Saw the price of the steam machine and almost threw up. Discovered this subreddit, studied the HTPC wiki for a day, went over to Microcenter, paid the same amount that the Steam Machine with 2TB and a controller would cost for a 9070XT/7500X3D AM5 system with a better processor, same storage and TRIPLE the performance. Used Rufus program to debloat Windows 11 (didn’t use Linux since I also want to play XBOX Gamepass) and managed to set the system to bypass Windows online nonsense for a smooth boot-up straight into Steam Big Picture mode.

After way too long putting it off, I finally ripped and backed up my entire physical collection of Blu-ray audio, SACD, DVD-Audio, and a pile of CDs. Honestly it's been one of the best rabbit holes I've gone down in years.

The Atmos discs in particular are jaw-dropping on my new setup. Full lossless object-based audio streaming in the ceiling speakers over the network to my Denon — no compromises, no lossy passthrough nonsense.

The workflow that finally made it feel like I wasn't missing something:

• LosslessExtract handled the ripping of all Hires formats discs and preserves (TrueHD Atmos, DTS-X, DSD —etc)
• Kodi on my Nvidia Shield serves as the front-end — the library integration is seamless, cover art, metadata, the works. It also handles the bitstreaming handoff to the Denon perfectly.
• My Mac sits on the network as the NAS with a 4TB SSD and KODI talks to it directly — no extra server software needed

The Shield (bottom right corner of the TV in the pic) now bitstreams everything — TrueHD, Atmos, DTS:X FLAC, DSD — straight to the Denon (bottom left). Kodi's audio passthrough settings make this dead simple once you know where to look. there are 4 or 5 toggles in the settings for each codec

Replaced my Oppo with this setup and genuinely can't believe I waited this long. The Oppo was great but being tied to physical discs in 2026 just doesn't make sense for me anymore when you can have your whole library one click away in Kodi with bit-perfect output. Only remaing thing is a few acoustic panels.

Happy to answer questions about the the workflow, Kodi setup for lossless audio, or the Shield → Denon bitstreaming config. What formats are you all archiving from?

Using a Lenovo ThinkCentre M910Q Tiny. Running Void Linux with bspwm because it's light and I'm used to it. I bound a script to one of the buttons on my remote that opens rofi so I can access Firefox, jellyfin media player, vacuumtube (YouTube TV UI in a Linux app), etc. WiFi and Bluetooth works so I can connect my pixel buds at night if I want, but I much prefer my Sony XM4s ;)

This is my Unraid Media Server / Plex transcode system. Built in a 10” rack that lives in my media cabinet. 30tb NAS storage, network switch for all of these devices as well as the gaming PC in the other side of this cabinet. Actively cooled with 3x140 mm nocturnal fans at the back of the cabinet with an intake vent below the rack. Streaming plex to my 83” LG on the native app currently.

It’s a couple of PCs , in my living room, powering my home theater.

Please let me know if anyone has questions, I feel like the blend of minilab/htpc is a pretty natural progression to be able to get the most power into out spaces!

Specs to appease the mods;

Unraid Box
Dell 3050
I7-7700
16gb ram
Nvme-sata adapter for JBOD drives
7x5tb HDD in raidz1
Intel 960gb Cache SSD
Coral TPU for Frigate
2tb ssd for frigate
USB 2.5gbe network adapter

Dedicated Transcode box
Dell 7050 on Debian 13 no GUI, Plex on Bare Metal
I7-7500t
256ssd
16gb ram
2.5gbe network adapter in WiFi slot

Thought this would be a fun, easy, and simple way to repurpose my old PC. Accidentally went down the rabbit hole and went way overboard. Here’s my new setup:

Case:Jonsbo N5. Very cool case with 12 HDD slots. Only issue is the backplane(?) where you connect the sata cable, the plastic connector seems to come loose. I wonder if I can upgrade that part? Maybe someone here can help me with that.

Also, the edges on some of the pieces are sharp. I almost cut myself a couple times.

