LinuxMCE - User contributions [en]

Audio over HDMI

2010-02-28T00:23:14Z

Murdock304:

[[Category:Documentation]]
[[Category:Audio]]

(Also see notes on the [[LinuxMCE-0810 alpha2]] page)

That article is started to help people get audio over HDMI. Feel free to post here your experience!

Generally it's possible with kernel 2.6.27 and ALSA 1.0.18. A few notes here. First of all, note that DVI port support video signal only. It's possible to inject audio signal to external video card from the S/PDIF using SPDIF_HDMI headers. Usually integrated video card with HDMI port have possibility to pass audio as well.

==nVidia==

nVidia doesn't provide a separate card for HD. Instead of that it offers a separate device:

linuxmce@dcerouter:~$ aplay -l
**** List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****
card 0: NVidia [HDA NVidia], device 0: ALC883 Analog [ALC883 Analog]
Subdevices: 1/1
Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 0: NVidia [HDA NVidia], device 1: ALC883 Digital [ALC883 Digital]
Subdevices: 1/1
Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 0: NVidia [HDA NVidia], device 3: NVIDIA HDMI [NVIDIA HDMI]
Subdevices: 1/1
Subdevice #0: subdevice #0

linuxmce@dcerouter:~$ aplay -L
default:CARD=NVidia
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
Default Audio Device
front:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
Front speakers
surround40:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
4.0 Surround output to Front and Rear speakers
surround41:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
4.1 Surround output to Front, Rear and Subwoofer speakers
surround50:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
5.0 Surround output to Front, Center and Rear speakers
surround51:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
5.1 Surround output to Front, Center, Rear and Subwoofer speakers
surround71:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia, ALC888 Analog
7.1 Surround output to Front, Center, Side, Rear and Woofer speakers
hdmi:CARD=NVidia,DEV=0
HDA NVidia
HDMI Audio Output
null
Discard all samples (playback) or generate zero samples (capture)

If you don't see HDA NVidia in the aplay -L output that means you card is not recognized by system correctly. Here is a correct output of lspci:
lspci -v
(only the relevant portion):
00:07.0 Audio device: nVidia Corporation MCP78S [GeForce 8200] High Definition Audio (rev a1)
Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Device 82fe
Flags: bus master, 66MHz, fast devsel, latency 0, IRQ 20
Memory at fcf78000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16K]
Capabilities: <access denied>
Kernel driver in use: HDA Intel
Kernel modules: snd-hda-intel

The alsamixer should should three digital devices: IEC958, IEC958 D and ICE9581. All of them should be unmuted. Then select 'HDA NVidia NVIDIA HDMI (ALSA)' as output for all items in 'Sound Prefrences' and
select 'HDA NVidia (Alsa mixer)' as the mixer.

After that audio over HDMI should work.

EDITED (geekyhawkes) It might be necessary to create an /etc/asound.conf file to "forward" the audio to your HDMI port. Details of the asound.conf file i am using can be found here[http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=8305.0]

===Test===

To test your HDMI output run following command:
aplay -D plug:hdmi /usr/share/sounds/KDE_Window_Open.wav

Replace KDE_Window_Open.wav by any other WAV file. You should use '''plug''' to convert mono sample to stereo.

==ATI==

Usually integrated ATI video cards come with separated HD sound card (for example, integrated ATI RadeonTM 1250). Sound over HDMI works fine with the latest Catalyst drivers.

==See Also==
* [http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=1895025&postcount=85 Audio through hdmi] - nVidia forum
* [http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=957581&highlight=audio+hdmi+8300 nVidia 8200 HDMI Sound support] - Ubuntu forum
* [http://alsa.opensrc.org/index.php/DigitalOut DigitalOut] - ALSA wiki. Very useful tips to find your digital device and test it

Automatic diskless boot of media directors

2008-11-29T04:57:02Z

Murdock304: /* Answer */

[[Category: Tutorials]]
[[Category: Networking]]
[[Category: Programmer's Guide]]
{| align="right"
| __TOC__
|}
LinuxMCE allows [[media director]]s to be booted over the network. This means that you can boot up thin clients without hard drives, or systems with other operating systems without affecting what is already on the disk.

==How to set it up==
===Enable PXE boot===
This is also known as network boot and can be accessed in your computer's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BIOS BIOS]. The exact procedure varies depending on your PC. Normally you press F2 or DEL right after turning the PC on to enter the BIOS settings. There is then usually an advanced option to enable this.

===Set the correct boot order===
You are also going to want to set the boot order in the BIOS so the network boot comes first, and your hard drive second. However most BIOS's will make you first enable network boot, save your changes, restart the computer, and then enter the BIOS settings a second time to set the boot order.

===Determine your network card's MAC address===

'''This step is not needed since version 7.04'''

<s>When network boot is working you should see at bootup the PC's mac address, and a messages about trying to contact a DHCP server, or trying to find a network boot image. This will be a new message you didn't see before and it means network boot is active on the PC. It will usually try for about 10 seconds to do a network boot image, and then give up and boot off the hard drive. This is what you want. When you see the message that it is trying to do the network boot, write down the mac address.

You can also get the mac address in Windows by running IPCONFIG command prompt, or in Linux by typing ifconfig as root from a console or a terminal.</s>

===Setup the media director in LinuxMCE===

'''This step is not needed since version 7.04 although the May 7th release of 7.10 appears to require it'''

<s>In LinuxMCE Admin go to '''Wizard > Devices > Media Directors'''. Add the media director if this is a new one, and set the mac address. The mac address should be a series of six 2 character sequences separated by colons, like this: 1A:00:F2:21:23:9F

Click 'update' to save your changes, and then click 'Setup Diskless Media Directors'. Wait for the popup window to finish. If this is a new media director you just added, go to Wizard, Restart and click 'Quick Reload Router' so the Router is aware of this new device.</s>

===Boot up from the network===
Now turn on the PC. You should see that it gets an IP address and boots into the media director software. The first time you boot it, it can take up to 30 minutes to boot because it will be installing a lot of the software on the diskless image on the core.

