Media Center Build..opinions??

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totalPCTechs

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I'm trying to build a media center for myself...this is what i have so far i don't want to spend alot but all its for is streaming netflix movies and xmbc. The onboard video is Radeon HD 4250 and im not sure if it will be glitchy at times but what do yall think???

Cart Item List:

MSI 880GM-E35 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813130585
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $74.99
$69.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820231425
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy $41.99

SILVERSTONE Black MILO Series ML03B Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case
Item #:N82E16811163174
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $59.99

Antec EarthWatts Green EA-380D Green 380W Continuous power Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817371033
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$20.00 Instant $59.99
$39.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor
Item #:N82E16819103808
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy $114.99

Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #:N82E16822148697
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $64.99
$59.99
Grand Total: $386.94
 
totalPCTechs said:
I'm trying to build a media center for myself...this is what i have so far i don't want to spend alot but all its for is streaming netflix movies and xmbc. The onboard video is Radeon HD 4250 and im not sure if it will be glitchy at times but what do yall think???

Cart Item List:

MSI 880GM-E35 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813130585
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $74.99
$69.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820231425
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy $41.99

SILVERSTONE Black MILO Series ML03B Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case
Item #:N82E16811163174
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $59.99

Antec EarthWatts Green EA-380D Green 380W Continuous power Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817371033
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$20.00 Instant $59.99
$39.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor
Item #:N82E16819103808
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy $114.99

Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #:N82E16822148697
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $64.99
$59.99
Grand Total: $386.94
Click to expand...

Personally I would go with an Intel build for this. The Sandy Bridge integrated graphics are far superior to AMDs offerings, especially for HD playback/encoding (Intel's new Quick Sync technology)

So, maybe something like this?

- H67 Socket 1155 Motherboard ($50-80)
- Intel Core i3 2100 ($115)

The rest of the build looks good though.
 
Use a server or another computer to store the media and boot the machine off of a flash drive or a small SSD. Cuts down the noise and heat. I use a mini-ITX system with an SSD and a special case that has a power adapter (like a laptop) rather than a power supply to cut down the noise even further. It's so close to going completely fanless right now.
 
totalPCTechs said:
I'm trying to build a media center for myself...this is what i have so far i don't want to spend alot but all its for is streaming netflix movies and xmbc. The onboard video is Radeon HD 4250 and im not sure if it will be glitchy at times but what do yall think???

Cart Item List:

MSI 880GM-E35 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813130585
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $74.99
$69.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820231425
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy $41.99

SILVERSTONE Black MILO Series ML03B Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case
Item #:N82E16811163174
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $59.99

Antec EarthWatts Green EA-380D Green 380W Continuous power Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817371033
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$20.00 Instant $59.99
$39.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor
Item #:N82E16819103808
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy $114.99

Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #:N82E16822148697
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$5.00 Instant $64.99
$59.99
Grand Total: $386.94
Click to expand...

Not a good choice of CPU

Modus operandi for a MC build is low power consumption

Low power = low heat = LOW NOISE

955 is hot, noisy CPU

Just a personal preference, but I dont like MSI motherboards. No reason, other than I just dont like them. :P

Check out this guide for up-to-the-minute build suggestions:
http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/rmp_sg_whirlpoolpcs_htpc

(I have been a member here for a long time and know the guys who put this together. Its the goods). If I was building again, this is where I would start.

If you want to get your head around MC build theory, check out the guide I wrote for the Mediaportal community (its a bit out of date, but the underlying ideas are still relevant)
http://forum.team-mediaportal.com/general-62/guide-how-build-silent-htpc-78218/

Whatever you do, start your build around a CPU with LOW TDP, and use the quietest possible chassis, HSF and PSU you can afford.

As far as remotes, go, IMON is the killer AFAIC because they are so versatile and have mouse mode :)
 
Last edited:
16k_zx81 said:
Not a good choice of CPU

Modus operandi for a MC build is low power consumption

Low power = low heat = LOW NOISE

955 is hot, noisy CPU

Just a personal preference, but I dont like MSI motherboards. No reason, other than I just dont like them. :P

Check out this guide for up-to-the-minute build suggestions:
http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/rmp_sg_whirlpoolpcs_htpc

(I have been a member here for a long time and know the guys who put this together. Its the goods). If I was building again, this is where I would start.