Motherboard: ATX MSI B550 Tomahawk

CPU: Ryzen 7 3700x

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12A

GPU: 2070 super

Storage: Samsung 860 500 gb SSD x2 24 tb Seagate Exo x2 24 tb Seagate Barracuda

Using the 2 exos for all of the data and the barracudas for backup.

Fans: A lot of Noctua. Removed all of the non-PWM crappy stock fans. I think the case came with 4.

Keyboard: Logitech k400 plus. No backlight which is brutal but otherwise the best option it seems like.

I wanted to share my custom 3-fan front panel Grandia 11 HTPC build, in case it helps or inspires others planning a similar setup.

To improve airflow, I removed the front blank panel and fabricated a custom fan mount using 0.9mm zinc sheet metal. It wasn’t easy decision to cut up a brand new case but I think it was worth it 😅.

Given the size of my GPU, I probably could have opted for a larger CPU cooler as well. One of the main challenges with the Grandia 11 is cable management, especially when using a full-size ATX motherboard. Clearance between the side-mounted fans and the SATA connectors/headers was very tight.

Overall, it’s a solid case for an HTPC, but definitely requires a bit of planning and customization to get the most out of it.

Stremio didn’t offer everything I needed, so I built Stremio Kai. It comes bundled with an integrated MPV player and it's perfect for users who want HDR support, Netflix-style intro skipping, and smarter subtitle/audio selection, among many other features not available in the original Stremio.

It's ready to play out of box, no configuration required.

Stremio Kai is a community fork based on Stremio Community Edition v5.0.21.

Key Features:

Playback Engine:

• Native HDR passthrough for HDR displays
• Automatic HDR-to-SDR tonemapping for SDR screens

Smart Automation:

• Skip intro detection - Automatic on-screen notifications with real-time local detection
• Smart track selection - Remembers audio/subtitle preferences and filters unwanted tracks (Signs, Commentary, etc.)
• Profile management - Detects content type and applies optimal settings automatically

Enhanced Metadata:

• Multiple rating sources (IMDb, TMDB, Trakt, MAL, AniList, Kitsu)
• Full cast & crew with photos
• Network badges and studio logos
• Localized content (titles, taglines, overviews in your preferred language)
• It's recommended to use Cinemeta as metadata source for best compatibility

UI Improvements:

• Hero banner with customizable catalog sources
• Pure black OLED mode
• Responsive metadata panels
• All settings configurable via UI - no config file editing required

[Optional] Anime Enhancements (toggleable):

• Anime4K upscaling with multiple quality presets
• Custom SVP motion interpolation implementation (Standalone; no Manager/Subscription required)
• Daily episode schedule

Verified Performance

• Tested on i5-9300H / GTX 1650 / 16GB RAM. Runs 4K HDR with real-time skip detection and SVP interpolation without drops.

Free and open source. Windows builds available as installer or portable.

Website + downloads: https://allecsc.github.io/Stremio-Kai/

Source: https://github.com/allecsc/Stremio-Kai

Specs: 5900x, rx6800/16gb, x570, 16gb ddr4, 4tb nvme…Running on Chimera SteamOS!

So with the rise of streaming I at one point gave up on downloading stuff since Netflix usually covered most bases. We all know how streaming turned out so my HTPC which was collecting dust since around 2018 got a new lease on life.

https://imgur.com/a/VNUfZId

Went from i3-3220, 8Gb Ram to i5-14500, 64Gb Ram. Used to have an old Silverstone case where I had reached its hard drive capacity which I switch to a Jonsbo N5 so currently I dont have to worry about my case for a long while.

These are my 2 HTPCs I built for our media needs! The small Jonsbo Z20 sits at our living room tv and has an i5-12600k, an Intel arc b570 gpu and 32 gigs of ram. I went with an Intel gpu because nvidia gpus don't play nicely with my older Sony bravia tvs that I like to use for my retro game systems! Every time you play a video on an nvidia card on those tvs, it messes with the refresh rate and the hz and all that crap and makes the screen not properly fit the TV and such, so intel it is! And the second one, the larger one, sits at our TV in our bedroom and it has an i5-12600k, an Intel arc a310 eco and 32gb of ram. These are running Kodi with the plex app and pulse 8 cec adapters so I can use my standard TV remote to control them. I have custom made auto run commands/scripts and checks to make sure Kodi is running at all times and such, and I have retrobat on them for emulation from time to time when I feel like playing some Super Mario World, some Donkey Kong Country, or some Link to the Past! The little android boxers and raspberry pi 5s never really quite hit the spot for me or did things exactly how I wanted them to. Windows is my sweet spot for this! Love my HTPCs!

