Need advice building an ITX media hub.

Falcor

Falcor

Falcor

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Joined
24 Feb 2008
Posts
117
Im under orders to build one of these for crimbo....

got a budget of £200ish not including hard disk, and dont want anything too ott, all it needs to do is:

Play media
Contain a 1tb hd.
Wireless link to my network.
Browse internet
Run simple programs like office.
(have an internal dvd drive if possible?)
Relitively quiet.(will be under tv i have a spare noctua fan that could be of use for that tho :) )

Im after a neat gloss black case thats not too big, but not stupidly small or a silly shape.

Also i need some advice on what windows version to use, what other software is good etc etc

What keyboard/mouse thing is good for a media centre(to use on your knee)

A click on power up and click off power down on the keyboard would be nice too if possible(like a controller would work)
 
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Having done a LOT of research...ive decided i want ITX over ATX however...

Im not sure wether to go for an ION processor or a normal one, pricing is similar it seems when u take into account the processor, and its faster so atm i see no reason not to go for the normal processor? i assume the power consumption is higher which is a concern, however not at the expense of a lot of performance...
 
yeah, having looking ill havto stretch my budget abit, not a big deal...i havent decided on an OS yet..not a fan of vista really...but it needs to be windows based as i wont be only person using it....none nerds will :D

Cases is bothing me, ive looked all the silverstone cube cases and dont like the styling or the price, seem expensive for what they are..

http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1797/a_cupid_3_mini_itx_htpc_chassis/index.html

i fancy this case...but its a lil ugly..good features tho with the card reader and its about the right size..ill havto think:) the in-win ones are slightly neater, id like to perhaps use a slim line optical so i can get the case smaller too...

Also which ZOtac ion board should i get? the 19vdc one or the standard atx one? will be getting one those with wireless n.
 
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the small a plus case cant fit a 3.5inch disc unfortunately...

i think ill shall prolly end up going for a smaller neater case with a smiline and space for one 3.5....i just havent seen one that makes me go WOW yet :) thats all...if only i had a milling machine and some sheets of 4mil aluminum :)

Which ion board is better? the one that comes with or the one without the psu? given one is external adapater and one uses the cases internal psu? which is quieter/more efficent? can u run optical drives and 3.5inch harddisks on that little 90w psu that comes iwth the ion board? Hmm ok from reading its not recommended to install a full optical on the 90w external psu...so whats the disadvantage of the slimlines?

Hoping to get all this sorted soon, ill do a build thread when i do, seems theres not that much itx info out there really :)
 
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hmm not a bad case but i dont like all the uncovered holes, there just dust attractors =p

only real thing im struggling to decide now is dvd drive, slim line or not...slimline allows for smaller cases but there must be some disadvantage id imagine?
 
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