2012-04-26, 06:13
For a long time I've had an "old" laptop (Alienware M15X, i7 quad-core, 4GB ram, GTX 260M gfx) which I had connected to the TV to supplement my usual XBMCLive Linux PC for movies/tv etc. Coupled with some Logitech F710 controllers, XBMC, Advanced Launcher plugin and some controls tweaking it became an awesome TV games machine. While I do have a "main" desktop (i7-2600K, 16GB ram, GTX580) I found myself coming back to the TV, which is a 50", for all my racing games, platformers and especially co-op and emulator stuff with housemates/guests as it's so damn nice on the big screen, on the couch with some mates and a few beers. Unfortunately, the GTX-260M really struggled with dishing out newer games at 1080p in medium detail settings so it's time to reorganise.
The current Linux XBMC box will be shifted out of the living room and act as a headless NAS with XBMC library in mySQL with a new, beefy box running Windows 7 with XBMC as the frontend for everything and networked with gigabit over cat6. I'd love to hear any comments/suggestions as this is my first true HTPC build (as far as HTPC desktop case, quiet design etc). I'm aiming for a sufficiently powerful machine with a bit of room to grow without breaking the bank.
Here's what I'm currently looking at:
CPU: Intel i5 2500K
CPU Cooler: CoolerMaster Vortex Plus low profile cooler (17dBa operating noise)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77-PRO3 ATX (supports SLI with 3 slot spacing incase I go down that route later as well as fast booting as this box won't be on 24/7)
RAM: 8GB (2x4GB) G-Skill 1600mhz DDR3
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2 60GB (this is a left-over drive I have spare which can act as the boot drive for fast booting)
HDD: 1x 2TB WD Green for games storage (videos/music/etc will be networked as above)
GFX: Gainward GTX 560 Ti 1GB (~33dBa operating noise, quietest 560Ti I can find without going the liquid cooling route which isn't practical)
Case: Silverstone LC-20B ATX Case (fits a full ATX mobo, plenty of fan spots and will accept full length cards). Size is not really an issue.
PSU: Corsair HX-750W (This is a spare PSU I have)
Fans: 2x Noctua 80mm case fans (10dBa @ 1300RPM pushing 39m3/h)
All this (minus SSD and PSU as I already have them) plus some small stuff like thermal paste and case silencing accessories (felt feet, rubber screw grommets etc) comes in at damn near $1000 AUD which is just the right price.
I'll be waiting a little while until I hear about what the situation is with the nVidia 600 series cards but otherwise I'm set to go. I'm pretty keen on using nVidia instead of AMD/ATI as the 3D support (should I go down that route) is superior as well as their newest 300 drivers offering a few things which are handy for TV gamers such as adaptive v-sync and FSAA (higher performance than MSAA). I'll also have the benefit of the SLI upgrade path which seems more successful than crossfire, especially for 3D.
On top of gaming/xbmc duties this machine will be beefy enough to serve as a video conversion box in spare time and I also do a lot of music recording and mixing where a quiet PC is great and being connected to a 5.1 speaker setup opens up 5.1 surround mixing opportunities that I haven't been able to do before
Any thoughts/ideas/suggestions on the build?
The current Linux XBMC box will be shifted out of the living room and act as a headless NAS with XBMC library in mySQL with a new, beefy box running Windows 7 with XBMC as the frontend for everything and networked with gigabit over cat6. I'd love to hear any comments/suggestions as this is my first true HTPC build (as far as HTPC desktop case, quiet design etc). I'm aiming for a sufficiently powerful machine with a bit of room to grow without breaking the bank.
Here's what I'm currently looking at:
CPU: Intel i5 2500K
CPU Cooler: CoolerMaster Vortex Plus low profile cooler (17dBa operating noise)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77-PRO3 ATX (supports SLI with 3 slot spacing incase I go down that route later as well as fast booting as this box won't be on 24/7)
RAM: 8GB (2x4GB) G-Skill 1600mhz DDR3
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2 60GB (this is a left-over drive I have spare which can act as the boot drive for fast booting)
HDD: 1x 2TB WD Green for games storage (videos/music/etc will be networked as above)
GFX: Gainward GTX 560 Ti 1GB (~33dBa operating noise, quietest 560Ti I can find without going the liquid cooling route which isn't practical)
Case: Silverstone LC-20B ATX Case (fits a full ATX mobo, plenty of fan spots and will accept full length cards). Size is not really an issue.
PSU: Corsair HX-750W (This is a spare PSU I have)
Fans: 2x Noctua 80mm case fans (10dBa @ 1300RPM pushing 39m3/h)
All this (minus SSD and PSU as I already have them) plus some small stuff like thermal paste and case silencing accessories (felt feet, rubber screw grommets etc) comes in at damn near $1000 AUD which is just the right price.
I'll be waiting a little while until I hear about what the situation is with the nVidia 600 series cards but otherwise I'm set to go. I'm pretty keen on using nVidia instead of AMD/ATI as the 3D support (should I go down that route) is superior as well as their newest 300 drivers offering a few things which are handy for TV gamers such as adaptive v-sync and FSAA (higher performance than MSAA). I'll also have the benefit of the SLI upgrade path which seems more successful than crossfire, especially for 3D.
On top of gaming/xbmc duties this machine will be beefy enough to serve as a video conversion box in spare time and I also do a lot of music recording and mixing where a quiet PC is great and being connected to a 5.1 speaker setup opens up 5.1 surround mixing opportunities that I haven't been able to do before
Any thoughts/ideas/suggestions on the build?