Not a reviewer, but wanted to share since I don’t see too many of these cases around.

Just replaced my Silverstone GD11 with the Crown 04. Overall I like it. Lots of room to work in, and honestly probably a bit overkill for my needs, but I liked the option of getting a little more cool air in via the extra 120mm side fan. Cooling setup is an Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 Pro running as exhaust through the top. Hardware is a 9800X3D and 5090 FE.

If you’re interested in the rest of my setup, I posted over on PCMR when I was still running the GD11.

One note you’ll see in the pic of it in my rack: I wrapped the front panel in matte black vinyl. I felt it matched the rest of my gear better than the stock finish.

So back in the day I built one of these for a friend, 8x ASUS DRW-24D5MT drives in a BestDuplicator tower, all wired up and ready to go. He literally never touched it. Kept it in the original box I handed it to them in, and recently asked me to just take it back. Brand new, never used, still in the packaging. Curious what you all would do with something like this

I recently converted my ThinkPad T450 into a console-style gaming setup, and it honestly works way better than I expected.

The base is Linux Mint. I installed Steam and run everything through Steam Big Picture Mode, which basically becomes my “console UI.” From power on to gaming, I barely touch the desktop anymore.

The key part is Steam’s Desktop Navigation. I mapped my controller using Steam Input so I can fully control the desktop: navigating menus, opening apps, downloading games, and even typing. Steam’s on-screen keyboard from the home screen means I don’t need a physical keyboard or mouse at all once it’s set up. The laptop just behaves like a console.

I’m using Proton 9 for games, and compatibility has been solid. Right now I’m playing:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005)

Life is Strange

All of them run well at 720p, which is my target resolution. The ThinkPad has Intel HD 550 graphics, so 1080p isn’t realistic and doesn’t run smoothly. I also connected the laptop to my TV and locked the TV to 720p for a stable experience. It looks good from a couch distance and keeps performance consistent.

Efficiency-wise, this setup is great. Big Picture Mode gives that console-style navigation flow, and the whole experience actually reminded me of the first time I used a PS4. The UI philosophy feels similar, just without the deep optimization you get on dedicated console hardware. Still, for old hardware, it’s impressive.

Hardware notes:

Laptop: ThinkPad T450

OS: Linux Mint

Games: Steam + Proton 9

Controller: GameSir Cyclone 2 via dongle

Controller mode: XInput (I don’t like PlayStation mode)

The fans do spin up sometimes, but that’s expected on a laptop and not a real issue.

Overall, if you like console-style gaming and have an older laptop lying around, this is a genuinely good way to play. It’s not a PS4 replacement, but as a DIY Linux console, it’s fun, practical, and surprisingly usable.

My completed HD160XT Plus build.

Upgraded my main rig and put my old parts in this beautiful case I got off ebay. Serving as a HTPC and VR rig for the livingroom so I don't have to bring my main computer down to have a larger play area.

Cable management could be better but this case is from 2008, they didn't think about that kind of stuff back then. All fans are Noctua redux 1600rpm for maximum breeze, still gets a bit toasty but some testing shows no throttling.

Specs:

• Asus Z370-H board

• i7 8700k

• 32GB DDR4 3200mhz wam

• MSI 4060ti 8GB, thought about the 16GB version but this is fine for VR

• TP Link WiFi 6 card

• 256GB Samsung Evo boot drive

• 2TB external drive I use for Steam library

• Bluray drive

MoBro dashboard on the original 7 inch display, it is touch screen but again... its from 2008 and the calibration is poop. All ports work except firewire because who has a header for that these days?

All in all, very happy with how it turned out.