Official Sandy Bridge / LGA1155 for HTPCs Thread - Page 16

I see a lot of people getting micro-ATX cases instead of the mini-ITX cases. I was leaning towards the smallest HTPC I could build. What advantages do the micro-ATX cases have over the smaller mini-ITX cases? I'm speaking only of HTPCs. I will have no accessory cards. I will only be using on board video and sound.

If you are just going with on board there are no advantages. A micro ATX case offers better expandability (i.e. video/tuner cards, multiple HDDs) and will give you better air flow. I have one HTPC in my house that is a micro-ATX (I have a separate dGPU and Tuner card installed). A second HTPC I build around the Clarkdale, and since I was going to rely solely on the onboard audio/video I went the Mini-ITX route

How much more noise should I expect to have with a smaller case? I want as near silent as I can get.

I intend to run the low power i3 (even though they appearently aren't low power ) with low voltage memory if I can find a new board that supports it.

The case fans for my build although not loud can be heard. I did replace the fans but they are still audible (my HTPC is in a cabinet so that drowns out any bit of sound). I found finding quiet fans from a mini itx case a little bit more challenging then for a micro atx

Those results not consistent with what I've observed between the 2500K (97W), 2400S (-27W) and 2100T (-55W) under load.



And idle draws of 30W, 28.7W, and 14.5W* for the 2500K, 2400S and 2100T.

* not quite apples-apples because this was with a pico-PSU, add 5-8W to adjust against standard PSU

Power usage could be one of those things, like overclockability, that varies b/w chips depending on the current yield (i.e. they have a better 2500K than I do ).

BTW, all the numbers above are measured at the wall.

Noise is a function of heat, either approach can be silent with the right component selection.

Why the re. low power i3s? We tested a 2100T a while back and it's very efficient and quiet. Also the DH67CF used in the review supports 1.35V RAM; I didn't get any in time for the review but it's what I'm running now.

All about choosing the right case

If you get one with an 80mm mount you can always replace it with something quiet.

I actually replaced the stock case fans with Scythe S-Flex 80mm in my mini-ITX. Although a little bit quieter by no means silent. Not a huge issue anyhow once I added some new bedroom furniture (case now in a cabinet and not out in the open, so any sound gets drowned out).

FWIW, I haven't found a Scythe fan the doesn't click.

I use Arctic Cooling 80/92mm PWM fans in most of my builds now.

This drive has been out for a while. Its not going to get these speeds you mentioned though. It should do about 325mb/s read. The writes on the 64gb are limited but trust me its plenty fast.

Especially for an htpc.

Is there really a significant difference between running 1.5v and 1.35v ram? I was thinking of using one 1.5v 4GB stick (G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR3 1333) with the DH67CF. Would I be better off getting two 1.35v sticks instead?

I doubt it, but it is something I want to take a look at (1.35 v. 1.5 v. 1.65) when time allows.

I'm running my DDR3 at 1.35v on my Core i7-2600K and DH67BL, and everything has been good and stable for weeks. My SPD doesn't tell it to run at 1.35v unless it is at 1600MHz, so I had to manually set the memory voltage in the BIOS.

Using 1 stick of DDR3 vs. 2 sticks is the difference between single and dual channel memory bandwidth. The performance difference may not make any difference for HTPC use.

Andy VT,

Did you also try navigating through WMC when testing the i3-2100t/DH67CF system? I'm curious to know if there are any slow downs when browsing through the libraries or viewing overlays while playing full HD in the background (connected at 1080).

I still can't figure out any significant article describing the difference between H61, H67 & P67 chipsets. I'm not sure which motherboard to go for!

I'm trying to build a fully 3D Blu-ray / Blu-ray Audio capable HTPC, but I don't want to overkill. I know I need the Sandy Bridge platform to be able to play full 3D Blu-ray content & bitstream Blu-ray Audio (DTS-HD, TrueHD, etc.). Try to get my shopping list together.

Motherboard is my first point of contention. Does H61/P67 also handle full 3D Blu-ray Video & Blu-ray Audio? Or only H67?

Secondly, if I get an H67 Motherboard / SB i3 or i5 - can I skip the GPU and use the Sandy Bridge HDMI for my blu-ray audio/video needs?

