First custom build for XBMCbuntu
#1
Hello,

I am looking around to build a HTPC for XBMCbuntu. My goal is to stream movies/music/pictures from my NAS. I believe I have finally found the hardware for my box, but I'd like to double check if anyone sees any issues with my setup:

[case] SilverStone LC19B-R €169,90
[mobo] ASUS F2A55-M €77,90
[CPU] AMD A6-5400K €72,90
[CPU Cooler] Zalman CNPS8000B €29,99
[RAM] Kingston ValueRAM 4 GB DDR3-1333 €19,99
[BD-ROM] LiteOn DS-6E2SH €49,99
[SSD] Corsair CSSD-C30GB € 54,90

Together with some cables, this gives me a grand total of €498,03, which seems fair.
Is this hardware sufficient to play all media? And do you think it will provide any cooling issues in the Silverstone case? Smile
Cheaper alternatives are of course welcome. Tongue

Thanks in advance.
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#2
AMD video + Linux isnt a great combo.
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=ne...px=MTEyNDk
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#3
Thanks for the link. Guess I'll have a look at Intel CPU and Nvidia card.
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#4
No, do not worry about it. You care about money, not that they don't support open source software. If intel nvidia was only $10 more, I would do it, but increasing your already stupidly expensive build any more is just unnecessary. Their drivers work fine, they just don't open source them.
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#5
(2012-11-20, 22:45)MuSe Wrote: Thanks for the link. Guess I'll have a look at Intel CPU and Nvidia card.

Personally I dont think the brand of the cpu matters but I would be looking for something that can playback content via cpu to future proof the htpc - not everything is gpu accelerated, 10bit x264 or netflix for example. I'd also have a look at an intel igpu, Ive been playing around with xbmc on my sandybridge laptop with hd3000 gpu and I get the feeling that intel isnt too far off nvidia for video playback - but I havent spent alot of time with it.

(2012-11-21, 04:55)Xeno43 Wrote: No, do not worry about it. You care about money, not that they don't support open source software. If intel nvidia was only $10 more, I would do it, but increasing your already stupidly expensive build any more is just unnecessary. Their drivers work fine, they just don't open source them.

Did you bother to read the link I posted? It has nothing to do with open source software and everything to do with playing back media well. And aside from driver support, VDPAU has been in xbmc for a few years, VAAPI is in frodo, while XvBA wont be.
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#6
OK, found me another, cheaper site and a new setup.

[case] SilverStone LC19B-R €154,90
[mobo] AsRock H61M-GE €65,90
[cpu] Intel Pentium G860 (Dual core 3ghz sandy bridge) €65,90
[cpu cooler] Akasa AK-CC7118HP01 K25 €15,90
[ram] Kingston KVR1333D3N9/4G €18,90
[BD-ROM] Panasonic UJ-141 €39,90
[SSD] A-DATA S396 SSD (30GB) €46,90

Together with the needed cabling, this gives a grand total now of €450. When taking the shipment costs into account, this makes this box about €40 cheaper and should fix my video playback issues. Cool
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#7
(2012-11-21, 08:01)teeedubb Wrote:
(2012-11-20, 22:45)MuSe Wrote: Thanks for the link. Guess I'll have a look at Intel CPU and Nvidia card.

Personally I dont think the brand of the cpu matters but I would be looking for something that can playback content via cpu to future proof the htpc - not everything is gpu accelerated, 10bit x264 or netflix for example. I'd also have a look at an intel igpu, Ive been playing around with xbmc on my sandybridge laptop with hd3000 gpu and I get the feeling that intel isnt too far off nvidia for video playback - but I havent spent alot of time with it.

(2012-11-21, 04:55)Xeno43 Wrote: No, do not worry about it. You care about money, not that they don't support open source software. If intel nvidia was only $10 more, I would do it, but increasing your already stupidly expensive build any more is just unnecessary. Their drivers work fine, they just don't open source them.

Did you bother to read the link I posted? It has nothing to do with open source software and everything to do with playing back media well. And aside from driver support, VDPAU has been in xbmc for a few years, VAAPI is in frodo, while XvBA wont be.

It doesn't have to support VDPAU to play back video bro, otherwise nothing made by AMD would work. But you know what? It does work. So stop with your FUD. The old build would play 1080P perfectly.

Anyway, here's a cheap Intel and a cheap AMD build, both will work no matter what Mr. VDPAU says over there.

