Another HTPC-Gaming build...

[bburk]

Building as quiet as practical 1080p capable HTPC and MMORPG gaming system. Can go as high as $2000, but don't want to just because I can. I am not looking to overclock.

Questions at this point are Antec p183, Solo, or something else?

Planning a Enermax UCTB12 T.B. SILENCE 120mm Case Fan.

PS idea is SeaSonic X650, Nexus VALUE 430, or something else?

The GIGABYTE GV-N460OC-1GI GeForce GTX 460 looks to be the least noisy 460? Big consideration on cases is which will contain this noise?

What MB (I see a lot of $100ish boards recommended)

CPU (inclined towards Intel I7's, i7-870 Lynnfield maybe?)

RAM (want 8GB)

Would like a Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler running fanless for the CPU.

Planning on a OCZ RevoDrive OCZSSDPX-1RVD0120 PCI-E x4 120GB MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) for OS & programs. What's the quietest 1.5 or 2TB drive for bulk storage?

A LG WH10LS30K 10X Blu-ray Burner.

Thinking of a Hanns·G HH-281HPB Black 28" 3ms HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor plus a Samsung 22" I already have that's rotated to vertical. I also need to run a signal to my Yamaha receiver with HDMI or component video & fiber optic audio. (I don't need to run all 3 monitors at once, just 2 at a time).

Planning on windows 7.

thanks for any ideas.

[danimal]

the solo is obsolete, p183 would be a better bet, if you can handle the size.

28" home theatre monitor is way too small, unless it's in front of you on a desk... plasma has much better blacks than an lcd.

the silver arrow cools better than the Megahalems.

i would not waste money on a bluray burner, get an oem bluray player drive instead, as long as it's one that includes the free oem bluray software player.

[bburk]

The 28" is for on the desk. I have a 65" for shows. Was debating on the burner vs. player already. The silver arrow works fanless on an I7 ? thanks

[kater]

If you really insist on running the CPU fanless go for Tr HR-02. Xbit Labs have recently tested some heavy weights and HR-02 emerges victorious in this department. I mean - just freakin' look at the size of this thing

The GB you selected seems a very quiet card, but I'm not sure if it can adjust RPM.

RevoDrive - I thought this thing was made purely for benching and marketing No, really, you seriously need such a quick drive? Wouldn't a Vertex 2 / X25-M or C300 be enough? But if money is no concern...

[Das_Saunamies]

PS idea is SeaSonic X650, Nexus VALUE 430, or something else?

The GIGABYTE GV-N460OC-1GI GeForce GTX 460 looks to be the least noisy 460? Big consideration on cases is which will contain this noise?

What MB (I see a lot of $100ish boards recommended)

CPU (inclined towards Intel I7's, i7-870 Lynnfield maybe?)

RAM (want 8GB)

Would like a Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler running fanless for the CPU.

Planning on a OCZ RevoDrive OCZSSDPX-1RVD0120 PCI-E x4 120GB MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) for OS & programs. What's the quietest 1.5 or 2TB drive for bulk storage?

--

Planning on windows 7.

PSU sounds fine, depending on card and CPU+mobo+RAM combo you might want to go 500W+. If you get a big case, modular won't be such a big necessity. I bought the Nexus NX-5000 R3 to replace a Corsair HX520W and I've been happy with it.

Don't know the Gigabyte card, but I like my Gainward GTX 460 GS GLH 1GB, very gutsy and I'd describe the sound as smooth and pleasant. Another person didn't like their 460 GS, but they were a jerk.

For MB, I can't help but recommend the Asus P7H55D-M EVO I bought. Solid so far and smart layout, can accomodate one gaming card (2-3 slots) and one PCI-E 1x card (sound, NIC etc.). Get the BIOS preflashed at the store.

For RPGs I don't think any i7 is worth the investment, not even the Lynnfields. The i5-760 is fab for anything, and you won't miss HT much with four physical cores anyway - put the $100 you'll save into that extra 4GB of RAM you want!

RAM: anything supported by your mobo maker. I'm getting G.Skill Ripjaws in 2 GB sticks for my mobo (DDR3-1333 F3-10666CL7D-4GBRH). I am not convinced you or anyone else needs more than 4 GB for gaming - especially seeing as how you'll have a blazing-fast SSD - and I've had bad experiences (stability issues, finally fried Asus ROG mobo) with 4 sticks.

