Home theater PC help

[mgh87]

Hi,

My graphics card stopped working on my old pc and and i think the PSU might be on the way out it's an old nameless built into the old case one. I want to use parts from my old pc to recycle it into the cheapest home theater pc used only for streaming video's, tv shows and some mild web browsing. Would this setup be sufficient?

Recycled parts:
Mobo: GigaByte GAH61m-USB3-B3
Memory: 8gb 2x4gb generic Kingston ddr3 1334
CPU: Intel Sandy bridge i7-2600
HD: 1tb Seagate 7200rpm
Optic drive: LG blueray reader/writer

Now I'm looking for the cheapest possible way to replace the GPU, PSU and case. I was looking at these:

GPU: Gigabyte R645-1GI 1GB 6450 PCI-E VGA Card $40 all this has to do is play 1080p movies and provide stereo sound through hdmi. Plug this in to fairly new LG LCD tv. http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/home/12648-gigabyte-r645-1gi-1gb-6450-pci-e-vga-card.html

PSU: Not really sure which to pick from this list? Is 350w going to be enough?
Corsair VS350 350W Power Supply Unit PSU http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/8943-corsair-vs350-350w-power-supply-unit-psu.html

Thermaltake OEM W03940/W0410NA 500Watt PSU http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/8826-thermaltake-oem-w03940-w0410na-500watt-psu.html

Corsair VS450 450W Power Supply Units PSU http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/8943-corsair-vs350-350w-power-supply-unit-psu.html

Case: This is the cheapest from a brand i recognize Antec VSK-4000B-U3 USB3.0 Mid Tower Case without PSU
http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/case/13272-antec-vsk-4000b-u3-usb30-mid-tower-case-without-psu.html

Any insight or advice anyone could offer would be greatly appreciated, just a quick side note i live in Western Australia so i'm fairly limited to component choices and MSY is usually has the most choice and the best pricing.

 

[Wolfshadw]

You could go with any of those components and run your HTPC just fine. The 350 watt Corsair PSU will be sufficient for your needs.

-Wolf sends

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The VS350 PSU and VSK-4000B-U3 case will work fine. You might want to go with a micro-ATX case, though. You really don't need a GPU for HTPC usage. The GPU integrated into the i7-2600 will work just fine for a HTPC.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

The graphics card will satisy your needs just fine, as for the case and PSU, I recommend you go with this one:

http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/2729-coolermaster-rc-344-skn2-elite-rc-344-usb30-case-with-420w-psu.html

Its a Case with built in 420W PSU, enough for your power needs. It can accommodate your MoBo as well. Its a value for money if you won't use this PC for gaming, and by that I mean anything above the TF2 level would not be playable with that GPU. So its a solely multimedia/ mild browsing PC, with a very good processor!

 

[ssddx]

the i7-2600 has integrated graphics onboard and your motherboard has dvi-d which is good for up to 1920x1200 resolutions. for only streaming web video, web browsing and playing dvds this would be sufficient and you can likely save yourself $40 on a graphics card.

for $4 more i'd probably go with this http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/2783-coolermaster-for-500-kkn3-force-500-usb30-case-without-psu.html since it has 1x140mm front or 2x120mm front fans instead of just 1x120mm like on the case you picked out. completely your choice though.

you want a quality power supply if possible. the low end corsairs while you could use them if you werent putting much demand on a system (they would work in a htpc) they also are not very reliable and likely have capxon capacitors which have been known to explode if you push them too hard. this antec vp http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/12095-antec-vp-450p-psu.html is rated as a class 2b unit here https://community.newegg.com/eggxpert/computer_hardware/f/135081/t/45344.aspx and is only $5 more than the cheapest one available to you so would be the one i would be most willing to go with.

without a graphics card... you should be looking at about 215 +/- draw on a psu. even with a cheap low end graphics card you are not likely to go much over 300 so a 450w power supply such as i recommended is perfectly fine and has lots of headroom. you could likely make do with even a 350w which would be fine for just the cpu no gpu... and likely fine with a gpu too however with the reliability of the 350 corsair in question... i wouldnt go pushing for maximum output hence why i suggested the other brand and if need be... a 450w not a 350.

the integrated graphics on the i7 is compareable to low end video cards which is why i suggested perhaps sticking with onboard instead of spending cash for the same performance.

in total... i think you could build what you want for $48+50= $92 aud total and retain quality components.

 

[mgh87]

the i7-2600 has integrated graphics onboard and your motherboard has dvi-d which is good for up to 1920x1200 resolutions. for only streaming web video, web browsing and playing dvds this would be sufficient and you can likely save yourself $40 on a graphics card.

for $4 more i'd probably go with this http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/2783-coolermaster-for-500-kkn3-force-500-usb30-case-without-psu.html since it has 1x140mm front or 2x120mm front fans instead of just 1x120mm like on the case you picked out. completely your choice though.

you want a quality power supply if possible. the low end corsairs while you could use them if you werent putting much demand on a system (they would work in a htpc) they also are not very reliable and likely have capxon capacitors which have been known to explode if you push them too hard. this antec vp http://www.msy.com.au/waonline/pc-components/12095-antec-vp-450p-psu.html is rated as a class 2b unit here https://community.newegg.com/eggxpert/computer_hardware/f/135081/t/45344.aspx and is only $5 more than the cheapest one available to you so would be the one i would be most willing to go with.

without a graphics card... you should be looking at about 215 +/- draw on a psu. even with a cheap low end graphics card you are not likely to go much over 300 so a 450w power supply such as i recommended is perfectly fine and has lots of headroom. you could likely make do with even a 350w which would be fine for just the cpu no gpu... and likely fine with a gpu too however with the reliability of the 350 corsair in question... i wouldnt go pushing for maximum output hence why i suggested the other brand and if need be... a 450w not a 350.

the integrated graphics on the i7 is compareable to low end video cards which is why i suggested perhaps sticking with onboard instead of spending cash for the same performance.

in total... i think you could build what you want for $48+50= $92 aud total and retain quality components.

Would I still be able to get sound through HDMI with a DVI to HDMI cable/ adapter?

Thank you to everyone who responded your advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[ssddx]

i personally use a dvi-d to hdmi cable to connect my video card up to my home theater receiver and television and i've had no issues with such cables provided they are dvi-d and not one of the cheap $5 junk cables you can buy which arent dvi-d

as far as if your pc can output sound via the dvi port...while i cannot guarantee that it allows output of sound via its dvi port be aware than even tech from 2003/2004 were capable of sound out via dvi-d so it would be silly for them not to include it on your h61 (which is actually newer than what i was using for output... since i'm still on x58 and had a 470 until yesterday)

if for some reason you are having issues you cannot fix then i would say go and get a cheap graphics card... but only if you have issues. my thoughts are that you will likely be fine with onboard integrated.