[RyanJohnson]

ok i have been building computers for about 4 years now and i have done everything to gaming computers to basic but one thing that i havent done is to build a htpc so i need a little help in this area below is a list of the things that i plan on using just need to know if its good or should i get better also keep in mind that i have a limit of around 600 dollars


Athenatech Black Steel A100BB.270 Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case - Retail 49.99

GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail 79.99

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Brisbane 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail 59.00

OCZ Vista Upgrade 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail 26.99

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM 64.99

Hauppauge WINTVHVR1600 Dual Tuner White Box 1101WB PCI Interface - Retail 74.99

SAPPHIRE 100234VGAL Radeon HD 3450 512MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail 36.99

LG Black 6X Blu-ray DVD-ROM 16X DVD-ROM 40X CD-ROM SATA Internal Combo LG Blu-ray/HD DVD-ROM & 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Model GGC-H20LK - OEM 139.99

all suggestions are appreciated

[saltynay]

With a HTPC's you have to choices do you make an all in one unit or do you make 2 computers one master the other slave. All in one is self explanatory but often noisy, Master and slave means having a server styled large case hidden in the attic per example that makes all the noise and has all those loud hdd's and a sleek mini-itx case actually with the tv that just works as a remote desktop to the large server either via file storage or true windows remote desktop.

This is my planned htpc (all in one)
KustomPCs.co.uk - Silverstone LC16M Silver
KustomPCs.co.uk - Sapphire Radeon HD3470 PCI-E <--- has true hdmi output with audio and video although nvidia cards allow for soundcard input which is why I put the soundcard lower down
KustomPCs.co.uk - Seagate 80Gb Barracuda NCQ 7200.10
http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_6279.htmlx3 in RAID5
KustomPCs.co.uk - Team Elite 2Gb DDR2-PC6400
KustomPCs.co.uk - Asus P5Q Motherboard
KustomPCs.co.uk - Intel Pentium Dual Core E220 775 2.2Ghz CPU <-- overclocked to the highest temps will allow I assume about 3ghz
KustomPCs.co.uk - ASUS Xonar D2 PCI 7.1 Sound Card <--- great card and whats the point in having all high quality video with lowquality sound
KustomPCs.co.uk - Dual Slim CD 5"1/4 Bay Adapter <--- for two slot loading sff dvd drives just because I think they look better
http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_1708.html<---- modular psu's are near essential and this zalman is extremely quite which is quite key to a htpc imo
KustomPCs.co.uk - Nexus FLC-3000 CPU Cooler

Plus as I am English are equivalent of tivo is sky+ so I would want that on my pc aswell
KustomPCs - HTPC, Gaming, CarPC, Cooling and Modding Products in the UK !

Heres a really great guide if a little old to htpcs
KustomPCs - HTPC, Gaming, CarPC, Cooling and Modding Products in the UK !

I would check on www.silentpcsreview.com before deciding on components aswell

[RyanJohnson]

also another question i have is what type of os should i use?

oh and yes i want to do an all in one as well

[saltynay]

What ever you prefer there are several linux variants mythtv, linux mce, etc... and Windows Mce or Vista home premium or even Mac tv although I am not sure how well that will transfer.

[RyanJohnson]

ok i think im going with vista

on another note is the hardware i have good enough so that i wont need an upgrade for a while or what

[kmote]

The hardware is not going to change so it just depends on what you need it for, playing a DVD was the same 2 years ago as it is now and the same as it will be in 2 years time.

[skylinegtrv98]

I have actually recently built myself a HTPC...I use it connected to my 42" flat panel...Anyways I used the same board the Gigabyte -GA-MA78GM S2H...To tell you the truth I have not seen a reason to buy an additional video card....the onboard 780 graphics chipset is more than capable of 1080p playback...plus the board comes with HDMI and DVI output already so you could even think about saving the money and going without a video card at first...I mean you could always pick one up later if you really need to...


As far as OS goes...I am using vista ultimate...and it seems to be working great for me

[RyanJohnson]

well everyone has been a big help just one question where is a cheap place to buy windows vista