for 1080p i think yes, because i've tried to stream over 100mbps network got lagging, but for 720p, running fine

CMIIW

Well i think it depends on your current setup more, i.e is the cables running fine? are they close to some power cord/source? are they tangle up?

LAN cables are very sensitive to those as they can pickup unwanted noise/disruptions from neighboring cables/equipment.

I have my LAN cables separated from the rest of my cables (power, vga, hdmi, and all the rest) and are able to stream 90% problem free (except for the jiterring/stutter when something runs at the background)

But different people may have different situation all together,

My advice is try and free those LAN cable from the cluster and use them as straight as possible, and also to keep them from going too near other power sources (i.e anything that has electricity running thru them), you might be able to see some improvement.

Another forum has a discussion on it --> http://forums.macrumors.com/archive/index....3C/t-29136.html

Good Cable Mamangement is your freind ^^

Qoute from Matt Simmons
"Keep power cables as far from ethernet cables as possible Power cables, especially clumps of power cables, cause ElectroMagnetic Interference (EMI aka radio frequency interference (or RFI)) on any surrounding cables, including CAT-* cables (unless they're shielded, but if you're using STP cables in your rack, you're probably doing it wrong). Run your power cables away from the CAT5/6. And if you must bring them close, try to do it at right angles."

Taken from --> http://serverfault.com/questions/26462/how...s-in-your-racks

This post has been edited by netherlord: Apr 28 2010, 03:41 PM

Guys, i am planning to build a htpc, would you guys look at my list.

Video:
32" LCD HDTV

Audio:
Maybe Pioneer Home Theater System (Is it possible to connect the wires to HTPC??? )

HTPC:
Processor = AMD Athlon II X2 250 3.0Ghz
Mobo = Gigabye A785GMT (Integrated HDMI)
Ram = Corsair DDR3 Ram 2GbB
HDD = 1TB Western Digital
DVD-Rom

Casing = ?? Please advise and where to get
S/card = ?? Do i need one
Graphic Card = ?? Do i need one since the Mobo already have.

I hope to connect the audio to those HOME THEATER from pioneer my existing. Is it possible with my setup?

THanks for all the help!

1. Whats your pioneer HT model, need to know what inputs you have to pass audio to it.

2. From the spec of the HTPC i can say the specs is enough to handle most HD content but iam not sure about BDMV and BD iso as those are more CPU intensive rather than GPU.

3. For casings i think you have to either browse from the net or go to low yat plaza yourself cause aesthetics is really a personal thing. What i like maybe not up to your taste.

4. For soundcard i think your spec already are capable for passing 5.1 DD/DTS to a receiver thru HDMI/SPDIF but if you want to pass 7.1 lossless DTS-MA/DD TrueHD thru HDMI i think you need something like a Asus Sonar HDA 1.3 ( http://www.dvhardware.net/article27745.html ) which is around RM700 ( Needs TMT Player to passthru thou ).

5. If you want better performance from your HTPC, of course another better Graphic Card will help, plus if you get the higher range of card like ATI 58XX series you can skip using the Sound card as it is capable of doing a 5.1 or 7.1 passthru (but the cheapest one i could find atm is around RM900) or take a look at this http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1179134 which explain alot on how to pass audio thru ATI 5XXX series card.

Hope my explanation is good enough

This post has been edited by netherlord: Apr 29 2010, 02:14 PM

1. Havent really look into the models yet. What inputs should i look for?

2. In order to run BDMV and BD iso, what are the minimum CPU spec that u recommend?

3. I cant agree more.

4. For sound, im glad to maintain 5.1 at the moment.

5. Ill stay with the integrated graphic with the mobo then.

With much said, i really appreciate your answers, Netherlord. However, I am still open for more suggestions. THANK YOU!

Have you bought the processor and mobo yet? If not, why not consider using Intel platform? It is lower power and lower cost and better performance than the AMD equivalent

Compare this 3 combos (all 3 mobos have HDMI port):
1) Pentium DC E6500 2.93GHz + Asus P5G43T-M = ~RM460
2) Athlon II X2 250 3.0Ghz + Gigabyte A785GMT = ~RM540
3) Core i3 530 2.93GHz + Gigabyte H55M-S2H = ~RM720

If you do some research, combo 1 actually give you better performance and lower power than combo 2 despite being cheaper. The only catch here is that the processor socket (LGA775) slowly being replaced by the Core i3/i5/i7 socket (LGA1156), which is why some people recommend spending a little more for combo 3 nowadays. Core i3 is even lower power than the rest due to the 32nm fabrication process and performance is a lot higher too (i3 is similar to Core 2 Quad performance)

To see the performance comparison check out http://www.anandtech.com/Bench/

Oh, as long as you look for a HT model with HDMI input and output, you can passthrough both audio+video through HDMI from your HTPC to the HDMI input of the HT. The HT will output the audio through its speakers and pass the video to the TV via its HDMI output

---

Added on April 29, 2010, 5:41 pmDo check out the spec and some photos of the HTPC I built for my hometown

http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1354755?author=Bart-man

This post has been edited by Bart-man: Apr 29 2010, 05:41 PM

1. Havent really look into the models yet. What inputs should i look for?
ANS: Well depends whether you have an existing old Pioneer which accepts SPDIF / Coaxial connection or you planning to buy a new one with HDMI, all supports 5.1

2. In order to run BDMV and BD iso, what are the minimum CPU spec that u recommend?
Ans: Like what Bart-man suggested, a Core 2 Duo or Athlon II X2 should be sufficient but try and get i3 to future-proof your mb should you plan to later on upgrade to a better proc.

