What's the Point of Building a Home Theater PC? 358
An anonymous reader writes "FiringSquad has written Building a Basic HTPC. They discuss why Building a HTPC only makes sense if it can do something better than any other commercially available solution, as well as why HTPC should integrate act like a component not a computer. They also go into upsampling of DVDs to HDTV."
Article text (Score:2, Informative)
February 03, 2004
Summary: You've read about building no-budget Dual Opteron workstations, and RAID-less storage servers and even air filters at FiringSquad. Today we'll be looking at Building a Basic Home Theater PC. If you're thinking Small Form Factor ATX, you haven't learned anything from our previous articles. This HTPC is designed for two purposes only: high-definition upsampling of DVD video and personal video recording. If you ever wondered how DVD's can look better when brought
Re:Article text (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Article text (Score:3, Insightful)
There must be a law that says people only mirror or post the text of articles on sites that aren't being slashdotted.
FPS (Score:5, Funny)
Two words: Half Life.
Re:FPS (Score:5, Insightful)
"If I have a computer, why would I care about television?"
Re:FPS (Score:2)
Re:FPS (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:FPS (Score:3)
A remote control is really just a wireless keyboard.
umm, price?! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:umm, price?! (Score:5, Insightful)
I priced out what it would take me to build a minimally-decent HTPC system, accounting for the specialized case (quiet, small, looks like it's an HT component), motherboard (because full-size ATX wouldn't fit in that case), processor, memory, decent TV capture cards, hard drive, DVD burner, etc. Hint: It wasn't $200. More like $700.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:4, Informative)
You don't need top of the line (Score:3, Interesting)
Still think you don't have the spare parts lying around? You don't need much CPU power or RAM (256MB is plenty) if all the encoding/decoding is on the capture card. Grab a PCI IDE controller for $10 and a 200GB drive (I've seen 'em as cheap as $100) a
Re:umm, price?! (Score:5, Interesting)
Generally speaking, you won't be able to build a custom HTPC for less money than a commercial HTPC(-like) device with the exact same functions.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:3, Interesting)
I don't care about asthetics for two reasons: 1) the system will be behind the main seating area in a cupboard that's closed (but vented to avoid overheating issues), and 2) when I'm watching a movie, I'm actually watching the movie, not the equipment. Sure, when I get bored w
Re:umm, price?! (Score:3, Funny)
Once one voids the warranty by opening the unit, the issue of worrying about the warranty is neatly resolved.
Will $700 get you HD recording without an HTPC? (Score:4, Informative)
It depends entirely on what you want to do. Consider my situation-- I had an HD-ready set, and wanted an OTA tuner and the ability to record HD broadcasts digitally.
Like a lot of people around here, I had an old PC laying around doing nothing. I bought an HDTV tuner card for $120 (used, new would have been $199) and stuck it in. Now I can record 10 hours of HDTV, and tune my local stations. A standalone tuner box would have been a minimum of $300, and the ability to record (maybe with a digital VCR) would have been another $300.
The MyHD MDP-100 tuner card has the nice side effect of being able to play back DVDs, and upscale the output to 1080i or 720p digitally. And because it's a hardware MPEG card, it doesn't need much of a system to run it. A PIII and 128MB of PC100 is well more than it really needs.
It wasn't $700 or $200, though-- it was $120. Aesthetically, it fits entirely behind the TV, and the one case fan isn't too noisy. Because I only use it for 2 or 3 shows a week, it's off the rest of the time and noise is not an issue.
Down the road, I'll build a better system-- but heck, even at $700, it beats out a 1080i DVD player (or standalone scaler and normal DVD), OTA HD tuner, and HD recording solution price-wise. A $30 ATI dongle lets me play PC games on the big screen in HD, too, so add an XBox with a component kit to that list.
They really can be price-competitive with a lot of other things, and a good quiet case and heatsink with underclocked CPU can really give you some advantages you can't get without spending a TON of money to do it another way.
When the HD Tivo is $300, *then* I'll have something to switch to. (but it still won't do the games, DVD scaling, or archive the HD shows to Xvid or WM9-- so my HTPC will probably soldier on.)
Re:umm, price?! (Score:3, Interesting)
Yes I used a motherblar
Re:umm, price?! (Score:4, Insightful)
The major point is builders pride. You do it because you love the doing.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:5, Interesting)
I have a few hundred CDs sitting in boxes, I would like to keep them there and listen to the ripped versions.
