Traveling XBMC: with tablets and power inverter

June 23, 2014, 11:53 pm

≫ Next: Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

≪ Previous: android tv box H918A

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Some of you might have seen my post on the "Full motion center headrest mount for tablet" I finally had some down time and installed my power inverter in my center counsel and then used snap-in outlets to make them look more stock and then wired a toggle switch for solid on off switch, now I can power a router while charging 2 tablets and a laptop at the same time (of course I won't be charging them non stop, but the router will be on for extended periods)





TP Link WDR3600: $57.00

amp wiring kit: $25.00 (power and ground was cheaper to buy this way at least where I'm at)

Cobra Power Inverter: $25.00

snap - in outlets: $5.00

Toggle Switch: $4.00

20 gauge stranded wire: $7.00(for the toggle switch)

14 gauge stranded wire: not sure had some on hand (used to run outlets and tie them together)

total $123.00 plus 14 gauge wire

other things that will be needed are: crimp adapters and heat shrink you can get them at a local hardware store

thanks to SKiNNiEH for the great idea will make our vacations much easier since we spend a lot of time driving

thanks to developers of XBMC and all other contributors in this community

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Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

July 11, 2014, 5:19 pm

≫ Next: New AMD AM1 build

≪ Previous: Traveling XBMC: with tablets and power inverter

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Hello all,

Im a bit new to the XBMC world and starting to discover all its glory. Have a couple of different android boxes that have worked perfectly. The problem is I received a couple new A20 boxes and they have no problem connecting to my home WiFi but when I try to connect via hotspot from my phone I get an unending string of error messages "System configuration is inconsistent with production configuration, please contact your supplier" has anyone ecperienced this and have a work around?

Thanks!

New AMD AM1 build

July 31, 2014, 11:04 am

≫ Next: Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

≪ Previous: Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

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Hi, here is my new upgrade of old mediacenter after 6 years.
I have discarded case, psu and dvd drive. Only SSD and HDD remains :-)

Config is:
mobo: Asrock AM1H-ITX
RAM: 2GB Patriot 1333MHz
CPU: Athlon 5350 AM1
SSD: Kingston SNV425 64GB
HDD: WD 1TB caviar black
case: Silverstone Milo ML-04
psu: universal notebook power brick 90W

Software is OpenElec 4.0.7 with XBMC 13.1 Gotham.
Boot is very quick (about 15sec) and GUI is fluent, without lags or stuttering.
When playing Avatar 1080p bluray rip, the cpu is only 5-10% load.

Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

August 14, 2014, 7:14 pm

≫ Next: Couple of builds using the Antec ISK310-150

≪ Previous: New AMD AM1 build

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Just a small project for an HTPC

Parts list:
Silverstone Sugo Series SG05BB-lite
Intel Pentium G3258
ASRock Z97M-ITX/AC
Patriot Gamer Series 4G 2x2 DDR3
Corsair Hydro Series H50 Quiet Edition Liquid Cooler
Silverstone SFX ST30SF 300w PSU

Its 8.5"Wide, 7"Tall, 11" long

Couple of builds using the Antec ISK310-150

August 29, 2014, 10:26 am

≫ Next: Passive FM2+ 7850K Build

≪ Previous: Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

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Just wanted to share with you guys the two HTPCs I've built with this case, not a particularly fun case to work with due to constraints like the stupid metal cage over the motherboard area and the fact that the PSU runs HOT due to lack of space. Built the i3-3220 two years ago, so the hardware is sort of old. You may also notice some of the text doesn't make sense, or follow right - I took the lazy way out and combined a bunch of posts together LOL.

You can also see the progression and the advances I made building in the case a second time, my first attempt looks so...hacked together.

Some things common to both builds:

1) Removed as much restriction as possible in the power supply - this involved removing any possible obstruction by cutting away the stock vents

2) Replace all stock fans (including the one in the power supply) and install a second auxiliary fan in the fan holder. The first build used a trio of Young Years (which are a rebadge of Yate Loons) and the second one used Gelid Silent 8's since I couldn't find the Young Years anymore.

3) Undervolt all fans. The first one used a trio of 5V Molex adapters I modified, so every single fan (including the one in the power supply) received 5V - I won't recommend this anymore since on high loads the fans won't ramp up anymore (initially the idea was to minimize tonality differences caused by different fan RPMs, and also due to the lack of fan control on the Intel board). Second time around, we ended up getting an ASRock board which has decent fan control, so we used the onboard motherboard headers with an addition of a Noctua (or any brand really) Y-cable splitter since ASRock only included one chassis header since it was their budget board.

IMHO, this case really needs to be stood up since ventilation isn't the greatest and any bit helps (including natural convection). However, the earlier build has been in an enclosed cabinet with barely any fresh air intake for almost 2 years now with no ill effects.

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Core i3-3220 Wrote:Really, just a PITA case to work in. You may notice I don't actually have a motherboard in it yet....the Intel H67 board has been backordered for several weeks now -.-

Quote:-Intel i3 3220
-Intel DH67CFB3
-8GB Corsair XMS3 2 x 4GB DDR3 1600MHz
-OCZ Vertex 3 120GB SSD
-Antec ISK310-150W
-Scythe Kozuti
-Some random Teac DVD Rom

Originally I was going to consider the Wesena ITX2/Streacom FC1, hence the Scythe Kozuti (as I wanted an optical drive, which prevented me from using a bigger sink like the Big Shuriken), but then realized that the case, plus the PicoPSU would've cost a fortune (though not as much as the FC5 I recently did a build on). Spent some time looking and finally settled on the Antec, which I admit does look nice, primarily due to the simple front which has absolutely no logos.

