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  1. Mike Veroukis

    Increasingly Sluggish HTPC Performance - Options Needed

    It's really hard to say, but what you describe tells me that your hardware is probably fine but there's something messed up with the OS. You say cpu and memory are fine, but what does that mean? And how did you check? How much free space is on the drive? I have experienced degraded performance...
  2. Mike Veroukis

    Upgrade PC or New Build

    I agree with Seldan Ball. A new PC isn't likely to solve the issue. I have an even older media server and it works fine for HD content. Only difference is that I use a dedicated 1000Gb wired line. If wireless is the only option, you may want to consider wireless AC adapter and an AC router and...
  3. Mike Veroukis

    Are there any lightweight DLNA clients out there?

    The SqueezeBox does look good, but not cheap. Also looked at the Sonos ZonePlayer and Roku SoundBridge.
  4. Mike Veroukis

    Are there any lightweight DLNA clients out there?

    Thanks for the tips. I am aware of the iPod approach, I was just trying to avoid that. I'll have to look into the SqueezeBox. I think I've heard of that before but just forgot about it. Thanks. Btw, one other option for PS3 owners is to get a PSP (or look into using OpenRP) and use the Remote...
  5. Mike Veroukis

    Advice requested and appreciated!

    Like kimmo said, there are lots of options! It's a problem that's both simple and complex. Once you know what you want, it's fairly straightforward to setup. However, before you start you'll want to think it all through. For example, do you want the media to be stored on the HTPC or do you want...
  6. Mike Veroukis

    Are there any lightweight DLNA clients out there?

    Hey, Not sure this is the right spot for this, but I have a media server which i use to stream media over the network to my Sony PS3. I use it often for video, but also for audio. However, I find it rather wasteful to run the PS3 and my TV just to listen to music. My receiver is an older Yamaha...
  7. Mike Veroukis

    DLP vs SXRD

    Funny, I'm pondering the exact same thing. I'd love to see some replies here as well. However, I am curious about this "yellow stain". What is it, and is it in the current crop of SXRDs? If so, is it a nightmare thing or a hardly noticeable thing? And can it be corrected? But yes, both...
  8. Mike Veroukis

    dlp vs. lcd vs. plasma

    60,000 hours is what most TVs are advertised for. - Mike
  9. Mike Veroukis

    dlp vs. lcd vs. plasma

    If you're gonna get a DLP, then you should seriously consider Samsung's new LED DLP. http://www.marketnews.ca/news_detail.asp?nid=2323 Best selling feature: It has no color wheel. It's still single chip, it just flashes red, green and blue LED light instead. However, I'm one of those...
  10. Mike Veroukis

    Toshiba 50XH70: Is this model a lemon or am I just unlucky?

    Just had a thought about this today. I wonder how susceptable these TVs are to bad or dirty power? Although the TV is plugged into a pretty good surge protector, it's not going through a line conditioner. How likely is it that this could be the root of the problem? - Mike
  11. Mike Veroukis

    Toshiba 50XH70: Is this model a lemon or am I just unlucky?

    Greetings! I'm the owner of a Toshiba 50HX70 and we've had warranty work on it three times now. It JUST died on us a few minutes ago and will now have to go through the Christmas break without it. The problem each time was a defective convergence circuit which needed to be replaced. The last...
  12. Mike Veroukis

    A Strange Error Message

    Do you by chance mean BAD_POOL_CALLER? If so, that just means that a kernel-mode process or driver incorrectly attempted to perform memory operations in the following ways: - By allocating a memory pool size of zero bytes. - By allocating a memory pool that does not exist. - By attempting...
  13. Mike Veroukis

    Computer Randomly Freezes??

    Sorry, I mixed up this thread with another one. I guess that's what happens when you're quickly posting on forums when you're SUPPOSED to be working! :D - Mike
  14. Mike Veroukis

    Computer Randomly Freezes??

    Okay, forget what I said about the drivers. :) It seems they've done things a little differently since the days of my GeForce 2. :) Of course, it be just my own bad memory, ya never know! :) Btw, the GF4 MX440 requires an interrupt (which is uncommon for a video card, unless it has built in...
  15. Mike Veroukis

    Computer Randomly Freezes??

