want to upgrade to a HTPC

[mastrduke]

The computer I built a little over 2 years ago is hardly ever used and I would like to upgrade it to a HTPC.

Computer Specs:
atlon 64 3200+ newcastle
asus k8n-e deluxe mobo
1 gig mushkin ram
bfg 6800gt
Antec BQE case and included power supply
250gb seagate hd

I want to be able to watch dvds, hold all music, and most importantly use it to record tv (standerd definition) and have my own replays of live tv etc (like a tivo). From what I understand I will want a dual tuner card so I can record one thing and watch another at the same time.

When I am recording tv I would like to be able to set it up so that it will record things like every seinfeld episode it sees until I have them all recorded. I believe I have seen this functionality and would love it. Also the more info the tv guide portion can give the better. the tv guide channel just doesn't cut it.

I need a tuner, software, remote. Do I need a sound card?

I read a review on tomshardware and I think I will buy this bundle from pcalchemy:

The 280 dollar bundle at the bottom of this page

http://www.pcalchemy.com/index.php/cNam...sCsid=6658b9e1be368e468324e9d6ef610a14



My uncle has an hp HTPC with windows media center 2005 and he loves it, so I was thinking of going that same way. The interface was clean and easy to use and looked nice.


Any suggestions, comments, and help is appreciated, even just saying what im about to do is fine.

Thank you all in advance for helping me!

 

[cprince]

I think your current setup is good for a HTPC. I don't think that you need a separate sound card, though.

 

[Slugbait]

I got a "product not found" from your link.

If you want it to hold all of your music, plus record every episode of Seinfeld: depending on how much music you have, you may need a bigger hard drive.

MCE is pretty simplistic to just set up and go. You'll hear some other recommendations, but you can always try those later if you want.

The 6800-series AGP cards do not support HD (H.264 decode acceleration). 6200 thru 6600 and 7600 thru 7800 do support H.264, so keep that in mind if that's something you want in the near future. I currently have a 5200, and am seriously considering a 7000-series to get that PureVideo goodness...otherwise, the picture looks very bland compared to a direct cable connection. Link

No, you don't need a soundcard. You've got COAX, optical and analog...everything you need to hook into a receiver. Note that you may need analog inputs in the receiver for movie playback in AC3/DTS audio (I need it, anyway...)

I have the standard MCE handheld remote, it's quite nice. I also have a Logitech wireless keyboard/mouse combo, which you'll find is almost necessary if you plan to use the machine for basic Windows operation as well as MCE.

 

[mastrduke]

Thanks for input so far guys!

put up a new link that worked for me this time...

so are you saying with my current video card the picture will not be as good as if i put the cable right into the tv? or is that jutst for hd content? (i only plan on using standerd def with this system)

Yea im planning on buying a 500gb seagate drive in the near future after i get this all up and running

 

[Slugbait]

Originally posted by: mastrduke
so are you saying with my current video card the picture will not be as good as if i put the cable right into the tv?

Correct

 

[mastrduke]

can windows mce 2005 skip commercials? and can it do things like i want it to be able to do with seinfeld?

 

[mastrduke]

also what is the cheapest card that would give me the same quality a direct to the tv connection would give?

 

[Slugbait]

Originally posted by: mastrduke
can windows mce 2005 skip commercials?

Yes, in 30-second increments. It does not fast-forward, it literally skips.

and can it do things like i want it to be able to do with seinfeld?

I think so, but Show Type=First Run may not work as expected for syndicated shows...not sure.

also what is the cheapest card that would give me the same quality a direct to the tv connection would give?

I don't know about "the same quality", but this Asus 6200 LE is definitely the cheapest at $42 shipped, but only has s-video output. And it's an LE card. For about $14 more (AR), you get HD-out (as well as s-video), plus you get DDR2 memory, and twice as much memory, with this PNY 6200...easily the best option.

 

[jkresh]

for OS i would recomend vista home premium over mce 2005 as it has all the mce features but updated and there are some fairly signficant updates. As for a tuner you should check to see if you are in range for OTA hdtv in which case an NTSC/ATSC tuner would be a good idea (not very expensive any more and HD is a big difference. Hauppauge tends to make good hardware tunners but their support sucks, ATI has fairly good hardware tunners with better support, if you are looking towards hd then there are other options (if QAM is important MyHD or Dvico are your best bet), though QAM is not easy to setup in MCE (havent tried it in vista) so you would have to use their software or an mce hack to get it as part of the same package.

 

[mastrduke]

I live in maine so im not worries about over the air hdtv, we really dont have much at all for hd through cable either.

Am I really going to be able to notice a difference between the video quality? I just dont want to put money and effort into this and then not have it work well. Thanks for all the help so far!

 

[mastrduke]

Another questions is would it be worth going for vista home premium over MCE 2005? Im not sure what to do as far as that goes,are my components even all compatable with cista?

 

[mastrduke]

am i going to want theatertek? does it make that much of a difference? i see it mentioned all over the place but never saw what it actually does

 

[jkresh]

your hardware should work fine with vista 32, theatertek is probably a waste of money as it basicaly is like MCE in terms of interface so you could get that if you had vista business or windows xp pro, but its not necessary with home premium or windows mce.

 

[mastrduke]

ok thanks! so you would go with Vista home premium then?

If I go with vista am I going to need more ram?

This computer will only be being used for HTPC functions