I'm taking the plunge...

[itschris]

Well... after waiting more than a year to build an HTPC because I wanted things to shake out a bit, I've decided the time is ripe. I ordered my case, a Thermaltake Mozart case which I think will compliment any system.

I'm trying to decide on a video card. I will eventually want to load up my DVD and Blu-Ray collection to the HTPC to play, so I'm adament about having a way to bitstream DTS-MA and Dolby TrueHD. So.. a couple of questions...

1) What card should I get today or what card should I wait for that's coming out in the next couple of months?

2) I'll be using Windows 7 and I intend to use Windows Media Center as my front end so to speak. When playing back DVD's and Blu-Rays, is it a difficult process? Do you have fiddle with starting up "this" program and "that" program to run in the background, select a bunch settings or can you just go to Movies and click on the thumbnail for IronMan and have at it?

 

[GlocksRock]

Unless you plan to game with your HTPC, I would wait till next month to see if ATI brings out the 56xx radeon cards, since they will cost less and do just fine for HTPC. No reason to believe they won't bitstream just as all the other 5000 series cards do. Plus the upcoming cards should only occupy one slot on the mobo instead of taking up two spaces for the cooling. Running media center shouldn't cause any problems with PowerDVD or TMT 3, as long as you have a good enough PC to run everything. Windows 7 is more efficeint than Vista as well, so that should help you out as well.

 

[krzywica]

Well... after waiting more than a year to build an HTPC because I wanted things to shake out a bit, I've decided the time is ripe. I ordered my case, a Thermaltake Mozart case which I think will compliment any system.

I'm trying to decide on a video card. I will eventually want to load up my DVD and Blu-Ray collection to the HTPC to play, so I'm adament about having a way to bitstream DTS-MA and Dolby TrueHD. So.. a couple of questions...

1) What card should I get today or what card should I wait for that's coming out in the next couple of months?

2) I'll be using Windows 7 and I intend to use Windows Media Center as my front end so to speak. When playing back DVD's and Blu-Rays, is it a difficult process? Do you have fiddle with starting up "this" program and "that" program to run in the background, select a bunch settings or can you just go to Movies and click on the thumbnail for IronMan and have at it?

I would go with the likes of Boxee or XBMC for your front end as WMC is nowhere near as capable or as user friendly as either of these options.

 

[itschris]

I would go with the likes of Boxee or XBMC for your front end as WMC is nowhere near as capable or as user friendly as either of these options.

I've read a lot about different front ends and all seem to have their issues. What I don't want to do is spend 30 minutes adjusting stuff just to watch a movie. If it takes anymore effort to watch a loaded movie other than just clicking the thumbnail then I don't see it as a real benefit to me and it would seem that just using my blu-ray player is no added chore.

I know a lot of people dislike the WMC, but I think it's pretty nice and I find it easy to use once you sorda get the hang of it. The main things though is that Microsoft will undoubtedly continue to update it and make it better especially with the consumer demand for this sort of inegration rising every day.

I'll certainly look into BOXEE and XMBC more. My initial reads of different reviews left me a little dissapointed but I'll certainly rethink it and do some more searching based on your recommendation. I've also looked at SAGE which is nice to.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[itschris]

Unless you plan to game with your HTPC, I would wait till next month to see if ATI brings out the 56xx radeon cards, since they will cost less and do just fine for HTPC. No reason to believe they won't bitstream just as all the other 5000 series cards do. Plus the upcoming cards should only occupy one slot on the mobo instead of taking up two spaces for the cooling. Running media center shouldn't cause any problems with PowerDVD or TMT 3, as long as you have a good enough PC to run everything. Windows 7 is more efficeint than Vista as well, so that should help you out as well.

I don't mind waiting a bit. I'm in no rush and I thinks its just as fun to do things a bit peicemeal. I thought there were new generation cards coming out. It seems like I should just wait for those especially since they are smaller and hopefully won't run as hot.

I'm not familiar with TMT 3, I got all jacked up about the HTPC stuff about a year ago, then sort of became disenchanted because it just seemed like more trouble than it was worth at the time. Now, I really thinik things are coming together. I'm assuming PowerDVD for instance just starts up automatically correct? I'm not giong to have to select, enter, and click a bunch of stuff to play movies correct?

