[Xi-Trum]

I've been wanting to build an HTPC for a while now.  I've done quite a bit of researching (Thanks, AVS) and have gone... no where.  

Through my search for that perfect HTPC, I've found that the most difficult component to decide on is actually the PC desktop case.  There are LOTS of cases out there.  But all seem to trade off one thing for another.  Well, that is about to end since I finally decide on the Antec Fusion, even though it is not even on the market yet.

So, with that most difficult decision made, I have spec-ed the following for my HTPC:

DECIDED:

- CASE:  Antec Fusion w/ True 380 PSU (included)

- CPU:  P4 2.4GHz (Northwood core).  This seems to be the sweet spot right now.  It may not be when I'm done spec-ing.

- HDD:  Seagate Barracuda IV 80GB

UP IN THE AIR:

- Case Fan
- Motherboard w/ USB 2.0 (Firewire a plus but not a must)
- CPU Fan/heatsink
- Audio/Video card (prefer passive cooling solution)
- DVD Drive
- TV/HDTV Tuner
- ???

I'm looking to build a "silent" PC.  Ok, maybe a "quiet" PC is acceptable, too.

I'd like to use the HTPC for TV viewing, picture slide show, CD + DVD playback, and maybe convert my digital camcorder tapes to SVCD (or DVD down the road).

And as with most component at this point, the budget is also "in the air".

Any suggestions on the components that are still "up in the air"?

Thanks.

note:  I'll update the list as decisions on components are made (or un-made).

[skchow]

For case fan, the deal I've found are the NMB C3110KL-04W-B19 80x25 mm fans.  2.50, cheaper if you buy more.  Here's the link

http://www.svc.com/80nmb253pinf.html

I can attest, they are very close to silent.

I would also prefer a different power supply than the one that comes with the case though I say this cautiously since I haven't heard the psw of any antec cases myself.  

video card: definetly the ati radeon 9000.  Its measures on par with the gf4 mx's for games (which means its not very good), but its fanless, has dvi, and cheap.  If you don't mind splurging, there's always the Silent Sapphire 9700 pro that's supposed to be coming out and its fanless also.  I've heard that the zalman cooler that that video card uses isn't very efficient unless you have a fan blowing right on top of it.

I prefer an AMD/Nforce2 solution myself.   My XP 2100+ easily clocks to 2400+, and it was only 90 bucks

DVD: I thought the one I got was *supposed* to be quiet, but its not.  Then again I was reading CDs at full speed, and supposedly less sound is emitted when the reading speed is lowered.  Not too sure about this one since most likely, it'll be the loudest component in your computer.

Hope this helps.

Sunny.

[mgalusha]

Last week I installed one of the Thermlaright copper SLK-800 heatsink's, 3 Panaflow fans and a Seagate 60g Barracuda IV drive. The computer is nearly sillent and that is with the fans running at 12volts.

The cpu runs at about 48* C so I know the fans can run slower. Current processor is an AMD 1800+ which does not run very cool, so the heatsink is doing a great job. I am also using a generic Ge-Force2 MX video card with 64mb and no fan. It has zero issues playing DVD's. The machine also has an SB Audigy, not the best but adequte for it's purpose (desktop machine, not HTPC) and does provide firewire.

Don't know how much this helps, but the Thermalright heatsink works really well.

Mike

[bubba966]

Just built a 'puter for a buddy last night with the intention of it being silent.

Put in 4 Segate Barracuda IV 80g drives in a RAID 5 configuration. A pair of AMD Athlon MP 2000+ CPU's on an Asus A7M-266D, 2 Thermaltake Volcano 9 adjustable speed fan and heatsink, 4 Papst 80mm case fans, and Vantec 520w "Stealth" PSU.

Let me tell you this, the 520w Vantec isn't "Stealth" at all. It's actually quite noisy even on the lowest fan speed setting. The 'puter would be dead silent if this thing wasn't so damn noisy.

Even with 4 Papst 8412NGL case fans, they made no noise at all. It was absolutely incredible.

The Volcano 9 heatsink/fan is pretty quiet at 1300 RPM and doesn't get to bad until you've got it up around 3000+ RPM. It uses 80mm fans, and the heatsink works well enough that replacing the lower CFM Papst fan would be viable and 90% quieter.

