,that was bad for me.Still,Divx converter is ,for me, the best video converter I tested


----------



## EQDruid

Well I have been Ripping away my Collection of DVD's.... Noticed a few Problems.

1) Some Movies don't sync with the audio, I'm using the DVDShrink and just Renaming the VOB file, and placing that on my extrenal Hard drive.

2) getting a flash from 5.1 to 2 audio channel sound, tho I think thats my fault =p, will have to redo thoose movies

What program do you sudjest to play beack the Video .Vob files on your computer, so that I don't have to keep running up and down the stairs and plug in the HD to the Playstation to make sure everything is working correctly?

EQDruid


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## wbassett

I haven't run into this problem. I did at first have a problem not getting any audio but after going into the settings I was able to get audio working.

I always just select the 5.1 audio and no commentary or secondary audio tracks.

I check the files on my computer using Power DVD and skim through the movie to make sure it works and is in sync.

Other than that, how's the rest of it going and for the movies that work how is the PQ to you?

Basementjack is doing a lot of testing with DivX and other codecs and checking various settings and checking picture quality.


----------



## EQDruid

Loving it so far.. 

I am reformatting the exteranal HD with the slow process so that it might fix any issues ( I hope) and redoing the the movies I converted with more then 1 audio track.

Thank god for my PC.. ( 4.2 GTHZ with 8 Gig Ram Quad Core ) Movies take about 10 mins to rip each keeping each movie under 4 gig.

did you partion your exteranl HD? or left it in tact? Thinking I might of slowed it down tring to add multi movies at the same time instead of 1 at a time.

EQDruid


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## EQDruid

Well I am about to give up...

Some movies play all right, and some just keep ******** out on me.

On the PC, their is sound, then no sound on the PS3, 

Sound but not in synch with the Video, and then there is a Huge delay with even the PS3 even opening the file.

With over 3500 DVD's I can't be having to recheck every DVD untill I show it off and look like a fool. =/

Open to some Idea's. Been following everything.

EQDruid


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## wbassett

We'll figure this out, and it is important we do.

Okay let's start with some basics and let me see if I can duplicate it... I have around 1500 SDVDs now, nowhere near what you have, but maybe we have some of the same titles you're having trouble with.

First what model PS3 do you have and what firmware level?

I have a 60GB first gen PS3 with FW 2.01 and an external USB 320GB Western Digital My Book. So far I have only had a problem with one bonus feature Bond disc, one that Best Buy was giving away in one of their promo's...

Next, you mentioned reformatting one of your drives I believe? How did you reformat it? The PS3 only reads FAT32 and Windows does some strange things when formating FAT32, especially on these drives. Is the problem on just one drive or across multiple drives?

Don't give up. From what I have seen and experienced so far is any time you convert from the original file format there is a performance hit of some kind... it's inevitable, you're making a change and as good and powerful as our PC's can be, we don't have studio gear so there will be a hit. Sometimes it's so minor nobody will notice, sometimes it's major.

Compression... always some PQ hit with compression, and add compression and conversion and it tends to compound things sometimes. That's one reason why I like to stick with the original file format. Also, with 2.1 (maybe 2.01 as well) you can use the .vob extension and won't even have to rename it to .mpeg. Might want to give that a try too.

Last thing, what version level of Shrink do you have? I have 3.2.0.15

If you continue to have problems with Shrink, try DVDFab. It can also convert to XVid and even has a 'PS3' mode. Worth a try and we will get you rolling don't worry. 

Send me a list of some of the titles you're having trouble with and I'll see if I have the same problem. It could be the title too, but like I said, we'll figure this out don't worry or give up.


----------



## ALIENWARE

does anyone knows if PS3 plays .mkv files,think I have to test that,is very popular and TRUE HD QUALITY,I will post soon my homework results.


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## wbassett

Honestly, I never played around with .mkv so I can't answer that but maybe someone else can.


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## EQDruid

I have shrink 3.2 with the 60 gig model ps3, latest firmware. I bought 4 Seagate freeagent 500 gig drives. Formatted Using Swissknife to fat32.

Might just use DVD fab and see if that is the problem. Having problems with the Movies The Prestige and Super Troopers and a few others but thats a start.

Thanks for looking into this... and sorry for sounding alittle cranky, wife and I both have the flu atm.

EQDruid


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## EQDruid

Tring DVDfab Plat now to convert using the PS3 settings. Takes 4 times as long, but if thats the case, I guess this is going to take alot longer then I was hoping. But such is the ways. Hope this turns out ok for the time invested.

EQDruid


----------



## ALIENWARE

Have anyone notice the new nice visual player when you play music on PS3,you have to be on he latest firmware,play any mp3,and press scuare 2 times,you get an VERY,VERY NICE EARTH VIEW visual player.This is great for anyone that have a HDTV,I notice this today.
Sorry if you all know this,but I didn't,all this time I was testing diferent video files,specialy DivX,speaking of that,I will report soon my results on video files and quality.
And sorry for the change of avatar,but aparently,this site don't want that avatar cus is an ALIENWARE WALLPAPER,yea I don't get it,but I dont make the rules of this site,anyway,be sure to chek the music visual player with a nice relaxing music you have.


----------



## EQDruid

Yeah, it's pretty sweet. Tho I personally Like to play Blast factor with Chemical brothers Playing in the background....

Found a trick with getting the PS3 to play the Video's in sync, Just let the Exteral hard drive warm up alittle bit... Seems it takes a few minutes for the HD to sync with the PS3.. 

Don't know if its the PS3's fault or the HD. Just noticed with 50 movies on thier so far that it takes a few minutes for all the movies to display. So if i start a movies and it sits there, i give it a few minutes then I try and restart it, works perfectly....

EQdruid


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## wbassett

That's good news EQdruid. Sorry about not getting back to you, I got tied up with some other projects too.

The Prestige worked fine for me, so I was going to say I wasn't sure what the problem might be.

Question, what brand of external drive are you using?


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## EQDruid

Seagate

Just it takes awhile for the ps3 to see all the videos on the exteral Hard drive


----------



## wbassett

Interesting. 

I can say that the My Book powers up and down with the PS3 and by the time the PS3 is ready the drive is ready. However... I only have the drive half filled. I might run into the same problem when it gets closer to being full.

I'll keep an eye out for that.


----------



## Guest

WOW, just read most all of this and I have to say it's very interesting. I just got a 40 gig PS3 and want to use it to run my photos, videos and music. This is very good info and good news.

Are most of you just hooking a drive to the PS3 then run all your music, music from there? Or, are you using a seperate PC as a media server and running off the PC? Seems like the hard drive to PS3 is the best bet.

Looking forward to trying this out. All videos need to go in a VIDEO folder right? What about music? Pictures? Not sure I read that anywhere.

JUst got a High Def video camera as well (canon HV20) Now I have to figure how to transfer those on the PS3 or play thru the PS3. This might be my answer to my new Ent. system. AWESOME

Joe


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## ALIENWARE

Welcome to this forum,browndog.
To answer your question about where to put your media files on your external drive,put them the same way you put them on a memorystick,create a VIDEO,PHOTO,MUSIC folders and the PS3 will play them,but you can also put the files anyware on the drive,but you have to select DISPLAY ALL on PS3 (EXAMPLE-PUT MP3 ON VIDEO FOLDER,SELECT DISPLAY ALL ON PS3 WILE ON MUSIC SECTION AND SELECT THE VIDEO FOLDER,ANY MP3 ON THAT FOLDER WILL BE DISPLAYED ON THE PS3)


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## Guest

Sounds easy enough. Man, that really is good news. I don't suppose I can rip my cd's on the PS3 and have them go to the external hard drive...I'm sure wishful thinking. Never been big in the music part. Not sure how to get my CD's to the hard drive.

Man, I won't be able to sleep tonight with all this great info

Joe


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## wbassett

browndog said:


> WOW, just read most all of this and I have to say it's very interesting. I just got a 40 gig PS3 and want to use it to run my photos, videos and music. This is very good info and good news.
> 
> Are most of you just hoocking a drive to the PS3 then run all your music, music from there? Or, are you using a seperate PC as a media server and running off the PC? Seems like the hard drive to PS3 is the best bet.
> 
> Looking forward to trying this out. All videos need to go in a VIDEO folder right? What about music? Pictures? Not sure I read that anywhere.
> 
> JUst got a High Def video camera as well (canon HV20) Now I have to figure how to transfer those on the PS3 or play thru the PS3. This might be my answer to my new Ent. system. AWESOME
> 
> Joe


Another welcome to the Shack!

I have our CDs and photos on the internal drive and movie's on the external drive.


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## ALIENWARE

browndog said:


> Sounds easy enough. Man, that really is good news. I don't suppose I can rip my cd's on the PS3 and have them go to the external hard drive...I'm sure wishful thinking. Never been big in the music part. Not sure how to get my CD's to the hard drive.
> 
> Joe


Yes you can,just select the music you want to copy,hit triangle and select copy,from there you just copy the music werever you want


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## Guest

So I guess I did sleep. Look forward to trying all this stuff today. Seems renaming the Vob files is still the best bet. I'm not too worried about space. I have several TB available to me.

My wife is going to be thrilled.


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## Guest

I must be doing something wrong. I hooked an external drive to the PS3 and then put an audio CD in the PS3. asked it to mport and it went to the PS3 drive and not the external drive. I could not seem to find an option to get the CD to import to the external drive.

Am I missing something?


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## Guest

Yet another question. I have added photos to the external drive via my PC then hooked the external to the PS3..Videos work great...Music works great but photos says no files. If I hit the triangle and do all files, then navigate to the photo directory..Then I can view them. Wierd!

What are you folks using to rip your music? And, to see the cover art on the album on the PS3?

Don't suppose there is a way to link cover art for movie DVD's as well??

Man, this is fun


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## wbassett

Don't quote me on this, but I think that Photos under the PHOTO menu looks at the internal drive and when you go to the external drive you have to select view all. 

I've never tried ripping a CD from the PS3 to the external drive, just the internal. I believe there is a move option though.

With the latest firmware update you don't even have to rename the VOB from .vob to .mpeg but you should still change the file name so you know what it is


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## Guest

So rename but leave the .vob extension? I'll try it. I think the photo issue was the directory needs to be PICTURE and not PHOTO. We will see in a bit


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## Guest

Has anybody bought DVDfab? I'm curious to find out if this would be a good software solution to backup my DVDs (few hundred, but not as many as some of you) to both disc and rip them to my PC (I like to stream to the PS3). I'll try to get to the downloaded free trial, but they show a $30 discount on the platinum edition. Unforunately, it expires today and I just found this thread. Any ideas?


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## Guest

I've tried the trial and I like it. I have not decided if I want to pay for it 

This PS3 is addicting


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## wbassett

I've tried it as well. It has more features than DVDShrink and isn't bad. 

DVDFab also converts to serveral different formats which is nice. 

Basementjack is doing a lot of testing but I got tied up with some screen projects. 

I really like the PS3 as an entertainment center and not just a game console.

Square... that $30 discount has been up there for weeks now saying 'expires today'


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## basementjack

I purchased DVDfab after playing with the trial. I think it always says there is a discount that expires today - I paid $50 for mine.

Fab seems to do a good job for me, and it's a very easy solution.


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## Guest

Hello!

After reading this thread, I picked up a 1Tb My Book at the weekend, and so far its working perfectly. I've been using DVD shrink which seems pretty good to me also.

Just going to take a while to churn through all those DVDs!

Stevo.


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## EQDruid

I got one of my 500 gig seagates 1/2 full with 4 gig movies, and it takes like a good 5 mins for all the movies to load up with icons... Anyone else having this issue?

I used swiss knife to format it to fat32.

I am guessing it has to do with the Ram inside the PS3.

When i use XP to open the folders things pop open almost instantly... ( 8 gig ram ) only 3 gig ram XP see's and use's.

EQDruid


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## dirtmcgirt79

Hi Everyone.. new to the board.. 

I myself have been trying to find a way to get my DVD collection backed up on HD that I can play on the PS3. 

After reading the guide in this thread I decided to give it a try last night. So I formatted an external in Fat32, and used DVD shrink on a few dvds. Just used the movie file and the VOB came out to less than 4GB. I did 3 videos at first.. I wanted to try streaming from the PC before connecting the HD to the PS3 itself. So I created a folder called VIDEO at the root of the HD, and placed a renamed vob file that I changed to an mpeg. I shared the media in WMP11, and was able to open it up on the PS3. I was impressed. Picture quality was great, sound was great, no skipping.. the only problem was that I couldnt fast forward or it would freeze.. And this was over a wireless network, so I figured that that was probably the reason.. My thought was to use a wired connection once I figured out that streaming would work.

So I tried another movie, and this time I plugged the drive directly into the PS3. This time I could fast-forward, video quality was great, but the sound started ******** out, about 15 minutes into the movie. It just quit. It was almost like my receiver was trying to cycle throught and find the right sound format. cause it just kept clicking back and forth. Now, I'm using an optical audio connection from the PS3 to an Onkyo reciever. Never had any issues with sound playing physical DVDs or games.. 

I checked the sound settings on the PS3 and though I'm not real sure what it should be set to, I cycled through all of the different settings, testing each one.. Nothing would work. 

Tried 3 more movies and have the exact same problem. I'm just not sure what to try next. I think I'm going to try leaving the file extension VOB and see if that does anything.. 

I plan on building an esata tower on my network to store all of these, and just streaming to the PS3 if I can figure out the best way to rip them. I haven't tested DVDfab yet, so I may have to try that too.. 

Anything else that I should try.. 

Thanks for the great board!


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## Guest

Hi dirtmcgirt79 - 

I had that problem with audio, and I fixed it by selecting only 1 audio option (such as Dolby 5.1) and not multiple audio settings. I also am using the optical cable and it works fine now - hopefully that helps you


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## Ray3

Wow, I don't know where to start - I guess a big hello to all as this is my first post! :wave:

I have been trying to do research and just getting bits and pieces, then I stumbled across this great thread. :clap: I'd like to share some ingo and ask a couple of questions.

I want to store/play my music, my pictures, my video (or d/l’d video) and DVDs. I want to see it on my 58” plasma and listen to it on my 5.1 sound system. With some powerline ethernet adapters, I am going to have a hard wired network (plugged into my wireless router) running to the basement HT and plugged into a switch. 

I have considered and eliminated Sonos, Squeezebox and Slingbox as limited and/or expensive. I boiled the solution down to either a HTPC, PS3, Xbox or DirecTV HR-20. The PS3 has the edge because 1) it looks like it does everything I want to do, 2) it is a killer BluRay player 3) and I can use a Bluetooth keyboard/mouse to surf the net 4) HDMI and 5) Sony has a promotion going on right now that gives you $100 credit on your first purchase of $299 or more when you sign up for a Sony VISA card. Every other solution I mentioned would require that I buy a standalone BluRay player, so the PS3 is an attractive option.

Anyhow, some questions:
1) Based on the HTPC/PS3/Xbox/HR-20 choices above, does the PS3 emerge as the winner in a comparison for quality and simplicity based on your personal experiences and research? Seems like everything has some drawback.

2) Is there any better choice than the PS3 for accomplishing all of this within a reasonable price range?

3) Based on what I read, where can I can plug my external 750GB and be able to see it through the PS3? 

4) What media server software is best to use? Along with Red Kaza(?) mentioned here, I have seen Tversity, Twonky and WMP mentioned with Tversity looking like the best choice.

Hmmm. I hope I didn't overstay my welcome on the first trip here.


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## Ray3

Bill - I just happened to see that you are in Upstate NY. Whereabouts are you? I am in Macedon, just outside Rochester. PM me if you would like to maintain a little privacy.


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## shine5555

Just wanted to say thank you for this. I have started my back ups. It is great for TV Shows I have on DVD. I just bought a 750 gig My Book (150.00 form best buy). I successfully tried a few shows of Arrested Development, on a thumb drive and it worked great

I do have one question. My folder structure on the PS3 under Movies looks like Arrested Development --> Season 1 --> Eposide one, Eposide two, … ect. Has anyone figured out how to put any graphics on the folders? I would love to have pictures or DVD Covers instead of folder covers? Just a thought

Thank you again, for this
- Scott


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## shine5555

Ray3 said:


> Bill - I just happened to see that you are in Upstate NY. Whereabouts are you? I am in Macedon, just outside Rochester. PM me if you would like to maintain a little privacy.


I grew up outside of Rochester, as well. I lived in Henrietta


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## Ray3

Where are you now?


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## wbassett

shine5555 said:


> Just wanted to say thank you for this. I have started my back ups. It is great for TV Shows I have on DVD. I just bought a 750 gig My Book (150.00 form best buy). I successfully tried a few shows of Arrested Development, on a thumb drive and it worked great
> 
> I do have one question. My folder structure on the PS3 under Movies looks like Arrested Development --> Season 1 --> Eposide one, Eposide two, … ect. Has anyone figured out how to put any graphics on the folders? I would love to have pictures or DVD Covers instead of folder covers? Just a thought
> 
> Thank you again, for this
> - Scott


No graphics yet, but the nice thing about the PS3 is that its a full blown computer, so whatever they decide to add down the road it can handle. So maybe later on we'll get this.


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## wbassett

shine5555 said:


> I grew up outside of Rochester, as well. I lived in Henrietta


I guess upper state means different things to different people... I am upper state from NYC... in the Albany area but a bit north east of there, near Bennington VT.


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## shine5555

Ray3 said:


> Where are you now?



Well, since Rochester... Orlando, FL --> Charlotte, NC --> and now Abingdon, VA (as far north as your going to get me)


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## Ray3

wbassett said:


> I guess upper state means different things to different people... I am upper state from NYC... in the Albany area but a bit north east of there, near Bennington VT.


I was hoping that you were closer. Would have been nice to see each other's set ups.:bigsmile:


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## Ray3

shine5555 said:


> Well, since Rochester... Orlando, FL --> Charlotte, NC --> and now Abingdon, VA (as far north as your going to get me)



Kind of a small world thing. My folks lived in Charlotte and my daughter now lives in Annandale, VA.


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## Guest

Excellent thread! 
PS3 seems a bargain even if you don't play any games, especially after the BR won the HD battle.


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## wbassett

I still may do this, but as of right now I put this project on the back burner, and that is building an HTPC that would play both Bluray and HD DVD.

I think it would be a thread that some people would be interested in, but I was looking at my equipment and asked myself 'Just what would I gain by building this?' The answer was nothing, in fact most likely I would lose a few features or quality.

The PS3 plays CDs, SDVDs, BDs, and movies archived on an external hard drive. My cable box provides DVR capabilities, the A2 plays SDVDs and HD DVDs... everything seems to be covered. It would be nice to have one box that does it all, but I have a sneaking feeling it would be a 'jack of all trades, master of none' type scenario.

My son bought the 40GB PS3 and also has a 360. He has two external USB drives hooked up to the PS3, and is loving it! 

The only problem he's told me about is some movies have playback issues, but only they ones that he went nuts on and compressed them down to under 2GB in size. He's coming up for two weeks and bringing his PS3 and 360 and we'll check out his movies, but other than a couple the rest play fine and he's more than happy.

As far as the PS3, I am very happy with it myself, and seeing I bought it last year, it is one of the few players from that time period that will be able to make it to profile 2.0

So plin I agree, the PS3 is a very good deal as well as being a powerful system.


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## Guest

Do you know if PS3 can also play .mp3 and .mpg files stored in its external HD?


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## Guest

I am new to this forum as you can see. I was referred to this procedure by someone else on another forum...........I think AVS.

Anyway I just got an external hard drive to use with my PS3 for a media server. I am following your procedure on how to do this. Unfortunately I am stuck on Step 2. I know this is probably pretty basic with most people but something I havent ever had to do on the computer. I placed my video file from DVD Shrink onto my B drive. How do I access this directory. How do I do the command prompt procedure to convert the VOB files? I went to C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe but then how do I get to the B directory?

Can someone please give me a procedure on this?


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## wbassett

jet757f said:


> I am new to this forum as you can see. I was referred to this procedure by someone else on another forum...........I think AVS.
> 
> Anyway I just got an external hard drive to use with my PS3 for a media server. I am following your procedure on how to do this. Unfortunately I am stuck on Step 2. I know this is probably pretty basic with most people but something I havent ever had to do on the computer. I placed my video file from DVD Shrink onto my B drive. How do I access this directory. How do I do the command prompt procedure to convert the VOB files? I went to C:WindowsSystem32cmd.exe but then how do I get to the B directory?
> 
> Can someone please give me a procedure on this?


Are you sure it's the B drive and not the D drive?

Anyway, you'd type cd d: or what ever the drive letter is to get to that drive. Then type dir to list the directories and find the one the file is in then go to that directory- cd 'directory name'.


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## Guest

wbassett said:


> Are you sure it's the B drive and not the D drive?
> 
> Anyway, you'd type cd d: or what ever the drive letter is to get to that drive. Then type dir to list the directories and find the one the file is in then go to that directory- cd 'directory name'.


I have a lot of hard drives on this computer. I put the DVD shrink video on drive B.
I have been typing cd b: but it wont let me in.

I cant get to the normal cmd prompt of C:\
Instead im at C:\users\XPS 720 User

How do I get out of this?


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## wbassett

jet757f said:


> I have a lot of hard drives on this computer. I put the DVD shrink video on drive B.
> I have been typing cd b: but it wont let me in.
> 
> I cant get to the normal cmd prompt of C:
> Instead im at C:usersXPS 720 User
> 
> How do I get out of this?


type cd ../.. and that should put you back to C:\ then try changing to the B drive.


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## Guest

wbassett said:


> type cd ../.. and that should put you back to C: then try changing to the B drive.


Ok that got me back to the C:\ 
Now when I type cd b: it lists B:\ but then drops down a line back to C:\
It wont let me enter anything next to B:\


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## Guest

jet757f said:


> Ok that got me back to the C:
> Now when I type cd b: it lists B: but then drops down a line back to C:
> It wont let me enter anything next to B:


Ok I think I got it.
Just went C:\>b:
and then it worked.
Now in directory. Hope I can get it to work now.

Thanks for the quick help.


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## wbassett

sorry, when you get to C:\ just type b: and hit enter


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## Guest

wbassett said:


> sorry, when you get to C: just type b: and hit enter


Well I thought it would be easy now but Im still confused.
Im in the B directory and have the B:\> cursor right now. I see the DVD Shrink file.
How do I get to that specific file and make the change?


----------



## Guest

I finally got it to work. I ended up putting 3 DVDs onto the hard drive. I am very happy with the way this is working. Thank you very much for working on this system and posting the procedure for us. I was torn whether to use the Vista Media Server with a hard drive already on my computer or the PS3 with a WD 1TB external Hard drive that I bought. Right now I am really liking the PS3 version. 

So far it is working very well in principle but I do have some questions. The first DVD I installed froze on me. Is there anything I can do to prevent this?

With DVD Shrink which reading do we use to set the compression? I realize we have to keep the file under 4gb. So are we using the file size on the left side across from title or the size listed above compression on the right side. I am asking because I think one of the movies I installed is ending too soon so maybe I set the compression wrong.

Thanks again.

One other question. Do we have to use subfolders if we are not doing a series?


----------



## Ray3

wbassett said:


> I still may do this, but as of right now I put this project on the back burner, and that is building an HTPC that would play both Bluray and HD DVD.
> 
> I think it would be a thread that some people would be interested in, but I was looking at my equipment and asked myself 'Just what would I gain by building this?' The answer was nothing, in fact most likely I would lose a few features or quality.
> 
> The PS3 plays CDs, SDVDs, BDs, and movies archived on an external hard drive. My cable box provides DVR capabilities, the A2 plays SDVDs and HD DVDs... everything seems to be covered. It would be nice to have one box that does it all, but I have a sneaking feeling it would be a 'jack of all trades, master of none' type scenario.
> 
> My son bought the 40GB PS3 and also has a 360. *He has two external USB drives hooked up to the PS3, and is loving it! *
> 
> The only problem he's told me about is some movies have playback issues, but only they ones that he went nuts on and compressed them down to under 2GB in size. He's coming up for two weeks and bringing his PS3 and 360 and we'll check out his movies, but other than a couple the rest play fine and he's more than happy.
> 
> As far as the PS3, I am very happy with it myself, and seeing I bought it last year, it is one of the few players from that time period that will be able to make it to profile 2.0
> 
> So plin I agree, the PS3 is a very good deal as well as being a powerful system.



Bill - your timing is excellent!!! :T 

I got my PS3 on Thursday and have been getting acquainted with it. What a piece of equipment (BTW - I agree with your assessment on your HTPC; the PS3 pretty much negates the need)

Anyhow, I’m hoping for some opinions/guidance before I start putting things in place. I have a PC in the 2nd floor office with a 500GB HD (450 GB available) and the PS3 in the basement HT (40GB HDD). Wireless network with good signal strength. I also have available 320 GB and 750 GB external USB HDDs that are pretty much empty, but I have lots of DVDs (500+ and BluRay on the way) I want to store.

I was going to start searching for possibility of attaching multiple USB external hard drives to the PS3 and here you mention your son does this already. I just ordered an IR remote control solution that will use one of my two available USB ports. 

Can I use the remaining PS3 USB port with a powered USB hub and add some additional ports and then plug in two (or more) external USB HDDs (formatted in FAT32) and will the PS3 “see” both of them and allow me to get at my media?

The answers to the above gets me to the following alternatives:

*1) Stream all my media from the PC*

If I plug the two of the external HDDs into the PC, I will have 450 GB (internal) plus 320 + 750 GB. If I choose this solution, I will need to use Tversity or WMP11 as my media center software. Some questions:

-Can I load all of my media on the 3 HDDs and will the PS3 “see” all of HDDs and allow me to stream?

-Does streaming everything from the PC and it’s attached HDDs eliminate the need to format the external HDDs in FAT32?​
*2) Just use the PS3 and don’t stream from the PC*

If I plug the two of the external HDDs into a powered USB hub, then into the PS3, I will have 40GB (internal), plus 320+750. I won’t need to use media server software (or will I?) and the PC doesn’t need to be on all the time. The PS3 would simply be a standalone entity. A question:

-Will the PS3 see both external HDDs if I plug them into a powered hub, then to the PS3 and allow me to get at the media?​
*3) Use the PS3 –AND-- stream from the PC*

Plug one of the externals into the PC and one into the PS3. Load my music on the PS3 40GB and scatter the rest of my media around the externals and the PC. Need to use Tversity / WMP to get at the PC.

*The advantages to item 1:*
-Much easier to move / add/ delete files and media
-If I don’t need to do FAT32 formatting to the externals, my DVD .VOB files can be larger than 4GB
-I can use all of that storage for things other than media​
*The advantages to item 2:*
-Don’t have the complexity of having the PC in the mix.
-Turn the HT stuff on and start enjoying.
-Can move / add / delete by taking the externals to the PC and plugging them in , then return to the PS3.
-Not dependent on a wireless network.​
*Item *3 is just flexible, but uses both pieces and is more complex.

Whew, I have such a headache! I could really use some input here, including some options I haven’t considered. The reason for all of this is that I want to get ALL of my DVDs (I have 500+ and BluRay is on the way) onto the HDDs I already own. I also want to make the process of using the PS3 as seamless as possible.

Thanks,

Ray


----------



## Guest

ALIENWARE said:


> 2.10,and I think is the best update.Also I discovered today that if you rip a dvd movie and copy to the ps3 at it is (.vob)with the new update it will play,so you dont have to reneame to .mpeg.THE PS3 NOW PLAYS .vob FILES,YEA BABY....


Is this true? You dont have to rename the VOB files? Does it affect anything else?
Im still learning how to do this so Im trying to find the best way with best PQ.


