New to computer Builds. Want to Build a nice HTPC

Travis_1203

Junior Member
Apr 17, 2014
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So I am tossing around the idea of building a nice HTPC for my home. I have been doing a little research the past few months but it is a little overwhelming. I do not give up easy though. I know the basic components I need but I do not know exactly what is best to use for my need/wants. My friend has built numerous computers for clients and he said he would help me. I would not say I do not have a budget for this build but I am not looking to spend a fortune on it. I am looking to build a fast, quiet, functional and fun HTPC. I really like the Silverstone GD07B case but I am open to other alternatives if there is a better one out there. I am also going to put a NAS in my house as well. So I have a ton of information to research and I am excited to begin piecing this build together. I appreciate the help on this.
HTPC Case
- Silverstone Tek GD07B
List of stuff I want the HTPC to do.
- Windows 7 (WMC)
- Cable card ready with DVR capability (Live TV)
- Best picture quality possible (HD, 1080P)
- SSD HD (What are the benefits of SSD over traditional HD’s?)
- Decent amount of storage (I am not looking to back up NASA databases though so nothing crazy)
- Light gaming
- Wifi ready
- Blu-ray
- Video streaming
- HDMI out
- Remote control capability
- Quiet
- Runs cool

Let me know if anyone else has any recommendations for a great system.

Thanks for your help.
 

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,292
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I would normally recommend an Intel processor like the Pentium G3220... but you say 'light gaming,' which may change that. Define 'light gaming.' (what are you going to be playing?)

As far as the SSD/HDD combo, that's what I have... a 60GB SSD for the OS and a mix of HDDs for storage and backup. Question: do you plan on ripping a bunch of DVDs or BDs and storing them on your HTPC, or recording and storing a bunch of TV/cable? And, given that, do you want to back up your media?

The SSD is nice, it makes for a quick startup and boot, and navigates well. Backup images are easy and straightforward as well. An SSD isn't necessary, but for $50 or less you can have your cake and eat it, too.

That's a pretty big case... do you need all that room?
 

Travis_1203

Junior Member
Apr 17, 2014
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As far as light gaming, my son plays minecraft and stuff like that. He also plays a lot of flash games. So light gaming might be exagerating. lol.

Yeah I will look into a SSD. Do you have any recommendations as to a decent one?

I do not nessecarily need a case that big. Just looking for a nice one that I wont need to replace in a few years when I want to swap stuff out.
 

Rio Rebel

Administrator Emeritus<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
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120/128gb ssd's are the price-performance sweet spot right now. You can get one between 60-90 dollars, depending on sales and models. If you find a really good buy on a 60/64gb ssd, then get it. But you probably will pay almost as much as a 120gb. Anything bigger is a waste for an htpc.

Also, since you are building a NAS, I would forego the storage altogether on the htpc. Just wasted money and more heat. Build a solid NAS, keep it backed up, and spend that money on wired network instead of storage drives in the htpc.
 

LoveMachine

Senior member
May 8, 2012
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Also, since you are building a NAS, I would forego the storage altogether on the htpc. Just wasted money and more heat. Build a solid NAS, keep it backed up, and spend that money on wired network instead of storage drives in the htpc.

NASes are great, but if you do plan on using WMC for DVR (recording live TV - and WMC is very slick and easy in this respect), it cannot use anything but storage connected directly to the computer. Even wired network drives won't do it. You can still use a NAS, of course, but you will need enough local storage. For 1080i, I think it was somewhere south of 10GB/hour, so it doesn't need to be huge. Oversizing a SSD probably isn't a cost effective way to do it, though.

As far as SSD recommendations, any of the newer Crucial or Samsung 120GB drives are a safe bet.
 

Rio Rebel

Administrator Emeritus<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Good correction. I didn't realize that about WMC - By the time I got a NAS going, I had stopped using it. Not even Mediabrowser can get me to go back to it. :)
 

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,292
62
91
120/128gb ssd's are the price-performance sweet spot right now. You can get one between 60-90 dollars, depending on sales and models. If you find a really good buy on a 60/64gb ssd, then get it. But you probably will pay almost as much as a 120gb. Anything bigger is a waste for an htpc.

