[aflac68]

Since no one else mentioned it, I thought I should. Have you considered a raspberry pi? Its $35 (plus about the same for essential accessories like case, wifi, psu, memory stick). Not only is it cheap, it will do 1080p effortlessly, make no sound at all and take up next to no space. Run OpenELEC on it, and its dead easy to install and use to.

To store the files, either use a USB external drive, a NAS or re purpose an existing PC (if any).

That actually brings up a good point because the raspberry pi was one of the first things I looked into. I felt like there were some mixed reviews with playback though? Something about how different files were encoded? Not positive but if someone could confirm it works very good then this I would definitely lean towards going in that direction

Some quick research from the openelec site
"Will my RPi play full 1080P MKV rips?
Shortcut: #1080P
YES! Some limitations do exist as follows:
Files with DTS or AC3 audio may have issues if not using a passthrough device and need to be transcoded. Stuttering may occur when streaming from a network source
"

What is this passthrough device they talk about? Also all of my media would be on an external hard drive.

Can I use a usb hub with the raspberry pi? Not sure 2 usb ports is enough because I am planning on having one hdd, and an ir reader(can that even be configured to work with it?). I know these are alot of questions and thats one concern I had because ive never really worked with linux and was planning on running xbmc over windows that way I was a little more familiar

[Vertigo]

Passthrough is when the decoding of the DTS or DD audio signal is handled by a downstream device, like a receiver/amplifier. In my case, I have a Yamaha receiver with HDMI inputs, and it does DTS and all that, so its not a problem. The raspberry just sends the audio signal as is to my receiver. But if you have a slightly older amp that doesnt do HDMI audio, or doesnt support DTS/DD, you have a problem, or you have to use stereo. Keep in mind the raspberry has no SPDIF, so its either HDMI audio to a capable decoder, or analog stereo.

As for the USB ports, an IR remote should just just work. Especially if its a common one like an MCE remote. If 2 ports isnt enough, just add a USB hub. Playback of 1080p I expect no problems, but if you have MPEG2 or VC1 video's, you will have to purchase a licence (just a few euro).

[Dougie Fresh]

No A6-3500s in my MicroCenter

Ok Dougie stop hugging them all... I know for sure you wen't and bought them all.... will make a good profit.

No, I am hogging all the i3-3225 / H77M-ITX combos

[aflac68]

Passthrough is when the decoding of the DTS or DD audio signal is handled by a downstream device, like a receiver/amplifier. In my case, I have a Yamaha receiver with HDMI inputs, and it does DTS and all that, so its not a problem. The raspberry just sends the audio signal as is to my receiver. But if you have a slightly older amp that doesnt do HDMI audio, or doesnt support DTS/DD, you have a problem, or you have to use stereo. Keep in mind the raspberry has no SPDIF, so its either HDMI audio to a capable decoder, or analog stereo.

As for the USB ports, an IR remote should just just work. Especially if its a common one like an MCE remote. If 2 ports isnt enough, just add a USB hub. Playback of 1080p I expect no problems, but if you have MPEG2 or VC1 video's, you will have to purchase a licence (just a few euro).

But I could get away without a passthrough device? I dont have surround sound or anything and the speakers arent the best on my tv to begin with so im not too concerned with the audio quality at this point in time. As long as its not terrible i am more concerned with the video playing without any skipping or freezing

[cwide]

No, I am hogging all the i3-3225 / H77M-ITX combos

SO YOU'RE THE ONE!! Still waiting on those to come back in stock.

To the OP: In all seriousness... with some patience and Microcenter open box bin hunting you can build a quite powerful HTPC for under $150 (and with the right deals on NewEgg/Amazon that might even include a fancy HTPC case). There was one time (after I already made my HTPC ) where I could have made a complete Celeron G550 with a USB3/SATA3 board HTPC for under $100. Probably should have just bought it to have around, but no extra money at the time.

If you are looking for something RIGHT NOW... I would suggest a raspberry pi over your first post option. Probably similar XBMC experience (or at least similar limitations) for a fraction of the price.

[Vertigo]

But I could get away without a passthrough device? I dont have surround sound or anything and the speakers arent the best on my tv to begin with so im not too concerned with the audio quality at this point in time. As long as its not terrible i am more concerned with the video playing without any skipping or freezing

Im actually not sure.
The Pi wont do DTS decoding, but Im unsure if it will do downmixing to stereo from a DTS file without hickups. Maybe someone else can answer that for us?

If it cant, then you would have to remux your files that only have 5.1 audio tracks. Unless your TV would accept DTS/AC3 but that would surprise me somewhat.

