HTPC build any good?

jaminben

jaminben

jaminben

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Joined
2 Apr 2011
Posts
72
Hello,

It's been a very long time since I built a pc and I'm looking for some advice on a possible HTPC build.

The main things it needs to do:

1. Be as silent as possible (if not silent).
2. Play 1080p content flawlessly (ripped Blu-Rays etc).
3. Quick at boot times (from standby and cold) and loading my HTPC software.
4. Be reasonably cheap (no more than £350 or there abouts).

Here's what I've come up with so far:

Asus AMD E35M1-M PRO Hudson M1 Integrated Dual Core Zacate 18W APU SATA-600 DDR3 mATX (Fusion) [E35M1-M PRO]

Corsair XMS3 4GB (1x4GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Single-Channel Module [CMX4GX3M1A1333C9]

OCZ Agility 3 60GB 2.5" SATA-3 Solid State Hard Drive (AGT3-25SAT3-60G) [AGT3-25SAT3-60G]

Silverstone SST-SG06B Sugo - Black (with 300 W PSU)

Not sure if I've got the right memory for this but the mobo spec's say single channel so thats what I've gone for and I already have an OS. It wouldn't be used to play games but would be used to surf the web, check emails and watch iPlayer / online content.

Thoughts?

Cheers

Ben
 
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the ram wil lbe fine, but even thou its single channel, you can use dual channel ram as well as it has 2 slots available, it just wont get the performance boost from dual channel ram

if you want to save abit more money, u could go for 2 of these
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-296-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1180

for about half the price as the 4gb module

theres also this

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-006-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1516

the only problem i think u'll have is if you use iplayer for HD content.
as it doesn't currently use hardware acceleration, it relies on the CPU to decode, which is abit weak for HD content.

there are ways around it thou, with abit of tweaking and using the flash beta, you can get it working properly.

finally, the case is too small for the motherboard.
you have a mITX case with an mATX motherboard.

this one is mITX
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-162-MS&groupid=701&catid=1903&subcat=1949
 
Thanks for the quick reply ;)

How will the cheaper ram affect the overall performance? Will it be noticeable?

Nicely spotted on the case.... that would've been a big mess. I'll stick with the Asus mobo as its fanless (well I think it can run fanless). Can you recommend a case which comes supplied with a PSU or is it better to buy a seperate case and PSU (for quietness).

Cheers

Ben
 
the cheaper ram wont make all that much difference in performance when it comes to media really.

its not exactly a memory intensive task, so cheaper ram would be perfectly fine.

as for the case, this really depends what your after in a case.

do you want a proper desktop style htpc case, or not too fussed about how it looks ?
do you want it as small as possible, or not too worried about size?

for the psu, most often its better to get them seperatly, as it gives you more choise about both parts.

if silences is what your after, then a picopsu would be the best to use, as these are silent, and will supply enough power for the fusion board.

theres also the fanless seasonic, but thats quite expensive.
 
Not really fussed about how the case looks but it needs to be no bigger than lets say an Amp.... if that makes sense. Basically it needs to fit into my cabinet so the smaller the better.

I can't seem to find a picopsu on Overclockers or is pico short for something?

Cheers

Ben

EDIT

Ok, I found the pico psu's..... intersting idea :)
 
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AMd llano APU will hopefully be released tomorrow, i'd wait for them and maybe grab one of those. Will be bit more expensive.

chip around £90 + mobo around £90 = £180, E351 about £120.

EDIT: Prices have'nt been officially announced could be bit more, bit less but not much change.

Apu is basically CPU+GPU so it will be a lot more powerful that hudson all in one.
There are 4 types but basically i'd go for 65W version for htpc.

google "AMD llano" tonnes of reviews are already out. Seems perfect for htpc.

With llano you want fastest ram ya can get within your budget as it boost performance of cpu and gpu. Gonna try find some cheap 1866mhz or 2133mhz ram.

for extra £60 i think its worth it.

edit2: llano = 4 cores so a lot more powerful (4>2)and Hd5550 graphics i think stomps al over HD6310.
 
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I did actually try and spec out an llano before I started this thread but the cheapest I could get one setup for was around £500..... I don't think the SSD I added helped tho.

