HTPC overpriced??? what are your thoughts?

[Naves74]

I ran across an add for dell the other day advertising thier pc's built for hometheaters and decided to go online and build one on thier website to see just how much it would cost to build one to do the things I want to do. Dell's base model was not bad but if I was going to spend around $2K on a HTPC it better do anything and everything I want it to do, play new pc games,record HD content, etc. I built the thing up and the total came out to nearly $4,500. That is crazzy.


So I decided to price the components out and see how much it would be to build one myself since its really not that hard and I have done it may times before.
Home Theater Case $100
600 Watt "quiet" PS $70
256 MB HD Graphics Card $250
Sound Card $100
Mother board w/ PCIExpress $200
3.2 HT P4 $225
DVD Burner $50
600 gigs 2 300 gig HD $224
1 GB DDR2 Ram $200

Total $1419

Now the dell didnt even have options for some of the better components and still cost $3,000 more. I understand that not everyone can build thier own but $3,000 is just a little to much of a price scalp if you ask me.

 

[Hi Ho]

It's almost always cheaper to build your own unless you're comparing it to one of Dell's $399 deals. As long as you have good quality components (you didn't give any names) the one you priced out would definetely be the better value.

A main point of concern is the power supply. If it isn't a good qualit unit you could be looking at a dead PC and another $1,500 to buy a new one.

 

[Sheep]

There is no such thing as a HTPC. Its a PC turned on it its side to fit into an AV rank.

Built a gaming rig with a digital out that supports EAX, and your set.

SheepStar

 

[furrycute]

HTPC is just a marketing gimmick so the likes of Dell can charge you a couple hundred extra dollars. All it is is a souped up ordinary PC housed in a fancy case.

 

[Hi Ho]

It sounds like a bit more than a couple hundred extra. I've never owned a name brand PC and I never plan to. The pricing of name brand gaming rigs is insane.

 

[Sheep]

It sounds like a bit more than a couple hundred extra. I've never owned a name brand PC and I never plan to. The pricing of name brand gaming rigs is insane.

And they have horrible cooling. Dells break because they run so hot.

SheepStar

 

[jaxvon]

And they have horrible cooling. Dells break because they run so hot.

SheepStar

No. Dells break because the company they outsource their mobos to doesn't do the best job. Also, people who own Dells aren't generally computer savvy, so they don't know that they should clean the dust out of their computers on a regular basis. The new Dell cases have a well-engineered airflow and good cooling. The new BTX case standard helps this.

 

[Hi Ho]

Dells have adequate cooling for the components they ship with. As soon as you add heat producing items such as hard drives and a faster video card, then you better add some extra cooling.

The power supplies in name brand PC's are generally decent. However, they are also just enough for the components the PC shipped with. Adding any extra loads such as a faster video card often causes problems there too.

Quality components make the difference between a trouble free PC and a headache.

I only use known good components:

Motherboards:
Asus
Abit
DFI

Hard Drives:
Western Digital
Seagate
Maxtor

Optical Drives:
Plextor
NEC
Asus
Lite-On

Power Supplies:
Enlight
Antec
xClio
PC Power&Cooling

Video Cards:
Leadtek
Asus
eVGA
ATI

RAM
Mushkin
Corsair
Crucial
Geil

 

[Sheep]

no OCZ ram or PSU?

What about hte ultra xconnect PSU. That thing is a monster.

SheepStar

 

[Hanse18]

I know exactly what you mean... My dad and I each bought new computers within the last month. I built mine, he went to Circuit City and asked for the best computer they had. He was directed to an HP Media Center PC. His Specs:
AMD 4200+ X2 (This is the only thing his comp pwns me in)
1 gig RAM
250 Gig HD
Dual DVD drives
mobo = ATI Xpress 200 (video included)
Standard Def TV tuner (cable or antenna) plus FM radio
Windows Media Center edition 2005
memory card reader(s) and "personal media drive bay" (a removably HD slot I guess... useless to him for now)