When somebody builds a box that can do both of those on top of what they do now, I'm in.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:2)
Re:umm, price?! (Score:3, Interesting)
2) components you already have
Consider: 100 cd carousel, console with one of those "30+ classic atari games!", and an AV receiver to combine the sound sources (A, B, or A+B). (those carousels go for $60 these days, a console can go from $300 down to nothing if used, and a receiver can be anywhere from $1000 to under $100, depending upon your needs).
If you already have a lot of these components, this set up can satisfy most of your requirement
Re:umm, price?! (Score:4, Insightful)
So, it gives you much more FREEDOM now and in the future. When I get my whole system built some day...I can at will, stream my media around to anywhere in the house...house all my audio/video media on a central, backed up server...etc. Something I really don't forsee as options with a commercially available system. And...no DRM.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:5, Insightful)
The advantage from my own linux based solution is I have a shitload of features ranging from being able to back it up, remote in via ssh to adding any number of capture cards and disks I wish into it.
The selling point of building it yourself is flexibility.
The disadvantages are price and, of course, having to know a fair amount about computers to get it working.
Re:umm, price?! (Score:2)
Err, what "principle" is that based on?
Re:umm, price?! (Score:2)
Not only price! (Score:3, Insightful)
Are you going to watch DVDs on a 17" monitor?
Are you going to use your $50 3-piece Altecs as a sound system?
The fact remains that the components of a home theatre that CAN'T be integrated into an affordable PC are going to be the majority of the system's cost anyway. So then the question remains: Why?
Re: Have a look at this: Media Ready 4000 (Score:2, Interesting)
Link: "Media Ready 4000" [vwbinc.com]
They are calling it an "interactive convergence product...hmmm - All I'm looking for is a way to centralize the media functions (i.e. DVD, MP3, etc) so I don't have to blow the speakers in the den to listen to a song while I'm in the pool...
In all honesty, I think it has 95% of the features most /.ers are looking for, albeit it lacks the DIY aspect.
The website says it was scheduled for R
Well, why not? (Score:5, Insightful)
Article Text! (Score:5, Informative)
February 03, 2004
Summary: You've read about building no-budget Dual Opteron workstations, and RAID-less storage servers and even air filters at FiringSquad. Today we'll be looking at Building a Basic Home Theater PC. If you're thinking Small Form Factor ATX, you haven't learned anything from our previous articles. This HTPC is designed for two purposes only: high-definition upsampling of DVD video and personal video recording. If you ever wondered how DVD's can look better when brought to HDTV resolutions even though the source is the same, read inside.
IntroductionPage:: ( 1 / 10 )
The HTPC or "Home Theater PC" is a popular but often nebulous concept. Everyone would agree that a fundamental component is that the pc be connected to a television but what the HTPC is used for is something to debate. Some people use a HTPC to play games on the big screen, while others see it as a way to enjoy high-quality DVD, others see it as a music/video/image jukebox, and still others see it as a way to get a low-cost HDTV by using a desktop monitor rather than TV.
The problem with having a HTPC doing multiple tasks is that it becomes more difficult to integrate the software and yet your wallet gets thinner and thinner. Instead of starting off with a full-fledged HTPC, we're going to start with a very introductory approach to the HTPC and then through follow-up articles, add more features.
For this introductory HTPC article, we have two very specific tasks: DVD upsampled to HDTV resolutions, and a personal TV recorder. Since we're "lazy," our HTPC needs to perform like a real piece of home theater equipment as much as possible. The system should integrate itself seamlessly, and shouldn't force the user to think about it as a computer. The HTPC also has to have an advantage over a similar dedicated component ** there's no point in reinventing the wheel unless you can make it faster, smaller, and cheaper.
Why these two tasks?
We've designed this system as an ideal starting point for anyone with a "HDTV ready" television.
Having a PC-based TIVO is ideal for a number of reasons. The most important factor is cost. Both TIVO and ReplayTV charge a subscription fee and ridiculous premiums for larger hard drives. With a PC, you can add and replace IDE hard drives on a whim and also enjoy free TV listings. In addition, it is possible to enjoy higher quality video through a PC-based system through improved video scaling than would otherwise be possible with a standard unit.
Finally, ATI and other third-party software applications have media server applications that will allow their multimedia products to stream video to client systems on your desktop, and NVIDIA is expected to add this capability to its Personal Cinema line in the near future.
