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 HTPC V2, Home Theater PC Setup, HOWTO and Guides

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netherlord
post May 21 2010, 03:27 AM

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QUOTE(yikyeou @ May 21 2010, 02:47 AM)
hi gurus and sifus, need recommendation on building a htpc. my budget is rm1500-2000.

my htpc is for playing MKV, youtube, surfing and PPS, that's all. =)
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No pun intended but its like walking into shop and asking a salesman what he have for sale blink.gif

In order to build a htpc, there are various factors to take into consideration. What sound system your running now? HiTB or AVR? What output do you need? HDMI or Composite? Optical or Bitstream? What future upgrades you looking at? You need to do a little research then ask the correct questions.

BTW all your requirements are already answered in all the previous post. Take some time to browse thru the past post then ask again with the proper questions. As for your question, anything spec will suffice in doing that. Thats all rclxms.gif
netherlord
post May 21 2010, 05:11 PM

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QUOTE(yikyeou @ May 21 2010, 12:45 PM)
forgot to mention, my video output will be hdmi and for sound will be spdif via toslink.
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Core i5 530 + Gigabyte H55M-UD2H + 2GB RAM + 1.5TB HDD + China ATX Casing + 400W PS + DVD Burner = RM17++

Outputs will be HDMI(Video), Optical(Sound).

Future Upgrade = DD TrueHD / DTS MA Bitstream capable AVR (thru HDMI), Bluray drive for BD playback.

Core spec will be able to handle most of your req there and future upgrade to support DD TrueHD and DTS MA is in place if you wanna upgrade your HT set. Hope this fits your budget rclxms.gif
netherlord
post May 22 2010, 07:07 AM

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QUOTE(paskal @ May 21 2010, 07:14 PM)
any particular reason in selecting core i5 when core i3 is enough?
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Based on your budget, dont you wanna get the best hardware possible?
netherlord
post May 22 2010, 02:51 PM

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QUOTE(paskal @ May 22 2010, 09:06 AM)
the core i3 paired with h55 is able to do hd audio bitstream. you don't need the ATI 5 series GC.
nope.
i'm gonna choose the lower end of the core series which could do bitstream (core i3-530) since the extra clockspeed won't improve the decoding performance (if software decoding is used) and won't affect anything if hardware decoding is used.
the lower clockspeed reduces the heat output, thus reducing the fan speed and noise.

the saved budget will be used to get the most important part in (any) HTPC (media library):
STORAGE.
RM300 saved is another 1.5TB of storage. i already have 6 and fully filled 5 of it.
then again, my requirement might not be the same as everyone. smile.gif
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True that most ppl have different requirement from their HTPC. As per yikyeou request, i just provide a spec to match his budget. How he wants to change it is totally up to him.

For me, Processor play a bigger role than Storage cause occasionally i do some video/sound editing/authoring so the extra speed comes in handy. My HTPC is more like a transformer biggrin.gif , when hooked up to my Monitor i use it to do general work, when hooked up to my AVR it transforms into a Media HTPC. rclxms.gif

P.S Iam using Acer 6935G notebook as my workhorse and HTPC. Windows Vista for general work and XBMC for Media HTPC purpose.

This post has been edited by netherlord: May 22 2010, 02:53 PM
netherlord
post Jun 29 2010, 11:26 PM

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QUOTE(lwk523 @ Jun 29 2010, 11:02 PM)
Ya, you are right .. I also think if something goes wrong .. it's really waste my money to buy that display card .. if I just upgrade just cost me around RM400  But, I going to buy a used c2d CPU need around RM1k lolx doh.gif  ...For sure c2d have last longer than old p4.... Dunno what to do now ... rclxub.gif  rclxub.gif
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Depend on how much you budget and how much u use the HTPC, of coz a new graphic card + P4 is cheaper but not viable in the long run cause P4 parts are quite rare and those 2nd hand shop gonna samurai you unless you buy from lyn members doh.gif .

C2D is gonna phase out soon also. So if your planning to spend 1k might as well go for i3 + H55 MB which already proven to be able to support all format playback. Exact how much i don't really know but i think you can check how much is it easily. But i think if your buying i3 + H55 MB i think you have to get the RAM also so budget might go overboard rclxub.gif .


netherlord
post Jun 30 2010, 12:46 PM

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QUOTE(tolorati @ Jun 30 2010, 11:18 AM)
So far I found cheapest 2 bay nas is less than rm400. What are the cheapest 4 bay nas u guys can find? IMHO, nas is the way to go if u have more than 1 pc.
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I think the cheapest should be DIY NAS. I found a quite informative place where ppl DIY their own NAS.

Pro: You get to customise your own NAS icon_idea.gif
Bring ur old pc system back to life flex.gif

Cons: Computer knowledge must be adequate and willing to get ur hands dirty whistling.gif
Might overbudget when going on a buying spree rclxub.gif

Link: http://www.diynas.com/category/hardware/complete-systems/
netherlord
post Jul 26 2010, 06:04 PM

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QUOTE(xsi @ Jul 26 2010, 01:53 PM)
thank for the tips...
my PSU is a cheapo one...maybe will upgrade later coz i have 2 HDDs 1 DVD drive. And possibly buying another HDD.

btw, also getting BSOD when trying to re-install the win7 again. Bugger!
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From my exp, BSOD with the message STOP: XXXXXXXXXXX <--- (numbers) is usually RAM or HDD problem, try reinserting the RAM/HDD cables and make sure they are on tight. If its a filename, take note of it and see which driver/software is causing the problem. IF you get BSOD from installing Win7 then my best guess would be either RAM, HDD or the media your installing Win7 (DVD rom / USB Stick) from.

If your installing from DVD then you might wanna try using a USB Stick instead. Link to do it i have included below. Be warned that the steps might need some computer expertise (Dos Command) hmm.gif, i will not be responsible if your accidently formats your computer HDD rather than the USB stick. laugh.gif

http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-install-...-working-guide/

Hope this solves the BSOD problem for you. rclxm9.gif
netherlord
post Aug 7 2010, 11:12 PM

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For the LCD resolution not matching the Desktop resolution i did not do anything on the GC side (Nvidia 9600M GT on Acer Aspire 6935G using HDMI) but i used my LCD (Samsung LA32B530) Screen Fit mode to make the desktop fit nicely (no black border or overscan).

IMHO if my LCD has this mode, iam sure other model should have something similar blush.gif maybe browse thru the manual tongue.gif
netherlord
post Aug 14 2010, 02:36 PM

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QUOTE(minimize @ Aug 14 2010, 01:48 AM)
in XBMC, how to rename TV series file to make it appear with episode name and episode picture?
I try to rename with many type of filename but still fail.  icon_question.gif
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For me (iam using XBMC also) i just make sure the Folders are the name and the files inside are following this scheme.

Foldername (Lost) --> Foldername (Season 1) ---> Filename S01E001.avi

1st Folder depicts the TV show name, 2nd Folder depicts the Season, 3rd Filename depicts the season and episode of that particular file. The built-in scraper for TV Shows (www.thetvdb.com) uses the SxxExxx format to get the info.

This format will allow XBMC to get the info for your TV Shows based on www.thetvdb.com database. Works with anime also ^^

Hope it helps rclxms.gif

This post has been edited by netherlord: Aug 14 2010, 02:38 PM
netherlord
post Aug 14 2010, 03:40 PM

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QUOTE(minimize @ Aug 14 2010, 03:10 PM)
What folder should i select in add source at XBMC? Foldername (Lost) or Foldername (Season 1)
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you should select (Lost) so it will use the foldername to search for the show info.

 

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