Total Cost: $2100 including software and warranty

My rig: Exclusively HTPC (Movie storage, PVR) NO GAMING or internet surfing
AMD64 3200+
1 gig RAM
500 Gig HD
CD Burner
DVD Burner
ATI TV Wonder Elite (SDTV Broadcasts)
ATI HDTV Wonder (OTA HD Broadcasts)
Floppy Drive (woo, a floppy drive... his comp didn't come with one for some reason)
Lynksys Wireless Network adapter w/ speedbooster
BFG 6200OC Video Card
Mobo: Asus A8V deluxe
Sound: On board (optical Out)

total cost: $1500 including extended warranties (parts all bought from local computer store, so warranty service is spectacular... plus I'm friends with the guy). and software (windows xp pro edition)

I figure If i were to remove some of the extra stuff, like the high quality tuners and extra HD space, I could easily upgrade to a higher processor.

I was pretty disappointed when he "showed it off" because I was rather unimpressed for the price he paid.

 

[Hi Ho]

no OCZ ram or PSU?

What about hte ultra xconnect PSU. That thing is a monster.

I made that list quickly and I left out a lot of good products. I mainly listed products that I have used most. A complete list would be much longer.

However, I personally wouldn't go for the X-Connect. It is manufactured by PowMax who makes some of the worst quality PSU's available. I have personal experience with PowMax and would not wish them on my worst enemy. There have been problems reported with the X-Connect that are frightning considering its price and claimed specs. There are better choices at comparable or better prices.

 

[Naves74]

It's almost always cheaper to build your own unless you're comparing it to one of Dell's $399 deals. As long as you have good quality components (you didn't give any names) the one you priced out would definetely be the better value.

A main point of concern is the power supply. If it isn't a good qualit unit you could be looking at a dead PC and another $1,500 to buy a new one.

I have built every computer that I personally paid for and it usually doesnt come out to be a $3,000 difference. I understand as you get pricer compenents from dell they are going to be higher but I could build almost 3 systems for the price of the dell and the only difference is the one I would build would be more stable and not say "media center" pc on the box it came in.


It is a rip off as someone already stated. Sheep your so true its a pc on its side that has a big hard drive and dell preys on the ignorant that want a "media center" pc.

 

[Hi Ho]

It's not always a $3,000 difference, but there is usually a good amount of money to be saved by building your own.

 

[sdy284]

like hi ho said, i would stay faaaaaaaar away from the ultra xconnect PSU.
OCZ
Antec
Enermax
PC Power & Cooling
are all reputable brands that will perform flawlessly & that is what makes them worthwhile. So many people build a great system then throw in a cheapy $70 psu thats rated for 600W and then wonder why their system keeps crashing. Buy a good PSU!

also, here is a great forum for learning a lot about computers & getting recommendations on components
http://forums.overclockersclub.com/
my member name is the same there, so if you join, feel free to send me a PM if you have any questions

 

[sdy284]

Well, i took the liberty to build you a computer that, in my opinion, is better than the one you built:

Processor:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
i would go with dual core for a HTPC since multi-tasking is a big part of a HTPC & dual core is the perfect solution for that
$295

Motherboard:
DFI nF4 Ultra-Infinity
$88

Memory:
G.SKILL Extreme Series 2GB (2 x 1GB)
$197 then $38 instant rebate = $159

HD:
2x Maxtor DiamondMax 10 6V300F0 300GB 7200 RPM SATA
Note: these HD's have 16mb of cache which means they will perform much better (ie faster) than other HD's with only 8mb of cache
$118 x 2 = $236

Video Card:
ATI 100-435703 Radeon X1800XL 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16
$299

Sound Card:
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic 7.1
$121

Power Supply
Antec NeoPower NeoHE 550
$118

DVD Burner:
NEC 16X DVD±R DVD Burner
$38.99

Keyboard/Mouse
Logitech Cordless Internet Pro Desktop
$32 then $8 instant rebate = $24

for a grand total of $1,379.98 and all you need to do is pick out a case

if you've never heard of some of these components, go to the forum i linked to and search for them. They're all highly regarded & come recommended by most of the members there