I want to make a home media PC..

[z0mb13]

Basically I want a PC where I can watch TV, do computer stuff, and record TV shows..

I will be placing the pc and monitor in my living room, so I can sit on my couch and browse/watch tv at the same time

what do I need?

I will probably buy a new desktop PC with windows media center, since my current desktop is long in the tooth

Regarding the television, I have to get a LCD TV, right? I currently have the dell 2405fwp.. can I make this work or is it better to just sell this and get a lcd tv? (like the costco spectre deal?)

Any other advice on things that I need? I probably need a wireless keyboard and mouse.. what else?

Thanks!

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

You don't need any specific tv. Just make sure the videocard you get has the kind of output that the display can input.

Some displays have some issues with overscan etc, but you should be ok with pretty much anything. (DLP, LCD, LCD RP, Plasma, CRT, etc)

If this is a livingroom environment, you probably want to go a lot bigger than 24".

 

[bchivers]

This article may be of interest.Link

 

[z0mb13]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
You don't need any specific tv. Just make sure the videocard you get has the kind of output that the display can input.

Some displays have some issues with overscan etc, but you should be ok with pretty much anything. (DLP, LCD, LCD RP, Plasma, CRT, etc)

If this is a livingroom environment, you probably want to go a lot bigger than 24".

what do u think of the costco 30 lcd tv deal? compared to the 26 inch hp deal, which one should I get?

 

[z0mb13]

Originally posted by: bchivers
This article may be of interest.Link

reading thanks!

 

[z0mb13]

btw is windows media edition worth it? or should I just get third party software?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: z0mb13

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
You don't need any specific tv. Just make sure the videocard you get has the kind of output that the display can input.

Some displays have some issues with overscan etc, but you should be ok with pretty much anything. (DLP, LCD, LCD RP, Plasma, CRT, etc)

If this is a livingroom environment, you probably want to go a lot bigger than 24".

what do u think of the costco 30 lcd tv deal? compared to the 26 inch hp deal, which one should I get?

I don't know, I haven't been keeping up with display deals since I don't have any desire to upgrade right now.

 

[piasabird]

Some plasma's can take a VGA input or sometimes two. This would be a really good TV Some are HD and some are not. They keep coming down in price but for a small one you are still looking at like $800 - $2,000. Some plasma screens can do split screen and you can watch TV and work on your computer at the same time. a 17" LCD Monitor with a TV receiver can operate separately as a TV. Alternatively a regular TV is not too expensive for a 27" or a little larger compared to Plasma or LCD. LCD monitor's/TV's may have some issues with brightness or with the viewing angle being limited.

 

[z0mb13]

if I dont want to spend $$$ on the lcd tv, can I just buy a tv tuner card and use my regular 29 inch sony tv?

 

[z0mb13]

btw is there a forum where I can read other people's set up for home media PC?

TIA

 

[Looney]

Anybody know of any good MCE remote control system like this: http://www.i-legend.com/ms/ms_hard_info.htm#Other_Hardware

 

[The Boston Dangler]

That's very similar to the one I picked up. I looked high and low, there is no internal reciever 100% compatible with MCE05 to be found. The Logitech Harmony remotes work well with this reciever + 2 blasters. There is the Imon setup if you want XP SP2, but there might be other software (maybe girder?) involved.

 

[hellokeith]

Originally posted by: z0mb13
btw is windows media edition worth it? or should I just get third party software?

http://www.sagetv.com/ all the way!

1. Multiple tuner support for more than 2 tuners - no tuner limit like MCE
2. HD support - no encrypted hd files like MCE
3. TONS of community plugins and an SDK supported by the developers
4. Cross platform support for both Windows and Linux, clients and servers can talk to each other independent of OS
5. Upcoming web server and placeshifting - schedule and watch your shows over the internet

 

[Boonesmi]

i really like sagetv with a hauppauge pvr150 (on winxp)

i like it alot better then windows mce version

 

[dev0lution]

Depends on your source. If you're using a digital cable or satellite receiver then multiple tuners aren't going to be too useful since you need the set top box to be tuned to the station you're recording. Also, if you're using a set top box you can probably save a bit of cash by going with a display instead of a tv, since you'll be tuning the stations off of the set top or the computer tuner and not off the actual tv.

I found BeyondTV to be a bit too glitch prone for my needs, but sagetv or another option may be viable if you're willing to put in some effort into adapting it to your system. Can't say how well they work since I haven't used them. I went MCE just for the hooks into the internet content for the guide, set top box control via remote, etc. Few bugs here too, but I'm using an unsupported tuner and haven't upgraded to rollup2.

Check out some HTPC forums for some ideas/feedback...

 

[pdo]

how far will you be from your tv? I sit about 8 feet away from my 37" LCD and the text is way too small for me.

 

[R3MF]

Asus A8NVM -CSM

SST LC10-300 case

Samsung P120 250GB H/D

A64 3200+ CPU

2x 512MB PC3200 ram

DVD-r

Haupenage TV capture card

 

[anatawa]

well.. i suggest dont plug it on normal TV, since it simply cant support high freq picture and resolution of your computer.. and it can damage your eyes eventually.. get LCD or Plasma TV.. or a monitor

 

[hellokeith]

Originally posted by: dev0lution
Depends on your source. If you're using a digital cable or satellite receiver then multiple tuners aren't going to be too useful since you need the set top box to be tuned to the station you're recording.

SageTV can control many set top boxes via IR blasting or even firewire connections. There are a number of regular SageTV forum members who have 3 or 4 set top boxes all being controlled.

 

[dev0lution]

Originally posted by: hellokeith

Originally posted by: dev0lution
Depends on your source. If you're using a digital cable or satellite receiver then multiple tuners aren't going to be too useful since you need the set top box to be tuned to the station you're recording.

SageTV can control many set top boxes via IR blasting or even firewire connections. There are a number of regular SageTV forum members who have 3 or 4 set top boxes all being controlled.

Wasn't saying it wasn't possible, but some people may not have or want to pay extra for 2 set top boxes to enable recording on two tuners or view on channel and record another at the same time.