Zotac H55-ITX WIFI / Origen AE M10 HTPC Build

[Omar]

I did some digging and the only viable options I could find for fitting in the M10 case were the Akasa 7106HP and the Silverstone SST-NT07-1156. I've ordered the Silverstone and will see what it's like, it has a copper core and should be slightly lower profile than the stock fan.

 

[mremulator]

Any update on your project ?

SFF Innovation... it's coming

A little teaser...

 

[fireisdangerous]

Actually no. In addition to the K-Lite Codec packs (32/64-bit) I have also registered the MPC MKV splitter (Gabtest), MPC mpeg filter and MPC Audio Renderer filters in Windows. This way I can use WMC7/Media Browser and get HD audio bitstreaming and MKV support etc in WMC7. Obviously ffdshow is also required (comes with K-Lite).

MPC HC is actually really good for 1080p, however, if you want to enable any shaders (sharpen complex for example) you'll require an ATI HD 5570 at the very least or else you'll get dropped frames.

BTW... CoreAVC only supports Nvidia CUDA, so you'd be better off using MPC/ffdshow (DXVA).

Hi There,

Would it be possible for you to do a quick guide on which settings you should choose to get the best possible playback through mpc.

it would be much appriciated.

tony

 

[AngelEyes]

I did some digging and the only viable options I could find for fitting in the M10 case were the Akasa 7106HP and the Silverstone SST-NT07-1156. I've ordered the Silverstone and will see what it's like, it has a copper core and should be slightly lower profile than the stock fan.

Hi,

Any joy with those coolers?

I built an M10 HTPC on an ASUS ION/ATOM overclocked to the max (AT3N7A-I) but it was soooo slow with Win7 x64 (bad choice OS probably) I eventually gave up but am looking at getting a better specced MB for an old Q6600 I have lying around, I just need a decent cooler.

Anyone know if these will fit in the M10?

http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/cpucoolers/tl-microsilencer

http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/cpucoolers/ac-freezer7lp

http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/lga775-coolers/cnps8000a

Thanks.

Adam

 

[Omar]

I think those might be too high to allow enough clearance for the optical drive. If you don't use an optical drive and remove the bay then it might fit.

The Silverstone SST-NT07-1156 cooler worked out pretty well, it's a bit quieter than the stock Intel one and very slightly shorter height-wise. I'm not getting fantastic temps, although they are still within a normal range so I might have a fiddle with re-applying some thermal compound. I went with Arctic Cooling MX-3 rather than the stuff that came with the Silverstone cooler.

I wish I was better at cable management, but I've done my best. I'll try to post some pics.

 

[AngelEyes]

I think those might be too high to allow enough clearance for the optical drive. If you don't use an optical drive and remove the bay then it might fit.

I think you are right on a couple i linked to but I just measured the surface of my current MB to the bottom of the drive an it is a just over 60mm, so the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 LP at 53mm seems like it could work. I guess it depends exactly where they take their measurements from.

I might give it a go as the noise/cooling performance claims seem quite good, although the fact you know the silverstone works is quite tempting, far too often I make life difficult for myself

Pictures would be great though especially if you can give an indication of the clearance the Silverstone fan gives.

Cheers.

Adam

 

[Omar]

The Silverstone's height is stated as being around 37mm, so the 53mm on the Arctic Cooling 7 LP will be a very tight fit given that you still need some clearance for cables and airflow on the fan.

I'm just trying to dig out the photos I took while assembling my build as well as when I replaced the stock cooler with the Silverstone, I'll probably stick them in a new thread.

 

[AngelEyes]

The Silverstone's height is stated as being around 37mm, so the 53mm on the Arctic Cooling 7 LP will be a very tight fit given that you still need some clearance for cables and airflow on the fan.

I'm just trying to dig out the photos I took while assembling my build as well as when I replaced the stock cooler with the Silverstone, I'll probably stick them in a new thread.

FWIW the Arctic Cooler pro 7 does fit ok, there is only a little room above it but the deign of the fan means that unless your CPU is completely covered by the BD drive you should be fine. It is a bit noisey at full speed though.

On a different subject I am realising why I gave up on this build the first time, I get a really loud buzz through my speakers over HDMI

It is basically the PSU or CPU activity that is being reproduced in the speakers. Anyone have experience in curing this kind of issue?

Thanks and sorry for the thread hyjack

Adam

 

[SubScape]

That case looks awesome, subscribed for what's coming next, can't wait!

 

[AngelEyes]

I completed my rebuild:

M-10
Zotac G41-ITX
4GB DDR2
Q6600
Sapphire HD5450

Runs great, much better than my Atom/Ion effort (naturally).

I do have a nasty problem though, my AV Processor picks up PSU noise, you know the buzzing that is in sync with CPU load, mouse movement etc.

I have had this before on other HTPCs (including the Atom/Ion build) but never this bad.

Do you think the PSU is underpowered for the hardware or do I have a ground issue or something else? Nightmare!!!

Thanks,

Adam

 

[Matty_Boy]

I've just finished a similar build using the Origen AE M10 case with an Intel i3 540 processor.
Couple of points to note, many already identified by other people doing this sort of build:-
- I originally tried using a Gigabyte H55N-USB3 motherboard. When my Origen M10 arrived, it had the PSU with the larger sized capacitors installed, so I could not use this motherboard as the capacitors fouled the ATX socket on the motherboard. Origen have updated the design of the PSU now with smaller capacitors, the model number of the new DC/DC board is PX150-P2. I have one on order from where I bought the case as Origen can supply them to their distributers on request.
- Case Power switch and LED cables must be swapped round when using boards with the Gigabyte layout as the shorter ones will not reach the motherboard connectors. Alternative, buy 2 pin extension leads.
- In the interim I have a Zotac H55ITX-A-E motherboard installed which has a better layout for the Origen M10.
- SATA power cable proved to be too short to reach the Hard Drive when a Graphics Card was installed. I have a Sapphire low profile 5570 1GB installed. I bought a SATA power extension cable to resolve this.
- Stock 60mm case fan is a bit noisey, be careful when ordering replacements, I ordered 2x Fractal Design 60mm Silent Cooling Fans, they didn't fit as the stock fans are only 15mm deep, the Fractals are 25mm. I sourced 2 x Papst 60mm x 15mm fans in the end and fitted them on a fan cable splitter. Much quieter now.
- Stock Intel CPU cooler became noisy under load, there is not a lot of room inside the Origen Case so heat builds up quickly, using the Zotac PWM setting proved too noisy. When I limited the fan to a max speed, temps rose abit too much for my liking. I have now replaced the stock cooler with a Silverstone NT07-1156 Low Profile Cooler. This has a copper core and a switch on the side for Full Speed / Quiet mode. On quite mode the noise and heat is far more acceptable than when using the stock Intel heatsink.

Other than that, am very happy with my build, controlling it with a Logitech DiNovo Mini keyboard. I'm in the process of updating my Logitech Harmony One with new commands to use also.

 

[allday247]

Anyone looking to sell their OrigenAE M10 case? I'm looking at acquiring one
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18279356