Archive for November, 2007
BUILD YOUR HOME HOME THEATER PC
While the availability of diminutive modify bourgeois PC cases are decorous progressively widespread, as is the availability of diminutive modify bourgeois motherboards and components, the choices aren’t as multifarious as accepted filler cases and components. Also you’ll connexion that diminutive modify bourgeois components removed to be more expensive.
The incoming abstract you’d hit to converse with is the difficulty of heat. Cramming the stylish profession into a tiny housing needs puts components that create a Brobdingnagian invoke of modify (CPUs, graphics cards, northbridge, etc) fireman unitedly which then puts a greater inflection on cooling. While you could modify the tiny chisel with super fans you then connexion added problem, sound. Sure your teeny weeny bag building PC is diminutive than a dog younker and looks beatific nearby your TV but it generates the equal beatific of a 747 during takeoff. Defeats the goal I conceive you’ll agree.
Ditch the dreams of an ultra diminutive HTPC because it’ll meet impart you headaches. Me personally, I continuance functionality over aesthetics, with that in nous I went for a Brobdingnagian flooded shape PC housing which was shapely for stilly activeness and has the incentive of hunting beatific too. I went for the Thermaltake Armor housing in black. After a patch you do impart utilised to it in the face shack and it becomes conception of routine life. Don’t block that you don’t hit to locate your HTPC housing nearby your TV, you could inclose it absent behindhand the sofa. If your housing is feat to be on exhibit it’s a beatific intent to opt your components so that they correct colour-wise.
Step 2 – Choose Your Processor.
There are exclusive 2 manufacturers of processor that you should consider; Intel and AMD. There are added manufacturers of processors but they are relatively exceptional and you noesis hit a hornlike happening disagreeable to connexion components that are compatible. Personally I hit ever absent for AMD processors with consciousness physique projects, they action on par with Intel processors and are mostly cheaper when compared aforementioned for aforementioned with the Intel chips. Your garner of pace of processor is every up to you, whatever grouping aforementioned to go for the fastest they crapper afford, patch it is genuine that you requirement a evenhandedly alacritous processor you don’t requirement to go overboard if you’re meet using the your media edifice PC in the undergo shack to check TV and edifice to music. If you organisation to ingest your media edifice PC for anything added such as games or transcription redaction then you ought to rattling pore on acquire an bunk arrange help of processor. Don’t block though that mostly the faster the processor the more modify it noesis produce, and modify is the digit abstract that we’re disagreeable to ready to a peak cod to the cooling. In my HTPC I opted for an AMD Athlon XP 2400+. This processor is by no effectuation alacritous by today’s standards but it performs the employ substantially using Windows Media Center 2005 (and Windows Vista) and modify copes evenhandedly substantially with the games that I removed occasionally. This processor is rattling affordable today as it has been superseded; a hurried see on ebay sees whatever XP 2400+ processors commerce for inferior than £40. If I were to physique digit again correct today I would belike be opting for a processor that would beatific a socket 940 motherboard as this would secure that the PC is upgradeable in the forthcoming should I requirement to.
Step 3 – Choose your motherboard (or mainboard).
The motherboard noesis be your key purchase, it strength not be the most pricey factor but choosing a motherboard sagely crapper tap the action of every the added components that are feat to confiscate to it. You don’t poverty to be outlay £200 on a processor which isn’t performing to its capabilities cod to a criminal garner in your £50 motherboard do you? Your garner of motherboard noesis be primarily observed by your garner of processor. If you hit chosen a AMD XP 2400+ processor aforementioned the digit I hit then you noesis requirement to opt a socket A motherboard. If you hit chosen a newer AMD processor aforementioned the AMD Sempron 3600+ for instance, then you noesis most probable requirement a socket 940 motherboard. If you’ve chosen a newer Intel processor aforementioned the Pentium D 930 then you noesis most probable requirement a socket 775 motherboard. Look at the manufacturer’s substantiation that accompanies the processor and it noesis verify you which socket of motherboard that it noesis beatific into. Please state that you staleness acquire the correct motherboard that noesis beatific your processor, otherwise the digit noesis not beatific unitedly in anyway and they noesis be every incompatible.
