Guide to Building a HD HTPC

[renethx]

Thanks for that reply, renethx! I don't necessarily need post processing would you have a suggestion for a processor/mb combination that has very low power consumption/heat development and is still good enough for BluRay, 1080p mkv? How much does the 780G/Phenom 8450 combination consume?
Is it possible to boot the system via a remote control or what would I need for that?
Athlon X2 4850e is recommended. Power consumption of the total system consisting of CPU, mb, two sticks of memory, a HDD and a BD drive in Antec NSK2480 with two 120mm fans:

- Athlon X2 4850e: 46W at idle, 80W at BD playback
- Phenom X3 4850: 72W at idle, 94W at BD playback

To be able to boot via a remote, you will need a built-in IR receiver (as with Antec Fusion 430). But you can still wake up the system from S3 standby via a remote.

[RichTJ99]

Renethx,

With money not being an issue for the graphics (out of these two cards):

Giga 8600 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125070)

ASUS EN8600GT SILENT/HTDP/512M (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121098)


Which will fit & run better/cooler in the 430(or are those two items not compatible)?

My goal being quiet, cool (as much as possible), web/email/dvd with a slight possiblity of gaming (not likely though)

Thanks,
Rich

[Skylinestar]

i'm planning to build an HTPC.
after reading many articles about PCM and bitstream, i'm still confused about it.
i have a few MKV files with AAC 5.1 audio. in a conventional typical setup, AC3filter can output the audio in AC3 format, send the signal through SPDIF, and let the AVR decode the audio happily.
what if i'm using a motherboard that features LPCM? is the signal flow the same, but through HDMI port? or;
does the pc decode the AAC 5.1 audio, sending the audio stream, through HDMI, to the AVR, and let the AVR amplify the audio?
do i need a special AVR that can support LPCM? or just a typical AVR with HDMI?

[sloth0815]

Athlon X2 4850e is recommended. Power consumption of the total system consisting of CPU, mb, two sticks of memory, a HDD and a BD drive in Antec NSK2480 with two 120mm fans:

- Athlon X2 4850e: 46W at idle, 80W at BD playback
- Phenom X3 4850: 72W at idle, 94W at BD playback

So I guess I'll go with the Athlon. Is the Gigabyte still the recommended mainboard for HD3200 since there are now several mATX boards available? Would the Scythe Shuriken fit on the board?

[renethx]

Renethx,

With money not being an issue for the graphics (out of these two cards):

Giga 8600 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125070)

ASUS EN8600GT SILENT/HTDP/512M (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121098)


Which will fit & run better/cooler in the 430(or are those two items not compatible)?

My goal being quiet, cool (as much as possible), web/email/dvd with a slight possiblity of gaming (not likely though)

Thanks,
Rich
Either one is OK.

BTW GeForce 9500 GT (replacing 8600 GT) is released tomorrow. There should not be much difference but you may want to wait for reviews.

[renethx]

i'm planning to build an HTPC.
after reading many articles about PCM and bitstream, i'm still confused about it.
i have a few MKV files with AAC 5.1 audio. in a conventional typical setup, AC3filter can output the audio in AC3 format, send the signal through SPDIF, and let the AVR decode the audio happily.
what if i'm using a motherboard that features LPCM? is the signal flow the same, but through HDMI port? or;
does the pc decode the AAC 5.1 audio, sending the audio stream, through HDMI, to the AVR, and let the AVR amplify the audio?
do i need a special AVR that can support LPCM? or just a typical AVR with HDMI?
AAC is decoded into LPCM by an AAC decoder, which is then sent to HDMI, then to AVR (preamp, amp), to speaker.

Any AVR supporting HDMI (not HDMI pass-through) can do this.

[renethx]

Is the Gigabyte still the recommended mainboard for HD3200 since there are now several mATX boards available? Would the Scythe Shuriken fit on the board?
Yes.

Yes, Shuriken fits the board.

[HT Slider]

Post-processing is very good with Phenom and your choice is right. :) Find a good CPU cooler is the hardest part. The case height is only 94 mm.

- Zalman CNPS8700 LED (H67 mm) is perhaps barely OK.
- SilverStone NT07-AM2 (H36.5 mm) is designed for 65W, but perhaps OK for 8450.
- Dynatron A48G: too loud unless you change the fan.

I tried some of the lower profile CPU coolers, including the 8700 and found them relatively loud (the 8700 wasn't terrible, but I could hear it easily).

I then tried a ThermalRight Ultra 120 combined with an expensive 120mm Noctua fan, but discovered I couldn't install the cover.... (it was absolutely silent though and kept the CPU very cool)

Eventually I discovered that the Zalman 9500 AT (Intel PWM) was a perfect fit. I did have to raise the cover by about 1mm to make sure it didn't resonate on the cooler, but even with the Intel Q6600, the CPU cooler is very quiet.

The only time I can hear the cooler is when all 4 cores are running at 100% for extended periods of time. Even then, if the room temperature is in the 70°F range or less I can hardly hear it since upgrading to the HIS 3870 IceQ video card (that blows heat directly outside the case and has been totally silent). With the ATI 2600XT and heat staying inside the case, the Zalman 9500AT was audible when the CPU was really being taxed though. These new IceQ coolers work very well and are very quiet (some of the older ones had slightly out of balance fans).

One significant improvement to our HTPC's noise was when I installed an expensive Noctua 80mm case fan (http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=9&lng=en). It is so quiet (expecially as a function of the amount of air it flows) that I found I can crank the speed up quite a bit (using a fanmate; even at full speed it is very quiet) and this cools the case well enough that the louder fans slow right down. I highly recommend Noctua fans. They do cost quite a bit, but blow incredibly well and are incredibly quiet.

The loudest parts by far in my main HTPC are the Seagate hard drives.

[sloth0815]

I tried some of the lower profile CPU coolers, including the 8700 and found them relatively loud (the 8700 wasn't terrible, but I could hear it easily).

Did you try the Shuriken? I have read it is supposed to be very quiet. The WD Caviar Green should be quiet but since the case I am interested in (Lian-Li PC-C36) is not out yet I am a bit worried about the PSU that comes with it but I could still exchange it later.
Does anybody here add WiFi to their HTPCs?

Thanks,
Jonas

[Skylinestar]

AAC is decoded into LPCM by an AAC decoder, which is then sent to HDMI, then to AVR (preamp, amp), to speaker.

Any AVR supporting HDMI (not HDMI pass-through) can do this.

as far as i know, all AVRs with HDMI have the capability of HDMI pass-through.
i'm looking for a budget AVR, targetting the yamaha RX-V363. it can accept this LPCM signal from the pc's HDMI and deliver the sound to the speakers, isn't it?

[gunbunnysoulja]

as far as i know, all AVRs with HDMI have the capability of HDMI pass-through.
i'm looking for a budget AVR, targetting the yamaha RX-V363. it can accept this LPCM signal from the pc's HDMI and deliver the sound to the speakers, isn't it?

No, the av receiver needs a repeater, not switcher/pass through.

Without repeater, you will not get MPCM audio. The receiver needs to be able to accept MPCM.

You need to step up to the 463 for this.

[Skylinestar]

No, the av receiver needs a repeater, not switcher/pass through.

Without repeater, you will not get MPCM audio. The receiver needs to be able to accept MPCM.

You need to step up to the 463 for this.

ok. now i understand.
quote from yamaha 463 brochure:
HD Audio LPCM 5.1-channel reception (up to 96kHz)
any alternative from onkyo or denon that support multi channel LPCM at a low price?
does multi channel LPCM work for pc games?

[gunbunnysoulja]

ok. now i understand.
quote from yamaha 463 brochure:

any alternative from onkyo or denon that support multi channel LPCM at a low price?
does multi channel LPCM work for pc games?

My #1 inexpensive recommendation always goes to the Marantz 4001 found here (http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/MARSR4001/MARANTZ/SR4001-80w-x-7ch-Surround-Receiver-w/HDMI/1.html).

If you want new, it's $50 more.

Further recommendations can be found over in the Amps, Receivers and Processors section.

[tyfoon]

I have just upgraded from a HDMI 1.1 TV (a philips 37PF9731) to a HDMI 1.3 TV (Philips 42PFL9703) and with this change my audio part of my HDMI from my HTPC is not working anymore. (Spdif to receiver still working OK, checked cable, checked port etc.)

My current setup is a P5B-E Plus MB with a MSI 7600GT HDMI graphic card. Audio is passthrough via a coaxil SPDIF connector to the videocard. I also have the MB Toslink connector conneced to my DTS/DD receiver.

I have tested all permutations to find the issue but the only reason I can think os why this suddenly stopped working is propaly related to the fact the the new TV has HDMI 1.3 and/or is more critical on the audio part of the HDMI signal.

Does this make sence? Any suggestions in how I can solve this problem e.g. is changing my somehwat outdated videocard with e.g. a 4850 a solution that will solve the problem?

[renethx]

I have just upgraded from a HDMI 1.1 TV (a philips 37PF9731) to a HDMI 1.3 TV (Philips 42PFL9703) and with this change my audio part of my HDMI from my HTPC is not working anymore. (Spdif to receiver still working OK, checked cable, checked port etc.)

My current setup is a P5B-E Plus MB with a MSI 7600GT HDMI graphic card. Audio is passthrough via a coaxil SPDIF connector to the videocard. I also have the MB Toslink connector conneced to my DTS/DD receiver.

I have tested all permutations to find the issue but the only reason I can think os why this suddenly stopped working is propaly related to the fact the the new TV has HDMI 1.3 and/or is more critical on the audio part of the HDMI signal.

Does this make sence? Any suggestions in how I can solve this problem e.g. is changing my somehwat outdated videocard with e.g. a 4850 a solution that will solve the problem?
I would try to use the DVI port (with a generic DVI-HDMI adapter), reinstall/update the graphics driver/audio driver, and/or clean reinstall OS.

[tyfoon]

@renethx; already tried this (by the way configuraion is still working on the original TV I was using) an it looks like a hardware/compatibility problem. The SPDIF connected to the receiver directly also works.

Do you know if there was a change in how the audio was 'injected' into the HDMI stream bij the first generation HDMI graphics card (like the one I have now MSI VGA GeForce NX7600GT Diamond Plus 256 MB ) versus the newer versions like a 8600GT? Or can it be that the SPDIF from the asus P5B-e Plus is not compatible with the correct HDMI standard?

I'm happy to buy new hardware, I just want to be sure it works...

[renethx]

I don't think there was a change.

[tyfoon]

I don't think there was a change.


Is there any other hardware related reason why this does not work anymore? could it be related to HDCP?

I'm really strugling with this and it is costing me heaps of time to find a solution!

[renethx]

Is there any other hardware related reason why this does not work anymore? could it be related to HDCP?

I'm really strugling with this and it is costing me heaps of time to find a solution!
HDCP matters only when you play premium contents (the player would refuse to play the content if HDCP is broken). Even if HDCP is broken, you should be able to get audio through HDMI for other tasks.

