[jameson_uk]

Over the summer Theydon and I (well mainly Theydon ) put a fair amount of effort into updating and sprucing up the main sticky here.

Since then things have moved on a fair bit

• Windows 7 Released
• ATI 5xxx cards released and support HD Audio bitstreaming
• Auzentech HDMI audio card has been released (not that you can get it anywhere)
• Digital Everywhere have stopped production of TV cards
• Pinnacle 7010ix cards are now officially as hard to come by as rocking horse poo
• MCE remotes no longer exist
• MP is approaching version 1.1
• ION Nettops released as potential great small HTPCs
• Geforce 9300/9400 boards just about vanished
• Core i5, i7 CPUs released

Probably a load more too.

So this is a request for help

Could people please go through the sticky and contribute to this thread with thoughts on anything that is out of date and needs removing or updating as well as anything which is new and needs adding.

Any thoughts on how everything is laid out (Not sure whether a smaller thread with more links would be easier to navigate than one with lots of info about everything in one thread with lots of links as well ???)

So please take the time and help out.

Cheers

[Earl_Uk]

There are more Net based TV services. I think this will be a big area of growth in the next few years

[crazyfool_1]

9400/9300 discontinued... some nvidia cards now have onboard audio...just some things I noticed at a quick glance, I'll take a proper look later

[Theydon Bois]

I think I would struggle to recommend a CPU to start with myself.

Thanks to Jameson_UK who must have been reading my mind as I recently have looked through the FAQ to tidy up the info there, let alone update it with new info...

[Earl_Uk]

Originally Posted by Theydon Bois

I think I would struggle to recommend a CPU to start with myself.

Thanks to Jameson_UK who must have been reading my mind as I recently have looked through the FAQ to tidy up the info there, let alone update it with new info...

CPU's are so cheap now, its easy to have a base level CPU for less than £50 anyhitng more for HTPC purpose is only relevant for gaming machines which of course ups the GPU at the same time.

[djcla]

can we have an index which links to the correct post further down the FAQ, and add you HD audio FAQ in there. Please also add a guide for adjusting overscan on Nvidia and ATI cards.

[djcla]

i was also hoping that a link to the my thread which people can add there setups so that when newbies come along asking what kit to buy they can see other peoples specs.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/home-...tpc-setup.html

[Daveybryce]

I can write a extremely condensed version from my 7MC thread if you think that this will help to add to the FAQ. Some screen shots and a little blurb on the built in Windows Media Foundation decoders, a bit on Sat TV setup, a bit on Mediabrowser and a bit on MediaCenter Studio. Then link them to my thread.

What do you mods reckon? I'll write in .txt format to allow for your editing if it would help.

Something else that may be quite useful is a Troubleshooting sticky or Troubleshooting & Tutorials HTPC sticky, I have been around quite a bit of time now to see alot of the same issues pop up constantly. I know people should learn to use the search button, but that wont happen.

Do we know when the new AVF layout is gonna happen. Could be an opportune time to tidy up the subsections as you mods deem fit.

Cheers Guys and I'm here if you need any help

Dave

[simon194]

I would like to just add that the Auzentech HomeTheater HD card can be bought from several online sources in Germany although Atelco Computers usually has them in stock. The downside is because of the Euro exchange rate against the pound it works out a bit pricey.

If you don't mind waiting Kustom PCs can get hold of one.

For owners of Radeon HD5xxx cards, it has been reported that from 20/11/2009 new purchases of PowerDVD 9 Ultra will support bitstreaming HD Audio via HDMI with these cards. The update for existing PowerDVD 9 Ultra users should be released on 27/11/2009.

[virtual22]

Don't know if you want to mention in the Media Browser part of the FAQ that the owner has announced that it is likely any future updates will be charged for although the exact charging mechanism is not yet known.

If someone is thinking of setting up a HTPC this could influence their choice of front end / plug in.

