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Roku Ultra vs MINIX Minix NEO X8-H Plus 4K


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Courtesy of a lightning strike, JB have offered a Minix NEO X8-H Plus as opposed to a Roku Ultra which was recommended by the technician who inspected our WD TV Live (wired networking no longer works). I'm wondering if we'd be disappointed instead of getting a Roku. Prior to the strike, I'd researched the Roku as a possible upgrade. Most of our viewing is from USB HDD's and a little YouTube. We don't have a 4k TV but will in the lifetime of the replacement media player but we don't watch Netflix so a lack of 4k with it isn't a problem but maybe later it might?

Anyway, thoughts? Also, are there amy Minix users here? I'm wondering if it shares attached storage over the network? The WD TV Live does and that was how I'd update the media

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~$280 for either model. If JB don't have the model you want then you can probably ask them for a refund (don't know the circumstances though - if its insurance then they should be happy to buy a unit elsewhere, they might just not pay all of the $290 as they probably get a discount at JBHiFi, worth asking though)

Note I found this place for Rokus for what its worth.

I'd also suggest you start looking at getting a NAS (Good thread on it around here somewhere). Preferably a 2 drive one that you can mirror so to prevent files from being lost. Much nicer solution than switching around external drives all the time and can service multiple devices.

Both units appear to support 4K?

Regards

Peter Gillespie

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Hi, Peter.  From what we've heard so far, it'll be extremely unlikely that we'll see cash because we'd do what most people might do and not replace the items until we knew exactly what we want and at this point in time, the money could be used better elsewhere as we're only partly inconvenienced by the damaged items and they want the items replaced, not just leak money for no apparent reason so they'll bounce from supplier to supplier.  The AVR is useless as a switching device but everything is now plugged into the TV and I'm more worried about the AVR than the media players as I think I'll end up with an Onkyo :(.  Sharp price on the Roku though, I think the tech recommended one at $399, not that it bothers me.

Anyway, yes, I've been keen on a NAS for a while but once again, funds rule that out for the moment.  Whilst a NAS would be a more elegant solution, using four HDD's hasn't been as bad as some might expect.  They were plugged into a powered USB hub and I turn on the drive we want.  One day I'll build a NAS!

The Minix supports 4k but not with Netflix (at the moment) as it's not an approved device.  I wonder how it would go with Amazon Prime?

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2 hours ago, Redav said:

Hi, Peter.  From what we've heard so far, it'll be extremely unlikely that we'll see cash because we'd do what most people might do 

Not sure I understand. I assume you're talking insurance? They presumably all have their own procedures, but in my experience they'll usually offer a replacement option. If its not the same they're usually happy to write a cheque but it will be for the reduced price they could get the replacement for, not the RRP in store. Can't hurt to ask? As a second approach if you're happy with the store that they are sourcing the Onkyo from then if they won't give cash ask for a store credit and say you want to choose your own AVR. Explain that sound quality differs appreciably between makes and models and you want to chose one that sounds nice to your ears, not just replace the base functionality. Maybe they'll be happy with that?

Only you can decide how important the 4K is. Chances are you'll update your media box in around 5 years anyway. If units have 4k then its possible a future FW update will see Netflix compatibility.

Regards

Peter Gillespie

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Yes, sorry.  Through insurance, JB is their preferred supplier unless we can demonstrate why their recommended item isn't satisfactory where they'll change supplier if we can't find another equivalent.  I'm trying not to use this as a method of upgrading (even though that's what essentially happens), I just don't want to be duded by ending up with a product that we're not happy with.

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Understood. IMO best not to look at it as a moral transaction, just a purely financial one. You can be sure they are. Ultimately any option they offer breaks down to a specific amount of money they have to pay the supplier. Ask for that. Nothing wrong with upgrading so long as you put in the extra dosh. Not something you'd do if you still had the original unit but since its gone the question arises.

Good Luck

Peter Gillespie

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On ‎17‎/‎01‎/‎2017 at 4:48 PM, Redav said:

Through insurance, JB is their preferred supplier unless we can demonstrate why their recommended item isn't satisfactory where they'll change supplier if we can't find another equivalent.

