Questions about transcoding and streaming to Xbox 360- EXPERIENCED USER

[brinn1]

I've used Mezzmo for awhile. I have a few concerns watching downloaded torrents on my TV using XBox 360. ANY HELP APPRECIATED- OR I'M GOING TO TRY ANOTHER PROVIDER.

1. Many times I get a message that the 360 can't communicate or recognize the torrent. Sometimes if I redownload the same torrent and try again its ok- but a pain.
If I try to watch that torrent on my computer with Windows Media player it works fine.
I have Mezzmo on a laptop, 8gb mem, Windows 7, lots of storrage, new fast processor (Alienware's highest quality one) etc. There is an error message I've found in hundreds of forums (don't have # but think it starts with 807..... status code).

2. I'm wondering if I need transcoding- I download almost 95% avi, or other common types altho avi is the one I'm having trouble with the most. Is Mezzmo transcoding these to something else. I've never been able to watch mkv. SHOULD I SET NOT TO TRANSCODE IF I'M DOWNLOADING AVI TORRENTS TO BEGIN WITH?

3. Can you set the utorrent directory to put download directly into mezzmo library / playlist. The farthest I seem to get is just "Mezzmo" but not the library or subfolder.
As of now I am inserting them in after download.

4. Does it matter if the video files are folder or files for tv? Does Mezzmo do any better with one than the others

5. Why does Mezzmo show folders for some tv / movies in playlist and thumbnails for others? Are the thumbnails just for files? I have lots of movies that are thumbnails that were folders and others stay as folders (which can usually be opened on xbox 360).

6. I have the latest xbox 360 release. Updates are complete and I use gold live.
Any suggestions for settings, etc to make all this work smoother. One other thing, in my home theatre system, the xbox 360 is hard wired into my network through router / hub but the computer / mezzmo is communicating wirelessly. I have not tried hooking up the computer to network thru the same hardwiring- would that help?

[Paul]

1. Many times I get a message that the 360 can't communicate or recognize the torrent. Sometimes if I redownload the same torrent and try again its ok- but a pain.
If I try to watch that torrent on my computer with Windows Media player it works fine.

Do you mean a file that has been added to Mezzmo's library?



2. I'm wondering if I need transcoding- I download almost 95% avi, or other common types altho avi is the one I'm having trouble with the most. Is Mezzmo transcoding these to something else. I've never been able to watch mkv. SHOULD I SET NOT TO TRANSCODE IF I'M DOWNLOADING AVI TORRENTS TO BEGIN WITH?

Please post your FFmpeg information (in Mezzmo right-click on the file and use the "Get FFmpeg Information" command) on some of those files and we'll see if they need transcoding. Basically, if you have transcoding turned OFF and the files play, then they don't need to be transcoded, but if they don't play, then they do and transcoding should be turned ON.



3. Can you set the utorrent directory to put download directly into mezzmo library / playlist. The farthest I seem to get is just "Mezzmo" but not the library or subfolder.
As of now I am inserting them in after download.

Just use the "Add Folder" in Mezzmo to specify where your downloads end up and Mezzmo will pick up the files automatically when you browse that folder on your XBox (or from within Mezzmo GUI).



4. Does it matter if the video files are folder or files for tv? Does Mezzmo do any better with one than the others

Not sure what you mean - if you mean whether each video is in a separate folder or not, then that doesn't make any difference to the actual streaming.



5. Why does Mezzmo show folders for some tv / movies in playlist and thumbnails for others? Are the thumbnails just for files? I have lots of movies that are thumbnails that were folders and others stay as folders (which can usually be opened on xbox 360).

Possibly Mezzmo didn't recognize the file or couldn't create the thumbnail. Please post FFmpeg information (see above) on one of those files.



6. I have the latest xbox 360 release. Updates are complete and I use gold live.
Any suggestions for settings, etc to make all this work smoother. One other thing, in my home theatre system, the xbox 360 is hard wired into my network through router / hub but the computer / mezzmo is communicating wirelessly. I have not tried hooking up the computer to network thru the same hardwiring- would that help?
If any part of the network is wireless, then that's the maximum bandwidth you'll be able to achieve. Having a wired network will help if you stream high-def content.

[brinn1]

Dennis
Thanks for helping
for #1. Yes I mean a downloaded file / folder which has been added to Mezzmo (in playlist- only one- under library

Regarding #2. I meant for the xbox 360, does an avi file generally need transcoding? I've read where files have to be in wmv form- so does the Mezzmo software even transcode avi files?