 

[GlocksRock]

Both PowerDVD and TMT 3 will be integrated into WMC once you install them, but as of now only PowerDVD is capabale of bitstreaming the HD codecs, so that would be the obvious choice for now.

 

[itschris]

Both PowerDVD and TMT 3 will be integrated into WMC once you install them, but as of now only PowerDVD is capabale of bitstreaming the HD codecs, so that would be the obvious choice for now.

Perfect. Also, was reading that Netflix has a new add in for WMC now. I was thinking about upgrading my BD player to the new LG model so I can stream movies and get other free content from Netflix. I guess I won't have to do that with the new plug in. I read that it's not super user friendly and seems more like a "beta" version, but appartently new updates are on the way.

 

[krzywica]

I've read a lot about different front ends and all seem to have their issues. What I don't want to do is spend 30 minutes adjusting stuff just to watch a movie. If it takes anymore effort to watch a loaded movie other than just clicking the thumbnail then I don't see it as a real benefit to me and it would seem that just using my blu-ray player is no added chore.

I know a lot of people dislike the WMC, but I think it's pretty nice and I find it easy to use once you sorda get the hang of it. The main things though is that Microsoft will undoubtedly continue to update it and make it better especially with the consumer demand for this sort of inegration rising every day.

I'll certainly look into BOXEE and XMBC more. My initial reads of different reviews left me a little dissapointed but I'll certainly rethink it and do some more searching based on your recommendation. I've also looked at SAGE which is nice to.

Thanks for the feedback.

I tried WMC for a very short while and didn't like it at all. Very dull and boring....

I have also run XBMC for a while and it was very good. Its amazing with different skins such as Aeon.

 

[jinjuku]

Yep, Netflix is in Media Center now.

As far as all the front ends are concerned. They all fall short some where somehow.

I just use VMCE (soon to be Win7 MCE) and My Movies. At some point it has to be 'Good Enough'.

Since my collection is DVD I don't worry about the trials and tribulations of HD content playback. I will wait it out and when MS and the content providers want to get their collective head out of their arse I will then participate.

 

[GlocksRock]

I don't use any front end programs, I just keep all my .iso files in a folder and when I want to watch something, I just mount the .iso and open whatever program I want to use to playback. It's not as fancy as it could be, but it works and I don't have to waste time messing with any other programs. Now with Windows 7's libraries I can see all the .iso files on all my differen't pc's in one folder or "library" which makes it that much easier when I go to mount an .iso

 

[itschris]

Yep, Netflix is in Media Center now.

As far as all the front ends are concerned. They all fall short some where somehow.

I just use VMCE (soon to be Win7 MCE) and My Movies. At some point it has to be 'Good Enough'.

Since my collection is DVD I don't worry about the trials and tribulations of HD content playback. I will wait it out and when MS and the content providers want to get their collective head out of their arse I will then participate.

\

That's kind of my thought as well Jinj. Microsoft has everything to gain by continually enhancing home integration stuff. With the resources they have, I just think Win7 MCE is going to get better and better with each update. The upcoming revised Netflix plug in is supposed to be leaps and bounds beyond the current version.

Having my blu-rays or even my DVD's on my computer is not a huge deal at this point. I really don't mind just slipping a disc into the player. I just don't have that many as of yet. My immediate concern will be re-ripping all my music (still not sure whether to use lossless WMA or lossless FLAC - not sure the pros and cons of each - feel free to comment) and to utilize TV recording and online content playback, as well as putting up the family pics and videos.

Also, just being able to utilzie the TV for normal internet use is helpfull and to be able to use ACCESS and EXCEL when I'm working late at night on the big screen is a plus.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I'm with Glocks on this one.

I like things to be as simple as possible - no front end - no nothing.

When playing back a blu-ray from the HDD, it takes a Double-Click and the movie starts automatically in a few seconds with automatic DTS-HD or Dolby TrueHD.

I don't have to mess with pushing any other buttons or configure anything else after the intial setup, which is simple to begin with.

Why complicate things by doing it any other way?