Per advice from other users, I opted to replace all the fans inside the case, including the PSU fan (which falls prey to an overly sensitive load sensor in the PSU), with Yate Loon's (yes, I'm aware they say 'Young Year', and that the model number printed on the label corresponds to a sleeve bearing model, instead of the 'Ball Bearing' claim printed below the brand) as they were the best ones I could find locally at a decent price (~$7 plus tax). I went and cut out the grill on the PSU as well, and will be creating a duct that will seal the exhaust fans to the exterior shell (there's around half an inch of dead space between the exhaust grill on the shell, and the actual fans which are mounted inside the chassis). All three fans will be undervolted externally via a 5V Molex adapters (I switched the Molex pins around on the PSU connector, the black Molex connector you see in the pictures is for the power LEDs, and yes they are designed for 5V so everything works out).

Cable-wise, everything is sort of tight, but not the worst I've seen. I don't know how Puget Systems and other review sites could make the case interior look so messy, as it really isn't that bad. A few zip ties here and there works wonders (I have not finalized the locations for the ties, will have to wait until I get the motherboard in before I can button everything up, for now it is just a mockup). I removed the now-useless bracket for the three speed controller on the Antec Tricool and plan to route the USB 3.0 header pass through cable to the back I/O panel, as my board doesn't have a USB 3.0 header. Should I keep the front panel USB connections 2.0 or 3.0?

Finally, the completed product. Good thing I bought a 1000 pack of zip ties, the smaller the case, the more zip ties I have to use in order to mock up where the cables go, and try different layouts. I honestly believe this is the best anyone can do without cutting away part of the ODD/HD brace.

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Sorry for the massive amount of pictures! Some closing notes:

-The PSU does get a little warm, but I attribute that mainly to how there's very little room inside the PSU - hell, the heatsinks nearly touch the top! Plus the fact that 1/3rd of the exhaust fan is blocked by the top cover and connecting it to a 6V adapter doesn't really help things. However, I don't think my draw is even at a fifth of it's rated specs, especially with the processor power management enabled in the power options of Windows. Will keep an eye on it however. I should've left the stock fan on and see how loud that was when coupled to my setup, but alas, I went ahead and quite literally sealed it in with zip ties everywhere LOL.

-The Scythe Kozuti is QUIET. Like holy crap quiet. Core Temp reports temperatures of around 24C at idle, which is astounding! I have almost an identical setup in my office PC, and that idles at mid 30's with the stock Intel heatsink.

-The board works flawlessly, I only wished it had UEFI, as I'm spoiled by my Asus Gene-Z. Haven't tried undervolting it yet, but for a HTPC, the BIOS settings are plenty. In addition, there's no USB 3.0 header on the board itself, but as this board came out almost 2 years ago, I really can't fault Intel for it. I will have to make do with USB 2.0 front panel connectors, or buy a passthrough dongle to the I/O panel and plug the header cable directly into the rear USB 3.0 ports.

-I honestly didn't think the Yate Loon's/Young Year's would sound any good, but at 5V, I think I can live with the barely audible whoosh of air. Barely any bearing noise at all, compared to the stock PSU fan and the Antec TriCool. And they start reliably at 5V as well! Alas, without hooking up a resistor/rheostat to it, I will not know the lowest operating/startup voltage. They push a significant amount of air for a 80mm fan.

-The chassis itself is built like a tank. I have seen some examples where the user cut away half of the ODD tray, but IMO, unless you find another way to brace the case,. this isn't a particularly good idea as the case relies on this brace to tie in the front and back panels. The vents on the removable top cover could use a bit of resizing however. My last few photos show how a third of the fans were cut off simply because the vents weren't big enough. I may enlarge the vents and put traditional wire grills one, but that'd ruin the overall look of the case.

Other than those points, I think this build went pretty straight forward. I must admit, I spent the bulk of my time routing cables, but honestly, it could be worse. There is actually quite a bit of space in the nooks and crannies, like the half inch of dead space right above the PSU and below the ODD tray, or in between the memory sticks and the PSU (where my 24 opin cable is routed through). I do think this case is best without a discrete graphics card as I worry that the card will block too much of the intakes, thus raising interior temperatures and increasing the noise.

I ran the Windows Experience Index for laughs and giggles, and to my dismay, the IGPU (Intel HD2500) only gave me a 4.9 LOL. On the other hand, that 4.9 is enough to let my watch full HD movies without stuttering, so it's GTG in my books.

Oh one last thing, like the other Antec cases with a lit ring around the power button (SOLO, etc), it is DAMN BRIGHT. I think I may have to sand the ring to make it less transparent, or add a resistor to the LEDs.[/quote]

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Pentium G3258 Wrote:Putting together another low-budget HTPC ($300) in a case I'm quite familiar with (I have one, and it is a PAIN to work in).

Quote:-Intel Pentium G3258
-ASRock H81M-ITX
-Kingston HyperX Genesis 2 x 4GB DDR3 1600MHz
-Intel 530 120GB SSD
-Antec ISK310-150W
-Scythe Big Shuriken 2 Rev. B

Took around a day, managed to get the feisty Pentium up to 4.2GHz (I know the screen cap says 4.1GHz, this was before I tweaked some more settings). Right now it is rock stable at 1.25V VCORE and the multiplier set at 42. Overvoltage is enabled, but aside from those settings, there are really no in depth adjustments. Ram is set to XMP Profile 1.3. Probably going to start lowering VCORE and see if we could get lower temps - it's hitting 85C with the stock Intel cooler (the Scythe is on backorder):







Onwards with the build!



I'm kidding, that couldn't boot period. Even unlocked, 6.0 is a pipe dream lol.





