Forum Home
PC World Chat
 
Thread ID: 93222 2008-09-08 05:58:00 Building a Media Centre PC Groovvy (7668) PC World Chat
Post ID Timestamp Content User
703528 2008-09-08 05:58:00 Hi all. Last weekend we have bought a new samsung 46inch LCD tv. Its very nice, i have to say :) Also bought a Zinwell HD decoder for the freeview channels to view in HD.

www.samsung.com

Now i just like a build media centre PC. The PC is going to be used for watch mostly watch movies, TV channels and xbox gaming. I would also like to able to record the stuff coming on TV.

Here is rough idea i have so far.


Motherboard, Case, HDMI output, 7.1 Audio - $480
www.xpcomputers.co.nz

HDD - 1TB HD - $217
pconlineshop.co.nz

Memory - 2 x 2GB - $100
pconlineshop.co.nz

CPU - Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz - $278
www.nzoczone.com

TV Tuner - Inno3D SmartTV-DX PCI Card w/ Remote - $66
www.xpcomputers.co.nz

Wireless Keyboard and Mouse - $45
pconlineshop.co.nz

Total - $1186.00

Not sure about the TV tuner. Do i need a really expensive tuner to record in very good quality or jus any tuner is good enough?

Please advise if you have better options or comments to make the PC build cheaper with my requirements.

Thanks all in advance.
Groovy 		Groovvy (7668)
703529 2008-09-08 06:17:00 Motherboard, Case, HDMI output, 7.1 Audio - $480
www.xpcomputers.co.nz

HDD - 1TB HD - $217
pconlineshop.co.nz

Memory - 2 x 2GB - $100
pconlineshop.co.nz

CPU - Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz - $278
www.nzoczone.com

TV Tuner - Inno3D SmartTV-DX PCI Card w/ Remote - $66
www.xpcomputers.co.nz

Wireless Keyboard and Mouse - $45
pconlineshop.co.nz

Total - $1186.00

Not sure about the TV tuner. Do i need a really expensive tuner to record in very good quality or jus any tuner is good enough?

Please advise if you have better options or comments to make the PC build cheaper with my requirements.

Thanks all in advance.
Groovy

Hi

First off the Shuttle can be an expensive way to get your case/psu/motherboard combo unless you particularly want that square box like look. Asus do an HDMI motherboard for under $100 and there are numerous home theatre cases around these days that could save you money - check out some of the silverstone ones.

Hard Drive - 1TB is a good choice at the moment $$ wise if you need that much storage (and I certainly wouldn't go any less).

Ram - I would definitely go 4GB with the prices the way they are at the moment.

CPU - Good CPU choice with the Q6600 if you want to go Intel. Could save a little bit by going for AMD but performance wise Intels where its at right now.

TV Card - I would probably go for a Hauppage tuner - they get good reviews. I have a cheap tuner in this PC and the image quality is a bit grainy and average.

Keyboard and mouse - if you are going to be sitting any more than 5-6 feet from your PC then you will need a bluetooth keyboard and mouse. They are quite a bit more expensive but you will get frustrated with a normal wireless set.

I'm just about to go through this process myself.

:2cents: 		Tukapa (62)
703530 2008-09-08 08:11:00 I second Tukapa's commens re: the wireless mouse and keyboard - get ones with a bluetooth connection as opposed to a wireless/IR signal. I have a Logitech Di Novo Edge keyboard which while being pricey is fabulous! You may well find that 750GB SATA drives are where the price/GB sweetspot is at - I recently bought 2 Samsung ones for about $190 each (from memory) and they quiet and reliable.
I also echo Tukapa's comments re: the shuttle form factor decision.

I would however disagree with Tukapa about getting a Quad core Intel CPU when a mid-range core 2 duo (circa $250) would do the job easily along with 2GBRAM.

Make sure that you choose a motherboard with at least 6 SATA ports so that you can add more hard drives as you expand your system.

Personally I recommend that you shop at Ascent Technolog (http://www.ascent.co.nz)y - their prices are always competitive nad their advice, support and returns service is superb!! 		Chemical Ali (118)
703531 2008-09-08 09:06:00 I was playing with a really good bluetooth mini keyboard with a touchpad for mouse controls - perfect for a media PC. I think it was made by Logitech

I think Vista is the way to go here - for all its flaws, Vista has a good media centre that is easy to configure and operate.