----------



## Guest

basementjack said:


> Ok Guys, I just finished skimming this thread from start to finish.
> 
> A few things I can add:
> 
> Alternate DVD ripping program -
> 
> It's a program called DVDFAB - you can find it at http://www.dvdfab.com
> 
> in short, DVDFab is a decent 1 click solution for going from DVD's to other formats.
> They seem to update the product regularly.
> 
> Some things DVDfab can do...
> - Copy a DVD to your hard drive as an ISO or a folder of files
> - Copy a DVD to a blank DVD
> - Copy a DVD to 2 blank DVD's
> - Copy a DVD to formats like divx, mpeg4, h264 etc.
> 
> 
> Also - for those with windows media center machines - microsoft has a dvd library feature thats disabled by default - a simple registry change enables it.
> 
> the MCE dvd library works with files copied to the HD from dvd shrink or dvd fab - the nice thing here is you have the original dvd - full quality - all sound options - full menus etc...
> 
> - Jack


I couldnt get Vista Media Center to work no matter what I used. Tried DVDFab and then My Movies. The people in the My Movies forum told me to use AnyDVD which didnt work either.


----------



## Guest

I installed a couple of dvd movies and also 2 TV seasons of Friends. It really works well especially with the TV episodes. It is nice being able to go onto the PS3 server and select a disc and get it to play immediately. I think I may use this with mainly TV series since it is so convenient.

There is only one problem. It does not scan or FF etc very well and sometimes freezes when you do it.
So the problem with the TV shows is that there are usually quite a few episodes on one disc which makes it hard to get back to where you left off unless you just watch the whole disc again.

Anyone have a solution for this?


Also does anyone know how to setup subfolders for TV series? As an example I would like to be able to have the folder Friends season 8 and then the 4 discs as subfolders. I tried this but they wouldnt show up on the PS3.
So now I have to have separate folders for everything. Friends Season 8 Disc1 and then Friends Season 8 Disc 2 etc.


----------



## wbassett

jet757f said:


> I installed a couple of dvd movies and also 2 TV seasons of Friends. It really works well especially with the TV episodes. It is nice being able to go onto the PS3 server and select a disc and get it to play immediately. I think I may use this with mainly TV series since it is so convenient.
> 
> There is only one problem. It does not scan or FF etc very well and sometimes freezes when you do it.
> So the problem with the TV shows is that there are usually quite a few episodes on one disc which makes it hard to get back to where you left off unless you just watch the whole disc again.
> 
> Anyone have a solution for this?
> 
> 
> Also does anyone know how to setup subfolders for TV series? As an example I would like to be able to have the folder Friends season 8 and then the 4 discs as subfolders. I tried this but they wouldnt show up on the PS3.
> So now I have to have separate folders for everything. Friends Season 8 Disc1 and then Friends Season 8 Disc 2 etc.


As far as I know subfolders don't work. I wish they did.

What I do for TV shows is do each individual episode. Most only come out to a gig or gig and a half at the largestest. I haven't had any problems with fast forward, but yeah, there is no chapter search.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> As far as I know subfolders don't work. I wish they did.
> 
> What I do for TV shows is do each individual episode. Most only come out to a gig or gig and a half at the largestest. I haven't had any problems with fast forward, but yeah, there is no chapter search.


Well hopefully the PS3 doesnt have any limits on the amount of files it can display. I have many TV series that I want to install. I dont think I have enough patience to do each episode so will stick with doing each individual disc.

Other than that it works great..........thanks again!!


----------



## Guest

Man, this works really well, i cant believe it, i tried lots of different programs for a week and then i found this, really nice, i recommend it 10 out of 10, the only problem i am having is that on some movies it has 2 files in the main movie section, i know you said to pick the longer one of the 2 but the 2 files are needed to finish the movie ,when i compress it compresses the 2 files seperate and when the first is done i still have to open up the other manually, any ideas how to fix this to make it all one movie. and hey once again awesome job!


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## wbassett

kravits28 said:


> Man, this works really well, i cant believe it, i tried lots of different programs for a week and then i found this, really nice, i recommend it 10 out of 10, the only problem i am having is that on some movies it has 2 files in the main movie section, i know you said to pick the longer one of the 2 but the 2 files are needed to finish the movie ,when i compress it compresses the 2 files seperate and when the first is done i still have to open up the other manually, any ideas how to fix this to make it all one movie. and hey once again awesome job!


I'm working with someone right now on a similar problem with the Friends DVDs, mainly the first season.

The only thing I have run into has been when a movie has alternate angles, or some have both wide screen and full screen on the same disc (always bad for video quality when they do that... takes up too much space).

Any particular titles you are having this problem with? So far I haven't had this problem myself.

The only problem so far that my son ran into with his 40GB PS3 was with Band of Brothers. What's weird is they play fine on my 60GB PS3 when I plug his drive into my system . Originally I thought it might have been some sort of copy protection, but it doesn't seem to be. I fully understand studio's concerns in this area and again want to stress this is only for movies that you actually own, but even at that studios don't like this too much and always throw something out there to mess things up.

My son is going for maximum space savings while I go for best video quality. So he compresses everything while I don't. Does it make a difference and what about DivX? We just tested them both out and on a smaller screen they look acceptable, but on my 55" SXRD you start to see a lot of compression artifacts and to me it looks more like VHS than DVD. So I personally don't compress unless I absolutely have to in order to get it to the 4GB size limitation.

I'll be honest in saying I haven't tried DivX at higher resolution settings because time is also a factor to me. I can do an entire season in the time it takes to do one disc with DivX, and I wasn't impressed with the end results.

Everyone will have different needs, so I am not trashing DivX, just saying I prefer this method myself.


----------



## wbassett

A note about My Books.

For Christmas I got my wife a kitten as one of her presents. She loves the little guy and he is a cute little devil, but devil is the key word there and he certainly is living up to his name of Alvin (from Alvin and the Chipmunks since he's always in trouble about something!) 

Today he jumped on my desk (I was across the room at the time) and I am doing some PS3 archiving so I have both the 320GB and 500GB My Book drives sitting on my desk, and he knocked them both off. They dropped around 3 feet to hardwood floors and I was flipping out to say the least! Surprisingly, no dents, dings, scratches, and most important, both drives still work perfectly fine.

I definitely dodged a bullet on that one, but these are pretty tough drives as I just found out the hard way. Right now the prices seem better too- I just picked up the 500GB at Best Buy last week for $120.

I really do like the My Books, but I will probably be switching to these drive enclosures.

YouTube - Ultra Stackable External Hard Drive Enclosure

Mainly because this will give me one power source and one USB connection to the PS3 as well as having nice uniform looking drives sitting there. My Book changed their case style and I can't get the same design anymore at a local store. eBay still has plenty of them with the circle on the front though, but this is a much cleaner layout in my opinion.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> A note about My Books.
> 
> For Christmas I got my wife a kitten as one of her presents. She loves the little guy and he is a cute little devil, but devil is the key word there and he certainly is living up to his name of Alvin (from Alvin and the Chipmunks since he's always in trouble about something!)
> 
> Today he jumped on my desk (I was across the room at the time) and I am doing some PS3 archiving so I have both the 320GB and 500GB My Book drives sitting on my desk, and he knocked them both off. They dropped around 3 feet to hardwood floors and I was flipping out to say the least! Surprisingly, no dents, dings, scratches, and most important, both drives still work perfectly fine.
> 
> I definitely dodged a bullet on that one, but these are pretty tough drives as I just found out the hard way. Right now the prices seem better too- I just picked up the 500GB at Best Buy last week for $120.
> 
> I really do like the My Books, but I will probably be switching to these drive enclosures.
> 
> YouTube - Ultra Stackable External Hard Drive Enclosure
> 
> Mainly because this will give me one power source and one USB connection to the PS3 as well as having nice uniform looking drives sitting there. My Book changed their case style and I can't get the same design anymore at a local store. eBay still has plenty of them with the circle on the front though, but this is a much cleaner layout in my opinion.


Yes I have the 1TB My Book and have been very happy with it so far. Just as an experiment I put all of the Friends Season on it and also a couple of Tomb Raider movies. So far plenty of space. Also the PS3 server seems fine with all of the titles.


----------



## Guest

hi!!! new to the thread!!!!! do the movies output in dd or dts?


----------



## ALIENWARE

Well,if you gona transfer your movies in .vob files (original as DVD)you can make them in DTS,the PS3 will play them,but if you plan to convert the movies to other formats (like MP4 or DivX) you have to rip them in DD5.1 or 2.0,just be sure to only select only 1 audio format when you rip your movies


----------



## Guest

ALIENWARE said:


> Well,if you gona transfer your movies in .vob files (original as DVD)you can make them in DTS,the PS3 will play them,but if you plan to convert the movies to other formats (like MP4 or DivX) you have to rip them in DD5.1 or 2.0,just be sure to only select only 1 audio format when you rip your movies


thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :jump:


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## Guest

As a owner of both a PS3 and a 360 id have to say (and not just being a Sony fan boy) but the PS3 is more reliable. Now I'm not rich so I had to get the 40 gig, now it's not bad but if you want it for a media server....you don't want firmware 2.10. This is the firmware I had and video playback was very messed up. With one second flashes of green then sometimes flashes of scenes of different parts of the video at random. I took my hard drive and used it with my fathers 60 gig PS3 and everything worked fine, so I thought my 40 gig had to be broken. So I called up Sony and it's covered by them, but before I sent it out I upgraded the firmware to 2.2 and everything works now. So if you have problems using the 40 gig as a media server then try updating your firmware to the newest one...but don't update the firmware blindly, always read up about the firmware


----------



## Guest

I started trying this out over the weekend. I am just storing them on one of my extra drives on my server. Other than the odd movie getting wierd audio things, not everytime I play them, and sometimes not at all the only problem I have is the video gets cropped either on the tops or sides or both. I figure this is due to the resolution or what ever its called from the native dvd to the 1080p on the PS3. Anything I can do?


----------



## wbassett

sbelleque said:


> I started trying this out over the weekend. I am just storing them on one of my extra drives on my server. Other than the odd movie getting wierd audio things, not everytime I play them, and sometimes not at all the only problem I have is the video gets cropped either on the tops or sides or both. I figure this is due to the resolution or what ever its called from the native dvd to the 1080p on the PS3. Anything I can do?


Interesting. One difference I observe is you are storing on a server and not the internal or an external drive on the PS3. Are you streaming to the PS3 or does the server come up as a storage device?

What model PS3 do you have, what is the firmware level, and how are you archiving your movies? 

They should look just like the DVD when the DVD is inserted into the PS3. Check and see if it does the same thing with the DVD, if so then it is either a display setting on the PS3 or the TV.

Also make sure when you archive with shrink, you only select one audio track for playback.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> Interesting. One difference I observe is you are storing on a server and not the internal or an external drive on the PS3. Are you streaming to the PS3 or does the server come up as a storage device?
> 
> What model PS3 do you have, what is the firmware level, and how are you archiving your movies?
> 
> They should look just like the DVD when the DVD is inserted into the PS3. Check and see if it does the same thing with the DVD, if so then it is either a display setting on the PS3 or the TV.
> 
> Also make sure when you archive with shrink, you only select one audio track for playback.


PS3 40 gig / 2.3 (I think). I am using the method outlined in the beginning of this thread, with DVD Shrink. Windows media sharing. DVD's play normal. Standard DVD 480p, blueray 1080p. I have the storage space on my server so I didn't want to spend the extra money to get the external USB drive. Is there another way to set up the connection between the server and the PS3? I tried TVersity and it does the same thing as well.


----------



## wbassett

Makes sense about wanting to use the storage space on the server.

I am thinking it is how Windows is handling the media sharing. Shrink will duplicate the DVD exactly, so what you see is how the DVD looks. The only things that can come into play are compression (then the video quality will be lower) or if a secondary video was inadvertantly used.

I'll have to look into this some more and see if I can duplicate it and then find out how to fix it.


----------



## Blaser

I have entered the 60 Gb PS3 world...I didn't know I was missing that much!


----------



## Blaser

Knowing that I have the PS3 60 Gb region B, it came with firmware 1.8 and I upgraded to 2.3. Only one question:

- VOB FIles bigger than 2 Gb will play correctly but will freeze if 30x or more fast forward is performed. Any idea? Will this change if converted to MPEG 2?


----------



## ALIENWARE

Yes,if you convert the movie to MPG4 or DivX,it will solve the problem,but you will lose 5.1 sound when converted,only 2.0 will be played,and depending in conversion,you will lose video quality.
If you dont mind loseing 5.1 or DTS in the VOB files,if for you is OK the play the movie in 2.0 sound,I recomend converting the movie to DivX (AVI) format


----------



## Blaser

No, I don't want that...I am playing it in my HT!! Just wondering if there is any means to keep 4 Gb size and solve the freezing issue when fast forwarding.


----------



## Guest

Hey guys, I am new to the forums but not quite new to the home theater gig (in fact I am kinda "seasoned'). Glad to be on board...... so glad in fact I am going to offer you all a challenge:

I have been running my PS3 as a media server for my computer for a while. I just converted my 500GB external hard drive to be compatible with the PS3, so I can play videos from the external HDD through the PS3 when I am away from home.

Now here is the challege:

Can anyone access their *external hard drive* through the media server *while the external HDD is still connected to the PC?* So far I have been only able to come up with two internal HDDs; the C drive and the G drive (I have currently four internal hard drives) through the PS3 media server. I have tried nearly everything, including setting the external drive for sharing, but the PS3 can't properly locate it.

Any takers??? :bigsmile: :boxer:


----------



## Blaser

Welcome Rodney,

Have you tried Windows Media Player 11? It plays everything but DVD movies.


----------



## Guest

*Image size*

I just tried this weekend to rip and stream a couple of DVD to a new 40 Gb PS3 with 2.35 firmware. First thing I noticed was that playing the ripped VOB file on the PS3, it did not fill the whole screen horizontally (as it dis when the disk was played on the PS3), as was posted by others above. Both TRUELIES and INDEPENDENCE day did this. Both are ~ 2.35 aspect ratio so there will be bars top and bottom but should fill the screen horizontally. I don't think the image is "cropped" but I'll have to do a close A B comparison. I can expand the image with WIDE on the TV (Sammy HTS-5687); my point is the ripped file and the original are not behavig identically. More digging


----------



## Blaser

Welcome to the Shack dloose!

There must be something wrong. I obtained exactly the same aspect ratio. Try with other movies. What are u using? DVDshrink?


----------



## Guest

First off i want to say what a great thread this, i've learned so much from reading these first 6 pages. Great job guys! I think the dvd shrink method is great and works really fast but i have run into a couple of snags just like a few other users out there. I have a small collection(compared a few other users on this forum!) of about 300 dvd which i would like to archive to an external hd and play off the ps3. Sony has done a great job of turning the ps3 into a ht media server power house and when paired with the psp, i can have access to all that media from any wifi connection.

My first attempt was with The Matrix (trilogy box set edition) and it failed to play properly on the ps3. It shows two files of the same length and size in dvd shrink If i select and output one file it shows the incorrect time length in the ps3(about 1 hr and 15 min) and has trouble fast forwarding. I havent sat down and watch the whole file but it seem like it contains the beginning and the end of the movie. it's really weird. 

If i try to output both files, i get two .vob's and that's not the result that i'm going for as i dont want to stop in the middle and select the next .vob.

Same thing happened with the Incredibles except that one has 3 files of the same size and length in dvd shrink.

My third attempt was with Dumb and Dumber(original dvd release) This one worked flawlessly. Didnt need any more compression as the original was under 4 gb and i didnt even change the .vob to mpeg.

So i'm getting the feeling that newer dvds that have the movies spread over two layers are going to be harder to transfer over, i still cant figure out how to do it. Both the matrix and the incredibles were well over 6 gigs on a dual layer dvd while dumb and dumber was only about 3.5 gigs on a single layer(The dvd is actually dual layer but one of the older ones that you have to flip over and it contains the 4:3 version).

Any help with this would be much appreciated. If anyone has had success with any of these two titles please let me know so i can maybe trouble shoot from my end. here is my pc hardware spec:

Custom pc
Mobo- asus p5ld2
Pentium D 3.00 
2 gb ram
dual booting Vista/Leopard OSX


----------



## Guest

Blaser said:


> Welcome to the Shack dloose!
> 
> There must be something wrong. I obtained exactly the same aspect ratio. Try with other movies. What are u using? DVDshrink?


I'm using DVDShrink 2.3.x (2.31 I think). The PS3 reports the resolution of the ripped file from Ind. Day as 720x480, which would be correct for a standard DVD. I think what's happening is that the PS3 does not recognize the streamed file (or that file on the ext HD) as a DVD and does not apply upscaling.


----------



## stickboy3k

I seem to be having bad luck. Do I need to keep the .ifo and .bup files of my dvd rips? I've been using DVD Shrink to rip to a single 3.98 GB vob file to a FAT32 formated drive. When I try playing on the PS3, it doesn't seem to recognize the file as a DVD because it doesn't deinterlace or upscale the video. The video is really jumpy also. Anyone run into this problem?

Thanks for this great thread by the way


----------



## Guest

where is everyone on this thread?? There's been a couple of posts over the last week with no help.


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## Guest

@ stickboy

i didnt keep the other files, just the .vob. So far I've only gotten dumb and dumber to work. The Matrix and the Incredibles both failed. I hope to try some more movies this weekend. What kind of drive are you using? do you have any other media on it?


----------



## wbassett

First my apologies... work has been extremely hectic the past couple of months...

Second, Welcome to the Shack guys! 




counter5th said:


> First off i want to say what a great thread this, i've learned so much from reading these first 6 pages. Great job guys! I think the dvd shrink method is great and works really fast but i have run into a couple of snags just like a few other users out there. I have a small collection(compared a few other users on this forum!) of about 300 dvd which i would like to archive to an external hd and play off the ps3. Sony has done a great job of turning the ps3 into a ht media server power house and when paired with the psp, i can have access to all that media from any wifi connection.
> 
> My first attempt was with The Matrix (trilogy box set edition) and it failed to play properly on the ps3. It shows two files of the same length and size in dvd shrink If i select and output one file it shows the incorrect time length in the ps3(about 1 hr and 15 min) and has trouble fast forwarding. I havent sat down and watch the whole file but it seem like it contains the beginning and the end of the movie. it's really weird.
> 
> If i try to output both files, i get two .vob's and that's not the result that i'm going for as i dont want to stop in the middle and select the next .vob.
> 
> Same thing happened with the Incredibles except that one has 3 files of the same size and length in dvd shrink.
> 
> My third attempt was with Dumb and Dumber(original dvd release) This one worked flawlessly. Didnt need any more compression as the original was under 4 gb and i didnt even change the .vob to mpeg.
> 
> So i'm getting the feeling that newer dvds that have the movies spread over two layers are going to be harder to transfer over, i still cant figure out how to do it. Both the matrix and the incredibles were well over 6 gigs on a dual layer dvd while dumb and dumber was only about 3.5 gigs on a single layer(The dvd is actually dual layer but one of the older ones that you have to flip over and it contains the 4:3 version).
> 
> Any help with this would be much appreciated. If anyone has had success with any of these two titles please let me know so i can maybe trouble shoot from my end. here is my pc hardware spec:
> 
> Custom pc
> Mobo- asus p5ld2
> Pentium D 3.00
> 2 gb ram
> dual booting Vista/Leopard OSX


Some titles have some heavy copyright protection on them so I suspect that could be the issue. I own The Matrix and The Incredibles, so if I have a chance I'll see if I get the same problem. If so then it's most likely a protection scheme.

I haven't had any problems with dual layer discs, so that shouldn't be an issue.



stickboy3k said:


> I seem to be having bad luck. Do I need to keep the .ifo and .bup files of my dvd rips? I've been using DVD Shrink to rip to a single 3.98 GB vob file to a FAT32 formated drive. When I try playing on the PS3, it doesn't seem to recognize the file as a DVD because it doesn't deinterlace or upscale the video. The video is really jumpy also. Anyone run into this problem?
> 
> Thanks for this great thread by the way


No you only need the main movie .vob file that you get when you use reauthor. You can rename the file extention to .mpeg or if you have the most current firmware you can leave it as .vob since the PS3 now reads vob format. Of course still rename the file so you know which movie is what! 



counter5th said:


> where is everyone on this thread?? There's been a couple of posts over the last week with no help.


Again, my apologies about that.


----------



## wbassett

*Re: Image size*



dloose said:


> I just tried this weekend to rip and stream a couple of DVD to a new 40 Gb PS3 with 2.35 firmware. First thing I noticed was that playing the ripped VOB file on the PS3, it did not fill the whole screen horizontally (as it dis when the disk was played on the PS3), as was posted by others above. Both TRUELIES and INDEPENDENCE day did this. Both are ~ 2.35 aspect ratio so there will be bars top and bottom but should fill the screen horizontally. I don't think the image is "cropped" but I'll have to do a close A B comparison. I can expand the image with WIDE on the TV (Sammy HTS-5687); my point is the ripped file and the original are not behavig identically. More digging


Are you streaming from a media server or using a USB drive? I don't use a media server so I am not in a position to really give you a good answer on that if you are. If you have a USB drive you can try this... try putting it on the USB drive and see if it works that way. If it does, then we have a streaming issue and we'll have to look into that.

I just finshed (well a couple months ago) putting the entire Highlander TV servies and all the movies on a 500GB MyBook without any problems whatsoever, and I still have around 200GB free! When I get time I plan on putting the rest of my 'sword genre' flicks on that drive.

Some question why do this, but when you have over 1000 DVDs, it's nice to consolidate some to a small footprint space wise like this. Plus since most either end up with no compression or very little, they all are still DVD quality. If I really like a special feature I'll grab that from the disc too but mostly I just get the movie itself. 

One thing that does have me a little miffed though is they changed the look of the My Books now. I like things to look the same and not have a mismatched look sitting there. Maybe it's just me on that though!


----------



## Guest

@ wbassett

Thanks a lot for replying, I really appreciate it. This is seriously one of the most informative ps3 related threads on the web right now and I hope that it continues to grow with information. If you have those two movies, i would really appreciate it if you could give them a try and let me know the results on your end. I used anydvd software to break the encryption(which usually does a good job) but i still get the same results as if i just used dvdshrink. Not sure what's the deal, but with more people trying maybe we can narrow down and isolate the problem. Tia


----------



## Guest

*Re: Image size*



wbassett said:


> Are you streaming from a media server or using a USB drive? I don't use a media server so I am not in a position to really give you a good answer on that if you are. If you have a USB drive you can try this... try putting it on the USB drive and see if it works that way. If it does, then we have a streaming issue and we'll have to look into that.


I've tried putting the file on a USB and it behaves exactly the same way. Using "Full screen" in the "Screen Mode" option scales it fine. I'm amazed at how well streaming wirelessly from Tversity works; but I've only experimented with 3 DVDs.

One reproducible problem I've run into is loss of sync between audio and video (streaming or USB). It seems to occur on scene changes that may be DVD chapter breakpoints on the disk. I would expect 
there is a lot of metadata at these points and that may be causing the problem. It does not happen at every chapter break. It can be resolved by stopping playback, falling back to the main PS3 screen and then resuming. Reminds me of a first generation Sony DVD player I had that did the same thing LOL.

I have an AMD 3000+ (~ 2.5 GHz) PC and it takes about an hour to rip a 120 min DVD with DVD shrink. Intel processors may work better for this.

I know what you mean about organizing media collections. I have ripped about 600 CDs (more than 6000 tracks) and having a database to browse, either in TVersity (not a great interface, new one promised soon) or Media Monkey (better) is wonderful; much nicer than getting down on hands and knees to find a disk, especially in the dark! If you haven't done it already, you might consider either Tversity or MM to create a database; you've done the tedious part of creating the data.


----------



## Guest

I ripped Star Wars IV (remastered version) without using any compression - file size was 6.4 GB. Obviously couldn't put this on a FAT32 drive the PS3 can use, but it streams OK from Tversity. The video library on my PC is NTFS, so that's one way around the 4 GB limit. Bad news is that I get an occasional dropout streaming the uncompressed file. Bandwith requirement is about 7-8 Mb/sec, probably right at my wireless limit (yeah I know it should be 27 Mb/s in theory and more like 19 Mb/s in the real world but mine's not that fast). The other bad news was the video artifacts, even uncompressed were horrible. White credits shimmered and wiggled; in the early scene in the white hallway, all the white lines in the walls were horrible black jaggy lines. The DVD played straight up was gorgeous from the PS3.


----------



## wbassett

dloose try this...

Try playing it locally on your PC and see if you have the same problem. Really there should be no difference between putting the DVD in or watching the archive, especially now that the PS3 can handle .vob files.

The only issues that could come into play would be compression (I do know if a file is compressed too much, aside from video quality hits, sometimes there are playback issues), copy protection, and then a bad archive.

The Shrink method isn't doing any video conversions, so as I mentioned there should be no difference in audio or video playback. When I run into a problem I always check it out on my PC to see if the problem follows the player. That's a real quick way to determine if it's the file itself or the PS3 is the issue.

I don't stream, my situation isn't practical for streaming, so I can't discuss any streaming problems from first hand experience.

I don't know where your video artifact issues are coming from. Like I said, it really should be a 'Is it live or is it Memorex' thing.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> dloose try this...
> 
> 
> The Shrink method isn't doing any video conversions, so as I mentioned there should be no difference in audio or video playback. When I run into a problem I always check it out on my PC to see if the problem follows the player. That's a real quick way to determine if it's the file itself or the PS3 is the issue.
> 
> I don't know where your video artifact issues are coming from. Like I said, it really should be a 'Is it live or is it Memorex' thing.


Thanks for the response. I REALLY wondered where the artifacts were coming from in the UNcompressed file. I'll try the PC connected to my HDTV and have a look.


----------



## Guest

dloose said:


> Thanks for the response. I REALLY wondered where the artifacts were coming from in the UNcompressed file. I'll try the PC connected to my HDTV and have a look.


THe video is perfect from my PC sending 1028x720 to my monitor which upscales to 1080p. So something is misconfigured in the PS3 which is upscaling the file at 720x480 (p or i?) to 1080p. The disc in the PS3 is perfect. What output from the PS3 are you using?


----------



## wbassett

dloose said:


> THe video is perfect from my PC sending 1028x720 to my monitor which upscales to 1080p. So something is misconfigured in the PS3 which is upscaling the file at 720x480 (p or i?) to 1080p. The disc in the PS3 is perfect. What output from the PS3 are you using?


I am using the HDMI output to a 55" 1080p Sony SXRD. Both the PS3 and SXRD are set to 1080p. 

Is this just a couple of movies or everything? 

What Firmware version is your PS3 at and what outputs are you using and what resolution setting? This is a strange one.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> I am using the HDMI output to a 55" 1080p Sony SXRD. Both the PS3 and SXRD are set to 1080p.
> 
> Is this just a couple of movies or everything?
> 
> What Firmware version is your PS3 at and what outputs are you using and what resolution setting? This is a strange one.


Seeing artifacts with first 3 movies I've done. That's why I tried no compression.

HDMI from the PS3 (v 2.35, brand new 40 G) at 1080p/24 (or 60, that's not it) to a Denon 3808ci (scaling turned off), HDMI from Denon to Samsung HLT-5687S. My first try will be different resolutions out of the PS3; I'm new to the PS3 but I've been doing this stuff for a while and agree it's strange. If I could figure a way to send 10 sec of the file, I would. Maybe with Nero....


----------



## Kagolu

Hey Guy,

New to the forum and this great thread. Thanks for all the great info. I've been wanting tinker around with this for some time and since I've had the flu all week I finally got a chance.

I've only done one movie(Something about Mary) and It worked great. Is there a way to enable Subtitles? I checked them when intially ripping the dvd but it is not an option when I try to play it back on the PS3. I need them for my wife. 

And had anyone figured out how to keep it from freezing up when you do a long fast forward. I figured it is because the file is so large( I set it to compress to 3999mb).

Thanks again guys!