[jameson_uk]

[QUOTE=Daveybryce;10891564Something else that may be quite useful is a Troubleshooting sticky or Troubleshooting & Tutorials HTPC sticky, I have been around quite a bit of time now to see alot of the same issues pop up constantly. I know people should learn to use the search button, but that wont happen.[/QUOTE]
Cheers that was my thought and sort of how I tried to write the HD Audio info as the facts are a little dull

Had been thinking about a FAQ covering "what is x?", "how does y work?", "do I need to bother with z?" type things.

Does anyone have any thoughts on layout? My current thoughts are that we should possibly cut down the amount of info directly in the sticky and have more links? So perhaps only one post on hardware with some high level details and links to more juicy info? Or are people more happy with everything in one place?

My thoughts are there are a couple of topics
hardware
software
configuration
troubleshooting

is there an another obvious topic I have missed?

[jameson_uk]

Originally Posted by Theydon Bois

I think I would struggle to recommend a CPU to start with myself.

Good point. Do people think that a slightly more generic approach might be better? Reminds me of a post a put up a couple of weeks ago about progress in HTPC land and whilst a year or so ago you could not really get much better than a 780G with 4850e procesor we have seen the 9300/9400 boards come and go graphics cards (and probably more importantly codecs and drivers) seem to have come on a bit.

Was thinking that perhaps the basic hardware bit (CPU, mobo, GPU) for non-gaming machines might be something as generic as you need a GPU which supports hardware acceleration (basically any GPU released in the last 12 months) then the lowest powered CPU that will work with the rest of your combo (subject to warning about downloaded files from t'interweb and BBC HD etc)

I am working on the assumption that i5/i7 are overkill for HTPC use when a Pentium Dual Core will still do? what about IGPs, are there currently any available that are suitable for HTPC use? Are the Intel ones still the same as 12 months ago, is 790G just the same as 780G? Is http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=3432&cp=5 still current?

(sorry since I finally got my hardware setup I have not been keeping up...)

[djcla]

refresh rates come up a lot as well

[deepbeep]

+1 for some info on refresh rates, including the state of play with regard to software and hardware support for achieving proper 24p playback. Would be really useful.

A thought regarding CPUs - whilst all that is needed is the minimum processor that can comfortably decode any format you want, I expect many HTPC owners do a lot of video encoding and presumably faster/more powerful CPUs have a significant effect on the speed this can be done?

[djcla]

Black borders on TV when conencted to ATI and Nvidia cards solution

Overscan settings for Nvidia
TV Overscan

ATI Overscan
Media center not really working :(

[Mike_P15]

Originally Posted by jameson_uk

is there an another obvious topic I have missed?

How about a section for things that are known not to work?

Troubleshooting implies that there is a solution that can be found. Sometimes there are things that you just can't resolve.

[Earl_Uk]

I think a Minimum spec would also be good to have.

There is no point throwing loads of power into a HTPC just to watch and record TV.

Id guess Minimum spec req should be somthing like

Freeview / Freesat
PVR 1TB space
Blu-Ray
5.1 Dolby
HDMI output
32bit OS with 2GB Ram

of course this is debatable

[Davyhulme]

Thanks to Jameson and Theydon for working on this. The current one has been really useful for me. Cheers!

I'd like to mention the AMD energy efficient CPUs. 230e, 240e etc. They run at 45W supposedly. And the nVidia 8200/8300 motherboards as an alternative to the 9300/9400 which you can't buy and the ATI 7xx series that don't do HD audio over the HDMI.

Also the Terratec Cinergy S2, Skystar HD2, Twinhan/Azurewave AD-SP400 are one and the same DVB-S2 card.

[jameson_uk]

Originally Posted by Davyhulme

And the nVidia 8200/8300 motherboards as an alternative to the 9300/9400 which you can't buy

Just adding a point here mainly so when I get round to actually doing this I don't forget

The 8200/8300 boards are actually a generation behind the 9300/9400 boards. IIRC is was something like 8 vs 16 pipelines which had a fairly dramatic impact on performance.

and the ATI 7xx series that don't do HD audio over the HDMI.