Try ASUS EN8400GS SILENT/HTP/512M GeForce 8400 GS card (~$30 after rebate). It's cheap and perfect for playing back BD movies. The card has an S/PDIF connector and you can use a generic DVI-HDMI dongle to get S/PDIF through HDMI. I used the card for a while and it worked fine.

[romanTotale]

First, thanks to all for the info in this thread.

I'm hoping to build a cheap and low power media server to stream to my ps3. I will keep it in a closet, and since hd pvr isn't really available now (right??), I probably won't worry about pvr at this point - so I'd like to just serve files. I don't need 14 TB of space to start, so I'd like to start small but keep expansion options open. So, based on the server build recommend in thread 2524, I was thinking of starting with the following:

Cooler Master Centurion 590 RC-590-KKN1-GP
ASUS M3N78 PRO AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8300
CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W
A-DATA 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
AMD Athlon X2 4050e 2.1GHz Socket AM2 45W

First - I was thinking of starting with only 3 to 5 drives and just using the mobo Raid 5 then adding the HBA and drive expansions when I need it. Is this a really bad idea? Would a pata drive (which I have) be the boot drive and the sata drives form the raid?

Second - I was thinking of using the 45w CPU above instead of the 65W Athlon 64 X2 4400+, is this also a bad idea?

Finally - I already have a 500gb Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 sata, would it be best to add identical drives, or just the same capacity drives? I don't care about noise, but I do care about power consumption

Thanks in advance for the suggestions, I've been having trouble finding recommendations for a small sized, 4-5 driver raid 5 media server online.

[renethx]

First, thanks to all for the info in this thread.

I'm hoping to build a cheap and low power media server to stream to my ps3. I will keep it in a closet, and since hd pvr isn't really available now (right??), I probably won't worry about pvr at this point - so I'd like to just serve files. I don't need 14 TB of space to start, so I'd like to start small but keep expansion options open. So, based on the server build recommend in thread 2524, I was thinking of starting with the following:

Cooler Master Centurion 590 RC-590-KKN1-GP
ASUS M3N78 PRO AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8300
CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W
A-DATA 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
AMD Athlon X2 4050e 2.1GHz Socket AM2 45W

First - I was thinking of starting with only 3 to 5 drives and just using the mobo Raid 5 then adding the HBA and drive expansions when I need it. Is this a really bad idea? Would a pata drive (which I have) be the boot drive and the sata drives form the raid?

Second - I was thinking of using the 45w CPU above instead of the 65W Athlon 64 X2 4400+, is this also a bad idea?

Finally - I already have a 500gb Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 sata, would it be best to add identical drives, or just the same capacity drives? I don't care about noise, but I do care about power consumption

Thanks in advance for the suggestions, I've been having trouble finding recommendations for a small sized, 4-5 driver raid 5 media server online.
Using mb RAID 5 is a bad idea because it supports only up to 6 drives. Use a hardware RAID controller card from the beginning. But you'd better think about pros and cons of RAID 5. Tom's Hardware article Can Heterogeneous RAID Arrays Work? : Homogenous Vs. Heterogeneous RAID (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/HETEROGENEOUS-RAID-ARRAYS-WORK,1789.html) is interesting. There are several other choices: single drives, JBOD, unRAID (M3N78 PRO does not support it right now; go with AMD chipsets), FlexRAID.

45W CPU is no problem.

If you use a 500GB drive in a RAID array, all the other drives are limited to 500GB. That's one of the cons of RAID. You can mix drives of various size in unRAID and FlexRAID. If you buy new drives for storage, go with 1TB, in particular, Western Digital GP. As the number of drives increases, the difference of power consumption between GP and the other drives becomes large.

Maybe RAID specialists want to comment. :)

[RockChok]

I am focusing on the storage portion of the guide and thinking small. I figure with storage becoming cheaper I won't need a lot of drives. This is what I am thinking of building

Motherboad - GA-MA78GM-S2H
Memory - G.Skill 1GB DDR2 1066
Storage enclosure - Athena Power BP-SATA2131B 2 x 5.25
Case - APEVIA X-QPACK-NW-BK/420
CPU - AMD Athlon X2 4800+ 2.5GHz Brisbane
Drives(2) - Samsung Spinpoint S1 HD502lJ

Basically going for a backup solution with the ability to store pics, movies, tv shows, and music. This will feed a VMC which will then stream out up to 5 extenders not necessarily at one time though. Are there any mistakes I am making or limiting myself in some way by focusing on going small?

Thanks for any feedback

[RichTJ99]

Hi,

A quick question about the Fusion 430. It says it has a built in IR port. I cant seem to find it & my WMC remote doesnt work with it (when I plug in my IR USB it does). Where does the IR get its power from? My VFD is working & I figured it was all part of the same thing.

I really love this case btw!

Thanks,
Rich

[romanTotale]

renethx,

Thank you for the reply and suggestions. I currently have very little video data, and about 250GB of music, so I'd like to start small (and cheap) with the option to expand. I'm not intending to store any critical data on this server, so I'd just like to minimize inconvenience when a drive dies. I'd also like to keep the power consumption as low as possible so I can set it in a closet and forget it. UnRaid looks good except that I'd like to run XP or a windows server - I use TVersity (or I'll use something similar to stream to my PS3) & I probably like to add other server apps (maybe squeezecenter and tivoserver). FlexRaid looks very promising, if a bit young. Thanks again for highlighting these options.

[urvi]

I currently have a very budget HTPC but would like to start upgrading it. I want to start with a new mobo and go from there. I want to use all the current hardware i have (less ram) if possible. I have a wd raptor 150gb as the boot drive, a seagate 7200.11 750gb media drive. The GCC is a Sapphire HD3650 512 gddr2 (should be here soon). The CPU is a P4 3.2. The power supply is the one that comes with the microfly case, it a 400watt i belive. So my question is which mATX should a go with? I dont OC anything (don't have a clue how to but wouldn't mind learning), and the only game it might see would be Flight Simulator. Im going to use component to a Sony 60" but will switch it to HDMI when i get my new reciever (out of HDMI inputs). There's just so many boards out there that i can't tell which are good and which are bad. Thanks for any help guys.

[renethx]

I am focusing on the storage portion of the guide and thinking small. I figure with storage becoming cheaper I won't need a lot of drives. This is what I am thinking of building

Motherboad - GA-MA78GM-S2H
Memory - G.Skill 1GB DDR2 1066
Storage enclosure - Athena Power BP-SATA2131B 2 x 5.25
Case - APEVIA X-QPACK-NW-BK/420
CPU - AMD Athlon X2 4800+ 2.5GHz Brisbane
Drives(2) - Samsung Spinpoint S1 HD502lJ

Basically going for a backup solution with the ability to store pics, movies, tv shows, and music. This will feed a VMC which will then stream out up to 5 extenders not necessarily at one time though. Are there any mistakes I am making or limiting myself in some way by focusing on going small?

Thanks for any feedback
It depends on you how much storage space is necessary. The max capacity of a drive in near future is 1.5TB.

Athlon X2 supports up to DDR2-800. You can use DDR2-1066 and the price difference is not large, though.

[renethx]

Hi,

A quick question about the Fusion 430. It says it has a built in IR port. I cant seem to find it & my WMC remote doesnt work with it (when I plug in my IR USB it does). Where does the IR get its power from? My VFD is working & I figured it was all part of the same thing.
IR port itself is somewhere in VFD. As you see in the manual, you have to do three things:

- Connect the 3-pin pwer connector from VFD to the 3-pin connector from the PSU.
- Connect the USB connector from VFD to a USB connector of the mb.
- Install software.

[renethx]

I currently have a very budget HTPC but would like to start upgrading it. I want to start with a new mobo and go from there. I want to use all the current hardware i have (less ram) if possible. I have a wd raptor 150gb as the boot drive, a seagate 7200.11 750gb media drive. The GCC is a Sapphire HD3650 512 gddr2 (should be here soon). The CPU is a P4 3.2. The power supply is the one that comes with the microfly case, it a 400watt i belive. So my question is which mATX should a go with? I dont OC anything (don't have a clue how to but wouldn't mind learning), and the only game it might see would be Flight Simulator. Im going to use component to a Sony 60" but will switch it to HDMI when i get my new reciever (out of HDMI inputs). There's just so many boards out there that i can't tell which are good and which are bad. Thanks for any help guys.
GIGABYTE GA-EG31M-S2
GIGABYTE GA-G31M-S2L
ASUS P5K-VM

[RichTJ99]

IR port itself is somewhere in VFD. As you see in the manual, you have to do three things:

- Connect the 3-pin pwer connector from VFD to the 3-pin connector from the PSU.
- Connect the USB connector from VFD to a USB connector of the mb.
- Install software.

Renethanx,

I have the VFD USB cable tied into the mobo & the VFD display works & displays information about my PC (which says to me that it is installed properly). The IR doesnt seem to work. There is nothing missing in the device manager, the 3 power pin is plugged into the power from the ATX, & the software is installed but I dont see the IR & my MCE remote isnt doing anything when I point at the unit. The IR should be on the front right?

On a side note (as this could be related) as these cables arent plugged in:

http://www.antec.com/us/support_roductInfo_FAQ.php?Qnumber=12&FAQno=24

I still dont get it, do the two wires get plugged into my Mobo, or into somewhere on the case itself? Do those wires get plugged into the VFD somewhere (if so, why didnt antec do that themselves)?

Thanks,
Rich

[renethx]

Renethanx,

I have the VFD USB cable tied into the mobo & the VFD display works & displays information about my PC (which says to me that it is installed properly). The IR doesnt seem to work. There is nothing missing in the device manager, the 3 power pin is plugged into the power from the ATX, & the software is installed but I dont see the IR & my MCE remote isnt doing anything when I point at the unit. The IR should be on the front right?

On a side note (as this could be related) as these cables arent plugged in:

http://www.antec.com/us/support_roductInfo_FAQ.php?Qnumber=12&FAQno=24

I still dont get it, do the two wires get plugged into my Mobo, or into somewhere on the case itself? Do those wires get plugged into the VFD somewhere (if so, why didnt antec do that themselves)?
This problem? (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=11898865#post11898865) The thread is good for troubleshooting.

IIRC the two wires from the case power buttun go to the the two pins PWN & GND on the VFD module and the two wires (red and black) from the module go to the mb's power switch pins. Search with key word "wires" in the thread.

[SteveV]

First, thanks to renethx and to everyone that has contributed to this excellent thread. It's been 3+ years since my last HTPC build and this thread was a great place to catch up with the hardware changes/advances that have occured over that period.

I just finished up building a new box based on the following hardware:

ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Mobo
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
ASUS EN9600GT/HTDI/512M GeForce 9600 GT 512MB
A-DATA 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 650W ATX12V Power Supply
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA HDD
ZEROtherm BTF90 with manual fan controller CPU Cooler
Moneual MonCaso 932B HTPC Home Theater PC Case

Overall, I'm happy with performance, low heat, and low noise. One area that has been very disappointing has been the 9600GT. It was frustrating to find that PowerStrip was no longer usable with NVidia products. My bad of course--I should have done a little more reading before commiting to the 9600. It would have been helpful, however, if the hardware recommendations included a footnote indicating that PowerStrip with NVidia is a no go.

