How cool is your HTPC setup? I love showing off my setup!

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GamerOC

416 posts

Ultimate Geek

Topic # 93345 18-Nov-2011 14:59
Hi there thanks for reading this post I figured I enjoy showing off my setup to my mates and inviting them over to watch movies. Firstly I got a TV that was going to be thrown out in the rubbish due to only one side of the screen working...elbow grease at my garage and it is now my tv then I bump unto a post of all the things you can do with a HTPC lol. I purchased two tunners at cheap price on trademe then now with WMC in W7 im running the tv, tv3 and tv2 on demand on the big screen and surf the web and even use twitter while watching tv. I love that I can record and watch tv or scheducle while im away. but one of my favorite parts is I can use skype and google plus+ with just adding a nice webcam to the screen and the most important part I can game on the big screen is flipping awesome specially with the wireless key that keep all tidy. I nearly forgot to tell you guys that I also made my own HDTV antenna with bits and pieces from the garage and it all works fine with two tunners. I know is not the flashes but I had heaps of fun putting this HTPC. Also I addes some ambience light behind the tv for the movies and lol nice. The most incredible thing is even my wife can use it without issues and i scored some points there as she never misses a show now.. haha I will see if I can up load some picks of my setup.

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950 posts

Ultimate Geek

Subscriber

Reply # 546963 18-Nov-2011 15:49
I'd be interested in more details and pics. I've been thinking for a while of building a HTPC to do away with the 5 devices currently connected to our TV. Do you have an infrared remote control? Also interested in your UHF antenna construction. I've been thinking of building a very high gain one for my parents who can almost receive Freeview HD (Kordia mux only with heaps of breakup).

GamerOC

416 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 546983 18-Nov-2011 16:14
Hi there mine is just my old gaming rig running tv dual core cpu 3ghz 2GB 800mhz ram x1 500GB hard drive for tv recording x1 320GB hard drive for games x2 Hauppauge HVR 3000 hybrid cards logitec webcam for laptop and i place it on top of the screen USB Wireless Key DVD writer for watching dvd or music DVI to HDMI cable to get HD signal from GPU to TV 5.1 Surround speakers getting imput from Creative sound card Wireless keyboard and mouse for gaming my favorite part the IR Hauppauge remote that came with the cards HDTV antenna and cable plus a spliter and all works beautiful. I placed a rimu chest then placed LCD screen there and I hide the PC behind it and I just placed the IR remote receiver on the the tv and all works great. I will put up some pics or upload a you tube video of my HDTV antenna maybe tonght. Andy

blur

333 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 548767 23-Nov-2011 09:52
I think it's about time that we had a "I'll show you mine if you show me yours" thread again. I'm all for this - I'll take a pic of my setup and upload it tonight. I also throw down the gauntlet to all other users to do the same! My HTPC - Case Antec Fusion Remote, MOBO Intel DH67BLB3, CPU Intel Core i5-2400S 2.5 GHz, RAM 8GB DDR3 1333, HDD 120Gig Corsair Force Series 3 SSD system \| WD Caviar Black 2TB data, Tuners Black Gold BGT3595 dual DVB-S/S2, dual DVB-T, Video nVIDIA GeForce GT 520, 1024MB, Sound Intel® High Definition Audio (onboard), OS Windows 7 x64

GamerOC

416 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 548769 23-Nov-2011 09:56
Blur: I like the idea and I promise some pics but my camera not working however I will try to take pics with the webcam and upload them today. So please anyone else that would like to show us your setup that will be great! cheers, Andy

geekiegeek

1130 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Reply # 548788 23-Nov-2011 10:22
I'm currently running: Core i3 4GB Ram 120GB SSD (OS/Apps and timeshift) 640GB HDD (Recording) 1x HVR2200 Dual DTT (Freeview) 1x Nova-S DST (For SBS) Running Mediaportal. Connected to Sony 1200ES receiver Panasonic 720p projector Viewsonic 24" monitor (second room via HDMI splitter). B&W CM9 Fronts, CM Centre 2, CM1 Rears and a Wharfedale 10" Sub (Main room) Wharfedale Diamond 9.5 (Second Room) No CD's, no BluRay, No DVD. All media is downloaded and stored on a Windows 2008 R2 Server under the house. Only use the HTPC for TV and Video and use a Squeezebox touch via a Beresford Caimen DAC for music (all Lossless). The HTPC is hidden in a entertainment unit so not much point in a photo of that but heres the view from my couch anyways Screen is just painted MDF. http://www.geekzone.co.nz/imagessubs/f48fa8aaf5fbdb1373f9a9b42710b65b.jpg "Political correctness is a doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end." My thoughts are my own and are in no way representative of my employer.