If you've seen my previous builds, most of you will know I have a thing for steel cables, and this is no different. Since I had cut down the ODD/HDD tray (original tray below) to increase the clearance for the HSF, it became slightly flimsy front to back since the original unaltered tray ran the full length of the case and tied the front to the back with screws. Decided to install a couple of steel cables to mitigate this - an unexpected bonus, they came out pretty sleek personally and just look cool.

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I knew the PSU in this particular case ran HOT so like my own HTPC I removed all possible obstructions from the intake and exhaust grills to aid in venting - even still the PSU blows out warm air, someone you'll have to put up with due to the extremely crammed compartment.



I did end up switching all the fans including the ADDA in the power supply with some Gelid Silent 8's - mainly because they were cheap and in stock locally. They sound pretty decent and included silicone mounts as well, good deal.



Overall, we managed to stay in budget and produce a fairly capable and sweet looking machine. Possible upgrades would be a second hard drive or an ODD - the board only has two SATA ports LOL. Oh, almost forgot about the USB3.0 front panel that's coming direct from Antec - curiously, even though this case is newer than mine, it has the older USB2.0 front panel. Since there is NO USB3.0 header on the motherboard itself, most likely we are going to run a header to dual 3.0 plugs adapter out to the external USB3.0 plugs on the I/O panel. Sacrifices...

Nothing wants to go in without a fight I found out. Installed (or rather, tried to) the Big Shuriken 2 Rev. B today, only to find out ASRock positioned the CPU socket so close to the top edge of the board that the Big Shuriken 2 hits the fans (missing around 1/4" of space). Uh Oh.

I guess lucky me, because the way the Scythe positioned the mounting locations for the Intel brackets means that I can shift the heatsink towards the top or bottom without losing contact with the heatspreader (due to the fact that the HSF base is an elongated rectangle meant for also accommodating the longer AMD sockets). I ended up using one of the LGA2011 holes and drilled an additional hole in each of the brackets in order to offset the entire heatsink (moved it about 1/2"). Ended up with an extra 1/8" of clearance - Scythe should've definitely designed the HSF asymmetrically to prevent issues like this.

Regardless, even installed it is a really tight fit, but the 15C temperature drop at full load made up for it!

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[/quote]

Here's the mod to the PSU:



[/quote]

Passive FM2+ 7850K Build

September 29, 2014, 9:43 am

≫ Next: My mix-n-match home entertainment

≪ Previous: Couple of builds using the Antec ISK310-150

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Hi everybody,

using XBMC for a while now and finally had the resources to build my long dreamed passive HTPC build.

Hardware:

• ASUS A88XM-Plus
• AMD 7850K Processor
• AMD some Gaming RAM 2,4GHz
• Streacom FC5 EVO
• Streacom OD3
• Streacom IR-Remote
• M4-ATX DC-DC Powersupply (250W+)
• MeanWell 280W AC-DC 24V Powersupply
• RME Hammerfall HDSPe + RME Multiface II (Use as preamp)
• 2x Audiolab 8000p
  

Software:

• Gentoo custom setup
• direct boot to X11
• VDPAU with Radeonsi driver
• openbox WM
  

High res pictures: Flickr

Please excuse the image noise level and the messy cables.

My mix-n-match home entertainment

April 22, 2014, 7:37 pm

≫ Next: Clean and simple setup

≪ Previous: Passive FM2+ 7850K Build

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So... seeing so many fancy rigs and creative solutions in this Showcase, I thought I might, while not the most fancy of systems - chip in with mine



Rears on DIY, height-adjustable stands:



HTPC / Storage :

• Intel NUC DN2820FYKH. 4GB Crucial CT51264BF160B, 120GB Kingston SSDNow V300
• Loshine wireless keyboard w/ trackball, Lenovo RC6 MCE Remote
• As of post: Windows 8.1 Pro, XBMC Gotham Beta 4
• "Cheap from china" C-media CM106 USB soundcard (for 5.1 analog and S/PDIF out)
• ZyXEL NSA-325v2 NAS, 2x2TB WD Green
• CiragoLink+ USB NAS, 3x2TB WD Essensials
  

AV equipment:

• Sharp Aquos 60" LC60LE651E "Smart" 3D TV.
• PS3, early rev.
• Panasonic BD60 BluRay player
• NAD T754 6x70 WRMS / 8 ohm AV Receiver
• Rotel RB-985 5x100 WRMS / 8 ohm THX Power Amplifier
• Dali Ikon 2 Vokal MK2 center speaker
• Dali 606 - 3x6.5" + dome, Front speakers
• Earthquake Platine Noireé rears, on DIY height-adjustable stands
• Cerwin-Wega LW-10-X 10" subwoofer
  

Luckily the significant other cares more about actual performance. than WAF And yes. I blacked out some cable mess, just got the 60" in today and need to rearrange the whole cabling soon. Must be 10 power cables & warts, 2xTP, 3xHDMI, 6xRCA + assorted speaker cable and interconnects jumbled up back there. Also need to shimmy up the TV, so the center speaker doesn't block the IR transmitter for the 3D glasses.

Clean and simple setup

April 28, 2014, 8:15 am

≫ Next: Bedroom setup

≪ Previous: My mix-n-match home entertainment

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My setup:

TV: 55" Samsung le55c650
HTPC: u-paq core i5 PC(completely silent as no fans), TechniSat SkyStar USB 2 HD CI
Software: Windows 8.1, XBMC 13 Gotham, DVBviewer (as backend for Live TV)
Speakers: Wireless 5.1 sound with Sonos Playbar, Sonos Sub, 2x Sonos Play1 and Sonos Bridge
Remote: Logitech Harmony 700, Logitech dinovo mini
Storage: QNAP NAS with 2x 2TB Western Digital Green and Synology NAS with 4x 3TB Western Digital Red
Gaming: xbox 360

Here some pics:

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Bedroom setup

May 3, 2014, 8:35 pm

≫ Next: May 2014 HTPC NUC Build

≪ Previous: Clean and simple setup

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Actually this is my main setup. I decided that I wasn't going to have nice expensive equipment in the living room with two toddlers around, so I chose the bedroom for my main system.

