HTPC questions/spec me one please!

Stripe · 28 Apr 2006 at 23:45

hello!

so i've pretty much decided I'm gonna build myself a (hopefully) silent HTPC. Thing is, I have little idea as to what sort of specs I would need it to be. so if someone could suggest or point me in the direction of a suitable resource then that would be great. my main concerns are:

processor speed (im gonna go with intel on this one i think - sorry!)
graphics card - (im not going to be using this PC for gaming at all but a card that has DVI out would be a must)
amount of ram
PSU wattage

would getting a mobo with AGP and an older socket type disadvantage me in performance/noise/cooling or benefit me on the cost front in any way?

I pretty much just want the coolest and quietest components I can get but don't want high specs im not going to use (unless it's for noise/cooling reasons)

cheers.

Stripe · 29 Apr 2006 at 12:42

cool, thanks for the ideas everyone.

I already have a samsung spinpoint lying around that I'm probably going to use.

I didn't realise I would need a processor like a 3000+ or 3.0Ghz P4 in there but I guess I'd be pushed to find a mobo that could take anything else. I would take the 3200+ out of my current rig and use that with my current mobo as well but I just figured it runs too hot to keep silent easily.

Onboard graphics sounds like it would be a good option if the quality was adequate as I wouldn't need 3D from this PC at all. I figure I might need a 7.1 soundcard too though.

I wouldn't plan on ever upgrading this system so I'd just like something that will be able to play DVD, music and video files.

monstermunch, do you know what sort of noise that PSU outputs? PSU sound is the thing that annoys me the most (HDD sound doesn't bother me at all really). That's why I was thinking of going with a seasonic. Would I really need 400w as well? a lot of HTPC cases come with 200/300w psus?

thanks again.

Stripe · 29 Apr 2006 at 13:11

I didn't realise fans used that much power that they would make any difference.

Do you think if i used my athlon 3200 and underclocked it then it could be cooled really easily and hence quietly?

i was thinking of going with intel for this coz i've heard that they run much cooler than AMD processors, is there any truth in that? I am teetering on being an AMD fanboy but if intel make the more suitable chip i'll just go with them.

Stripe · 29 Apr 2006 at 19:19

does anyone know whether I'll be able to fit a Scythe Ninja heatsink in a (largeish) htpc case and run it in fanless mode?

would a 300w fanless psu be ok to use as well?

and finally, would a 6200 be enough on the graphics front or would a bit more do me favours?

Stripe · 30 Apr 2006 at 12:51

this thread seems to have gone in a different direction so, erm, sorry for this. I'm just speccing up my htpc and wondered if anyone had any better ideas than these:

MB-046-MS MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra (Socket 939) PCI-Express Motherboard (MB-046-MS) £64.95 £64.95

CA-005-ZA Zalman HD160 Home Theatre PC Enclosure - Silver (CA-005-ZA) £186.95 £186.95

GX-060-LT Leadtek GeForce 6200 Turbo Cache 256MB DDR TV-Out/DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-060-LT) £27.95 £27.95

HD-023-SA Samsung SpinPoint P HD080HJ 80GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-023-SA) £30.95 £30.95

CA-000-SS Seasonic S12 430W Silent ATX2.0 Power Supply (CA-000-SS) £52.95 £52.95

Subtotal £363.75
VAT £63.66
Total £427.41

on top of that I'll be using the CPU, RAM, DVD/RW, DTV card from my current system and put in the 250GB samsung spinpoint I have lying around.

can anyone recommend me a *really* quiet heatsink that would be suitable and an analog TV card, please.

I am thinking of getting a fanless PSU instead of the seasonic but not decided yet. Might see how quiet I can get all that (minus the PSU) before i decide.

Stripe · 30 Apr 2006 at 13:41

hey, sorry, I wasn't very specific was i?

basically, I need it for playing mp3s, playing AVI files, watching DVDs and web surfing. i might have to re-encode avis for my GP2X but hopefully i'll havea noth system

I'll check out that board as well. seems like a good idea. The reason I picked the one I was looking at was because of the 7.1 sound and because of the PCI slots. I figure I need at least 3 but was considering 4.

cheers

Stripe · 30 Apr 2006 at 15:07

well, erm, I'm going to get mocked for this but I have a 19" TFT I quite like with DVI in that I plan to continue to use. Maybe I'll buy a large SDTV 2nd hand if I decide to at some point. I won't be planning using a projector (for a few years at least) and won't be buying an HDTV for some years (seeing as they won't do anything right now anyway with the tv signal sent out in the uk). tbh, I'm gonna have to go jargon deciphering as I didn't understand a lot of what you guys have said. that FFDshow stuff looks quite neat but does it require an HDTV to be of use?

marc, the MSI-K8NGM2-FID looks pretty much ideal actually, cheers. I was shying away from mATX as I figured if I had the space in my case I may as well use it but with the 7.1 onboard sound, passive cooling and adequate graphics I think it would be great. My one consideration with a mobo was the number of PCI slots but it's the number of free slots at the back of the case that's the consideration as I plan to have:

1 digital tv card, 1 analog tv card, a sata pass through pci plate thing and I would also quite like (but i don't know if they exist) a pci fan controller switch thing. I would consider modding one up if they don't exist. I do have a fan controller already but the case I'm planning on doesn't have any spare external 5.25" bays

Stripe · 30 Apr 2006 at 16:11

Cyber-Mav said:
get a gfx card with avivo or purevideo support. you will regret it if you don;t.

do you (or anyone) know if the MSI-K8NGM2-FID supports this?

it says on the nvidia website that the 6150 supports some of the HDTV features (is that what purevideo is about?) but not all. Which are the ones I should be most concerned about?

marc, for the external SATA thing I don't need power as I have an Icy Box which is powered from the mains but a hole in the back with a SATA data cable just coming out seems a pretty good idea.

So really, I guess I'm not going for a full on HTPC but just a quiet PC i only use for media with decent sound and best video quality I can get on my TFT.