----------



## sslamster

Hey guys,

Just registered to get in on this thread; great info! I have ripped about 20 or so movies to my WD 500GB external HD so far and everything has gone great. Thanks for the great instructions! Before PS3 FW2.4 the video quality was so-so. But after the FW update the video quality has improved when playing back those movies off the external HD. Anyone else experience this?


----------



## sslamster

Kagolu said:


> Hey Guy,
> 
> New to the forum and this great thread. Thanks for all the great info. I've been wanting tinker around with this for some time and since I've had the flu all week I finally got a chance.
> 
> I've only done one movie(Something about Mary) and It worked great. Is there a way to enable Subtitles? I checked them when intially ripping the dvd but it is not an option when I try to play it back on the PS3. I need them for my wife.
> 
> And had anyone figured out how to keep it from freezing up when you do a long fast forward. I figured it is because the file is so large( I set it to compress to 3999mb).
> 
> Thanks again guys!


I had that same issue, I assume you are leaving the filename extension as .VOB? I tried renaming the files with a .mpeg extension and the FF problem has disappeared!:yay:


----------



## Guest

Hi guys, I am new to the forum & registered specifically for this great thread. Thanks Bill & to all who have contributed.

I was trawling the net looking for information on how to do exactly what is be discussed here & stumbled across this thread. So I bought a Western Digital 1TB external HDD & have started backing up my DVD collection. 

I have backed up around 20 movies with no issues, works a treat! 

I have a few questions that I would appreciate if someone could answer or point me in the right direction.

1. Is there a size limit on the folders of the external HDD? The reason I ask is that I had 10 moves in one folder which I had called GANGSTER & copied another 5 or 6 movies to the folder as they were the same Genre. When I looked in the folder via the PS3 I could only see the first ten movies. I made another folder calling it GANGSTER_2 & moved the 5 or 6 "hidden" movies to it & I could see them via the PS3 with no issues. Not a problem, just curious.:nerd:

2. Is there a way to get a thumbnail of the movie onto the PS3 along with the movie or add it later? I am very happy that I can see the title & play the movie but my wife is not impressed that she can see a section for a still shot & yet there is nothing there:hush:So I said I would ask & try & find out. I have to keep her happy she is the boss:R


3. Seems to have escaped me at the minute but there is another question I have.:scratch:
Thanks Dougie


----------



## scrub

First post. Great forum and topic here. Thanks for the hard work and information provided...



sslamster said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> Just registered to get in on this thread; great info! I have ripped about 20 or so movies to my WD 500GB external HD so far and everything has gone great. Thanks for the great instructions! Before PS3 FW2.4 the video quality was so-so. But after the FW update the video quality has improved when playing back those movies off the external HD. Anyone else experience this?




Here's why movies from the HDD look better after 2.40 and 2.41.

Video
You can now use the [Frame Noise Reduction] and [Block Noise Reduction] settings for video content that is saved on the hard disk or storage media. 
You can now play upscaled video content that is saved on the hard disk or storage media. When the video content is played, it is upscaled automatically to match the screen size. 
Upscaling of Blu-ray Disc (BDAV) video content is now supported. 
For DTS playback on DVD-Video and Blu-ray Disc media, DTS-ES and DTS 96/24 for DVD-Video and DTS-ES Matrix for Blu-ray Discs are now supported.*
* "DTS" is a trademark of DTS Inc. 

The PLAYSTATION®3 system software version 2.41 (with 2.40) update includes the following


----------



## Guest

Doogz007 said:


> 2. Is there a way to get a thumbnail of the movie onto the PS3 along with the movie or add it later? I am very happy that I can see the title & play the movie but my wife is not impressed that she can see a section for a still shot & yet there is nothing there:hush:So I said I would ask & try & find out. I have to keep her happy she is the boss:R


A 15 second video preview can be added to thumbnail, search you tube for "add thumbnail to ps3 movie"
for a demo on how to do it. ( I can't paste the url as I have less than 10 posts)

I tried this method but it did not work for me, I think possibly because I left the copied movies as .vob files extension & this shows up on PS3 as MPEG2. The example on you tube is MPEG4. 

Anyway I would like to add STILL thumbnail like the DVD cover to my movies so if someone know how to do this & can tell me that would be great.

Cheers Dougie.


----------



## stickboy3k

The latest firmware has indeed fixed all video quality issues I have been having. Unfortunately I'm having some audio sync issues.. possibly because I'm playing off of a 2.5" notebook drive powered by the usb port?


----------



## Kagolu

Thanks, I'll try renaming.


----------



## stickboy3k

Thank you all for this thread! Found the post regarding letting the drive "Spin up" or "warm up" I just paused for a few minutes and restarted and it was all synced up.:yay:


----------



## Guest

Doogz007 said:


> 1. Is there a size limit on the folders of the external HDD? The reason I ask is that I had 10 moves in one folder which I had called GANGSTER & copied another 5 or 6 movies to the folder as they were the same Genre. When I looked in the folder via the PS3 I could only see the first ten movies. I made another folder calling it GANGSTER_2 & moved the 5 or 6 "hidden" movies to it & I could see them via the PS3 with no issues. Not a problem, just curious.:nerd:


I don't know what I did but I obviously did something incorrect above as since then I have added way more than 10 movies to a folder & been able to see them all.

You may find this interesting. I ran across a problem where the time to rip the movie to HDD doubled to tripled from 20-30 mins to 60-90 mins. I ran like this for a day or two & then checked it out. 

So if any of you have a similar issue you can google "How to enable DMA" .Sorry again butI cannot add URL due to post counts being <10. Basically one of my IDE devices(external HDD, I think, no idea really) had slipped into PIO mode which basically eats up lots of CPU processing power & slows things right down. Switching back to DMA mode & re-booting the PC worked first time & restored the rip time to 20-30mins thankfully. 

Cheers Dougie


----------



## wbassett

counter5th said:


> My first attempt was with The Matrix (trilogy box set edition) and it failed to play properly on the ps3. It shows two files of the same length and size in dvd shrink If i select and output one file it shows the incorrect time length in the ps3(about 1 hr and 15 min) and has trouble fast forwarding. I havent sat down and watch the whole file but it seem like it contains the beginning and the end of the movie. it's really weird.
> 
> If i try to output both files, i get two .vob's and that's not the result that i'm going for as i dont want to stop in the middle and select the next .vob.
> 
> Same thing happened with the Incredibles except that one has 3 files of the same size and length in dvd shrink.


Sorry about the delay in getting back on this. I've been swamped with work and other projects.

Right now I'm running through the Matrix and then I'll try the Incredibles. When I get time I'll try some of the other movies some people are having trouble with.

I'll report back later.


----------



## scrub

counter5th said:


> My first attempt was with The Matrix (trilogy box set edition) and it failed to play properly on the ps3. It shows two files of the same length and size in dvd shrink If i select and output one file it shows the incorrect time length in the ps3(about 1 hr and 15 min) and has trouble fast forwarding. I havent sat down and watch the whole file but it seem like it contains the beginning and the end of the movie. it's really weird.
> 
> If i try to output both files, i get two .vob's and that's not the result that i'm going for as i dont want to stop in the middle and select the next .vob.
> 
> Same thing happened with the Incredibles except that one has 3 files of the same size and length in dvd shrink.
> 
> My third attempt was with Dumb and Dumber(original dvd release) This one worked flawlessly. Didnt need any more compression as the original was under 4 gb and i didnt even change the .vob to mpeg.
> 
> So i'm getting the feeling that newer dvds that have the movies spread over two layers are going to be harder to transfer over, i still cant figure out how to do it. Both the matrix and the incredibles were well over 6 gigs on a dual layer dvd while dumb and dumber was only about 3.5 gigs on a single layer(The dvd is actually dual layer but one of the older ones that you have to flip over and it contains the 4:3 version).
> 
> Any help with this would be much appreciated. If anyone has had success with any of these two titles please let me know so i can maybe trouble shoot from my end. here is my pc hardware spec:
> 
> Custom pc
> Mobo- asus p5ld2
> Pentium D 3.00
> 2 gb ram
> dual booting Vista/Leopard OSX


I had a similar problem with the time and fast forward/rewind. I had to change my process for ripping movies. I still use shrink but I set the vob output to the 1gb chunks. Then I use a program called vob2mpg. This program will merge the smaller vobs into one .mpg (no selecting the next vob to play). I tried vob2mpg with the 1 vob output of shrink but vob2mpg didn't like that so back to 1 gb vob chunks from shrink. 

This will correct the timing and FF/RW issues. As for extra time to perform the step it takes an additional 10 minutes on top of the 10-15 minutes to use shrink. Well worth it in my opinion because now I get the correct time, movie view thumbs on the xmb (internal movies only), and FF/RW issues are fixed. All this for an additional 10 minutes is fine by me.

Not sure about the layered movies. I've shrunk movies over 5.5 gigs with no problems yet.

Hope this is helpful.


----------



## Guest

Greetings, fine posters:

I originally stumbled across this thread several moons back, but since the ability to include subtitles isn't possible with this method, I went in other directions. Well I'm back (obviously  ) and come bearing troubles.

I've had mixed success with this vob extraction method when it comes to preserving aspect ratios, specifically 1.78. When I extract from a 1.33 or 2.35 source, the resulting vob is displayed perfectly on my PS3. When I extract from 1.78, I get BIG black borders on the top and bottom of the screen. It looks like a 2.35 that someone stepped on. I'll note that when I play back the same file on my PC, it displays perfectly in 1.78.

Any ideas?


----------



## Guest

Just as a follow up:

I tried another 1.78 source and this time the vob displayed properly on the PS3. Could be something with the first set, so I'll try multiple 1.78 sources and post results here.


----------



## Guest

First thread here, just bought a PS3 and Samsung LN46A650 and will be doing the HD set-up. I have been wanting something like this for years and it will only improve.

First off thank you for creating this great thread and still here, still strong.

Few questions?

1. Has the new Firmware able to let you create sub folders?
- I just want folders titled 'Action' - 'Comedy' - 'Drama' - 'Thriller'
Can this be done?

2. Subtitles - The only reason I ask are all my Kung-Fu flciks. I rather not learn Chinese

3. I have ripped some of my blu-ray movies on my PC, and is no big deal as I have only 6, but I know down the road but DVD collection sickness will bleed into Blu-Ray. So is there a way to get them playing on a PS3?

4. Thumbnails. I know others have asked, but havent seen an answer. Has there been a way to view them yet? Perhaps changing the icon itself with the 'perfect icon' program.

5. Bill - I read that you want to split up your episodes. Perhaps 'Magic DVD Ripper' can have a solution, it you can convert DVD's into many different files and also split up episodes on those DVD's. I did with my South Park DVD's and converted them to IPod. - Check it out

Also-
Has anyone hooked up their HDD by firewire instead of USB. It's faster


Thanks and keep up the great work.


----------



## Guest

Went to the store to get the My Book either the 1tb or 500gb, but I was scared off with the My Book world Edition II with the networking options. I was thinking there might be a confliction . Would I have to format the My Book with a third party software? Or can this actually work? It would be nice to access and store my DVD's from my PC with the EHDD attached to the PS3 in the other room.

Has anyone have this model or any success?

It is really 2 500 GB built in one, is this still OK?

-Update-
I have been reading some really bad reviews about that drive, will end up buying....
Western Digital - My Book Home 1TB External FireWire/USB 2.0/eSATA Hard Drive 
Model: WDH1CS10000N


----------



## wbassett

Quick update...

I tested The Matrix, The Incredibles, and True Lies and they all work fine. 

A couple things to note though that could be different.

I put the mpeg extention on instead of leaving the files as .VOB
My copy of the Matrix is from the first run release and not the box set. There might be a difference between them and any encryption schemes on the discs.
I also have the original PS3 that has somewhat different hardware.

Anyway, I did test and didn't have a problem on my end. We'll figure out what's going on.


----------



## Guest

So I got that drive I mentioned in the update as well as the 21 DVD. When I first plugged in the EHDD it took like 5 minutes to find it. I had to go to view all and it had a couple other folders in it (I did delete everything on the PC) and then Videos, started 21 and it seemed a bit jumpy and laggy for the first 5 minutes. I pressed pause, then play, now it seems to play great.

Anyone else experiece this?


----------



## wbassett

RWills81 said:


> First thread here, just bought a PS3 and Samsung LN46A650 and will be doing the HD set-up. I have been wanting something like this for years and it will only improve.
> 
> First off thank you for creating this great thread and still here, still strong.
> 
> Few questions?
> 
> 1. Has the new Firmware able to let you create sub folders?
> - I just want folders titled 'Action' - 'Comedy' - 'Drama' - 'Thriller'
> Can this be done?
> 
> I don't have the latest Firmware (as in anything that's come out in the past several months). I hope they allow multiple subfolders in new releases.
> 
> Under the 'VIDEO' folder you can have other subfolders. I have the following folders under my VIDEO folder on one of my My Books:
> 
> 24 for the complete series of 24
> BourneFiles- all of the Bourne movies in one folder
> EnemyOfTheState- great flick!
> IMF- Mission Impossible, all three movies, the TV series, including the 1988 series
> RemoWilliams
> The_Bond_Dossier- all 22 Bond flicks (Don't forget Never Say Never) and all the bonus discs and special features
> TrueLies
> xXx- Noooo, not those kind of movies! The one with Vin Desiel
> This is my 'Spy' genre 'Book'. I still have over 100GB free on this drive. (It's a 320GB My Book). On my 500GB My Book I have the complete Highlander saga... all seven seasons and all four movies and I still have 200 plus GB free on that one.
> 
> I really wish though that you could do multiple sub folders, as in IMF/Movies IMF/Series/Season1 and so on.
> 
> Note: Don't waste your My Book space on music, I have tons of CDs on the PS3's internal drive and I doubt I'll ever fill it.
> 
> 2. Subtitles - The only reason I ask are all my Kung-Fu flciks. I rather not learn Chinese
> 
> I never tried them, I always remove them when I reauthor. I'll do a movie and keep the subtitles and see if they work.
> 
> 3. I have ripped some of my blu-ray movies on my PC, and is no big deal as I have only 6, but I know down the road but DVD collection sickness will bleed into Blu-Ray. So is there a way to get them playing on a PS3?
> 
> I've read that Bluray has a clause that states we can make one digital backup for our own use. You'll have to let me know how you do it.
> 
> As far as the PS3, that's a yes and no. Fat32 has a 4GB file size limitation, which you'll quicky exceed with High Def content. You can though stream it to the PS3 from your PC.
> 
> 4. Thumbnails. I know others have asked, but havent seen an answer. Has there been a way to view them yet? Perhaps changing the icon itself with the 'perfect icon' program.
> 
> As far as I know thumbnail video on the internal drive- yes, thumbnail video on external drives- no.
> 
> I'm not sure if you can change the icon or not. The still frame thumbnails that you do get are from the actual video itself and not an ico image file.
> 
> 5. Bill - I read that you want to split up your episodes. Perhaps 'Magic DVD Ripper' can have a solution, it you can convert DVD's into many different files and also split up episodes on those DVD's. I did with my South Park DVD's and converted them to IPod. - Check it out
> 
> I have to remember what I said as far as splitting up episodes. I do have multiple episodes of different series on my drives now and they work great. DVDs are fine, but when it comes to TV series, I really like having everything readily accessable like this... click the remote and watch whatever you want.
> 
> Also-
> Has anyone hooked up their HDD by firewire instead of USB. It's faster
> 
> Thanks and keep up the great work.


I'll have to check, but the PS3 doesn't have firewire does it?


----------



## wbassett

RWills81 said:


> Went to the store to get the My Book either the 1tb or 500gb, but I was scared off with the My Book world Edition II with the networking options. I was thinking there might be a confliction . Would I have to format the My Book with a third party software? Or can this actually work? It would be nice to access and store my DVD's from my PC with the EHDD attached to the PS3 in the other room.
> 
> Has anyone have this model or any success?
> 
> It is really 2 500 GB built in one, is this still OK?
> 
> -Update-
> I have been reading some really bad reviews about that drive, will end up buying....
> Western Digital - My Book Home 1TB External FireWire/USB 2.0/eSATA Hard Drive
> Model: WDH1CS10000N


I'd stay away from the World Edition My Book. Not because of anything I heard about it with the PS3, rather I've read some other issues with the World Edition. Plus it costs more. 

You won't have to reformat the My Book or most any other name brand USB drive. They are all (most I should say) preformatted to Fat32. This allows them to be compatable with the widest range of computers out there. The PS3 only reads Fat32 (for now) so that's the format you want.

I just saw a 500GB My Book for $99 the other day. I can't remember if it was at Walmart, Target, or Best Buy though.


----------



## Guest

I believe there is a firewire in the back of mine. I have the 80 GB I bought with the MGS4 bundle


----------



## Guest

Quick question about the video files created by DVD Shrink. When I copy a DVD using DVD Shrink, I end up with a VOB file (that I simply rename - and I am using the mpeg extension). But I am left with a few other very small files in the folder. When I try to copy the next DVD, more of these little files are created, and I end up getting a message that files are already present with the same names. I have been deleting these other files - and it doesn't appear to affect playback. Anyone know what these other files are and if they are necessary?

EDIT: Dumb newbie mistake - I just read back a screen and found my answer. Sorry all!


----------



## scrub

Etienne_72772 said:


> Quick question about the video files created by DVD Shrink. When I copy a DVD using DVD Shrink, I end up with a VOB file (that I simply rename - and I am using the mpeg extension). But I am left with a few other very small files in the folder. When I try to copy the next DVD, more of these little files are created, and I end up getting a message that files are already present with the same names. I have been deleting these other files - and it doesn't appear to affect playback. Anyone know what these other files are and if they are necessary?
> 
> EDIT: Dumb newbie mistake - I just read back a screen and found my answer. Sorry all!


You may find that renaming the files creates problems with the FF and RW plus the elapsed time of the movies. I use VOB2MPG to convert to MPG. Make sure shrink is set to make smaller chunk VOBs as opposed to one single VOB. 

Here lately I've skipped the MPG process all together and simply placed the single Shrink VOB file on my external HDD with zero playback problems.


----------



## Guest

Just wanted to thank Bill for his excellent information.

I've spent almost 2 days exploring the internet to try and find out how to get my DVD collection stored on my PS3 (I've upgraded the hard drive to a 250Gb model).

Nothing gave me the exact answer I was looking for until I came across this thread.

Just wanted to say thanks for the help. Just what I needed.

Lurker


:jump:


----------



## wbassett

scrub said:


> You may find that renaming the files creates problems with the FF and RW plus the elapsed time of the movies. I use VOB2MPG to convert to MPG. Make sure shrink is set to make smaller chunk VOBs as opposed to one single VOB.
> 
> Here lately I've skipped the MPG process all together and simply placed the single Shrink VOB file on my external HDD with zero playback problems.


I just did a firmware update because Star Wars The Force Unleash needed it in order to play. 

So far all my movies still play and still FF and RW, I'll run through a bunch this weekend.

You're right though scrub... for awhile now the FW updates have allowed the PS3 to read straight .vob files so the renaming to .mpeg isn't necessary. 

As far as converting, as you mentioned and I have also there isn't a need to rename anymore so I wouldn't, but there also isn't a need to convert because DVDs are already mpeg encoded, that's why we can get away with just doing a rename. The problem with running things through encoders and converters is every time something touches that video source and converts it, quality is taking a hit. It may be minor but it is still happening. The rename method really isn't converting anything so there is no loss in video quality- just whatever loss happened depending on whether it needed compressed of not to meet the 4GB file size limitation.

My son has the newer PS3 and I have the original one and I have noticed some differences in build quality which does seem to affect playback, FF, RW and things like that. Simply put, the original unit is built like a tank and the new one has software instead of hardware emulation for some things, which is where I believe some of the problem lay. His unit is actually in for repair right now, the fan went out. Mine is coming up on being two years old and not one problem, and I probably use my unit twice as much as he uses his. (Which reminds me, I need to check on my extended warranty and renew it).

One FW update that I am hoping for is for NTFS support, that way we can get away from the FAT file system and the 4GB file size restriction. Of course one way around that is to stream from a media center PC, but my house doesn't allow an easy way to run cat5 to my HT room and I really don't recommend wireless streaming, too much loss.

With that said, I am going to be running cat5 eventually and setting up MediaMall's PlayOn. The online streaming content is finally starting to get a pretty big selection of movies and Netflix is even working on HD streaming content. Amazon is also getting into the mix, and there is always Hulu. If the PS3 could only DVR things it very well could be the ultimate media center device, but again with a network connection all that can be done on a PC and streamed. 

Just a note though for people that want to do something like this, first right now the Watch It Now or 'On Demand' content (whatever you want to call it) still isn't fully up to DVD quality yet. Most is better than VHS, but not quite DVD quality. Second, I personally would recommend setting aside a dedicated MediaCenter PC system for content. It may seem like overkill but if a person wants the least amount of drops, skips and stutters that's the best way to go.

When will I get to all that? I can't say now that the weather is getting cold, but those are some things I have planned for the future and my PS3 setup.


----------



## Guest

Love the way I can play movies from ext hard drive...However, I found that the ps3 wont let me make video thumbnails from the ext hard drive. Only if the movie is on the ps3 hard drive. Anyway around this?


----------



## wbassett

Lurker said:


> Just wanted to thank Bill for his excellent information.
> 
> I've spent almost 2 days exploring the internet to try and find out how to get my DVD collection stored on my PS3 (I've upgraded the hard drive to a 250Gb model).
> 
> Nothing gave me the exact answer I was looking for until I came across this thread.
> 
> Just wanted to say thanks for the help. Just what I needed.
> 
> Lurker
> 
> 
> :jump:


First things first... Welcome to the Shack Lurker!

Thanks for the nice comment. That was the exact problem I ran into as well. I even spent some time up on Sony's PS3 forum and man, talk about some over zealous fanboys! I knew there had to be a way to do this but nobody was really interested. Everyone was saying 'DivX', and honestly, I'm not really a big DivX fan and don't like converting if I don't have to- as mentioned, too much of a hit in video quality in my opinion.

The real reason though is I have too many DVDs and to convert to DivX was taking hours, even days just for one movie, only to end up with some really bad playback video quality. For some it's all about max storage and how much they can cram on a drive, for others playback quality is the biggest factor. For me it was video quality and time needed to archive things.

[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/PS3MediaServerSetup/HD_Dock.jpg[/img]
Here is a slick little item I ran across...
Simply drop a bare 2.5" or 3.5" SATA drive into the dock! No adapters or other cables required. Perfect when you have multiple drives you need to access. The dock connects to your computer via USB 2.0.

Features:

Supports All 2.5” and 3.5” SATA HDDs up to 1TB 
Supports USB 2.0 Transfer Speed 
Hot-Swap 
Capability for Rapid Multi HDDs Access & Exchange 
Compact Docking Station Design Maximizes Heat Dissipation and Exhaust

Price: $36!

Seeing that SATA drives have come down a lot in price I may be switching over to this setup instead of the My Books. I do like the MyBook, but they do cost a little more and once you get over a couple of drives then you have multiple power outlets, multiple USB connections... This little gem has two drive bays for up to a terabyte of storage. Simply archive a complete genre or TV series on a drive and then drop it in. Granted the coolness factor leans more to everything connected and accessable instantly, but this is a nice alternative.

The other setup I like and showed previously and is worth another remention is the UltraStackable drives. Whether you connect directly to the PS3 or to a PC that is streaming content to the PS3 these things are like gold!
Here is the video once again-
YouTube - Ultra Stackable External Hard Drive Enclosure

And here are some other components aside from the drive enclosures-
[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/PS3MediaServerSetup/UltraStackablePSa.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l190/wbassett/HTS/PS3MediaServerSetup/UltraStackable2.jpg[/img]To the left is the power suppy unit. 
Each drive enclosure comes with its own power supply, but nobody wants two, three, or six separate power supplies, each requiring its own outlet. That is messy and takes up way too many outlets.

The Power Center has six power outputs, that's enough for five drives and the Hub. I personally would go with the Multi-Card Reader and 6 port hub over the 7 port hub mainly because the connections are on the back, meaning no wires on the front where people can see them.

To the right the units can be seen stacked, but they don't have to be stacked in a single column like that, you could actually split them into two stacks of three, or three stacks of two, whatever looks best and fits in your equipment racks the best.

The one negative factor I have read is that the power center is a bit loud from the fan, and also each drive has a fan... and then the PS3's fan... so that is something to take into consideration. I know even the slightest fan noise bothers some people.


----------



## jbryngelson

Great Thread, and my biggest thanks is for your attention to keep helping out - EVEN BETTER!

I have followed the directions, and copied 6 movies over to a FAT32 external USB HD, and connected to my PS3. All works great. My goal is to copy the remaining 300 DVDs to the unit, but I have some questions/concerns.

1) The naming convention requires only 8 character due to FAT32 - Correct? Makes it hard to create movie names I will recall in a year or two... Any suggestions on what to do to make these names longer?

2) Compression, this is going to be viewed on a Projector based system (120" screen), so quality is KEY. Every one of my movies had to be compressed to get them to under 4GB. I have not critically watched, but I am not liking 25-35% compression of a movie. Is this common? I am only copying the main title and the english DD-2.0 or DD-5.1 soundtrack.

3) Media Server - I have an extra XP system and could put a couple 1.5Tb drives into it, and just copy the movies there. I assume then I do not have 4Gb file size, or naming convention problem. What is necessary to make sure it easily sees the XP system, and the Video files associated with it?

Again, thanks for this effort. The PS3 and all its features really amazes me.

Jeff in Detroit


----------



## dh2005

Hello everyone,

I don't know whether my question is appropriate here, but I've recognised that there are some knowledgeable and decent people on this thread - and I'm in dire need of such people!

What I'm trying to do is back-up as much of my DVD collection as possible, store it on a large external HDD (or two...) and transfer what I want to watch at any particular time to the PS3's hard drive for playback. But I've run into some trouble.

I'm from Britain, so my native discs are PAL Region 2. All of my Region 2 discs (so far) run very happily on the PS3, but I have some NTSC Region 1 discs that are causing me all sorts of problems. Most of my Region 1 .VOBs crash during playback - the video freezes, the audio continues for five seconds or so, then the screen goes black and the audio dies and the PS3 just sits there doing nothing.

I'm completely new to this, but I did notice that, unlike my Region 2 .VOBs, my Region 1 files had no thumbnail images, and their running times were wrong (completely random - like, 0:00, 0:07, 12:18, 55:12... just anything), so I figured it might be a timecode problem. I installed MPEG Streamclip, which claimed to fix the timecode in the .VOBs, but it also insisted on converting them to .MPGs when it saved them in their repaired form - and when I tried to play these .MPGs on my PS3 it said that they were corrupted... yet Windows Media Player could run them just fine!

:dontknow:

... I'm stuck. Have I done the right thing by fixing the timecode? If so, can anyone recommend a timecode repair program that will allow me to leave the files as .VOBs?

Sorry for the life story. Thanks for reading.


DH


----------



## dh2005

joevigi21 said:


> Greetings, fine posters:
> 
> I originally stumbled across this thread several moons back, but since the ability to include subtitles isn't possible with this method, I went in other directions. Well I'm back (obviously  ) and come bearing troubles.
> 
> I've had mixed success with this vob extraction method when it comes to preserving aspect ratios, specifically 1.78. When I extract from a 1.33 or 2.35 source, the resulting vob is displayed perfectly on my PS3. When I extract from 1.78, I get BIG black borders on the top and bottom of the screen. It looks like a 2.35 that someone stepped on. I'll note that when I play back the same file on my PC, it displays perfectly in 1.78.
> 
> Any ideas?



Hey dude,

Yeah, I've had this exact same problem. So far, I've observed the key difference to be whether or not the DVD source is a movie or TV show - all of my 1.78:1 anamorphic movies remain anamorphic, whereas all of my 1.78:1 TV shows (like Seasons 2, 3 and 4 of House M.D.) appear to have lost their anamorphic coding, somehow.

