My first MediaPortal Machine

[Wizard_TPG]

Hi Guys

This is my first post here.
I have been considering setting up a media server for some time and, after seeing a friends mediaportal machine on the weekend, I have decided to go ahead and do it.

The reason for this post is to hopefully gain information from experienced users in relation to setup and hardware choices.

The machine that I will be using for this media portal has the following specs:
Asus A8N-E Motherboard ( http://au.asus.com/products4.aspx?mo...15&l3=171&l4=0 )
AMD 64 3500+ cpu
2gb ram
6800GT PCIE Vid card (2x DVI output)
120gb SATA2 HDD
360gb SATA2 HDD
Coolermaster Wavemaster case (initially anyways)

The TV that I will be connecting to this will be LG 42LC7D LCD TV.
For the time being there will not be a surround sound system but in the future there definetly will be.

My expected usage for the system will be:
- Mp3 and music jukebox
- Playback of divx/xvid episodes and movies
- Playback of DVDs
- Watching of free to air digital TV (in australia)
- Recording of same


ok, so now some questions.....

1) What is the best way to connect the audio from the PC to this TV. I assume optical will be the best when I have a surround sound reciever but what is the best wen connecting to this TV (Coaxial SPDIF??)?

2) I have to purchase a TV tuner card. Any comments, either good or bad, about the cards on this list?
http://www.pccasegear.com.au/category189_1.htm

3) I will probably also purchase a media center case and remote. Any comments, either good or bad, about the cases and their assocaiated remotes on this list? (Also, is it better to buy a combined remote and case or a separate remote??
http://www.pccasegear.com.au/category103_1.htm


Any other advice would be greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance guys.

[Marcusb]

Hi Wizard, welcome to MP.

As a fellow Australian, I (and quite a few others) recommend the tuners available from "DigitalNow".
I have a dual tuner digital and analog PCIe (four tuners in total) card from them that I got from http://www.eyo.com.au/prod_D-DualHyb...ve_softwa.html
This is much cheaper than equivalent dvico models and has much better reception and drivers.
Bear in mind that the analog section is software driven, so it will place a load on your CPU. I don't know much about the analog side as I only use digital though.

I also don't know for sure about it working with the standard TV engine, since I only use the new TV engine 3 (I recommend this much more but it does take longer to set up).

For cases, you can pay any amount of mony. I like the very simple Aopen range that take mATX boards. It's small and cramped but takes up almost no room.
For a really good case, look at the barebones Asus Pundit cases. they are also great value. -> http://www.gamedude.com.au/prod_show...ASpundit_p1ah2 not sure about how well it handles HDTV though. Considering you get a 6150 chipset mobo and a great looking mini case for less than $200 its a pretty good deal.

Also, you will eventually need a remote (trust me) and in that case I suggest the MCE remote. it's around $69 and includes two transmitters as well.

Have fun. An HTPC takes up a lot of time with tinkering, but is well worth it.

[Wizard_TPG]

I ended up purchasng an iMon inside remote and digitalNow DNTV Live Dual Hybrid S2 TC Card.

I decided to hold off on a specific media case for the moment as I have quite a nice pc case I can put this machine in ( Coolermaster Wavemaster with a hardcano 12 fan controller ).

I am looking forward to getting it all setup and running.


Thanks for the advise Marcusb