Intel G530+HD6450 or A6-3500
#1
Question 
I'm looking to setup a new XBMC machine and cannot decide between two configurations which only differ in CPU/GPU (and motherboard of course):

Intel Celeron G530 + Ati HD6450 1GB
(discrete graphics because of the Sandy bridge frame-rate issue)
or
AMD A6-3500 with integrated graphics

I think that both configurations are more than capable of handling everything you throw at them and are in fact ideal for a XBMC Windows machine. But, since there is almost no price difference, the only concern left is the power consumption.

Would the Intel configuration draw more power because of the discrete GPU? Huh

I’m not sure because according to reviews the G530 alone draws less power than the A6-3500 and the HD6450 is not a power hungry GPU.

Would there, besides the mentioned, be any other differences?
What would you buy between these two choices?
:confused2:
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#2
I just recently went with the A6. No graphics card means better airflow without the obstruction in the way. It's just neat having fewer components. I haven't examined power consumption tests, but I have to imagine the power consumption is similar.
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#3
bobanmilan Wrote:I think that both configurations are more than capable of handling everything you throw at them and are in fact ideal for a XBMC Windows machine. But, since there is almost no price difference, the only concern left is the power consumption.

Would the Intel configuration draw more power because of the discrete GPU? Huh

I’m not sure because according to reviews the G530 alone draws less power than the A6-3500 and the HD6450 is not a power hungry GPU.

Well here are some numbers-

1. G530 (65w)+HD645 (31w)= 96w. You'll get a dual-core CPU
2. A6-3500/HD6530d (65w). You'll get a tripple-core CPU and less components
>Alienware X51- do it all HTPC
>Simplify XBMC configurations
>HOW-TO Bitstreaming using XBMC
I refused to watch movie without bitstreaming HD audio!
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#4
bluray Wrote:Well here are some numbers-

1. G530 (65w)+HD645 (31w)= 96w. You'll get a dual-core CPU
2. A6-3500/HD6530d (65w). You'll get a tripple-core CPU and less components

Sorry, but just stating the TDP values don’t mean anything and certainly it doesn’t help me.

As well as having a triple-core CPU. This extra core will make no difference for the XBMC experience, but what it does is raise the power consumption Oo
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#5
beetlesnack Wrote:I just recently went with the A6. No graphics card means better airflow without the obstruction in the way. It's just neat having fewer components. I haven't examined power consumption tests, but I have to imagine the power consumption is similar.

It is possible that the power consumption of the whole system will probably not be significantly different. Just wondered if someone knows better...

What are the cons and pros between the A6 IGP and the HD6450?
I suppose that there will be no differences between 1080p playbacks (which will be the hardest task for my system), but is there anything that is much better at either card? Or probably some problems I could run into with XBMC when using them as a graphics solution?
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#6
bobanmilan Wrote:Sorry, but just stating the TDP values don’t mean anything and certainly it doesn’t help me.
Well, they come up with (Max TDP) power consumption with all the cores into consideration. As long as your have PSU in these ranges, you should be fine to operate your HTPC.

bobanmilan Wrote:As well as having a triple-core CPU. This extra core will make no difference for the XBMC experience, but what it does is raise the power consumption Oo
Since (Max TDP) is 65w, it shouldn't consume much more power than that. Well, the extra core might give you faster XBMC UI. It'll allow you to multiple tasks faster too! Smile
>Alienware X51- do it all HTPC
>Simplify XBMC configurations
>HOW-TO Bitstreaming using XBMC
I refused to watch movie without bitstreaming HD audio!
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#7
With XBMC running on one core a GPU provides some nice boost. The 6450 is quite low-power for the capabilities, and has a pretty good fan-base here.

Power consumption is well-below rated on video playback. I say do the standalone GPU
System: XBMC HTPC with HDMI WASAPI & AudioEngine - Denon  AVR-3808CI  - Denon DVD-5900 Universal Player  - Denon DCM-27 CD-Changer
- Sony BDP-S580 Blu-Ray  - X-Box 360  - Android tablet wireless remote - 7.1 Streem/Axiom/Velodyne Surround System
If I have been able to help feel free to add to my reputation +/- below - thanks!
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#8
The A6 I think is the easy answer. More CPU and graphics power as well as lower power consumption (probably) during playback of 1080p video (32W). The link below show the A6 draws 32 watts during 1080p video playback and a G620 w/ integrated intel graphics) draws 34 watts on 1080p video. Not a direct comparison to your situation but I think you get the picture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/dis...-i3_8.html
Main HTPC:
Intel e4600 + AMD HD5450 + Antec NSK2480B case + 4gb ddr2 + Earthwatts 430 + 1.5tb Seagate 7200 + XBMC Rapier Qualar Mod Skin + Win7
Office HTPC/Ripper/Server:
AMD x4 635 + GT220 + Antec 300 case + 4gbddr3 + OCZ ModXStream 500 psu + 3x2tb WD green drives + Win7
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#9
bluray Wrote:Well, they come up with (Max TDP) power consumption with all the cores into consideration. As long as your have PSU in these ranges, you should be fine to operate your HTPC.

