aaaarrrggghhh - I've fecked up, HELP!!

Lpfsox

Hi folks

I've been mulling over building a HTPC for a very long time, and every time I nearly got as far as buying parts life got in the way and paused things. Anyway, I bit the bullet, did my research (though not thoroughly enough as it turns out) and bought the following:

Case: Coolermaster Elite 130 (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/Mini/113888/Cooler+Master+Elite+130%2C+ohne+Netzteil.article)
Mainboard:ASUS AM1I-A (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/DDR3/159508/ASUS+AM1I-A%2C+ITX%2C+AM1.article)
Processor:AMD Athlon 5350 (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/Sockel+AM1/157298/AMD+Athlon+5350%2C+Boxed%2C+Sockel+AM1%2C+TDP+25W.article)
RAM:4GB Kingston HyperX PC3 DDR3 (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/1866+Low+Voltage/72600/4GB+Kingston+HyperX+PC3-14400U+CL9-9-9-27.article)
PSU:Corsair Modulr CX430M (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/400+-+500+Watts/74424/Corsair+CX+Series+Modular+CX430M%2C+430W.article)
SDD:Crucial M500 240GB (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/Solid-State-Disk/101091/Crucial+M500+240GB+SATA+6GB+s+6%2C4CM+%282%2C5%29+7mm.article)
Optical Drive:ASUS BC12T2HD (http://www.hardwareversand.de/en/S-ATA/107435/ASUS+BC-12D2HT+BLK+G+Retail+Silent.article)

I also bought 2 PCI tuner cards, the TBS 6220 (dual DVB-T2) and 6981 (dual DVB-S2).

Now I realise that the mainboard only has one PCIe slot so I can't use both tuners. My options are to either dump the tuners and go for something like a BlackGold 3602 (quad tuner, 2 x each DVB-T2 and DVB-S2) but the problem with that is that it needs a 6pin 12v connection to the mainboard to power the LNB and there are only 1 x 4pin 12v connection and 1 x 24 pin main power connection or dump the board and case and go with a bigger, ATX style one which can accommodate the cards.

Does anyone see any other potential solutions to this? The box will be sited in the sitting room under the TV and will act as a DTT/Sat receiver / XBMC hub to stream from my NAS and the internet and needs to be as parent friendly and silent as possible.

thanks in advance for any help.

same ol sh1te

The six pin power is from the power supply, not the board, just get a better one with pci-e power connector. There will be plenty to choose from, most modern graphics cards need at least one, some psus will have one or two 8 pin (with 2 detachable to make 6 pin)

Lpfsox

nah, maybe I didn't explain myself properly - there's no 6 pin connector on the board, just 1 x 4 pin one and 1 x 24 pin one, but thanks for your reply

same ol sh1te

Lpfsox wrote: »

nah, maybe I didn't explain myself properly - there's no 6 pin connector on the board, just 1 x 4 pin one and 1 x 24 pin one, but thanks for your reply

Read my post again, it's a connector on the psu (if you have right one) that plugs directly into the card providing extra power directly to the card. 1 x 4 pin and 1 x 24 pin are how the motherboard receives power from the psu but this doesn't supply enough to power the card so the card gets an extra connector directly from the psu. Understand?

Lpfsox

sorry, my mistake. Looks like I could be in business with that option so. Have you any personal experience with BlackGold tuner cards? I had heard that they weren't as reliable as TBS which is why I went with that option, also I'll need to use Windows as OS and not Linux but that's not a deal-breaker as long as the cards are reliable.

again, thanks.

cerbeus

I have been using a Blackgold quad tuner, 2xDVB-T & 2xDVB-S2, for two years now with no problems using Windows 7.

Never tried it on Linux but there is a driver available.

same ol sh1te

Lpfsox wrote: »

sorry, my mistake. Looks like I could be in business with that option so. Have you any personal experience with BlackGold tuner cards? I had heard that they weren't as reliable as TBS which is why I went with that option, also I'll need to use Windows as OS and not Linux but that's not a deal-breaker as long as the cards are reliable.

again, thanks.

None with the BlackGold and my only experiences have been on linux

Lpfsox

folks thanks again, shame about the tuners but getting the blackgold ones instead of dumping case, board and all is still way cheaper. Starting not to feel quite so despondent...!

Johnboy1951

Is there no other motherboard available that fits the case and has two PCI-e sockets?

That would be the cheapest way out it seems.

Maybe a longer search would show up something.

The Blackgold was my first choice of tuner card, but as they promised but never delivered on releasing their drivers for Linux I decided to use TBS ...... and because of that I have been able to use Openelec as the OS for my HTPC.

I would not 'jump the gun' until all avenues have been explored

EDIT:
Is it possible to bring the mini-PCI-e slot out to a standar PCLI-e slot with an adapter and plug one of the cards into that?
I know nothing about those mini-PCI-e slots so have no idea if this is feasible or not.

EDIT 2:
. Something like this is what I had in mind .........
http://amfeltec.com/products/flexible-x1-pci-express-to-minipci-express-adapter/

tonyfillony

Im selling my BGT3602 if you are interested
http://www.adverts.ie/other-peripherals/blackgold-bgt-3602-for-sale/5466424
Got it in january for my HTPC but misses wants to keep Sky

Lpfsox

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Is there no other motherboard available that fits the case and has two PCI-e sockets?

That would be the cheapest way out it seems.

Maybe a longer search would show up something.

