openelec for MXIII-G (amlogic S812) ?

[stannoplan]

I just ordered 3 mIII-g and I wanted to run openelec on them.

What is the best version to run that will work with kodi 15.2 and Also can someone give a brief walk through on how to install openelec to this device

Hi Bigred, the file in post #128 is working well for me. An Openelec install is pretty simple.
- Remember to save your kodi settings from android (https://seo-michael.co.uk/how-to-bac...ore-xbmc-kodi/) if you wish.
- download the.zip file from post #128 and unzip to to a fresh FAT32 SD card. you should have three files on there.
- put the SD card into the box and ensure the box is off
- grab paper clip or something thin and pointy and see if you can locate the little reset button inside the AV port on the back. you can feel it click.
- whilst holding the little reset button via the paper clip press and hold your power button as well to turn the box on, after about 5 secs the little android robot comes up and says recovering, you can let both the power and reset button go
- and there is openelec.
-you can also follow this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKtL6sKfDwI - its for a different box and remember the file download will be different (post #128)
- you can then restore your old kodi settings from 15.2 back if you wish.

to get really fancy (and i havent tried this myself), after you have done the above and set up 15.2 how you like it, use the latest build post #137 and follow the instructions in there eg: backup the new 15.2 install, toothpick the 15.1 version and restore the 15.2. that should give you 15.2 on the more stable build base. maybe those more knowledgeable can comment further.

good luck

Edit: i am unsure whether an android kodi backup can be restored to an OE instance due to the different directories. it might have to be manual saves and pastes.

[envagyok]

I have MX III G 1GB/8GB 2.4g wifi, and i try both 6.0.0.2.b an dkszaq 5.95.5.2a version too, but isnt working for me.
The amlinux.ru 6.0.0.0 working, but some tearing see it.
What is the problem?

[Bigredfan]

I just ordered 3 mIII-g and I wanted to run openelec on them.

What is the best version to run that will work with kodi 15.2 and Also can someone give a brief walk through on how to install openelec to this device

[MinixCrazy]

Wilro thanks for the continued effort...

I'm back to your version OE6 as the last build posted didn't work well for me. I had very slow 5G WiFi performance. Version 6 works very well...

PS I have no heat issues with version 6. I've upgraded the thermal tape inside the box and my temps never get above 130f. I would suggest everyone remove the cover and replace the tape with 5mm thermal tape covering the entire heat sink area under the PCB.

[vn800art]

Hello ! I installed Kszaq on my old Mk808b Plus, too, was going to try last OE6 on Mxq S85, too, but always from SDCArd ! I see only .zip and .tar files up there, is the possibility that I can try an .img on my spare MXIII - G on Sdcard, too ? One question, I do not need to worry about boot image, or other problems as on MxIII G I have last OTA update Stock Android FW working ?
Thanks a lot for Your work WILRO !

[stannoplan]

thanks wilro, i use Kszac's OE build for my MK808b+ and it runs beautifully.good move. thanks again for persisting with this.

[ilfrance]

Oh well, that's unfortunate - I think a recent kodi patch may be causing this. Are you streaming the file over wireless/lan/local hdd? I'm only able to get full bluray 1080p images to play smoothly over the Gig-E here

I'm using gigabit lan and have no troubles with full bluray as well, only those 4k encodings have problems but i think i can live with that since that there's not a lot of material yet, and i can still access those from my tv via smb and they play just fine

[wilro_6276]

Actually 4k works for the interface but has lots of troubles playing 2160p videos, i've tried both h264 and h265 and i have messy colors all around, flickering etc...
I will try some other source (for example Youtube) when i go home tonight

Oh well, that's unfortunate - I think a recent kodi patch may be causing this. Are you streaming the file over wireless/lan/local hdd? I'm only able to get full bluray 1080p images to play smoothly over the Gig-E here

[wilro_6276]

Howdy All,

Still not real happy with my builds, so I figured it was time to try something different - I run Kszac's OE 5.95.5.2 build on my other devices, & find it a very solid build, so I decided to rebase my MX3G build on it:

http://5.189.137.29/Openelec/MX3G/kszaq/OpenELEC-Amlogic.MX3G.arm-5.95.5.2a.zip

http://5.189.137.29/Openelec/MX3G/kszaq/OpenELEC-Amlogic.MX3G.arm-5.95.5.2a.tar

Note:
1. This runs kodi 15.1 (database is compatible with 15.2, I recommend using OE to create a backup onto usb, & using the toothpick/sdcard zip file method install which WILL wipe all partitions - clean slate - then restore the backup file)
2. Wireless/Gig-E work, however bluetooth doesn't (does anyone use bluetooth in OE? I wanted to preserve the older wireless drivers, as they appear faster/more reliable)
3. The default "ondemand" scheduler actually *works* (yipee!)

