Dear Santa. Please bring me...

[kingpin]

More harddrive space.
What are you asking for?

[MikeB]

Well,....

https://scontent-ord5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/364801658_683698793803864_7033847651392771460_n.jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=3635dc&_nc_ohc=oJsnfbSfzGwAX85C3zc&_nc_ht=scontent-ord5-1.xx&oh=00_AfCtJF1HDw1zpuJPNRCFMkIESyCuklG1fLtTAwKPrks3dA&oe=657BE411

[LATB]

Health.
My health. My wife’s health. The health of our dogs.
At this point everything else I want or need is pretty much obtainable.

Lord grant us strength in our hearts, our bodies, and our minds. The heavy lifting I can handle. Actually, I look forward to it.

[Corey_68]

A Time Machine...I've been asking for a damn time machine for the last 10yrs and the wife has yet to deliver. :cuss:

[IrishSpuds]

Health.
My health. My wife’s health. The health of our dogs.
At this point everything else I want or need is pretty much obtainable.

Lord grant us strength in our hearts, our bodies, and our minds. The heavy lifting I can handle. Actually, I look forward to it.

I have seen a number of immensely wealthy friends get ill over the last year. Parkinson’s, stroke, cancer etc. I will give up coin if I ever had the choice. My friends all said the same thing. They put health and longevity over wealth.

[Unsuspicious]

A Time Machine...I've been asking for a damn time machine for the last 10yrs and the wife has yet to deliver. :cuss:

Just be specific about which time machine you want

https://www.omegawatches.com/media/catalog/product/o/m/omega-seamaster-planet-ocean-600m-co-axial-master-chronometer-chronograph-45-5-mm-21530465101001-7833cf.png?w=1100

[Blademaker]

Nothing.

[KenHorse]

More harddrive space.
What are you asking for?

And I thought my NAS was overkill @ 12 TB......

[LATB]

I have seen a number of immensely wealthy friends get ill over the last year. Parkinson’s, stroke, cancer etc. I will give up coin if I ever had the choice. My friends all said the same thing. They put health and longevity over wealth.

Indeed and agree.

I never sought out wealth. It comes in deserved amounts naturally to those who work hard and are honest/ethical.
I do however still seek income. It makes spending a lot easier pill to swallow. Especially if you spend some exorbitantly.

[Taurus]

I have seen a number of immensely wealthy friends get ill over the last year. Parkinson’s, stroke, cancer etc. I will give up coin if I ever had the choice. My friends all said the same thing. They put health and longevity over wealth.

Me as well and that was one of the primary considerations for retiring early. One of my closest friends and the best man at my wedding dropped dead in his driveway coming home from another late night working in 2021. They didn't find him until the next morning because it snowed. He was the hardest working guy I knew and it got him nothing in the long run.

I just want the health to enjoy this retirement my wife and I worked our entire lives for.

[Bruze]

More harddrive space.
What are you asking for?

I bought my first PC in 1992, it had a 170 MG drive.

Have had countless DTs and LTs since, and have never even come close to filling a hard drive -- including that 170 MG. And I save anything and everything I want to save. And I've never bought top of the line, i.e. not the biggest nor 2nd biggest HD available.

My current LT is about 15 months old, 1T capacity and has about 154M filled.

How do you even manage to fill a hard drive? That's a serious question. :shrug:

In lieu of a bigger hard drive, I'll take one of these:


92939

[kingpin]

I bought my first PC in 1992, it had a 170 MG drive.

Have had countless DTs and LTs since, and have never even come close to filling a hard drive -- including that 170 MG. And I save anything and everything I want to save. And I've never bought top of the line, i.e. not the biggest nor 2nd biggest HD available.

My current LT is about 15 months old, 1T capacity and has about 154M filled.

How do you even manage to fill a hard drive? That's a serious question. :shrug:

In lieu of a bigger hard drive, I'll take one of these:


92939

It's my home media server. I don't need to stream anything except hockey games. No need for cable/satellite or anything else.
Everything is Bluray or 4k quality uncompressed except for some tv shows which only are available SD or 720p.
My desktop is only a 1tb & 2tb NVME with a 6tb external hd.

https://i.imgur.com/YZwm4It.jpg

[ColeTrickle]

Merlin 540 For my flat bottom jetboat

[Bruze]

It's my home media server. I don't need to stream anything except hockey games. No need for cable/satellite or anything else.
Everything is Bluray or 4k quality uncompressed except for some tv shows which only are available SD or 720p.
My desktop is only a 1tb & 2tb NVME with a 6tb external hd.

https://i.imgur.com/YZwm4It.jpg

My TVs are OTA but I stream most things. Never had cable or satellite. I don't know how you swerved into that, I thought you needed a larger HD.