I'm using an older Mits WS-65909 RPHDTV so custom rez and timings are a must. After countless hours of screwing with the NVidia Control Panel's custom resolutions I was able to get it to work but the level of "tweakability" stinks. Also, I think that the picture is much softer than with my old 6600GT based HTPC--nothing to back this up really, just my impression.


The last straw was attempting to calibrate my TheaterTek video settings only to discover TheaterTek's video adjustment don't work with the 9600. I'm not sure where the problem lays but suspect it's another NVidia driver issue.


Anyway, I'm thinking of taking a 15% restocking hit at Newegg and returning the 9600 for a comparable ATI card. Can anyone suggest a model that works well with PS, low fan noise, etc?

Thanks again -- Steve

[excise]

Well, I've been lurking in this thread for a while and I think it's time to put one of these together for myself. I'm a first time builder so I thought I would run my BOM by you all for some assurance before I commit. I know the case is expensive compared to the rest of the system but the look of the case is important for me and I don't want to wait for the, better IMO, looking Omaura TF8 to be readily available and consistent in quality.

Case: OrigenAE S10V
Optical Drive: UJ-85J-B Slim Slot Load DVD+-RW
IR Module: OrigenAE IR221 Vista IR Module Kit for S10V, S14V, S16V, S21T
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX
Processor: AMD Athlon X2 4850e 2.5GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core
CPU Cooler: Silverstone NT07-AM2
RAM: mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Power Supply: Antec earthwatts EA380 380W ATX12V v2.0
System Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB
Data Drive: Western Digital Caviar GP WD10EACS 1TB 5400 to 7200 RPM

I plan on running vista media center, and I will probably get a tuner in the not too distant future. I will probably also upgrade to a BD player when I get a TV to show off the difference, but that will be a while. If you see any issues or anything I have forgotten about, please point them out. And lastly, thanks to everyone who keeps this thread so interesting and full of great info, the help is very much appreciated.

[Smitty2k1]

Well, I've been lurking in this thread for a while and I think it's time to put one of these together for myself. I'm a first time builder so I thought I would run my BOM by you all for some assurance before I commit. I know the case is expensive compared to the rest of the system but the look of the case is important for me and I don't want to wait for the, better IMO, looking Omaura TF8 to be readily available and consistent in quality.

Case: OrigenAE S10V
Optical Drive: UJ-85J-B Slim Slot Load DVD+-RW
IR Module: OrigenAE IR221 Vista IR Module Kit for S10V, S14V, S16V, S21T
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX
Processor: AMD Athlon X2 4850e 2.5GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core
CPU Cooler: Silverstone NT07-AM2
RAM: mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Power Supply: Antec earthwatts EA380 380W ATX12V v2.0
System Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB
Data Drive: Western Digital Caviar GP WD10EACS 1TB 5400 to 7200 RPM

I plan on running vista media center, and I will probably get a tuner in the not too distant future. I will probably also upgrade to a BD player when I get a TV to show off the difference, but that will be a while. If you see any issues or anything I have forgotten about, please point them out. And lastly, thanks to everyone who keeps this thread so interesting and full of great info, the help is very much appreciated.

Build away!

[jim tressler]

I have had mixed results - I have an amd athlon 64 3000 paired with an ati 3450 and on some "ripped" 1080p movies from either a bd source or hd dvd source - the mkv file is sometimes hardware accelerated if I use the mpc codec from mpc-hc (media player classic home cinema - http://sourceforge.net/projects/mpc-hc/) with either media player classic or windows media player 11. The cpu load is around 10% and it plays beautiflly! Other ripped 1080p files get chopped to hell and the cpu is pegged at 100% - If I try to use a front end such as media portal - there is no hardware acceleration at all.. very strange.

720p material allways plays fine - even without hardware acceleration the cpu never gets above 60%

All of that being said - all of the 1080p stuff plays fine on my core2 duo e7200 with nvidia 6800 - cpu load never goes above 30% and thats with no acceleration.

Reading in other foruns i saw some people mentioning that .mkv files doesnt support hardware aceleration, is that true?

If yes, what people do to run such videos?

[tyfoon]

On the MSI site I noticed the introduction of the silent MSI N9500GT (passive).

On the site:
http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=proddesc&prod_no=1534&maincat_no=130&cat2_no=136# (http://http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=proddesc&prod_no=1534&maincat_no=130&cat2_no=136#)

It also states it supports 'multichannel PCM' only via 'HD Audio' (and not SPDIF).

Are there external audiocards (so not motherboards) that deliver multi channel audio to inject into the stream?

[renethx]

On the MSI site I noticed the introduction of the silent MSI N9500GT (passive).

On the site:
http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=proddesc&prod_no=1534&maincat_no=130&cat2_no=136#

It also states it supports 'multichannel PCM' only via 'HD Audio' (and not SPDIF).

Are there external audiocards (so not motherboards) that deliver multi channel audio to inject into the stream?
Specs of GeForce 9500 GT (http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_9500gt.html) in the NVIDIA site.

Audio Input for HDMI: SPDIF

That means there is no way to get multichannel LPCM over GeForce 9500 GT HDMI.

Maybe the MSI card has an HD Audio Link header? If this is true, you could get multichannel LPCM with several motherboards with an 16-pin HD audio link header. For example,

GIGABYTE GA-G33-DS3R
GIGABYTE GA-G33M-DS2R
GIGABYTE GA-G33M-S2
GIGABYTE GA-G33M-S2L
GIGABYTE GA-G33M-S2H
Intel DG33TL
Intel DP35DP
ASUS P5E
ASUS P5E3
ASUS P5E3 Deluxe
ASUS P5E3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP@n
ASUS Maximus Formula
ASUS Maximus Formula (Special Edition)
ASUS Maximus Extreme
Intel DX38BT
ASUS P5E Deluxe
ASUS Rampage Formula
Intel DG45ID (Icedale)

ASUS P5N32-SLI Premium/WiFi-AP
ASUS P5N32-E SLI
ASUS P5N32-E SLI Plus
ASUS Striker Extreme
ASUS Striker

[tyfoon]

Maybe the MSI card has an HD Audio Link header? If this is true, you could get multichannel LPCM with several motherboards with an 16-pin HD audio link header. For example,


This card has just been released one of these last days. p.s. made a type in the previous link. should be: http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=proddesc&prod_no=1532&maincat_no=130&cat2_no=136

On the site it mentiones:

Support for audio input via SPDIF and HD-Audio
Support for stereo as well as multi-channel LPCM audio streams (multi-channel is only supported via HD-Audio)
Support for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus*, DTS, WMAPro, MPEG*, audio formats.
* The GPU supports these formats, but requires OS support to output audio in these formats.


Are there besides the motherboards , AUDIOCARDS only that support multi-channel LPCM?

I don't like to change my motherboard (whick is the P5B-E Plus, which unfortuantely is not on your list).

[renethx]

Are there besides the motherboards , AUDIOCARDS only that support multi-channel LPCM?
AFAIK, no.

If you don't like to change the mb, then you'd better wait for ASUS Xonar HDAV1.3 or Auzentech X-Fi HomeTheater 7.1. These cards do exactly the reverse way: grab video from a graphics card, mux it with audio and output them through HDMI.

[SteveV]

I'm returning my ASUS EN9600GT/HTDI/512M GeForce 9600 GT to NewEgg. I have an older Mits RPHDTV not being able to use PowerStrip to fine tune rez's with NVidia products is a problem.

So I'm looking for an ATI card with comparable performance to the 9600. I'm looking at either the HD 3650 or the HD 3850. Can someone confirm that PowerStrip works properly with these models.

Are there other options I should be looking at?

[prosper0]

awesome thread, thanks for all the hard work into compiling the info

[jim tressler]

this is the most comprehensive thread on anything I have seen in a while.. kudos to all the participate in it.. one problem is that there is so much info your head spins.. I was able to free up some money in the budget and was originally going to upgrade the TV - but after some research and viewing of the new crop of dlp and lcd and I have decided to stick with the crt rp :) - after we put the money back in the budget -I have a few hundred bucks to play with.. so what better way to squander the cash then upgrading the htpc :) - Case, PSU, RAM, Hard Drives, and video cards are all still good to go - so that leaves the cpu and mobo.. right now I have an athlon 64 socket 939 1.8ghz with a nforce3 or 4 mobo - anyway it chokes on some 1080p content.

How about this combo - Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L mobo and the Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 - total price $226 - can anyone think of a better combo / bang for the buck? My current e7200 / asus pk5 Pro that I have for the desktop in the office seems to do quite well with 1080p stuff - hence the basis for my decision..

thanks

jim

[renethx]

How about this combo - Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L mobo and the Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 - total price $226 - can anyone think of a better combo / bang for the buck?
You can save $13 by going with GA-EP43-DS3L. The only difference between them is P45 vs P43 (obvious :)); more precisely, P45 officially supports FSB 1600MHz and DDR2-1200 which you will never use, while P43 supports them in overclocking mode. There is no other difference as GA-EP45-DS3L does not have a second PCIe x16 slot.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Does anyone have a recommendation of an inexpensive amplified antenna for ATSC OTA HD content?

I just picked up the AVerMedia AVerTV Combo PCIe.

I don't get anything with the included antenna, as I'm about 80 miles from Boston... Which was expected. Analog cable from comcast works fine.

Also, if I want QAM unencrypted, am I also able to use regular analog cable channels via the same coax, and also ATSC OTA via an antenna?

I believe I read I lose functinality of one of these when bringing QAM into the picture...

[SteveV]

Does anyone have a recommendation of an inexpensive amplified antenna for ATSC OTA HD content?

Have you tried http://www.antennaweb.org. The website allows you to enter your address and other geographical info and returns a list of recommeded antennas.

[carrera1]

Well, I've been lurking in this thread for a while and I think it's time to put one of these together for myself. I'm a first time builder so I thought I would run my BOM by you all for some assurance before I commit. I know the case is expensive compared to the rest of the system but the look of the case is important for me and I don't want to wait for the, better IMO, looking Omaura TF8 to be readily available and consistent in quality.

Case: OrigenAE S10V
Optical Drive: UJ-85J-B Slim Slot Load DVD+-RW
IR Module: OrigenAE IR221 Vista IR Module Kit for S10V, S14V, S16V, S21T
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX
Processor: AMD Athlon X2 4850e 2.5GHz Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core
CPU Cooler: Silverstone NT07-AM2
RAM: mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Power Supply: Antec earthwatts EA380 380W ATX12V v2.0
System Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB
Data Drive: Western Digital Caviar GP WD10EACS 1TB 5400 to 7200 RPM

I plan on running vista media center, and I will probably get a tuner in the not too distant future. I will probably also upgrade to a BD player when I get a TV to show off the difference, but that will be a while. If you see any issues or anything I have forgotten about, please point them out. And lastly, thanks to everyone who keeps this thread so interesting and full of great info, the help is very much appreciated.


You made a great choice going with the Origen case. I have built systems with the S10 and TF8 and the S10 is supperior in quality and a little more generous with space. I also used the IR221 module but would probably not order it again since the built in IR was sufficient (unless you want a blaster). Good Luck!

