Upgrading my old PC, to make it a HTPC

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
i am not a gamer but as far as i know 6670(or equivalent) is minimum recommended for playing most games at low settings.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
If you use the PC to surf ,downloading, game and watch movies its a different story then get a HTPC or whatever that is!
But if you just watch movies just get a media player like Asus Oplay WD live or better and attach your HDD and watch movies without paying high electricity bill for no reason. HTPC are archaic.
 
OP
TheLetterD

TheLetterD

Will Power
No thankyou. I want to get a HTPC cuz:
1.Its up-gradable
2. I can get a Blu-Ray drive when prices fall. I wont have to get a HD Media Player + BluRay player
3. I can play a few old racing games at low settings
4. The Video quality would be amazing
5. I have this old PC and ill get a Gaming PC next year, And selling this PC would hardly get me 4-5K. So this is why I am re-purposing it.
6. No format problems. Media Player Classic will play em all.
7. Ill use it for downloading too.
And a media player which gives me all the stuff I listed will cost me somewhere around 8-9k. so why not spend 7k on my old PC? to save 200-300 rs. of electricity? Please.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
Its your wish if Rs 300 to 500 just for electricity is nothing for you to watch movies. That Rs 500 will be Rs 6000 at the year end just for watching movies alone. So if you are comfortable with that go ahead. That Rs 6000 and some more months will get you a separate Blu Ray player and still save from next day for electricity space and wire clutter mess. When these Media Players and the LED/LCD like Samsungs were not there the a HTPC did make somewhat sense but now no more. For example a 43 inch Samsung Plasma for Rs 36500 can recognize a externally Powered HDD of 1TB and can play any format,any dam format. That is the way forward. But Im not telling you to go and pay Rs 36500 for a true Movie experience but to get a Media Player which plays all formats, support flash drives to Ntfs HDD,has WiFi streaMING OPTIONS and makes life simpler and better.


WD TV Live - Rs 6000
Seagate Freeagent Goflex TV - Rs 8200
Asus O!Play Mini - Rs 4400 (New Firmware)
Amkette Flash TV HD - Rs 3990 (Entry Level)

Those are MRP ,could be had for less. I think the first two are with 500GB HDD,not sure.
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
^^just like audiophiles can't be content with Rs.15000 speakers from logitech,F&D,altec lansing,..... similarly those who pursue video quality can not rely on anything other than a HTPC.when one needs custom video renderers,frame rate manipulation,audio clock rate deviation using reclock,deinterlacing algorithms,fancy video codec like 10bit H264(which no hardware player supports at the moment as far as i know & no hope for at least 1-2 years) & such PC/HTPC is the only option.this statement that "HTPC did make somewhat sense but now no more" is completely wrong as far as a videophile is concerned.
 
OP
TheLetterD

TheLetterD

Will Power
I am no Video-phile but I thought re-purposing my old PC would be better than getting a new HD media player+Blu Ray player! And I cant stand the pathetic video-quality from my old DVD player and the Intergrated Graphic chip on my PC. ANND as far as my power consumption goes using many Power calculators even at LOAD the power consumption is roughly 250w. And If i get a good efficient PSU like a Corsair VS450 , lets say it will consume 250w all the time. (I know the actual power consumption is higher but then again it wont be on 100% load all the time). And say I use it 10 hours a week, 40 hours a month(one hour every week day and 1.5 on Saturday and Sunday) and in 4 hours it consumes 1 Unit of electricity which lets say will cost me 5 rs. So Rs. 50 a month? And that is 600 a year. So if I use a media player for 10 years I may be able to buy a blu ray player. LOL
No offence bro but I made the decision AFTER thinking a lot about it! DW! :) And I needed something to play games on for 5-6 months before I get a good PC! Ill upgrade it to an A4 and Crossfire the 6450/or if I get a 6570 Ill get a AMD A6 when my motherboard stops working. And btw the Video Quality on those TVs which can play Videos from a USB drive, is pathetic.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
^^just like audiophiles can't be content with Rs.15000 speakers from logitech,F&D,altec lansing,..... similarly those who pursue video quality can not rely on anything other than a HTPC.when one needs custom video renderers,frame rate manipulation,audio clock rate deviation using reclock,deinterlacing algorithms,fancy video codec like 10bit H264(which no hardware player supports at the moment as far as i know & no hope for at least 1-2 years) & such PC/HTPC is the only option.this statement that "HTPC did make somewhat sense but now no more" is completely wrong as far as a videophile is concerned.

