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HTPC Build Post #49201

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kronik8

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 16, 2002
Messages
167
So, I can get a discount on parts at BestBuy; as such, I'm limited in what I can purchase, but here we go.

BFG NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Motherboard (Socket 775)
Model: BFGRINF680IS

Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E6600

2 x Corsair 2-Pack 1GB PC6400 DDR2 DIMM Memory Modules
Model: TWIN2X2048-6400C4D

Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Professional Series Sound Card
Model: SB046B

Western Digital Raptor 150GB SATA for boot / gaming

Perhaps 2 Western Digital 1TB drives

BFG 8800 GTS with 640MB

Case / PSU / Cooling / Drive : all will most likely come from elsewhere. I'll probably end up with a Silverstone LC13 for the case. I'd like to wait until a HD-DVD/Blu Ray drive came out before upgrading from a SD DVD. So, ultimately.. I won't be here forever but I'd like to get as much as I can, for as cheaply as I can. It will be going to a Sony KDS-60A3000 via a Denon 4308CI. Advice as to what is completely superfluous is also appreciated.

My questions:

1) Will this adequately run games in 1080P on a 60"? 1920x1200+ is not something I'm terribly concerned with to be honest.
2) Fan noise is of concern, of course, when it come to HTPCs. Will the cooling required for the video card/processor be too much?
3) How is the ATI 650 Tuner? It is the only one we have that is viable.. the reviews seem to range from decent to great.
4) I'd like to be able to record to HD streams while watching a 3rd - what, currently, is capable of this? HDHomeRun + say an ATI 650 tuner?
5) Power supply recommendation?
6) At some point, the highest quality audio will probably be something I'd like out of this thing.
 
Those specs are plenty for what you want to do.

I'm not sure about that Ati 650 tuner, but the HDHomerun is great. I have one and quite simply, it kicks ass for recording HD.

That Raptor might be a bit loud, what are your other choices? Good call on the seperate drive for video and such. Keeping the OS on a sperate drive is a good idea.

For sound, if that motherboard has a digital out for the onboard sound your set for audio. Just hook it up with a the digital audio out and thats all you need. If your gaming this, then get that Xi-Fi, but only if you're gaming.
 
kronik8 said:
So, I can get a discount on parts at BestBuy; as such, I'm limited in what I can purchase, but here we go.

Case / PSU / Cooling / Drive : all will most likely come from elsewhere. I'll probably end up with a Silverstone LC13 for the case. I'd like to wait until a HD-DVD/Blu Ray drive came out before upgrading from a SD DVD.
Click to expand...
Working at Best Buy, I guess you missed the LG dual format internal HDDVD/Blu-ray ROM drive for $299?
 
Can you please list the prices of each part with your discount?

Also, what's your budget?
 
Danny Bui said:
Can you please list the prices of each part with your discount?
Click to expand...
Unless they're absolutely spectacular I doubt they're really all that different then what he'd have to pay at Newegg. The only thing that would make any sort of difference is whether or not the item comes with a rebate, even then you never count rebates due to the fact that you are not guaranteed to get one back.

Anyways, it looks like your building a gaming rig. You are not. You're building a system aimed at a quality media experience, a home theater PC but that doesn't mean gaming can't be a part of it. It just means that gaming takes a back seat.
1) Will this adequately run games in 1080P on a 60"? 1920x1200+ is not something I'm terribly concerned with to be honest.
Click to expand...
Check any reviews out there and you'll see what card you need to run that resolution in games, the 640 GTS is entry level.
2) Fan noise is of concern, of course, when it come to HTPCs. Will the cooling required for the video card/processor be too much?
Click to expand...
You didn't post what CPU cooler you are going with, if you think the Intel heatsink is enough then "no," is very much going to be a concern. The video card should be okay with the stock cooler from what I understand, the stock cooler is suppose to be rather quiet until you start gaming.

But I would wait on gaming until the 8800GT comes out.

So, get a new CPU cooler, you'll need it.
3) How is the ATI 650 Tuner? It is the only one we have that is viable.. the reviews seem to range from decent to great.
Click to expand...
It's one of the best out there for SD content and I would seriously getting it from somewhere other then Bestbuy. Christ, I was in a BB yesterday and noticed that they sold this tuner for over $100 (close to $160 I think)! I bought mine, retail, for $65 from Newegg.
4) I'd like to be able to record to HD streams while watching a 3rd - what, currently, is capable of this? HDHomeRun + say an ATI 650 tuner?
Click to expand...
If you're talking ATSC broadcasts then yeah that combo would work perfect.
5) Power supply recommendation?
Click to expand...
Corsair's VX 450w PSU.
6) At some point, the highest quality audio will probably be something I'd like out of this thing.
Click to expand...
Drop the Creative card and go with a nice receiver with some quality speakers then. Go digital out from the mobo to the receiver.

Also go with Vista Home Premium.
 
The deal has been down for quite some time. There was a thread on it in the [H]otDeals forum.
 
So, the discount from BestBuy would have netted me about 300 dollars difference from NewEgg. In my opinion, not worth it enough to be limited by what BestBuy carries.

As such, I've changed my hardware choices (probably for the worse). I was focusing on a powerful box though in retrospect, I think my video card order may have been a bit premature.

ABit IP35 Pro
Intel E6750 C2D (cheaper than the E6600 on NewEgg at the moment)
EVGA 8800 Ultra (so, the difference between a BFG 8800 GTS 640 OC2 and an EVGA Ultra was about 120 bucks so... yea.)
Same HDDs
Crucial Ballistix Tracer 4 x 1GB
Corsair 520HX
ATI AIW 650
HDHomeRun

Still kind of out on the case..... maybe a SilverStone LC20.

So, all that being said - the idea behind the Ballistix was to get a decent OC out of the box, though in my reading I've found that most estimate the OC I could get (cooling-limited) would not be enough to push the Ballistix. Is this accurate? What cooling, still, would you recommend? The Scythe Mini looks good - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185046 . Gaming at the highest res possible with the most IQ goodies enabled while having the best HD video playback / encoding ability is what I'm going for here, hence the "overkill" for a HTPC. I wanted to be able to OC a wee bit as well. Hopefully the LG BD/HD-DVD combo becomes available again; our store never carried it and it was gone on the webpage before it was mentioned here.
 
Dude, I don't think I would put that into an HTPC case. Far too much for an HTPC case to handle, honestly I would have went with something a bit less "overkill" and a bit more "sensible." Just so you know the Ultra only really makes sense if you're gaming at more then 1920x1080 and even then you said you want "the best HD video playback" when this systems doesn't really have that. The Ultra doesn't have the same VP2 engine that the 85/8600 series (and to a lesser extent the 8400) do which means that the CPU is still doing the heavy lifting when it comes to Blue Ray/HD DVD playback.

Is there such a term that means "beyond overkill?"
 
Interesting. The idea behind the 1920x1080 was obviously for pixel map matching with the television, which the 8800 should have been capable of, as you stated. A bit of future-proofing is in order, as well. Popping out components to make this a more dedicated media machine and building another gaming box may be something I choose down the road. I am not in a position, unfortunately, to wait until other options become available as I need to build something within the next week but on the same token, I do not anticipate upgrading for at least a year and a half, if not more depending on performance/etc.

What would aid me in gaining excellent HD vid playback from one of these boxes? I tried to read some of your guide but most of it is linked to HTPCNews (where I tried to go before posting here) and the site has been done for some time, it seems. The CPU doing the heavy lifting is an impetus to getting the E6750, no?

And no, "beyond overkill" is "completely redundant."
 
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