[J-Pak]

I'm going to build a new audio PC, since the one I'm using now is also my web browsing computer. And I don't need that distraction when I want to critically listen.

I'm going to build a setup that is based around the K1000.

My primary goals are:

1. aesthetically pleasing. Looking to get a very nice home theater PC case. Going for the minimal look. Must be black. Must lie horizontal since it will go in an audio rack.
2. quiet. Right now my PC is silent. I want silence since the K1000 is fully open.
3. lots of storage space, with some form of RAID. More than likely 2x500 GB hardrives in RAID1.
4. this won't be hooked up to a monitor. I need some way to control this from either a laptop or a portable touch screen

The last bullet point is very important. I want an interface that will easily allow me to use foobar2000, and have full control over my playlist. Do not recommend the Squeezebox 3 to me please, I have seen one in real life and for the distance I'll be sitting from the setup the display is too small.

For planned hardware:

Computer:
Athlon 64 S939 (really this can be anything, just needs to put out as little heat as possible; I'm not up to date in the processor game)
1 GB of RAM
integrated video
M-Audio Audiophile USB soundcard

Audio:
Lavry DA10 DAC (digital from the Audiophile USB)
Pass Labs Aleph 3 or 30 power amp
AKG K1000

The audio portion is set in stone. The computer portion is what I will need help on, or offer me better suggestions (except the soundcard which I already have thats not changing it has a very good digital out).

If you refer to the bullet points above I could use some help on the above areas. Especially the last one. I need help trying to figure out a good way to control the listening computer from my comfy chair. Keep in mind I have a very fast laptop (WinXP), so that can be used as a potentional interface.

Thanks guys for advice. I'll probably bump this thread frequently since this is going to be a pretty big project.

 

[thomaspf]

Have you looked into the newest generation Hush boxes. I have an older model and I am pretty happy.



I use remote desktop to operate Jriver Media center on it from a laptop

Cheers

Thomas

 

[Istasi]

Here's a pricey, but perfect solution for the case (even has a built in touchscreen.)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163061

Another, much cheaper option (though lacking the screen.)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811112096

 

[J-Pak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thomaspf Have you looked into the newest generation Hush boxes. I have an older model and I am pretty happy. I use remote desktop to operate Jriver Media center on it from a laptop Cheers Thomas

Thanks I looked at their website and it looks like they're selling fully assembled computers. I'm going to build this myself since it saves a considerable amount of money and I already have a lot of the parts.

I am interested in hearing more about Jriver Media center, and how you use it on your laptop.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Istasi Here's a pricey, but perfect solution for the case (even has a built in touchscreen.) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163061 Another, much cheaper option (though lacking the screen.) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811112096

I don't want something with a touch screen on the case since I'll have to get up from the chair in order to control it. And I will be sitting about 9 feet away. The Lian Li case looks very nice, but after browsing Newegg somemore I think I'm going to go with this Silverstone:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811163065

I just prefer something that will hide the front optical drives. My only worry with that case is it only has 80 mm rear fans. I really want 120 mm intake and exhaust.

 

[ogewo]

The ideal situation is for the media pc to have no fans and no hard drive. This way it's perfectly silent, both from audible noise and EMI from within the case. It can boot from a ram drive (expensive) or usb (cheap), though usb might require linux. A case for such a system could be tiny.

Storage would be networked attached and in another room. Either in its own computer or an enclosure designed to connect hard drives directly to the network.

For playing a cd right from the drive, cheap PC remotes can be purchased and the buttons set up to send keystroke commands. In foobar you'd set global hotkeys for Play, Next Track, etc.

For browsing through your playlist, I know linux on both systems would allow the functionality for your laptop to control foobar on the Media PC. XP probably has software for that too....PC Anywhere?

 

[J-Pak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogewo The ideal situation is for the media pc to have no fans and no hard drive. This way it's perfectly silent, both from audible noise and EMI from within the case. It can boot from a ram drive (expensive) or usb (cheap), though usb might require linux. A case for such a system could be tiny. Storage would be networked attached and in another room. Either in its own computer or an enclosure designed to connect hard drives directly to the network. For playing a cd right from the drive, cheap PC remotes can be purchased and the buttons set up to send keystroke commands. In foobar you'd set global hotkeys for Play, Next Track, etc. For browsing through your playlist, I know linux on both systems would allow the functionality for your laptop to control foobar on the Media PC. XP probably has software for that too....PC Anywhere?

Thanks for those suggestions.

My computer right now has fans, and hardrives and my head is about 2 feet away from it. From this distance it is dead silent. If I put my head right next to the front of the case I can hear the intake fan, but it's still very quiet.

I don't plan to use the optical drive other than to rip CDs. Even then I'll probably rip them on my main computer and send them over the network to the audio PC.

Sitting 9 feet away, I don't think I need to be that hardcore and go all out with ramdrives

I like the idea of the PC remote but I'd still like to see what I'm controlling since if I want to jump from an artist in "A" to an artist in "T" it will take more than a simple remote.

Keep the suggestions coming everyone, they're all fantastic and helping me out in some way.

 

[h0ng]

If you are going for that Silverstone case, I heard that there are 80mm Yate Loon fans that are supposedly great for quietness, dont know about the cooling potential of it though. Besides that, have you thought about the CPU cooler and Power Supply? As they do have an affect on the overall quietness on your HTPC rig.