I'd get an Intel SSD for trusty, solid performance, you'll get your money's worth for sure. Think they've got a revision in the works so might get G2 cheaper at some point. For storage, I love my WD Green 1 TB EARS. 1.5 and 2 TB drives have had issues in the past, so I'm leery of those.

Win7 or bust these days. Running Home Premium 64-bit and it's so far been able to run everything I need and done a good job of it.

[bburk]

I see what you mean about the i5 vs the i7. Would hyperthreading be an advantage to Dragon Naturally Speaking speech input software? It's maximum possible performance is critical to me. ty

[Das_Saunamies]

I see what you mean about the i5 vs the i7. Would hyperthreading be an advantage to Dragon Naturally Speaking speech input software? It's maximum possible performance is critical to me. ty

You're in the same spot as me then, one absolutely critical piece of software dictates everything that goes in the rig. Mine was the SDL Trados translation and term management software that luckily started supporting 64-bit OS' just as I reinstalled Windows.

Reading up on Dragon NaturallySpeaking, it seems that 64-bit support is up to date. The system requirements don't seem to be all that much; if a software is willing to run acceptably on 1 GHz P4s and A64s, and is recommended a 1.6 GHz dualcore (you find more than this in laptops now!), it will run like white lightning on a modern quadcore, HyperThreading or no.

This is all speculation based on manufacturer recommendations (more often compensated for poorly optimized and managed installations than not), but in my mind there is no doubt a quad i5 will run that stuff as smooth as possible, especially with no bottlenecks in memory or HDD/SSD access times.

[kater]

You're in the same spot as me then, one absolutely critical piece of software dictates everything that goes in the rig. Mine was the SDL Trados translation and term management software that luckily started supporting 64-bit OS' just as I reinstalled Windows.

Hate to derail the thread, but this is relevant to my personal interest. Are you trying to say that Trados (2009?) works better / faster / sans crashes on W7 Premium x64? Just curious. I don't have the software yet, but will prolly have to buy it (ugh, the price...) to get more jobs. We could go private on this not to mess up the thread.

[Das_Saunamies]

You're in the same spot as me then, one absolutely critical piece of software dictates everything that goes in the rig. Mine was the SDL Trados translation and term management software that luckily started supporting 64-bit OS' just as I reinstalled Windows.

Hate to derail the thread, but this is relevant to my personal interest. Are you trying to say that Trados (2009?) works better / faster / sans crashes on W7 Premium x64? Just curious. I don't have the software yet, but will prolly have to buy it (ugh, the price...) to get more jobs. We could go private on this not to mess up the thread.

Well it's quick to sum up so a little OT should be no prob.

In short, Studio 2009 works just fine on W7 HP 64-bit and so does MultiTerm, and I can use all of my RAM. Been using both programs since they came out and have not missed a beat.

[danimal]

The silver arrow works fanless on an I7 ? thanks

"It's an impressive feat seeing heatsinks passively cooling an i7, especially when it's overclocked to 4GHz! Of course, having good airflow is of utmost importance but it certainly helps reduce noise levels whilst maintaining temperatures. Its[silver arrow] lead over the Noctua NH-D14 was a stunning 3C.

*Thermalright HR-02 results have been omitted for now in light of further passive tests*"
http://www.vortez.co.uk/contentteller/a ... ew,10.html

you could end up needing a whole lot of video card power to drive a 28" monitor, depending on it's recommended resolution... lcd monitors should always be run at their default rez, they do not scale well.

[ntavlas]

I have to agree with pretty much all of Das_Saunamies` recommendations. I`ll also recommend the Thermalright Hr-02 which should easily handle an i5 cpu in semi passive mode. Not that any of the other coolers mentioned would be a bad choice.

I don`t know much about the Hanns monitor you mention but it`s resolution of 1920x1200 is quite usable and not too high, meaning you won`t need an extremely powerful gpu. However, if productivity stuff is not really important a 1080p monitor might make even more sense.

Concerning case fans, I would stick to the recommended list of SPCR with the addition of the Skythe Kama pwm, if you need a pwm fan. Every now and then I`ll try something different, but so far I haven`t found anything that outperforms the tried solutions. I would also avoid the Noctua models, people go after them often but personally, I don`t really like their sound characteristics.