Have you made any progress on this, yet?

Or can anyone out there offer some help?

Again, any input would be deeply appreciated.


DH


EDIT: I spoke too soon - one of my movie rips has presented with this problem, too. Guess it's not TV-only...!


----------



## dh2005

Wow... looks like I killed this thread!

I didn't mean to. If no-one can help, that's fine. Just carry on as before!

But, of course, if anyone CAN help with my timecode and/or anamorphic problems, I'd love to hear from you - drop me a private message, if you don't think it's appropriate for the thread itself.


DH


Edit: I'm noticing that the anamorphic problem occurs in patterns - for instance, all of Woody Allen's MGM movies from between 1970-something and 1980-something lose their anamorphism when they're archived, all of House M.D. after the first season do the same, and yet other shows and movies have no problems. I tried using DVD Decrypter instead of DVD Shrink to rip the .VOBs to see if it made any difference, but it didn't.

Clearly, there's something about the way these discs are coded that means the anamorphism doesn't get carried over. Which leads me to believe that there must be something that can be changed to fix it...


----------



## wbassett

I'll try but since I only use region 1 I may not have the answers you're looking for.



dh2005 said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> I don't know whether my question is appropriate here, but I've recognised that there are some knowledgeable and decent people on this thread - and I'm in dire need of such people!
> 
> What I'm trying to do is back-up as much of my DVD collection as possible, store it on a large external HDD (or two...) and transfer what I want to watch at any particular time to the PS3's hard drive for playback. But I've run into some trouble.
> 
> I'm from Britain, so my native discs are PAL Region 2. All of my Region 2 discs (so far) run very happily on the PS3, but I have some NTSC Region 1 discs that are causing me all sorts of problems. Most of my Region 1 .VOBs crash during playback - the video freezes, the audio continues for five seconds or so, then the screen goes black and the audio dies and the PS3 just sits there doing nothing.
> 
> What are you using to archive?
> 
> Here is the million dollar question, do the Region 1 discs play on the PS3 without any problems? Most players I know of only support one region at a time unless they are region free. I honestly never checked if the PS3 is region free or can be set to region free but I assume it can be.
> 
> If the discs themselves play fine, then the problem is on the PC end and the software for doingthe archives. Again most PC DVDRoms are set to one region.
> 
> Can you give some more details about your setup please?
> 
> I'm completely new to this, but I did notice that, unlike my Region 2 .VOBs, my Region 1 files had no thumbnail images, and their running times were wrong (completely random - like, 0:00, 0:07, 12:18, 55:12... just anything), so I figured it might be a timecode problem. I installed MPEG Streamclip, which claimed to fix the timecode in the .VOBs, but it also insisted on converting them to .MPGs when it saved them in their repaired form - and when I tried to play these .MPGs on my PS3 it said that they were corrupted... yet Windows Media Player could run them just fine!
> 
> This sounds like a wrong file format to me, or as you are thinking there is a time code issue.
> 
> I haven't run into this myself. What PS3 Firmware are you using?
> 
> :dontknow:
> 
> ... I'm stuck. Have I done the right thing by fixing the timecode? If so, can anyone recommend a timecode repair program that will allow me to leave the files as .VOBs?
> 
> Sorry for the life story. Thanks for reading.
> 
> 
> DH


----------



## wbassett

joevigi21 said:


> Greetings, fine posters:
> 
> I originally stumbled across this thread several moons back, but since the ability to include subtitles isn't possible with this method, I went in other directions. Well I'm back (obviously  ) and come bearing troubles.
> 
> I've had mixed success with this vob extraction method when it comes to preserving aspect ratios, specifically 1.78. When I extract from a 1.33 or 2.35 source, the resulting vob is displayed perfectly on my PS3. When I extract from 1.78, I get BIG black borders on the top and bottom of the screen. It looks like a 2.35 that someone stepped on. I'll note that when I play back the same file on my PC, it displays perfectly in 1.78.
> 
> Any ideas?


What titles are you having trouble with?

The only one I had problems with was True Lies. When I played it back it had black bars on the top, bottom, left, and right. Turns out it wasn't anamorphic, rather a 4:3 'letter boxed' format.

Is this happening with all your 1.78 movies or just a few?

Shrink should be identical to what was on the disc. It doesn't change any formatting or aspect ratios or anything like that so I doubt it's on the Shrink end that's causing this.

Also make sure when you re-author that you preview the file. Some discs have multiple formats on the same disc and it's easy to select the wrong one, or an alternate angle version.

I see you mentioned when you play it back on the PC it looks fine. Also check your TV and PS3 settings to see if you have it forced to one aspect ratio over another.

Sorry that I don't have any solid answers for this one at the moment.


----------



## dh2005

Thanks for getting back, Bill. I realise you have plenty to do yourself without baby-sitting newbies like me...!


My PS3 is European, so it's locked to Region 2 for DVD playback. Ironically, accessing my Region 1 DVDs was one of my reasons for buying the PS3 - I have dozens of discs that I've not been able to watch in years since my multi-region player broke down, and I was told that if I used AnyDVD to remove their regional coding and ripped them using DVD Shrink that I'd be able to watch them through the PS3...

... and the thing is, sometimes it works perfectly. Region 1 Anchorman, Young Frankenstein, The Producers, Easy Rider, Taxi Driver, Best In Show etc. etc. all work absolutely beautifully, and I'm delighted about that. But the fact that some of them don't work, when I've ripped them with exactly the same software on exactly the same laptop, is a bit of a drag.


As for the anamorphic issue that both I and another user are having - I am absolutely certain that these images *ought *to be anamorphic. I'm one of those "hi-fi serious" (some might say, anally-retentive...!) people who get hung-up on DVDs being anamorphic, so I notice when they're not!

The overwhelming majority of the discs with this problem are MGM discs - all of Woody Allen's movies from the early '70s until the early '90s (with the exception of 1979's Manhattan, which works fine... weird), Married To The Mob, Something Wild, Carrie, In The Heat Of The Night, Boxcar Bertha, The Tall Guy, Drugstore Cowboy... In fact, nearly *all *of the discs that have this problem are MGM discs, which suggests that there's something about the way these discs are structured that's different from others.

I have my PS3 and my TV set to 16:9 mode, and most of the anamorphic discs that I've ripped retain their anamorphism and look exactly as they should, so I'm thinking that DVD Shrink is failing to bring across the data that tells the PS3 that the image is anamorphic. But I don't know where such data would be kept.

I suppose it's possible that the anamorphic data is not stored in the main .VOB, but rather in one of the smaller files that DVD Shrink creates when it rips it (like VTS_01_0). I delete these files without a problem, usually. D'you think that might be my mistake...?

Thanks again.


DH


EDIT: Sorry... I didn't answer your question, did I?

I'm using a 2x2.00GHz Sony Vaio with 2GB of RAM to rip the .VOBs. I'm using AnyDVD to remove the copy protection and regional coding, and DVD Shrink to do the ripping (I've tried DVD Decrypter and DVD Fab to overcome the anamorphic problem, but the output is exactly the same).

My PS3 is second-generation (I bought it a month ago), and the firmware, I assume, is the most recent because I downloaded a new update two or three weeks ago. My TV is a 32" Panasonic Viera (doubt that matters, but I thought I'd mention it...).

I'm storing the .VOBs on two Fujitsu-Siemens 1TB external HDDs, and connecting them to my PS3 via USB. The majority of my rips run absolutely fine, so I'm pretty sure there's nothing wrong with this end of the setup.


----------



## wbassett

DH I may see one potential problem with at least the Region 1 discs.

Shrink will also remove the region coding, but of course if the disc is in a region setting that the drive isn't set to then it can't read the disc. I have no experience with AnyDVD so I don't know if that's an issue and it's being passed off to Shrink or not.

One thing you can do since DVD Rom drives are so inexpensive is to get a second drive and set it up solely for Region 1 discs and then read the discs into Shrink from there and let Shrink remove any region coding. It's something worth considering at least.



DH2005 said:


> I suppose it's possible that the anamorphic data is not stored in the main .VOB, but rather in one of the smaller files that DVD Shrink creates when it rips it (like VTS_01_0). I delete these files without a problem, usually. D'you think that might be my mistake...?


No I don't think that's it, at least I haven't seen that information contained elsewhere than the vob file.

Since most are working this is definitely a problem isolated to those few titles and Region 1 discs. I can't say for sure but my guess is something is happening between AnyDVD and Shrink. I know it sounds like a pain, but see if you can put a second DVD Rom in and try using just shrink. You can of course change your region setting on your current DVD drive, but the software will only allow a limited number of changes before it locks it out to one region. 

Okay, you can do this... change your drive to Region 1 (you can set it back to Region 2) and then use just Shrink to rip one of the Region 1 discs and see if that plays in the PS3. If it does, then get yourself a second drive dedicated just to Region 1 discs. At least this way you can test this theory without spending money on another drive. If it works... you're golden and then you can feel comfortable getting a dedicated Region 1 drive. If it doesn't... then we have to do some more investigating.


----------



## dh2005

Thank you for your thoughts. Can I also, more generally, thank you for your excellent "can do" attitude - it's very comforting when the frustration sets in!

It hadn't occurred to me that AnyDVD might be causing a problem... the first thing I'll do is turn-off AnyDVD then re-rip a Region 2 disc that was giving me the anamorphic problem, and see whether I've been bad-mouthing Shrink unjustly!

I'll report back ASAP.


----------



## dh2005

Nope. Still not anamorphic... pity - that was my best idea in a while!

I'll look into changing the region of my drive, now. May not be able to get that done today, but I'll report back once I have.


----------



## dh2005

Update: it's gonna be another few days before I get to changing the region on my drive. I'm in the middle of ripping the complete X Files - you wouldn't *believe *how long that takes!


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> If the PS3 could only DVR things it very well could be the ultimate media center device, QUOTE]
> 
> 
> It can now! I cut & paste details due to the fact I can't add URL as less than 10 posts. It's called Play TV for PS3. Apparently it comes with an EPG as well. Unfortunately for me the EPG does not work in Ireland so not much point of me buying it yet. Vrey reasonable proce of £59.99 as well. Cheers Dougie
> 
> Below is taken from Amazon.co.uk:
> "
> PS3 already gives your family next-generation gaming, Blu-ray movies, music, video, web browsing and PLAYSTATION Network support – all in one unit. Now, with PlayTV, it has the functionality of a state-of-the-art TV tuner and PVR – it’s great value and it’s one more reason to make PS3 the centre of your family entertainment.
> Two TV tuners: watch one programme while recording another.
> 
> Electronic Programme Guide: a seven-day navigation interface that makes it easy to programme and watch PlayTV. It’s lightning fast and simple to use with either PS3’s SIXAXIS controller or the Blu-ray Remote Control.
> 
> Watch, pause and rewind live TV: TV programmes now operate at the viewers’ convenience. Just hit the pause button to take a break without missing a thing – and rewind any bits to watch over and over again.
> 
> Portable viewing with PSP: Seamless PSP connectivity allows you to set recordings remotely and to watch live TV streamed on your PSP wherever you are via a WiFi connection (using Remote Play feature).
> 
> Record TV:
> 
> while you're playing games on your PS3 "


----------



## Guest

Hey you guys I have a couple questions. As of right now, I do not have a PS3, and am trying to decide whether to get one or not. Basically I have a 52" LCD 1080p tv, and have a lot of movies just like most of you do as well. I am starting to get blu-rays as well, and of course would love to store all of my movies including blu-rays on a hardrive to watch whenever. From what I have read, please correct me if I am wrong, The PS3 WILL play the blu ray file from the hard drive, however it must be less than 4GB, which is hard to obtain. Is this limitation because of the PS3?

The other option I have been thinking about is a Networked Media Tank, such as the HDX-1000. To be honest I don't play video games all that much, so the PS3 would mainly be a used as a Media server. I can get a used PS3 for around $300, and the HDX-100 is $270 shipped, so for $30 more I would be able to have the PS3 to play games as well.

My only concern is which would be a better for playing stored blu-rays and regular movies. Does anyone know if the Networked Media Tank has file restriction sizes just like the PS3 does?

Thanks for the help.


----------



## BlueZero

Jeff, check out the WD TV too. It's from Western Digital. It's about $130. Looks interesting but I can't find a lot of info on it yet. I started ripping my movies to my PS3 but am going to hold off for now till I see some detailed reviews on the WD TV.


----------



## wbassett

Well so far all I can find on PlayTV is it is over the air HD reception only and not yet available in the US.

That puts me out on both counts... first I can't get one, and second where I live I can't pick anything up over the air. 

One interesting thing about the WD TV is it doesn't have the FAT32 restriction, meaning no 4GB file size restriction.


----------



## Guest

jbryngelson said:


> Great Thread, and my biggest thanks is for your attention to keep helping out - EVEN BETTER!
> 
> I have followed the directions, and copied 6 movies over to a FAT32 external USB HD, and connected to my PS3. All works great. My goal is to copy the remaining 300 DVDs to the unit, but I have some questions/concerns.
> 
> 1) The naming convention requires only 8 character due to FAT32 - Correct? Makes it hard to create movie names I will recall in a year or two... Any suggestions on what to do to make these names longer?
> 
> 2) Compression, this is going to be viewed on a Projector based system (120" screen), so quality is KEY. Every one of my movies had to be compressed to get them to under 4GB. I have not critically watched, but I am not liking 25-35% compression of a movie. Is this common? I am only copying the main title and the english DD-2.0 or DD-5.1 soundtrack.
> 
> 3) Media Server - I have an extra XP system and could put a couple 1.5Tb drives into it, and just copy the movies there. I assume then I do not have 4Gb file size, or naming convention problem. What is necessary to make sure it easily sees the XP system, and the Video files associated with it?
> 
> Again, thanks for this effort. The PS3 and all its features really amazes me.
> 
> Jeff in Detroit


I dont think you are limited to 8 characters when renaming. I have used many more than that with no problems.


----------



## Guest

I have been away from this for awhile but started putting more DVDs onto my external WD 1TB.
I notice we dont have to change to mpeg anymore which Im going to try. This eliminates a time consuming step. 

Im still having issues with TV Episode type DVDs like "King of Queens" for example where there is not just 1 or 2 main movie titles when you go to the re-author step with DVD Shrink. Instead there are many main titles making it almost impossible to do. Anyone else have this problem and found a fix for it?


UPDATE: Yes not having to rename change to mpeg does save time especially with these TV series type discs where Im finding I have to do the procedure for each individual episode instead of just once like regular movie.
So this brings up the question of the subfolders on PS3. I have found that with the external hard drive I can create a main folder "King of Queens" and then put the episodes in subfolders and they will open no problem on my computer.
When I try this on the PS3 they will not open. What am I doing wrong?


----------



## Guest

Thanks for the tutorial, but I'm having problems at the Command Prompt. When I type in the destination of the ripped DVD i get the following message in Command Prompt " D:\VIDEO is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file"
Where am I going wrong?:help:


----------



## wbassett

jet757f said:


> I have been away from this for awhile but started putting more DVDs onto my external WD 1TB.
> I notice we dont have to change to mpeg anymore which Im going to try. This eliminates a time consuming step.
> 
> Im still having issues with TV Episode type DVDs like "King of Queens" for example where there is not just 1 or 2 main movie titles when you go to the re-author step with DVD Shrink. Instead there are many main titles making it almost impossible to do. Anyone else have this problem and found a fix for it?
> 
> 
> UPDATE: Yes not having to rename change to mpeg does save time especially with these TV series type discs where Im finding I have to do the procedure for each individual episode instead of just once like regular movie.
> So this brings up the question of the subfolders on PS3. I have found that with the external hard drive I can create a main folder "King of Queens" and then put the episodes in subfolders and they will open no problem on my computer.
> When I try this on the PS3 they will not open. What am I doing wrong?


Someone else is reporting having some problems with a TV series. One thing I noticed is those of you that are having trouble it seems to be with newer TV series/DVD releases. I suspect maybe they changed some of the encryption or format. I hate it when they do that. The Fairness act does allow us to make one backup copy for personal use, mainly to keep the original DVD from getting damaged and becoming unplayable.

SubFolders- Are you putting them in the /VIDEO folder? You can have one level below the /Video directory but no more than that. Another thing I noticed is after doing a firmware update I have to select my external drive and then do a refresh before I see everything on it. I didn't have that problem with FW 1.8. I can't recall off the top of my head which button you hit, but if the subfolders are in the correct place, there is a button/option that will refresh the display and then everything comes up for me.


----------



## wbassett

DonkeyDave said:


> Thanks for the tutorial, but I'm having problems at the Command Prompt. When I type in the destination of the ripped DVD i get the following message in Command Prompt " D:\VIDEO is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file"
> Where am I going wrong?:help:


Try going to your D Drive first. I get the same message if I try to go straight to the path-
C:\Documents and Settings\Bill>d:/PS3 DVD
'd:/PS3' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

C:\Documents and Settings\Bill>D:
D:\>
Then go to your directory...

D:\>cd PS3 DVD
D:\PS3 DVD>


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> Try going to your D Drive first. I get the same message if I try to go straight to the path-
> C:\Documents and Settings\Bill>d:/PS3 DVD
> 'd:/PS3' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
> operable program or batch file.
> 
> C:\Documents and Settings\Bill>D:
> D:\>
> Then go to your directory...
> 
> D:\>cd PS3 DVD
> D:\PS3 DVD>


I must be doing something wrong here. My ripped DVD is in a folder on my D Drive. The folder is called VIDEO_TS, and inside that folder are 3 VTS folders and 2 VIDEO_TS folders.
I go to command prompt and make sure I have D:\>
I then type VIDEO_TS, after that prompt, but am still getting the not recognized error!

What I type in is the following D:\>VIDEO_TS
I also try D:\>D:\>VIDEO_TS and I get access denied.

Wonder where I'm going wrong!!


----------



## wbassett

DonkeyDave said:


> I must be doing something wrong here. My ripped DVD is in a folder on my D Drive. The folder is called VIDEO_TS, and inside that folder are 3 VTS folders and 2 VIDEO_TS folders.
> I go to command prompt and make sure I have D:\>
> I then type VIDEO_TS, after that prompt, but am still getting the not recognized error!
> 
> What I type in is the following D:\>VIDEO_TS
> I also try D:\>D:\>VIDEO_TS and I get access denied.
> 
> Wonder where I'm going wrong!!


Three VTS and two VIDEO_TS folders?

Is this your Shrink folder or your external USB drive that you are connecting to your PS3?

Here is a typical look at what my Shrink output directory looks like:
D:\ShrinkTarget>dir
Volume in drive D is Storage
Volume Serial Number is 484A-ECB8

Directory of D:\ShrinkTarget

12/05/2008 06:40 PM <DIR> .
12/05/2008 06:40 PM <DIR> ..
08/10/2008 02:38 AM 30 Default.PLS
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 12,288 VIDEO_TS.BUP
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 12,288 VIDEO_TS.IFO
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 92,160 VTS_01_0.BUP
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 92,160 VTS_01_0.IFO
11/30/2008 01:33 AM 9,975,808 VTS_01_0.VOB
11/30/2008 01:36 AM 1,073,739,776 VTS_01_1.VOB
11/30/2008 01:39 AM 1,073,739,776 VTS_01_2.VOB
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 765,700,096 VTS_01_3.VOB
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_02_0.BUP
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_02_0.IFO
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 45,113,344 VTS_02_1.VOB
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_03_0.BUP
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_03_0.IFO
11/30/2008 01:40 AM 19,326,976 VTS_03_1.VOB
15 File(s) 2,987,862,046 bytes

I'm confused as to why you have multiple subdirectories.


----------



## Guest

wbassett said:


> Three VTS and two VIDEO_TS folders?
> 
> Is this your Shrink folder or your external USB drive that you are connecting to your PS3?
> 
> Here is a typical look at what my Shrink output directory looks like:
> D:\ShrinkTarget>dir
> Volume in drive D is Storage
> Volume Serial Number is 484A-ECB8
> 
> Directory of D:\ShrinkTarget
> 
> 12/05/2008 06:40 PM <DIR> .
> 12/05/2008 06:40 PM <DIR> ..
> 08/10/2008 02:38 AM 30 Default.PLS
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 12,288 VIDEO_TS.BUP
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 12,288 VIDEO_TS.IFO
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 92,160 VTS_01_0.BUP
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 92,160 VTS_01_0.IFO
> 11/30/2008 01:33 AM 9,975,808 VTS_01_0.VOB
> 11/30/2008 01:36 AM 1,073,739,776 VTS_01_1.VOB
> 11/30/2008 01:39 AM 1,073,739,776 VTS_01_2.VOB
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 765,700,096 VTS_01_3.VOB
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_02_0.BUP
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_02_0.IFO
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 45,113,344 VTS_02_1.VOB
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_03_0.BUP
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 14,336 VTS_03_0.IFO
> 11/30/2008 01:40 AM 19,326,976 VTS_03_1.VOB
> 15 File(s) 2,987,862,046 bytes
> 
> I'm confused as to why you have multiple subdirectories.


Its my shrink folder mate. Could it have anything to do with the option of choosing "Create VIDEO_TS and Audio_TS subfolders" when backing up? Should I choose this option?
Thanks for the help btw.


----------



## Guest

Still having problems at Command Prompt. Any ideas.


----------



## Guest

I have used DVD-Shrink on quite a few (~20 DVDs) and it works great. AMD processors seem to handle this chore more slowly than Intels. It takes about 40 min to do a 2 h DVD (AMD-3000). When I copy the VOB file to the PS3, the file is there an plays fine, but the icon box is black. Does anyone know how to create a file that the PS3 will display as an icon in the video section?


----------



## Harpmaker

dloose said:


> I have used DVD-Shrink on quite a few (~20 DVDs) and it works great. AMD processors seem to handle this chore more slowly than Intels. It takes about 40 min to do a 2 h DVD (AMD-3000). When I copy the VOB file to the PS3, the file is there an plays fine, but the icon box is black. Does anyone know how to create a file that the PS3 will display as an icon in the video section?


While I can't help you with your stated problem, 40 minutes for a DVD rip is a long time. I suspect your DVD drive may still have the factory rip-lock activated limiting the speed at which it will read a disc. I'm currently ripping my discs with DVD Shrink on a lowly 1.7GHz Celeron PC. My avg. rip time is half of yours.


----------



## marois

Hi Everyone this is my first post.

First, a big thanks to Bill for taking the time to document and continue supporting this project.

I have not yet tried this setup, but I just read that firmware v2.53 support sequential playback of videos. This is a paste from uk.playstation.com/help-support/ps3/movies/detail/item124721/Sequential-Playback/


> [Sequential Playback] is an option under Settings > [Video Settings].
> 
> You can set the PS3 system to sequentially play multiple video files that are saved on the hard disk or storage media.
> 
> Off: Videos are not played sequentially.
> On: Videos are played sequentially.
> 
> Hint
> This feature is not available for some video content types, such as content with parental control restrictions or rental content with a restricted playback period. The PS3 system will skip over these content types to play the next video in the sequence.


This would seem to imply that, with a proper naming convention, one should no longer have to compress the VOB files. There are many utilities for splitting VOB into 4G chunks to deal with the FAT32 limitation.

Jean


----------



## marois

A note on FAT32: FAT32 does not handle fragmented files very well, so always copy multiple files with a single copy command, whether using copy & paste or drag and drop. In other words, do not start a second copy&paste before the first one is done. It also a good idea to defragment the drive occasionally if you delete files. Fragmentation could be the cause of choppy playback on slower drives.


----------



## marois

> What I type in is the following D:\>VIDEO_TS
> I also try D:\>D:\>VIDEO_TS and I get access denied.
> 
> Wonder where I'm going wrong!!


In a DOS command shell (CMD.EXE), use the CD command to change folders(aka directory) and the drive letter followed by ':' to change drives, e.g.:
C:>D:
D:>cd video_ts
D:\VIDEO_TS>


----------



## audio newbie

I just noticed that you can purchase and download HD movies from the playstation store. These are all more than 4GB. Sony must have a seamless way to get over the 4GB limit. Maybe the sequential playback that was mentioned earlier is allowing this?

Thanks for all the great info so far!


----------



## wbassett

marois said:


> Hi Everyone this is my first post.
> 
> First, a big thanks to Bill for taking the time to document and continue supporting this project.
> 
> I have not yet tried this setup, but I just read that firmware v2.53 support sequential playback of videos. This is a paste from uk.playstation.com/help-support/ps3/movies/detail/item124721/Sequential-Playback/
> 
> 
> This would seem to imply that, with a proper naming convention, one should no longer have to compress the VOB files. There are many utilities for splitting VOB into 4G chunks to deal with the FAT32 limitation.
> 
> Jean


Jean thanks for this update information because this is HUGE! It's one of the playback features that was always lacking on the PS3. I'll try to download the update this week and play around with it over the New Year's break!

This should resolve a lot of the quirky issues some have had to deal with as well as any compression issues. Personally I've only had a few movies where the compression was noticeable, but I know others have mentioned they see artifacting in their archives. Alot has to do with the content and how much it is being compressed. Like I said this should eliminate that!

The only things lacking now are:

NTFS support- but don't hold your breath on this one. Sony and Microsoft would need to come to an agreement and I doubt that is going to happen anytime soon if ever. If we truly can play sequential files now, that's a bit of a moot point though. 
Adding the ability to stream NetFlix 'Watch it Instantly' movies. From what I hear this is definitely coming. NetFlix already has over 12,000 movies and TV series to watch instantly and the list is constantly growing. Now they added Starz and soon will be streaming HD content. I just watched an episode of Sliders and I was really amazed at the playback quality. I know part of it had to do with the HDTV and it also upconverting the image, but it was very good quality, definitely DVD quality, maybe slightly better. (Note: The PS3 already can stream content from a computer and acts as a media device)
DVD menu playback- In otherwords the ability to playback the menu and all special features as if the disc was in the drive. Again I wouldn't hold my breath on this either.
Cable playback and DVR type recording- This is one item I doubt we will ever see since the PS3 doesn't have a built in tuner or a way to DVR content. For me it's not a big issue since my cable box records content, but if the PS3 could ever do this as well then it would be a very good media server solution!
Last, and this is also a big one that they should be able to provide with an update- Nested folder support. By that what I mean is video content has to be under the 'VIDEO' folder and then you can have one level below that. For intance the TV series 24; Currently I have /VIDEO/24 and then the episodes. It would be nice to be able to add additional folders for each season such as /VIDEO/24/Season1 ... /VIDEO/24/Season2 and so on. This one should be coming if it's not already included in this update.

The only negative I can think of is bigger movie sizes equals less room on our drives. Also the hassle of redoing anything that was already put on an external drive but here is my mind set on that- If it works now and the video quality is the same as the DVD already... don't mess with it! I personally will only be redoing anything that didn't look good because of compression.


----------



## wbassett

audio newbie said:


> I just noticed that you can purchase and download HD movies from the playstation store. These are all more than 4GB. Sony must have a seamless way to get over the 4GB limit. Maybe the sequential playback that was mentioned earlier is allowing this?
> 
> Thanks for all the great info so far!


If I recall correctly (I'll have to look this up to be sure) DiviX files can be larger than 4GB but only on the internal drive. Most of the downloadable content goes to the internal drive doesn't it?


----------



## wbassett

*Warning*

*WARNING! DO NOT DO A FIRMWARE UPDATE TO v2.53*​
I just spent the past couple of hours reading though the official PS3 forum on Sony's website and I'm glad I did before updating my firmware.

Many people are reporting major issues after updating to FW v2.53 that basically renders the PS3 unusable. There are many symptoms but the biggest problem is the drive quits working.

Sony is turning a blind eye and blaming it on hardware failure. The people that have mentioned others have had the same problem immediately after the firmware update and the Sony reps say it's the first they heard of a problem. Many people are getting the same response and this has been going on since the update was released at the begining of December. 

