MP3's via my HT (1 Viewer)

[JonT]

I have dive on my server dedicated to MP3's. What i would like to do is to play them through my HT system.

I understand the fact that all i really need to do is run a cable (either coax or rca) from my sound card to the reciever, that's the easy part.

What i'm looking for is to be able to control the songs/files played from the room the HT system is in, not being physically on the PC itself.

Is there an easy and cheaper way to accomplish this?

 

[MikeFR]

Im currently working on a project to do this very thing. What I am doing is setting up a network(since I need to get my ps2 online anyway) and Im going to put a second PC out by my HT.

I have 80% of a pc already(just need a case for it ) and Im going to pick up a vid card with TV-out. This way the PC will be hooked up to my tv so I can select songs, and all my media will be on my main PC in another room.

The reason I am doing this is mainly because I dont want to run a 50ft rca cable to my HT and I would rather invest my money in this rather than a mega cd changer. The added bonus is I will have my ps2 finally set up online, and I will be able to sit on my couch and have access to all my music(I plan on ripping most of my cd collection to wma) and be able to play it on my HT.

This probably more than you are looking for but I'll let you know how it turns out if you want.

Here is the list of equipment...

Router
Network cable
2nd PC with network card, tv-out vid card, and decent sound card.
Cables to connect to HT(and possibly a ground loop isolater if their is any 'hum' in the sound)

Its actually turning out to be fairly cheap, the most expensive aspects are the video card and router(which I already had anyway) the rest is less than 40 bucks CDN.

 

[Joe Hsu]

Well I don't know how extensive you want your abilities to be, but if you simply want something to play/stop/pause/FF/rewind, you could always get an IR repeater system and a remote while using Girder on said computer.

Perhaps there is a way to amplify the signal and extend the range of a cordless keyboard, such as the Logitech MX duo?

 

[Scott L]

It would be too much of a hassle imo. You'd have to get back to the comp to mess with playlists and individual songs not on them. See if any of your friends have an old Pentium 1 or 2 you can use to stick your HD & a new sound card in.

 

[JonT]

True, plus it would then allow me to have a PC in that room, if needed.
Thanks.

About the video, i had heard that the image is very poor when you hook up a PC to a TV. Is that true? Is there any thing special the i should look at buying?

 

[MikeFR]

About the video, i had heard that the image is very poor when you hook up a PC to a TV. Is that true? Is there any thing special the i should look at buying?

I havent done this yet but you are limited by the resolution of your tv. In my case it isnt going to matter because I wont be playing games or movies on the PC. I just want to be able to see my media player and select music.

 

[DonRoeber]

Jon - Take a look at the AudioTron system. It's a network device that you can plug in, and it'll play MP3s over the network to any stero that it's connected to. It creates and maintains a database, so you can ask it for any song that it knows about, and it'll stream it for you.

 

[Mike LS]

About the video, i had heard that the image is very poor when you hook up a PC to a TV. Is that true? Is there any thing special the i should look at buying?

Yeah, the quality is pretty bad....especially if you're trying to make out text. It makes it hard when you're selecting songs for playback. Streaming movies or video is pretty clear on a TV, but most anything else is pretty low quality.
You'll also probably lose some of your screen area because of the conversion. I know on my setup I'm missing a good part of the sides of my image, even though the picture edge is about 2 inches from the edge of the screen.

I keep an old monitor next to my TV so I can set up playlists and such.....it's easier than the eye strain you get doing it with a TV.

 

[Jeff Blair]

If both computers are hooked up to a network, you can use VNC. It is like PCAnywhere, but free. You can get it at www.tightvnc.com/

As for the quality of the video on a TV. It's not too bad. It depends how the video is made. If you are watching a DVD then it will be great. I will be moving my PC back to my HT in a few weeks. I need to get a wireless card. The one I have now isn't supported in Linux :frowning:

 

[JonT]

My ultimate solution, if i had this kind of money. Would be to run Citrix Metaframe server and publish Winamp (or other player) to a wyse wireless device. The all i would need is a like from the MP3 server to the HT system.

 

[Rob Gillespie]

If you're running Windows XP you can use the built-in Remote Desktop Connection tool. You'd need to the have the PC connected to a monitor initially to install Windows, but once it's up and running it can be controlled entirely from another PC.

 

[Kris McLaughlin]

I've wanted to have my MP3s & streaming radio play through my HT for some time now. Here's my solution:

Asking around at work, one of the guys had an old Pentium100 laptop sitting in his closet. For the price of a case of beer (yes, it counts as currency here) the laptop was mine.

With a network adapter and a 25' stereo miniplug cable from the dollar store, this baby sits on my coffee table and connects to the other computers on the network through my router, sharing their music and files.

I now have access to my entire collection without getting up from the couch, and can even surf the web & play my old games while watching TV.

The best part of the setup is that being a laptop, the computer is virtually silent. No fan/HDD noise can be heard unless you put your ear right up to it (but why?)

I'd recommend asking your geeky friends if they have something similar laying around, it might just be the answer to your problem!