First generation i3 NUC
Xbox One
Vizio 42" LCD
Marantz SR6008 receiver
MB Quart Vera speakers

May 2014 HTPC NUC Build

May 5, 2014, 8:22 am

≫ Next: My New Server

≪ Previous: Bedroom setup

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So here is my HTPC setup. It’s a little over the top, but I wanted something that could also run Windows 7 and my Express VPN app for Windows so that I could also use it for MLB.TV with a large selection of servers to choose from (the Linux version for Express VPN has a limited number of server choices).

If I had my druthers, I would have gladly purchased an i5 based NUC; however, the i5 4th gen NUC currently available does not have room for a 2.5” hard drive in the NUC enclosure. Only the i3 4th gen currently has the slightly larger enclosure. I expect an i5 based NUC to be released soon which will address this “hole” in Intel’s lineup, but I didn’t want to wait.

The preference for the NUC was based upon form factor, ease of setup and the built in IR receiver. The IR receiver on the NUC works flawlessly out of the box with a Harmony 650 remote. Add the NUC model number to the Harmony Activity profile and POOF. It all worked without ANY further mucking about. I was quite blown away by this after reading all of the threads here with much gnashing of teeth and frustrations posted by others. In fact, I didn’t even realize it worked without further messing about with it right away. I was so expecting problems and further refinements, I couldn’t believe it when I hit a button on the remote by accident during Game of Thrones and I ended up pausing the stream. I hit “play” and the show resumed and my eyes widened in amazement.

• Intel BOXD34010WYKH1 NUC Barebone System
  - Intel Core i3 4010U Dual Core 1.70GHz, DDR3
  - Intel HD Graphics 4400 , Mini HDMI+Display Port , 7.1-Channel HD Audio,
  - GLAN, 4x USB 3.0
• Intel 7260HMW IEEE 802.11AC, dual-band, 2x2 Wi-Fi plus Bluetooth 4.0 Mini PCI Express combo Adapter (Necessary for wireless Networking to your NUC. It is NOT built in to the NUC – you MUST get this micro card.)
• G.SKILL SQ Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600MHz CL9 SODIMM Memory (F3-12800CL9D-8GBSQ)
• ADATA XPG SX300 128GB mSATA 6Gb/s Solid State Drive (SSD) Read: 550MB/s Write: 505MB/s (ASX300S3-128GM-C)
• WD Blue 1TB 2.5" SATA3 5400RPM 8MB Cache OEM Hard Disk (WD10JPVX)
• Micro HDMI (Type D) to HDMI (Type A) High-Speed 3D Ethernet 1.4 - 6 ft. (HMICH-34G-06) (HDMI port on NUC is micro HDMI. You must have this cable or a similar adapter if you use the Display Port output)
• Windows 7 Home Premium OEM
• Logitech K400 Wireless Keyboard w/built-in Touchpad - Black (A) (Note: I am NOT a fan of this wireless keyboard/touchpad combo and I do not recommend it. Reception on the NUC from the unit is choppy. Don’t buy this unit.)
• Logitech Harmony 650 Remote (refurb)
  

There are some driver issues with the NUC with its Gigabit LAN. I am still screwing with this as my NUC won’t / can’t properly see my Homegroup, although its access to the Internet via hardwire to my network router is working just fine. I think the problem is that I installed the new GIGabit LAN driver package which Intel has just released for the NUC before the rest of the network drivers were installed and I believe this is why I am having the problem. (I suspect that I overwrote the Gigabit LAN fix during my driver installation). I will check on this tonight.

Anyways, this is a far more expensive solution than many people here would recommend or purchase, but I am happy with my purchase and extremely impressed by how seamless the remote set-up went.

Performance in XBMC and in Windows 7 is quite snappy. The only downside so far is the Logitech Keyboard/trackpad which is poor hardware and I would NOT buy this device again if I had the chance to do it all over again. I’d get something else if I were you.

My New Server

May 5, 2014, 9:31 am

≫ Next: my apartment theater

≪ Previous: May 2014 HTPC NUC Build

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A few weeks ago i decide i needed to upgrade my old server which was made from left over parts i had laying around.
so what i built is expandable for quite a while at the rate my collection is expanding.

Case: AZZA Solano 1000R Black / Red Japanese SECC Steel/Metal mesh in front MicroATX/ATX/Full ATX Computer Case
Cpu: AMD A8-5500 Trinity 3.2GHz (3.7GHz Turbo) Socket FM2 65W Desktop APU
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-F2A88X
Ram: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-14900CL9D-8GBXL
Bay Adapter: 3x iStarUSA BPN-DE350SS-BLACK 3x5.25" to 5x3.5" SAS/SATA 6.0 Gb/s Trayless Hot-Swap Cage
Expansion Card: SUPERMICRO AOC-SASLP-MV8 PCI-Express x4 Low Profile SAS RAID Controller
PSU: SeaSonic M12II 850 SS-850AM 850W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Full-Modular Active PFC FULL-modular Power Supply
Additional Parts: 2x 3ware CBL-SFF8087OCF-05M 1 Unit of .5M Multi-lane Internal (SFF-8087) Serial ATA Breakout Cable, 6x StarTech SATAPOWEXT8 8" 15 pin SATA Power Extension Cable, ALASKA USB-S-3DCM-A PT Int USB to Ext USB, SanDisk Cruzer Glide 32 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive

Im running unRaid.
I included a screenshot of my drive temps for those that are interested.

my apartment theater

May 12, 2014, 6:17 pm

≫ Next: New HTPC build (passive, Streacom FC5B, i3 4130t , Linux , 24/7, xbmc , 4k)

≪ Previous: My New Server

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Here is the current stage of my apartment project.