[audionewer]

i want to know if i can encode with this config:

Asus P5Q (P45) motherboard
e8400
ati 3450
4 GB of Ram (DDR-800)

i want to know if this system enough to encode or not? do i need any change on this system? can this system do PP (post-processing) or not?

[etcarroll]

Good grief - Winchendon?

I haven't been there in years. There will be nothing inexpensive about it, you are going to need a BIG UHF antenna on the roof, some altitude and a rotator and preamplifier.

You should be able to get the HDTV material on UHF by using a Channel Master 4228 and a Channel Master Titan 7777 mounted on the roof and using a rotator.

Gene

Does anyone have a recommendation of an inexpensive amplified antenna for ATSC OTA HD content?

I just picked up the AVerMedia AVerTV Combo PCIe.

I don't get anything with the included antenna, as I'm about 80 miles from Boston... Which was expected. Analog cable from comcast works fine.

Also, if I want QAM unencrypted, am I also able to use regular analog cable channels via the same coax, and also ATSC OTA via an antenna?

I believe I read I lose functinality of one of these when bringing QAM into the picture...

[cnickersonjr]

I have a mobo with intergrated (ATI Radeon X1250) GPU, which has DVI & VGA out. I have a VGA to component cable running from the PC to my Onkyo 604. A component to VGA cable then leaves the Onkyo to my Epson 83C projector. Now here is the problem.

I boot up my pc. I don't get any video until the log in screen for XP comes up. I log in, the screen flashes and I can hear the sound of it starting up but no video comes back up.

I then hook my monitor up via DVI. Lower the resolution from 1680X1050 to 800X600, thinking maybe the resolution was too high. I shut down then hook it back to my receiver. Weird thing is the resolution of the screen isn't 800X600 when the log in screen comes back up, and the same thing happens. No video after I log in.

I'm out of ideas, anyone else have any troubleshooting tips?

[gunbunnysoulja]

Good grief - Winchendon?

I haven't been there in years. There will be nothing inexpensive about it, you are going to need a BIG UHF antenna on the roof, some altitude and a rotator and preamplifier.

You should be able to get the HDTV material on UHF by using a Channel Master 4228 and a Channel Master Titan 7777 mounted on the roof and using a rotator.

Gene

lol figures...

yea I use to have a BIG antenna on the roof, til the wind blew it off.. :(

I wish I could say the same about not being here in years... Winchendon isn't exactly my #1 spot on the map...

[redjr]

You made a great choice going with the Origen case. I have built systems with the S10 and TF8 and the S10 is supperior in quality and a little more generous with space. I also used the IR221 module but would probably not order it again since the built in IR was sufficient (unless you want a blaster). Good Luck!

I agree. That is one classy looking case. I've never seen that brand before. I'm jealous. I just might have to upgrade after seeing it. ;) Honey, can I have an extra $400.....

[ericeash]

origen cases look great

[amicusterrae]

Renethx and everyone--
I am having problems getting a picture over HDMI after I install the Nvidia chipset drivers. The mobo is the Abit A-N78HD. I bought an Athlon 64 X2 2.6Ghz, 65w CPU to go with it. After several weeks of trying to find an answer in forums online or from Abit tech support, I'm ready to give up and get another mobo with a different chipset. The problem seems to be an issue with my Samsung DLP TV and the Nvidia drivers. Sound familiar?

Since I already have the AMD X2 processor (and I cannot return it), and I want blu-ray playback, what about the new AMD 780G chipset? I see the Gigabyte GA-MA78GM is now in the recommedned systems list. My processor was fine with GeForce for smooth playback, but is it enough with the ATI integrated graphics, and what ATI video card would you mate with the mobo for better performance and occassional gaming?

Are people having issues with HDMI / DVI outputs and the ATI chipsets? I see cnickersonjr's post above--doesn't sound promising!

And, does Gigabyte have a good reputation for providing technical support?

[gunbunnysoulja]

Since the database crash, I noticed everything after August 2nd was lost.

Hopefully there is a easy way for renethx to get the updated mATX config's back up.

I will feel really bad if all his hard work updating to the thread was lost for good.

[outspoken]

Since the database crash, I noticed everything after August 2nd was lost.

Hopefully there is a easy way for renethx to get the updated mATX config's back up.

I will feel really bad if all his hard work updating to the thread was lost for good.

as neat and tidy as he did everything i'm going to say he's probably the kind of person to have a local copy that was written up on his local machine before posting here.

i hope. ;)

[gunbunnysoulja]

Just curious, if I decide to upgrade my primary hard drive to a larger one, is it simple to switch over all data, including the OS and then boot from the new hard drive?

Wasn't sure if I was gonna need to re-install the OS when I go from my 320gb to 1TB.

[8IronBob]

I think that I already posted my build somewhere already, not on this thread, but one here in the HTPC forum. However, needless to say, I've got a pretty comprehensive AMD Phenom/nVidia build, and might go Blu-ray soon, even tho right now I'm primarily using my PS3 for BR, but may probably eventually go with a Blu-ray burner once they start to dip below $200. Any chance that the ASUS M3N78 Pro mobo will handle a BD-RE/RW without too much difficulty down the road?

[brianley]

Just curious, if I decide to upgrade my primary hard drive to a larger one, is it simple to switch over all data, including the OS and then boot from the new hard drive?

Wasn't sure if I was gonna need to re-install the OS when I go from my 320gb to 1TB.


Easy with programs like Acronis or Ghost - just add the new drive to the machine, use either program to clone the data from the old to the new and expand out the partitions in whatever manner you choose.

If you don't want to spend any money on software and have a intermediary place to store 300+ GB, you could use the backup program built into Windows to create a full backup, which you could then restore to the new hard drive - you'd have to perform a base windows install on the new drive though.

IMHO, the minimal cost of Acronis more than makes up for the savings in time. You can also use it for online, incremental backups of your system.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Easy with programs like Acronis or Ghost - just add the new drive to the machine, use either program to clone the data from the old to the new and expand out the partitions in whatever manner you choose.

If you don't want to spend any money on software and have a intermediary place to store 300+ GB, you could use the backup program built into Windows to create a full backup, which you could then restore to the new hard drive - you'd have to perform a base windows install on the new drive though.

IMHO, the minimal cost of Acronis more than makes up for the savings in time. You can also use it for online, incremental backups of your system.

awesome.. thanks!

[SteveV]

All drive manafacturers have disk utilities that will allow you to clone your old drive to the new one without having to install Windows on the new drive. If you bought a retail box drive it should contain a bootable CD that contains what you need.

If you purchased an bare oem drive, you should be able to download what you need from the manafacturers web site.

[gunbunnysoulja]

as neat and tidy as he did everything i'm going to say he's probably the kind of person to have a local copy that was written up on his local machine before posting here.

i hope. ;)

Since its back to normal, I'd say you were right. Renethx is the man!

[BobZoron]

Awesome. Just came here to pray that renethx still had his post somewhere

[renethx]

Since I already have the AMD X2 processor (and I cannot return it), and I want blu-ray playback, what about the new AMD 780G chipset? I see the Gigabyte GA-MA78GM is now in the recommedned systems list. My processor was fine with GeForce for smooth playback, but is it enough with the ATI integrated graphics, and what ATI video card would you mate with the mobo for better performance and occassional gaming?

Are people having issues with HDMI / DVI outputs and the ATI chipsets? I see cnickersonjr's post above--doesn't sound promising!

And, does Gigabyte have a good reputation for providing technical support?
Video playback performance of AMD 780G is basically equivalent to Radeon HD 3450, GeForce 8200, and GeForce 8400 GS. If you add a discrete graphics card, then the chipset itself does not matter. For example, you can use Abit A-N78HD + Radeon HD 3650 for better 3D performance.

[renethx]

I think that I already posted my build somewhere already, not on this thread, but one here in the HTPC forum. However, needless to say, I've got a pretty comprehensive AMD Phenom/nVidia build, and might go Blu-ray soon, even tho right now I'm primarily using my PS3 for BR, but may probably eventually go with a Blu-ray burner once they start to dip below $200. Any chance that the ASUS M3N78 Pro mobo will handle a BD-RE/RW without too much difficulty down the road?
I remember GeForce 9800 GTX+. If you use this card, ASUS M3N72-D (nForce 750a SLI chipset, the SLI x8 version of GeForce 8200/8300) is better because the card won't block SATA ports. Any of M3N78 Pro, M3N72-D and 9800 GTX+ should be able to handle BD-RE/RW.

[TiaoMacaleh]

My post disapeared, so i guess it was due to last night forum bug.

I need some help with my first HTPC config. I want it to be a media HUB, to play ripped HD videos 720p and 1080p .h264 .mkv / avc / wmv / etc. I'm looking for a low end config. One important note: in my local market (Brazil) there aren't many hardware options avaible, even that some motherboards are very recommended, most of them i simples can't find here avaible for sale.

The config:


Motherboard: ASUS M2A-VM HDMI
Processor: ATHL 64X2 5200+ 640KX2 (or 5600+)
2gb memory
500gb seagate SATA2 Hard Disk


Is that ok? Will i be able to play any ripped HD video?

[renethx]

My post disapeared, so i guess it was due to last night forum bug.

I need some help with my first HTPC config. I want it to be a media HUB, to play ripped HD videos 720p and 1080p .h264 .mkv / avc / wmv / etc. I'm looking for a low end config. One important note: in my local market (Brazil) there aren't many hardware options avaible, even that some motherboards are very recommended, most of them i simples can't find here avaible for sale.

The config:


Motherboard: ASUS M2A-VM HDMI
Processor: ATHL 64X2 5200+ 640KX2 (or 5600+)
2gb memory
500gb seagate SATA2 Hard Disk


Is that ok? Will i be able to play any ripped HD video?
Perhaps yes.

[amicusterrae]

thanks, Renethx, that's what I was hoping.
If you match the discrete card with the integrated chipset, then both Nvidia and ATI offer some power saving features, right? What ATI card would you recommend to mate with the 780G? I like the idea of having a great card that doesn't draw a lot of power when it isn't needed.

And for what it is worth to anyone thinking of buying the Abit A-N78HD or any Universal Abit product right now, I think it's a good board with decent features. But, I have been unable to get ANY technical support from them over the last two + weeks. I've sent two emails, left phone messages, and waited on hold for one-hour stretches. Yesterday and Friday, I could only get a busy signal for the tech support line.

Anyone have an opinion on the support of other vendors like Gigabyte and Asus?

[renethx]

thanks, Renethx, that's what I was hoping.
If you match the discrete card with the integrated chipset, then both Nvidia and ATI offer some power saving features, right? What ATI card would you recommend to mate with the 780G? I like the idea of having a great card that doesn't draw a lot of power when it isn't needed.

And for what it is worth to anyone thinking of buying the Abit A-N78HD or any Universal Abit product right now, I think it's a good board with decent features. But, I have been unable to get ANY technical support from them over the last two + weeks. I've sent two emails, left phone messages, and waited on hold for one-hour stretches. Yesterday and Friday, I could only get a busy signal for the tech support line.

