[mythtv-users] How buff is enough? - Epia, Myth and DVD burning

[Gert van der Knokke]

myth-lane at dowobeha.net wrote:

>I currently have MythTV working on my 1 GHz AMD desktop system using a WinTV
>250. Unfortunately, the machine is quite loud, and I'd like to build a
>dedicated box that can live in the living room. I'm trying to assemble the
>quietest, cheapest small form factor machine that can do what I want. I'm
>shooting for the USD$350 mark, and I already have the WinTV 250 and the hard
>drive. Here's what my research so far has led me to. I'd appreciate any
>comments:
>
>
>Hardware:
>
>TV card: WinTV 250
>RAM: 256 MB or 512 MB
>Motherboard/CPU/TV-out: VIA Epia ME6000 or VIA Epia 10000 (Nehemiah) 
>Power supply: 70 Watt PW-70A (http://www.mini-box.com/pw-70a.htm)
>Case: Recommendations for cheap & quiet cases welcomed!
>
>Here's what I'd like it to do:
>
>Run MythTV frontend and backend on same machine
>Record one TV show and simultaneously watch a recorded show
>Should be no louder than my VCR 
>Burn a DVD from recorded MPEG2 files
>Pref be able to burn a DVD while recording a different show
>Be able to turn itself on and off based on scheduled recordings
>  
>
My 2 cents worth:

For an all-in-one solution:
Take an Asus Pundit and put in the PVR250 and a DVD burner
CPU suggestion: Celeron 2.4 Ghz (or a P4 if you need to do serious MPEG2 
editing/transcoding etc.)
Harddisk 120 - 250  Gb
256-512 Mb RAM

The powersupply should be able to handle this but the fan might go in 
the 'louder' mode with all things running..

>So, does this seem reasonable? Can all of that be done on a 600 MHz ME6000? If
>not, does the 1 GHz Nehemiah on the Epia 10000 make for a noticably louder
>system? Will the 70 Watt power supply provide enough power? Are the Via drivers
>sufficiently stable for use on a MythTV box? Can anyone verify that the Epia
>boards are supported for Shutdown/Wakeup functionality (I looked through the
>nvram code and it appears to be supported there)? 
>  
>
My second suggestion is to take the 1GHz AMD and make it into a nice 
backend system.
You can add more harddisks in such a big case if you need to.

Use a small Epia system as frontend or better: use a Pundit as frontend, 
take the cheapest Celeron you can find, add some RAM (128 to 256Mb is 
plenty) and a small quiet harddisk.
With some work you can even make this system  netboot from the backend 
and  you don't need a harddisk at all.. which should make a nice quiet 
frontend with all bells and whistles you need (integrated 
LAN/SOUND/VGA/TVOUT/PCMCIA/CARDREADER/USB etc.)
AFAIK the Pundit can wakeup on timer also (haven't tried it yet)

The Pundit costs here in Holland about $150 as barebone (case, board and 
powersupply)

>Wow. OK. That's enough for now. Any and all suggestions and comments are
>appreciated.
>  
>

Gert