After some time, you will see the avwizard screen where you can choose your UI, resolution and so forth. After finishing the avwizard, the system will setup your interface and eventually you will be prompted by the setup wizard where you should choose the media center setup and then go through your typical setup for this new MD.

==How to use it==
If this media director has a hard drive in it that contains another operating system (like Windows or Linux), then from the media director's on-screen orbiter, or from any other orbiter that is currently controlling that media director, hit the 'power' button and choose 'restart as windows/linux' to boot up the computer off the hard drive and use it like a normal PC. Then choose 'restart as LinuxMCE' from the orbiter to boot it back again into LinuxMCE.

==Troubleshooting==
===PXE-Boot hangs up, looping......===

I have an Asus A7N8X-deluxe board, with two NICs onboard. When I connect one of them the MD tries to boot via PXE. Everything seems to go its way until the line: filename tftpboot/pxelinux.0 comes up, for about 20 seconds and after this.
After this, the last block written:

IP-Config eth0 complete (from 192.168.1.23)
adr: 192.168.80.255 broadcast: 192.168.80.255 netmask: 255.255.255.0
gateway: 192.168.80.1 dns0: 192.168.80.1 dns1: 0.0.0.0
rootserver: 192.168.80.1 rootpath: filename tftpboot/pxelinux.0

is repeated about hours in a really fast way.....

====Answer====
It is switching NICs during the PXE boot. Disable one of the on-board NICs via the BIOS.

:''Source: http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=3521.0''

===Diskless Setup Failed===

I have multiple MDs which all give a Diskless Setup Failed after announcing themselves to the CORE.

====Answer====
Log into the Web Interface on the CORE, change to the devices view and open up the options for the new MD. Under Device Data check to make sure that the field Architecture is correct. On mine it shows amd64 but all my MDs are actually Intel chipsets. I manually enter i386 and hit save. Then reboot the MD and it will finish setting itself up correctly.

NOTE: The field labeled Model is not user editable. If you change the Architecture field, upon reboot the CORE will automatically update the Model field appropriately so do not worry about it being wrong.

==GRUB PXE network boot==
In some situations, it may be more appropriate to use GNU GRUB bootloader:

#The machine does not support PXE booting directly (no boot-ROM).
#You can use a GRUB boot menu to decide wheter you want to boot LMCE or the native OS.
#Booting is a lot faster when you boot the native OS by skipping the network step.
#GRUB allows for easy adjustments of the boot parameters at boot-time.

This is described in detail at [[GRUB PXE network boot]].

== Reduce boot time ==
When using diskless boot, all data have to be read over the network connection. This can cause boot up times longer than desirable. To avoid long boot up times, you can tune the NFS mount options of the NFS root. Specifically, the rsize and wsize options. You might do a Internet search for resources on this.
Another option is to implement suspending of the media director. Also know as standby, suspend or hibernate. This function is not integrated into LinuxMCE (yet), and requires some Linux shell hacking. See the [[Suspend]] article for more information.

==Programmer's guide==
The network boot images are contained in /usr/pluto/diskless/[deviceID]. If a network image is corrupted, just delete that directory, and re-run 'Setup Diskless Media Directors'.

When the user hits the power button to change which device is booted, the command is sent to "General Info Plugin", which updates /tftpboot/pxelinux.cfg/01-[mac address]. That file contains a line KERNEL or LOCALBOOT 0, depending on what the user wants to boot. If it's LOCALBOOT 0, then when the media director tries to do a network boot the Core will tell it to boot off the hard drive instead. General Info Plugin then sends the App Server running on that machine a command to reboot.

Since there is both a Linux and Windows version of App Server, if App Server is installed and running on the Windows PC, then LinuxMCE can still reboot it remotely back into the network boot even if it's running Windows. Also the Windows App Server utility gives you a tray icon to switch back to network boot.

==Other Network Cards==
If you get to the remote machine starting the boot process, but then fails with it unable to find eth0, the reason may be because the stock diskless image did not have your network card statically compiled. The linux image building process does allow for additional network modules to be loaded during the boot process. The installer that linuxmce uses builds this image from a base copy of the operating system (ubuntu) that is untar'd during the diskless setup process. It puts this into it's own directory that serves as a virtual harddrive for your diskless machine. In the /usr/pluto/diskless directory you should have a list of device numbers that correspond to your diskless machines. For example: '45' was the number for my diskless machine. Edit the file /usr/pluto/diskless/###/etc/initramfs-tools/modules and add on your nic's module. In my case I edit /usr/pluto/diskless/45/etc/initramfs-tools/modules and added sky2. Then run the /usr/pluto/bin/Diskless_InstallKernel.sh script with the device number (directory name) of your diskless machine. In my case "/usr/pluto/bin/Diskless_InstallKernel.sh 45". This script builds the initrd image and puts it in the proper place (symlinks it actually).

The driver used in my machine was the 'sky2' driver for Marvell Gigabit ethernet cards. Other drivers will be located in the /usr/pluto/diskless/xx/lib/modules/2.xxx/kernel/drivers/net/ directory.

File:Fiire Engine.jpg

2008-11-16T14:52:58Z

Murdock304: uploaded a new version of "Image:Fiire Engine.jpg"

File:Fiire Station.jpg

2008-11-16T14:51:54Z

Murdock304: uploaded a new version of "Image:Fiire Station.jpg"

File:Fiire Station.jpg

2008-11-16T14:48:27Z

Murdock304: uploaded a new version of "Image:Fiire Station.jpg"

Fiire Engine

2008-10-26T13:43:46Z

Murdock304: /* Status */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Cores]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Engine.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab]

== Features ==

• Fits in a standard A/V rack, on an existing shelf or with a custom sliding rack-mount shelf for easy access in standard 19" rack systems.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.

• User Interface: UI2 with masking or alpha blending

• Processor: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 65W, 45 nm. 6 MB L2 cache. (quiet and low-heat/power model)

• RAM: 2GB

• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 500 GB

• RAID storage for media: 12port sata controller + 12 sata bays (hard drives aren’t included).

