HTPC Ebook 2014
HTPC Ebook 2014
HTPC Ebook 2014
My Media Experience
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. GETTING STARTED
2. GENERAL LESSONS LEARNED
3. HOW TO BUILD A HTPC
4. HOW TO CONFIGURE IT
5. HOW TO SET UP SOFTWARE
CHAPTER ONE
GETTING
STARTED
Introduction
A Home Theater Personal Computer, HTPC for short, is a
computer connected to your TV which plays media files
(movies, music, and photos) and internet media content.
If you want to reach the full potential of connected home
entertainment, then getting a HTPC is the way to go. HTPC
brings most of the home theater devices into one box.
HTPCs are often smaller and quieter compared to the desktop
computers as they are designed to be used in the living room.
The not-so-silent hum of your desktop PC might not be a
problem at the office, but it can be a significant annoyance to
people in your living room trying to enjoy the movie.
What are the benefits of a HTPC?
- It reduces the number of home theater devices
- It provides a large degree of flexibility
- It has large storage capacity for media files
- It supports many media formats
In this chapter, I will introduce four reference HTPCs that I
currently use in my home:
Starter HTPC
Budget HTPC
Value HTPC
Performance HTPC
CHAPTER TWO
GENERAL
LESSONS 5-13
Silence is golden
Mini-ITX
Micro-ATX
ATX
10
11
12
13
Monitor temperatures
CHAPTER THREE
BUILD IT
LESSONS 14-34
Media Streamers
If getting a HTPC sounds too complicated for you, then another
option is to get a media streamer such as Apple TV, Roku or
Google Chromecast.
These devices allow you to stream content from the Internet
and other computers to enjoy videos on TV. They are not as
versatile as HTPCs, but as streamers, they are good alternative.
If you want to have more flexibility but still dont want to build
a custom HTPC, then you should consider setting up the very
popular Raspberry Pi mini computer or Ouya game console.
Both of these little devices allow you to install media center
software such as XBMC, which allows you to customize your
media experience much more than the commercial media
streamers.
14
Linux-based Raspberry Pi
15
Android-based Ouya
Custom HTPCs
Nowadays, there are all kinds of small media streamers and
smart TVs, so why would you need a HTPC in your living room?
Many of my friends view videos through their Xbox, PlayStation
or Blu-ray player, yet they had no idea what an HTPC was. After
they saw my home theater PC setup for the first time, they
were amazed by what you can do with your TV.
The key reason to build your own HTPC is the flexibility and
quality. You can have exactly the kind of hardware and user
interface you need.
An HTPC is only as expensive as you make it. You can build an
HTPC for less than 300 dollars. You can even build one using old
PC components you might already have. Furthermore, most of
the media center software such as XBMC or Plex are entirely
free. And by the way, they look stunning!
16
17
18
Compatible motherboard
19
20
Stock CPU coolers come free with your CPU, but are often
too noisy for HTPC use. Intel Haswell's S- (power saving)
and T- (thin chasis) models have slightly quieter cooling
fans, but they still are not in par with the best coolers.
I would recommend getting an aftermarket CPU cooler
such as Noctua NH-L9A (AMD), NH-L9I (Intel) or Scythe Big
Shuriken 2 (AMD and Intel) that are designed to be quiet.
It is important to install the aftermarket CPU cooler with
the motherboard outside the case, as the cooler retention
plate mounts underneath the motherboard.
21
22
Often stock case fans are too noisy for the home theater
environment, so I would recommend to use Noctuas
aftermarket case fans.
Usually one case fan is enough in addition to a CPU cooler,
but its good to test with stock case fans to discover how
many fans you need to reach optimal temperature inside
your case.
I would recommend using the low-noise adapter (LNA)
that comes with Noctua case fans to lower the voltage to
make it spin slower and quieter. You can also adjust the
speed of fans from the BIOS settings.
23
A solid state drive (SSD) is the single best upgrade you can
make for an HTPC to improve the speed while making the
system quieter.
An SSD will make your user interface feel snappier, for
example by helping with the loading of 1080p fanarts and
other metadata.
As an additional benefit, your system will boot and shut
down much faster, and the system will just feel much
snappier overall. SSDs are really light weight, so even if
your case does not have a slot for it, you can use an
adhesive tape to attach it anywhere inside the case.
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
CHAPTER FOUR
CONFIGURE
LESSONS 35-38
35
Configure BIOS
36
37
Windows 8.1
38
OpenELEC
CHAPTER FIVE
SOFTWARE
LESSONS 39-50
Front-end software
A lot of people don't see the point in using a third-party media
application when the built-in capabilities of the PC already play
music and videos. The reason that you might want to get the
extra application is both easy of use and superior playback.
The user interface makes a huge difference to the way you view
your media center, so by getting an open source media player,
you are giving yourself more control over what you are able to
watch and how easily you are able to watch it.
Secondly, media centers like the XBMC are able to support
different video and audio codecs, so no matter what your
media is, you should be able to play it without a problem. In
this chapter, I will introduce the most popular media center
software that you should choose as a front-end.
39
40
41
MediaPortal
42
43
Back-end software
Have you ever wondered about creating a media server to link
multiple TVs and to store all the media into a centralized server
(as opposed to a dedicated hard drive)? In this chapter, I will
cover the main back-end software you will need to set up your
own media server back-end to store all your media in a cloud.
Network Attached Storage (NAS) is a media server that can be
accessed over a home network, as opposed to a single
computer access. You can use your HTPC as a back-end as well,
or you can build another computer as a media server.
The main advantage of the NAS server is that you can store all
your media files in one centralized place and then stream the
files to your HTPC or other device. An additional benefit is that
NAS servers often include multiple hard drives, which allow you
to back up and mirror data between multiple hard drives.
44
45
46
47
FreeNAS software
48
Mediabrowser 3
49
50
AnyDVD HD
Final thoughts
Congratulations! If you've made to this point, you're an HTPC
expert who knows more about HTPCs than 98% of other people.
There is always a balance between the price you pay and the
quality you get. The best thing you can do is to only buy what
you really need for HTPC use.
Focus on getting a good-quality case with a 300-400W 80+ rated
PSU, Intel Core i3 or AMD A6 series processor and a compatible
motherboard. Then add 2-4 GB RAM memory, get an SSD as a
system boot drive. You can buy a separate graphics card, quieter
cooling fans and other components later if needed.
I would recommend testing different kinds of media center
software to find out what best suits your needs.
WHAT'S NEXT?
This eBook contains recommendations on optimal components that
are suitable for HTPC use.
I thought it would be helpful to create an HTPC comparison page
that you can always come to for the latest and tested component
recommendations.
Please note that some of the links at My Media Experience are
affiliate links, and I will earn a commission (at no extra cost to you)
if you purchase through those links.
Thank you for supporting my hard work.