How to complete my HTPC..

A

agent_hamsta

Weaksauce
Joined
Jul 14, 2006
Messages
125
Hey everyone..I want to use my old spare PC as an HTPC/DVR in my living room. So what I really need to ask is what do I need to get to complete my pc and make it happen?

1) What will you be doing with this PC?
HTPC/DVR .. My cable provider is Time Warner Cable!

2) What's your budget?
If i keep it under $150 I'll be happy.

3) Where do you live?
Los Angeles, CA

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget?
Capture Card..Remote..keyboard I'm not really sure what I'm missing.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
E6600 @ 2.4ghz, Asus P5NE-SLI, 4GB Mushkin HP2-6400, EVGA Nvidia 8600GT 256 MB, 1tb Seagate HDD, Vista Home Premium 32bit (Upgrade to WIN 7 will happen)

6) Will you be overclocking?
No

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
Plugging into my TV Samsung Plasma 720P

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
This weekend

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
N/A ?

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yes

Thanks for help in advance.
 
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spacetrader said:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...7&cm_re=hauppauge_2250-_-15-116-037-_-Product

http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Con...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1253747897&sr=8-2

you can look for better prices on the remote, but i think these two things are all you need. you have a great htpc, the video card is good and overall a nice system. the keyboard is hard, i cant really find a decent RF or BT one that doesnt have key lag or error... at least not in the mini sizes.
Click to expand...

Instead of buying the 2250 and remote separately, you might want to check out the 2250 kit w/remote for $129 w/ FS.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116036

Does your plasma have a QAM tuner and have you checked out exactly which channels are available with TW? If you aren't planning on using analog cable(NTSC), you can skip the 2250 and get the Avermedia Duet. It's about half the price of the 2250 and does OTA(ATSC) and QAM.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815100041

If you go with the Duet, you'll need a remote. XPCgear.com has a decent selection of under $30 remotes.

http://www.xpcgear.com/remotectrl.html
 
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Hey DDR4040:

Thanks for the info. My TV does not have QAM at least that's not a spec I found in the tech specs (Samsung HTP-5054).

I do have digital cable from TWC though, TWC should still be providing me with the same channels I currently have. As I'm guessing I still have to keep their set-top box which plugs in to the Hauppage card? which is fine by me.

Also I'm planning on just using Windows Media Center to manage it all. Is it something that's doable or would I run into issues with codecs?


EDIT: What about that ATI Cable Card Tuner that was all over the news a few weeks back? is that avaiable and would it be a viable option?
 
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you dont need a stb if all you have is analog cable. however, if you do have digital cable and you want the high def channels without a lot of extra cost, you can feed the cable box into that hauppauge card with composite. it may not sound great, but its actually pretty damn good with all the computer upscaling that goes on.

i would buy the microsoft remote kit, it is top quality.
 
agent_hamsta said:
Thanks for the info. My TV does not have QAM at least that's not a spec I found in the tech specs (Samsung HTP-5054).

I do have digital cable from TWC though, TWC should still be providing me with the same channels I currently have. As I'm guessing I still have to keep their set-top box which plugs in to the Hauppage card? which is fine by me.
Click to expand...

From a quick check on google, it does look like you have a built in QAM tuner on your Samsung. Disconnect the TW RF cable coming out of your wall from the STB. Connect it to the Ant2 in(cable) input on the back of your TV. Go into the menu and drill down to the Antenna option and choose Cable. Hit enter to save it and then run AutoProgram. It will take a few minutes for the TV to run through all of the channels. When it is done, go through all of the channels it has found. All of the channels without a decimal point are analog and need an NTSC tuner. All of the channels with a decimal point are digital QAM channels. The 2250 will be able to tune and record both sets of channels. The Duet will only be able to tune and record the ones with a decimal point. That should help you make your decision on which card to buy.

Be aware though that with the FCC digital transition that happened back in June, TW is not required to keep using the analog channels. They are leaving them on for now as a courtesy to their customers without STB's, but can shut them off at any time for good. And since the analog channels take up a good chunk of their bandwidth, they most likely will shut them off to make room for more HD Channels. When they do shut them off the only thing you will be left with is the local networks(ABC,CBS,PBS etc) and a few other channels like C-Span and QVC.

As far as keeping the TW STB and connecting it to the 2250 goes, that's not really a great option. You are stuck with SD only and you feed the 2250 via S-Video Out from the STB. You also have to use IR Blasters in order to allow the 2250 to change the channels on your STB. It can be done, but I'm not sure it is worth the effort for poor quality SD.

Give the Samsung QAM tuner a shot and let us know how you make out. You will be able to make a much better informed decision once you know what is available on QAM and NTSC from TW.
 
Ok so I did the scan of QAM tuner and I really don't get any channels aside from basic locals. I called TWC and they informed me that in my neighborhood(development) the viewing of cable channels will only happen with their STB due to whatever contracts are in place. (we receive a really nice discount on our service.)

But to get back on subject. I feel a bit discouraged now since it seems I can't get away from having a STB (TWC or TIVO) and continue to pay a subscription for it's DVR functions.

What options am I left with?
 
agent_hamsta said:
But to get back on subject. I feel a bit discouraged now since it seems I can't get away from having a STB (TWC or TIVO) and continue to pay a subscription for it's DVR functions.

What options am I left with?
Click to expand...

If you rule out the TWC DVR and Tivo, you are left with Win7 Media Center with a CableCard tuner or a Hauppauge HDPVR paired with a regular TWC HD STB. The only Cablecard tuners available now are from ATI, and you can get a single tuner model from Dell for about $210. Sometime in early 2010, we will see new multi-tuner cards from Ceton and maybe Hauppauge.
 
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