hi ppl,

my hand itchy on those HD stuffs and since i already have a HD LCD TV, so i decided to build a HD HTPC.


Overview:

1. Im a movie freak, currently i have a database of downloaded HD movies (mostly 720p), viewing them from my laptop (HP DV6208tx) connect it thru VGA cable to my LCD TV. And the quality is amazing (a bit tweaking of FFDShow & Media Player Classic). So im moving towards HD stuffs, mainly HD-DVD
2. In the 1st place, im thinking to get a stand-alone HD-DVD (toshiba cost around RM1300 plus shipping from b&hphoto). but it will confine me only to play those HD-DVD only.


Objective:

1. To play HD-DVD smoothly @ 1080p, displaying highest possible picture quality.
2. To play HD movies (mainly nHd, mkv) smoothly.
3. HCDP system
4. Occasional games. most of the games i play is (NFS and some other racing games, not into those hi-end games like Bio-shock, far cry etc etc).
5. Near silent system operation. (i dont want to watch transformers HD-DVD while hearing cooler fan sound)
6. Reasonable cost.

Hardware List:

CPU : CORE 2 DUO 2.66GHz E6750 - FSB 1333 RM630.00
CPU Cooler : THERMALRIGHT Ultima-90i RM199<---------- other cheaper solution?
MotherBoard : Gigabyte P35-DS4 RM700.00
Memory : Crucial Ballistix DDR2 PC2-6400 800MHz 2GB Kit [2X1GB] RM415
Graphic Card : SAPPHIRE RADEON HD3870 512MB GDDR4 RM 879
HDD : Seagate 250GB RM 230
Optical Drive : xbox Hd-dvd addon RM650est (will consider to buy @ ebay for cheaper price)
PSU : Extreme Power 550 (V2.0) RM215
Casings : Cooler Master Media 281-Black RM328


Total Cost : RM 4264est


for Graphic Card, any nvidia 8600 (8600 GT 256MB with HCDP cost around RM490) will do the job (encoding hd-dvd) superb enough; if i want to bring the cost down.

Questions:

1. I need your opinion on this system, in terms of performance, reliability and whether it able to meet my objective (listed above)
2. Any other hardware recommendation, beside on this list?
3. If i want to bring the total cost down, without sacrificing significant performance, any recommendation?
4. Any other related comments appreciated.


many thanks

This post has been edited by apisgogo: Nov 28 2007, 04:18 PM

a htpc without a tv card?

hmm....why you choose P35-DS4 ? @ Rm700...quite expensive and no much function compare to P35-DS3. and the board cost Rm380 in LYP. Save you alot.
If you want a better and more silent aftermarket hsf, take Artic Cooling Freezer Pro. Best bang for the bucks.

yea..a decent graphic card do fine for HD Movie play back....go for ATI HD2000/3000 series as their HD is meant High Defination...

This post has been edited by 168257061: Nov 28 2007, 01:05 PM

agree... ds3 will do the job for u good enough... i can see lots of good hsf around, but thermalright should b 1 of the best air cooled hsf around... save on mobo and go for better hsf...

ya...thermalright good, but you may need sendiri choose own favourite fan to place on the heatsink, because all thermalright product do not include fan for you

im no intention to watch aired tv or record tv for time being. as far as we concern, there is no HD program aired in MY.


will consider P35-DS3.

can save alot, so i could use that into audio setup. maybe a denon amp receiver somthing like that.


thanks


forgot to add, i'll be using windows vista as OS

This post has been edited by apisgogo: Nov 28 2007, 01:25 PM

I have setup HTPC for HD for quite sometime. The most important factor is the fan noise from the system. This is the no issue with the machine. DS3 is good enough. Also, 8600GT or 3950 will do nicely (remember to get custom low noise fan). Look for PSU with low db. 450w to 500w is good enough. If possible, get video card with HDMI so you don't need to spend another 100++ for the DVI to HDMI convertor. TV card is only needed if you want to record and watch our crap TV on your HDTV.

ts... forget to mention thermaltake typhoon is also 1 of the good hsf... try to read some review...

why not just buy hd3850, superb in hd, come with hdmi converter as well, low noise fan,

thanks for the suggestion
haha, 'our crap tv' u right lah.. even astro also... that's why i ditch the idea of tv card. if i live at JB near s'pore then maybe can 'curi' their hd signal


thanks 4 the input. im reading a lot of reviews today's productivity at office is very low


this is the reason i choose ati 3xxx series.
hd3870 comes with hdmi converter rite?


