Transcoding recordings for PlayOn to read

[rgroves]

I've tried searching, but I'm not finding a clear answer to the question.

I have SageTV and PlayOn installed on The same computer. I have lots of TV Shows and movies recorded by SageTV, or ripped from my DVD/Blu-Ray collection. I have SageTV and PlayOn pointing to the same directories for recordings. I'd like to transcode everything from SageTV to be viewable on PlayOn. Is this possible.....If so, what settings do I need to use on SageTV to do so.


BTW - I'm still on SageTV 1.7xx I've not upgraded to 1.9 yet.... I still have 1 HD300 and 1 HD200. And I've debated setting up an Intel NUK or two if needed. I do still have an SiliconDust external digital tuner (not in use).

The reason for asking is multifold....
1) I'm getting ready to cut the cord. Switching to Roku's, antenna(local News), and Streaming services (Netflix, HB), Amazon, SlingTV, etc..)

2) My SageTV server is old....AMD quadcore CPU, 4GB RAM, Running Win 10 (but can't upgrade to annivers edition because of an issue), it's approx 6-8 years old. The hardware is old and showing signs of it's age.

3) I'm debating upgrading the hardware and reinstalling my tuners for capturing local stations from the antenna, if needed. I took them out for installing digital tuners, and then took then out for a cable card tuner.

4) I'm sure transcoding will chew up the CPU and RAM while it's working.

5) I realize I may have answered many of the questions on the upgrades....Upgrade the HW=Yes. Upgrade OS=Yes. Upgrade to SageTV 1.9=Duh..YES. I'll have to gradually to this as to not upset the wife and cause me lots of sleepless nights and weekends troubleshooting things.

[Fuzzy]

I'm not really understanding where you are trying to put PlayOn into the mix. Typically, when PlayOn is used with sage, is is to capture/record streaming content, which is then made available to be played in sage.

Regarding your other questions/notes:
1) I honestly don't think I'd go Roku for this. I'd look into an Android TV box (Nvidia Shield TV, or Mi Box). These will not only support your streaming services, but also have decent sagetv support.
2) That server would do fine for most sagetv serving duties, especially if you use clients that don't require transcoding (like the Android boxes I just mentioned). Most that RAM is likely being used up by Windows 10 itself, and the bloat it has included. Sage, on windows, is only going to use at most about 1.4GB of ram.
3) Like I mentioned, upgrading hardware may not be required, unless you WANT to.
4) most 'good' transcoders will only use what is available.
5) if you ARE going to be getting new hardware, I think I'd look into building a new system from scratch and purchasing unRAID as the OS. This could then be built from scratch, not touching your existing hardware, so you can easily transition to it without significant downtime, if this is perceived as being an issue.

[NetworkGuy]

I also have PlayOn and SageTV installed on the same computer. All I use PlayOn for is to record shows, movies, etc from different streaming services. The PlayOn record directory is an import directory for SageTV, so the recordings show up automatically in SageTV.

I am not sure that I have used PlayOn to actually watch any recording.

Why are you trying to use PlayOn instead of SageTV to view the recordings?

[rgroves]

I prefer Roku. I can get all my streaming services directly on the Roku, and then use PlayOn to record any streamed shows I miss.

I want to use SageTV to record OTA - Local news broadcasts or other local content.

I guess I'm asking if PlayOn can see the SageTV recordings (both broadcasts and ripped media)? Would (or could) anything recorded by SageTV need to be transcoded to be see by PlayOn?

I'm not using SageTV to view the recordings because I only have 1 HD300 and 1 HD200. The 200 is not working correctly and buffers quite a bit. The 300 seems to work OK, but I've only got 1, and need at least 5. The Roku's were cheaper than trying to buy additional 300's or build replacement client boxes.


Maybe SageTV isn't for me anymore? Maybe I just need to find something to easily and cheaply record OTA local content? I'd like to keep SageTV around, I've been a supporter since the very early days.

[Fuzzy]

I think PlayOn has some sort of Media Library feature, that you could drop your sagetv recordings into - but this really seems to be the long way around to do this.

I really do think you might want to look into the $69 Mi Box (sold by Walmart) instead of the Roku. You'd then be able to watch your sagetv recordings in sagetv itself, as well as livetv, configuring favorites, etc. What streaming service are you wanting to use that is available on Roku but isn't available on Android TV?

