Need some input quick

antec has some great psu + case combos going on right now. I think you are off to a good system start.
 
I would just get this for a cheaper price

CPU/MOBO - AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Brisbane 2.6GHz + ASUS M3A78-EM AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX Combo Deal for $125
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103211
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131324

RAM - CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 for $55($30 MIR) w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ickDeals&cm_mmc=AFC-SlickDeals-_-NA-_-NA-_-NA

PSU - Antec True Power Trio TP3-430 430W for $45 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103942

HDD - WD 6400AAKS 640gig for $75 w/free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

Total : $300
 
Do you guys think the dual core will play .mkv files smoothly? I heard from some people that it needs a phenom to run properly.
 
Motox502 said:
Do you guys think the dual core will play .mkv files smoothly? I heard from some people that it needs a phenom to run properly.
Click to expand...

Depends on what mkv files you are watching. So what are these mkv files that you are watching?
 
Get a ~$25 PCIe card capable of hardware decoding most video formats (ATI HD2xxx series low end or similar Geforce 8 series low end, 8400 or so) and don't worry about the CPU so much. I'd personally pick up a second hand E2xxx series chip (~$40-50), a G31 based board (~$60), 2-4GB of cheap DDR2-667 or 800 ($20-40), and the Antec 300 + Antec PSU deal on Newegg ($55 + PSU cost - $20 discount). Boom.
 
Motox502 said:
Blu ray rips
Click to expand...

With a straight blu-ray rip, a dual-core Athlon X2 4850e is more than enough if coupled with the 780G chipset. The IGP of the 780G chipset can offload most if not all HD decoding. No need whatsoever for a video card that can do HD decoding, at least with AMD's 780G motherboards. However when re-encoding blu-ray rips as MKV files, make sure that they are DXVA compatible. If the MKV files are DXVA compatible, then, again, the X2 4850e is more than enough.

Also, I recommend getting this 780G mobo instead:
Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H AMD 780G mATX Motherboard - $80

Here's why I recommend the Gigabyte:
CrimandEvil said:
As I said. The only one worth a damn is Gigabyte's board (or very possibly MSI's Diva boards).

The reason being is that if you want to use the HDMI connector you're going to limited to 2.0 audio since the 780G only supports that. Gigabyte gets around this by using a sound chip that does DTS connect/DD 5.1 live which means it will re-encode your TrueHD audio from pristine 7.1 HD goodness into almost as good 5.1 audio over the HDMI port. No other 780G mobo does that which I can't see any damn good reason since we all know the IGP is limited to 2.0 and they still bill it as "an HTPC solution."
Click to expand...

However if you don't care about sound. just get one of the cheaper 780G motherboards.
 
heres some info about the rips....

Technical Specs
---------------
Container...........: Matroska
Video Encoder.......: x264
Video Aspect Ratio..: 2.40:1 (1920x800)
Audio Codec.........: DTS
Audio BitRate.......: 1536 kbit/sec
Audio Channels......: 5.1 channels
Subtitles...........: English + non-English parts + Dutch
Source..............: Blu-Ray (U.S. version)
File Size...........: 12.0 GB (avg bitrate of 11.6 Mbit)
DXVA compliant......: Yes


So, I should be fine with an x2 and that Gigabyte board? Also for sound, since its a computer playing the files, It would be easier/cheaper to just pick up a set of z-5500's to use as surround sound, right?

Thanks for all your input!!!
 
Motox502 said:
So, I should be fine with an x2 and that Gigabyte board?
Click to expand...

Yup, totally fine according to the info you provided. The MKV files you have are DXVA compliant so you should be set.

Motox502 said:
Also for sound, since its a computer playing the files, It would be easier/cheaper to just pick up a set of z-5500's to use as surround sound, right?
Click to expand...

Yes.

EDIT: NVM that.
 
If he's using the Logis then he can output via analog or digital coaxial or optical, all of which will product the intended 5.1 sound provided the file supports them. Just need to set the output in Playback devices.

What a cheater, edit before I post :mad:
 
Just don't overpay for those Z-5500's. They're not worth more than $200, but they're hard to beat at that price. They've been had for much less, though (mine were $145AR, and my buddy paid $185AR).
 
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