Anyone PC game on their TV from couch?

[tential]

I have an entire i5-750 system laying around in pieces that I keep saying I am going to turn into a TV gaming machine. This thread has given me some things to look into, especially concerning keyboard input.

Now if I could just find the motivation to actually get everything put together. I was really hoping to put everything in a nice small enclosure, but trying to find a mATX or ITX socket 1156 motherboard these days is damned near impossible. Well, unless I feel like paying 3x the cost for some no name brand.

I put mine in a Fractal Design Define R4 case. Not a single person I've met so far has known it was a PC. It's right next to my entertainment center, most people think it's my subwoofer despite my 15 inch subwoofer (that's BRIGHT RED) sitting next to it.

Don't see the obsession with trying to force everything into extremely tiny cases.

 

[ControlD]

I put mine in a Fractal Design Define R4 case. Not a single person I've met so far has known it was a PC. It's right next to my entertainment center, most people think it's my subwoofer despite my 15 inch subwoofer (that's BRIGHT RED) sitting next to it.

Don't see the obsession with trying to force everything into extremely tiny cases.

I don't need it in anything tiny I guess, but the case I have the MB mounted in now is a full tower, and I mean full. It was sold as a small server case. I figured if I am getting a new case I might try for something I could put on a shelf. It isn't a deal breaker though.

 

[Aikouka]

I don't need it in anything tiny I guess, but the case I have the MB mounted in now is a full tower, and I mean full. It was sold as a small server case. I figured if I am getting a new case I might try for something I could put on a shelf. It isn't a deal breaker though.

Before I settled on a Fractal Design R5, I originally tried two Silverstone cases that are meant for HTPCs. The first one was the ML07, which suffered from the SFX PSU restriction. SFX PSUs are smaller which leads to smaller cooling fans. I read reports that even Silverstone's 600W PSU was a bit noisy. I wanted to get their SFX-L PSU, which uses a 120mm fan, but Silverstone doesn't exactly believe in concrete release dates and I got tired of waiting. Also, I really don't like the ridiculously long USB 3 cable.

So, I moved up to the Silverstone GD08B. That case was more accessible as it allowed for a normal ATX PSU; however, as you'd expect, it's a larger case than the ML07. The biggest problem there is that while it's about 3" taller, there's really no improvement in cable management as there's just one compartment. Fortunately, the paint job on my GD08 was pretty bad with lots of bubbles -- it looked like someone spray painted it in their garage! So, that gave me a valid reason to return it.

The R5 worked out pretty well and it's really quiet.

 

[tential]

Interesting to see someone go from the ML07 to the larger Grandia to the R5.
My cousin just go the ML07. He's already seeing the fun in building in a small form factor but he also insists on it sitting in the TV stand(My PC actually would sit behind my TV stand as there is more than enough room for it. I just sit it directly next to it though for ease of access for peripherals and because it blends anyway so doesn't matter).

 

[Aikouka]

Interesting to see someone go from the ML07 to the larger Grandia to the R5.

The ML07 isn't that bad of a case. The biggest problems that I had with the case itself is the USB 3 cable being too long, which is a problem in a lot of cases (exacerbated by the fact that it's a thick cable), and it's a pain to remove the PSU/3.5" bracket (the screws in the back are ridiculously close to the edge). I had the whole system built, and I was just waiting for a PSU. However, I heard too many complaints about the 450W and 600W being noisy (the latter being less annoying), and I wasn't willing to put a loud PC in my living room. I definitely liked that it can take a pretty big video card. I had a large Gigabyte card that uses the Windforce 3X cooler. Although, the case doesn't exactly provide a large hole for passing cables through to the video card, so that might've been a problem in the end.

I really didn't like the Grandia though. I was tired of making concessions, which is why I went with the R5. Although, I should note that I normally work in very large cases (my main desktop is in a Corsair Obsidian 900D), so the R5 wasn't exactly a picnic.

 

[Ancalagon44]

I do this.

I've got a cheapie 40 inch TV and a sound system composed of an entry level Wharfedale set (Diamond 10s I believe) and a Denon AVR X500 (entry level). I've connected my PC to it, and use a regular wireless keyboard and mouse to control it. I put both of them on a tray for typing and gaming. I've also got an Xbox One controller which I use as my main game controller, and two arcade sticks for things like Mortal Kombat.

I'm pretty happy with the setup. Playing FPS games can result in wrist strain though, that is the only problem.

 

[Eric1987]

Don't knock it til you try it.
Laying down with a few pillows to prop your head up while looking at a massive screen (80-120 inches) and playing AC Unity, Dragon Age Inquisition, Crysis 3 or any of the other visually impressive games out there is a treat.

I play a LOT of PC games while lying down in bed on my Projector and love it.

Again, it's mind boggling to me that the PC Gaming community is so extremely polar on issues.

Intel CPU
Nvidia GPU
IPS Monitor (and god forbid you use an HDTV or TN monitor!!!!)
Keyboard + Mouse (IT doesn't matter how bad of a solution this is. You could be playing a Flight Sim, Racing Sim, etc. Keyboard + mouse ONLY because PC Master Race!!!!!)
60 FPS ( 59 FPS? game is unplayable. 30 FPS? Devs should be tortured in an unnamed prison for life)
etc.

PC Gaming, despite being the epitome of having choices, has a crowd that can only play/do things 1 EXACT specific way.

