TUAW Guide: Setting up the Ultimate Mac mini Home Theater

Great post, I'm just starting to plan out my new mini HTPC, and this will definitely come in handy.

One thing you didn't mention that I know I'll be using with my setup is a Hillcrest Labs Loop:
http://www.hillcrestlabs.com/loop/

Definitely my choice for controlling a PC from the couch. Way easier to use than any other wireless mouse, designed for the living room, plug & play, etc.

Its easier this way:

1. buy mac mini
2. buy usb nova td tiwn hd tuner
3. install windows 7
4. run windows 7 media centre.
5. Enjoy the best HTPC user experience currently available.

(for a cheaper version, buy the pegatron netpc but you lose the dvd drive)

Firstly: Great article. Heaps of help.

Secondly: My iMac has recently developed the 'blue line down the middle of the screen' syndrome.

I'm thinking of buying a Mini and creating something similar to what is wrote about here.

This maybe a stupid question, but why did you buy a TV and not a monitor? What are the pros and cons of each?

Thanks!

late to the party, gone all weekend. thanks for writing this. my big takeaway from it all is this, apple could quite easily make a htpc that would blow our minds out of the box. here's hoping they do some day.

I find macs as htpcs still too fiddly - the lack of hdmi is just the tip of the iceberg. The mac mini would require hd tv tuners, DVR capabilities and decent hdd sizes to be viable. The UI isn't ready and requires to many components to get it working. It would also help if apple creates a proper media server app - DLNA etc. This would allow the mac mini to stream to more devices around the house. Maybe there's a niche for home entertainment dedicated xserves for serious home media rigs.

People who decry blu-ray or say they don't need it, well good for them. Apple needs blu-ray. The simple truth is that blu-ray will catch up with dvds and as more people replace their collections with blu-rays, the more options they'd like to play them. E.g if i go abroad and wish to take a film with me for entertainment at the moment I can't take any of my blu-rays s my laptop doesn't support them. Blu-ray is also new and cutting edge compared to dvd - apple not supporting it will hurt their image in the long run.

My system relies on a lacie NAS drive which receives content from my mac. Then it's viewed on the TVs via 2 ps3's, one wired and one over wifi. We can usually watch 2 shows at the same time and watch blu rays. Ps3's have come down in price now and I would recommend it as media viewer over a mac. The mac is better suited to proper computing needs.

I have had a Mac mini (Macmini1,1) (1.66 GHz Intel Core Duo) (Intel GMA 950 Graphics) connected to my Sharp Aquos (LC-26D40U) for a few years now. I connected the video using a cheap HDMI to DVI cable and connected the audio using a cheap dual RCA to 1/8" TRS cable.

Mostly, I use it for playing iTunes music, showing iPhoto slideshows, and occasionally watching video (iTunes, youtube, nasa tv, hulu). It seems to work great for these purposes, with only a minor problem.

According to my TV's manual, the native resolution of the display is 1366x768. However, the mini does not seem to support that resolution. It defaults to a larger resolution that overscans off the edges of the screen, which is unacceptable. The best resolution that I can find is 1280x720, which leaves black bars around the edges. I've tried SwitchResX and DisplayConfigX to no avail. When I try to force a 1366x768 resolution, I just get a black screen.

That minor problem aside, I'm pretty happy with the setup. Maybe someday I'll give plex and eyeTV a try.

Hi Christina,

I have a Mac mini (2.0GHz, 2GB) that I got in Nov 08. I have hooked it up with a 26" LCD TV and Altec Lancing FX5051 (5.1) speakers. I use the iPhone boxee app as the remote.

This is the setup in my bedroom as I watch movies in my room and I don't have a spare room for the home theater.

Any suggestions to enhance the setup ??

Christina (and everybody):

Concerning resolution... So, am I going to get better a better picture running Boxee/Plex/Hulu Desktop/Browser-Full-screened-Netflix... in full screen mode with my Mini set at 1920x1080...

versus:

those same apps in full screen mode set at a lower resolution (say at 1280x720 or 1900x600)?

I too like to leave my mini at a lower resolution so I can read browser text better (without enlarging the text).

To clarify my question: Is full screen Plex with my mini set at 1280x720 not the same as full screen Plex with my mini set at 1920x1080?

BTW, I love my Mac Mini Media Center so much, canceling cable tv is in my near future.

Thanks,
Chris

Personally, I do not need system for an on par or better-than-the-Arclight movie experience. If I had the cash to swing a private theater with 8-channel surround, stadium seating and nice draperies, I wouldn't drive it using a sub-1000$ HTPC. If mosxs has a dedicated theater room with the environment to match the tech specs, more power to hir, but there are a whole lot of ppl who shop on specs and "potential" with little real world necessity. You know, the SUV buyers of AV equipment; "but someday I MIGHT do this, so I need to buy it!" :-P

I've been running a Mini for a few months as a cable replacement. It can handle all of my HD rips and I think the Blue Ray comments are unwarranted. Unless you are on a 50+inch tv Blue Ray isn't that much better that what you can record over the air. I've documented my experiences and added commentary for antennas, accessories, etc on my site. Take a look and keep building Mini HTPCs.

http://www.cuttingthecord.tv