You'll have to do some research and decide which media front end suits your needs best. The top 3 are Emby, Kodi, & J River. All 3 will do what you need. Plex is pretty good too but I personally don't think it has enough "eye candy" appeal.

I use the old Media Browser (now Emby) and I haven't upgraded to anything else because I like the way it looks better than any of the others.

Also, MPC-HC is a much better player than VLC especially if you have a lot of films with forced subtitles.

 

Plex is probably the easiest and quickest to set up and use. Kodi is, IMO, better looking and more customizable. Those are the two most used front ends. I don't think Plex has an option to play actual Blurays and DVDs while I know Kodi does. Kodi is also able to easily launch things like Netflix, Youtube, emulators, etc, right from Kodi. I use Kodi on the HTPC hooked up to the large Plasma TV in the living room (since it's more of a showcase) and I use Plex on the PC hooked up to the TV in my bedroom.

 

I'd also go Kodi. Another option would be Emby.

 

Kodi! The flexibility is nice. Although it does lack proper Netflix and Hulu support, there are ways to get it working with third party apps such as playon or if using the Advanced Launcher plug in along with Windows metro apps of Netflix and Hulu. It can definitely be done.

 

I use Kodi and the ios remote app. Nice thing is how much you can customize it. Could even tell it to use third party players (VLC, MPC...etc) if you wanted to.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. So Kodi will pull thumbnails and descriptions off the web for media content?

I don't really need Netflix integration as I can just launch netflix from my browser as needed. My tv is SMART and has netflix support but of course I have the audio out issue to my receiver.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robilar

So Kodi will pull thumbnails and descriptions off the web for media content?

Short answer. Yes

Longer answer. You add a source folder and it asks you what content scraper you wish to use. Scraper gets descriptions, cover art, fanart, thumbnails. Generally all apps like Kodi, Plex and others do this in the same way.

You may need a skin to display everything to your preference, depending on how detailed you want to get.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robilar

Thanks for the suggestions. So Kodi will pull thumbnails and descriptions off the web for media content?

I don't really need Netflix integration as I can just launch netflix from my browser as needed. My tv is SMART and has netflix support but of course I have the audio out issue to my receiver.

Absolutely! There is an awesome thumbnail and art downloader plugin available also. It will grab disk art, logos, you name it for your content. It's all free to use and try out. The current build Jarvis RC 16.2 is out now.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by hyp36rmax

Absolutely! There is an awesome thumbnail and art downloader plugin available also. It will grab disk art, logos, you name it for your content. It's all free to use and try out. The current build Jarvis RC 16.2 is out now.

Stick to the stable builds your first time.

 

RC is kinda stable, but in 1-2 weeks we will have the officially released version of Kodi 16. Id say wait for it because it'll have many improvements over 15. Until then pick you skin and research what can you do with Kodi.

 

I have to recommend Kodi although Plex is decent for streaming to multiple devices and across the web. But based on your needs I'd recommend Kodi.

 

Serviio media server, for PC, has apps for Android. it costs though...

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bundyka

RC is kinda stable, but in 1-2 weeks we will have the officially released version of Kodi 16. Id say wait for it because it'll have many improvements over 15. Until then pick you skin and research what can you do with Kodi.

Pretty much this ^

I don't think i've had a major problem with any of the betas or Release Candidates.

 

Yes most of the times it is plenty stable. I don't think you should recommend RC versions to people when they are new to the software.

 

Here's how I have mine set up, using Kodi for front end, Launchbox / BigBox for the front end for the emulators, and Controller Companion so I can control it all easily from the couch using nothing but an Xbox 360 controller.

 

Does Kodi come up with those background images all on its own?

 

In your case Kodi is probably what your looking for. Personally im not a fan of it I found it to be difficult to setup (and I work in IT for what its worth).

I live by Plex, however it shines by acting as both the "backend" and "frontend", in that it has a server component and then a player component. It really shines when intending to centrally host the media and play from other players.

Ive found Filebot to be extremely helpful in renaming and organizing my media. I use a batch script that has it detect movie/tv show, rename it and move it folder structure for me (and grabbing subs too). Plex takes care of the poster/imdb like info automatically.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by GnarlyCharlie

Does Kodi come up with those background images all on its own?

Short answer is yes.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by madpossum

Here's how I have mine set up, using Kodi for front end, Launchbox / BigBox for the front end for the emulators, and Controller Companion so I can control it all easily from the couch using nothing but an Xbox 360 controller.

Holy cow.. Teach me the ways!!

 

Doesn't seem like many people use it, But I'm a fan of media portal. Been using it for a few years now, Took a little while to set it up how I like though. Lots of plugins available too. It can do TV also if you decide to add a tuner card later, but you don't have to install the TV package if you don't plan on using it.

http://www.team-mediaportal.com/

 

I loaded up Kodi and it looks great. Having some setup issues with some files in terms of them being properly recognized. Not the most user friendly to change things but the interface is great.

Thanks for the suggestions. Just added another 3TB drive to my media PC this morning so it is ready to rumble.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robilar

I loaded up Kodi and it looks great. Having some setup issues with some files in terms of them being properly recognized. Not the most user friendly to change things but the interface is great.

Thanks for the suggestions. Just added another 3TB drive to my media PC this morning so it is ready to rumble.

Cool beans! Yes Kodi has a slight learning curve, once you get used to the menu and customization it'll be much easier to setup.

 

I always keep things in the format of "tv show name - SXXEXX - maybe episode title.file extension". I believe the default scrapper is still thetvdb.com for TV shows, check there also if you are having problems.

 

One thing I have noticed is that the built in video player does not provide as clear a picture as VLC player.

Any thoughts?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robilar

One thing I have noticed is that the built in video player does not provide as clear a picture as VLC player.

Any thoughts?

I just use the default player, but you can try this: