ruwackd

[ruwackd]

According to the review conclusion on SPCR, I wouldn’t go with the AMD low power quads.  I would look at the regular athlon x4s compared to the i5.  For video encoding the x4 640 seems to be the better choice as its slightly faster than the i5 650 and i5 661 (based on the benchmarks on anandtech found here [url=http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/117?vs=188]http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/117?vs=188[/url] (benchmarks are for the 635 which is at 2.9GHz, the 640 is slightly faster at 3.0GHz) and its $65 and $110 cheaper respectively at newegg. 

[i]The “E” processors total power consumption during our timed benchmarks was only 10% better than the faster 95W and 125W AMD quad cores, and still a ways off from Intel’s Core i5s. They are slightly more energy efficient when idle, but the difference is too small to make a real impact in the grand scheme of things. In addition, the price premium attached to these processors makes them rather poor values; equivalent or better performance can be found in the ~$100 Athlon II X4 635. From what we can gather, the only real selling point of these CPUs
is the lower operating temperature… but then again, most standard AMD processors undervolt fairly well.[/i]

Full review can be found here [url=http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1054-page6.html]http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1054-page6.html[/url]

[ruwackd]

[quote=”Skirge01″]
LOL!  There’s where they went wrong then.  Americans don’t like intelligent, thought provoking shows.  They want their Jersey Shore*, dammit!
[/quote]

So sad, yet so true 🙁

[ruwackd]

If you are running the SageTV server on your WHS, I would recommened installing your bluray drive in the server as you can add the drive as an import path and then the disc than becomes availalbe to any of your SageTV clients (assuming AnyDVDHD is running). 

If you are not using the client to run comskip or showanlayzer for commercial skipping, you could save some money by going with an Athlon X2 instead of the x4.  And to save costs even more, have you looked at the HD300 to see if it will meet your needs?  It handles bluray playback (unencrypted) and hd tv, is extremely easy to install/setup, and is silent.

[ruwackd]

Really looking forward to this and how you’re using Remotefx!

[ruwackd]

[quote=”xjboonie”]
If I wanted a new motheboard that has more PCIe slots, can I use my AMD A64 x2 4850e AM2 CPU in a newer AM3 motherboard?
[/quote]
Unfortunately no.  The backward compatability AMD provides allows AM3 CPUs to be used in AM2 motherboards, not AM2 CPUs in AM3 motherboards.

[ruwackd]

I would agree with you if it was available while the movie was still in theaters but since it is for a time frame between when it leaves the theater and is released on home video I just can’t see paying the same cost for a single viewing vs owning the media in just a few more weeks.

[ruwackd]

That’s frustrating.  I haven’t run into that myself but you could always type the contents of your post in notepad then cut and paste it into the text box to post it.

[ruwackd]

[quote=”robinhoody”]
I’d love to play it…..I’m just afraid if I purchase it I may never see the sun again.
[/quote]

With winter approaching, a standard work day will prevent you from seeing the sun anyway, so that shouldn’t stop you  ;D

[ruwackd]

Not knowing what kind of gaming you’re planning on you may want to look at the PowerColor Go Green 5750.  Uses less power than the standard 5750 (doesn’t require the additional power supply connection) and benchmarks show it does fairly well.  Just need to make sure you have enough airflow.

[url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131346&cm_re=powercolor_5750-_-14-131-346-_-Product]http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131346&cm_re=powercolor_5750-_-14-131-346-_-Product[/url]

[ruwackd]

Its a characteristic of the 120HZ tvs also referred to as the “Soap Opera Effect”.  Looking at your manual, try going into Menu->Picture->Advanced and turning off “LED Motion Plus”

[ruwackd]

Thanks for the answers!  This definitely opens a world of possibilities for the WMC platform especially if softsled ever becomes a reality for these devices. 

Since these would be consumer devices, I would think they would have a hard time selling with the ceton quad tuner as it would cost at least $6-700, but if Ceton released their dual tuner or the Hauppauge/Silicon Dust tuner was used and that system is in the $4-500 range, I think it could provide a lot of competition to Tivo in the consumer market.

[ruwackd]

The 450 is already available on Newegg but based on recent reviews (gaming benchmarks), if you can, it might be worth waiting until October when the new AMD HD6xxx cards are released which should support 3D.

