TVSquad

I've been absent from the pages of TV Squad and PVR Wire for a few weeks, partly due to a combination of personal circumstances and downright laziness, but also because I've been up to something I should have done a long time ago.

In short, I built myself a Windows Media Center PC.

I know, I know -- it's something I should have done a long time ago, especially given that I've been writing about MCE on PVR Wire for over a year.

However, I was starting to get tired of running an S-Video cable from my PC, halfway across my living room (along with a 3.5mm minijack-to-stereo-phono cable), every time I wanted to watch something I'd downloaded.

So, I pestered one of my friends to source me an old (but generally good) PC which I could go to work on, which he did (don't ask).

Thankfully, it was in reasonably good condition, and I replaced the graphics card with a cheap 128MB nVidia Geforce MX5200 (with DVI-out), and added a removable drivebay, along with a Hauppauge PVR-150 TV tuner card I had lying around in my garage, but never tried.

I popped in the Windows Media Center installation CDs, and within an hour, I was on my way.

Thanks to a DVI-D cable I picked up for less than £10 on eBuyer, I was able to connect the whole setup to my LCD flatscreen along with a short minijack cable for the audio, and before I knew it, I had MCE up and running on my living room TV with little or no effort at all.

Of course, it soon became evident that I'd grow quickly tired of having to perform the most basic tasks with the hulking great keyboard I'd positioned behind the TV, or the mouse hanging over the edge of my TV stand, so I made a quick trip to eBay and purchased an OEM Microsoft MCE remote for £20, which duly arrived the next day -- then added a compact Cherry Keyboard for less than £15.

Lastly, I connected the ethernet port straight in to my wireless router (which just so happens to sit behind my TV), ran an RF cable from the back of my Sky+ RF-OUT into the PVR-150, and not only did I now have a fully-working MCE wireless setup (allowing me to access video files on other PC equipemt around the house), but an additional output method for TV shows from my Sky+ box, if I so desired it.

I think the whole thing cost me about £75 (of course, the PC was free) -- but it's an ideal solution if you fancy recycling that old midi tower sitting in your junk cupboard, especially since it means you don't have to set your living room up like Dexter's Laboratory in order to watch a downloaded video.

As for MCE -- it's fantastic. I honestly couldn't give it any more credit than an A+. It's a well-crafted, user-friendly and thoroughly enjoyable experience (for a Microsoft product); in essence, it's simplicity itself.

Now, all I need is a motherboard and processor upgrade, some extra memory -- and I can install that Vista Premium CD I've had sitting on my kitchen worktop for a month....