HTPC - Please give me your thoughts

geordiejc

geordiejc

geordiejc

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I was using my laptop as a HTPC for Skygo app, and Youtube @ 1080p. The motherboard has died and i need a new HTPC.

I'd love your honest feedback on the options i have.

Option A

no competitor talk please! part list

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock AM1B-M Micro ATX AM1 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
DVD/RW Driver (Purchased)
AVP HTPC Micro Atx Media Case Black with Blue LED 450W PSU AvP Gladius

Total: £147.67

I think this PC has enough horsepower to stream and decode HD video as it has a built in APU ? i could be wrong?

Option B)

This is on offer for £30 - i'd need to add GeForce GT 610 1GB it for £25 im told - Sorry for poor description - it is what is posted in the advert.

INTEL E6600 , CORE 2 DUO (4 MEG L2 CACHE) 2.4 GIG CPU
QUALITY INTEL MOBO
3 GIG DDR2 RAM
250 GIG SATA HD
DVD WRITER
QUALITY SEASONIC 80+ PSU


Can you guys please evaluate both options please and tell me any pitt falls ? as i said its literally just to watch legit TV/youtube and playback of my own blurays,

Thank you!
 
geordiejc said:
I was using my laptop as a HTPC for Skygo app, and Youtube @ 1080p. The motherboard has died and i need a new HTPC.

I'd love your honest feedback on the options i have.

Option A

part list

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock AM1B-M Micro ATX AM1 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
DVD/RW Driver (Purchased)
AVP HTPC Micro Atx Media Case Black with Blue LED 450W PSU AvP Gladius

Total: £147.67

I think this PC has enough horsepower to stream and decode HD video as it has a built in APU ? i could be wrong?

Option B)

This is on offer for £30 - i'd need to add GeForce GT 610 1GB it for £25 im told - Sorry for poor description - it is what is posted in the advert.

INTEL E6600 , CORE 2 DUO (4 MEG L2 CACHE) 2.4 GIG CPU
QUALITY INTEL MOBO
3 GIG DDR2 RAM
250 GIG SATA HD
DVD WRITER
QUALITY SEASONIC 80+ PSU


Can you guys please evaluate both options please and tell me any pitt falls ? as i said its literally just to watch legit TV/youtube and playback of my own blurays,

Thank you!
Click to expand...

Them two builds are like chalk and cheese there is no comparison between them mate, The top one is easily double the power of the Core 2 Duo they are both 64bit but the E6600 has been out since 2006 so that processor could potentially be 9 years old with 100,000 power on hours on it lol. The AMD rig is running DDR3 rather than the obsolete DDR2. More RAM and better hard drive with it being an SSD, The 250GB could be the original hard drive with the machine so potentially 9 years old too. Id pay the extra and go with the new system build at least you know its all new parts as you'll have built it. The AMD should be fine for watching HD movies and TV on. If not you just get a cheap radeon 5450 for a few quid on ebay.
 
Thanks for your input fella.

i'll go with the AMD / new build.

What CPU would you reccomend that would have enough horsepower for 1080p decoding / playback ?
 
I did wonder if I could get a NUC in there but it just ends up too much:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £179.87
(includes shipping: £15.90)
​


​

Out of your two the top one will be fine, but I would look for a better Psu though, even though it's not getting stressed, this is just my personal opinion.
 
i know its a crap PSU and i think the whole system will only need ~150w.

I was going to buy the Apex MI-008 but its shot up in price as no-one sells it anymore.
 
if you had the budget then something like this maybe, no hdd, but you could get a usb stick for ready boost or whatever or salvage an old hdd if you have one.

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £174.02
(includes shipping: £11.10)
​


​

out the 2 you listed, the top one, but if you look on the bay you could get(if many still going) a socket 1150 build with a g3220, 4gb of ram i think, optical, storage drive, average case and psu for £120 or so they was the other month when i was looking, just add a gpu and away you go..

that last bit was only a suggestion if you didnt want to buy from a shop.
 
