hellow folks

Just thought of sharing some info on building a media center pc

if u r trying to buy a media center pc there are few things which we need to make sure that u have them on your computer.

the media center pc is the one thats targeted to make the pc as your digital entertainment centre. this has many features included in it like watching live tv on your pc or recording a tv show watching dvds and listening music. Also this allows you to access your music, pictures or recorded tv shows which are stored on your computer from your tv in the living room provided u connect ur tv to a media center extender.

now lets first try to know some of the features of the mce2005
this allows you to watch live tv and record the tv shows. you can also burn the recorded tv shows on to a dvd and have a copy of it. this all can be done form a user friendly gui. u can organize your music ,pictures in a better way using this. the other feature of this operating system which actually makes this pc ur entertainment centre is the option to use extenders. a media center extender is a device using which u can access ur computer from the tv in your living room.u need to have a wireless or lan network and an extender .once u configure the extender and connect it to ur tv u can open the media center on ur tv and watch live tvor recorded tv show and u can access the music. pictures and can play dvds from the computer

when u are purchasing a media center pc make sure u have the following things in it

[b]Tv tuner :: this is the most important component of a media center pc. along with this u should also make sure that u receive a media center remote control and IR receiver. there are many tv tuners available. try to go for a dual core tv tuner which will allow you to watch a program while u record the other. Dual core means physically its one card but acts as if there are 2 tv tuners. so it allows u to watch a program and record another at the same time.

Video card :: a good video card is needed for this. if you are trying to watch the HDTV signals then ur video card should be able to support very high resolutions to have a picture with the HDTV quality.

RAM :: as this operating system uses extremely high end graphic user interface better to have 512 MB or more memory. this allows your computer to work faster and smoother.

Chipset :: if you are using the intel motherboard then try to use the 925chipset or later.

Monitor :: u can use a crt monitor but I recommend to have a 19” flat panel which supports the dvi and analog input. Check whats the highest resolution supported by your monitor. The higher the resolution it supports the better it gets.

Sound card :: normally many of the intel motherboards do have the integrated soundcards but if u want to experience the real fun of surround sound and karaoke effects u better have a sound card. the sound blaster audigy 2zs or later is the best. many of the sound blaster cards also have a midi game port and firewire port on them.check the manufacturers wesite for more details and the tech specs of the card.

Speakers :: okie we have the latest monitor chipset graphix card and soundcard but that’s not all folks we also need to have good speakers to enjoy the music and the sound effects. try to have a 5.1 channel speaker system.

Nic :: the intel mother boards have the integrated nic but make sure u have a 10/100 lan or gigabit lan if you are planning to have a wieless network then make sure you have a wireless nic installed.

So that’s all guys these are a few things which we need to check before buying a media center pc.any questions just post them and you will have one of us reply to that.


Ajit kumar

Hardware dude team
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