A videophile even in wildest of dreams wont buy a HTPC he would rather buy something like Lumagen Radiance XE-3D and a transport or Ill put it simply, something like a Denon DVD-2500BT/Oppo BDP-95EU.An HTPC is laughable when you compare the picture quality with these mentioned. A videophile with respect to the term will never ever use a compressed format to begin with. I think you mixed up the term Videophile.
Videophile - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 

virajk

Broken In
Sorry to Hijack this thread, I am having no suggestions on my Post in this forum. I would like some attention to be given to it as well, since Ill be purchasing a PC within two days.It happens to be my second post suggesting recommendations on a config.
Here is the link : *www.thinkdigit.com/forum/pc-compon...65995-new-gaming-config-30k-have-psu-gpu.html
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
I know the performance is almost the same, but what about the power consumption? And Temp.?

Since power consumption was one of your valid concern hence I put up my post and an alternative that addresses power consumption to a large extent.


I am no Video-phile but I thought re-purposing my old PC would be better than getting a new HD media player+Blu Ray player! And I cant stand the pathetic video-quality from my old DVD player and the Intergrated Graphic chip on my PC. ANND as far as my power consumption goes using many Power calculators even at LOAD the power consumption is roughly 250w. And If i get a good efficient PSU like a Corsair VS450 , lets say it will consume 250w all the time. (I know the actual power consumption is higher but then again it wont be on 100% load all the time). And say I use it 10 hours a week, 40 hours a month(one hour every week day and 1.5 on Saturday and Sunday) and in 4 hours it consumes 1 Unit of electricity which lets say will cost me 5 rs. So Rs. 50 a month? And that is 600 a year. So if I use a media player for 10 years I may be able to buy a blu ray player. LOL
No offence bro but I made the decision AFTER thinking a lot about it! DW! :) And I needed something to play games on for 5-6 months before I get a good PC! Ill upgrade it to an A4 and Crossfire the 6450/or if I get a 6570 Ill get a AMD A6 when my motherboard stops working. And btw the Video Quality on those TVs which can play Videos from a USB drive, is pathetic.



You use your PC 10 Hrs a WEEK .....!!! You should upgrade and get a HTPC immediately. Forget all the advice I ever gave you.LOL.Actually I went by your Rs 300 or some more calculations of electricity.
Nevermind mate,Get a reliable PSU and add a little bit more money and get a worthy GPU since you are gonna play games in the HTPC !
And about USB playback quality by TVs a lot has changed.Carry an USB with HD material to a store and you will know.But if you playback non HD material on an HD device yes the results would be more than pathetic.
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
A videophile even in wildest of dreams wont buy a HTPC he would rather buy something like Lumagen Radiance XE-3D and a transport or Ill put it simply, something like a Denon DVD-2500BT/Oppo BDP-95EU.An HTPC is laughable when you compare the picture quality with these mentioned. A videophile with respect to the term will never ever use a compressed format to begin with. I think you mixed up the term Videophile.
Videophile - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
i guess you are not familiar with madvr:
madVR - high quality video renderer (GPU assisted) - Page 513 - Doom9's Forum
I've also had a Lumagen Radiance XE (overpriced junk) and iScan Duo, neither of which has stayed in my system too long either.
when it comes to picture quality nothing can match madvr.as you can see some of the people posting in that thread have knowledge about video processing/rendering which can put to shame many so-called professionals/experts.i suggest some light reading only though.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
Seriously you are comparing madVR at this stage to Hi End Blu Ray players picture quality. I would say get your fact together about the issues being faced by "still under development" madVR. It is a plain upscaler mate.Why go so ga ga about it.It faces driver issues and is a hassale for normal user.Are you aware of it 60FPS issues?
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
i am aware & its upscaling ability is what makes it the best.remember not everyone watch full HD videos by buying original blu-rays not to mention that not everything is available in blu-ray(not including the horrible/shoddy upscaled 1080p jobs which are quite a few).for more than 90% of the content usually found on people PC madvr is the best solution(& in case of 10bit H264 only solution).my intention was simply to let you know that people having far more knowledge than most about video processing & rendering & who can post statements like "lumagen is overpriced junk"(link in my previous post where poster had extensively discussed about tweaking LUT's with 10bit output manually) support & appreciate madvr then that means something.of course it also means that "average user" will face issues with madvr but then isn't this true for any area where user has to learn to get the best performance.also as far as drivers are concerned every gamer worth his or her salt knows about this & since madvr also uses graphics card capabilities so it is not madvr's fault & just like gamers there are ways around for such issues in most cases.60fps is not as prevalent as of now & even then most such issues with madvr & 60fps relates to interlaced material & incorrect/improper telecine.again ati scores a bit better than nvidia(6xxx series at least) for most cases.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
Before making irresponsible half baked comments which will for sure mislead people get your facts together...read this *www.hometheaterhifi.com/video-proc...s/lumagen-radiance-xs-3d-video-processor.html


