[Assioso]

First of all, sorry if there is a specific advise thread this should go in ...
I am looking to buy an HTPC that will run win7 + XBMX and have more or less figured out the hardware except for the case (its a low budget HTPC btw)

MSI E350IA-E45
4gb duo Patriot 1333mhz
Lc-power LC1360Mi Case

Any comments, or does this look ok so far? I will put in a 2TB Hdd I have lying around and for now have no need for a DVD player.

Now for the case, since I use a Harmony One remote I'm looking for a case with integrated IR if possible, does any one know if these are available and work with a Harmony One (I'm a complete noob when it comes to hardware) ?

Any additional advise is always welcome

Thanks!

[Malard]

You might want to consider the Nyxboard Hybrid remote over the harmony, that will use RF, so you don't need IR visibility, how about something like http://www.pulse-eight.com/255.jpg ?

[eskro]

read my sig

[Assioso]

You might want to consider the Nyxboard Hybrid remote over the harmony, that will use RF, so you don't need IR visibility, how about something like http://www.pulse-eight.com/255.jpg ?

I already have the Harmony One so I'll have to stick with that...

I've found out that case with intigrated IR + Harmony One wont work so I will look for another solution on that...

Other than that the hardware looks good for my needs (just playing HD material, mkv, blu ray rips...) ?

I've looked through some of the pages of the threads in ur sig Eskro, but it seems my knowlegde of hardware is insufficient to form my own decision

Thanks

[wicky]

On a budget and keeping in mind the vacate platform is anything but high end performance, yes this will do 1080p mkvs rips of typical bitrates, and through the right software you will be able to watch bluray disks (xbmc has no integrated bluray disk playback).

Zacate is the HTPC favorite right now as it offers an ideal blend of low power, cost, and performance. Enough to surpass Atom in every capacity, except for the lack of barebones/oem options, zacate is mini itx only right now.

As for ram I would suggest looking at the G.Skill ECO series as they run lower voltage and cooler than typical ram, so it's a nice trade for a few dollars premium.
And I would highly recommend using an SSD as your boot drive/xbmc drive, and using that 2tb strictly for content storage. Particularly if you're going to be using sleep mode as an SSD means much quicker resume times. Same goes for boot times. UFI bios and an SSD means about 25 seconds from cold boot to using xbmc.

[DavidT99]

Asus have a micro ATX zacate mobo.

David