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Posted 05 June 2009 - 11:40 PM
Hey i was wondering if any of you all have converted or built your own DVR / media center computers. I have been looking into it and wanted to get some help from experienced people. Thanks for any help you can give.
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#2
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Posted 06 June 2009 - 09:55 AM
I built a media center from stuff I had laying around.
I used the following,
Abit AG8 motherboard
Pentium 4 2.8GHz CPU
2GB [4X512MB] PC3200 DDR memory
Sapphire Radeon X1650 XT 256MB video card
Seagate 250GB SATA hard drive
Samsuing 20X DVD burner
Easy TV Tuner/Video Capture PCI Card [with remote]
Linksys USB wireless internet adapter
I put it all in an unknown brand black & silver midtower case that was handy
[ 1 80mm rear fan,front USB & sound], along with a Lead Power [CWT] 680 Watt power supply [also handy] .
I installed,
XP [SP3]
Win PVR [TV tuner program]
Nero 6
Intervideo WinDVD 6 [Plays DVD,AVI,ETC.]
Magic DVD Ripper [Rip DVD's to get rid of everything but the movie]
Cucusoft DVD converter [Convert DVD's to AVI,take up less space, work as well]
The Win PVR program not only plays TV but I can record TV programs & can also set it to start recording & stop at certain times.
When I installed XP I made 2 partitions on the HD. 1 50GB that has XP & programs, the other the remainder that I put my movies & music on.
[If XP gets a virus or something happens I have to reinstall my nedia on "D" is safe]
I'm not real big on games & it will play more then I'll ever use.
[I do have the CSI series]
Unless you intend for it to be able to play the newest "high end" games a media center doesn't really require the latest greatest hardware.
I got the TV tuner card off of ebay for $20. [delivered]
I have it hooked to cable
It works great & the only issue I've had with it is when I change channels some of them will be B&W for a few seconds before the color kicks in.
Not really a big deal though
I used the following,
Abit AG8 motherboard
Pentium 4 2.8GHz CPU
2GB [4X512MB] PC3200 DDR memory
Sapphire Radeon X1650 XT 256MB video card
Seagate 250GB SATA hard drive
Samsuing 20X DVD burner
Easy TV Tuner/Video Capture PCI Card [with remote]
Linksys USB wireless internet adapter
I put it all in an unknown brand black & silver midtower case that was handy
[ 1 80mm rear fan,front USB & sound], along with a Lead Power [CWT] 680 Watt power supply [also handy] .
I installed,
XP [SP3]
Win PVR [TV tuner program]
Nero 6
Intervideo WinDVD 6 [Plays DVD,AVI,ETC.]
Magic DVD Ripper [Rip DVD's to get rid of everything but the movie]
Cucusoft DVD converter [Convert DVD's to AVI,take up less space, work as well]
The Win PVR program not only plays TV but I can record TV programs & can also set it to start recording & stop at certain times.
When I installed XP I made 2 partitions on the HD. 1 50GB that has XP & programs, the other the remainder that I put my movies & music on.
[If XP gets a virus or something happens I have to reinstall my nedia on "D" is safe]
I'm not real big on games & it will play more then I'll ever use.
[I do have the CSI series]
Unless you intend for it to be able to play the newest "high end" games a media center doesn't really require the latest greatest hardware.
I got the TV tuner card off of ebay for $20. [delivered]
I have it hooked to cable
It works great & the only issue I've had with it is when I change channels some of them will be B&W for a few seconds before the color kicks in.
Not really a big deal though
This post has been edited by fairjoeblue: 06 June 2009 - 10:00 AM
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#3
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Posted 06 June 2009 - 11:51 AM
I don't have a "media center PC" but I have a Hauppauge capture card which gives me TV capability and DVR capability. I have cable (with box) connected.
Don't get fooled by the hype...people have been capturing/editing/recording video on ordinary PCs for some time now, well before anyone thought of such a thing as a "media center PC".
Louis
Don't get fooled by the hype...people have been capturing/editing/recording video on ordinary PCs for some time now, well before anyone thought of such a thing as a "media center PC".
Louis
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