• Network: Dual Ethernet ports. Gigabit speed.

• Audio: 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, line in, mic connectors

• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors

• Optical Drive: DVD RW

• TV: PVR-150 Analog Tuner Card (optional)

• Connectors: 6xUSB 2.0, 2xIEEE1394

• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

LinuxMCE supports 3 variations of the user interface, as shown [http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Main_Page#Screenshots here]. The [[Fiire Station]]s are designed to be LinuxMCE media stations, and use special graphics processors and video decoders to provide the highest quality video playback, and provide alpha blending done in the hardware. However, the video subsystem in the [[Fiire Station]] is not available for use in a standard PC platform. The [[Fiire Engine]], however, uses standard PC parts.

The [[Fiire Engine]] is intended to be primarily the back-end server, while the [[Fiire Station]]s are dedicated for media playback. Therefore the [[Fiire Station]]s have more a/v connections, including component video, and SPDIF coax and optical for digital audio and surround sound.

The FiireEngine 12 TB is the main brain of our LinuxMCE solution. This is what runs all the back-end software, provides diskless boot images to the FiireStations, runs your RAID storage, phone system, home control, and so on. You need one and only one FiireEngine for the whole house. In every other room where you want LinuxMCE you add the FiireStation thin clients. The FiireEngine is built with PC components and the latest generation INTEL core 2 duo CPU. This gives the FiireEngine the processing power it needs to handle all the back-end tasks. The FiireEngine can be connected to a TV and used as a home theater PC. But, generally speaking we find most people don't want a PC connected to the TV because even with high-end fanless systems the hard drives are still audible, the PC's are big and require a shelf or rack to put them on, sa, we designed Fiire with the intention that in higher-end installations the FiireEngine would be put in a central closet out of the way and the FiireStations would be connected to the TV's. Since all devices throughout the home are shared, and every FiireStation has access to all the media and devices connected to the FiireEngine or to other FiireStations using a standard home network, there is no reason why you need to put the FiireEngine in close proximity to a TV. The FiireStations boot off the network using the FiireEngine's hard drives. The FiireStations are quiet, use very little power and generate little heat. They have specialized video processors to deliver video-phile quality high-def playback and de-interlacing of 1080i. To get started you can buy a FiireEngine by itself, which you conect to a TV and use as a HTPC, and then add FiireStations later when you want to add extra media directors.

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-engine.php

Fiire Engine

2008-10-26T13:43:30Z

Murdock304: /* Status */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Cores]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Engine.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab].

== Features ==

• Fits in a standard A/V rack, on an existing shelf or with a custom sliding rack-mount shelf for easy access in standard 19" rack systems.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.

• User Interface: UI2 with masking or alpha blending

• Processor: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 65W, 45 nm. 6 MB L2 cache. (quiet and low-heat/power model)

• RAM: 2GB

• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 500 GB

• RAID storage for media: 12port sata controller + 12 sata bays (hard drives aren’t included).

• Network: Dual Ethernet ports. Gigabit speed.

• Audio: 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, line in, mic connectors

• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors

• Optical Drive: DVD RW

• TV: PVR-150 Analog Tuner Card (optional)

• Connectors: 6xUSB 2.0, 2xIEEE1394

• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

LinuxMCE supports 3 variations of the user interface, as shown [http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Main_Page#Screenshots here]. The [[Fiire Station]]s are designed to be LinuxMCE media stations, and use special graphics processors and video decoders to provide the highest quality video playback, and provide alpha blending done in the hardware. However, the video subsystem in the [[Fiire Station]] is not available for use in a standard PC platform. The [[Fiire Engine]], however, uses standard PC parts.

The [[Fiire Engine]] is intended to be primarily the back-end server, while the [[Fiire Station]]s are dedicated for media playback. Therefore the [[Fiire Station]]s have more a/v connections, including component video, and SPDIF coax and optical for digital audio and surround sound.

The FiireEngine 12 TB is the main brain of our LinuxMCE solution. This is what runs all the back-end software, provides diskless boot images to the FiireStations, runs your RAID storage, phone system, home control, and so on. You need one and only one FiireEngine for the whole house. In every other room where you want LinuxMCE you add the FiireStation thin clients. The FiireEngine is built with PC components and the latest generation INTEL core 2 duo CPU. This gives the FiireEngine the processing power it needs to handle all the back-end tasks. The FiireEngine can be connected to a TV and used as a home theater PC. But, generally speaking we find most people don't want a PC connected to the TV because even with high-end fanless systems the hard drives are still audible, the PC's are big and require a shelf or rack to put them on, sa, we designed Fiire with the intention that in higher-end installations the FiireEngine would be put in a central closet out of the way and the FiireStations would be connected to the TV's. Since all devices throughout the home are shared, and every FiireStation has access to all the media and devices connected to the FiireEngine or to other FiireStations using a standard home network, there is no reason why you need to put the FiireEngine in close proximity to a TV. The FiireStations boot off the network using the FiireEngine's hard drives. The FiireStations are quiet, use very little power and generate little heat. They have specialized video processors to deliver video-phile quality high-def playback and de-interlacing of 1080i. To get started you can buy a FiireEngine by itself, which you conect to a TV and use as a HTPC, and then add FiireStations later when you want to add extra media directors.

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-engine.php

Netboot

2008-10-26T02:27:51Z

Murdock304: /* Hardware enabled netboot */

{| align="right"
| __TOC__
|}
[[Category:Tutorials]]
[[Category:Networking]]
A netboot is the process of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_booting booting an operating system over a network]. The operating system image is stored on a central server's hard drive (in this case the [[Core]]), and loaded into the RAM of the PC which is requesting the netboot.

In many ways, it is similar to booting from a LiveCD or floppy, but the storage media is on the network.

==Hardware enabled netboot==
Many newer PCs have [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preboot_Execution_Environment PXE] built into the BIOS and are able to netboot. Older PCs from the 1990s may not have this capability.