Aside from that I didn't understand anything about your post. :(

[04 commemorative]

My son back......then one of these .

[Louie Detroit]

Hey Kingpin. What software is that you’re running? I have about 20TB free on my NAS and wouldn’t mind adding some movies like that. In what file format are they stored in?

[simpleman68]

Mike, how well does Atmos or Dolby HD transfer? As discreet channels, I mean. Is there any compression or matrixing/downmixing of channels happen during the burn?

I have no experience with this stuff at all and have been collecting physical media for years with about 1400 titles of the highest quality available.
I know that someday folks won't be able to watch an old Eastwood flick if their streaming service drops it.

I've been thinking about setting up a NAS but it would really just be for convenience I think. Are there other benefits? Seems like it's pretty costly to setup with 4k movies being 20-40GB.

Scott

[kingpin]

Hey Kingpin. What software is that you’re running? I have about 20TB free on my NAS and wouldn’t mind adding some movies like that. In what file format are they stored in?


Mike, how well does Atmos or Dolby HD transfer? As discreet channels, I mean. Is there any compression or matrixing/downmixing of channels happen during the burn?

I have no experience with this stuff at all and have been collecting physical media for years with about 1400 titles of the highest quality available.
I know that someday folks won't be able to watch an old Eastwood flick if their streaming service drops it.

I've been thinking about setting up a NAS but it would really just be for convenience I think. Are there other benefits? Seems like it's pretty costly to setup with 4k movies being 20-40GB.

Scott

It all depends on how you rip the disk. 4k movies uncompressed are normally between 50-80gb and BR 17-30gb. But many 4k's can blow up to 100-140gb's also as shown below.

The best and most common software is called MakeMKV. You may have seen .mkv format mentioned in many places. It's free software and you have a choice if you want to compress or not. Plus when you rip the movie you get to remove stuff like multiple languages, audio formats or bonus features if you don't want them which all save space. I rip all my movies 1:1 so no compression at all and I remove all languages except English and I remove all bonus material. So when the rip is finished you have one .mkv file unless you add subtitles (.srt file) with absolute no compression.
It's a lengthy process though and one thing to make sure you do is name the folder and file properly otherwise it makes it difficult and very time consuming for EMBY or PLEX to find all the information.

When I started I had roughly 1700 Blurays and a few hundred DVD's and some TV sets.
I had 2 internal Bluray drives and one external all going at the same time and it took me a year by the time I was done. I was also lucky as my 2 internal drives I never updated their firmware so they stayed unlocked and I was able to rip 4k's with them. Not all drives can read or allow you to rip 4k.

What I suggest is rip BluRays and DVD's but not 4k movies. 4K are for serious watching so use the disk in your Oppo. Plus 4k are a bit more involved in ripping unless you are torrenting and downloading the files and they take up 3-4x the space.

Convenience is the biggest plus. You just want to sit back and watch a movie or a tv series and you just press a button. Media servers like Plex or Emby remember where you left off if you shut off a movie and keep track of where you are when watching a tv series.

It's not cheap to startup if you are going 1:1. Easiest way but more expensive is a NAS from Synology, Asustor, Qnap etc. I always suggest buying the largest capacity one you can afford to start and start filling it with drives. When I started years ago I had the money to burn. It cost $2500 for the NAS and another $2200 for drives plus another $1000 for a proper UPS to protect it all. 6 months later I added an expansion unit $2300 and $4000 in drives.

Now if you are Computer Network and Storage literate you can do it for half the price but you need to know about RAID setups and a whole buncha other stuff I have no idea aboot. You pay for the user friendliness and easy setup when buying a NAS.

First pic is my front end which I use Emby. It's a custom CSS I copied from someone else and changed for me.
Second pic is the first 3 rows of my largest 4k movies. They range from 90gb's to 160gb's each. Roughly 80% of my 4K movies are over 60gb's each.
Third pic on the bottom shows you some info.
Size/bitrate/audio etc.
Fourth pic is Expansion unit on top, NAS underneath and external drives below. On the bottom is a rackmount 1500w/1500va Pure Sinewave UPS.
P.S. Don't forget about backups. RAID is not backup just temporary protection. I have 160tb's in external drives all hooked up also as backup. One file goes to my NAS and another goes to my backup.

[ZipZap]

Tomorrow. It should be on Corvette Blvd sometime today for stalkers with yellow pads...

