Heres on for ya!!

[MFCGMFC]

how hard is to setup the software?

if i install it all ovbiously it wont all work flawlessly straight away!!

oh just noticed i still need a remote lol

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

 

[wonko]

I use a standard MS remote - Mediaportal understands it better than most compatibles

I only do cable not sat so cant say on setup - on cable mp is easy to setup and under xp at least is easy to get runnign with mdapi/vplug as a softcam (tho my main box runs vista with 2 jokers/floppydtv's I also have a littlee box with uses a softcam - tho so far I havent played with multiple card mdapi setups) - if using sat with hardcams there should be no issues

 

[señor ding dong]

edit - think you wont be impressed with the ati 3200 onboard graphics m8 - however for media playback they can be persuaded to work ok IF you use the drivers installed by vista windows update rather than the ati ones - or just buy a Kustom PCs Asus GF9600GT Silent PCI-E 512Mb *B Grade* instead lol

I'm curious, which problems did you have with the 3200 graphics? I used to use one of these, and I thought it was excellent, certainly for HTPC purposes. The 9600 seems a bit like overkill, unless you plan to use it for gaming, of course. You can certainly get a much cheaper card with adequate 2D graphic powers.

 

[wonko]

stuttering mainly - there's nothign wrong with the hardware - unless you want to do above 720p the 3200 is fast enough -it's the ati drivers - with them in (any version, with or without the reg tweaks) video isnt smooth, theirs ghosting/smear on moving objects etc - in short useless for media playback

yes a simple 8400gs would do the job - only upto 720p tho - it's half the price of the particular 9600gt I mentioned - but the 9600 is a much better more flexible card for ony double the money (gaming, proper HD output , better quality HD outut and decoding - it even looks better lol)

 

[little_pob]

If I'm reading the case discription correctly it takes full size 5.25" drives but you've spec'ed for a laptop drive. Other than that it looks good, just a few general pointers:

Keep an eye on postage - you are currently looking to order from 5 different suppliers. Obviously you are restricted by the case and the DVB cards, but you may find it cheaper to order the rest of the hardware (or equivalents) from one supplier once you total it all up and including P&P.

Keep an eye on the postage costs if using google checkout at aria - they doubled the 'estimated' postage costs last time I went to pay that way, going back a few pages and paying direct got the original estimated postage costs. Also Aria don't have the best rep for customer services so pay by credit card if you can.

The 9600GT is an extended PCB graphics card, the FAQ on the case suggests that it is 'unlikely' to fit. So take a look at a 9400GT or HD4350 if you decide you need the extra graphics processing power at a later date.

Depending on the case layout you may be restricted on the height of the CPU cooler - more so if the PSU mounts above the mobo (effectively working as an exhaust).

 

[wonko]

if you can avoid it you dont want to use any case where the psu is on top of the hsf - heat will rise from the hsf and ramp up any psu fan - leading to more noise (been there done that lol) - and fanless psu's have a fairly narrow operating temperature range eg you must keep the case temp below 30c for most - tho obiously everything is subject to budgetary costraint it's a good idea to design it properly in the first place rather than have to rebuild it in a few months time coz you arent happy with it

 

[señor ding dong]

stuttering mainly - there's nothign wrong with the hardware - unless you want to do above 720p the 3200 is fast enough -it's the ati drivers - with them in (any version, with or without the reg tweaks) video isnt smooth, theirs ghosting/smear on moving objects etc - in short useless for media playback

I have to disagree. You may have had a driver or setup issue, but mine worked fine with 1080p, and every review I've read praises its 1080p capabilities. Ghosting and smearing aren't the kind of problems you'd get from an underpowered card anyway. This could be caused by not syncing the card's refresh rate to your display.

yes a simple 8400gs would do the job - only upto 720p tho - it's half the price of the particular 9600gt I mentioned - but the 9600 is a much better more flexible card for ony double the money (gaming, proper HD output , better quality HD outut and decoding - it even looks better lol)

Yes, the 9600 is an excellent card, certainly the passive version, the one with a fan sounds like a jet engine, but since gaming doesn't appear to be a priority, and that budget does, it makes more sense to stick with the onboard graphics.

 

[wonko]

reviews are one thing - practical user exerience another - and while spending months tryign to solve the problem I must have read posts from literally thousands of people who had exactly the same issues - it' a common problem with ati drivers and always has been - plug in an nvidia card and suddenly all of my "setup issues" disappeared - reinstall and use only the MS drivers and no problem - install the ati drivers - problems back

seems fairly straightforward to me - just rtryign to save the guy months of mucking around if he encounters the same issue - apparently this isnt acceptable behaviour coz u've read reviews saying the 3200 is marvelous -so had I - thats why I bought a board with it on - then found out that they arent quite as good as advertised

mutter...mutter...mutter

 

[señor ding dong]

reviews are one thing - practical user exerience another - and while spending months tryign to solve the problem I must have read posts from literally thousands of people who had exactly the same issues - it' a common problem with ati drivers and always has been - plug in an nvidia card and suddenly all of my "setup issues" disappeared - reinstall and use only the MS drivers and no problem - install the ati drivers - problems back

seems fairly straightforward to me - just rtryign to save the guy months of mucking around if he encounters the same issue - apparently this isnt acceptable behaviour coz u've read reviews saying the 3200 is marvelous

It's certainly acceptable, but like I said, the problems you describe sound like a simple setup issue, as smearing and ghosting have nothing to do with an underpowered GPU. Stuttering can be caused by overheating, as well as certain CPUs that are not properly supported by some older models. I seem to remember 125w CPUs were a problem.

As I'm sure you know, you can find thousands of posts slamming any aspect of HTPC'ing, which more often than not are born out of people's knee jerk reactions to problems they don't fully understand. We've had dozens of posts around here slamming various DVB cards, because people couldn't figure out how to make an ini file to scan with, or configure Vplug to work correctly, or some other issue not directly related to the hardware.

I know for a fact that the GPU on this board is perfectly able to handle 1080p. Whether or not certain models may have conflicting driver issues or setup problems with certain TVs' IVTC and deinterlacing is another matter entirely, but those sort of problems are something you could encounter with virtually any piece of PC hardware.

 

[MFCGMFC]

WOW Lads!! no need to fight over little old me lol

right ok that case seems to be bollox lol

can someone reccomend a case then that would be adequate for the job as i want to order up parts asap!! lol

@wonko
it is cable i'm looking to get into mate, feck sats!!

the link for the cards make it look as if its DVB-S but when ye click it it says they are defo cable cards

TIA peeps

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

 

[little_pob]

I grabbed this case for my sister the about 18 months ago: Extra Value Black Opera ATX Desktop Case 500W PSU (20+4 pin) - Ebuyer

The supplied PSU seems stable enough, but I did replace it for a quieter one on the last rebuild.

Still has the advantage of taking full size cards. The front flap hides a 3.5" bay which I have a fitted a silver coloured card reader in.

It is very much a plastic and steel case though. But as long as you're not sitting 3 foot away from the case or lugging it back and forth to LAN parties you should be fine.

As you want everything passively cooled, you'll need some case fans. Take a look at 2x 60mm Black Case Fan - 4pin Molex Connection - Ebuyer (for the rear as exhausts) and 2x Noctua NF-R8 800 RPM 8cm 80mm Quiet Case Fan SSO on eBay, also Fans, Fans Heatsinks, Desktop PC Components, Computing (end time 26-Jun-09 23:48:45 BST) (for the side, intake by the CPU, exhaust by on the opposite side).

 

[MFCGMFC]

those fans will spin like fook? and cause loadsa noise?

i've just orderd 2 noctua fans using your link mate

btw can i just go ahead and buy those 2 cable cards? or do yous very knowladgeable peeps think i would be better off using differnt cards?

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

 

[little_pob]

I've put those 60mm fans on the parent's HTPC. They're not noticeable more than 2 foot away, and that's before you put any sound through the speakers. (However, as they are 'unbranded' there is no guarantee you'll get the same ones.)

I'm not up on DVB at the moment (waiting for DVB-t2 to come out).

 

[MFCGMFC]

its £307 on ebuyer including delivery everything except the DVB cards

most likely will just plump for them unless anyone has any last minute adjustments to my setup?

TIA

is this remote wha ti'm looking for? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Microsoft-Med...66:2|39:1|72:1690|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

 

[wonko]

thats the one

 

[reggie124]

Case:
iBox Cube Micro ATX PC Case > Maplin

Mobo:
Okobe.co.uk: ASUS 90-MIB5G0-G0EAY00Z - ASUS M3A78 PRO, Motherboard, 780G, 8GB, DDR2 SDRAM

CPU:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4850e 2.5GHz Socket AM2 Energy Efficient 1MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor - Ebuyer

Dvd Drive:
SAMSUNG SLIM 8x DVD WRITER SATA BLACK - Aria Technology £30

HDD(500GB) :
500GB Hitachi SATA-2 P7K500 Hard Drive- 16MB - Aria Technology

Ram:
Arianet 2GB PC2-6400 DDR2 SDRAM - Aria PC

Cable Tv Cards (2x):
HISAT : Satellite equipment and information : Triple-Dragon, GbSat, Twinhan, Visionnet, MVision, Dreambox

still need a PSU is there such a thing as a passively cooled psu?

trying not to have any fans at all if possible

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

mate the Motherboard is full size atx (12 x 9) will not fit in the iBox is micro atx (9 x6)

 

[newm]

i have one of those remotes and they are good have the microsoft ir keyboard as well are you going to watch hd on your system?

 

[little_pob]

mate the Motherboard is full size atx (12 x 9) will not fit in the iBox is micro atx (9 x6)

True, well spotted, but he's now getting a different case that does take full size boards.

 

[MFCGMFC]

yeah i'll be watching downloaded stuff in HD

i have a full hd tv (1080p) so if the graphics can keep up i'll be watching as much HD stuff as possible!! lol

So will i go ahead and order this stuff 2nite?

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC

 

[MFCGMFC]

has anyone used that HISat site to buy from?

is it ok? trustworthy?

Cheers
MFCGAVMFC