Pascual

I have been wanted to build a HTPC for quite some time and I’ve decided now is the time! I have a windows home server that I will be streaming all my media off and I think XBMC will complement it nicely. So I need a HTPC capable streaming 1080p video and shows off of sites like Hulu or BBC iPlayer. Here is the build I have planned at the moment:



I’m planning to use XBMC Live but would the remote I have selected work properly? Also do you think the CPU I selected is powerful enough? Any help or comments on the build would be much appreciated

tNok85

E7400 is overkill.

What's the pricing on the E3200 over there? Using that in my current one with a 3450 and it's working beautifully (1080p and all).

If the E3200 is cheaper, you could get a bigger HDD in place. 500GB is not much when you're talking high def.

Amdkillsintel

I think that cpu is fast enough.

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Pascual

E3200 is £40 quite a bit cheaper. If anything I would like a smaller HDD. Everything is going to be streaming of my home server so space isn’t really an issue.

tNok85

Gotcha.

Then definitely, the E3200 is more than enough. Can personally attest to that.

Manyak

Just a few points:

1 - Why use an mITX board in an mATX case? Since the case has got the room for the extra expansion slots you might as well take advantage of them. Especially as mITX boards are more expensive than the mATX ones.

2 - Are you hooking this up to a good stereo/surround system, or just to the TV speakers? If it's to a stereo you'll be disappointed with the sound quality compared to real A/V equipment unless you pick up a good discrete sound card (any of the Xonars will be great). Onboard sound just has crap for imaging, practically no dynamics, and lots of introduced noise and distortion.

3 - The 780G has better video quality than the 9300, and you'll get a better processor for the same price with AMD. At least here you do, I don't know about over by you.

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iakovl

i'd go for a small ION based itx pc... perfect htpc

Pascual

Ok so I changed a couple of things and I’m curious to what you guys think. If someone could tell me if the motherboard and CPU are compatible with each other that would be great, I have never had an AMD system before.

pioneerisloud

Change the motherboard to an AMD 780G or 785G chipset board instead of an Nvidia board. Change the CPU to a Sempron 140, and you're good to go.

EDIT:
Might also want a TV Tuner card in there too. The Hauppage 2250 is a great tuner card (I've never personally used it, but heard great things about it).

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Pascual

I thought Ati doesn’t support hardware acceleration on Linux. So a 780G chipset motherboard probably not a good choice or have I got this all wrong?