Many current Ethernet NIC cards have a hardware chip ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preboot_Execution_Environment PXE]-ROM) that allows booting over a network. This option is selected from the BIOS configuration on the PC.

Netbooting is more difficult [[Wireless_Networking#Netbooting_Wirelessly|wirelessly]] if the wireless card does not have an embedded PXE-ROM chip. Check the manufacturer's specifications. Some users have used [[Wireless_Networking#Netbooting_Wirelessly|wireless bridges]] to enable wireless netboots.

If the PC has both an active wireless and a wired Ethernet card, or multiple active wired NIC cards, it can be tricky to set which card to use for PXE netboot.

In general, direct netbooting from the BIOS is more successful over a single wired connection.

==Software enabled netboot==
Alternatively, a netboot can be specified using a boot loader on the local PC's hard drive, such as GRUB. See [[GRUB_PXE_network_boot|this discussion]].

This can be configured to use different Ethernet cards and allows for greater flexibility, but there is a certain amount of configuration and Linux knowledge required.

==Netbooting in LinuxMCE==
LinuxMCE can automatically configure itself to allow the [[Media Directors]] to do a "[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_booting Network Boot]". In the past, network booting has been used mostly by Apple computers, and Windows generally hasn't supported it. Nevertheless, nearly all modern computer are capable of doing a network boot, offering some significant advantages.

When a computer does a network boot it means that it does not use its internal hard drive at all. Instead it boots up off the Core. This allows you to leave your current computer system on your local hard drive untouched by LinuxMCE, and you just hit a button on the remote to indicate if you want to use your computer like a normal PC (normal boot) or as a media director appliance (network boot). When it boots up as a Media Director, you don't have any computing issues to worry about. It functions just like an appliance -- no start menu, no software to install, nothing to configure, no viruses to worry about. This solves one of people's biggest complaints with media PC's (like Windows XP Media Centers) -- when they just want to watch TV, listen to music, or play a DVD they don't want to mess with a computer. They just want an appliance. With network boot you get the best of both worlds--it's a computer when you want to do computing, and an appliance the rest of the time.

Best of all there's no software you need to install to make it work. When you first turn your computer on, just press the key to enter the BIOS or setup program. There is normally an option to enable network boot, sometimes called "PXE". (This is an embedded Linux netboot protocol.) There will also be an option for boot order. Put the network boot option before the hard drive boot option -- that way the Core can tell the computer whether it should do a network boot or boot like normal.

If you can't figure out how to set this in your computer, you should contact the manufacturer's tech support. You can also try LinuxMCE's support and forums.

Normally, once you enable network boot in your BIOS, every time you turn on your computer it will show you this MAC Address for a few seconds.  There is also an Advanced / IPs and Mac's page in the LinuxMCE Admin site that will show all the Mac Addresses in use in your home.

DHCP must be enabled on the Core to use netboot. You can do this by checking the box in the installation wizard, or after the fact from the LinuxMCE Admin web site.

===Disadvantages of netbooting===
Netbooting can be slower than booting from the hard drive -- depending on network speeds, it can be much slower.

In addition, if there is limited memory on the client, swap time is potentially slower over the network. The hard drive used by the peripheral PC remains on the central Core, so in effect, the effective "bus speed" becomes the data transmission speed of your network.

Lastly, unique hardware drivers and configurations for the client may not be recognized by a netboot, potentially causing a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel_Panic kernel panic] (i.e. the hardware can't be recognized well enough to netboot the OS).

===Alternatives to netbooting===

This may seem like a silly section, but the creators of Pluto and LinuxMCE are enamored of the concept of netbooting. Personally, I don't like it, for the reasons listed above.

Very few PCs these days come with small hard drives, and it seems trivial to me to set up a second partition (using the Gparted Live CD, for example) on any PC that I intend to use as a Media Director. I simply install LinuxMCE on that second partition and [[Media Director without netbooting | configure it to automatically start as a Media Director]]. When I start the PC, the GRUB bootloader will give me the choice of using it as a Media Director or of using the native OS on the primary partition anyway. This is slightly less troublesome then using netboot (in which I have to change the BIOS settings), in fact.

Booting LinuxMCE from a second partition on the hard drive is far faster than performing a netboot. Furthermore, I can even disable the Kubuntu hardware auto-detection modules in order to speed up the boot process even more (but that's not a job for a newbie!)

Plug and play is great, but touch and go is better!

===See also===
See also: [[Automatic diskless boot of media directors]]

===Troubleshooting===
*[[MDs Do Not Network %28PXE%29 Boot]]
*[[Automatic_diskless_boot_of_media_directors#Troubleshooting|Troublshooting an automatic diskless boot]]

Fiire Station

2008-10-26T00:02:01Z

Murdock304: /* Features */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Media Directors]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Station.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab].

There are now 3 options to choose from when selecting a Fiire station:

1. Fiire Invisible (2" VESA wall mount)

2. Fiire Prestige (More expensive / Front Panel LED)

3. Fiire Prestige Lite (Less Expensive / No Front Panel LED)

== Features ==

Fiire Invisible:

The Invisible is designed to mount behind a standard VESA mount equipped flat panel Plasma or LCD TV set. This means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.

• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending

• Processor: AMD BE 2400 (quiet and low-heat/power model)

• RAM: 1GB

• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)

• Network: Gigabit Ethernet

• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors

• Video: nVidia 7050 graphics with HDMI, VGA, Component and S-video connectors

• Connectors: 7xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, 3xeSata

• Optical Drive: external DVD RW (optional)

• TV: Analog PVR-500 Dual Tuner card

• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

• VESA and WALL mounting kit included

Fiire Prestige:

The Prestige and Prestige Lite, versions have more room for expansion cards.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.

• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending

• Processor:ntel® Core 2 Duo E4600 2.4 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 65W, 65 nm. (quiet and low-heat/power model)

• RAM: 1GB

• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)

• Network: Gigabit Ethernet

• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors

• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors

• I/O: 6xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, IR receiver

• Optical Drive: DVD RW

• TV: Analog PVR-150 Tuner card (optional)

• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

The [[Fiire Station]] runs [[LinuxMCE]] and can be used as a standard medium-performance PC. However, it also has specialized video decoding hardware to provide the best video quality, and offload all video processing, including sophisticated 1080i de-interlacing, OpenGL 3D effects, and alpha blending, all in the video hardware. The end result is you get better video quality than the massive, high end Windows Vista MCE systems, which require very expensive, power-hungry, hot processors to do the 3D alpha blended effects in Aero and video playback in MCE. The FiireStation offers even better video and a smoother UI experience while drawing as little as 9 watts of power, about 1/20th what a Windows Vista Media Center PC draws. That translates to a couple hundred dollars a year in energy savings if you leave your Media PC on all the time.

The [[Fiire Station]] is available in 3 versions: A 2” thin vertical mount designed to hide behind a plasma TV, and a standard set top box (2 versions).

The vertical mount version means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables. It comes with VESA mount holes. Most flat panel TV’s have VESA holes in the back for attaching them to a wall mount. So if your flat panel TV sits on a base, and not a wall mount, the [[Fiire Station]] attaches directly to the back of the TV using the VESA holes. If your flat panel TV is mounted to a wall, the [[Fiire Station]] is thin and narrow enough to fit inside a typical wall mount and can be attached to the wall, the mounting bracket, or the back of the TV. The vertical mount version costs more because it uses specialized precision components with ultra-lower power consumption so that it is only 2” thick, has no fans or vents, and can be tucked away in the small space between a TV and the wall.

The standard set top box version has more room in it and extra connections, including component video and SPDIF for digital audio. The vertical mount version does not provide SPDIF connectors because flat panel TV’s do not have SPDIF inputs. If you are using this in an equipment rack and have a receiver with SPDIF, the standard set top box version is better. Plus, you can have a local DVD/CD player in the standard set top box version. For the vertical mount version, you can leave your CD’s or DVD’s in a jukebox attached to the [[Fiire Engine]].

== Where to buy ==

Invisible:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-invisible.php

Prestige:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-prestige.php

== COM Ports ==

As of May 1, 2008 only the 1" version had a serial port built-in. According to fiire customer service the set-top box version has an available serial port header and a DB-9 punch out. However, Polywell (the manufacturer of the fiire boxes) does not populate the DB-9.

According to customer service, the case of the 2" Fiire Station does not have a spot for a DB-9.

== Versions ==

A new generation of the Fiire Station and Engine have been released to coincide with the release of LinuxMCE 07.10.

Fiire Station

2008-10-26T00:01:06Z

Murdock304: /* Status */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Media Directors]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Station.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab].

There are now 3 options to choose from when selecting a Fiire station:

1. Fiire Invisible (2" VESA wall mount)

2. Fiire Prestige (More expensive / Front Panel LED)

3. Fiire Prestige Lite (Less Expensive / No Front Panel LED)

== Features ==

Fiire Invisible:

The Invisible is designed to mount behind a standard VESA mount equipped flat panel Plasma or LCD TV set. This means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending
• Processor: AMD BE 2400 (quiet and low-heat/power model)
• RAM: 1GB
• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)
• Network: Gigabit Ethernet
• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors
• Video: nVidia 7050 graphics with HDMI, VGA, Component and S-video connectors
• Connectors: 7xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, 3xeSata
• Optical Drive: external DVD RW (optional)
• TV: Analog PVR-500 Dual Tuner card
• Works on 110 and 240 voltage
• VESA and WALL mounting kit included

Fiire Prestige:

The Prestige and Prestige Lite, versions have more room for expansion cards.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending
• Processor:ntel® Core 2 Duo E4600 2.4 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 65W, 65 nm. (quiet and low-heat/power model)
• RAM: 1GB
• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)
• Network: Gigabit Ethernet
• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors
• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors
• I/O: 6xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, IR receiver
• Optical Drive: DVD RW
• TV: Analog PVR-150 Tuner card (optional)
• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

The [[Fiire Station]] runs [[LinuxMCE]] and can be used as a standard medium-performance PC. However, it also has specialized video decoding hardware to provide the best video quality, and offload all video processing, including sophisticated 1080i de-interlacing, OpenGL 3D effects, and alpha blending, all in the video hardware. The end result is you get better video quality than the massive, high end Windows Vista MCE systems, which require very expensive, power-hungry, hot processors to do the 3D alpha blended effects in Aero and video playback in MCE. The FiireStation offers even better video and a smoother UI experience while drawing as little as 9 watts of power, about 1/20th what a Windows Vista Media Center PC draws. That translates to a couple hundred dollars a year in energy savings if you leave your Media PC on all the time.

The [[Fiire Station]] is available in 3 versions: A 2” thin vertical mount designed to hide behind a plasma TV, and a standard set top box (2 versions).

The vertical mount version means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables. It comes with VESA mount holes. Most flat panel TV’s have VESA holes in the back for attaching them to a wall mount. So if your flat panel TV sits on a base, and not a wall mount, the [[Fiire Station]] attaches directly to the back of the TV using the VESA holes. If your flat panel TV is mounted to a wall, the [[Fiire Station]] is thin and narrow enough to fit inside a typical wall mount and can be attached to the wall, the mounting bracket, or the back of the TV. The vertical mount version costs more because it uses specialized precision components with ultra-lower power consumption so that it is only 2” thick, has no fans or vents, and can be tucked away in the small space between a TV and the wall.

The standard set top box version has more room in it and extra connections, including component video and SPDIF for digital audio. The vertical mount version does not provide SPDIF connectors because flat panel TV’s do not have SPDIF inputs. If you are using this in an equipment rack and have a receiver with SPDIF, the standard set top box version is better. Plus, you can have a local DVD/CD player in the standard set top box version. For the vertical mount version, you can leave your CD’s or DVD’s in a jukebox attached to the [[Fiire Engine]].

