My HTPC project...almost there....almost.

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › My HTPC project...almost there....almost.

fotochoppa

3 posts

Wannabe Geek

#27256 20-Oct-2008 01:11

Hey guys, ive been a lurker for quite some time now, decided i should finally post my stuff and contribute a bit

This is my HTPC so far:

specs
AMD 5000+ dual core
Thermalright Ultra 120 extreme
NZXT hush case
Corsair 450w PSU
Corsair 2GB @1066mhz
Asus DVD writer combo drive
Asus M3N-H/HDMI motherboard
Asus 8600GT silent *i got this off kiwijunglist who i suspect is the same person on this forum*
Cheap generic card reader

thats the specs so far, still got some stuff to order

2x 1TB seagate HDDs
TV card
Sound card
My wireless controllers, like a dinovo mini and a universal remote, thats enough chat, i'll give you all some pictures to chew on aye ;-)

this PC will be running XP and media portal, it will be fully remote controlled if i can get some answers to a few questions i have.

question:
I am planning on getting the logitech harmony one remote http://c1com.co.nz/shop/step1.php?number=14043 and the hauppage HVR-4000 http://c1com.co.nz/shop/step1.php?number=13100 , the HVR-4000 comes with a remote and IR of RF receiver, can THIS remote be used to operate mediaportal, as i have heard people say it will only operate the software that came with the TV card-ie. WINTV or the like, and not be able to scroll through mediaportal menus-is this true? The harmony one is compatable with this TV card and reciever but i am unsure if it will do the things i want, like have all the functions of the remote in mediaportal. Sorry if that sounds confusing but to put it basicly. Will the harmony one fully work with mediaportal THROUGH the HVR-4000 receiver? any answers to that question will be appriciated.

this was the case when i got it, it was described as a 'high gloss black'....it wasnt....
[img]

[/img]

so i took it to work and got it repainted....thats much better
[img]

[/img]

annother pic which i adjusted to show the gloss better
[img]

[/img]

a few peices together
[img]

[/img]

annother angle
[img]

[/img]

i have some new pictures of it, but for the life of me i cant find them, i will update them later. I have cut out all the mesh on the vents in the case, i have also made all my fans to run on 7v through the molex power mod, which has made my PC dead silent while its running, the 2TB of HDDs will be suspended for further noise reduction, i will line most of the case with acoustic foam too. I have heard the foam dosent do much, but i just happen to have some lying around.

well thats about it for my media pc. This PC will never see a game in its lifetime. I already have a gaming PC, i will post some info on that if you guys want too.

thats it for now, any info on the question ould be appriciated, thanks.

-jono

MrAlan

98 posts

Master Geek

#172239 20-Oct-2008 13:14

fotochoppa:

question:
I am planning on getting the logitech harmony one remote http://c1com.co.nz/shop/step1.php?number=14043 and the hauppage HVR-4000 http://c1com.co.nz/shop/step1.php?number=13100 , the HVR-4000 comes with a remote and IR of RF receiver, can THIS remote be used to operate mediaportal, as i have heard people say it will only operate the software that came with the TV card-ie. WINTV or the like, and not be able to scroll through mediaportal menus-is this true? The harmony one is compatable with this TV card and reciever but i am unsure if it will do the things i want, like have all the functions of the remote in mediaportal. Sorry if that sounds confusing but to put it basicly. Will the harmony one fully work with mediaportal THROUGH the HVR-4000 receiver? any answers to that question will be appriciated.

-jono

Even if that remote/receiver combo doesn't natively work with MediaPortal pretty much any remote/reciever can be made to work with MediaPortal by using HIP. http://www.byremote.com.au/HIP/Default.htm

eXDee

4032 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#172300 20-Oct-2008 16:40

Sweet, running a TRUE passive!
Such an awesome cooler - with the help of that my e8500 made a jump from 3.1ghz to 4ghz

Dominator's are pretty excessive RAM for a HTPC, i would've thought that normal heatspreaders would suffice if not overclocking!

The Hauppuage remote can control mediaportal. If it can't IRServerSuite which is a plugin will definitely be able to. Pretty sure your harmony remote will emulate the hauppuage one fine also.

Great build

fotochoppa

3 posts

Wannabe Geek

#172316 20-Oct-2008 17:21

cheers guys for the apps, they might come in handy (although hopefully i wont need them), ive got a few more pictures for you all

this is some acoustic foam, i got a deal on this much, cost me the same as 3 sheets of it

this is my custom power light, there is no HDD activity light, i removed it, cut the wires to the LEDS in the LED fan too, so this is the only part of the case with lights. It is a peice of paper that is lit by a single blue LED in behind, it does not catch your eye at all, unlike the original which almost blinded me

This is my 7v mod, all the other fans are daisy chained off this one molex

this is the inside of my case so far, i have not even begun to tidy the cables at all, i ahve simply plugged it up for the most part, i will tidy this all up when i get my hard drives and put my foam in, i am VERY anal about how my wires look haha. i cant stand it if they are like spagetti. You'll see what i mean when you see my gaming pc-haha!

i'll show you all a few pictures of my gaming pc too, just for laughs and giggles

specs:
AMD6400+ Black edition
Coolermaster Aquagate R120 Mini (highly reccomend)
2x leadtek 8800GT 512MB's
Creative x-fi XtremeGamer soundcard
Asus M2n-SLI mobo
2x seagate 250GB HDDs in RAID 0
NZXT lexa blackline case
Silverstone 850w PSU
Asus DVD writer/lightscribe
4GB crucial Ballistix RAM
and a truckload of cableties

thanks for your answers to my question guys, i'll have the OS on the medai pc sometime soon i hope, i amd getting the hard drives for it this week.

ZeeBOB

26 posts

Geek

#172520 21-Oct-2008 14:37

That is very cool! Going to go buy an R120 Mini now :)

fotochoppa

3 posts

Wannabe Geek

#172563 21-Oct-2008 17:02

AHH! before you buy one you must know these coolers DO NOT fit AM2 sockets straight out of the box, i fabricated my bracket from a '96 Subaru Legacy wagon bumperframe iorns and modifyed my backplate to fit a nut and bolt system.

the coolermaster aquagate kit is great, keeps my cpu at about 23deg on idle and about 30deg on max load at 3.2ghz. the fan it comes with is hella loud to say the least when its on full speed, i replaced it with a super silent one from modster and flows great

here are some (bad) pictures of how i made the kit ft though, you can barley see the bracket though, and it comes very close to standard height ram depending on what orientation you have the block.

-jono