RJC had a good idea with a NUC, Intel HD graphics chipsets aren't too bad for HD content on them now then you wouldn't have to worry about the psu or wattage The Gigabyte Brix BXBT-1900 is the slightly lower spec NUC that you can get for around the £90 mark so theres a £15 saving there then just add your on RAM (Make sure for the NUC its DDR3L) and SSD and your away. :)
 
blitz7287 said:
RJC had a good idea with a NUC, Intel HD graphics chipsets aren't too bad for HD content on them now then you wouldn't have to worry about the psu or wattage The Gigabyte Brix BXBT-1900 is the slightly lower spec NUC that you can get for around the £90 mark so theres a £15 saving there then just add your on RAM (Make sure for the NUC its DDR3L) and SSD and your away. :)
Click to expand...


would be his best bet, but intel hd graphics cant play 1080 or at least not 1080p files as ive experienced a few times, 720p perfect, granted i used hd 4000, but i doubt my hd 4400 on mobo could play 1080.
 
i've narrowed my builds down to two.

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: MSI AM1I Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: CiT MTX-005B Mini ITX Tower Case w/300W Power Supply
Total: £138.85

or

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: Asus H81I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: CiT MTX-005B Mini ITX Tower Case w/300W Power Supply
Total: £180.59

would love to get your thoughts?
 
both sound good for the money, but id look for a better psu, i had a cit shade with a 500w unit and while it was okay for the time i had it, i didnt have anything fancy to power nor would i have..
 
geordiejc said:
i've narrowed my builds down to two.

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: MSI AM1I Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: CiT MTX-005B Mini ITX Tower Case w/300W Power Supply
Total: £138.85

or

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: Asus H81I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: CiT MTX-005B Mini ITX Tower Case w/300W Power Supply
Total: £180.59

would love to get your thoughts?
Click to expand...

They are both good htpc builds now it just boils down to what side of the fence your on. Intel or AMD :)

But get something like this for the psu in case you decide on upgrading the graphics later on.

EVGA 430W 80+ Bronze £33.95

or

EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze £36.95
 
Hey all

Thanks for your input.

Here's my final build which i ordered today

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: Silverstone ML04B HTPC Case
DVD Drive: Samsung

Hopefully it should be good enough for netflix/kodi/youtube/ 1080 and even 4k over the next 4 years
 
Last edited:
Will need a gpu for 4K but for everything else looks good, what psu you putting in it? Or run on air? ;) heh.

I still question Intel graphics though, you should get a GeForce 210 or an older dx10 310 as they run 1080p flawlessly and can be brought for anything up to 15 quid and should tie you over. I had both cards and they played my 1080p movie files perfectly despite some cases mating them with shocking processors ha.
 
geordiejc said:
Hey all

Thanks for your input.

Here's my final build which i ordered today

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: Silverstone ML04B HTPC Case
DVD Drive: Samsung

Hopefully it should be good enough for netflix/kodi/youtube/ 1080 and even 4k over the next 4 years
Click to expand...

Pentium graphics spec
Max Resolution (HDMI 1.4)‡ 1920x1080@60Hz
Max Resolution (DP)‡ 2560x1600@60Hz

you'll need at least an i3 for 4k support
 
FixupSellon said:
Will need a gpu for 4K but for everything else looks good, what psu you putting in it? Or run on air? ;) heh.

I still question Intel graphics though, you should get a GeForce 210 or an older dx10 310 as they run 1080p flawlessly and can be brought for anything up to 15 quid and should tie you over. I had both cards and they played my 1080p movie files perfectly despite some cases mating them with shocking processors ha.
Click to expand...

I ran Intel based HTPCs for years using onboard graphics and never ran into a single issue playing back 1080p files of various formats.
 
Well I'll be, that be clever if it works well(on phone and at shops so not watched the videos), have no idea what the hd 4400 does as I connect to Dvi for main monitor for movies.
 
geordiejc said:
Hey all

Thanks for your input.

Here's my final build which i ordered today

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Case: Silverstone ML04B HTPC Case
DVD Drive: Samsung

Hopefully it should be good enough for netflix/kodi/youtube/ 1080 and even 4k over the next 4 years
Click to expand...

Im glad you got your build sorted :) Intel was the better platform ;)

Audigex said:
Despite the fact there have been <79,000 hours since 2006? :p

That said, I agree with your post...
Click to expand...

Haha yeah that was just a random guess.
 
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