[coffeeman]

ok, I have my case and power source picked out, FINALLY!

now I am deciding on the CPU and mother board.

I need a ITX board so the selection is small and expensive.

I only want this HTPC to run XBMC flawlessly, play movies, 1080, 720, on my 50" TV

I will use this HTPC for about 4 to 5 years. then I will replace the parts.

option 1
A6-5400 + FM2 A75m-Itx Asrock Total price - 200 dollars ( expensive here)

Option 2
A4 3400 llano + F1A55- V (68ucks) or F1A75-M Pro (78bucks) Total price- 111. or 121 dollars

option 3

A6-3500+F1 A55-m 130 dollars.

so the difference is 80 dollars,
I just want a system runs quiet and Very Cool. and is cheap and runs XbMC flawlessly.
My laptop wont run XBMC, the fans start going crazy when I boot into it..
so I really want to make sure the HTPC doesn't huff and puff and make noise when I open the skin.

I have decided to go with AMD because it has the best bang for the buck when it comes to onboard graphics.

if someone knows a better Intel solution I am listening, but I don't think I have room for discrete video card.

my case.
http://www.icoda.co.kr/goods/detail.html?num=225330

not bad for 40bucks.

any help is greatly appreciated.

ohh I am thinking 150w picoPsu? just to be safe for the A6
and 120 with the A4

[Beer40oz]

A6-3500 and be happy...

[Dougie Fresh]

I would not get the FM2A75M-ITX until the issues are worked out. A 120W power supply with that board and A6-5400K will not be enough to protect your power supply from burning out.

A6-3500 is a proven winner. Or, if you do go A6-5400K get a micro-ATX board from ASUS or Gigabyte, preferably A75 and make sure the VRMs are heatsinked since they run hot.

BTW, my HTPC (yes, mine not going to sell it someone else) that I am building is A8-3820 + ASUS FM1 A55/CSM. It has low power consumption, runs cool and gets very high scores for CPU and GPU in testing so far.

[coffeeman]

A6-3500 and be happy...

can you recommend a mother board?

has to be mini Itx. as I think the case wont fit anything else.
which is a real bummer.

Itx and Micro are only 3 cms different. arrgghhhh

[coffeeman]

I would not get the FM2A75M-ITX until the issues are worked out. A 120W power supply with that board and A6-5400K will not be enough to protect your power supply from burning out.

A6-3500 is a proven winner. Or, if you do go A6-5400K get a micro-ATX board from ASUS or Gigabyte, preferably A75 and make sure the VRMs are heatsinked since they run hot.

BTW, my HTPC (yes, mine not going to sell it someone else) that I am building is A8-3820 + ASUS FM1 A55/CSM. It has low power consumption, runs cool and gets very high scores for CPU and GPU in testing so far.

what if I get a 150 psu?

if I dont get that mother board.. then what else can I get in the ITX department? there are not many choices.


also the htpc you are building.. what psu you going to use?

that system you are building, is very powerful, a little expensive! why do you need so much juice and high cost for a htpc?

[coffeeman]

what about a A4 5300? would that be a better choice?

for a ITX build? 150w PICO PSU ?

if the 5400 will have issues on the case?

[Dougie Fresh]

if someone knows a better Intel solution I am listening, but I don't think I have room for discrete video card.

You don't need a discrete card with Intel Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge to get 1080p/720p video. The integrated GPU works very well for HTPC.

Something like
G860
Gigabyte GA-H61N-USB3 or ASUS P8H61-I R2.0
picoPSU 90 w/ 90W AC adapter

would (and does) work very well for an HTPC. My bedroom HTPC for live HD TV, HD movies and streaming is a G620 / ASUS P8H61-I, 64GB SSD, 4GB RAM hooked up to a 50" Panasonic plasma. It works great.

[coffeeman]

if someone knows a better Intel solution I am listening, but I don't think I have room for discrete video card.

You don't need a discrete card with Intel Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge to get 1080p/720p video. The integrated GPU works very well for HTPC.

Something like
G860
Gigabyte GA-H61N-USB3 or ASUS P8H61-I R2.0
picoPSU 90 w/ 90W AC adapter

would (and does) work very well for an HTPC. My bedroom HTPC for live HD TV, HD movies and streaming is a G620 / ASUS P8H61-I, 64GB SSD, 4GB RAM hooked up to a 50" Panasonic plasma. It works great.

thanks doug for your replies.. but after doing hours of searching, I have come to realize A MINI ITX build is far more expensive than a Matx build.
so I am going with a Matx build for now.
save the money and put it toward my Nas.