I built a PC specifically for connecting to my 55 inch
wide screen TV and surround sound system. The
case is
black to match my stereo equipment and has a front panel to hide my
white DVD drive. It also has front USB, firewire, and audio jacks, which
are
hidden by
a flip up
panel, and makes it easy to connect my external hard drive. I'm
not going to go into detail on how to build a "media" PC in this
guide, but I plan on putting together a guide, much like this guide,
on how to build a media PC.
What you need to know for now is that you will need
a video card with TV out to connect to your video input on your TV
and you will need a Y-adapter audio cable to connect your PC audio to
your L and R audio inputs on your TV. A wireless keyboard and mouse
is a good idea but not necessary. I use the Gyration wireless
keyboard and mouse, which I just love.
I have not tried out any stand alone DivX players, but have read up on them
a little. You basically have two ways to go: build one yourself or buy
one. Some models I have read about are the Mecotek MK-X4000, Umax DVX6100
and Philips DVD-737. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any for sale in the
US. However, there are several websites you can purchase
one
from.
I would
definitely read
as many reviews as I could before ordering.
Below are several reviews I have found:
Below are several sites you can order from (I have no idea about their reliability
or reputation or even if they deliver to the US):
If you are interested in building your own, below are several websites that
might interest you: My next project is to build a stand
alone DivX player as cheap as possible with all the latest features. I
will publish a guide,much like this one, with all the details when I have
completed it.
The Terk Leapfrog WaveMaster 30 Wireless Multiroom Audio/Video Distribution
System (
Model: LF-30S) is suppose to transmit A/V signals from a single source to multiple
destinations, virtually anywhere in your home, without wires. The set
includes a 2.4GHz
transmitter, one receiver and all necessary cables.
I had read a review on this product and it didn't sound very good, but I
thought I would test it out for myself. For this to work, the PC must have
video out on the graphics card. I connected the video out line on the
graphics board to the transmitter's video input
and connected the audio
out line from my mother board to the transmitter's audio input to
using a Y-adapter audio cable. I connected the receiver's video and audio
outputs to my TV's video and audio inputs. Then I set my PC monitor to
TV Out. Then I played the movie from my hard drive.
When I had the TV in the same room as the PC, the movie looked just OK, about
the quality of a VHS tape. When I moved the TV to the other side of the
house, I couldn't pick up the video at all.
Conclusion: This is not an option!
