[Wraith88]

Want some of you good peoples advice on a new build. Am looking to run openelec because of its low overhead. I need a small low power build that run Aeon Nox/MQ4 with no delays and play 1080/720p videos over a wired connection from a NAS. No wireless, DVDs, blu-ray, 3D, etc.
I'm going with intel b/c I've heard to AMD/ATI issues with linux, and I always roll intel/nvidia

ASRock DDR3 1333 Intel - LGA 1155 Motherboards (B75M-ITX)
EVGA GeForce 210 1024 MB DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 DVI/HDMI/VGA Graphics Card, 01G-P3-1312-LR
Intel G540 CPU 2.50 GHZ 2M CACHE 2.5 2 LGA 1155 Processor (BX80623G540)
M350 Universal Mini-ITX PC enclosure PicoPSU compatible
Crucial CT25664BA1339 2GB 240-PIN PC3-10600 DIMM DDR3 Memory Module
Mini-Box picoPSU-80 80 watt Output 12 volt Input DC-DC Power Supply
Kinamax AD-LCD12 LCD Monitors 12V 6A 72W AC Adapter Power Supply
Patriot Memory Supersonic Boost XT USB 3.0 Flash Drive (PEF16GSBUSB)

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[Wraith88]

Well I'm intrigued. Never heard of that specific barebones box. It's something I'd be interested in but its clocked at half the speed of the system I specced out. Just a hunch but I'd assume this would be the Intel NUC device I've heard about. Do you have any experience with the aforementioned system, especially with running openelec?

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[Wraith88]

Thanks. I was looking at the Arctic MC101 Barebone kit but the atom seemed a bit counterproductive for my build, and the ATI card had issues with bitstreaming and openelec. I'll read through that thread and decide by Monday. I'm upgrading from a build that uses old desktop parts and is far too inefficient. If it works flawlessly, i'll duplicate the build to replace my living room ATV1 which is too slow and laggy.
I'd just like an expert to confirm the NUC build, or someone that is running openelec on one.

[particleman]

I'm wondering how you plan on getting the GeForce 210 into the M350 case? The M350 has no PCI slot openings.

[Wraith88]

That's an excellent point. That was the exact thing I was looking for people to point out. I've been out of this game for too long.
I'm checking out the above NUC solution. Is a SSD benificial for OpenElec, or is a usb 3.0 drive fast enough?
If my build is more efficient, how about the MI-008 Tower Black P4 Chassis with 250W case. A bit bigger then I'd like, but I'd assume it fits that card.

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[Wraith88]

Then I'm looking down the NUC + SSD route. Value is important, but I'm willing to spend money to ensure good performance.
I just don't want to be the first one to use that specific build, especially with OpenElec. I'd rather go with a proven platform than something untested.

[Dougie Fresh]

Go with the picoPSU 90. It comes with the 4-pin power plug you need for the CPU on most motherboards. The picoPSU 80 does not have it so it'll end up costing more since you need a molex splitter and/or adapter.

For just a bit more than the 350 + picoPSU + AC adapter, this VESA mount case come with a power supply, AC adapter and VESA mouting plate all together.

You're also going to need a low-profile CPU cooler or change to a Pentium G630T.

[spencers]

Openelec on the NUC is still iffy. From what I've gathered, they still haven't updated their kernel (or drivers?) that play nice with the HD4000 gfx. I experienced some artifacting and audio clipping issues with Openelec on my NUC (only certain movies).

I've since switched to from Openelec to Windows 8, (kicking and screaming, of course) and surprisingly have yet to find any problems whatsoever.

Read through the NUC thread. http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=140534 You wouldn't be the first one with that setup.

I still would recommend the NUC, especially for the usage you described in your original post. It's energy efficient and very powerful. Only downside is that you'll be spending around $400 on hardware all-said-and-done.

[Wraith88]

Thank's for your advice. I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the NUC build after reading the whole thread.
Comes in Wed. I'll probably dual boot win8/openelec. Will update then.