GamerOC

416 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 548794 23-Nov-2011 10:28
Geekiegeek: OMG! what a cool setup it looks sharp. Andy

blur

333 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 548795 23-Nov-2011 10:30
Doh! I just went to the effort of listing my HTPC specifications in my signature, only to discover that you need to have 500 posts under your belt for it to display! Perhaps Mauricio could assist us here? My HTPC - Case Antec Fusion Remote, MOBO Intel DH67BLB3, CPU Intel Core i5-2400S 2.5 GHz, RAM 8GB DDR3 1333, HDD 120Gig Corsair Force Series 3 SSD system \| WD Caviar Black 2TB data, Tuners Black Gold BGT3595 dual DVB-S/S2, dual DVB-T, Video nVIDIA GeForce GT 520, 1024MB, Sound Intel® High Definition Audio (onboard), OS Windows 7 x64

CYaBro

1813 posts

Uber Geek

Reply # 548814 23-Nov-2011 10:54
I won't show pics as it's nothing special to look at. Maybe when we move into the house we are about to start building :) I have a basic server that sits in the corner of the room where the satellite feed comes in. It has all our shared data & media stored on it. Specs: AMD Phenom II X4 840 4GB 2x 1TB 1x 2TB Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 2x Nova-S PCI DVB-S cards 1x Tevii Dual DVB-S2 PCIe card MediaPortal TV Server Omnikey 5321 Smart Card Reader HTPC: Asus EeeBox Atom Dual Core - Can't remember the exact model Nvidia ION graphics with HDMI connected to 32" Toshiba - no seperate sound system :( 2GB RAM 250GB Microsoft MCE Remote and iR receiver that has programmable buttons for TV power & volume MediaPortal client The HTPC plays all media without a problem, SD or HD. I also have the mediaportal client on my laptop so can watch TV pretty much anywhere in the house. Computer Repairs Whangarei Remote Support

Azzura

165 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 549048 23-Nov-2011 20:28
How many watts does your HTPC draw? That is directed towards all those posting in thread with HTPC build.

geekiegeek

1130 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Reply # 549055 23-Nov-2011 20:49
Azzura: How many watts does your HTPC draw? That is directed towards all those posting in thread with HTPC build. No idea, its only on when watching or recording and hibernates the rest of the time. It only has a 450watt power supply though so I doubt its much - not compared to the projector and amp anyways :-) "Political correctness is a doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end." My thoughts are my own and are in no way representative of my employer.

CYaBro

1813 posts

Uber Geek

Reply # 549134 23-Nov-2011 23:32
My little Asus EeeBox only has a 19V - 2.1A power supply so only 40W. Then there's the 32" LCD TV and the server in the other room. Computer Repairs Whangarei Remote Support

