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HTPC what CPU do I need

K

kyotousa

Senior member
I haven't been in the computer upgrading scheme for awhile
However, I am building a HTPC and I am using this board.

neweegg

It's a mATX so it won't oc much...or at all....and I am trying to run as cool&quiet as possible.

Basically I read the review on Anandtech
http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=3072&p=5

anyway it seems like E6550 would run H264, mpeg2, and HD-DVD in 1080p wihtout problem using the onboard X1250

My main question is :
LE-1600 has about the same performance as a 2.2ghz Opteron would it match E6550? Maybe after a little oc to 2.4-2.6 ghz?

I will not run any HD-DVD, Blu-ray, DVD video on this HTPC.
I will only need to run .rm file and downloaded TV show @ 720p resolution

Alright after a few reading from other sites, I have decided that LE-1600 with a lil OC will work well thx for the help
 
Put in an X2 4600+ in there if you want roughly the same as an E2160. It'll do the job. In my HTPC I have a single core 3500+ and It was folding@home while playing DVDs and plenty of other media.

Intels do run cooler, but the motherboards with HDMI are few and far between.

As for the need for dual core, there is none. You won't be multi tasking, nor will you be doing video encoding. You're just going to be plugging this computer to a TV and using a remote to control it right?
 
ASUS P5E-VM HDMI plus any of the e2xx0 chips.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131237

Overclock the chip if necessary to the minimum speed that suits your needs. Or, throw in a passive ATI 3450 series (once one is available with HDMI) and leave the chip at stock speeds.

Edit: just saw that you linked the 690g board. Those are nice too. Head over to the AVS forums (HTPC section) and they have a nice thread on AMD and Intel builds. Lots of great info.
 
1080p support with 7.8 drivers (recommend E6420 or above), 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, and 1080i support, HDCP 1.1 support on data stream with on-chip key storage, integrated DVI or HDMI 1.2 interface single-link support only for HDMI, 30-bit dual-link support for DVI, 1650 Mbps/channel with 165 MHz pixel clock rate per link, DX9.0 VS/PS 2.0, max 2048x1536 resolution, MPEG-2 hardware decode, MPEG-4 simple profile support, WMV9 Hardware Acceleration, MPEG-2 hardware decode acceleration.
Click to expand...

Looks like it can only do MPEG-2. Are you sure that's what you want? And "MPEG-4 simple profile" can't be right, they probably mean that silly "AVC dxva with cheating on deblocking and more CPU usage than CoreAVC" mode.
 
Originally posted by: TheOtherRizzo
1080p support with 7.8 drivers (recommend E6420 or above), 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, and 1080i support, HDCP 1.1 support on data stream with on-chip key storage, integrated DVI or HDMI 1.2 interface single-link support only for HDMI, 30-bit dual-link support for DVI, 1650 Mbps/channel with 165 MHz pixel clock rate per link, DX9.0 VS/PS 2.0, max 2048x1536 resolution, MPEG-2 hardware decode, MPEG-4 simple profile support, WMV9 Hardware Acceleration, MPEG-2 hardware decode acceleration.
Click to expand...

Looks like it can only do MPEG-2. Are you sure that's what you want? And "MPEG-4 simple profile" can't be right, they probably mean that silly "AVC dxva with cheating on deblocking and more CPU usage than CoreAVC" mode.
Click to expand...




Are you saying it could not decode H264 or .mkv?

software decode should be ok right.....powerdvd ultra 7.3 ftw

I don't need this comp to do 1080p...720p is sufficient enough...
I only needs it to play downloaded HDTV material. usually in .mkv file.

"With the release of the Catalyst 7.8 driver, the X1250 graphics core has been touted as having the capability to playback high definition content in 1080p with an appropriate CPU and CyberLink's PowerDVD player. We confirmed this claim with our Mission Impossible titles that are encoded in the VC1 format in HD-DVD and the less demanding MPEG-2 format for Blu-ray with our E2160 processor. We tested Casino Royale that is encoded under H.264 and found the average CPU utilization rate to be around 89% with the E2160. While the majority of the movie was viewable, there were certain action sequences that created a 100% CPU usage rate that resulted in the movie stopping or PowerDVD locking up."

It seems fine according to Anandtech.

anyway...no one knows anything about the AMD65 LE series?
 
It seems fine?

"...there were certain action sequences that created a 100% CPU usage rate that resulted in the movie stopping or PowerDVD locking up."

The thing is there many different kinds of video out there today, it's no longer all MPEG-2 and xvid. I'd summarize HD content as Blu-Ray disks (mostly AVC), pirated Blu-Ray videos (mostly AVC in TS), pirated and reencoded HD files (x264 in mkv), HDTV (MPEG-2 and AVC).

Of these four categories you will only be able to watch the low quality x264 reencodes without problems unless you have a very fast CPU. Is that what you want? So you're asking for advice on how to become a better pirate?