== Where to buy ==

Invisible:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-invisible.php

Prestige:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-prestige.php

== COM Ports ==

As of May 1, 2008 only the 1" version had a serial port built-in. According to fiire customer service the set-top box version has an available serial port header and a DB-9 punch out. However, Polywell (the manufacturer of the fiire boxes) does not populate the DB-9.

According to customer service, the case of the 2" Fiire Station does not have a spot for a DB-9.

== Versions ==

A new generation of the Fiire Station and Engine have been released to coincide with the release of LinuxMCE 07.10.

Fiire Station

2008-10-25T23:59:11Z

Murdock304:

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Media Directors]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Station.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab].

There are now 3 options to choose from when selecting a Fiire station:
1. Fiire Invisible (2" VESA wall mount)
2. Fiire Prestige (More Expensive / Front Panel LED)
3. Fiire Prestige (Less Expensive / No Front Panel LED)

== Features ==

Fiire Invisible:

The Invisible is designed to mount behind a standard VESA mount equipped flat panel Plasma or LCD TV set. This means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending
• Processor: AMD BE 2400 (quiet and low-heat/power model)
• RAM: 1GB
• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)
• Network: Gigabit Ethernet
• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors
• Video: nVidia 7050 graphics with HDMI, VGA, Component and S-video connectors
• Connectors: 7xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, 3xeSata
• Optical Drive: external DVD RW (optional)
• TV: Analog PVR-500 Dual Tuner card
• Works on 110 and 240 voltage
• VESA and WALL mounting kit included

Fiire Prestige:

The Prestige and Prestige Lite, versions have more room for expansion cards.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710 with licensed video decoders and drivers to enable video-phile quality HD decoding and de-interlacing with alpha blending and all the OpenGL effects. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
• User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending
• Processor:ntel® Core 2 Duo E4600 2.4 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache, 65W, 65 nm. (quiet and low-heat/power model)
• RAM: 1GB
• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 120 GB (only if "MD as Core" option is checked)
• Network: Gigabit Ethernet
• Audio: 7.1 HD audio, with analog and SPDIF coax/RCA fro digital audio, line in, mic connectors
• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors
• I/O: 6xUSB 2.0 ports, 1xIEEE-1394, IR receiver
• Optical Drive: DVD RW
• TV: Analog PVR-150 Tuner card (optional)
• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

The [[Fiire Station]] runs [[LinuxMCE]] and can be used as a standard medium-performance PC. However, it also has specialized video decoding hardware to provide the best video quality, and offload all video processing, including sophisticated 1080i de-interlacing, OpenGL 3D effects, and alpha blending, all in the video hardware. The end result is you get better video quality than the massive, high end Windows Vista MCE systems, which require very expensive, power-hungry, hot processors to do the 3D alpha blended effects in Aero and video playback in MCE. The FiireStation offers even better video and a smoother UI experience while drawing as little as 9 watts of power, about 1/20th what a Windows Vista Media Center PC draws. That translates to a couple hundred dollars a year in energy savings if you leave your Media PC on all the time.

The [[Fiire Station]] is available in 3 versions: A 2” thin vertical mount designed to hide behind a plasma TV, and a standard set top box (2 versions).

The vertical mount version means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables. It comes with VESA mount holes. Most flat panel TV’s have VESA holes in the back for attaching them to a wall mount. So if your flat panel TV sits on a base, and not a wall mount, the [[Fiire Station]] attaches directly to the back of the TV using the VESA holes. If your flat panel TV is mounted to a wall, the [[Fiire Station]] is thin and narrow enough to fit inside a typical wall mount and can be attached to the wall, the mounting bracket, or the back of the TV. The vertical mount version costs more because it uses specialized precision components with ultra-lower power consumption so that it is only 2” thick, has no fans or vents, and can be tucked away in the small space between a TV and the wall.

The standard set top box version has more room in it and extra connections, including component video and SPDIF for digital audio. The vertical mount version does not provide SPDIF connectors because flat panel TV’s do not have SPDIF inputs. If you are using this in an equipment rack and have a receiver with SPDIF, the standard set top box version is better. Plus, you can have a local DVD/CD player in the standard set top box version. For the vertical mount version, you can leave your CD’s or DVD’s in a jukebox attached to the [[Fiire Engine]].

== Where to buy ==

Invisible:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-invisible.php

Prestige:

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-prestige.php

== COM Ports ==

As of May 1, 2008 only the 1" version had a serial port built-in. According to fiire customer service the set-top box version has an available serial port header and a DB-9 punch out. However, Polywell (the manufacturer of the fiire boxes) does not populate the DB-9.

According to customer service, the case of the 2" Fiire Station does not have a spot for a DB-9.

== Versions ==

A new generation of the Fiire Station and Engine have been released to coincide with the release of LinuxMCE 07.10.

Fiire Station

2008-10-25T23:38:26Z

Murdock304: /* Status */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Media Directors]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Station.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab].

== Features ==

* Software: LinuxMCE 1.1 (KU0704)
* User Interface: UI2 with alpha blending
* Processor: Via Eden 1.5 Ghz. Ultra low power 9 watt in the vertical mount version, and 20 watt in the set top box version
* RAM: 512MB
* Internal Hard drive for operating system: 40GB. All system drives in the FiireEngine are mounted for data storage.
* Network: Gigabit Ethernet
* Audio: Via Vinyl 6 channel audio, with line in, line out and mic. Standard set top box version also has SPDIF coas and tos-link for digital audio
* Video: Via UniChrome Pro II, with proprietary drivers and special alpha blended MPEG 2/4 and WMV9 acceleration
* IO: 4 USB 2.0 ports, 2 PS/2, 1 COM (COM port only on 1" version)
* Dimensions – vertical mount: 168 (h) x 300 (w) x 25.4 (d) mm
* Weight – vertical mount: 1200g

== Sales Pitch ==

The [[Fiire Station]] runs [[LinuxMCE]] and can be used as a standard medium-performance PC. However, it also has specialized video decoding hardware to provide the best video quality, and offload all video processing, including sophisticated 1080i de-interlacing, OpenGL 3D effects, and alpha blending, all in the video hardware. The end result is you get better video quality than the massive, high end Windows Vista MCE systems, which require very expensive, power-hungry, hot processors to do the 3D alpha blended effects in Aero and video playback in MCE. The FiireStation offers even better video and a smoother UI experience while drawing as little as 9 watts of power, about 1/20th what a Windows Vista Media Center PC draws. That translates to a couple hundred dollars a year in energy savings if you leave your Media PC on all the time.

