HTPC Guide

the thing that still bothers me about the intel graphics, they cannot output the right 23.976. that is just stupid. i would stick with the amd zacate setup since it can do anything you want for a home theater computer. it will do hd audio where nvidia ion won't.


and i stream my content so my htpc only needs 1 small harddrive

 

You just gave me an idea. Added under optional:

Intel 310 Series (Soda Creek) SSDMAEMC040G2C1 mSATA 40GB mSATA (mini PCIe form factor) MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

This would go great with the Sapphire E350 board I posted under Tier 2 since it has a mini-pci-e slot.

Thanks

 

Awesome guide Brute Force, especially since I've been out of the PC loop for years now.

I'm building the following system:

LIAN LI Black Aluminum PC-C33B
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 5570
Intel BOXDH67BLB3 LGA 1155 Intel H67
Intel Core i3-2100T Sandy Bridge 2.5GHz
SAMSUNG Black 12X BD-ROM
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) (PC3 10666)
Antec BP550 Plus 550W
ASUS USB-N13 802.11N USB2.0 Wireless Network Adapter
WD Caviar Green 2TB

Keyboard/Mouse
Remote

Was a little more pricey than what I was expecting (~$1025 with shipping, sucks to be Canada sometimes) but looking forward to building (and using) it!

 

Thanks!

Your system looks great, I hope you enjoy using it.

 

This is what I have running as my media centre:
AMD Athlon X2 3600+ 2.0 GHz (Windsor)
ASUS M3A78-EM
Kingston ValueRAM 4 x 1 GB DDR2-800 RAM
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500 GB (OS and etc.)
Hitachi 1 TB 7200 RPM (recording drive)
Windows 7 Home Premium x64

More on my HTPC here:
http://www.kwokinator.com/page/computer-specs#htpc

About 50% of this rig are open box parts , including the 3600+ which I got for $50 back in 2008 so I can't really complain right?

deltatux

 

guys need some advice here
Fusion or cheapest SB

this article changed my opinion on Fusion

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/core-i3-2100t.html

 

*clears throat*
anyone can chime in,please?

 

Updated Tier 3.

And to answer the question above me, it all depends on your budget; personally I would recommend SB.

 

Updated Tier 2.

I'm going to need some help updating Tier 1.

 

Updated Tier 3. I will be adding an AMD based system for Tier 3 as soon as the ASUS F1A75-I motherboard comes out.

 

Updated my HTPC:

i3 530
4gb ddr3
80gb Sata HD
Samsung Bluray drive
Silverstone HTPC Full ATX Case
TT 430w TR2
On board intel graphics over HDMI
Win 7 Pro 64 SP1

Needs SSD at some point
All media is streamed from my File server with the occasional bluray disc being played.

TV: Sony 46EX620 120hz LED

 

I think this is the right place to ask this..

I have an HTPC with a Sapphire HD5450 512MB in it..

When I run CyberLink BD Advisor I get a PASS on all except the 5450 which gets a FAIL..
This is on a fresh Win7 install with latest ATI drivers.. the fresh install was done because of this same problem, yet it is still present.
When I play Blu-Ray discs with PowerDVD 11 they seem to be playing in 720p and upscaling to 1080p when i fullscreen the app.
I'm also having to use Anydvd to play Blu-ray as without it I get various messages saying the content cannot be played.

All other content I play works perfectly on PDVD, WMC or any other player, for example MKV, MP4, M4V, M2TS, AVI... all in 1080p, 720p or whatever the res may be.

HTPC:

Shuttle SX38P2 Pro
Core2Duo E6700
Sapphire HD5450 512MB
4GB DDR2 1066
2TB WD Caviar Green
LG BD ROM / DVDRW

HDMI out to 1080p TV.. COAX out from onboard to AV Receiver.

Is this a HDCP problem? I've tried all I can and googled a lot but no luck with a solution.

Any help would be appreciated guys.

Thanks.

 

AMD based HTPC:

Motherboard: Asus F1A75-I DELUXE = $157

CPU: AMD A8-3850 Llano = $140

SSD: Crucial M4 64GB = $115

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 HD204UI 2TB 5400 RPM - $80

Memory [RAM]: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 = $52

Optical Drive: SAMSUNG Black Blu-ray Drive SATA Model SH-B123L LightScribe - $57

Power Supply: 400W-600W PSU 80 Plus - $30-$60

Case: Micro-ATX HTPC - $30-$60

GRAND TOTAL: ~$690


I am welcome to hear any suggestions.

 

I've just updated my systems:-

Media Server

Intel Core i5 2400s (2.5Ghz)
Gigabyte GA-H67M-UD2H-B3 Motherboard
Seagate 80GB 2.5” HDD (OS)
550w Corsair PSU
12 x 2TB Western Digital Caviar Green HDDs (RAID6)
3 x Icy Box IB-554SSK 4 Bay Hot Swap SATA Enclosures with alarm.
3Ware 9650SE-12ML Hardware Raid Controller (with BBU)
8GB Corsair DDR3 RAM
Lian Li PC-P50B Case
UPS

HTPC

Intel Core i3 2100T Ultra Low Voltage CPU
Gigabyte GA-H61M-S2V-B3 Motherboard
4GB OCZ Ultra Low Voltage RAM
OCZ Vertex 2SE 50GB SSD (OS)
600w Corsair HX600 PSU
ATI Radeon HD5570 HDMI
Samsung Blu Ray Drive
Samsung LE55A956 55” Backlit LED TV
Onkyo TX-SR608 Amplifier
Tannoy HTS101 5.1 Speakers
Silverstone SG02B-F Evolution SFF Case