Dune HD Max 4K

Advantages: 1. Monumental heavy device, the body is made entirely of metal, the build quality is excellent. 2. Full size display showing seconds, playback status and network connection type. When idle, shows the current time. 3. Possibility to install 2 HDD-disks, access to one - the basket on the front panel, access to the second - from the bottom of the device, under the cover screwed in with screws that do not require a screwdriver. 4. Separate HDMI output for audio only, ie. no longer need a 4K receiver (a huge plus). 5. Support for most modern formats out of the box and almost all after installing third-party players. 6. A large number of settings, i.e. the ability to fine-tune the device. 7. A developed community of owners to which you can contact with questions. 8. Great plugins from the community to watch movies and listen to radio online. 9. Better quality HDMI-cable included (but still far from top-end).

Disadvantages: 1. Price. It could be cheaper by 10-15 thousand because except for a fancy case, a switching power supply and a separate HDMI output for audio, in principle, there are no fundamental differences in terms of hardware power and capabilities from Dune Pro 4K (the same processor, the same amount of memory, etc.). 2. The bluetooth remote is not very useful because it is disgusting as a mouse. It’s very difficult to position the cursor and do something for them, it jumps like mad. 3. All the same problems in terms of software as with Dune Pro 4K: problems with NFS access of my NAS QNAP, not intuitive scaling, different players for different content, problems with AVI playback (solved by transcoding to H264 and MKV with the free software XviD4PSP ). However, there is still hope that most of these problems will be fixed in the future, for example, support for 3D blu-ray with menus has been added in the latest firmware, this is good news. 4. HDDs get very hot, so it was worth adding active cooling anyway. 5. At the start of playback / after a pause, the sound is sent to the receiver with a 2-second delay (starts to sound later about 2 seconds). It would seem a trifle, but annoying. Fortunately, there is no desynchronization of sound and audio, for which I was most afraid.

Comment: If you're looking for an Android box that looks great with your fancy rackmount receiver, this is exactly what you need, the design and build are excellent. Also, for those whose receiver does not support 4K and the TV does, a separate HDMI port for audio only solves the problem. Otherwise, it's still a somewhat controversial device, like the Dune HD Pro 4K. It is still far from the premium segment, which this device claims to be, because of the software part: it is not as convenient and does not work as perfectly as it should. If you are ready to spend a certain amount of time setting up and put up with the listed (and most likely other) problems, then the device definitely deserves attention.

Advantages: A very brutal appearance and quality of the body material, excellent software and support, everything works well, both over the network and autonomously, high quality components.

Disadvantages: not found other than cost.

Comment: A very positive impression, before that there was a Popcorn Hour A-400 media player, some positive emotions, the LG 42LW4500 3D TV has never shown so great, the software is just at its best, the gadget's operation is intuitive, fast and without lags and brakes, the presence of 2x slots for hdd with a capacity of up to 10 TB makes it possible to create any collection of movies and music, the gadget reproduces music just fine, working in conjunction with the Pioneer VSX-LX503: 9.2-channel receiver and 5.1 jamo 606 set, in the cinema is beyond praise, the sound is like in cinema, internet and streaming perfectly!

Advantages: Video - excellent, usability, connectivity, etc. - good.

Disadvantages: "High quality digital audio outputs"

Comment: Video - excellent, usability, connectivity, etc. - good. I bought this model because of "High quality digital audio outputs", for playback through external devices. Unfortunately, "High Quality Digital Audio Outputs" did not pay off. Sounds good, but nothing more (too "simplistic", "harsh"). Better sound can be easily achieved with a PC. In general, audio is not for audiophiles. I handed it back. The device is clearly overloaded with junk android apps - probably to justify the price. Without regret, I left myself Dune hd solo4k.

Advantages: The new generation of Dune consoles provides both traditional omnivorousness in formats, codecs and containers, with an expanded catalog of applications that significantly expands the capabilities of the multimedia center, but also with the transition to the Android platform opens up almost endless possibilities for customization, expanding the functionality of the set-top box. From a simple BD-Remux player with Hi-Res sound (if you have a set from a receiver with speakers), to a game center with rare games of the old school platforms Sega, NES and Playstation.

Disadvantages: The presence of a single color (black), front panel design (the front panel profile is slightly larger than the case profile).

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