So, after the last sustainability day at McMaster I managed to pick up a new Socket 478 motherboard with a 3 Ghz Pentium 4 for a HTPC
I also found an Asus Socket 775 motherboard and im selling it for 40$. Anyone else using a PC as a home theater?? What is your system like??? Discuss!
My new HTPC specs are:
Pentium 4 3.0Ghz w/ HT (can't wait to overclock!)
2 GB DDR400 Ram
250 + 250 + 160 GB Sata HD (i have 500 GB of avi files)
Asus Xonar DS 7.1 soundcard w/ Optical SPDIF
ATI x1650 XT 256 MB GPU
16x DVD-ROM
400w PSU
It can play every kind of video/dvd/bluray up to 1080p and output 5.1 surround
Pictures:
outside inside
That being said, my old
home theater PC is for sale, 45$
AMD Barton 2500+ (1.8 Ghz, overclocks to 2.1, unlocked multiplier)
Asus Socket A motherboard w/ SPDIF digital audio/5.1 suround
1 Gb DDR333 Ram
80 Gb IDE Hd
DVD-ROM
350w PSU
Windows XP pro
ATI 9800 pro 128 MB AGP 8x
Antec Case
It can play all video files / dvd, except for 1080p (1080p lags a little)... It can game decently as well, CS Source at high settings, Unreal Tournament 2004 on high settings...
If anyone wants me to build them a modern HTPC w/ new components, it can be done for approx 300$ just let me know and we can work something out.
A computer as an HTPC offers far more flexibility compared to a DVD/Bluray/xbox in terms of content and connectivity, also the quality is amazing.
