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Best HTPC motherboard

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Originally posted by: Team Spicoli
Originally posted by: elconejito
I think you might be a little conflicted on what exactly this machine is for 🙂

I think you are thinking of it more as a "computer attached to my TV" rather than a dedicated HTPC. That will make a huge difference in the motherboard/CPU/Video/case you choose.
Click to expand...

You're right. I will have a separate low-budget server housing several TBs of data, sending the media out to a more powerful computer/general workstation, and then out to various TV's etc.
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I have a similar, but different setup. A low-power fileserver running RAID 5 which stores backups for all the machines, and keeps all my media (music, videos, etc). On my HTPC (which I affectionately call the "ghetto tivo") I store TV recordings and a few other misc videos. The HTPC is on 24/7 so it's not exactly a powerhouse. No gaming or anything intensive like that. Then I have my main desktop in my sig which I do everything with, but that's not connected to the TV.

You could put together a real low-power fileserver. Or buy one of the prebuilt WHS boxes which are also really nice. Leave it on all the time, it will use up about the same amount of energy if you left a light bulb on all day. And they are near silent so you won't notice them running.

Then build yourself a reasonably quiet desktop and just output video to your TV. You listed an Antec 900. It's a nice case, but if you're trying to keep noise down you want something a little less "open" like maybe a P180 (or P182, P183 newer versions). Noise isn't as big of an issue since you'll actively be using it whenever it's on.
 
790GX chipset is by far the best platform for an HTPC, it's cheap the other components are cheap ( DDR2 ram, CPU etc) and it is the best performing- Intels IGP's are poor for HD video and Nvidia is hit and miss with solid board and Bios support. The Biostar board on Newegg can be had for $80 so either that or the Giga and low power CPU and you'll be fine.
 
Alright, so I build a HTPC for a friend recently. He went with a Phenom II X4 810. The motherboard is the ASUS M3N78-VM. We put everything into the Antec Fusion Black case (lovely HTPC case!). Now, I didn't look too deep when recommending the board, but it seems every 780GX chip has issues with HDMI... and I mean every single one (ASUS, GA, ASRock, etc). If you don't turn the TV on first, before starting the HTPC, good luck trying to get any input on your TV. Now, we found a workaround (somewhat) - plug the TV through a DVI->HDMI converter. If the HTPC starts first there's no input, but the screen is detected in Windows (if it's connected through HDMI only it's not even detected) and all it takes is a small "push" (like refresh/resolution/cloning/extending change) and the screen shows up. The issue is there if there's something else connected together with the HDTV (he has a LCD in the corner of his living room connected to the same HTPC). This issue has been present since the day the 780GX launched (thousands of posts, seriously). So, beware. We found an acceptable workaround. You might not.

This is a driver independent issue, since the exact same behaviour can be observed during POST.

Except for the above issue, everything is running top notch. His HTPC is dead quiet, the case keeps everything cool (he changed fans from the medicore Tri-Color ones to Noctuas and added a Scythe Shuriken on the CPU). The CPU throttles to 800MHz and sits there most of the time (movies, browsing, etc the CPU is not spinning up... sometimes to 1,4GHz). It's running at a cool 40C. He also bought a Silverstone ST30NF 300W PSU (a high quality passive PSU) and is extremely happy about the whole setup. He'll be getting a SSD drive next, as right now only the HDD is making any noise.

However, his MB temp is sitting at 45C. Is that temperature fine? What's the average temp ASUS Probe II should show? He's a bit concerned that it's too high. Anyone got any ideas? Tried googling for it and there's no real answer available.

Originally posted by: Team Spicoli
Thanks for the insight into the 790GX chipset. I will be adding a GTX 260 graphics card, will I run into any problems?
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You should be fine. Just be sure to get a quality PSU. Also, which CPU are you running?
 
Originally posted by: Qbah
Alright, so I build a HTPC for a friend recently. He went with a Phenom II X4 810. The motherboard is the ASUS M3N78-VM. We put everything into the Antec Fusion Black case (lovely HTPC case!). Now, I didn't look too deep when recommending the board, but it seems every 780GX chip has issues with HDMI... and I mean every single one (ASUS, GA, ASRock, etc). If you don't turn the TV on first, before starting the HTPC, good luck trying to get any input on your TV. Now, we found a workaround (somewhat) - plug the TV through a DVI->HDMI converter. If the HTPC starts first there's no input, but the screen is detected in Windows (if it's connected through HDMI only it's not even detected) and all it takes is a small "push" (like refresh/resolution/cloning/extending change) and the screen shows up. The issue is there if there's something else connected together with the HDTV (he has a LCD in the corner of his living room connected to the same HTPC). This issue has been present since the day the 780GX launched (thousands of posts, seriously). So, beware. We found an acceptable workaround. You might not.

This is a driver independent issue, since the exact same behaviour can be observed during POST.