Azzura

165 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 549195 24-Nov-2011 08:39
Mine uses about 100watts running 24/7. Cost per month - Rough estimate and at .315 cents per KW $22.68. HTPC- E5200 (powerful enough to run Air Video for streaming to Ipad and for viewing any 1080P video on XBMC) MSI P45 NEO3 2GB OCZ, 200GB 2x2TB WD Raid 1 2x2TB WD Raid 1 2x1.5 Seagate 2x500GB Seagate JOBD 1x320GB Seagate OS Drive ATI HD4650 RF FireFly Remote Hauppauge HD-PVR - This allows the Sky STB to work flawlessly on my Canadian PlasmaTV...I tired everything to plug directly from Sky STB to TV. It just wouldn't work without the HD-PVR. HTPC also does weather station duties/collects data from a Vantage Pro2 Plus with Fan-Aspirated Radiation Shield Data is uploaded to Weather Underground every 10 min - http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/hdfForecast?query=dargaville Someday I hope to stream weather data live.....once I get a faster connections, if that ever happens. TV and Audio (This part of setup is not factored into the HTPC for power draw, as it is not on 24/7) Panasonic Plasma 50" Plasma TH-50PX60U - max 500 Watts... during a TV show or a movie 150-225Watts on average - using a simple power meter at the wall to measure. Yamaha YSP4000 Sound Bar Kewood 12" Sub I looked at something like the Asus EeeBox for HTPC, but i figured with the amount of HD's I want to run in a couple of external Drobo units. I figured the power draw would almost be as much as just running the E5200 system and once I factored in the expense of a Asus EeeBox and Drobo units...not worth it for me. The E5200 basic setup without so much in it...runs like approx 50-75 watts. I setup my wife with my MSI Netbook Atom cpu...it draws like 40 watts ($9 a month running 24/7). It's awesome little systems these Atoms, does what she wants/needs. Reason I became so power concerned...we had a $700 power bill =S in August. Mind you we did have 3 x 2200Watt heaters going in the house before we got the wood stove in. Bill is much better now $150 now.

sfrasernz

43 posts

Geek

Reply # 549481 24-Nov-2011 16:35
Azzura, what HTPC software are you using? I'm interested in learning about your AirVideo setup. I'm guessing your not using WTV files from Windows MCE.

dan

460 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 549578 24-Nov-2011 19:33
I upgraded mine just recently, decided to get something with hair on its chest AMD 6 Core 3.2Ghz 16GB DDR1333 Crucial 64GB SSD 2TB HDD Nvidia GT 430 GFX w/ 1GB 500W Silverstone Modular PSU SilverStone GD06 Micro ATX HTPC Case Hauupauge Dual DVB-T Tuner PCIe Software: Mediaportal Front End Argus TV Server Im using 10GB of the above ram as a ramdrive for timeshift. It cost 115$ for 16GB so why not.

Azzura

165 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 549760 25-Nov-2011 08:55
sfrasernz: Azzura, what HTPC software are you using? I'm interested in learning about your AirVideo setup. I'm guessing your not using WTV files from Windows MCE. I really only use XBMC its so pretty/eye candy and a lot of plugins. Quick response from the remote. It's pretty cool...there is even one plugin that you can setup to play movie trailer (grabs from the net) before the movie you selected plays. I think it can also grab trailers from movie database you have and play 3 of those trailer's before the movie you selected plays. The biggest reason for my using XBMC...was the simple ease of setting the thing up. You just run the install, point it to the movies folder, tell XBMC these are movies, select what scrapper (IMDb - for example) and it goes scraps the data. Do it all over again for TV Shows. Some movies or TV Shows it might get wrong...but it is just as easy to fix an error. Couple of other things about it, the remote setup - no messing around trying to get the buttons to works...they all work like they are on the remote (for me). There could be a little bit of searching for the file XBMC requires to properly operate the remote you have (chances are it is already in xbmc). Most of the plugins just simply work without having to do anything to them (plugins auto update..this could be good or bad). Oh and one more very very important thing about XBMC....my wife can't break it! And she can use it with ease ;) I have spent countless hours in the past (yrs ago) trying to get other programs like XBMC working...like MediaPortal...myth and others I can't even remember the names of. One of them had me pretty pissed after hours/days of trying...you pretty much need a university degree to get it working..I think it was Myth (I could be wrong). Scrappers wouldn't work..plugins wouldn't work...cause the freaking things were broken. Even the guys on the forums agreed it was crazy pita to setup, if you could get it setup. Perhaps it is easier to setup today. For watching SKY I just use Total Media Extreme to get it up for viewing onto the TV and use the SKY box to record/playback (for now). In Canada I was using BeyondTV and SageTV for pvr on the system. Have to figure out how well the BTV or Sage works here in NZ. Hard part is/will be getting the guide working. I may end up using Windows Media Center. I think Myth TV can be integrated into XBMC...that's an option as well (hopefully it is easier these days). I am really hoping I can get Beyond TV working the most out of the options....it just worked so well for PVR. It is just so simple to navigate. I could run it for months on months no reboots, some guys claimed to have not rebooted their BTV system for 2 years. Sorry to be so long winded...

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