This is an older linux kernel (3.10.61) & I only backported the drivers necessary to get MX3G functional (Gig-E, poweroff,etc) - Having dual boot is a feature I really want to get working down the track, kszaq has already done the hard yards for this as far as OE is concerned (Thanks mate!)

I want to get this build as solid as it is on my other boxes - A stable reference point is what I desperately need with this box. With a stable base to fall back on, it should be easier to move forward with the build while minimising breakage (yeah, riigghhtt!

Still running this autostart.sh (may not be necessary now):

---snip---
#!/bin/sh

echo conservative > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu0/cpufreq/scaling_governor
echo 1992000 >/sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu0/cpufreq/scaling_max_freq
---snip---

[ilfrance]

Hi ilfrance,

Place autostart.sh in "/storage/.config", make it executable (ie. chmod 755 /storage/.config/autostart.sh), & the changes should be applied during bootup.

Thanks for confirming that 4k works (It's a hard sell justifying to the wife to spend a $2K on a new TV, just to confirm that my $50 mediaplayer works at this resolution

Actually 4k works for the interface but has lots of troubles playing 2160p videos, i've tried both h264 and h265 and i have messy colors all around, flickering etc...
I will try some other source (for example Youtube) when i go home tonight

[wilro_6276]

Hi wilro_6276, thanks for your great work, i'm using your builds on my mx3G box and so far it's working really great, it can even manage the kodi interface at 4k, and looks gorgeous.
I have one question about the cpu scaling, where do i have to put the autostart.sh to have it work automatically? I've i run it manually it works correctly and i can see the cpu temp going down, but i need to launch it everytime i reboot the box.
Also if you somehow manage to support box wake up using hdmi-cec it will make this the perfect htpc box (at the moment i can control the interface with my tv remote, but i cannot power it up so i always have to keep the box remote at hand)
Francesco

Hi ilfrance,

Place autostart.sh in "/storage/.config", make it executable (ie. chmod 755 /storage/.config/autostart.sh), & the changes should be applied during bootup.

Thanks for confirming that 4k works (It's a hard sell justifying to the wife to spend a $2K on a new TV, just to confirm that my $50 mediaplayer works at this resolution

[ilfrance]

Howdy All,

Another update - Mostly Kerber based (hence the naming), with a few reverted/added patches cherry picked from various places:

http://5.189.137.29/Openelec/MX3G/Op...G-6.0.0.2b.zip

http://5.189.137.29/Openelec/MX3G/Op...G-6.0.0.2b.tar

I am still concerned about the temp. of the CPU's, & personally use this autostart.sh:

---snip---
#!/bin/sh

echo conservative > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu0/cpufreq/scaling_governor
echo 1992000 >/sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu0/cpufreq/scaling_max_freq
---snip---

The "conservative" scaling governor functions similar to the default "ondemand" one - Due to issues with ondemand & hotplug noted in my previous post, I found the above actually keeps the box a little cooler, with no noticable impact on overall performance

Hi wilro_6276, thanks for your great work, i'm using your builds on my mx3G box and so far it's working really great, it can even manage the kodi interface at 4k, and looks gorgeous.
I have one question about the cpu scaling, where do i have to put the autostart.sh to have it work automatically? I've i run it manually it works correctly and i can see the cpu temp going down, but i need to launch it everytime i reboot the box.
Also if you somehow manage to support box wake up using hdmi-cec it will make this the perfect htpc box (at the moment i can control the interface with my tv remote, but i cannot power it up so i always have to keep the box remote at hand)
Francesco

[wilro_6276]

yes wilro_6276 , there are prices to pay to live in the best country in the world cobber techprices, FTA TV and upload speed are all a pain.