True that. The Crucial M500 120GB is about the best deal going right now as they are trying to clear the shelves for the M550... in fact, I bought one. Smaller SSDs, while adequate, aren't that good of an absolute bargain vs the 120GB and up. My W7 install with everything is only 32GB in my HTPC, so it works for me... but I already had the small SSD.

Also, since you are building a NAS, I would forego the storage altogether on the htpc. Just wasted money and more heat. Build a solid NAS, keep it backed up, and spend that money on wired network instead of storage drives in the htpc.

NASes are great, but if you do plan on using WMC for DVR (recording live TV - and WMC is very slick and easy in this respect), it cannot use anything but storage connected directly to the computer.

That's a good point. Following that logic as well, you could seriously downsize the case if you are only going to have an SSD and a single HDD for local recording... something like the Silverstone GD05 (Grandia Series,) or the ML03 or 04 (Milo Series... smaller and not as deluxe as the Grandia.)

I use WMC with MediaBrowser... I like it very much and, more importantly, my wife does, too. It's simple and fairly streamlined.

So, here goes...

Intel Pentium G3220, $65
ASRock H81M-HDS mATX mobo, $57
G.Skill Ares 2x4GB RAM, $65
Crucial M500 120GB SSD, $80
Toshiba 2TB HDD, $80
Corsair CX430M PSU, $40 (AR)
CD/DVD drive, (or BD if needed,) $16 (AR) or $40
Silverstone Grandia GD05B, $93 (AR)
Windows 7, $100

Total: $516 or so. I used Newegg as my source, very often you can find some of those items on sale... I would take 2 weeks or so and as the items you need show up on sale, buy them... like W7, the PSU, HDD and SSD, and you can substitute items like the mobo for another similar (just make sure it has the features you need like a USB3.0 header, HDMI out, and such.)

I think the Pentium chip and integrated graphics will be OK for Minecraft and such as you describe, if not, that case will take a decently sized GPU.
 

Alan G

Member
Apr 25, 2013
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I splurged on my HTPC and went with an i3-3225 with HD4000 graphics. OS is on a Samsung EVO 120GB SSD with a WD Blue 500GB HDD (I don't store programs for long periods of time; watch and delete is my mantra). I have a Seasonic G360 PSU as it's a much more stable unit than the Corsair mentioned above. The MoBo is the Gigabyte H77N-WiFi as I use the WiFi for Internet streams (Netfilx, Amazon Prime, and other stuff). I use the Hauppage Win 2650 Cable Card tuner as I need access to HBO on Verizon FIOS; it works just fine once configured.

Everything is in a Lian Li PCQ-27 passively cooled case which is just fine as HTPC applications run cool. Intel graphics are just fine for HD and 1080 pictures. I do like the Silverstone GD05 case and probably will use it in a future HTPC build.
 

Travis_1203

Junior Member
Apr 17, 2014
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Thank you guys so much for your help. I seriously have been researching this non stop for weeks. You guys are a lot of help.

I found this yesterday. Has anyone used this before? It is small, quiet and pretty much all put together minus the OS and SSD. It has amazing reviews. I am mainly just going to use it to watch movies, internet and maybe my son will be playing minecraft on it but this seems like it will be perfect. Has anyone had any experience with this?

http://www.amazon.com/Intel-D54250WY...s=intel+nuc+i5

Thanks again for your help.
 

evident

Lifer
Apr 5, 2005
12,081
686
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I have the same case as you are planning to get, but an older model. I have hte GD05-B from silverstone and it's a great one. Got an i3-3225 with the HD4000 graphics and it handles flash games and everything just fine. if you're going to be playing 3d games, may want to consider picking up a low power graphics card like the Radeon HD 7750 or 7770. the 7770 is a dual slot and it manages to fit in my silverstone case just fine. good luck!


Also, I prefer the HD Home run prime over the Ceton InfiniTV 4. I feel it's much more versatile even though you get one less stream. I had a bunch of random issues with the InfiniTV 4 such as low signal tuning errors when it simply wasn't the case. havent had one hiccup with the hd home run prime.
 
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