Advice on htpc

[k4y]

Hi all,

am looking to build a htpc for watching 3d blurays and non 3d blurays and gaming with a 5.1 surround sound with a av receiver and a optoma hd65 3d projector.

my budget is around £900 at the moment am looking at these specs

Cpu: Intel Core i5 2500k 3.3ghz

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3P

Cpu fan: Noctua NH-U12P SE2

Case: Antec Fusion Remote Max

Psu: Corsair AX850

i have no idea what is good am using a macbook pro 2.26ghz at the moment. Could you guys please give me some advice. I have never built a computer before. Not sure what kind of ram to go for all i know is to go for 8gb ram and for the graphics card am looking for a nvidia card thanks

 

[Grizzly]

You don't need to spend that much on an HTPC, I suggest you take a look at parts again. As a rough guide I would suggest either an i3 or an AMD Hudson chipset, i3 being the better performer in general, Hudson would be cheaper and still do fine. With this get a case that has a PSU included that is less than 600W, Silverstone SG series are good for this but that limits your choice of motherboard to ITX only, nothing wrong with that unless you want expansion options inside the case. On the topic of motherboards get one with built in graphics, you don't need a dedicated graphics card for blu ray, and unless you need the expansion slots get ITX or MATX as this will reduce the size of the case needed and therefore the size of the PC considerably (personal preference). RAM you will likely need a max of 4GB. Once you've had another go at speccing a rig come back and post the spec you've got in mind as cooler will depend on whether you choose i3/Hudson and the case.

 

[k4y]

Might be able to add some more money to get an evga gtx 580 sc and probably down the road get another one what do you guys think

 

[k4y]

You don't need to spend that much on an HTPC, I suggest you take a look at parts again. As a rough guide I would suggest either an i3 or an AMD Hudson chipset, i3 being the better performer in general, Hudson would be cheaper and still do fine. With this get a case that has a PSU included that is less than 600W, Silverstone SG series are good for this but that limits your choice of motherboard to ITX only, nothing wrong with that unless you want expansion options inside the case. On the topic of motherboards get one with built in graphics, you don't need a dedicated graphics card for blu ray, and unless you need the expansion slots get ITX or MATX as this will reduce the size of the case needed and therefore the size of the PC considerably (personal preference). RAM you will likely need a max of 4GB. Once you've had another go at speccing a rig come back and post the spec you've got in mind as cooler will depend on whether you choose i3/Hudson and the case.

Thank you for your reply. i just wanted to build a all in 1 kind of thing in a htpc so that i can game now and then and watch movies

 

[Grizzly]

Thank you for your reply. i just wanted to build a all in 1 kind of thing in a htpc so that i can game now and then and watch movies

It all makes sense now.

You're original spec was OK, the NH-U12 won't hold a high overclock so don't go expecting 5GHz stable with good temps on it, if you want a cooler that could do that then NH-D14, Silver Arrow, or Phanteks dependent on when you're putting this build together as I don't think Phanteks coolers are in the UK yet.

If you're gaming from time to time a 580 is likely overkill, general consensus is if you have the money (which as you were looking at 580s I assume you do) then the GTX 570 is the best priceerformance wise.

An 850W PSU is fine and gives you a good standing when it comes to upgradability, but if you're short on cash the system will run on the AX650, but I would get an AX750 to be safe if I was in the same situation.

 

[k4y]

It all makes sense now.

You're original spec was OK, the NH-U12 won't hold a high overclock so don't go expecting 5GHz stable with good temps on it, if you want a cooler that could do that then NH-D14, Silver Arrow, or Phanteks dependent on when you're putting this build together as I don't think Phanteks coolers are in the UK yet.

If you're gaming from time to time a 580 is likely overkill, general consensus is if you have the money (which as you were looking at 580s I assume you do) then the GTX 570 is the best priceerformance wise.