The video card was an Asus V9280TD, 128mb GeForce 4 Ti 4200. Yeah, it's got a fan on it. But it's not very noisy.

All in all I was most impressed with the dead quiet Papst fans. I'll definitely slap a couple of those suckers in my own 'puter as soon as I've got the spare $ to do so. I was also very impressed with the lack of noise from the Seagate's. You'd think running 4 HD's in a RAID setup would be noisy. But the Barracuda's were fare from noisy. I wondered if they were even operational at times as they weren't making any noise I could detect.

I was very, very disappointed with the noise level of the 520w Vantec PSU. But maybe it's impossible to build a 520w ATX supply that IS quiet. 'course the 3 fans in the Vantec PSU don't help the noise level. A Enermax might be better as they've only got 2 fans to make noise with.

[Xi-Trum]

I've thought about the PSU that comes with the case.  I used to have the Antec Smart PSU and it was not quiet.  I bought a Verax (Fortron) 300W based on the review on Tom's hardware.  It is very quiet.  Tom's review also mentions the Antec True 380 PSU and that is also supposedly quiet like the Verax.  The PSU that comes with the Fusion case is a modified version of the Antec True 380.  It has a larger fan instead of two fans, so it is supposed to be even quieter.

Bubba, check out the Fortron 350 PSU reviewed in THW.  It's supposed to put out a stable 450W instead of the rated 350W.  It's also quiet and quite cheap, $38 on directron.com.  The Verax/Fortron 300W I have delivers a stable 390W and is very quiet.  It costs $27 on directron.

As for the CPU, I thought about AMD.  But I've heard that people have more trouble integrating with AMD than with Intel.  Also, the AMD is a lot hotter and thus requires more cooling.  That equates to potential for more noise.  That's why I'm going with the Intel.

For video, I'm thinking of going with ATI AIW 8500.  I like the idea of having TV tuner and video capture all in one.  Still entertaining others, though.

I'm looking to decide on a mobo and cases fan next...

[JoshK]

I last built my PC almost two years ago and it is quite entertaining how even though I was up on all the latest then, it is irrelevant now.  My home PC is an AMD 1Ghz, 256k ram, IBM 45 & 75 gig 7500 rpm IDE drives, Asus Geforce2 32ddr (no dvi but the board does support it), ABIT KT-7 raid mobo, soundblaster live (got to go!), 350w PS.  I am now deciding whether to build a new HTPC and keep this box for home usage (more than enough because I am not a gamer) or build a new PC and use this for the start of a HTPC.  Of course I would need to get a TV tuner and IEEE controller at some point.  Don't know what is better.

When I was looking into vid cards back then ATI's basically sucked for graphics for the most part.  It seems that they are being recommended even though it is said that they suck for gaming.  I would have thought that would make them suck for video playback too, or are those two different things?  I would basically want my HTPC to function as a TV/HDTV tuner, DVD player and video scaler/pscan decoder.  I would want to get the best results in video quality I could for my plasma tv (no dvi input, only rgb/vga/component.  Any thoughts on what would make a good vid card?

[bubba966]

As for the CPU, I thought about AMD.  But I've heard that people have more trouble integrating with AMD than with Intel.  Also, the AMD is a lot hotter and thus requires more cooling.  That equates to potential for more noise.  That's why I'm going with the Intel.

What integrating problems have you heard concerning AMD processors? The last time I recall people having any problems with AMD's was when they first brought out the Slot A Athlons and had some problems with a few PSU's. But all of the Socket A chips have worked perfectly fine in my experience. Yeah my personal experience has so far been limited to the Duron 700, 850, & 900, Athlon 1.0 & 1.2, Athlon XP 1.6, 2.0, 2.1, 2.4, & 2.7 and Athlon MP 2.0. I'd think if there was some large compatibility problem that I woulda run across it at least once with that cross-section of AMD's line up.

And you can slap a heatsink capable of running an 80mm fan on a 2000+ AMD with a Papst fan (12dBA) and it runs just as cool as the heatsink/fan supplied with a retail box 2000+ CPU.

I wouldn't count AMD out myself...

