[jasmill1969]

Hello all. I just got into HTPCs and I am really enjoying myself. It's great to find a community like this one with helpful/friendly participants. Like I said, I am new to the game and I am using a really old desktop which I will link below so you can get a feel for the specs.

My Beater

To that I have added an ATI Radeon HD 5670 and a WD green 2TB hard disk.

This old machine is taxed pretty hard because it not only is the storage and playback box in one, it is also the download box running couch potato, sickbeard, SABnzbd, EmberMedia, etc.

My problem is the video is choppy as hell if I am running 720p or above and the other apps are running. Or if uTorrent or SABnzbd are sucking down content at 1.5MBps. Now, if I reboot and prevent the above apps from running (via scheduling) then the video will play fine at 720p, but I hate having to reboot my machine each time I want to watch something beautiful.

I would really like to have a two piece setup where I have a dedicated HTPC and a separate NAS.

OK, for those of you that are still reading I would like to know how would you proceed if you were me and you had around 400-500 to spend on an upgrade. I think there are two options, but if you think there are more please let me know...

1. Keep my current rig as the HTPC, purchase a budget NAS and use the current WD Green 2TB as one of the NAS drives.

2. Purchase another WD Green 2TB and put it in my current rig and use it as a NAS and purchase one of the HTPC setups that Eskro and Poofy have recommended.

I certainly look forward to your honest feedback and thank you in advance.

[T800]

You know your current PC can handle the downloading/sharing side of things but struggles with HD content so I would use that as a server and build a newer HTPC.

[Mallet21]

+1 w/ what T800 said....You've already got the 5670 so you could put that in the new HTPC and you would have plenty in your budget for the new HTPC. Make sure you have a gigabit network card in the old PC/new server.

[splnuts]

I personally would take the video card out and use it in a new smaller/prettier htpc. Since the current computer is probably larger and louder then a new htpc would be.

[jasmill1969]

My main concern in turning the current rig into a NAS is if it will be able to handle the downloading, uploading, media management, as well as be the stream 1080p to a new HTPC.

I guess my main issue is, I don't understand how much cpu/ram is used when streaming. For instance, which PC is working harder the one where the movie is stored or the one where the movie is being received and playing. Assuming there is little overhead on the storage PC while streaming then I should be good to go with the old rig being used as a NAS.

Lastly, if this does end up being the solution, do you know if the 5670 will fit into any of the eskro recommended setups? From memory it seemed pretty big and his setups seem pretty tight.

[Mallet21]

My main concern in turning the current rig into a NAS is if it will be able to handle the downloading, uploading, media management, as well as be the stream 1080p to a new HTPC.

I guess my main issue is, I don't understand how much cpu/ram is used when streaming. For instance, which PC is working harder the one where the movie is stored or the one where the movie is being received and playing. Assuming there is little overhead on the storage PC while streaming then I should be good to go with the old rig being used as a NAS.

.

All the 1080P work would be handled by the new HTPC. Very little resources are required for a NAS to serve media leaving plenty left over for your downloading. Honestly, I don't know why your current rig is unable to handle both tasks. Any dual core processor and GPU that supports hardware acceleration should have no trouble handling 1080p video.

[paul]

You know your current PC can handle the downloading/sharing side of things but struggles with HD content so I would use that as a server and build a newer HTPC.

Like the terminator said. you could also turn your current system in to a nas using freenas... just a thought

[jasmill1969]

If I turned the current rig into a NAS would I still run windows XP on it? It sounds like FreeNAS is an operating system. So if I use it, does XP go away? Also, do apps like uTorrent, SABnzbd, Sick Beard, etc run on FreeNAS?

[seand]

If I turned the current rig into a NAS would I still run windows XP on it? It sounds like FreeNAS is an operating system. So if I use it, does XP go away? Also, do apps like uTorrent, SABnzbd, Sick Beard, etc run on FreeNAS?

Not an expert on FreeNAS which is a linux server OS but Sab, sickbeard, couchpotato all run on various server formats. Some people hack them into hardware NAS's. Thats why they are designed to be run through an html web interface, so they can be run "headless" on a server without even looking at the monitor on the machine you are running them on. You can look at their web interface and control them on anything that reads web pages in your network, including more likely than not your cell phone these days. Not so sure about uTorrent but if not Transmission is a low-impact web-deamon bit torrent app that runs on all kinds of servers, etc. I run Transmission on my router, for example, which also has a usb port to act as a poor man's NAS. Serving files and simple downloading is a low impact job and does not need a lot of processor power.

There are Windows based servers but they aren't as free and stripped down/maintenace light as a Linux based server OS would be. Or you could just leave it on and turn on your SMB sharing but you know there is more virus/driver update maintenance going on and you are supporting a lot of OS features you aren't actually using.

[Mallet21]

Just keep XP and share the drives with your new box.

[jasmill1969]

Does anyone know of the ATI Radeon 5670 will fit in any of the eskro recommended setups?

[Mallet21]

Looks like all of his builds are for low-profile cards. You just need to find a micro atx case that accepts full-height video cards.

I have this one and love it:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6811129034

This one is cheaper..but does not come with a power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6811204035

[eskro]

2 great choices MAllet21!!

usually, the nMediaPC 5000B costs $15 to ship!!
now its on sale and has free shipping!!
thats a great deal right there!!

[jasmill1969]

Is the 5670 a better card than the GT430? If so, I am inclined to reuse it and go with the larger case.

So, if I went with the nMediaPC 5000B case and reuse the 5670 card, would would I still use all of the other parts from one of Eskro's recommended builds?

Or could lesser expensive parts with equal performance be obtained due to the the fact that I'm no longer tied to a low profile setup?

I am super close to pulling the trigger on an order and would like any input you guys have, especially eskro, on what mobo, cpu, psu, 30ishGB ssd, and 4gigs of ram. I plan on running windows 7 and doing zero gaming. The only reason I want to go 4 gigs of ram is just future proofing when the price difference is so little.