[Mighty5nake]

as the title mentions above , i have a Acer X3810 with i'm planning to use as XBMC machine , but only if someone with more expertise then me can ashore me its capable of playing everything i wan't (meaning 1080P 1:1 blu-ray with all the possible kinds of audio formats ...

my spec's are this :


Computer: Acer Aspire X3810
CPU: Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 (Wolfdale-2M, R0)
2500 MHz (12.50x200.0) @ 2494 MHz (12.50x199.5)
Motherboard: Acer WG43M
Chipset: Intel G43 (Eaglelake-G) + ICH10 Consumer
Memory: 4096 MBytes @ 399 MHz, 6.0-6-6-15
- 2048 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - Samsung M378B5673EH1-CH9
- 2048 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - Samsung M378B5673EH1-CH9
Graphics: Intel G45/G43/P45 Chipset - Integrated Graphics 0 [A3] [ACER]
Intel GMA 4500(M)(HD), 1849944 KB
Drive: WDC WD3200AAJS-22L7A0, 312.6 GB, Serial ATA 3Gb/s
Drive: HL-DT-ST BD-RE BH10LS30, BD-RE
Sound: Intel ICH10 - High Definition Audio Controller [A0]
Network: Intel 82567V-2 ICH10(R+) Gigabit Network Connection
Network: Ralink RT2790 802.11n 1T/2R miniCard Wireless Network Adapter
OS: Microsoft Windows 8 Professional (x64) Build 9200


i have to mention i had bad experience with the graphics card and audio card , thats my second question depending on my first question ...

i suppose if i buy a graphic's card with HDMI , i don't need a second audio card because audio will be taken care of by the graphics card , so in my case , what graphics card is the best choice (and don't give overkill cards plz, i'm not planning to game with the machine , only watching movies and tv-shows) , and its got to be low profile ...

i hope there is a NVidia card that fills my needs ... , thanks to all who take the time to reply to this ...

and btw , if your opinion is in fact that my machine should be replaced for something new , please say so and give me some recommendation in the right direction with hardware of this day ...

thanx !

[cwide]

Granted, your computer is going to be bigger and more power hungry than most modern options, but you will be fine just putting in one of these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6814133457

or this for fanless:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6814121641

~$40 and you are good to go for a long time.

[true_devil]

What cwide said..did a similar thing with an OLD PC i had lying around. WOrk a treat, can play BLURAY just fine.

[Mighty5nake]

Granted, your computer is going to be bigger and more power hungry than most modern options, but you will be fine just putting in one of these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6814133457

or this for fanless:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6814121641

~$40 and you are good to go for a long time.

thanx mate , i probably will buy that card , only thing that i needed to know is , and i know it may sound stupid , but i'm not 100 pro cent sure this is a pcie slot on my mobo , can you maybe confirm it ?

http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Acer-Aspire-X3810...ye5BREKNu/$(KGrHqZ,!i4FD-jVu7gFBREKNt,Pdg~~60_57.JPG

the black slots on the right bottom , the small one is used for the Wifi card that was deliverd with the X3810 (the Model name) , the slot on the right is empty and i suppose there fits a graphics card in there , am i right ?

[cwide]

The black slot is a PCIe x16 slot. It is for graphics cards like the ones I listed.

If you are going to get the fanless one (which I would recommend) make sure it will fit in your case. The heatsink on it takes up a lot of space. Basically make sure the case or the PSU isn't right next to the bottom of your motherboard. I doubt it is though.

[Mighty5nake]

The black slot is a PCIe x16 slot. It is for graphics cards like the ones I listed.

If you are going to get the fanless one (which I would recommend) make sure it will fit in your case. The heatsink on it takes up a lot of space. Basically make sure the case or the PSU isn't right next to the bottom of your motherboard. I doubt it is though.

Cwide ,

thanks allot for the perfect help , i taught it was a PCIe X16 but wanted to make sure it would fit in there so i didn't wasted any money , only thing i probably should take a look at is my PSU , if i'm not mistaken it only gives 220 Watt , and no , i'm not mistaking with the voltage what is also 220 , i suppose the watt's are that low because the system i's specifically build for that hardware ... , tomorrow i will open up the case again and double check ... is there a way to benchmark how mush my hardware is consuming now at the moment ?

[cwide]

The black slot is a PCIe x16 slot. It is for graphics cards like the ones I listed.

If you are going to get the fanless one (which I would recommend) make sure it will fit in your case. The heatsink on it takes up a lot of space. Basically make sure the case or the PSU isn't right next to the bottom of your motherboard. I doubt it is though.

Cwide ,

thanks allot for the perfect help , i taught it was a PCIe X16 but wanted to make sure it would fit in there so i didn't wasted any money , only thing i probably should take a look at is my PSU , if i'm not mistaken it only gives 220 Watt , and no , i'm not mistaking with the voltage what is also 220 , i suppose the watt's are that low because the system i's specifically build for that hardware ... , tomorrow i will open up the case again and double check ... is there a way to benchmark how mush my hardware is consuming now at the moment ?

Well... there is a lot that goes into that.. so I would say not really. Even if you have a Kill-a-watt can't really tell how efficient the PSU is.

Those video cards don't use much power (under 30 watts)... so I would just go for it. I doubt you will run into trouble with the cards I recommended.

