New build.. Thoughts welcome

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19 Aug 2009
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Hi, im planning on building a small PC/HTPC. The main uses for the system that will be hooked upto my new 32" Tv are to stream content from my main PC like movies and music and some light web browsing. I will not be playing any games on the system. My budget is £300

At first i tought id get an out of the box job like the Acer Revo, but then i had the idea of building my own with a Blu ray drive :)

Anyway this build is in the initial thoughts phase, thought id post on here what i have in mind for anyone to give advice etc.. as i am new to the whole mini itx game.

MOBO:
Asus Intel atom N330 £103

CASE:
Win mini ITX £39

POWER:
Picopsu 120 £40

OP DRIVE:
Liteon BLU RAY with DVD-RW iHOS104 £50

HDD:
Samsung spinpoint F3 500 gig £37

MEMORY:
Corsair XMS2 2x 1GB ddr2 £30

Comes in at £299, any ideas / thoughts welcome, Thanks

Jay
 
HDD: In small ITX case don't you need a 2.5 inch drive? a 2.5 inch drive will also be cooler and quieter and if you're not storing media a smaller drive won't be a problem. I'd also be tempted to get a small SSD. It would cost more (though if the Patriot 32Gb is enough it's only £30 more) but be faster and silent.

Blu-Ray Drive: Again I think you may need a slimline drive for an ITX build (check the case info). This will be much more expensive.
 
Thanks for the input, the win mini case can house 1x 5.25 external drive and 2x 3.5" internal bays 1 exposed and one hidden, thats why i chose this case.

case.jpg


This solves the blu ray drive size issue and the internal HDD, will have a think about the HDD though,
Thanks

Jay
 
Cool. That's going to be a tight fit :)

Even if you stay with 3.5 inch you could consider one of the 'Green' (both WD and Samsung have one). These are quieter and cooler and more efficient than the standard versions, though not as much as laptop drives.
 
I have a main PC with only 2, 500 gig hard drives, will add another 1tb soon. DIY route appeals because i like to build stuff :) and i can add a blu ray drive.

If i build my own yes i can store a lot on it, i can stream stuff from my main PC when i add a larger drive and i can add a blu ray drive to the htpc, if the revo had a blu ray player then id probably look at that but then again the self build appeals more.

Cheers
Jay
 
Last edited:
Now ive just seen the ASRock Ion 330HT-BD, this has a blu ray player and you can add another 2.5" hdd upto 1tb....
mmm might have to do some more thinking!
Jay
 
Parts ordered

MOBO: Zotac IonITX N330 DE
Zotac_IONITX_D-E_440.jpg

CASE: InWin BP655
inwinbp655.gif

MEMORY: OCZ 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400
HDD: Western digital 1TB Caviar Green
OPD: LiteOn iHOS104 Blu-Ray Reader & DVD-Rom

Should all be here by Monday or Tuesday :)
 
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