[Carb0]

Hi there

I currently have an ASRock ION 3D and I'm very happy with its media playback capabilities but I don't like the fact that there are skins and some N64 roms that don't run very smooth on this machine. I'd also like to watch TV within XBMC and record TV Shows so I thought I could build my own HTPC. It's going to be the first PC I'm building on my own.

My HTPC should be able to:
- Use any XBMC Skin available
- Play Blurays (incl. 3D Blurays)
- Play 1080p mkv (up to 30mbps)
- Bitsteam HD Audio
- Watch HDTV (DVB-C)
- Play light Games (Emulation)

After I have read eskro's and poofyhairguy's threads, that both were very helpful, I chose the following parts for my HTPC:

[Mobo] Asus P8P67-M PRO (B3), Intel P67 B3, LGA1155, CFX/SL, mATX
[CPU] Intel Core i3 2100 BOX, 3.1GHz, LGA 1155, 2C/4T
[GPU] Asus GT-430, 1GB DDR3, PCI-E x16, HDMI, low-profile
[RAM] Kingston ValueRAM, 2x2GB Kit, DDR3-1333, CL9
[Case+PSU] Compucase 7K09 incl. 250W PSU
[BD-R] LG BH10LS
[SSD] Corsair Force3 60GB, SATA-3
[TV Tuner] Digital Devices Cine CT V6, Dual DVB-C/DVB-T PCIe
[USB IR Receiver] HP 5188-1667

Now I have a few questions:
- Will I be able to do the things mentioned above?
- Do I need a Fan?
- Is the the 250W PSU which is included in the case enough? (Newegg lists this case as 300W but my local retailer lists it as 250W.)
- Will the TV Tuner work with XBMC? (It has BDA Drivers)

The hardest part was to find a nice case. But I'm still not really happy with it.
Does anyone have recommendations for a case? I also like the Lian Li PC-37B but it is a little bit too big.

Requirements for the case:
- Max. Dimensions: 600 x 120 x 380 mm (WxHxD)
- 2 or more PCI Slots
- Nice looks

Thanks in advance.

[Kirky99]

Live TV is more of a function of whatever backend you're using, NOT necessarily XBMC. What OS are you using? If Windows, then your best bet is probably look at Team MediaPortal for support on that Tuner.

Where are you storing your recorded shows? That 60G drive will fill up fast, again, if you're running windows you're probably looking at about 25 gigs for the OS and supporting software right off the top, and I'm guessing about a gig an hour for recordings.

[Carb0]

Thank you for the answer. Yes, I'm going to use Windows 7 as the OS. And the Team Mediaportal website says that all TV Tuners that have BDA drivers are supported.

About the TV Shows: I have a NAS with 8TB storage where all my media is stored. Is it possible to save the shows directly on the NAS when I map the NAS as a network drive in Windows? Will the connection be fast enough? If not it is probably better to buy an additional internal drive (1TB or 2TB WD Green) to store them until I have the time to copy them over to my NAS.

[Kirky99]

Over wired ethernet you should be OK. MediaPortals' TV server does allow you to specify a network share as a recording destination (I've done it and it works).

Here's a thought. I don't know if it's necessary as we're still a ways away from a really good PVR implementation it seems, but for MP, I went and put extra memory in my HTPC Box with the TV tuner(s). I create a ramdisk, and use that for the timeshifting buffer (seperate from the recording directory in MP).

My first go with a backend gave me a few headaches with performance, and I wanted to make sure I wasn't gimped this time. I'm also distributing TV to three clients (including the one I'm recording with) so that's a bit different than a one HTPC setup. Just an idea while memory is dirt cheap!

[Carb0]

Thanks for the tip with the ramdisk. How much RAM would you recommend? I already have 4GB in the build I posted above. If I need more I will have to use the 64bit version of Windows. Are the parts I used in my build 64bit capable?

[Kirky99]

I don't know if you NEED more memory, 4G with Windows is plenty. I went with 8G in mine, 3G dedicated to the ramdisk used for the timeshifting buffer(s). Ultimately though, I'm going to be running 6 tuners through this machine and I currently have 3 clients (4th one coming).

