I've been looking through this thread and I've bounced from the Lenovo Q190, a NUC, or buid my own, but it's starting to get all confusing.
I'm looking for an HTPC around $350 in the USA that fulfills the following requirements.
-Smooth 1080p 24fps and 60fps (not too bothered about 3D)
-Quiet
-Small form factor
-Besides XBMC it should be able to run SABNZBD, Couchpotato, and Sickbeard. Able to download/process while watching 1080p film with no hiccups.
-Use Netflix etc. so probably Windows 7 or 8 as OS, although as this is pretty much baked into most TVs it's not an absolute.
-Some emulation gaming like MAME, Amiga, C64 (PS1 if possible, but that's just gravy).
-Enough USB ports to attach an external drive, FLIRC, and a USB wireless keyboard
Thank you for any thoughts, advice and any opinions from people who've achieved the above.
At this price point, including the OS and everything, I'd normally suggest one of the Celeron 847 systems. I just don't know if it can:
- Able to download/process while watching 1080p film with no hiccups.
-Some emulation gaming like MAME, Amiga, C64 (PS1 if possible, but that's just gravy).
I do know it can:
- Smooth 1080p 24fps and 60fps (not too bothered about 3D)
-Quiet
-Small form factor
-Use Netflix etc. so probably Windows 7 or 8 as OS, although as this is pretty much baked into most TVs it's not an absolute.
-Enough USB ports to attach an external drive, FLIRC, and a USB wireless keyboard
Thanks Dougie. So it looks like the Lenovo q190 would be a good buy. Maybe I can offload the sab, and couchpotato stuff to my raspberry pi.
Or schedule it for when you're not watching or make it a lower priority?
You could also DIY a Celeron system and save some money.
Hi,
I'm looking for the same HTPC.
The Q190 and NUC you mentioned are the ones that caught my attention too.
The NUC had some disadvantages for audio. Only HDMI is supported.
Do not create an HTPC with an FM2A75M-ITX motherboard. I think of the half-dozen FM2A75M-ITX builds I did for customers only 1 did not fail. Google "FM2A75M-ITX fire" if you need more than my word for it.
it was just to give him an idea
he could go FM1 like Beer40's famous A6-PACK build
Yes, A6-3500/A75M-ITX is still a great option.
The MSI FM2 mini-ITX has proven stable though you cannot undervolt and like the other FM1/FM2 boards it maxes the CPU while in the BIOS causing a power spike and a lot of heat when neither is expected. If you can deal with that though, it'd pretty decent.
(2013-06-03, 22:27)punking Wrote: [ -> ]-Small form factor
-Besides XBMC it should be able to run SABNZBD, Couchpotato, and Sickbeard. Able to download/process while watching 1080p film with no hiccups
Out of curiosity, why do you want these two things in combination? Where will you be storing all the d/l
Cheap AMD and RPi setups focus on their GPU horsepower, and you will not be able to offload SAB to that type of hardware. You need the better cpu thread performance to combine those with XBMC, so I can't see a reason not to go with the G1610. $35 at microcenter
(2013-06-06, 02:36)Dark_Slayer Wrote: [ -> ]Out of curiosity, why do you want these two things in combination? Where will you be storing all the d/l
Currently data is stored on a 2tb external drive connected to my desktop which runs sab etc. This is networked via smb to a Pi in another room. The Pi works pretty well but the UI is temperamental and I don't like that I'm limited in the skins I can try.I also miss being able to use a browser occasionally, adn I want to play some retro games.
I thought having everything in one would be cheaper than building an HTPC
and a media server, and I wouldn't have to worry about problems with streaming material. (SMB issues for example).
(2013-06-06, 02:36)Dark_Slayer Wrote: [ -> ]Cheap AMD and RPi setups focus on their GPU horsepower, and you will not be able to offload SAB to that type of hardware.
I haven't tried it myself, but there are people who claim this is possible.
http://www.howtogeek.com/146410/how-to-a...nload-box/
http://www.cylindric.net/blog/raspberrypi-setup/
templarrush Wrote:The Q190 and NUC you mentioned are the ones that caught my attention too.
I've read this about the Q190 which puts me off of it. The NUC seems alright, if a little expensive for what it is.
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.p...&t=1194253
Right now I'm leaning towards building one myself (i've done it in the past) so I'm looking for parts and I'm considering the celeron that has been mentioned or an i3 and perhaps upping my budget a bit (I already have windows 7 that I can use so that'll save some pennies).
I'm taking a look at the A-6 build as advised and I'm waiting to see what Eskro talks about when he updates the windows build on his excellent guide.
(2013-06-06, 03:40)punking Wrote: [ -> ] (2013-06-06, 02:36)Dark_Slayer Wrote: [ -> ]Cheap AMD and RPi setups focus on their GPU horsepower, and you will not be able to offload SAB to that type of hardware.
I haven't tried it myself, but there are people who claim this is possible.
http://www.howtogeek.com/146410/how-to-a...nload-box/
http://www.cylindric.net/blog/raspberrypi-setup/
Poor choice of words on my part. You can offload it to a pi, but notice they suggest turning off ssl and limiting your server connections (same suggestions the forum has for when weak CPU is limiting your download speed. Also smb sharing from a celeron or better Intel processor works just fine for me. I leave my home network sharing open if that makes any difference
Dark_Slayer Wrote:You can offload it to a pi, but notice they suggest turning off ssl and limiting your server connections (same suggestions the forum has for when weak CPU is limiting your download speed.
I see your point. It's kind of like how I'm not happy using the Pi for XBMC. In that you have to cut back on certain things (no rss feed, less intensive skins, etc) to get it to do what you want.
Thanks for the advice everybody. I'm off read about the A6-Pack.
I used to do all that you describe on a G530 Celeron based setup. HTPC/server/emulators... I have since switched to separate machines for separate functions (it's a lot easier if you have a lot of people accessing/using your systems).
I'm sure a Celeron G1610 like a poster previously mentioned would be just fine. That processor currently powers my server and does a great job. I think the graphics are good enough for what you want. If you have a Microcenter close you can get some good deals (not for SFF stuff though... go Amazon for that).
Celeron - $43
Antec Case - $80
ECS H61 board w/HDMI - $50
4 GB Ram - $32
Total: $205
You have around $145 to get your Windows license and whatever SSD you will put it on. Honestly, if you have to pay $100 for a Windows license it isn't really worth it. You can do all that you want on Linux and buy a Roku or Apple TV for your netflix stuff. There are a lot of guides for setting up all that stuff for Linux. If you are uncomfortable with that or REALLY don't want a separate Netflix device (or use your TV) then shop around for a Windows license. I don't think it's worth the money.