To add insult to injust, Sony is charging people $150 to fix a problem caused by the update.

The problem is affecting all the PS3 models, so it is a wide spread problem. It does work for some people and they really like the update, but it is crashing a lot of systems so beware.


----------



## Blaser

I was about to do it later today... :rolleyesno: I like/need the features of the new firmware, so I guess I'll wait.


----------



## wbassett

Blaser I was going to do it last night so I could try out the sequential playback.

Something told me to check the forum out. I haven't had one issue with a firmware update yet, so I was about to just pull the trigger on it and apply it. I guess I wanted to see what others were saying about the sequential playback. Instead I saw a huge thread 'Update V2.53 ruined my PS3'

I started reading and was looking to see if they updated via the internet. Most firmware update problems occur from internet updates. I also wanted to see if it was a specific model. Turns out it happens to people regardless of the model and doesn't matter if it's a web update or through a flash drive. Some are able to recover by completely restoring the system (takes around four hours) and others are reporting no success even after a complete restore.

Sony is stating it has nothing to do with the latest FW update however everyone was working fine until they applied the update. Sony maintains it is just a coincidence. What really bothers me is the number of people reporting this problem and Sony keeps saying they never heard of any issues with the v2.53 FW update. Then there is that $150 fee to have them fix your system if it's not under warranty. Interestingly when they send your system back, it doesn't have v2.53 on it, they roll it back to v2.52. That right there tells me they know something is wrong with the update. Why they don't pull it... nobody knows.

Wait for v2.6 and even then make sure to check the forums and make sure people aren't having problems.


----------



## Blaser

Sure Bill! I'll never risk to having a problem with my PS3. I'll definitely wait.


----------



## avaserfi

When did 2.53 come out? I am pretty sure I have it on my PS3 no problems...guess I got lucky.


----------



## marois

I've been running 2.53 since it first came out without any problems. 

I did have a failure six months ago, system overheated, since then I've been using the new auto shutdown feature. I used to always leave the system running the protein folding, but no more. It cost me $150 for a new unit, which only took a week to get back once they recieved my dead system.


----------



## avaserfi

Just checked, I have 2.53, no issues here at all.


----------



## wbassett

marois said:


> I've been running 2.53 since it first came out without any problems.
> 
> I did have a failure six months ago, system overheated, since then I've been using the new auto shutdown feature. I used to always leave the system running the protein folding, but no more. It cost me $150 for a new unit, which only took a week to get back once they recieved my dead system.


Jean it's great to hear you're not having any problems.

From what I am reading newer units seems to be fine, but units that are six months to a year or older seem to be having the problem, but not all have this problem.

When it hits it is a strange one. Some people can only play SDVDs, no Bluray or PS3 games, others can't play anything and have reported even the USB ports are inoperable. 

I'm not trying to panic anyone, just let people know there is a very real problem with this update for some players.

Jean, since your system is working and I'm leery about updating mine, could you test the sequential playback feature with some .vob files and give a report on how it works? 

This is big news, next will be if we can also do menus too!


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## wbassett

*More Big News: Netflix comes to the PS3*

PlayOn enables consumers who own a PLAYSTATION 3, Xbox 360, or HP MediaSmart TV to access content from sites including Netflix, Hulu, CBS, YouTube, ESPN and more on their television. We have been testing PlayOn Beta for a number of months now, and the fully featured release will be coming shortly!

This is in beta stage, but looks promising.

Netflix s going to be the dominate streaming content provider, and they are actively working on HD streaming. Over the holidays I was down at my daughters and we connected a PC to their new 36" LCD HDTV and streamed some Netflix Watch Instantly content and I was really surprised. It was an episode of Sliders and looked every bit as good as DVD. A lot also has to do with how well your set upconverts too, so mileage may vary but the picture quality is getting better and better all the time.

It's just something to think about as an additional feature for the PS3!


----------



## Ray3

*Re: More Big News: Netflix comes to the PS3*

If you track back on the PS3 firmware upgrade versions, you will find that the problems with upgrades are not limited to 2.53. Each of the upgrades from 2.35 onward have generated reports that a small number of PS3s have had problems with each upgrade.

There seems to be no answers as to why this is happening and upgrades are a hit & miss thing. I've continued to upgrade with each release, including 2.53 and (knock wood) have had no problems. I got my PS3 in 11/08, so I don't know if it qualifies as newer or older.

A common theme in these upgrade problem threads shows that re4setting/rebooting the hard drive often claears the problems up. Some small percewntage need to send in their PS3s to Sony.



Wish I had better info for this. Actually, I wish SONY had better info.


----------



## ratnrol

wbassett, thank-you for posting your guide and walking us through your experiences. I have registered with this forum just to subscribe to this thread!

Cheers


----------



## Wayde

I just got a PS3 for Christmas and have just taken an interest in this thread. 

I have had an Xbox 360 for some time and have used it as a media-center extender. Just as you outlined I used DVDShrink saved VOBs as one big file and renamed them .MPG. It worked great. 

The problem I had with Xbox 360 and what eventually made me stop using it completely was the slowness. As my media collection grew navigating it got slower and slow. In fact, music is totally useless. I can't navigate it because I have so many music files on my computer the Xbox 360 completely chokes trying to page through my collection. It's unusable.

I have started using a Squeezebox for music and it works fantastic and also brings Internet radio to my HT.

But I'm now interesting in testing PS3 for video. I wouldn't mind being able to stream but I'm sure it's not the best option. My PS3 is hard wired to my router but my PC is wi-fi. I might even pick up a wireless N router and LAN card just to make streaming painless. 

I'll let you know how it goes. 

BTW. streaming lossless music files to the squeezebox and navigating my giant collection is completely hassle free. I really recommend this device - it's just a tiny screen that sits beside my center speaker, it's one of the best pieces of equipment I own.


----------



## ratnrol

I ripped 5 movies seamlessly using Shrink 3.2, with anydvd.

Dragged the vob file into my tversity movie folder and voila. All five play fine. The length of each movie is not displayed correctly, however. FF and RW capabilities are limited and flakey.

I am going to test my luck with the VOB2MPG program to see if the PS3 likes the mpeg format better.

For those of you using PS3 Media Server instead of Tversity, a poster uploaded a photoshop template for your cover art. It looks great. Unfortunately, I am having problems editing and saving the download. Hoping someone else may have better luck and be able to share their knowledge. I have an older version of adobe photoshop elements 3.0 and thinking that may be the issue.

Sorry, but it appears I don't have five posts and cannot create a link. Here is where I found this template...
AVS Forum > Digital Video & Audio Devices > Home Theater Gaming > PlayStation Area > [PS3 Media Server], a new java based streaming application


----------



## WRYKER

I read the first part of this thread and several last posts. I haven't found someone post a way to watch HD movies through/on the PS3 (either wirelessly, hardwired, through USB, etc).
DVDShrink will not work with a lot of newer movies - I have 800 DVDs including BD's & HDDVDs and I'd love to get them onto a HD and be able to watch them on/through the PS3 without loss of video quality or sound. I also have an XBOX 360.


----------



## wbassett

ratnrol said:


> I ripped 5 movies seamlessly using Shrink 3.2, with anydvd.
> 
> Dragged the vob file into my tversity movie folder and voila. All five play fine. The length of each movie is not displayed correctly, however. FF and RW capabilities are limited and flakey.
> 
> I am going to test my luck with the VOB2MPG program to see if the PS3 likes the mpeg format better.
> 
> For those of you using PS3 Media Server instead of Tversity, a poster uploaded a photoshop template for your cover art. It looks great. Unfortunately, I am having problems editing and saving the download. Hoping someone else may have better luck and be able to share their knowledge. I have an older version of adobe photoshop elements 3.0 and thinking that may be the issue.
> 
> Sorry, but it appears I don't have five posts and cannot create a link. Here is where I found this template...
> AVS Forum > Digital Video & Audio Devices > Home Theater Gaming > PlayStation Area > [PS3 Media Server], a new java based streaming application


Chris before you try VOB2MPG (not familiar with that program myself to be honest) keep in mind that .vob files are already mpeg encoded. You don't need to use any program to convert to mpeg, infact I discourage anyone doing any type of conversion programs because each time you convert, there is a loss of PQ. Even if it's small, it's still a loss. 

All you have to do is rename the file extention from .vob to .mpeg and it's an MPG file now! I just setup a drive for my brother that are all in mpeg, and did the entire TV series Man from U.N.C.L.E (48 dvds) plus all the UNCLE movies, and even the complete Girl from U.N.C.L.E! Nothing is compressed and it's all on a 320GB external drive.


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## wbassett

Well I am happy to say I am now up to 2.5TB of storage! Soon to be 4.5TB:bigsmile:


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## WRYKER

wbassett said:


> Well I am happy to say I am now up to 2.5TB of storage! Soon to be 4.5TB:bigsmile:


And still no answer to my post....:snoring:


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> I read the first part of this thread and several last posts. I haven't found someone post a way to watch HD movies through/on the PS3 (either wirelessly, hardwired, through USB, etc).
> DVDShrink will not work with a lot of newer movies - I have 800 DVDs including BD's & HDDVDs and I'd love to get them onto a HD and be able to watch them on/through the PS3 without loss of video quality or sound. I also have an XBOX 360.


Yeah I've been having trouble with some new releases too. Seeing Shrink was closed, there won't be any updates for it, what a shame. I'll have to play around with DVDFab some more and see if it will do the job.

As far as HD movies, you should be able to stream those over your network if you're connected. If not, now the PS3 will handle play lists, so it's theorectically possible to have a high def movie and via the play list, play each file segment and watch the entire movie that way. Fat32 and that 4GB file size limitation is still killing us though. A 20GB HD movie would have to be broken up into five segments. I guess that's doable, but man what a pain.


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> And still no answer to my post....:snoring:


I was responding at the same time you hit submit! 

That may not have answered your question though. I'll look into this and see what I can find.


----------



## wbassett

More great news for PS3 owners and maybe even those still on the fence whether to get a PS3 or a stand alone DB player...

[BANANA]One complaint with the PS3 was that it didn't decode DTS-HD Master Audio (but it did send it to a receiver undecoded so the receiver could do the work), as of June 2008, firmware upgrade version 2.30-2.36 fixed that problem. Now the player decodes Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio, giving users the latest surround sound formats. That same upgrade also added BD Live (Profile 2.0) support, meaning users can connect to the Internet for additional downloaded content for any BD Live-enabled disc.[/BANANA]

Now the only complaint would be it doesn't have discrete 5.1 outputs, but a lot of BD players don't have that either. This may be a deal breaker for some, but for most I think it's not.

Also Firmware update 2.53 added play-list capability, but as I mentioned, stay away from that update. They are up to 2.60 now and I'm hearing better results and will be updating to it this weekend myself.

From launch to current date, the PS3 is one of the only Bluray players from back then that was capable to be upgraded to Profile 2.0, and really its full potential has yet to be tapped.

Full Divx support is there now, and the biggest breakthrough improvement will be if Sony ever knuckles under and finally adds NTFS support. This will be absolutely *huge* if they ever decide to do it, and yes they are getting a lot of pressure from owners to add this to a future update.


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## WRYKER

wbassett said:


> I was responding at the same time you hit submit!
> 
> That may not have answered your question though. I'll look into this and see what I can find.


It did and it didn't - I haven't had any success using TVersity to stream anything to my PS3. My PS3 is wired into the router along w/3 computers so it's not an issue of 'wireless' since it's wired.

I have no problems streaming music using WinAmp though (but that's just music)

What I'd love to do is to back-up/copy all my DVDs, HDDVDs, & BD's onto harddrives and watch them over my network without loss of audio (DTS, 7.1HD-MA, TRUE-HD, etc) or video (bitrate):help:: if there's a way to do that (please no Kaleidoscope posts) I'd love to know.


----------



## mechman

I updated to 2.6 last Wednesday. Everything seems fine.

Does the PS3 only see fat32 usb drives? It's supposed to be able to see my freeNAS server which is ufs. There's actually a service that I enabled for PS3. I haven't tried yet though. I may have to do some searching on this... :reading:


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> It did and it didn't - I haven't had any success using TVersity to stream anything to my PS3. My PS3 is wired into the router along w/3 computers so it's not an issue of 'wireless' since it's wired.
> 
> I have no problems streaming music using WinAmp though (but that's just music)
> 
> What I'd love to do is to back-up/copy all my DVDs, HDDVDs, & BD's onto harddrives and watch them over my network without loss of audio (DTS, 7.1HD-MA, TRUE-HD, etc) or video (bitrate):help:: if there's a way to do that (please no Kaleidoscope posts) I'd love to know.


I hear ya Wryker... I want to put all mine on drives too. If for no other reason than to save shelf space because I am completely out. I'll edit and post a picture of my DVD shelf system when I get a chance, but it's 8' wide by 8' tall and I have two stand alone DVD racks that are full too, and I have a bookshelf in the bedroom that's full too. If nothing else I'd like to at least get my TV series and special genres down to the drives.

I do apologize about not answering you. As far as the timely response, I was swamped with work and then down with the flu. As far as the quality of the reply in answering your question... I honestly don't know right now because I haven't tried to do Bluray or HD DVD yet. 

Red Kawa is a very good streaming program from what I have read, but again, I haven't tried it. This is one area that maybe we can work together on and if you find something first, please post it up because I am sure others are very interested in this as well. 

I really love this concept and totally geek out over it so I'm just as interested as you in figuring out a way to do this. Again, my apologies about not having a straight up answer for you right now, but one thing about the Shack is we won't snow someone and say we know something when we don't. We will try to figure it out though! 

Right now the short term answer in my opinion is streaming, or with the playlist that 2.53 introduced. The long term answer as far as USB drives is whenever Sony decided to add NTFS support.

We'll figure something out, don't worry! Maybe you'll be the one to come up with it first, if so... post away! Any input and tips/tricks are always appreciated.

In the meanwhile I'll try to find something out myself too. I hope to have an LG Super Drive my the end of next month.


----------



## wbassett

mechman said:


> I updated to 2.6 last Wednesday. Everything seems fine.
> 
> Does the PS3 only see fat32 usb drives? It's supposed to be able to see my freeNAS server which is ufs. There's actually a service that I enabled for PS3. I haven't tried yet though. I may have to do some searching on this... :reading:


From a locally attached USB drive, yes only FAT32, and that is a really debilitating obstacle right now.

I partially understand their reasoning, FAT32 is old but universal. Macs can read it as well as PCs, so it's the least common denominator. But it's not the best or most efficient that's for sure.

The fact that Sony even allows .vob playback is huge. The fairness doctrine allows us to make an archival backup for our own personal use, and that is soley the intent here. Nobody is trying to cheat anyone, just make our viewing experience easier and more enjoyable. To that end I applaud Sony for allowing us to do this because Sony is also one of the biggest defenders of copy-rights. 

The bigger issues is that seeing that Sony provided .vob support as well as all video format support now... it is Sony vs Microsoft. NTFS is a Microsoft file system, and as such there are some issues between the two companies. Even if Sony wanted to incorporate it in the next FW release, it's doubtful Microsoft would go along with it since they are rival consoles. And that is a shame that it comes down to that type of mentality.

My son has both a PS3 and the XBox 360, and I respect the 360 immensely. Where the two differ, and I will state that this is my opinion, is that the 360 is a true gaming console and it has the lions share of better games, whereas the PS3 is more of a component that can be integrated into a Home Theater easier. Both are powerful, but as a full media center I put the PS3 ahead of the 360, and... I am no Sony fan so that says a lot right there I think.

The 360 has an HDMI out, but if you need a digital optical out, you need a special adapter. Lack of an internal HD DVD drive or BD drive also limits it. Being able to plug in an external HD DVD drive was a big plus, but where is the external BD drive now that the format war is over?

Don't get me wrong, I personally like HD DVD better than Bluray, but that's all moot now. 

Until Sony an MS sort things out, we're stuck with FAT32 for our local USB drives, or... streaming the content. I wish it were different, but I don't see this changing for a long time if ever.


----------



## ratnrol

Thanks wbassett, I researched the vob2mpg a little more.

Here is what the videohelp web site says...
"VOB2MPG converts your DVD to MPG file(s). It goes through a whole DVD VIDEO_TS folder and joins up the various vobsets to produce mpgs for the different titles. It does NOT reconvert the video and audio."

Following your instructions in regards to ripping as a single vob and just renaming work and plays on the PS3. I guess I will just live without FF or RW features.


----------



## Desperado

This is a great thread! I've bookmarked it and joined the forum. 

Regarding VOB2MPG, I had the FF/RW issue with my VOB files as well, even when renaming the extension to MPG. However, I started using VOB2MPG to "convert" my files (after ripping with DVDShrink), and the FF/RW problem is fixed. I'm not sure what that program does, but I use it for all my DVDs now. Takes 5-10 minutes to run.

One thing I've noticed is that sometimes the program will bomb out after a couple of seconds. I just click the "start" button again and it works fine. This is with v2.5. Maybe there's a newer version where this is fixed - I haven't looked.


----------



## Blaser

ratnrol said:


> I guess I will just live without FF or RW features.


Speaking for myself I guess not. This is really what bothers me regarding using the PS3 as a movies server...:hissyfit:


----------



## Blaser

I have updated my PS3 to firmware 2.6 and I'm happy it seems there is no more problems with FF or RW. I would nevertheless prefer 4 Gb files instead of 1 Gb so that there would be only one interruption / dual layer DVDs.

Any idea what program to use?


----------



## ratnrol

Blaser,

I have used Shrink 3.2. Just set the output files to be one large vob file versus 1 gb chunks.

As per my earlier posts, vob2mpg helped add the FF/RW functions back. If the new update gets rid of this, it will at least remove one step from the method I use. Good news.


----------



## Blaser

Yest but I do not like 4 Gb compressed movies. On my big screen full DVDs do not look perfect already...


----------



## dh2005

Which is why you need a Popcorn Hour, dude...!

... but being serious for a moment, though...

I used this thread a great deal to begin with. It was the perfect starting point for learning about ripping, remuxing, VOB-merging, timecode-repair and other such things. And Bill is the perfect moderator - full of knowledge, innovative ideas and encouragement - which I deeply appreciated then, and I still do now. He and the other members helped me to get the very best that I possibly could out of my PS3, as a media device.

But, when push came to shove, it couldn't be denied that the Popcorn Hour machines are easier to use and, in my opinion, do a better job. I haven't had to compress, remux or otherwise "mess with" any DVD rips since going over to the Popcorn Hour. With my PS3, I was doing it all the time. And that God-forsaken 4GB limit was _always _a problem. It dictated what I could and couldn't back-up, because after 15 to 20% compression, the movies looked and sounded awful. And if it looks and sounds awful, you might as well use the disc...! Which completely defeated the object of the exercise, for me.

I know a lot of people are very happy with the PS3 - particularly those who stream content from networked devices, who can therefore circumvent the FAT32 issue. But for those who aren't, you might consider the Popcorn Hour (and/or other similar media devices).

Anyone with questions, feel free to PM me.


DH.


----------



## dh2005

Then again...

... on reflection, this thread's for setting-up the PS3 as a media device. I don't mean to hijack it, or be obnoxious - so I've edited some of the above. I only posted here because Blaser and I were discussing the merits of the Popcorn Hour A-110 on another thread.

No offence intended. And none caused, I hope.


----------



## Blaser

Well, the PS3 is not only used as a movies storage device anyway... but it goes far more than that and is in my opinion one of the most versatile machines available today (if not the most at all).
So this thread is about only a fraction of the capabilities and features of the PS3, and the Popcorn Hour is good to have beside the PS3, but not as a replacement anyway 
So no offence taken


----------



## shine5555

dh2005 said:


> Which is why you need a Popcorn Hour, dude...!
> 
> ... but being serious for a moment, though...
> 
> I used this thread a great deal to begin with. It was the perfect starting point for learning about ripping, remuxing, VOB-merging, timecode-repair and other such things. And Bill is the perfect moderator - full of knowledge, innovative ideas and encouragement - which I deeply appreciated then, and I still do now. He and the other members helped me to get the very best that I possibly could out of my PS3, as a media device.
> 
> But, when push came to shove, it couldn't be denied that the Popcorn Hour machines are easier to use and, in my opinion, do a better job. I haven't had to compress, remux or otherwise "mess with" any DVD rips since going over to the Popcorn Hour. With my PS3, I was doing it all the time. And that God-forsaken 4GB limit was _always _a problem. It dictated what I could and couldn't back-up, because after 15 to 20% compression, the movies looked and sounded awful. And if it looks and sounds awful, you might as well use the disc...! Which completely defeated the object of the exercise, for me.
> 
> I know a lot of people are very happy with the PS3 - particularly those who stream content from networked devices, who can therefore circumvent the FAT32 issue. But for those who aren't, you might consider the Popcorn Hour (and/or other similar media devices).
> 
> Anyone with questions, feel free to PM me.
> 
> 
> DH.


I can not for the life of me figure out ow to PM on this forum.... I am intrested in more info, I Love the guide, from this thread... I use this all the time, but maybe I need to start looking at popcorn hour, for my > 4 gig movies


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## Blaser

Guys, there are 2 threads about the Popcornhour (A-100 and A-110). Pls discuss these products there. Pls do not use PM for such discussions so that others can also benefit/learn...
Thanks!


----------



## dh2005

Blaser;

Sure, there are things the PS3 can do that the PCH can't, and vice versa. An important point that needed to be made - thank you.


----------



## dh2005

shine5555;

Yeah, I'm fortunate to have access to both.

Post to me on either the A-100 or the A-110 thread, and I'll reply to your questions there.


----------



## wbassett

Blaser said:


> Well, the PS3 is not only used as a movies storage device anyway... but it goes far more than that and is in my opinion one of the most versatile machines available today (if not the most at all).
> So this thread is about only a fraction of the capabilities and features of the PS3, and the Popcorn Hour is good to have beside the PS3, but not as a replacement anyway
> So no offence taken


Sorry for being away for so long in this thread, work has been very hectic.

I'm not putting the Popcorn Hour down in any way, however I agree with Blaser. The PS3 is much more than just a mass storage/playback device. It is also a top rated Bluray player, and did I mention it plays some pretty cool games too?  I'm lucky because I bought one of the first models so mine plays PS1, PS2, and PS3 games as well as upconverts DVDs and plays BDs. If I didn't have a PS3 though and already owned a stand alone BD player, then I probably would have gone the route of the PCH or Western Digital Media Player. Again... I certainly am not putting down the PCH or anyone that loves thier's, but if a person already has a PS3, why not use all of its capabilities? Now only if I can get Netflix Watch It Now to work through it... 

I did some playing around, actually I was up all night playing! I went ahead and took the plunge and did a firmware update to 2.6. Some people were reporting that it was also crashing their system. I think maybe a lot has to do with how the update is done, but I can't say that for certain. I download the update to my computer and then put it on a USB flash drive and update my system that way. So far I have never had a problem, and 2.6 is running perfectly.

The first thing you'll want to do is go to your System Settings and then Video. Scroll all the way to the bottom and turn Sequential Playback on. That's it! Now you can skip making one .vob or mpeg file that's 4MB in size and use the 1GB .vob chunks that are the normal DVD size.

I tested this out with Rocky and it works perfect. Also, and this could vary from model to model, but I was able to fast forward just fine. Also if you hit 'next' it 'chapter skips' so to speak- there are no real chapter breaks, but it will go to the next .vob or mpeg file in the movie. That's better than nothing I guess.

The other things I played around with was sub-directories and long file names. Unfortunately sub-directories still do not work. The best you can get is /Video/MovieName. It won't read any folders nested further than that. Some good news though, I intentionally named a file with more than eight characters. That is something that really bugged me with FAT32 and I hated some of the cryptic names I came up with. I made a test .vob and named it RockyBalboa.vob, which is obviously eleven characters (the file extention doesn't count). This is going to make things a lot nicer. The bad news (for me at least) is I now have to go back and rename a bunch of things. 

I'm up to 4.5TB of storage now, but I'll be honest and say I am not even close to having everything archived over yet. Work seems to be slowing down a bit now, so I hope to have everything archived soon. Plus I just put together a monster PC- Q8200 Quad Core 2.66Ghz, 4GB ram, 1TB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 4650 PCI-Ex16 w/1024MB ram, DVI/HDMI/VGA out, 7.1 channel audio out via Tosh-link... a 22X Light Scribe DVD Burner, and... an LG SuperDrive that plays Bluray, HD DVD, burns Bluray discs, and plays and burns DVDs and CDs and a 32" LCD HDTV with HDMI and VGA in! So I'll have two systems in my computer area and one will pretty much be dedicated to archiving to the external USB drives! If anyone is interested, the system ran me $1200 for everything. I'll probably start a thread if anyone is interested in going that route instead of a PS3, PCH, or Western Digital Media player.

Anyway, I thought it was good news that 2.6 works, and also that fast forward, rewind, and 'next' all work as well as we don't have to use just eight characters. I'll play around and see what the max character count is and report back.


----------



## Blaser

Welcome back Bill!

I have the PCH in hands. A nice machine that is very good as a storage device. But I can't live without my PS3 though for its software and extremely fast processors (that's the biggest problem of the PCH).
They are both an excellent combination, I guess I need them both, the PCH mainly for its movies Jukebox programability and flexibility, which appears quite like a movies server I saw in a showroom for as much as 26000 $.
Both are definitely excellent stuff for the money IMO!


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## wbassett

I have some good news and some so-so news.

First the good news!
I've been enjoying all my new $5 HD DVDs! Some were even less, like say around $2, but they weren't free shipping like most of the $5 ones are. Still, with shipping they come to just under $5. 

So I'm sitting here with all these HD flicks and my HTPC/Media PC I put together mainly for video editing and starting thinking... can I get these to play on my PS3? Well of course all my Blurays will play, just put the disc in. But I'm hooked on total archive playback. Can these be put on external drives too?

Blurays are a definite yes... with a bit of a but... The 4GB file size restriction. I know we've overcome that with the sequential playback feature, however I ran into a snag. I can split the BD files into any size I want, but when I tried a test playback on my PC there was a definite and noticeable 'bump' or gap/studder between the segments. I haven't tried it on the PS3 yet, but I see no reason I wouldn't experience the same thing there. So I need to work that issue out. As far as archiving, it does meet my main requirement of being simple and having as few steps as possible. Basically... one program is needed and that's it.

Now the so-so... HD DVDs are proving to be a bit of a problem. Not only do they require 8-10 steps, it also requires at least four programs and as of right now I have yet to successfully get one to work. I get video, but no audio.

On a side note... as far as Blurays go, this method should work for the Western Digital Media Center as well as the Popcorn Hour. I will be on vacation for a week and down at my brother's. He has a WD Media Center so I will be playing around with that while I'm there. I don't have access to a Popcorn hour though. As far as this thread though, I have nothing against the WD or PCH. I just happen to already own a PS3 so instead of spending more money on something else, my goal is to see what all I can do with the PS3.

I am toying with the idea of streaming to the PS3 from a PC (I have one sitting in my arcade cab that's in the HT room) but again I want to try and keep this as simple as possible. That plus some people may not be able to stream for a number of reasons. If they can, then there are a ton of options available to them. For those that can't, yet own a PS3... well that's what this thread is about. 

The biggest factor with external drives and the PS3 is FAT32. This is something I doubt we'll ever see change though. And except for what I am trying to do right now, really there is no need. SDVDs play back perfectly, and with the sequential playback feature there is no need for the 4GB size movies... just use the native 1GB size chunks Shrink normally creates. No compression... and I am having no issues with FFW or RW.


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## WRYKER

Bill
So for BD's you have on an HD and view through the PS3 using the small 'chunks' do you get HD audio and no 'pauses' when it ends one VOB and begins the next? After my post a few months ago I'm leaning towards PCH for the sake of 'convenience' to rip DVDs, HDDVDs, & BDs and stream away without having to do nothing more than rip.


