HTPC System

[mmapride]

Hey guys,
I am putting together a decent budget HTPC system to hook up to my plasma. Wanted to get an expert opinion about this system:



-- Antec FUSION Silver Aluminum/steel MicroATX Media Center Computer Case 430W Power Supply - Retail

-- EVGA 256-P2-N624-AR GeForce 7900GS 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 KO Video Card - Retail

-- ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

-- AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+(65W) Windsor 2.0GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADO3800CUBOX - Retail

-- CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X1024A-6400 - Retail

-- 2 Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

-- SONY Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model DDU1615/B2s - OEM



Here is the full list on NewEgg:
https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wi...cWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=6434768


Thanks!

 

[Slick5150]

I'd recommend something in nVidia's 8500/8600 line. They offload the h.264 decoding completely to the GPU, which the 7900GS can't do. And 8500GT would cost about the same, if not less, than a 7900GS.

The rest seems ok to me though.

 

[Noema]

Originally posted by: Slick5150
I'd recommend something in nVidia's 8500/8600 line.

Yep. I was thinking exactly the same thing.

Those video cards fit HTPC rigs like a glove.

 

[GooeyGUI]

Another good place to explore this is over at avsforum

look up the HTPC forum there and read, read, read...

Also, I think that this summer will bring some integrated boards that allow some advantages for HTPC. Always good to check before buying.

 

[GZeus]

You could consider this for a video card:

MSI GeForce 8600 GTS @ ZZF for $160

Might be a bit more than you wanted to spend but its fanless which is a bonus for a PC in the living room!

 

[mmapride]

I re-examined my rig, and came up with something like this based on the suggestions. How does this look?

CASE: Antec FUSION Silver + 430W Power Supply
MOBO: MSI K9N SLI Platinum Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP
VIDEO: GIGABYTE GV-NX85T256H GeForce 8500GT 256MB HDCP
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+(65W) Windsor 2.0GHz
RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 1GB DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
HD: 2 x SAMSUNG SpinPoint T Series HD501LJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA
Media: PHILIPS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with 12X DVD-RAM Write

 

[igloo15]

First off whats your budget?
Secondly your gonna want alot of harddrive space if your going to make an HTPC so 1TB is a must.
Third what about a tuner card?
and Sound Card?

 

[mmapride]

Well I want to keep it under 1K, and 2 x 500 will give me a almost a TB, so that should hold me over for a while I hope...
No tuner, this will be the PC to play movies on my TV.. I have HD cable hocked up separately. This purely to play crap (movies etc) off my computer and watch it on the big screen.
As far as sound, the MSI mobo has optical out, so I was hoping that it will be pretty good. Am I wrong in assuming that? The optical out would go to the HT receiver.

 

[Deinonych]

Bear in mind that only MicroATX boards will fit in the Antec Fusion. I was going to use that case until I realized that limitation (I'm re-purposing an old ATX motherboard in my HTPC). If you want to use that ATX mobo, you'll need to pick a different case (I went with the Zalman HD160B). Alternatively, you'll need to pick a different motherboard.

 

[mmapride]

Ahh crap... that really puts a dent into my plan

 

[mmapride]

What about this mobo? MSI K9NBPM2-FID Socket AM2 NVIDIA Quadro NVS 210S Micro ATX AMD Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130065)

I assume I need a soundcard with this mobo. Is there a cheap good one I can use?

 

[Deinonych]

That motherboard has an on-board Quadro ("business" class, i.e. crap) video card. Are you sure you want that? What sort of features are you looking for in a motherboard, other than MicroATX?

 

[mmapride]

It's hard to say... I think 4 gigs of ram, SATA 3gb ports, PCIx16, and all the basics... I don't think I need to OC for the HTPC system. I am not planning to use the stock video, instead I am planning to use GIGABYTE GV-NX85T256H GeForce 8500GT 256MB HDCP. I would want stock sound with fiber out, but I don't see that in MicroATX. Is there something better in MicrosATX that I can get?

 

[Deinonych]

It appears that there are more choices by going with an Intel board than an AMD board for MicroATX. NewEgg only carries one AM2 board in MicroATX; there are over 100 choices with Socket 775.

Here is a list of all the MicroATX boards for Socket 775 (for Core 2 Duo procs) at NewEgg. You should be able to find what you are looking for here.

 

[snowdogg187]

What os and htpc software are you goign to use?

That will help a lot with your selection of hardware.

 

[mmapride]

Hmmm... I would really prefer to stick with AMD if I could....

I am planning to install XP Pro and just run the media player / power DVD