An HTPC Build?

[Intexity]

So I am looking to build an HTPC for a friend of mine and am having a hard time. I need to keep a 600 dollar cap on it somehow, but this is hard considering he has two HD sources (foreign satellite and local cable). So this is what I have so far.

Intel E2200 Core2Duo CPU
Asus P5KPL-CM Mobo
I have 2 Sticks DDR2-800 somewhere...
Antec NSK2480 Case
MSI GeForce 9400GT GPU
Windows 7 OS (would go open source but he is not tech savvy)
Unsure on a tuner card is there one with two inputs that will handle both sources?
IOGEAR GKM561R Keyboard/Trackball
Encore ENLWI-N wireless card
LITE-ON Blu Ray Player (He won't want to burn to disc)
WD WD10EADS 1 TB HD

What are your thoughts?
Thanks

 

[jdjbuffalo]

For $600, I don't think you can do it. I've been looking at putting one together myself and the best numbers I came out with were around $800 - $1000.

You are going for really cheap on the processor, memory and video card. It is important to match these up with what he wants. Since Bluray is thrown in there you are going to have some issues. Bluray requires some good processing power and you have to buy additional software to play movies ($49-$99). Also, if you want the best sound from the Blurays then you'll need to look at the ATI 4800 or ideally 5800/5700 series cards. This can also be done with dedicated sound cards but it's a more expensive option that you don't need.

The satellite will be a hard one to pull off and if it's DirecTV or Dish then I don't think it can be done at this time. For cable, he can do the non-HD unencrypted channels (the ones you don't need a cable box for) if they are even offered. If he wants the HD ones then he should wait for the Ceton cable cards which will be out by Q1 2010 (they will be between $150 and $500) for the 2 tuner and 4 tuner cards.

For more information on how to setup HTPCs I recommend looking at www.avsforum.com .

 

[heyheybooboo]

Gigabyte 785g / Sempron 140 AM3: $100

If you feel you need a discreet video card check out the Asus Radeon HD 4350 - not sure if you can Hybrid CrossFire but I just ordered one and hope to find out soon - LOL.

This should help your budget because most likely you should purchase a retail package BluRay drive because you need a player - and most will provide a copy of PowerDVD (but you need to verify -- make certain of the version and if there is additional cost to update features).

You will not find a tuner that will accept satellite --- they have a different signal modulation. For your cable you need a QAM-capable tuner BUT the really bad news is that cable analog/digital QAM will soon be encrypted by CableCo. Not sure how that will effect any local channels that in the past they were required to offer unencrypted.

Sorry 'bout that .....

 

[Blazer]

the blu-ray player will prolly come with power dvd 7 or 8 but will only support 2 channel sound, you will have to get pdvd 9 for 5.1 - 7.1, so figure on the update, also the ATi 4670 512 video card works really well and doesnt require additional sound card.

 

[Intexity]

ok so i spoke to him today and apparently I only have to have one HD input the foreign satellite (receives foreign channels) is not HD.

 

[Intexity]

oh and i guess im confused... was planning on running the video from the sat receiver to the htpc, so wouldn't that negate the need to descramble the video?
edit-nevermind found out the hard way... looking at the ati cablecard pci card..
oh and he said quality before price... we will see after i price this out how long he will stand by that..

 

[Intexity]

Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
Gigabyte 785g / Sempron 140 AM3: $100

If you feel you need a discreet video card check out the Asus Radeon HD 4350 - not sure if you can Hybrid CrossFire but I just ordered one and hope to find out soon - LOL.

This should help your budget because most likely you should purchase a retail package BluRay drive because you need a player - and most will provide a copy of PowerDVD (but you need to verify -- make certain of the version and if there is additional cost to update features).

You will not find a tuner that will accept satellite --- they have a different signal modulation. For your cable you need a QAM-capable tuner BUT the really bad news is that cable analog/digital QAM will soon be encrypted by CableCo. Not sure how that will effect any local channels that in the past they were required to offer unencrypted.

Sorry 'bout that .....

looks like a solid choice do you have any experience with this board? curious about if the onboard video will handle a 52 inch LCD HDTV