The upsampled DVD is the more important feature in our HTPC today. Even if cost is no object, the HTPC approach to DVD can offer better picture quality than any stand-alone unit. DVDs are recorded with 480 lines of resolution, however it turns out that upsampling the video to a 720p or 1080i resolution for HDTV and HDTV-ready televisions will offer the best quality.
It's a real phenomenon
One of the most often confused concepts is the idea that upsampling DVDs to HDTV resolutions will make DVDs look as good as HDTV. It doesn't seem as if this is possible -- the data is not present to begin with. The real answer is that while an upsampled DVD isn't as good as true HDTV, it will look better than a straight 480 progressive lines of resolution. Here's why**
HDTV-ready CRT
Like a CRT PC monitor, an HDTV-ready CRT can sync at multiple resolutions. The catch is that the electron beam is not designed to change in size depending on the resolution (it changes but not by design). Suppose you have a 19" monitor running at 1280x1024 or 1600x1200. While reading this webpage, look at the white background. Get as close to the screen as you can to study the white. Now, change your monito
Not so redundant (Score:3, Informative)
Since this was posted A.C., it doesn't appear to be a case of Karma whoring, an
Re:Not so redundant (Score:3, Informative)
The downmod is most likely the result of this childish tweaking:
(I've seen worse in copied articles before, but that doesn't make this less annoying.)
Why? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Why? (Score:3, Interesting)
It's rated "funny" but it's actually true. There are porn companies now offering 720P, high-definition porn in Windows Media format [surferpictures.com]. The only way to watch this stuff is via a HTPC.
DVD upsampled? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:DVD upsampled? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:DVD upsampled? (Score:2)
Re:DVD upsampled? (Score:2)
Good question. In my case, it's because neither of those resolutions are a perfect match for my display. I have a Sony 8" CRT projector, and the optimum resolution for it (i.e. the point at which the gap between scan lines disappears, but does not overlap) is 600 lines. So I run at a resolution of 1066 x 600. I use a Radeon card, and I believe the scaler in that is better than the Genesis scaling chips in commercial stand-al
Re:DVD upsampled? (Score:3, Interesting)
For scaling, unless the set has a Faroudja FLI2300 chip, a newer Radeon will likely be at least as good.
Few TVs have acceptable deinterlacing, but on video based material it is better than even WinDVD. Granted, most software DVD players suck - they are "bob" or "weave". but when patched into software like dScaler and ffdshow, they are better than
Re:DVD upsampled? (Score:4, Informative)
So the answer to the big question here is.. if you have a GOOD projector or monitor with a GOOD deinterlacer/scaler chipset, then you don't need a HTPC. If you don't, then a HTPC can get you good deinterlacing/scaling for your DVDs.
BTW.
http://deinterlace.sf.net for a Windows Deinterlacer
or
http://tvtime.sf.net for a Linux Deinterlacer.
For me (Score:5, Insightful)
Things like:
"Build a HTPC into a VCR, and keep the original funcionality of the VCR"
"Build a HTPC in my receiver, and make sure everything works" (Side note: That one was only sort of successful - had to remove the amp and use an external one, to much EMI)
I do it because I like having choices, I do it because I like to be able to stream show X to TV Y or burn it to DVD.
I do it because I'm a geek and a tinkerer, and it's in my nature.
What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:2)
For instance, I'd want/need to get my HD content from DirecTV/DishNetwork. Ideally I'd want the MPEG stream to be saved directly to my HD, but that doesn't seem possible. I'd settle for using the new/upcoming Dish/TiVO HD-PVR's these DBS companies are offering but even then there appears to be a problem getting the content into the computer... my video card (and all of the other video cards I've looked at)
Re:What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:2)
Re:What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:2)
Let's say I want to get pay channels on DishNetwork, would what you're describing allow me to do that?
Re:What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:3, Interesting)
I think the way it works is, when you buy a set-top box, it's a pretty standard piece of kit. When you buys one, you calls up your satellite provider, having plugged it in, read them off the serial number, and the number of your LNB unit, and they authorize it in their system.
Well, get a card, plug it into your pc, call them up, give them the serial number, and you're off to the races.
I think. Not sure.
Re:What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:2)
Oh, and do you know if the Nexus-S is compatible with Star Choice?
Re:What I want to do is use my monitor... (Score:2)
the free satellite channels you can pick up are pretty crappy.
