Media Centre PC / tiny pc- Spec ?

[Jonathan Cave]

I need a system / device which can play .mp4 or .mkv files on my TV vwirelessley from my main PC from my router.

i.e. a small pc connected to to my TV

i think i have two options here - a small form factor budget PC or an intel compute stick.- do you guys have any other suggestions? - i have a fire tv stick in the bedroom but that wont do the job im afraid.

Please post your suggestions below, either builds or links to tech which will ellow this... thank you!

 

[CTurbo]

Having a small HTPC hooked to your tv is the best thing ever. I have over 4TB of media at my disposal at all times.

What is your budget?

 

[CTurbo]

Here's an example of a small HTPC for under $200 without the OS


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD 2650 1.45Ghz Dual-Core Processor ($25.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI AM1I Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard ($31.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Linkworld 920-01C2121U (Black) HTPC Case w/150W Power Supply ($52.27 @ Amazon)
Total: $194.08
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-12 17:34 EDT-0400

 

[Jonathan Cave]

Thanks CTurbo

I don't have a budget to be honest i'll save and buy what i need. i'm from the UK and was thinking something sub £150 but can stretch further if needed. (excluding o/s)

Would that build be good enough to play 4k media on a TV?

i've looked at this based on your build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD 3850 1.3GHz Quad-Core Processor (£23.49 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: MSI AM1I Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard (£22.80 @ Scan.co.uk)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£16.98 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 750GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£25.99 @ Aria PC)
Case: Apex MI-008 Mini ITX Tower Case w/250W Power Supply (£19.77 @ Amazon UK)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN781ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter (£7.54 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £116.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-12 23:34 BST+0100

it has 1mb extra L2 cache and 2 additional cores and a faster integraded graphics.
I don't plan to store any media on the HTPC i'd rather stream it from my main PC over wireless.

Which software is best VLC? i've never set up a HTPC therefore any advice in terms of software set up would be great.

I also would love some advice around peripherals ? windows remote? or just keyboard / mouse ? i have a wireless keyboard / mouse already i can use.

 

[jmsellars1]

I don't know whether any of these builds will manage playing 4k video to be honest. I can't find any benchmarks to check but in my experience you need at least a single core Celeron or dual core A4/A6 to play 1080P video smoothly (so it doesn't tend to work on Atoms and E-350's etc.) So it stands to reason that you would need 4 times the computing power of that considering you would be driving 4 times as many pixels. That would lead me to beleive you'd need something like an i3-4160 or an A10-7800 to run 4k video smoothly (but again, this is just a guess based on the logic above. If anyone else has a 4k monitor and can test and check the CPU usage, let us know.)

EDIT: If you're happy with 1080P and your budget is flexible I'd just get the 5350, it only costs £10 more and is 2.05Ghz so it is like 50-60% more performance for £10.

 

[Jonathan Cave]

edit: you just answered my question on the 5350 vs 3850 thanks

What about an intel build? is there any point ? any suggestions ? i do prefer intel but if AMD will do the job of playing 1080p and is cheaper i'll go AMD (Forgive me intel i have sinned!)

i am also considering swapping out the HDD for an SSD - would this improve 1080p decoding performance or would the RAM be sufficient in a windows 7 system ?

What i have so far and i welcome feedback!

AMD - Slower & smaller case which is more desirable.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor (£34.68 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: MSI AM1I Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard (£22.80 @ Scan.co.uk)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£16.98 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£19.00 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Apex MI-008 Mini ITX Tower Case w/250W Power Supply (£19.77 @ Amazon UK)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN781ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter (£7.54 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £120.77
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-13 00:28 BST+0100

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Intel - Faster? worse case

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Celeron G1820 2.7GHz Dual-Core Processor (£26.92 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£30.97 @ Scan.co.uk)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£16.98 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£19.00 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Zalman ZM-T4 MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£14.99 @ Novatech)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN781ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter (£7.54 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £116.40
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-13 00:45 BST+0100

 

[jmsellars1]

I've been running 4GB on a Windows 7 system for a while now and it is fine for gaming, movies or anything. Couldn't do them all at once but who could? 😛

You could go with any Intel CPU although I wouldn't go with an Atom personally, terrible performance in my experience. A Celeron G1820 should be fine.

