Thinking of replacing my wd live with htpc

Iv got the zotac 9300-i-e and it handles 1080p no problems. I even play some old games fine with it.

If i was buying totally new now I would probably go i5 or similar but it handles everything i need fine.

You could pick up a Q6600 for like £60inc 2nd hand. I got my Q9450 for around £100inc.
 
OK thanx for the heads up on the motherboard.


All I am really wanting it for is web surfing and 1080p movie watching so...

regards,

Matt
 
.:SAmSuNG:. said:
Iv got the zotac 9300-i-e and it handles 1080p no problems. I even play some old games fine with it.

If i was buying totally new now I would probably go i5 or similar but it handles everything i need fine.

You could pick up a Q6600 for like £60inc 2nd hand. I got my Q9450 for around £100inc.
Click to expand...

Having a blond moment!

Does the hdmi cable transmit the sound as well as video or are you using a sound card.

Just googled the board and see it has an optical connector!

regards,

Matt
 
Last edited:
Right have now got the CPU, e8400, well it'll be on its way once the money has cleared.

Was going to go for a SSD butg everyone keeps saying wait whilst early next year for the Intel drives, I also have a spare 40gb 2.5 HDD that I could use for the mean time, so am going to wait, unless one crops up cheap on MM.

regards,

Matt
 
I really doubt you will notice any real world differences in speed between something like a vertex2 or C300 and the new Intel drives due out. I would like to replace my 1TB F3 with a SSD to of course be faster but to cut down the noise. With the 2nd drive turned off when inactive it would make the system near silent. Its just a hassle re installed everything again.
 
Anyone got an idea for a low profile, quiet, socket 775 cpu cooler? I have the one for my Q9650 that I could use but was wondering if there was one better?

regards,

Matt
 
Thermalright Axp-140.
Prolimatech Samuel 17.
Scythe Shuriken.

All of those will work well it just depends on your budget,if it's tight go with whatever is cheapest.
 
Thanx for this I like the look of the shuriken.

Another question, the case I have can have upto 2 side fans, 1 is installed as standard - I have heard it is a bit noisy so I have replaced it with 2 Akasa amber fans.

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Antec-ISK300-150-Case-Review/934/3

Specs for standard fans are:

Speed 1500 2000 2600

CFM 20 26 34

db 18 24 30

Speed 1800

CFM 25.4

db 20

Now the Antec fans come with a small square switch to control the speed of the fans and it fits snuggly in the back of the case, can these be bought seperately? If so what are they called?

Also can anyone give me a clue as to what I can use to sleeve / braid the cables to make it all look a bit tidyer in there?

regards,


Matt
 
Last edited:
After living with a WDTV Live HD for the last 2 years, I am thinking of upgrading to a small HTPC. I have also read the whole post and I cannot understand why people dont prefer the cheaper and less power hungry ION platform...
I have narrowed my choices to the following hardware:

Asus AT3IONT-I
http://www.asus.gr/product.aspx?P_ID...wXw&templete=2
4GB DDR3 Kingston Value RAM
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 250GB SATA 2
All of the above cost in Greece 227€
Silverstone GRANDIA GD02, 107€
http://www.silverstonetek.com/produc...=gd02&area=usa
SilverStone Strider Series ST40F, 51€

...and I still need a wireless keyboard/mouse.

What I need for the HTPC is to play ALL the HD media with maximum video and sound quality and to be able to surf the internet fast without problems.
My problem is that the above setup will cost more than 385€ (if we add the keyboard). Is this high for my needs? Is it possible to have another setup less expensive which will accomplish my needs?
Furthermore do you think its worth the upgrade?
 
Im not saying its not but your pretty limited on upgradablilty and what your saving on it been less power hungry from what iv read you will lose running a PSU like you specced. That system will draw what, 100w? Meaning the PSU will be no where near its rated efficiency.

Just passing on what i was advised by others.

Looking at what you will use it for it should handle that fine.
 
Whilst I agree ION is an option, brother-in-law has a system based around one, whilst it does do all I could want I just find it less responsive than a PC. Hence I am going down this route and not an ion based system.

regards,

Matt
 
I have recently replaced a WDTV Live with an Asus 1501P nettop, it has the following spec:

1.8 GHz Intel Atom D525 (dual-core)
NVidia Ion2 graphics
2GB DDR2 RAM
250GB Hard Drive
Slot-loading DVD burner
Two USB 3 ports + some USB 2 ports
Windows 7 Home Premium

I am very impressed with it having previously tried an ASRock Ion 330 last year which was too noisy (imho) for HTPC use in my bedroom.

I've installed the latest beta of XBMC on Windows 7 and it is all very slick, much smoother than I expected. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that the Asus comes with a media centre remote and has a built-in sensor. It runs fairly quietly with only a slight woosh of air that I can definitely live with as you can't hear it when playing media.

The Asus cost around £372 including delivery and is a very well built machine for the money.

This was a far cheaper option than building a machine from scratch, although I have built a beefier HTPC for my living room (OrigenAE M10 case, Intel Core i3-530 CPU, 4GB DDR3, Gigabyte H55-USB3 motherboard, circa £600 a few months ago excluding an operating system).
 
Hi again!

Could you please inform me about the sound capabilities of the ION 2 platform?
For example there are a lot of movies supporting either AC3 or DTS or Dolby Digital.
Does this little gem support everything?

Thank you
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom