Quick spec check for HTPC

Scott Salisbury · 25 Nov 2008 at 15:33

Antec Fusion HTPC Case
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-060-AN

OCZ ModXStream Pro 400w Silent SLI Ready ATX2 Modular Power Supply
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-033-OC

Gigabyte GA-73PVM-S2H GeForce 7100 Micro-ATX (Socket 775) PCI-Express
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-098-GI

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB)
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-161-IN

Corsair 4GB DDR2 XMS2 PC2-6400C5 TwinX (2x2GB)
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-136-CS

Samsung SpinPoint F1 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-053-SA

Asus ATI Radeon EAH3450/HTP/256M Vcool Silent 256MB DDR2 TV-Out/DVI (PCI-Express)
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-152-AS

Compro VideoMate DVB-E700 Digital TV Internal PCI-E
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-011-CP

Linksys WMP54G 54Mbps Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=NW-003-LS

Samsung SH-S223F/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)
- http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CD-099-SA

Total inc vat: £587.52

I don't think I've missed anything vital. The hard drive is SATA II, does the Gigabyte MATX support SATA II also?

Scott.

RJC · 25 Nov 2008 at 15:35

Nice spec, but a quad core for a media centre is a bit over the top, unless your going to use it for video editing ect.

My current media centre uses the E2200.

Scott Salisbury · 25 Nov 2008 at 16:02

Cheers

Yeah I was looking at the 2200, but it's quite possible I'll be doing a lot of encoding and converting etc. I convert a lot of my dvd's and movies to mp4 format for my iphone which takes over 10 minutes for one 20 minute episode (on my single core storage pc).

Is there much speed difference between dual cores and quad cores for encoding and ripping etc? If not then I'll happily downgrade.

Will 400W PSU be enough for this setup ?

Scott.

0Shorty · 25 Nov 2008 at 16:13

Looks all fine to me. As for the encoding, remember the software you use to do the encoding must support multiple threads for it, otherwise there is no point in 4 core over dual core. If it saves you much money, id just go for the dual core. Otherwise all fine. 400w will be ample for that setup.

Ian.

RJC · 25 Nov 2008 at 18:42

As your encoding then the quad will be fine.
If you were using it to watch TV & hi-def video then a lower cpu would be better. (power consumption and noise)

clv101 · 25 Nov 2008 at 18:48

No Blu-ray drive? 4GB seems a bit of an overkill but I guess it's quite cheap.

Katoom · 25 Nov 2008 at 18:50

What about a AMD 780 board, can use a quad and will save on a GFX card.

b|gf|sh · 25 Nov 2008 at 18:58

Replace the Q6600 with an E5200 (quad core is overkill for HTPC use).

Replace the motherboard and graphics card with an Intel G45 or Nvidia 9300 chipset motherboard instead (for onboard H264 acceleration without the need for gfx card).

Remote?

clv101 · 25 Nov 2008 at 18:59

An operating system maybe?

Scott Salisbury · 25 Nov 2008 at 22:37

Thanks for all the responses. Very helpful

RJC said:
As your encoding then the quad will be fine.
If you were using it to watch TV & hi-def video then a lower cpu would be better. (power consumption and noise)

Interesting point, I am considering the dual core as there is quite a considerable saving for what is likely to be little or no performance benefit.

clv101 said:
No Blu-ray drive? 4GB seems a bit of an overkill but I guess it's quite cheap.

I considered blu-ray, but they are still quite pricey for a dvd recorder combo. Blu-ray is not essential at the moment and I don't fancy installing 2 drives. Hopefully they will come down in price by the time I need one.

4GB is indeed probably a bit overkill - but for the price? It would be crazy not to. I will be running Vista, so no doubt that 4GBs will come in handy when the time comes to start dealing with blu-ray-sized files.

Katoom said:
What about a AMD 780 board, can use a quad and will save on a GFX card.

Just had a look - a very good option, however, this system is being built with the future in mind. It is currently going to be hooked up with a standard CRT TV - with the knowledge that I will soon be upgrading to HDTV. So initially, it also needs an S-Video out or similar TV out feature - hence the graphics card.

clv101 said:
An operating system maybe?

I haven't decided between vista home premium or vista ultimate edition. Will be ordering separately since its free shipping

b|gf|sh said:
Replace the Q6600 with an E5200 (quad core is overkill for HTPC use).

Remote?

Yeah I've been convinced, quad core is overkill. The E5200 is an excellent alternative.

I can't seem to see any remotes on the ocuk website? If there are any please point me in the right direction.

Really helpful and interesting suggestions, most appreciated. Many thanks!

Scott.