HTPC advice for MOBO, full HDMI, Case, etc

oldgraydog

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May 19, 2009
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Your list looks good to me.

If you want to save some money, then you could get a different Blu-Ray drive for a fraction of the cost of the Plextor. I personally use an LG and haven't had any problems with it. Of course, get retail if you don't plan on purchasing additional blu-ray software.

The PSU is the same one I use. Very quiet but it has very long cables. Make sure you have room for cable management in the case you've chosen or else go modular.

No TV tuner? If you don't plan to watch TV then that's OK.

I have both black and green versions of WD's 1TB drives. The green is a lot quieter while the black is faster. Just in case that is important to you...

Keep us posted on the progress of your HTPC project.
 
I'm not sold on the HTPC remote control that comes with the motherboard. I suppose it's all you need if you're not going to run Vista Media Center, but if you are, maybe select a different motherboard and this Windows Vista Certified Infrared Remote Control. Just a thought.

I have the nMediaPC 200BA case for my HTPC and while I love the case, it is a bit cramped. It looks like this one has a bit more room for hiding cables from the power supply. I did a poor job in my case and ended up burning up my DVD Drive (took over a year to do it though).

-Wolf sends
 



Exactly what model LG do you have?

TV tuner ---> I plan on using a Panasonic G10 50" as my display and will be switching from Dishnetwork satelitte to the PC, when i want to video stream, each plugged into different HDMI plugs sockets. I would like to shave the cost down to $800 if possible. Any ideas?
 



I don't plan on using the remote that comes with the Motherboard. I think they have a version without the remote. That's why I am using the Wireless RF keyboard that needs a usb dongle.

One of the reasons I went with this case was because it had more room in it. Also it had a reader in front as well as firewire I believe plus a couple of usb ports.
 
I'm using the LG GBC-H20L SATA Blu-Ray drive. They can be found for around $100 (retail). It comes with PowerDVD, but I ended up going with TotalMedia Theater instead because I didn't like PDVD.
 
This is an alternate keyboard for only $30 a $40 savings.

http://www.xoxide.com/moneual-wireless-keyboard.html?utm_content=moneual-wireless-keyboard&utm_campaign=FROOG&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=Shopping#

Here is an alternate for the CPU only $60 a $59 savings.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103298

here is an alternate Blu-Ray drive only $119 a $22 savings

http://www.amazon.com/LG-Super-Blu-ray-DVD-ROM-GGC-H20L/dp/B000ZEBOFG/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top



anymore ideas??
 
? Why no get a Kuma cpu should work fine even while doing H.264 decoding/blu-ray correct me if im wrong
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103300
pretty sure even this one will do it just fine
and probably stay a bit cooler.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103298

Change ram to
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231209
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231219
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231207
All quality ram that can run at 1.8v with those timings

also consider a quieter/ better psu for that price
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703016
the watt is a bit over kill just for that a 350w psu would do
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703018
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371006

Does look like a solid build either way i just think you can cut cost. As for case just make sure it moves air well enough but not well enough to be heard pvm fans may be iffy but do consider getting new fans if you find your case is too loud.
 

 


In my original post, I did mean to say that it looks like "your" case has more room. Checking the specs, it actually does: 1 inch more depth (which means more space behind your power supply). If they're still using the same fans as they were a couple years ago, then it should be very quiet. About all the noise I hear from my case is the GPU fan (old HD 2600 Pro).

I still recommend getting a Vista capable Media Center Remote Control or a VMC keyboard, but a standard keyboard will work, of course.

-Wolf sends
 
I would like to thank you all for your comments. The build is looking pretty good. We can probably do it for a little less than $900 and still have an awesome system. I will adjust the proposed build with the actual when I do it. Just waiting for motherboard and a few more dollars in pocket:)