New Build // Hybrid Computer

D

dracop

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 8, 2005
Messages
133
) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
1/3 home theatre, 1/3 general computer, 1/3 gaming (Total War, Dragon Age, next iteration of Battlefield series, etc.)

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$1,100, yes

3) Where do you live?
CT

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
Just about everything

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
DVD Burner and an SB Audigy 2 if it was worthwhile

6) Will you be overclocking?
No

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
46" Samsung 120 hz LCD (LN46B640)

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within the next couple of weeks

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Relying on the mobo for NIC and Sound functions

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Nope, altho this is the budget for the hardware. I can use a student discount for Win7 separately .

Its been years since I built a PC, I havent been into this since 2003. I am typing this on my main rig - an AMD XP 2500+/Radeon 9800 lol. After moving into a small apartment, I need to combine my PC and home theatre into one nice, neat compact system while upgrading my rig. I have limited space for external components, so I was looking to build a super PC; my gaming needs are moderate and I am no longer a Hardcore gamer.

NOISE is unacceptable altho I wasnt looking for SSD. Still, quiet is the name of the game and this affects choice of vidcard, hdd, and all cooling solutions. (Many of my choices were based on dBa ratings and subjective reviews of noise)

Here is what I have assembled from elsewhere:


ASRock P55 Deluxe LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s ATX Intel Mobo $159.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W $199.99

CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) C...1600C9 $94.99

Western Digital Caviar Black S 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s $74.99

ZOTAC GeForce GTS 250 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI E 2.0 x16 $142.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V $99.99

LITE-ON Black 4X Blu-ray Reader SATA Model iHOS104-06 $59.99

ZALMAN Black HD503 ATX Media Center / HTPC Case $264.9

Total $1,130 after S&H

If you guys have suggestions or if I screwed up on a design (does that memory work with that mobo and CPU? think it does...)

The case is pricey but I need the IR remote for htpc functions and it looks good for an htpc imo.

Suggestions to make this work or improve the setup? Most of these prices were off Newegg, I wanted to make sure it was well put together before price shopping everything to death. I am undecided if I want to wait for the xmas specials/post holiday clearance sales
 
If noise is unacceptable to you, then you need to find ways to minimize the noise. Check out silentpcreview.com for articles, reviews, and guides that can help you on that task.

Since you're buying an OEM Blu-ray drive, you'll need to buy some software that would enable you to play back Blu-ray movies. You may want to add that into your OS budget. (Windows 7 Home Premium is all that you need for this build.) One more thing: Lite-On optical drives tend to be loud.

The parts, as a whole, are fine, but they're not exactly the best bang-for-your-buck components you can get. First off, do you really need a case with a proprietary IR remote? You can buy a cheaper HTPC case and get a remote with a USB receiver (or something similar) instead. Additionally, the Core i5 750 has several combo deals that you could take advantage of. In fact, two or three such combo deals could save you quite a bit of money.
 
AsRock Deluxe is an oxymoron, IMO, lol. I'd go for the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3 for $135 instead, rather than paying $160 for an AsRock. AsRock is Asus budget line... so they shave costs somehow. :p Yes, this is simply because of the brand... I don't like paying premium prices for budget brand parts.

Not sure how the Lite-On is, but the LG is pretty quiet.

I'd suggest the HD5770 instead of the GTS250.

Cases are subjective, so get what you want; but as tiraides pointed out, the IR remote can and should be bought separately.
 
thank you for the responses, I will check out your suggestions and post once Ive figured out a semi-final build.
 
Final Build (ordered already):

Silverstone Crown CW02S-MXR Silver case
Intel i5 CPU 750
Gigabyte P55a UD3 Motherboard
Corsair TW3X4G1600C9DHX 4 GB Dual Channel DDR3
XFX 5770 1 GB
WD Caviar Black 1 TB HDD
Corsair TX650w Power Supplies
Win 7 Professional Full Retail (the $30 student special :)

All together, after BING Cashback, Rebates, and Free Shipping:
Got almost all of it at Circuit City and Tiger Direct online, (sister websites? must be same company), CC has some very aggressive pricing atm; with the Bing and Free S&H, they are smashing Newegg.

$1,034 including the case (the case was 1/3 the cost of the system, its pricey but its beautiful and this thing sits prominently in my living room).

Recycled DVD Burner, Keyboard (Logitech G15 for now), and Mouse (Logi G7 Gaming Laser Mouse), 5.1 HTIB for the audio out.

Now the real question, is the onboard sound on this setup better than an SB Audigy 2 (standard). I have one I can recycle but I have no idea which would offer better sound.

Thank you for the suggestions guys, I obviously liked much of what you guys had to say. The 5770 is much better for a hybrid HTPC than a GTS 250, both in terms of performance and noise; I like the Gigabyte mobo better than the AS Rock, and I fell in love with the Silverstone (not discussed here but elsewhere).

Now, I need a nice Bluray, some software for said bluray, and I need to figure out my sound (prob more of an AVS Forums or HTPC forum here question).
 
Tigerdirect owns Circuit City.

Try out both the onboard sound and sound card. See which one gives you better audio quality. Report back so that others will know.
 
If you use optical out of the motherboard or soundcard, it won't matter which you use. Optical is a digital signal which bypasses the analog circuty in the soundcard/onboard sound. Just keep that in mind.

If you want to actually use either the onboard of the soundcard you have, hook them up the HTiB with their analog outs.
 
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