[ruwackd]

1) I assume that these devices will be the equivalent to a Tivo box only running media center.  Will the ordinary home user have direct access to the operating system similar to a standard OS install or will it boot directly into Media Center and the standard consumer will not have a way to access the OS?

2) Mikinho, you state that WS7PWS7C will support cable card, do you know if it supports the HD-PVR as well for satelite users?

3) Does WS7PWS7C  support extenders?

4) Given that it uses the same hardware platform as the boxee box, is cost expected to be in the same $200-250 range?

[ruwackd]

[quote=”Tikker”]
but I think sage sucks donkey balls, so i’m not sure why I’d spend more ?!?
[/quote]
[quote=”Tikker”]
people get so hung up on loving a brand, or hating a brand, that they just seem to forget about right tool for the right job
[/quote]
I guess its always nice to prove your own point 🙂

I never said that there isn’t a market for the apple tv, as i specified before I’d be shocked if many in this hobby would purchase it especially since most want 1080p resolution and the ability to bitstream hd audio.

[ruwackd]

I’ve added my comments below based on the assumption that this will be for htpc/general use only, ie no gaming 🙂

[quote=”SSMI”]
nVidia GeForce GT 240
[/quote]

This isn’t necessary for htpc use as the integrated graphics from nvidia, amd, and intel are all sufficient to handle htpc tasks

[quote=”SSMI”]
Intel core i5-750 2.66 GHz
[/quote]

Again, if this is just for htpc use and even general use the i5 is way overkill.  You can save your self some money by dropping down to an i3 and you’ll get the added benefit of having the clarkdale integrated graphics which is capable of bitstreaming HD audio from bluray discs

[quote=”SSMI”]
Open to suggestion for a motherboard
[/quote]

I’m partial to msi motherboards so for me, I would go with [url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130263&cm_re=h57-_-13-130-263-_-Product]this[/url]

[quote=”SSMI”]
Would like a case like this [url=http://www.directron.com/csdm318.html]one[/url]but am open to suggestions.
[/quote]

I’ve never used that case but there are plenty of cases of that size.  Just be careful that if you do decide to add a video card or tv tuner that you get ones that are low profile otherwise they won’t fit in the case.

[quote=”SSMI”]
Will need advice on a tv tuner eventually
[/quote]

Your tv tuner will obviously be based on what your tv service is (cable, satelite, ota) and which software package you tend to go with.  Currently, Windows Media Center is the only software that currently supports cablecard tuners which allows your pc to tune all of your channels without the need for an external set top box.

[quote=”SSMI”]
Do I need an audio card?
[/quote]
Nope, with the i3 and the h57 chipset, you’ll get audio over hdmi (assuming you’re using hdmi)

[quote=”SSMI”]
When I was looking at this I think the power consumption will be close if not above that of the power supply that comes in the case.  Is it possible to get a better power supply that fits in a case like the one I showed?
[/quote]

Your power consumption shouldn’t be anywhere near using the 275 that comes with that case however you can definitely replace it, you would just need to purchase a flex power supply vs. a standard ATX power supply.

Unfortunatley you will not be able to use the RAM from your old system as both intel and amd now use DDR3 which just recently became mainstream in the past year and a halv. However the cost savings of dropping to the i3 and eliminating the graphics card should more than cover the cost of RAM.

Since you mentioned the issue of available resources, if SageTV fits your needs, then you should definitely look into the possibility of running SageTV on your old desktop and purchasing their new HD300 extender for your viewing location.  For the extender and Sage software ($200), and PlayOn software needed to get hulu and netflix through SageTV ($80), your total cost is under $300 and you have a great foundation that supports tv and bluray for when you add them.  The cost for your htpc would be roughly $430 (Core i3 530 – $115, msi h57 mb – $100, 4GB RAM – $75, Windows 7 OEM license $100).  Depending on how you view it, you can either pocket the additional savings or use those savings to go ahead and add a bluray drive and a tv tuner.  I didn’t include the software costs that would be required in both scenarios ( such as anydvdhd to remove copy protection to rip dvds and blurays).

And if you do decide to go the HTPC route, renethx on avsforum has put together an amazing and helpful guide of recommended systems [url=http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=18816470#post18816470]here[/url]

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