I am more comfortable in my 200$ chair I purchased. And I wouldn't use a damn controller a PC. Well unless it was sports/racing.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Heh I have a desk chair that cost $250 and I still prefer the recliner in the game room.

 

[SlitheryDee]

My primary gaming PC is my HTPC. Ever since I realized how many PC games offer full gamepad functionality I had the desire to build my own Uber-console that would blow anything Xbox or Playstation out of the water performance-wise. It works quite well. Everything plays more or less like it would on a console except for extremely PC-centric strategy games and the like. I keep a rolling laptop cart nearby with an office chair I can pull up if I want to play one of those games with a kb+m. I can turn up the eye candy to levels far beyond any console and get better framerates while doing it. Been doing it this way for the last 4-5 years and I don't plan to go back anytime soon.

Edit: Oh and since we're talking cases, this is what I use.

I really like it. It's big enough to accommodate a full sized graphics card while looking like a piece of nice A/V equipment.

 

[Kneedragger]

I have a question for you guys in regards to gamepads and PC gaming.

I recall Steam announcing 100% gamepad support for most games a while ago. Did they ever come through with that?

 

[SMOGZINN]

I have a question for you guys in regards to gamepads and PC gaming.

I recall Steam announcing 100% gamepad support for most games a while ago. Did they ever come through with that?

An impossible dream. A lot of games have gamepad support, simply because most games are designed for a console first, but no where near 100%. Nor would it even make sense for a lot of games.

 

[poofyhairguy]

I have a question for you guys in regards to gamepads and PC gaming.

I recall Steam announcing 100% gamepad support for most games a while ago. Did they ever come through with that?

There are a lot of games in Steam with controller support, and in Big Picture mode it is easy to know which is which. For the most part all the ones I would expect to support a controller have.

 

[Aikouka]

I really like it. It's big enough to accommodate a full sized graphics card while looking like a piece of nice A/V equipment.

Hmm.. I think my only complaints about that one would be the excessive LEDs on the front and the logos. In my opinion, HTPC cases should have optional logos to keep the front as clean as possible. That's the one thing that I liked about the ML07 -- the logo was optional.

I have a question for you guys in regards to gamepads and PC gaming.

I recall Steam announcing 100% gamepad support for most games a while ago. Did they ever come through with that?

Gamepads are largely supported in newer releases for games that make sense. Obviously, you're not going to see it in most RTS games, but racing games, shooters (personally, not my cup of tea) or platformers usually ship with built-in gamepad support. They usually use XInput, so they'll work out of the box with things like the XBOX 360 controller.

The bigger annoyance that I run into are games with lazy ports leading to awkward setups. For example, I love Sonic All-Star Racing Transformed, but the options menu is segmented into a separate application... that usually stays hung in the background when you close it, which means you can't launch the game until you go into task manager and close it manually. Even with controller support, the game should never have a separate configuration app unless the same options can be set in the game too.

 

[SlitheryDee]

Hmm.. I think my only complaints about that one would be the excessive LEDs on the front and the logos. In my opinion, HTPC cases should have optional logos to keep the front as clean as possible. That's the one thing that I liked about the ML07 -- the logo was optional.

Well I DID disconnect the blue LEDs that shine out of the grooves in the bezel. I like the power and HDD leds though. I suppose the optional logos would be a plus, but it never even occurred to me to dislike them. The brushed aluminum front and substantial appearance was what really appealed to me. I know a lot of people go hard the opposite way, favoring small, clean, and compact cases over the kind I have. I wanted something hefty, roomy, and solid feeling though.

 

[stockwiz]

I do. 2600K overclocked with 16GB of RAM running a GTX 670 on a 60 inch samsung LCD. Home theater system includes Onkyo receiver, Polk Monitor 70 front speakers, monitor 60 rear speakers, CS2 center and a PL-200 subwoofer. Sit on a large beanbag chair with speakers perfectly aligned for optimal sound. Use mouse and keyboard... playing adventure shooters like Far Cry 3, Bioshock, Portal, etc.

 

[tential]

I do. 2600K overclocked with 16GB of RAM running a GTX 670 on a 60 inch samsung LCD. Home theater system includes Onkyo receiver, Polk Monitor 70 front speakers, monitor 60 rear speakers, CS2 center and a PL-200 subwoofer. Sit on a large beanbag chair with speakers perfectly aligned for optimal sound. Use mouse and keyboard... playing adventure shooters like Far Cry 3, Bioshock, Portal, etc.

diysoundgroup.com

If you ever get some spare cash, upgrade your speakers with handbuild speakers from there.

I already did my subwoofer (which is insanely strong), and will do my speakers 1 by 1 when I get more cash.
The Polks I have sound great for the price and for being a noob (back when I was one with home theater), but I'd definitely upgrade if possible to custom build. Nearly same price as the polk speakers with much better sound quality.

Just my 2 cents on what I plan on doing since my setup is similar to yours only slightly more "advanced". You'll enjoy the DIY speakers a lot more than the polks.

 

[Kneedragger]

Thanks for the info guys.

 

[Aikouka]

FYI, Microsoft announced that they'll be releasing an adapter this fall to allow you to use Xbox One controllers wirelessly on the PC (no price mentioned). Currently, you can use them as long as you hook the controllers micro-USB port to a USB port on your PC (and install the drivers).