Building HTPC Cheap

[wolf39us]

So after discussions with the female, we have decided to pickup playing Dance Dance Revolution again (we both used to play some time ago!)

We are what the cable companies like to call "cord cutters".  We have no cable service at all and rely solely on internet content and streaming video.  

Coupled with a WDTV Media Player (kind of like an Apple TV)

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 I can pretty much stream what I want.  This is obviously a cheap solution ($100).  I've decided to move onto XBMC w/ an HTPC (Home Theater PC).  It's a little more expensive, but it opens the door to a much more customized feel... as well as ability to play some DDR and other games of my choosing.  I've ordered some parts to build the PC and amazed that I came out at only $255!  

Here is what I purchased:

Case:  APEX MI-008  (Mini ITX)

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Motherboard:  GIGABYTE GA-H61N

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Processor:  Intel Celeron G1610 Ivy Bridge 2.6GHz

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Hard Drive:  Maxtor 320gb

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Memory:  1x 8gb DDR3

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I'll update this tread once I receive the parts w/pics :-)

[PickelledEggs]

That's pretty awesome, wolf.

I was trying to do something similar and was going to run mythbuntu on an old desktop I had so I could stream from some of the bootleg tv sites I have, but, the desktop I was given has either a shot motherboard or HDD and it's not worth fixing.

Good to see it doesn't look too expensive to put something like that together!  :)

[PopeyesPappy]

You can save another $15 on your processor at Micro Center.

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Don't be surprised if your HTPC ends up being kind of noisy.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

All that for Dance dance revolution?? Really?  :-k
By the way WDTN is the call letters for a TV station in Dayton, Ohio, my hometown. They really need to know about this debauchery.  [-X

[wolf39us]

You can save another $15 on your processor at Micro Center.

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Don't be surprised if your HTPC ends up being kind of noisy.

The case is fanless, and the PC is low-powered (in comparison to others)

[_Xenu_]

Xmbc is nice. I use it when I want the media center experience. Personally though, I'm also a fan of digital broadcasting. Cable companies don't like me.  

[PickelledEggs]

can you run emulators through xbmc? I never heard of it before today.

[wolf39us]

can you run emulators through xbmc? I never heard of it before today.

XBMC supports a launch plugin that will allow you to create a shortcut "within xbmc" to any executable within your system.

So... in that sense, YES you can run emulators with xbmc :-)

Remember, XBMC is merely a shell that combines all of your media and makes things easier to access via plugins etc

[PickelledEggs]

Hmmm. I'm confused by the website... Is it a complete OS, or is it for running within an OS?

[wolf39us]

It's not a complete os, it's a program... Like windows media center

[PopeyesPappy]

You can save another $15 on your processor at Micro Center.

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Don't be surprised if your HTPC ends up being kind of noisy.

The case is fanless, and the PC is low-powered (in comparison to others)

Yea but OEM CPU cooling fans are noisy as hell.

[Jason78]

You're going to fill that hard drive to bursting within a month.

[sub:1pioibn5](Note to self.  Come back in a month and find out)[/sub:1pioibn5]

[Johan]

You're going to fill that hard drive to bursting within a month.

[sub:33tzupob](Note to self.  Come back in a month and find out)[/sub:33tzupob]

Its definitely not the drive I would have spec'd for that application. Like you said, its going to be on the small side if he's going to store media on it. The 5400RPM speed means its also going to be slow. Its listed as out of stock now so I can't see what he paid for it. If it got it for $20 I could understand choosing it. But terabyte drives that spin faster are so cheap now, its difficult to justify spending much more than $20 on older technology IMO.

Then again if he intends to stream everything from network drives and the 'net then he might do just fine with that drive in that application.

[wolf39us]

I have a 2TB local drive on my main PC and a 3TB NAS hooked up to the router

[Jason78]

I have a 2TB local drive on my main PC and a 3TB NAS hooked up to the router

That's a lot of porn!