[DAB]

i still have my two front teeth, so how about a hippopotamus?

[Unsuspicious]

i still have my two front teeth, so how about a hippopotamus?

Refer to that video someone posted of that fat hippo on the basketball court

[simpleman68]

What I suggest is rip BluRays and DVD's but not 4k movies. 4K are for serious watching so use the disk in your Oppo. Plus 4k are a bit more involved in ripping unless you are torrenting and downloading the files and they take up 3-4x the space.

P.S. Don't forget about backups. RAID is not backup just temporary protection. I have 160tb's in external drives all hooked up also as backup. One file goes to my NAS and another goes to my backup.

This is an interesting avenue I hadn't thought about and a great option since it saves money on storage and I won't be worried about ultimate SQ/AQ since they are just 1080 and compressed audio.

Would be sweet if there was a way to upsample 720 at the source. I'm guessing it would have better vid quality vs projector doing it.
I'm running a Sony VW675 es and it's been excellent for blu-ray and native 4k material.

Sidebar: I've got to check out an in person demo on video gear like Lumagen etc.
Probably more bang for the $ to upgrade to a laser output model I'd guess.

Thanks man!
Scott

[ZipZap]

This is an interesting avenue I hadn't thought about and a great option since it saves money on storage and I won't be worried about ultimate SQ/AQ since they are just 1080 and compressed audio.

Would be sweet if there was a way to upsample 720 at the source. I'm guessing it would have better vid quality vs projector doing it.
I'm running a Sony VW675 es and it's been excellent for blu-ray and native 4k material.

Sidebar: I've got to check out an in person demo on video gear like Lumagen etc.
Probably more bang for the $ to upgrade to a laser output model I'd guess.

Thanks man!
Scott

Honest question: Why go with a projector when 80" monitors are available?

[gs568]

Don’t really need anything. My pick is President Trump in 2024. That would be a great present.

[kingpin]

Honest question: Why go with a projector when 80" monitors are available?

80" is not large especially if it's a dedicated space.

[LATB]

Don’t really need anything. My pick is President Trump in 2024. That would be a great present.

I’m looking forward to that.

[LisaJohn]

Anybody know where I can get a penguin?

[Torqaholic]

I usually buy myself a new computer game about twice a year. Christmas and Birthday. It's like I need an excuse to spend money.

[Bruze]

Anybody know where I can get a penguin?

92991

[Bruze]

I usually buy myself a new computer game about twice a year. Christmas and Birthday. It's like I need an excuse to spend money.

What are some good games for old people? (besides solitaire :()

[Egnalf]

Anybody know where I can get a penguin?

yes, but you need to get your documents in order upfront. https://www.exoticanimalsforsale.net/penguins-for-sale.asp

[simpleman68]

Honest question: Why go with a projector when 80" monitors are available?

My screen is the same size as 4 85" TVs put together. In a good sized theater even a 100" picture seems comically small. The theater is 19' wide by 36' deep and has 3 rows of seating with the first row being 12' from the screen. The 3rd row would have trouble seeing much of an 80" image.

TVs have incredible colors/contrast etc but to me they appear unnatural and distracting; eye candy that is more vivid than the world all around.

When I watch movies on my screen (curved, acoustically transparent) it looks like the theater to me only sharper, and far better image quality as you'd expect.

I can locate some stills I took to show the difference but the immersion that a 165" screen offers with 7.2.2 setup is really hard to beat.

Only shot I could find of the old screen (150" roughly)

https://i.imgur.com/ukjtXILh.jpg

[Torqaholic]

What are some good games for old people? (besides solitaire :()

Good games for old people? Anything relaxing and enjoyable. I play to have fun, not be stressed out. These days it's hard for me to play more than a couple hours without my fingers cramping up. There's so many different styles of game it's hard to recommend anything without knowing what you like. Best way for you to find something you like is to watch u-tube videos of it. It's also a good way to find out how games work because most good games have a stiff learning curve.

I prefer open world games with base building, exploration, skill progression, lots of loot, and strategizing. Single player games that don't require an internet connection and good gun physics is a bonus. Most games allow difficulty to be modified thru the options tab. Make them as easy or challenging as you want. You can bet I'm not playing on "nightmare mode", they should just call that frustration mode. Any game that requires multiple rifle shots to the head to eliminate an opponent is just plain unrealistic IMO, don't like it. Never had to shoot anything in the head more than once IRL, why would I want to do that in a game? Makes no sense.

