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+---
+date: "2007-11-14T03:33:06Z"
+title: HTPC Mayhem!
+---
+
+<img src='http://pablotron.org/gallery/misc/antec_fusion-thumb.jpg' 
+  width='200' height='105' align='right'/>
+
+<p>I've been planning to build an HTPC for quite a while now, and I'm
+finally doing it.  I got an <a href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129030">Antec Fusion Black</a> case for my
+birthday, and I went out and bought the rest of the parts yesterday
+evening.  Here's the hardware I'm using:</p>
+
+<ul>
+<li>Case: <a href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129030">Antec Fusion Black</a></li>
+<li>CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4000+ </li>
+<li>Motherboard: Asus M2A-VM HDMI</li>
+</ul>
+
+<p>The other pieces were all spare parts and aren't particularly
+interesting.  This post is about the Antec Fusion Black.  Let's start
+with the pros:</p>
+
+<ul>
+<li>Built-in case fans are extremely quiet.</li>
+<li>Enough room for a standard ATX power supply.</li>
+<li>Same width and style as standard home theater gear.</li>
+<li>Front-mounted USB, Firewire, and HD audio ports.</li>
+<li>Built-in IR port.</li>
+<li>Built-in programmable LCD.</li>
+<li>Several in-case cable ties to keep things properly routed and
+organized.</li>
+</ul>
+
+<p>And the cons:</p>
+
+<ul>
+<li>Three-compartment design makes running anything other than power and
+SATA cables a bit of a hassle.  It took a bit of magic to thread a
+standard EIDE cable from the motherboard compartment to the DVD/LCD
+compartment, for example. </li>
+<li>The IR receiver is for MCE-compatible remotes only; it doesn't work
+with standard universal remotes, so don't even bother.</li>
+<li>Linux support sucks.  I believe you can get everything working, but
+doing so requires a bit of effort.  See below for more information.</li>
+<li>The included manual is horribly out of date and contains errors and
+omissions.  Your best bet is to use the manual as toilet paper and
+download the PDF from <a href="http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=15739#">Antec's product page</a>, although that
+manual is still dated.  Both versions claim that the motherboard has a
+3-pin power supply fan signal connector cable, and no such cable
+exists in my case.  There is also a mysterious two-pin purple and
+black cable labeled "M/B PWR" that is not documented in either manual
+(<a href="http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=878407&amp;page=2">this thread on AVS Forums</a> explains what it's for).</li>
+<li>Non-standard power connection for the LCD and IR receiver.  This only
+matters if you need to replace the power supply; see below.</li>
+</ul>
+
+<p>Fortunately I've already decided to buy a Harmony remote, so the MCE
+remote requirement is a minor inconvenience and an excuse to go buy a
+new gadget.</p>
+
+<p>The most irritating problem so far is that the power supply fan is
+extremely loud.  I think my PSU is probably defective, because it
+doesn't make any sense to design a sound-isolating case with extremely
+quiet case fans and then put a power supply that sounds like an air raid
+in there.  Alternatively, the noise might be related to the non-existent
+3-pin power supply fan signal connector cable mentioned above.</p>
+
+<p>Anyway, I don't really want to send the case back, so I ran to
+Microcenter and picked up a new silent power supply.  That's when I
+noticed the non-standard cable that powers the LCD/IR receiver, and the
+following blurb tucked away in the manual:</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+  <p>Note: If you choose to swap the included power supply with another
+  power supply, please call Antec Customer Service to purchase a special
+  24-pin Extender with the 3-pin connector to power the display.</p>
+</blockquote>
+
+<p>I've already ordered the adaptor from Antec's web site; I figure even if
+I figure out how to quiet the existing power supply it's worth having so
+I don't end up without the LCD and IR port if the power supply failure
+in the future.</p>
+
+<p>Next up, Antec Fusion Linux support.  The LCD is not officially
+supported in Linux by Antec.  The good news is that the LCD in the
+Fusion V2/Black is better than the VFD display included in the original
+V1 Antec Fusion case.  Unfortunately it is much harder to find
+documentation on the newer display.  The newer display also requires a
+couple of patches and some config file twiddling.</p>
+
+<p>Here's what you need to do, as of today:</p>
+
+<ul>
+<li>Install <em>patched</em> versions of <a href="http://lirc.org">LIRC 0.8.2</a> and 
+<a href="http://lcdproc.org/">LCDproc 0.5.2</a>.  You can get the patches from 
+<a href="http://codeka.com/blogs/index.php?cat=30">here</a>.</li>
+<li>Follow the instructions exactly for patching and compiling LIRC
+and LCDproc.  </li>
+<li>When you recompile LIRC, select <em>"Soundgraph iMON MultiMedian IR/VFD"</em>, 
+not "Soundgraph iMON PAD IR/VFD".  </li>
+<li><p>After you patch LCDproc, you need to do the following or LCDproc won't
+pick up the changes from the patch:</p>
+
+<p><code><pre>
+  aclocal &amp;&amp; automake &amp;&amp; autoconf
+  ./configure --enable-drivers=imonlcd
+</pre></code></p></li>
+<li><p>Compile and install both LIRC and LCDproc.</p></li>
+<li><p>Find the <code>[server]</code> section in <code>/etc/LCDd.conf</code> and add the following
+lines:</p>
+
+<p><code><pre>
+  Driver=imonlcd
+  DriverPath=/usr/local/lib/lcdproc/
+</pre></code></p></li>
+<li><p>Add this section to <code>/etc/LCDd.conf</code>:</p>
+
+<p><code><pre>
+  [imonlcd]
+  Device=/dev/lcd0
+  Contrast=300
+  # do NOT set the Size, if you do it won't work
+  #Size=16x2
+</pre></code></p></li>
+<li><p>Make sure the LIRC modules are loaded: </p>
+
+<p><code><pre>
+  modprobe lirc_dev &amp;&amp; modprobe lirc_imon 
+</pre></code></p></li>
+<li><p>Start up <code>lircd</code> and <code>LCDd</code>, and things should be working.</p></li>
+</ul>
+
+<p>If you're using <code>2.6.23.1</code> or newer the patches above will not work;
+you'll need <a href="http://codeka.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&amp;t=14&amp;sid=dfba9b5872d57bbe1602ed1c8b229afb">these updated patches against the CVS version of LIRC</a>.
+You'll still need to follow all the steps above, even with the updated
+patches.</p>
+
+<p>That's all for tonight.  It looks like configuring the motherboard in
+will be a battle too; I'll have more details as events warrant.</p>
+
+