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## wbassett

I get full audio and video with BDs, it's just that at the moment when it switches to the next segment (on my PC, I still have to test this on my PS3) there is a momentary split second where the screen goes black. Totally unacceptable in my opinion. I am still working on this though, which is why I haven't posted any instructions yet.

Again I have nothing against the PCH. Like I said, I have a PS3 so I want to use what I have is all. 

Wryker if you know an easy way to do HD DVDs please let me know!


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## WRYKER

My BD/HDDVD drive is en-route to me. I've held off for a while to see what would 'shake out' regarding streaming BD & HDDVD since I prefer 'easy' over a lot of work to stream HD stuff. I enjoy streaming DVDs to my HDTivo's without any problem so I'm probably going to get a PCH and a few NIM100's to make all my rooms 'wired' without needing to run any CAT6 and then either buy AnyDVD or use ToNMT UI (also looks like ToNMT UI does HDDVD's). I, too, would like to get all I can from my 2 PS3's but it just seems like too much work still.


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## spartanstew

Great Thread, I appreciate all the input.

One quick question.

I burned a partial movie, since I only had a 1GB flash drive laying around and wanted to test it out.

When I click on The USB device in the PS3 it says "no files". I have to use the triangle button and then select all files to see the file that's on there. I then select that and it plays fine.

Is that standard? Will I always have to hit triangle?

Burned the movie using Shrink and left it as a vob file.


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## JTDINVA

Sonnie said:


> I'll have to look at it and see... I'm not sure if it has USB ports or not. It's an Xbox 360


Sonnie - I'm doing something similar using the 360 and streaming the content from my PC using media center extender and a great interface called "My Movies". If you're interested let me know and I'll get you all the info.

John


----------



## WRYKER

spartanstew said:


> Great Thread, I appreciate all the input.
> 
> One quick question.
> 
> I burned a partial movie, since I only had a 1GB flash drive laying around and wanted to test it out.
> 
> When I click on The USB device in the PS3 it says "no files". I have to use the triangle button and then select all files to see the file that's on there. I then select that and it plays fine.
> 
> Is that standard? Will I always have to hit triangle?
> 
> Burned the movie using Shrink and left it as a vob file.


I can say for music files on a Flash Drive i've used and from what I've read elsewhere that yes, that is the way the PS3 works.


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## wbassett

Do you have it in a folder named /VIDEO ?


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## spartanstew

wbassett said:


> Do you have it in a folder named /VIDEO ?


Me? No.

It's not in a folder at all. I figured I would just have the movies on the drive without a folder, so it would be one less access point.

Do I need a video folder?


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## wbassett

I haven't tried a flash drive other than for updates, but I it should have the same folder structure and the internal drive or an external USB Hard Drive. All your videos should be in a folder named '\VIDEO'


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## spartanstew

wbassett said:


> I haven't tried a flash drive other than for updates, but I it should have the same folder structure and the internal drive or an external USB Hard Drive. All your videos should be in a folder named '\VIDEO'


Why?

Even with an external HD, I was just planning on putting all the movies on the drive without any folders.

Will having a folder eliminate the need for hitting triangle?

Is there any other reason to have a folder?


For the most part, I'll be doing this to put all of our kids movies (Disney, Pixar, etc.) on a HD so I can stop using DVD backups which get trashed all the time in the kids playroom. One less step for them to access their movies will probably be beneficial (which is why I wasn't going to use folders). But, if it eliminated the need to press the triangle, it might be worth it (and more so if there's other needs/benefits to folders).


----------



## wbassett

spartanstew said:


> Why?
> 
> To start... that's the folder structure the PS3 uses. It's not that big of a deal on a small flash drive.
> 
> 
> Even with an external HD, I was just planning on putting all the movies on the drive without any folders.
> 
> Will having a folder eliminate the need for hitting triangle?
> 
> As you've seen, you can just throw all your files in one location, but try to imagine a terabyte drive with hundreds of movies and maybe even music (all my cds are on my internal drive) and trying to find something. And yes, it should eliminate the need to press the triangle. I should say at least I don't have to.
> 
> Is there any other reason to have a folder?
> Sub folders!
> In addition to keeping your music, pictures, and videos seperate and sorted, you can make a sub folder under the main VIDEO directory. So for Spiderman I have \VIDEO\Spiderman\Spiderman.vob ... Spiderman2.vob ... and Spiderman3.vob in one directory.
> 
> Same goes with my other drives. I have a TV series all in one folder, so if I want to watch Magnum P.I. I just go to the MagnumPI folder and don't have to go through everything else on the drive.
> 
> For the most part, I'll be doing this to put all of our kids movies (Disney, Pixar, etc.) on a HD so I can stop using DVD backups which get trashed all the time in the kids playroom. One less step for them to access their movies will probably be beneficial (which is why I wasn't going to use folders). But, if it eliminated the need to press the triangle, it might be worth it (and more so if there's other needs/benefits to folders).


It's really not that much extra work. You have to go to Video from the dashboard anyway, then click the drive and you'll see the sub folders. The one issue I could see is if they are really young and can't read yet. You could just get a smaller USB drive for their movies and have them all in the open for them to select... but honestly if they are that young I personally would not want someone that young messing with a $400 player.

In the end though, set it up however it works best for you!


----------



## spartanstew

wbassett said:


> The one issue I could see is if they are really young and can't read yet. You could just get a smaller USB drive for their movies and have them all in the open for them to select... but honestly if they are that young I personally would not want someone that young messing with a $400 player.
> 
> In the end though, set it up however it works best for you!


Well, they're 4 and 6. They've (mainly the 6 year old) had the PS3 in their playroom for over a year now, putting in their own DVD's (and taking them out). But, their DVD's get scratched and all the time and I have to reburn them. That's the main reason I'm looking into this. I'm not worried about them wrecking the PS3, they've done fine with it for the last year. The 6 year old can read well, I just wanted to make it as few button presses for him as possible, but since he has to hit triangle this way, it's not much different than selecting a folder, so I'll probably give that a try. I do wish there were images for each file as that would make it so much easier for them (especially the 4 year old), but you can't have everything. I don't need it for my own personal use (yet), as all my movies are in the home theater and I don't have a PS3 in there (and as of now, don't see a need to have anything but the actual disc to play).

Thanks for your help in this thread, I'll try folders when I start putting them all on a large HD.


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## wbassett

Try it both ways then and let them tell you which is easiest for them to use. 

Yeah I've heard the comment on 'Just put the disc in!' by many, and that is a viable option. Aside from the coolness factor, my DVD library is around 1500 movies and TV series. I have a 6' wide by 8' high DVD rack and two small racks, and I am out of room! I've actually lost track of DVDs because I have some upstairs, some in the rack, and some in unknown places!

So it's not about being lazy! 
For me it's about organization, and yeah... there is a certain coolness factor about it! Especially when I get my Pronto remote and get it all programmed. Then if I want to watch Miami Vice, or the original Mission Impossible TV series or anything, I just push one button, it turns on my AV reciever, the HD TV or projector, the PS3 and selects the folder, movie and everything starts playing without ever having to dig through hundreds of DVDs looking for something!


----------



## dh2005

Hey fellas,

Long time, no talk... and the last time I _did_ talk, I annoyed a couple of moderators. So, I'm very sorry about that.

It seems the versatility of the PS3 has improved since I ditched it in favour of the PCH A-110. Not that I'd be without my PCH... but I was wondering, could someone confirm or deny the following for me:

1. Can the PS3 now play VIDEO_TS and/or .ISO rips of DVDs? That is to say, can it play complete discs with menus, switchable subtitle and audio tracks etc...?

2. If not _that_, can the PS3 now run 1GB .VOBs in a movie folder sequentially without delays between files?

3. Also, and this would *REALLY *be a killer addition, does the PS3 now have the ability to read .IFO files? This would resolve all of those dreadful aspect ratio problems that I was having back in November. Without which I probably wouldn't have bought a PCH in the first place...!


I'm asking because a friend of mine has a PS3, and I've been advising him to buy a PCH because it has better DVD playback facilities. But it seems I'm slightly behind the times on the PS3, and I don't want to give him bad advice. For starters, he's *a lot* bigger than me...!

Cheers,



DH.


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## Blaser

Hi DH, it's a pleasure to see you around!! 



dh2005 said:


> 1. Can the PS3 now play VIDEO_TS and/or .ISO rips of DVDs? That is to say, can it play complete discs with menus, switchable subtitle and audio tracks etc...?


From a hard drive... still no.


> 2. If not _that_, can the PS3 now run 1GB .VOBs in a movie folder sequentially without delays between files?


Yes... not like the original DVD for the delay but not bad.


> 3. Also, and this would *REALLY *be a killer addition, does the PS3 now have the ability to read .IFO files? This would resolve all of those dreadful aspect ratio problems that I was having back in November. Without which I probably wouldn't have bought a PCH in the first place...!


Things haven't changed a lot since November, the best thing that happened is basically sequential playback.

If your friend only needs to play movies from a hard drive, the PCH is still the way to go....


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## cypher_195

Hey all, 

I'm new ere from Australia n let me apologise for my shortness n abbreviating on the count of left hand typing - I have read right thru this thread while in hospital with a broken hand in search of the true multimedia capabilities PS3 has to offer after getting a glimpse of a friends streaming setup.

Thankyou to Bill for your dedication to this topic...much time I have wasted on less than adequate solutions. Like you, I share above norm shall we say "OCD tendencies" regrding th quality req of my media storage and have found methods used by others (such as mentioned above and throughout) to be primarily much too time consuming and punishing on produced quality.

This as been hands down the most diversely explored and informative thread I have been lucky enuf to locate.

Many of the issues discussed surrounding playback functionality and quality I have witnessed on a friends HT setup using PS3 + WiFi Router + PC with added HDD. Scanning/searching and selection can be valuable to users such as myself who thrive on the simple enjoyment of DVD functionality but with the desire of fingertip access to everything. 

My input > I hav not been able to test this on PS3 itself yet - as in hospital with only my laptop - though I would like you if possible to explore the following -
In Reauthor mode > left pane (DVD compilation view) > DVD Shrink 3.2 displays a button with 2 arrows icon (wave cursor over and see label 'set start/end frames').

From what I can see it allows u 2 portion the main title/movie into individual smaller segments of your own custom length/size/time. By using this rather then the 'split to 1GB files' function would it not be possible to essentially recreate 'Chapters' with the added funtionality of PS3's sequential video playback update?

If the above is true we should have the abilty not only to FFW/RW but move between actual scenes - ie: the 'NEXT' button on ur remote/controller would take you to the next small .vob/mpeg file, also avoiding our FAT32 4GB max size nightmare....??

Regards, Chris


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## dh2005

Hey Chris,

Welcome to the forum. And I second your praise of Bill for his commitment to this cause. Although I was ultimately to abandon the PS3 as a media streamer, I gained considerable knowledge about video compression and playback technologies through this thread.

The wonder of the PS3 as a media streamer is that it's powerful and versatile, particularly given everything _else _that it can do. The _trouble _with it is that, because it's not *primarily *a media streamer, users are forced to make compromises. Those compromises got the better of me, and I defected to Popcorn Hour.

The 4GB file-size limit wouldn't be so much of a problem if .VOBs ran sequentially with seamless buffering. But because they can't, it really handicaps the PS3 as a DVD-archiving solution. Plus, the inability to read .IFO files will cause _some _video files to lose their timecodes and aspect ratios (and I know not everyone has had problems with this... but I had *lots* - almost 40% of my discs).

If you don't mind compressing movies, sometimes losing their anamorphism, and occasionally having to remux rips to repair broken timecodes, the PS3 is fine. For people happy to stream content from a PC, I'm told (although I've never tried it myself...) that the PS3 is very good at that. But for someone wanting a (mostly!) painless DVD-archiving experience, in which 100% _perfecto_ disc images are accessible from internal, USB and NAS hard drives, I *must *recommend the Popcorn Hour machines.

Blaser's experience is similar to mine, I think it's fair to say - we both tried to make friends with the PS3 as a media streamer, couldn't do it, and went for a PCH.


*I reiterate* - for those willing to make compromises, the PS3 can be a very commendable media streamer, and I'm not here to hijack the thread or offend anyone. But for those with less patience, and the willingness to make the investment, Popcorn Hour machines deserve consideration.


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## Blaser

I agree DH, but I must say I am friend with both. PCH is a far better movies tank but PS3 is far supperior in photos and a much better music tank. 
I don't believe it would be right to discuss one vs the other simply because they were not designed to do the same tasks (they are not competitors). But they basically complete each other: 
I use PS3 for:
- BD playback
- Music playback
- Photo playback
- Games

I use the PCH for:
- movies storage / playback (excellent, the YAMJ's a free software that makes the job of several thousand dollar machines!!)
- downloads

The PS3 is a much faster machine with very fast processors, while the PCH is more delicate to deal with.

If I should advise someone to buy one over the other, I'd really consider what he needs to do, but I think (and that's my opinion) the PS3 should come first (BD/DVD playback comes to mind), then a PCH is an excellent add-on...


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## dh2005

Yeah, I'd probably agree with that.

I bought the PS3 because I wanted to watch Blu-ray discs. It was only when I discovered this thread, and I began faffing about with DVDShrink, that I realised it might be possible to archive my DVD collection to hard drives and 'retire' the discs. After spending six or seven weeks trying to force my PS3 to be something it wasn't, I then began looking elsewhere and stumbled upon the Popcorn Hour A-110... so, you could say that I bought a PCH *because *I'd bought a PS3! As a natural consequence, as it were.

You're right about YAMJ. Absolutely gorgeous, and completely free. Somebody should kiss those guys...


----------



## Blaser

DH,

Exactly! Couldn't agree more:T


----------



## dh2005

And you know, I think it's only fair to express some criticism of the PCH. Just to give a balanced view:


1). Ahmed described the PCH as "delicate to deal with". He was being polite. It's actually a royal pain the backside, sometimes. It's got next-to-zero processing power, so anything vaguely complicated makes it plod. And setting it up can take ages if you don't know what you're doing.

2). Sometimes perfectly good files just don't run. For no reason at all. They just *don't*. It's very rare - I think I have ten files out of almost 800 that don't run, but every single one is irritating.

3). It's surprisingly rubbish at playing music. Not because it doesn't _sound _good, but because the music software's *awful*. If you think the _PS3's _is bad, check out the PCH...!

4). Frankly, it looks tacky, and the remote's a bit lame. It's nothing like as polished and smart as the PS3.


I'm sure there are other complaints... but mostly, PCH machines are awesome.


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> My BD/HDDVD drive is en-route to me. I've held off for a while to see what would 'shake out' regarding streaming BD & HDDVD since I prefer 'easy' over a lot of work to stream HD stuff. I enjoy streaming DVDs to my HDTivo's without any problem so I'm probably going to get a PCH and a few NIM100's to make all my rooms 'wired' without needing to run any CAT6 and then either buy AnyDVD or use ToNMT UI (also looks like ToNMT UI does HDDVD's). I, too, would like to get all I can from my 2 PS3's but it just seems like too much work still.


Something to keep in mind... the 4GB and FAT32 restrictions as well as the video 'bumps' I reported with BD files is only if you are connecting to the PS3's USB ports. If you are streaming, these issues go away. In that sense then the PCH may have a tougher fight with the PS3 in that arena because the PS3 can also be streamed too, plays a wide range of file formats, and is also a BD player and game console. The only thing missing is Netflix.

Honestly, if you are already streaming, and have PS3's... why not try streaming to them? If I already had a stand alone BD player I certainly wouldn't buy a PS3 just as a media player, but since I already have one, I'm trying to get it to work as a media player across the board.


----------



## wbassett

> 2. If not that, can the PS3 now run 1GB .VOBs in a movie folder sequentially without delays between files?


Blazer also answered this...

I personally haven't seen any delays with standard def discs and .vob files... just with m2ts files. I'll have to go back and play around with some more SDVDs and see if there is a delay, but none that I noticed so far. Trust me on this one, any delay or even the slightest audio sync issue and I usually notice it before anyone else does. Probably because I am looking for it though, but I do pick up on things like this.

Next bit of news/updates...
Of course as mentioned streaming is a very viable option. However not everyone may have a PC setup for streaming, or like me, can't easily run a network cable. If it is available though, it probably is the easiest solution to everything mentioned throughout this thread.

Next I looked at what can be done on the PS3 side of things? The options I was looking at:

Upgrading the internal Hard Drive.
Adding a secondary OS

Upgrading the internal drive is definitely an option, but there is a cost factor- You have to buy a new 2.5" drive. The pros are that the PS3's internal drive is isn't FAT32 (not NTFS either) and it can support files over 4GB! Replacing the internal drive is also a breeze. The con... very large 2.5" drives can be a bit on the expensive side and those larger drives tend to have a higher failure rate than smaller drives. Also when you run out of space you can't just add another drive.

However HD content from the Hauppauge PVR 1212 is amazingly small in size. I just recorded a high definition movie and the file size was a surprisng 6.82GB m2ts file. Playback looked absolutely stunning, and yes it also retains the 1080 resolution as well as 5.1 sound. With that said, a larger internal drive can hold an awful lot of HD content! If the plan is to archive BDs to that drive, well it's going to fill up real fast.

Next in consideration is a secondary OS. Yellow Dog Linux (YDL) is designed for many types of systems, including the PS3! It really sounded like a great option but there were a few things the site wasn't clear about, so I called.

First the support team at YDL is very good, and they don't keep you on hold forever either. I explained what I wanted to do, and they had quick and clear answers. Sadly, Linux isn't going to be a solution for us, at least not right now. There were some issues with USB support, so that right there was a problem, but they have gotten USB drives working. The next problem is it still is only FAT32 support, so we won't gain any ground there either. Plus when I inquired about the media player, YDL (or RedHat for that matter as far as I know) can't access the NVidia hardware in the PS3, so we lose the excellent upconverting that the PS3 does.

Conclusion- YDL isn't an option. Even if it did work with NTFS and upconverted like a bandit... I think the learning curve for installing a secondary OS is probably more than the average person wants to deal with. Still it should be mentioned that only the PS3 can be setup with a secondary OS and be used as a fully functional PC... no other media center can do that... Well, except for an HTPC, but if we had one of them in our system we wouldn't be talking about any of this! (Being the owner of a full blown HTPC in my upstairs setup, I can say we'd be discussing totally different issues! Nothing is perfect.)

[MOUSE]Supposedly someone actually got Windows running on a PS3, but it was dreadfully slow... so slow it was essentually useless. But it was done![/MOUSE]​
So I continue on my quest... and I do feel that the PS3 has the power to do everything we want, but Sony won't unlock certain features. The PS3 SDK has found its way out to the internet though!

What exactly does that mean? Well the number one complaint about the WDTV by some was that it doesn't have network support... The WDTV also has its code out on the net and there are a lot of talented people writing new firmware updates for the WDTV, and yepperdoodle, it supports networking now! (I also tested a WDTV with a USB hub and can state for a fact that hubs work too with the official WD firmware even though they say hubs aren't officially supported). We could be looking at some home grown firmware updates for the PS3 that break down some of the barriers we're talking about here. 

I wouldn't hold my breath on a home brew PS3 FW update anytime soon, but mark my word they will be coming. Even when they do arrive, well... I'd be less afraid of updating the firmware on a $99 WDTV than I will be on my $500 PS3 (That's what I paid two years ago).

I have a few more things I am going to try, and if they don't work, my solution will be to stream from my arcade PC. I do like the WDTV though based on its size, price, and what it can do. I'm just having a tough time right now of the thought of adding another device to my setup just for m2ts/HD files when I can still just throw those into the player... and the fact that I only have around 60 HD DVD/Blurays and 1500 SDVDs...


----------



## Avus_M3

I have a weird issue. I used DVDFab to pull the titles off of some demo disc I have so I could store the various scenes on the PS3. All the videos play great but I only have sound on the Dolby encoded (AC-3) tracks. The DTS doesn't play audio? I changed from linear pcm (over hdmi) to bitstream and that didn't work either? When I play them on my PC they play fine? Any thoughts?

I have a 500gb ext3 formatted hd attached via USB to my router which acts as a NAS. Works great so far!


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## wbassett

Dave I don't have an answer for you about the DTS vs AC-3 playback issue. Can you select the DTS audio track with the remote?

Question for you... What router are you using? Brand and model number? A NAS setup would be perfect for me too as long as it supports NTFS formatted drives.


----------



## myrddin

I use an app called playon to stream to my viewing area. It works well... you can get netflix, hulu, cbs, espn and more... You can also load plugins to get more like adult swim, local files (plays images from your PC) and much more...

interested in what your thoughts are:

look up ( the media mall . com) - playon

plugins - playonplugins . com

sorry first post cant link...


just thought I would add what works for me... I love the PS3 - great player and game console.

let me know what you think?

also I use Nero for all editing great program and will dump blue ray, as well as allow me to add custom start animations like welcome to my HT and so on...


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## Kagolu

Has anyone figured out subtitles yet?


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## WRYKER

I gave up on trying to use the PS3 to stream BD's or HDDVDs and bought the A110 Popcorn Hour and I'm mc-luvin' it. My PS3 can see the PCH and I can stream the ripped BDs & HDDVDs to it but it chokes on the file and plays 1 second, pause, second second, pause, etc - and no sound.
But it was interesting to see that it can 'see' the files being broadcast.
For SD DVDS I've ripped those and use Tivo to watch them VOD-style. So my PS3 is barely touched now.


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## dh2005

Yeah. I must admit, as lovely a piece of kit as it is, I've not used my PS3 in ages because I can't afford to buy games for it, and my A-110 achieves (almost) everything I want at the media end of the equation.


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## wbassett

Sorry to hear you guys are not happy and went to different tech.

I'm still with my PS3 and what I've done is one I don't buy games when they first come out... smart advice to any console owner! 
You can rent a game at Block Buster or online, and I highly recommend that because you could get nailed with a stinko title for $60 like I did! Rent it, play it and see if you like it. If you do, then buy it when it drops in price a few months later. That's the smart thing for games. Oh... I forgot, BD players and PCH don't play games! People that own those... never mind! 

PCH and WDTV... I truly love the WDTV.  I think pound for pound and for the price it is the slickest thing I have seen. Thing is, neither play Bluray discs, so if you're in the market for a BD player and want to play archived content from hard drives, neither of these will satisfy that. 

The PS3 won't do everything, as in it won't DVR things, but it really does come the closest to anything to doing everything. It's not perfect, but I will also say nothing is... and neither is the PCH or the WDTV.


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## dh2005

Hello Bill,

Yeah, I agree that there's nothing currently available that can do _everything_... but the Popcorn Hour C-200 is shipping this week. This device threatens to do the PS3 out of business as a media streamer, unless Sony can improve the functionality through firmware.

I'm not here to pimp, so I won't provide a link. Those who are interested should look it up.


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## wbassett

The main thing is that I already own a PS3 so my mindset is to use what I have instead of spending a couple hundred more on something that does the same thing... or in this case part of the same thing 

I really can't speak for the PCH since I don't have one and don't know anyone that does so I can review one. I have seen the WDTV up close and personal and it is probably the slickest thing I have played with in years. For $100 I was tempted to go out and buy one, but again... I have a hard time justifying that when I already have the tools to do the same thing.

The PCH would need to really blow the PS3 away in my opinion in order to justify the price and lack of BD playback. If the new WDTV is priced right (around the $130 mark) it will put a hurting on the PCH. That certainly isn't slamming the PCH, I really am open minded on other ways of doing things, but price and performance/features are high on my list. I would not recommend a PS3 to someone that already has a Bluray player, but I certainly would to someone that is looking to get into the BD world! Especially with the $299 price tag now.

I've said it before and the one thing that really hurts the PS3 is the lack of NTFS support, but it does work extremely well with a media server. My current project is setting up a NAS with 20 terabytes of storage (10TB as RAID backup). Once that's done I will pick up one of the new WDTVs and maybe a PCH and put one in each room with a TV as a media center hub (the PS3 of course being part of the main theater/media room).


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## sub_junkie

I just tried converting Tranformers Revenge of the Fallen using DVD Shrink. I get this error message when it starts Analyzing the DVD. I also have DVD 43 to decode the dvd or something. I can't remember right now...


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## eugovector

Are you trying to rip using DVD shrink as well? I'd say you have a copyright protection problem. Here at the HTS, I don't think we want to head down the road of discussing how to circumvent copyright protection, but a google search will likely yield some answers.


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## sub_junkie

Ok, I understand :bigsmile:
Has anyone else had this problem yet? Or if someone has Transformers 2, can you try ripping it onto the PS3 via an external HDD?


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## wbassett

ANYDVD should do it


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## Cowboy72

Hello everyone and wow did I ever do a lot of reading here. This is my first post so please bare with me. There was so much useful information. I only started working on this yesterday and decided to do some research in this forum today since I have this site booked marked at work. 

I might be able to offer some positive suggestions. Judging by the last dated post this may be out of date but may help the new guy. I am no expert by any means and there are still some issues with menus and ff.

I believe I get full uncompressed video and using an NTFS external usb 2.0 drive connected to one of my computers.

From start to finish it takes about 25 mins per movie and it's ready to watch.

I use 123Copy and rip the movie to my exteranl drive 25 mins average and it's done.

Okay that is it in a nut shell but here is the setup and what I needed to use.

One dual core computer
One router/switch perhaps just a hub would do
Two RJ 45 cables not cross overs (you could do this wireless as I did at first but when hard wired it was night and day difference) 100Mb wireless.
Software called PS3mediaserver (free)

The key is PS3mediaserver but first thing is first. Using 123copy that I bought cheap years ago and running it on my XP machine since I couldn't get it to run on Vista perhaps the newer one will run on Vista. I ripped it to a folder I created on the external NTFS drive using daul layer option. The series I used first was Battle Star Galactica Season 1 disc 1 file size was just over 7gigs for the one dvd. Then I hard wired my PS3 to the router as well as the computer. Ran the PS3mediaserver and there it was showing on my PS3.

Some may ask why not just run it through the computer and right now the only answer that I can think of is my computer doesn't upscale.

PS3mediaserver is a whole other topic and seems to be very kewl.

I can write more but that is it in a nutshell. If anything it might be some more food for thought.


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## tea_doe

I would just like to say that this has been a very informative thread. 

Now, here is my question. This thread has been going on for a long time now. For those of you who have converted your dvd's over, would you do it again or would you do something else? I have about 500 dvd' or so and I am thinking about buying a couple 1tb hard drives the day after thanks giving. Walmart is going to have 1tb my books for around $75. 

So, would you do it all again? what would you do differently? Is DVD Shrink 3.2 still the recommended way to go or is DIVX better now? 

Suggestions would be great. I would probably have the dvd's streamed from my computer to the PS3.

I am running Windows 7 home as well, but what do you guys think about PS3 Media Server? Is it good to have or not?


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## wbassett

tea_doe said:


> I would just like to say that this has been a very informative thread.
> 
> Now, here is my question. This thread has been going on for a long time now. For those of you who have converted your dvd's over, would you do it again or would you do something else? I have about 500 dvd' or so and I am thinking about buying a couple 1tb hard drives the day after thanks giving. Walmart is going to have 1tb my books for around $75.
> 
> So, would you do it all again? what would you do differently? Is DVD Shrink 3.2 still the recommended way to go or is DIVX better now?
> 
> Suggestions would be great. I would probably have the dvd's streamed from my computer to the PS3.
> 
> I am running Windows 7 home as well, but what do you guys think about PS3 Media Server? Is it good to have or not?


To answer the first... yes I would do it again! 

Okay the next question... DIVX...  No. The reason is there is a compromise in quality. To some it may be minor, but there is a drop in PQ. Anytime there is a conversion there will be a hit in quality. The other reason I personally don't like this option is that it takes a lot more time to convert. When I say it takes a lot more time, we're talking hours! Then the quality isn't that great after all that time waiting.

