Topic: Building an HTPC / Gaming Please help.

[plapoy]

Hi All,

After doing a lot of searching on the net. I decided not to buy an xtreamer ultra and just rebuild my desktop pc for home theater and gaming purposes. I think i can save more money on this route. Kindly help me choose.

What i have now from my old pc that i can use:

Processor: Pentium 2.66 Dual Core D805
Memory: 750MB DDRAM (512+256mb) (This one needs an upgrade. )
PSU: 500w

Here's what i have in mind:

Motherboard: preferably micro/mini ITX with small footprint.
Graphics Card: can handle hd movies 720p/1080p (w/ hdmi output) and decent games like Call of Duty
Sound Card: Can handle HD audio like dts-hd, dd true hd.
Memory: 2-4g ddr3
Casing: micro ITX or any decent casing with small footprint (preferably horizontal casing)
HDD: 1TB-2TB SATA or SATA3

Budget is 15k-20k

Any input will highly appreciated.. Thanks..

[AC]

sir what kind of games do you want to play po?
to be honest.. i think... ang magagamit nalang po is case and psu..

medyo hindi napo updated ang parts eh.. @ 15t masuggest ko lang po is.. sa sunod nalang kumuha ng video card
i would suggest an i3, a mobo... h61 h67 or Z68 and 4gb ram maybe a 2tb hd nadin since it will be an htpc.. kailangan mo ng malaking storage...

try niyo po muna graphics ng i3... its not dedicated its not hard core gaming but for light gaming pwede napo.. @15t po thats the best na naiisip ko.. power efficient yet powerful

ofcourse antay nadin tayo suggestions ng iba:D

[plapoy]

sir what kind of games do you want to play po?
to be honest.. i think... ang magagamit nalang po is case and psu..

medyo hindi napo updated ang parts eh.. @ 15t masuggest ko lang po is.. sa sunod nalang kumuha ng video card
i would suggest an i3, a mobo... h61 h67 or Z68 and 4gb ram maybe a 2tb hd nadin since it will be an htpc.. kailangan mo ng malaking storage...

try niyo po muna graphics ng i3... its not dedicated its not hard core gaming but for light gaming pwede napo.. @15t po thats the best na naiisip ko.. power efficient yet powerful

ofcourse antay nadin tayo suggestions ng iba:D

Salamat sir AC sa suggestion.. actually more on Call of Duty and Need for Speed lang nilalaro ko.. basta racing at barilan lang... i've tried the world in conflict kasi maganda graphics nya..

I have an I5 laptop with ATI Radeon 5470 VC.. so far kaya naman lahat ng games na nilalaro ko.. hindi pa nya ako binibigo.. nalalaro ko pa sila ng full graphics.. kaya lang nagdecide ako mg htpc route kasi maliit lang yung hd ng laptop ko saka masyado na nagagamit.. Mainit kasi sya pag naglalaro ako..

I'll check with those specs sir. baka pwede na rin sya.. mejo mahal pa kasi ang I series na processor..

Add ko lang din sir.  gusto ko sana yung vc yung kaya mag decode ng 2nd gen na audio like DTSHD and TrueHD.. kahit hindi na 3d capable ok lang sakin.. ano2 po ba masa suggest nyo?.. More on ATI Radeon kasi ako eh.. hindi ko pa natry ang NVIDIA..


yung sa motherboard ok na rin yung atx type kasi nakakita nako ng casing ng silverstone for htpc.. mejo pricey lang.. tama po kayo na hindi kasya ang 20k for that kaya unti untiin ko na lang po siguro.. 


 

[AC]

hindi po ako expert sa ganyan... antay natin mga masters..
kay master "j" lang ako humingi ng suggestion.. mukhang happy naman ako sa naging final choice..

nung una kukunin ko dapat is hd6850 but after suggestions kinuha ko is gtx460
nvidia po 3d ready na... dtshd nadin po... kayalang hindi pa kaya highest settings sa 1080p sa last game na nilaro ko (call of duty 6 yata.. yung about parang cuba russia)... meron naman higher models pero di na kinasiya ng budget ko.. hehe if gusto niyo highest settings palagi.. you might need gtx560...

i know you prefer ati and i respect that.. but nabasa ko din po  bagay sa htpcs natin nvidia.. dahil mababa ang idle nito... gtx460 ko is 11watts only.. kung tama ako ganun din idle ng gtx560...

nice na pala laptop niyo.. asus k43? wishing for one din kasi.. pero no budget.. hehe tsaka na..