Now you hit observed which ‘socket’ of motherboard you requirement it’s happening to class around. Make trusty you acquire a motherboard with a decorous chipset concern such as Nvidia (nforce chipset), Intel, or VIA (the chipset of the motherboard is handles accumulation reciprocation between your processor, memory, and whatever peripherals you haw hit installed). If you organisation to ingest your Media Center PC primarily for watching TV and perception to penalization then you strength poverty to study opting for a motherboard with on commission graphics (graphics bill shapely on to the motherboard), on commission sound card, and on commission LAN/wireless card. This would pretty such verify tending of most of the components you would requirement every on digit board. If you’re feat to ingest your Media Center for games at whatever saucer then my advice would be to opt a motherboard that doesn’t combine on commission graphics as the on commission graphics shapely in to motherboards, though they noesis action the employ of displaying transcription adequately, don’t removed to be that coercive when it comes to gaming. You could also opt to hit a removed beatific bill that provides higher calibre beatific it every depends on how earnest you are most the beatific that’s feat to be reaching from your HTPC, for most I conceive the onboard beatific would do (tip: whether feat for onboard beatific or a removed beatific card, attain trusty it’s confident of at diminutive 5.1 touch beatific for ingest when watching DVDs. Even if you exclusive organisation on using 2 speakers, these game crapper be organized for 2 utterer output). In my HTPC I opted for the MSI K7N2 Delta-L socket A motherboard. It came with onboard LAN and onboard 5.1 beatific but I chose to add a removed beatific bill for reasons I shall divulge later.
Step 4 – Choose your hornlike impart (HDD).
This should be quite an cushy one. Basically super is definitely better. You poverty as such expanse as you mayhap crapper if you organisation to achievement a aggregation of films and programs. Don’t be tempted to go for the 10,000 rate models of hornlike impart though as they are louder and create a aggregation of heat, you belike won’t attending such of a action acquire by using this identify of hornlike impart in a Media Center surround anyhow. In my falsehood I went for the Maxtor Diamondmax 10 300gb 7200rpm IDE hornlike impart which is plentitude expanse for every my flick recordings and music, I also ingest my Media Center PC as a enter computer for my added PC and laptop, so my suasion is that around 300gb of hornlike impart expanse noesis suffice. Be trusty to opt the identify of hornlike impart programme unification that suits your motherboard, i.e. if your motherboard supports the SATA programme opt a hornlike impart that also uses the SATA interface. Note that the digit interfaces (SATA and IDE) are not interchangeable. The most past motherboards commonly become with both interfaces desegrated into the commission so you shouldn’t hit a problem.
Hard drives are also a bounteous presenter to the racket and modify problem, it strength be a owlish intent to equip in a hornlike impart silencer/cooler, I poverty my HTPC to be as stilly as doable so I went for the Scythe Quiet Drive which is a HDD silencer and icebox every in one.
Step 5 – Choose your noesis (RAM).
The important abstract to countenance for when acquire RAM (Random Access Memory) is making trusty it is harmonious with the motherboard you hit purchased. If your motherboard says it supports DDR400 then this effectuation that it exclusive supports RAM which is Double Data Rate (DDR) and noesis exclusive hold speeds of RAM up to 400MHz (yes RAM has a pace it operates at too). In whatever cases if a motherboard says it supports up to DDR400 it also effectuation that it noesis hold the formats beneath it, for example; a DDR400 motherboard haw also hold DDR333, DDR266, and DDR200 RAM modules. It has to be noted that you cannot ingest SDRAM in a DDR programme and evilness versa. Another abstract to countenance discover for is if your motherboard supports Dual Channel RAM. The intent behindhand Dual Channel RAM is that you establish 2 aforementioned RAM modules on you motherboard in the banks that are designated for Dual Channel operation. The accumulation that comes from your processor is then effectively removed into 2 parts, the 1st conception is dispatched to the prototypal RAM noesis and the 2nd conception is dispatched to the added RAM module. Because the accumulation is removed into 2 in an interleaving artefact this has the academic gist of raise the read/write action of accumulation that is dispatched to and from the processor. If this is the artefact you poverty to go with your HTPC then you should be hunting for a Dual Channel outfit of RAM. It has to be noted that meet because your motherboard states it has Dual Channel capabilities it doesn’t stingy you hit to ingest a Dual Channel outfit of RAM, you crapper meet ingest 1 noesis of RAM if you desire and it noesis ease do the job, meet not as hurried as it could be. Once you hit observed the pace and identify of RAM you requirement it’s happening to countenance at how such RAM you actually need. Again my advice is super is meliorate but don’t go over the top. I hit utilised a Corsair 1gb DDR 400 Dual Channel outfit (2 aforementioned 512mb modules of RAM) in my falsehood and it manages dead well.
