[GAVtheRAV]

Hello all

I've been an XBMC user for many years and currently have an always on HTPC/NAS sat under our main TV that I'm looking to silence (or at least quieten down) and reduce power consumption. The specs of the current machine are as follows:

[CPU] Intel Celeron G1610
[Motherboard] MSI B75MA-P45
[Memory] Generic 4GB DDR-10600
[GPU] Gigabyte Nvidia G210
[Hard drives] 1xSamsung HD501LJ (for the system); 2x Samsung HD204UI (for data)
[TV Card] PCTV 73E
[Case] Silverstone GD06B
[Fans] 3x Silverstone 120mm with 5v mod
[OS] Gentoo
[TV sw] MythTV using XBMC-PVR (Frodo)
[AV amp] Sony STRDH820

To quieten/lower wattage I already plan to buy an SSD (probably a Sandisk Ultra Plus) and take out the HD501LJ and originally planned to replace the CPU/Motherboard with a Haswell solution (Pentium G3220 and ASRock H81M-HDS). Having researched into the state of Intel and VAAPI on Linux it doesn't look great. I've seen mentions online of people encountering green artifacts (macroblocking?) when using VAAPI and having very limited deinterlacing (though I understand this can be worked around using sse4-vaapi).

Can anyone give any advise on whether it's worth moving to Haswell (bearing in mind I'm not prepared to move away from Gentoo)? Deinterlacing is a must for me for use with UK TV (576i I believe). If VAAPI isn't stable enough at the moment, would the G3220 be able to display 1080p24 content and deinterlace 576i content in software? Are there any fixes in the pipeline for Gotham for Intel users?

Alternatively am I just better off replacing the gfx with a fanless GT610 for quietness and HD audio? If I got myself a fanless GT610 should I be expecting to see much higher system temperatures?

Many thanks in advance
Gavin

[leepenny]

ok so your machine runs great - just replace the fans - cpu fan with a scythe low profile silent fan - yes also the gt610 is the preferred option (especially for hd audio - its the desired step up from gt210)
The 3 silverstone 120mm fans COULD be replaced for quieter ones (not knowing how loud they are they could be adjusted to spin slower - depending on temperatures inside the case)
Youre in the UK so I would look here - http://www.quietpc.com/ - not the cheapest but once you find the product you can search amazon or scan.co.uk for bargains or a lower price (I just replaced fans in my server and were cheaper on amazon - so find the parts on quietpc first then shop around !)
If your machine isnt broken then I don't see the point of a new MB/CPU

If you can find which components make the most noise and replace those you should be golden.

[GAVtheRAV]

Hi Lee

Thanks for the advise. Just to give a bit more background. The original idea for changing the motherboard and CPU was to move to Haswell and to remove the discrete gfx card; this would have enabled lower power consumption and lower noise (my current gfx card has a small whiny fan). However I'm seriously questioning the ability of Haswell/VAAPI on Linux at the moment so want to be sure I don't spend and waste money.

I like the idea of putting the 610 in the machine as it means no major change to the drivers (though I have had trouble with some of the newer Nvidia drivers). The thing I would want to be sure of is that a fanless GT610 won't generate excessive amounts of heat that would require more airflow (vicious circle)

I think the silverstone fans would probably be ok but if not then I have my eyes on some Noctua fans (can't link to them because I'm at work) which spin at 800rpm and are basically silent. I've already got a Scythe Shuriken Rev 2 installed which is silent.

So from your point of view, in the current state, Nvidia would be a better option than Haswell?

[leepenny]

obviously the haswell will be lower power with onboard graphics - (better IDK)
The gt610 can run hot (60 degrees plus) - and it is probably (i'm assuming) cramped in the case with your drives and pci card- so on one hand the haswell is a good option - but by just changing the gfx card for about 30 pounds - you could save a bit (again depending on temps in the case)
Its a double edge sword really - personally I would go with the nvidia card and test my temps - (you can always e-bay it later) - I know many people running this card with no problems.
As you said the haswell can be problematic for some. The only advice I can give is that nvidia is IMO a good option which has proven itself already running XBMC in Linux.
I'm sure there will be other opinions out there and you should get a couple of other (more knowledgeable) posts before diving in.
ps (think of the WAF if the haswell doesnt work correctly LOL)

[GAVtheRAV]

A fanless GT610 is sounding pretty good right now. There's an Asus or MSI model available for less than £30 that would probably be suitable. I think airflow shouldn't be a problem. The GD06B case is quite roomy (compared to some of the MiniITX cases available).

Can anyone provide some input regarding the Pentium G3220 in Linux? Does it have problems or are these fixed/being worked on?

