[mythtv-users] Reference 0.24 netboot silent frontend

[Richard Morton]

Hi,

There was a thread on this recently.

A completely silent PC is very difficult to achieve as CPUs usually
require heatsinks and fans; or expensive heatpipes and heatsinks.

It is possible to achieve this with an intel atom / nvidia graphics /
chipset (ION).

remember that a hardware decoder only implements certain (common)
features of the codec standard and can choke on files that are
otherwise "bluray" like.

Another example is that MPEG4Part2 (DIVX/XVID) is not always decoded
in hardware (ION2 or GT220 do decode this in hardware).

In the end it comes down to your expectations and the acquisition
equipment / broadcast standards in your territory...

After saying that it is difficult get completely silent PC; Zotac have
just announced boards that would meet your need; specifically the
ZOTAC ION-T

It is ION2 so decodes MPEG2, MPEG4part2(DIVX) and MPEG4part10 (H264)
in hardware.
http://www.zotac.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=546:zotac-updates-ion-itx-platforms&catid=1&Itemid=268&lang=un

http://www.legitreviews.com/news/9818/

I think this (if the price is right) will be my next frontend.

R