Assassin's Simple/Beginner HTPC Buying Guide - Page 68

Pretty much 100% of the keys you buy are not legit. Well they are legit keys but they are from a tech net subscription and could get blacklisted at anytime.

I believe thats what I have now (it came with the case) but my problem is just that they're too loud b/c they're on full blast all the time.

ah, ok. well, I've been using mine for a year now so I'm not really worried - but I guess I'll have to buy actual discs. Apple has it right with the $29 price. Windows is ridiculously overpriced.

I guess it depends what you use them for. I love my macbook pro and for my video/audio processing on the go it's been perfect. It also holds its resale value very well.

Good point, those swivel's do look a bit flimsy & the one you point out looks like the next best. Nice one.

Yeah I read the FAQ thanks, very clear explanations. I just wanted to maintain the maximum cooling capability if possible. My system temps seem fine but it's the ceton cable tuner that concerns me. The manufacturer mentioned 90% of the problems with this card result of overheating and I have no way of monitoring it's actual temperature so I definitely want to error on the side of caution with this.

Going back to that cable, doesn't it take the power from the psu connector and only uses the CPU header for rpm & pwm feedback?

So I've pretty much got my build together now & almost ready to pull the trigger on my order... Big thanks to Assassin - Will Paypal you something as you've saved me £££ on some of the choices !

Case - Lian Li PC-C33B £140.80
CPU - i3 2100 SandyBridge £93.76
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-H67A-UD3H-B3 Intel H67 Express Socket 1155 £111.20
PSU - Seasonic S12II-380 380W £55.02
SSD - Crucial 64GB RealSSD C300 SSD £86.46
HDD - 2TB WD20EARS C.Green, SATA 3Gb/s 5400rpm 64MB Cache £61.06
RAM - Corsair Memory XMS3 4GB DDR3 1333 Mhz CAS 8 Dual Channel £44.56
Wireless - Edimax EW-7722In 300Mbps Wireless 11n PCI Adapter £20.33
Blue Ray - LG Blu-Ray Writer, BH10LS30.AUAU, SATA, OEM £69.56
HDMI Cable - HDMI15-RS £7.07
[CPU Cooler & keyboard/mouse/tablet/remote controller - T.B.Decided]

I'll be connecting the HTPC to my Panny P50V20, and ideally to my analogue amplifier & two stereo floor-stander speakers (I don't have a surround system or av recevier yet).

Can anyone explain how I will actually connect into my analogue amplifier though? Looking at the pictures of the sockets on the MOBO, there doesn't seem to the usual red/white stereo outputs ?
I'm guessing the MOBO only outputs a digital signal via the HDMI for both picture & sound directly into the TV...
Checked the back of the TV & it has a red/white stereo out... So I reckon I just connect that output into the amp & hey presto it should work.....
Right ???

ok here we go.....

i've been playing with the idea of creating a little master piece for myself for a while, only problem is i'm probably nuts and not in the loop as much as i used to be so its getting pretty heavy going and im at the point where i need some serious help...
from reading this post and others your an expert on the parts im using.

project is to try and fit all this into antec mini skeleton which will be modified as much as needs be:

asus E350m1-i or similar mobo

3x 2.5" hdd
1x 2.5" ssd

8Gb ram ddr3 1600 with xigmatek dragoon n422 ram cooler.
you said this sort of setup never needs more than 4Gb but how about 4Gb to be used as ramdrive, maybe?

Sony BD-Combo Slim SATA Slot Load optical drive

2x graphics cards in sli on a multiple active flexible pci riser setup with thermalright spitfire or similar heatsinks mounted so that each heatsink will sit on the outside of either side of the case. ( i know absolutely crazy )
i just love the way it would look

shuttle silent 300w psu
i have no idea right now how much power a set up like this might need
all i know is the psu needs to be fanless and ultra small to fit within my dream


im a keen amateur photographer so 1000s of hi def pics and do lots of work on photoshop, have a large music and video collection
also small bit of gaming would be nice
plus the usual email/surfing/streaming...

is it complete overkill? will it even work?
all help and ideas welcome

thanks in advance

The EngadgetHD review of the Infinitv 4 (I presume that is the card you have) indications that you can monitor the temperature from the diagnostics in the web app. You may wish to take and look and see if you can dig it up.

I don't think it's overkill, but instead a confused set of hardware.
running an SLI/Crossfire set up on a Zacate doesn't make a lot of sense. I'm not even sure how you plan on accomplishing this as these boards only have 1 16x slot (which doesn't even run at 16x electrically), and after a quick Googling the only "multiple active pci card" I could find was for a VIA board, and in any case I am doubtful it would have the performance to run two video cards. If you want to edit images, I would be looking towards the i3 or even i5. With regards to the RAM, in the case of image manipulation, 8 GB makes a lot of sense.

Is this supposed to be a workstation, HTPC, or both?

my bad, just had to ask

i'm a complete beginner when it comes to mITX / mATX / HTPC
as mesasone was kind enough to point out the 1 16x slot (which doesn't even run at 16x electrically), on the E35m1-i. i wouldnt have noticed.
thanks@ mesasone.

i've been trying to find away of making my project a reality to know avail.
i found this thread and started reading when i got to the end i posted.

this i want to be my all and everything HTPC, Photoshop Workstation, and all rounder.

again sorry,
i would really appreciate any help you could give me
thanks

That is true for thermal-control fans that have the sensor on the fan. Those can't be intake fans because intake air is always cool. Some thermal-control fans have a sensor lead that is placed inside the case on critical components. Those can be used for intake fans.

