[helpermonkey]

Hey guys,
After a few posts on here and elsewhere, I've finally gotten my parts list for my HTPC. I'm ditching cable and moving my media over to a NAS and going to get into the whole streaming thing. This rig will be used for some gaming, but I'm not looking to run the newest games and certainly not at their optimum settings (don't care about how they really look). I really want this thing to be silent and I will be using it to record OTA programs as soon as I figure out what external tuner to get (I won't have a cable card). Meanwhile, I've got a slim external BluRay drive and a Netgear RNDP200U-100NAS R with a SAMSUNG EcoGreen F4 HD204UI 2TB 32MB Cache SATA and a Seagate Barracuda Green ST2000DL003 2TB 5900 RPM 64MB Cache SATA inside.

Big thanks to Eskro, Dougie Fresh, and Beer40oz for all their help. And with that ... onto the build:

Edited to reflect swapped out RAM

CASE: Antec ISK 300-65 Black Steel Mini-ITX
PSU: picoPSU 160
MOBO: ASRock Z77E-ITX LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s
APU: Intel Core i7 3770S processor 3.1 4 LGA 1155 BX80637I73770S
RAM: Crucial Ballistix Tactical 4GB DDR3 SDRAM Memory Module - BLT2KIT2G3D1869DT1TX0
FAN: Scythe BIG SHURIKEN 2 Rev B. 5
HD: Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2
OS: Win7 Pro 64 + XBMC
REMOTE: Logitech Harmony One
GAMING: Xbox360, NES, TG16, & Sega Genesis.
ANTENNA: Mohu MHANT 1000
TUNER: Still TBD.

So what do y'all think? See any problems with this getup? I'm most concerned about choosing the right pico and RAM that will fit.

[Mick1152]

Only problem I see is gaming, Xbox360 There is no XBOX 360 Emulator that I'm aware of.... although I may be totally wrong on this one.

[Beer40oz]

That G SKIll RAM won't fit under the BIG SHURIKEN.....

[helpermonkey]

Only problem I see is gaming, Xbox360 There is no XBOX 360 Emulator that I'm aware of.... although I may be totally wrong on this one.

Those aren't emulators actually - those are my systems I plug in. Muuu haaaa ;-)

That G SKIll RAM won't fit under the BIG SHURIKEN.....

Thanks Beer40oz, do you know how much clearance i'll have? I will probably take out my bracket like you did. If you aren't sure how much - how would i go about finding the right sized ram?

[bluray]

how would i go about finding the right sized ram?

You just need a low profile memory stick as this "Kingston HyperX Genesis 4 GB".......

[Beer40oz]

Or....

This one I recommend....

The link is on my build.....

[bluray]

Or....

This one I recommend....

The link is on my build.....

I'm wondering how well will it work with Intel motherboard and i7.........

[helpermonkey]

Or....

This one I recommend....

The link is on my build.....

I'm wondering how well will it work with Intel motherboard and i7.........

how do i figure out what's low profile

[Mick1152]

From what I can find, the Crucial Ballistix Tactical sticks are 1.4 inches tall. Consider that your limit for RAM and find that or shorter... or just go with one of the two modules that have been posted here that are known to fit under that cooler.

[Beer40oz]

Yes the Crucial Ballistix Tactical with my BIG SHURIKEN 120MM.... fit... 1/8" clearance.....

[bluray]

how do i figure out what's low profile

One thing I know, this "Kingston HyperX Genesis 4 GB Kit (2x2 GB Modules) 1866MHz" is suggested by your Intel motherboard website......it seem to be lower than Crucial too. As you can see, there is no crown heatspreader on top of it.......

I know Beer installed the Crucial in his HTPC, but his HTPC is A6-3500 with FM1 motherboard......I'm not sure how well will it work with Intell mobo and CPU......

[Beer40oz]

They don't get to test all the RAM sticks.... I bet it would work just fine.

Mine was not even on the list either for Asrock...

[bluray]

They don't get to test all the RAM sticks.... I bet it would work just fine.

Mine was not even on the list either for Asrock...

I ran the compatibility test on their website for Crucial Ballistix Tacticle, and it is compatible with "Guaranteed-compatible with the ASRock Z77E-ITX".......

[Dougie Fresh]

IMHO, an i7 for an HTPC like you describe is overkill. If it's the HD4000 GPU you're after, just wait a bit for the i3-3225.

http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Core_i3/In...-3225.html

http://www.cpu-world.com/Releases/Deskto....html#June

[helpermonkey]

IMHO, an i7 for an HTPC like you describe is overkill. If it's the HD4000 GPU you're after, just wait a bit for the i3-3225.

http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Core_i3/In...-3225.html

http://www.cpu-world.com/Releases/Deskto....html#June

Thanks Dougie -
I agree that the i7 is overkill. It's in fact ... major overkill. The reason for the purchase is to allow me flexibility with the rig as time goes along. Having resolved the memory issue ($34 for the ballistix http://www.buy.com/pr/product.aspx?sku=228200685 ), I'm just trying to make sure I have a power supply to cover this. I like the idea of having a brick for this, but we'll have to see what happens. Hopefully I'll resolve this in the next 24-hours though. According to the estimates (http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine) i'm somewhere in the 140-150 range ... so i *think* a picoPSU 160 should be enough.