Except for the above issue, everything is running top notch. His HTPC is dead quiet, the case keeps everything cool (he changed fans from the medicore Tri-Color ones to Noctuas and added a Scythe Shuriken on the CPU). The CPU throttles to 800MHz and sits there most of the time (movies, browsing, etc the CPU is not spinning up... sometimes to 1,4GHz). It's running at a cool 40C. He also bought a Silverstone ST30NF 300W PSU (a high quality passive PSU) and is extremely happy about the whole setup. He'll be getting a SSD drive next, as right now only the HDD is making any noise.

However, his MB temp is sitting at 45C. Is that temperature fine? What's the average temp ASUS Probe II should show? He's a bit concerned that it's too high. Anyone got any ideas? Tried googling for it and there's no real answer available.

Originally posted by: Team Spicoli
Thanks for the insight into the 790GX chipset. I will be adding a GTX 260 graphics card, will I run into any problems?
Click to expand...

You should be fine. Just be sure to get a quality PSU. Also, which CPU are you running?
Click to expand...

Hey,

Thanks for the feedback. Thinking of going with the Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0 for the CPU. . . . I've got a 1000W Coolermaster RealPower Pro PSU. . I know overkill. . . too late, got it off Ebay YEARS ago. . . .unless anyone STRONGLY insists against it!

Also, will the Gigabyte mobo automatically turn-off power to the discreet graphics card when not in use, like the ASUS M3N mobo does?

Thanks!
 
Originally posted by: yh125d
So something like this? plus a 9300 or G45 board should handle HD playback fine?
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If you go with G45, it would be recommended to use something other than Windows XP (e.g. Vista or W7). Intel has gutted some hardware decoding features under Windows XP, whether the content is protected or not, because it feels that XP's secure pathway APIs are not robust enough for protected content. That doesn't explain why Intel crippled hardware decoding of non-protected content as well, nor why ATI and NVIDIA seem to have no problem with 'robustness' of secured pathway APIs under Windows XP, and Intel ain't commenting on any of this.
 
Originally posted by: Team Spicoli
Hey,

Thanks for the feedback. Thinking of going with the Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0 for the CPU. . . . I've got a 1000W Coolermaster RealPower Pro PSU. . I know overkill. . . too late, got it off Ebay YEARS ago. . . .unless anyone STRONGLY insists against it!

Also, will the Gigabyte mobo automatically turn-off power to the discreet graphics card when not in use, like the ASUS M3N mobo does?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
I'm pretty sure the auto-turn-off only works with certain combinations of chipset and GPU. Offhand I don't recall what they were.
 
I am new to the HTPC technology. I would like to build a HTPC (mainly for streaming video files, watch blu-ray, and watch tv on my big screen TV through HDMI (prefer to have sound through HDMI to my tv as well "52 inch 1080P)). I will be using the Moneual MonCaso 972 case along with 500w power supply, Video: Gigabyte HD4350 512MB, OS: Windows 7 Professional (Vista premium until W7 comes out) and WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-Ray support. Could someone help me choosing the best motherboard and processor that will suit my need. Also, I would lke to be able to use this HTPC for DVR as well. Please let me know what other components I would need. My budget is around $2000 or less.
Thank you for any recommendation.
 
That's a big case for an HTPC. I guess if you can tuck it away somewhere it's good, but HTPCs should be tiny unless you're making a gaming HTPC. In which case, go for a crossfire board and load it up with dual video cards.

And if you're using a big case, don't worry about the IGP. Just get a radeon 4000 series card with HDMI (and possibly component and every other output as well) and be happy at something that doesn't have the flaws of any of the IGPs.
 
What should my motherboard be? Should I go with Intel or AMD? Also, is Quad-core versus i7, which one is a better choice for HTPC. I am not looking to build a game machine, just something I can use as DVR, upconverting, blu-ray, etc... What model of motherboard/processor would you reccomended.

Thanks for your help and time.
 
Originally posted by: tn4304
What should my motherboard be? Should I go with Intel or AMD? Also, is Quad-core versus i7, which one is a better choice for HTPC. I am not looking to build a game machine, just something I can use as DVR, upconverting, blu-ray, etc... What model of motherboard/processor would you reccomended.

Thanks for your help and time.
Click to expand...

Quad core might even be overkill, but I'd go for an AMD quad just because it's cheaper than i7 and will have enough cpu power for anything you'd want.

Also, AMD's integrated graphics are better (not that i7 has any), but a 4xxx series radeon card balances that out anyway.
 
Originally posted by: tn4304
What should my motherboard be? Should I go with Intel or AMD? Also, is Quad-core versus i7, which one is a better choice for HTPC. I am not looking to build a game machine, just something I can use as DVR, upconverting, blu-ray, etc... What model of motherboard/processor would you reccomended.

Thanks for your help and time.
Click to expand...

