Nvidia Shield as DVR

[ssoltis]

@djw

I will join the fray to come down firmly on both sides of the fence

I have an old Nvidia Shield 2017, not pro and (non-cylindrical), in one room and seems to work fine a a client and a ChannelsDVR server a) when coupled with a external HDD and b) for a single user. Nothing is choppy.

I will add that this shield seems to need to be rebooted maybe weekly or so to stay "unconfused" and I don't know why. As a general streaming client it also works fine.

I will add that the AppleTV client and a separate miniPC as a server has way more zip and handles more load much better. That's the primary set-up we now use. Neither every have to be rebooted to get "unconfused".

If I had lots of discretionary funds I might replace the shield with another AppleTV, but I don't and it works ok. It might be on my wish list that the AppleTV could run ChannelsDVR server some day but tvOS server not likely in the cards.

In your opinion does the Shield need rebooted every week due to it being buggy as a server? Or do you think it is buggy as a client too?

[djw]

Hard to say. From my perspective, 'shield experience 9' was the turning point. I see nothing real buggy, it just runs better after a reboot or when apps are not allowed to accumulate (double click the dot button and thin them out).

[ssoltis]

@djw

Hard to say. From my perspective, 'shield experience 9' was the turning point. I see nothing real buggy, it just runs better after a reboot or when apps are not allowed to accumulate (double click the dot button and thin them out).

But you would advise against using the Shield as the server? As a client only is fine?

[djw]

If you already own one, all I can only say try it and see.

But I would not buy one if you don't already have one. I would go with something else for the server. There are much better choices for the $.

[speedingcheetah]

Just to chime in about the Shield as a cleint. It works very well. Have had no issues with the Pro model. Never have to reboot it. The Tube model though, does need reboot every couple months and is slower.

[kelson]

@ssoltis

So I am confused about what you are saying. You recommend getting the server off of the Shield, but then indicate the same problem pops up using a mini PC and you have to reboot every few days? What exactly is your suggestion? Thanks

First let me say that the choppy video never occurred with Shield+ChannelsDVR+Client until nVidia did that major Android update to v11 which broke Channels DVR Server and Plex Server amongst others. I liked the idea of running DVR/Client on the same Shield with an external SSD like I did before the v11 update so after nVidia/Channels resolved the Android 11 problems I transferred the server back to the Shield.

When the choppy video issue started I had no idea where the problem was but the only way to correct it was to reboot the Shield. Since I usually had recordings running, rebooting was a problem so when the opportunity arose to acquire a sub-$100 mini-PC to use as the DVR Server, I took it.

Bottom line: The server runs stable as a rock on the linux mini-PC.The choppy video on Shield/Channels Client still occurs every couple days of running and always after I skip through a commercial or a long program segment. So the problem is with the Shield/Client but since the server is running elsewhere I have no problem rebooting the Shield and picking up watching the recording where we left off.
So my suggestion is to run the server on a separate device so if you have to reboot the Shield you won't risk trashing a recording in-progress.

[jkr4m3r]

@RockandRoller70

And you guys should invest in a native Windows client for Channels if this is your recommendation.

The problem there for me is a remote. Back in the day I found a remote that worked with Win7 Media Center, is there such a thing today? I can get around on Win10/11 using Android Unified Remote, but it's not gonna be as good as a device remote I can operate via "feel".

[Rice]

@jkr4m3r

The problem there for me is a remote

Flirc usb and any ir remote you like. Works great

[Metalman]

I'm using Microsoft MC remote, and it is going strong.
I also have the Dell Microsoft MC remote that I can use as a mouse and a remote.

[chDVRuser]

@chDVRuser

Not using one, but ran across this post on the SD forum and wonder if it applies to Channels DVR also.

Never answered. I was asking if Channels DVR also has to go through FUSE and has the same issues.

"The Shield is no longer a recommended recording platform. With the move to the newer Android version in Shield Experience 9, Google removed the ability for apps to directly access storage attached to an Android device. It instead has to go through a system called FUSE, which really sucks. It runs at about 10% of the speed compared to what direct access was capable of in earlier versions, and this can result in recording and playback problems if you get more than like 2 channels going at once."