[plapoy]

hindi po ako expert sa ganyan... antay natin mga masters..
kay master "j" lang ako humingi ng suggestion.. mukhang happy naman ako sa naging final choice..

nung una kukunin ko dapat is hd6850 but after suggestions kinuha ko is gtx460
nvidia po 3d ready na... dtshd nadin po... kayalang hindi pa kaya highest settings sa 1080p sa last game na nilaro ko (call of duty 6 yata.. yung about parang cuba russia)... meron naman higher models pero di na kinasiya ng budget ko.. hehe if gusto niyo highest settings palagi.. you might need gtx560...

i know you prefer ati and i respect that.. but nabasa ko din po  bagay sa htpcs natin nvidia.. dahil mababa ang idle nito... gtx460 ko is 11watts only.. kung tama ako ganun din idle ng gtx560...

nice na pala laptop niyo.. asus k43? wishing for one din kasi.. pero no budget.. hehe tsaka na..

Ok salamat sir.. ngayon iconsider ko na ang Nvidia dahil sa input nyo. by the way i'm using Dell Inspiron 15R with I5 M450 2.40ghz, ATI Radeon 5470 1G DDR5, 4GB DDR3 and 320G HDD. I got it sa SG sir for a fraction of a price.

Ok na sya sakin for htpc kaya lang sobrang naawa nako kasi pag nanonood kami movies pag weekend. average of 5 movies.. then music naman after.. sobra pong init na nya. halos wala na syang patayan kasi ginagamit ko din sya na pandl ng movies. baka kasi bumigay sya agad kaya gusto magbuo ulit ng pc..

[firestorm]

Ok salamat sir.. ngayon iconsider ko na ang Nvidia dahil sa input nyo. by the way i'm using Dell Inspiron 15R with I5 M450 2.40ghz, ATI Radeon 5470 1G DDR5, 4GB DDR3 and 320G HDD. I got it sa SG sir for a fraction of a price.

Ok na sya sakin for htpc kaya lang sobrang naawa nako kasi pag nanonood kami movies pag weekend. average of 5 movies.. then music naman after.. sobra pong init na nya. halos wala na syang patayan kasi ginagamit ko din sya na pandl ng movies. baka kasi bumigay sya agad kaya gusto magbuo ulit ng pc..

If AMD talaga prefer nyo and hindi naman importante ang 3D (whether sa movies and especially games). Ok na yun AMD 6570 or 6670 depending on your budget. It can play 720/1080p and bitstream DTS-HD and Dolby True HD and play games at medium resolutions with lower effects settings. Pwede rin naman sya sa 3D Bluray the main advantage for Nvidia is for 3D stereo gaming because meron syang Nvidia 3D vision much easier to setup games.

Hope this helps.

[plapoy]

Opo sir firestorm, tama po kayo mejo hindi po importante yung 3D sakin ngayon.. wala po kasi ako balak mg 3D na route for now.. yung DTS-HD and True HD lang po ang importante sakin para sa mga movies ko. Sa games naman po bihira na po ako maglaro ngayon. Pero gusto ko po full graphics po ang games pag naglalaro ako.. budget po siguro is 10k.. wala na po ako idea kung magkano na ngayon ang mga VC.. magkano na po ba yung 6570 at 6670 ngayon sa market?.

Add ko lang din po.. kung ano maganda motherboard para sa kanila.. yung hindi na po ako magupgrade ng 2-3yrs.. para tipid

Salamat po sa input sir..

[AC]

ayan na pala si master "j".. hehe:D

[firestorm]

Opo sir firestorm, tama po kayo mejo hindi po importante yung 3D sakin ngayon.. wala po kasi ako balak mg 3D na route for now.. yung DTS-HD and True HD lang po ang importante sakin para sa mga movies ko. Sa games naman po bihira na po ako maglaro ngayon. Pero gusto ko po full graphics po ang games pag naglalaro ako.. budget po siguro is 10k.. wala na po ako idea kung magkano na ngayon ang mga VC.. magkano na po ba yung 6570 at 6670 ngayon sa market?.

