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A6-PACK ☆ ISK 300-90 picoPSU HTPC A6-3500 Very Silent!
Sooo, i've been reading through this insane post and was already convinced after the second post but kept on reading all until page 28. Figured i'd stop since I just want this HTPC more and more. Are all these parts the best match even months later? Or some new parts could be upgraded? At first I was thinking about the A8 to make sure I would keep it years and that it would still be able to handle anything 5years from now. But well, not sure if it really worth it since the A6 seems pretty badass! I might get my HTPC before christmas at the end! hehe
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(2012-10-01, 05:03)Xexiz Wrote: Sooo, i've been reading through this insane post and was already convinced after the second post but kept on reading all until page 28. Figured i'd stop since I just want this HTPC more and more. Are all these parts the best match even months later? Or some new parts could be upgraded? At first I was thinking about the A8 to make sure I would keep it years and that it would still be able to handle anything 5years from now. But well, not sure if it really worth it since the A6 seems pretty badass! I might get my HTPC before christmas at the end! hehe
You'll have plenty of time for the latest Trinity, which is schedule to release on October 1st. If you go for the A6-3500, you'll be stuck with FM1 socket. You'll not be able to upgrade to Trinity with FM2 socket......just a thought!

>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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(2012-10-01, 05:03)Xexiz Wrote: Sooo, i've been reading through this insane post and was already convinced after the second post but kept on reading all until page 28. Figured i'd stop since I just want this HTPC more and more. Are all these parts the best match even months later? Or some new parts could be upgraded? At first I was thinking about the A8 to make sure I would keep it years and that it would still be able to handle anything 5years from now. But well, not sure if it really worth it since the A6 seems pretty badass! I might get my HTPC before christmas at the end! hehe

It's a great set-up.... you will have an awesome HTPC.

Many people have gotten the internals and different cases and such.
The A6 will stay cooler and less heat then the A8...

It should handle everything 5 years from now.

There is tons of people that will tell you go for it... Wink

Get a real 6 pack while you do your build.... Cool cheers...

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I think which to get Llano or Trinity, depends on your timeframe, your budget and how long you plan to keep your HTPC.

First, even though Trinity is being released this week, I would not jump right on it until I've see some hand-on reviews with production (not sample) APUs.

Second, there's also the matter of pricing. The A6-3500 is such a great deal for the price, having the 2nd best GPU in the Llano lineup. If there's a comparable Trinity APU in nearly the same price range then it might make sense. But, if A6-3500 prices drop (I've seen $65 recently) and $65 gets you the bottom-of-the-line Trinity, is it worth it?

Third, whether or not the upgradeability is important depends on how long you keep your HTPC. If you typically build a new PC every 3-4 years who is to say FM2 will have any support then? Even the latest LGA1155 from Intel for Sandy/IvyBridge is a dead-end since Haswell will be LGA1150.

Anyway, just food for thought. I am not either "side". It's up to you -- just consider all the factors that are important to you.

I wonder what kind of Black Friday deals we'll see on Llano APUs Smile
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(2012-10-01, 14:59)Dougie Fresh Wrote: I wonder what kind of Black Friday deals we'll see on Llano APUs Smile

Yeah, I was first planning to wait until black friday, even here in Quebec there is a lot of deal to match US Black Friday but it is far away still and not sure I will be able to wait until this day. Oficially started shopping last night and updating the prices I had last time I checked and then noticed the 300-65 is pretty much a ghost now. Only option would be the 300-150 but it looks exactly the same and the case is the exact same dimensions so not so sure what else is different beside the 65W vs 150W Which does not really matter since apparently the Pico 90W is the way to go. I might have missed some posts though, not sure why you would rather go with some 90W instead of just getting the 150 (and not the 65)
Anyways all this is part of a big plan. Dropping the Cable company! Wink First I have to buy the HDTV Antenna (no idea which one yet), then I need to swap internet provider, then buy an HD Homerun 3 to record tv, then Buy that insane HTPC and setup XBMC on it to stream all my content from my NAS / HDHomerun live TV.

Can't wait for this plan to come to an end and save tons of money! Smile

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The "150" has an internal AC/DC 150W power supply with a little fan whereas the "65" has an internal fanless DC power board with an external AC adapter. That's the big difference.
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(2012-10-01, 23:16)Dougie Fresh Wrote: The "150" has an internal AC/DC 150W power supply with a little fan whereas the "65" has an internal fanless DC power board with an external AC adapter. That's the big difference.

Oh great. Thanks! I have to find a 65 then, dont want this psu and the connector in the back that I would have to patch :S
Just noticed that the Big Shuriken SCBSK-1000 is not for AMD FM1 Sad Is it really not working? I had this 1000 for a while, I though I could use it but it says only AMD 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3.. Any thoughts?
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Hey Beer40oz, this is a great thread. When I saw your clip of your system running I was really impressed and instantly knew that's what I wanted!
I've not had time to read it all so sorry if these questions have been asked before or I sound like a bit of a noob, but here goes.

1. Where is your media stored?
2. If stored separately from the XBMC, how are they connected?
3. Do you update your first post with all your current parts to save me (and others) going through the whole thread to check which parts you've found to be the best?

