New HTPC

[dB79]

Hi all,

I'm new on this forum and hope to find some tips, hints and help with putting together a new HTPC.
Quite some years ago I was pretty up-to-date with (building)computers and computer hardware, but things evolved so fast in the hardware world that I lost track on what's hot and what's not.

So I hope you guys can help me out a bit.

I'm looking for a HTPC mainly for streaming movies, record/watch cable tv and maybe some games.

I looked up some configurations online, but they easily vary from under 500 dollars to way over 1000.
My budget is about 700 dollars.

I found someone elses 'dream' HTPC online which would be about $200 over my budget, because I still need to add a TV-card and some small stuff:

- nMEDIAPC Black Aluminum / Steel HTPC 2000B ATX Media Center / HTPC Case ($90)
Newegg.com - nMEDIAPC Black Aluminum / Steel HTPC 2000B ATX Media Center / HTPC Case
I do want a case like this (wife approval factor)

- MSI LGA1155/Intel P67 B3/DDR3/SATA3&USB3.0/A&GbE/ATX Motherboard P67A-GD65 (B3) ($153)
Amazon.com: MSI LGA1155/Intel P67 B3/DDR3/SATA3&USB3.0/A&GbE/ATX Motherboard P67A-GD65 (B3): Computers & Accessories

- Western Digital Caviar Green 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive WD20EARX ($120)
Amazon.com: Western Digital Caviar Green 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive WD20EARX: Electronics

- EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Superclocked 1024 MB GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 2DVI/Mini-HDMI SLI Ready Graphics Card ($186)
Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Superclocked 1024 MB GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 2DVI/Mini-HDMI SLI Ready Graphics Card, 01G-P3-1461-KR: Computers & Accessories

- Intel Core i5-2500K Processor ($220)
Amazon.com: Intel Core i5-2500K Processor: Electronics

- Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive DRW-24B1ST (Black) ($17)
Amazon.com: Asus 24xDVD-RW Serial ATA Internal OEM Drive DRW-24B1ST (Black): Electronics

- Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) 240-Pin DDR3 Memory Kit for Intel Core i3, i5, i7 ($50)
Amazon.com: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB ( 2 x 4 GB ) DDR3 1600 MHz (PC3 12800) 240-Pin DDR3 Memory Kit for Intel Core i3, i5, i7 and AMD Platforms SDRAM CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9: J&R Music and Computer World

I think this machine would be a beast and might be a bit over the top.

The questions are:
- Do I need a GPU or is onboard video enough.
- Do I need a soundcard? The HTPC would be connected via optical to Entertainment system.
- Would an i3 Processor be enough.
- Is 4GB or even 2Gb of DDR3 not more than enough?
- Which TV-card works best with Cable TV (Time Warner)

If you have (better) alternatives, please feel free to respond!!!

Thank you so much in advance!

Rob

[jdeb]

The questions are: - Do I need a GPU or is onboard video enough.

I would recommend the best IGP today which is the i5-3570K CPU

- Do I need a soundcard? The HTPC would be connected via optical to Entertainment system.

I would go with the onboard sound to start, you can always add if you are not satisfied but I think you will be very happy with it.

- Would an i3 Processor be enough.

Not if you want the best graphics that are inter-graded (IGP). See answer above

- Is 4GB or even 2Gb of DDR3 not more than enough?

4GB is enough but for the price of 8GB, might as well get it now. The one you chose is fine.

- Which TV-card works best with Cable TV (Time Warner)

I think these are the best as they allow you to record up to 4 programs in HD
Newegg.com - Ceton InfiniTV 4 Quad-tuner Card for Watching Digital Cable TV on the PC, PCI-Express x1 Interface

If you have (better) alternatives, please feel free to respond!!!

I will come back to this when a get a little more time.
I think you need to increase your budget 200 to 300.00 but let me digest this a little

[jdeb]

Ok. The best I can come up with is about 660.00 and that is with a AMD APU build. The kicker is the Ceton Tuner. My builds are usually 1000.00 or more with the Ceton Tuner. You can upgrade (not that you need it) you graphics at a later date as well by adding a HD6570 or HD6670. Additionally, you can add hard drives when you need to add storage.

660.00 not including shipping or OS

LG DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827136247

AMD A6-3650 Llano 2.6GHz Socket FM1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103943

ASUS F1A55-M LX PLUS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131813

Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820104166

Western Digital Caviar Black WD5002AALX 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136795

SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151093

nMEDIAPC Black Aluminum / Steel HTPC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811204032

Ceton InfiniTV 4 Quad-tuner Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16815706001