Cheapest ever HTPC that's decent. Proud of myself. - Page 13

Originally Posted by KevBel

Thanks for the heads up on the SSD size!

Here's my updated plan...

From NewEgg.ca :

• (19$) Mushkin Enhanced Silverline 4GB RAM
• (60$) Mushkin Enhanced Callisto Deluxe 60GB SATA II SSD

From BestDirect.ca :

• (31$) COOLER MASTER Elite 460
• (65$) Gigabyte GA-H61M-S2H
• (56$) Silverstone ML03B
• (49$) Intel G530

TOTAL COST : 295.59$



I'm a poor electrical engineering student :-P

And, I don't feel like I'm getting second grade components here...
The SSD uses a Sandforce controller and has excellent reviews. The Cooler Master PSU has very good reviews as well and is more than powerful enough. From what I've read Gigabyte makes very good motherboards. I actually feel like I'm splurging with the Silverstone case - if I had to upgrade it'd be for a 100$ case. Although, I'll admit I wouldn't mind getting the G630 but it's probably overkill for playing DVDs and DVDrips, streaming files over LAN/FTP, etc...

If you could upgrade one or two things about this build, what would it be?

Originally Posted by rsoares28

you could get the G530 for $41 at DirectCanada.com

Originally Posted by Zon2020

460w is actually a little too big and you'll be operating at pretty low efficiency given the minimal power demands of this system, and Coolermaster wouldn't be my personal choice in PSUs, but that's an FSP made one and should be fine. You could certainly do a lot worse, particularly for the $20 you're paying for it. The case is very nice, but realize that there is no room for installing any full height cards ever.

Originally Posted by Zon2020

But before anyone can answer if you should be using different components, you need to explain what it is you are trying to do with this box. You have no storage for rips, no tuner for OTA or cable, and no optical drive for disks. As a device for internet streaming, it should be fine, but what else did you have in mind?

Originally Posted by Zon2020

Oh, by the way, you probably need a couple of 80mm fans; I don't believe that case comes with any. Looking at what Best Direct sells, I'd probably pick the Silenx Effizios. Newegg Canada may have more choices, but don't just buy the cheapest fans you can find or they'll be noisy and won't last.

Originally Posted by BudgetHT

Edit: This doesn't include the cost of software ie: TMT5 or PowerDVD12...

Originally Posted by KevBel

I have a 750gb 3.5" HDD I'll be adding in, and will eventually upgrade to 2 HDDs in a mirrored RAID setup. I also have a 5.25" DVD drive I'll be dropping in. So I don't think it should be too overkill...

Originally Posted by Logic_BomB

(First time HTPC attempt)

So I just priced out a system based on Assassin's guide and I'm looking to save money without seriously losing performance:

- Mobo: Asrock H77 Pro4-m: $110
- Ram: G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB): $30
- CPU: i3-2100: $120
- HDD: Samsung F4 2TB HDD & Crucial M4 SSD: $130/$85
- PSU: Antec Green Watts 380: $55
- Case: nmedia 5000b - $80
- Optical: Lite-on BD somethingorother: $60

Total: $670

I'm in Canada which is why some prices are higher than you might expect. I CAN do USA shipping to a friend though if it will save me a hefty chunk of change.

This will be used most importantly for:

- Ripping DVDs/BD's and playing them as near to perfect quality as possible
- Playing back music
- Probably streaming something like netflix/hulu et al
- Possibly being used as a PVR for OTA transmissions in the future
- No 3d, ever, at all, hate it.

I haven't had an up to date PC of any kind in over 10+ years and I'm not interested in choppy/laggy/frustrating anything.

Where are the biggest bangs for the buck that I can save money on here without wishing I spent the extra cash?

(As a side point, I am NOT budget restricted but I am budget conscious - I want to spend only as much as needed to get the job done perfectly)

Originally Posted by Logic_BomB

(- HDD: Samsung F4 2TB HDD & Crucial M4 SSD: $130/$85

Where are the biggest bangs for the buck that I can save money on here without wishing I spent the extra cash?

(As a side point, I am NOT budget restricted but I am budget conscious - I want to spend only as much as needed to get the job done perfectly)

Originally Posted by a5ehren

You can probably drop down to an H61 motherboard (~$40 less) and a SB Pentium G620 CPU (another $50 less) and not lose any serious functionality.

Originally Posted by Zon2020

Is there something specific about that motherboard that interests you?

Originally Posted by Logic_BomB

I guess I liked the ability to go Ivy Bridge at a later date should I need to but I'm now questioning if that is all that important.

Originally Posted by Zon2020

That's understandable, but most current H61/H67/Z68 motherboards should accept a current Ivy Bridge CPU with a bios update. For their motherboards, Intel lists the version numbers that will accept Ivy Bridge, but even my year-old DH67BL is recent enough to use an IB cpu with just a bios update. How well other mfgs handle this, I don't know.

But this is the reason I said that if you wanted an H77/Z77, you can still get one for less than the one you listed. But if you're going to use a SB cpu, what's the actual likelihood that you're ever going to install an IB. You can save a lot with an H67 or H61 and it is still supposed to be able to take the upgrade if you ever decide to do so.

