My new MythTV HTPC

[Kevin P]

While Sven was busy upgrading this forum, I was busy upgrading my HTPC. I used an Ouvislite mini PC with a Celeron CPU as the basis for this new machine (which I got on sale on Prime Day). The machine has 8 GB of RAM and a 128 GB internal SSD, to which I added a 1 TB SATA SSD for storage of recordings.

It's running Ubuntu 22.04 LTS and the current build of MythTV, version 32. I'm using a HDHomerun Connect Duo as a tuner connected to my attic antenna to receive over the air television. I don't have cable or satellite, nor do I subscribe to any streaming services. Both the HTPC and HDHomeRun are connected via ethernet to my network via a gigabit switch located behind my entertainment center.

Here's the new machine sitting atop of the old one. The old one has served me faithfully since 2007 (innards were replaced in 2010 after a PSU failure fried it).



Here's the old one (big honking box in background) and the much smaller new one in the foreground.


The reasons I upgraded were: old machine is very old, it draws a lot of power, and needed a fan in the cabinet to keep it cool. The new machine stays cool without needing the cabinet fan. Also, the new machine has HDMI outputs on it, while the old one had to be connected with Toslink and component video.

For remote control I have a Microsoft MCE IR receiver that connects via USB.

In addition to running MythTV for watching TV, I can also use the Ubuntu desktop and web browser to watch things like Youtube on my home theater. I keep a Logitech wireless keyboard and mouse in a drawer to pull out to use to run the web browser or other apps.

[theSven]

I should look at something like that for my roon server. I need to migrate that from a VM to something physical that can be put in the AV cabinet. That is the perfect size for what I would like too! Thanks for sharing the info on the new build!

[JonMarsh]

This brings back a lot of old memories, I used to really be into HTPCs for ripped DVD's. I still have my last one in storage, which could actually do 5.1 audio. I hadn't thought about putting things like this together right now, other than the M1 Mac mini I'm writing this from was supposed to be the Music learning and playing computer, and has tons of downloaded lessons from YouTube and other sources, and could of course be used for other streaming tasks. It sits on a Satechi hub that hosts a large SATA SSD for the video files, and offers a fair amount of front panel connectivity.






But for now, this is a CAD workstation for Steve's projects instead! It's out in a corner of the dining nook on a small roll around sit-stand computer table that I love, use them for many things... (like, even for holding small speaker cabinets for measurement at different heights off the ground!)





I originally discovered these at a Scandinavian furniture store, but they have them on Amazon, too.

[Kevin P]

I've been testing out the HTPC watching episodes of Big Bang Theory that I recorded years ago. Seems to be working well so far. I suppose I should try recording some shows next.