How to Build a Powerful Home Theater PC for Less Than $500

 

It used to be an expensive and time-consuming task to custom-build a dedicated home theater PC (HTPC). Here's how to build a tiny dedicated HTPC with Blu-Ray drive, 2 GB RAM, 128 GB hard drive and heatsink for less than the price of most off-the-shelf Blu-Ray players.

Technorati Tags: HTPC,Home Theater,entertainment,audio,computers,Blue Ray

A few years ago, I built an enormous home theater PC that cost about $1200. Because it's on most of the time, it runs too hot, and the fans trying to cool it down are loud, which makes the whole thing sound like a jet engine. My new HTPC, built around Nvidia ION graphics, is outperforming my old PC and has been shrunk down to the size of a cigar box. With some new features such as an internal Blu-ray player and a noiseless heatsink (instead of a loud fan) to absorb and dissipate heat, it streams HD multimedia without flickering or stuttering and it cost less than $500 dollars (and could cost as little as $300).
If you don't want to build your own computer, start with either a bare-bones (preassembled) PC like the ASRock ION 330. The computer is missing a Blu-ray drive, but comes with 320 GB HD and 2 GB of memory all wrapped up in a small, glossy black case.
But if you're a real DIYer, start with separate components, tailoring the PC however you want. The entire building process took me less than 30 minutes.
Heres a shopping list: case, motherboard, RAM, wireless remote, Windows OS and a hard drive. NVIDIA's new ION graphics processor is powerful for integrated graphics. Think of it as a supercharger for the PC's visual performance. It excels at handling full 1080p video with 7.1 surround sound and transcodes video up to 10 times faster than an Atom CPU alone. ION can even handle a few games without choking.

The process begins with the motherboard and case. Start with an ION motherboard like the Zotac ION-ITX and a case like the Travla C287 Mini-ITX Case. The essentials, such as a mini-PCIe Wi-Fi card, an HDMI out and a dual-core Intel Atom 330 processor, are already onboard in the motherboard. The only thing left to do is add RAM and turn it on.

Place the Zotac motherboard into the case using the four supplied screws.

Snap in some RAM. I used 2 gigs of Corsair xms2.

I added a Kingston 128 GB SSD hard drive for speed. And an HTPC wouldn't be complete without a Blu-Ray drive. I screwed an internal laptop Blu-ray drive from Panasonic into the case's supplied tray.

Connect the wires (all three!) and close the case. Attach it to a TV with an HDMI cable and power up.

The rest of the time is spent installing Windows 7 and configuring some applications.
I've kept it very light on software. Kaspersky is my favorite virus-protection software; I install this in every PC I build. Pidgin is my choice for IM client; Libre Office for a free alternative to the extremely expensive Microsoft Office. I wanted to make sure ION could handles some games. I installed Spore (perfectly playable), Call of Duty 4 (I changed most of the settings), and Left4Dead (set everything on low) and it works. TMPGEnc 4.0 Xpress (with Nvidia's CUDA) is fast and straightforward. Now the best software recipe for playing Multimedia is a combination of Windows Media Center, Cyberlink's PowerDVD 9 and Media Player Classic Home Cinema. Windows Media Center does 95 percent of the work playing movies and music files, while Cyberlink's PowerDVD 9 handles the decoding of Blu-ray discs. And as for streaming 1080p MKV files, I rely on Media Player Classic Home Cinema. From music to movies, surfing the web to streaming Netflix, everything is working perfectly. No hiccups, stuttering, loss of audio or overheating. This is the easiest home theater PC you'll ever put together ... until the next breakthrough product comes along!

Logitech’s Harmony Link: Tablets and Smartphones Get Full Control Over Home Theaters

Logitech understands that in the age of the of wi-fi and touchscreens, remote controls are heading the way of the Dodo. TheHarmony Link is their attempt to bridge the gap between traditional IR components and the smart devices in our hands.

The $100 Harmony Link is not unlike thePeel iPhone remote that came out earlier this year. At its core, the Harmony Linki is a hub that works as a middle man between your Android/iOS device and your TV/stereo/Blu-ray player. The Harmony Link takes the wi-fi signal from its control app and turns it into an beam that it blasts at the component you're attempting to control.

When I saw a demo of the Link in action, it worked pretty well. Placed on a shelf below the TV and next to the components, the multi-directional IR blaster built inside the hub could target and control components no problem. Logitech still included jacks for the more traditional single device blaster should there be any control issues.

As for the app, Logitech, like Peel, is moving away from channel surfing using up/down controls or program guides. Instead, they've built an app centered around visuals that emphasizes what's on TV right now. That's not to say you can't find your way to channels using more traditional methods, but it's not the focus here.

There are already some devices (Apple TV, Google TV, Roku) that use smartphones and tablets to communicate directly with a device over wi-fi. The Harmony Link is a glimpse at the future when all devices will function as such. Even if the Harmony Link didn't seem quite as snappy as just pointing an orthodox remote at a device, it definitely proves there are better ways to control your television than what you're doing now. [Logitech]

Klipsch's AirPlay-enabled Gallery G-17 Air soundbar pleases ears sans cords for $530

By Joe Pollicino  posted Jul 20th 2011 4:32AM

No, that's not some oversized Kinect KIRF. What you're looking at is Klipsch's latest soundbar, the Gallery G-17 Air. Seem familiar? If you'll recall, back at CES it was known as the Gallery Studio -- the smallest of three AirPlay-enabled speaker systems the company let us demo at CES. Although not totallynew, its full specs have been revealed and its price re-vamped from $400 to a slightly spendier $530. The bi-amplified stereo rig features four individually powered drivers that aim to deliver full-range sound via two Tractrix-horned .75-inch tweeters (10 watts each), and dual 2.5-inch, 20 watt woofers. Although you'll probably be streaming music over WiFi from iDevices or iTunes, the unit's equipped with USB and 3.5mm inputs should you ever want to plug-in directly or juice-up your battery. There's an ultra-svelte grill-cloth magnetically attached to the front, playback and power buttons on the side, and it also comes with a remote. The system itself sits atop a tempered glass base, but if space is at premium it can be mounted to a wall. The G-17 is set to release this fall, but if your ears are already tingling you'll find more info in the source link below.

Pioneer's SE-CL331 earbuds are just begging to be washed

By Darren Murph posted Jul 9th 2011 6:49AM

The first-ever earbuds designed to be drenched they aren't, but they just might be one of the first to actually be "washable." Sure enough, Pioneer's new SE-CL331 headphones ($59.99) -- available in white, pink and bright blue hues -- can reportedly be "soaked and washed after every sports session without damaging sensitive electronic equipment." Furthermore, they boast a newfangled ear holder that keeps 'em in place while your body's in motion, and there's a two-layer mesh and rubber ring that'll prevent water from seeping in while submerged up to one meter of goop. The built-in 9mm drivers probably won't live up to Westone standards, but then again, you can't exactly take your ES5s into the kiddie pool.