Regarding #3. I know one can add files / folder to the library as I do that. But I wanted to know if the U torrent directory could be set to send downloaded files straight to the mezzmo library playlist. When I use browse I can get to Conceiva / Mezzmo but can't find the location for Mezzmo Library / playlist (I only use 1). It would be great if downloaded folders went directly into the playlist and didn't have to be moved

Regarding #4. It seems at times as if my status code errors (not communicating showing on xbox for the torrent I see there and click on), that the codes occur more with a folder (same torrent) or files only depending on movie or tv- Is it possible that the file is not containing something that the folder does contain for that torrent? On that thought, do you download everything in a folder for a tv show or movie as I typically eliminate text and jpeg stuff. Is the nvo. extra piece impt with the file? Maybe I should just be downloading everything in the folder associated with the download?

Regarding #5. I'm now using the "list" view so it only shows folders and files and not thumbnails anyway.

Also I still can't watch mkv torrents (are they usually downloaded as folders or files?).

Is it possible some torrents showing on xbox 360, but refusing to play are just bad downloads? If true, how often to you find that in your experience?

How do I know the media server port listed is correct?

Which panes do you find most helpful to have checked to see on the right side?

Is this what my "file filter" line should look like
*.aac;*.au;*.ac3;*.aif;*.ape;*.fla;*.flac;*.m4a;*. m4b;*.m4p;*.mp+;*.mp2;*.mp3;*.mpc;*.ogg;*.oma;*.sh n;*.tta;*.wav;*.wave;*.wma;*.wv;*.3gp;*.3g2;*.amc; *.asf;*.avi;*.divx;*.dvr-ms;*.flv;*.m2p;*.m2t;*.m2ts;*.m2v;*.m4v;*.mkv;*.mo d;*.mov;*.mp4;*.mpe;*.mpeg;*.mpg;*.mts;*.ogm;*.rm; *.rmvb;*.tp;*.trp;*.ts;*.vob;*.vro;*.wmv;*.wtv;*.b mp;*.cmp;*.gif;*.j2k;*.j6i;*.jbg;*.jp2;*.jpeg;*.jp e;*.jpg;*.png;*.thm;*.tif;


With Medium icon view- folders are shown for movies- if I open the folder in Mezzmo by double clicking, then the thumbnail does appear at the file level- is that the way it should be?

Sorry for all the questions but any help with the answers would be appreciated.

This is the FFMPEG for one of the folder / movies (again double clicking on the folder gets down th a thumbnail with "avi" in the right hand corner, but without double clicking it shows as a folder even on thumbnail view

Thanks much
Dr Steve Brinn
513 226 7331 (I'm a pediatrician in Cincinnati Ohio take care of kids 32 years)

[brinn1]

Dennis
One last thing
Why do some added folders of movies (added to the playlist) show as subfolders under the playlist even tho they were added to the open playlist. They are not included in the detail list of movies / tv files, only seen as subfolder
Thanks
S

[brinn1]

If it says HDTV in the torrent name, does it take any additional file to run it on mezzmo? Ie. should it be in a folder with another file allowing HDTV to be read? I think I have a lot of problems with HDTV files even if avi on the xbox 360
Steve B

[brinn1]

Regarding the HDTV question, I have the exact same file that I downloaded a 2nd time but this time from another source and it included an HDTV.nfo file with the regular avi file. Should the HDTV files always come in a folder with the nfo files inside as well in order to play those torrents?
S

[Paul]

for #1. Yes I mean a downloaded file / folder which has been added to Mezzmo (in playlist- only one- under library

Ok, possibly transcoding is failing or is not fast enough. Please turn on logging (see this thread: http://forum.conceiva.com/showthread.php/419-FAQ-How-to-turn-on-diagnostic-logging) then try that file again and once it fails, stop the server and send the logs to support (at) conceiva (dot) com



Regarding #2. I meant for the xbox 360, does an avi file generally need transcoding? I've read where files have to be in wmv form- so does the Mezzmo software even transcode avi files?

AVI is just a container that can contain anything inside it, that's why I asked for FFmpeg information on those specific files - I can't tell whether they'll need transcoding or not. Mezzmo will pass some AVI files through natively and will transcode others to WMV.



Regarding #3. I know one can add files / folder to the library as I do that. But I wanted to know if the U torrent directory could be set to send downloaded files straight to the mezzmo library playlist. When I use browse I can get to Conceiva / Mezzmo but can't find the location for Mezzmo Library / playlist (I only use 1). It would be great if downloaded folders went directly into the playlist and didn't have to be moved

You mean from within the uTorrent software? I don't know the exact setting, but I imagine that it should allow you to change the destination folder. All you'll need to do from within Mezzmo is use the "Add Folder" command to add that folder to the Library and it'll be updated automatically with new files when you browse it from your device.