Originally Posted by assassin

I don't think an IVB CPU in a SNB board can take full advantage of the new chipset though.

Originally Posted by Zon2020

Such as?

What other than DDR3 1600 in the native memory controller you lose?

Frankly, I'd probably buy a 7 series for any build today, but that's just me and I don't know of any reason why you would really need to, especially if the liklihood of ever swapping processors is low.

Originally Posted by assassin

Supposedly better 23.976 for those who obsess over it.

Originally Posted by Zon2020

Would you also get that same advantage using a SB in a 7 series motherboard? I was under the impression that that is a chipset rather than CPU issue, but I have no idea if you can get the better timing putting a SB in a 7 series motherboard.

Originally Posted by azula

Hello Folks,

Saying that I am a newbie to this topic is a serious understatement. I know absolutely nothing about HTPC's, building one, and even less about how to integrate it into my system. I was just about to pull the trigger on an Oppo 93 but it seems like the capabilities of an HTPC are far more vast (stating the obvious I know). I have tons of bluray's and consolidating them into one system sounds amazing (WAF too!). Would there be any need for a conventional bluray player if I went with a HTPC? My primary purpose for having an HTPC would be for bluray playback. Also, is there any loss in quality (audio/visual) between a hard copy bluray disc and a HTPC?

I have already started reading Assassin's build thread for beginners and my head is about to explode! Just need a quick synopsis of what this potential treasure is all about! Thanks in advance.

Originally Posted by azula

Hello Folks,

Saying that I am a newbie to this topic is a serious understatement. I know absolutely nothing about HTPC's, building one, and even less about how to integrate it into my system. I was just about to pull the trigger on an Oppo 93 but it seems like the capabilities of an HTPC are far more vast (stating the obvious I know). I have tons of bluray's and consolidating them into one system sounds amazing (WAF too!). Would there be any need for a conventional bluray player if I went with a HTPC? My primary purpose for having an HTPC would be for bluray playback. Also, is there any loss in quality (audio/visual) between a hard copy bluray disc and a HTPC?

I have already started reading Assassin's build thread for beginners and my head is about to explode! Just need a quick synopsis of what this potential treasure is all about! Thanks in advance.

Originally Posted by azula

Hello Folks,

Saying that I am a newbie to this topic is a serious understatement. I know absolutely nothing about HTPC's, building one, and even less about how to integrate it into my system. I was just about to pull the trigger on an Oppo 93 but it seems like the capabilities of an HTPC are far more vast (stating the obvious I know). I have tons of bluray's and consolidating them into one system sounds amazing (WAF too!). Would there be any need for a conventional bluray player if I went with a HTPC? My primary purpose for having an HTPC would be for bluray playback. Also, is there any loss in quality (audio/visual) between a hard copy bluray disc and a HTPC?

I have already started reading Assassin's build thread for beginners and my head is about to explode! Just need a quick synopsis of what this potential treasure is all about! Thanks in advance.

Originally Posted by azula

Thanks guys, I found a "how to" video uploaded by newegg on youtube. I haven't priced out the parts that he is using in the video but does this seem like a build to suit my needs? (90% bluray, 10% music) here's the link:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnkrD_UJCko

Originally Posted by azula

Thanks guys, I found a "how to" video uploaded by newegg on youtube. I haven't priced out the parts that he is using in the video but does this seem like a build to suit my needs? (90% bluray, 10% music) here's the link:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnkrD_UJCko

Originally Posted by Mfusick

Assembly is easy part imo

Originally Posted by Zon2020


Wow. Where to start.
You don't want a Zotac motherboard, you don't need an i5 cpu. I stopped watching about then.

Assassin has built a bunch of systems using that Apex-style boxy ITX case (same basic case is sold under several brands). Read his hardware recommendations.

Whether you are going to store your video on a hard disk in your HTPC or outside as in a server or on another pc, will dictate how small you can go. If you don't need a local hard disk and will just have an SSD, the Antec ISK-300-150 is a nice ITX case. If you want local storage, Assassin has a thread here about cramming three 5 1/4 inch hard drives and an SSD into one of those Apex cases (although I wouldn't recommend a first timer try it). Depending on whether you want 3D, you might want an i3 or if not you might be able to use a Pentium. Post your proposed build list and you'll get plenty of comments.

Originally Posted by robseyes

What thread is that? Would love to read how he put that many drives into one of those mini cases!

Originally Posted by assassin


Here you go.

I used this build for almost a year before I changed to a Silverstone GD05 for more testing.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1346162

Originally Posted by Logic_BomB

Out of curiosity - when it comes to an HTPC, what are you missing out on when it comes to the least expensive options?

I put together parts a few posts ago that seemed to get a lot of love for about $6-700. If I tried cutting every corner and dropped it down to some of the $300 systems I see here, what would I notice?

Laggy playback?
Slow GUI interface?
Part failure or reliability issues over time?
No support for something I can't even think of right now?
Something else I can't even think of right now?

Is it just that with a higher-end system programs will take half a second to load instead of 2 seconds or are there usability issues that I can't seem to wrap my head around?

Originally Posted by KevBel

I'm curious about this as well...

What will I NOT be able to do with my 300$ HTPC once it's built?