[plug] MythTV project

[Tim Bowden]

Hi,

I'm looking (finally) at building a cheap(ish?) MythTV box.  Building
small form factor or low power systems is something I've not done
before, so I've got some rather basic questions.

The system will have a combined front end and back end, at least two
and at most three tuner cards, with at least two 1Tb SATA hdd's I've
got lying around.  I've got more spare SATA drives, but I'm not
expecting to fit more than two into a case without size and heat
issues.

* Does anyone have any recommendations for cases, motherboards or
tuner cards available locally at a 'reasonable' cost?

* Do all modern tuner cards pick up the new digital channels?  I
assume so, but I'd rather ask a dumb question than get stung.

* PLE has Leadtek WinFast DTV1000S PCI tuner cards going cheap ($27).
http://ple.com.au/ViewItem.aspx?InventoryItemId=601666
I have seen various reports on the success or otherwise of getting
them to work under linux, though as of kernel 2.6.33 the driver is
included.  Does anyone here have any experience using them?  I'm
tempted to grab a couple and take the risk unless there are better
cards at a similar price.

* This system will be on 24/7 in the living room, so excessive noise
and power consumption is an issue.

* Form factor- Micro ATX or Mini ITX?  Do any of the Mini ITX boards
have enough PCI slots for multiple tuner cards or should I only look
at Micro ATX boards?

I'm sure I'll have plenty more questions as I get my head around this.

Regards,
Tim Bowden