Maybe try to talk them into a pioneer Redav ; choice of 3 ; one of them has atmos ; dts x . Its room eq considers the ceiling speakers ; tell them the onkyo;s don't :aww:

https://www.jbhifi.com.au/tv-home-entertainment/receivers/?p=1&s=displayPrice&sd=1&fc=brand%3A%3APIONEER%3B&mf=brand&fm=false#

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On 18/01/2017 at 10:40 PM, cwt said:

Maybe try to talk them into a pioneer Redav ; choice of 3 ; one of them has atmos ; dts x . Its room eq considers the ceiling speakers ; tell them the onkyo;s don't :aww:

https://www.jbhifi.com.au/tv-home-entertainment/receivers/?p=1&s=displayPrice&sd=1&fc=brand%3A%3APIONEER%3B&mf=brand&fm=false#

Does the Onkyo equalisation factor in the ceiling speakers?  Or is this an attempt to jump ship?  I wondered what the equivalent Pioneer be.  A VSX 1131 (only listed due to it's presence on JB's site)?  I thought I'd have a search and based on this site, I think it's safe to assume that it isn't because it appears that the VSX 1131 is a TX-NR646.  Gee, should they have badged it Onkyeer?  Pionkyo?

Out of interest, would something like this (Krix in-ceiling speakers) be suitable for Atmos?  Or should one go for typical mounted speakers that can be angled?  I'd guess the latter?

As for the media player, I think we'll give the Minix player a crack.  As it's Android, that's relatively attractive for loading apps.  I just wonder what the interface for playing attached storage is like.  We're used to navigating the folder structure on the WD TV Live and I think we'd hope the Minix would do this too.

Edited by Redav
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45 minutes ago, Redav said:

Does the Onkyo equalisation factor in the ceiling speakers?  Or is this an attempt to jump ship?  I wondered what the equivalent Pioneer be.  A VSX 1131 (only listed due to it's presence on JB's site)?  I thought I'd have a search and based on this site, I think it's safe to assume that it isn't because it appears that the VSX 1131 is a TX-NR646.  Gee, should they have badged it Onkyeer?  Pionkyo?

Out of interest, would something like this (Krix in-ceiling speakers) be suitable for Atmos?  Or should one go for typical mounted speakers that can be angled?  I'd guess the latter?

As for the media player, I think we'll give the Minix player a crack.  As it's Android, that's relatively attractive for loading apps.  I just wonder what the interface for playing attached storage is like.  We're used to navigating the folder structure on the WD TV Live and I think we'd hope the Minix would do this too.

Doesn't look like it ; only tries to change phase of upfiring modules ; and you need room eq to consider all your speakers ;) This really needs a lot of dsp processing to do a good job.

Quote

AccuEQ equalizes the surround-sound to suit the room acoustics for crisply focused sound, while AccuReflex aligns the phase of upfiring “height” speakers with the sound coming directly from your other speakers

The 1131 has pioneers proprietary MCACC and at  least covers the xyz axis ; not hard with only 2 atmos surrounds :aww: It would be the equivalent of the tx nr555 ; hard to say exactly due to the differing specs of the power amp stages [no honest all channels driven here ] 160w into 6 ohms for the pio and 130w iec standard for the onk . They both have amps for dolby atmos 2 ch only ..

MCACC FOR Dolby Atmos & DTS:X
This AV receiver for the first time enables precise acoustic room calibration for object-based audio formats. Not only the horizontal but also the vertical axis is included in the complex calculation of the room acoustics for the perfect calibration of amplifiers and speakers.

Certainly the Krix for the ceilings as they would be ideal for the horizontal dispersion characteristics needed for atmos . And they have a proper back box so your not dependant on the roof cavity size for bass extension :) A point source design like the dearer moveable baffle designs is what ide go for [as the less reflections the better for object steered sounds] or a swivable tweeter design  does the same thing for the upper frequencies. Depends on where the mounting is to go ?

