i built myself one a couple of months ago from spare parts from muh main rig...

Specs of my HTPC:-
AMD Sempron64 2500+
Asus K8N-E Deluxe
Advanced Module 512mb DDR400 x1
Maxtor 20GB PATA HDD
MSI FX5200 GC
Samsung DVD Rom & Samsung CDRW
Powerlogic 500w PSU (Pre-sleeved, sort of UV reactive. changed the stupid white molex to UV reactive ones)
Cheapo RM38 Wireless Mini KB & Mouse (best replacement for remote control sold in PC3 in LYP)
Linksys Wireless USB Adapter
Edifer R501 MK-II connected to on-board audio
(yeah yeah i know...but trust me...this mobo has excellent on board audio)
Panasonic 21" TV (Waiting for cash for a 29" or mebbe even a 34")
Some brandless 4 or 5 year old beige ATX Casing.

its basically a normal PC....change the graphics card to a better one and it could probably even be a gaming rig

only thing left to do with it is to find a way to record tv/astro direct onto the pc. havent really done any research into that yet.... havent even reconnected muh astro yet

MY HTPC DIED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

story is HERE

guess wat....

ITS ALIVE!!! ITS ALLIIIIIIIIIIVVVEEEE!!!

hehehee.....only problem was just the friggin ram...changed it to a KVR 512mb and

thank god it wasnt the mobo....i love that mobo too much coz of the onboard sound... matches well with my Edifier R501MKII and so easy to configure....

gave me abit of a scare

guys...need some quick quick help with my HTPC...

currently setup is like this:-

AMD Sempron64 2500+ @ stock
Asus K8N-E Deluxe
KVR 512mb DDR400 x1
Maxtor 20GB PATA HDD
MSI FX5200 GC (only has VGA and S-Video out...NO DVI)
- connected to TV and a 14" CRT for reading purposes.
Samsung DVD Rom & Samsung CDRW
Powerlogic 500w PSU
Cheapo RM38 Wireless Mini KB & Mouse
Linksys Wireless USB Adapter
Edifer R501 MK-II connected to on-board audio
Panasonic 21" TV only has ONE AV input - connected to FX5200 via S-video
Some brandless 4 or 5 year old beige ATX Casing.

System is running on Windows XP SP2

its basically a normal PC thats connected to a TV....change the graphics card to a better one and it could probably even be a gaming rig

the thing is, im reconnecting ASTRO in my room... so what i wanna know is....

1/ i wanna connect ASTRO to my PC so that i can record the programs bla bla bla... i also want the output to not only come out at the TV but also the CRT... my TV only has 1 AV in so its gonna be troublesome to keep switching the wires....

2/ what kinda hardware do i need for the output and recording thing and how much will it set me back? HDD i know a lil small but thatll come later....

3/ how do i connect the astro to my Edifer R501 MKII so that i can view the channels in 5.1?

ill be going to LYP tomorrow (MERDEKA!!! ) to get some stuff and will get these as well...

will appreciate all the help i can get...

thanks a bunch in advance

EDIT: forgot to mention a few things...

1/ need hardware that can support many kinds of TV... coz i dunno which TV im gonna be upgrading to... currently considering a 42" plasma which doesnt have a tuner but has inputs. prefer USB connection

2/ would also like sumthing that can be used while the PC is off.. i dun wanna on my PC just to watch astro

3/ need sumthin that supports progressive scan... so it wont pixelate on whatever TV i upgrade to later or sumthin that supports the digital signal.. (very blur about this )

4/ can support high resolutions...

This post has been edited by mADmAN: Aug 30 2006, 04:25 PM

thanks alot ryansia.... wasnt expecting any replies to my question here...

anyway... currently decided to just forget about the tv card as i just bought 2 handphones and a digicam plus i have to save for my trip to US in october...

hopefully when i have more money i can set this up....but i think i need to upgrade my TV first.

errr...theres already a HTPC THREAD in the audiophiles section guys...

built my HTPC long ago....it also doubles as my torrent rig.