[presslab]

I use VAAPI with my Haswell HTPC and it works fine. This is on Ubuntu 13.10, XBMC Gotham. 24.976 Hz works fine. When I was running G3220 it was fine for video. I upgraded to i3-4330 for games. I use the stock Intel fan, I never hear it.
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=176709

I also use VAAPI on my Haswell i7 ultrabook (with 3200x1800 screen) and with 4k videos CPU is under 10%. Without VAAPI the CPU fan screams and usage is 60-90%. This is on Fedora rawhide.

About deinterlacing, it just seems to work for me, I never see tearing. I don't know what method it's using.

I vote for Haswell. Love them.

[GAVtheRAV]

Hi Presslab

I've seen your build during my googling. It's very nice! Could you provide some specifics on software versions used on your HTPC? For example: libva, libva-intel-driver, xserver-xorg-video-intel, mesa, xorg.
Also are you using the vaapi-sse4 build? http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=165707

[CaptainPsycho]

Hello all

I've been an XBMC user for many years and currently have an always on HTPC/NAS sat under our main TV that I'm looking to silence (or at least quieten down) and reduce power consumption. The specs of the current machine are as follows:

[CPU] Intel Celeron G1610
Having researched into the state of Intel and VAAPI on Linux it doesn't look great. I've seen mentions online of people encountering green artifacts (macroblocking?) when using VAAPI and having very limited deinterlacing (though I understand this can be worked around using sse4-vaapi).

I'm using a Pentium G630T with integrated graphics and have absolutely no problems under gentoo.

Have you set "vaapi" USE Flag in make.conf?
USE="alsa dts dvd -gtk -gnome hal mmx sse sse2 sse3 unicode vaapi"
VIDEO_CARDS="intel vesa fbdev"

For example: libva, libva-intel-driver, xserver-xorg-video-intel, mesa, xorg.

ffmpeg-1.2.3
libva-1.0.15
libva-intel-driver-1.0.17
xf86-video-intel-2.99.901 USE="dri sna udev"
mesa-9.1.2-r1
xorg-server-1.13.4

Regarding the disks have you tried setting the Acoustic Management to quit? hdparm -M 128 /dev/sd?

I think with a cpu cooler like the Silverstone SST-NT06-PRO Nitrogon you can even go semi-passiv without a fan on the cpu.

[GAVtheRAV]

Hello all

I've been an XBMC user for many years and currently have an always on HTPC/NAS sat under our main TV that I'm looking to silence (or at least quieten down) and reduce power consumption. The specs of the current machine are as follows:

[CPU] Intel Celeron G1610
Having researched into the state of Intel and VAAPI on Linux it doesn't look great. I've seen mentions online of people encountering green artifacts (macroblocking?) when using VAAPI and having very limited deinterlacing (though I understand this can be worked around using sse4-vaapi).

I'm using a Pentium G630T with integrated graphics and have absolutely no problems under gentoo.

Have you set "vaapi" USE Flag in make.conf?
USE="alsa dts dvd -gtk -gnome hal mmx sse sse2 sse3 unicode vaapi"
VIDEO_CARDS="intel vesa fbdev"

For example: libva, libva-intel-driver, xserver-xorg-video-intel, mesa, xorg.

ffmpeg-1.2.3
libva-1.0.15
libva-intel-driver-1.0.17
xf86-video-intel-2.99.901 USE="dri sna udev"
mesa-9.1.2-r1
xorg-server-1.13.4

Regarding the disks have you tried setting the Acoustic Management to quit? hdparm -M 128 /dev/sd?

I think with a cpu cooler like the Silverstone SST-NT06-PRO Nitrogon you can even go semi-passiv without a fan on the cpu.

I'm not currently running with my Intel GPU so don't have VAAPI set. I'm currently using my Nvidia GPU so am using VDPAU. I'm contemplating which is better to use going forwards as switching to Intel will require at least a new motherboard (mine doesn't have HDMI) while staying with Nvidia will mean getting a new silent GT610.

Thanks for the info on software versions. That'll be very helpful. Also what version of Xbmc are you using?

All my disks are set to the quietest acoustic management and my data disks are set to spin down after 2 hours so they're pretty quiet. The system disk will be replaced with an SSD very soon so that's not a problem either. Likewise the Scythe Shuriken I have at the moment is whisper quiet. The main noise generator is the system disk spinning and the fan on the Nvidia card.

PressLab, CaptainPsycho: Do either of you watch interlaced content on your machines? I'm thinking TV through MythTV/Tvheadend or DVDs ripped via MakeMKV (or an equivalent). If so, what deinterlace settings are you using?