No service fees? More features? (Score:3, Insightful)
You can make your own system with an on-screen guide, time shifting and the ability to play DIVX movies and games for rather cheap now.
The retail units still don't play DIVX or Apple
Re:No service fees? More features? (Score:2, Interesting)
I caught the end of a segment on a news show explaining the stats on how many Tivo (I think) users had paused/replayed a certain item during the superbowl, including how many times they had replayed it.
I didn't realize the PVR sent this sort of infomation back to the mother ship.
I've been waiting a long time for this... (Score:2, Insightful)
wHY install Linux on an x-Box?
WHY install Linux on a toaster?
WHY make a cell phone so small that only an ant can use it?
"Why" is such a great question, but unfortunately the only answer here seems to be "Because I can". Didn't science have a purpose once upon a time?
Top 5 reasons. (in no particular order) (Score:5, Informative)
2) Play games on a big TV with decent 5.1 sound.
3) Play MP3s from a central server through your stereo.
4) Used by people with high end projectors to deinterlace video signals.
5) Confirm your geekiness.
Re:Top 5 reasons. (in no particular order) (Score:3, Insightful)
3. - 1 stero cable from your computer to your stero system solves this w/o building a seperate dedicated machine. heck, it's the same thing w/ the difference of which machine does the work.
5. - i post on slashdot already
No Reason For It (Score:5, Interesting)
It would be incredible.
Then I realized that I already had all of that stuff and it all worked perfectly. Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should.
D
Tell me about it! (Score:2, Funny)
Re:No Reason For It (Score:3, Informative)
And if you didn't already have all that stuff?
Or if you wanted to tidy up your A/V rack? I count maybe six individual boxes that could be integrated into one box.
For one thing, it ignores deinterlacing needed for HDTV. The minimum cost for a good standalone deinterlacer is about $900, a standalone deinterlacer + scaler: $2500. With a non-Booktree based TV card ($50) into an existing machine and running dScaler, you get m
Porn (Score:2)
HTPC is the way to go!
ignore me
I can say the same thing about just about anything (Score:5, Interesting)
Why build your own car?
Why build your own house?
Why do any of the above when you can just purchase the finished product outright which might be better than what you could build? Because we can.
Re:I can say the same thing about just about anyth (Score:3, Funny)
Why build your own car?
Why build your own house?
Why do any of the above when you can just purchase the finished product outright which might be better than what you could build? Because we can.
For you, the resolute do-it-yourselfer, may I recommend the Dentist in a box [planetmadtv.com]
You thought I was joking? its for real, folks [sma.org.au]
Re:I can say the same thing about just about anyth (Score:2, Interesting)
I built my HTPC with an Athlon 2600, 1 gig ram, 240 gig of drives, ATI 9600 (HD Output), Hauppauge vid capture for under $1,000. I got to rewind and pause Janet's boob all I wanted and Tivo never knew.
Why build my own car?
Ummm, exactly how many people are doing this? I haven't seen that many home built ones on the road. Restored yes, home built no.
Why build my own house?
So I can configure room layout, ceiling heights, carpets, windows and all the extras that don't cost much to
Cost effective? (Score:5, Interesting)
Posters here seem to have demonstrated pretty clearly that even that's not close to cost-effective, unless you have almost all parts already and don't care about much of Tivo's functionality.
You do this stuff for fun, not to save money.
Re:Cost effective? (Score:3, Insightful)
An HTPC does a LOT more than a TiVo for only a LITTLE more in cost.
Re:Cost effective? (Score:3, Insightful)
That is, if you value your free time at $0.
Yes, I can build a HTPC that does everything you said, and more, for only a bit more than a TiVo, but will it be as reliable? Will it be as user friendly (and not just to me! If my wife can't use it then it's worthless. If my visiting relatives/friends can't use it then it decreases in value somewhat)? How much time will I have to spend tweaking it? All just so that I can have it do everything?
F
It's not cost effective unless we're talking HDTV. (Score:3, Insightful)
1. HD tuner (standalone cost, $300+)
2. HD recorder/PVR (standalone cost, $400+)
3. 1080i/720p DVD player (standalone cost, $250)
4. PC games in HD on big screen (closest comparison is an XBox with an HD kit-- $200)
5. A high-end scaler/filter box for HD video. ($500+)
Re:Cost effective? (Score:2)
Justify 'been done by every PVR software package I've seen' - You claim to have seen MythTV...? That doesn't even claim to support them - repeated recordings are *not* season passes.
The only package that actually claims season passess is showshifter, and that's expensive, presumably because they had to license the patents to do it.
Then there's wishlists - *nothing* does that because they can't get the guide data for it. Oh, and suggestions...
HDTV Recorder (Score:5, Interesting)
It's not exactly a TiVo, but it time-shifts HDTV just fine. Since there is so little HD content anyway, I have no need for an HD TiVo anyway.
Things I do with my HTPC (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm sure given more time I could think of a few more, but that covers the majors. It wasn't any cheaper than a standalone unit for some of these functions, and it isn't quite as easy to deal with, but it was fun to build and tweak on. Plus it has the added benefit of being upgradeable.
One thing that this article doesn't seem to touch on is noise. When I first built mine the noise was intolerable. I ended up having to replace the PS, CPU fan and case fans with quiet models, and lining the case with Dynamat to cut the noise down to where it didn't bother me.
How do you do it? (Score:2)
Do you have a website I can read?
Why can't it behave like a computer? (Score:3, Insightful)
Why? Obviously, if one has the know-how to build such a system, they probably won't find it inconvenient to use it like a computer. I know that I'm like the fact that me "HTPC" doesn't act like a component -- and I appreciate the flexibility that a computer offers me. Anybody who needs their "HTPC" to act like a component is probably better off saving time and money by just buying a component in the first place.
Re:Why can't it behave like a computer? (Score:2)
Saying "that's why I have a remote" doesn't work either -- you get no more functionality from an HTPC remote than a component remote.
Re:Why can't it behave like a computer? (Score:3, Interesting)
I understand your point, as was the jist of the article...but this is Slashdot. I'm sure that there are a significant amount of Slashdot readers who feel that it's perfectly natural to use a keyboard and mouse in their living room.
Secondly, I have a
We are geeks! (Score:2, Insightful)
Perhaps they didn't mean for this to be spotlighted on
For most of the world, there isn't a point (Score:2, Insightful)
They want their tivo, their dvd player, their vcr, etc.
But the biggest problem, imo, (which some will say these pcs address cause of upgradeability) is that once you buy a combo setup system--tivo/dvd player/vcr/whathaveyou, you're "locked in" to that system for a while....people (such as myself) don't want to spend a gang of money constantly upgrading, or sitting there wondering how quickly the entertainment center will become obs
Foreign Videos (Score:5, Interesting)
This will only to appeal to a small segment of the population, but I speak from experience with anime (this could apply to any foreign works, though). There are times DVDs are released without subtitles in a language you can read or dialogue in a language you can understand. There are people out there (fans) who will go through the trouble of created timed subtitle scripts. So, if you have a PC and a region-compatible or region-free DVD player, you can enjoy this new video (which you payed for) with working subtitles!
This becomes more interesting when you learn that a lot of entertainment goes through a localization process when they are being brought over to foreign markets. One prime example is how virtually every Hong Kong movie must have gangster rap in it... >_< So, sometimes people want to watch the original version.
That's one advantage I can think of for HTPC.
Uhh.. Because you can? (Score:5, Interesting)
There's also a very strong community of personal aircraft builders. (I know one, it impresses the hell out of me that he's building this thing and intends to fly it.)
I enjoy building my own PCs because I can pick and choose to my taste.
Where do people think innovation comes from? Big corporations paying for new designs? The majority comes from people PLAYING with ideas and creating new things!
Re:Uhh.. Because you can? (Score:3, Informative)
Yup. Exactly how much design comes from a tinkerer in his/her garage? Nearly all but a small fraction of a percent of innovation and design comes from large corporations.
Prove me wrong.
Answer: (Score:2)
Okay, next question, let's see what's on ask slashdot [slashdot.org]
Should be a computer, not a component (Score:3, Insightful)
- HTPC should integrate act like a component not a computer.
I don't understand this. You have a fully functional computer. Why not use it like one?The attraction of a HTPC for me is that it can do a reasonably good job playing DVDs and recording TV (replacing a dedicated DVD player and TiVo) and also function as a full computer, allowing me to browse the web, read e-mail, work, and play games. In particular, playing PC games on a huge 80" projection screen with a surround sound system is pretty sweet.
