Topic: Share your HTPC Setup

[agmjr]

sirs tanong lang po.  i have a creative SB audigy soundcard that is supposed to be 6.1.  I tried to connect it to my avr (yamaha rxv750) by way of coax pero stero lang output nya ( i mean front lang ang tumutunog).  ganun din ang result pag optical gamit ko. same result for the pci card and front drive connections. i am using the speaker test software of creative and it is indicating that signals are being sent to the speakers. ok naman avr ko if i used its test tone function ( gumagana lahat ng speakers). ano kaya problema? compatibility? ty po

[jpadua]

sirs tanong lang po.  i have a creative SB audigy soundcard that is supposed to be 6.1.  I tried to connect it to my avr (yamaha rxv750) by way of coax pero stero lang output nya ( i mean front lang ang tumutunog).  ganun din ang result pag optical gamit ko. same result for the pci card and front drive connections. i am using the speaker test software of creative and it is indicating that signals are being sent to the speakers. ok naman avr ko if i used its test tone function ( gumagana lahat ng speakers). ano kaya problema? compatibility? ty po

ano gamit mo na software for playing DVD? may setup yun, make sure na naka set sya to spdif.

[RU9]

When ripping DVDs to your hard drive, it would be best if you rip at full quality, so you get the exact digital version of the DVD on your HDD.  That will take up a lot of space.  If you rip with compression naman, playing a DVD on the DVD drive would produce better results.

Thanks for the tip.

Louie

[agmjr]

sir jpadua,
thanks for the tip, i havent done that yet but sure enough there is a config in the dvd sw...i am using a version of power dvd that is included in the dvd rom...i will try to hook it up with my avr again...

[ronjet]

Make your own sling box (watch videos on your computer from any internet connected PC)

hi Sir Jay, quick question lang po, what's this "sling box" all about?  thanks.

[jpadua]

sir jpadua,
thanks for the tip, i havent done that yet but sure enough there is a config in the dvd sw...i am using a version of power dvd that is included in the dvd rom...i will try to hook it up with my avr again...

Usually yung soft DVD players na free with DVD rom drives, kulang yung features, baka walang spdif ... pero check mo na rin sa audio setup try to set it to spdif.

[jpadua]

hi Sir Jay, quick question lang po, what's this "sling box" all about?  thanks.

a sling box is a machine (PC based) that you hook up to your Cable, and you can set it up to record TV shows.  Then you can view them anywhere from the internet. Of course the slingbox has to be connected to the internet vial DSL or Cable. 

sling box is getting a lot of buzz... Some people set up sling boxes in the states so that they can view US TV programming from here via the internet.  The sling box is configurable  via HTTP,  so if you have a friend in the states, setup a slingbox over there, and you can watch US TV here.

[et414]

hi guys, can anyone suggest a mobo for the pentium d930? im looking for one with onboard video and spdif. it will be used 70% torrent downloading(and watching)/ 30% gaming. tia! 

[alexg]

hi guys, can anyone suggest a mobo for the pentium d930? im looking for one with onboard video and spdif. it will be used 70% torrent downloading(and watching)/ 30% gaming. tia! 

Try the MSI P4N SLI-FI, I have no problem with it, SPDIF works great and the option to have nvidia's SLI later is great for gaming.

[RU9]

You guys got me thinking into going to HTPC.

Planning to start with this:

DFI ATI RS482 Infinity mATX Socket 939 Motherboard
Features:

    *A finest solution for PC's rich media
    *AMD Athlon 64 X2 CPU(Socket 939)
    *ATI Radeon Xpress 200 RS482 Chipset
    *Integrated ATI Radeon X300 GPU
    *FSB 2000MTps & Dual-Channels DDR400 memory
    *TV-out(HDTV supports)/ VGA/ DVI-D output device,
    the best DVD playback experience
    *Gigabit PCI LAN & 4 x SATA
    *8channels High definition Audio
    *8 x USB2.0 ports

http://us.dfi.com.tw/Product/xx_product_spec_details_r_us.jsp?PRODUCT_ID=4497&CATEGORY_TYPE=LP&SITE=US

Please comment.

Thanks.

Louie

[Philander]

RU9,

That board is very good. But I suggest to get the board that support dual channel DDR2 and the latest Socket AM2. Then get a good video card: Nvidea 7 series or ATI X1300 up.

[et414]

alexg,

thanx for replying, hows the performance of your pentium d? does it give a better pq than an upscaling dvd player when playing divx? i use an oppo and dvd playback is terrific but divx playback looks a little weird.

[ronjet]

a sling box is a machine (PC based) that you hook up to your Cable, and you can set it up to record TV shows. Then you can view them anywhere from the internet. Of course the slingbox has to be connected to the internet vial DSL or Cable.

sling box is getting a lot of buzz... Some people set up sling boxes in the states so that they can view US TV programming from here via the internet. The sling box is configurable via HTTP, so if you have a friend in the states, setup a slingbox over there, and you can watch US TV here.

hmm...INTERESTING  ah...?  how much it will cost to add that slingbox thing?  and... yung PC ba sa states ang kailangan lang may slingbox or both? again sir jay,thanks.