As for the control side of things, you could opt for the iMon remote with the VFD display that fits in the CDROM bay. On the other hand, you can use VNC, a program to control the HTPC from your laptop.

 

[CSMR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by J-Pak I'm going to build a new audio PC, since the one I'm using now is also my web browsing computer. And I don't need that distraction when I want to critically listen.

What sort of distraction exactly? There may be software you can use to get round this.

 

[InSides]

J-Pak, what is your budget? For a completely silent PC - no other way then to go fanless - and the way I see it - the enclosure would be the most expensive part of the build.

Seeing you don't like the Hush - prebuilt does not save you money - these below will probably break your budget, but for continuity sake, I am posting them anyways.

For the HTPC - A-Tech Fabrication HeatSync 6000 - properly configured - ~$900:

A-Tech HeatSync 6000

For the media drive - A-Tech Fabrication Mass-Storage 4x - holding 4 drives - properly configured - ~$400:

A-Tech Mass-Storage 4x

I have seen one of their cases - and they are [apart from the price premium] gorgeus as well as functional.

Alternative option - mCubed HFX - ~$700 when configured:

mCubed Tech

Although - I have yet to locate a US dealer for these.

As for control - a good way to do this is to get a small 8" touchscreen that you can mount near your listening post - two cables need to go to your PC - VGA and USB. These can be had for as little as $250.

 

[Bones13]

J-Pak

Reconsider the Raid system. With an audio box you really don't need the "perceived" speed, and add a big layer of complexity to the setup and upkeep to your system. Nothing wrong with a terabyte though, I am settled on a single 500 gig drive myself for my ongoing current build. The current issue of MaximumPC (yeah, I know its not as great as it used to be) has a very nice comparison of HTPC cases.

Am awaiting the parts for my new computer, so excuse me if I get to sound pedantic.

The new Intel Core2Duo chips are both much faster than the current AMD crop, and are MUCH more efficient, producing a lot less heat. For a new "quiet" system, I would heartily recommend you consider these. I am not certain of the availability of the micro motherboards for the HTPC cases for this CPU yet, but I think worth the research, and perhaps a short wait for one. Don't overload your system with RAM for this unit. You want to avoid any excess to lower heat output.

I will have to do some digging for the remote control part, there are several systems out there that allow "remote" desktop control across a wireless network. At least it seems simple for the IT geek at work to log onto my computer and do stuff like he is sitting at my desk. I have read of folks that use a PDA to run their systems, this is the part I don't know much about, and whether this would allow you to browse your collection, or just do PLAY/STOP and volume control.

 

[Jon L]

I would stress simplicity and reliability when building an Audio PC. When there are multiple ways to do it, go with the one that will be the simplest and most reliable.

I hate the small screens of Pocket PC type of remote controls and went with Viewsonic wireless LCD panel (expensive!), but that adds another layer of wireless complexity. Any time there's more software, hardware, wireless network to deal with, there WILL be problems, sometimes very frustrating.

I recommend going with a small, hard-wired LCD monitor, as there are long "extension" monitor cables available. With K1000, you do want complete silence, so avoid anything with fans. Fanless PS and fanless case (water-cooled, etc) will be more pricey, but in the long run, you will save money by not needing to "upgrade" later on.

Do use internal rubber hard-drive suspension harnesses, and I would use internal hard drives for all your needs. External hard drives are good for backing-up, etc, but there are too many issues with heat and/or noise to use them as your main library that needs to be "on" all the time. Again, simpler is better.

I know some people are recommending using the minimal CPU b/c music playback is not demanding. But as Gordon Rankin has stated, more powerful CPU's tend to sound better, and you really do need a good CPU if you plan to run anything such as Secret Rabbit Resampler, digital room correction, or run multiple applications at the same time (such as EAC and Foobar going at the same time). So get at least a 2.4 GHz chip and put a chip heatsink on it as well as "heat-sensitive" PC case...

 

[003]

As for controlling the PC remotley with no monitor, you can do that very easily with the free program TightVNC:
http://www.tightvnc.com/

I use it to control a dedicated server I run with no monitor, it is perfect and it is very straightforward to use.

 

[thomaspf]

I have never used tightvnc. Is there any benefit over the built-in remote desktop?

Cheers

Thomas

 

[Dedpoet]

Quote:

I have never used tightvnc. Is there any benefit over the built-in remote desktop?

The main difference here is that VNC is an actual remote control application. You can connect to the remote PC, move your mouse, and watch the mouse move on the remote machine. Remote Desktop is essentially another session on the remote computer - you don't disturb the true console session. RD is faster and pulls most of the resources to the controlling computer. It also lets you run in true full-screen mode, and to use special keys like ctrl-alt-del or the window key. With VNC, you have to click buttons that emulate those keystrokes.

Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I love RD for administrating servers, especially in remote offices, but you can't beat VNC for support purposes - when you want someone else to see what you're doing, as you might in this case.

For what it's worth, I prefer UltravNC over TightVNC. It seems to perform just as well, and also has file transfer capability which may or may not matter for this application. It also uses an optimized video driver for better screen performance and, depending on the level of geekiness desired, can use Windows authentication for connecting.

 

[Dead Ghost]

I would recommend Antec Fusion, but it's not black i'm afraid. But it has 2 120mm fans, very good cooling and space for 2 hdds.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129131