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Next Gear: Make a Media-Savvy PC

Here's how to custom-design a machine to handle TV and music with aplomb--or just make your current system more entertaining.

Tom Mainelli

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Entertainment PC Parts List (chart)
We built two entertainment-oriented PCs--one (at left) to minimize the cost and the other to suit a more generous budget--using off-the-shelf components. Both will function as digital video recorders, show DVD movies, and play MP3 files; they differ most in how they perform as computers. Of course, you can outfit your entertainment PC any way you want--that's the point of building your own.
Photograph: Marc Simon

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