Tech Question #3 network streamer + WD NAS

CiB

Couple of years back I bought a WD MyBook Live NAS to use as a media server. It works in that it delivers media to various devices, but when viewing music tracks via the main method on the iPad it displays them in alphabetic order, not track order. This is a bit pants, esp with CDs that have a flow from one piece to the next.

This is the same for the Cambridge Audio Stream Magic 6 v2 using the older blue-skinned app in the iPad, or the newer grey-skinned app. I recently upgraded to a Naim ND5-XS streamer, and the much smarter iPad app for that also displays tracks alphabetically.

It's a known issue with the WD device, Google shows many hits for people with this alpha sequence issue. So either:

* is there a hidden fix to the WD DNLA server (I know the interface inside out, nothing resolves it) that will change its display order?

* What alternative NAS drives are there that act as media servers and are known to present the data correctly? This is the preferred option btw.

Points that will be raised: tracks are a mix of MP3, FLAC & some HD files. All MP3 & FLAC tracks have been ripped with either WMP or DB Power Amp; the metadata in the files is correct (checked, corrected occasionally with MP3Tag), including the track number in the filename 'sometimes' corrects it, but usually doesn't - WD DNLA is reading the tags presumably; Cambride Audio tech support have been v helpful but ultimately [they say] display order is entirely driven by the DNLA sw, their app just shows what it's sent. Naim say the same. Have tried to toggle to Twonky server from DNLA but only ever see the 'invalid format' error, so am stuck with WD DNLA as the server s/w.

Any ideas folks?

rank_amateur

If a new NAS drive is your preferred option then look for one that will run Plex server. I run Plex server, albeit using an old Mac mini which is always on, to send all types of media, from 3 NAS drives, to all types of devices (iPads, iPhones, smart TVs, Roku box) which run the Plex client - either on my local network or wherever I am in the world. Works brilliantly.
It's not quite so good when the server is actually on the NAS, because they don't have the processing power of a computer, but if there isn't much transcoding of files needed then I believe they work well.

https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articl ... imitations

CiB

Thanks for that RA.

CiB

In case anyone else comes across this via Google or whatever, the answer is that the DLNA server s/w on the WD Mybook Live is the cause. Older Mybooks used to have an option of running either Twonky or WD's own DLNA package, they dropped Twonky on MyBook Lives sold since around 2013 onwards, and DLNA doesn't work properly. To prove it I installed a demo version of Asset UPnP from the DB Poweramp site on the PC, and that presents the data correctly in the iPad app so the metadata is correct and the app works correctly with that folder structure

The conundrum now is to find a media server package that I can install onto the WD to run in place of its shoddy DLNA. Or maybe just buy a NAS that works out of the box.

davis

I would consider Mediatomb as a DLNA server, in addition to adding the zero-padded track number to the start of the filename. I would also check the media files' tags for consistency (I'm pretty over-zealous when it comes to correct tagging).

10/10 for Plex here too; I became a "Life member" (or whatever it's called). Everything downloaded into it; Movies, TV Shows, Radio and Music all work perfectly 100% of the time. I've got episodes of Gardeners' Question Time* which I save on my phone for driving / shed fettling as well as movies cached on the tablet for long car journeys for t'boy. A CentOS machine (rather than a dedicated and limited "NAS") running Plex does literally everything and gives us the perfect "10-foot UI" interface, plus it can perform other functions. Synology are the go-to make if you do want a NAS, though.

*: Yes, I'm nearly *that* old, but you try finding any single radio serial which is more "dip in and out"-able and easy listening than GQT. I even occasionally *listen* to it.