[detroitdr]

ok I want to be running XBMC for windows XP
I would like to connect to my tv via HDMI

Here are the parts I'm planning on using.... is this ok? ..Any suggestions...
**Also will the remote work with the XBMC?**

CASE: Antec Fusion Remote Black Desktop mATX Case
http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php...cid=CS.897

MOTHERBOARD: Asus P5N7A-VM Socket 775 nVidia nForce 730i Chipset + GeForce 9300 Graphics (HDMI/DVI/VGA) Hybrid SLI Dual Channel DDR2 800/667Mhz 5x SATA 3Gb/s GigaLAN 8 Channel HD Audio Micro ATX
http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php...cid=MB.157

PROCESSOR: Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 Socket LGA775, 2.8 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 3MB L2 Cache, 45nm
http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php...cid=CPU.84

BLU-RAY: LG CH08LS10 Black 8X/Blu-Ray Read /16X DVD-Writer SATA Lightscribe Retail
http://www.canadacomputers.com/index.php...cid=CR.405

MEMORY: 4GB
HD 2 x 1.5TB

Will this be ok? Should I use a faster processor?

THANK-YOU in advance!

[detroitdr]

Bump Please

[tmpdir]

well you're building a windows system, but you are not describing what material you want to play. Then again you're asking for the best htpc ... so its 1080p

Under windows there is no video processing done by your graphics card, so your cpu must do this all. The cpu you are considering can do most of the video's, but not the heaviest of them without a few framedrops. For this you need a slightly faster cpu.

On the other hand when running a HTPC, why not using Ubuntu or XBMC live? agreed the learning curve if you're new to linux is unwanted, but this only takes a few hours or few evenings at max and gives a mean htpc in the end. Not to forget that even een Atom n330 processor can handle 1080p material under linux this way.

Downside is the support for bluray under linux is not there yet (its comming), so if your into the bluray disc's, then don't go for linux or xbmc live. But a lot of xbmc users just dowload their stuff and than this is no issue.

about the cpu, you should read more around before buying this cpu. Looking at the costs of this one and heavier one, I would buy this one and would not mind the restrictions in playback material.

Your asking for the best htpc... I think when it comes to xbmc you should consider stepping over to ubuntu or xbmc live and buy a nvidea 9400 mgpu based board with a energy efficient cpu. Atom when onlly playing video with your htpc or a energy efficient core 2 duo (5x00 series) when you wanna play light games on it to. A heavier cpu would be overkill and a real drain on the electricity bill when playing a lott of video's on it.

[ryan03rr]

well you're building a windows system, but you are not describing what material you want to play. Then again you're asking for the best htpc ... so its 1080p

Under windows there is no video processing done by your graphics card, so your cpu must do this all. The cpu you are considering can do most of the video's, but not the heaviest of them without a few framedrops. For this you need a slightly faster cpu.

On the other hand when running a HTPC, why not using Ubuntu or XBMC live? agreed the learning curve if you're new to linux is unwanted, but this only takes a few hours or few evenings at max and gives a mean htpc in the end. Not to forget that even een Atom n330 processor can handle 1080p material under linux this way.

Downside is the support for bluray under linux is not there yet (its comming), so if your into the bluray disc's, then don't go for linux or xbmc live. But a lot of xbmc users just dowload their stuff and than this is no issue.

about the cpu, you should read more around before buying this cpu. Looking at the costs of this one and heavier one, I would buy this one and would not mind the restrictions in playback material.

Your asking for the best htpc... I think when it comes to xbmc you should consider stepping over to ubuntu or xbmc live and buy a nvidea 9400 mgpu based board with a energy efficient cpu. Atom when onlly playing video with your htpc or a energy efficient core 2 duo (5x00 series) when you wanna play light games on it to. A heavier cpu would be overkill and a real drain on the electricity bill when playing a lott of video's on it.

i have to agree 10 fold. xbmc in my beadroom runnung on a p4 2.4 ghz and 8 series gpu
does not struggle with 1080p
wile in my movie theater a c2d and ati system with 20 times the cpu power drops 5 frames or so on some heavy videos..
i would convert my theater to 8.10 stable with xbmc and vdpau just too lazy to redo my build right now...


i personnly think that the fastest or best is not always the best .... even tho i do run xbmc in windows it is really a moot point right now really. dont get me wrong xbmc is the best but the whole point of htpcs is in the perfect scenario not to have to touch a keyboard or mouse not have to listen to a pc with crazy fans and and overkill hardware.
so getting a cpu that runs hot as hell and needs some crazy water cooling to be quiet is stupid...
since most of us dont know up from down for coding and we are really getting a product for free that once finished would probably sell good for 200 bucks at best buy i guess we cant really bitch too much... and since oss always comes with a learning curve i suggest hunkering down and learning debian/linux. once you do it it will be a good experiance.. i personnaly love ubuntu for the "family" no matter what bullshit they download i dont really have to worry about unwanted code execution from lets say my significant other downloading a song on frostwire that just soo happens to be 756kb with a .exe extension....lol

[Paradise]

Im in the same situation.

For me the reason for XP, Windows 7 is that i also want to play games. Put for that maybee you can do a multiboot. I have to do a multiboot for old XP games but i don't want to boot also for Vista, W7 games. Another thing is the support for the "Asus Xonar HDAV1.3" and the "Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater HD" in Windows...

I believe DXVA is coming...

[mp2031]

hey guys i want to setup a htpc with xbmc for 1080p vids, can you point me in the right direction ??

eg what cpu & motherboard to use and gfx if needed.


thanks in advance

MP

[mp2031]

Or will this work ?

CPU : Intel Pentium 4 630 (3ghz)
M/b : Dell – OJC474
Ram : DDR2 PC2-4300 (266mhz) 1gb
sound / gpu – onboard