The HTPC Thread - Dont buy an HTPC - The Something Awful Forums

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > The HTPC Thread - Dont buy an HTPC

Munkaboo: Aug 5, 2002; If you know the words, you can join in too
He's bigger! faster! stronger too!
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I've decided I want to build a media center PC (On the cheap), and came up with the following:

LITE-ON 20X DVD�R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black SATA Model LH-20A1S - $30.99
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - $89.99
GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128090) - $89.99 -- Has SPDIF/Optica/HDMI which I need
CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X1024-8500 - $29.99
AMD Athlon X2 BE-2350 Brisbane 2.1GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor Model ADH2350DOBOX - $69.99
IN WIN 0.6mm SECC Steel BK623.GLS300BL Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case (S.F.F Tiny Tower) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811108092 - $63.99

Is there anything you all would do differently to make it cheaper? I know I could get a cheaper case and just do regular ATX case/motherboard, but how much would I really save? I'd prefer to have it be smaller and run cooler, which is what the BE brisbane will accomplish.

One huge requirement is that it must be able to play 1080p content well (mkv, or bluray whenever the drives get cheaper). Will this setup do that well? Thanks in advance.

# ¿ Jun 8, 2008 18:03

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# ¿ May 20, 2024 13:47

Munkaboo: Aug 5, 2002; If you know the words, you can join in too
He's bigger! faster! stronger too!
He's the newest member of the Jags O-Line crew!

Korgoth posted:

Of course, I'd have to get a hard drive, case, and power supply also. I also have absolutely no idea about AMD or any of their processors, I've used Intel since forever ago, but I wouldn't mind purchasing some AMD products if it meant a cheaper solution. I basically want to be as cheap as possible without ever seeing suttering/quality loss. Is 2gb of ram overkill? I may as well keep the 2gb any way because ram is so cheap right now. Any way, if anyone could give me some input/insight into this I'd appreciate it.

From what I've gathered, if you are playing filez at 1080p, its all processor. If you are playing legit blu-ray, its about half and half GPU/CPU. As for that processor, I have no idea. But I would get a motherboard that has HDMI/Optical/or Coax, and has integrated graphics, as nowadays they are quite good and have the HD acceleration.

LITE-ON 20X DVD�R DVD Burner Black IDE Model DH-20A4P-04 - OEM $23

IN WIN IW-BT611T.300SL Silver Best Performed 0.8mm SECC Japanese Steel metal MicroATX Desktop Computer Case 300W Power Supply - $50 Retail

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive $80

GIGABYTE GA-MA74GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 740G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $67 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128328

mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit $43

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz Socket AM2 125W Dual-Core Processor Model ADX6000CZBOX $114- Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103773

Total: 376

I too just want 1080p content, and am curious if that 6000+ is overkill.

Also, for an alternative build where im not worried about 1080p (this one is for my parents whose TV can only do 1080i), I was thinking of slapping on the AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ Windsor 2.4GHz Socket AM2 65W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103064 to get the cost down to $318. Opinions? Could I get it even lower?

Munkaboo fucked around with this message at 17:17 on Jun 22, 2008

# ¿ Jun 22, 2008 17:15

Munkaboo: Aug 5, 2002; If you know the words, you can join in too
He's bigger! faster! stronger too!
He's the newest member of the Jags O-Line crew!

Crackbone posted:

If you're going CPU decode only, the 6000 is probably a decent choice, although it's going to run very hot. You could also get a 5000 x2 black edition which is about $80 at newegg and has an unlocked multiplier (so it's incredibly easy to overclock).

You other option is to replace that motherboard with a 780g chipset, which has built in video card with HD decoding on it, and dropping down to a cheaper CPU.

Thanks, I decided to go with the 780G 90 dollar motherboard instead and got the black edition like you suggested. About how much can you overclock with the stock cooling heatsink/fan?

edit: drat, doesnt come with one. Would I be shooting myself in the foot if I got a cheap 10 dollar heatsink/fan if I want to get to 3.1ghz? What about this? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185125

Munkaboo fucked around with this message at 01:06 on Jun 23, 2008

# ¿ Jun 23, 2008 00:37

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