Holiday 2010 System Builder's Guide
by AnandTech Staff, edited by Jarred Walton on November 19, 2010 2:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
- Systems
- Holiday 2010
| Ganesh's Midrange HTPC | ||
| Hardware | Component | Price |
| Processor |
Intel Core i5-650 Clarkdale 45nm (Dual-core + HTT, 3.2 to 3.46 GHz, 4MB L3, 73W) |
$113 |
| Motherboard |
ASUS P7H55D-M EVO (Intel H55, USB 3.0, MATX 1156) |
$180 |
| Video | Clarkdale Integrated Intel HD Graphics | $0 |
| Alternate GPU | HIS Silence Radeon HD 5570 1GB (H557HR1G) | $75 |
| Alternate GPU |
Zotac GeForce GT 430 1GB Zone Edition 1GB (ZT-40601-20L) |
$85 |
| Memory |
G.Skill Eco Series 2x2GB DDR3-1600 (F3-12800CL8D-4GBECO) |
$83 |
| Hard Drive |
Seagate Barracuda XT 2TB (ST32000641AS 7200RPM 64MB SATA 6.0Gbps) |
$170 |
| Optical Drive |
ASUS 8X Blu-ray/16X DVDR Combo Drive (BC-08B1ST) ($20 MIR) |
$69 |
| Power Supply |
Antec TruePower New TP-550 550W (80 Plus Bronze Certified) |
$92 |
| Case | Antec Black Fusion Remote MATX HTPC | $135 |
| Total System Cost (Price range based on GPU choice) | $842-$927 | |
The PC I've put together is not meant to be a powerful gaming machine/HTPC combo—Alan will cover that next. Instead I've specced out a midrange build that tries to do a bit of everything, while making sure that it excels at HTPC duties. Some of the components are left to choice, depending on the needs of the end user. For example, if gaming and support for native video refresh rates are not necessary for the end user, there is no need to invest in a dedicated graphics card. Similarly, the level of interest in 3D would influence whether to go the NVIDIA or the AMD route for the dedicated graphics card—and how high you might want to go. Many of the components in the system are similar to Balraj's value build, and the cost conscious consumer can refer to that for some of the costlier components in the table below.
For the motherboard, I went with the ASUS P7H55D-M EVO mATX. It is slightly costlier than the ASRock board chosen by Balraj, but you get the option to slot in extra DIMMs and take the total memory installed up to 8GB (or 16GB if you go with 4GB DIMMs). For the CPU, a quiet, dedicated HTPC can make do with Balraj's choice, but I prefer something with more muscle and the ability to Turbo Boost. The Core i5-650 is ideal. The stock cooler is good enough and considering the airflow allowed by my choice of chassis (more on this further down), there is little need to go for a fancier cooling solution.
The DRAM is one of the most understated components in an HTPC build. DIMMs that operate at higher voltages tend to heat up and have a reduced lifespan and also affect the nearby motherboard components. Fortunately, G.Skill has an excellent HTPC oriented DRAM product in the Eco series. 4GB of G.Skill Eco memory wraps up this department. We opted for the CL8 memory, though care needs to be taken to adjust the ASUS motherboard BIOS settings appropriately for the voltage (1.35V) and CAS latencies.
As mentioned earlier, the integrated GPU in the Clarkdale is good enough for most HTPC purposes. However, people wanting a bit more muscle in the gaming department and better video quality should go in for an AMD HD 5570. The better 3D solution right is the GeForce GT 430, which performs as well as the 5570 in most HTPC benchmarks. For people who have already invested in the 3D ecosystem for the rest of their home entertainment, the GT 430 is the way to go. You could try adding a "near-silent" GPU with more performance, but my focus is on keeping things as silent as possible so I limited my selections to fanless GPUs.
