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Considering an HTPC

673 Views 6 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  Greg121986, 
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Right around this time of year I find something that I want, and throw money at it.
First was my Samsung LN46B640 HDTV which went on my interest free credit card so I can dump a little bit of cash out of pocket for the beginning of 2010. One thing that came to mind was an HTPC, but I am not sure if it would be a good idea for me.

I currently have a 15 foot HDMI cable that I use in rare cases to hook up to the TV which is in the next room. I use audio through my regular PC 2.1 speakers which will eventually be hooked up with a very long audio cable. I thought it would be easier/a more fun idea to build an HTPC. But I'm not sure if I would really use it to its full potential.

I thought I would move all of my music and movies to the HTPC. But, I still want to keep my 2TB drives in my main PC. This will raise the cost significantly, though. I also want to be able to stream from Hulu and possibly NetFlix while using my HTPC. I will also use it as a DVD player, and I might get a Blu Ray drive, but I don't know for sure. I want to get a PS3 in the very near future as well. Will the PS3 allow me to view things like Hulu? Can I get to the video on my PC from the PS3 attached to the network?

I do not have HD DirecTV, though. And if I build an HTPC I probably won't be able to get the HD receiver I need to have a basic HD package. They want $99 for the HD receiver and I really do not want to pay that to begin with. Would I even be able to record the HD shows from the DirecTV receiver if I had an HTPC?

Here is what I came up with so far. I would like to buy as many used pieces as possible. But I am set on this case unless someone can point me onto another one.

Lian Li Case $139.99
Gigabyte 785G $79.99
Athlon II 250 3.0Ghz $67.99
Corsair 400W PSU $49.99
WD 1TB Caviar Green $84.99 I would really like the 1.5TB Green, but they are out of stock right now. One or two would be fine for now.

Total: $422.95

Is there anything else? I would really like a TV tuner, but it is pretty expensive. I also do not have an HD antenna so I can't use that to get HD signals. Basically the only source I have for HD entertainment is what I have on my HDD right now and the internet.
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Quote:


Originally Posted by Greg121986
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Right around this time of year I find something that I want, and throw money at it.
First was my Samsung LN46B640 HDTV which went on my interest free credit card so I can dump a little bit of cash out of pocket for the beginning of 2010. One thing that came to mind was an HTPC, but I am not sure if it would be a good idea for me.

I currently have a 15 foot HDMI cable that I use in rare cases to hook up to the TV which is in the next room. I use audio through my regular PC 2.1 speakers which will eventually be hooked up with a very long audio cable. I thought it would be easier/a more fun idea to build an HTPC. But I'm not sure if I would really use it to its full potential.

I thought I would move all of my music and movies to the HTPC. But, I still want to keep my 2TB drives in my main PC. This will raise the cost significantly, though. I also want to be able to stream from Hulu and possibly NetFlix while using my HTPC. I will also use it as a DVD player, and I might get a Blu Ray drive, but I don't know for sure. I want to get a PS3 in the very near future as well. Will the PS3 allow me to view things like Hulu? Can I get to the video on my PC from the PS3 attached to the network?

I do not have HD DirecTV, though. And if I build an HTPC I probably won't be able to get the HD receiver I need to have a basic HD package. They want $99 for the HD receiver and I really do not want to pay that to begin with. Would I even be able to record the HD shows from the DirecTV receiver if I had an HTPC?

Here is what I came up with so far. I would like to buy as many used pieces as possible. But I am set on this case unless someone can point me onto another one.

Lian Li Case $139.99
Gigabyte 785G $79.99
Athlon II 250 3.0Ghz $67.99
Corsair 400W PSU $49.99
WD 1TB Caviar Green $84.99 I would really like the 1.5TB Green, but they are out of stock right now. One or two would be fine for now.

