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Considering Kaleidescape. Several questions.

E

elee532

Well-known member
I’ve been thinking I might assemble some type of Kaleidescape system… definitely on a budget, and likely would be looking into used equipment. I have maybe 100 Blu-ray, mostly concerts and music. I have pseudo-4k Epson projector and Atmos sound setup.

I’ve been ripping my Blu-ray’s and using Kodi. Tired of the kludgy ripping process. The user friendliness of Kaleidescape is very appealing. I do see some of my favorite concerts in the Kaleidescape store, but not seeing other discs in my collection.

Someone had recommended a Strato and Cinema One might be a good fit for me. However, I’m curious (1) if this will fit my functional needs and (2) is there a less expensive route?

I just read that with the Cinema One, I have to insert the physical disc before I can play the ripped version. This seems to almost defeat the purpose. Is there a better way?

Can the Cinema One play a standard 1080p Blu-ray that has an Atmos audio track?

Can I rip a Blu-ray to the Cinema One that is not in the Kaleidescape store?

Can I rip Blu-rays to the Cinema One that are primarily music only? I’m thinking something like the Blu-ray with Atmos that was part of the Abby Road anniversary box set or other

If I have a Cinema One and Strato, does that mean I have two separate libraries to navigate, or are they somehow combined?

Anyone have experience integrating with Control4? Does this require purchasing a third party driver?

What does it mean when I see that a device has been “grandfathered?”

Thanks for and advice!!
 
I can't help you with the largest part of your questions, but I can help you with the Control4 question. Yes, you need to purchase a driver. Chowmain has a really good driver that most people seem to prefer over the official driver. It is what I am using and it works great. They even just recently updated the driver and if you have a trouchscreen C4 tablet, or your phone, you can browse or queue things up while the KScape is playing something else.

Chowmain Software

www.chowmainsoft.com www.chowmainsoft.com
 
CPickler said:
I can't help you with the largest part of your questions, but I can help you with the Control4 question. Yes, you need to purchase a driver. Chowmain has a really good driver that most people seem to prefer over the official driver. It is what I am using and it works great. They even just recently updated the driver and if you have a trouchscreen C4 tablet, or your phone, you can browse or queue things up while the KScape is playing something else.

Chowmain Software

www.chowmainsoft.com www.chowmainsoft.com
Click to expand...
Any idea of the cost on Chowmain’s driver?
 
So, I’ve been doing some reading, and thinking maybe I don’t need a Strato at all right now if I don’t care about 4K? In which case, Alto, Premiere, or Cinema a v2 systems might work?

What I want :
  • Play my existing Blu-ray Discs (mostly music/concerts).
  • Not have to insert a disc each time I want to play It.
  • Support for Blu-ray’s with Atmos that I already own (e.g Roger Waters, the Wall).
  • Play/store Blu-ray discs not in the Kaleidescape store (e.g. Abby Road from 50th anniversary Blu-ray with Atmos).
So, maybe something like an
  • M700 + 1U movie server?
  • DV700 + 1U + M300/500?
  • DV700 + Alto?
  • DV700 + Cinema One?
Would these options get me what I want? Are there other options? What’s the least expensive?
 
How many Blu-Rays do you have?

M700 + 1U server would be best for fewest number of pieces and allowing for expandability (you can do up to 18TB on a 1U with 4x 6TB drives). This setup imports the disc content to the server and plays it back instantly from the onscreen menu. The Blu-ray discs must remain in the vault to prove ownership.

Cinema One + DV700 would behave the same but you would be limited to 4TB (although you can link a 2nd Cinema One and combine the storage).

Alto looks like a Cinema One but has the caveat of not actually being able to import aka 'rip' disc content. If you link a DV-700 to it, the Alto plays content directly from the disc, like the old Sony DVD jukeboxes.

All of the above supports ATMOS pass through.
All would let you play the disc without inserting it (with caveat on the Alto)

You mentioned Grandfathering... That applies to DVD imports. If the server is grandfathered it can import DVD content and play it back without the disc being present in the vault. If not grandfathered, DVD can only playback directly from the disc (carousel or standalone DVD player style).
 
Thank you @AlienWarlock. This is very helpful!!

I’d estimate that I have about 70 Blu-ray’s… mostly concerts, and at least 1/3 of which I see are available in the Kaleidescape store. I probably have 30 or 40 DVDs, most of which are concerts, documentaries, and other extra video content that came with a music box set.

Two last questions for now I was hoping you might be able to help clarify…

First, I‘ve seen references to “cataloguing,” “importing,” “ripping,” and ”downloading” as different formats/ways to obtain content. I think I’m understanding the differences now based on your reply. But, I’m still a little fuzzy on if/what is the difference between importing and ripping?

Second, assuming an M700 + 1U setup… Can tell me how the system would handle Blu-ray’s or DVDs that are not in the Kaleidescape store? For example, can I import (rip?) the Blu-ray that came with my Beatles Abby Road box set? Or, the DVD concert videos that came with my Genesis box set? How about my own home videos?

Thanks!!
 
Last edited:
CPickler said:
I can't help you with the largest part of your questions, but I can help you with the Control4 question. Yes, you need to purchase a driver. Chowmain has a really good driver that most people seem to prefer over the official driver. It is what I am using and it works great. They even just recently updated the driver and if you have a trouchscreen C4 tablet, or your phone, you can browse or queue things up while the KScape is playing something else.

Chowmain Software

www.chowmainsoft.com www.chowmainsoft.com
Click to expand...
Just to call-out the part buried in the third sentence, you don't need to purchase the Chowmain driver, but it is strongly recommended by almost everyone that has used it.

Yes, the premier setup would allow for importing the discs, so that you can playback content not downloaded from the store. Anything that is not protected content (like home movies) would not require disc presence for playback, so you wouldn't need to count those toward the vault utilization if imported.
 
Note that vault uilization only applies for Blu-rays. If you import DVDs (requires grandfathered server), home made BD-R or DVD-R, or CDs, those can be removed from the vault after import. If you remove a Blu-ray from the vault, the content will not play until you put it back in.
 
Thank you @Transepoch and @AlienWarlock!! I really appreciate the speedy and informative replies.

Regarding “grandfathering,” is it the M700, the 1U, or both that would have to be grandfathered?

Is there an FAQ or something that describes more about the software side of Kaleidescape? For example, if I import my own BD-R, do I get to name it or set a cover image or things like that? Also, just curious in general about how it operates and hate to keep bothering folks with all my questions.

Thanks!!
 
Only the server needs to be grandfathered. If you import content that is not recognized by the movie guide you have to go into the web ui and type in the title, actors, cover art etc. It looks like this...1633393381997.png
 
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