United States of America
I have messed with htpcs in the past, using MCE and never really liked it. I settled on turning that pc in to a PVR using Snapstream BeyondTV, so basically it just records my favorite shows and I put them on my server after removing the ads.
For a while now I've been using the little Hauppauge Media MVP box to access my media from my server to watch on my TV, but I've grown tired of its short comings and decided to build a new media center for my TV. Ive built the box, its very simple and the specs of it are in my lil profile, but basically its a mini itx system that hooks to my tv via VGA+3.5 audio, (HDMI when I can get my hands on a mini itx that supports a decent chip and offers integrated HDMI) but after coming across the MediaPortal software I have been very impressed and its now the backbone of my system.
This new box I have built is only to stream media from my servers, I dont really need a TV tuner in there right now, I simply use MP as a front end for the pc to access my servers and allow me to watch my recorded media, music, and use this pc instead of having a stand alone DVD/Blu ray player.
But I have still to settle on a remote, but after doing some searching on the forums here I've come across as many success stories as I have frustrated posts on choosing the right remote. Looking through the config software for MP it seems any of the more recent MCE remotes will work just fine, but as I am running XP Home (not MCE) I was wondering if I would need to resolve any driver issues. Back when I was messing with MCE, driver issues with these remotes were enough to drive you crazy
So assuming I buy an MCE certified remote, plug in the IR USB receiver, and install the required drivers, is MediaPortal set up pretty straight forward?
Beyond that Ive also considered buying a USB IR receiver and seeing if I can get my standard universal remote that came with my Time Warner digital cable box, to work with one of those. I came across some USB dongles such as this or this or evne this little one. Ideally I'd like to continue using my current remote for everything, since all I have now is the tv, the cable box, and the media center PC (i use the dvd player internally), it would be nice to have 1 remote for a change.
So what do you guys think? Is the MCE remotes the best bet and work properly under XP home, or would I be better off gambling a couple of bucks an a USB adapter?
[edit]
Ok well the question is partially answered. I found my MCE 2005 remote that I bought when I was using it, and I was able to get it to work with XP home by extracting the irbus files that I needed for the ehome IR receiver that was included with the remote and keyboard. It was a bit of a pain but I got it to work and so far so good. All the features in MediaPortal work fine and I am able to take advantage of all the features.
Now all I need to do is wait for that damn mini itx case to arrive so I can get the parts off my desk!
For a while now I've been using the little Hauppauge Media MVP box to access my media from my server to watch on my TV, but I've grown tired of its short comings and decided to build a new media center for my TV. Ive built the box, its very simple and the specs of it are in my lil profile, but basically its a mini itx system that hooks to my tv via VGA+3.5 audio, (HDMI when I can get my hands on a mini itx that supports a decent chip and offers integrated HDMI) but after coming across the MediaPortal software I have been very impressed and its now the backbone of my system.
This new box I have built is only to stream media from my servers, I dont really need a TV tuner in there right now, I simply use MP as a front end for the pc to access my servers and allow me to watch my recorded media, music, and use this pc instead of having a stand alone DVD/Blu ray player.
But I have still to settle on a remote, but after doing some searching on the forums here I've come across as many success stories as I have frustrated posts on choosing the right remote. Looking through the config software for MP it seems any of the more recent MCE remotes will work just fine, but as I am running XP Home (not MCE) I was wondering if I would need to resolve any driver issues. Back when I was messing with MCE, driver issues with these remotes were enough to drive you crazy
So assuming I buy an MCE certified remote, plug in the IR USB receiver, and install the required drivers, is MediaPortal set up pretty straight forward?Beyond that Ive also considered buying a USB IR receiver and seeing if I can get my standard universal remote that came with my Time Warner digital cable box, to work with one of those. I came across some USB dongles such as this or this or evne this little one. Ideally I'd like to continue using my current remote for everything, since all I have now is the tv, the cable box, and the media center PC (i use the dvd player internally), it would be nice to have 1 remote for a change.
So what do you guys think? Is the MCE remotes the best bet and work properly under XP home, or would I be better off gambling a couple of bucks an a USB adapter?
[edit]
Ok well the question is partially answered. I found my MCE 2005 remote that I bought when I was using it, and I was able to get it to work with XP home by extracting the irbus files that I needed for the ehome IR receiver that was included with the remote and keyboard. It was a bit of a pain but I got it to work and so far so good. All the features in MediaPortal work fine and I am able to take advantage of all the features.
Now all I need to do is wait for that damn mini itx case to arrive so I can get the parts off my desk!