What I am doing now is setting up to stream instead of local hard drives. The main reason is the 4GB limitation. Even though you can play files sequentially now I'd rather not split HD movies. Plus it's easier to load to a local drive and stream than all these MyBooks!


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## tea_doe

Ok, so for the next question. As I am just starting out, I noticed the second movie I ripped can fast forward, but when I hit play it does not play. It will fast forward again and I can see where it is at in the movie, I just cant fast forward and then be able to play. It does not matter if it is .vob or .mpeg. Any suggestions?


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## wbassett

What model PS3 do you have and what firmware?

I don't seem to have the problems that a few others have, but my PS3 is the behemoth first gen unit, which is a different animal than the newer releases.

What are you using to archive? Shrink? And have you tried to do the movie again?


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## tea_doe

The movie I was looking at was Coach Carter. Right now I am not sure what version of the firmware it is but I am not to sure about it. I have ripped about 50 movies now in the past 2 days and have watched a couple other ones and they seem fine so I think it was just that movie and it might even work if I try it again. 

Anyways, I have to say the whole process has been really easy overall. I have 2 burners and I rip 2 movies at the same time so I can do 2 movies in 20 min. And that is while playing Battlefield 2 or Left 4 Dead 2. I just need to get the extra hard drives soon as I am running out of space.

Also, has anyone else been getting a msg that says there are no tracks available. I will navigate to the movie but it is recognizing it as a folder and not a movie. It goes to another tab like it is a folder. Another forum said that was due to the folder having new stuff in it, which I am always burning to it and putting more movies in there, and to wait an hour or 2 and it will work. It just seems to be happening every time.

Anyways, i like my new media server!


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## tea_doe

Update 

The conversion is going well. I have around 100 dvd's converted over out of the 500 I am guessing I have. I have 3 1.5 tb hard drives coming in the mail and I will then have a raid 5 and my media server built. I am pretty much out of Hard drive space right now so I can only convert a couple more between now and when I get the new hard drives.

Anyways, here is my question. Out of the 100 plus that I have converted so far, I have 16 that have failed on me. These would mostly be newer movies such as Casino Royale, Transformers, Accepted... Anyways, how will I be able to convert these? I have tried using DVD43 which I have always used in the past, and also the anydvd or whatever its called that is recommended in this forum but they will not convert. Any suggestions?

Slippery


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## wbassett

Usually it means it's a newer disc and has a new protection scheme. Nothing Shrink can do about that and that is a problem with using Shrink since it is no longer supported.

I'm not familiar with DVD43 so I can't answer you there, sorry about that. Lately I have been using AnyDVD HD.


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## KBacon

Hey there. Just spent a couple of hours reading this post from start to finish and have to say best thing on the net for this by far. I have been tying to find ways and means of doing this for a couple of months at least!! 

I have managed to get some videos onto an old external hdd and all working well. However, I'm thinking of buying a NAS as my external HDD is now full. Reading the forum though everyone seems to be using external HDD or streaming.

2 questions:

1) If i connect a NAS to my router and also router to PS3 via ethernet will everything work as it does with my external HDD? Do I just format the NAS to FAT32, create a VIDEO folder, drop the files in, connect ethernet cable from router the NAS for everything to show in the Video folder?

2) Should I consider streaming from my NAS instead? If connected the NAS to the router presumably I can stream the files on my NAS to the ps3 . Will wireless G suffice - have heard in many places it wont which is why I'm looking at the ethernet option.

As you can probably tell I'm not too much of a computer geek but getting my head round this. Just need to check before I buy a NAS and really should have got a cheaper external HDD.

Thanks for great forum


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## KBacon

Sorry forgot one last question

I'm seriously impressed with the way the PCH can use JAMJ which looks awesome.

Does anyone know if I set this up on my computer, transfer it to the NAS and then run on PS3, whether it will work? The big problem I can see with the PS3 is searching for videos from huge HDD. Whilst I have a PS3 and using a NAS could be cheapest option, the current list format on the PS3 seems archaic at best.....

Thanks for help


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## wbassett

First welcome to the Shack Kevin!

As far as the PCH, you'll need to ask about that in the PCH thread.

NAS drives should work with the PS3, the only problem being as you mentioned; Drive searches with larger drives. I am going to setup a RAID based media server after the holidays and stream. My decision is based on now having more MyBooks than ports on the PS3! That and I can go to NTFS and larger files. Since I started using the Hauppauge PVR 1212 FAT32 isn't cutting it for HD content!


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## KBacon

Hi Bill

Thanks for reply. Just so i have understood correctly. A NAS drive should work, its just the searching for files which you think is a problem?

Read somewhere that there is a possibility of YAMJ on PS3 if installed on PS3 but think that was a Linux one. 

As say just wanting to make sure a NAS hardwired vis ethernet will work just as well as a normal external HDD. 

If so will tr YAMJ and let you guys know if can work

Thanks guys


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## wbassett

I don't think it would be a big problem, but it does take a few seconds for it to search a 1TB drive that is packed. I use sub folders for my individual titles which seems to make it faster than having everything in one directory. That and it makes it easier to organize and browse.


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## dennisbsmith

WOW! this is the best info I've come across in the past view days of searching... GREAT!!!
OK, here's my dilemma: I've got a 70gig hard drive dell laptop running xp which is pretty much full with all of my music and photos, so i store all of my ripped dvds(VOB) on an external western digital 500gig drive. My laptop is connected wirelessly to my Linksys router which hooks directly to my cable modem. I extend my itunes to my living room stereo and printer with an airport express. Recently, my dvd player broke and i'm in the market for a blu-ray player. What I'd love to be able to do is this: install the ps3 in my living room, plug my western digital hard drive into it, MOVE all of my photos to the external drive(or to the ps3 drive). This way I can look at photos and watch videos on the TV without having to swap discs. From what I can tell on the forums, I believe that all of this can be done easily, but *the key for me is that I'd like to MOVE all of this data to the ps3 to free up space on my laptop, but still be able to view/edit the photos on my laptop... WIll my laptop be able to see all of the photos that are stored on the ps3? and will i be able to open them for editing/organizing in Picasa/photshop on my laptop?* thanks so much for any help, i'm so ready to go buy a ps3...


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## tea_doe

If you are wanting to store everything on a hard drive that is directly connected to the PS3 that is great. However, if you want to access it on your laptop without removing it from the PS3 that would be a problem. External Hard drives can be moved around so you could easially unplug it from the PS3 and move it over to the laptop at any time.

The next step up from there is to get a NAS or Network Attached Storage. This takes a decent amount of know how around a computer. Depending on you skill level, you can buy premade NAS Boxes or make your own. I personally have a total of 4TB of storage in a raid 5 setup. 4, 1.5TB hard drives in a pretty cheap but easy to use Intel SS4200-e box. My PS3 saw it right away and the software that comes with the box setup mapped drives on the computer for me. I was suprised how easy it was compared to what I was trying to do before.

Anyways, everything depends on what you are wanting to do. 

External drives are cheap and can easially be moved from the PS3 to the computer. 
---(Remember, the PS3 only uses FAT32 which has a 4gb max file size.)
NAS Boxes can be accessed from anywhere. It costs more but you can usually have a backup built in.
You can also keep the laptop on at the same time as the PS3 and just stream it over to the PS3 using Windows Media Player or PS3 Media Server.

Choice is yours, if you have more questions, let me know.


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## dennisbsmith

Hey, thanks for the advice.
update:
USB remote included, i just dropped $600 on a 250gb PS3 and a 1TB WD MyBook NAS.
PS3 is up and running in a mere 30 minutes. Sweet.
Hope to install the NAS sometime between now and Sunday.
Will keep you posted.


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## KBacon

Happy New Year Guys

Just a quick couple of questions. I recently got Lacie NAS and am putting my files on it, but the PS3 only recognizes it when it is hardwired into my PS3. Is there a way of getting the ps3 to see it without hardwiring? It is a UPNP model so thought it should recognize it straight away.

Also, I'm using DVD Decryptor and the files it is making are huge! Bigger than the disc - some 5 or 6 gig. Am I doing this right? Making the VOB is quick, but transferring it to the NAS takes around 2 hours and that is it being hardwired, not wireless. I thought this was a straight copy and since I ignore subtitles and foreign languages I thought it should be smaller than the capacity of a DVD. 

Any thoughts?


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## tea_doe

A normal DVD is around 8gb in file size. Depending on the settings that you are using it could have a larger file. The disks you "backup" the dvd to are usually 4gb. Depending on what you are doing, the file sizes will very. I dont have experiance in DVD Decrypter so I cannot answer that question.

Now, for the NAS that you are using, how do you have it attached to your Computer and PS3. If it is attached to your computer via USB, if you have USB 1.0 it will take a long time to transfer a DVD over. Now, the whole purpose of as NAS is that it is Network Attached Storage. Make sure that it is plugged directly into your router using a network cable. After that, I am not sure what the Lacie software has as far as recognition but as long as its plugged into power as well, I would think you should be able to recognize it.


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## eugovector

DVD Decrypter simply rips the original file ad does no transcoding. The files are no larger nor smaller than they are on the disk.


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## MataLeo

im getting confused with the command prompt, i open it and its in c:\documents and settings\owner, whats the next steps its on my M: drive, so i type in M: and it switches to M:\ but from there i cant find anything


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## wbassett

MataLeo unless you specifically want to rename your files to *.mpeg you can skip that step and just rename them in Windows Explorer. The PS3 has been able to read *.vob files for quite awhile now and that makes life a whole lot easier! 

Now if they would only support NTFS and full ISO files it would be perfect in my opinion!


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## MataLeo

yeah i just started reading the other post sorry for asking a question that already was answered, great post by the way


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## wbassett

NP and welcome to the Shack!

I probably should go back and edit that section of the thread... thanks for bringing it up!


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## dennisbsmith

OK. Everything's setup and working... just really SLOW...

I've got the NAS connected to the router and my laptp see it (wirelessly) just fine.

I've got the PS3 connected via ethernet cable to the router and it sees the NAS as well.

But when i use the PS3 to open/browse a folder of photos that are on the NAS it is SO SLOW!!! it probably takes 20 seconds to load each 2MB JPEG image. Not even fast enough to run a slideshow.

I've been searching online to see what's up, but can't figure it out. SOmeone said something somewhaer about manually changing the IP addresses for the laptop, NAS and PS3 to be all different to avoid conflicts. However I'm not sure how to do this... I assume I can do this through the router setting via my laptop, but i'm not sure.

Any help woudl be appreciated!


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## dennisbsmith

ugh.

i assigned my ps3 a static ip address and then enabled DMZ in my router for that address.

turned everything off then on again,

but it's still loading the images really slow.


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## dennisbsmith

here's a thought i just had...

the NAS is formatted as NTFS.

Could it be that I need to reformat it to FAT32?

or not, because the PS3 is already seeing it?


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## KBacon

Hey guys. Have been putting my dvds onto my NAS for a while now and have just upgraded to a 5.1 surround sound system.

I notice that although I have recorded my DVDs with surround sound (says so when playing them on ps3 when hit select) they dont seem to be getting to my receiver in surround sound. The receiver has nothing saying Dolby Digital or DTS on it.

Loaded the original DVD and that worked fine with both DTS and Dolby options, but the copy doesnt seem to. Any ideas?

Also recorded some in DTS and Dolby Digital. Thought could just hit audio options on PS3 and it would turn from one to the other but that doesnt work either (obviously does with origianl DVD). 

Any thoughts why receiver not getting the Dolby Digital or DTS coding? I have played around with both Linear PCM and Bitstream under BD/DVD Audio Format (HDMI) and BD Audio Optical Format (optical digital) but it doesnt seem to make any difference. 

Could it be because I'm not using HDMI and only using ethernet connection? If so is there a function to get the digital surround option via ethernet? If not how do I get true surround sound as presuming there must be an option to do this otherwise I'm not getting a true copy of the original. 

Any thoughts much appreciated


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## recruit

When you are ripping your DVD's to the server are you sure you are not removing any content like the Audio DD/DTS tracks as that is all I can think of if they are playing fine as disks, it sounds like you have everything connected correctly :huh:


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## KBacon

Thanks for thoughts. Using DVD Decrytor and leaving the DTS/Dolby Digital checked so should be copying that information. When the PS3 plays the file it has Dolby digital etc in the top right corner. But I can say it definitely is not going to the amp, and when I play the original through DVD the sound is much better and very different.

Any other thoughts what I have done wrong?


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## recruit

It is a strange one Kevin as it sounds like you have done everything correctly, I did have a PS3 but not any more and never used it a video streamer so not overly confident how well it works, I use a Popcorn Hour A110 and that works really well, I hope someone can give you the correct settings or at least point you in the right direction


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## ke6jph

Hey Guys, Just a quick note about decoding...I have had great success using One Click DVD Copy Pro for all my movies. You can adjust the compression and edit. Have yet to have a failure
Mark


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## KBacon

Hey guys.

Since my last query i have worked out what was going on. The PS3 was decoding the surround sound and the amp was not doing it. Thats why it wasnt showing surround sound on amp. With DVDs the ps3 can either transcode the signal or the amp. It seems with HDD and external storage it is the ps3 and no other option.

However, I am having 2 problems.

1) I struggle with DTS recordings. Something like Saving Private Ryan records to DD but not DTS. Even if I just select just DTS when ripping I wont get DTS on PS3. Anyone managed DTS ripping?

2) Been mentioned here before but not seen an answer. Subtitles just wont record and play on PS3.

Anyone got any ideas on these two issues?

Cheers


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## wbassett

Kevin I haven't run into this problem but honestly I haven't watched my entire library over again. There may be some that have the same problem you are having.

If I find anything I'll post a solution if any.


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## wbassett

*Possible Game Over*

It's been a long road and one thing I have always said is there is no single item that is perfect at doing everything for everyone. 

The Popcorn Hour is a great media player, but it isn't a bluray player unless you get the C200 and then drop another $100 or so for a BD rom to put in it. It definitely is the most flexible, even plays DVD ISO files with full menu support- but it also has an ugly interface compared to other players. Mainly its price is its main con. It costs more than a BD player but it doesn't play BDs without spending more money.

The WDTV and WDTV Live are ones I have seen up close and personal and really intrigued me. Setup is a breeze and they play everything thrown at them... except ISO files with menu support. They will play a DVD ISO file, but they only play the biggest .vob file thinking that's the main movie. For episodic TV shows this obviously won't work because you can't switch between episodes. So far WDTV will not commit to whether this feature will ever be added to the current players. Even the home brew firmware guys haven't gotten ISO menu support to work, or at least not that I have read yet.

Then there is this thread... the PS3. Unless Sony makes some major mindset changes, they will have totally missed the boat on what could have been the single most influential piece of gear to hit homes since the PC. In fact the PS3 can even be configured to dual boot into the PS3 console or as a full Linux PC! 

What this thread was about was not to force people to buy a PS3, nor was it saying the PS3 is the best or only option out there. The whole point and exercise was to utilize the PS3 to do everything it is capable of doing. Since it is a very capable DVD and Bluray player as well as a fun game console, if a person already owns a PS3 then why not utilize it as a media player? The PS3 is even going to get a 3D update soon, as well as in Japan they just released a DVR addon for the PS3 for $100. 

To me adding a PCH which costs as much as the PS3, or more if you add the BDrom doesn't make sense. Now if the PCH was a bit lower in price, I'd be all over it. As I mentioned though, the goal was to get the PS3 to do as much as it can.

The FAT32 limitation really is an issue when it comes to USB drives. This is one area where other players like the PCH, WDTV and O!Play beat the PS3 hands down. Once a media server and network streaming are introduced though then the field is leveled, and actually the PS3 has some ground. Now the PS3 can play DVDs, BDs, games, stream virtually all media content... but it can also do online content like NetFlicks Watch It Now feature. Not all the players can do that. Still nothing is perfect. The PS3 can't do iso's and definitely can't do full ISO menu support. This is something Sony definitely needs to relax on and enable this feature. But they won't.

Sony will never add NTFS support if for no other reason than NTFS is a Microsoft file system and Microsoft is their biggest competitor. Sony is not only a hardware company, but also a movie studio with a huge vested interest in copy protection. Even though what we are doing isn't illegal since we own the discs, Sony has never liked this type of thing and actually I am surprised that they even enable media playback on the PS3 in the first place. My biggest fear is one day being prompted by a new release Bluray or PS3 game that I need to do a firmware update- I do the update, and then all my media playback is whacked. That is something they could do at anytime. I don't think it would be smart, but it is something they could do.

So based on the above, and how Sony really doesn't want us doing this in the first place and then throw in the fact that they also own movie companies and DVD/BD distribution companies... I seriously doubt they will ever add in ISO playback with full menu support for DVD and BD. Like I said, they really missed the boat. If Sony was smart they would open up the PS3 and let it do anything and everything. Also if they were smart they would include an HDMI cable as well as the remote in every box. Sony could dominate the HT world as well as the gaming world and be as big as the PC is and literally have at least one if not two or three PS3s in every house if they did that. But Sony isn't smart.

And neither is the PCH. Sorry about saying that guys. Yes it is an incredible device, but when WD or ASUS can come out with something that really rings the PCH's bell in a lot of areas for a third the price- then PCH really needs to step back and re-evaluate their market base and pricing strategy. 

If the ASUS O!Play really can do everything it claims and what I just spent the weekend researching... it probably will be game over for the PS3 as my media player. Why not have them co-exist you may ask? Keep the PS3 in the main HT area and have the O!Play in the bedrooms and other areas of the house? Well it comes back to that ISO menu feature again. The PS3 can't do it, so if I archive as an ISO then it won't be able to play the content which negates the whole purpose in the first place. The PCH can do it, but at the same cost as a PS3 it is too expensive to be buying a PCH for every room in the house.

A media player needs to play everything and also be affordable so people will buy them just like they do a second, third and even forth DVD player. We are starting to get close but not quite there yet.

By the time the dust settles though, all this will be a moot point because just as all TVs are HDTVs now, soon they all will have network connections and have built in media player capability.

For now though don't trash your PS3, it is still a great option and depending on what a person needs it could be perfect for them. My point is that nothing doesn everything, and typically if something does, then it usually doesn't do everything well- there will always be trade offs.

I will be getting an O!Play soon though and will start a thread on that. Also I am in the process of building a 20TB plus media server to feed the PS3 and my media players. I'll have new threads on those in the coming weeks.


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## WRYKER

*Re: Possible Game Over*

wbassett - the PCH is under $200. The new A200 is out and supports BD structure. True it doesn't play BDs but the intent of the device is to not use physical media. I have 2 PS3's, the PCH A110 and the WD HDLive. The WD is easier for the novice to set up and get running but the PCH is still the best media box for those that don't mind some slight tinkering (I love YAMJ).
Some food for thought.
Still have the PS3's hooked up for those off-times I want to watch the physical media (to watch the 'extras' etc) but aside from that - my PCH does everything from HDDVDs, to BDs, to VOBs from DVDs.


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## wbassett

Again I want to say that from everything I hear the PCH does work well. It's the price though that has to come down before I can personally recommend it as a mainstream unit. The O!Play has the right price and right features for an extender.

It's all gonna be a moot point though because this will be integrated into our HDTVs soon.


----------



## WRYKER

@$179 for the new A200 I would recommend it to anyone! :yes:


----------



## wbassett

Still not as good as the O!Play at $99 which plays all the same formats including ISO menus for SD and BD and has a more intuitive menu system... and neither can play actual discs or games or the upcoming 3D content which the PS3 can (and will be able to do 3D with the coming firmware update).

It all comes back to what I said earlier that no one unit is perfect and does everything, or everything well.


----------



## WRYKER

Valid points. My TV is 3D ready and the PS3 will be upon release of the firmware upgrade- that leaves my receiver as a potential bottle-neck for 3D playback of BDs. I do not see 3D having any inroads since a bulk of people bought HDTV's this last year and will not pony up more money to buy a new BD player and TV. I consider the PS3 a gaming/BD device - the PCH for streaming any/all content (I have 8TBs hooked up to it with @190 BDs/HDDVDs ripped for instant viewing) and have 4TB hooked up to my networked PC with @700 DVDs ripped. Unless you have a Cat6/1Gbps network set up (and your cable isn't "split") you can't stream a ripped BD over a network (thus I bought the WDHD for the living room.) So even with an 'all-in'1' system unless you have such a blazing network or only one room you watch your media; it won't support a whole-house idea.


----------



## eugovector

Popbox will take care of the price issue (eta Summer 2010 @ $130). As for media streaming built into the TV, I refuse to pay extra for it. Sure it saves you a box, but at the rate that internet services are changing and updating, and the history of AV manufacturers to want to sell you a new unit instead of updating their older one that you already own, I want as little built into my TV as possible.


----------



## wbassett

$130 is definitely a price point that PCH had to hit, otherwise they would be way over priced and their target consumer would be those that feel something is better because it costs more. That simply isn't the case anymore. In its day the PCH was king of the media extenders because it played the most file formats, but now that isn't the case and the $100 units are delivering everything the PCH was but at a better price point, and some even have better/more intuitive interfaces.

I certainly am not bad mouthing the PCH, just pointing out it, like everything else isn't perfect and has its cons. In order to stay competetive PCH had to bring their price down.

As far as HDTVs, I wasn't referring to only Hulu and Netflix type Internet streaming, rather any digital media, even from a home network server/media server like what we are talking about for all these extenders. Eventually all HDTVs and AVRs will have media playback features, and I expect BD players to start incorporating it in certain models. We're pretty much pioneers in all of this. A couple of years from now all of what we are doing is going to be old hat and integrated is all I am saying.


----------



## WRYKER

On top of that we'll be out several $$$ since we tend to be early adopters!


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> On top of that we'll be out several $$$ since we tend to be early adopters!


lol yeah that's the price we pay!

I also understand what Marshall was saying about not wanting to spend more money on more gear. I was actually looking at a new 58" LCD HDTV to replace my Sony SXRD set. There really was no reason to though because the 55" SXRD is a great set. Anyway, when I started hearing about the 3D sets coming... well I realized two things- First, why buy a set and then if 3D does take off and more important if it looks good, then I'd probably want to upgrade. So why spend money just to turn around and want to buy a new TV next year?! Second... when these new 3D HDTVs do hit, well there are going to be some HUGE sales on regular HDTVs!

Most people are't going to buy a new AVR or HDTV just for media playback, and I wouldn't recommend anyone do that either. I'm saying that the day is coming soon when it will be an integrated part of our components. 

As long as we're talking future tech, ultimately hard drives as we know them will be obsolete and everything will move to solid state storage. Media servers and media players are inevitable and will be in every household. When that day comes I'm sure we'll look back on the devices we have now and laugh at some of them, while others will hold fond memories... and then there will be devices we wish were still around!


----------



## WRYKER

Wellllllll step right up my friend and go to Best Buy and buy the 3D package that's already available! You mentioned your TV but not if you need a new receiver sooo why wait!? ORDER NOW!!!
I have a 73" Mitsubishi so I'll just need to buy the 'adapter' (when that comes out) and the PS3 upgrade and then I just need to figure out 'what' 3D glasses will work (since there are two flavors).


----------



## wbassett

lol... Wryker throw in the mix that I also have a projector setup!

Maybe I'll just wait for the HoloDeck displays!


----------



## WRYKER

I might just hold-out until we all have transporters in our home.


----------



## rizzi_nyc

Wryker, I'm confused, why aren't you using the PCH in your living room as the main streaming device? Is it in a more dedicated home entertainment room so you need the WDHD to stream in your living room? I really only watch my media in the living room so I assume I'd be able to get away with just the PCH there? Also, when you're streaming from your PC, are you able to do that to both your PCH and the WDHD. I'm curious how that works, as most that I've read says streaming HD content doesn't really work well. Thanks.


----------



## Hjalmar

Hello all,

we are using the PS3 extensively for video (and games by our son).
Initially we plugged in an external USB drive, it works well and is quiet. However the PS3 does not show the files on the drive unless we hit the green button.

We then hooked up an Buffalo Live network drive to the network, the PS3 did not see this drive until the latest firmware upgrade, now it works like a charm. It took 2 years to get the firmware fixed .....

While being annoyed by the buffalo I purchased an Iomega 1TB network harddisk that worked like a dream directly out of the package. The only thing is that the hard disk spinning is quite audible. It is thus better to keep the disk in some out of the place location.

Which brings me to our specific problem with wiring and/or wireless setups. For HD contents I strongke advice a wired connection, in my experience wireless can not keep up. I have not tested N-type networks though.
We are in a rental property with concrete / brick walls, which severly limits possibilities for laying wiring and using wireless. I am trying to use ethernet of powerline, but the powerline is lousy here in the country (we are on a generator about 8 hours a day :hissyfit: ) so I ended up putting the Buffalo server disk on the same Gigbit switch as the PS3, uploading content to the Buffalo takes a bit more time, but playback is now fine.

For audio we now use an old Squeezebox connected through optical digital out to the home-cinema receiver.

Regards,

Hjalmar


----------



## wbassett

First welcome to the Shack Hjalmar!

You discovered the first rule of media streaming... Do Not use WiFi!

I know your plight. I own my place but it is a 160 year old Victorian with lath and plaster walls and running any wires is a major undertaking.

I looked into the Powerline option and it most likely isn't going to work for you. The problem people run into, and I know I would have this issue, is that Powerline doesn't deliver the advertised speeds and will only come close if you are on the same physical breaker. If you are not on the same breaker, you have to be on the same side of the breaker box, but your speeds will be slower since you're not on the same line. If one room is on one side and the other on a different side then Powerline won't work.

A better option is to go old school in a way. If you have cable run throughout your apartment and there is cable wired in the room where your computer is and also cable run to the room where the PS3 is then try to find a couple of Verizon Actiontec MI424WR Routers. These will connect to your existing cable system and then on one end you will plug the PS3 into the four port hub, and on the other end you will plug the PC into the four port hub.

I say 'old school' because a lot of people look at this and say wow and think it is cool and new technology but it isn't. Cable has been used for computer networks long before most people ever even thought of having a PC in their house. Thicknet was the standard in the day. There used to be a very thick and rigid coax run between floors in an office building. The IT tech would take what was called a vampire connection and screw it into the coax. It was called vampire because it had metal spikes or 'teeth' that would pierce the cable and make connection with the center conductor. Then they would run thinner and more flexible coax runs to the networked PCs.

The coax used was a bit different than what we use for cable TV but modern cable TV coax will support ethernet along with cable/internet. The one exception is if you are using satellite such as Direct TV or Dish Network because the operating frequencies interfere with the ethernet operating frequency.

If you have cable run to the rooms, and are not using a satellite system... the Actiontec MI424WR may be what you are looking for! It delivers speeds up to 100baseT, which is more than enough for streaming even full HD over.

Good luck, and once again welcome to the Shack!


----------



## WRYKER

rizzi_nyc
True- streaming HD content is not possible in my home. I have a "man's room" where the PCH resides (upstairs) while downstairs in the living room is another large screen TV. The "man's room" is where I watch all my TV (except for the plasma in the bedroom). Downstairs in the living room is where my better half watches TV during the day and if I'm watching something she doesn't at night. I ripped all my DVDs to drives attached to the PC as a central HUB to stream them. Streaming DVDs to either my PCH or WDHD works like a champ. I've tried streaming HD (meaning ripped BDs or HDDVDs) from all three units (PC, PCH, & WDHD) to each other (not testing, of course, from the PCH or WDHD to the PC). Each attempt would cause 'stuttering' or 'freezing' of the content. It depends on how many bits the HD content is trying to send (for example the first 5 -10 minutes of one Harry Potter BD rip didn't stutter going from the PCH to the WDTV.) 
SO for any BD she wants to instantly watch I rip to the WDTV and the PCH (otherwise the PCH first and if she wants it downstairs I 'copy' it from the PCH to the WDTV.) Redundant? - yes - but it accomplishes what I wanted. Instant viewing of whatever we want. Over 700DVDs and currently @200 BD/HDDVD rips. HD content from cable (we have 2 HDTiVo's) that's ripped to the PC and re-encoded to .mpg play fine to either unit (but for some reason sound gets dropped). I purchased diplexers and connected those to my cable to see if by 'splitting' the signal into digital and analog would increase the bandwith but it didn't do anything for my set-up (others have had success.)
Feel free to PM me with any other questions!
Also - to wbassett's post: i have several Motorola NIM100 Cable Modems connected to my cable to get a wired connection in all my rooms. While true it can support 1Gbps speed that only will work if EVERY connected device in your home is 1Gbps. That means every router, bridge, PC, etc must be at that speed to 'hope' you achieve. If any item connected does not support that speed (PCH does not for example) than the entire speed for the connection is 'lowered' so HD is impossible to stream. If you are starting from scratch - have Cat6 wired everywhere and THEN you should be able to stream HD everywhere!


