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    #1

    multimedia pc

    I'd like to build myself a snazzy living room multimedia pc to plug into the telly.

    Requirements:
    - DVD
    - quiet
    - small
    - power saving

    So it is a mini ITX board with a dual core atom all passively cooled and a cool looking case. Thing I am not sure about is whether I need to get one with a separate GPU/graphic card or whether onboard is good enough.

    Anybody out there with experience in that field?

    Many thanks in advance!
    Once your problem is solved please mark the topic of the first post as SOLVED so others know and can benefit from your experience! / FAQ
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    #2
    Re: multimedia pc

    I've done this.

    I would recommend staying far away from Intel GMA450 graphics if you want to use a built in video card. The 3150 model might be better, but go for nVidia if you can.

    IMO for playing videos, a built-in is plenty of graphics power. You might not be able to use 3-d desktop, but who cares? Another plus to the built-in is no extra cooling fan and you can use a smaller case.

    Here's a perfect mobo WITH a remote and a reviewer has already used it with Lucid: NewEgg

    The DVD slot loading or slim-line DVD's are more expensive and less featured than the regular desktop versions. Plan on spending twice as much for one AND needing an adapter for it - unless you go with a case big enough to hold a regular DVD.

    Storage: I use my media box on my home network so storage is not needed. I opted for a bootable 8gb CFII card and a SATA adapter for it. Not the cheapest route, but totally silent - no moving parts. 8gb is twice the space I needed for Ubuntu and XBMC. If you meed more storage and have the $$$ a nice SSD is the way to go. Speed isn't as much of a factor as you'd think so you don't need a blazingly fast one. Both these options are way less power usage, less heat, less space than a conventional hard drive and likely to last longer.

    Case and Power: I opted for a very low profile (no video card) case with a slot loading DVD (that lasted less than a year ) and an external "Brick" type power supply. Advantage here is no PS fan. Disadvantage - corded Brick.

    Also interesting note: The LED's on the case I got seemed normal until it's night time then they looked like blue flames! If your case has them and you like a darkened room consider covering them or replacing them with ones requiring more voltage (thus dimmer).

    Please Read Me
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      #3
      Re: multimedia pc

      Thanks a lot, oshunluvr!

      That info is exactly what I'm looking for!

      I've had a look on ebay here in Germany but I cannot find a mini-itx mobo with a remote and nvidia graphics - intel on-board all the way...

      Got to look into the remote scenario as that is obviously essential but I cannot imagine that to be too difficult. Are there any problems linux wise? I can't imagine but not knowing _anything_ about it I'd be grateful for any hints

      Finally, what OS did you put on? I understand there is a bunch of different stuff out there and I wonder which is the most convenient...
      Once your problem is solved please mark the topic of the first post as SOLVED so others know and can benefit from your experience! / FAQ
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        #4
        Re: multimedia pc

        Currently I'm using Ubuntu but I've tried others. I wanted to use XBMC and it's available in an Ubuntu package. I didn't need KDE and was conserving a little space without it. If you're really into it you can go with MythTV but it's really mostly for TV tuners and I wasn't going that route yet. It's more complicated to set up. I mostly play music, watch ripped DVD's and videos and look at family photos with my setup.

        I use a USB HF wireless keyboard instead of a remote, but eventually want to switch to a regular TV remote. I have even built a USB powered sensor bar and installed the software to use a remote from a Wii. Kinda fun but it needs some tweaking. The remote project for linux is called lirc.

        This company is in the UK if thats better http://www.mini-itx.com/store/.

        Please Read Me
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          #5
          Re: multimedia pc

          Cheers, oshunluvr! I am looking at this little box at the mo. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find a video on youtube to see it working but hey, the price at £50/€60/$70 is tremendous

          Plus I hacked my router so the usb port can take up to nine different devices and reads ntfs and ext3 as well as a printer, so I could use that as my main data centre. Next thing is to put samba on it (the router) but I've run out of space Some more tweaking necessary...
          Once your problem is solved please mark the topic of the first post as SOLVED so others know and can benefit from your experience! / FAQ
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            #6
            Re: multimedia pc

            Nice wireless box! Now if I can get one here...

            Great use of the router also. What model is it?

            Could you mount a thumb drive to hold the samba software

            Please Read Me
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              #7
              Re: multimedia pc

              It is a FritzBox 7170. The firmware hack is made _very_ easy by Freetz (link to their wiki entry). They also have detailed instructions on how to enhance the firmware - it basically consists of downloading a tarball, unpacking it, typing "make", selecting what you're after in the old 2.4 kernel ncurses style, exiting the interface and typing "make" again.

              Absolutely no rocket science at all - and it works

              Anyway, I've since managed to put samba onto it as well - the cost was their little help system which I had to get rid of but that is not a big deal since I never used it anyway. Now I have a proper little file server

              But the irony is - I'm going to move on Monday and the new DSL provider provide their own box... It'll be interesting to see whether it is possible to continue using my hacked version or not
              Once your problem is solved please mark the topic of the first post as SOLVED so others know and can benefit from your experience! / FAQ
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                #8
                Re: multimedia pc

                In theory you will be able to uplink through their router and retain yours. I used to do it with my hacked LinkSys WR54G.

                You use your router as a bridge.

                Please Read Me
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