2012-12-03, 13:59
Hello I'm a newbie to HTPC builds so bare with me....
Please can someone suggest suitable hardware for the following, the reason I'm thinking of a custom build rather than an out of the box offering e.g Asrock is that small form factor does not matter as it will be tucked away under the stairs with a long HDMI cable and IR receiver for connectivity. Because of this I think I should be able to build it cheaper i.e. because it does not need to be small factor sized - is my thinking correct here?
Usage
- Will be used for watching movies that are 1080p Blu-ray rips with DTS sound and also a few 3D rips
- Will also initially be used as a media server until I can afford to buy one separately
- Wont be used for gaming
Requirements
- Needs to be able to play 3D movies flawlessly
- Needs to output DTS-HD sound using bitstreaming
- Blu-ray drive not necessary initially as will be playing rips but will probably get one in the future so will need expansion space
- Size/location not an issue - so doesn't need the expense of silent operation and doesn't need to be small form factor.
- Space for at least 4 internal hard drives and USB 3.0 connectivity for 4 external hard drives
- needs to have HDMI out, (multiple outputs and the ability to watch different movies at different locations would be advantageous but not a must)
- gigabit networking
Look forward to your suggestions
Please can someone suggest suitable hardware for the following, the reason I'm thinking of a custom build rather than an out of the box offering e.g Asrock is that small form factor does not matter as it will be tucked away under the stairs with a long HDMI cable and IR receiver for connectivity. Because of this I think I should be able to build it cheaper i.e. because it does not need to be small factor sized - is my thinking correct here?
Usage
- Will be used for watching movies that are 1080p Blu-ray rips with DTS sound and also a few 3D rips
- Will also initially be used as a media server until I can afford to buy one separately
- Wont be used for gaming
Requirements
- Needs to be able to play 3D movies flawlessly
- Needs to output DTS-HD sound using bitstreaming
- Blu-ray drive not necessary initially as will be playing rips but will probably get one in the future so will need expansion space
- Size/location not an issue - so doesn't need the expense of silent operation and doesn't need to be small form factor.
- Space for at least 4 internal hard drives and USB 3.0 connectivity for 4 external hard drives
- needs to have HDMI out, (multiple outputs and the ability to watch different movies at different locations would be advantageous but not a must)
- gigabit networking
Look forward to your suggestions