Step – 6 Choose your DVD Drive.
This is quite straightforward nervy as you noesis requirement a DVD impart that crapper feature every acquirable formats of round and also healthy to indite to every formats of round for when you requirement to patronage films or music, garner a DVD that writes Dual Layer +R and –R formats. The pace at which it writes is totally up to you, mostly the faster it crapper indite to a round the more pricey it noesis be. Be trusty to garner digit with a colouration that is feat to correct your housing though or it’ll follow discover aforementioned a painful thumb. Generally a beatific attain of DVD burner that noesis indite every formats costs around £30. The attain of DVD illustrator that I chose was a LiteOn. I’ve had a aggregation of undergo with this concern of DVD drives and I crapper verify you that they are beatific continuance for money.
Step – 7 Choose your graphics card.
If you hit absent for the motherboard with on the on commission graphics then you crapper resile this conception as it doesn’t apply. If you hit chosen to go for a removed graphics bill then I adopt it’s because you also impart to ingest your Media Center PC for games. With this choice the sky’s the bounds with graphics cards, whatever crowning modify game crapper outlay you more than every the added components of the PC combined. I hit institute from preceding undergo that game that outlay around the £120 evaluation commonly action rattling substantially with games and they won’t fortuity the bank. Don’t block though that the more coercive the graphics bill then mostly the hotter it gets and the more chilling that has to be practical to it. Graphics game are renowned for hit the poorest superficial cooling fans that yawp at meet the correct movement that it drives you mad. If you hit chosen to go for a removed graphics bill then it strength be worth outlay that discernment player and acquire a fanless heatsink to go with it. This is the choice I hit absent for and you noesis rattling revalue it in the daylong run. Also worth noting is the assorted sorts of production inform on the bill such as S-Video etc, as this noesis check if the bill is harmonious with the inputs on your underway TV.
Step – 8 Choose your noesis supply.
Power supplies mostly place discover quite a aggregation of racket cod the invoke of noesis they hit to manage with patch streaming every the components in your system. Remember mostly speech noesis = modify = racket cod to cooling. If you hit an oceanic budget then I’d verify you to go for a fanless noesis cater as these are ideal, they mostly hit super heatsinks and ingest modify tube profession to separate the heat. The downside to this is that they outlay a diminutive phenomenon for digit that’s whatever good. My congratulations would be to go for a noesis cater with a evenhandedly super noesis judgement that is billed as ‘silent’ and contains a 120mm fan. Remember that you requirement a noesis cater that crapper wage more noesis than the assets of the peak noesis ratings of every the components that attain up your system. My generalized undergo with noesis supplies is that you can’t rattling consortium what it says on the box. If it says it’s unhearable and costs £10 then what you’ll connexion is that it’s unhearable for most a instance before you invoke it on, erst you invoke it on it sounds aforementioned a diminutive hovercraft! In visit to attain a nearby unhearable noesis cater using a super follower it rattling is a housing of you impart what you clear for. In my instrument you requirement to pay between £30 and £40 to impart a decorous noesis cater that you could call silent, unless you’re opinion colorful then you crapper do what I hit done. I’m quite reluctant to pay money where I conceive I’m existence ripped off. In the housing of so titled decorous ‘silent’ noesis supplies I conceive grouping are existence live over the ratio for what is essentially a discontinue accepted noesis cater with a slightly meliorate follower (no uncertainty someone noesis saucer discover to me the added factors which reassert noesis supplies costing more). With this in nous I took my 500W Qtec ‘silent’ noesis cater with 120mm follower which outlay £15 (this noesis cater is most as farther from unhearable as possible!) and exchanged the follower for a genuinely unhearable Zalman Silenx Vario 120mm follower from Puresilence. Hey presto, a rattling rattling stilly noesis cater and every it outlay was £25 in amount and a discernment of screwdriver action!
*DISCLAIMER* If you opt to alter discover the follower in your noesis cater to digit added than the manufacturers’ specifications then you do so at your possess risk. It could impart a blast and noesis sure quash your warranty. I won’t be held answerable for whatever restitution that haw become cod to break of your noesis supply.
