I took the plunge this year and ended up buying a 22" Samsung smart tv for the bedroom, to my enjoyment it has been by far my most enjoyable purchase this year.
To use with Vortexbox which acts as a DLNA server to stream movies and music to the Samsung smart TV, all you have to do is connect the tv to your network either via cable or WiFi. For my setup i used WiFi and have experienced no problems at all.
The Vortexbox is an old acer revo which i had kicking around with a 500GB hard drive, again to load Vortexbox is very simple.
When you have the Samsung Smart TV Networked and also the Vortexbox, no configuration is needed simply go to the menu option for recorded TV and you Vortexbox will show up as media server.
You can then stream any movies or music that you have stored on your Vortexbox Dlna server.
The LG smart sound bar works with a very similar approach once you in the home menu your Vortexbox will show up as an option again it will be called media server, you can call the DLNA server anything you wish by logging into the Vortexbox settings and there is an option to name your DLNA service.
The great advantage for me of purchasing the LG Smart Sound Bar was that my 32 inch Samsung TV in my living room was not a smart TV, by adding the LG Smart Sound Bar to it not only gave me grat sound for my Freeview TV channels via an optical cable, it also adds smart functions from the Smart Sound Bar, giving me apps like netflix and BBC iplayer. Again i can stream movies and also music from Vortexbox too.
Another twist is you can setup Bluetooth from your smart phone or tablet PC, i use an Iphone and i can stream music from that to.
On Both the sound bar and smart TV i have spotify which i have a premium account for.
Please check out my video for my Samsung smart TV review
Also my LG Smart Sound Bar Review
Saturday 30 November 2013
Friday 8 November 2013
Panasonic NCP500 VPN testing one way audio sip
Panasonic NCP500 VPN testing work in progress
Having issues on one way audio using a pptp VPN to Panasonic NCP500
Using a Mikrotik router with pptp server.
Cannot get audio from the network to the end user from any of the extensions.
Using two adsl lines bonded by sharedband with all ports transparently sent to the router from sharedband.
Same VPN works on freepbx server on network with no issues.
Tried installing DD-WRT router with pptp server calls are succesful and no one way audio issue.
Then on DD-WRT turn of force encryption back to one way audio again.
Next to try on Mikrotik is enforce encryption to see if this is the issue
Have try disabling service ports on the firewall which made no difference, i am thinking more likely the encryption, because the DD-WRT works out of the box so to speak.
Will test some more with encryption settings.
Update
Seems to be a problem with mikotik on sharedband service
there are two cards on the ncp500 one for sip traffic and ip phones
thesecond card handles the rtp traffic
This i believe is where the problem is, testing on asterisk there is only one ip address for all protocols
with the panasonic there is 2
the rtp traffic is unable to work over the mikrotik vpn
testing a site to site vpn still have problem with one way audio from remote phone over external calls.
Have programmed a staic route from Mikrotik back to router B on site to site but not getting accross the lan.
The Voip DSP card is the problem
Though now testing sip accross site to site it seems very unstable, so will have to avoid site to site on this particular connection as think sharedband is not handling the vpn very well
Having issues on one way audio using a pptp VPN to Panasonic NCP500
Using a Mikrotik router with pptp server.
Cannot get audio from the network to the end user from any of the extensions.
Using two adsl lines bonded by sharedband with all ports transparently sent to the router from sharedband.
Same VPN works on freepbx server on network with no issues.
Tried installing DD-WRT router with pptp server calls are succesful and no one way audio issue.
Then on DD-WRT turn of force encryption back to one way audio again.
Next to try on Mikrotik is enforce encryption to see if this is the issue
Have try disabling service ports on the firewall which made no difference, i am thinking more likely the encryption, because the DD-WRT works out of the box so to speak.
Will test some more with encryption settings.
Update
Seems to be a problem with mikotik on sharedband service
there are two cards on the ncp500 one for sip traffic and ip phones
thesecond card handles the rtp traffic
This i believe is where the problem is, testing on asterisk there is only one ip address for all protocols
with the panasonic there is 2
the rtp traffic is unable to work over the mikrotik vpn
testing a site to site vpn still have problem with one way audio from remote phone over external calls.
Have programmed a staic route from Mikrotik back to router B on site to site but not getting accross the lan.
The Voip DSP card is the problem
Though now testing sip accross site to site it seems very unstable, so will have to avoid site to site on this particular connection as think sharedband is not handling the vpn very well
Sunday 3 November 2013
BT Openreach have become a disgrace
Another rant
I recently took on a job for a customer in the rural area of the Cotswolds.Their complaint was that their broadband had become unusable.
I checked the router and when it did sync it felt like dial up speeds.
So i began the usual checks of the internal wiring of the telephone wiring.
I also when to the neighbours who live 20 yards away, with a quick test on speedtest.net i could see they were getting a steady 1 meg/
Sure enough it was not suitable and felt that a re wire from outside with a new cable may help the situation, so i called in a local Cotswolds Telephone Engineer
A new cable was ran still no sync, unfortunately they were with AOL so i insisted that we move them to my Entanet as i am a partner which makes support very quick and easy rather than hours of calls to AOL.
Openreach were then duly called out.