Total: $422.95

Is there anything else? I would really like a TV tuner, but it is pretty expensive. I also do not have an HD antenna so I can't use that to get HD signals. Basically the only source I have for HD entertainment is what I have on my HDD right now and the internet.

is there a specific reason you want that case. it looks rly nice. but if you want a tv tuner. id suggest that you get a cheaper case (not a complete crap one though) and spend the money you saved on a new tuner. haupauge seems to be one of the better brands and a highly suggested one. with the tuner tehre are also programs. which allow you to turn it into a dvr so you could record rewind pause shows on tv. if you want to you could also look into a hi def tuner. if you have hd satelite or cable you could then have hi def on ur computer besides whats on it already and the internet.

feel free to pm me if you have any more questions.

edit. do you already have ram for this?
and do you have an operating system for this?

also after reading more into ur post. if u have a hi def tv tuner you could record hi def. (ill def look more into this myself cuz im curious myself and could better answer ur questions
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I was going to try to use a distro of Linux for an OS. I have heard that there are some good GUIs out there, but I think it also has some issues with drivers for ATI software and Hulu.

I figure I will buy some RAM used from OCN.

I do not have an HD receiver for my DirecTV right now. If I built the HTPC, I don't think I would have the funds to buy the receiver which is $99. I really would like that, though.

If I do get a TV tuner card for it right away it must be one that has all the features I could want. That would mean HD capability. I want an HD tuner card for the HTPC, but that might not be until later because of the cost savings. Or, I could not get the tuner and then buy the HD Receiver box for my DirecTV at least. Does DirecTV encrypt their signal so it cannot be received by the HTPC tuner card? I have heard of some people having problems with this, but I do not know what carrier does it. I have DirecTV currently, and late next year I may have to use Charter Cable at my parent's house.

I am still just really confused right now. I do not know if I should just get a DirecTV HD Receiver box and a PS3 instead of building an HTPC. I can't really decide if it's going to be totally useful for me.
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Have you considered buying this instead of building
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that looks like a really good deal for a HTPC, if your cable isn't encrypted your in luck!
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Quote:


Originally Posted by Greg121986
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I was going to try to use a distro of Linux for an OS. I have heard that there are some good GUIs out there, but I think it also has some issues with drivers for ATI software and Hulu.

I figure I will buy some RAM used from OCN.

I do not have an HD receiver for my DirecTV right now. If I built the HTPC, I don't think I would have the funds to buy the receiver which is $99. I really would like that, though.

If I do get a TV tuner card for it right away it must be one that has all the features I could want. That would mean HD capability. I want an HD tuner card for the HTPC, but that might not be until later because of the cost savings. Or, I could not get the tuner and then buy the HD Receiver box for my DirecTV at least. Does DirecTV encrypt their signal so it cannot be received by the HTPC tuner card? I have heard of some people having problems with this, but I do not know what carrier does it. I have DirecTV currently, and late next year I may have to use Charter Cable at my parent's house.

I am still just really confused right now. I do not know if I should just get a DirecTV HD Receiver box and a PS3 instead of building an HTPC. I can't really decide if it's going to be totally useful for me.

If you're going to use Linux you need to build your machine around it. You need to pick mobo, tuner and gpu which have decent compatibnility (also applies to remote control if youre planning on using one). Something like XBMC is not too hard to set up, but if you're thinking of PVR tasks, and decide to go MythTV, be aware that its not for the faint of heart - you will need some pretty decent Linux skills to get it working.
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Originally Posted by 0ldfart
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If you're going to use Linux you need to build your machine around it. You need to pick mobo, tuner and gpu which have decent compatibnility (also applies to remote control if youre planning on using one). Something like XBMC is not too hard to set up, but if you're thinking of PVR tasks, and decide to go MythTV, be aware that its not for the faint of heart - you will need some pretty decent Linux skills to get it working.

A friend of mine is pretty heavy into Linux and he said he would be willing to help me out. I am thinking I might go Windows 7 though, just to make is easier on me.
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