You will want to get a TV tuner with hardware encoding - I think most have that feature, but it pays to check.

I've got a silverst6one LC16 case which is really nice, but the remote that comes with it doesn't work properly with media centre, and the built in IR receiver doesn't work with media centre remotes. The newer Silverstone cases may have addressed this issue. 		Greven (91)
703532 2008-09-08 10:20:00 I find it very interesting to note that in the samsung link you posted under the specs it says power cord accessory i would have thought that this would be most essential that the power cord be hard wired rather than an accessory. especially for the money you pay for the tv. Hitech (9024)
703533 2008-09-08 10:24:00 I would however disagree with Tukapa about getting a Quad core Intel CPU when a mid-range core 2 duo (circa $250) would do the job easily along with 2GBRAM.

Make sure that you choose a motherboard with at least 6 SATA ports so that you can add more hard drives as you expand your system.

Personally I recommend that you shop at Ascent Technolog (http://www.ascent.co.nz)y - their prices are always competitive nad their advice, support and returns service is superb!!

I agree that a Core 2 Duo would do the job nicely. I was only commenting that if he wanted to go with the Quad Core it was a nice CPU. And I would definitely go to 4GB Ram bearing in mind it would cost about $60 for the extra 2GB.

Depending on the case that is used for this build the number of SATA ports on the motherboard may not matter as a lot of HTPC cases can only fit 1 or 2 hard drives anyway. An e-SATA port would be better for an external hard drive at a later point if you needed the extra storage space.

I have a nice bluetooth keyboard and mouse here that I am waiting to use once I sort my HTPC out! Someday soon hopefully! :( 		Tukapa (62)
703534 2008-09-08 11:09:00 If you gonna want to record Freeview in HD then you'll probably have to forget using Windows Media Center. You will need to use something like MediaPortal.

You'll also want to make sure you get a DVB-T TV Tuner card and get a video card that has hardware acceleration of h.264 video - needs to be 8500GT or newer I think.

Best to have a look at www.geekzone.co.nz forums as there are tons of threads on this topic. 		CYaBro (73)
703535 2008-09-08 12:14:00 I agree that a Core 2 Duo would do the job nicely. I was only commenting that if he wanted to go with the Quad Core it was a nice CPU. And I would definitely go to 4GB Ram bearing in mind it would cost about $60 for the extra 2GB.

Depending on the case that is used for this build the number of SATA ports on the motherboard may not matter as a lot of HTPC cases can only fit 1 or 2 hard drives anyway. An e-SATA port would be better for an external hard drive at a later point if you needed the extra storage space.

I have a nice bluetooth keyboard and mouse here that I am waiting to use once I sort my HTPC out! Someday soon hopefully! :(

Thanks for all the info. I guess Intel Core 2 Duo is good enough to browse and watch movies and so on. I sort also want to make it futer proof just incase, anymore new stuff might not work!!!!

The Intel Core 2 Duo will bring the price down by $100. Also as you guys suggested i need to get the bluetooth keyboard and mouse. $160..ouuch..

Also main reason i chose the "Shuttle XPC" case becos of the size. I dont want a huge tower Case in my TV cabinet. So about the silverstone case, how big are they?

Does anyone have the Zinwell UHF HD decoder. I cant seem to receive any channels on my tv.
I have done the following:
1. Powered the Zinwell and TV.
2. I think i have an VHF antenna. Not sure how to tell what sort of antenna i have, but i get very clear channels of TV1, TV2 and so on.
3. I have connected the antenna to the RFIN port.
4. I have connected an HDMI cable from zinwell to my LCD tv.
5. Tried to tune channel by pressing the menu and so on, but i dont see anything on the TV.
6. Does zinwell work with a VHF antenna?
What am i doing wrong?

Thanks all. 		Groovvy (7668)
703536 2008-09-08 18:11:00 Also is Vista the best OS for this? i personally dont like vista as its a power hog and not hugely better than XP. Thanks Groovvy (7668)
703537 2008-09-08 19:46:00 You need a UHF aerial to receive FreeviewHD.
If you can get Prime or the Maori channel clearly then you most likely have a UHF aerial. If not then only VHF.
You also need to live in an area where FreeviewHD is being broadcast.
It is not available everywhere in NZ, only the Freeview via satellite is, which is not HD. 		CYaBro (73)
1 2