Intel: $385 https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/MySav...D=25897627
AMD: $340 https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/MySav...D=28947348

When you buy the hard drive, just pick whatever will get you more space for $60 at that time, as they go on sale almost everyday. (Or get an SSD if you don't want any space, doesn't matter for an HTPC)

Also, your case is stupidly expensive, please don't buy it. On a scale of 1 to unnecessary, its pretty much useless.

And on top of that, wtf cpu cooler? Why are you doing a budget build and then buying a third party cooler? That's unnecessary. The amount of ram you have is perfect for XBMC, however I would buy 8GB of RAM simply because its like $5 more and helps you future proof your system. Your motherboard is too expensive, I'd go with one that is $50 equivalent with good reviews, as a motherboard in a budget system simply needs to work. And if you go intel you should really get an i3. But just look at my builds if you want any ideas.

Oh and you didn't include a video card in your build, but got an intel processor without video processing. So that build wouldn't be able to do 1080P.

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#8
Lol, I didn't copy the videocard in the last config indeed. Smile Either way, I know the case is expensive, but I'm not interested in a case the size of a space ship. I need it discrete in my living room. The Silverstone case allows me to do that.
Anyway, I'm glad that next to pointing out my bad hardware choices (hell, I haven't done this anymore in over 10 years ^^), you also want to help me with examples. But can you please copy/paste your configs? Those configs were composed in your browsing session with your credentials, so I can't see them. Smile Thx.
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#9
(2012-11-21, 21:54)Xeno43 Wrote:
(2012-11-21, 08:01)teeedubb Wrote:
(2012-11-20, 22:45)MuSe Wrote: Thanks for the link. Guess I'll have a look at Intel CPU and Nvidia card.

Personally I dont think the brand of the cpu matters but I would be looking for something that can playback content via cpu to future proof the htpc - not everything is gpu accelerated, 10bit x264 or netflix for example. I'd also have a look at an intel igpu, Ive been playing around with xbmc on my sandybridge laptop with hd3000 gpu and I get the feeling that intel isnt too far off nvidia for video playback - but I havent spent alot of time with it.

(2012-11-21, 04:55)Xeno43 Wrote: No, do not worry about it. You care about money, not that they don't support open source software. If intel nvidia was only $10 more, I would do it, but increasing your already stupidly expensive build any more is just unnecessary. Their drivers work fine, they just don't open source them.

Did you bother to read the link I posted? It has nothing to do with open source software and everything to do with playing back media well. And aside from driver support, VDPAU has been in xbmc for a few years, VAAPI is in frodo, while XvBA wont be.

It doesn't have to support VDPAU to play back video bro, otherwise nothing made by AMD would work. But you know what? It does work. So stop with your FUD. The old build would play 1080P perfectly.

Anyway, here's a cheap Intel and a cheap AMD build, both will work no matter what Mr. VDPAU says over there.

Intel: $385 https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/MySav...D=25897627
AMD: $340 https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/MySav...D=28947348

When you buy the hard drive, just pick whatever will get you more space for $60 at that time, as they go on sale almost everyday. (Or get an SSD if you don't want any space, doesn't matter for an HTPC)

Also, your case is stupidly expensive, please don't buy it. On a scale of 1 to unnecessary, its pretty much useless.

And on top of that, wtf cpu cooler? Why are you doing a budget build and then buying a third party cooler? That's unnecessary. The amount of ram you have is perfect for XBMC, however I would buy 8GB of RAM simply because its like $5 more and helps you future proof your system. Your motherboard is too expensive, I'd go with one that is $50 equivalent with good reviews, as a motherboard in a budget system simply needs to work. And if you go intel you should really get an i3. But just look at my builds if you want any ideas.

Oh and you didn't include a video card in your build, but got an intel processor without video processing. So that build wouldn't be able to do 1080P.

Wow, bro, you've missed the point again... If only you could read as well as you rant.
Excellent observation regarding not needing VDPAU to playback video, but my point was that AMD drivers and linux arent the best mix. Yes you don't need XvBA for video but do you want a GPU with notoriously bad drivers? You talk about getting 4x the ram thats really necessary to run xbmcbuntu to 'future proof' the build, but you recommend a GPU from a company that ceased releasing updates for GPU's still for sale and only a few years old - Great foresight there, and thats fact not FUD!

wtf cpu cooler? - yeah bro they're usually quieter and better performing than the stock ones! And nobody mentioned anything about a budget build except you, so why are you being so critical of the OP's choices? Just because something is cheap doesn't make it the best. A case is a personal choice of taste.
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