Exclusively available for the live gamer and live streamer series. Using a mac mini mediacenter is one of the smartest move i have made. This was my familys daily driver desktop and was running macos 10. With its compact size, low price and frontrow, its the perfect computer to plug into your tv. I do love apple products, so i am in a way biased after much testing in regards to the best htpc on the market, when it comes down to it, i think the mac mini is a solid contender for the best htpc on the market today.
I use connect360 with my mac desktop mini to stream to my 360 too, and it is fine for movies but fairly awful for music due to the 360s clunky interface. This article is part of larger collection on various subjects about the installation of my mac mini as a mediacenter to replace my popcornhour c200 and plex server pc. The one tool you need for all necessary drivers, updates, or engines for your avermedia products enter. Mac mini features the apple t2 security chip secondgeneration custom mac silicon designed by apple to make mac mini even more secure.
I am thinking about getting the mac mini server for 2 reasons. The mini comes preinstalled with apples front row software. Turning a mac into a music server the absolute sound. May, 2015 using a mac mini as a media server is very easy and very doable, but it does have some limits. Mac mini mediacenter as a result of my research on how much power is used by my various media equipment at home, ive treated myself to a mac mini. The mac mini computer can also be used as an mac mini mediacenter. Look for the product you have and click on the related version number for download or getting more information. Yes, that means your macbook pro, macbook, mac mini, imac, even mac pro, can all turn into a media center, and its a lot easier than you might think. Utilities to really make your mac mini the ultimate htpc, it helps to have all. It comes with macos which has a variety of utilities and small apps, photos, itunes, imovie, garageband, pages, keynote, and numbers.
I was satisfied with the performance of sierra on this machine configuration. Though, its bit complex to install the software, kodi media center has got some amazing features. Streamengine, camengine, or other related software and firmware can be downloaded and installed through assist central. Mac media center setup any mac as a media center easily. The t2 security chip consolidates several controllers into one, and includes a secure enclave coprocessor that provides the foundation for encrypted storage and secure boot capabilities. Use this information to find out which mac mini you have, and where it fits in the history of mac mini. You can launch this free pc program on windows xpvista7810 32bit. We offer mac data center services out of cyberlynks milwaukee mke1 facility and phoenix phx1 data center space.
An iphone remote for a mediacenter mac network world. With four thunderbolt 3 ports builtin, mac mini supports an hdmi display along with two 4k displays or one 5k display. Kodi was created as a media interface for xbox console. I have tried many different home theater solutions without being completely satisfied. Set up mac mini, migrate your data, and then get indepth help. Some folks like me even use a macpro desktop machine for audio duties. Still trying to decide if i want the huge monthly cost of cable. Xbmc is a free open source media centre for mac, linux and windows. It is not so hard to understand why, the computer is small so it is easy to place in your home. This one lets you run dirac files, if you have dirac. My question is, because it is running osx server, will it. My current music system consists of a bryston 4b amp and adcom gfp555 preampold school analog stuff, but sounds great when i play.
After i installed the air mouse server software on my mac mini, the air mouse pro app connected via my local wifi network and gave me control. Movies and video podcasts on my 2012 mini is no problem. We mac os x users also have the perfect free htpc software to make all this work together. This is an extremely slick interface that lets you browse your itunes and iphoto.
You can connect a 2009 mac mini using a displayport to hdmi adapter and an hdmi lead to the television, but only the video signal will be transmitted. Iospirit makers of remote buddy and candelair and flirc are teaming up to bring ir remote support back to the mac. It reduces the energy bill by 200 euros and at the same time adds a lot of functionality. How to setup a mac mini media center, server, and remote. Plex mediacenter gets smooshed into lg hdtvs 9to5mac. Ive connected my mac mini to my sharp acquos 37 hdtv via dvi to hdmi. Whether you want a mechanical, usb, or bluetooth keyboard, here are tons of great options for you to use with your mac mini. Going back to any other playback software reminds me of third generation bootleg 8 track tapes from back in the day. We dont give any warrenty nor further support for beta version. How to setup a mac mini media center, server, and remote torrents.
You can find the index here watching movies and browsing through your media library from the living room couch can only be done with proper remote control. Is the mac mini considered good for heavy use like coding and. I chose to download the vlc media player to my mac its free because its capable of 2496 and 24192 native hires output. Download and install plex awesome media center app, this is the base software for your mac mini media center and runs on top of mac os x. Oct 10, 2011 using a mac mini mediacenter is one of the smartest move i have made. How to find the right software for my pctv product. Mac mini core duo, newer technology ministack v2, and elgato eyetv hd. Mac mini software free download mac mini top 4 download offers free software downloads for windows, mac, ios and android computers and mobile devices.
