Hello, and a hardware query

[John@TunerUK]

First of all, hello to everyone. I don't yet have sageTV, but intend it to be the base of my own TV system, as well as perhaps offering it to some of my future clients, as I am a self employed electrician.
As I plan to install it into my own house first, I have a few questions regarding my current setup.
At the moment I'm using MythTV, which is a Linux program, but to be honest, it's become more hassle than it's worth, and for the cost of SageTV I'd rather pay up and get something a bit more user friendly.

My current system comprises the following: -

AMD AM2 4200+ Dual Core
abit AN-M2HD Motherboard
Asus nVidia 7300GT gfx card
Hauppauge Nova T 500 DVB-t card
Leadtek DVT1000T DVB-t card
Samsung Spinpoint 500GB SATA II
1Gb Corsair RAM
Antec Fusion Case (Black)

Can anyone see any obvious pitfalls with the above? I'll be running on XP if it makes a difference.

Also, has anyone tried using Mac Mini's (Running Windows) with Sage Client? I'm quite interested in the possibility of using those in each TV room, so any advice will be muchly appreciated.

Also (Although prhaps the wrong forum section) what's the deal with the EPG for freeview TV in the UK? MythTV gets it's database over the airwaves, but I'm not sure whether SageTV can do the same. Again any advice most appreciated.

Thanks in advance

John

[autoboy]

The system above will make a perfectly good HTPC with SageTV. I don't see any problems and it seems like you did a great job at assembling the hardware.

Yes mac mini's make great clients but their lack of a decent sized harddrive and expandablity makes them of limited use as a standalone HTPC. However, in November look for the SageTV HD Extender to make the client PC a thing of the past. For SD installations, the regular extender out now makes a great client as well.

[John@TunerUK]

Excellent news
So would you recommend using a single partitioned HDD, or a small one for Windows and other software, and a large one for storage?

My plan was to use the Mac Mini's as front end machines using Sage Client, connected to a heftier server backend machine. Everything in the UK is SD at the mo, unless you want to fork out for Sky HD, which isn't all it's cracked up to be to be honest. And the mac mini will be a more versatile option.
Also, on the business side of my plans, the type of client who has been asking me about this sort of thing are the type of people who live in huge houses and want to pay the extra £300 on something like a mac, because it looks nicer sat next to their £7000 Loewe TV

I may well look into them for my own house though. Any further info on the HD Extenders? I can't seem to find any. *Edit, scratch that, I found a few posts

[autoboy]

Small one for windows (i use 20GB) formatted with the default 4K cluster size and one large partition formatted for 64K cluster size. Any drive used by sage should be a separate partition with 64K clusters to prevent skipping.

The SageTV extender is a better client than a mac mini because it is more stable. Stablility is more important than looks even for your clients. However, I would not recomend SageTV for clients because there is just too much to break. A Tivo is better IMO for non techie people. I'm sure there are a lot of people who have tried Sage with clients. Stick around and find out how they worked out.

[John@TunerUK]

Having read the post regarding the HD Extender I think it could be a real possibility. As you say, stability is a high priority. The standard Extender isn't really an option, with it's limited output options, but my first install won't be finished till after christmas, so it's quite possible the HD versions be available to purchase by then.
When you say there is too much break, do you mean there is a lot of maintainence required?
A Tivo (Or uk equivalent) doesn't really offer the versatility I'm after
(DVB-t, DVB-s, DVD, Audio, and internet in every room)
People these days generally want to record something on one machine, and then be able to watch it wherever they are in the house. (With LinuxMCE you can even get it to follow you as you walk around the house using bluetooth!)

Like I say, I intend to use this in my own house too, so I'll be sticking around for the forseeable future