[Vertigo]

Did some more reading on the subject. It appears the pi is fast enough for decoding/downmixing of Dolby Digital 5.1 in software, and will generally not cause any stuttering. Its only DTS (and obviously DD HD and DTS HD) streams that risk throwing a spanner. The issue is not even hardware, its software. Raspberry foundation is so far unable to obtain a license for DTS decoding needed to use the onboard audio features of the pi. More info here:

http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewto...63&t=15546

Apparently DTS company is looking in to it, so there might a license key you can purchase in the future, like Mpeg2 and AVC1. But even if not, in practice, its rare for a source to only have a DTS track. Almost always there will be a dolby digital and/or stereo track too. After all, most TVs wont handle DTS either (though some/many? will handle Dolby Digital aka AC3), so its unlikely to cause you headaches. If you do have a DTS only source, you could recode it in to DD or AAC. Its not like you will hear the difference with built-in tv speakers.

TLDR; its probably only a theoretical issue unless you ripped your own DVDs and only copied the DTS track. The reports you read about playback stutter however, are almost certainly from people playing HD rips using the DTS track instead of the DD or stereo audio track.

[aflac68]

Did some more reading on the subject. It appears the pi is fast enough for decoding/downmixing of Dolby Digital 5.1 in software, and will generally not cause any stuttering. Its only DTS (and obviously DD HD and DTS HD) streams that risk throwing a spanner. The issue is not even hardware, its software. Raspberry foundation is so far unable to obtain a license for DTS decoding needed to use the onboard audio features of the pi. More info here:

http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewto...63&t=15546

Apparently DTS company is looking in to it, so there might a license key you can purchase in the future, like Mpeg2 and AVC1. But even if not, in practice, its rare for a source to only have a DTS track. Almost always there will be a dolby digital and/or stereo track too. After all, most TVs wont handle DTS either (though some/many? will handle Dolby Digital aka AC3), so its unlikely to cause you headaches. If you do have a DTS only source, you could recode it in to DD or AAC. Its not like you will hear the difference with built-in tv speakers.

TLDR; its probably only a theoretical issue unless you ripped your own DVDs and only copied the DTS track. The reports you read about playback stutter however, are almost certainly from people playing HD rips using the DTS track instead of the DD or stereo audio track.

Okay that makes me feel a little better. Im definitely no expert but I think i am understanding what you are saying.

I think I am about to take a leap and go with the raspberry pi.

I have the following:
1.5 terabyte usb hd
hdmi cable
micro usb cable(pretty sure thats the power cord for raspberry pi?)
ethernet cable(although I dont really need it for now)

So all I need now is to buy the raspberry pi on ebay for 48$ and a sd card, correct?

Im not too worried about a case right now so not going to spend any money on it yet

[Vertigo]

Why buy it on ebay when you can order it new from a distributor for $35 .
http://www.raspberrypi.org/

You might also want to buy a case for the Pi, though its not required.
You will also need something as remote though. Do you have an existing usb ir receiver? you can use a smartphone/tablet (yatse or official remote app) if you connect the pi to your network. If your TV has full support for HDMI CEC, it might also work with your tv remote if you set it up as such, but I wouldnt bet on it. Bluetooth input devices will not work, or not without a lot of hassle.

[aflac68]

Why buy it on ebay when you can order it new from a distributor for $35 .
http://www.raspberrypi.org/

You might also want to buy a case for the Pi, though its not required.
You will also need something as remote though. Do you have an existing usb ir receiver? you can use a smartphone/tablet (yatse or official remote app) if you connect the pi to your network. If your TV has full support for HDMI CEC, it might also work with your tv remote if you set it up as such, but I wouldnt bet on it. Bluetooth input devices will not work, or not without a lot of hassle.

I have a hp mce ir receiver plus a logitech harmony remote! and really? I thought i tried to buy it once from the website but it would be like 8 weeks to get to me? Havent been on the site in a while other than today. Ill check it out. Thank you for all of your help

Edit: Yea there are none currently in stock for the US from the distributors unless i am missing something?

[Vertigo]

raspberry pi supply wasnt able to keep up with demand initially, but it appears to be much better now. My distributor says they are well stocked and it will take about a week. Granted Im on the same side of the atlantic as the raspberry foundation, it might be different in the US, if that is where you are.

[aflac68]

raspberry pi supply wasnt able to keep up with demand initially, but it appears to be much better now. My distributor says they are well stocked and it will take about a week. Granted Im on the same side of the atlantic as the raspberry foundation, it might be different in the US, if that is where you are.

Oh well ill figure something out. I really want this htpc setup working soon but 35 sounds better than 48. Although id rather not wait a month

Edit: Just purchased the raspberry pi b and 4gb sd card from ebay both for 55$ I believe thats the only purchase I will be making other than the case. Will keep updating my progress! Thanks your your help again

[Vertigo]

I just checked the sites of the biggest distributors. Element 14 says they have them in stock in Europe and so does RS. But when I select the US as country, they are out of stock and the US site of Allied Electronics even states:
*Please note that due to extreme demand and short supply, the estimated delivery time is uncertain and will likely take several months. We do regret the delay and inconvenience this may cause.

Seems kinda weird? You might want to give them a call before you order, or just go with an ebay one.