And to answer your question: a real HTPC should have at least a 2600 ATI or 8600 Nvidia and CPU doesn't matter much after that. Beware though that with the buggy state of GPU drivers nowadays, by far the least stressful method to play HD is to get Set Top Boxes. If you need more info go to avsforums.
 
will you potentially use a tuner card in your HTPC and download shows while watching shows? if so, go dual core intel. A single core won't be up to the simultaneous tasks (you'll glitch your recording or your playback with audio/video stutters jumps with a single core based on my experience. that was the biggest benefit for me going to dual core🙂
 
Originally posted by: kyotousa
I haven't been in the computer upgrading scheme for awhile
However, I am building a HTPC and I am using this board.

neweegg

It's a mATX so it won't oc much...or at all....and I am trying to run as cool&quiet as possible.

So which CPU should I buy?

budget is 50-100 dollars. As long as it's in par with E2160.

Basically I read the review on Anandtech
http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=3072&p=5
and found out that onboard video card + E2160 can handle 1080P well and I only need to use to 720p resolution for .mkv file.

So I am trying to find the cheapest way to build a HTPC that emphasis on music (0404USB), neverthless it'll need to play 720p .mkv files. (downloaded TV shows)

Should I switch to Intel? I read AM2 run hotter than Intel.
I only chose AM2 because of the board.....I think I could get it for 40shipped and AMD CPU are usually cheaper...donno if that's still the case.

(something like this? neweggI don't think there'll be any benefit to run dual core.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind, although that 690G board will be adequate for 720p, I think you could buy a Radeon HD 3450-based card and have its UVD capabilities. But I'm unclear as to whether UVD accelerates MPEG-2, or only H.264 and VC-1?
 
The one I recently built has a 2140 slightly oc'd to 1066 fsb with a mobo that can do up to 720p. I'm going to be putting in a 3850 though with HDMI out and run some 1080p stuff. I have a blu-ray/hd-dvd combo drive in it so yay =)
 
Originally posted by: bfdd
The one I recently built has a 2140 slightly oc'd to 1066 fsb with a mobo that can do up to 720p. I'm going to be putting in a 3850 though with HDMI out and run some 1080p stuff. I have a blu-ray/hd-dvd combo drive in it so yay =)
Click to expand...

Very cool. You could get away with a 3450 for that, though, and have the benefit of passive cooling on it.
 
Originally posted by: kyotousa

Are you saying it could not decode H264 or .mkv?

software decode should be ok right.....powerdvd ultra 7.3 ftw

I don't need this comp to do 1080p...720p is sufficient enough...
I only needs it to play downloaded HDTV material. usually in .mkv file.

anyway...no one knows anything about the AMD65 LE series?
Click to expand...

MKV files are simply ""wrappers"" and the content within the files could comprise alot of different video/audio combinations encoded in a multitude of ways with really wide swings in bitrates.

PDVD is topshelf stuff regardless of everything else.

The h264 question is a 'loaded gun'. 720p/1080p h264 encodes can have bitrates playable on SocketA's with great quality and reasonable cpu utilization. On the other hand some h264 encodes can have bitrates 4-5 times that and strangle todays fastest procs.

That's why modern vid cards which substantially remove the decoding off the cpu are such a great alternative.

A 690g board for $40 is a pretty good deal. Whether it will do what you want combined with an AMD LE cannot really be answered. Your best shot if that is the way you want to go would be to combine it with a vid card which will substantially off-load decoding from the cpu. Still, investing another $20-$30 in a dual-core would not be a bad idea-the 65w's run pretty cool.

The rumahs on the internets have the 780g chipset rolling out this month as a replacement for the 690g - the IGP is supposed to support UVD & dx10. That might be why you can grab that 690g so cheap ...


 
Originally posted by: sjwaste
Originally posted by: bfdd
The one I recently built has a 2140 slightly oc'd to 1066 fsb with a mobo that can do up to 720p. I'm going to be putting in a 3850 though with HDMI out and run some 1080p stuff. I have a blu-ray/hd-dvd combo drive in it so yay =)
Click to expand...

Very cool. You could get away with a 3450 for that, though, and have the benefit of passive cooling on it.
Click to expand...

Very true I could, but I'd like to see benches first. Plus I could game with a 3850 =)
 
In an HTPC, the processor is one of the less important parts... to get the most out of your DVDs and potentially HD-DVDs/BR-Ds, you'll need a video card with hardware acceleration for MPEG-4 and h.264 decoding. Even an old Pentium 4 or Athlon 64 single-core would be perfectly fine for HTPC use, especially if you're not playing HD media.
 
Originally posted by: TheOtherRizzo
It seems fine?

"...there were certain action sequences that created a 100% CPU usage rate that resulted in the movie stopping or PowerDVD locking up."

The thing is there many different kinds of video out there today, it's no longer all MPEG-2 and xvid. I'd summarize HD content as Blu-Ray disks (mostly AVC), pirated Blu-Ray videos (mostly AVC in TS), pirated and reencoded HD files (x264 in mkv), HDTV (MPEG-2 and AVC).

