HTPC + RAID 5 + Bittorrent + DLNA Box

[contro]

Approximate Purchase Date: Tomorrow-Next Week


Budget Range: $500-$1000


System Usage from Most to Least Important: Bit Torrent , Watching Movies, Streaming to PS3


Parts Not Required:
Hard Drives for the RAID 5 I already bought 4 Western Digital 2.0TB WD20EARS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136514


Preferred Website(s) for Parts: The cheaper the better, I use newegg.com a lot but I have priceblink installed on my Firefox Web Browser to find even cheaper prices.


Country of Origin: USA


Parts Preferences: I prefer ASUS and Intel, but if there is a better brand I am willing to go with another. Would like to go with a Modular Power Supply if possible.


Overclocking: No


SLI or Crossfire: Maybe


Monitor Resolution:
I have a LG FLATRON M237WD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824005120&cm_re=M237WD-_-24-005-120-_-Product



Additional Comments: Here is my current setup:
I have a Samsung HW-C560S Home Theater System
and everything is connected to it, The LG Monitor, my PS3, and for now My Asus W3J Laptop which is acting as my current home theater PC.....

I'm not sure where to start originally I wanted to use the 4X 2TB drives in a NAS Enclosure was looking at Synology DS411j but in the end a DIY build was the most logical choice due to all the things I want to do on the computer.

They machine will be on 24/7 I am a slightly bit concerned about power when I am not going to be home. I'd like to run Windows 7 on it, Movies will be watched on the PC 1080p, flash, and maybe Blu-Ray discs but I have a PS3 for that so it's not terribly important. and uTorrent will be run on it.

Preferably I'd like sound and video to be outputted via one HDMI cable, not sure if it's possible or if it's the best choice.

I'd like to go with a HTPC case the smaller the better if it's possible, At least 5 hard drive bays if possible, I do not want to install the OS on the RAID 5 array. The quieter the better.

Well that's pretty much all the information I have. Any questions feel free to ask I'll reply as soon as I read the feedback.

 

[joelmartinez]

Let me know how those work out for you, I'm in the market for 2 120mm or 1 200mm fan and the scythe looks nice because of how quiet it is, just a bit expensive

 

[contro]

As soon as the SATA Cables, Scythes, Blu-Ray Drive come in I will update the post, I haven't forgotton about everyone's help here.

 

[contro]

Update: Final parts are scheduled to arrive here today!

 

[contro]

Built the computer everything turned on with the first try! ^__^
Installed Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit Edition.
Preformed the RAID 10 Setup
In Windows 7 right now formatting the RAID 10 array.

Will post pics when I get a free chance.

 

[Alvin Smith]

WOW! *SUCH* a STUD !!

 

[joelmartinez]

I'd like to see how everything worked out

 

[contro]

Sorry to keep you guys waiting for such a long time but I finally got around to finishing up adding the pictures to my website and well here take a look thank you all who helped with the recommendations and everything!
The build was completed on 1/20/2011

The Final Parts

The Whole Thing put Together

 

[contro]

Best answer selected by contro.

 

[Alvin Smith]

Thanks for the pointz and the "shout out" ...

... Looks great and, hope it does everything you wanted it to ... I think it WILL.

... nice page ... too.

=enjoy!=

 

[contro]

Thanks for the pointz and the "shout out" ...

... Looks great and, hope it does everything you wanted it to ... I think it WILL.

... nice page ... too.

=enjoy!=

Thanks for all you help!

 

[Alvin Smith]

Would be good to hear a report on "heat and noise" as well as any success at OC ...

... Play with it, for a few weeks, under "normal" conditions, and let us know if/what you might change, if you could ...

... I am kinda wondering how much noise those four spinners put out and how that compares to your cooling ...

... Also ... If the fans are louder than the drives ... then how much temperature overhead "is there" to allow the use of RPM limiter strategies, to reduce fan noise ...

... Just wondering, because if an HTPC is in the same room as the "viewer(S)", ... and if one has gone to the trouble of acquiring Hi-Q sound/playback components ... Then ...
... Obviously ... sound is an issue.

I am always interested to know how the "noise vs. sound issue" plays out, in REAL DENS and home theaters.

= Take some mental notes ... and dig this thread up, in a few weeks. =

 

[FirmwareGuy]

Your request subject included "DLNA Box", but I can't find any responses that address that need.

If you are (hopefully) using Linux and are somewhat adept at adding components, I suggest ushare for the DLNA server. Since the PS3 has a DLNA client, you should be set to go. At one point, the PS3 client didn't support the '.wmv' codec. I don't know what the situation is now.

You can get ushare from SourceForge at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/ushare/

You will have to rebuild with DLNA support, which is, as I remember, a '.configure' option. I don't know why DLNA support isn't the default.

For Torrent download, I suggest ctorrent, which you can get at http://sourceforge.net/projects/ctorrent/

I've not built ctorrent, so I don't know what the challenges are. It was used on my ex-company's NAS lines.

Approximate Purchase Date: Tomorrow-Next Week


Budget Range: $500-$1000


System Usage from Most to Least Important: Bit Torrent , Watching Movies, Streaming to PS3


Parts Not Required:
Hard Drives for the RAID 5 I already bought 4 Western Digital 2.0TB WD20EARS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136514


Preferred Website(s) for Parts: The cheaper the better, I use newegg.com a lot but I have priceblink installed on my Firefox Web Browser to find even cheaper prices.


Country of Origin: USA


Parts Preferences: I prefer ASUS and Intel, but if there is a better brand I am willing to go with another. Would like to go with a Modular Power Supply if possible.


Overclocking: No


SLI or Crossfire: Maybe


Monitor Resolution:
I have a LG FLATRON M237WD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824005120&cm_re=M237WD-_-24-005-120-_-Product



Additional Comments: Here is my current setup:
I have a Samsung HW-C560S Home Theater System
and everything is connected to it, The LG Monitor, my PS3, and for now My Asus W3J Laptop which is acting as my current home theater PC.....

I'm not sure where to start originally I wanted to use the 4X 2TB drives in a NAS Enclosure was looking at Synology DS411j but in the end a DIY build was the most logical choice due to all the things I want to do on the computer.

They machine will be on 24/7 I am a slightly bit concerned about power when I am not going to be home. I'd like to run Windows 7 on it, Movies will be watched on the PC 1080p, flash, and maybe Blu-Ray discs but I have a PS3 for that so it's not terribly important. and uTorrent will be run on it.

Preferably I'd like sound and video to be outputted via one HDMI cable, not sure if it's possible or if it's the best choice.

I'd like to go with a HTPC case the smaller the better if it's possible, At least 5 hard drive bays if possible, I do not want to install the OS on the RAID 5 array. The quieter the better.

Well that's pretty much all the information I have. Any questions feel free to ask I'll reply as soon as I read the feedback.