And thanks for the info on the PSU's. A dual AMD MP setup requires at least a 400W PSU. It'd probably be better to stick with one that's factory rated for 450w+. I wish they'd publish dB(A) stas on PSU's, it'd be much easier to make a choice then...

[Xi-Trum]

I've heard some integration problems with video card drivers.  Some people reported having screen freeze during DVD playback.  I don't know whether the problems are current or not.

[EchiDna]

I've heard some integration problems with video card drivers.  Some people reported having screen freeze during DVD playback.  I don't know whether the problems are current or not.

buddy this is OLD news, like 18 months or more....

don't believe the hype, AMD and Intel are basically side by side, I've owned 4 intel and 5 AMD systems in the last 5 years and yes there were a few issues (all minor) with some early AMD thunderbird and thoroughbred processors, but these are not even on the market now.

Personally once I've made the decision to purchase, I buy based on price/performance at that moment in time. If I was to buy today, I'd buy a P4 based system, but with the release of the AMD barton into retail shortly, I might rethink that idea....

The other thing that impacts performance FAR more than the actual processor is the Motherboard chipset and the Bios. Pick and choose based on informed opinion, not just 'What I've heard'

[Phat Phreddy]

Hmm... Well on AVS we still have far more complaints from AMD users than intel... These are not the old 4 in 1 big issues but things like fluidity of playback etc (though inserting reclock into the filter graph helps fix this) and other hard to quantify elements...

For power supply and silence consider the fortron power solutions... Very quiet... Also if you look at exoticPC they have a ICEBerg II watercooling kit at $99 they do a silent special of this and the Fortron PSU for about $130... Remove your GFX fans in favour of a waterblock or passive heatsink and it gets very very quiet...

[Xi-Trum]

Here's an update on my progress.  

DECIDED:

- CPU: P4 2.4GHz (Northwood core). This seems to be the sweet spot right now. It may not be when I'm done spec-ing.

- CPU fan/heat sink:  Zalman CNPS-6500B-CU Flower heatsink w/ fan

- Motherboard:  Asus P4PE

- RAM:  512MB

- HDD: Seagate Barracuda IV 80GB

- PSU:  Verax FSP300-60ATV (390W Max)

- Audio:  M-Audio (model?)

- Video:  Sapphire ATI Radeon (9xxx)

- Capture Card:  Flyvideo 2000

- DVD:  Pioneer 106S ATAPI 16x/40x Slot Load

UP IN THE AIR:

- CASE (now undecided thanks to the uncertainty of when the Antec Fusion would come out)
- Case Fan (size depending on case)
- TV/HDTV Tuner
- ???

On a side note, I had decided on the monitor.  Picked up a 61" Samsung DLP.

So, looks like things are falling into place.  I still need help on the case.  This turns out to be the biggest issue.  I want 4+ internal HD bays.

Any [potential] issues with my selections above?  Thanks.

[DTH]

Regarding the case quandary you have(what is up with the Antec and the Fusion anyway?) I just ordered one of these:

http://www.exoticpc.com/cgi-bin/merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=EPC&Product_Code=20273&Category_Code=CASES-AHA

Kinda pricey, but I was sick of waiting for the Fusion. I also ordered the Antec Sonata(the tower version of the Sonata) for another PC I am building.

[Phat Phreddy]

The DIGN cases do look nice (but beware of the non standard parallel VFD / LCD)...

There are quite a few boutique cases that are mentioned on AVS (PSI make a few http://www.crtcinema.com/cases.html ) and the Vision 2 in silver looks mighty sweet and pays close attention to airflow and silence (so I hear)... If I was buying a HTPC case this would be my number one...



Also consider the Kanam version on the DIGN case...

http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Cases/ht200.asp

Soundcard... RME if you have a few hundred to spend on the better end of the market... An M-Audio Revo if you are budget conscious...

GFX card... Check out the 9600 Fanless... This will be an interesting HTPC card... enough power for gaming.. Fanless... etc...

Check out the new SW HDTV cards that are coming from DviCo and another Korean maker... down around the 150 USD mark... Also the Fusion II is alleged to have QAM cable support but its not out yet... Worth waiting for if HD via cable is available in your area..

For case fans pick up a bunck of Pabst of other known to be quiet fans... Lots to choose from...

[saluto1121]

DTH I think just like you.