High performance home networks

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Mon Aug 15, 2011 7:14 pm

Hopefully there's bound to be someone here who may know the answer to this...

I am now the proud owner of a very powerful home server, courtesy of that nice man pvr, and have got it to rip, decrypt and recode DVD, BluRay, Audio and H.264 HD video so that I have a single source media system but the wireless can't deliver the data rates and my existing powerline betwork wasn't set up for anything but extending the wireless coverage.

So, have any of you tried these new(ish) Homeplug AV systems, and how much success have you had?

I'm looking to be able to deliver a minimum of 24-30MB/s (around 200Mbps) from the server to any of the points where the HD & 3D TVs are. I know I can do it with GigE (1,000Mbps) over Cat 5E or 6 wiring but that's impractical; the current 802.11 wireless standard can't cope on either 2.4GHz or 5GHz (theoretically it can, but in the real world of this house it struggles even with additional transceivers), so I'm looking for people with real experience of the Homeplug systems like the Devolo 500AV plus, or 200AV Plus, or any of the other similar types on the market.

I've got an older 60Mbps system, but that's not fast enough for this use. Full HD1080p video needs a lot more, and multiple streams need a LOT more!!

dubbers · Post by **dubbers** » Tue Aug 16, 2011 7:42 pm

I've been thro' this pain over the last 5 years or so. The answer is cabled, wifi and home plug/power line just aren't robust enough even if you do manage to tweak them to deliver a consistent 30mbps physical link. I got close with power line at 200mbps but 1080p dts can peak to 45mbps and I had annoying frame/sound drop with my PCH's. With wifi, as throughput increases range drops, and even a 450mbps 3 or 4 transmitter wifi access point won't meet peak hd video.

After years of dancing round looking for the innovative tech solution, I ended going low tech, digging, drilling and laying cat5e. Jumbo frame enabled Netgear switch which is load balanced to a readynas file server. I can now run two 1080p dts mkv encoded films to different rooms, robustly - so no moans from wife or kids.

pvr · Post by **pvr** » Tue Aug 16, 2011 9:08 pm

I installed the Hanewin software to get a higher throughput as I could not get the windows share to get the files pushed through the NIC quickly enough for HD content.

And yes, I am hard wired as that is the only way ... (have 500 metres of cabling in the wall in the house ...)

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Tue Aug 16, 2011 10:01 pm

I thought (feared?) doing it properly was going to be the answer, but it was worth asking. I now know I need at least 40MB/sec per stream and that means either two VLANs of PLT, or CAT5e/6 wiring and a gigabit backbone architecture. Fibre is too damned expensive - even if it does have the bandwidth and some, and is easier to hide.

Might look and see what cabling is going to be needed for 10Gbase-T so at least it's a one time future proofed install. The network hardware is waaaayyyy to pricey to use jow, but in the future it will come down and I an onky see the digital world we live in needing faster network capacity. I think CAT6 can cope as long as the run lengths are reduced to less than 50m - which all mine will be.

7 years ago I wondered what anyone could possibly need 1TB of storage for. Having commissioned 8TB with 8TB more for the backups, I now know why! Bluray movies eat storage at 50GB a time. My HD cameras burn 10GB per hour, each!

Oh well time to get the tools out...........Cheers for the input guys

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 7:39 pm

All Stop!

Blasted server internal PSU crapped out so gone back. Be another 10-days before I can try and sort this out. I think I'm going to need a length of external Cat5e/6 as the internal run has some major issues. Might be abe to run it alongside the satellite cables (2x Shotgun type) which will reduce the visual impact.

Be nice to know about any cross-talk though. I wanted to avoid long runs in case the amateur transmitter interferes (I am a Radio Ham too). Oh well, no doubt HRH will come up with alternatives to keep me busy while on leave next week...

sramsay · Post by **sramsay** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 8:00 pm

Is STP instead of UTP cable an option? Not sure if the shielding has any specific requirements.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 8:03 pm

I had planned to use double screened, solid conductor but had not got far enough down the road of checking the type code. Good point though. I'll remember that when I go looking.

dubbers · Post by **dubbers** » Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:55 am

[quote=""X5Sport""]I had planned to use double screened, solid conductor but had not got far enough down the road of checking the type code. Good point though. I'll remember that when I go looking.

[/quote]

Just check that STP allows 1GB/s speeds - My knowledge is not current, but I remember that STP topped out at 100MB/s?

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