Re:Should be a computer, not a component (Score:2)
Not a very insightful article (Score:5, Informative)
Last year I found myself with an old AMD 800mhz PC, missing just the monitor (total value probably $100). I also have lots of divx movies. Converting the movies to MPEG, splitting them, and burning them to CDs so that I could watch them in my DVD player was a pain. Watching them on a computer was even worse. So, I hooked up my PC to the TV, put the PC on my wireless network, and now I have a "HTPC". Total cost to me -- $40 for a wireless network card.
Now I'm in the process of installing MythTV on that PC (total cost $200 for a encoder/decoder card), and I'll have an awesome PVR without having to pay any monthly fees.
There's no reason that your wallet needs to get thinner and thinner. If you are interested in a PVR (ie. Tivo), then you actually save piles of money by not having to pay the monthly Tivo fee.
Re:Not a very insightful article (Score:2)
Linux is only free if your time is worth $0/hour.
Personally, I would much rather spend more time building something myself than going out and buying it prepackaged. You have a sense of accomplishment when you finish the job.
Re:Not a very insightful article (Score:3, Insightful)
This is an important point. While the out-of-pocket costs may or may not be less, the freedom from monthly fees is a significant incentive.
I despise recurring fees. When given the choice between a lower-cost porduct with a recurring charge or a higher-cost one-time purchase, I will invariably choose the latter alternative. Why rent when you can own? Even if the cost to build it yourself is significantly more than the cost of a similarly-featured commercial soluti
There is a better way (Score:3, Informative)
Alternative configuration:
Mini-ITX system (the case will fit on top of the TV) like those from casetronic.com, with a VIA 800 or better.
MyHD HD Tunerboard (will upscale DVDs and tune HD/SD broadcasts).
VGA to component breakout cable connected from the MyHD's output directly to your set.
Install XP or 2K, put the MyHD IR control app in the winblows startup folder, and never look at the windows desktop again, since the MyHD has an OSD on the HD output.
With this config you can tune HD broadcasts and upscale DVDs for less.
A simple addition to your setup to do both... (Score:3, Informative)
But I wanted the desktop, too. So I bought a couple of VGA->Component RCA breakout cables and set things up like this:
Radeon HD Component Dongle -> Component RCA to VGA breakout cable -> MyHD VGA input
and
MyHD VGA output -> VGA to Component RCA breakout cable #2 (just like your current setup.
All this does is allow you to use the handy source switching built in to your MyHD card to toggle between 1080i deskto
Typical Tom's Article (Score:2)
There are plenty of reasons to build a HTPC, the most obvious one being that you can make it do exactly what you want how you want it. And of course there's price. I'm presonally thinking of building myself a HTPC off of the VIA Mini-ITX
Makes Sense for Most Geeks (Score:3, Interesting)
So, I've been waiting for video cards with HD tuners to arrive. It's inevitable. For one, getting this for me will be cheaper than getting a full HDTV for the time being, because I will not want to skimp on the type and size of TV I want for the household. Another reason is that my computer's screen, while not perfect as Apple's 23-in HD Cinema Display [apple.com], is suitable enough for a clear, digital signal.
I suspect that El Gato or other companies will make and sell HD tuner video cards that also support conventional stuff (VGA, conventional TV tuners, etc.) just for the geeks. Most normals will simply drop into Best Buy, buy a TV, and be done with it. For me, however, I want all the mods, baby, and the ability to burn, burn, burn. A conventional HDTV, no matter how nice it looks, can't do it, and I don't want to add yet another computer connected to it to try to get recordings. I'm a one-computer kind of guy in daily use (though I collect plenty of them for nostalgia).
I've been using mine for around 7 months (Score:5, Interesting)
In fact, even my wife loves it.. which is a feat
I used it for mp3 playback, streaming mp3's, dvd upsampling and playback and television watching. I use a 100 hour directtivo for pvr stuff.
It's an athlon 1800+, 512 megs of ram, radeon 9000, guillemot soundcard with hacked drivers running optical out to the receiver
It's in an antec sonata, and is using zalman cooling stuff for everything.. the vidcard has no fan.. That machine is quieter than the tivo.
It's all running vga straight back to an infocus x1 projector showing on a 92" vutec silverstar screen
I control it all with a gyration ultra mouse/kbd combo
Software wise, i use zoomplayer with the cinemaster video codecs going through ffdshow for dvd playback and dscaler for tv watching. It's all running xp professional because i'm not particluarly linux savvy.