BTW what improvements are you making? my second MXiii-g has just arrived and am playing with some heavy custom builds eg: the Beast, Andys Build and Spinztv, seems to handle it all ok but on some days its as slow as a wet week particularly wireless. Will be getting up in the roof tomorrow with some cheap CAT6 from MSY i forgot to reflash the firmware when changing OE builds which caused me some dramas but all good now, thanks for the earlier post that twigged my memory.

Hi stannoplan,
Yeah, I know - Wouldn't live anywhere else (been there, done that - I guess if I can figure out how to transport internet via coal (or even better transform coal into quantum computers), we could re-join a more forwarding thinking society, rather than dwelling on/protecting the past

As far as the MX3G is concerned, my goal is to get it running as smoothly as my other s805 boxes. I kind of expected some heat issues (known s812 problem), & while I primarily want to use Gig-E, it irks me how poor both 2.4/5Ghz perform compared to the 2.4Ghz only devices which use the same chipset/drivers. My tweaks thus far are mostly to try & improve heat,wifi & kodi smoothness - involving rolling back to older versions of apps/drivers, porting patches from other devices etc. The only significant changes are the poweroff patch + rollback on libnfs (+ newer patchset's upstream for kodi + new kernel)

[wilro_6276]

I updated my mxiii-g box to openelec 6.0. Only one thing is missing or is not working.

Please can someone add cec setting like the one that are used in a raspberry pi with openelec to our amlogic devices. See picture.

Originally posted by Condorello View Post
That linux rom make these box the perfect htpc!
any chance to have the tv remote wake up the box from standby through cec? In that way we can hide the amlogic device behind the tv or similar!

Now when i shut down my tv with te remote control te box stays red end will not turn on. Only by pressing the power button.. Now i can't hide it behind my tv.
Any sollution? On android it works like a charm.. But i prefer openelec

Hi Nighthawk,

My understanding is that this particular addon is pi specific, as the pi implements far more of of the CEC spec than these amlogic boxes do - I use hdmi-cec on the one TV I have that supports it, however, the config is very specific to my box/tv/remote, with several functions talking directly to the MX3G, as I haven't found a way to pass them via CEC - I plan on exploring this further as time permits, but I have quite a few other things that are of higher priority at the moment. (If it was a simple task, I'm sure someone would have already done it - Sorry I can't do more with this at the moment...

[wilro_6276]

I looked up your unit, they didn't give that away in 2010 $999 in AU. I am using an HTPC with Windows MEDIA Center, 7 tuners with 1 TB recording drive Xboxes on each t.v. for whole home pvr or live t.v. Clarkss12 is using an s805 with Openelec and pvr backend plugin recording to a NAS for whole home pvr and live t.v. The MXIII-G has very good hardware specs that can replace my Xboxes if the software is there. They have patched Kodi 16 nightly for the h.264 Caption issue. I am watching a mpeg2 t.v. recording now with captions via Openelec Kodi on my zotac intel box without issue. Comcast my cable t.v. provider uses variable bit compression mpeg2 and mpeg4 now with 480i, some weird resolutions, 720p and 1080i so getting it all to work on any box without issue is difficult.

Yes, the 'wiz was a very pricey kit (let's see, my youngest is 6 now, & I had it for a couple of years before he was born - I guess the investment paid off - I used it extensively to digitise many hours of home movies at the time, but rarely use it myself these days (for previously mentioned reasons) - I don't allow any tech being connected to my network or the internet for that matter, that I am unable to "get under the bonnet of" so to speak - Everything I currently use gives me that flexibility (The smart TV was "just for fun" however, I use it purely as a dumb display

While the wiz is a great pvr (I can live with 1080i for broadcast), it's a pretty mediocre playback device, so we only use the pvr functions these days (Everyone's kinda use to it's navigation, so I face an uphill battle when the time comes to replace it - I certainly appreciate dealing with weird resolutions/frame rates - Had a nightmare of a time dealing with ntsc film -> pal only tv's in the 'bad old days' - It's good to see kodi making solid progress in this area, I still have a few really old video's (no DVD/Bluray release), which I've never been able to cleanup to a respectable level.