New here and totally new to HTPC's

[Man-O]

Hey, so hi everyone and i hope that i can get a little help from you all.

I am wanting to build a HTPC and would like to know a couple things..

I want to use it mainly for recording and playback HD.. So, What hardware do i need to be able to do this properly? I have heard that certain cpu's and/or video cards wont playback HD?

Also, the main thing i want..

A nice Media Player type case, with a built in receiver for remote.. i just hate to have the receiver cable hanging out somewhere.. are there any cases like this you all know if that are quite cheap?

[blackjet]

Hello Man-O,

The best thing to do is research, check out some of the system specs of other forum members.
There are many component options with HTPC's
What is your budget?

Regards Blackjet

[Ikeee]

Welcome to the forums Man-O!

I agree with blackjet - browse around and have a look. If you can't find quite what you need, try posting your own thread.

Once you have chosen some parts you might want to check www.staticice.com.au for good prices.

Lastly, remember the search tool is your friend!

[Man-O]

Hey thanks for the replies.. sorry but i thought i was starting my own thread.. anyways..

I have looked around a fair bit, but none of what i see seems to have cases that actually have the IR receiver built in, or say that it does anyways..

Anyways, i will look around a bit more, to see if i can find what i want.. i was mainly just concerned on the points i made in my first post, but if no one can help thats cool..

As far as budget, i would like to keep in under $1000 if that is possible.

[blackjet]

Man-O

HTPC case's with built in receivers will start at about $200. Other forum members may be able to leed you in a better direction for something cheaper.

Here's an example of a case with a VFD with IR receiver.
http://www.i-tech.com.au/products/25...se_Silver.aspx

Regards blackjet

[Man-O]

Thanks for that.. thats what i am talking about. So around that price is ok.. What exactly is VFD? And is having a low profile case make it harder to get TV Capture cards and video cards to fit?

[blackjet]

Originally Posted by Man-O

Thanks for that.. thats what i am talking about. So around that price is ok.. What exactly is VFD? And is having a low profile case make it harder to get TV Capture cards and video cards to fit?

OK VFD is vacuum fluorescent display http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuum_fluorescent_display

You have various low profile case options:

Some cases can take ATX motherboards aswell as MATX motherboards (Mobos), other cases can only take MATX motherboards (Micro ATX Mobos)

so therefore start with what case you are after then get a Mobo to suit that case.

Some low profile cases use PCI and PCIE riser cards that allow full height PCI cards to be inserted horizontally in the case, usually they only have one or two slots to allow this.

An old case I have only allows one PCI card and or one PCIE card to be installed in the case using riser cards .silverstone Lco2 :http://www.hardcoreware.net/reviews/review-221-1.htm
:in Other low profile cases such as the Antec minuet 350 allows up to 4 vertical slots for low profile PCI and PCIE cards to be inserted :http://www.antec.com/pdf/drawings/Mi...echdrawing.pdf

So therefor as I stated in my earlier post there are various options that you need to research before you buy anything.

I reccomend that you start a list of what you think you may buy then post it here and get other members to verify that all the hardware will work together.

Regards Blackjet

[Man-O]

Ok cool,
Thanks for that.. i think i will go for a media centre look case, but nit a low profile one as i want to be able to expand and what not later on..

[Man-O]

Ok, so here is what i am thinking of building, any help or thoughts would be appreciated:

AMD Phenom X4 Quad 9750 AM2+
Elixir 4GB DDR-2 800MHz
Gigabyte M750SLI-DS4 AM2
WD Caviar GP 1TB SATAII 1 CALL
Hauppauge HVR2200 MCE TV Tuner
ASUS 512MB HD3450
Antec Fusion Remote Max HTPC

So, if possible i would of course like to do it as cheap as i can.. I also have no idea about remote Controller..