That's it for now but I'm sure I'll be back with more. Cheers.
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(2012-10-01, 14:59)Dougie Fresh Wrote: I think which to get Llano or Trinity, depends on your timeframe, your budget and how long you plan to keep your HTPC.
Timeframe don't really matter in this case, because Trinity is already released on October 1st.....

For $75 OTD, I'm highly recommending the new AMD Trinity A6-5400K over the previous A6-3500 model. You'll have the latest technology and almost double the horse power (3.6GHz) CPU in A6-5400K than the 2.1GHz in A6-3500, and stronger Radeon HD 7540D iGPU too......AMD A6-5400K Trinity 3.6GHz.......
>Alienware X51- do it all HTPC
>Simplify XBMC configurations
>HOW-TO Bitstreaming using XBMC
I refused to watch movie without bitstreaming HD audio!
Reply
I am a bit more conservative. I am not going to recommend something that came out today, the only reviews are from carefully staged and pre-released product and that I haven't even tried yet.

Once things settle down, I see some reviews, there's actually some mini-itx motherboards released and more widespread availability, especially of the higher-end 65W Trinity APUs, then I'll see how it's going.

My hope though is to be replacing Llano with Trinity. I am just not ready to do that today on day one.
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(2012-10-02, 17:03)Dougie Fresh Wrote: I am a bit more conservative. I am not going to recommend something that came out today, the only reviews are from carefully staged and pre-released product and that I haven't even tried yet.

Once things settle down, I see some reviews, there's actually some mini-itx motherboards released and more widespread availability, especially of the higher-end 65W Trinity APUs, then I'll see how it's going.

My hope though is to be replacing Llano with Trinity. I am just not ready to do that today on day one.
It'll cost you some bucks to replace both FM1 CPU and mobo with the latest FM2 CPU and mobo.......would as well build another PC...Wink

Since Xexiz is building a new PC, I'm highly recommending the latest Trinity......

Test Setup And Benchmarks


>Alienware X51- do it all HTPC
>Simplify XBMC configurations
>HOW-TO Bitstreaming using XBMC
I refused to watch movie without bitstreaming HD audio!
Reply
(2012-10-02, 18:00)bluray Wrote:
(2012-10-02, 17:03)Dougie Fresh Wrote: I am a bit more conservative. I am not going to recommend something that came out today, the only reviews are from carefully staged and pre-released product and that I haven't even tried yet.

Once things settle down, I see some reviews, there's actually some mini-itx motherboards released and more widespread availability, especially of the higher-end 65W Trinity APUs, then I'll see how it's going.

My hope though is to be replacing Llano with Trinity. I am just not ready to do that today on day one.
It'll cost you some bucks to replace both FM1 CPU and mobo with the latest FM2 CPU and mobo.......would as well build another PC...Wink

Since Xexiz is building a new PC, I'm highly recommending the latest Trinity......

Test Setup And Benchmarks

I for sure will go with the FM2.. I should normally wait until november until I purchase so until then reviews and problems should be on the web! Just fucked with this Scythe Shuriken 1000 Sad Is it only the braket that is not the same and that's why it does not support FM1 and FM2 ? Also, just noticed. the new Trinity is only dual-core..

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At least for FM1, the CPU coolers for AM2, AM3, etc. all fit FM1. I haven't heard FM2 is any different (is it?) so the Shuriken should fit.

BTW, I am not saying someone should or should not use Trinity. Everyone can decide for themselves. I am saying that I am not going to make a recommendation. For me to recommend or not recommend something I need to know a lot more about it first and preferably try it out myself. When the mini-itx motherboards and either the A10-5700 or A8-5500 come out I'll do just that and by then there will also be more reviews, etc.
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(2012-10-02, 14:11)Big_Al Wrote: Hey Beer40oz, this is a great thread. When I saw your clip of your system running I was really impressed and instantly knew that's what I wanted!
I've not had time to read it all so sorry if these questions have been asked before or I sound like a bit of a noob, but here goes.

1. Where is your media stored?
2. If stored separately from the XBMC, how are they connected?
3. Do you update your first post with all your current parts to save me (and others) going through the whole thread to check which parts you've found to be the best?

That's it for now but I'm sure I'll be back with more. Cheers.

My media is stored in my unRAID rig... see my sig?
Connected via cat6 cables and on a gigabit network...
Yes my first page has been updated since day one... have not changed nothing except that I found the dongle that turns on your HTPC from a cold start.... its all on page one.

Llano works (a6-3500) and it's been tested over and over again... tons of people have it on this community now... I recommend it. It just works...

It's crazy to read all the pages...

I am here to help and some other guys. Tongue



Big Grin



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for real, the more i look into it even after being away
for a while becuz of my work,
i truly still think that the a6-pack reigns supreme!!

i mean, yeah, u can go on and stuff a trinity 65w tdp APU in your htpc but,
overall, beer's htpc has been tested like nutz and it simply the best in my opinion.

price is hard to beat. eats XBMC with any heavy skins for breakfest.
u still have a slim optical slot if ever needed for a bd-writer.
and u have front usb ports which is best to use with IR dongles and stuff...

cant go wrong man, A6-pack is insane and still the best!!
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A6-PACK ☆ ISK 300-90 picoPSU HTPC A6-3500 Very Silent!10