Anyone have an opinion on the support of other vendors like Gigabyte and Asus?
Power saving feature is offered only by the latest NVIDIA chipsets (GeForce 8200/8300, nForce 750a/780a SLI), called Hybrid Power, and it works only with the latest high-end graphics cards (GeForce 9800 GT and higher > $150). ATI chipset has a similar feature called PowerXpress, but right now it is available only on notebook PCs.

Usually abit USA does not reply to emails and phones. RMA has been excellent, however. It is rumored that abit has gone: Abit reportedly leaving motherboard business (http://arstechnica.com/journals/hardware.ars/2008/08/11/abit-reportedly-leaving-motherboard-business).

[gunbunnysoulja]

Does anyone know if the Asus Xonar HDAV1.3 will fit in the Antec Fusion 430?

[LankyJ]

Hello, sorry, new here, but I'm trying to put together an HTPC and I'd just like to know if what I've got is going to work for me, or is it all a lost cause?

An older (June 2005) HP A1130N w/ Windows MCE
AMD Athlon 64 3500+
3 gb RAM
Diamond Radeon HD 2400Pro 256mb
LG Super Mlulti Blue combo Blu Ray / HD DVD Rom Drive
47" 1080p JVC LCD TV

I don't have my DVI->HDMI Cable yet so I haven't been able to try any 1080p, but 720p seems to work fine, I'm no videophile, but the picture looks nice on my JVC. However, I noticed that PowerDVD is still using about 40 - 55% of my CPU when playing HD DVD's. Am I not getting any hardware acceleration here, or is that kind of CPU usage to be expected?

If that's the case with 720p, I guess I've got no shot at all with working 1080p without buying a new case and starting from scratch, right?

Thanks for any help!

John...

[renethx]

Does anyone know if the Asus Xonar HDAV1.3 will fit in the Antec Fusion 430?
From this picture (http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/4431/xonarhdav131024uq3.png), the card should fit Fusion 430 with no problem.

[renethx]

However, I noticed that PowerDVD is still using about 40 - 55% of my CPU when playing HD DVD's. Am I not getting any hardware acceleration here, or is that kind of CPU usage to be expected?

If that's the case with 720p, I guess I've got no shot at all with working 1080p without buying a new case and starting from scratch, right?
That's normal for a single-core processor. The CPU usage depends almost only on the source. If your source is 1080p with 40 - 55% CPU usgae, then your system should be fine whatever the output resolution is.

[TiaoMacaleh]

Perhaps yes.

Is that a yes or a no? :D

[renethx]

Is that a yes or a no? :D
The answer to the question "Will i be able to play any ripped HD video?" depends on the player you use. I assume you play ripped BD (and HD DVD) movies.

- PowerDVD/TMT: they are CPU cycle-hungry and even with a 2.9GHz processor you may see stuttering depending on the bitrate and the audio track (e.g. decoding TrueHD requires some CPU power).

- Media Player Classic with, say, CoreAVC: OK.

[whiskeynsoda]

I want to build an HTPC mainly for recording tv, but wondering if its wiser(cheaper) to buy a media computer.

This is what I was speced out:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz
ABIT AX78 AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard
EVGA 512-P3-N861-AR GeForce 9600 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3
Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1800
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA


This is just the meat and potatoes, but is this config. overkill,
is the tuner card a wise choice?
is the CPU gonna be fast enough?
is the video card decent (if i wanted to play the occasional game)?
How will this look on a 50" Plasma?


Cheers

Jim

[TiaoMacaleh]

The answer to the question "Will i be able to play any ripped HD video?" depends on the player you use. I assume you play ripped BD (and HD DVD) movies.

- PowerDVD/TMT: they are CPU cycle-hungry and even with a 2.9GHz processor you may see stuttering depending on the bitrate and the audio track (e.g. decoding TrueHD requires some CPU power).

- Media Player Classic with, say, CoreAVC: OK.

What kind of modification do i need for a more compatible/future proof setup? Better cpu?

[renethx]

I want to build an HTPC mainly for recording tv, but wondering if its wiser(cheaper) to buy a media computer.

This is what I was speced out:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz
ABIT AX78 AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard
EVGA 512-P3-N861-AR GeForce 9600 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3
Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1800
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA


This is just the meat and potatoes, but is this config. overkill,
is the tuner card a wise choice?
is the CPU gonna be fast enough?
is the video card decent (if i wanted to play the occasional game)?
How will this look on a 50" Plasma?
Your system will be fine for your purpose (recording/watching TV, occasional gaming; even playing BD movies).

[renethx]

What kind of modification do i need for a more compatible/future proof setup? Better cpu?
You can add a video card later for perfect playback with PowerDVD/TMT.

[Skylinestar]

how does a typical 42" plasma (1024x768..not FullHD) handles HTPC job through HDMI? Does Vista Media Center works with plasma and display everything properly in widescreen? How about watching widescreen movies using media player classic? will the soft-subtitle be place at the correct place, which is at the bottom? I am worried due to the weird plasma res compare to that of lcd which has 1366x768 res.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Would the EVGA 132-CK-NF79-A1 790i be a better option than the MSI P7N Diamond 780i, if gaming was a factor besides HT?

I do realize there is a significant price difference, unfortunately.

[renethx]

how does a typical 42" plasma (1024x768..not FullHD) handles HTPC job through HDMI? Does Vista Media Center works with plasma and display everything properly in widescreen? How about watching widescreen movies using media player classic? will the soft-subtitle be place at the correct place, which is at the bottom? I am worried due to the weird plasma res compare to that of lcd which has 1366x768 res.
In general 1024x768 is no problem. Vista Media Center works just fine at this resolution as well as PowerDVD and TotalMedia Theater. MPC should also work.

[renethx]

Would the EVGA 132-CK-NF79-A1 790i be a better option than the MSI P7N Diamond 780i, if gaming was a factor besides HT?
Basic difference is memory: DDR3 vs. DDR2. If you look for the best performance in gaming, you should choose DDR3. You can find several benchmark results between 780i and 790i on the Internet.

[gunbunnysoulja]

Basic difference is memory: DDR3 vs. DDR2. If you look for the best performance in gaming, you should choose DDR3. You can find several benchmark results between 780i and 790i on the Internet.

great. thanks!

[renethx]

I will be on vacation until August 25th. During this period I can't answer questions in this thread. I am sorry for that.

[amicusterrae]

Have fun! With all your work on this thread, the break is well deserved.

[gunbunnysoulja]

I will be on vacation until August 25th. During this period I can't answer questions in this thread. I am sorry for that.

Have a great vacation. Thanks again for all your support and contributions to this thread.

[tsteves]

renethx
With all your work on this thread we should pay for your vacation!

[RichTJ99]

Renethx,

What would a comparable ATI card be to the Geforce series you recommended (8500, 8600)? I am looking for something fanless to replace my X300 ATI card (yep, you read that right :)

Thanks,
Rich

[Lostclusters]

I will be on vacation until August 25th. During this period I can't answer questions in this thread. I am sorry for that.

Have a great vacation!

[bokis]

I will be on vacation until August 25th. During this period I can't answer questions in this thread. I am sorry for that.

Well we all need one, with any luck thier be new drivers out when you come back :D

[etcarroll]

I will be on vacation until August 25th. During this period I can't answer questions in this thread. I am sorry for that.

Have a blast!

[Vieux]

Hi guys,

Bult my HTPc a few months ago foloowing the low end recommendations:

# Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H AMD 780G chipset microATX
# Memory: Crucial Ballistix BL2KIT12864AA804 DDR2-800 2 x 1GB Kit

Received the single sided chips, but tried anyway and all worked well for a while. Then I started to lose audio over hdmi, needing a reboot to bring it back.

Now the htpc won't even boot.

No POST. No Video.

It happened before, and leaving only one stick of ram did the trick to bring it back from the dead.

But not now.

So, i'm sick of troubleshooting. And the wife is about to go berzerk.

Please, please, please... what do you guys suggest as a worthy replacement to the board and ram?

I need to get this working 100%. All the time.

Thank you very much.

[tsteves]

Try reseating the ram and video card.
you may need to replace the ram, not sure why crucial memory would go bad, though.
Whats the video card, and whats the display?

[SammyB]

To my fellow HTPC builders, WARNING: NVIDIA HDMI driver (171.37) prevents you from hooking your HTPC to an HDMI switching receiver.

I built my HTPC based on the ASUS M3N78 PRO motherboard. I have the HDMI from the HTPC going into my Onkyo TX-SR705 receiver as one of the three inputs the receiver switches between. Whenever I switch away from the HTPC input, the HDMI port on the receiver goes electrically dead. This causes the NVIDIA driver (version 171.37) on the HTPC to uninstall the HDMI "monitor." When I switch back to the HTPC input, the NVIDIA driver will not automatically reinstall the "monitor" so I have to go to the NVIDIA control panel, do a hardware scan, find the new monitor, clone the VGA to the HDMI with no way to automate this. NVIDIA tech support confirms this behavior. Until they come out with a fix for the driver, my system is practically useless. My HTPC is in the basement with all of the other AV gear so walking downstairs to switch inputs is less than useful. I must now find something that will sit between my receiver and my HTPC that serves no other purpose than keeping the NVIDIA HDMI port electrically active.

Any suggestions (or google search terms) would be greatly appreciated.

[John Tibbs]

....To my fellow HTPC builders, WARNING: NVIDIA HDMI driver (171.37) prevents you from hooking your HTPC to an HDMI switching receiver...


Perhaps I misunderstood, but can you revert back to an older driver or has this been like this since you built it?

[jim tressler]

sammy - nvidia drivers have always done that.. both mechanical and electonic - so for my ati 3450 does not suffer from that problem

To my fellow HTPC builders, WARNING: NVIDIA HDMI driver (171.37) prevents you from hooking your HTPC to an HDMI switching receiver.

I built my HTPC based on the ASUS M3N78 PRO motherboard. I have the HDMI from the HTPC going into my Onkyo TX-SR705 receiver as one of the three inputs the receiver switches between. Whenever I switch away from the HTPC input, the HDMI port on the receiver goes electrically dead. This causes the NVIDIA driver (version 171.37) on the HTPC to uninstall the HDMI "monitor." When I switch back to the HTPC input, the NVIDIA driver will not automatically reinstall the "monitor" so I have to go to the NVIDIA control panel, do a hardware scan, find the new monitor, clone the VGA to the HDMI with no way to automate this. NVIDIA tech support confirms this behavior. Until they come out with a fix for the driver, my system is practically useless. My HTPC is in the basement with all of the other AV gear so walking downstairs to switch inputs is less than useful. I must now find something that will sit between my receiver and my HTPC that serves no other purpose than keeping the NVIDIA HDMI port electrically active.

Any suggestions (or google search terms) would be greatly appreciated.

[zicoz]

What cabinet do you use in the "and a new workstation recommendation" in the first picture in the OP?

And is it just me or is there a lack in the market when it comes to "shallow" 3U cabinets? Something as simple as this:

http://bildr.no/image/240927.jpeg

The top part is cabinet seen from above, and the bottom seen from the front. It really should be able to create something like this and sell it for not more then $75 shouldn't it? It could then be used for connecting extra disks to a NAS.

