[mythtv-users] Newbie wants criticism of component choices...

[Andrew Close]

On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 15:01:06 +0000, Mark Hood <mark.a.hood at gmail.com> wrote:
<snip>
> My choices:
> Motherboard: Gigabyte S478 Intel 845GV MATX no AGP DDR Audio/Visual/LAN
>         This has 3 PCI slots, and I figure I only need 2 (TV card &
> maybe wireless later)
> Processor: Intel Celeron D 330 Socket 478 256Kb 533FSB Inc Fan
>         2.6GHz, and comes with a fan (which I can replace in the
> future if I find it too loud)
> Case: CoolerMaster ATC-630-B21
>         MicroATX, should be the same as the motherboard :) with 200W PSU
> TV-Card: Hauppage TVR-350
>         The only part I'm truly confident of!
> HDD: Maxtor DiamondMax Plus10 300GB UDMA133
> DVD: Pioneer DVD+-R/RW DualLayer 16x IDE

Hi Mark,
welcome to MythTv! :)

> My questions:
> 1. Is this any good? :)

that's a question only you can answer without giving more detail. 
what do you mean by 'good'?  i'm not trying to be a smart at ss, just
clarifying that it depends on what you want the machine to be capable
of.

> 2. Does anyone with experience of the case know if I need a riser card
> or not? If so, how many of the slots will become unusable?

i don't have this particular case but i do have a similar case:
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=11-119-024&depa=1
mine didn't require a riser card.  sorry i don't have a more
definitive answer for you.

> 3. Am I over-speccing? I would like to think it's future-proofing,
> rather than anything else :)

in my opinion you can't over-spec a machine. :)  you can always find a
use for excess power. it's when you have too little power that you run
into problems.  but since it sounds like you're going for a stand
alone single purpose MythBox your specs look pretty good. (assuming
you're only dealing with SDTV)  you didn't mention how much RAM you'll
be adding.  i think the minimum recommended amount is 256MB; however,
i would recommend 512MB.

> 4. How do I go about getting digital sound out?

doing a quick search i didn't find specs for you mobo.  does it have
an SPDIF connector?  or do you know if the built in audio supports ac3
passthrough?  if it's a newer audio chipset it probably does.  search
the list and various Myth forums for members with similar mobo's.
i use the ChainTech 7NIF2 mobo with built in sound.  it used to have a
built in SPDIF connector, now it's an add-on...

does your mobo have built in tv-out?  since you're buying a complete
system from new parts you may look into a board with an integrated
nvidea chipset that supports tv-out.  they aren't that much more
expensive and that would eliminate the need for the pvr-350.  you'd be
able to get away with a pvr-250 or a pvr-150 if you want to be on the
cutting edge.  it'll save you a couple bucks for future upgrades.

if you search the mailing list or various forums you can find numerous
setups and the pros/cons of each.
do you know what distro you're planning on running yet?
when i set up my box i wanted to a dedicated MythBox that would do
nothing more than be the center of my entertainment center.  since i
didn't want to have to deal with all the installation issues and then
configuration issues that could pop up i went with the KnoppMyth
distro.  if you're new to Linux or want a fairly easy 'out of the box'
setup then KnoppMyth is the way to go.  everything is preconfigured
for you.  the trick is getting hardware that is fairly mainstream;
which isn't really difficult anymore.

ChainTech 7NIF2 mobo - built in audio, video/tv-out, LAN
Athlon XP +2700 CPU
2x256MB dual channel RAM
PVR-250
CoolerMaster ATC-620C-BX1 Case
CoolerMaster RS-450ACL-X 450W PSU with 120mm fan (very quiet and adjustable)

nice setup and worked 'out of the box' with KnoppMyth :)


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