Small Media\Streaming Device...

[Bam]

So I'm going around in circles at the moment, NAS and Raspberry Pi, Micro-ITX PC....etc

What I'm looking to achieve is a small, silent PC, that can take a 3TB 3.5 drive, and deliver media via XMBC to the TV (HDMI), so needs to look nice

I keep going from a Pi by the TV, and a NAS replacing my old behemoth of backup a PC, or a small Mini/Micro-ITX system by the TV.

Budget is low, around £250 max and if I were to go a NAS/Storage PC route a PicoPSU 150 XT rather than a standard PSU would be my option.

Any thoughts on what would be the most appropriate choice?

 

[Bam]

Any thoughts people, need to add the parts to my wish list asap ;p

 

[Bam]

Couple of concerns with the specs below;

1) Why are Micro (SSF) cases huge, and so expensive compared to Mini-ITX?
2) I can't find a decent Mini-ITX (SSF / Slimline) and Mobo combo on OC.

I assume I'm missing something here (IQ possibly..)

Any ideas would be most welcome.




YOUR BASKET
1 x Western Digital Caviar Red 3TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache WD30EFRX - OEM HDD £96.98
1 x Gigabyte F2A88XN-WIFI AMD A88X (Socket FM2+) DDR3 Mini ITX Motherboard £77.99
1 x Streacom Nano 150w HTPC Power Supply/Adapter £77.99
1 x Streacom ST-F7CS EVO HTPC Aluminium Case - Silver £74.99
1 x AMD A6-6400K 3.90GHz (Socket FM2) APU Richland Dual Core Processor (AD640KOKHLBOX) £47.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 4GB (1x4GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Single Channel Kit (HX313C9F/4) £31.99
Total : £417.53 (includes shipping : £8.00).

 

[Bam]

FYI in case anyone was reading I opted for a Synology DS213J and 2 x 2TB WD reds +Raspberry Pi

 

[Avalon]

So in other words you didn't stick to your spec Personally the Pi is a tad under powered for large libraries etc. and if you have something that's badly encoded it's just not going to end well, combine that with running multiple plugins, a nice skins and a Pi isn't the best choice. When you get to that stage buy a FLIRC and a NUC, you'll never look back.

 

[Bam]

Well, I hadn't really come to a conclusion so just opted for what I felt was best. I agree a NUC is a good choice, but I'm looking for something I can build from scratch.

Problem I'm really having is finding a small case that can take a 3.5 HD and act as my NAS and stream via Xmbc to the TV, hence the Pi...

Santa hasn't quite 'ordered' the parts yet, so still open for suggestions....I'm also restricted to around £200-250, so my spec was speculative based on what I could find would be compatible from OC. Ideally I would like to use a PicoPSU.

So my original request "What I'm looking to achieve is a small, silent PC, that can take a 3TB 3.5 drive, and deliver media via XMBC to the TV (HDMI), so needs to look nice" still stands

 

[Bam]

Please close this thread, creating a new one in General.
Thanks