[JUICESIX90]

Hey all, I'm gonna cut a long story short and just ask if someone could let me know what I need to put together my own media center to solely run the excellent XBMC.

It'll be tucked away so it doesn't need to look pretty it would need to be reasonably compact mind.

My main request is that it plays 1080p content without any stuttering nonsense.

The media center will plug into my Onkyo 606 then top my 1080p tv

How does this set up look? (taken from avsforum)

£60.00 AMD PHENOM 64 8450 X3 PROCESSOR, SOCKET AM2+

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AMD-PHENOM-64-8450...|294%3A200

£15.00 SilverStone Nitrogen NT07-AM2 CPU Cooler

http://www.afterhours.co.uk/silverstone-...ce=froogle

£130.00 J&W MINIX 780G-SP128MB

http://www.overclock.co.uk/product/Zotac..._8628.html

£30.00 A-DATA ADQVE1A16K 2x 1GB

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CT2KIT12864AC800-2....m63.l1177

£80.00 WD 1000GB SATA Hard Disk Drive 7200RPM Internal 1TB

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/WD-1000GB-SATA-Har...|294%3A200

£64.00 APEX MI-008 Black Mini ITX Computer Case 250W

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/APEX-MI-008-Black-...|294%3A200

[badmoviesnbeer]

Umm.. this should probably be in the hardware discussion forum..

As for what you have there... It seems mixed up a bit. You have an amd processor listed but a motherboard that takes intel cpus. Also, your motherboard has onboard video, so I'm not sure why you would need the extra ati video card.

So ditch the extra video card and either switch to an intel cpu, or an amd compatible mobo.

[Hunta]

sssss

[ShadeBlack]

I think perhaps you're looking at a very expensive option there. you're currently on £379, where some of that gear isn't compatible as a previous commenter has stated.

why not go for something like this?
Acer-Aspire-Revo-Intel-Atom-Desktop-PC
it's £260, will easily manage everything you wanted it to do and is roughly the same size if not smaller.

so the only thing you're missing out on is Hard drive space. with the spare money, why not try and get a shared network drive?
1TB LAN External Hard Drive £98

£260 + £98 = £357.

I'm all for building my own computers, but only when it's cheaper

[JUICESIX90]

I think perhaps you're looking at a very expensive option there. you're currently on £379, where some of that gear isn't compatible as a previous commenter has stated.

why not go for something like this?
Acer-Aspire-Revo-Intel-Atom-Desktop-PC
it's £260, will easily manage everything you wanted it to do and is roughly the same size if not smaller.

so the only thing you're missing out on is Hard drive space. with the spare money, why not try and get a shared network drive?
1TB LAN External Hard Drive £98

£260 + £98 = £357.

I'm all for building my own computers, but only when it's cheaper

I was hoping someone like you would come along

I've never built a PC before infact I'm a mac user (12 years+) so I was trying to gather enough info to build one.

So what you've posted will play 1080p blueray rips (at 5000+ bit rate, that seems to be the sticking point with some media playing pc's) if that's the case then you saved me potentially electrocuting my self lol give yourself a pat on the back.

[jefffisher]

that setup is not going to play bluray rips, i would help you with the pc building but don't know of any UK sites to look for parts

[JUICESIX90]

that setup is not going to play bluray rips, i would help you with the pc building but don't know of any UK sites to look for parts

Thanks man, are you talking about the set up I've listed or the Acer-Aspire when you say it won't play blue-ray rips?

[jefffisher]

your setup isn't going to work at all due to the non compatibilityness, the aspire i'm not quite sure about that video card might actually handle it i found a uk site i'm seeing if i can put you something together reasonably right now though i can't find any decent motherboards that small

[JUICESIX90]

Thanks J - Appreciate your time man. To be honest though looking on here and a couple other sites it looks as if this Aspire may do the the trick and at £150! (+ 1TB HD & an extra 1GB stick of ram)

[harryzimm]

Thanks J - Appreciate your time man. To be honest though looking on here and a couple other sites it looks as if this Aspire may do the the trick and at £150! (+ 1TB HD & an extra 1GB stick of ram)

The aspire should work well under linux using vdpau(as long as you have atleast 2gb of ram). Windows on the other hand is a no go.

cheers

[JUICESIX90]

The aspire should work well under linux using vdpau(as long as you have atleast 2gb of ram). Windows on the other hand is a no go.

cheers

Thanks man.

Linux it is then (he says as if he knows what he's talking about ) I'm sure I'll be able to gather enough info from here to get XBMC installed though.

Out of interest do you have any idea what ram is compatible with the acer?

[harryzimm]

Have a look at this thread, if you haven't already, its long but should provide some decent info.

cheers

[JUICESIX90]

Have a look at this thread, if you haven't already, its long but should provide some decent info.

cheers

That's the exact thread that's got me so worked up on getting one of these didn't see anything about the ram but I'm sure I'll find out without much of a problem, just thought you may have one your self hence me asking.

Thanks anyway mate

[jefffisher]

well this is what i got you a pretty good setup certainly superior to the aspire setup with everything you need, and the same price as your original offerings.

AMD Phenom X3 Triple Core 8650 2.3GHz Socket AM2+ 2MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/144635

Samsung EcoGreen F2 1TB Hard Drive SATAII 32MB Cache - OEM
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/164282

Antec Minuet 350 Piano Black Slimline MATX Case - With 350W PSU
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/141001

DFI LANPARTY JR 790GX-M2RS Socket AM2+ onboard DVI HDMI 8 Channel Audio mATX Motherboard
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/152224

OCZ 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 667MHz/PC2-5400 CL 5-5-5-15 Value Series
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/142343

Tenda Wireless-N PCI Adapter
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/155641

[JUICESIX90]

Blimey you certainly know what your doing! thanks J

I feel I've wasted your time though because I'm going to go with the Aspire, it seems perfect for what I need (play 1080p content via XBMC) I'm sure what you put together will walk all over it but I'm guessing it may be a little overkill for my requirements.

Cheers anyway though mate.