Not much help with the minix Ime afraid ; I use Linux based ones that dual boot and I like the osd with the Linux . You should be able to run plex I understand ? :unsure:

 

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On 17/01/2017 at 4:48 PM, Redav said:

Yes, sorry.  Through insurance, JB is their preferred supplier unless we can demonstrate why their recommended item isn't satisfactory where they'll change supplier if we can't find another equivalent.  I'm trying not to use this as a method of upgrading (even though that's what essentially happens), I just don't want to be duded by ending up with a product that we're not happy with.

Been though this with Nrma myself. You just say Jbhibi dont have the correct one you want it replaced with and they should put the money straight into your account. Jb wanted to offer me some garbage Sony Avr with my old one bit the dust! I pretty much laughed at them and said ahhh not happening.

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On 21/01/2017 at 5:11 PM, cwt said:

Doesn't look like it ; only tries to change phase of upfiring modules ; and you need room eq to consider all your speakers ;) This really needs a lot of dsp processing to do a good job.

The 1131 has pioneers proprietary MCACC and at  least covers the xyz axis ; not hard with only 2 atmos surrounds :aww: It would be the equivalent of the tx nr555 ; hard to say exactly due to the differing specs of the power amp stages [no honest all channels driven here ] 160w into 6 ohms for the pio and 130w iec standard for the onk . They both have amps for dolby atmos 2 ch only ..

MCACC FOR Dolby Atmos & DTS:X
This AV receiver for the first time enables precise acoustic room calibration for object-based audio formats. Not only the horizontal but also the vertical axis is included in the complex calculation of the room acoustics for the perfect calibration of amplifiers and speakers

What about if I only bothered with 7.1 as that's what we'd wired the room for?  Any idea if the Pioneer equivalent for a TX-RZ810 (JB's suggested replacement) would be the SC-LX701?

On 21/01/2017 at 5:11 PM, cwt said:

Certainly the Krix for the ceilings as they would be ideal for the horizontal dispersion characteristics needed for atmos . And they have a proper back box so your not dependant on the roof cavity size for bass extension :) A point source design like the dearer moveable baffle designs is what ide go for [as the less reflections the better for object steered sounds] or a swivable tweeter design  does the same thing for the upper frequencies. Depends on where the mounting is to go ?

Our ceiling is raked which would tilt the speakers a little towards the viewer so that's probably a little better than straight down and maybe they could be positioned for the viewer? I'd have to look at that layout again and look at heights.  But I wonder whether there would be enough room in the raked ceiling to house the back box?  Could there be heat issues?  There's a tin roof and insulation above it.

23 hours ago, sero said:

Been though this with Nrma myself. You just say Jbhibi dont have the correct one you want it replaced with and they should put the money straight into your account. Jb wanted to offer me some garbage Sony Avr with my old one bit the dust! I pretty much laughed at them and said ahhh not happening.

Yeah, that could be the angle to go for.  I wonder whether JB might come to the party if I can jump to Pioneer?  I'd be happy to pay some difference if necessary.

Edited by Redav
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2 hours ago, Redav said:

What about if I only bothered with 7.1 as that's what we'd wired the room for?  Any idea if the Pioneer equivalent for a TX-RZ810 (JB's suggested replacement) would be the SC-LX701?

Our ceiling is raked which would tilt the speakers a little towards the viewer so that's probably a little better than straight down and maybe they could be positioned for the viewer? I'd have to look at that layout again and look at heights.  But I wonder whether there would be enough room in the raked ceiling to house the back box?  Could there be heat issues?  There's a tin roof and insulation above it.

Yes redav ; they are relatively close in power ; in fact the onkyo is specced into 6 ohms which is a bit of a cheat to raise the watts/ch figure as the pioneer is more honestly rated into 8 ohms .. Note the pioneer is also class d not a/b which is more efficient and actually has watts into 4 ohms specced which can be handy with low impedance speakers :) If you can get one of those as a substitute do so . JB haven't in the past stocked the premium sc pioneer line so if you can swing it rather than the 1131 good job .. 

