Need Help With 3D HTPC

[xps420]

Hi I own a Samsung HLT6187SX/XAA DLP HDTV with a 3DA-1 adapter, and a Onkyo TX-SR876 receiver which is not 3D capable.

I'm looking to build a 3D HTPC that would be compatible with what I own and build it to be somewhat future proof, if that's possible.

This is what I'm looking for:

3D Blu-Ray player/burner.

Silent or quiet case or tower.

Silent or quiet power supply.

A quality & compatible motherboard for what I need with USB 3.0.

1.5TB-2TB Hard Drive & hopefully quiet.

If possible wireless internet built in, if not I'll buy a adapter.

3D compatible video card for playing 3D Blu-Ray's, 3D MKV's, HD MP4's. Also I'm not looking to play games but I would like the card to handle 2D To 3D conversion well, if the video card contributes to that.

For Audio I would like to send one HDMI out to my AV Receiver & get Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD, and one HDMI to my 3DA-1 adapter.

i3,i5 or i7 processor depending on what I need to play all the formats I list & in 3D.

For a TV Card, I would only want one if I could use a program to convert 2D to 3D HDTV stations, if that's not possible I don't need one.

A program or programs that play all the formats I listed, and also does 2D to 3D conversion well.

I haven't purchased 3D glasses yet, but I'm looking to buy the Ultra Clears, and I don't know which would be compatible with a HTPC. DLP Link or IR? If IR I would need to buy a emitter.

For budget, I'm not looking to spend an outrageous amount & I heard it's possible to build a quality HTPC for a low cost if it's not a full blown gaming machine, if that's true or not.

Any help would be great and fast responses would be much appreciated, thanks.

 

[jmsellars1]

Isn't 3d just dependant on your TV and your glasses? I don't think you have to build a 3d PC. Some guidelines for a HTPC though:

- Go for Low Power Consumption, this equals low heat and that equals low noise.
- The integrated graphics on a socket 1155 i3 or AMD Llano are perfect for this kind of build.
-A quiet PC with just 1 loud part equals a loud PC so be careful and make sure every part is quiet.

 

[manu 11]

yeah, llano will be the best htpc processor, great inbuild graphics and can be used for moderate gaming too.

 

[jmsellars1]

I'd argue that the i3 would still be better for a HTPC because it can handle HD movies and has better processing power, also consumes far less power. If you want to game, buy a GPU imo.

The llano is still a great option though.

 

[xps420]

See I don't know if a i3 can handle the demands of 3D well and an inbuild graphics card for sure can't handle 3D from what I've been reading. From a few threads on 3D I read, I need a minimum of a 430 GT on the nVidia side and a 6-series on the ATI side. Quality and clarity on the video card is crucial for me to.

On the Sound Card I need a HDMI out to get Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD and the only 2 I've found were the Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater HD sound card that has issues and the Asus Xonar and most sites stopped selling them & their expensive. Maybe they stopped selling them because their coming out with 3D compatible ones.

Here is a one year old build http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/home_theater_vengeance

It uses a Athlon II X4 610E on a 3D PC, but 3D was fairly new to PC's last year and I don't know how this did perform and some things are expensive. I would like a current 2011 build with newegg links for everything I need if that's possible, because I know nothing about motherboards, processors, cases, Proper & quiet PSU etc.

I do know a little about video cards, sound cards & ram though.

 

[rwpritchett]

On the Sound Card I need a HDMI out to get Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD and the only 2 I've found were the Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater HD sound card that has issues and the Asus Xonar and most sites stopped selling them & their expensive. Maybe they stopped selling them because their coming out with 3D compatible ones.

If you want Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, you don't need a sound card. The latest generation video cards bitstream HD audio over HDMI with their own built-in audio. Even the i3 CPU's bitstream HD audio. You definitely do not need a Xonar.

For example, if you purchased a 430 GT video card: it has both video and audio processors on it that are output over HDMI. No need for motherboard audio, no need for a sound card.

For 3D blu-ray, the Intel i-series processors can do it, the AMD Llano processors can do it, and the recent video cards from both Nvidia (4xx and 5xx) and AMD (HD5xxx and HD6xxx) can do it. All of them can bitstream HD audio BTW, with the exception of the Geforce 570 and 580 for some strange reason.

 

[xps420]

If you want Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, you don't need a sound card. The latest generation video cards bitstream HD audio over HDMI with their own built-in audio. Even the i3 CPU's bitstream HD audio. You definitely do not need a Xonar.


For example, if you purchased a 430 GT video card: it has both video and audio processors on it that are output over HDMI. No need for motherboard audio, no need for a sound card.


For 3D blu-ray, the Intel i-series processors can do it, the AMD Llano processors can do it, and the recent video cards from both Nvidia (4xx and 5xx) and AMD (HD5xxx and HD6xxx) can do it. All of them can bitstream HD audio BTW, with the exception of the Geforce 570 and 580 for some strange reason.

Does the quality of the video change between a higher end card for upconverting 2D to 3d using a program and on Blu-Ray playback in general?

How would I be able to send one HDMI to my TV 3D adapter & another to the AVR 1.3 for sound?

How's the quality of the video card sound besides Blu-Ray playback?

Here is a thread discussion I found http://www.evga.com/forums/tm.aspx?m=1071187&mpage=1

Can you give me a quality build with links?

 

[rwpritchett]

I'm not a 3D guru by any means. I suggest you read up at this FAQ for 3D HTPC playback:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1240499

It's more geared towards 3D blu-ray playback... I don't know if it applies to 3D broadcast programming.

I don't know exactly what that 3DA-1 adapter is supposed to do, but a quick google search tells me it is only for Mitsubishi DLP TVs and their "checkerboard" format. Will it work with your Samsung or is it even necessary? As I said though, I'm not a 3D blu-ray guru. What do you need it for?

The ideal setup is HTPC->HDMI->Receiver->HDMI->TV. I believe that is the only way to get both 3D video and HD audio, though I could be mistaken. Since your receiver is not 3D capable, I don't think you will be able to set it up with everything you want. Either you have 3D video going straight to the TV and standard DD/DTS going to your receiver via S/PDIF, or you have 2D video with HD audio. I think you need to get a 3D capable receiver to get this to work with both 3D and HD audio.