HTPC set up

[FatalityV]

I'm tryiong to do my first HTPC this time round, mainly to play videos from my ehd, in mp4, mkv format primarly (1080p and 720p).

First time building it so not very sure about what build I should go for. Any recommendations for parts? as cheap as possible

 

[coyote]

AsRock B75 ITX + I3 3220, Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced ITX chassis + FSP Hexa 500W psu + 4G Kingston value ram + 500G WD Blue harddisk. Prolink Wireless Laser mouse + keyboard. No monitor. Output straight to your 42" & above Full HD TV(anything smaller than 42", texts are too small to read from Sofa).

 

[saysuzu]

just want to be off topic a bit:
why don't you want to buy a media player instead? nowadays the media player can play a lot of formats

relax, not a discouragement towards you building a HTPC, just want to seek your opinino

 

[coyote]

http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/home-theatre-audiophiles-13/minix-neo-x5-4042108.html

 

[FatalityV]

just want to be off topic a bit:
why don't you want to buy a media player instead? nowadays the media player can play a lot of formats

relax, not a discouragement towards you building a HTPC, just want to seek your opinino

I heard that even though media players are convenient and can play quite a variety of formats, sometimes the soft subs are not in sync, and/or the audio tends to be not in sync since I will be watching TV shows (korean) released by different release groups which encode their shows differently. I'm afraid that some of the encodes might encounter issues with the media player :/ that's why I'm opting for a HTPC instead.

Do I have to go for a i3 processor? would the budget intel processor be sufficient? the pentium g860 for example

 

[koicafex]

nvr encounter any prob after using my media player for 2yrs lo

 

[coyote]

Lol, since you said you dont know korean, so if the voice is not sync well with the sub, you probably cant tell much unless its totally out of sync. Pc and mediaplayer slight different.

 

[coyote]

I recommend i3 because the hardware accelaration of full hd content, whether in flash or html5 is not fully compatible across the board, sadly. In such situation, a powerful i3 will decode and playback with raw cpu power effortlessly.

Same goes to mediaplayer. And like ts said, the codec changes always, no one player can guarantee firmware upgrade always... Except the few like himedia, or may be the new kid on the block, minix.

 

[Shutterbox]

Processors like g2010 can use for hoc? If can, what r th

 

[Shutterbox]

Processors like g2010 can use for htpc full hd bluray viewing? If can, what r the constraints ?

 

[coyote]

Seemed like people does not understand what I meant.

If you have the proper codec & media player installed to enabled the hardware accelerated playback of 1080p video file by the Intel HD2500 gpu, even a slow processor can handle that.

There are instances, for eg, a Full HD video embedded in youtube, you cannot choose which media player to play back, and if your browser + codec + other things isn't fully compatible to enable gpu hardware accelerated playback, it will fall back to the cpu to do the software decoding of the youtube video. If the cpu is too slow, it will not work.

So, getting a i3 is fail safe. Slower cpu than i3 may work in certain situations & may not work in certain situations, you have to try your luck.

I recommend i3 because the hardware accelaration of full hd content, whether in flash or html5 is not fully compatible across the board, sadly. In such situation, a powerful i3 will decode and playback with raw cpu power effortlessly.

Same goes to mediaplayer. And like ts said, the codec changes always, no one player can guarantee firmware upgrade always... Except the few like himedia, or may be the new kid on the block, minix.

 

[antsig30]

Hi,

If I got a old MCE remote control. How do I make it work example for controlling XBMC using the recommended hardware. What extra stuff do I need to get?

 

[t258jgn]

Can use EventGhost software

Hi,

If I got a old MCE remote control. How do I make it work example for controlling XBMC using the recommended hardware. What extra stuff do I need to get?

 

[MoneyFace =p]

Seemed like people does not understand what I meant.

If you have the proper codec & media player installed to enabled the hardware accelerated playback of 1080p video file by the Intel HD2500 gpu, even a slow processor can handle that.

There are instances, for eg, a Full HD video embedded in youtube, you cannot choose which media player to play back, and if your browser + codec + other things isn't fully compatible to enable gpu hardware accelerated playback, it will fall back to the cpu to do the software decoding of the youtube video. If the cpu is too slow, it will not work.

So, getting a i3 is fail safe. Slower cpu than i3 may work in certain situations & may not work in certain situations, you have to try your luck.

Even if hardware acceleration doesn't work Intel desktop processors these days are powerful enough to handle the software decoding workload. Also, a cheap, passive running, lowest end recent gen graphics card + Celeron (which is also cheaper) will do the job just as fine so i don't see the need to spend much more on a Core i3 just to get the full hardware acceleration support. As far as i don't see TS selecting a chassis without expansion card support.

 

[antsig30]

Can use EventGhost software

err...how does the HTPC read the control from MCE remote? Does the motherboard already has the necesscary hardware?

 

[t258jgn]

err...how does the HTPC read the control from MCE remote? Does the motherboard already has the necessary hardware?

You have the USB IR Receiver?

If not, go eBay buy HP USB MCE IR Wireless Receiver.
Can also use with Logitech Harmony

 

[coyote]

Even if hardware acceleration doesn't work Intel desktop processors these days are powerful enough to handle the software decoding workload. Also, a cheap, passive running, lowest end recent gen graphics card + Celeron (which is also cheaper) will do the job just as fine so i don't see the need to spend much more on a Core i3 just to get the full hardware acceleration support. As far as i don't see TS selecting a chassis without expansion card support.

Even the slowest celeron today can do software decoding? Probably it is. But Up till which one? I wont know.

 

[mun]

I'm thinking of getting this Asus EeeBox PC EB1505 to use as HTPC.

Spec as follows:

ASUS - Eee- EeeBox PC EB1505

ASUS - Eee- EeeBox PC EB1505

Is this Asus EeeBox powerful enough to be a HTPC? Advice, pl. Thanks all.

 

[antsig30]

You have the USB IR Receiver?

If not, go eBay buy HP USB MCE IR Wireless Receiver.
Can also use with Logitech Harmony

icic. Thanks for the advice.

 

[quekky]

the Celeron 847 may not be fast enough
found someone cpu at ard 80% playing only 720p. don't think it can play 1080p smoothly

the i3 3220 should be able to, but may not be able to use the best upscale
my i5 sometimes will lag when i on anti-ringing

also unknown is whether any of them can play h265