3. I cant agree more.
ANS: There are many nice cases for HTPC design but most of them are quite costly unless you go for those normal ATX. Price ranges from RM300 - RM700 for those really nice ones like Silverstone and Coolermaster

4. For sound, im glad to maintain 5.1 at the moment.
ANS: Then your MB SPDIF and HDMI should be sufficient to output DD / DTS to your chosen HT AVR

5. Ill stay with the integrated graphic with the mobo then.
ANS: Do note you need to do some tweaking to the On-Board ATI GPU in order to fully utilise it for HD playback, take note on the model and driver, and also get the latest codec to ensure smooth playback.

If you provide what the on-board GPU is i might be able to scrounge up some guide in how to set it up for HD playback.

All the best to your HTPC build

how about atom n ION combo...
like acer revo....do u all recommend to buy it

Not to say not recommending it, but you need to have some technical knowledge/skill to make it into a proper HTPC, there are ppl using it for XBMC Media Center [LiveCD Version] and have done so successfully.

Link --> http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=538...light=acer+revo

If you like a simple HTPC ( Just to play HD SD contents ) then Acer Revo might be an option but do take note of the hardware limitation .

HTPC with C2D/Athlon are more capable in handling BD iso, BDMV and also Blu-Ray disc playback, not mentioning games and other stuff. Depending on what you want or expect from your HTPC, Specs may vary like Day and Night .

Deciding what you want from your HTPC will eventually decide on what component goes into your HTPC. Just remember the choice is in your hands and don't regret afterward .

just wanna ask if there's a way to use both cores in my C2D E8400 to play BDMV.

currently, it only max out 1 core using MPC and sometimes the sound stutters a bit.

What are acer revo limitations

i3 + h55 can bitstream HD audio.

1. Bring up Task Manager (CTRL + ALT + DEL and click Start Task Manager)
2. Browse to the PROCESSES Tab
3. Look for the MPC.exe file (mine is mpc-hc.exe), highlight and Right Click
4. Select SET AFFINITY
5. Make sure to tick BOTH CPU0 and CPU1 to make it run on both cores (or more if you have quad core or Intel i5,i7)
6. Click OK and restart MPC and start Step 1-5 to make sure the settings was applied.

If it still is running on 1 core i guess its either the software or settings that causing the problems. If that's the case, you can try the link below

Link --> http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/251947-3...1080p-8800ultra

Well here are the specs :

Aspire Revo specs

* CPU: Intel Atom N230, at 1.6GHz
* RAM: from 2GB DDR2
* HDD: from 160GB, at 5400rpm
* Graphics: nVidia ION (Geforce 9400)
* Ports: 6 x USB 2.0, eSATA
* Memory card reader: SD/SDHC/MMC/XD/Memory Stick
* Output: HDMI, VGA
* Networking: Ethernet, WiFi
* Dimensions: 7,1″ x 7,1″ x 1,2″ (18cm x 18cm x 3cm)
* OS: Windows Vista
* Monitor mount: VESA 80 to 120 standard

Since processing BD.iso, BDMV and Blu-ray disc needs more CPU power rather than GPU for file processing (i.e loading the file and such into RAM) the bottleneck is already apparent on the CPU. Intel Atom cpu arent too famous for their processing power. Neither is Windows Vista that was installed on it.

Quoted form the website
"The only downside of the Aspire Revo the operating system. If you want to play a video on your TV, waiting two minutes and a half to boot your computer is a pain. Depending on your country, you may be able to request a refund on Windows Vista."

Link --> http://www.eeextra.com/nettops/acer-aspire-revo.html

While the GPU no doubt is capable of handling HD contents but with the CPU bottleneck i doubt it will be a very good BD.iso, BDMV or Blu-ray disc player.
This is what i can see from the specs alone but i maybe wrong cause i haven't got a chance to play with one of them.

Hope my explanations are good enough

thanks...how about gaming...can it play games like dirt2

Dun think so... 100Mbps should be good enuf in the LAN for streaming with some buffering....

I stream a 1080p mkv from my NAS to my Mac.. max b/w recorded is only 12Mbps (buffering) over a 54Mbps wifi link... during playing time is only around 4-5Mbps...

I always have a Windows mini apps called NetPerSec running in the small icon to check the current b/w usage in bps.

Ermmm.... Atom CPU aren't graded for those kind of games. The only games i heard ppl run on Acer Revo are like emulator games (SNES, Megadrive, MAME)

Link --> http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=72656

To run the more newer games in the market (Dirt2, Need for speed, Starcraft II so on) i think a C2D/Athlon with nvidia 96xx serries/ ATI 47xx series is required for a smooth gameplay (albeit at lower resolution).

That's why in my previous post i said the Acer Revo has some limitations compared to a full fledged custom HTPC (which usually contain a better CPU/GPU combination).

Acer Revo is more suited for ppl who just wanna play HD mkv's streamed/stored on the HDD or Network.

thanks for the tip. will try it out.

Are you sure your 1080p mkv video portion is untouched? a bluray 1080p movie typically has 30Mbps to 40Mbps bit rate, if it is only 12Mbps, then I think your 1080p movie quality is not as good as those original bluray movie

thanks for the info netherlord

NP Glad to be of assistance