2013-07-08, 03:47
Hi everyone, first post here. I love XBMC on my PC to the extent that I don't really bother using anything else but iTunes to play music (yes, I love coverflow, so sue me!). So I've decided to go ahead and make the jump to having a real HTPC. And why not, lets go linux! Yay!
So here's the problem. I have been out of IT and not following computers in general since 2008. There's a story involving a terrible job hunt in a down economy and switching careers, buy me a beer some time we'll talk about it
End result is technically I'm a dinosaur now and I know it. So could I get some feedback on this system?
This will be for XBMC and media storage in the same box. Basically an always-on file server for the house (mostly the media which will be viewed through XBMC, but some personal back ups and other light use) with XBMC running all the time and hooked to the TV so I can just switch inputs and get my media on. No gaming. Will this suffice to give me a smooth XBMC experience? I do like my AEON nox with glows, showcase coverflow, extra fanarts, and tvtunes, I wouldn't want to give those up just to move it to the set top.
16 gig SSD
2x WD Green 1TB (for now
)
Intel Celeron G1610
ASUS P8H77
PNY XLR8 4GB DDR3
TP-Link WN881ND PCIe wireless adapter
cheap SATA DVD RW
Linkworld micro ATX case with 400w PSU
The SSD will host the OS, XBMC, and whatever other software it may need and the terabyte platters will hold the media.
The real key point was finally finding a microATX board that has more than a few SATA slots, which is what sent me towards Intel. Mini ITX seems to be cheaper and offer more mobo-chipset in one options, would a mini ITX board with a PCIe SATA card be a better choice given I'm just going for video playback with some shiny?
The wireless may go away in favor of a wireless transmitter behind the TV for all the entertainment stuff to hook into, but that's a minor point and not really important here.
I welcome any advice to trim the price down, cheap is fun
Why is this in the linux forum, you ask? Because I'm torn on how to proceed software wise. My first thought was ubuntu with XBMC running and greyhole to pool all the storage and handle redundancy. Then I read about openELEC, and since XBMC is what this box is going to be doing 99% of the time anyway after initial setup, I am starting to think this might be the better option. Depending on how set up goes, that is. Whatever performance hits would be incurred through having ubuntu moving along behind the scenes is surely minimal once the machine is set up and running. So is sacrificing the full OS for whatever use it may have in the future worth the trade off in faster boot times?
Has anyone attempted something like this and they have any experiences to share? I'm still liking my first option on familiarity, but if openELEC will really give tangible benefits over ubuntu + xbmc...
I do appreciate all your time and any advice given, and thank you fine folks of XBMC. You have created a fantastic program.
EDIT: And it just occurred to me, I forgot the remote! *facepalm* Not something I have had to worry about at the desktop! Time to research that too, it seems!
So here's the problem. I have been out of IT and not following computers in general since 2008. There's a story involving a terrible job hunt in a down economy and switching careers, buy me a beer some time we'll talk about it
End result is technically I'm a dinosaur now and I know it. So could I get some feedback on this system?This will be for XBMC and media storage in the same box. Basically an always-on file server for the house (mostly the media which will be viewed through XBMC, but some personal back ups and other light use) with XBMC running all the time and hooked to the TV so I can just switch inputs and get my media on. No gaming. Will this suffice to give me a smooth XBMC experience? I do like my AEON nox with glows, showcase coverflow, extra fanarts, and tvtunes, I wouldn't want to give those up just to move it to the set top.
16 gig SSD
2x WD Green 1TB (for now
)Intel Celeron G1610
ASUS P8H77
PNY XLR8 4GB DDR3
TP-Link WN881ND PCIe wireless adapter
cheap SATA DVD RW
Linkworld micro ATX case with 400w PSU
The SSD will host the OS, XBMC, and whatever other software it may need and the terabyte platters will hold the media.
The real key point was finally finding a microATX board that has more than a few SATA slots, which is what sent me towards Intel. Mini ITX seems to be cheaper and offer more mobo-chipset in one options, would a mini ITX board with a PCIe SATA card be a better choice given I'm just going for video playback with some shiny?
The wireless may go away in favor of a wireless transmitter behind the TV for all the entertainment stuff to hook into, but that's a minor point and not really important here.
I welcome any advice to trim the price down, cheap is fun
Why is this in the linux forum, you ask? Because I'm torn on how to proceed software wise. My first thought was ubuntu with XBMC running and greyhole to pool all the storage and handle redundancy. Then I read about openELEC, and since XBMC is what this box is going to be doing 99% of the time anyway after initial setup, I am starting to think this might be the better option. Depending on how set up goes, that is. Whatever performance hits would be incurred through having ubuntu moving along behind the scenes is surely minimal once the machine is set up and running. So is sacrificing the full OS for whatever use it may have in the future worth the trade off in faster boot times?
Has anyone attempted something like this and they have any experiences to share? I'm still liking my first option on familiarity, but if openELEC will really give tangible benefits over ubuntu + xbmc...
I do appreciate all your time and any advice given, and thank you fine folks of XBMC. You have created a fantastic program.
EDIT: And it just occurred to me, I forgot the remote! *facepalm* Not something I have had to worry about at the desktop! Time to research that too, it seems!