Since (Max TDP) is 65w, it shouldn't consume much more power than that. Well, the extra core might give you faster XBMC UI. It'll allow you to multiple tasks faster too! Smile

You ran into the wrong direction. I'm not afraid that my PSU is not strong enough. I want to know which of these configurations will add less to my monthly energy bill... and TDP has very little to do with it.

I know that the A6 consumes more power then the G530. Be it because of the extra core or because of whatever. But the fact is, I will not decide on which config to buy based on no. of cores or on CPU power, because they are both mooore then enough to run XBMC buttery smooth.

CPU power and number of cores are not the subject of this thread. It is just power consumption and differences between the A6 IGP and the discrete HD6450. Wink
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#10
If it helps I use about 22-24W with 1080p on 6450.
System: XBMC HTPC with HDMI WASAPI & AudioEngine - Denon  AVR-3808CI  - Denon DVD-5900 Universal Player  - Denon DCM-27 CD-Changer
- Sony BDP-S580 Blu-Ray  - X-Box 360  - Android tablet wireless remote - 7.1 Streem/Axiom/Velodyne Surround System
If I have been able to help feel free to add to my reputation +/- below - thanks!
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#11
DDDamian Wrote:If it helps I use about 22-24W with 1080p on 6450.

The whole system?

Can you be more specific about the components?
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#12
Mallet21 Wrote:The A6 I think is the easy answer. More CPU and graphics power as well as lower power consumption (probably) during playback of 1080p video (32W). The link below show the A6 draws 32 watts during 1080p video playback and a G620 w/ integrated intel graphics) draws 34 watts on 1080p video. Not a direct comparison to your situation but I think you get the picture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/dis...-i3_8.html

I'd say that link pretty much settles the question regarding power consumption, at least as far as playing 1080p.
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#13
Mallet21 Wrote:The A6 I think is the easy answer. More CPU and graphics power as well as lower power consumption (probably) during playback of 1080p video (32W). The link below show the A6 draws 32 watts during 1080p video playback and a G620 w/ integrated intel graphics) draws 34 watts on 1080p video. Not a direct comparison to your situation but I think you get the picture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/dis...-i3_8.html

If you read the whole review, you'll see that actually the Intel has more processing power!
The A6 graphics are better than the IGP in the Intel, but we are here comparing the A6 graphics with the HD6450. And in that comparison the A6 graphics is again weaker. Even though it doesn’t matter because both will handle every movie file you throw at them with ease.
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#14
I’ve read the reviews for the A6-3500, the G530 and the HD6450 at these links:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5005/holid...rs-guide/2
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/dis...html#sect0
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapph...ve/25.html

At this comparison my conclusions are the following:
- both the Intel G530+HD6450 combination and the A6-3500 are powerful enough to handle everything you could want to do with a XBMC machine (except if you are into serious gaming, but then neither is good enough)
- both are similarly priced
- the total system power consumption of both options will be at almost the same level because both the G530 and HD6450 are very power efficient parts

In the end I will opt for the G530+HD6450 combination because it will perform at any computing task better then the A6-3500, while at the same time it will not consume more energy and the initial purchasing cost is approximately the same.

The only circumstances in which I would opt for the A6-3500 would be if I‘d be short on space in my case or if I could get the A6+motherboard for much lesser then the G530+HD6450+motherboard.

I hope this thread helps someone as thinking, reading and writing about this issue helped me to decide.
Nod
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#15
bobanmilan Wrote:The whole system?

Can you be more specific about the components?

Sorry - missed this. That would be the GPU consumption alone, not total system power. And I agree with your final decision - don't think you'll regret it based on my experience with it.
System: XBMC HTPC with HDMI WASAPI & AudioEngine - Denon  AVR-3808CI  - Denon DVD-5900 Universal Player  - Denon DCM-27 CD-Changer
- Sony BDP-S580 Blu-Ray  - X-Box 360  - Android tablet wireless remote - 7.1 Streem/Axiom/Velodyne Surround System
If I have been able to help feel free to add to my reputation +/- below - thanks!
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Intel G530+HD6450 or A6-35000