But is there a way to make the NAS see each and every HD in an external cabinet like this? I was thinking maybe one of those Addonics 5-to-1, but those just create a JBOD don't they?

[Vieux]

Try reseating the ram and video card.
you may need to replace the ram, not sure why crucial memory would go bad, though.
Whats the video card, and whats the display?

That's the first thing I did for the ram. The video card is integrated (HD3200).

Believe me, I took it all apart more than once, checking every connexion and reseating everything.

Tried booting with only with everything disconnected but ram and hard disk.

Two stick, one stick, no stick.

The fans turn, the hard disk spins. That's it.


I can't tell for sure if it's the ram or the board.

I've read nothing but horror stories about the crucial ballistix since they went with one sided sticks instead of the double sided.

The board is a GA-MA78G-S2H rev.1.0.
I might get something else as it seems to be complicated to find compatible ram.

I guess I should start with buying new ram sticks and see if it solves my problem.
Or maybe find another board more ram friendly, hoping to use those ballistix.

What do you think?

[teknoguy]

That's the first thing I did for the ram. The video card is integrated (HD3200).

Believe me, I took it all apart more than once, checking every connexion and reseating everything.

Tried booting with only with everything disconnected but ram and hard disk.

Two stick, one stick, no stick.

The fans turn, the hard disk spins. That's it.


I can't tell for sure if it's the ram or the board.

I've read nothing but horror stories about the crucial ballistix since they went with one sided sticks instead of the double sided.

The board is a GA-MA78G-S2H rev.1.0.
I might get something else as it seems to be complicated to find compatible ram.

I guess I should start with buying new ram sticks and see if it solves my problem.
Or maybe find another board more ram friendly, hoping to use those ballistix.

What do you think?

Have you tried getting into BIOS and resetting the board to it's default settings?

Also, most boards with a memory problem will beep a pattern on powerup, that you can decode by going to the MB website.

If there is no beeping on powerup, it may not be the memory.

-t

[deshwasi]

I have this setup:

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H mb
AMD BE-2400 CPU
2GB RAM

everything works good EXCEPT for the AVCHD files from my Canon Camcorder stutter. the file is a .m2ts on my htpc hard drive and drivers are pretty much upto date (just built this recently). I have ffdshow & Haali Media Spliiter installed and some registry hacks to make the files show up & play in Vista Media Center. Any ideas? is hardware acceleration working for these files? incidentally, the same thing plays smooth on my OC'd (3Ghz) E2180 PC with a 8600GT video card and the same software setup (ffdshow & haali media splitter).

[BCDouglas]

That's the first thing I did for the ram. The video card is integrated (HD3200).

Believe me, I took it all apart more than once, checking every connexion and reseating everything.

Tried booting with only with everything disconnected but ram and hard disk.

Two stick, one stick, no stick.

The fans turn, the hard disk spins. That's it.


I can't tell for sure if it's the ram or the board.

I've read nothing but horror stories about the crucial ballistix since they went with one sided sticks instead of the double sided.

The board is a GA-MA78G-S2H rev.1.0.
I might get something else as it seems to be complicated to find compatible ram.

I guess I should start with buying new ram sticks and see if it solves my problem.
Or maybe find another board more ram friendly, hoping to use those ballistix.

What do you think?

I have your exact board but use the G.Skill F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ w/o issue. I'm running the onboard HDMI (video & audio) to my Harmon Kardon AVR347 then HDMI to DVI on my Sony.

[SammyB]

Perhaps I misunderstood, but can you revert back to an older driver or has this been like this since you built it?

That's the one that shipped with the MB. NVIDIA says that is the designed behavior of their driver. :(

[Xuivo]

Hi all,

I've been reading this thread for a while. I'm looking to build an HTPC to replace my old Xbox. I was about to go with the recommended system from this thread, but I would like your input on the build.

CPU: Core 2 Duo E8400
Memory: DDR2-800 2 x 2GB Kit
Graphics Card: RADEON HD 4850/HTDI/512M
HDD: SEAGATE 320 GB SATA 2 (Already have one, not sure model number, I'm planning to stream anyway from a NAS, so no big need for a large hardrive in it)
PSU : OCZ Game XStream 600W (Already have, will use it if compatible)

Here's what I need input from you : ATX or mATX. From what I've looked, it would either be :

Motherboard: ASUS P5K-VM Intel G33 chipset microATX
CPU Cooler: Scythe NINJA MINI SCMNJ-1000
or
Motherboard: ASUS P5Q PRO Intel P45 chipset ATX
CPU Cooler: ZEROtherm BTF90

My needs are :

- Play HD and SD files (I will backup my DVD collection, I got some blu-ray and I want to be able to play the HD content found on the net (mkv, x264, etc.) with quality and stability.
- I connect to a Pionner Elite VSX-82 Receiver (7.1 setup) via HDMI to a Pionner Elite 5010 Plasma (1080p). The receiver does not decode directly the new HD audio codec neither is it HDMI 1.3, but I would want something futureproof on this side since I planned to upgrade it.
- Play audio (mp3, wav, FLAC, OGG, etc.)
- Rip and encode Blu-Ray disk (backup)
- Use it as a HD-PVR connected to a Bell Xpressvu (similar to direct TV)
- Play emulators (which is not a problem, I'm sure)
- Occasionnal gaming
- Be able to use a PS3 controller on it to control if possible (blutooth?) and/or harmony 880.

Can you give me your input on the build... I've let the case section empty for your suggestion, with the CPU cooler if possible? Do I need an audio card with this?

What would be a good frontend (simple)? I know XBMC is coming to windows, but in the mean time?

Lot of question, I know... But thanks for helping!

[wiak]

the 780G recommadaion needs a little tweak
if you pair a 780G/GX with a phenom it will enable more postprosessing of HD video

I have this setup:

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H mb
AMD BE-2400 CPU
2GB RAM

everything works good EXCEPT for the AVCHD files from my Canon Camcorder stutter. the file is a .m2ts on my htpc hard drive and drivers are pretty much upto date (just built this recently). I have ffdshow & Haali Media Spliiter installed and some registry hacks to make the files show up & play in Vista Media Center. Any ideas? is hardware acceleration working for these files? incidentally, the same thing plays smooth on my OC'd (3Ghz) E2180 PC with a 8600GT video card and the same software setup (ffdshow & haali media splitter).

what decoder do you use?
try Totalmedia theatre or powerdvd
those have hardware supported decoding that the motherboard you have supports

[shanshan]

Now I have finally ordered my new HTPC! :D
I went with the new G45 Gigabyte motherboard, since that was now available here in Sweden. Here is what I finally decided to order:


Antec Fusion Black 430
Gigabyte GA-EG45M-DS2H
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3,0GHz
Scythe Ninja Mini
Samsung SpinPoint F1 HD753LJ 32MB 750GB
LG GGC-H20L Blu-ray reader, DVD writer
Logitech diNovo Mini keyboard
FloppyDTV S2/CI Internal DVB-S2 receiver - HDTV


I'm gonna see (and listen) what the ALC889A sound chip performs like and see if I want to upgrade to a better separate sound card instead. I'm gonna use the analogue outputs to my receiver and HDMI to my Pioneer PDP-LX508D plasma.

[mingus]

which OS? I'm putting together something similar and can not decide between XP and Vista. Using a slim case and have not seen any low-profile or USB sound cards that look interesting so far. was hoping for higher-end 2 channel analog out also.

You will use adapter to adapt the mini phone jacks to RCA and run 6 RCA cables? that works for my Arcam receiver.

Now I have finally ordered my new HTPC! :D
I went with the new G45 Gigabyte motherboard, since that was now available here in Sweden. Here is what I finally decided to order:


Antec Fusion Black 430
Gigabyte GA-EG45M-DS2H
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3,0GHz
Scythe Ninja Mini
Samsung SpinPoint F1 HD753LJ 32MB 750GB
LG GGC-H20L Blu-ray reader, DVD writer
Logitech diNovo Mini keyboard
FloppyDTV S2/CI Internal DVB-S2 receiver - HDTV


I'm gonna see (and listen) what the ALC889A sound chip performs like and see if I want to upgrade to a better separate sound card instead. I'm gonna use the analogue outputs to my receiver and HDMI to my Pioneer PDP-LX508D plasma.

[shanshan]

which OS? I'm putting together something similar and can not decide between XP and Vista. Using a slim case and have not seen any low-profile or USB sound cards that look interesting so far. was hoping for higher-end 2 channel analog out also.

I'm gonna use Vista, but I will probably use Media Portal instead of VMC. When I was looking at sound cards, I was planning on the ASUS Xonar DX which is a low profile, but maybe you'd prefer a more high-end card?


You will use adapter to adapt the mini phone jacks to RCA and run 6 RCA cables? that works for my Arcam receiver.

Yes, that's the plan. :)

[amicusterrae]

Please, please, please... what do you guys suggest as a worthy replacement to the board and ram?

I need to get this working 100%. All the time.



On Newegg, there are A LOT of similar complaints about this board, though the overall rating remains high (I just ordered one). Some people think it has to do with the high temperatures generated by the integrated Northbridge graphics. In the 1.1 revision, Gigabyte put on a beefier heatsink, as well as a fan header. That seems like a an admission to me! What temps were you getting before failure? What case and how many fans are you using? Are you overclocking? There's a great thread on this mobo here at avs forum. You maky try there. If you RMA the board, you should get the new revision back.

If you wanted to stay with the 780G chipset, Asus has two microATX boards that compete with the Gigabyte. From what I can tell, the Asus boards have a beefier heatsink (same as Gigabyte's 1.1 revision) and they accept EEC memory, if you care about that. One has optical out, but neither board supports DTS or Dolby encoding. That was the dealbreaker for me.

You could switch to a Nvidia GeForce board and reuse the same AMD processor. I had a terminal problem with the Nvidia drivers and my Samsung DLP tv via HDMI, so I've given up on that chipset. Many, many others, though have had no issues.

[Vieux]

On Newegg, there are A LOT of similar complaints about this board...

...What case and how many fans are you using? Are you overclocking? There's a great thread on this mobo here at avs forum. You maky try there. If you RMA the board, you should get the new revision back.


Well, the case is the Antec Fusion 430, meaning two 120mm fans.
No overclocking.

I'm looking at the GA-MA790GP-DS4H as a replacement, but it is a bit early to get burned again...

[ndabunka]

Looks like the master is out until the 25th but I'll throw my question in here anyway. I use to build systems but that was 10 years ago. I currently design 4G wireless solutions so am still fairly technical. Now, here's my issue. I've got a desktop that runs my Cinemar component control software and I have been using it (just fine) to play movies and std DVD's to my SVGA projector. I understand that some video cards will process the video so the CPU processor doesn't matter that much so here's my question. Which is the cheapest AGP-type video card that off-loads the video processing from my CPU so that I can simply throw in this video card and a BluRay player into my PC to my LCD and Plasma 1080p systems? In reading the Buyers guide, it appears that only the GefForce products off-load the processing? Is that accurate? I can get one of the recommended Radeon 3650 for $70 but it seems that people writing reviews state that it doesn't off-load processing yet it's appears to be a favorite here in this forum. This HTPC is used ONLy for Whole house application control and BluRay playback only (no gaming, no ripping, etc). Any help or direction as to what video card would make the most sense would be appreciated. Remember that I can not use a PCI-E card at all. I "could" use a standard PCI but think that a 4x AGP card would be the best solution.