Specs of my HTPC:-
AMD Athlon 2800+ s754
Biostar TForce 6100 s754
Kingston KVR DDR400 512MB*2
WD 250gb SATA2 HDD
WD 320gb SATA1 HDD (thinking of changing the 2 HDDs for a single 500gb)
Colorful 8600GT Ultra Edition (HDMI out to TV)
Samsung DVD Rom & Samsung CDRW
CoolerMaster Real Power 450w ACLX
Cheapo RM38 Wireless Mini KB w/ built in pointer control (best replacement for remote control bought in PC3 in LYP)
Linksys Wireless USB Adapter
Creative Audigy 4
Edifer R501 MK-II
LG 42" Plasma TV
Microfly SFF m-ATX Casing

actually my HTPC also good enough to turn into a low-mid range gaming PC which was my initial plan...but after 2 years i still havent installed any games in the rig yet

that actually depends on whats the usage oso....

if ur gonna be using ur HTPC purely for watching movies...then TV, ull get a bigger size. theres even some 42" selling for 2k+ albeit low end.

if ur gonna end up using more as a PC, like gaming, surfing etc etc... then id recommend a monitor.

but imho, HTPC should be used with a TV.

then id recommend getting TV.

typically, the more u pay for a smaller TV the better the TV will be. so u gotta get ur priorities right la.... u wan features/ clarity or size?

either way, id strongly recommend asking that question HERE

This post has been edited by mADmAN: Jun 13 2008, 04:59 PM

guys....does anyone know where i can get one of these???



its a wireless keyboard with integrated cursor control (aka built in mouse)

would prefer something thats USB and uses RF (the one above uses infra red) and also preferably AA or AAA batteries. other options would be fine as well...as long as its wireless and has the cursor control built in.

the one above is mine.. and i think its dying

guys....does anyone know where i can get one of these???



its a wireless keyboard with integrated cursor control (aka built in mouse)

would prefer something thats USB and uses RF (the one above uses infra red) and also preferably AA or AAA batteries. other options would be fine as well...as long as its wireless and has the cursor control built in.

the one above is mine.. and i think its dying

need it for muh HTPC

speaking of wireless keyboard


noone can help me with my previous post meh??? really need to find a replacement

hey guys....im thinking of upgrading my HTPC....thinking of going intel LGA 775 this time for it. question is the mobo i dunno which to choose... so is there a mono that meets the following criteria?

MUST HAVE

• onboard audio supports 5.1 AND Line In at the same time (usually 7.1 cards can do this)
• supports E2160 and penryn and quad core.
• has 1 PCIEx16 Slot
• PCI slots oso of course la
• m-ATX
• DDR2
• 3 or more SATA ports
• CHEAP!

NOT IMPORTANT BUT WOULD BE GOOD TO HAVE

• onboard video with HDMI output
• Optical and Coaxial output on rear i/o ports (if have to use PCI bracket oso its ok i guess)

thats all i can think of for now....any suggestions?

This post has been edited by mADmAN: Jul 3 2008, 01:43 PM

hey thanks....will look into it....but how much does it cost??

anyway, anyone else has any other suggestions??? cheap as possible please...

hey guys....im thinking of upgrading my HTPC....thinking of going intel LGA 775 this time for it. question is the mobo i dunno which to choose... so is there a mono that meets the following criteria?

MUST HAVE

• onboard audio supports 5.1 AND Line In at the same time (usually 7.1 cards can do this)
• supports E2160 and penryn and quad core.
• has 1 PCIEx16 Slot
• PCI slots oso of course la
• m-ATX
• DDR2
• 3 or more SATA ports
• CHEAP!

NOT IMPORTANT BUT WOULD BE GOOD TO HAVE

• onboard video with HDMI output
• Optical and Coaxial output on rear i/o ports (if have to use PCI bracket oso its ok i guess)

thats all i can think of for now....any suggestions?

reason i dont want AMD is because i wan my HTPC to act as a spare rig for my main rig oso (siggy). so no AMD for me

so i still need suggestions on intel boards... the asus LExus65 mentioned is certainly delicious, but pricey too right?

nola...gonna dump a cheap E2160 in there.... or mebbe even a celeron.

i wan intel coz if anything happens to either rig then i got spare parts to use for testing etc etc....

DFI? no thanks....too picky la the boards...i dont intend to OC oso anyway...its gonna be my torrent + HTPC rig so no point OCing it.

also would prefer something with HDMI onboard. so that i dont need to use an extra GC. can save power abit.

the intel mobos tungkw posted looks interesting. might consider that oso...

right now i still looking for asus mobos that has what i want... reason being.. the Q-Connector... i love that thing man

err....why do u need FDD to install XP??? install XP no need FDD wan mah...

unless u wanna run ur HDD's in RAID and need the RAID drivers la.

not only that... HEC also makes rock solid PSUs. theyre just very underated here.