CPU/Mobo Need advice for home theatre PC

[techguise]

During shifting home, my PC's CPU cabinet faced some mishandling due to which the motherboard chipped in half.
What's intact now is the 500GB HDD and AMD A4 2.4 GHz processor and two Corsair 2GB RAM. I havent tested power supply yet. The cabinet's floor and front is gone. Now I intend to build a media server cum home theatre system for my personal room with what I have remaining from the CPU. I've BenQ 24 inch LCD monitor and F&D 3000u 5.1 speakers.
Now besides what mobo should I use for building my personal HTPC, I also want to know do I need a graphics card as well? Would a new sound card be needed for 5.1 speaker set?
I plan to connect PC to monitor with HDMI, so would a graphics card be required. If so, then which one do you suggest.
Overall I do not want to expend much, so what will be the approx cost of new mobo, HDMI cable (me think 1.5 m cable length will be enough) and graphics card (if its required).
lastly, if I not sounding silly, one more question, as I'll be connecting monitor with HDMI cable, would I've to connect speaker system to monitor now or to the PC?

Too many queries, so thanks in advance.

 

[Alex D'costa]

So, you are having AMD A4 processor then go for Biostar HiFi A55S3 motherboard. I suggest you double up your RAM capacity. Regarding HDMI connectivity, you should buy a budget graphics card from Palit or Gigabyte. Then you can channel your audio plus video directly to your LCD monitor. Because of motherboard's inherent sound capabilities, you do not have to buy any sound cards these days. Your speaker system will deliver good sound quality as Biostar HiFi motherboard has utilities like Smart EAR and HiFi AMP that will allow you to easily enjoy awesome and high quality sound.

 

[Crazy_Eddy]

I also want to know do I need a graphics card as well?

Onboard graphics should be enough. The A4s have a decent GPU with AMD's UVD3 which should assist with video decoding. Only reason to get a dedicated GPU is if you play games on it as well.

Would a new sound card be needed for 5.1 speaker set?

Depends on how good your speakers are.

lastly, if I not sounding silly, one more question, as I'll be connecting monitor with HDMI cable, would I've to connect speaker system to monitor now or to the PC?

You can still connect your speaker system to your PC. Sending out audio via HDMI can be configured optionally. Most people struggle to get audio out of the HDMI port

go for Biostar HiFi A55S3 motherboard.
Your speaker system will deliver good sound quality as Biostar HiFi motherboard has utilities like Smart EAR and HiFi AMP

Doesn't look like these are available in India : http://www.abacusperipherals.com/products/motherboards-1.html?limit=30. All the advertising lingo aside, its still a regular Realtek chipset.

 

[techguise]

hello and thanks to Alex d'costa, crazy_eddy and maverick90 for the suggestions.
Hi maverick90.. I guess you are online right now. Can you suggest which one out of Gigabyte F2A75M or Biostar A85W should I choose. Which one will deliver a better movie experience?

 

[techguise]

Ok, Thanks for your inputs for the Biostar mobo to choose and also for the cabinet suggestion.

 

[techguise]

Maverick90 .. thanks again for the Biostar mobo suggestions and HDMI clarifications. Much appreciated.

 

[Crazy_Eddy]

^ Please take the Biostar advice with a pinch of salt. Those Biostar boards are not available in India, and the legitreviews article did not test any of the "HiFi" claims. Its still a Realtek controller.

Happy to help. My observation for Biostar Hi-Fi A85W was based on the review carried by Legit Reviews (legitreviews.com/article/2104/). As the review also says, this mobo can be helpful for you if you decide later for further upgradations and for amazing sound qualities.

I suggested Biostar based on its review here at http://www.legitreviews.com/article/2027/ . With onboard good sound the gaming experience will be enhanced I guess.

Are you guys associated with Biostar?

 

[techguise]

Oh.. thanks crazy_eddy for pointing that out for Biostar mobos. I'll have to get my PC components locally from Ludhiana. So is Gigabyte F2A75M HD2 advisable or as I was searching MSI FM2 A75MA. As these are priced at $60 range in newegg.com, so in India they would 1000 rupees more i guess. So would be in my budget.