Add ko lang din po.. kung ano maganda motherboard para sa kanila.. yung hindi na po ako magupgrade ng 2-3yrs.. para tipid

Salamat po sa input sir..

Kung 10K budget nyo for the video card only I think you could already get a 6850 meron pang sukli if you add a bit more 6870 na. Are you using a full HD display/monitor? Kasi for newer graphics intensive games you might not be able to enable all detail settings at full HD resolution maybe turn down anti-aliasing to make framerates acceptable. for older games there should be no problem pero there are always exceptions to the rule. Palagi naman meron newer games to max out your current video card so I suggest get the best card you can afford with your budget.

Regarding sa motherboard, it will really depend on what CPU you choose to get? If meron ka nang CPU napili just get a motherboard that supports it and choose a well known brand like Asus or MSI unless meron particular feature kang hinahanap sa board that may limit your choices.

Pero if you are planning to use a small htpc case I think you might have a hard time fitting in a full sized 6850 or 6870 so I suggest you do some calculations first before actually buying anything na hindi pwede ibalik.

[plapoy]

Kung 10K budget nyo for the video card only I think you could already get a 6850 meron pang sukli if you add a bit more 6870 na. Are you using a full HD display/monitor? Kasi for newer graphics intensive games you might not be able to enable all detail settings at full HD resolution maybe turn down anti-aliasing to make framerates acceptable. for older games there should be no problem pero there are always exceptions to the rule. Palagi naman meron newer games to max out your current video card so I suggest get the best card you can afford with your budget.

Regarding sa motherboard, it will really depend on what CPU you choose to get? If meron ka nang CPU napili just get a motherboard that supports it and choose a well known brand like Asus or MSI unless meron particular feature kang hinahanap sa board that may limit your choices.

Pero if you are planning to use a small htpc case I think you might have a hard time fitting in a full sized 6850 or 6870 so I suggest you do some calculations first before actually buying anything na hindi pwede ibalik.

Ok sir salamat po.. yung display ko po is HD ready na plasma po.. upto 720p lang po yung kaya nya.. Sa processor naman po base po sa suggestion ni sir AC ok na daw po yung I3 for that. With regards sa mobo naman po.. ang natry ko pa lang po is ASRock and it serves me i think more than 5 yrs.. so satisfy na din po ako sa kanya. but will try your recommendations. by the way full size na mobo na rin balak ko since nakakita nako ng case na silverstone for htpc na locally available s tpc.

[firestorm]

Ok sir salamat po.. yung display ko po is HD ready na plasma po.. upto 720p lang po yung kaya nya.. Sa processor naman po base po sa suggestion ni sir AC ok na daw po yung I3 for that. With regards sa mobo naman po.. ang natry ko pa lang po is ASRock and it serves me i think more than 5 yrs.. so satisfy na din po ako sa kanya. but will try your recommendations. by the way full size na mobo na rin balak ko since nakakita nako ng case na silverstone for htpc na locally available s tpc.

Since 720p yun display mo you should be able run almost all games with high detail settings turned on a 6850 or 6870 card. Satisfied ka na with your experience using Asrock so just stick with it my belief is if it ain't broke why fix it. Going with a full size mboard and casing I guess you won't have any problems anymore with whatever parts you decide on. Sige balitaan mo kami dito kung nabuo mo na yun htpc mo.

BTW, yun 5470 ng laptop mo doesn't support HD audio bitstreaming? I'm not too familiar kasi with mobile video chips.

[plapoy]

Since 720p yun display mo you should be able run almost all games with high detail settings turned on a 6850 or 6870 card. Satisfied ka na with your experience using Asrock so just stick with it my belief is if it ain't broke why fix it. Going with a full size mboard and casing I guess you won't have any problems anymore with whatever parts you decide on. Sige balitaan mo kami dito kung nabuo mo na yun htpc mo.