The [[Fiire Station]] is available in 2 versions: A 1” thin vertical mount designed to hide behind a plasma TV, and a standard set top box.

The vertical mount version means for the first time ever, you can have a full HD PVR and media player solution without any visible set top box or exposed cables. It comes with VESA mount holes. Most flat panel TV’s have VESA holes in the back for attaching them to a wall mount. So if your flat panel TV sits on a base, and not a wall mount, the [[Fiire Station]] attaches directly to the back of the TV using the VESA holes. If your flat panel TV is mounted to a wall, the [[Fiire Station]] is thin and narrow enough to fit inside a typical wall mount and can be attached to the wall, the mounting bracket, or the back of the TV. The vertical mount version costs more because it uses specialized precision components with ultra-lower power consumption so that it is only 1” thick, has no fans or vents, and can be tucked away in the small space between a TV and the wall.

The standard set top box version has more room in it and extra connections, including component video and SPDIF for digital audio. The vertical mount version does not provide SPDIF connectors because flat panel TV’s do not have SPDIF inputs. If you are using this in an equipment rack and have a receiver with SPDIF, the standard set top box version is better. Plus, you can have a local DVD/CD player in the standard set top box version. For the vertical mount version, you can leave your CD’s or DVD’s in a jukebox attached to the [[Fiire Engine]].

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-station.php

== COM Ports ==

As of May 1, 2008 only the 1" version had a serial port built-in. According to fiire customer service the set-top box version has an available serial port header and a DB-9 punch out. However, Polywell (the manufacturer of the fiire boxes) does not populate the DB-9.

According to customer service, the case of the 2" Fiire Station does not have a spot for a DB-9.

== Versions ==

According to fiire technical support a new generation of the Fiire Station and Engine are slated to be released to coincide with the release of LinuxMCE 07.10.

Fiire Engine

2008-10-25T23:32:35Z

Murdock304: /* Features */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Cores]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Engine.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab]. This article is out-of-date and this unit has been replaced by a new product line.

== Features ==

• Fits in a standard A/V rack, on an existing shelf or with a custom sliding rack-mount shelf for easy access in standard 19" rack systems.

• Software: LinuxMCE 0710. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.

• User Interface: UI2 with masking or alpha blending

• Processor: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 65W, 45 nm. 6 MB L2 cache. (quiet and low-heat/power model)

• RAM: 2GB

• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 500 GB

• RAID storage for media: 12port sata controller + 12 sata bays (hard drives aren’t included).

• Network: Dual Ethernet ports. Gigabit speed.

• Audio: 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, line in, mic connectors

• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors

• Optical Drive: DVD RW

• TV: PVR-150 Analog Tuner Card (optional)

• Connectors: 6xUSB 2.0, 2xIEEE1394

• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

LinuxMCE supports 3 variations of the user interface, as shown [http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Main_Page#Screenshots here]. The [[Fiire Station]]s are designed to be LinuxMCE media stations, and use special graphics processors and video decoders to provide the highest quality video playback, and provide alpha blending done in the hardware. However, the video subsystem in the [[Fiire Station]] is not available for use in a standard PC platform. The [[Fiire Engine]], however, uses standard PC parts.

The [[Fiire Engine]] is intended to be primarily the back-end server, while the [[Fiire Station]]s are dedicated for media playback. Therefore the [[Fiire Station]]s have more a/v connections, including component video, and SPDIF coax and optical for digital audio and surround sound.

The FiireEngine 12 TB is the main brain of our LinuxMCE solution. This is what runs all the back-end software, provides diskless boot images to the FiireStations, runs your RAID storage, phone system, home control, and so on. You need one and only one FiireEngine for the whole house. In every other room where you want LinuxMCE you add the FiireStation thin clients. The FiireEngine is built with PC components and the latest generation INTEL core 2 duo CPU. This gives the FiireEngine the processing power it needs to handle all the back-end tasks. The FiireEngine can be connected to a TV and used as a home theater PC. But, generally speaking we find most people don't want a PC connected to the TV because even with high-end fanless systems the hard drives are still audible, the PC's are big and require a shelf or rack to put them on, sa, we designed Fiire with the intention that in higher-end installations the FiireEngine would be put in a central closet out of the way and the FiireStations would be connected to the TV's. Since all devices throughout the home are shared, and every FiireStation has access to all the media and devices connected to the FiireEngine or to other FiireStations using a standard home network, there is no reason why you need to put the FiireEngine in close proximity to a TV. The FiireStations boot off the network using the FiireEngine's hard drives. The FiireStations are quiet, use very little power and generate little heat. They have specialized video processors to deliver video-phile quality high-def playback and de-interlacing of 1080i. To get started you can buy a FiireEngine by itself, which you conect to a TV and use as a HTPC, and then add FiireStations later when you want to add extra media directors.

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-engine.php

Fiire Engine

2008-10-25T23:32:06Z

Murdock304: /* Features */

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Cores]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Engine.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab]. This article is out-of-date and this unit has been replaced by a new product line.