If you want to get your head around MC build theory, check out the guide I wrote for the Mediaportal community (its a bit out of date, but the underlying ideas are still relevant)
http://forum.team-mediaportal.com/general-62/guide-how-build-silent-htpc-78218/

Whatever you do, start your build around a CPU with LOW TDP, and use the quietest possible chassis, HSF and PSU you can afford.

As far as remotes, go, IMON is the killer AFAIC because they are so versatile and have mouse mode :)
Click to expand...

The AMD E350 APUs are decent for a HTPC, but you won't be doing any gaming on them, if that's a priority/option. I think the main noisy component is going to be your GPU if you are running a discrete card.

If you want to use the HTPC for moderate 3D gaming, then you will need at least an HD5670/HD6670 (rebadged 5670, cool and quiet)
 
Vicenarian said:
Personally I would go with an Intel build for this. The Sandy Bridge integrated graphics are far superior to AMDs offerings, especially for HD playback/encoding (Intel's new Quick Sync technology)

So, maybe something like this?

- H67 Socket 1155 Motherboard ($50-80)
- Intel Core i3 2100 ($115)

The rest of the build looks good though.
Click to expand...

I disagree. I built an MCE out of an Athlon x2 a month ago for my living room and it rocks.

My system is

AMD Athlon II X2 250

6Gb DDR3 Crushial

ASUS M4A78LT-M

WD Blue 1Tb Drive

Hauppauge Colossus h.264 Capture card

LITE-ON DVD Burner

APEVIA X-MASTER-BL/500 MCE case

This system is running Windows 7 MCE and can record true h.264 high definition video and aac or ac3 audio. Simultaneous playback and recording is smooth and fast. The Hauppauge IR blaster works perfect with my DirceTV h20 receiver. In the month since I built it I haven't had a single problem with it. Its dead silent and runs very cool even in the hot weather we have been having.

The Hauppauge does not currently support multiple capture cards but they say that it will soon and when it does I plan to add another to it. I here that you can use multiples by using the dblink software. The AMD processor is a champ in this system. At first I was going to built a quad core but I decided that a dual should be fine and I have been very happy with it.

The only problem I have been having is that I want to transcode the wtv recorded files to mkv but because my h20 diretv receiver will only output aac audio I can't find a transcoder that will do it because of patent laws with aac. As soon as I can figure out how to make the Hauppauge convert the aac to ac3 like it can on mythtv I will be able to transcode it without a problem. The Hauppauge is capable of re-encoding aac to ac3 in real time but for some reason only the Linux MythTV drivers have support for it. It might be because Linux does not support aac very well.

BTW, Netflix works wicked fast on this thing.

Edit:

BTW I use the HDMI out on the motherboard to connect to my 47" TV. The picture is great on live and recorded TV as well as Netflix. The only hitch is you have to install the radion control center and turn over-scan completely off or you will have a 1" black boarder around the entire screen. It does not affect the PC input on the TV but I went with the HDMI so I could get better sound to the TV.
 
Last edited:
I built one from a 3ghz ibm desktop with a gig of memory. Running XP SP3. I don't have a license for Media Center Ed. The video is an ATI 9550. I don't stream netflix from it I use my blu ray player for that. I do watch stuff i've downloaded off the web as avi files being pulled from from a shared drive on my server. It's not glitchy at all. I saw a similar machine over on Geeks.com for like 79.00. I've got an old 2gig emachine that I'm going to put in my room so my wife and I can watch stuff off of the network on the TV in our room.
 
Vicenarian said:
Personally I would go with an Intel build for this. The Sandy Bridge integrated graphics are far superior to AMDs offerings, especially for HD playback/encoding (Intel's new Quick Sync technology)

So, maybe something like this?

- H67 Socket 1155 Motherboard ($50-80)
- Intel Core i3 2100 ($115)

The rest of the build looks good though.
Click to expand...

+1

filler..........................
 
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