[alexg]

alexg,

thanx for replying, hows the performance of your pentium d? does it give a better pq than an upscaling dvd player when playing divx? i use an oppo and dvd playback is terrific but divx playback looks a little weird.

I have compared my HTPC with upscaling DVD player, and I would prefer my HTPC over upscaling DVD player. I am using Zoom Player pro with ffdshow, avisynth and I have enabled trimension. I hardly use my DVD player now, except for playing DVD-Audio and SACD. 

Using either my Infocus and my Samsung LCD, I get very good PQ.

[RU9]

RU9,

That board is very good. But I suggest to get the board that support dual channel DDR2 and the latest Socket AM2. Then get a good video card: Nvidea 7 series or ATI X1300 up.

Thanks, will look into this.

Louie

[jpadua]

I have compared my HTPC with upscaling DVD player, and I would prefer my HTPC over upscaling DVD player. I am using Zoom Player pro with ffdshow, avisynth and I have enabled trimension. I hardly use my DVD player now, except for playing DVD-Audio and SACD. 

Using either my Infocus and my Samsung LCD, I get very good PQ.

Heya, how did you get trimension working? are you using the older winDVD6 Codec with trimension? To what I know the newer winDVD codecs have locked down the trimension feature to only the winDVD player...if you are using newer codecs, let me know how you did it. Thanks!

[alexg]

Heya, how did you get trimension working? are you using the older winDVD6 Codec with trimension? To what I know the newer winDVD codecs have locked down the trimension feature to only the winDVD player...if you are using newer codecs, let me know how you did it. Thanks!

I was able to find WinDVD6 on the net. The newer codecs will not work. (Lucky for me, I do not use WinDVD so I can have the old version, 6, installed). 

[jpadua]

I was able to find WinDVD6 on the net. The newer codecs will not work. (Lucky for me, I do not use WinDVD so I can have the old version, 6, installed). 

Oh I figured I have 6 also...  But the trimension is not as good as the new one.. lots of artifacts... have you tried watching lightsaber fights with trimension in windvd6? you can see blocks of pixels on the light sabers, the new trimension has fixed the artifacts and is so much cleaner, but has locked out trimension to only the winDVD player

[alexg]

Oh I figured I have 6 also...  But the trimension is not as good as the new one.. lots of artifacts... have you tried watching lightsaber fights with trimension in windvd6? you can see blocks of pixels on the light sabers, the new trimension has fixed the artifacts and is so much cleaner, but has locked out trimension to only the winDVD player

I have tried windvd6 on Star Wars and other DVD's, and I did not remember seeing the blocks of pixels. Anyway, will look for it tonight.

[jpadua]

I have tried windvd6 on Star Wars and other DVD's, and I did not remember seeing the blocks of pixels. Anyway, will look for it tonight.

I notice it when the lightsaber sparks againts each other.. try watching attack of the clones where all the jedis are fighting the droids.. you'll relly notice it there

[doc_koko]

Hi Mr Jay, I'm planning to set up my own HTPC after reading this forum. Looks nice but kinda hard to fix too. so maybe I'll be needing help from the 'experts' and well experienced guys.  I have JVC LT-Z26SX4 for monitor and I've been using this for more than a year as aTV only without realizing it's potentials.

I dont have a set up yet, I'm planning to. Could you give me a 'good' HTPC set up matched for my monitor. Btw, my AVR is Denon 1604. You're here in Las Pinas, that's great! I'm also Las Pineros.  Where can I buy the specs? I'm not also a computer geek but I'm willing to learn. I have shuttle xpc already, still no idea what to put inside. As of now I want the 'best for it'. Then if my budget get short, will adjust accordingly.

Thanks!!!

[alvinthx2]

Has anyone tried HQV Benchmark DVD to test their HTPC?. I am out of the HTPC scene for a long time now and was wondering about its quality today againts the best scalers out there (Iscan vp30 with abt102 deinterlacer, Gennum VPX and Silicon Optix HQV).

If not, is there a suggestion on what software and filters to use as well as their settings so that I can make a head to head comparison?

[nerveblocker]

doc_koko- Welcome to Pinoydvd!  I'm sure you know me already.    HTPC is the way to go coz you have a lot of options as compared to just a DVD in a hometheater.  Your LCD TV needs to be maximized and having an HTPC is the way to go......

Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005

[doc_koko]

Mr. Nerveblocker.... this is bonefixer!  You got me into this, kaya tuloy tuloy na 'to.

[jambam]

My new case...

[nerveblocker]

My Budget HTPC (Fujitsu FMV-C9/190L)

[voj]

My new case...

where did you get this? how much, if you please?  thanks

[jambam]

voj ,

Order thru tipidpc ...5900

[nerveblocker]

Tried hooking my HTPC to my Epson EMP-S3  projector and definitely resolution and video quality kicks the butt out of my Philips DVD player with progressive scan.  I'm happy I made the right decision. 

[alexg]

voj ,

Order thru tipidpc ...5900

How do you order from tipidpc?

Would this case take a full size ATX mobo?