The Blackgold was my first choice of tuner card, but as they promised but never delivered on releasing their drivers for Linux I decided to use TBS ...... and because of that I have been able to use Openelec as the OS for my HTPC.

I would not 'jump the gun' until all avenues have been explored

EDIT:
Is it possible to bring the mini-PCI-e slot out to a standar PCLI-e slot with an adapter and plug one of the cards into that?
I know nothing about those mini-PCI-e slots so have no idea if this is feasible or not.

EDIT 2:
. Something like this is what I had in mind .........
http://amfeltec.com/products/flexible-x1-pci-express-to-minipci-express-adapter/

thanks JohnBoy, could be an option alright - cheers

Knasher

I can only see a single PCI-E x4 slot on that motherboard, no minipci slots, so I don't think that would be an option. It is possible to get a PCIe splitter. Honestly though I think this would be more effort than it is worth. Your space is a little constrained so you would have to use the half height adapters on your tuner cards (which I assume you have as the last time I go TBS cards they included them). You would still have to make sure that you have enough space to plug the adapter in below the tuners. You could just flexible riser cards to help with this.

Personally though I'd either sell on both your current turners and buy a black gold one, or I'd just sell on the dvb-t tuner and buy one (or two if you want to be able to record all current muxes) usb dvb-t tuner (assuming these are for RTE, you don't need dvb-t2) and plug them into the internal usb connector. I'd probably also get an old pci filler plate and drill and mount some tv plugs on it, just so the external cable isn't pulling on something internal to the case. The usb dvb-t tuners are only about E10 each, and I've never had an issue with them.

Johnboy1951

Sell on the DTT tuner card and buy this

http://shop.blackgold.tv/epages/BT3159.sf/en_AU/?ObjectPath=/Shops/BT3159/Products/BGT3550

This is selling cheaply because it is not T2 ..... which matters not for Saorview presently.

Place it in an airflow to help keep its temperature down when in use.

I feel sure you could rig up something neat for the DTT cable ...

Just another option .... and might be the easiest and cheapest to implement.

Lpfsox

thanks for the replies folks. I've been steering away from USB tuners because I want a neat "one box" solution but will consider all options. Right now it seems that dumping case & board and going for a mATX board like the Asus AM1M-A and a Silverstone SS3-ML03B caes which will come in at about €100 seems the most sensible option to give me what I want.

One more question for you, has anyone used an internal IR receiver when building a HTPC? I've got a couple of FLIRC dongles which I'm using with RPis, they're ok but not great. If it's easy to set up an internal IR in my system to be used with one remote then I'm sorted.

thanks again,

Johnboy1951

I used a Silverstone GDO4B case for mine. About ~€80 + VAT from Dabs at the time.
http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/Cases/Home_Theatre/48126-GD04B-USB3

The Sat card does generate heat .... the DTT one not much ... but there is not a lot of airflow around the cards and am considering inserting an extractor on a backplate running slowly (quietly) to help with this.

I use Openelec on the HTPC with TVHeadend backend, running XBMC. The TBS remote works well for me. Spare is used with FLIRC on the R-Pi so have consistency.

Regarding the use of USB devices .... is there not sufficient space internally to place the USB DTT dongle in an airflow with the Aerial socket on a backplate?
It is an alternative .... although I am not a huge fan of such devices for a HTPC. Very useful though and convenient for desktop/laptop use.

also I'll need to use Windows as OS and not Linux

Can you say why you need to use Windows and not Linux?
You might save ~€100 by not paying for Win unless you have an unused retail version to hand.

Lpfsox

my understanding is that linux drivers with Blackgold cards is flaky... but I've no personal experience there. My preferred option for OS is OpenElec which is why I went with the TBS cards as they offered maximum flexibility wrt OS in case OpenElec doesn't work out for me or my needs change down the line.

Going with a new board & case still works out cheaper than buying a new tuner but I'm not jumping until I've done my homework properly this time!

Johnboy1951

Lpfsox wrote: »

my understanding is that linux drivers with Blackgold cards is flaky... but I've no personal experience there. My preferred option for OS is OpenElec which is why I went with the TBS cards as they offered maximum flexibility wrt OS in case OpenElec doesn't work out for me or my needs change down the line.

Going with a new board & case still works out cheaper than buying a new tuner but I'm not jumping until I've done my homework properly this time!

Ah! Sorry! I misunderstood that post I quoted
I see now you were referring to the need to use Windows if you changed the tuner card/s

Blackgold have (from what little I read lately) apparently improved their support for Linux since my communications with them, but I have no idea whether these are solid or not.
They were to release open source drivers and I waited months before finally giving up and buying TBS cards.

In truth if I were to start all over again I would not build a 'piece of furniture that looks good on a shelf' as a HTPC.
I find the box bulky.
I would instead use an old case and house the main parts in it and put it out of sight, and then use something small, and neat for the client machine at the TV. Almost anything that would run XBMC and give Full HD out via HDMI would do.
It probably would not have cost as much either

Lpfsox

true JohnBoy, but I'm hoping to move house (relatively) soon so I've decided to go the "under TV" route for now as the cabling's in place there and reserve a "one big box" solution until things have settled down again for me. Parts can always be reused that way. Right now, priority is for one box, one remote, grabbing live tv, streaming from NAS and 'net. At the minute I've a DTT/SAT combi, DVD player and RPi under the TV so it's just rolling them all into one