DVD's from PC to AMP.

Charl:

I'm new to this portion of the forums so i'm sure this question has been asked before. I'd like to play music from computer to AV receiver.

What i have done so far is connect my PC to Yamaha RXV3800 via CAT 5 cable, then ripped CD's using Windows Media Player and after battling to get PC and AMP to "see" each other, it was the virus scanner blocking the process, i managed to get music from computer to play thru the amp.

My question is, how do i do the same for my DVD collection? Windows Media Player can't rip DVD's and copying DVD's into shared folder doesn't work either.

Any help would be appreciated. 

Assuming you mean you want the DVD audio files/soundtrack, then use Mpeg Streamclip software. Load the DVD on the Mac and open the .vob file( containing the music/soundtrack in MPEG Streamclip then 'demux' it into AIFF format and afterwards import to iTunes as AAC at whatever quality level you prefer.

I did this with a lot of BBC radio plays I had recorded (audio only) in NICAM stereo on VHS*. I copied them to DVD-R then used the process above (MPEG Streamclip) to demux them. The quality of the original Stereo FM broadcasts was preserved beautifully.

If you want to rip the entire DVD then 'Mac The Ripper' software is used by a lot of people. I cant be bothered. I just play the DVDs.

On a PC I would not even begin to think about attempting anything like this.

*I used to record audio only on VHS because many plays (especially on R3) were done in their entirety without breaks and cassettes were simply not long enough. A brand new TDK E180 VHS tape would easily accomodate a 2.5 hour play and the quality was very high with the 1st generation NICAM machines. (Mine even had adjustable audio levels with LED meters!)

Mac the Ripper is definitely the one to use on Mac - on a PC you can use ImToo's DVD Copy Express to creat the vob files - save an individual folder for each film, save them in the 'videos' folder (this is vista I'm talking about). But you need to change the registry setting

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionMedia CenterSettingsDvdSettings

The item is "ShowGallery" - change it from "Play" to "Gallery". Then the vob files are available to play in media centre.

Having said all of this, it's illegal, it takes forever, and at 8gig a film, it sucks your hard disk dry. I'd get a DVD player if I were you.........

Thanks guys, i was hoping that there was an easy way, i tried something similar to convert DVD's onto my iPod but it was such a tedious process i gave up, it took forever and the thought of going thru the whole process for each DVD,(100 plus) wasn't worth it. I have DVD's that are great for playing at parties when i have friends over and to keep changing DVD's was a pain.

I was just wondering what the real benefits are of having amp connected to PC via home network. I'd beable to play music from pc but then i'd have to rip my cd's to PC, but i've already got all my cd's on my Ipod. I can also play internet radio, not that i need that. So, what are the other benefits, am i missing something? 

I have:

Thecus > mac > xbox360 > TV - this allows me to stream any film / photo to my TV. I only really watch movie content stored on my Thecus because the music playback capabilities of the xbox are just about the worst in the world. Giving the xbox an internet connection allows it to download and install updates (your receiver can now do this if it wasn't connected to the internet before) and connect to xbox live.

Thecus > mac > stereo. - obv. handles all music playbackÿ

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How do i link iTunes to my network receiver, is it possible? Does yamaha 3800 only work with windows media player? I copied music from itunes to windows media player so it is possible for me to play all my music via windows media player but i have music stored on both so i use double the pc disk space, 20 gigs on iTunes and 20 gigs on windows media player, basically ending up with duplications.

If i could play thru iTunes then i wouldn't have to use windows media player.

Hate to say it, but I think the best way to do what you want is the Airport Express. However, there do seem to be certain potential pitfalls with this product when used with PCs at the moment (see this post). Of course, I'm sure this isn't affecting every PC user else there really would be uproar, but it's something to bear in mind before you buy - maybe get an agreement with the shop you can take it back if you get this issue.

Otherwise, I don't think there will be a way of getting the amp to talk directly to iTunes and all your playlists. Is the receiver DLNA enabled? If so, you can use some DLNA software like Twonky Media installed on your PC to allow the receiver to see the folders that your iTunes library is stored in. As I say though, this won't allow you to see your iTunes playlists and the like.

thanks prof, maybe it will be better if i get an external hard drive and save all music on that and so free up hard drive space on my pc. 

Yup, definitely a good option, especially considering how cheap you can get a terabyte USB drive these days!