The two bolded items can be handled by any decent integrated video (like a 780G or Nvidia 8200 for example), or a low end video card. The DVR function takes minimal CPU, and only taxes the hard drive if you're recording multiple HD streams (SD doesn't require much either). So really no need for a quad core unless it will be transcoding or something, and even then it might be overkill.

You have lots of options, you could get an AMD 45W chip like the 4050e, for example, and pair it with a motherboard based off of the 780G chipset or the latest Nvidia chipset like t 8200/9300 and use the onboard video which is just fine for what you want it to do.

If you wanted to go Intel, I would get any decent motherboard (without integrated video) and a low-power CPU like the e5200/e7200, then pickup a dedicated video card. Right now I'd say to go with an ATI Radeon 4350, which has an idle of about 8-9w and load of about 15w. Better than almost every other card out right now.
 
Originally posted by: elconejito
Originally posted by: tn4304
What should my motherboard be? Should I go with Intel or AMD? Also, is Quad-core versus i7, which one is a better choice for HTPC. I am not looking to build a game machine, just something I can use as DVR, upconverting, blu-ray, etc... What model of motherboard/processor would you reccomended.

Thanks for your help and time.
Click to expand...

The two bolded items can be handled by any decent integrated video (like a 780G or Nvidia 8200 for example), or a low end video card. The DVR function takes minimal CPU, and only taxes the hard drive if you're recording multiple HD streams (SD doesn't require much either). So really no need for a quad core unless it will be transcoding or something, and even then it might be overkill.

You have lots of options, you could get an AMD 45W chip like the 4050e, for example, and pair it with a motherboard based off of the 780G chipset or the latest Nvidia chipset like t 8200/9300 and use the onboard video which is just fine for what you want it to do.

If you wanted to go Intel, I would get any decent motherboard (without integrated video) and a low-power CPU like the e5200/e7200, then pickup a dedicated video card. Right now I'd say to go with an ATI Radeon 4350, which has an idle of about 8-9w and load of about 15w. Better than almost every other card out right now.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. right now i have the Radeon 4350 with HDMI on hand. Therefore, between AMD or Intel, which one wll work better with thie specific card. Also, is there any brand preference for the motherboard? So far, I've had many good experiences with ASUS motherboard due to their stability/performance. Would there be any other recommendation for HTPC?
 
Originally posted by: tn4304
What should my motherboard be? Should I go with Intel or AMD? Also, is Quad-core versus i7, which one is a better choice for HTPC. I am not looking to build a game machine, just something I can use as DVR, upconverting, blu-ray, etc... What model of motherboard/processor would you reccomended.

Thanks for your help and time.
Click to expand...
There is no need for discrete graphics or quad core. (Assuming that by upconverting you mean upscaling.) In fact the Zotac IONITX-A Atom board will be fine for this. For a little more headroom DG45FC+E5200 or Zotac GeForce 9300-ITX+ E5200 will be excellent choices. Also 780G boards are good for HTPC with a low-end AMD processor and come in mini-itx and micro-atx flavours.
 
Bear in mind that software, remote control, and PC/TV connection are the key problems to solve when building an HTPC. Building a good HTPC is relatively easy.
 
I really like the MSI Media Live DIVA:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813130206

It has a built in amplifier of good quality (according to many review sites). It also is of lower power because it's a mobile chipset, but it still supports h.264 offloading and the like.

I think the one downfall it may have is a potential lack of support for Phenom II, though it might. MSI's site doesn't list support for it, but SMKSuperStore (a quick find on the googles) is selling complete systems with the DIVA and a Phenom II X4 955 BE, so that makes it seem as if it would work.
http://www.smksuperstore.com/c....asp?ID=40667&s0=38038

I got an Asus 750a motherboard for mine because it supported HybridPower with my 9800GTX, and I've been decently happy with it, but I wish I would have gotten the MSI.
 
Originally posted by: tn4304
Thanks for the advice. right now i have the Radeon 4350 with HDMI on hand. Therefore, between AMD or Intel, which one wll work better with thie specific card. Also, is there any brand preference for the motherboard? So far, I've had many good experiences with ASUS motherboard due to their stability/performance. Would there be any other recommendation for HTPC?
Click to expand...

AMD and Intel will both work fine with that video card. I think it necessarily opens or closes any doors (I realize that's not particularly helpful). If I were in your shoes, that might make me lean a little more towards Intel since you don't have a need of onboard graphics.

Asus has several good choices in this realm. So does Gigabyte. Maybe Foxconn falls in here as well. Basically, look for a motherboard that has the features you need like the number of PCI/PCI-e slots needed, any firewire/eSATA, number of RAM slots, RAID, size (mATX vs ITX vs ATX), and most importantly the price you want.

Lots of choices.
 
I'd like to recommend against the geforce 8200/8300 based boards. I had one, and performance was quite lack-luster. Both for the semi-3d interfaces of media center apps, as well as video playback at 1080p.
 
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