For storage, the WD Caviar Blue 500GB is still an option, but I feel that the capacity is too low for a desktop HTPC. Sometimes, I want to do some video editing too, and a fast hard drive helps. The 2TB Seagate Barracuda XT is the best combination of capacity, performance, quietness and price right now. If you want a bit of added performance, the Kingston SSD Now is quite cheap, with deals for the 128GB version coming in at $180. This could be an ideal OS drive choice too, but it increases the cost of the system too much and I wanted to invest the extra money in something that would last through multiple HTPC builds. The ASUS Blu-ray Combo Drive BC-08B1ST is my choice of optical drive for the system. The 8x speed ensures that 3D Blu-ray can also be read without issues. It's a little extra money that I believe is well spent for a reusable component.
The HTPC case is something that I expect to last beyond the usual life of a motherboard and processor. For HTPC purposes, I also like to have an MCE remote / IR receiver. LCD displays and volume controls are icings on the cake. If you're willing to increase your budget, the feature packed Antec VERIS Fusion Remote Max has multiple drive bays and support for ATX motherboards. This would ensure the reusable nature of the case for purposes other than a pure HTPC. However, I wanted to keep costs down so I decided to go for its smaller sibling. The Antec Fusion chassis has similar features with respect to media center capabilities but supports only two internal 3.5" drives and can support only Micro ATX and Mini ITX motherboards. The spacious and well ventilated chassis, along with the three partition internal structure, maintains a cool thermal profile for your HTPC even when the chassis fans are removed.
Unfortunately, the chassis doesn't come with a PSU. Allowing for builds with gaming GPUs requiring external PCI-E power connectors, I budgeted for the well reviewed Antec TruePower New TP-550 550W PSU. With a partially modular cable system, unused cables can be safely stowed away for later use while maintaining a clean assembly inside the chassis.
I have never been interested in the TV content that cable connections have offered. With online streaming becoming so popular, it shouldn't be difficult to view most content on the Internet. However, interested users can add a Hauppauge WinTV tuner to the system if streaming video isn't sufficient.
In the end, depending on your choices for the GPU and optional tuner, we have a good HTPC build that costs anywhere from $850 to $1050 (the higher price includes the GT 430 and WinTV tuner). That's a bit higher than we'd like for a midrange HTPC, but we put some extra money into reusable components. You can build the above system now and upgrade to the Sandy Bridge successor (Ivy Bridge) while keeping several hundred dollars worth of equipment, or you can take the above but wait for Sandy Bridge to come out.
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raghu1111 - Saturday, November 20, 2010 - link
Sorry for the repost. I thought my earlier comment didn't make it.sjfischr - Saturday, November 20, 2010 - link
I think that it's a fantastic setup. To those commenting on the number of drives, let me tell you...as a Ceton owner myself, it's extremely easy to eat up space. I am already eating about 25% of my 4 TB of space thanks to this wonderful card, and I have owned mine for less than four weeks. 1080p HD takes up a good 5.5GB/hr, so let's be certain that many movies approach 12-15 GB apiece. To be sure, I can record up to 4 NFL games at once, and watch them in fast forward (these of course eat up space like crazy). You will need a huge amount of space over time--6TB will be a fine amount of space for now, but think about the fact that as it progresses, the media library will continue to grow.My only disagreement is on the case. Why get a $300 tower when the Thermaltake DH101 provides arguably one of the best examples in the $250 range? The DH101 is full ATX, is quiet enough for most tastes, has 4-3.5" bays, is tool-less, and has a built-in LCD display/remote. The LCD display recently had a firmware update, making it very easy-to-read, and it extremely customizable. With a supplied IR remote, this enables anyone (not just iPhone/Android folks) to point at the device and find what they want. I combine this with a Logitech diNovo Mini (it's much sleeker), and I agree that this combination of case, remote, and keyboard rate the highest on the Spousal Approval Factor.
just4U - Saturday, November 20, 2010 - link
With options out there for memory that is in the cas 6-7 range I am not quite sure I understand why those of you building the more expensive systems are not considering them..It doesn't make sense. Please explain.
just4U - Saturday, November 20, 2010 - link
A prime example comes from this link (the cas 6 lineup at Newegg)http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Sub...