another thing,
where u guys gets your hd-dvd optical drive? price? anybody?
those asus blu-ray optical drive already available here, but cost arnd rm2k

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Added on November 28, 2007, 2:03 pmif budget permits, i would like to get this link


This post has been edited by apisgogo: Nov 28 2007, 02:03 PM

since noise is an important factor...

avoid fans lower than 120mm. so ultima 90 is a nono. but i would recommend the Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro. nice and silent and works well. almost half the price of the ultima and u dont need to buy a fan. dunno if itll fit in the case or not though. else theres the Artic Cooling Alpine 7. its quiet but sadly not a real good performer...i think even the stock intel hsf beats it in terms of temps. as for case fans...undervolting them to 7v would be a good idea.

PSU: the Cooler Master extreme power supposedly has a very noisy fan....something to do with it rattling the grill or something like that. im not too sure....but mebbe a Silverstone Strider 400w should be enough to power ur rig...not too sure about this

rams: need performance rams meh? id rather go for 4gb value rams instead if its just for watching movies man...more bang for the buck. or get 2gb value rams and save some cash.

This post has been edited by mADmAN: Nov 28 2007, 03:30 PM

artic cooling freezer 7 nice and silent cooler... price also reasonable..
get a st56f?extreme power not true power psu .

htpc should get a nice speaker also ?

This post has been edited by fcuk90: Nov 28 2007, 03:57 PM

hmm...i think ts got a nice home threater already..

if you want a silent psu, ST50F, its queit than ST56F.
or gigabyte odin gt 550/800w ? can control fan speed....quite silent also...im using it now

after some opinions and suggestion from nice people here, here are the updated list:


CPU : CORE 2 DUO 2.66GHz E6750 - FSB 1333 RM630.00
CPU Cooler : ARTIC COOLING FREEZER 7 PRO RM115
MotherBoard : Gigabyte P35-DS3 RM385.00
Memory : Kingston HyperX DDR II 800MHz [2X1GB] RM350
Graphic Card : SAPPHIRE RADEON HD3870 512MB GDDR4 RM 879
HDD : Seagate 250GB RM 230
Optical Drive : xbox Hd-dvd addon RM650est (will consider to buy @ ebay for cheaper price)
PSU : Extreme Power 550 (V2.0) RM215
Casings : Cooler Master Media 281-Black RM328


Total Cost : RM 3782est (a saving of RM464 from previous list)

im thinking to lower the GPU cost to nvidia 8600 GT. still reading some review in the net. What say you guys? im tend towards 3870...
for the hd-dvd addon xbox, i think ebay offer cheaper (RM4++)
combo drive (hd-dvd + blu-ray) cost abt RM1k (direct import)

haha...seems like you got alot of budget...
hmm...what i think is...HD3850 will do fine on HD Movie play back also, ATI made their HD series is for High Defination movie play back....HD3850 can save you some bucks...

for sounds, i set already RM 2-3k++ for amp receiver + probably some speakers. (looking at yamaha or denon). but i cant enjoy the dolby trueHD stuff from HD-DVD just using the S/PDIF to my amp for 5.1ch...

dolby trueHD amp cost around 10k++ , plus need stand-alone player to enjoy it. im not crazy yet towards those level

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Added on November 28, 2007, 4:30 pmyeah. u rite... i could save few hundred buck if i choose 3850.. the diff can buy more hd-dvds!

This post has been edited by apisgogo: Nov 28 2007, 04:30 PM

haha....i have the interest about audio these things...but...those component like cables, amp, receiver, i don't understand maybe when im getting older and get a job just can afford those expensive components...

Still student now...

now.... who wanna let go their xbox's hd-dvd drive? )

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Added on November 28, 2007, 4:38 pmha... u go lah to audiophile section. i learned a lot from there... also, for more comprehensive guides, reviews, how-to, go to www.avsforum.com
there a lot of useful infos regarding HT

basically amp receiver is to amplify and decode the sound from sources. those DTS, Surround Sound, THX, Dolby, blah blah, blah.

This post has been edited by apisgogo: Nov 28 2007, 04:38 PM

haha. my system:

amd x2 3600 - rm300
2gb ram ddr2 800 - rm300
320gb hdd sata - rm220
mobo biostar 690g - rm350

my kenwood diy casing... priceless

this also can play 1080p nicely. prices are about 1/2 year ago so now should be very cheap.

wah.. nice.. any pics to share? diy casing eh?

do you have any optical drive? (blu-ray or hd-dvd)?