There are systems you can buy which are low powered and quiet, or if you want to make your own then the raspberry Pi is a good option ( ). Ideally you want a quiet PC for the client computer otherwise you will have to contend with a noisy fan whilst watching TV. It is possible to combine these functions on one computer, or they can be split between two computers, or more if you want multiple front end systems for different rooms.

The front-end or client components are used for displaying the tv content and interacting with the home theatre system (remote controls etc.). Media centres have a backend or server component, which handles the tv tuner hardware, electronic program guide (EPG) and recording aspects. Firstly there are some architectural concepts to be familiar with.īasic requirements are a PC, a DVB-T tuner card (which connects to your TV antenna) and obviously a TV or display for viewing the content.

There are a number of free options available if you have the time and inclination to set them up. In addition a media centre can gather all the photos and videos on my home network and make it convenient to view these in one place. I wanted to setup a system that would allow me to record shows on a regularly basis and pickup shows that I am interested in. As a result I decided to build my own PVR, or media centre PC. I have been using TiVo for a while but these devices are no longer sold so commercially available personal video recorders (PVRs) are limited by comparison to the features offered by the TiVo service. The free-to-air stations have increased the number of channels available and the content provided so it is worth looking at ways to optimise the access to programs you are interested in.

I have previously written about internet streaming services such as netflix and presto, but if you don't have a suitable internet plan which allows for streaming services then you are probably limited to TV as a source of entertainment.

Nextpvr mediaportal backend