For me it's at the point where I don't care if it it goes higher I want those latancies to come down so ... C9 is great for a budget system but higher end?
JarredWalton - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
My personal experience with high-end RAM over the years has been less than ideal. Notice how all the CL6 RAM requires 1.6 to 1.65V, and compatibility with motherboards is less certain. A good mobo should work with it, and it would be faster than CL9 or CL8 memory, but it's not going to be such a huge difference that I'm personally ready to recommend spending $30 more on it. Besides, many of the DDR3 kits can do better timing with a bit of added voltage (just like the CL6 kits). If you want better RAM, by all means go for it, but I'm not promising it will always work.iMav - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
Another recommendation for Unicomp. Their keyboards ARE the modern-day Model M's. Not Model M-like, they are honest to goodness Model M keyboards.Definitely check out geekhack.org for more information you'd ever care to know about regarding mechanical keyboards.
jonup - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
I can't agree more with Anand's mobo/CPU recommendation. I am personally waiting for Sandy for my next build. Meanwhile, I picked up this yesterday: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.asp... . For an extra $4 I got P2X4 940 and a similarly/slightly better spec'ed 785G mobo. I think that the extra core and 6MB of cash are worth the for buck. The trade off is that I am stuck with DDR2 but it is not an issue for me since I have 4GB in the system I am putting it in.All in all, stick with Anand's choice of picking up a cheap CPU/mobo and wait till January/February of next year. I would even extend this recommendation to the choice of SSD. With many new and exciting SSDs coming out soon after the holidays and the lower production costs of the 28nm manufacturing we should expect higher performance/capacity and lower prices once the next generations start popping up. Maybe 60GB for $100-130 or 80-90GB for <$150 would be a smarter investment.
ivaxona - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
I've already placed the orders, most of the components arrived.Pjenom II X4 955 - bought second hand
Gigabyte 880GM-UD2H
Corsair xms3 2x2GB 1600MHZ
Seagate 500GB and dvd-rw from my old PC
Antec p180 mini
Seasonic M12II 430W
I will buy a 6850 as soon as i have the money, until then the onboard 4250 has to keep me covered. A Corsair force 60 gb on the long run and better cpu cooler. Maybe i'll wait for a new revision of coolermaster Hyper 212 after the new amd socket arrives :)
GullLars - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
I have a couple of points i want to make in critique of this so called "dream PC".First off, while the RevoDrive x2 is a great single part that will not be a bottleneck in any normal system, this is not a normal system, and if you clock the CPUs a bit, it can still be a major bottleneck for bandwidth of incompressible data (like media, compressed or encrypted files).
RAID-5 off ICH10R with 4x 1,5TB HDDs isn't dreamy either (4R5).
Since this is a $8K+ "dream system", i feel it warrants a real hardware RAID controller, like the Areca 1880 with a 4GB stick of RAM. This controller supports 6Gbps SATA/SAS and plays nice with SSDs, and comes with 8-24 ports with good support of expanders, should they be needed. You can also hit 2GB/s bandwidth and >100K random IOPS.
I'd suggest 8R6 Hitachi/Seagate Green 2TB drives + 4-8R0 Crucial C300 from the 12 or 16 port versions. The capacity of the SSDs dedicated by the budget, 8R0 of lower capacity taking priority over 4R0 of higher capacity. OFC with an image of the SSD RAID kept on the HDD RAID, and daily backups of userdata kept on the SSDs.
I'd also list water cooling as an alternative, especially since 2x 580 in SLI would benefit from being watercooled.
eBob - Sunday, November 21, 2010 - link
I was wondering if there are any companies that provide remote control hardware for HTPCs other than Soundgraph/iMon. My current HTPC case has this solution pre-installed and it has been a huge headache. Basically, I am unable to turn power on from the remote after turning power off. If I turn off power at the power supply and turn it back on the remote works, but only once. I am running a Linux OS on this box and apparently Soundgraph is unable or unwilling to support such a setup and their customer support is useless.