Passive cases with CPU for 1080P

[ixelion]

I am new to HTPC building, I am wondering if a passively cooled case are viable with a CPU powerful enough for 1080p video playback, lower bitrate file sizes probably less than 4GB**

Is this possible? any suggestions on CPU and case?

[LoveMachine]

The Strea*** FC5 OD would do the trick** I had a link, but the forum isn't posting it correctly for some reason** Googlify that**

It isn't cheap, and installation options are somewhat limited (e**g** bluray drives), but the massive heatsinks and heatpipe arrangement would be plenty for an Ivy Bridge G2120 or i3-3225** Both will play 1080p files with 7**1 HDMI sound just fine** The latter chip also adds Quicksync if you want quick transcodes, and has a beefier iGPU** Either, though, would work equally well for playback, and neither would overwhelm the passive cooling, as long as it's not stuffed in a tight media cabinet** And a picoPSU would deliver enough juice for such a setup if the goal is a fanless rig**

In this case (har!), going cheap on a passively cooled case would likely not pay off, so be prepared to invest properly**

[ixelion]

Thanks for the great info, it is a bit expensive for me. What do you think of the F1C and maybe one of those Zotec miniITX or any miniITX. Can I get away with a G465 or G560?

[LoveMachine]

When you say "passively cooled case" above, are you trying to achieve a fanless system, or just with a cooling fan for the case itself? If the former, then the options you list won't work. If the latter, then a decent downdraft CPU cooler probably could keep the whole system cool enough. The G chips will all play 1080p video without much issue.

[wirednuts]

amd e350's can easily run passively and play or stream 1080p content. i have not found a movie yet that wont play perfect on mine. netflix, youtube, hulu all work great too in hd.

[KAZANI]

For passive cooling stuff FanlessTech is a good place to start your research.

[Highfi]

We have built a HDPlex H3 with a i7 3770, it's a very fast pc and plays blueray without problems. With 3 heatpipes to each side (HFX heatpipes 33W each) and 160W PicoPSU this case could cool down 2x75W=150W. This is more than enough for the upcoming Intel Haswell or AMD Kaveri, or the A10-5800K. You could use the case like it is with AMD A10-5700 for best graphics. There are many heatsink cases that can cool down the best CPU's with internal graphics, and when you consider the price you may take in acount the price for coolingtower and fan you don't need. The cost of the Streacom FC8 are maybe a bit less than for the FC5.

[crashtestdummy]

If all you're looking for is to play 1080p files, a raspberry pi running openelec with an external hard drive will get the job done.