Creature HTPC

Q. What is the price of an HTPC?

A. If you don't need the S301 and only need a single system. The C202 and X100 can be upgraded to fully functional standalone systems minus the server power of the S301. Add $600 for tuner, 500GB storage and software. If additional storage is needed upgrade options are available. Take note on the C202 and X100 the Standalone option must be purchased before other storage upgrades. Dealer pricing is also available, contact us for more information.Top

S301C202X100
MSRP$5400$3400$2300
StandaloneNA$600$600
800GBNANA$350
1.0TBNA$300$500
1.6TB$600$900NA
2.0TB$1000$1300NA
Q. What is the difference between the models?
A. The key features denote the major differences, while the common features are common to all the models in some form or fashion. Typically the S300 is designed to be a standalone system and the home for all your media. It's primarily used in the high end media or home theater room. It also stores all the media which the C200 and X100 will access over the network. While the systems don't need to be in the room that it powers, it's often easier to do it this way. The C200 was designed as a sleek and inexpensive way to expand into any room that needs access to the media on the S300. The C200 is similar in power and quality as the S300 and would be much better for gaming than the X100. The X100 is less powerful but has a much smaller footprint and will still produce superb PQ. Easy rule of thumb, if you need 720p or above, gaming or connecting to a receiver via digital sound, then go with the C200. If you don't then the X100 will suffice with power to spare. Top
Q. How do the HTPCs communicate?
A. The HTPC's can communicate across a network either wireless or wired. Wired is preferred as wireless doesn't have enough bandwidth for video. Either Cat5, Cat5e or Cat6 is appropriate and even Cat5 is capable of supporting 10 plus systems simultaneously. We also recommend a broadband internet service. Top
Q. What does HTPC stand for?
A. Home Theater Personal Computer. Top
Q. What is an HTPC?
A. A HTPC is a computer specially designed to be used in conjunction with your home theater system. Top
Q. What can an HTPC do?
A. High end Progressive scan DVD Player Upscaling PVR and DVR style functionality Sound Processing PC Functionality Internet Browsing PC Games CD Player and Music Jukebox DVD and Multimedia server Video Compression and Encoding Convenient access to information such as weather, movie showtimes, stocks, comics, email and more. Top
Q. How do I watch TV and/or control my video library?
A. Your HTPC will use a TV tuner/capture card to record, tune and watch TV piped to the HTPC via coaxial or s-video cable. Recordings are setup in two ways, either through the visual guide on your TV or through the web interface accessible from anywhere on the internet. Top
Q. Are there any monthly fees with the HTPC?
A. No. All the information is retrieved from the internet and none of the programs on the HTPC have a monthly fee associated with them. Top
Q. How do I connect the HTPC?
A. Connecting an HTPC is much simpler than you think. A quick reference guide will be provided with each system and will vary as technology changes, but most consist of the following: Power, Video, USB devices like RF receivers, Keyboard and Mouse, Satellite or Cable connections, Audio and Internet. Top
Q. How do I connect cable or satellite systems?
A. There are a few methods to achieve this and each will be discussed. The most basic and easiest method of getting cable TV into the system is via your standard coaxial cable; however, this will limit you to your standard free channels. To get an idea of what you will have access to, use this same connection to your TV's tuner card and scan through the channels. To gain access to all the pay channels from your cable or satellite company you need to use their tuner box (STB) instead of the HTPC's tuner. The HTPC has a capture and tuner card in it; however, the tuner card is easily bypassed. Instead of using the coaxial cable, you connect the s-video out from the STB to the s-video input on the capture card. The same goes for the audio out from the STB to the capture card. Since we are no longer using the tuner within the HTPC we need a way to allow the HTPC to change the channel on the STB. This is done in a variety of ways either through a hardwire from the HTPC or an IR blaster. Either method used above requires you to open the Beyond TV configuration wizard and choose the cable or satellite company for your area, this is how the machine knows what guide data to download and use. Top
Q. I hear DVD playback is good with an HTPC but really how good is it?
A. Breathtaking! The HTPC has the unique ability, in most cases, to match the native resolution of your display and it will upscale images to that resolution. This combined with native DVI output and advanced color, contrast and other adjustments let you really dial in an image to show off a high end display. Top
Q. Can I store movies on my HTPC?
A. Yes and No. Currently the DMCA does not allow us to ship with any software like DVD Shrink, that will break and rip encrypted DVD's to the HD; however, once the DMCA goes away and this software is allowed we will ship with it. It can also be installed at a later date and will work extremely well with our current video library management plug-ins. The plug-ins can manage your offline and online DVD's and recorded movies from TV. Top
Q. Which is better a TV or a monitor?
A. This is a very hard comparison to make. A typical computer monitor displays a very high resolution which you observe from 8 inches away. A television displays a much lower resolution which you observe from 8 feet away. Televisions are on average much cheaper per viewable inch than a computer monitor. With higher definition televisions, plasma and LCD screens becoming more affordable we are faced with a broader range of options and the best solution is usually the preference of the individual. Basically the higher the resolution the more detail you will see. HD sets that support 720p or 1280x720 native, produce superb images, and the new 1080p sets show a lot of potential. We definitely recommend using DVI inputs on your HD sets, and a set with a VGA input is often much more HTPC friendly than ones without. Top
Q. What is resolution?
A. Basically resolution is the number of pixels horizontally and vertically on your viewing surface. If you stare closely at your screen or television you will see the picture is made up of thousands of tiny little dots. These dots are the pixels. Top
Q. Will the desktop look as good on my TV as it does on my monitor?
A. Generally No. Text is often times a bit harder to read on a television, which displays 480 lines versus a computer monitor which can display easily in excess of a thousand. We pay special attention to this and adjust the font sizes and other attributes to make your viewing easier. Most of your time will be spent using the media software like Beyond TV or Beyond Media, which is designed for easy viewing on a television set. Keep in mind HDTV's, Plasmas, LCD Projectors and others have a higher resolution than your standard definition TV and produce much clearer pictures. The desktop on an HDTV supporting native 720p, 1080p or others, produces a pristine desktop and beautiful text. This is mainly a concern with SDTV's and s-video inputs. Top
Q. Is an HTPC upgradeable?
A. Yes! This is one of the major benefits of an HTPC. As technology changes you just upgrade that component instead of buying a whole new unit. If you need more storage, spend a few dollars for an extra hard drive instead of thousands for an entirely new system. When HD over Firewire is available, download the software update and purchase an eight dollar Firewire cable and you upgraded to HD PVR. Top
Q. Where can we learn about setting up and working with the HTPC?
A. We want to work closely with our installers to keep them up to date on changes in technology and new features with our products. Just pickup a system at showroom pricing to maintain in your store and we will provide on hand or distance learning to keep you up to speed on the latest trends. Top
Q. Do you accept Credit Cards?
A. Yes Top
Q. How long does it take for delivery?
A. About 10 working days. These systems are still custom built and changes can be made to the specifications. Top