Of these four categories you will only be able to watch the low quality x264 reencodes without problems unless you have a very fast CPU. Is that what you want? So you're asking for advice on how to become a better pirate?

And to answer your question: a real HTPC should have at least a 2600 ATI or 8600 Nvidia and CPU doesn't matter much after that. Beware though that with the buggy state of GPU drivers nowadays, by far the least stressful method to play HD is to get Set Top Boxes. If you need more info go to avsforums.
Click to expand...

Did you read my whole post or just the "it seems fine" part !?! and imagine the rest of the post yourself? downloading 720p TV show = pirating movie? haha weird...

I said...I am not using it to play BD, HD, only downloaded file in 1024x720 resolution.
This will not be my home theater HTPC...mainly for 2ch. audio.
Video parts, I'll only play some realplayer files, low quality TV shows, and downloaded 720p TV shows (Heroes, Prison Break or such).

I don't need to play DVD, BD, HD, watever HD stuff you are thinking.

The whole point is to build the cheapest video capable jukebox 🙂
 
Originally posted by: Amaroque
I would go wth a dual core CPU. Preferably a C2D, but any dual core CPU will work.
Click to expand...

For what reason?
50 dollars dual core should wrong slower than the LE-1600 right?

 
Originally posted by: tenax
will you potentially use a tuner card in your HTPC and download shows while watching shows? if so, go dual core intel. A single core won't be up to the simultaneous tasks (you'll glitch your recording or your playback with audio/video stutters jumps with a single core based on my experience. that was the biggest benefit for me going to dual core🙂
Click to expand...

Nope....I will not use a tuner card and I will use other computer to download. thx for the suggestion.
 
Originally posted by: sjwaste
Originally posted by: kyotousa

Keep in mind, although that 690G board will be adequate for 720p, I think you could buy a Radeon HD 3450-based card and have its UVD capabilities. But I'm unclear as to whether UVD accelerates MPEG-2, or only H.264 and VC-1?
Click to expand...

thx I will look into it...jw 690g board will still be able to play H.264, .mkv file in 720p right?
Click to expand...
 
Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
MKV files are simply ""wrappers"" and the content within the files could comprise alot of different video/audio combinations encoded in a multitude of ways with really wide swings in bitrates.

PDVD is topshelf stuff regardless of everything else.

The h264 question is a 'loaded gun'. 720p/1080p h264 encodes can have bitrates playable on SocketA's with great quality and reasonable cpu utilization. On the other hand some h264 encodes can have bitrates 4-5 times that and strangle todays fastest procs.

That's why modern vid cards which substantially remove the decoding off the cpu are such a great alternative.

A 690g board for $40 is a pretty good deal. Whether it will do what you want combined with an AMD LE cannot really be answered. Your best shot if that is the way you want to go would be to combine it with a vid card which will substantially off-load decoding from the cpu. Still, investing another $20-$30 in a dual-core would not be a bad idea-the 65w's run pretty cool.

The rumahs on the internets have the 780g chipset rolling out this month as a replacement for the 690g - the IGP is supposed to support UVD & dx10. That might be why you can grab that 690g so cheap ...
Click to expand...

I kinda want to use onboard video card since there will be no fan or such. If it's sufficient I'll stick to it.

what does UVD do?

btw I don't really understand your analogy.
 
Originally posted by: Sheninat0r
In an HTPC, the processor is one of the less important parts... to get the most out of your DVDs and potentially HD-DVDs/BR-Ds, you'll need a video card with hardware acceleration for MPEG-4 and h.264 decoding. Even an old Pentium 4 or Athlon 64 single-core would be perfectly fine for HTPC use, especially if you're not playing HD media.
Click to expand...

Yes I know that, I am using Athlon 64 single core 1.8ghz OC to 2.6ghz with ATI X800
It play these 720p TV show and 1080p sample files just fine.

However I am trying to build this HTPC for about $400 dollars and
0404USB cost $125 already.
500gb HD is probably gonna cost another $100.
Antec case + Antec PS + ram is about 50-100 dollars after rebate.
So left with 100 on board abd CPU

As I said my video requirement for this HTPC isn't that high. So why spend more if what I want could be achieved for less?
 
Originally posted by: kyotousa
Originally posted by: Amaroque
I would go wth a dual core CPU. Preferably a C2D, but any dual core CPU will work.
Click to expand...

For what reason?
50 dollars dual core should wrong slower than the LE-1600 right?
Click to expand...

First and foremost, because single core CPU's are obsolete already.
 
Originally posted by: Amaroque
Originally posted by: kyotousa
Originally posted by: Amaroque
I would go wth a dual core CPU. Preferably a C2D, but any dual core CPU will work.
Click to expand...

For what reason?
50 dollars dual core should wrong slower than the LE-1600 right?
Click to expand...

First and foremost, because single core CPU's are obsolete already.
Click to expand...

huh? I just showed LE-1600 is still for sale.
anyway thx for point out they are obsolete.....even though it's irrelevant.
 
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