[mythtv-users] Myth / Pluto / LinuxMCE choice - advice needed

[Ben Lancaster]

On 6 May 2007, at 18:01, Paul Simpson wrote:

> Ok, my server machine / core will obviously be on all the time,  
> however
> I'm a bit of a scrooge and want to get as much "bang for my  
> buck" (as they
> say in the US) as I can. Am I better getting a meaty machine, or  
> having a
> moderate spec and the having some extra machines with WOL to use to  
> do the
> actual capturing?

Headless backends need a minimal spec, harddrive throughput and RAM  
are probably the most important things. Beefy CPU is only really a  
requirement for HD or if you're going to be doing lots of  
transcoding. On my P4 2.8Ghz (HT) backend I can transcode at around  
40fps, so I can get through several hours of the day's programming  
overnight.

Having video storage and the OS (specifically database) on separate  
drives is a good idea.

> What about the whole hardware / software encoding issue? I hope to  
> use the multiplex streaming when it becomes available to allow me  
> to get as many channels as possible with as few LNBs and capture  
> cards as I can get away with.

DVB doesn't require any decoding as it's a digital stream saved  
straight to the disk as MPEG2. If you plan to use XvMC (not really  
necessary for SD stuff on reasonably spec'd machines) then you'll  
need an NVidia card.

> What about disks? I'd rather not have a whole bank of disks powered  
> up all the time if there is a system which allows them to be  
> powered down when not in use.

I don't know anything about doing this, but Western Dig recently  
launched some SATA drives specifically for AV/Media Centre usage, so  
I'd presume they're designed to be left idle and running for long  
periods of time.

> I understand that there is a Myth add-in which allows you to set up  
> a "wish list" of films and programmes. Will this work with the EPGs  
> available in the UK?

Yes.

> How much detail does the EPG in the UK have?

Of you use the over the air guide on Freeview (EIT), you'll get 7  
days for most channels. If you use the xmltv grabber with the Radio  
Times data, you'll get up to two weeks depending on the channel.

> 5 of my "customers" are children, so they will want to build up  
> libraries of everything from "Bob the Builder" and "Pingu" (2 year  
> old) to "Spongebob squarepants" (9 year old) whilst I want to end  
> up with every eposode of "The New Yankee Workshop". WAF is very  
> important to me, not least because I have to get the cost of all  
> this through the financial committee (AKA my wife!).
>
> The final question is, I guess, the biggy. Which should I go for?  
> Ultimately, I want the integration of Pluto / LinuxMCE, but from  
> what I'm seeing that is a road frought with hazzards. Would I be  
> better sticking with Myth only for now?

I'd say stick with Myth for the time being, then when you get that  
stable, give LinuxMCE a go: "If it ain't broke, fix it until it is"

> Or is even Myth still a little shakey?

No; everyone has teething problems to start with, but once you iron  
them out you should be OK!

> I really can't afford to throw money at hardware unless I know I've  
> got a reasonable chance of ending up with a working system which is  
> useable by all the family.

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