Construction:

The theater is located in my loft area, so i needed to construct a wall. naturally i went with pvc for its cheapness, lightness, and bonus awesomeness factor when i tell people i made this out of pvc, some bed sheets, blackout fabric, and magic.

for the new wall, we sewed 2 queen size sheets side by side, then longways with light proof fabric for the outside of the wall. and the opposite existing wall got a king sized black sheet screwed to the wall along the top.

the top of the stage was framed with pvc and tensioned with the black string. was then covered in a part of a king sized black sheet that was used for the top stage and the side curtains.

the bottom of the stage is just a storage rack with a wood board top covered in another black sheet.

the air circulation manifold in the left side bottom of the stage has a 465cfm blower fan that pulls air from the other side of the new wall into the theater.

the back window in the theater is covered with light proof fabric. we sewed magnets across the top and sides of the fabric, and glued push pins into the wall to hold it around the window frame.


Equipment

server:
6 core amd 16gb ram ~18tb storage
virtual machine host for my ControlCenter that manages my media centers and other fun vms.
mediaserver 3, subsonic host.

theater:
athlon 3x core 4gb ram running openelec gotham
Acer H6510BD projector

kitchen:
xios ds running linux frodo
asus 23" monitor and external speakerbar

bedroom:
dell inspiron core2 duo with 4gb ram running openelec gotham
samsung ~36" 720p plasma.


the last picture is a sneak peek at my antique piano bar conversion, made in England in 1879.


Next Stages

top and bottom masking system for the theater, will hopefully be adjustable and remotely controllable so it can move for whatever content im playing (16:9/21:9).
will eventually get a real receiver and speaker system, but my current creative 5.1 is doing the job so far.. dont want to piss my neighbors off too much before i start making acoustical panels.

General Setup

all the xbmc boxes are synced using the mediabrowser3 server and the xbmb3c addon to use the server as media library. Check out the forum here.

and is controllable through my control center here and my xbmc remote here

New HTPC build (passive, Streacom FC5B, i3 4130t , Linux , 24/7, xbmc , 4k)

May 27, 2014, 4:39 pm

≫ Next: 6 Client 5 User Setup

≪ Previous: my apartment theater

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Pictures at the bottom!!

Decided to move my desktop computer away from HDMI capable range from my living room. Great excuse to buy a new HTPC! After some research I stumbled across this forum and xbmc. Really liked its sleekness and customizability so decided to incorporate it into my new setup. Going from my old and user friendly win7+VLC to a fully featured Linux box is a process that takes some time to complete I've found out. It's not all plug and play. As I'm writing this I've gotten most of the stuff taken care of but there's still some things that need to be fixed. (Deinterlacing issues, Chrome/netflix launcher from xbmc, Streacom IR working with chrome, iptables config etc)

--------------------------------------------------
Setup and hardware:

Pretty straightforward overkill for a regular HTPC. But I wanted flawless 1080p (possibly 4k later) and menu experience in XBMC, 24/7 server operation with VPN for DLNA and internet tunneling, VNC/SSH, NAS (Samba&NFS), and more stuff I dont really need or use today but might in the future.
Xubuntu 14 LTS with Xbmc Gotham. Chrome+pipelight for netflix (works actually). And worst of all I considered the 4765 i7.. The i3 is lightning fast. More than enough.


Intel Core i3-4130T Haswell
Socket-LGA1150,Dual Core,2.9GHz,3MB,35W,HD4400
https://www.mpx.no/k/ki.aspx?sku=797977

ASUS H87I-PLUS, Socket-1150
https://www.mpx.no/k/ki.aspx?sku=782481

Crucial DDR3 Ballistix Sport VLP 8GB KIT
1.35V
https://www.mpx.no/k/ki.aspx?sku=770200

WD Red 3TB + Samsung 120gb SSD (sata3)
https://www.mpx.no/k/ki.aspx?sku=791617

Case and psu:
Streacom FC5B WS EVO Black
Streacom IR-Receiver& Remote Control
Streacom NANO150 PSU Adapter (150w)

I found this part the most confusing to pick. Initially I considered

Akasa Galileo
http://www.akasa.com.tw/update.php?tpl=p...K-ITX09-BK

Because it's passive and clean looking. It's a lot smaller than the streacom case. So in a typical living room it could look a little out of place next to a A/V receiver for instance.

Secondly a passive mini itx case from HFX looked a bit like this, but in brushed aluminum and straight clean front like the streacom.
http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/fanl...ed_pc.html

Ended up choosing the FC5 for space (can expand more HDD later)
No big problems with assembly or parts not fitting with this setup. H87i + streacom fc5b. There's a capacitor which interferes with the 4th heat pipe, but when changing #3 and #4 pipe with each other, it fits. (Picture shows how it'll look. There's enough cooling paste included with the case for the heat pipes and CPU, and my included an updated CPU heatsink assembly.

The whole build is based off of user "binwiederda" HTPC

http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=146962

Fanless and passively cooled. Yes you can hear the HDD spinning if you stick your ear next to it, but my 110-220V transformer and kitchen fridge makes more noise.



This is how the harddrives will fit in the case. Lots of space. I think it's room enough for 3x3.5 drives. Also note the 2.5 inch drive is SOOO much smaller (first one I've owned)


USB 3.0 and Streacom IR module in the top right of the picture. IR button has a "pass through" power cable for the motherboard. So the case 'power on' cable, actually goes to the IR module, then to the motherboard pin 'power on' connector. Makes the bios acpi power on/off setting matter, when I use the remote for power on/off. E.g. Hard-off or reset.



