Help w/ system refresh

[rchawla80]

Hi there -

I need some really thought out advice to "refresh my C4 system". This is my current setup:

Zone 1 - HC-300 running 1.6 (not the newest version as my dealer won't do it for free)

Main zone with independant Receiver/speakers in Wall/TV/DVD Player

Zone 2- HC-100 (old school controller) running 1.6

Running independant receiver/speakers in wall/tv/dvd player

Zone 3- HC-100 (old school controller) running 1.6

Running independant receiver/speakers in wall/tv/dvd player

Zone 4- HTC Media Controller (v1 - 40gb)

Independant receiver

16 channel Amp (v1) - (supplying to 3 zones (exclusing Zone 4)

Zone 5 -Audio zone only from 16 channel amp

Zone 6 -Audio zone only from 16 channel amp

Zone 7 -Audio zone only from 16 channel amp

Zone 8- Theatre room (running HC-100) with wireless hub

Independant receiver with DVD player, Home Theatre PC and 7.1 audio setup

Now, Zone 4 is the main zone that everyone usually sees, guests and the audio interface is mainly used there. I have some latency issues when I stream to all zones. I am using a DIR-655 with a Apple N router (DHCP off) and it all seems pretty slick. I have this coupled with Gigabit switches. My home network DOES NOT GET Gigabit speeds though (probably because Control4) lags the LAN.

Here is what I want to do. I really do not want the Media Controller any more. I would rather use a Mac Mini and let it serve Itunes music somehow or use a NAS to do it.

I want my system to look NEW, be SUPER FAST and have HD UI and ideally at some point do video distribution (independant zones). I dont mind putting in a small pc in each room or some other solution.

Also, I have no HDMI in the house as when house was built, it was not approved for inwall use. I have component running and Cat5e. The Cat5e is being used for ethernet jacks. Can I split it to get HDMI in?

I know this is a lot but anyone willing to write back or call me in detail and spend some time I would truly appreciate. I do not mind paying a small consulting fee only.

I just want a place where I can stream music and movies to zones and control it in a very slick way. I am all about "appereance", hence I love macs too.

Please advise and thank you in advance.

[thecodeman]

To keep everything together let's stick with one thread.

http://www.c4forums.com/viewtopic.php?id=4159