[Mighty5nake]

The black slot is a PCIe x16 slot. It is for graphics cards like the ones I listed.

If you are going to get the fanless one (which I would recommend) make sure it will fit in your case. The heatsink on it takes up a lot of space. Basically make sure the case or the PSU isn't right next to the bottom of your motherboard. I doubt it is though.

Cwide ,

thanks allot for the perfect help , i taught it was a PCIe X16 but wanted to make sure it would fit in there so i didn't wasted any money , only thing i probably should take a look at is my PSU , if i'm not mistaken it only gives 220 Watt , and no , i'm not mistaking with the voltage what is also 220 , i suppose the watt's are that low because the system i's specifically build for that hardware ... , tomorrow i will open up the case again and double check ... is there a way to benchmark how mush my hardware is consuming now at the moment ?

Well... there is a lot that goes into that.. so I would say not really. Even if you have a Kill-a-watt can't really tell how efficient the PSU is.

Those video cards don't use much power (under 30 watts)... so I would just go for it. I doubt you will run into trouble with the cards I recommended.

oké , awesome , i gone go for the fan less one like you suggested , normally i won't have any space problems , i open up the case right now to check and order my video card today , in the future i'm goane look for a ssd for faster boot speeds and install openelec i suppose , the only thing i do need now is a remote keyboard and mouse for maintenance and a remote , but i suppose i can use app's in the apple store for that ? (i got a iphone and ipad so ... )

[Mighty5nake]

Cwide ,

thanks allot for the perfect help , i taught it was a PCIe X16 but wanted to make sure it would fit in there so i didn't wasted any money , only thing i probably should take a look at is my PSU , if i'm not mistaken it only gives 220 Watt , and no , i'm not mistaking with the voltage what is also 220 , i suppose the watt's are that low because the system i's specifically build for that hardware ... , tomorrow i will open up the case again and double check ... is there a way to benchmark how mush my hardware is consuming now at the moment ?

Well... there is a lot that goes into that.. so I would say not really. Even if you have a Kill-a-watt can't really tell how efficient the PSU is.

Those video cards don't use much power (under 30 watts)... so I would just go for it. I doubt you will run into trouble with the cards I recommended.

oké , awesome , i gone go for the fan less one like you suggested , normally i won't have any space problems , i open up the case right now to check and order my video card today , in the future i'm goane look for a ssd for faster boot speeds and install openelec i suppose , the only thing i do need now is a remote keyboard and mouse for maintenance and a remote , but i suppose i can use app's in the apple store for that ? (i got a iphone and ipad so ... )

oké , so i looked at the inside of the case , and there's a small problem , the card is to big in height , when i check the info its 1,6" , i assume thats inch and here we working with cm's , so when i convert that i have 4,1 cm , and i don't have space enough for that ... only option is to go for the on with a fan ... but thats the least of my problem ...

[cwide]

Just make sure there is 1-2 CM left for airflow from your video card fan. Can't put the fan sitting right on the PSU or it might overheat.

You can spend $15 more and get a fanless that fits:

http://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-NVIDIA-GeFor...less+gt610

If you want to keep it cheaper than you will be probably be OK with the card with a fan.

Also, if you are sticking with Windows you could go the AMD HD 6450 fanless route and they all should fit. But if you do plan to switch to Openelec at some point and need HD audio then I would stick with NVIDIA.

Also, I just use the XBMC iOS app to control. Works better than a remote.

[Mighty5nake]

Just make sure there is 1-2 CM left for airflow from your video card fan. Can't put the fan sitting right on the PSU or it might overheat.

You can spend $15 more and get a fanless that fits:

http://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-NVIDIA-GeFor...less+gt610

If you want to keep it cheaper than you will be probably be OK with the card with a fan.

Also, if you are sticking with Windows you could go the AMD HD 6450 fanless route and they all should fit. But if you do plan to switch to Openelec at some point and need HD audio then I would stick with NVIDIA.

Also, I just use the XBMC iOS app to control. Works better than a remote.

hi , just got back from work and didnt had the time to watch the forum , i already ordered a graphics card ,

its the ASUS GeForce GT620-1GD3-L-V2 - 1GB - PCI-E , normally it should fit , and i wanted a geforce so it should be good , i hope it arrives tomorrow ... i let you know how good the xbmc handles playback when i got it

thanx for al the help ! i will also check the app out ...

[cwide]

Good call on the card and good luck with your setup. Should be good for your purposes for a long time.

[Mighty5nake]

Just make sure there is 1-2 CM left for airflow from your video card fan. Can't put the fan sitting right on the PSU or it might overheat.

You can spend $15 more and get a fanless that fits:

http://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-NVIDIA-GeFor...less+gt610

If you want to keep it cheaper than you will be probably be OK with the card with a fan.

Also, if you are sticking with Windows you could go the AMD HD 6450 fanless route and they all should fit. But if you do plan to switch to Openelec at some point and need HD audio then I would stick with NVIDIA.

Also, I just use the XBMC iOS app to control. Works better than a remote.

thanks for the help , i wanted to let you know i bought a Asus Nvidia 620 GT , and all works fine now after a bit of tweaking in xbmc , what the airflow concerns, i don't have 2 cm left , but the GPU dusnt go above 50 degrees under load ... so its fine ... i will also try the remote out somewhere this week ...