Look at the 4th heat pipe from the left. It tucks a bit out of the heatsink, because the capacitor on the motherboard that's barely visible in the back. I switched heatpipe number three and four, it's originally supposed to look symmetrical. This little mod has no practical impact on temperature I'm sure. And it required no bending of the pipes, just a firm hand when installing it all.


This is the psu connector from the 'external' psu box. It's like a laptop psu in comparison, the dc plug goes straight to the motherboard connector, and there's a Y-cable attached for the ATX 4 pin CPU cable. Same with SATA and MOLEX power.

Furthermore you can see from the picture how an add in riser card would work for the PCI slot. It would fit the PCI card horizontally aligned the the expansion card cover. So for cable planning my box now only has the CAT5 and HDMI and power cable attached.

HDMI audio out works perfect, even streams DTS to my soundbar receiver which shows a little DTS logo when I play DTS content, if I've understood it correctly this is bit streaming. A lot of users reported this not working under Linux. VAAPI CPU movie decoding works. The Haswell also has some new encryption feature to make it more CPU efficient, not sure if it works or not. But all in all surprisingly few hiccups with drivers for the build and O/S.

Oh and temperature wise it's cool, Antarctica cool. The case is rated for max 95TDP, the 4130t is 35w. Could easily get away with a 55w Haswell, but I didn't want to take the chance. The heatsinks on the sides of the case feels like body temperature after 1-2 hrs of 1080p playback, never bothered to measure it. It's totally doable to stow this box in an enclosure or something.

6 Client 5 User Setup

June 7, 2014, 1:03 am

≫ Next: android tv box H918A

≪ Previous: New HTPC build (passive, Streacom FC5B, i3 4130t , Linux , 24/7, xbmc , 4k)

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I have been using XBMC since the early days on the original XBOX with help from the Splinter Cell mod.

Over the years i have used it in various different configurations such as the Apple TV, Mac, RPi, OpenELEC, Windows and Ubuntu.

Currently i have a pretty solid server and client setup that i would like to share for anyone thats interested.



Server



Specs:
- Lian-Li A71F
- Intel i7 920 2.66GHz Quad Core
- ASUS P6T
- 16GB (4x 4GB 1333MHz DDR3)
- Nvidia GT610
- Corsair HX1000
- Corsair H60
- IBM M1115 SAS Controller (Flashed as LSI 9211-8i)
- Intel 530 120GB SSD
- 20TB Usable Space (2x 1TB, 1x 1.5TB, 1x 2TB, 5x 3TB Western Digital + 1x 3TB Seagate)

VMware's vSphere Hypervisor (ESXi - Free) with the following virtual machines:

unRAID by LimeTech
- Network Storage (SAMBA)

Ubuntu 12.04 Desktop
- XBMC 13
- MySQL (Database)
- Squid (Proxy)

unRAID hosts all of my files, XBMC scans into the MySQL database through the Squid proxy.

The Squid proxy isn't required but its helpful at speeding up the fetching of posters and other images.





Clients



Lounge Room

Garage



Bedroom 1



Bedroom 2

Bedroom 3

Bedroom 4

I have setup a shared database structure via MySQL for all clients and profiles.

Checkout my signature for more details.

android tv box H918A

June 12, 2014, 6:58 pm

≫ Next: Traveling XBMC: with tablets and power inverter

≪ Previous: 6 Client 5 User Setup

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There is a new product-H918A,hot selling now and make a unique style because of its gold color which is different of others,Allwinner A31S quad core CPU,six kinds of working mode.Built in bluetooth,and can connect wifi internet,a power botton and HDMI output.

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Traveling XBMC: with tablets and power inverter

June 23, 2014, 11:53 pm

≫ Next: Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

≪ Previous: android tv box H918A

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Some of you might have seen my post on the "Full motion center headrest mount for tablet" I finally had some down time and installed my power inverter in my center counsel and then used snap-in outlets to make them look more stock and then wired a toggle switch for solid on off switch, now I can power a router while charging 2 tablets and a laptop at the same time (of course I won't be charging them non stop, but the router will be on for extended periods)





TP Link WDR3600: $57.00

amp wiring kit: $25.00 (power and ground was cheaper to buy this way at least where I'm at)

Cobra Power Inverter: $25.00

snap - in outlets: $5.00

Toggle Switch: $4.00

20 gauge stranded wire: $7.00(for the toggle switch)

14 gauge stranded wire: not sure had some on hand (used to run outlets and tie them together)

total $123.00 plus 14 gauge wire

other things that will be needed are: crimp adapters and heat shrink you can get them at a local hardware store

thanks to SKiNNiEH for the great idea will make our vacations much easier since we spend a lot of time driving

thanks to developers of XBMC and all other contributors in this community

Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

July 11, 2014, 5:19 pm

≫ Next: New AMD AM1 build

≪ Previous: Traveling XBMC: with tablets and power inverter

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Hello all,

Im a bit new to the XBMC world and starting to discover all its glory. Have a couple of different android boxes that have worked perfectly. The problem is I received a couple new A20 boxes and they have no problem connecting to my home WiFi but when I try to connect via hotspot from my phone I get an unending string of error messages "System configuration is inconsistent with production configuration, please contact your supplier" has anyone ecperienced this and have a work around?

Thanks!

New AMD AM1 build

July 31, 2014, 11:04 am

≫ Next: Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

≪ Previous: Problem connecting A20 box to Hotspot

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Hi, here is my new upgrade of old mediacenter after 6 years.
I have discarded case, psu and dvd drive. Only SSD and HDD remains :-)

Config is:
mobo: Asrock AM1H-ITX
RAM: 2GB Patriot 1333MHz
CPU: Athlon 5350 AM1
SSD: Kingston SNV425 64GB
HDD: WD 1TB caviar black
case: Silverstone Milo ML-04
psu: universal notebook power brick 90W

Software is OpenElec 4.0.7 with XBMC 13.1 Gotham.
Boot is very quick (about 15sec) and GUI is fluent, without lags or stuttering.
When playing Avatar 1080p bluray rip, the cpu is only 5-10% load.

Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

August 14, 2014, 7:14 pm

≫ Next: Couple of builds using the Antec ISK310-150

≪ Previous: New AMD AM1 build

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Just a small project for an HTPC

Parts list:
Silverstone Sugo Series SG05BB-lite
Intel Pentium G3258
ASRock Z97M-ITX/AC
Patriot Gamer Series 4G 2x2 DDR3
Corsair Hydro Series H50 Quiet Edition Liquid Cooler
Silverstone SFX ST30SF 300w PSU

Its 8.5"Wide, 7"Tall, 11" long

Couple of builds using the Antec ISK310-150

August 29, 2014, 10:26 am

≫ Next: Passive FM2+ 7850K Build

≪ Previous: Silverstone Sugo Intel Pentium G3258

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Just wanted to share with you guys the two HTPCs I've built with this case, not a particularly fun case to work with due to constraints like the stupid metal cage over the motherboard area and the fact that the PSU runs HOT due to lack of space. Built the i3-3220 two years ago, so the hardware is sort of old. You may also notice some of the text doesn't make sense, or follow right - I took the lazy way out and combined a bunch of posts together LOL.

You can also see the progression and the advances I made building in the case a second time, my first attempt looks so...hacked together.

Some things common to both builds:

1) Removed as much restriction as possible in the power supply - this involved removing any possible obstruction by cutting away the stock vents

2) Replace all stock fans (including the one in the power supply) and install a second auxiliary fan in the fan holder. The first build used a trio of Young Years (which are a rebadge of Yate Loons) and the second one used Gelid Silent 8's since I couldn't find the Young Years anymore.

3) Undervolt all fans. The first one used a trio of 5V Molex adapters I modified, so every single fan (including the one in the power supply) received 5V - I won't recommend this anymore since on high loads the fans won't ramp up anymore (initially the idea was to minimize tonality differences caused by different fan RPMs, and also due to the lack of fan control on the Intel board). Second time around, we ended up getting an ASRock board which has decent fan control, so we used the onboard motherboard headers with an addition of a Noctua (or any brand really) Y-cable splitter since ASRock only included one chassis header since it was their budget board.

IMHO, this case really needs to be stood up since ventilation isn't the greatest and any bit helps (including natural convection). However, the earlier build has been in an enclosed cabinet with barely any fresh air intake for almost 2 years now with no ill effects.

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Core i3-3220 Wrote:Really, just a PITA case to work in. You may notice I don't actually have a motherboard in it yet....the Intel H67 board has been backordered for several weeks now -.-

Quote:-Intel i3 3220
-Intel DH67CFB3
-8GB Corsair XMS3 2 x 4GB DDR3 1600MHz
-OCZ Vertex 3 120GB SSD
-Antec ISK310-150W
-Scythe Kozuti
-Some random Teac DVD Rom

Originally I was going to consider the Wesena ITX2/Streacom FC1, hence the Scythe Kozuti (as I wanted an optical drive, which prevented me from using a bigger sink like the Big Shuriken), but then realized that the case, plus the PicoPSU would've cost a fortune (though not as much as the FC5 I recently did a build on). Spent some time looking and finally settled on the Antec, which I admit does look nice, primarily due to the simple front which has absolutely no logos.

Per advice from other users, I opted to replace all the fans inside the case, including the PSU fan (which falls prey to an overly sensitive load sensor in the PSU), with Yate Loon's (yes, I'm aware they say 'Young Year', and that the model number printed on the label corresponds to a sleeve bearing model, instead of the 'Ball Bearing' claim printed below the brand) as they were the best ones I could find locally at a decent price (~$7 plus tax). I went and cut out the grill on the PSU as well, and will be creating a duct that will seal the exhaust fans to the exterior shell (there's around half an inch of dead space between the exhaust grill on the shell, and the actual fans which are mounted inside the chassis). All three fans will be undervolted externally via a 5V Molex adapters (I switched the Molex pins around on the PSU connector, the black Molex connector you see in the pictures is for the power LEDs, and yes they are designed for 5V so everything works out).

Cable-wise, everything is sort of tight, but not the worst I've seen. I don't know how Puget Systems and other review sites could make the case interior look so messy, as it really isn't that bad. A few zip ties here and there works wonders (I have not finalized the locations for the ties, will have to wait until I get the motherboard in before I can button everything up, for now it is just a mockup). I removed the now-useless bracket for the three speed controller on the Antec Tricool and plan to route the USB 3.0 header pass through cable to the back I/O panel, as my board doesn't have a USB 3.0 header. Should I keep the front panel USB connections 2.0 or 3.0?

Finally, the completed product. Good thing I bought a 1000 pack of zip ties, the smaller the case, the more zip ties I have to use in order to mock up where the cables go, and try different layouts. I honestly believe this is the best anyone can do without cutting away part of the ODD/HD brace.

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Sorry for the massive amount of pictures! Some closing notes:

-The PSU does get a little warm, but I attribute that mainly to how there's very little room inside the PSU - hell, the heatsinks nearly touch the top! Plus the fact that 1/3rd of the exhaust fan is blocked by the top cover and connecting it to a 6V adapter doesn't really help things. However, I don't think my draw is even at a fifth of it's rated specs, especially with the processor power management enabled in the power options of Windows. Will keep an eye on it however. I should've left the stock fan on and see how loud that was when coupled to my setup, but alas, I went ahead and quite literally sealed it in with zip ties everywhere LOL.

-The Scythe Kozuti is QUIET. Like holy crap quiet. Core Temp reports temperatures of around 24C at idle, which is astounding! I have almost an identical setup in my office PC, and that idles at mid 30's with the stock Intel heatsink.

-The board works flawlessly, I only wished it had UEFI, as I'm spoiled by my Asus Gene-Z. Haven't tried undervolting it yet, but for a HTPC, the BIOS settings are plenty. In addition, there's no USB 3.0 header on the board itself, but as this board came out almost 2 years ago, I really can't fault Intel for it. I will have to make do with USB 2.0 front panel connectors, or buy a passthrough dongle to the I/O panel and plug the header cable directly into the rear USB 3.0 ports.

-I honestly didn't think the Yate Loon's/Young Year's would sound any good, but at 5V, I think I can live with the barely audible whoosh of air. Barely any bearing noise at all, compared to the stock PSU fan and the Antec TriCool. And they start reliably at 5V as well! Alas, without hooking up a resistor/rheostat to it, I will not know the lowest operating/startup voltage. They push a significant amount of air for a 80mm fan.

-The chassis itself is built like a tank. I have seen some examples where the user cut away half of the ODD tray, but IMO, unless you find another way to brace the case,. this isn't a particularly good idea as the case relies on this brace to tie in the front and back panels. The vents on the removable top cover could use a bit of resizing however. My last few photos show how a third of the fans were cut off simply because the vents weren't big enough. I may enlarge the vents and put traditional wire grills one, but that'd ruin the overall look of the case.

Other than those points, I think this build went pretty straight forward. I must admit, I spent the bulk of my time routing cables, but honestly, it could be worse. There is actually quite a bit of space in the nooks and crannies, like the half inch of dead space right above the PSU and below the ODD tray, or in between the memory sticks and the PSU (where my 24 opin cable is routed through). I do think this case is best without a discrete graphics card as I worry that the card will block too much of the intakes, thus raising interior temperatures and increasing the noise.

I ran the Windows Experience Index for laughs and giggles, and to my dismay, the IGPU (Intel HD2500) only gave me a 4.9 LOL. On the other hand, that 4.9 is enough to let my watch full HD movies without stuttering, so it's GTG in my books.

Oh one last thing, like the other Antec cases with a lit ring around the power button (SOLO, etc), it is DAMN BRIGHT. I think I may have to sand the ring to make it less transparent, or add a resistor to the LEDs.[/quote]

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Pentium G3258 Wrote:Putting together another low-budget HTPC ($300) in a case I'm quite familiar with (I have one, and it is a PAIN to work in).

Quote:-Intel Pentium G3258
-ASRock H81M-ITX
-Kingston HyperX Genesis 2 x 4GB DDR3 1600MHz
-Intel 530 120GB SSD
-Antec ISK310-150W
-Scythe Big Shuriken 2 Rev. B

Took around a day, managed to get the feisty Pentium up to 4.2GHz (I know the screen cap says 4.1GHz, this was before I tweaked some more settings). Right now it is rock stable at 1.25V VCORE and the multiplier set at 42. Overvoltage is enabled, but aside from those settings, there are really no in depth adjustments. Ram is set to XMP Profile 1.3. Probably going to start lowering VCORE and see if we could get lower temps - it's hitting 85C with the stock Intel cooler (the Scythe is on backorder):







Onwards with the build!



I'm kidding, that couldn't boot period. Even unlocked, 6.0 is a pipe dream lol.





If you've seen my previous builds, most of you will know I have a thing for steel cables, and this is no different. Since I had cut down the ODD/HDD tray (original tray below) to increase the clearance for the HSF, it became slightly flimsy front to back since the original unaltered tray ran the full length of the case and tied the front to the back with screws. Decided to install a couple of steel cables to mitigate this - an unexpected bonus, they came out pretty sleek personally and just look cool.

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I knew the PSU in this particular case ran HOT so like my own HTPC I removed all possible obstructions from the intake and exhaust grills to aid in venting - even still the PSU blows out warm air, someone you'll have to put up with due to the extremely crammed compartment.



I did end up switching all the fans including the ADDA in the power supply with some Gelid Silent 8's - mainly because they were cheap and in stock locally. They sound pretty decent and included silicone mounts as well, good deal.



Overall, we managed to stay in budget and produce a fairly capable and sweet looking machine. Possible upgrades would be a second hard drive or an ODD - the board only has two SATA ports LOL. Oh, almost forgot about the USB3.0 front panel that's coming direct from Antec - curiously, even though this case is newer than mine, it has the older USB2.0 front panel. Since there is NO USB3.0 header on the motherboard itself, most likely we are going to run a header to dual 3.0 plugs adapter out to the external USB3.0 plugs on the I/O panel. Sacrifices...

Nothing wants to go in without a fight I found out. Installed (or rather, tried to) the Big Shuriken 2 Rev. B today, only to find out ASRock positioned the CPU socket so close to the top edge of the board that the Big Shuriken 2 hits the fans (missing around 1/4" of space). Uh Oh.

I guess lucky me, because the way the Scythe positioned the mounting locations for the Intel brackets means that I can shift the heatsink towards the top or bottom without losing contact with the heatspreader (due to the fact that the HSF base is an elongated rectangle meant for also accommodating the longer AMD sockets). I ended up using one of the LGA2011 holes and drilled an additional hole in each of the brackets in order to offset the entire heatsink (moved it about 1/2"). Ended up with an extra 1/8" of clearance - Scythe should've definitely designed the HSF asymmetrically to prevent issues like this.

Regardless, even installed it is a really tight fit, but the 15C temperature drop at full load made up for it!

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[/quote]

Here's the mod to the PSU:



[/quote]