HTPC Build spec

[pieplough]

Hi,

Did a few searches but couldnt really find all the info I was after so dont shout if this is the millionth thread on the subject!

Im speccing a HTPC for one of my close friends, so I want it to be a sweet wee machine.

His outline is "Small, quiet, fast, able to play blu-rays and HD content and cost less than £400". Gaming isnt really a requirement.

After some reading my spec is:

Silverstone SG05B Mini ITX case with 300w psu

An old E6320 from my last pc (unsure how much/if to charge for this?)

Zotac GF9300-I-E mobo

Either 4 or 2 gig ram.

And a Samsung spinpoint F3 1TB drive

So the questions i have are:

1. Are there any slim Blu Ray drives, ive seen a laptop one but it was £140.

2. Cpu cooler, the E6320 is a fantastic clocker so a modest 3ghz shouldnt be a problem?

3.4 or 2 gig ram?

4. Are the on-board graphics up to the job of playing HD content etc?

Appreciate any advice.

 

[pieplough]

Leave the cpu at stock (if anything lower the voltage), 2g of ram will be fine and get an ATi 5450.

So its going to be toasty?

The GFX on a 9300 will happily decode any HTPC work. Won't play many games.

Cool, glad to hear that as I do want to keep the price down as much as possible.

Also anyone know what HSF's will fit in the case?

 

[pieplough]

Cheers, after some googling that is what I have settled on.

The only thing thats annoying me is the SG05 uses slim drives, my mate is demanding a Blu Ray drive so its the most expensive component on this build! Its £470 currently but he says hes ok with that, so will be ordering this week and probably building next weekend.

I'm running a 9300 in my HTPC, observations being:

- NB runs incredibly hot, so much so I had to bolt mod it to get the temps down. Even with that it idles at 60 degrees in an SG05 with the onboard GPU disabled.

- Getting into the BIOS is hit and miss, sometimes I have to unplug the KB and plug back into another USB port then power cycle.

- Board layout isn't so great either in the SG05, the PSU cables drop down from the top restricting the airflow through the case.

Personally given the choice again I'd plump for something else, that said I'd probably go i5 knowing what I know now and use the Gigabyte H55N.

Hmm, thats not so good to hear. Any other cases you would recomend?

 

[pieplough]

He dosent want a tower, if it was up to him it would be a standard HTPC style case but I want the case to have room for a GPU should he want/need to upgrade.

Are the high temps due to the SG05's airflow or is it just the mobo?