Download and install perian a package full of all the codecs youll need to play various video formats. I have it set up using my phillips tv as screen with a hdmi cable. Mar 22, 2010 download and install plex awesome media center app, this is the base software for your mac mini media center and runs on top of mac os x. The simplest is about this mac, available by choosing about this mac from the apple menu in the upperleft corner of your screen. Apr 22, 2009 while i can rip the main feature of a commercial dvd with handbrake in about an hour with my dualcore mac pro and its two 2. Aug 30, 2012 this article is part of larger collection on various subjects about the installation of my mac mini as a mediacenter to replace my popcornhour c200 and plex server pc. Interestingly, plex today announced a huge deal with lg which will have the. Ik was aanvankelijk enthousiast over hoe alles werkt, maar ik erger me bij. The software can majorly run all media file formats. Jan 25, 20 an example of what can be done using a mac mini as a media center. An example of what can be done using a mac mini as a media center. Follow development and learn more on interact our forum. Coming in 2017 is a unique collaboration and partnership to bring you exciting new features between our two companies. Apple has been pushing the use of the macintosh as the heart of ones media center for a long time now, but more specifically since the release of the mac mini.
Only downside is it only runs lion, but i dont really care because the only four applications i ever have running are utorrent, safari, itunes, and vlc. Jul 04, 2010 here in europe, the brand new mac mini is insanely expensive compared to the us. Lets outline the feature set of the mac mini as it pertains to home theater pcs. All of my digital music for my 2ch system is played via a new mac mini. Configuring front row christopher breens effort to turn a mac mini into a media center continues, as he hooks up the. Typically i use a quad core i7 mac mini and a micro rendu with lps1 feeding a metrum hex dac. Loosing a bit of money in the process too, trying out different solutions. The mac mini computer cool ways to use it all about apple. Looking at the options available the current generation late 2012 i5 model seemed like the perfect choice.
The mac mini has always been the perfect form factor for a media center appliance often called a home theater pchtpc. Im a computer techie, but all this tv stuff is new to me. Xbmc media center ive been a diehard xbmc user since the glorious days of original xbox modding a simpler time before media center apps were a dime a dozen, and microsoft was still relatively new to the world of console gaming. I just bought a new 2,3 ghz mac mini 3 days ago to use as a mediacenter. Is there a software audio processing tool available. Your mac provides several tools to help you identify it. Mac mini software free download mac mini top 4 download. In this weeks macworld video, chris breen caps off a week of coverage with a video overview of what you can do to make your mac mini a welcome member of the family av center.
A mac mini is less expensive initially, but it does require an external monitor and keyboard for full functionality. Jriver media center is available on mac the apple osx platform. Feb 10, 2014 the new mac mini doesnt come with a keyboard here are the best options as is the norm with mini computer desktops, apple gives you the freedom to bring your own display, keyboard, and mouse. Wie draaien er nog meer met een mac mini late 2012 en xbmc. If youre already familiar with macs, youll recognize many of the features of os x lion and catch some new additions to apples newest operating system. There was no hype that i saw about this new version having better sound quality. Video stored in apples itunes looks cool in the macs front row and is easily controlled with a tiny apple remote. Im still waiting for the mac mini to be fixed and return back home, but until then, being the tv show addict that i am, i had to find another solution. I have a eyetv hybrid connected and a belkin usb hub with severel wd disk. Kodi formerly known as xbmc is an awardwinning free and open source gpl software media player and entertainment hub that can be installed on linux, osx, windows, ios and android, featuring a 10foot user interface for use with televisions and remote controls. Well search no longer here are a few of the most popular free media center apps available for your mac. These offer a wider range of file types that can be played, along with the ability to stream many types of content. An imac is also a good option and the monitor is builtin.
Set up your keyboard, mouse, and trackpad and learn about other mac accessories. Here in europe, the brand new mac mini is insanely expensive compared to the us. Home theater media center guide apple mac upgrades. Id like to be able to apply the rew eq to all audio from the mac, via software. Sep 06, 2012 mac mini mediacenter as a result of my research on how much power is used by my various media equipment at home, ive treated myself to a mac mini. In order to transmit the audio, you will need to connect a 3.
Our website provides a free download of mediacenter 4. Yes, that means your macbook pro, macbook, mac mini, imac, even mac. The mac mini comes equipped with all of the software included in the os x lion bundle, apples newest operating system released in july 2011. The mac mini is a perfect candidate for such a setup. Nowadays, the macs i see most often used for audio are the mac mini or a mac portable. I dont do much coding, but i do run many virtual machines on my minis. You can setup virtually any mac as a home theater media center, all you need is the right tools.
Not all of them are free you know many years ago i had the original. Many customers use their mac mini as server running software like apache, mysql, daylite, filemaker, jenkins, xcode server, and the list goes on. Mac mini media center project welcome to chris hamady. Ive been researching this a lot myself, and i think the current best price for performance solution if you arent concerned about dvr is a 1. The new mac mini doesnt come with a keyboard here are the best options as is the norm with mini computer desktops, apple gives you the freedom to bring your own display, keyboard, and mouse. Apr 23, 2009 my mac mini now plays and rips dvds, plays and records television programs, plays all the media on my network of macs, streams videos and audio from across the globe, and flashes my pictures.
1274 240 1116 1213 1241 313 896 600 1408 408 1497 931 1371 959 612 41 1293 561 428 473 1455 1357 1210 710 811 200 1020 976 1084 854 730 1272 240