    The PCI vs AGP simply means that it would first attempt to find a video card in one of your PCI slots before checking the AGP slot. If you only have one video card in the system, this setting shouldn't make a major difference. If however you're using more then one video card, this setting will...
  16. Mike Veroukis

    New Screen for HTPC help...

    You'll probably need to bite the bullet and upgrade that crappy MX440 to a newer video card which supports DVI output.
  17. Mike Veroukis

    Computer Randomly Freezes??

    In your BIOS setup there may be an option along the lines of "Load Fail Safe Settings". If so, select it. This should force the MB to use the most stable timings which should result in slightly less performance but greater stability.
  18. Mike Veroukis

    Installers are saying Pro-Logic II better than DD or DTS!

    Even if the hardware WAS broken, a good installer would say so and tell you how to go about getting it fixed. A good installer would NEVER say that DPLII is better then any 5.1/6.1 format. It would be like a car mechanic who can't re-hookup your turbo tell you that naturally asperated cars are...
  19. Mike Veroukis

    Yamaha rxv 1400 ypao (MERGED THREAD)

    What does the manual say??? - Mike
  20. Mike Veroukis

    Burning SACD's

    Could it be a 6 channel PCM? Is there such a standard? Perhaps there is, somewhere, but one would also require a player. I'm thinking all this does is convert a 6 channel SACD into a 2 channel PCM. What's the point? Well, for starters, you can buy the SACD for your home system, and then burn...
  21. Mike Veroukis

    That annoying "pop" on my Anthem amp

    Just pointing out the obvious, but Jurgen stated he experiences this even with his receiver DISCONNECTED! So it's unlikely that the digitalness of the receiver or the volume would have anything to do with this. - Mike
  22. Mike Veroukis

    Faroudja question

    It's the DVD decoding chip, and it also performs the all-important scaling function, which turns the typical 480i film sourced DVD into a 480p video source. The 480i means an interlaced display with 480 lines of resolution, while 480p means a progressive display with 480 lines of resolution...
  23. Mike Veroukis

    HTPC vs Stand-alone DVD Player

    Hmm.. Well, modern day video cards do have amazing picture quality. If your TV has DVI inputs, and your gfx card has DVI output capabilites (most modern ones do), then that should provide you with a stunning picture. Having said that, a stand-alone DVD player, with a Faroudja chip, should out...
  24. Mike Veroukis

    If Faroudja is the Pentium4 of DVD players who is the Athlon ?

    Hmmm... Just when I thought I knew something about DVD decoding chips, I read this thread and see I know jack sh!t!!!. So Genesis is now Faroudja, and there are many variations of Faroudja, and DCDi is the important chip to have if you're interested in scalers. Is there a nice list of Faroudja...
  25. Mike Veroukis

    General CD burner question...

    @LanceJ, The thing with the stand-alones is that they don't reveal much in terms of the finer detail like Cary_H was inquiring about. On the computer the hardware is more or less as good or better then any stand-alone, and a user can then use the software with the features they need. One...
  26. Mike Veroukis

    Sending a DVD player to Canada?

    Check out www.futureshop.ca. I wouldn't bother mailing it as the receiver will be dinged taxes/duty, even if it is a gift (unless you can convince them it's a DVD player worth less then CDN$45). Borders suck! - Mike
  27. Mike Veroukis

    Yamaha RX-V640, Is It Normal Question

    Define "spongy" :-) Well, it's normal for it to get warm. It shouldn't be hot enough to hurt to the touch. Any other signs of overheating? Does it ever shut itself off? - Mike
  28. Mike Veroukis

    DVD players that produce a HDTV quality picture?

    Well, there's one advantage to a scaling DVD player; some TVs will only do the "anamorphic squeeze" in 1080i mode, like our Toshiba 50HX70. So, in that sense, feeding the TV a 1080i signal, as opposed to a 480i/480P signal, will produce a more detailed picture due to the higher resolution of the...
  29. Mike Veroukis

    do all recievers experience digital drop out

    Is the drop-out during a layer change caused by the DVD player? I always assumed the dro-out was due to the suspended signal from the player. @Topher, This initial "drop-out" you mentioned you get when you play CDs, could it be that you have your input mode set to "AUTO", as opposed to...
  30. Mike Veroukis

    Broken volume control Yamaha RX-V2095

    A loose cable perhaps or dirty contacts? - Mike
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