BTW, yun 5470 ng laptop mo doesn't support HD audio bitstreaming? I'm not too familiar kasi with mobile video chips.

ok sir thanks for all your input.. magagamit to in building my future htpc.. baka matagalan pa po yung pagbubuo kasi i'm doing a research parts by parts para talagang satisfied ako sa performance at hindi ko pagsisihan mga nabiliko sa huli.. mejo mi kamahalan din kasi ang mga components kaya dapat sigurado talaga. kaya magagamit ko yung mga binigay nyo para iresearch ang pros and cons nila.. 

with regards to your question on HD audio support, base po dito sa link http://www.notebookcheck.net/ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-5470.23698.0.html kaya po nya mag bitstream ng hd audio.. but i've never tried this since most of my movies are in DTS and DD lang for now.. hindi pa kasi ulit ako nakakabili ng hdd..

salamat po ulit..

[firestorm]

ok sir thanks for all your input.. magagamit to in building my future htpc.. baka matagalan pa po yung pagbubuo kasi i'm doing a research parts by parts para talagang satisfied ako sa performance at hindi ko pagsisihan mga nabiliko sa huli.. mejo mi kamahalan din kasi ang mga components kaya dapat sigurado talaga. kaya magagamit ko yung mga binigay nyo para iresearch ang pros and cons nila.. 

with regards to your question on HD audio support, base po dito sa link http://www.notebookcheck.net/ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-5470.23698.0.html kaya po nya mag bitstream ng hd audio.. but i've never tried this since most of my movies are in DTS and DD lang for now.. hindi pa kasi ulit ako nakakabili ng hdd..

salamat po ulit..

Tama yan research lang ng research and palaging meron mga bagong cpu and video cards na lumalabas. Besides ok na yun laptop mo for everything you need right now medyo kailangan lang bigyan ng konting rest in between movie viewings.

I also read from your setup thread na you currently have fronts and a subwoofer. I guess mas importante na mabuo muna yun 5.1 setup before thinking of building your htpc.

Thanks.

[plapoy]

Tama yan research lang ng research and palaging meron mga bagong cpu and video cards na lumalabas. Besides ok na yun laptop mo for everything you need right now medyo kailangan lang bigyan ng konting rest in between movie viewings.

I also read from your setup thread na you currently have fronts and a subwoofer. I guess mas importante na mabuo muna yun 5.1 setup before thinking of building your htpc.

Thanks.

Yes sir.. yun po muna ang unahin ko.. specifically yung center ko.. kahit huli na ng surrounds.. by the way post ko na lang po dito kung mi update na for the htpc setup.. thanks..

[FrancisD]

Just note that high end video cards consume huge amounts of wattage! I think its like as good as an aircon in consumption when your playing games  Then you may do crossfire and that takes your savings away from inverter type aircons or worse...

[plapoy]

Just note that high end video cards consume huge amounts of wattage! I think its like as good as an aircon in consumption when your playing games  Then you may do crossfire and that takes your savings away from inverter type aircons or worse...

Whoa?.. can you enlighten me on this sir FrancisD and also the crossfire thing. what if i'm only watching movies?. do they consume as much as when i'm playing games?. Thanks for pointing this out.

[boing]

Video cards only consume a lot of power when they're under full load. I think movies won't stress out the video card by even half its capacity so it won't consume as much as when you're playing a demanding game.

[plapoy]

Video cards only consume a lot of power when they're under full load. I think movies won't stress out the video card by even half its capacity so it won't consume as much as when you're playing a demanding game.

Ok sir boing.. Thanks for stressing this out. by the way i'll check the power consumption and idle consumption of the VG i'm going to buy.

[Tavus]

no one recommends here amd llano? its cheap and it has a build in video card.
his budget is around 15k-20k.

[rotciv818]

no one recommends here amd llano? its cheap and it has a build in video card.
his budget is around 15k-20k.

can you give the ideal specs for the build sir using the AMD llano? i'm trying to build an htpc

[FrancisD]

@plapoy

High end video cards consume less when not used in full. Depending on the card but for now its not linear. Some cards now have some sort of power saving mode but more efficient cards still consume less power. If you have a media streamer, use that for movies as PC even with relatively efficient set-ups usually consume more power.