[NetworkGuy]

If you want to stay with Roku, why don't you install Plex on the server. (I also have it installed.) There is a SageTV plugin that keeps Plex and SageTV in-sync. I know that there is a Plex channel on Roku.

Also, in my opinion, Plex seems to have a better Media Library than PlayOn.

[rgroves]

Already bought the Roku's.

Already bought lifetime subscription to PlayOn.

Already subscribed (Trials) to HBONow, Netflix, Amazon Video/Prime, SlingTV (w/ Epix and Cinemax), Starz, and Showtime.


Pointed PlayOn to the same recording directory as Sage, and told it to import, but it does not see the SageTV recordings.....This is why I asked if the SageTV recordings need to be transcoded.

[Fuzzy]

I have found no info on what formats the PlayOn Media Library supports. That said, I can't believe there isn't a way to have the Roku target the recordings folder directly itself. Does a roku not have some sort of media browser built into it?

[tvmaster2]

Originally Posted by NetworkGuy

I also have PlayOn and SageTV installed on the same computer. All I use PlayOn for is to record shows, movies, etc from different streaming services. The PlayOn record directory is an import directory for SageTV, so the recordings show up automatically in SageTV.

I am not sure that I have used PlayOn to actually watch any recording.

Why are you trying to use PlayOn instead of SageTV to view the recordings?

I also have a PlayOn Lifetime membership, but never use it. How do you interface with it, aka what apps, what computer, etc, to grab material PlayOn can record? Other than using PlayOn Server the PC it's installed on, is there any other way? I set up Sage's Media Center to see my PlayOn recordings folder - but what's the best way to record material?

[NetworkGuy]

I just ran a test and turned on the Media Library in my PlayOn server. I pointed it at the SageTV recoding directory and it found all of my recordings. I was able to play them with Playon. I have a Roku somewhere, but it is not hooked up so I was not able to test that portion.

If you add the SageTV recording directory to the PlayOn Media Library, can you see the files on the PlayOn Server? (It took a while for them to show up, because PlayOn was scanning them.) If you can see them on the server, then test to see if you can see them on the Roku.

It looks like PlayOn will automatically transcode as watch, or you can tell it is ignore certain extensions (e.g. mpg, etc.) if the Roku can handle the native file format.

[rgroves]

@NetworkGuy - What recording settings and codec are you using on SageTV? I'll double check my setup, but I've had PlayOn installed for a few months but nothing in my SageTV directory shows up.....I MUST BE doing something wrong then....

[NetworkGuy]

Originally Posted by rgroves

@NetworkGuy - What recording settings and codec are you using on SageTV? I'll double check my setup, but I've had PlayOn installed for a few months but nothing in my SageTV directory shows up.....I MUST BE doing something wrong then....

My recordings are mpeg format. The SageTV settings are in an attached screenshot.

Can you see other video files in the PlayOn Media Library?

[Monedeath]

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

I have found no info on what formats the PlayOn Media Library supports. That said, I can't believe there isn't a way to have the Roku target the recordings folder directly itself. Does a roku not have some sort of media browser built into it?

IIRC, many of the Newer Roku boxes only do h.264 or h.264/265

If you want to view mpeg2, you're going to need something to transcode it.

https://support.roku.com/article/208...sic-and-photos

Which media file types are supported?

The following file formats are supported:
•Video — H.264/AVC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV)
•Audio — AAC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV); MP3(.MP3, .MKV); WMA (.ASF, .WMA, .MKV), FLAC (.FLAC, .MKV), PCM (.WAV, .MKV, .MP4, .MOV), AC3/EAC3 (.MKV,.MP4. .MOV, .AC3), DTS (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV), ALAC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV, .M4A)
•Playlists — .M3U, .M3U8
•Image — JPG, PNG, GIF (non-animated)

The following media formats are supported on Roku devices that support 4K
•4K Video — H.265/HEVC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV); VP9 (.MKV)

The following media formats are supported on Roku TVs
•Video — H.262 (.MKV)

Notes:
•The Roku Media Player channel will not display unsupported file types or files it has determined cannot be played by your Roku device.
•DRM-protected content is not supported.

Ok, so it seems that Roku does support mpeg2(h.262), if you have a RokuTV at least, but you're going to need to have it in a .mkv container. If you're using one of their boxes, you're probably out of luck, you'll need to transcode the video to h.264