difference between Arch ARM + xbmc vs Raspbmc etc

[Inxsible]

I am just delving into Raspberry Pi and would like to build a xbmc htpc connected to my TV. The primary function for it would be to play movies/tv shows from an NFS share. Also music and pictures.

Occasionally if I can use the web browser to watch an online flash/html5 video then that would be great.

With that in mind, do you think I should go for a dedicated xbmc based derivative like -- Raspbmc, OpenElec or Xbian or should I use a full fledged linux disto with xbmc installed -- Arch ARM, Raspbian, Pidora etc.

Having used Archlinux on my desktop and laptop for a very long time, I am biased towards Arch + xbmc, but if the performance is going to be slower than that of xbmc based derivatives then I might just use those.

Could you guys please share what you have experienced in terms of performance and speed -- playback as well as menus?
Also would anyone of them allow me to connect the audio through my AV Receiver so that I can use my home theater in the setup?

Thanks.

[Inxsible]

ummm.. 5 days , no replies?

[sdjf]

You are asking a question about comparing various OS's for the Raspberry Pi in a dedicated archlinuxarm for the Pi forum.

I, for one, had nothing to say as I have never tried those other systems to compare them to arch, and have no experience with the applications you are asking about.

Since you have a question about a number of systems, you might get a better response in the General Discussion forum on the foundation site at http://raspberrypi.org, where many people have experimented with the other systems.

Or, maybe even better yet, since what you really seem to want to know is which is the best way to install XBMC, then asking at an XBMC forum or subforum would likely yield many responses. I don't see one on the Foundation site, but there might be one elsewhere?

[dhead666]

That's easy, no ugly patches to XBMC.
But seriously if you just need XBMC then go with OpenELEC, much more KISS than Raspbmc or Debian for that matter.

[Inxsible]

sdjf, fair enough. But what I wanted to find out was -- are there arch ARM users who have played with xbmc on these boards and to see if they thought the performance was good or at least tolerable. That's the reason I asked on this forum.

dhead666, thank you. I think I will try Raspbmc since I was thinking I would also use the browser for a one off online video viewing and as far as I can tell OpenElec doesn't allow that since its not a complete linux environment.

The point of this thread was only to differentiate between ArchARM + xbmc vs the rest. I believe (from lack of responses and also from what I have read about the whole thing) is that Raspbmc or OpenElec will be better off than any full blown linux environment like Arch or Raspbian or even Pidora


Thank you.

[WarheadsSE]

We do have several users doing this, but they don't populate the forums much.

[sdjf]

If you can afford an extra SD card for your Pi, you might just have one card each for your two top choices, and do a comparison yourself. If the final choice is very clear to you, maybe the alternate card could be used as a dd'd full system backup.