I'd recommend going to Windows x64 regardless. Unlike Windows XP 64, I haven't run into driver issues. 32 bit and 64 bit actually share the same key (or did) so given the choice I'd install x64.

Emulations (MAME anyway) might actually be better if you run the 64 bit versions.

[bluray]

[Mobo] Asus P8P67-M PRO (B3), Intel P67 B3, LGA1155, CFX/SL, mATX
[CPU] Intel Core i3 2100 BOX, 3.1GHz, LGA 1155, 2C/4T
[GPU] Asus GT-430, 1GB DDR3, PCI-E x16, HDMI, low-profile
[RAM] Kingston ValueRAM, 2x2GB Kit, DDR3-1333, CL9
[Case+PSU] Compucase 7K09 incl. 250W PSU
[BD-R] LG BH10LS
[SSD] Corsair Force3 60GB, SATA-3
[TV Tuner] Digital Devices Cine CT V6, Dual DVB-C/DVB-T PCIe
[USB IR Receiver] HP 5188-1667

that is very similar to what i have in my signature. it should be able to playback bd 1080p with dts-hd/truehd with ease!

[Carb0]

Ok, I think I'm going to use Windows 64bit then. Thank you Kirky99.

Thank you Bluray. Will the 250W PSU be enough?

And do I need a fan? Or is heat not going to be an issue? The HTPC should be as quiet as possible.

[bluray]

Ok, I think I'm going to use Windows 64bit then. Thank you Kirky99.

Thank you Bluray. Will the 250W PSU be enough?

And do I need a fan? Or is heat not going to be an issue? The HTPC should be as quiet as possible.

everything should be fine!

if you are concern about heat, you might need to install something similar to this- Scythe SY1225SL12M

[Carb0]

I just checked the cases at my local retailer again and there are 2 versions available of the case i mentioned above. One has 250W and one has 300W. What is the better choice for my build?

[bluray]

I just checked the cases at my local retailer again and there are 2 versions available of the case i mentioned above. One has 250W and one has 300W. What is the better choice for my build?

go with 300w. it'll give you a little bit more headroom for future upgrades!

[Carb0]

Thank you.

[Carb0]

I found a better looking case:
http://moneualusa.com/index.php?option=c...Itemid=159

Pros:
- Looks much better
- IR receiver included
- has a display
- probably better build quality

Cons:
- much higher price
- PSU not included

My new build:
[Mobo] Asus P8P67-M PRO (B3), Intel P67 B3, LGA1155, CFX/SL, mATX
[CPU] Intel Core i3 2100 BOX, 3.1GHz, LGA 1155, 2C/4T
[GPU] Asus GT-430, 1GB DDR3, PCI-E x16, HDMI, low-profile
[RAM] Kingston ValueRAM, 2x2GB Kit, DDR3-1333, CL9
[Case] Moneual MonCaso 320
[PSU] be quiet! STRAIGHT POWER, E8 400W 80plus Silber
[BD-R] LG BH10LS
[SSD] Corsair Force3 60GB, SATA-3
[TV Tuner] Digital Devices Cine CT V6, Dual DVB-C/DVB-T PCIe

What do you think?

And I'm a little worried about the Asus GT-430: Is the fan of the card loud? Would a GPU with passive cooling be better?

[bluray]

the case in your link seem to be very well built, but it's very expensive. i'm not sure what type of fan is intstalled on asus gt430, but i own both of these gpu's below. it seem to be very quiet.

SAPPHIRE 100324L Radeon HD 6570 2GB DDR3 and Evga GeForce GT 430. i preferred hd 6570 over gt 430!

[eskro]

first you should still go with an Active Cooling GPU
since you plan on using a slim case,,,
things can get how in there easily,,,

the Asus GT-430 has never been reviewed as a Loud/Annoying card so,
i wouldnt worry at all,,,,

overall your built is good
but seems pricey