That setup has replaced my television completely. dscaler does a wonderful job of managing the tv signal, and zoomplayer is just phenomenal.
When we did LOTR:TT extended cut, i ripped both discs to the hard drive, added in trailers on the front end, psa's from the 60's, and spliced in a 10 minute dancing candy intermission in the middle.
Just hit play, and it goes magically.
The only complaint i have is the lack of useful hdtv cards. You can receive ota signals, with minimal pvr support, but that's it. Nobody supports signal over cable lines, or anything fancy.
I assume i'll need some sort of gray market hardware in the future to do that..
Oh yeah.. the total cost of all of this was less than a decent lcd hdtv set.. and you get a whole lot more..
If you can't convince you're wife/significant other with the raw windows/linux interface, look at some of the frontends. I used myhtpc (myhtpc.net) for a bit, and it was first rate..
I abandoned it since my wife is savvy enough to figure it out herself..
For more info, go to avsforum.com and read their htpc forums.. or linux htpc forums as you desire..
Highly recommended.
Gee, what can an HTPC do that a console can't? (Score:2, Funny)
The real reason? CONTROL! (Score:2, Insightful)
The article is a good primer on why to use an HTPC. I just finished putting together a Home Theater mainly for watching DVDs. The PC is outputting to a Sanyo Z1 projector which is 960x540 native to a 95" diag screen. With an HTPC I can make sure that the PCs output is EXACTLY the right resolution and refresh rate, completely bypassing any resolution scaling that the Projector will do. With anamorphic DVDs and using Powerstrip, Zoomplayer and FFDShow (under Windows, sorry *nix guys!), I can upsample D
You're right! (Score:2)
The flexability.. (Score:3, Insightful)
2) Time-shifting TV is the ONLY way to go.
3) Music ripper/jukebox with fancy visuals is nice.
4) Mplayer compatible video player works out great for viewing new episodes of Red vs. Blue [redvsblue.com].
5) Web browsing.
6) DVD burning.
7) Expandable.
8) Upgradeable.
9) Skinnable.
There are certainly a couple of trade-offs, like those times you realize xmltv needs to be upgraded AFTER you've missed recording your favorite program. But if your a Slashdot geek these problems should be right up your alley. Anyone belly aching about the cost or convenience of a HTPC is probably not up for it. But for those of us who are, the additional features and flexibility will trump any store bought PVR any day (and if it doesn't, well just write the extra software!).
Note to potential HTPC do-it-yourself article writers: Use either Mandrake, Gentoo or Debian (if your new to Linux or don't like configuring things yourself: Mandrake). You'll save a lot of time because you can install all the neccisary packages to run MythTV from a single command (ie 'urpmi MythTV' if you've set up PLF or Thacs rpm archive). Its REALLY not that difficult, but if you don't enjoy this sort of project (challenge?) why waste your time. Btw, Hauppauge's WinTV-250 [hauppauge.com] is the way to go (at least for the MythTV project).
Why I Built My HTPC (Score:5, Informative)
Finally, I settled on buying a computer to do all of this. I had quite a few of the parts I needed; the only thing I was missing was an OTA tuner card, the DVD software, and the sound card. I already had decided on Windows XP (which I will explain below), so I was set.
The DVD software I went with was called TheaterTek [theatertek.com] and the benefits it had over a standard player are numerous:
- Ability to resize any move to any resolution including 1080i
- Ability to expand the movie to get rid of the black bars around the edge (i.e. anamorphic widescreen)
- Ability to save these changes for each individual movie
- Using Windows to further enhance the output using various filters (i.e. fdshow filters)
The output from this setup was incredible. Watching DVDs at 1080i with the image cleaned up is so much better than 480p. I highly recommend it.The other problem was getting the actual HD content from the main networks. Locally in Omaha, NE ABC, CBS, and NBC have been broadcasting in HD for a while, so an OTA tuner was the way to go. A stand alone box was going for $600 locally, and I had found a card that does it for $200, the MyHD OTA Tuner Card [digitalconnection.com]. The picture quality is incredible and the performance was great on my 850 Duron. It gave me everything the set top box would have done and also Tivo like functionality out of the box, something that still isn't available for HD yet.
