I'm about to upgrade my workstation, so figured i'd turn it into a MC machine. Just wanted to shoot a few hardware questions at everyone before I get underway with any purchases.. Currently my machine is an Athlon XP 3000+ with 1GB RAM in an Asus A7N8X-E Deluxe, with an 80 gig hdd and a 200gig hdd. My questions are:
[Edit: was unclear here, buying a new workstation, turning old one into mc]
Will I be able to use the digital sound output on my motherboard? (digital coaxial)
Are my specs enough for watching + 2xrecording if I add 3xNOTA-T PCI?
I store all my data on a central fileserver, however I figure I'm best recording locally to the machine doing the recording then transfering the files afterwards (despite gigabit connectiveity), if this is true, are there any solutions for moving a show once recorded/encoded or daily/etc?
I'm wanting to buy a new graphics card, was looking at the GeforceFx5800 (i think) with 256mb ram, looking to spend ~£50.. Any advice?
How would I go about connecting my TV to my PC? At first, I will be using a 32" SDTV.. simple enough. Until the Bravia X Series, would rather do this over YUV (HDMI?) through my amp if possible... Is it? (DVI->HDMI?) etc
Quite like the look of the ATI remotewonder remote.. Would probably get one of those unless they are a bad idea, or there is a particularly better remote available? (i want a good remote!)
Any more help/advice/random stuff to read you can point me too is always appreciated too.
Thanks for any/all help.
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Regards, Will Boyce.
http://willboyce.com/