[mythtv-users] Recovering from Disaster, Rebuild Options?

[Douglas Wagner]

Not to go too far into some of the "fun" I've had over the last week, but
I'm still in the process of recovering from some pretty major corruption
I'm still tracking down.

That said, I'm looking at what I've got right now and I'm not very happy.
I'd like some comments on some questions that'll help me look farther into
the future of my TV architecture.

1) What's the "favored" Tuner for MythTV These days?  I've currently got a
pcHDTV3000 and 5500 in my backend at this point but those seem like "old"
solutions these days.  Is everyone pretty much sporting an HD Homerun at
this point?  Is there something better?  What's considered the "best
option" for a small number of Tuners at this point.  What would you
recommend for someone saying "Hey, I want to build a Myth TV system?"

Backend:  My backend is now running on a Dell Optiplex 740 (AMD X2 5600+)
which is better CPU than I had in my old Backend, but it's running an
integrated graphics card.  The tech specs show "Nvidia Quadro NVS 210S"
(whatever the hell that is) but LSPCI is showing a GeForce 6150 LE
Chipset.  It is an nforce4 based motherboard (I think) so that makes
sense.

The thing does have an open PCI-E x16 slot (both PCI slots are now taken up
by the Tuner Cards) but I wouldn't know what NVIDIA card to throw in there
since the PS (302 w) doesn't have a connector for the power input on a
modern graphics card...and running a new power supply is way out of my
interest level with this box (Dell's are so custom built).

2) Suggestions on a PCIE Graphics card I could throw into this thing to get
rid of the onboard and actually get some reasonable playback?  (It's mostly
a backend but I want it to work as a frontend if/when we're trapped down in
the basement for storms..playback is entirely unacceptable at this point).

Future:

So lets say I network a NAS Storage Device for the house and move all my
drive space to it, and pick up something like an HD Home Run for my tuner.
At that point the ONLY thing the PC is being used for is the CPU, Memory,
Network and Graphics Card.  Could I technically go down and buy a cheap ass
$300 laptop with some low end CPU and Memory and at least run a backend off
it?  I realize HD Playback would be an issue if it's not an NVIDIA or ATI
card in there (which it won't be, it'll be Intel graphics) but even a $300
cheap ass laptop would be about 3 generations of hardware better than what
I'm running my backend on right now.

3) What's the best "oh crap that hardware just died on me what do I do now"
proofing solution for MythTV at this point?  My largest issue seems to be I
run these MythTV boxes till they die and then am looking at the prospect of
a $1000 Desktop to replace it since the hardware is SO out of date by that
point.

Anyone able to help me architect?

--Doug
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