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HOME THEATER PC HOME THEATER PC HOME THEATER PC HOME THEATER PC
MAXIMUMPC OCTOBER 2006Now that your HTPC is assembled,
it’s time to perform the basic steps
to get it ready for prime-time view-
ing (or listening, or recording, or
whatever else you expect to do with
your home-theater PC).
Because you’ll be using the
machine as a digital video recorder for
time-shift viewing and archiving your
favorite TV shows and movies, you’ll
want to divide its hard drive into two
partitions to keep the constant record-
ing and deleting of the PVR content
from fragmenting the contents of your
hard drive. You’ll set up your partitions
during the Windows XP install.
Set your BIOS to boot from CD-
ROM, drop your Windows installation
disc in the drive, and restart the system. When prompted, press any key on
your keyboard. If you need to confi gure a SCSI drive or a RAID array, you’ll
need to press F6 and install the required drivers from a fl oppy disk when
prompted by the Windows installer; otherwise, wait until the partitioning
screen appears.
The first step in your OS installation will be to partition and format
your hard drive. Create a C: partition using at least 75GB of your drive’s
capacity for Windows and your application software (we set aside
125GB of the 750GB available on our Seagate Barracuda). Create a
D: partition using the balance of the available space for data storage;
alternatively, you could create two or more additional partitions and
reserve one specifically for video recording and the others for digital
photos, music, and the like). Doing so simplifies the process of creating
backups or drive images, but it isn’t strictly necessary.
Once your drive is properly partitioned and the C: drive formatted, proceed
with your normal Windows installation. When that’s fi nished, install the chipset
drivers from the disc that came with your motherboard. The next step is to
obtain and install the most current drivers for your videocard. Take it easy on
your eyes and set your videocard to match the native resolution of your display,
even if you’re only using that display temporarily; just don’t forget to reset it to
match whatever display device you’ll ultimately use—e.g., your TV.
Download and install the most recent Windows updates from Microsoft’s
website, and then obtain and install the most recent BIOS and chipset drivers
for your motherboard, as well as the latest drivers and utility software for
your soundcard and TV tuner (you’ll install these later, of course).
Now that your
machine is up and
running with its
basic infrastructure,
you can install the
rest of the hard-
ware: Shut down the
machine, plug the
soundcard into an
available PCI slot,
restart it, and install
its device driver
and any associated
software. Repeat
this process for the
TV tuner.4 INSTALL THE SOFTWARE INFRASTRUCTURE 5 DO THE POST-ASSEMBLE BOOGIE
The first thing you need to know about installing Beyond TV is that if
you intend to use a remote control with the program, you must install
the drivers for the remote before you install Beyond TV. You should have
already installed any TV tuner cards that you’ll use with the program.
Finally, ensure that your PC has an Internet connection.
We’ll use Snapstream’s own Firefly remote to control Beyond TV,
and Logitech’s Harmony remote to control other aspects of our home-
theater system, particularly the A/V receiver. Both remotes can send
commands using a radio frequency, which means they don’t depend on
line-of-sight to operate.
Install the Firefly’s software first, and plug its RF receiver into one
of the PC’s USB ports when prompted. Once you’ve installed the remote
drivers, you can move on to installing the main program. The first step
in the Beyond TV installation routine is to designate which remote con-
trol you’ll use with the program (you could use a keyboard and mouse,
but we prefer to use the remote from the couch). If you’ve installed the
Firefly remote, make sure
you choose it and not the
Firefly Mini.
The software will
auto-detect any support-
ed TV-tuner/video-capture
card(s) installed in your
PC, but you’ll need to
designate the broadcast
video source (choosing
between analog or digital
antenna, straight-from-
the-wall cable, or cable or
satellite TV set-top box)
for each of them.
The next step is to
download a programming lineup, which is based on your zip code, your
service provider, and the level of service you subscribe to (i.e., basic,
extended basic, or premium). We’ll show you how to download the
guide in the section on configuring Beyond TV. Now you’ll need to tell
the software which of the tuner card’s video inputs you’ll use to receive
programming. As for audio inputs, most cards have just one, the line-in
stereo port.
If you’re connecting a set-top cable or satellite decoder, you should
use the tuner card’s S-Video input. You’ll also need to configure the
software to communicate with the box, so that it will be able to change
channels using the IR Blaster. Beyond TV ships with configurations for a
fair number of set-top boxes, but don’t fret if yours isn’t listed; It’s not
at all difficult to set up a
custom configuration. If
you’re using the USB-UIRT
IR blaster, you’ll simply
point the set-top box’s
remote at the USB-UIRT,
then press the appropriate
buttons when the install
routine prompts you. When
that’s done, you can test
the IR blaster to make
sure it’s properly aimed
and that it sends the cor-
rect commands to the
set-top box.We recommend dividing the
drive so that the PVR software
records video to a partition
separate from the one that
Windows is installed on.Once you have a working Ethernet connection,
download and install the latest video drivers
from your mobo manufacturer’s website.It’s important that you install the
drivers for the remote control you
intend to use with Beyond TV be-
fore you install Beyond T V itself.You’ll know you’ve successfully
installed Beyond TV when you see
and hear video streaming through
your TV tuner.