The game I bought today is called Kenshi Kenshi Probably not for everyone. But it was only like $13 on sale. Old style graphics but it looks like the coding is on point :yesnod:

I think games where you can have downtime to relax and not be constantly battling monsters are great for old people. Take your time, choose your battles, run away if things get hairy, do other things and return with better equipment later. I would say Skyrim, Fallout 4, 7 Days to Die, and No Man's Sky are good for this kind of play. You can search any of those on u-tube and watch them for days. Nearly as much fun as playing them yourself if you can find a gamer who isn't too obnoxious :D

[Yadkin]

Well,....

https://scontent-ord5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/364801658_683698793803864_7033847651392771460_n.jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=3635dc&_nc_ohc=oJsnfbSfzGwAX85C3zc&_nc_ht=scontent-ord5-1.xx&oh=00_AfCtJF1HDw1zpuJPNRCFMkIESyCuklG1fLtTAwKPrks3dA&oe=657BE411

Coupe > vert, but not in Floriduh.

[ZipZap]

My screen is the same size as 4 85" TVs put together. In a good sized theater even a 100" picture seems comically small. The theater is 19' wide by 36' deep and has 3 rows of seating with the first row being 12' from the screen. The 3rd row would have trouble seeing much of an 80" image.

TVs have incredible colors/contrast etc but to me they appear unnatural and distracting; eye candy that is more vivid than the world all around.

When I watch movies on my screen (curved, acoustically transparent) it looks like the theater to me only sharper, and far better image quality as you'd expect.

I can locate some stills I took to show the difference but the immersion that a 165" screen offers with 7.2.2 setup is really hard to beat.

Only shot I could find of the old screen (150" roughly)

https://i.imgur.com/ukjtXILh.jpg

I don't have any friends:rofl:

[Tikiman]

What are some good games for old people? (besides solitaire :()

I enjoyed the “Uncharted” series on my PS4.

[IrishSpuds]

Coupe > vert, but not in Floriduh.

I just drive from Atlanta through the Carolinas and drive through a place called Yadkinville. If my kid didn’t have such a lead foot I would have gotten a pic. 🙄

[snide]

I just drive from Atlanta through the Carolinas and drive through a place called Yadkinville. If my kid didn’t have such a lead foot I would have gotten a pic. 🙄

I drove through there a year ago. You didn't miss anything.

[Chuck A]

Happiness and peace
very thankful, indeed

[Rodnok1]

Some kind of breakthrough for cancer treatments(cure a bit of a stretch still).

[Corey_68]

Just be specific about which time machine you want

https://www.omegawatches.com/media/catalog/product/o/m/omega-seamaster-planet-ocean-600m-co-axial-master-chronometer-chronograph-45-5-mm-21530465101001-7833cf.png?w=1100

Yeah one of my major flaws is overanalyzing and indecisiveness....I'm not the type to have a watch collection because I'll gravitate one and the other will sit in a box. Cannot decide on a watch to do it all. :o

Huge fan of Chronos, but I wash my hands probably 30-40 times a day at work and sometimes get bloody.

[Yadkin]

I just drive from Atlanta through the Carolinas and drive through a place called Yadkinville. If my kid didn’t have such a lead foot I would have gotten a pic. 🙄

Yadkinville is named after Yadkin County. Yadkin County is named after the Yadkin River. The Yadkin River is named after a cousin of Yad.

Just kidding; the origin of the name is lost to history. Some speculate that it is a native American name, but there is no written evidence.

[IrishSpuds]

Yadkinville is named after Yadkin County. Yadkin County is named after the Yadkin River. The Yadkin River is named after a cousin of Yad.

Just kidding; the origin of the name is lost to history. Some speculate that it is a native American name, but there is no written evidence.

We must have passed six different Yadkin signs with three different Yadkins. Clearly they celebrate Yadkin! 🤪

[Anjdog2003]

Anybody know where I can get a penguin?




Go to a Catholic church, i'am sure they have a bunch of nuns.

[KenHorse]

Huge fan of Chronos, but I wash my hands probably 30-40 times a day at work and sometimes get bloody.

OCD is a horrible affliction

[LilRedCorvette]

While I wouldn’t turn away a Lamborghini/Ferrari/Pagani/McLaren from Santa :Jeff '79: I truly want for nothing material. Am quite blessed in that regard :yesnod:

Of course, I always wish my health was better…lots of things I can’t do anything about, but I still try with the things that I can control (like diet/exercise/etc) :seasix:

I’m good with that, will merrily roll along…
:lilred:

[Yadkin]

We must have passed six different Yadkin signs with three different Yadkins. Clearly they celebrate Yadkin! 🤪

Here we are at the headwaters of the Yadkin River. :yesnod: