I have just 'stumbled' over MythTV and an fascinated by the idea of putting this together. While I am a 20+ year PC type and a Windows professional I have zero knowledge of Linux.

From this it appears to me that the KnoppMyth would be my best starting point. I'm looking for suggestions on what hardware and configuration I would need to:

1. Support recording of two programs from cable and 1 from a
Dish receiver
2. Support PIP
3. Support record of two programs and playback of one
4. Support handheld remote control
5. Support 802.11A (54MB) wireless LAN connectivity to allow
- Database on an existing separate server (Windows w/ MySQL)
- Allow later configuration to play different programs on multiple
TVs in different rooms.
6. Allow DVD playback and record (two independent DVDs would be
interesting, independent record and playback?)

Obviously not everything would be implemented day one but I'd like to create an open structure that would allow me to migrate to this configuration.

I have a nice motherboard with 5 PCI slots, 1 AGP slot, 1GB memory and an Atheron 2500+ CPU sitting idle right now and it sounds like that should be sufficient CPU for such a task.

For the cable TV interfaces I see various installations of PVR-250/350 card and I'd appreciate suggestions on which way to go. For the Dish interface what video capture card would be appropriate? I'm thinking about 80-120GB 7200RPM HD.

My current Panasonic TV/monitor supports multiple composite videos and an S-video input.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

people will agrue with me.. but theyd be wrong... >=) use ALL 250's NO 350's Many/all devs i know of dont use 350's and there is a reason. While the 350 is a life saver to a SLOWWWW computer it sucks if you have got the ponies under the hood. plus in version .17 of myth the new UI will use hardware accellaration.. so the 350 wont be able to use some of the new features. Misery loves company thats why many 350 users love to speak on its merits.. i would never buy one period.. im overstating my point, but i do feel this way.. read around on the forum to get an idea how much of a pain the 350s are..


*gr8nash suits up his fireproof undies*
-bring the heat....
andy

Oh my... What other OSes have you worked with? Any Unix experience at all?


It is probably the most painless way to set up a MythTV system. You're still going to need to learn some Unix stuff so I'd suggest picking up a Unix primer of some kind to help bootstrap.



You'll need one tuner card per input or at least one per concurrent source. You may be able to use multiple inputs to a single card but you'll only be able to capture one of them at a time per card. You're going to want at least two and probably three cards. Also note that if your cable requires a box with a remote, you'll probably need multiple boxes... You may also have to control those boxes (via IR blaster or if you're lucky serial or firewire connection) which is advanced config.

The MoBo and TV sound fine, but double check the MoBo against the Tier 1 and Tier 2 fourms for proven success or known issues.

Using the existing MySQL server will only make your life harder. Skip it for now and let KnoppMyth set up a local for you. It's going to do it anyway.

Wireless LAN setup again takes some advanced config work. You'll have to search the forum for details.

All the rest is doable to the best of my knowledge. The retail PR-250 comes with an IR remote that is well supported under Knoppmyth. You only need one for the whole box.

I've probably forgotten stuff but it can wait until you have more specific questions.