I think it is more of a combination of both HTPC and AVR...

For initial setup with minimal budget, desktop 5.1 does the job as most built-in soundcard supports it..

Later down the road, the path is to upgrade to a HTiB (HT in a Box) then to a proper AVR with separate speakers & subwoofers.

All depends on how much $$$ to spend..

HTPC is just more versatile ( flexible ) and with services like High Speed Broadband (HSBB), hopefully, one day we can just stream all the content directly from the Internet to our living room and cut off paid subscriptions for tv contents.

Lots of ISP are bidding for contents like BPL (football) to kickstart this trend that is happening in the US.

Anyone could suggest , i'm planning to upgrade my GPU from Geforce 210 to GTX275, GTX285, GTX295.

Also, any Speaker system that you guys would like to suggest. Im currently on Altec Lansing ATP3 2.1.

Thanks in advance..

HTPC is a cheap solution if you want have a universal Home Theatre. With HTPC, you can play VCD, DVD, Blu-Ray and can play all kind of format available on the planet. But still, decent HT setup is far more better than HTPC with the cost of money. If not, those AVR, speaker, amp and all those HT equipment maker will gulung tikar.

For me, HTPC is one part of the HT. Instead of buying multiple player (DVD, Blu-ray etc), we can have all-in-one player. The most important we built it ourselves part by part!

Currently, I have bought all the part I mention in 1st page. Now in the process of installing.

BTW, anyone here now any free software for remote key mapping? I bought a cheap remote with IR blaster and it can control navigation of MCE quite well. Some button need to be change like fast forward/backward.

Anyone heard about Lenovo HTPC ? Please look at the specs. USD499

"Lenovo has introduced a new HTPC, the IdeaCentre Q700. The system is comfortably nestled between the size and specifications of a nettop and full-blown HTPC. It should fit in perfectly with your other home theater equipment, and its hardware ought to chew through basic HTPC-oriented tasks.

The IdeaCentre Q700 is equipped with an Intel Pentium E5200 2.5GHz CPU and X4500 integrated graphics, 4GB of RAM, and the choice between a 320GB, 500GB or 640GB HDD. Although it's not available with a Blu-ray drive at the moment, it does come with a DVD burner.


It also houses an HDMI and VGA-out, TV tuner, eight USB 2.0 ports (split between front and back), Firewire, an eSATA connector, a 4-in-1 card reader, 5.1 surround sound outputs, gigabit Ethernet and Wi-Fi connectivity. Models are available with a remote and USB receiver dongle, and all ship with Vista Home Premium 64-bit installed.

Granted, you won't be playing high-end games on max with smooth frame rates but the Q700 crams a lot into its 2.36" x 7.87" x 9.84" box. The offer only looks better when you consider its $499 asking price"

GTX295 for HTPC? Wahh.. I though is for hardcore gaming.
I'm not sure about Nvidia. But ATI 5xxx series can bitstream HD audio. Maybe u should consider it.

TS update with some info on how to obtain malaysian guide and stuff

Anyone here successfully bitstream HD audio from ATI 5xxx series when playing Bluray disc movie using BD-ROM?

I want to upgrade my HTPC so it can play bluray disc. But i'm affraid BD-ROM not support HD audio.

Any input system recommended?
was looking into
http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/keyboard...s/3616&cl=us,en

actually more into dinovo edge.. but the price is...

GTX275, the least i want to go for, plus its HDMI output , so no coversion required from dvi to hdmi..

no idea whether this fits your bill, but maybe you could give EventGhost a try. it supports a multitude of IR receivers

$499 X 3.4 = around RM1.7k
for that price, you could get much much better spec

I know rm1.7k we could quote better spec. What im trying to say here is , DIY HTPC is far better and satisfying then getting a branded HTPC.

Acer too, offering such HTPC at higher cost , seen last was RM6999, which absolutely commercial branding price..

Better still DIY prices..

The fun in DIY HTPC in the process of doing the research for the different components, choosing the best specs you can afford, making sure they work nicely together and fixing any issues along the way ( like heat & cooling issues, software drivers and selecting wrong peripherals like cordless keyboard with very short range )...

It have been a very good and satisfied experience overall.. and still room for upgrades in the near future.. ( unlike commercial HTPC offerings )..

Stan001, hope you dont mind im sharing the information for those users watching Blu-ray on HTPC

CyberLink Corp. today released CyberLink PowerDVD 10. Enabling Full HD and 3D Blu-ray playback, CyberLink PowerDVD 10 features TrueTheater 3D technology, upgrading the movie experience with 3D movie playback for DVD discs and video files. Meanwhile, the improved version of TrueTheater HD, optimized for the latest CPU/GPU acceleration technologies, enables the upscaling of both DVD movies and video files to HD. A "Mark II" update is scheduled for release this summer which will add Blu-ray 3D playback and 2D-to-3D video file conversion to their software.

With the initial release of PowerDVD 10, consumers will enjoy Blu-ray movies, plus the new features of CyberLink's advanced suite of TrueTheater technologies: TrueTheater 3D, TrueTheater HD, TrueTheater Noise Reduction, and TrueTheater Stabilizer.

Referring to PowerDVD 10 as a major milestone for CyberLink, Alice H. Chang, CyberLink CEO declared: "We're not just talking about an incremental shift in quality; PowerDVD 10 represents a new era of media entertainment, offering the best 3D and HD experience you can enjoy on the PC."