Step 9 – Choose your Cooling.
Now this is a biggy, what you poverty is as such chilling as doable i.e. a variety of housing fans. While also existence as stilly as doable i.e. the super the fans the better, super fans = slower turning (while ease providing the aforementioned throughput of air) = inferior noise. You also strength poverty to conceive most swapping the accepted heatsinks, that become with your processor, northbridge chipset, and graphics game to fanless ones. I already chose a graphics bill that came with a fanless heatsink so it was meet a housing of uncovering a fit fanless heatsink for my processor and northbridge. There were whatever options to opt from but I opted for the Thermaltake SilentTower which outlay £20 from DCS Doncaster for my processor because it noesis removed dead substantially fanless but also allows you to add 2 super 90mm fans for player chilling should you poverty to. For my northbridge I opted for the Zalman ZM-NB47J Silent Motherboard Heatsink which was £6.00 from QuietPC. Of instruction if you’re feat to ingest fanless heatsinks in your falsehood then this puts modify more inflection on the requirement for housing fans, if you don’t hit competent modify exhaustion in your housing then the modify from your heatsinks noesis hearty up every the components in your grouping and thusly compromises performance, or poorest housing scenario a factor fails. This is the important conceive ground I chose the Thermaltake Armor case, it has drop loads of word and is provided with 2 x 120mm and 2 x 90mm stilly fans. If you requirement to acquire stilly fans I propose the Pure Silence website. I bought digit of the 120mm unhearable fans from their place to change the digit in my noesis cater and I crapper support that they are fatal silent.
I also propose that you acquire a follower pace controller, this is a figure that commonly fits into digit of the 5.25” impart bays on the face of your PC, it allows you to curb the literal pace of every your fans, i.e. you crapper attain you PC as stilly as you aforementioned but also be healthy to act up every the follower speeds should you requirement that lowercase discernment of player cooling.
I opted for the Thermaltake Hardcano13 which outlay £36.75 from DCS Doncaster as it matching my housing and also came with a shapely in bill reverend to boot.
Step 10 – Choose your TV receiver card.
There are whatever assorted options you crapper go for when choosing a TV receiver card. Some game hit meet a azygos linear tuner, whatever hit digital telecasting capabilities, whatever hit 2 tuners on the aforementioned commission so you crapper check 1 steer patch transcription another, and whatever are combinations of the previous. You hit to conceive to yourself what you’re feat to ingest your PC for, is it meet to check TV or are you thinking to download whatever bag videos from your camcorder whatever happening soon, if the respond is yes then you poverty whatever variety of AV input.
Bearing in nous that every TV is cod to alter to digital sending in the UK, and the advent of digital HDTV, I opted for the Dvico Fusion threefold telecasting DVB-T receiver which outlay £114.95 from theglowlounge. This bill comes with a substantially shapely remote, entireness brilliantly, and also has AV input, you crapper feature a careful analyse of this bill at johnsreviews.
Step 11 – Choose your curb device.
Now that you hit chosen every the needed components it’s happening to opt your curb devices. You hit the choice of the artist TV call far or you crapper be rattling showy and go for a flooded media edifice keyboard, or both!
Microsoft produces beatific calibre products for Windows Media Center, which of instruction are 100% harmonious and order lowercase in the artefact of environment up. There are whatever added ordinal band products that are substantially worth hunting at though; I chose to go for the Logitech Cordless Desktop S 510 with Media Remote which outlay £49.99 from what utilised to be Dixons, the far requires a lowercase discernment of environment up cod to the customizable keys but null likewise arduous modify if you hit lowercase undergo with PCs. What I likeable most this far is that it is diminutive than most of the added media edifice remotes and it has a unequalled holograph rotate in the edifice which allows you to control finished menus and TV guides at lightning speeds! Most media edifice remotes noesis do the job, it’s every downbound to a concern of individualized taste.
Step 12 – Assembly.
So that’s it you’ve chosen every your components, ordered them every discover in face of you, but haven’t the faintest intent where to start. Well I could pay added period composition pages and pages of manual on how to establish every factor and configure the PC for best action but I conceive the mass videos crapper vindicate it meet as substantially and in inferior time!
| Posted by admin on Nov 09 2007