Not sure I get this never heard of ATI 7xx cards ?

[jameson_uk]

message to self

Correct drivers to get LPCM out of ATI 4xxx (and presumably 5xxx ?) cards

[Davyhulme]

Sorry, I meant the AMD 7-series motherboards - 780G, 785G and 790G.

I know what you mean about the 8200/8300 vs the 9300/9400 but if you can't buy the 9300/9400s anymore, what you gunna do?

From the reviews I read, the differences didn't make much/any difference to decoding video. If it's for games, you can always add a discrete card. My one was about 40% cheaper than the 9400 I was looking at.

[Theydon Bois]

A Jan the 26th bump.

[wolvers]

HD audio bistreaming with the new ffdshow needs adding. DaveyBryce has written the guide for this in MPC-HC already. I intend to write one for 7MC soon.

Also, the post listing in the first post doesn't match.

I should have a look at the TV stuff to see if I should update that too.

[jameson_uk]

One day I will actually find time to do this...

Looks like the Wiki may be coming along so starting to think about replacing the sticky with a set of Wiki pages.

First step is likely to be a copy and paste excercise but comments on the following main areas. Anything obvious missed?

I thinking here in terms of HTPC only. I realise things like PSUs are missing but I am sure we will end up with articles on them in regards to general PC usage and that will still hold true for HTPCs

• Hardware
  • Main gubbins (CPU/GPU)
  • TV Cards
  • Cases
  • Fans
• Software
  • Front Ends
  • Other Software
  • Useful Utils
• Config
  • Codecs
  • Audio
• Troubleshooting
  • Common Problems

[Daveybryce]

I will write up some stuff tomorrow if i get chance and pop it all in a zip/rar file in RTF or Word doc for you moddy type chappies to edit and post as you please.

Let me know preference of file formats.

Cheers

Dave

[PsyVision]

Two recent things I've done/will be doing:

Streaming DVB-T across a network using 7MC and DVBLink.
Custom LED for 7MC status - this is more importantly about getting the parts in the UK as the site it is from is norwegian.

Would these be useful writeups?

[wolvers]

Originally Posted by PsyVision

Streaming DVB-T across a network using 7MC and DVBLink.

Does this work with DVB-S as well?

Originally Posted by PsyVision

Would these be useful writeups?

Yes to the streaming TV thing.

[Daveybryce]

Yep it works with dvb-s/s2. When I first got my TV card back in may or june, technisat hadn't released win7 drivers and this was the only way to integrate TV into 7MC for me and use the 7MC style EPG. basically DVBViewer runs in the background in standby mode almost and then dvblink is the tuner you use not your actual tv card.

Very clever and it also support disceq for motorised dishes.

I would love to see this guide included, however it's a very lengthy process and I believe that DVBlink for DVBViewer provide pretty good instructions which could be added.

[PsyVision]

The guide I followed for setting up DVB-T was quite short but wasn't spot on for a beginner and missed some of the screens in 7MC which might confuse someone starting off. The forum helped a bit too. I gather that DVB-S is more involved but I wouldn't be writing up on that as I don't have a card.

The main reason I suggested it was because I wanted to watch TV around the flat but with only one aerial input. I tried a linux solution which didn't work too well and I didnt want to run MediaPortal, this solution fits nicely into 7MC but there's not much information on it - I only found it because a guy at work who uses a DVB-C card for free Virgin TV uses it.

[Daveybryce]

Psyvision,

could you also include in your guide a method to retrieve the EPG data via internet rather than via satellite. This is where I fell short as I couldn't find a decent program to get the EPG data for UK and had to settle for Satellite EPG which is only valid for the current program you are watching.

I could possibly add to your DVB-T with a DVB-S add one, as I maybe going down this route again once I install a kitchen pc for the missus.

Cheers fella

Dave