I've been a fan (chuckle) of thermal-control fans for a while and have first hand experience with some of the options available. Here are some of the fans available:

• VANTEC TF12025 120mm Case Fan¹ (I've used the 60mm model)
• Antec 75012 Smartcool 120mm Case Fan¹ (haven't used this one)
• VIZO FZ-12025 120mm Case Fan¹ (haven't used this one)
• SILVERSTONE SCOOL121 120mm Case Fan² (I've used the 80mm model, see signature link for details)
• GELID Solutions FN-TX12-15 120mm Case Fan² (I've used both 120mm & 80mm models)

¹ = Thermistor is in the fan casing, not suitable for intake fan
² = Thermistor is on an extension lead and can be used for intake

Having trouble keeping things cool? Maybe you need one of these: http://www.madshrimps.be/news/item/77658

I've been having a few issues getting the playback dialed in in MCE and have posted my current Shark007 settings here. Also, if that post is expanded to the full thread the rest of my Shark007 settings are posted above. Any help on getting this dialed in would be really cool. Thanks.

UPDATE:

I went into the Sound settings in Windows control panel and set my Denon Receiver to 7.1 and disabled the Dvix media foundation splitter in the MKV TAB in Shark 007. So now I am getting Multi-Channel in for my Denon which is LPCM with the HTPC doing the decoding but why is the pass-through bitstreaming not working? It seems that I have all the settings correct for that.

What does your set up look like as far as A/V equipment? Are you using a monitor and a "big" display? Just a monitor or just a TV?

Depending on how you are/plan to be set up, I would build a workstation capable of outputting to two displays, which is nothing fancy these days. Display #1 will be your monitor and display #2 will go to your receiver or TV/Projector/whatever. Set up a remote and have your media center software (XBMC/Windows Media Center/Whatever) to run on the second display. I know this is easily done in XBMC, perhaps someone else could chime in for MC7.

As for specing out a workstation, as Assassin hinted, that is beyond the scope of this thread and there are better venues for it. However for starters I would look at using an i5 2500 or 2500k, gobs of RAM (8 gigs for sure, might consider 12 or even 16) if you're doing serious image editing, and for HTPC purposes you will probably be better off with one of AMD/ATI's offerings as their current implementations handle 24p content a bit better. Crossfire/SLI are very over rated imho, even for heavy gaming so I wouldn't worry about that unless you want to run three displays (two monitors + TV/Projector).

In your screenshot of the Shark007 audio tab (which is the 32-bit Shark007... not gonna work in WMC if you're 64-bit), you have ffdshow set to pass-through, but did you go into the ffdshow audio settings and select which types of audio to actually bitstream? If so, remember there is both 32 AND 64 bit ffdshow settings to play with depending on the player you are using. Media Center will use the 64-bit ffdshow settings on a 64-bit system. Go into your 64-bit ffdshow audio settings (you can get there through a dropdown menu in the "Config" tab in the 64-bit Sharks007), go to the "output" item in the left pane, and make sure all of your HD audio streams have their boxes checked in the pass-through options:



By default, all of the boxes are unchecked if I remember right.

Here's my settings (The link was only available in the 32bit Shark007 application):



I think I need to change the compatibility to not be PCM
and use all formats.

Update on my use of the Zacate build performed by Assassin.

My HTPC requirements were as follows:

1. Play 1080p movies
2. Use Win 7 / Media Center
3. Download & play movies, music, pictures & data
4. Surf the internet
7. Connect to a HDTV via HDMI
8. Watch HULU +, Netflix, etc.
9. Be easy to use
10. Connect wireless to home network

So, does it do all this? Yes! I have completed each of those tasks without trouble. I still have much to learn, but so far it does what I am asking of it. I have a couple files to test for a fellow member and will hopefully attempt that today.

PICS:

I don't use a "traditional" TV stand/rack. I have the HTPC behind and to the side of my TV:


Top view of the HTPC. I ended up connecting to my home network via ethernet cable (yellow cable) instead of using the wireless option. Initially, I used the wireless, but with my crappy 1Mbps speed and multiple devices, I opted to use the cable. When I used the wireless connection, the set-up was instant, and I encountered no issues:


A pic of the Lenovo N5901 Keyboard to give you some perspective about it's size:


ISSUES:

The button to open/eject the disc drive on the case is not long enough to engage the button on the disc drive. This means I have to open/eject the drive from the pc instead of pushing the button.

IMO, it would make more sense to move the "Fn" button on the Lenovo N5901 Keyboard to the other side (right side) of the space bar. This comes into play when typing the "@" symbol, as both the "Fn" and "@" keys are located on the left side of the keyboard. This causes me to handle the remote a bit awkward. Once again, not a big deal. I'll get use to it.


THANKS AGAIN, ASSASSIN!!!

Well that didn't change anything but maybe I need to reboot first.

Along with everyone else, put a build together this weekend. I'm a cheapskate (go slickdeals!) yet didn't wanna compromise for my HTPC build. I have a WHS serving up 14 TB of media, so I just needed a top shelf player.

Here's what I came up with...

HEC Micro ATX case w/300w power supply. $50 Link
i3 2100 combo with MSI 61 MB $99 at Microcenter. Wow. Amazing deal. MB Link
4gb DDR3 $40

Total - $190.
I threw in a 60 gig OCZ Vertex drive I picked up a while ago for $80, and loaded Win7 (thru MSDN, so no cost for me) and away I went.

For some reason the chipset had a little trouble displaying the desktop properly on my big screen, but after setting the overscan to 50%, all is working flawlessly. That CPU is a beast.

Was a little worried about the super-budget case, but it's silent, and with almost nothing generating heat in the case, it's as cool as the other side of the pillow.

Only thing left to do is try to grab a couple more of the combos from Microcenter, pick up some refurbed 32 gig SSDs, and do it all over again. *grin*