Do I junk it, renovate it or rejuvenate it?
#1
Hi gents, I recently have been given a older media center and have been tossing around what to do with it. The first thing I did was to download XBMC and see if it would run. It loads fine but that is about it. So I am asking for other thoughts on it and what I could do to make this work.

What I have been given is one small black media case appro. size is 5.25 inches tall x 14.5 inches long x 13.75 inches wide. The motherboad is an Intel DG31PR with 1 gig of ram. The cpu is a Celeron G430 1.8GHz. The hard drive is a Seagate Baracuda 7200 laptop 80 gig SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive. The power supply is FSP Group 250.

What I will use this for if at all possible is strickly media streaming from my NAS and some web browsing. Most of my content is a mixture of SD (50%) and 720 (30%) and 1080 (20%). I will be running all audio and video through my receiver, then onto my TV. Either through a DVI to HDMI connection or HDMI solo.

With these qualifications I started to look around for a vid card and cpu. What I have come up with is adding a new Core 2 Duo and a Radeon HD 5450. The problem I see is that if I go ahead with the above, the 5450 will need atleast a 400 Watt or greater power supply recommended.

What are some suggestions?
Thanks
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#2
250W would be more than enough for a 5450 (do you need to buy Win7 as well?).


OpenELEC + a Nvidia GT 210 (or GT 520, 430 etc.) would work great with that CPU and RAM.
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#3
I think you mean Celeron 430 without the G. That is a single core 1.8Ghz cpu. It is pretty slow, slower than an atom 330. It will be fine for playing videos when coupled with an Nvidia GT210 thanks to GPU offloading but the xbmc gui will be pretty sluggish. (Eden's dirty regions might help with that)

Since you already loaded up xbmc, see how the menus and transitions are, you can also try a lighter skin. Even though confluence is pretty light, there are more minimalistic ones.

The radeon will force you to use win 7 for gpu offloading, but an nvidia card will work in linux really well if you wanna give live or openelec a shot. (Especially openelec uses a lot less resources than a full Windows installation)
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#4
Quote:250W would be more than enough for a 5450 (do you need to buy Win7 as well?).
liveforever - I get the power listing from the HIS 5450 details page "System Requirements 400 Watt or greater power supply recommended"
I have a fresh copy of Win7 64 Home edition so no need on that.

aptalca : I will only use windows for the operating system since if I do get this to run with modifications, I will be giving it away to a family member as a gift. Also if I can not even scan a TV show I already have with all the info on it into XBMC with this cpu, what differance will a skin make.

My other thought would be to ditch the motherboard and go with a new A series APU with new motherboard. I do believe that the 250 psu would be enough for doing something like that?
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#5
"Recommended" means just that. It's not necessary.

If you have a high-drain CPU and/or components (ATX boards are generally less conscious of power drain), want to overclock, or just have a load of hard disks, then you'd need a 400W. Otherwise it's just recommended for stability. It's doubtful you'd do anything with XBMC that would drain enough power to require a 400W.
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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#6
baldmosher: You are correct in assuming I won't have any power draining hardware, the question still bothers me is; For the cost of a new vid card and cpu, am I better off swapping out the m/b and replacing that with what I had previously stated- APU?

I may be giving this away but I will still need to maintain it once it is given, since I would be the only person with any computer knowledge in my family.
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#7
HTPC CPU requirements are minimal.

If the mobo was missing some essential features like PCI-E slot or SATA ports then I would change, but otherwise why bother ripping its heart out?

Can't you pick up a 5450 and a CPU off eBay for v cheap? Not sure about the CPU you want but the 5450s normally go for £15 or less in the UK. I reckon you could max out this system for well under £50. It wouldn't be amazing but it'd work very well.

Incidentally I gave my dad my old K6 2000+ system a few years ago and he still uses it now, only changes I made were to install an AC cooler, 64GB hard disk (upgrade from his old 13GB), and 1GB RAM. I've just bought him a Barton 2500+ for £4 on eBay, you'd be surprised how long decent technology will last without issues if people are content with using it. His previous PC was dead after 3 years as it was just a cheap barebones.

If you want to build a new system in that case you're gonna spend £150 easy
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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#8
You don't need a new CPU.

Just get an Nvidia GT210 and it will be fine.

I run XBMC Live with a single-core 1.8Ghz Celeron (socket 775), on a mini ITX motherboard with integrated geforce 9300 graphics.

I can play 1080p video just fine.

I've read accounts on here of people running XBMC and 1080p videos on Pentium III hardware as slow as 450Mhz with a PCI Geforce 8400GS upgrade.

I'd put as much RAM in it as it can hold, but other than that, you should be fine.

-Wes
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#9
Wes,
So do the 8xxx or 9xxx cards play 1080p DXVA without macroblocking and other issues? Cos if so that does give me more options as I'm looking for a second hand card for the Microserver - I just want the cheapest card available for the task in hand.

I take it the 5450 is the lowest I can go with ATI/AMD
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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#10
I have XBMC running on a P4 3.0 with a 8400GS on W7 x86.
Streams perfectly fine.
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#11
Yeah, for "older" systems PCI 8400gs is the way to go.

They don't make any AGP flavors, so it's either a PCI 8400GS if you don't have PCI-express, or a GT210 if you do. (there are other choices, but these two offer the best bang-for-buck for a dedicated media center)

No blocking or other issues.

I'd use Linux, Live or Openelec, though.

If you're trying to use Windows, remember that XBMC HW acceleration uses DXVA2, so you'll need Vista or Win7, and those both take a lot more resources, particularly with RAM; just something to remember.

Hope this helps,

-Wes
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#12
Not fussed which GPU I get really, as long as it's cheap, and slim. It'll only be in use as an HTPC temporarily (probably). I'm scouring eBay for second hand G210, GT220, 5450, 6450, 6570 cards, only got PCIE so I suppose there's no point adding the 8xxx/9xxx (unless they come in PCIE flavours?)

One brand new AMD G210 is listed for £22 but the passive heatsink is flippin' enormous and space is very tight in the tiny Microserver case. I've seen Radeon HD cards go for £15 and less recently so I'm keeping an eye out for a bargain.
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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Do I junk it, renovate it or rejuvenate it?0