Completed 4300S Dell HTPC (1 Viewer)

[purplejuelz]

i have been fiending for a media center pc to play files in an easy to view format ... and now i have one
be warned ... shes no powerhouse, but runs smooth
---------------------------------------------------------------
Dell 4300S (oldie) running XP Pro
1.8 GHz P4
512 MB SDRAM
NEC 3520-A 16x DVD-R/RW
320 GB Maxtor
80 GB Western Digital
GeForce MX440 AGP - running @ 4x :lol:
Orinoco Silver 802.11b
Logitech Wireless Keyboard/Mouse <<~~ crapola
connected to:
Polaroid FLM-2632 26" LCD TV w/ ATSC tuner built-in
via:
D-Sub 15
missing: TV tuner card ... i dont watch much tv, and what i do watch usually comes off BT in the form of a HDTV.avi rip

i think thats it .... ill try and get a pic up, only thing worth looking at is the TV though ... i need a shiny silver pc case

 

[purplejuelz]

U KNOW U LOVE IT

 

[Bram]

For HDTV viewing you'll need a better videcard (won't run smooth) and probebly more RAM. A better videocard is advisable anyway, even without the need for HDTV.

 

[NLS]

as we talked in IRC, you are probably MUCH better off (in fact I think it can even come cheaper) to get a new HTPC...

even the LOWEST END (and cheapest) POSSIBLE you can buy today, is much faster and better than that

turning "a spare old PC" to a linux net/file server (with no GUI) is much simpler than turning it to an HTPC

my opinion of course

 

[purplejuelz]

ill keep that in mind, ive been working for a month now saving some $, when it comes time i will be consulting you guys .... ive got my eye on those high end receiver look HTPC cases

 

[Bram]

What NLS says is true....
I started about a year ago with a PIII 1Ghz, 64MB video an 512MB RAM. But soon I started upgrading part by part. If I look back at what I spend on parts thure time...I could better have bougt a completely new computer. I would have had more PC for less money.

 

[purplejuelz]

exactly what i been trying to stay away from "ooo this looks good, ooo that looks good" and stick it out with what i got until i can do the whole thing, like get one of the Dvine cases and go from there

 

[NLS]

ok that is fair enough - but believe me, you don't have to look so high

a simple 500 euro complete PC is MUCH MORE powerful than your current setup

than you can change the case etc. if you want