Step#0:
Install Windows 7 Ultimate, PDVD9 Ultra 2320, Virtual Clone Drive, Any DVD HD, and DVDFab6. Configure PDVD9 to play FULL-SCREEN and Play Non-decoded HD-Audio. Configure Windows to Autoplay PDVD9 for BDs.

Step#1:
Rip the BD using DVDFab6 and rip just the Main movie only with only one Soundtrack (DTS-HD or TrueHD, etc.) as a BD ISO file.

Step#2:
If Step#1 failed, then use AnyDVD HD to rip the entire BD. Then Redo Step #1.

Step#3:
Double-Click on the movie you want to see.

And that is it. Simple as 1, 2, 3.

 

[itschris]

Are you just clicking the file through Windows Explorer? What are you using or what window are you using to see the individual files?

I'm with Glocks on this one.

I like things to be as simple as possible - no front end - no nothing.

When playing back a blu-ray from the HDD, it takes a Double-Click and the movie starts automatically in a few seconds with automatic DTS-HD or Dolby TrueHD.

I don't have to mess with pushing any other buttons or configure anything else after the intial setup, which is simple to begin with.

Why complicate things by doing it any other way?

Step#0:
Install Windows 7 Ultimate, PDVD9 Ultra 2320, Virtual Clone Drive, Any DVD HD, and DVDFab6. Configure PDVD9 to play FULL-SCREEN and Play Non-decoded HD-Audio. Configure Windows to Autoplay PDVD9 for BDs.

Step#1:
Rip the BD using DVDFab6 and rip just the Main movie only with only one Soundtrack (DTS-HD or TrueHD, etc.) as a BD ISO file.

Step#2:
If Step#1 failed, then use AnyDVD HD to rip the entire BD. Then Redo Step #1.

Step#3:
Double-Click on the movie you want to see.

And that is it. Simple as 1, 2, 3.

 

[GlocksRock]

Use windows explorer to view all of your ripped .iso files. You can use virtual clone drive, or daemon-tools to mount the .iso, as long as you have that set to be the default program that opens .iso files, so when you are viewing your files in windows explorer, just double click the movie you wan to watch then it will mount, and automatically launch powerdvd (as long as autoplay is enabled for blu ray) and will fullscreen by itself so long as you set it to. It's really quite simple once you get the hang of it and have it all setup properly. the ripping software is also really easy to use and is updated fairly often, I have yet to not be able to rip any blu ray between anydvd hd and dvdfab.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Are you just clicking the file through Windows Explorer? What are you using or what window are you using to see the individual files?

Yes.

Example:
Double-click on Computer from Desktop.
Double-click on Hard Drive that contains the File.
Double-click on the File.

Simple and easy.

When I want to watch another file, I just double-click on that file. There is no need to Mount or Unmount or anything. Just double-click.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Use windows explorer to view all of your ripped .iso files. You can use virtual clone drive, or daemon-tools to mount the .iso, as long as you have that set to be the default program that opens .iso files, so when you are viewing your files in windows explorer, just double click the movie you wan to watch then it will mount, and automatically launch powerdvd (as long as autoplay is enabled for blu ray) and will fullscreen by itself so long as you set it to. It's really quite simple once you get the hang of it and have it all setup properly. the ripping software is also really easy to use and is updated fairly often, I have yet to not be able to rip any blu ray between anydvd hd and dvdfab.

Yeah, it takes Glocks and me about 2 seconds to watch a BD, right?

It is so simple, my 6 yr old daughter does it daily on her laptop!!!

 

[itschris]

Okay... not that I disagree with you guys at all.... but playing devil's advocate here... I'm thinking about my wife who still can't get the DVD player to work. Wouldn't it be easier just to have the HTPC boot up to the Win7 MCE screen where she could just click MOVIES, then double click the thumbnail of the movie she wants to watch.

My whole big push and excuse to do this is to make it easier for her... that's what I sold her on anyway. I showed her MCE and she seemed to get it pretty quickly. It made sense to her which is why I'm leaning towards that. I can just hear now... why do I have to click on this computer stuff... what's
MY COMPUTER? She really has zero interest in that aspect of it so I'm hoping to make it not just simple, but simple to someone who could care less about this stuff and just wants to watch a movie. She'd rather buy antiques all day from Ebay and play with her family tree on Legacy. I'm trying to get her involved more in this entire integration idea. It's a hard sell I know.