[myoda]

Looks like the master is out until the 25th but I'll throw my question in here anyway. I use to build systems but that was 10 years ago. I currently design 4G wireless solutions so am still fairly technical. Now, here's my issue. I've got a desktop that runs my Cinemar component control software and I have been using it (just fine) to play movies and std DVD's to my SVGA projector. I understand that some video cards will process the video so the CPU processor doesn't matter that much so here's my question. Which is the cheapest AGP-type video card that off-loads the video processing from my CPU so that I can simply throw in this video card and a BluRay player into my PC to my LCD and Plasma 1080p systems? In reading the Buyers guide, it appears that only the GefForce products off-load the processing? Is that accurate? I can get one of the recommended Radeon 3650 for $70 but it seems that people writing reviews state that it doesn't off-load processing yet it's appears to be a favorite here in this forum. This HTPC is used ONLy for Whole house application control and BluRay playback only (no gaming, no ripping, etc). Any help or direction as to what video card would make the most sense would be appreciated. Remember that I can not use a PCI-E card at all. I "could" use a standard PCI but think that a 4x AGP card would be the best solution.


Hi - I am in the same boat you are. I weighed the options, upgrade, or build a new pc. I decided to upgrade - I get good performance from the living room pc, but wanted to add a combo blu-ray/hd dvd drive. (I have a Toshiba XA2, but am not ready to spend 300 bucks on a stand alone blu-ray device) The video card has to be HDCP compliant. Most GPUs do take the load off the CPU, so shop around. (Decent AGP cards are DDR memory are becoming harder to find, aren't they?) Make sure your power supply can handle the load. You did not indicate what your current mainboard and PC configuration is, but an 8X agp solution would move video data slightly faster.

I have an Asus P4P800-E Deluxe with a 3.2Ghz P4 chip. The bare minimum for blu-ray playback. Stuff to install later this week:

2 gb of OCZ Platinum DDR 400 sdram
LG GGC-H20L Blu-ray/HD DVD drive
Asus AH3650 Silent HTDI 512 MB Radeon HD 3650
Seagate Barracuda 7200 ST3750330AS 750GB SATA hard disk
CORSAIR CMPSU-550VX 550W ATX12V V2.2 Power Supply (Those video cards draw some current)
We'll see how that works by this weekend. Let us know what you decide. Thanks.
By the way, all of the above components can be migrated to a more current motherboard, with the exception of the video card and memory. Guess I'm just old school....Cheers!

[ndabunka]

I didn't mention the motherboard directly but did demonstrate that it is a dinosaur. The AGP will do 4x (because I have a 4X AGP from ATI in it now). However, it is a single processor 600MHz AMD Athlon Slot A.

However, if the new graphics card can handle 100% of the processing I am hopeful that this CPU shouldn't be an issue. I also run Windows 2000 on this server rather than XP or Pissta and have no plans to upgrade. I use table PC's to access the control screens and can run the newer OS's on them if I want to.

I see a 512MG Radeon 2600 AGP card for $60 and also see the 256MB 3450's for ten or twenty less and then also see the 3650's but don't know why one is better than the other (and I've been on ATI's site for a while now. Maybe I'm just not looking in the right areas).

[amicusterrae]

The AMD/ATI 780G chipset offloads from the CPU. One review I read successfully played blu-ray with a Sempron processor (though they didn't recommend it with Vista)!

[amicusterrae]

Well, the case is the Antec Fusion 430, meaning two 120mm fans.
No overclocking.

I'm looking at the GA-MA790GP-DS4H as a replacement, but it is a bit early to get burned again...

Well, the Fusion should have great airflow. That board you picked looks awesome with the heatpipe, but it won't fit in that case.

Have you tried getting a replacement from Gigabyte?

[wellVersed]

Does anyone have any good information on how to make a choice if neither of the prices bother me?

I am not much of a gamer, but it seems to me that the NVIDIA is 2x as powerful a card than the ATI.

Silence is golden though, and thus a requirement.

[shalom]

Hi all, this is my first post.

and I'm looking to fix up a HTPC.

After gathering some info here, I've come up with this config:

AMD X2 5000+ (65W) or 4850e (45W)
Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H using onboard graphics and sound.
1x 2Gb DDR800 Ram
1x WD6400AKKS Hdd
1x DVDRW or DVD-rom
Antec NSK2480 (with supplied 380W PSU)

I don't game, so I don't need graphic card to install.
I intend to use this for watching HD videos / DVD / DivX playback via LCD TV. Other usage are web browsing, emails, IM chats, photos, Office, music on Audioengine A5 speakers.

Between AMD and Intel cpu, which is a better choice now?
Is there any suggested equivalent Intel cpu for the above setup?
Any comments, please feel free to response. Thanks.

[zicoz]

Could anyone tell me how an OS will see disks connected to one of the Addonics 1-to-5 SATA port multipliers?

Wil it see 5 disks, or one raid/JBOD?

[ndabunka]

The AMD/ATI 780G chipset offloads from the CPU. One review I read successfully played blu-ray with a Sempron processor (though they didn't recommend it with Vista)!

Are you implying that the 2600 uses a 780G chipset? If so, I don't see any references to that on ATI's website for the 2600. I would think that a Sempron would support just about anything (including BluRay). I guess my question is "would the 780G chipset" also run BluRay with a MUCH older Athlon processor like I have.

[zicoz]

Well that depends completely on what old Athlon you have, if it's just a AMD Athlon Socket A then I really doubt it.

[ndabunka]

Hi - I am in the same boat you are. ...I have an Asus P4P800-E Deluxe with a 3.2Ghz P4 chip. The bare minimum for blu-ray playback........Cheers!

If this really is accurate then my CPU wouldn't be adequate as it is nowhere near that speed (it's probably about a 1/4th your CPU's capacity). So, I go back to the OP who posted "NVIDIA's second generation PureVideo HD engine provides 100% offload for H.264 decoding. That means that any decent PC with a video card with this engine can play back HD contents smoothly"

My current PC is "decent" IMHO as it does everything it needs to to support the minimal functions it is currently doing. The only thing I don't know is if it is "decent" ENOUGH in regards to playing BluRay disk if all the graphics processing is (actually) truly being handled directly by the graphics card.

If a certain processor is needed in order to assist in this offload, then it might not work. If this is the case then maybe I haven't read enough on this subject.

[ndabunka]

Well that depends completely on what old Athlon you have, if it's just a AMD Athlon Socket A then I really doubt it.

Yes, as stated four or five posts above ^^^ it is just a 600MHz Athlon Socket A. I was looking for others who may have already done something like this but it does appear that most in here are only working with the newer CPUs and therefore may not have the expertise necessary to provide guidance on such an effort.

Therefore, it looks like I will try it and let others who might want to try the same thing how it turns out. Heading to one of the local B&M stores that will accept returns if it doesn't work. It doesn't look like it would cost much (under $500) to build a new 2U-height, rack-mounted mid-range HTPC to fit into my 19-inch equipment rack.

[chanakya]

Looking for the same here. I am thinking of
Antec New Solution NSK2480
GA-MA78GM-S2H
Vista 32 Ultimate
AVerMedia AVerTV Combo PCIe MCE ATSC/NTSC/QAM Tuner Card
Ninja Mini (SCMNJ-1000) + Athlon x2 be-2400 cpu
A cheap Scythe SY124010L fan should cool the northbridge...

[MrFoxer]

Could anyone tell me how an OS will see disks connected to one of the Addonics 1-to-5 SATA port multipliers?

Wil it see 5 disks, or one raid/JBOD?

I looked into this and concluded that it will look like 5 disks connected to 5 SATA ports. If you want to configure it as RAID/JBOD, you can. You do it the same way you would with 5 disks connected to 5 separate ports. See here. (http://www.sata-io.org/portmultiplier.asp) I haven't actually bought one yet, so this is not from personal experience.

[zicoz]

Thanks I'll probably try it out then :)

[MrFoxer]

Thanks I'll probably try it [a port multiplier] out then :)

My conclusion was that software like FlexRaid or UnRaid would work fine, but I wasn't certain what would happen if I tried to use a built-in bios to mirror/raid the drives. I suspect that won't work, so make sure you can return or wait for some more comments from someone who has tried it if that's important to you. Let us know how it turns out if you buy.

[tahalouzi]

thank yoooooooooooou

[ansetou]

Guys, I'm trying to build a powerful HTPC system for watching OTA HD TV, download movies, home HD video view/minor editing/database. My selecting criteria is to build a system using almost the best components that has very good cost/function ratio. I tend to pick not the most advanced parts unless I have to. Also, since this whole thing takes so much time, I do pick parts that will allow my system to be useful for maybe the next 5 years. So here is my list:
CASE
Thermaltake DH101 $209 zipzoomfly.com
MOBO
ASUS P5Q Deluxe Intel P45 $190 zipzoomfly.com
MEMORY
CORSAIR PC2-8500 TWIN2X4096-8500C5DF 4GB $139 zipzoomfly.com
CPU
Intel® Core™2 Quad Processors Q9550 $326 zipzoomfly.com
HDD
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD753LJ 750GB 7200 RPM 2 for $220 zipzoomfly.com (RAID 1 setup)
HEATSINK
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail $37 newegg.com
POWERSUPPLY
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX $76 zipzoomfly.com
VIDEO CARD
ASUS EAH4850/HTDI/512M $188 newegg.com
KEYBOARD/MOUSE
Logitech diNovo Mini $133 amazon.com
HD TURNER
Silicondust HDHomeRun $142 amazon.com
DVD DRIVE
LG Blu-ray Burner GGW-H20L $250 newegg.com
OS
Windows Vista Ultimate Service Pack 1

TOTAL COST: $1,910


Please let me know what you think about this whole setup or each component. If you have a better part, definitely let me know.

I'm especially not sure about the Blu-ray burner. I'm not even sure if I need the write part of it as I plan to use the HDD for storage. When I need more space in the future, I think will most likely get a RAID tower for that. Even for sharing data with other ppl, I think I can use a USB drive for that. So maybe I should just get a RD ROM + DVD R/RW (LG GGC-H20L $150 ) ? What do you think.

Thank you.

[myoda]

Are you implying that the 2600 uses a 780G chipset? If so, I don't see any references to that on ATI's website for the 2600. I would think that a Sempron would support just about anything (including BluRay). I guess my question is "would the 780G chipset" also run BluRay with a MUCH older Athlon processor like I have.

Hi - you need more horsepower - run this tool for a breakdown on what you need for smooth playback. The 780G socket has a different pin array than your current processor, won't fit.

http://www.cyberlink.com/english/support/blu-ray_support/index.jsp

[Vieux]

Well, the Fusion should have great airflow. That board you picked looks awesome with the heatpipe, but it won't fit in that case.

Have you tried getting a replacement from Gigabyte?

Hmmmm, you sure it won't fit?

Damn...

I guess it's time for RMA then...

