Guide to Building a HTPC, Workstation and Server - Page 119

I am just looking for some opinions regarding a setup that I am looking to purchase. I reviewed the basic setups that Renethx posted and built upon them. Key things I am looking to accomplish are Blu Ray playback, HD recording via Clear QAM, SD with NTSC, and moderate post processing for SD and HD. These will be used with a 61" Samsung while home and a 26" while at school.
Concerns- Heat, PSU, Tuner, Fiji or not?
Will be running Vista Home Premium and 2 - 1.5Tb Seagates (once in stock)

Sorry for asking the same question that everyone else asks over and over again, but I've read this thread, a lot of other sites and threads on this forum, and I'm still not exactly sure what to buy. I feel like I know a lot more than I did last week about HTPCs, but I still don't have the specific knowledge I need to make a purchase. I would really appreciate the help though, since I'm ready to buy (already bought the cheap 4gb ram on frys.com).

I plan on exclusively watching ripped TV shows (720i and 1080i) and movies (1080p). I don't care about bluray or HD DVD playback or gaming at all. I was thinking of getting an E8400 and a P5Q board, but now I am thinking that might be overkill. Is there a go-to board/proc for these specific requirements?

As far as case goes, I figure I will need a remote as well, so is it a better deal to get the Antec Fusion case that comes with the remote, or should I get the NSK case that everyone likes and buy a remote (the cheap 25$ microsoft remote seems standard, or do I want something else?)?

One last thing I'm confused about is storage. Most cases I believe fit 2 HD, is there a standard hard drive to buy? WD or something else? Should I buy 1TB drives? And as far as expansion ability, I've seen cheap PCI express cards that it looks like you can plug external hard drives into via SATA connection - is this pretty easy/non taxing on a system to do if I end up needing more space later?

I also have a few questions about the setup. I'm thinking about getting some speakers to go with this as well - I'm not an audiophile to it seems like the logitech z-550s will fit the bill. However, the review I read on them was from 2007 - are there any better/cheaper speakers that will sound good and not require a receiver now?

And as far as connecting them goes - how does that work? Can I run HDMI from computer to TV (I assume this carries audio and video) and then run S/PDIF from TV to speakers? And then whichever inputs the TV is accepting, whenever I select this particular input (whether it be HDMI from computer, HDMI from set top box, Wii, or DVD player) the sound will come out of the speakers? Is this a good idea or am I way off on how to do the whole audio thing?

Thanks for any help on setup ideas that people have.

Thanks for the picture!
I am planning to install the same heatsink in my P5Q-EM/S16V combo.
Can you please post pictures with the the heatsink fan and the Lite-On Blu-ray DVD ROM installed?
What are your MB/CPU temperatures at idle/load?

Thanks!

OK, Renethx (as a student of the master) and someone else earlier who asked me to post the PC Completed and in the rack. It is below.

In taking these pics, I noticed the shelves needed to be leveled (which I have now done) and the wiring is a mess. I will dress it out once I finalize shelf spacing and clean everything. I also note the grubby finger marks and the empty shelves. I originally put in this rack what is now a lot of old legacy equipment. I had a VCR, Laser Disk Player, large CD changer, and two cable boxes. Note to anyone, an operating HTPC eliminates a ton of equipment and wiring. I also run wiring from the upstairs DVD changer.

Since my reliable, bullet proof, great sounding B&K receiver doesn't have any HDMI switching, a bunch of the wiring is for a hidden HDMI switch. Thankfully, the wiring is completely unnoticable except when flashing with a digital camera. You all get to see the ugly stuff.

A few things about the Silverstone case. 1st note the too bright power LED. The little USB dongle is for the wirelss Gyro mouse and Keyboard. I'll stick it somewhere later. The Case is very deep and you need a really deep space to put it in. My cabinet is about 45 inches deep so no problem but the rack pulls out and swings and the PC barely clears it upon spinning. I would warn someone to not put the PC right above an egg cooker like the B&K receiver or any other hot running power amp, etc... My rack has large fans, temp controlled to the exact left of the receiver and my shelves are particle board and have no vent slots (Thus no shelf heat issues that would occur with metal racking). For this reason, my temp runs cool but I'd beware of ventilation.

