[mythtv-users] Advice on Building a Quiet MythTV Box?

[VCRAddict]

At 12:05 PM 11/16/08 -0800, Charles Iliya Krempeaux wrote:
 >
    [snip]
 > 
 > The first thing I'd like a MythTV box (that I would build) to be, is
 > to be quiet.  Completely silent if possible.  Does anyone have any
 > advice or experience in doing this?

Start here:

    <http://www.silentpcreview.com/>

They're positively *obsessive* about mechanical quietness.

Beyond that, if you want a MythTV system to be really quiet in day-to-day
use, then you want to implement it as a "split" system, with the
"front-end" and "back-end" chores handled by physically different systems.
The "front-end" is basically responsible for driving the display, rendering
the sound & images during playback, and providing/managing the GUI.  The
backend is primarily responsible for the recording process -- i.e., the
tuner cards and file storage.  

By splitting the system, you can make the backend as large, ugly and noisy
as it needs to be to do whatever it is you want to do -- up to and
including some *very* ambitious specifications.  For example, in the new
back-end I'm about to build, I'm planning on being able to record a minimum
of four HDTV channels *simultaneously*, with storage for somewhere north of
200 hours of High-Def material -- and that's hardly the most ambitious
MythTV system ever built.  This "monster box" (really, a medium-large
"mid-tower" case will suffice) can then be stashed away in some
non-obtrusive location, like a closet, basement, garage, etc. -- so you
will never hear it from the "media room".  

This also takes the load off the "front-end" system (which *does* need to
be in relatively close proximity to your TV & audio system); so it can be
small, sleek and relatively quiet.

 > Is using SSDs (Solid-State Drives) instead of a Hard Drive an option?
 > (Anyone have experience using them?)

No experience, but my guess is that it wouldn't be worth the trouble.
Presuming a split system, and the use of a suspended/isolated 2.5" laptop
drive (see SPCR for the details) in the front-end box, it should be
effectively dead-silent anyway.

 > What about not having any fans?  (Like no CPU fan, no power supply
 > fan, no graphics hardware fan, etc?)

Fanless video cards are easy.  Fanless cooling for the main CPU is a
Catch-22 -- it can be done, but it will near-certainly lead to a larger (&
uglier) case than you'd really want stuck in your living room.  Ditto for
the main case fan(s) & PSU fans.  That said, there *are* reasonably quiet
PSUs, CPU fans, & case fans to be had; and especially if you *under*-clock
the CPU & memory slightly, you should be able to trim down the fan speeds
to the point of near-inaudibility anyway.  Remember, presumably your TV is
going to be on and making sounds whenever the system is doing anything more
than idling anyway.

 > Does anyone have a list of hardware that is known to work (with Linux
 > and MythTV)?  (Such that I could pick parts from the list?)

Google is your friend:

    <http://www.google.com/search?q=MythTV+Hardware>

 > Also, what considerations are there for video playback?  Is it
 > recommended to get a system that can playback certain video formats in
 > hardware (rather than in software)?  (Like a hardware MPEG player or
 > something?)

Opinions seem to be split on this question.  Mine is:  If you can take
advantage of hardware video acceleration (such as XvMC, for example), you
will want to.  But if you have raw CPU horsepower to burn in your front-end
system, you can also do without it to no real ill effect.

 > And if so, what hardware of this type is known to work
 > (with Linux and MythTV)?

Up until a few days ago, the standard answer to this was "any nVidia
FX5200-based video card".  But as noted elsewhere on the list recently,
nVidia has just announced a new API which should *greatly* expand the realm
of graphic chipsets (including a lot of the newer ones commonly found
integrated onto motherboards) which can effectively use HW acceleration
under MythTV.  I'm not sure when exactly that will actually go from an
announcement to "It's Soup!"; but I would also expect it to be jumped with
a fervor on almost as soon as it becomes available.

 > Also, what output jacks should I be looking for (in people's
 > experience)?  Is RCA (3 plug) output enough?  Or should I go for a
 > system that supports SVideo?  Or do I want a system that support HDMI?

This all depends on what you intend to feed the signal(s) to.  Bear in mind
that neither Composite Video (which I presume is what you meant by "RCA (3
plug) output") or S-Video will ever support any form of "high definition";
and "Standard Definition" is going away in a hurry (at least in the U.S.).
In some cases, you can make High-Def work over Component Video; but to keep
your bases covered, you really want either DVI or HDMI output (the former
is as good as the latter, for your purposes, at least presuming we're *not*
talking about the near-extinct analog-only DVI-A variant).

 >  Or is there some other output jack that I want a system to support?
 > (Note... I'm not an expert on output jacks.)

Again, much depends on the specifics of your other equipment; but I'd
suggest at least one S/PDIF audio output to feed your A/V receiver.
Alternately, at least one set of analog audio outputs to support however
many (audio) channels you want (me, I'm still using plain-old L/R
two-channel stereo, and quite happy with it).

 > Obviously, I'd also like the system to support a remote control.  

Easy.  Lots of ways to do it.  To many variants to get into right now.

 > And have wireless networking support.

Wireless and High-Def tend to not play nicely together.  It *can* be done,
when everything falls together "just so"; but all in all, you'll be a lot
better off running some CAT-5e or CAT-6 cables where you need then, and
being done with it.  Ad far as the NICs, switches, routers, etc., go...
Run-of-the-mill 100Base-TX will be adequate for at least a couple of
simultaneous High-Def data streams; but given how inexpensive Gigabit
Ethernet hardware is these days, it's cheap future-proofing.

 > But is there anything else I should desire in a system?

Loaded question.

That's the beauty (or the problem, depending on how you look at it) of
MythTV.  The possibilities are indeed pretty much unlimited.  And once you
get a taste, you want more... and MORE... and ***M-O-R-E***.  Bwahhh Haaa
Haaa (insert evil laugh here).

Good luck.  And HAVE FUN.