AOpen MP965-DR
Computer: AOpen MP965-DR
Specs: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 Ghz T8300, Intel GMA x3100 integrated graphics, ICH8M chipset, 2GB DDR II RAM, Integrated 10/100/1000 Intel NIC, Integrated Realtek ALC888 sound
Size: 165(W)x50(H)x165(D) mm
Hard drive: 1 TB 7200 RPM external hard drive connected via eSATA II. Extra storage also kept on 500 GB NAS
Tuner cards: HDHomerun (2xHD tuners), 1 Firewire STB connection (1 HD/SD tuner using Motorola 6200 STB), Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-950 USB tuner (HD+software SD tuner)
Other important ports: Integrated Firewire, Component video output (Y-Pb-Pr)
Installation:
My default install with Mythbuntu 8.10 cause video to not always show on boot. Instead I installed Ubuntu 8.10 and installed the Mythbuntu package manually from their website.
Usage:
Computer is fast for general usage but the remote seems to lag sometimes and not all the buttons are mapped by default. I would have to play around with it to get everything to work.
Notes:
The firewire tuner did not work as expected. MythTV recognized the tuner but a lot of the channels were blocked out. The Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-950 SD tuner did not work in Ubuntu out of the box (see solved problems below).
Solved problems:
1. In Ubuntu 8.04 I needed to build Lirc from scratch and replace some files to get the remote to work. Instructions here.
2. I had to add a new firmware to the Win-HVR-950 tuner to get it to even work under Linux but the video quality and reception was very poor. I tried the tuner under Windows using the same cable connection with similar results for video quality and reception.I ended up selling the tuner because I needed a SD tuner more than I needed another HD tuner.
Outstanding problems:
1. Fan on external hard drive never turns off and hard drive never spins down. Probably a problem with Ubuntu not yet supporting the Intel ICH8M chipset.
2. Limited to < 4GB RAM because of chipset
3. Video does not always display on a cold boot. I wouldn’t turn off the machine if I could figure out problem #1 but sometimes I have to reboot 2 times before the video shows on the TV.