New (to me) house - Starting with a clean slate. Need advice on how to hookup peripherals to new 4k TV theater!!

[stinkbob11]

Hi guys! I've been doing lots of reading that past couple months on this. This is my first house and I plan on living in it for quite awhile. I've been looking into what I want and need help with an overall picture on how to do it.

First - My Overall Goal - I want to watch TV and surf online (maybe play wow) with as few remotes, as good quality as possible, and as simple as possible (once I set everything up).

Some background info - I'm an avid BR collector and anime watcher. I will purchase a 2016 65" 4k HDR model when they are released. I want to rip my collection to a HD and have tons of hi res anime and watch it. The network in the house will be running through cat6 and will have a patch panel, router, switch, etc, and am installing a OTA antenna in the attic that will run though new RG6 wiring. Now I don't plan on buying cable TV but I will run RG6 wiring from the network box to each room as well (wall plates will have 2 coax connectors, one for OTA and one for cable). This is for future proofing as well as if i need to sell the house. The TV will be wall mounted with all wires in the wall. I am installing Surge Suppressor receptacles for the peripherals, wall plates for the 5.1 surround sound, and multiple Ethernet ports for them too.

Questions:

• 
  Would a HTPC or NAS setup work better for what I want? I would like to play WOW on it, no games more demanding than that. Some 4k content takes quite a bit of bandwidth and I know decoding it will take quite a bit of power too. I currently have 5TB's and plan on expanding that.
  I want all my content (xbox, computer, OTA, other peripherals) to play through my receiver. Since some of it will be 4k in the future, what kind would I need?
  All the peripherals will be about 10-15ft away from the TV. I am running all wires though the walls. How can I setup the remote controls to switch sources, apps, surf, and change volume while pointing it at the tv? I want a clean, uncluttered look.

Phew. I'm just stuck seeing how all these pieces come together. I have a good idea of what I need to buy for each part but not how to connect everything together in a simple(ish) fashion with limited fuss during use.

 

[americanaudiophile]

I think an HTPC would be better overall and especially for a one room situation. You can leave the HTPC on and access the content on its drives over the network too. Since you are 4k oriented your will need a video card with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2 which are coming out but slowly. I would run extra cat6s from your equipment to the TV since cat6 can carry HDMI and other signals with adapters and is cheap insurance against future problems.
To operate the TV and AV gear a universal remote that operates over RF or Wifi will allow you to operate your equipment without line of sight issues. You could use an IR receiver at the TV and wire it to emitters where the equipment is located but the wireless solution is better. Brands include Logitech, URC, and RTI. The latter two usually require professional programming. The Logitech is less flexible but is programmed via their website. All of them give you the option of using a hard button remote, which is preferred for AV since you don't have to look at it, and/or an app for phones and tablets.