A friend of mine asked for my help to build a HTPC system. The goal is to run XBMC and/or Windows Media center.
ANTEC HTPC FUSION WITH REMOTE BLACK
ASUS P5N7A-VM PCI-E SOCKET 775 M-ATX
CORSAIR 4GB DDR2 PC6400 XMS2 XTREME (2X2GB)
INTEL CORE 2 DUO E8400 3.0GHZ 6MB 1333MHZ S-775
SCYTHE NINJA MINI CPU-COOLER
PIONEER BDC-S02BK BLU-RAY INTERN BLACK SATA RETAIL
WESTERN DIGITAL CAVIAR GREEN 1TB SATA/300 16MB
Reading this forum I found out that Thermalright fan-mounting kit was recommended when using the Ninja Mini.
What do you guys think about this system?
Thanks,
Erik
(edit: typo)
Please review this HTPC system
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FartingBob
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Hi! Look's like you have a generally good plan there!
Here's my take on it: If it's a pure media center, then the E8400 is overkill. You won't need more than E7200, and I would actually suggest that you look into the E5200.
At least if you get the E8400, you can heavily under-volt it. EDIT: In reality either will be just fine. What it boils down to IMO is what you want to pay for doing the same job.
Consider a PicoPSU for your HTPC - I recently moved to PicoPSU and I'm never building a desktop PC with a regular PSU again! Less heat inside your case, less fan noise and increased efficiency - for me the choice is obvious.
Your other components are top-notch, great case, great board, 4 GB RAM is standard nowadays. WD GP is a great quiet drive - remember to find a way to suspend it or soft mount it. Mine is in a Scythe Quiet Drive, resting on four small foam pieces - this did the trick for me.
Only thing I can think of, is that you WILL need to get aftermarked fans and undervolt them - then you should be set to go!
Here's my take on it: If it's a pure media center, then the E8400 is overkill. You won't need more than E7200, and I would actually suggest that you look into the E5200.
At least if you get the E8400, you can heavily under-volt it. EDIT: In reality either will be just fine. What it boils down to IMO is what you want to pay for doing the same job.
Consider a PicoPSU for your HTPC - I recently moved to PicoPSU and I'm never building a desktop PC with a regular PSU again! Less heat inside your case, less fan noise and increased efficiency - for me the choice is obvious.
Your other components are top-notch, great case, great board, 4 GB RAM is standard nowadays. WD GP is a great quiet drive - remember to find a way to suspend it or soft mount it. Mine is in a Scythe Quiet Drive, resting on four small foam pieces - this did the trick for me.
Only thing I can think of, is that you WILL need to get aftermarked fans and undervolt them - then you should be set to go!
You should check out the AVS HTPC forum
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=26
There are several ways you could go, depending on how much you want to spend, and how hard you plan to push the machine.
For simple DVR work and Blu-Ray playback, a combination of an AMD 4580e CPU and 780g on board graphics is a popular and inexpensive solution. If you plan on ripping/encoding a lot of DVDs and BDs to your HDD, you might want a system with more oomph. The 'best' HTPC is the one the best fits your needs.
Of course a 32 bit OS will never be able to use 4 gigs of RAM, but you can get it cheap enough now that buying 4 to get (+/-)3 isn't that extravagant.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=26
There are several ways you could go, depending on how much you want to spend, and how hard you plan to push the machine.
For simple DVR work and Blu-Ray playback, a combination of an AMD 4580e CPU and 780g on board graphics is a popular and inexpensive solution. If you plan on ripping/encoding a lot of DVDs and BDs to your HDD, you might want a system with more oomph. The 'best' HTPC is the one the best fits your needs.
Of course a 32 bit OS will never be able to use 4 gigs of RAM, but you can get it cheap enough now that buying 4 to get (+/-)3 isn't that extravagant.
gechu wrote:I assumed a powerful CPU was needed to decode HD content as well as keep vista running smooth.
Which alternatives are you suggesting?
Thanks all for your feedback!
When Strid wrote PicoPSU my thoughts turned to finding a case without PSU. But I also started thinking about MINI-ITX. Speaking of ITX I found two motherboards from Intel, DQ45EK and DG45FC. But after reading a review about the later of the two boards here at SPCR, the reviewer found the board to be limited.
The PicoPSU seems interesting, does anyone have experience of using it in a Core2Duo based system using integrated gpu?
Are the MINI-ITX boards mature enough? If so, which cases are recommended?
When Strid wrote PicoPSU my thoughts turned to finding a case without PSU. But I also started thinking about MINI-ITX. Speaking of ITX I found two motherboards from Intel, DQ45EK and DG45FC. But after reading a review about the later of the two boards here at SPCR, the reviewer found the board to be limited.
The PicoPSU seems interesting, does anyone have experience of using it in a Core2Duo based system using integrated gpu?
Are the MINI-ITX boards mature enough? If so, which cases are recommended?
Does anyone know if the Scythe Mini Ninja fits in a Antec Fusion chassi?
Sry guys, didn´t do my homework before posting:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article754-page1.html
.."You want a perfect passive CPU cooler in an Antec Fusion/NSK2400 or similar media PC case"
Sry guys, didn´t do my homework before posting:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article754-page1.html
.."You want a perfect passive CPU cooler in an Antec Fusion/NSK2400 or similar media PC case"
gechu wrote:Thanks all for your feedback!
When Strid wrote PicoPSU my thoughts turned to finding a case without PSU. But I also started thinking about MINI-ITX. Speaking of ITX I found two motherboards from Intel, DQ45EK and DG45FC. But after reading a review about the later of the two boards here at SPCR, the reviewer found the board to be limited.
The PicoPSU seems interesting, does anyone have experience of using it in a Core2Duo based system using integrated gpu?
Are the MINI-ITX boards mature enough? If so, which cases are recommended?
You should be just fine with a PicoPSU and an IGP, almost no matter what CPU you choose. You can even go the route I did, a PW-200-V (same make as PicoPSU, just for 200 W) and a Dell D2-A 200 W power brick. See my setup in my signature (there is a link to the gallery too).Personally, I wouldn't go with a Mini-ITX board. The µATX boards out there are a lot more "mature", with more upgrade options, compatibility and connectors.
As suggested, you final setup will depend on how much power you need - if you're going to rip/encode and such.
Re: Please review this HTPC system
I'd recommend posting your question at missingremote.comin the Help Me Build forum.gechu wrote:A friend of mine asked for my help to build a HTPC system. The goal is to run XBMC and/or Windows Media center.
ANTEC HTPC FUSION WITH REMOTE BLACK
ASUS P5N7A-VM PCI-E SOCKET 775 M-ATX
CORSAIR 4GB DDR2 PC6400 XMS2 XTREME (2X2GB)
INTEL CORE 2 DUO E8400 3.0GHZ 6MB 1333MHZ S-775
SCYTHE NINJA MINI CPU-COOLER
PIONEER BDC-S02BK BLU-RAY INTERN BLACK SATA RETAIL
WESTERN DIGITAL CAVIAR GREEN 1TB SATA/300 16MB
Otherwise, I agree with most of what has been said already. The CPU is a bit overkill, as well as the memory (but memory is pretty cheap these days....so 4 GB wouldn't hurt). Will this HTPC be used as a PVR? If so, you'll need at least one TV tuner. There are a number to choose from...and picking one will depend on the type of TV signal being used.