You have to decide whats the most important to you, power or efficiency. There are power efficient cards with adequate capability to play current games thats usually for the HTPC crowd ( Which is what I use a GT 240 DDR5) or a power user with the most bang for the buck FPS in games but consumes more power.

You also have to list the games you want to play and at what resolutions and quality you play them. Most games will play with entry level cards but at lower resolutions and quality.

Although it is alright every now and then to splurge and buy the best there is, this kind of self-indulgence (combined with heavy utilization) is bad news for the electricity bill. While the enthusiast might enjoy limited doses of pixel delicacies on a regular basis and remain rather financially viable, the hardcore gamer with his or her permanent power consumption could noticeably be punished by the electricity companies.

The average user should stay away from high-end graphics cards altogether, because even if those products increase the potential of what can be rendered, the cards remain underutilized most of the time. Even though power consumption remains rather low (due to the amount of time spent idle), the electricity money is still wasted.

Those who decide to get a high-performance graphics card should be aware of the added costs. It is just like buying a car: even if you have just enough money for a Porsche, tires, gas, insurance, and taxes still have to be paid. And if that makes things a bit tighter, driving is less fun.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-consumption-graphics-cards,2849-13.html

 

[plapoy]

@plapoy

High end video cards consume less when not used in full. Depending on the card but for now its not linear. Some cards now have some sort of power saving mode but more efficient cards still consume less power. If you have a media streamer, use that for movies as PC even with relatively efficient set-ups usually consume more power.

You have to decide whats the most important to you, power or efficiency. There are power efficient cards with adequate capability to play current games thats usually for the HTPC crowd ( Which is what I use a GT 240 DDR5) or a power user with the most bang for the buck FPS in games but consumes more power.

You also have to list the games you want to play and at what resolutions and quality you play them. Most games will play with entry level cards but at lower resolutions and quality.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-consumption-graphics-cards,2849-13.html

 

You've got a point sir. thanks for that advise sir FrancisD i think now i know what i really need.. it is simply an NMT for my movies.. I'll just use my laptop as my gaming rig for now. a fraction of a cost than building an htpc. maybe soon if my laptop needs an upgrade or i have my own ht room. thanks to the gentlemen for all the suggestions.. 

[jhelenz]

guys i'm thinking of building a simple htpc and gaming rig nag  paquote ako sa pc express and this is what they gave me
intel pentium dual core e 6600 (3.06 ghz) 2mb l2 cache/1066 fbs/45nm lga7  P2,850
msi g41/ddr3/v-4500/s/gb lan matx motherboard                                        2300
kingston 2gb ddr3 1333mh non ecc                                                            650
lite on3d 430 1gb ddr3 12bit vga dvi hdmi videocard                                      920
oxygen 03 red/black casing                                                                     1280
a4 tech 9300f wireless desktop padless kb + mouse                                     1100
                                                                                                       P11,750

ok na po ba yung mga specs nito or medyo overkill sa requirements ko?meron pa ba kayong ma susuggest na mas murang bilihan?sabi nila mas mura daw sa gilmore,baka may alam kayong shop dun na puede ko mag inquire ng prices pa pm naman po ng contact no.pasensya na po ngayun lang ulit ako mag bubuo ng desktop pc puro laptop lang gamit eh.thanks

[Stagea]

guys i'm thinking of building a simple htpc and gaming rig nag  paquote ako sa pc express and this is what they gave me
intel pentium dual core e 6600 (3.06 ghz) 2mb l2 cache/1066 fbs/45nm lga7  P2,850
msi g41/ddr3/v-4500/s/gb lan matx motherboard                                        2300
kingston 2gb ddr3 1333mh non ecc                                                            650
lite on3d 430 1gb ddr3 12bit vga dvi hdmi videocard                                      920
oxygen 03 red/black casing                                                                     1280
a4 tech 9300f wireless desktop padless kb + mouse                                     1100
                                                                                                       P11,750

ok na po ba yung mga specs nito or medyo overkill sa requirements ko?meron pa ba kayong ma susuggest na mas murang bilihan?sabi nila mas mura daw sa gilmore,baka may alam kayong shop dun na puede ko mag inquire ng prices pa pm naman po ng contact no.pasensya na po ngayun lang ulit ako mag bubuo ng desktop pc puro laptop lang gamit eh.thanks

It's a little cheaper in Gilmore, yes. The graphic card that they included is weak for gaming use, imho. The processor and motherboard are EOL products too.

