PC Peripherals HTPC suggestion: can i go cheaper+better than this?

S

Smith

Skilled
Following what the title says...I'm building a HTPC that can do Hi-Def on a budget.

The following is my newegg cart (its already a bit over budget)..Can you guys help me go cheaper and better than this? I am looking for alternate suggestions ($500 is my limit). Please do not suggest a PS3..i already have one :)

The cart:

--AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Brisbane 2.6GHz Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core Black Edition Processor Model ADO5000DSWOF - Retail
-- GIGABYTE GA-M78SM-S2H AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
--OCZ S.O.E 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ2SOE8002GK - Retail
-- Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
-- LG Blu-ray/HD DVD-ROM & 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model GGC-H20L - Retail
-- APEVIA Black / Silver SECC Steel / Aluminum X-MASTER-AL/500 ATX Media Center / HTPC Case - Retail

The total of this cart is $545 (incl shipping and taxes...$515 excl.)

Please suggest if this combination is optimal for 1080p blu-ray playback (keeping in mind my $500 budget) or if I can do better than this in my budget. I would prefer newegg to be my single source of purchase.

Thanks!!
 
Consider these:

CPU

Newegg.com - AMD Athlon X2 4850e 2.5GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor - CPUs / Processors
Motherboard:

780g based board is supposed to be very good for HTPC use.

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards
RAM:
DDR2, get whatever is cheaper.

HD Drive:
I think you have selected a HDDVD drive. Are you sure you want a HD DVD drive when the format is discontinued. You may consider a Blue ray Drive instead.
 
id suggest if u really want to cut down on costs.. get rid of ta lg bd/hdd rom.. im sure itl save u atleast 150$ for the time being.. an a lil later maybe by end of this yr u cud get it dirt cheap in comparison..

an anyways u can stil play bd's on ur ps3 rite..
 
+1 to both of gmano's suggestions :)

get one of the XX50e amd proccys. much more energy efficient. also the 780g chipset as such is a much better performer as has been attested to be numerous reviews.

also.. are u sure that a 250gig hdd will suffice?
 
@amityrock..the ps3 is doin duty on another display..this one's for the bedroom tv...

@gmano...thanks for suggesting the processor...I realized that the processor that I had selected earlier did not come with a HSF..I updated the cart with your suggestion.

Also, the mobo that you suggested comes with an ATI card...is there any advantage to this when compared to the Nvidia 8200 that i had previously selected?

p.s: It is important that I have a HDMI out (audio + video) on the motherboard.
 
Also, the mobo that you suggested comes with an ATI card...is there any advantage to this when compared to the Nvidia 8200 that i had previously selected?

p.s: It is important that I have a HDMI out (audio + video) on the motherboard.
Click to expand...

Yes; U can make use of a separate ATI graphics to use the ATI Hybrid Crossfire tech wherein at peak graphics loads both the onboard IGP and the external graphics will be utilized; although the onboard 780G IGP can easily stream 1080P;

The board has an HDMI, DVI and a VGA; :)

And the PSU???

Get a corsair VX450 or the Gigabyte ODIN 550w; :)

Both are good and runs silently;
 
gannu said:
Yes; U can make use of a separate ATI graphics to use the ATI Hybrid Crossfire tech wherein at peak graphics loads both the onboard IGP and the external graphics will be utilized; although the onboard 780G IGP can easily stream 1080P;

The board has an HDMI, DVI and a VGA; :)

And the PSU???

Get a corsair VX450 or the Gigabyte ODIN 550w; :)

Both are good and runs silently;
Click to expand...

I believe there's a 500watter included with the Cabby...please do correct me if I am wrong....
 
Smith said:
I believe there's a 500watter included with the Cabby...please do correct me if I am wrong....
Click to expand...

Heh yeah there's one; :p

Newegg.com - APEVIA Black / Silver SECC Steel / Aluminum X-MASTER-AL/500 ATX Media Center / HTPC Case - HTPC / Media Center Cases

Never get such stuff here; :)

Besides I really dont know how reliable these PSUs're. Anyhow U should not have any issues running them with a low power rig;

And I guess, U havn't read this: http://www.techenclave.com/guides-and-tutorials/htpc-building-guide-for-dummies-111862.html from the queries u've posted; Give a read; :D
 
gannu said:
Heh yeah there's one; :p

Newegg.com - APEVIA Black / Silver SECC Steel / Aluminum X-MASTER-AL/500 ATX Media Center / HTPC Case - HTPC / Media Center Cases

Never get such stuff here; :)

Besides I really dont know how reliable these PSUs're. Anyhow U should not have any issues running them with a low power rig;

And I guess, U havn't read this: http://www.techenclave.com/guides-and-tutorials/htpc-building-guide-for-dummies-111862.html from the queries u've posted; Give a read; :D
Click to expand...

Was looking at that 780G mobo...gigabyte's website says its hdmi1.3 is certified for video spec only...so i doubt I'll get any audio out of it :S

Anyways, I guess I'll just have use the other audio-out ports.

edit: just read around a bit more...audio seems to work fine..

As for your earlier post on HD-DVD..i have a few of those lying around and this drive seemed like a good buy.

Also, the 250gigger internal HDD wont do anything other than temporarily store any rips...I have a TB WD Mybook world edition on the network.

Thanks for your suggestions..
 
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