Lost on the road to the Perfect Home Theatre PC...

[ratso]

alrighty, seriously movieholic it's the third time :

Hardware Guide - Assassin HTPC Blog

scroll down to ivy bridge builds. pick your processor, whichever sounds good to you. pick your motherboard under that, whichever sounds good to you. pick your ram under that. you now have basically a computer. pick whatever case you like. if you are going for a super small case (mini ITX) you will run into fit issues and all of the above you picked out will have to specify its for mini ITX, otherwise don't worry about it. also on this page you can pick any accessories you like, like an optical drive (cd/bluray), etc. really the only info you can't get from here is gaming graphics cards but there are a million gaming sites online that you can ask about one. after you pick your parts post them here or elsewhere so everyone can get a look at them and tell you if it's okay. ask the community questions, like what power supply should i get for this build, what fans, etc. then buy your parts, get it assembled and ta-da. or just buy a prebuilt system like i did, search for custom HTPC.

edit: btw i was just looking at the guide itself and one thing isn't very clear. being that it isn't a gaming site, it recommends the H77 motherboard, saying it's all you need for HTPC which is true. it says the upgrade Z77 boards give you dual-video card support which is not needed for HTPC but you might strongly consider for gaming as many video cards are dual slot.

edit edit: one other thing. a VERY easy way to figure out what you want is also to simply pick a processor that sounds good to you, say the i5-3570K (quad core, 4000 graphics, not a lot of watts, might be an excellent choice for you). then simply google "i5-3570K build" and see what others have done.

edit edit edit: also found this: http://www.anandtech.com/show/6229/midrange-system-buyers-guide

 

[TLS Guy]

Ratso - so its obviously then to give my i7 to Pinky and maybe upgrade a few things to make it work as best as possible

But when you say "start from scratch", what kind of specific parts would i need to take a look at. I was hoping for some kind of general push in the direction since for example there are tons of motherboards and cpu's which seems to be the best place to start.

I have to say that this may be a tough climb for you, as you say you have never attempted anything like this previously.

You need to research this yourself first. On a forum like this, we have to assume some basic knowledge. We can not teach you everything form scratch. We can provide general guidance.

I can share my design with you, but you still have to possibly trouble shoot it like I did. My did not boot first time, but I found the problem quickly. I'm afraid it might stump you. Then you have to know how to load the operating system and software, such as Arc Soft, and set the computer up.

The advantage of a single processor is speed, low power and synchronization. However the main issue is selecting a board, that is optimal for the application.

If you are serious about this, I will post everything you need. However as you think you want to be a serious gamer, I will up you to an i5 processor, from i3 that I used. When it comes to processors you need to study how to instal them correctly and apply a very thin layer of heat sinking compound.

If you don't like any off the shelf solutions, and don't feel you want to do the build, I might be prepared to build it for you. However the build and set up is close to a day, so you will be over budget.

I would not be able to do it for a while as I need cataract surgery and lens implant. I'm an old geyser also.

However apparently you have to save funds, so our schedules may match.

This is what it looks like installed.

It is the unit second from the bottom in the first rack. The other computer is my audio workstation.

The unit in action.

 

[Irvrobinson]

I'm an old geyser also.

No, you're a geezer, but I hope your surgery is successful and uneventful.

 

[movieholic1977]

A blueprint and cost analysis of whats out there...

By researching:

MaximumPC, Toms Hardware, An and Tech, Amazon, Newegg, and Assassin HTPC i slowly came up with these.

Especially note that these are guesses from a limited Point of View. Thats to say, i hope i am right in these choices, but i also expect to be wrong but learning is why we are all here. So thank you again for reviewing whats below and critiqueing.

Choices so far:

Intel Core i5-3570K 230.00 Newegg
Intel 3.5GHz Core i7-3770K 330.00 Newegg

Notes: These are the 2 best processors my research showed until Haswell is released. Not sure if Haswell will be better. I also do not know how to overclock so the cheaper seems obvious.


ASRock Z77 Extreme6 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard 160.00 Newegg
ASRock Z77 Pro4-M LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard 110.00 Newegg

Notes: I have no clue how to even begin how to tell if these are correct. But i used various search sites to narrow it to these. I hope this is correct.


MSI R7850 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card 220.00 Newegg

Notes: This is the best video card out apparently. Or at least the one that is most affordable and delivers best bang for the buck.


Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 ST3000DM001 3TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive 140.00 Newegg

Notes: Yeah 3 tb is small for people who archive tons of movies to watch and tv shows but this should work. The future goal would be to show these on a larger monitor like a huge (100") projection screen or hook a projector up to the computer to maybe? do this?


SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD256BW 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) 230.00 Newegg

Notes: SSD for the OS. w00t!, i speak computer-ese.


Phanteks PH-TC14PE 140mm UFB (Updraft Floating Balance) CPU Cooler 86.00 Newegg

Notes: Its hot so its needs air to cool and water is bad for a pc.


ASUS VE278Q Black 27" 1920x1080 2ms Full HD HDMI LED Backlight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 300 cd/m2 ASCR 10,000,000:1 290.00 Newegg
ViewSonic VX2753mh-LED Black 27" 1ms Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers 300 cd/m2 DC 30,000,000:1, (1,200:1) 300.00 Newegg

Notes: the 2 best monitors i researched. obviously there is a better one, perhaps even a tv or small plasma, but this is for critique and tweaking ")


RAZER Tiamat 7.1 5 x 3.5mm jack, 1x USB for power Connector Circumaural Surround Sound Analog Gaming Headset 175.00 Newegg

Notes: i prefer an online game with a decent headset with a mic since my z-5500's are ok for movie watching.


ASUS Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 12X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM 8MB Cache SATA Blu-ray Burner BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS 80.00 Newegg

Notes: Nice to be able to burn off a movie and this suits the Blu Ray Burner side of me and requests for those who have a birthday


Antec NEO ECO 520C 520W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply 55.00 Newegg

Notes: Power for the entire PC, but it seems that a good power source could be future proofed or something bigger in that it allows for additional upgrading of the mobo and chip without switching out the power. Is this a good idea to consider?


SAMSUNG 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MV-3V4G3D/US 50.00 Newegg

Notes: Ram for the mobo, i prefer it maxed out to avoid any bottlenecks


LITE-ON 24X DVD Writer Internal 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Model IHAS324 25.00

Notes: Backup burner for those archiving purposes.


Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (Full) System Builder DVD 1 Pack 92.00 Amazon

Notes: Crappy OS that you have to have to be legal, and most friendly for those of us who don't know how to use a MAC "(, or Ubuntu, or Linux or others


230 + 160 + 220 + 140 + 230 + 86 + 300 + 175 + 80 + 55 + 50 + 25 + 92 = 1843 Budget

Sideways Calculator to save space and draw up a rough idea of how much to budget

 

[ratso]

ta-da! nice list. a few thoughts from an idiot. most people would say that an i5 is more than fine, the i7 probably overkill. that 3770K is pretty much the gold standard in gaming rigs. i personally did not see any huge improvement from adding a SSD in my machine, programs launch a little faster. start with the stock intel cooler (comes with the processor). if you aren't getting the temps you want you can always upgrade but the stock cooler is supposedly pretty good. lets see if this link works - the mobo's look pretty similar Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more! i would think go with the cheaper one. a lot of people choose not to go with an optical drive as it eats up space and interferes with airflow, you can get a usb external one later if you wanted to go that route. monitors, i don't know, i would rather just get a flat screen tv and hook it to that, but that's me. but again, nice start! this would be a more extensive build than most of us do, but it would be a killer machine. i can't help you on the video card. overclocking is for testbench geeks, you should never need to overclock this. i use a small hard drive (a 256 ssd is more than big enough) and keep my media on external storage. oh, and you need a case: search newegg for atx case for example. here's one, don't know your taste but nice: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129179 all in all, very impressive - you could go with a cheaper setup than this and upgrade later or just go with something like this if your comfortable. post the list on a few more sites, get some more input.

 

[Grador]

I mostly agree with what ratso has said here. Though SSDs can be quite a bit faster depending on what HDD and what SSD you're looking at. One other reason to go with a cooler that's not the stock intel one would be noise. Replacing the stock cooler with a quieter one could eek out a few extra dB, but I completely agree to give the stock one a try.

 

[movieholic1977]

Intel 3.5GHz Core i7-3770K 330.00 Newegg
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 Motherboard 135.00 Newegg
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 32GB 200.00 Newegg
--------
665.00

Add existing Hard Drive, Power Supply, Graphics Card, Sound Card, Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, OS, External Burner, Headset

If I understand all that you awesome folks have written, then by replacing the top 3 with accompanying prices into an existing system would be getting a new computer?