Is there a big difference between the i3-2100 & i5-2300? Cost difference is about $55. For a simple 3D HTPC (no gaming/encoding) - just simple media playback - would an i3 suffice?

Thanks Guys!!

Absolutely. The ASRock Vision system uses an i3 mobile. So the i3 SB should be plenty.

Excellent! That seals the CPU.

As far as motherboard is concerned .... should I be shooting for an H67 as opposed to H61/P67. I'm not sure about the differences - I'm looking for the one that can handle full 3D Blu-ray / Blu-ray Audio.

IMO no one really knows right now which MBs will be the best because of the recall. You can read some online reviews but I usually use those and actual user reviews to make my decisions. So if you are ready to build I would choose a brand that you can trust. I am a huge fan of Gigabyte and ASUS.

I myself am a big fan of ASUS & Gigabyte and I'll wait for either to hit Newegg ... but my question is more to do with the Chipset. I'm not finding much information on the difference between H61, H67 & P67. I'd like to use just the motherboard/CPU for the full 3D Blu-ray / Blu-ray Audio without having to go with a GPU for now. My understanding is that I need the H67 chipset for that, but I'm not sure. Can the H67 handle 3D Blu-ray Video & Audio without theneed for a GPU?

Has any one played around with fan-less Sandy Bridge HTPCs?

H67 has onboard GPU P67 does not.

That's Exactly what I was looking for!!! I'm also beginning to notice no MicroATX P67 boards.

That seals my decision on the H67 board. Now I just have to wait for ASUS or Gigabyte H67 to hit newegg. I'm already sealed on the Core i3-2100 Sandy Bridge CPU.

My understanding of the Sandy Bridge platform is that with an H67 Motherboard & SB CPU, I won't require a Graphics Card. The Motherboard/CPU will allow playback of 3D Blu-ray and bitstream Blu-ray Audio. Is that correct?

That is accurate.

Thanks!!

I'm pretty set here with my component list for the Full 3D Sandy Bridge HTPC.

- H67 ASUS or Gigabyte Motherboard
- Intel Core i3-2100 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz ($129.99)
- Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply ($69.99)
- G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) ($79.99) ... [I don't know if 8GB is overkill or not; I figured applications like Media Browser/WMC would run faster/better with more memory.]
- Thermaltake Black SECC Japanese steel LANBOX Lite VF6000BWS Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case ($89.99)
- Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive ($39.99) ... [Media is stored on attached eSata RAID Drives, so just need OS & Media Player Software on Internal]
- Rosewill WMC Remote control/Rcvr RRC-127 for Win 7 ($24.99)
- Hauppauge Colossus HD-PVR High Definition H.264 Video Recorder ($169.99) ... [This one's for recording cable shows in HD .. DVR functions]

Approx $540 without DVR Card ... $710 with DVR Card.

Edit: If there's anything Overkill here - please feel free to suggest!

The client experience was the same w/ the 2500K, 2400S and 2100T. For the most part having more cores/higher clock speed only made a difference in transcoding, commercial scanning and other server type tasks.

Take a look at the Neo Eco 400W Antec. A better PSU for this setup and costs less too, imo.

You don't need 8GB RAM. 4GB will be plenty.

Why the need for such a large PS? I doubt that setup will use even half that.

Assassin ... I've created a new thread; I think I was heading into Off-Topic here ... I'll probably get better responses in a dedicated thread. It would be great if you want to hop over there.

Thread Link

I am realizing that 8GB is overkill; and I'm also wondering if I need anything over 380W considering there is no GPU and SB Components draw less power. The only one thing I do want to keep open-ended is the ability to install a GPU at some point if needed ... for example if there's a shift in technology that may demand a GPU in case the CPU alone is not able to handle it.

Agreed. Unfortunately unless you want a pico the smallest ATX PSU you can buy is 380-400 watts.

Hmmm I was planning on using a 150w pico for my Mini-ITX. Is there a problem using the pico PS with Sandy Bridge boards/CPUs? I don't have any experience with them.

I don't see this as off-topic. We are still discussing Sandy Bridge components. I want to make sure I get the right PS for a Sandy Bridge HTPC.