I should never of purchased the little HP WHS server. It is not expandable enough and at some time, I will need to go to one of Renethx rack Home Server storage sytems. So, eventually I see this rack being full of the HTPC, a Receiver with HDMI switching, a back up Blu Ray player, The Tivo (or not depending on better TV Tuner Options), Surge and line protector, Server Solution, and a gaming platform.

So here it is......

Sorry if I wasn't clear. My question is "Where did the video card you are trying to use ORIGINALLY come from?" In other words, is this a video card you got from work that might be a "special" card? Or is it a card you bought from a local retail brick and mortar store like Best Buy?

Hello All,

First off, thanks Renethx and others for all the useful info you've compiled here.

Second, I've got a list of components I'm thinking of getting and would like feedback. I haven't assembled my own computer in almost a decade, so here goes:

My goals (parroting many others) are HD DVR (OTA signal), stored video (mostly dvds ripped as .iso), some gaming (though, nothing major and less important), maybe blu-ray.

cpu: Phenom x3 8750
mobo: GA-MA78GPM-DS2H (using on-board video/sound)
case: Antec Fusion Black
tuner: Avertv Combo PCIE(M780)
also I'm planning to have an optical drive and one, maybe two HDs.

As far as memory is concerned, I'm inclined to go higher, rather than lower (which for 32 bit OSes means <4GB). If I install 4GB, there won't be any negative except for the partial GB that doesn't get used, right? How about memory speed? I can get 4GB 1066MHz (2x2GB) for $80. There's an odd note in the "memory support list" for this mobo though, and I'm not sure what to make of it: "Note: Due to AMD AM2+ CPU limitation, DDR2 1066 is only supported by 1 dimm per channel." Is this anything to worry over?

Next, is it worth overclocking? As configured, the stock heatsink is fine, right? if I do overclock, will there be heat/power concerns beyond a new heatsink?

If I wanted to also use this box as network file storage for the other machines in the house, how much would that impact someone watching TV?

The last question then is which OS should I use? I tend to prefer XP to Vista. I have XP Media Center running on an old machine and it seems fine. Are there reasons to not use the 64bit versions of windows? The drivers seem to be available. Is something like Linux/MythTV worth considering?

Thanks again for any feedback/suggestions you may have!

Hi ndabunka,

Video card? I have no taken any video card from work.. i am using my laptop's video output, which is a Mobile Intel 945 Express Chipset. I only took the VGA "cable" from work.. not video card.

And i think that whichever video card i use does not matter, since the problem happens with the TV.. The TV does not recognize the cable (the one from monoprice, not the one from work). And this is before i hook the cable to my laptop.

So i don't think it's a problem of video card or video output settings, so i'm wondering if there's different type of VGA cables?

I'm looking for a full height & width case. Better fit & finish and just moderately priced are important.

Hi,

I finally decided to buy the following components;

AMD X2 5000+ (65W)
Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H
2GB Kingston DDR2 800Mhz
500GB Seagate Sata2 HDD
400W Asus psu
USB Wireless Stick (125mbps)
APlus GL-3 Case
Microsoft MCE Remote & Keyboard

I'll add a graphics card later, possibly HD4670 or HD4830, when avalible in Turkiye.

Any possible problems with the configuration?

I just bought the Silverstone LC20 Black...full size ATX $179.00 Lots of room, and runs cool.

I'm trying to put together an HTPC with as much bang-for-the buck as possible, and after reading through the recommended systems on page 85 through to the most current post in this thread, I'm still a little confused as to why the Intel/Intel system is considered the "best all-in-one solution of video" when compared to the AMD/AMD system using a Phenom processor. I've read the small print under those system's descriptions and a whole lot of posts here, and am just not seeing the difference. FYI, I don't have a religious preference of Intel vs AMD, and my priorities are high quality HDMI HDTV output, "trouble-free (heh)" Blu-Ray, and reasonable post-processing performance. I will likely use Windows XP SP3, and possibly Ubuntu Linux as neither of those will cost me anything.