Of course I would either look online for this already done or have these parts bought at a place for them to install but this is where the entire system starts?

If these choices are the best of the best, please let me know otherwise i will keep reading your posts and keep searching as i try and grasp this difficult subject.

Thanks again for all the help,

Michael

 

[Grador]

I'd drop off a bit of that ram, there is no reason at all you'd need more than 16 gig, and frankly 8 is probably sufficient. Getting a new video card is probably a good idea.

If you are going to have someone put this together for you you will be far better off price and service wise by just buying a prebuilt system though.

 

[movieholic1977]

Grador - how does a new pc owner decide how much RAM is sufficient? Is there a diminishing returns in affect?

Everyone Else - Having bought 2 pc's thru Dell, i am reluctant to ask what other Major PC Makers are out there and reliable? Is there a good PC maker or one with an outstanding warranty that might justify costs?

Where else can you get pre-built machines?

Thanks,

Michael

 

[Grador]

Grador - how does a new pc owner decide how much RAM is sufficient? Is there a diminishing returns in affect?

Up to a point there's diminishing returns, and beyond there no benefit at all. Every application you run wants some amount of ram, the more applications you run simultaneously the more ram you want. Media playback doesn't really benefit from having more than a little bit of ram, my media system has a massive 2 GB and I'm not wanting for more, and for games you're really going to want to close down as much of your background stuff as possible.

Some programs require more ram than others, really depends upon how much information any given program want's to keep handy for quick access. Games do like to have a bit, but 32 gig is an exceedingly large amount. I'd say 16 gig is a quite future-proof number (and 8 most likely fine), furthermore unless you want to start spending TOP dollar for your video card(s) that's going to be your limiting factor for games anyway.

 

[ratso]

oh and speaking of ram, those ram chips you picked out are pretty high profile. not saying you will have this problem but some have had clearance issues with tall ram bumping into things like the cpu cooler. if you were wanting to buy a prebuilt system made to your specs assassin will do that for you. not the cheapest option, but quality from what i've heard AND you can get the benefit (for a price of course) of having him preload and configure all the HTPC programs so that you should have a turnkey system right out of the box. i followed his guide and did it all myself - took about 3-4 hours and was fairly straightforward if you wanna go that way.

 

[Grador]

You could also take a look at something like this: HP ENVY h8-1455 Desktop PC | HP® Official Store

Unless you have some very specific wants and needs, buying a prebuilt usually saves you quite a bit of money. It's very possible that you'd be able to find another coupon code to take off of this system.

 

[chug]

I think you're doing this wrong.

I'd salvage your cpu, board and ram that you have, buy everything you need around it. Case, drives etc. Get a smaller SSD storage, and spend the change on an extra 3tb.

Then at least you're up and running now rather than 3 or 4 months time, then once the rest is bought if you really want to upgrade the processor and board, then you can. Not that I think you'll need it.

 

[jinjuku]

The OP may want to consider splitting this up into a PS3 (with a price drop imminent) and a low power, low profile, low cost HTPC. Just a thought. He would save $$ and get the best of both worlds.

 

[panteragstk]

HTPC's are a simple thing. If gaming is a requirement then that eliminates Mac anything. Apple also hasn't adopted blu-ray as a standard yet (AFAIK) so that further eliminates Mac. Video cards are what control HDCP so as long as the card is compliant and you have a compatible player, you are good. My personal preference is Arcsoft TMT 5. Plays just about everything. If you want a decent HTPC with few parts to assemble that will game with lower to mid resolutions I've got a build for you. I plan to grab this once I get my new TV. The only thing you'll need to add is a power supply.

As far as the OS goes, Windows 7 is the safest bet. Automating your system isn't an easy task, but can be accomplished with compatible equipment with software like EventGhost and Girder. I use EG (eventghost) for my movie room and everything is nice and seamless. Any automation software will have a fairly steep learning curve, but they both have helpful forums. Lots of reading will do you very well.

The system below should be able to accomplish pretty much anything you're after unless the low profile case stops you from getting a monster video card. I would add a large mechanical drive to my build for storage as I store everything on my server so a small OS drive is all that is needed.

 

[TLS Guy]

To help the OP and others, I have posted my HTPC design in another thread.

This is a straightforward build and has been very stable and reliable.