Cheers

Ben
 
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I was mulling over SSD for my htpc, but to be fair knowing my lot it'll be on 24/7 anyways :D so wont really need the fast boot times.

ye never know AMD could lower prices of zacate/hudson when llano is out either way worth holding out 1 day :)

Pico PSU are used lot in htpc builds, very good rep edit: Pico is a brand of a power supply.

I'll prolly stick mine in cheap coolermaster case like 335 elite (around 30 quid) or 430 elite and add full size Corsair 430W (£33-38).
Not too bothered about looks, will be hid away :)

Edit one of coolermaster cases can be put on its side and looks like very big dvd player :P think its the coolermaster 330.

Id really recommend looking at an athlon x2 + hd5450 build, it was what i was planning on before llano.



You can replace stock amd cooler with something quieter, get hd5450 fanless silent version around £35 and you've got core of great build.

Athlon x2 + am3 board + hd5450 = £134 will use more power than llano or hudson. but be more powerful than hudson build. you can grab am3+ board allowing you to upgrade to a newer chip down the line, gives you bit of an upgrade path .
 
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OCUK dont sell pico psu's, so u'll have to get one elsewhere.

they are basically really small, low powered psu's.

some of the more expensive htpc cases come with them built in.

they are usually a small psu in the case with a power brick outside, simlar to a laptop psu.

the 120w version should be more than enough power.


there are some nice htpc cases around, the main problem with them is they can be expensive.
i use the silverstone ml02 myself, but this cost upwards of £150

theres the Silverstone ml03, which would take the mATX board fine, and not too expensive, then u'll just need a psu for it
The Antec Micro fusion is a nice case too, althou abit bigger, and has gone up in price now, used to be below £100 including psu
 
Thanks for all the help guys :)

I'm more confused than ever but I think I'm probably going to get an llano and go over budget. I need to think more about what I need and how much I'm prepared to pay for it.

Cheers

Ben
 
Ok, so I'm still trying to work out what to do, how about this...

Asus E35M1-M, AMD Hudson M1, AMD E-350 Dual-Core CPU, PCI-E 2.0 (x16), DDR3 1066, SATA 6Gb/s, mATX
Silverstone Milo ML03B Micro ATX, Black, Slim/HTPC Case with USB3 w/o PSU (ATX)
60GB OCZ Solid 3 SSD, 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s, SandForce 2281, Read 500MB/s, Write 450MB/s, 20K IOPS
4GB (2x2GB) Corsair DDR3 XMS3 Classic, PC3-10666 (1333), Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 9-9-9-24, 1.50V
400W PSU, FSP Zen PPA4000800, 89% Eff', 80 PLUS, Fanless, ATX v2.2

Total inc. delivery: £378.00

Does it look ok?
I'd like to try a pico psu but really unsure how they work and if they supply power to HDD's and external fans as well as the mobo so went with a fanless psu instead which I can use in my desktop once I understand the pico's.

Cheers

Ben

EDIT

I've found this case which includes a 120w PSU.... would this be ok?

Silverstone LC19B-R Black Slim Aluminum MicroATX Case with 120W Fanless PSU & Card Reader

Using this brings my cost down to £347.79 inc. delivery.
 
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looks great please post pics when you are building it/ have built it mate!

yeah think its like 8w idle 40w load or something really low like that
 
How many devices can one run off a pico psu? It only comes with 1 sata connection as far as I can tell, so can you daisychain 4/5 more off the molex adaptors?
 
Well I bit the bullet and went for the below in the end:

Case - Antec ISK-100, Black/Silver, Mini-i
Mobo - E35M1-I DELUXE MITX DDR3 HDMI DVI SATA 6GB/S GLN
HDD - 60GB OCZ Solid 3 SSD, 2.5" SATA 6Gb
Mem - Corsair XMS3 4GB (1x4GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz

My overall Windows Performance Index is 3.9 with the processor being the lowest performing part. I'm surprised my SSD only scores 5.9 seeing as its supposed to be 6GBs and my desktop SSD which is only 3GBs scores 7.3.

To be honest I'm not all that impressed with the overall performance of the setup.... for some reason I thought it would be better but it does play all my HD content so I guess I shouldn't be too disheartened.

I'd be interested too see what other people score with a similar setup, if anyone knows of any results... my google skills seem to be lacking today as I can't find anything.

Cheers

Ben
 
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