Overall Ceton Echo Performance

[vir2oso]

What are your experiences with overall performance with the echo. Here are some of mine in order of frustration levels:

1. Remote Control responsiveness. When i press a button on the remote, most of the time there is a delay before something happens. And some of the time, I have to press the remote button more than once before the desired action takes place. And in some of these cases, it causes multiple clicks to queue up and then they all fire at once. This happens more on the remote that came with the echo and a little less on my previous MCE remote control that i used with my HTPC, but still enough to be a distraction.

2. Menu load times are extremely long. I have about 150 mkv files that show under My Movies. On my HTPC it takes a couple of seconds to load them all when I go into My Movies, but on the echo when I select My Movies, it freezes for about a minute before the titles are displayed. Also Recorded TV takes longer to load than the HTPC.

3. Sound cuts out. It doesn't matter if it's live tv, recorded tv or a mkv file. Some of the time when I start playing something, there is no sound. In order to fix it, I have to press the go back 3 seconds button. Most of the time, that causes the sound to kick in. When this doesn't work, i have to reset the echo.

4. Sound and Video get out of sync on recorded tv and mkvs. This happened a lot prior to the latest firmware update, but it seems to have gotten a little better. But now there is a definite stutter in the video where it appears the video is playing catch-up to the audio.

This is my first extender, so I don't have anything to compare these experiences with. None of these issues happen on my HTPC that the Echo is connected to. Are these types of issues common with extenders or specific to the Echo?

[soccerdad]

I have remote issues, but opposite of yours! My (standard microsoft RG6) remote always gets a quick response, but it gets multiple responses. Push 4 and you get 44.

I don't have MKVs, but my ripped DVDs stutter really badly in playback. (and not on the XBox)

I see no audio drop out.

TV viewing is good, along with recorded TV content

Comskip works fine

The ceton logo on the echo is too bright (and should dim or go to sleep at night)

ICS seems to have melted


My experience would give it about a "B-" at the moment. This takes price point and expecations into account. It works fine as a live TV and playback device for me, but at this pricepoint, I am expecting more. Amazon instant movies, netflix, Vudu or something like that. I know these won't be inside WMC, but the echo should have a way to get me there. I don't want another box.

[jagrime2]

If you would give the Echo a B- what would you give an XBox 360?

I have shelved my Echo and gone back to my Xbox. The xbox provides me with access to HBO, ESPN3 and Netflix (I do pay for Gold) and also has no problems playing dvd rips and mkv files. I do really love the Ceton Companion app for navigating WMC and setting up recordings however it works just as well with my xbox as my echo.

While I am sure the Echo uses less power than the Xbox at this point there is no comparison on performance/features.

[handyd]

"The ceton logo on the echo is too bright (and should dim or go to sleep at night)"

I agree. I have blue painters tape over the logo. still see the logo, but much less brighter.

[soccerdad]

If you would give the Echo a B- what would you give an XBox 360?

Interestingly, the xbox would also get a B- from me as an extender. I don't want gold, I want to leave it on so the wife can just turn on the TV and use it (with low power use), and I would like it smaller. As a gaming console that also works as an extender, the xbox gets an A-.

As I noted, the echo is a good piece, but the price point makes it need to do more. Once the nagging items such as remote double entries and the logo light get worked out, it will be a better extender than the xbox. But for the price, I really think it should do a little more to make it the single device hooked up to the TV for my media use.

[Crash2009]

1. Remote Control responsiveness. I just tested mine from a distance of 30 feet. No complaints. Ceton Companion is faster though.

2. Menu load times not too bad. I only have 85 movies, they are all WTV, and are pathed properly within WMC. The HTPC opens up the movie library instantly, (art and all). The Echo (for me) takes about 1 second (or less)

3. Sound. I am not experiencing any of the issues you describe.

4. Sound and Video. No problems. Everything is syncing well and crystal clear. I do get a bit of pixelation between channel changes and have noticed about a 1 or 2 second delay while surfing Live.

I have 2 Echos and they are my first extenders. I too have nothing to compare to. Naturally your HTPC will be more responsive. Your display is connected directly to the motherboard. Whatever you are watching through the Echo has to do some travelling to get there. There are a lot of Snakes and Ladders on the way such as: The NIC in your HTPC, the router, the ethernet wire, the Echo itself, the HDMI cable, and finally the TV.

Sounds like you might have a network issue. http://cetoncorp.com/product-support/ Open a ticket. Ceton will help you out with that. They want you to be happy.

[adam1991]

The Xbox as extender is every bit as responsive as the native HTPC. Don't knock it until you've tried it.

The Echo is not as responsive as the XBox.

[vir2oso]

Hey Crash, I thought about it being a network issue as well. I am currently using ethernet over power lines using 500 mbps adapters. I read in another post that other people are using those successfully and they were cheaper than wiring my house so i thought about giving them a try. I would definitely agree that the load times and sound issues could be caused by the network connections, but I don't know about the remote responsiveness which is at the top of my list of frustrations.

[foxwood]

2. Menu load times are extremely long. I have about 150 mkv files that show under My Movies. On my HTPC it takes a couple of seconds to load them all when I go into My Movies, but on the echo when I select My Movies, it freezes for about a minute before the titles are displayed. Also Recorded TV takes longer to load than the HTPC.

That's odd, because the display is actually calclated on the PC, not on the Echo itself.

How much RAM do you have in the PC? When you start up the Extender, it's like a 2nd user logging on to the PC (you can see this in Task manager). If you're a bit tight on RAM, some tasks may be slower, and you'll only see this when the Extnder is on.

[vir2oso]

I have 8 Gigs of RAM.

[Crash2009]

Hey Crash, I thought about it being a network issue as well. I am currently using ethernet over power lines using 500 mbps adapters. I read in another post that other people are using those successfully and they were cheaper than wiring my house so i thought about giving them a try. I would definitely agree that the load times and sound issues could be caused by the network connections, but I don't know about the remote responsiveness which is at the top of my list of frustrations.

Just for an experiment, you could go to monoprice and get a couple long Cat5e's. See if your problems disapear, then you know what you gotta do. I don't have any experience with Powerline adapters other than what I have read around here. What I have read is that for some they work great, for others, not so.

System requirements for Echo are http://cetoncorp.com/products/echo/ I took them seriously when they suggested a 1Gig network. I replaced my switch, router, and wire this past summer.

The remote could be network related remote>echo>htpc>echo>hdmi>tv. just a hunch, I don't know for sure. Have you tried the Ceton Companion yet? I find that it's a bit quicker than the remote.

[vir2oso]

Yes, i have the companion app and it works pretty well. But my wife doesn't have it and doesn't want it, so she uses the remote. And more often than not, the remote acts up with her and she gets frustrated.

[Crash2009]

But my wife doesn't have it and doesn't want it, so she uses the remote. And more often than not, the remote acts up with her and she gets frustrated.

Yeah we both need a wife friendly Ceton Companion. All my wife would need is a big fat shortcut to LMN.