HTPC Question

[TFBlaze]

My wife to be and I are getting ready to move into our new apartment and I'm not sure if I should build a dedicated HTPC. What I want to do is to play my DVD and BD library onto the TV, other forms of content I'm not concerned with.

Currently I have a machine setup as a server with an Intel Core Duo E6600, 4gig of ram, and currently it has an 8800GTS 640mb but I am considering placing an ATI 4550 or ATI 5550 for the HMDI and sound output to use it to drive the TV. It started out as a my personal machine but was replaced by i5 750 system. This machine will likely also serve as her personal machine for school/general usage if I am using mine.

I had originally planned on just running an HDMI cable from the 2nd bedroom around the wall to the tv in the living room and using a some DROID plugins as a the remote control, or possibly getting an usb extension and buying a remote control for use with Media Center (windows 7).

Should I expect performance problems when playing back DVDS/BD content while other operations are in progress, such as general Word, Excel usage? Also, I don't think the idea of running cables from one room to other is very appealing to her and have considered going wireless or buildign a separate dedicated HTPC. The components I am considering are below:

AMD Athlon II X2 240 Regor 2.8 GHZ
Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H
Scythe SCKTN-3000 92mm Sleeve "KATANA3" if the Stock cooler isn't considered to be quiet enough.
hec Black 0.7mm Thickness SEC Stell 7K09BBA30FNRX Micro ATX Media Center 300W Power Suply HTPC Case
Gskill 2GB(2x1GB) DDR2 1066
I might consider adding a BD player to this, but for starting out I am ok with having to put everything on the server to first.

To avoid running a cable was considering going 802.11 N. Would this suffice for networking the BD content from the server?

I have never really looked into streaming video such as Hulu, etc. Most of the television I watch are sports, baseball (cubs), basketball (bulls), football (packers). Unfortunately much of the baseball and basketball content has moved from the over the air WGN unto cable channels so I think I'm stuck with having to have cable for that. She enjoys watching some of the reality shows that are on cable. Also, I most of the gaming I do is single player and I don't do any bandwith heavy things such as bit torrents, all I use the internet for is general browsing, news, and email.

I plan on purchasing a 55" LED LCD TV that this will be hooked up to.

SO I guess what I'm looking for is:
A) Is the video card change enough and will general office usage affect the video playback?
B) If it will affect playback, is building the dedicated machine a better choice? Are changes I should make to the parts I've selected?
C) Will wireless N suffice for going wireless, or should I stick to wired ethernet?

 

[IDversusEGO]

lots of info there, let me see if I can sum it up...you have a Intel Core Duo E6600, 4gig of ram, and a future ATI 4550 or ATI 5550 that you want to run a logn cable to the tv.

A) general office usage shouldnt hurt it
B) building a dedicated machine is a better choice for a few reasons, but performance isnt the biggest
C) Wireless N might not be adequate for full quality Bluray streaming.

solutions are numerous, but some of themost common include:

1) dedicated machine with ether net running under baseboards. Ethernet is smaller than HDMI and can usually be shoved under the baseboard.

2) WD Live. it plays everything you mentioned and is much cheaper than a dedicated machine. still needs Ethernet though. they have wireless adapters available, but I have concerns with HD over wireless.

3) move all your media to the dedicated machine so it isnt streaming the blurays. give it a wireless connection for file dumping and sharing. forget the idea of a server...since she is using it for general use, you dont have a dedicated server anyway. I did exactly what you are talking about for a while and it sucked when I needed to reboot because anybody watching media was interrupted. defeats the purpose of a server...to have an always available rock solid source. moving your media to the newly built, dedicated HTPC is my favorite in your scenario because it makes the entertainment source independent.