Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - How much of your hobby do $500 and $2000 buy?

telekinetic · 11-24-2009, 07:22 AM

I have a theory that most casual to moderately serious hobby can easily absorb $2000. Also, that you can get started in almost anything for $500. As much as I hate "Post your favorite....?" threads, since they tend to be completely non-interactive, this is one I think could be a lot of fun.

What is a hobby you are pursuing or want to pursue?
What's the best bang for your buck for around $500?
What's the best bang for your buck for around $2000?
About how much have you spent on it, and what do you have?

Feel free to make your posts as detailed as you want. Feel free to cover a hobby someone else already has (maybe you would spend $500 in it differently?). Feel free to cover multiple hobbies. I am a gadget freak, so I'm specifically thinking of buying physical items, but your mileage may vary!

How does TFP spend its leisure dollars?

---------- Post added at 07:22 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:08 AM ----------

To contribute: My current hobby is setting up a Home Server, with an emphasis on Media serving!

Home Media Server!
$500:
Router: $40
Barebones DIY computer: $200
1.5TB HD: $100
FreeNAS operating system: $0
BriteView CinemaTube to watch content on your TV: $80
Misc. Cat-5 cables: $20

More Better Home Media Server with Wireless and Multi-Room Audio controlled by cell phone via Squeezebox Server (cell phone not included in budget)
$2000:
Wireless N Gigabit Router: $140
Used Rackmount server w/new internals: $400
3 x 1.5TB hard drives: $300
Windows Home Server operating system: $100
HTPC running Boxee to watch content on: $300
Harmony remote to control everything: $100
Two Small monitorless mini ITX PCs to run distributed multi-room audio: $400
Semi-decent Speaker setups for the above: $200
Misc cables: The rest! haha.

What have I actually spent?
Yeesh...my setup is much closer to the $2000 one. I have a good d-link router, a rack mounted server with Windows Home Server. I originally thought all my media needs could be met with an Apple TV, but its lack of HD content has me bummed out, so I supplimented it with a BriteView Cinematube for HD stuff, and I'll probably get rid of it eventually. I wish I'd just built an HTPC to start with instead of wasting my time on prebuilt units. I'm just now getting my distributed audio setup working, but rather than spending money on them, I'm using a pair of laptops with cracked screens as the client computers--useful because they already have built-in wireless, and are still useable enough to configure.

11-24-2009, 07:22 AM	#1 (permalink)
telekinetic zomgomgomgomgomgomg Location: Fauxenix, Azerona	How much of your hobby do $500 and $2000 buy? I have a theory that most casual to moderately serious hobby can easily absorb $2000. Also, that you can get started in almost anything for $500. As much as I hate "Post your favorite....?" threads, since they tend to be completely non-interactive, this is one I think could be a lot of fun. What is a hobby you are pursuing or want to pursue? What's the best bang for your buck for around $500? What's the best bang for your buck for around $2000? About how much have you spent on it, and what do you have? Feel free to make your posts as detailed as you want. Feel free to cover a hobby someone else already has (maybe you would spend $500 in it differently?). Feel free to cover multiple hobbies. I am a gadget freak, so I'm specifically thinking of buying physical items, but your mileage may vary! How does TFP spend its leisure dollars? ---------- Post added at 07:22 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:08 AM ---------- To contribute: My current hobby is setting up a Home Server, with an emphasis on Media serving! Home Media Server! $500: Router: $40 Barebones DIY computer: $200 1.5TB HD: $100 FreeNAS operating system: $0 BriteView CinemaTube to watch content on your TV: $80 Misc. Cat-5 cables: $20 More Better Home Media Server with Wireless and Multi-Room Audio controlled by cell phone via Squeezebox Server (cell phone not included in budget) $2000: Wireless N Gigabit Router: $140 Used Rackmount server w/new internals: $400 3 x 1.5TB hard drives: $300 Windows Home Server operating system: $100 HTPC running Boxee to watch content on: $300 Harmony remote to control everything: $100 Two Small monitorless mini ITX PCs to run distributed multi-room audio: $400 Semi-decent Speaker setups for the above: $200 Misc cables: The rest! haha. What have I actually spent? Yeesh...my setup is much closer to the $2000 one. I have a good d-link router, a rack mounted server with Windows Home Server. I originally thought all my media needs could be met with an Apple TV, but its lack of HD content has me bummed out, so I supplimented it with a BriteView Cinematube for HD stuff, and I'll probably get rid of it eventually. I wish I'd just built an HTPC to start with instead of wasting my time on prebuilt units. I'm just now getting my distributed audio setup working, but rather than spending money on them, I'm using a pair of laptops with cracked screens as the client computers--useful because they already have built-in wireless, and are still useable enough to configure. __________________ twisted no more Last edited by telekinetic; 11-24-2009 at 07:26 AM..