[mythtv-users] Hardware recommendations for low CPU system

[Kevin Kuphal]

I have a PIII-450 motherboard with memory that I'm looking to use as a
slave-backend to my main MythTV system (Athlon 2200 with WinTV) and
occasional frontend in the basement for the kids.  Given that I currently
have a software WinTV card encoding on my main system and much of my content
is in MPEG-4/RTJPEG should I?

1.  Getting a PVR-350 for the second system for hardware encoding and
decoding?

2.  Getting a PVR-250 for the main system for encoding and some kind of
decoder for the second system as a front-end only (recommendations)?  Maybe
a decoder integrated with a video card like the Matrox G200 + DVD
daughterboard type system?

3.  Avoid the PVR-x50s altogether and spend the $150 a 350 would cost
instead on a new motherboard CPU bundle and just use another WinTV card in
software avoiding the MPEG2 content/decoding issue?

Thanks,
Kevin