I've bought a "new" house from some old people, and want to install a lot of electronics in it, not just a MP client There are also some stuff/hardware i would like some input about, and in general i would love to get some good ideas for smarter/better solutions. I'll try to keep this clean and short.
Livingroom
I want to wallmount a Samsung UE46D6505 LED-LCD, and have a Harman/Kardon SB16 soundbar beneath it. I'm building my own tv stand which will house the htpc and a xbox360, and also this will be wallmounted (no legs). I'm thinking to mount the power supplies underneath that stand so they won't take up so much space inside the stand. In the wall behind, i'm putting up channels and pipes for electrical wiring, and all of this will end up in the attic. There i'll have my modem/wireless router and a switch. I'll pull down 3-4 Cat5e wires to home theater, for htpc, xbox, tv/sonos and maybe a spare. I'm thinking a optical link from tv to soundbar, hdmi from htpc and xbox to tv. I might put a Sonos in the loft also, and pull a digital coaxial to the soundbar, and i'll be putting a WD MyBook Live 3TB NAS up there.
HTPC
- Streacom F1C - Neat little case
- PicoPSU 160W or Iwill IWI-H33 160W
- Intel 520 SSD 120GB
- Corsair Vengance DDR3 2x4GB 1600MHz Low profile
- Samsung Mini Bluetooth Keyboard - I really like this one, but i miss a matching BT mouse. Samsung's are not BT.
- Western Digital My Book Live 3TB
- MoBo and CPU, not yet decided, but i'll probably wait for Ivy Bridge on either Asus, Gigabyte or Zotac i guess, one with Intel 4000 GPU. Is H77 the most suiting chipset? has to be mITX. I don't think i'll be having a DVB card, i'll be streaming content exclusively. The case also sports a slim optical drive slot, but i think discs are old fashion...hmm.
Other stuff
In the attic, i want to put one or two Sonos Connect:Amp (ZP120), one for outside and maybe one for the bathroom, i'll do that later on when i replace the bathroom. However, i have a hard time finding out which outdoor speakers that will match the power of the Sonos Amp. I might also have a Sonos Connect (ZP80) in the attic connected to the soundbar in my livingroom, but i'm not sure if it's necessary.
To sum this up, i want minimalistic but potent equipment, like a soundbar instead of surround. The pros are that the ir receiver is in the bar, and not an amp in the tv stand. I want the tv stand to be closed to hide the stuff inside it. Btw, i'm replacing all of the electrical installation in the house, a lot of walls and have good access to the attic, so if there is anything i should consider, let me know Final questions:
- Bluetooth mouse, one that looks ok, black, and not in itty bitty tiny size.
- MoBo and CPU? Not certain yet, but i have an idea on Ivy Bridge.
- Outdoor speakers for a Sonos Connect:Amp (ZP120), have NO idea, lol.
Looks like i failed on the short part, lol. I'm not on a strict budget, but i'm not throwing money out the window either. Any ideas for improvements and other cool suggestions are very welcome
Livingroom
I want to wallmount a Samsung UE46D6505 LED-LCD, and have a Harman/Kardon SB16 soundbar beneath it. I'm building my own tv stand which will house the htpc and a xbox360, and also this will be wallmounted (no legs). I'm thinking to mount the power supplies underneath that stand so they won't take up so much space inside the stand. In the wall behind, i'm putting up channels and pipes for electrical wiring, and all of this will end up in the attic. There i'll have my modem/wireless router and a switch. I'll pull down 3-4 Cat5e wires to home theater, for htpc, xbox, tv/sonos and maybe a spare. I'm thinking a optical link from tv to soundbar, hdmi from htpc and xbox to tv. I might put a Sonos in the loft also, and pull a digital coaxial to the soundbar, and i'll be putting a WD MyBook Live 3TB NAS up there.
HTPC
- Streacom F1C - Neat little case
- PicoPSU 160W or Iwill IWI-H33 160W
- Intel 520 SSD 120GB
- Corsair Vengance DDR3 2x4GB 1600MHz Low profile
- Samsung Mini Bluetooth Keyboard - I really like this one, but i miss a matching BT mouse. Samsung's are not BT.
- Western Digital My Book Live 3TB
- MoBo and CPU, not yet decided, but i'll probably wait for Ivy Bridge on either Asus, Gigabyte or Zotac i guess, one with Intel 4000 GPU. Is H77 the most suiting chipset? has to be mITX. I don't think i'll be having a DVB card, i'll be streaming content exclusively. The case also sports a slim optical drive slot, but i think discs are old fashion...hmm.
Other stuff
In the attic, i want to put one or two Sonos Connect:Amp (ZP120), one for outside and maybe one for the bathroom, i'll do that later on when i replace the bathroom. However, i have a hard time finding out which outdoor speakers that will match the power of the Sonos Amp. I might also have a Sonos Connect (ZP80) in the attic connected to the soundbar in my livingroom, but i'm not sure if it's necessary.
To sum this up, i want minimalistic but potent equipment, like a soundbar instead of surround. The pros are that the ir receiver is in the bar, and not an amp in the tv stand. I want the tv stand to be closed to hide the stuff inside it. Btw, i'm replacing all of the electrical installation in the house, a lot of walls and have good access to the attic, so if there is anything i should consider, let me know Final questions:
- Bluetooth mouse, one that looks ok, black, and not in itty bitty tiny size.
- MoBo and CPU? Not certain yet, but i have an idea on Ivy Bridge.
- Outdoor speakers for a Sonos Connect:Amp (ZP120), have NO idea, lol.
Looks like i failed on the short part, lol. I'm not on a strict budget, but i'm not throwing money out the window either. Any ideas for improvements and other cool suggestions are very welcome