I've tried everything again. Took it all apart. Reassembled everything out of the case. NADA. No post.

Since I've only had it for 5 months, I should be able to send it back to the e-merchant.

Hoping for a credit. Or at least a rev1.1 board.

[ndabunka]

Hi - you need more horsepower - run this tool for a breakdown on what you need for smooth playback. The 780G socket has a different pin array than your current processor, won't fit.

http://www.cyberlink.com/english/support/blu-ray_support/index.jsp

Moda - Thanks but (of course) I am QUITE familiar that the 780G is a VERY different processor. I wasn't even considering changing the CPU. In fact, the OBJECTIVE is to do this without doing anything EXCEPT upgrading the Graphics card (as it appeared possible from what the creator of this thread had originally posted in his initial outline). Heck, maybe I'd even kick $400 into one of the higher end video cards with the premise I could re-use it in the future in my next system. Of course, then I would need to find one that used the standard PCI bus rather than PCI-e as my current motherboard only has PCI and/or AGP. However, I think nearly all the higher end ones assume you have the PCI-e bus that they can then leverage. If it won't work, it won't work. But I would at least like to give it the ole college try before I jump over to alternate motherboards, CPUs, memory, case, etc...

Thanks for the performance link but it doesn't appear applicable. Rather, it shows that they recommend higher-end/newer CPU's and this is an older CPU not capable of anywhere NEAR those speeds. Of course, the entire premise is that ALL the graphics processing would be occurring on the Graphics card and therefore the CPU doesn't need to do much (if anything) in order to support BluRay playback. At least that is the way I read the OP's original post in this thread. Seems nobody has addressed this yet. I wonder why nobody directly answers my inquiry but rather reverts back to these reference points. If that site has something on offloading the graphics processing onto the video card, then I must have missed it.

The application they offer is useless to me at this point in the process as I don't yet have a high-end graphics card on which to run the tests.

Actually, the site does reinforce my approach by using the following statement in their FAQ's...
"Which graphic cards support Hardware Decoding?

The playback of Blu-ray Disc requires a powerful computer, such as a Dual-core or Quad-core CPU. Some graphics cards include hardware decoding, meaning that you don’t need to use a powerful computer. When you play back Blu-ray Discs, the graphics card will share the decoding process and reduce the CPU usage. The following is a list of the graphics cards that support hardware decoding:
Nvidia: GeForce 8000, 9000 Series
ATI: ATI Radeon HD 2000, 3000 Series"

Of course, I already know that these cards support the decoding (from this forum) but what remains unclear is ... How weak of a computer can I use in the role outlined by this statement"? Nobody on here appears to know (yet)... Certainly, someone on here has tried it with a 1.2 celeron, right?

[duff99]

ndabunka I think the reason that nobody has directly answered your question is that nobody has a definitive.

As we all know the oracle is on vacation, he'd probably give you a proper answer. As for my two cents. I strongly suspect that even with a high-end video card you'd be out of luck. Even if the video card could handle it I think the rest of the sub-systems couldn't keep up. Then you'd have software issues to deal with also.

If your willing to spend $400 on a video card then your most of the way to a new HTPC. Get a motherboard with IGP and you might be able to reuse some of your old things, drives, maybe even the case.

You could also find one of the cheap pre-builts and add a $50 video card and still be pretty close to $400.

AGP is dead. It's going to be pretty hard to find a modern video card using it. Especially a high-end one. Spend your money on something that will have a more useful life span. Good luck.

[tsteves]

ndabunka
There is no way!
My 3Hz P4 is not good enough according to the Cyberlink Blu Ray advisor.
A 600MHz Athlon? You can run XP on it, but does any program work fast?
Spending money on an AGP slot video card is wating your money. All new boards have pci express, none have agp slots.
Spend the $400 on a new computer.

[amicusterrae]

Just wanted to update the thread on my successful build and offer my thanks, as it is finally working great:

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H microATX mobo w/ integrated AMD/ATI 780g chipset, rev. 1.1
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ 2.6 GHz 65w CPU
2 x 1GB Kingston EEC server memory DDR2 800 (KVR800D2E5K2/2G)
Scythe Ninja mini cpu cooler
Antec Fusion Versis Black case
Western Digital caviar blue 500GB hard drive
Sony Blu-ray drive BDUX10S

I first tried an Abit A-N78HD mobo with Nvidia GeForce 8200 integrated graphics, but I could never get display over HDMI after installing the chipset drivers.
So, I returned the Abit and got the 780g board, and what do you know, 1080p over HDMI--no problem! I liked the EEC support in the Abit board (which was why I bought server memory), but it's not a big deal.

The Gigabyte board has DTS connect and optical out, which is great if your receiver doesn't accept HDMI. And, the two channel version of PowerDVD that came with my drive is sufficient for now, as I still get a multichannel DTS signal over the optical out.
I chose the Sony drive because of a lot of recent negative comments on Newegg about the Lite-on drive. And, I figured Sony should provide the best firmware support considering they developed blu-ray.

I almost went with the 45 w X2 processor, but I decided it wasn't worth the slight price premium since you can undervolt a 65 w processor if you really want to.

My experience with the Scythe nija mini was a hassle--it's a scary mounting process for rookies like me. On the Abit, I had to really crank it down, but on the Gigabyte, it is not as tight. Somewhere in between would have been nice. Still, it is a good match with the Fusion case. I'm using the Arctic Silver ceramique and it really does take a few days for the temps to come down.

The case made for an easy build. All in all this was a lot easier than I expected. The biggest headaches were the software issues related to the Nvidia chipset drivers and my TV. I haven't tried the Fusion's display yet--another long story!

Thanks to Renethx and everyone else for your help. And, to any other first time builders--you can do it.

[ndabunka]

ndabunka
There is no way!
My 3Hz P4 is not good enough according to the Cyberlink Blu Ray advisor.
A 600MHz Athlon? You can run XP on it, but does any program work fast?
Spending money on an AGP slot video card is wating your money. All new boards have pci express, none have agp slots.
Spend the $400 on a new computer.


I guess you see my point. The Advisor ONLY shows CPU requirements WITHOUT regard to the considerations required when the Graphics board takes over the graphics processing function so your right, there is no way to tell if my Athlon will work using that type of analysis.

[ndabunka]

ndabunka I think the reason that nobody has directly answered your question is that nobody has a definitive.

As we all know the oracle is on vacation, he'd probably give you a proper answer. As for my two cents. I strongly suspect that even with a high-end video card you'd be out of luck. Even if the video card could handle it I think the rest of the sub-systems couldn't keep up. Then you'd have software issues to deal with also.

If your willing to spend $400 on a video card then your most of the way to a new HTPC. Get a motherboard with IGP and you might be able to reuse some of your old things, drives, maybe even the case.

You could also find one of the cheap pre-builts and add a $50 video card and still be pretty close to $400.

AGP is dead. It's going to be pretty hard to find a modern video card using it. Especially a high-end one. Spend your money on something that will have a more useful life span. Good luck.

Duff - Thanks for the well thought out response. I agree that AGP is dead and that was one of the reasons I figured I might be able to find a high-end card with AGP pretty darn cheap (The 512MB ATI 2600 that was (and still is) $150 at most places is available on clearance for $70).

I have already scoped out a replacement Motherboard/CPU/Memory combo (if necessary) for $180 that I can use if I decide to replace the MB and would most likely use of the mid-level $100 graphics boards (I can't find any with the rebates others mention) for a total of $300 or so. However, being an engineer, I am still interested in KNOWING if the $70 card can actually off load all the processing as indicated by both the original creator of this thread as well as the vendor site I quoted above.

[ansetou]

Any one care to comment on my list? Newbie needs help here. Thank you.


Guys, I'm trying to build a powerful HTPC system for watching OTA HD TV, download movies, home HD video view/minor editing/database. My selecting criteria is to build a system using almost the best components that has very good cost/function ratio. I tend to pick not the most advanced parts unless I have to. Also, since this whole thing takes so much time, I do pick parts that will allow my system to be useful for maybe the next 5 years. So here is my list:
CASE
Thermaltake DH101 $209 zipzoomfly.com
MOBO
ASUS P5Q Deluxe Intel P45 $190 zipzoomfly.com
MEMORY
CORSAIR PC2-8500 TWIN2X4096-8500C5DF 4GB $139 zipzoomfly.com
CPU
Intel® Core™2 Quad Processors Q9550 $326 zipzoomfly.com
HDD
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD753LJ 750GB 7200 RPM 2 for $220 zipzoomfly.com (RAID 1 setup)
HEATSINK
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail $37 newegg.com
POWERSUPPLY
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX $76 zipzoomfly.com
VIDEO CARD
ASUS EAH4850/HTDI/512M $188 newegg.com
KEYBOARD/MOUSE
Logitech diNovo Mini $133 amazon.com
HD TURNER
Silicondust HDHomeRun $142 amazon.com
DVD DRIVE
LG Blu-ray Burner GGW-H20L $250 newegg.com
OS
Windows Vista Ultimate Service Pack 1

TOTAL COST: $1,910


Please let me know what you think about this whole setup or each component. If you have a better part, definitely let me know.

I'm especially not sure about the Blu-ray burner. I'm not even sure if I need the write part of it as I plan to use the HDD for storage. When I need more space in the future, I think will most likely get a RAID tower for that. Even for sharing data with other ppl, I think I can use a USB drive for that. So maybe I should just get a RD ROM + DVD R/RW (LG GGC-H20L $150 ) ? What do you think.

Thank you.

[jim tressler]

I would say you are not going to have any problems doing what you want... What is your front end going to be?

[fitret]

This is pretty much exactly what was recommended for a mid-range system, but here's my wishlist.

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=5162329

Additionally, I have a Microsoft Remote Control and Receiver for Media Center PC with Windows and a have a DVD-RW drive that I'll put into the system and I'll be loading 32-bit Vista. I also have a M-Audio Revolution 5.1 sitting around collecting dust (I'm running Vista 64-bit on my new PC, and that sound card isn't supported :() Is there a benefit to putting that in my HTPC, or is the onboard sound chip from that motherboard sufficient?

I have both a 360 and a PS3, so I have no intention of ever adding a blu-ray drive or an HD-DVD drive.

I want to use the PC for gaming, but not hardcore gaming - just emulated SNES games and the like. My primary use will be watching pre-recorded content (both SD and HD), though I'd also like to be able to record TV and backing up DVDs would be nice since storage is so cheap. I'm having a hard time deciding between the two HD tuner cards that are in the OP. Is the advantage of the network one just that it can go to multiple PCs, or that your cable input doesn't have to be in the same physical location as the HTPC? Can they both do 1080p? Should I even care about recording 1080p since most TV stations are only 720p?

Edit: The more I think about it, maybe I should just get one of the high-end systems since I'll want to record TV and back up DVDs. Given what I want to use the system for, which is recommended, or are they really all about the same?

Lastly, have I forgotten anything? The list on newegg + what I already have is the full extent of what I'll be ordering.

[ansetou]

I would say you are not going to have any problems doing what you want... What is your front end going to be?

I understand my system is powerful enough to handle the work I plan to throw at it. I was