"We've upgraded playback quality for video files and music too, turning PowerDVD 10 into a unique universal player that enhances the visual and auditory experience for all kinds of media," said Alice H. Chang.

In addition to new playback features, PowerDVD 10 enables new online experiences, with more features for sharing movie reviews and live comments to social networks on Facebook, Twitter and MoovieLive.com.

CyberLink PowerDVD 10 offers the following features:

Blu-ray Movies in 3D:

* Blu-ray 3D, including comprehensive support for various 3D playback hardware, ensures exceptional playback quality for the soon-to-be-released Blu-ray 3D format. (A free "Mark II" upgrade will be made available to existing PowerDVD 10 Ultra users to enable Blu-ray 3D features.)
* Improved optimization for Intel Core Family Processors, NVIDIA CUDA and ATI Stream, delivers smooth playback for high-definition content by leveraging the power of the latest hardware acceleration technology.
* Lossless HD audio, including support for HDMI 1.3a, offers pure 8-channel Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD audio via a single cable.
* Fast Blu-ray loading enables consumers to access their Blu-ray movies on the PC up to four times faster.
* DVDs in 3D and HD
* Advanced Cyberlink TrueTheater 3D technology lets consumers transform their existing 2D DVD content into a 3D experience.
* HD upscaling for DVDs, using CyberLink TrueTheater HD technology, sharpens the image quality of standard definition content for playback on high-definition TVs and monitors.
* Enhanced Videos and Music
* Quality-enhancing TrueTheater Technology for videos improves the playback experience for video files, including real-time correction of home movies using TrueTheater Stabilizer and TrueTheater Noise Reduction. PowerDVD also includes TrueTheater HD, TrueTheater Motion, and TrueTheater Lighting for upscaling and enhancing video files too.
* TrueTheater Surround for music allows PowerDVD users to customize their playback experience according to their home theater hardware and personal taste, with a range of settings for optimizing audio playback.
* Extensive file format support enables playback of even more movie types, including QT, MOV, RM, RMVB, FLV, MKV, and 3GPP, and support for subtitle formats including smi, ass, ssa, psb, srt and sub.
* Refreshed universal player interface integrates access to movies, videos and music files, without compromising the traditional simplicity of the PowerDVD interface design.
* Playlist features allow consumers to easily create video and music playlists of their favorite media.

Movie Reviews and Live Comments

* MovieMarks offer a brand new way for PowerDVD users to bookmark, write and share movie reviews, by adding comments and descriptions to bookmarks of key movie scenes.
* Sharing MovieMarks on MoovieLive.com is a new feature allowing reviewers to upload their reviews to PowerDVD's online community MoovieLive.com. MovieMarks can be downloaded and shared.
* Short Comments allow users to post live updates to Facebook, Twitter and MoovieLive.com as they are watching their movie.
* PowerDVD Movie Page provides direct access to the latest content on MoovieLive.com, with links to recent movie reviews, trailers, and product tutorials, more in-depth movie information, and the ability to post live comments to Twitter and Facebook.

Support for Windows 7:

* Touch support allows users to navigate features by touch, including their Movie Collection via PowerDVD's FancyView interface.
* Ambient Light support offers compatibility with hardware featuring the power-saving feature of the latest notebooks.
* Support for Windows 7 music library features enables easy creation of music playlists and track management directly from within PowerDVD 10.

Product Availability

Cyberlink PowerDVD 10 is now available online, supporting the following languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Japanese, and Korean. Boxed versions will be available soon in retail stores worldwide. CyberLink also offers OEM versions to PC and peripheral manufacturing customers.

* CyberLink PowerDVD 10 Ultra 3D: $99.95
* CyberLink PowerDVD 10 Deluxe: $69.95
* CyberLink PowerDVD 10 (Standard): $49.95

Upgrade versions for previous PowerDVD versions are available starting at $29.95.

Note: Consumers who have purchased PowerDVD 10 Ultra 3D can upgrade their software for free to enable Blu-ray 3D playback and 3D video file playback. Available this summer.

This post has been edited by sKyWiR3pT3lTd: Mar 18 2010, 01:21 AM

but still there's no support for HD audio bitstream.
a waste of money IMHO to buy a HDMI enable card, and still have to buy another card that supports HD audio streams in the future (when there is solutions to buy just one card)

QFT.

At least to utilize the Picture quality for movie playback. Sound doesnt matter at the moment..

I'm using a Dinovo Mini.
It's great.

How much did that cost you?
Is it using a Blue tooth / Wireless to sync to your machine?

Bro Paskal, are u using BD-ROM in your HTPC?

no offence, but that is a failed logic.
you do know there's a graphics card that support both HDMI and HD bitstreaming. why you still wanna get something that lack one over the other?

and IMHO PQ for movie playback are not affected by which GC you have in the system. you could be running Intel GMA and still get the best PQ (if your CPU powerful enough to software decode the video)

not currently. will be buying one in the near future.
why you ask?

---

Added on March 18, 2010, 5:36 pmi never used QFT before and it turns out:



if i'm spreading wrong info please correct me all knowledgeable one.
it would much appreciated if you could explain why i got a QFT from your holiness

This post has been edited by paskal: Mar 18 2010, 05:36 PM