Yes.

Example:
Double-click on Computer from Desktop.
Double-click on Hard Drive that contains the File.
Double-click on the File.

Simple and easy.

When I want to watch another file, I just double-click on that file. There is no need to Mount or Unmount or anything. Just double-click.

 

[krzywica]

I'm with Glocks on this one.

I like things to be as simple as possible - no front end - no nothing.

When playing back a blu-ray from the HDD, it takes a Double-Click and the movie starts automatically in a few seconds with automatic DTS-HD or Dolby TrueHD.

I don't have to mess with pushing any other buttons or configure anything else after the intial setup, which is simple to begin with.

Why complicate things by doing it any other way?

Step#0:
Install Windows 7 Ultimate, PDVD9 Ultra 2320, Virtual Clone Drive, Any DVD HD, and DVDFab6. Configure PDVD9 to play FULL-SCREEN and Play Non-decoded HD-Audio. Configure Windows to Autoplay PDVD9 for BDs.

Step#1:
Rip the BD using DVDFab6 and rip just the Main movie only with only one Soundtrack (DTS-HD or TrueHD, etc.) as a BD ISO file.

Step#2:
If Step#1 failed, then use AnyDVD HD to rip the entire BD. Then Redo Step #1.

Step#3:
Double-Click on the movie you want to see.

And that is it. Simple as 1, 2, 3.

So you guys are telling me that if someone that is computer illiterate comes over to your house and wants to watch a movie they would be able to with no instructions by you? That is my definition of "simple". I don't define "easy to user" by how easy it was to setup. The two are not mutually exclusive. If its hard to setup and easy to use I don't consider that a drawback at all, just as long as its easy to maintain.

If someone came to my house all they would have to do is pickup the remote and choose the movie they wanted via my front end that uses NMTServer (which is extremely easy to use) and press play. No monkeying around trying to find the file location of the image that needs to be mounted, no dealing with multiple drive letters and trying to figure out what movie is on what drive.....easy and simple to USE.

I will admit it took a bit to setup.....

Check it out

http://krzywicki.homelinux.net:88

 

[krzywica]

Okay... not that I disagree with you guys at all.... but playing devil's advocate here... I'm thinking about my wife who still can't get the DVD player to work. Wouldn't it be easier just to have the HTPC boot up to the Win7 MCE screen where she could just click MOVIES, then double click the thumbnail of the movie she wants to watch.

My whole big push and excuse to do this is to make it easier for her... that's what I sold her on anyway. I showed her MCE and she seemed to get it pretty quickly. It made sense to her which is why I'm leaning towards that. I can just hear now... why do I have to click on this computer stuff... what's
MY COMPUTER? She really has zero interest in that aspect of it so I'm hoping to make it not just simple, but simple to someone who could care less about this stuff and just wants to watch a movie. She'd rather buy antiques all day from Ebay and play with her family tree on Legacy. I'm trying to get her involved more in this entire integration idea. It's a hard sell I know.

Exactly my point.

YOU might find it easy to find because YOU built it and you know where everything is. This is an extremely common issue with computer geeks and I am guilty of this at times as well.....we just assume everyone else holds the same knowledge we do and if they don't we deem them idiots. Luckily I have a girlfriend that I can guinee pig the useability of my projects for me.

 

[itschris]

My wife is obsessed with Dark Shadows... the old series and every week she gets two new discs from Netflix. Just about every other night, I need to get the disc up and running. I've showed her a 100 times, but if she has to pick up more than one remote and press more than one or two buttons, she gets all bent about it and complains that it's too complicated. Now I could just take the remote, the bigger, heavier one for the cable box, and beat her about the head and shoulders with it, but I can't take my HT to jail with me. So despite my desire most nights to do so... I refrain and try to understand... just like when she wants me to sit down and watch antique roadshow with her. Kind of the same thing I guess.

I'd really like to remove any "computer" aspect from it because that will be an immediate roadblock. If it's just a pretty blue menu with a little picture that says Dark Shadows, she'll be more than happy to play along with my hobby.