Regarding #4. It seems at times as if my status code errors (not communicating showing on xbox for the torrent I see there and click on), that the codes occur more with a folder (same torrent) or files only depending on movie or tv- Is it possible that the file is not containing something that the folder does contain for that torrent? On that thought, do you download everything in a folder for a tv show or movie as I typically eliminate text and jpeg stuff. Is the nvo. extra piece impt with the file? Maybe I should just be downloading everything in the folder associated with the download?

There could be a few issues here, so please send logs (separate from issue 1 above) browsing such folders which causes errors and we'll take a look.



Also I still can't watch mkv torrents (are they usually downloaded as folders or files?).

These should be transcoded as the XBox doesn't play MKV files natively. Is transcoding turned on or off?



Is it possible some torrents showing on xbox 360, but refusing to play are just bad downloads? If true, how often to you find that in your experience?

It could be, if the download is incomplete, for example, but most likely it's something else. Logs should give us more insight into what's happening here as well.



How do I know the media server port listed is correct?

As long as it's not blocked by your firewall and you can browse folders and play files, it's correct.



Which panes do you find most helpful to have checked to see on the right side?

Sorry, not sure what you mean here? If you mean which panes should be visible in Mezzmo's GUI, then that's more of a personal preference - it won't affect how the server works in any way.



Is this what my "file filter" line should look like
*.aac;*.au;*.ac3;*.aif;*.ape;*.fla;*.flac;*.m4a;*. m4b;*.m4p;*.mp+;*.mp2;*.mp3;*.mpc;*.ogg;*.oma;*.sh n;*.tta;*.wav;*.wave;*.wma;*.wv;*.3gp;*.3g2;*.amc; *.asf;*.avi;*.divx;*.dvr-ms;*.flv;*.m2p;*.m2t;*.m2ts;*.m2v;*.m4v;*.mkv;*.mo d;*.mov;*.mp4;*.mpe;*.mpeg;*.mpg;*.mts;*.ogm;*.rm; *.rmvb;*.tp;*.trp;*.ts;*.vob;*.vro;*.wmv;*.wtv;*.b mp;*.cmp;*.gif;*.j2k;*.j6i;*.jbg;*.jp2;*.jpeg;*.jp e;*.jpg;*.png;*.thm;*.tif;

Yes, the default one is the best one to use.



With Medium icon view- folders are shown for movies- if I open the folder in Mezzmo by double clicking, then the thumbnail does appear at the file level- is that the way it should be?

Folders should be shown as folder and files should be shown as thumbnails. If you have each movie in its own subfolder, then you'll have to enter those folders to see the actual movies.



This is the FFMPEG for one of the folder / movies (again double clicking on the folder gets down th a thumbnail with "avi" in the right hand corner, but without double clicking it shows as a folder even on thumbnail view

Sorry, it seems there's no FFmpeg info?


Dennis
One last thing
Why do some added folders of movies (added to the playlist) show as subfolders under the playlist even tho they were added to the open playlist. They are not included in the detail list of movies / tv files, only seen as subfolder
Thanks
S
If you add a folder, it'll be added as a folder and its files will be inside it. If you go inside that folder, do you see the files?


If it says HDTV in the torrent name, does it take any additional file to run it on mezzmo? Ie. should it be in a folder with another file allowing HDTV to be read? I think I have a lot of problems with HDTV files even if avi on the xbox 360
Steve B
Usually video files are stand-alone and do not require additional files to be present.


Regarding the HDTV question, I have the exact same file that I downloaded a 2nd time but this time from another source and it included an HDTV.nfo file with the regular avi file. Should the HDTV files always come in a folder with the nfo files inside as well in order to play those torrents?
S
Mezzmo does not need those additional files, so it doesn't matter whether they're present or not.

[brinn1]

Dennis
Thanks for all your help with questions above. I am now working thru emails with the Mezzmo staff to provide logs of files which won't play.

When you asked about transcoding off or on, my box under transcoding is unchecked (check would turn it off?) so leaving it unchecked is what you meant as far as turning on Transcoding?

[Paul]

Yes, if the transcoding box is not checked, then transcoding is turned off and incompatible files (such as MKV) will not play on the device.

[brinn1]

Dennis
I think its the opposite.
I think the box needs to be unchecked for transcoding to occur
ie. transcoding is on unless you turn it off by checking box?
S

[Paul]

The box in Device Settings says "Transcode incompatible media files", so that means if it's checked, it'll transcode, if it's not checked it won't.

The box in Transcoding Settings says "Turn off transcoding for all connected devices", so that's the opposite of the other one and should be unchecked. Which one were you talking about - perhaps we're talking about different boxes :)

[brinn1]

Hi
Where is the box in device settings to which you are refering to? Where are device settings?
The box I was refering to is under transcoding settings, I don't know where device settings is located

[Paul]

In the Media Devices dialog, click on your device, then the Edit button - this brings up device properties and you can also turn transcoding on/off for individual devices this way.