An 850W PSU is fine and gives you a good standing when it comes to upgradability, but if you're short on cash the system will run on the AX650, but I would get an AX750 to be safe if I was in the same situation.

Thank you again for your reply. can the AX 750 do sli with the gtx 570 or the 580 when i upgrade down the road or do you think its best to stick with the AX850 just want to get best parts at the moment like psu,motherboard wise so i don't have to upgrade these two things down the road. What 8gb ram would fit under the NH-D14 thanks

 

[sheroo]

What 8gb ram would fit under the NH-D14 thanks

Vengeance LP (low profile).

 

[Grizzly]

Thank you again for your reply. can the AX 750 do sli with the gtx 570 or the 580 when i upgrade down the road or do you think its best to stick with the AX850 just want to get best parts at the moment like psu,motherboard wise so i don't have to upgrade these two things down the road. What 8gb ram would fit under the NH-D14 thanks

If you're planning SLI 570 or 580 you're best getting the AX850, I only recommend the AX750 or AX650 if you find yourself short on cash.

As sheroo said Corsair Vengeance LP will fit, Mushkin Redline, Blackline and Radioactive and Kingston Genesis and G.Skill RipJaws are also good and will fit under the D14

 

[daantjuh44]

Corsair Dominators also fit under the D14 if you remove the top fins of the heatsink with 2 screws.

 

[k4y]

Thank you all for your reply. do you guys think the 8GB Mushkin Radioactive 1600MHz RAM Speed, CAS 9-9-9-24 Timings, 1.5v VDIMM will be a good choice. Will be overclocking to 4.0 or 4.5 will be using it 24 hour thanks

 

[Grizzly]

Thank you all for your reply. do you guys think the 8GB Mushkin Radioactive 1600MHz RAM Speed, CAS 9-9-9-24 Timings, 1.5v VDIMM will be a good choice. Will be overclocking to 4.0 or 4.5 will be using it 24 hour thanks

Yep Mushkin are good sticks, those are fairly standard 'gaming oriented' specs as well. If you wanted a different colour there is no difference between them and other Mushkin sticks of the exat same specs, the only difference would be the cooler in case you were thinking about it.

 

[k4y]

I will be going with the evga gtx 570 sc model and do you guys think the Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3P is a good board thanks

 

[k4y]

Yep Mushkin are good sticks, those are fairly standard 'gaming oriented' specs as well. If you wanted a different colour there is no difference between them and other Mushkin sticks of the exat same specs, the only difference would be the cooler in case you were thinking about it.

Thank you again for your reply. You have really helped me thanks

 

[Grizzly]

I will be going with the evga gtx 570 sc model and do you guys think the Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3P is a good board thanks

Have taken a quick look on Scan and they have it on clearance, I personally wouldn't buy something on clearance for a brand new build unless I was on a super tight budget. My other recommendations would be the Maximus IV Gene-Z although that is MATX so you don't have as many expansion slots, if you did go SLI in future you wouldn't be able to have any other cards on the board. Otherwise there is the Gigabyte Z68XP UD4 and the Asus P8Z68-V Pro, both full ATX, for a similar price to the Gene-Z.

EDIT: I stand corrected I was looking at the Z68X not Z68XP, yes it should be fine.

Thank you again for your reply. You have really helped me thanks

NP it's what the forums are here for.

 

[k4y]

Have taken a quick look on Scan and they have it on clearance, I personally wouldn't buy something on clearance for a brand new build unless I was on a super tight budget. My other recommendations would be the Maximus IV Gene-Z although that is MATX so you don't have as many expansion slots, if you did go SLI in future you wouldn't be able to have any other cards on the board. Otherwise there is the Gigabyte Z68XP UD4 and the Asus P8Z68-V Pro, both full ATX, for a similar price to the Gene-Z.

EDIT: I stand corrected I was looking at the Z68X not Z68XP, yes it should be fine.

NP it's what the forums are here for.

Hi does any one know if the Antec Fusion Max will fit the Noctua NH-D14 thanks