PVR - Minimum Requirements?

[Devious]

I am curious to know what MINIMAL stable systems people are using as PVR's. I personally took my old PIII computer components out of a tower case and transplanted them into an Antec Overture case six months ago and have been running BTV3 fast, flawlessly, and continuously ever since; alongside the rest of my entertainment components. My set up cost approx. $210 ($160) to upgrade for PVR use. This is my simple setup:

Already had:
PIII 700 MHZ, 512 MB RAM, 180 GB 7200 RPM HD, ATI Radeon 7200 (video), Turtle Beach Santa Cruz (audio), running Windows XP Pro SP2

Upgraded to make PVR:
Hauppauge PVR-150 = $100
SnapStream Beyond TV 3 = $60
SnapStream Firefly remote = $50 (optional)

This system obviously doesn't have all of the additional capabilities that other setups might, but I want to record shows that I would typically miss while out of the house, and that's exactly what this system does. I've never missed a show and I always have 30+ hours left to record at DVD 'Best Quality'. I have a splitter running to my digital cable box in case I want to watch another show while recording.

Since the system is old and I have another, I keep this PVR clean, defragmented, and up-to-date.

[Glenn Hall]

Originally Posted by Devious

I am curious to know what MINIMAL stable systems people are using as PVR's. I personally took my old PIII computer components out of a tower case and transplanted them into an Antec Overture case six months ago and have been running BTV3 fast, flawlessly, and continuously ever since; alongside the rest of my entertainment components. My set up cost approx. $210 ($160) to upgrade for PVR use. This is my simple setup:

Already had:
PIII 700 MHZ, 512 MB RAM, 180 GB 7200 RPM HD, ATI Radeon 7200 (video), Turtle Beach Santa Cruz (audio), running Windows XP Pro SP2

Upgraded to make PVR:
Hauppauge PVR-150 = $100
SnapStream Beyond TV 3 = $60
SnapStream Firefly remote = $50 (optional)

This system obviously doesn't have all of the additional capabilities that other setups might, but I want to record shows that I would typically miss while out of the house, and that's exactly what this system does. I've never missed a show and I always have 30+ hours left to record at DVD 'Best Quality'. I have a splitter running to my digital cable box in case I want to watch another show while recording.

Since the system is old and I have another, I keep this PVR clean, defragmented, and up-to-date.

Sounds good. I will try it when my dad's P3 1 Ghz gets retired from him. It's already got an 8500 AIW DV in it too.

Upping the ram and hard drive helps an old system.

[Cal]

Mine is minimal. See Sig. Works great.

[not_Shorty]

AIW? ew. Good luck.

Originally Posted by Glenn Hall

Sounds good. I will try it when my dad's P3 1 Ghz gets retired from him. It's already got an 8500 AIW DV in it too.

Upping the ram and hard drive helps an old system.