Streaming media without transcoding it?

[SnowLeopard]

Hi all. I want to start using a spare Windows PC as a central media server so I can access my video collection from my devices either at home or over the internet or mobile networks. I currently own a lot of videos encoded in 720p/1080p HD video and HD audio formats, and I want them to stay in this high of quality for when I access them from home (which is most of the time). Remotely, I am fine with having them streamed in lesser quality to accommodate the bandwidth, but I assumed that it is possible to throttle the quality on-the-fly, as it were, without transcoding the file. Unfortunately, I'm finding that this is apparently a pretty tall order. Nearly every media streaming solution I've come across requires that it first transcode the original file before streaming it. Does anyone know of a simple, straightforward, and free/cheap (hopefully) solution that can do what I want? Thanks for the help!

 

[imagoon]

Any reason you are against transcoding? Most streaming apps do it on the fly as long as you have the CPU to do it.

 

[SnowLeopard]

I just don't want the original transcoded. That said, I just found something that says that one particular solution transcodes a COPY and stores it in a hidden folder for streaming. That makes more sense. Is that how most streaming solutions operate?

 

[imagoon]

I have never seen a streaming server with transcoding alter the original. Every one of them I have dealt with only transcode on the fly for the device and leave the original source.

 

[Nothinman]

I just don't want the original transcoded. That said, I just found something that says that one particular solution transcodes a COPY and stores it in a hidden folder for streaming. That makes more sense. Is that how most streaming solutions operate?

No, most only transcode the chunks in memory before passing them off to the network. I've never seen a streaming server that alters the data on-disk.

 

[sxegloxx]

:hmm::hmm::hmm::hmm:

:$

Are you so lazy that you can't just copy the item off a network resource and press play. It will take up 1 minute of you life..

😀

 

[imagoon]

:hmm::hmm::hmm::hmm:

:$

Are you so lazy that you can't just copy the item off a network resource and press play. It will take up 1 minute of you life..

😀

Explain to me how that works for streaming from a central server to an xBox, PS3 and Roku device? When all the media is 8+gig H.264 files?

 

[SnowLeopard]

Explain to me how that works for streaming from a central server to an xBox, PS3 and Roku device? When all the media is 8+gig H.264 files?

Especially when you want to watch them from a storage-challenged laptop in a hotel room or on Android over 4G!

Ok, sounds like my questions have been answered. Thank you for the quick replies and helpful info!