Media Centre PC and Recording PS3 and Wii etc.

[murnco]

I've been thinking about building a Media Centre PC for a while now and wondering if I could get some advice and recommendations. I have a computer that is good enough to run it with Vista however it just has a GeForce 8800GTS which has no inputs. My TV is 1080p 46" Sharp Aquos. I have an older RCA Home Theater amp with no HDMI ports. Currently I just have everything plugged directly into the TV and then audio RCA out to the home theater amp (I know not exactly getting the true surround experience). It does have SPIDF and Optical line in and a bunch of RCA jacks on it however.

I want to be able to hook up my PS3 (HDMI) and Wii (Component) and standard SD cable connection (coaxial) with an option for HD digital cable (HDMI) or another HD source to be added later.

I also would like to be able to record my PS3 and Wii games on the computer as well as record the cable like a DVR.

Any recommendations on how I should set this up and what gear I would need? I may be willing to replace my outdated sound system. Can you recommend a Graphics Card and any switching equipment etc. that I may need and the best way to hook it up? Also if I push the PS3 through my PC and record it will there be any lag back to my TV when recording? Shold I split the signal from the PS3?

Thanks in advance would love to hear how you guys have done this as I know someone out there has hooked up a system like this before.

Links to gear or tutorials etc are welcome.

[freakazoid12]

I want to be able to hook up my PS3 (HDMI) and Wii (Component) and standard SD cable connection (coaxial) with an option for HD digital cable (HDMI) or another HD source to be added later.

I also would like to be able to record my PS3 and Wii games on the computer as well as record the cable like a DVR.

Any recommendations on how I should set this up and what gear I would need? I may be willing to replace my outdated sound system. Can you recommend a Graphics Card and any switching equipment etc. that I may need and the best way to hook it up? Also if I push the PS3 through my PC and record it will there be any lag back to my TV when recording? Shold I split the signal from the PS3?


likely not possible for the PS3 without some serious input lag.
There's precisely one HDMI input card for the PC. (black magic intensity pro) It doesn't speak HDCP which the PS3 requires for games outputted via HDMI. I have seen an HDCP stripping HDMI switch but it's rather illegal in the .us due to the DMCA. Plus I have no idea what the input lag is like on the card. Likely up in the unacceptable department.

There is the hauppage HD-PVR which takes in component and spits out h.264 over USB but i've seen reports of a lag of a few seconds. Unacceptable for any game. You might want to prod hauppage to see if there's any video lag on the component output cables on the card. (aka: PS3 -> component switch -> HD PVR -> TV) The PC could *maybe* be a capture device if there's no (or little) lag on the output side of the box.