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+--- Thread: Your Very First HTPC? But Where do You Start? (/showthread.php?tid=94199)
- roland6543 - 2011-06-22
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162081 $38 after rebate for the fanless GT520 is pretty sweet too.
- eskro - 2011-06-22
indeed yes
- jdwoods - 2011-06-22
eskro Wrote:i love Gigabyte motherboards, very reliable!!
Eskro, thanks for the replies and guidance in this thread and others.
My initial request was for a build-it-yourself machine that could not only run XBMC at 1080p but also stream Netflix, VUDU, Youtube, etc AND run Sab, Sickbeard, Couchpotato and possibly Transmission or something similar...
Do you think the Shuttle XS35 or the Zotac ND22 would be able to do this?
I guess I should note that the plan is to run Windows 7 as the OS.
- mdwexford - 2011-06-23
Excellent thread, finding it very helpful.
Im currently running xbmc on my big desktop which has 2 external hard drives hooked up to it full of 3tbs of hd content and is hooked up to my tv in the sitting room but im getting rid of the desktop now and want something more compact and stylish.
I was going to get an Xtreamer Ultra but after reading here maybe i should go for one of the builds in the original post??
All i want to do is run mainly 720p and some 1080p stuff to my tv, wont be gaming at all or using it for anything else and dont have a seperate sound system yet but probably will in the future. Id like it to boot very fast and work by remote etc
Could someone advise me what to go for??
Thanks in advance.
- eskro - 2011-06-23
yeah sure mdwexford, just create a new thread about it and i'll catch you there when i have a chance!
thx
- kc2008ls - 2011-06-29
Good info eskro. You're HTPC looks sick, I'm more of a mac guy, but it's very nice.
- eskro - 2011-06-29
thanks kc2008ls!
Upgraded to GT520, 1080p audio still choppy - roland6543 - 2011-06-30
I replaced my 6600GT with a GT520 in the hope it would fix the choppy 5.1 when playing it from the motherboards optical connection. See earlier post. Unfortunately there is no improvement.
I'll start a new thread because I don't want to hijack this one, please look out for it if you have advice.
- itsjwills - 2011-07-04
Would the best i3 build listed still be a fairly quiet unit? Also, I posted this in another thread but would I be able to use that and Apple TV to access XBMC in multiple rooms? Is ATV the best way to do that?
I am really struggling with how to do a multi-room setup that gives me the ability to playback 1080p flawlessly.
- eskro - 2011-07-04
by multi-room u mean,
accessing the same content from each room?
if thats what u mean,
each TV needs its XBMC box..
and you need a central storage place, like a NAS,
that would feed each XBMC box's with the same content of course...
Now if your asking whats the cheapest hardware to run
XBMC and play 1080P without issues,
well you've a couple of choices,,,
but anyways, for now, what do u wanna do?
- itsjwills - 2011-07-04
Yes, I do mean accessing the same content from each room. Just two rooms to be exact.
What is the best setup that will give me 1080p? Also, I do have one 3D TV so if it is possible to have 3D playback I would want that as well.
I won't be using any PVR devices since I have DIRECTV Whole Home DVR. I just want to be able to access bluray rips and music but picture quality is very important to me. (As is having a relatively quiet system)
- Superorb - 2011-07-04
itsjwills Wrote:Yes, I do mean accessing the same content from each room. Just two rooms to be exact.Then the AppleTV is out since it will only output 720p (it can decode and play 1080p files, but will output them at 720p).
What is the best setup that will give me 1080p? Also, I do have one 3D TV so if it is possible to have 3D playback I would want that as well.
I won't be using any PVR devices since I have DIRECTV Whole Home DVR. I just want to be able to access bluray rips and music but picture quality is very important to me. (As is having a relatively quiet system)
You'll still need a central repository to store the files. This can be a NAS type box, a dedicated server, a USB external drive, or even another PC with shared folders. There is an article on Lifehacker that explains how to sync all XBMC client boxes to a central repository.
- eskro - 2011-07-04
easy way is to use a seperate PC dedicated solely to Store your data on...
many of us here use/like/recommend unRAID....
you can see more on this in my signature under 'unRAID Guide' ...
Also, i believe you've read my HTPC guide so,
im positive you know which parts to buy in order to meet your needs...
- itsjwills - 2011-07-04
eskro Wrote:easy way is to use a seperate PC dedicated solely to Store your data on...
many of us here use/like/recommend unRAID....
you can see more on this in my signature under 'unRAID Guide' ...
Also, i believe you've read my HTPC guide so,
im positive you know which parts to buy in order to meet your needs...
I feel confident that I know what to buy if I am building one machine, but it gets confusing when I am trying to build one main machine that can play in two different rooms. I will do some more research on unRAID. Don't be afraid to just spell it out for a noob like me either though. I could use it...haha.
- outatouch0 - 2011-07-04
itsjwills Wrote:I feel confident that I know what to buy if I am building one machine, but it gets confusing when I am trying to build one main machine that can play in two different rooms. I will do some more research on unRAID. Don't be afraid to just spell it out for a noob like me either though. I could use it...haha.
One machine to play in two different rooms WOULD be confusing... Fortunately you are not going to be doing that
All you have to do is pick out ONE set of hardware for your XBMC and simply buy two of everything
(both rooms get their own XBMC).I assume you already have at least one computer somewhere in the house... Is this a desktop (ie. not a laptop)? If so then there is your repository for your media to be shared to your XBMC's in the other rooms. You can always do a separate media storage device (NAS) as a later project. Do one project at a time = less to learn all at once = less confusion.
The tricky part for many people tends to be the networking these computers together. Do you have a home network already? You REALLY want to do wired connections if you can.