1st appointment:
Faint beeping on the line: Openreach engineer seemed to think that as we had left the faceplate cover off that would fix it, actually we left the faceplate off so the extensions in the house were not on to help the broadband if a fault was found, he left not actually checking the phone, the phone still had faint beeping (crosstalk).
2nd appointment:
Engineer tested line went to the cabinet about 1.2 miles away, said 5 meg speed there. He went to the exchange did a lift and shift on the port in the exchange, phoned us to say it may settle. Still no sync.
3rd appointment:
This time a openreach coach turned up with a another engineer, these guys gave me hope, again i explained that we had ran new wire, so they tested the line found it was touching dead wire which explained the crosstalk, but they then revealed the real reason broadband was poor. Aluminium lines in the ground, this was something that was laid in the seventies and eighties as a cheap alternative to copper, fair enough broadband did not exist then but now it causes major problems. They began to test every spare pair but the light ran out and they left a note for the next engineer.
4th appointment:
Notes from last visit were ignored, openreach engineer suggested putting the line on 1/2 meg fixed rate line, which i sorted with enatnet for the next morning.
Next morning still no line sync and a note to Entanet from BT that they cannot deliver broadband due to length of line. Blaming the fact that there are to many broadband connections going into the village.
My complaint here
a: I had to tell each enginner from openreach what the last one did as they dont and cant see notes form last engineer visit.
b: They did not test all pairs in the ground.
c: Aluminium needs ripping out replacing with copper, to lose 5 meg in 1.2 miles is disgraceful.
d: when FTTC (Fiber to the cabinet) comes the villagers will still not get anything because of poor lines.
e: openreach engineers are poorly trained and do not have enough time to repair what needs repairing.
f: BT openreach and BT Wholesale are to concentrated on saving money, not reinvesting where lines need it.
g: No contact can be made with openreach, they can hide behind a invisible wall, the only way something could happen now is if we write a letter to our local MP to explain the problem, as they can communicate with openreach, the local MP for this rural area happens to be David Cameron whether this is a good thing or bad i dont know.
Shame on you BT openreach i really hope that 4G will answer rural communities problems and people cancel their problem riddled telephone lines and replace with a reliable 4G connection.
Openreach should not exist in my opinion and should be broken down into smaller localised companies who understand the local problem with the BT lines.
I would love to here your comments about your problems with the poor service BT openreach have given you.
I recently took on a job for a customer in the rural area of the Cotswolds.Their complaint was that their broadband had become unusable.
I checked the router and when it did sync it felt like dial up speeds.
So i began the usual checks of the internal wiring of the telephone wiring.
I also when to the neighbours who live 20 yards away, with a quick test on speedtest.net i could see they were getting a steady 1 meg/
Sure enough it was not suitable and felt that a re wire from outside with a new cable may help the situation, so i called in a local Cotswolds Telephone Engineer
A new cable was ran still no sync, unfortunately they were with AOL so i insisted that we move them to my Entanet as i am a partner which makes support very quick and easy rather than hours of calls to AOL.
Openreach were then duly called out.
1st appointment:
Faint beeping on the line: Openreach engineer seemed to think that as we had left the faceplate cover off that would fix it, actually we left the faceplate off so the extensions in the house were not on to help the broadband if a fault was found, he left not actually checking the phone, the phone still had faint beeping (crosstalk).
2nd appointment:
Engineer tested line went to the cabinet about 1.2 miles away, said 5 meg speed there. He went to the exchange did a lift and shift on the port in the exchange, phoned us to say it may settle. Still no sync.
3rd appointment:
This time a openreach coach turned up with a another engineer, these guys gave me hope, again i explained that we had ran new wire, so they tested the line found it was touching dead wire which explained the crosstalk, but they then revealed the real reason broadband was poor. Aluminium lines in the ground, this was something that was laid in the seventies and eighties as a cheap alternative to copper, fair enough broadband did not exist then but now it causes major problems. They began to test every spare pair but the light ran out and they left a note for the next engineer.
4th appointment:
Notes from last visit were ignored, openreach engineer suggested putting the line on 1/2 meg fixed rate line, which i sorted with enatnet for the next morning.
Next morning still no line sync and a note to Entanet from BT that they cannot deliver broadband due to length of line. Blaming the fact that there are to many broadband connections going into the village.
My complaint here
a: I had to tell each enginner from openreach what the last one did as they dont and cant see notes form last engineer visit.
b: They did not test all pairs in the ground.
c: Aluminium needs ripping out replacing with copper, to lose 5 meg in 1.2 miles is disgraceful.
d: when FTTC (Fiber to the cabinet) comes the villagers will still not get anything because of poor lines.
e: openreach engineers are poorly trained and do not have enough time to repair what needs repairing.
f: BT openreach and BT Wholesale are to concentrated on saving money, not reinvesting where lines need it.
g: No contact can be made with openreach, they can hide behind a invisible wall, the only way something could happen now is if we write a letter to our local MP to explain the problem, as they can communicate with openreach, the local MP for this rural area happens to be David Cameron whether this is a good thing or bad i dont know.
Shame on you BT openreach i really hope that 4G will answer rural communities problems and people cancel their problem riddled telephone lines and replace with a reliable 4G connection.
Openreach should not exist in my opinion and should be broken down into smaller localised companies who understand the local problem with the BT lines.
I would love to here your comments about your problems with the poor service BT openreach have given you.
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