Go for the G620 at the very least for the processor (the price is the same), and add a tiny bit more for a huge performance leap with a HD 6750 or a GTS 450 3d accelerator.

[AC]

+1
minsan po mga shop na ganyan pinupush mga last model.. mahal kasi mga yun... pero wala na masyado may gusto
imho.. i would prefer a new model low end rather than an old model hi end

yung friend ko ganyan din.. 3months ago siguro nagbuo.. nagtanong sakin sinuggest ko G620 or i3... sa huli... di din nakinig sakin... baka nagakala pang nagaahente ako nung mga sinusuggest ko... hindi ko maintindihan bakit c2d ang prinefer niya.. inexplain ko naman ng mabuti na better itong mga ito.. mas mabilis na.. mas matipid pa sa kuryente
mas mababa pa yata kesa gt430 inalok sa kaibigan ko... parang 8400gt or gs... nasa ganun...

kakabuo lang namin last week.. and baka magbuo uli next week for another friend

lagyan ko nalang po ng specs/items yung suggestion ni sir stagea


intel g620 3000
intel i3-2100 5000
_______________
asrock H61 2450
_______________
4gb ddr3 pqi 750
_______________
video too many to suggest... try mo muna without video card...(my dad has an i3... he plays civilization5... hindi super heavy game but... kayang kaya naman.) 
casing any (get a branded psu if magkaka video card kana)
keyboard i prefer logitech.. true... mas mahal... pero some of my mouse sa office were from year 2001.. ok pa naman sila.. daily use... nagtipid ako once... nagtry ako cdrking 100php mouse.. iniisip ko... whatda... kung masira edi tapon.. palagi bago... ayun 1 week.. nagcocomplain na sakin mga tao.. nag dodoubleclick magisa.. kaya naging basura... A4tech does last a few months sa office namin... nung huli.. i just bought logitech na mumurahin.. parang 250 or 300 each yata.. yung itim na pang office yata... siguro 2 years na now... wala pa naman nagrerequest ng bago.. hehe

[jhelenz]

thanks for the replies sir.will try to canvass again yung mga suggestions nyo.
@AC ok lang din ba manuod ng hi def movies without video cards?thanks

[AC]

yes.. kaya po.. kahit 1080p
malakas napo built in video ng new systems ngayon..

the next generation ivybridge.. magiimprove padaw 30% graphics 20% processor

ang problema lang po ng sinuggest ko na setup is.. wala po yang usb3.. kung gusto niyo po ng may usb3.. dagdag po mga 1200php more

[emmanuelle_m89]

pwede ka mag build ng gaming HTPC sa Silverstone GD06b

specs ko
i5 3570k
gtx 550ti
intel 330 ssd
seagate 500gb
8gb ram
550w

[olrac]

mga sir.  need your assistance. im planning to build a dekstop PC for the kids.  pero excuse na rin kay misis para magamit ko siya for my 3d ready projector (acer h5630 nvidia 3D vision).  I know that there are a few 3d movies out in the market kaya gagamitin ko lang siya for 3d viewing since I use another palyer for movies.  ano suggested niyong specifications na mura.

thanks.

[rulesmeister]

mga sir.  need your assistance. im planning to build a dekstop PC for the kids.  pero excuse na rin kay misis para magamit ko siya for my 3d ready projector (acer h5630 nvidia 3D vision).  I know that there are a few 3d movies out in the market kaya gagamitin ko lang siya for 3d viewing since I use another palyer for movies.  ano suggested niyong specifications na mura.

thanks.

I built one for my boss with a budget of less than 15k, got cheap parts from TPC.com and he's happy with his HTPC.  
AM3; Asrock N68-VS3FX
DDR3 Gskills 1333Mhz 2GB  x2
AM3 Athlon II X2 260 3.2Ghz
AMD Radeon HD6570
500W Aerocool StrikeX true rated 80% efficiency
1 TB Seagate / Samsung / WD

1 part (mobo) was already existing, 3D ready na rin..