Is there an advantage of a system built from an Intel E5200/G45 over a Phenom/780G? Is there a deficiency with either one? (I've noticed the pass-through issue on the Intel system and that won't affect me). I'm missing some detail - please edify me!

Thanks!!

It's a good size - 16.9"W X 16.9"L X 6.7"H. http://www.silverstonetek.com/produc...=lc20&area=usa
Running cool is vital. The pictures of the case make it look unattractive. Does it look better in person?

Have you seen the Thermaltake VC4000SNS? It's a little larger - 16.9"W X 17.8"L X 6.7"H. http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Produc...8&ID=1432#Tab1

I really liked the Silverstone LC18 the best... but the 650.00 price tag made it a no brainer.
The HTPC i'm building will be buried in the rack of my home theater....not visible.I will be using a remote control. I was looking for an all black case to blend in....the thermaltake only comes in silver?

As I stated, there should not be any difference. All VGA and SVGA cards should be the same. You need to use a $14.00 Ohm meter from Radio Shack to understand how the pins are wired. This is a VERY simple process for a 15-pin VGA interface.

I'm an AMD CPU newbie...

Is the 9150e > 8450? Specifically for use in the GeForce 8300 motherboard, for HD decoding. Or should I go with the 9650, and deal with the extra watts?

I know... I just am trying to fiind a real 24p solution. Since ATI @ 24p with TMT doesn't quite work, I want to try the nVidia @24p with TMT and see if, in fact, it works.

So while the 9150e is more expensive, is it better than the 8450, or is the 8450 still better?

When i find out how the pins are wired, what do i do next? (Or what could i do?)

I expect that the standard cables that you got from the different sources are correctly built. Therefore, it sounds like you will need some type of custom cable built to match the blue one you "got from work" so that you can return it to work.

So, test the pin outs on the blue one. Compare those to the pin outs on the standard VGA cables and then order a custom built cable that matches your blue one from work. It may cost you $30 but it would work. Now, as to why your pin outs are odd.... can't even guess at this point. Have you tried to change out the video card (if that's even possible)

If the pit outs on the ordered cables are exactly the same as those on the blue one, then you've got something else going on (like interference?)

As a point, this is not really the proper forum for questions on vga cables so I'll leave my comments here and recommend that you look elsewhere for a more detailed discussion about your cable issues (Have you even called the cable providers you bought those through to ask their opinions or what you should do? Since they make them, they have probably ran into these types of issues before.

i have biostar 790gx mobo, 2x m780 pcie combo tuner. i want to know can i put one of the two tuner on the second gfx slot ( slave gfx slot) and not pcie 1x slot or not. does it really matter if i put it on pcie 1x or pcie 8x slot.

Okay, but what about overall? I'm just trying to fiind out if I'm buying a generally better processor with the 9150e, or if the 8450 is better overall? Beyond simply 24p.

More simply: Is there anything at all the 8450 is better at compared to the 9150e?

Again, I don't understand the AMD CPU's, as I've been an Intel guy.

You're right - predominantly silver w/ vertical black accent band. Another model VB8000BNS http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/produc.../vc8001bns.asp they show is solid black but is tarted up with some purple LED accent lights. I've written them to find out if the lights can be turned off.

Another thing I noticed in the specs on both the Bach & Mozart cases is that they are not liquid cooling capable. That brings up a whole other issue. At what point should we all consider the need to look into that alternative method of cooling. I'm sure we all agree that cool is good and quiet is better for HTPC's. Wikipedia comments "Water cooling not only allows for quieter operation and improved overclocking, but with improved heat handling capabilities hotter processors can be supported."

So is price it? And at newegg it's more like 89 vs 149, but the point is valid.

Not sure why I'm unable to get a direct answer to this seemingly simple question... Is the 9150e technically better than the 8450, or is there any technical reason the 8450 is better?