As I mentioned before, I went with Windows XP as everything mentioned above is only available for that platform. Also, due to the mature video drivers on Win32 vs. Linux for the ATI card I went with, I was able to tweak more aspects of the output to the HD monitor through a program called Powerstrip [entechtaiwan.net]. I tried DVD playback on Linux (mplayer), but it had no where near the functionality of the Theatertek software. Also, I did look into the pcHDTV card [pchdtv.com] available, but it isn't nearly has mature as it should be for a commercial HD tuner card (the only user fiendly app I have found, MythTV [mythtv.org], has very limited integration with the pcHDTV card. That is changing quickly, though).
All in all, I highly recommend making a HTPC if you have the time. Plus, you don't need that Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition crap to make it work, just plain old XP will do you fine.
Privacy, Privacy, Privacy! (Score:5, Insightful)
Did you know that Tivo tracks not only what shows you watch, but exaclty what parts of shows you replay or skip over?
Now, I know it's *supposed* to be anonymous. And I do believe them when they say they aren't selling the data *at the moment*.
I also know they have systems in place to anonymize the data.
But can you (or Tivo) guarentee that they will *never* be bought out be someone less ethical?
Can you guarentee that Tivo won't get a new CEO who decides selling your viewing habits to direct mail advertisers is more lucrative? (Imagine if Darl McBride went to Tivo instead of SCO).
That's my biggest reason for me to put together my own PVR.
Of course, there's also flexibility. I get to decide exactly what capabilities I want, not the marketing department of a profit-motivated company.
Re:Privacy, Privacy, Privacy! (Score:3, Interesting)
Janet Jackson most watched moment among TiVo users [contracostatimes.com]
Re:Privacy, Privacy, Privacy! (Score:3, Informative)
Yup.
Now, I know it's *supposed* to be anonymous.
And if you read the posts by people who have investigated this it is anonymous. The data that contains key presses, show info, etc. is sent without any identifying information whatsoever. TiVo has further stated that the data is stored in completely separate databases that have no interfacing between one another.
And you can always call th
Can TIVO do this? (Score:4, Interesting)
My second system is a cheap PIII 550 with an 80 gig HD. It too holds my MP3 collection and is primarily for playing music. However, it too is connected to the living room TV and reciever and can play previously recorded content via the network. Thus, when the DVR is recording something, I can still play music or watch shows.
Also, the music computer has two soundcards. Winamp uses my Audigy2 and everything else uses a cheap Hercules card. Thus, I can even listen to music while someone else is watching a recorded show!!!
Also, that music computer is wired to nearly every receiver to the house, so I can listen not only from the living room, but from the kitchen, bedroom, etc. (I'm working on getting the bathroom's wired with speakers.) And I should point out that ATI's Remote Wonder works throughout my huge two-story farm house.
With my homebuilt DVR systems, I can do the following:
1. Record shows, edit out the commercials, and burn them to DVD.
2. Pause, rewind, and fast-forward live TV.
3. Know what's currently on TV and what's coming up. (With ATI's Guideplus/EasyView software, included with its All-in Wonder cards.)
4. Access my entire 900+ CD collection in MP3 format from nearly every room in the house. (Via TightVNC.)
5. Create a playlist of ALL my favorite songs, which I can access with one button from my Remote Wonder. That playlist is over four days long; it's like having my own radio station!
5. Normalize the volume of my CD/MP3 collection via my Audigy 2 card. That's important. A roommate had one of those 200 disc CD players, but considering that nearly every CD has a different volume, I considered it worthless.
6. Rip my DVD collection so I can play them back without all the FBI crap, from nearly every room in the house.
7. And most importantly, I do not have to pay a monthy service, or have it randomly record shows it feels I might want to watch.
Sure, my system probably cost a lot, (I built them both out of mostly spare parts) but considering it does exactly what I want and there is no commercially available alternative, I find it extremely valuable. Heck, even my wife can use it!
It is about the deinterlacer chipset..... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:myHTPC r0x (Score:2, Funny)
wife!??! not on slashdot...
Believe it or not... (Score:2, Flamebait)
I do not run Linux, nor do I have any plans to on my desktop, thus Linux support for it matters less to me then your meaningless opinion.
Re:I Suppose it could be better than TV (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I Suppose it could be better than TV (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Getting video to the HDTV? (Score:3, Informative)
HD tuner cards with VGA outputs can be connected with a VGA->Component breakout cable, as long as your HD card supports YPrPb (normal VGA is RGB). All the ones I've seen that have their own outputs support this.
My combo uses both, and connects the output of the radeon to the loopback input of the HD card (kinda like an old voodoo 3d accelerator) with