[mythtv-users] First impressions of the SS50

[Jeff McDonald]

I sent a note awhile back about the Shuttle SS50 and promised to share
my experiences with MythTV.  Basically it ROCKS! :)  The video looks
great and the audio is a lot better than I expected, using the default
settings for mpeg4/mp3.  So far I haven't noticed a single glitch, been
recording for about 3 hours, watching the live input the CPU usage is
around 40%.  And I still have a free PCI slot!  Most likely I'll set up
a few cameras around the pad.

After I've had more time with it, I'll put up a page that describes the
experience/setup in more detail, but for those considering the SS50 as a
Myth box perhaps this will be useful.  Sorry if I'm leaving anything
out, it's been a long (but fun) day.

Thanks so much to Isaac, Matt, everyone else working on Myth, and the
posters to the mailing lists :)


Hardware:
Shuttle SS50
P4 2GHz (512KB L2)
512MB PC2100 DDR (Kingston)
200GB 7200RPM 8MB cache (WD)
Generic DVD-rom
Generic 4-input Bt848 capture board
Using on-board sound, video, lan, etc.
Total cost:  ~ $700


Software:
Debian Woody (bf24 kernel)
CVS MythTV
CVS MythWeather


Installation:

Step 1:
Installed Debian via the miniCD here:
http://www.phy.olemiss.edu/debian-cd/
I first tried upgrading from Woody to Unstable but ran into a lot of
problems due to the new gcc/qt 
issues.  Rather than spend a lot of time on this, I just reinstalled
Woody and left it that way.

Step 2:
Installed the SiS650 drivers from this page:
http://www.winischhofer.net/linuxsis630.shtml#download
I just used the precompiled versions he has for Debian, slightly
modified his XF86Config-4 file, and X was running beautifully.

Step 3:
modprobe cmpci to configure sound chip.

Step 4:
modprobe videodev ; modprobe bttv to get the capture board going.

Step 5:
Grabbed the necessary packages from Matt's page:
http://dijkstra.csh.rit.edu:8088/~mdz/debian/dists/woody/mythtv/

Step 6:
Got the latest XMLTV build from debian unstable sources.

Step 7:
Built mythtv && build mythweather (using the easy to follow
instructions)

Step 8:
It just works. :)