----------



## Hjalmar

Hello,

wbassett can you explain how you run ethernet of coax cable.
The place I have rented has a coax output for cable TV in every room.
All of the cables terminate on one splitter. Using it for ethernet would be ideal.

A problem I am having with the PS3 is that is cannot handle .MKV video files. Transferring them to a m2s file format costs a lot of computer time.

Regards,

Hjalmar


----------



## rizzi_nyc

Thanks Wryker, that is very helpful...and I will likely PM you to clarify some things...thanks again.


----------



## wbassett

Hjalmar said:


> Hello,
> 
> wbassett can you explain how you run ethernet of coax cable.
> The place I have rented has a coax output for cable TV in every room.
> All of the cables terminate on one splitter. Using it for ethernet would be ideal.
> 
> A problem I am having with the PS3 is that is cannot handle .MKV video files. Transferring them to a m2s file format costs a lot of computer time.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Hjalmar


The Verizon Actiontec MI424WR Routers connect to your existing cable and has a four port 10/100 hub built in. You connect one MI424WR to the cable in each room where you want to extend your network and it will bridge the network over the cable run..

For the .MKV files, I believe you will need to transcode those. Try something like PS3 MediaServer and see if that works for you. 

Note: BTW- PS3 MediaServer is an excellent little program and it works for more than just the PS3. It also works very well with the XBox 360 and other media players as well.


----------



## WRYKER

Please know that it's not straight-forward connecting Verizon Actiontec MI424WR Routers to a cable system (my NIM's on the other hand are plug-and-play!). For more information on setting up the Actiontec visit: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1145636


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> Also - to wbassett's post: i have several Motorola NIM100 Cable Modems connected to my cable to get a wired connection in all my rooms. While true it can support 1Gbps speed that only will work if EVERY connected device in your home is 1Gbps. That means every router, bridge, PC, etc must be at that speed to 'hope' you achieve. If any item connected does not support that speed (PCH does not for example) than the entire speed for the connection is 'lowered' so HD is impossible to stream. If you are starting from scratch - have Cat6 wired everywhere and THEN you should be able to stream HD everywhere!


Actually this is true of anything on the network. Things will only travel as fast as the slowest point. Well... if a workstation is 10/100 and everything else is Gigabit then everything except that workstation will run at Gigabit speed. Now if the router or switch is 10/100... forget it. Everything is bottlenecked now.

Same thing goes with Ram and just about anything that shares a common point- it always runs at the slowest speed in the link.

For video though, and this applies to anything out there and not just the PS3- WiFi is bad, stay away from it unless you're in the same room and only a few feet away and even then don't expect everything to be perfect 100% of the time. Powerlink- Very very cool concept and over in Europe there are places that have been using power lines for Internet ISP providers for years now like we have been using cable for our high speed Internet. So the concept is cool... but so far I don't know anyone that is really happy with their PowerLinks.


----------



## WRYKER

Interested in the Asus O!Play? Check out http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/25/asus-o-play-air-reviewed-deemed-capable/


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> Please know that it's not straight-forward connecting Verizon Actiontec MI424WR Routers to a cable system (my NIM's on the other hand are plug-and-play!). For more information on setting up the Actiontec visit: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1145636


Where did you get your NIMS? 

I like that they have a cable in and out, the one turnoff was the one network connection. It would really be nice if it had a 4 port switch built in


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## WRYKER

eBay. You can find them every now and then for @$40. I bought an inexpensive 8 port switch to plug that one network connection in to get 8! I checked and right now there aren't many available (the NIM). Need to keep checking (that's why I bought 4 of them when I did!)


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## wbassett

Same here, I was looking for them too. I got the Actiontecs for next to nothing but then the guy didn't send the power adapters so I had to order them. Royal Pain!


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## WRYKER

I emailed the guy I bought my Nim100's from and he emailed back that he just put more on sale at eBay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Motorola-NIM100...dZViewItemQQptZPCC_Modems?hash=item2eac179dedhttp://cgi.ebay.com/Motorola-NIM100-NIM-100-Cable-Modem_W0QQitemZ200455724525QQcmdZViewItemQQptZPCC_Modems?hash=item2eac179ded


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## wbassett

I'm tempted to pick up a couple even though I already have the Actiontec's.

Right now I am finally putting together my media server to feed the PS3 as well as an ASUS O!Play 

Once I get that built I will be setting up a network though my cable system.


----------



## KBacon

Anyone checked out AC Ryan's range of products? They are getting seriously good reviews in the UK, are quite cheap, play ISO files and can have YAMJ put on apparently. 

Anyone got any thoughts?

http://www.acryan.com/en/


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## wbassett

I didn't read everything on it but it does look interesting... also a bit expensive for something that doesn't seem to offer anything more than the PCH at the same price range.

We're starting to see a glut of these devices, and naturally each company will say their product is the best. This is where it gets hard for the consumers that have to actually wade through everything.

I'm not saying this unit is bad, so don't anyone infer that! I am saying though that companies are jumping on the band wagon. Typically though when you really dig under the hood of things, there usually is only one or two companies that actually make the guts and everything else is rebadged and a slighly different bios/OS to give a different look. Again I am not saying that is the case here, just pointing out this is common throughout the electronics industry.

I still stand behind the PS3 because it is something that a lot of people already have but didn't know it can also play media. Probably the biggest issues I have with the PS3 is the lack of NTFS support for USB drives, and lack of ISO file playback with full menu support. The NTFS issue will never change, however streaming from a media server resolves that issue- and besides, once a person gets more than a couple My Books they probably should start looking into a media server just to house and arrange their content in an easier to find way. The ISO menu support issue is something that 'could' be rectified with a future firmware update. Note I didn't say it 'would', I said it 'could'.

So other than those two items, the PS3 supports a boat load of file formats, and so far has played everything I have thrown at it. I'm sure there are formats that it doesn't do well, but that really can be said about all of these media players... they all have their strengths and weaknesses. In my opinion what they need to work on is better and more polished interfaces. 

Right now the units I recommed are (and in no particular order) the PS3 of course, the PCH, WDTV Live, and the ASUS O!Play. 

Now if AC Ryan wants to send me a unit to test and evaluate...


----------



## WRYKER

@wbassett - are you able to stream BD and HDDVD rips to the PS3? I'd be really surprised. The file size restriction is why I don't consider using the PS3 as a media server.


----------



## Blaser

Indeed you can rip BDs with PS3, but you'll have to install Yellowdog Linux, or use SAK (swiss army knife) for this to happen...


----------



## WRYKER

Ah - not worth it for me with my PCHA110 (and Sony's battle to remove the ability to install any other OS)


----------



## Blaser

Indeed it's worth it if you want to have a backup of your BDs in the nmt. I have both PS3 and PCH A110. I am under the impression the PQ of the PS3 is supperior to the PCH. That just may be an impression. Can anyone confirm or deny?


----------



## eugovector

I use the NMT streaming from networked drives and haven't done a sidexside with blu-ray, but I have compared a DVD image vs the original disc on the popcorn hour vs. an Oppo 981. Not really a fair fight, but the Oppo did have superior pic quality, just not enough to outweigh the convenience of the Popcorn Hour. The Oppo now lives with my dad.


----------



## wbassett

WRYKER said:


> @wbassett - are you able to stream BD and HDDVD rips to the PS3? I'd be really surprised. The file size restriction is why I don't consider using the PS3 as a media server.


HD content streams fine and lots of people are doing it even on 100baseT networks. If you are streaming multiple things at a time to various TVs then there could be a problem. If you are using wireless... then a definitely no to HD content.


----------



## WRYKER

I can stream HD xfrs from my Tivo - but BD .ts rips from the PCH to a Western Digital HD or vice versa - not happening.


----------



## McACRYAN

Hi wbassett,

Could you send me a PM please? Thanks

McACRYAN


----------



## wbassett

Can't PM until you have at least 5 posts.


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## McACRYAN

I'd like to send you a Playon! to test and evaluate.


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## wbassett

I definitely would be interested in that seeing I will be adding to the PS3 to have streaming devices in every room in the house that has a TV.

The PS3 is a great option and one of the purposes of this thread is to utilize it to do everything it can. If someone was going to buy a device just for streaming, the PS3 is too expesive just for that and there are less expensive options out there... like the Playon for instance. 

I still can't PM you yet, but you can go to my profile and then under contact information you can send me an email.

I definitely look forward to testing a unit out and putting it through it's paces.


----------



## McACRYAN

The Playon series certainly does provide a streaming alternative to the PS3.

My eyesight is not what it used to be - in your contact info, you only have an AIM Instant Messenger, not email...this correct?


----------



## McACRYAN

By the way, would you prefer to test the Playon!HD or just the Playon!HD Mini? 
The Mini is more of a streamer without the internal storage...and of course a lower price than the Playon!HD


----------



## McACRYAN

5th post while I'm at it;-)


----------



## wbassett

McACRYAN said:


> The Playon series certainly does provide a streaming alternative to the PS3.
> 
> My eyesight is not what it used to be - in your contact info, you only have an AIM Instant Messenger, not email...this correct?


you can select send a message via email to wbassett.

I'll have to check with Sonnie as to why your PM function isn't showing up. I thought it became active after 5 posts and that it is setup that way to prevent someone from joining and spamming everyone and then never coming back. In any advent if there isn't a clickable link to send me an email let me know and we'll get this resolved so we can talk offline about the details of getting a unit for review. I would love to check it out and I promise to he honest and fair.


----------



## wbassett

PM sent


----------



## Sonnie

It can take up to an hour for maintenance to run and promote him to Shackster so that he has PM available. :T


----------



## Maralyn45

Amazing.......wud like to have it..


----------



## bmurphy2121

Ive read some posts on here bout converting you DVD so that you can save on an external HD to play throught your PS3, but have relized that a lot of the posts are from years ago. I was wanting a tutorial on how to do this for all the new updates that has occured. Could someone please help me out Im very ancious to try this out so that I can get back away all my old DVDs. Thanks in advance


----------



## wbassett

I still use the exact same method originally explained. The only change, which was mentioned is that it is no longer necessary to rename to '.mpeg' You can simply rename rename the file within Windows Explorer and keep the .vob extention. Again I am certain this was mentioned but I will check and also look at updating the tutorial as well. 

In fact I am using this method right now to do the TV series StarGate and I just finished Dr Quinn for my wife.


----------



## bmurphy2121

Thanks for the update. The only thing is Im not real computer smart and am having trouble saving everything the right way so that I can find it all to be able to save on an external HD. I think I have it right tho, but still a little unsure about it all I will try again tonight and see if I can get a movie or two saved to the external HD. Thanks again


----------



## bmurphy2121

Wbassett, Ive tried to do your tutorial again last night everythig seemed to work but when I but it on the PS3 nothing came up it was like the PS3 didnt ever reconize that I had anything hooked up to it. I really wish this thing would work cause I have around 300 + movies I want to back up but seem to have some trouble doing so could you please help thanks in advance.


----------



## wbassett

First make sure the external drive is formatted in FAT32 and not NTFS. The PS3 will only recognize FAT32. This is the biggest negative con about the PS3. Everyone has complained about the restrictions of FAT32 but Sony will never add NTFS support to the PS3 so it is a serious limitation on their part and judgement. However... once you start streaming over a network and not from USB attached hard drives the 4GB limitation no longer exists. Again though make sure your USB drive is FAT32.

If it is formatted in FAT32, make sure your files are in /VIDEO.

If you have done both of those, the PS3 should see the drive and movies. If it doesn't, try another USB port on the PS3. After that if it still doesn't work, swap USB cables. If it still doesn't work, there is something else wrong that is beyond what I can assist without seeing things in person.


----------



## bmurphy2121

wbassett, I know this might be a dumb quewstion but how do I find out if the external HD is formatted in FAT32? and if its not how can I reformat it? Thanks for being very patient with me as Im still learning all this software stuff. Thanks again.


----------



## wbassett

The easiest way is to plug it into your computer and then from Windows Explorer right click on the drive and select properties. You will see what file system the drive is formatted in.

If it is NTFS you will need a format utility like Swiss Army Knife. Depending on the make of the drive, the company may have a format utility.


----------



## bmurphy2121

wbassett said:


> The easiest way is to plug it into your computer and then from Windows Explorer right click on the drive and select properties. You will see what file system the drive is formatted in.
> 
> If it is NTFS you will need a format utility like Swiss Army Knife. Depending on the make of the drive, the company may have a format utility.


The HD that I am using for now is a WD Passport Essential 350G. I tried to do the right click thing and nothing came up saying what the drive was formatted to. Need help on that one. Also do I have to have the movie converted into ISO or no? I have converted a couple of them and put them on the HD and then pluged it up to the PS3 but still got nothing showed up. 

I did find a better "How To" that gives step by step directions on how to use the latest DVD Shrink, thought I would share it.
http://www.dvd-guides.com/content/view/16/59/


----------



## bmurphy2121

Never mind I found out how to convet it to FAT32. I will try this tonight and see if it works and then post back. Thanks again for all you help wbassett


----------



## wbassett

bmurphy2121 said:


> The HD that I am using for now is a WD Passport Essential 350G. I tried to do the right click thing and nothing came up saying what the drive was formatted to. Need help on that one. Also do I have to have the movie converted into ISO or no? I have converted a couple of them and put them on the HD and then pluged it up to the PS3 but still got nothing showed up.
> 
> I did find a better "How To" that gives step by step directions on how to use the latest DVD Shrink, thought I would share it.
> http://www.dvd-guides.com/content/view/16/59/


I see you found how to reformat the drive. Any drive though will have a properties tab when you right click. When you look at the properties you'll see a section that is labeled 'File System. That's where you will see what file system it is formatted in.

As far as the tutorial you posted, I don't know if I would say it's better... it's not covering the same things. It is a nice tutorial for using Shrink but it doesn't show how to get the movie. And no you do not want ISO for the PS3, it can't read ISOs or play back an ISO with full DVD menus.


----------



## bmurphy2121

wbassett said:


> I see you found how to reformat the drive. Any drive though will have a properties tab when you right click. When you look at the properties you'll see a section that is labeled 'File System. That's where you will see what file system it is formatted in.
> 
> As far as the tutorial you posted, I don't know if I would say it's better... it's not covering the same things. It is a nice tutorial for using Shrink but it doesn't show how to get the movie. And no you do not want ISO for the PS3, it can't read ISOs or play back an ISO with full DVD menus.


Well I finaly got the PS3 to see my HD and I set up a folder called movies in all caps and put it in that folder but my PS3 is saying there is no folders to be found. What am I doing wrong I'm so frustrated? Oh and if I take a game and copy it to the HD it works so there must be something I'm missing. I'm so close but so far away still. Can you help? Thanks
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## wbassett

bmurphy2121 said:


> Well I finaly got the PS3 to see my HD and I set up a folder called movies in all caps and put it in that folder but my PS3 is saying there is no folders to be found. What am I doing wrong I'm so frustrated? Oh and if I take a game and copy it to the HD it works so there must be something I'm missing. I'm so close but so far away still. Can you help? Thanks
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


As per the tutorial I made-


> Before you just start copying movies over, the PS3 recognizes certain directories only. Create a directory on the external drive named 'VIDEO' in all capital letters.


If you used MOVIES then the PS3 won't recognize that because it's looking for a folder named VIDEO.


----------



## bmurphy2121

Ok thanks I will check when I get home and make sure that it is called to "VIDEO" and not movies. If it is called VIDEO is there any thoughts on why the PS3 is not seeing the folder? I also have a folder made called MUSIC and it dosent see that folder either but the PS3 def sees the HD that I have. Just confused maybe I just need to play around some more then.:dontknow:


----------



## bmurphy2121

wbassett, 
Well I got it all to work last night and able to play a movie that I put on my HD. The prob I had was I had a folder called PS3 and inside that folder I had the VIDEO and MUSIC folder, once I got rid of the PS3 folder everything worked like a charm. Thanks again for all your help. 

The only question I do have is if you make every file under 4G will you only loose the menu and credits and thats it or will it start to effect the movie. For instance I was recording Slap Shot and it is well over 4G so thats why I have that question


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## wbassett

You won't lose the opening and closing credits, it is just compressing the movie is all. What that means is if any compression is needed there will be some loss in the overall quality. Most movies either don't need any or if they do not much to bring them to the 4GB size. There are ones out there though that do take up almost all of a dual layer DVD so they will be compressed quite a bit. 

You are going to lose the DVD menus no matter what you do though because right now the PS3 can't read ISO files and support DVD menus.


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## wbassett

Something to note:

You can create additional folders under the VIDEO (or MUSIC or any other folder). For example if you have different movie genres you could create a Kids, or Drama, or say you have all the Bond flicks you can make a folder named Bond or James Bond or 007... and then put all your movies for that genre/catagory in that folder. This way you won't have hundereds of movies all in the main \VIDEO folder. That can become a pain to navigate though after awhile.

Just keep in mind you can only have one level deep. Meaning \VIDEO\SuperHeroes and then all your super here flicks will work, but if you try to make another directory level for each franchise or studio it won't work... example this will not work \VIDEO\SuperHeros\Spiderman or whatever subdirectory you might want. You can only have one layer deep. It's a pain I know but still it's cool having everything at the click of a button!

My wife thought this was stupid and that I was nuts until I loaded her Dr Quinn series on a MYBook and showed her how to use it. Now she actually brags to her friends about how cool it is to be able to just click on any season and show and it's playing instantly! 

To anyone else that also questions this or says why when you can just put the disc in? Well here is a perfect reason why- My wife was watching her new Dr Quinn series set so much that some of the discs were starting act up and weren't playing right. I cleaned them all and some I even had to run through a buffer to get working. Basically if I didn't do this soon some of her discs wouldn't be playable anymore. I really wished I would have done this sooner though too because the set is a special edition collectors boxed set but now it's a bit used looking. If I would have done this right off the bat the boxed set would look mint right now. Oh well...


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## Harpmaker

wbassett said:


> To anyone else that also questions this or says why when you can just put the disc in? Well here is a perfect reason why- My wife was watching her new Dr Quinn series set so much that some of the discs were starting act up and weren't playing right. I cleaned them all and some I even had to run through a buffer to get working. Basically if I didn't do this soon some of her discs wouldn't be playable anymore. I really wished I would have done this sooner though too because the set is a special edition collectors boxed set but now it's a bit used looking. If I would have done this right off the bat the boxed set would look mint right now. Oh well...


Most excellent Bill! HTS is a large place and I certainly haven't read every thread let alone every post, so maybe this has been addressed before, but I get the impression that many people think that if they buy a DVD it will be good forever and that simply isn't the way it works. I have had commercial DVD's go bad due to age alone (I had played the disc once and then put it back in it's cover and stored it on the shelf in my bedroom). The point is that there ARE legitimate reasons for backing up a DVD. If I hadn't I would have to repurchase those DVD's and some of them may be out of production (like your Dr. Quinn set).


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## nickm

I have OS Vista and when I reformated my HDD it used exFAT. Is that compatible with PS3? I would love to be able to use it as my media server. One more thing I have the Netgear WDR3700 wireless router with the usb on the back for HDD to file share. Is it possible to watch the movies that way without it hooked up to the PS3?
Thanksfor the input.


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## nickm

Ok I just found a program that will format an external hard drive to FAT32. This program does the whole HDD and not just 30GB. The program name is Easeus Partition Master 6.1.1 Home Edition.


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## wbassett

Yeah there are many out there that will. 

Also most hard drive manufacturers have a utility that can be downloaded as well.


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## nickm

I own a dvd set (Band of Brothers) that was bought in Germany. I would like to know if there is a program out there that will rip it or reformat it to play in english. The dvd set will only play in a dvd player that is compatible with other countries format. I do not want to have to go out and purchase another dvd set of the same movie.


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## wbassett

There are some PAL converters out there. I'd have to do a search myself though too.


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## Harpmaker

Here is a media converter/encoder I recently started to use. It seems to be a simple thing to convert a PAL DVD to NTSC, but I haven't tried it (don't have any PAL discs).

Oh yeah, this program is FREE! :dancebanana:

http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html


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## Drumzerbe

Hi Bill,

Is the PS3 (older fat version) compatible with say a mac-mini or hard disc connected via wireless to an apple airport extreme? My wife wants an apple tv but from what I have read it only outputs 720p so I'm not sold and why buy a piece of gear which does essentially the same thing as the PS3?

Thanks,

Dave


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## beuoy

Drumzerbe said:


> Hi Bill,
> 
> Is the PS3 (older fat version) compatible with say a mac-mini or hard disc connected via wireless to an apple airport extreme? My wife wants an apple tv but from what I have read it only outputs 720p so I'm not sold and why buy a piece of gear which does essentially the same thing as the PS3?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Dave


Hey Dave,

I am running this server on a iMac running 10.6.8

http://www.afterdawn.com/software/audio_video/media_servers/pms_mac.cfm

As long as I have the drive from my airport extreme mounted on the iMac and shared through the server it works great. Right now my movies are stored on the iMac hard drive as H.264 and my large 500Gig or so file is on my airport extreme usb port. I also have a Apple TV2. It's a great little box although I did have to convert all my movies from .avi to H.264 format but Handbrake http://handbrake.fr/downloads.php dose it quite well and there is a setting for the Apple TV. The PS3 sees this format very well so I've been ditching my .avi files and keep the H.264. I have to keep the PS3 server and iTunes Home Sharing running to be able to use both devices but it has been surprisingly glitch free. It's been up for 6 months now and running over the wireless network just fine. Both of these programs are free and run in OS X. Hopes this helps.:T


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## chrapladm

Ok so after going through everything step by step from the beginning of the thread I still dont know how to change the vob files. Do I need to still?

I was trying to do my first upload or whatever you want to call it. I was trying Fellowship of the Ring. So there are 2 titles exactly the same. In the preview I couldn't tell the difference. So I just selected the first one I think. 

I did DVDShrink the first time and saw that I forgot to deselect 1gb sections. Oh well so I did it again. Got the whole movie onto one .vob file. I was going to just add the movie to my external 1TB HD but when connected to my PS3 there was no where to access the HD. So maybe not Fat32 or something.

I have downloaded shows and music videos to my computer and then just copy the file I want to watch to my PS3 HD then view. Then delete when I am done. Normally I can see all videos on my network from the PS3 but I cant see these vob files.

I am going to try and make a video file on the 1TB hard drive and see if when connected to the PS3 it can find the movies.

I really just want to add a few movies for now but figured this would be a quick easy thing to do. So anyone can you please help?


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> Ok so after going through everything step by step from the beginning of the thread I still dont know how to change the vob files. Do I need to still?
> 
> I was trying to do my first upload or whatever you want to call it. I was trying Fellowship of the Ring. So there are 2 titles exactly the same. In the preview I couldn't tell the difference. So I just selected the first one I think.
> 
> I did DVDShrink the first time and saw that I forgot to deselect 1gb sections. Oh well so I did it again. Got the whole movie onto one .vob file. I was going to just add the movie to my external 1TB HD but when connected to my PS3 there was no where to access the HD. So maybe not Fat32 or something.
> 
> I have downloaded shows and music videos to my computer and then just copy the file I want to watch to my PS3 HD then view. Then delete when I am done. Normally I can see all videos on my network from the PS3 but I cant see these vob files.
> 
> I am going to try and make a video file on the 1TB hard drive and see if when connected to the PS3 it can find the movies.
> 
> I really just want to add a few movies for now but figured this would be a quick easy thing to do. So anyone can you please help?


You will have to set up your external hard drive to FAT32 then put movies on it the way you have them. Then the PS3 will recognize them.


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## chrapladm

Sorry for the NOOB question but where do I find out if the HD is Fat32?

I looked at properties and it said NTFS


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> Sorry for the NOOB question but where do I find out if the HD is Fat32?
> 
> I looked at properties and it said NTFS


Yeah u will need to change it to FAT32.


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## chrapladm

I will do that next to the hard driver but what about changing vob files for PS3?


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> I will do that next to the hard driver but what about changing vob files for PS3?


Keep the VOB files. All u need to do is get Swiss knife off the web reformat ur external hard drive to FAT32 the load the VOB files on the external hard drive then plug the external hard drive into the PS3 then the PS3 will see all Ur movies.


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## chrapladm

Might have to wait to get a new external hard drive. Just saw there is a bunch of my wifes files on there. Reformatting means I will be in trouble. 

Can I make a partition with Swiss Knife and make the partition Fat32?


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> I will do that next to the hard driver but what about changing vob files for PS3?


Keep the VOB files. All u need to do is get Swiss knife off the web reformat ur external hard drive to FAT32 the load the VOB files on the external hard drive then plug the external hard drive into the PS3 then the PS3 will see all Ur movies.


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> Might have to wait to get a new external hard drive. Just saw there is a bunch of my wifes files on there. Reformatting means I will be in trouble.
> 
> Can I make a partition with Swiss Knife and make the partition Fat32?


I would just get ur own HD and then not worry about loosing some of ur wife's stuff.


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## chrapladm

I will have to get one later on. Are vob files always small 720 width resolution?


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## bmurphy2121

chrapladm said:


> I will have to get one later on. Are vob files always small 720 width resolution?


I'm not sure. I run my external HD through my Boxee Box so that I don't have to reformat a HD and mine plays just fine and up scales too. I believe when I had it on my PS3 it was full res


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## chrapladm

Does the PS3 only like vob files?

I am sure it can play a bunch of different files but my HDD ext is saying "NO titles."

I have a maybe 20 movies on the HDD and started the folder labeled with VIDEOS. Then there are some movies in that folder and there are a few sub-folders. One of the sub-folders is labeled Horror and there are about 10 movies in there. That being said I cant see any titles at all or any folders what so ever. SO what did I do wrong?

I formatted the HDD so it is Fat32. The PS3 now atleast says USB Device (Ext HDD 1021) but when I go to access it in music pictures or videos is says there is nothing.:scratch:


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## bmurphy2121

Well I think the problem ur having is that u can not make sub folders. Just make one folder called video's and put all the movies there no sub folders.


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## chrapladm

I thought that maybe the case but the videos that are VIDEO folder are not able to be accessed either.

SO I have a VIDEO folder. There are some videos with in this folder and also three subfolders. I figured the PS3 would atleast see one of the videos but it just stated NO TITLES.


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## rikdegraaff

Hmm, nice guide.
I gonna test it on my PS3!!

Thanks for this guide :clap:


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## Sevenfeet

It's a nice guide but the PS3 has never been a great streaming media player for me. Just too many problems and not enough compatibility. It is getting better but if it were to be really good, you'd see more support from Sony. I think part of Sony would like too, but then they have the content side of the house that likely doesn't want to make this any easier.


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## duder1982

I recently made some changes to my network and now I don't see the PLEX icon on my ps3. What I had before was my usb with all my media connected to my pc. Then since I had another computer, I moved the usb to my Netgear router. Since then Plex doesn't seem to be working on my ps3. Any suggestions. 

Thanks


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