If I was building a cheap HTPC I'd definitely go for a 5350 based build though, it is perfect. The whole platform is so cheap (£22 motherboard!) and it is only 25W so stays very cool even in small cases.

 

[Jonathan Cave]

I've just edited my previous post to include an intel/amd build - funnily enough i chose the same CPU for intel.

I think i'll go for the AMD build based on lower thermals and the case is better looking than a PC case.

Would a HDD with 32MB Cache be better than a 8MB Cache for streaming, or will it just use the RAM ?

In terms of setting up VLC to stream over my home network, would a 5GB mp4 / mkv file stream ok via wifi? - i really don't want to use cables in this day and age.

 

[jmsellars1]

Assuming you're on 150Mb/s wireless N, that's around 18MB/s maximum (call it 12MB/s to take bad signal into account). Assuming the 5GB file is a 100 minute film, that's 50MB/minute. So that's less than 1MB/s.

In theory it should be fine so long as your signal is strong and relatively stable. It would be literally 6 times faster with a gigabit cable though.

There really isn't that much of a performance difference between those CPU's, maybe 10% difference or so according to Passmark. That's only a a very rough guide I know but the AMD looks like the winner to me.

EDIT: I'm not 100% sure but I think the cache/speed probably would make a difference, not a huge one though. Even a 2.5'' 5400rpm drive should hit 80MB/s or so.

 

[Jonathan Cave]

according to this : http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_athlon_5350_apu_and_am1_platform_review,6.html

4k / UHD is achievable if it is DXVA encoded.

 

[CTurbo]

I would go a different route if you want 4k video. The Intel Celeron's igpu won't even handle 1080p smoothly. The AMD has a clear advantage there.

This is a little more expensive, but is a full fledged PC with a lot of upgrade potential if necessary.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD A4-5300 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor (£24.65 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI A88XI AC Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard (£68.34 @ Scan.co.uk)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£25.07 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 250GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£19.00 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case (£43.24 @ Scan.co.uk)
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (£32.31 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £212.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-13 03:44 BST+0100

 

[Jonathan Cave]

Hi Turbo,

I notice you have recommended dual core CPU's - Is there little/no benefit of using quad core for HTPC's ?

What software do you use for your HTPC ? - would love to know what your setup looks like from when you boot her up.

Also i have been looking at the Intel Compute Stick - This would be so much better size wise as it comes with Windows 8.1. Will this be able to stream HD 1080p video from my main PC wirelessley ?

IF so i may consider getting the Intel Compute Stick

 

[jmsellars1]

The Celeron will be fine for 1080P, just disable hardware acceleration and it won't use the iGPU. Just the CPU on its own should manage it fine. I've got a Pentium G620 that seems to manage it.

I don't really have any experience in the software side of HTPC's or compute sticks though unfortunately. Had a bit of a play with XBMC and Steam Big Picture but not really properly used them. Windows Media Center is another option but again I haven't really used it.

 

[CTurbo]

I think the intel Compute Stick would probably work, but what's the fun in that?


You could probably do it with the Raspberry pi too.

 

[Jonathan Cave]

Thank you both for you invaluable input.

The 'fun' is when my wife doesn't bend my ear all day about having a computer box sitting underneath the TV which will be mounted on the wall HA!

It's the same price as a HTPC and plugs directly into the back of the TV - no wires up to the TV. ... decisions decisions!

 

[jmsellars1]

In that case I'd either get a PC with a small, sexy case that she won't mind or just get a compute stick. So the power and flexibility of a proper PC or the size and cost effectiveness of a compute stick I suppose.

I really like the Raijintek Metis case, probably not as small as you're hoping but looks really cool.

http://www.cclonline.com/product/177066/0R200011/Cases/Raijintek-Metis-Black-Mini-ITX-Case/CAS1907/?siteID=8BacdVP0GFs-0NbjC1G__U2_Qsygcfnwtg

 

[Jonathan Cave]

It's a nice case, reminds me of the define r4 series with the brushed metal front.

The reality is its a case in the living room we are trying to avoid hence the curiosity in the intel compute stick as its discrete.

 

[jmsellars1]

Ahh fair enough, just thought it was more of a case of not liking the look of it rather than not having one at all.