If you call Lumagen junk and a under development buggy Upscaling software great then seriously....on that note....... peace out.

We are getting offtopic rather lets help the OP.
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
i guess you are one of those people who simply don't possess a broad outlook.i gave you link to a post posted by someone who has at least 10 times more knowledge than you regarding video processing & you instead posted a link to article likes of which are dime a dozen on net.just stick with giving advice on audio equipments which i agree you are good at & come back and argue about madvr after you read & understood essentials of video processing like these persons & then perhaps i will take you seriously.

madVR - high quality video renderer (GPU assisted) - Page 488 - Doom9's Forum
*i.imgur.com/LekAc.png

madVR - high quality video renderer (GPU assisted) - Page 572 - Doom9's Forum

and i am helping op by letting him expand his knowledge so that next time he knows how to differentiate between useful knowledgeable advice from just plain copy paste dime-a-dozen article links.
 
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The Incinerator

Human Spambot
Even you posted a link right or did you create it yourself? Did you develop madVR? No. So you too learnt it from those dime a dozen links right. And please refrain from making posts like what I should stick to and what not. It none of your business mate.Lets not fight like kids who knows 10 times more and act like agents as to whose link is better.What is surprising for me is that you are so up in arms for a a mere software based chroma upscaler which is around since 2010 and has issues if you look around the web. That dosnt demean it rather cause it is still a work in progress. Be a bit more responsible fir what you say. Your statements look like as if the Holy Grail of Video world is madVR and hardwares are second rung.Its not the case..... even for madVR to run you need a proper GPU ,and not mere onboard to really shine. Tell me how many user will actually go in and care to check their deinterlacing, noise reduction, edge enhancement and other post processing steps,since madVr dosnt do it on its own. Before madVR starts rendering these need to be done.Its a replacement for EVR and not a revolution,the way you are projecting it.Do I Find it good? Subtly yes over EVR but only on my Sony NX series LED otherwise ,NO if you dont have a capable display you wont even notice the difference,it looks the same on my Samsung Plasma indistinguishable whether its EVR or madVR.But when its compared to even a Denon 29,900 UD player playing a downlaoded film in terms of picture quality even in DIVX it will fall flat and die.Go to ProFX and check the Denon or a Pioneer which takes in even more formats and recognizes HDDs and upscales with even better chips and algorithms which are stable. madVR is a deinterlacer /"upscaler"/renderer and they are flawed in the term itself,even for non purists.

Do I like EVR ,haali, madVR yes , will sell my kidney for madVR, hell no!
 
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whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
my issue is not with proving superiority of madvr over hardware but your "my way or highway" tone.this kind of tone befits only those who have the necessary qualifications which both you & i know neither of us possess(assuming you don't have a Phd in electronics from MIT).i am more than willing to change my point of view if you can prove your points in madvr thread discussing it with "professionals/experts" who use $2500 calorimeters to attain perfect color accuracy using madvr but until then refrain from making statements like "even in DIVX it will fall flat and die"(btw which person here uses $3000 denon i am really interested to know).i don't have any problem with your preference for hardware upscaling & as long as you present your statement as your personal view i will not contradict you.
 

