sam9s HTPC Project! powered by XBMC!!

[baijuxavior]

^^ 1. No 3D support. You can play SBS 3D files.
2. You can add GPU. But make sure that the cabinet supports GPU.

 

[baijuxavior]

Great news for XBMC users - XBMC Audio goes HD | XBMC

 

[manniraj]

Great news for XBMC users - XBMC Audio goes HD | XBMC

Looks like the same developer who gave the HD audio patch has done this build. I am using the Dharma edition with the HD audio patch since more than 2 months and it is working flawlessly for HD audio, no issues other than when you pause the movie after a gap of more than 10 min the subtitles does not sync wit the movie. I felt it is a minor issue so I dont pause the movie instead I stop and I can start again from where I left it the last time.

Till the stable build is not ready I will stick to this combination.

Thanks

 

[baijuxavior]

I am currently using the Eden version with HD audio patch. Haven't faced any problem, but I haven't tested HD audio files. Will try this nightly build later.

 

[Driftin' Blues]

Where is the Night skin in EDEN? Earlier i was using this skin but after doing a format (I hate viruses) I cant find it in the addon section.

 

[sixthsense]

Great news for XBMC users - XBMC Audio goes HD | XBMC

Good news for sure. I'm already running eden with HD audio for past couple of months without an issue. But a official stable version would be good. The new audio engine is capable of upscaling existing streams :clapping: . Will anyway wait for the stable ver to release.

 

[baijuxavior]

Just downloaded and installed the nightly build. The main change apart from the addition of HD audio is change in the skin color theme. The startup splash screen now shows just 'XBMC media center'. No version is shown. The movies has now a submenu for 'Sets'. 'Recently added albums' is now also available in 'Music' home window. The application loads pretty fast as before. I am yet to test hd audio decoding.

 

[sam9s]

^^ I hope all the cover arts and download info for the movies remain intact after the upgrade ... ??? or do you have to rescan the entire lib again ... ???

 

[baijuxavior]

No need to redownload or rescan the library. All the movie info and album cover art etc. are untouched. I have even tried eden over a dharma install without losing the movie info.

 

[baijuxavior]

Android users rejoice. Now XBMC can be launched as an application on your set-top-box, tablet, phone, or wherever else Android may be found.

XBMC For Android | XBMC

Those with android hd media players can now try and experience xbmc.

 

[rajadeep]

Great news baiju Bhai ... If this works then I won't need to upgrade from a himedia 900b to a htpc like I was planning ...

 

[sam9s]

Android users rejoice. Now XBMC can be launched as an application on your set-top-box, tablet, phone, or wherever else Android may be found.

This is absolute great News, its still in Beta n Development, but its on the right track ...... For me its gonna do wonders, as I can access my NAS XBMC repository from internet via 3G. I can now use XBMC on my Phone/TAB to have full blown experience of Media watching on the go ........

Really Really excited about it .....

 

[captainrizal]

Just downloaded and installed the nightly build. The main change apart from the addition of HD audio is change in the skin color theme. The startup splash screen now shows just 'XBMC media center'. No version is shown. The movies has now a submenu for 'Sets'. 'Recently added albums' is now also available in 'Music' home window. The application loads pretty fast as before. I am yet to test hd audio decoding.

i downloaded nightly build and installed it with my previous dharma version, all the art work of movie posters are missing. Is there any settings to get those art work back to display? Please help. I tried this one on my laptop before actually installing on my HTPC.

 

[baijuxavior]

Before installing xbmc nightly or alpha version, first backup your movie posters by going to Settings> Video>Library> Export Video Library > Separate. This will backup all your movie details into the same folder as that of the movie. Then install xbmc nightly. It is also recommended to rename your current xbmc folder under program files to say xbmc old. Also backup xbmc roaming folder 'C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\XBMC'. It is under this folder that xbmc stores its database, thumbnails etc. I'm currently using xbmc frodo alpha3 and it works without any problem.

 

[reignofchaos]

Just finished building my second HTPC

Intel Core i3 2100
Scythe Kozuti low profile cooler in an Antec ISK 310 enclosure
Asus P8H77-I
8GB Corsair vengeance
64GB OCZ Vertex4
500GB Seagate Momentus
Sapphire Radeon 6570
Pioneer Bluray burner
Windows 7 + LAV Codecs + MPC-HC.

I'm surprised by the fact that all this hardware is just pulling around 60W at load from the wall. The 150W psu in the case proved to be more than sufficient.

I'm using both the HDMI outs separately - the Radeon HDMI goes to the TV and the Intel HDMI out goes to the receiver. I'm using Quicksync for decoding and the Radeon with madVR for presentation. Machine boots into windows in under 10 seconds. This is faster than most media players and bluray players. Also its dead silent and can't be heard even with the ear right beside the machine.

I'm mostly certain picture quality will be better than an Oppo BD93 that most people pay 500$ for. Would be glad to do a shootout if someone can get one over to my place.

For a computer the size of a shoe box, its bloody fast as well.

 

[manniraj]

Great congrats..

 

[sam9s]

@reignofchaos How much for "64GB OCZ Vertex4" .... BTW 10 sec time must be including POST, coz it should be even less. My desktop with an Intel SSD takes 7-8 sec ... , 3-4 from Hibernate and 1-2 sec from sleep mode, ... In sleep mode its like you press enter and desktop is there ....

 

[reignofchaos]

@reignofchaos How much for "64GB OCZ Vertex4" .... BTW 10 sec time must be including POST, coz it should be even less. My desktop with an Intel SSD takes 7-8 sec ... , 3-4 from Hibernate and 1-2 sec from sleep mode, ... In sleep mode its like you press enter and desktop is there ....

I paid 64.99$+ sales tax for the Vertex4. It was on ID4 sale at microcenter.

Yes it is roughly the time it takes from pressing the power button to having a usable desktop.

The next potential upgrade for this machine is an AMD 7750 Low profile. This is the fastest low profile card you can get.

 

[yuvaraki]

@reignofchaos - Nice Build!! Could you please provide split BOM?

 

[reignofchaos]

You won't get most of the stuff in India. Anyway here's the breakup


Intel Core i3 2100 - 90$
Scythe Kozuti low profile cooler - 40$
Antec ISK 310 enclosure - Rs 4800
Asus P8H77-I - 109$
8GB Corsair vengeance - Rs 3400
64GB OCZ Vertex4 - 69$
500GB Seagate Momentus - Rs 2750 (around 2 years old)
Sapphire Radeon 6570 - Rs 4200
Pioneer Bluray burner - 80$ (This is external in a USB3 casing as it won't fit in the Antec. I can use it in my main desktop as well)
Windows 7 + LAV Codecs + MPC-HC. (Free - I have an MSDN account :lol

Evaluating if I should pick up a copy of AnyDVD HD.

You can build a similar machine for a lot cheaper if you have a case that supports mATX instead of miniITX. The latter means horribly expensive boards - mATX boards of similar config will be around 70-80$ with more expansion options and frills. Also you can fit a faster graphics card without heat concerns. I'm limited to low profile cards as that is all my case will take. You also can get a larger cooler with a bigger fan. The Scythe Kozuti has a horrible mounting mechanism and takes a lot of patience to install. Plus it is quite expensive for the performance. However if you have a cramped case, that is the only cooler that will fit properly.

I'll post some pics of the innards over the weekend when I do some cable management.