You don't have to run more than 7.1  ; the number of times people ask "does it have atmos" in the fs threads is amazing though many don't have the room :aww: so it will help come resale time .

145mm mounting depth for the hemispherix so no problems there . Ide only be speculating on heat issues ; the specification pdf doesn't mention it; if concerned try  http://www.krix.com.au/contact-us/

Edited by cwt
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19 hours ago, cwt said:

JB haven't in the past stocked the premium sc pioneer line so if you can swing it rather than the 1131 good job ..

So they've come back suggesting a 1131.  I've not spoken to them but I expect you'll be right about them not being able to get the SC.  If the choice was between the VSX-1131 and the TX-RZ810, which is the smarter choice?

Thanks for your input too, it's been too long between looking into audio etc

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8 hours ago, Redav said:

So they've come back suggesting a 1131.  I've not spoken to them but I expect you'll be right about them not being able to get the SC.  If the choice was between the VSX-1131 and the TX-RZ810, which is the smarter choice?

Thanks for your input too, it's been too long between looking into audio etc

Glad to help ; Ide go for the pioneer still ; the difference in the watts/ch is nothing when you consider the logarithmic nature of db output and the output all channels driven isn't given unfortunately..'

The pioneer still has the better room eq  'MCACC ; And also good sub eq  ''Subwoofer EQ (4 Band)'' if its parametric [ probably] which is the important end of the frequency response :) The onk has an extra set of binding posts if you need more than 1 extra zone and an extra component input [ unnecessary these days ]

What makes it hard is the onk has a full set of pre amp outs ; very handy if you want to add a power amp later ; having more headroom for the lossless soundtracks available these days is an upgrade many have done ..  If you have good efficient speakers though you may be happy without one..  Lets hope " the computer says no '' or at least the insurers :blink:

The sc lx I should add if they take a payment from you has the flexibility / capability of 4 ceiling speakers not just 2  = 7.2.2ch/5.2.4ch configuration

/

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  • 4 months later...


  • 4 weeks later...

Sorry for the delay.  Ours has more than replaced our WD TV Live, it's a lot better and flexible (because of Android) but it's not perfect.  We probably need to reboot it every week or so for whatever reason.  Also, it's an older Android and I don't think it'll be upgraded to a newer version but I think there's a newer model MiniX NEO U or something like that which I think is probably better again with a newer OS?  Dunno, haven't looked into it.  I won't bother looking into it until we get to our HT in 4018.

We only stream from ABC and SBS or watch other content from USB drives that are plugged into it so have no idea about NAS streaming.  I'm sure it's fine and I hope it is as that's what I want to be able to do.  I need to look into the H.265 though.  I think it's supposed to be able to do it but there's some files that I have that don't play properly and I think they're H.265 (that's with either their own 4K media player and VLC, I haven't tested Kodi)

Edited by Redav
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  • 2 weeks later...
On ‎11‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 9:57 PM, agelessgoodguy said:

As you say your using USB sticks a fair bit have a look at the Roku Streaming Stick too its a great little way to get so much more from your TV and at a much lower cost - saving too.

Love my Roku streaming stick.  Use it mostly for Plex streaming and Netflix.

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  • 9 months later...

*sigh* last night we went to watch some stuff and I find the remote not working and swapping the batteries doesn't fix anything which means this thing is useless without it.  I thought I'd turn the NEO X8-H on anyway but nope.  Dead.  It's 14 months old.

 

We're going to try and get JB to swap it for a MINIX NEO U9-H which I expect is the current equivalent?

 

It's a bit annoying given that our PS3 Blu-ray drive stopped working a few weeks back and I haven't worked out a suitable replacement yet ?

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It wasn't just the remote, the unit had died too (or at least it won't turn on).  Mind you, I wonder if it's related?

 

Anyway, JB weren't interested in replacing but offered the new unit at staff rates so we bought it instead.  I might try tinkering with the old unit though.

Edited by Redav
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