The Incinerator

Human Spambot
Okay mate see...

Is madVR good when set up properly with MPC-HC and LAV filters and Haali splitter and cuda extensions to the lavs ,yes definitely.Its way better than the VLC or the likes renders.The blacks are deep, the Colors are not washed out, the picture is sharp (little artifacts)...I myself use that set up.....but trust me when you use a mid end UD player the Blacks get even better ,the colors more solid and the artifacts gone. Im not saying madVR is bad mate, but you completely junking out Hi/Mid End UD (starts from as low as Rs 29900 and not $3000 [Theta Compli Blu come for that kind of money!!!] ) players and External Processors are of Concern to me. Why do you think its my way or the hiway..who the hell am I? Its my two cents that HTPC are over better get good UD players and add HDDs or simply media streamers. You think if I come across an advanced user I wont tell him to go the madVR way,when Im myself using it at times. I did have some driver issues with it everybody has it,its still a work in progress and it has to work in the areas of artifacts a bit. A good HDMI cable did solve it to some extents but then the sharpness was subdued too. Thats a trade off I would say. If a day to day user can set up madVR great.And yes you need a capable display to bring about the goodness of madVR and atleast an entry level GPU.

EDIT: You making shallow statements like "who uses a $ 3000 Denon here" is like undervaluing the others and thecountry itself .Just because you and I cant afford dosnt mean people dont have it. Youll be amazed to know how people buy Hi End Audio/Videogear in India. Its not for no reason that Companies like Mc Intosh ,Theta , MBL , Krell , Wilson To Focal (have you heard about the Grande Utopia 3) let alone lesser Denons and Pioneers, have dealers in India,the scene here is better than middle east and south east asia!!! India has come a long way. Now for the who,I a lesser mortal here have a Rs 60,500 (Im not American and I dont care about its Dollar valuation) CD/SACD player.I believe there are plenty in the forum who has better.People in this forum buy headphones for 7K to Rs 15K and above!!!Thats a lot of money for a pair of cans,even by International Standards.Thats a small example ,I hope now you can gauge. So better leave that part who can do what and has what.Better see what can be done best for a specific interest.
 
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OP
TheLetterD

TheLetterD

Will Power
Ok, Umm well this is awkward lol. Sorry to interrupt but can someone just let me know if the HD6450 has better video quality than an HD5570. And will it be able to play Videos at higher resolutions than 1080p whenever movies are made in that resolution? And no Im not going to set up 'madVR' or anything. All Im going to do is use Media Player Classic and XMBC. :/
Thanks in Advance. And btw I do not understand anything you both have said in these last 4-5 posts.
 

whitestar_999

Super Moderator
Staff member
ok then let's consider this argument settled with conclusion that for an advanced user with not much money madvr is best & for an average user with budget hardware AVR is best(standard here being likes of Denon not WD Live).of course for average user with Rs.5000 budget WD Live types are only options.

btw that $3000 statement was not intended to make any point.of course there are many in India which can afford hi-end equipments but i was talking about a combination of (money+advance technical knowledge+regular forum member) something like yourself.i already know/guessed you use some expensive audio equipments & i know that there are people who have better but i only know about you here(got my point!).

@TheLetterD,no problem :) there is no difference in picture quality between different graphics card assuming no post processing like in your case so you can get either card but i suggest 5570.6450 is not such a good card for its price & even nvidia GT 610 is faster than it.of course 5570 is faster than both.
 
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OP
TheLetterD

TheLetterD

Will Power
Hahah ok Thankyou Whitstar_999! I read your The Incinerator 's and discussion last night and I understood most of it!
27887623.jpg

I had a few questions! Will the quality of my Videos increase and be better than my Integrated Graphic Chip NVidia 7050/630 ? Cuz when I watch regular SD content on my DELL 17 inch monitor its perfectly fine but when I watch HD content there is so much noise in the Video. So, will it change if I get a HD6450? Or is it cuz my Monitor is a very basic one thats why this is happening? Ill either hook this HTPC up to a Samsung/Sony 46 inch LED TV or A Phillips 27 inch monitor!
 
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