Need Help getting started with HTPC building

S0mE0nEsMiNd1

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 18, 2004
Messages
496
Hey guys im very interested in making a HTPC...We are getting a new TV setup, and wireless streaming would be great, or whatever the latest technology is now :rolleyes: so my questions are
1) what kind of technology is possible with HTPC's and what can they do now assuming I can hook it up to my TV System?
2) what do you reccomend most (parts, brand, ammount, all i really want to do is use it around the TV)
3) Is it possible to steam wirelessly to my HTPC w/ WIFI?
 
Basically, it is possible to do everything a tivo can do and more with an HTPC. Software-wise you can either go the windows route (beyondtv or sageTV) or the linux route (mythTV), each of which has their advantages and disadvantages. Basically the advantage of a windows set up is the ease with which you could set it up. The advantage of mythTV is that it's a far more powerful program, and it's free. The disadvantages of the windows based machine is that it's gonna cost a bit more, and the only real disadvantage of mythTV is it's probably going to be a lot harder to setup.

Hardware-wise I would suggest building an AMD-based system because it's generally cheaper and you're not going to need to spend an extra 100 dollars to see no real-world performance increase(htpc-wise). Also I'd grab a pvr-250 as your encoder.

Basic hardware setup:
Barton 2500+
Abit NF7-S
Hard Drive
512 Ram (2x256)
PVR-250
5200FX or G4MX440 with svideo out
whatever other peripherals are necessary
Should come out to around 500 dollars

As for streaming wirelessly, it depends on many factors including the size, strength of the wireless network, speed of the wireless network, but you' should be able to do 1 stream at a time, possible 2.
 
There are also free HTPC programs for Windows: myhtpc and GotTv. I am designing a low-cost system using this software.

1) HTPC's greatest asset, imo, is it's ability to centralize and catalog your digital media. You can have one-click access to mp3's, cds, DivX and other video formats, DVD's, internet, games, and email all on your home television in your living room.

2) As for parts, you can either go budget or expensive as with computers. Budget systems will get you basical functionality that is likely to meet most of your needs, but you can spend more for additional featuers. The most important thing here to me is video quality in and out of the system. You want a card that encodes mpeg2 in hardware, which basically eases the stress on the rest of the system. PVR-250, Blackbird-based cards, and ATI E-Home wonder are good examples. Personally, I am using the E-home Wonder due to ATI's reputation and its low cost. If you buy a card that does mpeg2 in hardware, you can then use a cheaper cpu, mainboard, and memory. I am working with a Duron 850, 512MB PC2100 DDR ram, and a 60GB hard disk using ATA100. I bought a $30 refurb shuttle mainboard from Newegg. There is also a $27 PC-Chips mobo on newegg that many people have had great success with. Personal taste is going to dictate cost also, because if you want a more sleek case or Mhz bragging rights, you gotta spend more.

3) It seems like you could use a couple of 802.11 G cards at 54Mbps, which is good enough to stream DVD video. But you still have the range and reliability issues of wireless here. 100Mbps ethernet would be ideal if you don't have to run cables through any walls.
 
Though i haven't tried myHTPC or gotTV, from what I've seen they work, but they dont seem as polished as the other programs. That's just my opinion though, and having not experienced either i may be completely wrong.

Regarding hardware, unless you actually have parts already there is no reason to skimp on the machine. Sure you could shave off about 100 dollars by skimping on parts, but the extra 100 will futureproof the machine a lot more. Considering PC2700 costs the same amount as PC2100, the barton 2500+ can be had for less than 80 dollars, and the soundstorm audio of the NF7-S is simply incredible, i see no reason not to go this route. As far as the wireless stream goes, it all depends on how many streams you want at a time and how good the connections are.
 
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