== Features ==

• Fits in a standard A/V rack, on an existing shelf or with a custom sliding rack-mount shelf for easy access in standard 19" rack systems.
• Software: LinuxMCE 0710. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
• User Interface: UI2 with masking or alpha blending
• Processor: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 65W, 45 nm. 6 MB L2 cache. (quiet and low-heat/power model)
• RAM: 2GB
• Internal Hard drive for operating system: 500 GB
• RAID storage for media: 12port sata controller + 12 sata bays (hard drives aren’t included).
• Network: Dual Ethernet ports. Gigabit speed.
• Audio: 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, line in, mic connectors
• Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors
• Optical Drive: DVD RW
• TV: PVR-150 Analog Tuner Card (optional)
• Connectors: 6xUSB 2.0, 2xIEEE1394
• Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

LinuxMCE supports 3 variations of the user interface, as shown [http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Main_Page#Screenshots here]. The [[Fiire Station]]s are designed to be LinuxMCE media stations, and use special graphics processors and video decoders to provide the highest quality video playback, and provide alpha blending done in the hardware. However, the video subsystem in the [[Fiire Station]] is not available for use in a standard PC platform. The [[Fiire Engine]], however, uses standard PC parts.

The [[Fiire Engine]] is intended to be primarily the back-end server, while the [[Fiire Station]]s are dedicated for media playback. Therefore the [[Fiire Station]]s have more a/v connections, including component video, and SPDIF coax and optical for digital audio and surround sound.

The FiireEngine 12 TB is the main brain of our LinuxMCE solution. This is what runs all the back-end software, provides diskless boot images to the FiireStations, runs your RAID storage, phone system, home control, and so on. You need one and only one FiireEngine for the whole house. In every other room where you want LinuxMCE you add the FiireStation thin clients. The FiireEngine is built with PC components and the latest generation INTEL core 2 duo CPU. This gives the FiireEngine the processing power it needs to handle all the back-end tasks. The FiireEngine can be connected to a TV and used as a home theater PC. But, generally speaking we find most people don't want a PC connected to the TV because even with high-end fanless systems the hard drives are still audible, the PC's are big and require a shelf or rack to put them on, sa, we designed Fiire with the intention that in higher-end installations the FiireEngine would be put in a central closet out of the way and the FiireStations would be connected to the TV's. Since all devices throughout the home are shared, and every FiireStation has access to all the media and devices connected to the FiireEngine or to other FiireStations using a standard home network, there is no reason why you need to put the FiireEngine in close proximity to a TV. The FiireStations boot off the network using the FiireEngine's hard drives. The FiireStations are quiet, use very little power and generate little heat. They have specialized video processors to deliver video-phile quality high-def playback and de-interlacing of 1080i. To get started you can buy a FiireEngine by itself, which you conect to a TV and use as a HTPC, and then add FiireStations later when you want to add extra media directors.

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-engine.php

Fiire Engine

2008-10-25T23:29:34Z

Murdock304: Updating page to reflect new hardware

[[Category: Hardware]]
[[Category: Cores]]
[[Category: Supported]]

[[Image:Fiire_Engine.jpg|right]]

== Status ==

Will be supported by [[Fiire]] (LMCE support). Mid 2008 the hardware order fulfillment transitioned from [http://www.polywell.com Polywell Computers] to [http://www.pcdlab.com PC Design Lab]. This article is out-of-date and this unit has been replaced by a new product line.

== Features ==

* Fits in a standard A/V rack, on an existing shelf or with a custom sliding rack-mount shelf for easy access in standard 19" rack systems.
* Software: LinuxMCE 0710. Will self-upgrade as new releases come out.
* User Interface: UI2 with masking or alpha blending
* Processor: Intel E8400 Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz, 65W, 45 nm. 6 MB L2 cache. (quiet and low-heat/power model)
* RAM: 2GB
* Internal Hard drive for operating system: 500 GB
* RAID storage for media: 12port sata controller + 12 sata bays (hard drives aren’t included).
* Network: Dual Ethernet ports. Gigabit speed.
* Audio: 7.1 HD Audio with analog, SPDIF optical and coax/RCA, line in, mic connectors
* Video: nVidia 7150 graphics with HDMI and VGA connectors
* Optical Drive: DVD RW
* TV: PVR-150 Analog Tuner Card (optional)
* Connectors: 6xUSB 2.0, 2xIEEE1394
* Works on 110 and 240 voltage

== Sales Pitch ==

LinuxMCE supports 3 variations of the user interface, as shown [http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Main_Page#Screenshots here]. The [[Fiire Station]]s are designed to be LinuxMCE media stations, and use special graphics processors and video decoders to provide the highest quality video playback, and provide alpha blending done in the hardware. However, the video subsystem in the [[Fiire Station]] is not available for use in a standard PC platform. The [[Fiire Engine]], however, uses standard PC parts.

The [[Fiire Engine]] is intended to be primarily the back-end server, while the [[Fiire Station]]s are dedicated for media playback. Therefore the [[Fiire Station]]s have more a/v connections, including component video, and SPDIF coax and optical for digital audio and surround sound.

The FiireEngine 12 TB is the main brain of our LinuxMCE solution. This is what runs all the back-end software, provides diskless boot images to the FiireStations, runs your RAID storage, phone system, home control, and so on. You need one and only one FiireEngine for the whole house. In every other room where you want LinuxMCE you add the FiireStation thin clients. The FiireEngine is built with PC components and the latest generation INTEL core 2 duo CPU. This gives the FiireEngine the processing power it needs to handle all the back-end tasks. The FiireEngine can be connected to a TV and used as a home theater PC. But, generally speaking we find most people don't want a PC connected to the TV because even with high-end fanless systems the hard drives are still audible, the PC's are big and require a shelf or rack to put them on, sa, we designed Fiire with the intention that in higher-end installations the FiireEngine would be put in a central closet out of the way and the FiireStations would be connected to the TV's. Since all devices throughout the home are shared, and every FiireStation has access to all the media and devices connected to the FiireEngine or to other FiireStations using a standard home network, there is no reason why you need to put the FiireEngine in close proximity to a TV. The FiireStations boot off the network using the FiireEngine's hard drives. The FiireStations are quiet, use very little power and generate little heat. They have specialized video processors to deliver video-phile quality high-def playback and de-interlacing of 1080i. To get started you can buy a FiireEngine by itself, which you conect to a TV and use as a HTPC, and then add FiireStations later when you want to add extra media directors.

== Where to buy ==

http://www.fiire.com/fiire-engine.php

Fiire Engine

2008-10-25T22:55:47Z

Murdock304: /* Status */