£200 Noob Mini HTPC Build
#1
Ok, firstly many thanks to all the posters here (especially Eskro) who helped educate me as to how to build my first HTPC.

I was looking for a long time at the Revo R3700 and Lenovo Q180, but was put off by the many reviews talking about the limitations of these devices as an htpc. So, after reading exhaustively on here, I decided to take the plunge and managed to build a pretty decent htpc for about the same price that these two are going for which looks great. Bear in mind, this is the first time I've ever built a PC or even attempted anything like this which should illustrate that anyone can do this simple build. I could have shaved another £50 off of the build, but I really liked the case.

The build took about an hour and a half once all the parts were recieved.

Case - Lian Li PC-09fb - £70.65
Motherboard - ASrock H61M-ITX - £52.80
Proccesor - Intel Pentium G620 2.60ghz Dual Core - £48.52
Memory - Patriot 4GB Signature DDR3 1333/9.0/1.5v - £15.59
Postage - £12.79
------------------
Total - £200.30


I've gone and added an ASrock Smart Remote, Rapoo keyboard, Logitech C270 webcam,30GB Nova SSD plus a windows 7 copy I already had which has pushed the price up another £100, but honestly I could have just run this with the android remote app as I had originally intended running XBMCUbuntu off of a spare usb stick.

I'll post photos soon, this sits comfortably under the TV quiet as a mouse for now and I'm very pleased with the performance for bang on £200.
Reply
#2
Not the prettiest job internally, but for a first timer I think it's ok. I detatched the front power led due to it being obnoxiously bright.

Has so far played everything 1080p I've thrown at it. I'm not sure how this build would compare to the ION based nettops, but this runs great with a 4.2 Graphics score on the Windows Experience rating.

Image

Image

Image
Reply
#3
Hey thanks for sharing your system with us!

these are the threads i like to see!

someone new to this hobby creating his 1st project by following my HTPC guide!

congratz! its a fantastic system and you'll be happy with it!

i like the case, very nice!

feel free to add to my reputation when u can! thx
Reply
#4
Thanks again for your invaluable guides man.
It is a beautiful case, may be able to add a low profile graphics card in there if II get a pico psu. Just not sure if the airflow would be restricted too much.

Anyway, would love to add to your rep.....if I could figure out how to Big Grin
Where the hell is the "add to rep" option??
Reply
#5
(2012-04-15, 21:47)filthycatbox Wrote: Has so far played everything 1080p I've thrown at it. I'm not sure how this build would compare to the ION based nettops, but this runs great with a 4.2 Graphics score on the Windows Experience rating.
Intel G620Sandy Bridge 2.6GHz + HD2000 should be better than ION nettops......you'll enjoy it for a long time.

If you're planning to build a very low power in the future, this "Intel Core i3-2120T Sandy Bridge 2.6GHz LGA 1155 35W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000" probably the best 35W all-in-one CPU ever made......

(2012-04-15, 21:47)filthycatbox Wrote: Image
Congrat...! Bigger case is always better....and there is plenty of room in there......it seem that you have enough room for this "HIS Radeon HD 6570 2 GB" discrete GPU.....

>Alienware X51- do it all HTPC
>Simplify XBMC configurations
>HOW-TO Bitstreaming using XBMC
I refused to watch movie without bitstreaming HD audio!
Reply
#6
(2012-04-15, 22:27)filthycatbox Wrote: Where the hell is the "add to rep" option??

http://i.imgur.com/r6PjZ.png

see the +/- blue button next to FIND button?

u might need around 10 posts before u can do that
Reply
#7
(2012-04-15, 22:48)eskro Wrote:
(2012-04-15, 22:27)filthycatbox Wrote: Where the hell is the "add to rep" option??

http://i.imgur.com/r6PjZ.png

see the +/- blue button next to FIND button?

u might need around 10 posts before u can do that

I guess that's why I couldn't find it then. I'll add as soon as I can.
Thanks Smile
Reply
#8
thanks for that!!

love your case btw
Reply
#9
Would a 120w Pico PSU be enough for this build?

I want to replace the CPU cooler with a low profile Shuriken or Gelid and make it as silent as possible by getting rid of the flex psu.
Reply
#10
yeah, that the Lian Li PC-09 version has a PicoLike PSU by default.

while your version comes with a flex PSU.

even 90w is enough for you.
Reply
#11
Pretty BOX.... love it..... its nice and simple....
You seen this new case....

Looks like you can race it with a remote control...

Image
And this one is new too....

Image
Reply
#12
Thanks, looking a bit nicer now I've stuck a bluray slimline drive inside.
The build quality of the Lian Li cases are fantastic. This one uses black anodized aluminium, which looks great but attracts fingerprints and dust like you wouldn't believe Smile
Almost done on all the enhancements I plan to make. The Pico PSU will go in once the power brick is delivered, I just need to fit the adapter I custom cut and drilled for the gap left by the void flex PSU.
I have some filters to fit over the mesh that I've made (from magnetic strips and stockings Smile)

Went through 2 ASRock remotes which I couldn't get working, so got a PS3 bluetooth remote which is working great.
May fit in an internal Streacom in the future, the case metal is very easy to work with.
Reply
#13
I have the PC-Q09A with the 150W FlexATX PSU. I put a bunch of pictures here:

http://outsidethestb.blogspot.com/2011/0...-usb3.html

There was a lot to like and a lot not to like. Smile
Reply
#14
Ah, I didn't realise you had almost the same build. Nice blog site by the way, I read quite a bit of that before my first build.

Out of interest though, what in particular are the "not to likes" for you with this case?
Reply
#15
(2012-05-15, 20:19)filthycatbox Wrote: Ah, I didn't realise you had almost the same build. Nice blog site by the way, I read quite a bit of that before my first build.

Out of interest though, what in particular are the "not to likes" for you with this case?

Not likes:
- No expansion slot in a relatively big case (looks like there's room to me!)
- Short connectors on power supply
- ODD on any case other than black stands out (I have gray)
- Noisy case fan 92mm
- Building consists of flipping the case over many many times Smile.

Likes:
- Looks
- Price (I caught an amazing sale US$69.99 + free shipping)
- Size / desktop footprint
- Lian-Li! (I love all-aluminum mini-ITX cases and the way Lian-Li mounts drives)

Overall, I think it's a pretty good case. I wouldn't pay full price -- it's not worth US$150. Since I did that build I've found cases I like better like the E-I7 that I have on my site. I'd pick the E-I7 over the PC-Q09 in a heartbeat. See, I am a huge Lian-Li fan and it's what inspired me to find the cases that I did but with the features I was looking for like slot-load ODD and an expansion slot.

p.s. thanks for reading my blog. I'll try to be better about keeping it up-to-date Smile.

p.p.s. look for an update tomorrow - I got a new shipment with a new case today!
Reply

Logout Mark Read Team Forum Stats Members Help
£200 Noob Mini HTPC Build0