Comments on: Linux as a Home Theatre PC (HTPC) – Installation

By: smulcahy

smulcahy — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:45:45 +0000

On the audio side of things I must admit to being something of a heretic – there’s sound coming out of both sides of the television so I’m more than happy 🙂 Some day I’ll go and play around with home cinema speaker setups but the cable management hassles put me off – and like I said, I’m easily pleased on the audio side of things.

By: Alb

Alb — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 00:48:16 +0000

Yeah, I should have mentioned I’ve no intention of ripping or encoding anything on it or using it as a DVR, so I won’t be using a TV card. The revo can play HD video without breaking a sweat so it will do.

I just need a working torrent client and access to my existing digital media library. My PS3 will be used for any DVD/BD playback. That Ubuntu Element looks interesting, I had not come across that before.

I’m almost certain I’m going to go with the Sony STRDH800 A/V receiver. There are other options but its remote will play nice with my other Sony hardware. You don’t seem to have mentioned any audio setup in your posts – any plans there?

(PS: sorry about the last double comment post, I got an error trying to submit on the other post and wasn’t sure it went through.

By: smulcahy

smulcahy — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 06:18:30 +0000

Hey Albert, thanks for dropping by! The Revo is a nice bit of kit alright although I wonder if the Atom has enough grunt – especially if you want to do any encoding. If you don’t, it should be a good purchase alright. As for what software to go with, XBMC is very nicely put together (but doesn’t do DVR – if thats not a concern for you, I think XBMC is a great choice. You might be interested in trying Ubuntu Element (http://www.elementmypc.com) if XBMC is your thing – I haven’t tried it yet but it has gotten good reviews.

By: Alb

Alb — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:40:31 +0000

I have also reached the conclusion that any kind of media player is just inferior to a proper HTPC. Finally I seem to have found the perfect, cheap PC to fit the purpose: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/182588 there’s also a video that give s anice overview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEc5bZZa06Q

I think I’ll order it within the next few days. I’ve not decided yet what software I’ll stick on but either XBMC on ubuntu or XBMC Live are the most likely.

The low price of the revo will make me feel less guilty about dropping quite a bit more on a proper A/V receiver and speaker setup – the final pieces of my HE puzzle.