[rbonon]

Dear Folks,

I have been trawling the forums for HTPC hardware information and it seems that my desired final config starts to dawn on me.

Requirements:
- no noise
- play 1080p (not caring much about the killa sample)
- excelent remote control usability
- excelent power standby/resume preferably fully via remote control


My proposed config:

- Case: HFX Micro M2 Black

- CPU: C2D E5200. I know it may be not enough for all HD content (is it really like that, if you exclude the killa sample?). E8400 may not be cooled enough by the passive case. Would it be a bad option to go for a E5200 and wait that Nvida GPU processing would come to solve the problem in mid-term future?

- MoBo: that is the big question: I would like your suggestiong for mini-ITX + good NVidia on-board VGA (upcoming GPU graphics processing) + good standby/resume (if possible using IR remote) + good Linux drivers for the whole of the on-board hardware + good Linux standy/resume.

- OS: considering the need for standby/resume via IR Remote, is Linux a good choice?

Anybody here using something similar?

Big thanks in advance for your contributions.

[gurkburk]

The Mcubed Mirco does not support to warm and power demanding processors.

Please have look in the Mcubed support forum for compability motherboards.
http://www.mcubed-tech.com/forum/forumdi...php?fid=15
But it can be hard to find a Mini-ITX MB with nVidia and Intel.

[dannybullit]

Dear Folks,

I have been trawling the forums for HTPC hardware information and it seems that my desired final config starts to dawn on me.

Requirements:
- no noise
- play 1080p (not caring much about the killa sample)
- excelent remote control usability
- excelent power standby/resume preferably fully via remote control


My proposed config:

- Case: HFX Micro M2 Black

- CPU: C2D E5200. I know it may be not enough for all HD content (is it really like that, if you exclude the killa sample?). E8400 may not be cooled enough by the passive case. Would it be a bad option to go for a E5200 and wait that Nvida GPU processing would come to solve the problem in mid-term future?

- MoBo: that is the big question: I would like your suggestiong for mini-ITX + good NVidia on-board VGA (upcoming GPU graphics processing) + good standby/resume (if possible using IR remote) + good Linux drivers for the whole of the on-board hardware + good Linux standy/resume.

- OS: considering the need for standby/resume via IR Remote, is Linux a good choice?

Anybody here using something similar?

Big thanks in advance for your contributions.

Impossible to achive at the moment if you want to use Linux, due to the lack of gpu HW acceleration support in Linux

Br, Daniel

[bobb0]

Impossible to achive at the moment if you want to use Linux, due to the lack of gpu HW acceleration support in Linux

Br, Daniel

I have to disagree. I've been spec'ing out a mini-itx box that almost matches my current desktop configuration. I have run XBMC Linux on Ubuntu 8.10 with the following hardware:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+ (2.8GHz as reported by Win7)
4GB DDR2-800
eVGA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB

Most h.264 720p rips seem to be encoded between 6Mb/s and 8Mb/s. It seems most 1080p rips are encoded between 8Mb/s and 12Mb/s.

I recently downloaded this http://www.nzbsrus.com/nzbdetails.php?id=176385 -- it plays terribly in Windows (VLC) regardless of the output module I use. XBMC Windows and XBMC Linux both play it equally well. (Near perfect-not 100%) Of the HD video I have downloaded, it's the most decode-intense I have seen, therefore I will use this as the benchmark (ie, if it can play this, then "normal" usage will be fine). In both XBMC's the CPU averages about 80% usage while playing this clip. Linux a bit higher (sometimes hits 100%) The video (according to NFO) is 12Mb/s + 1.5Mb/s (DTS)

I don't believe Killer Sample is a valid test since its beyond ridiculous in size.

Killer Sample:
Resolution : 3840x2160
Framerate : 50 fps

The Mini-ITX system I am looking to configure is:

Athlon 64 X2 5400+ 65W (2.8GHz as reported by NCIX.com)
2GB DDR2-800
Jetway NC62K w/MCP78S (GeForce 8200 on-board)

I fully expect it should perform similarly. I'm pretty sure XBMC Linux can still leverage HW color conversion which is pretty much all it uses HW acceleration for at this point in time.

[bobb0]

Still, I would like to see what other people have setup for their own XBMC Media Center systems. My TV is a 720p (1360x768) set, so I am only aiming for that level of output but I still want the ability to decode 1080p material without issue.

I've been thinking about a system with the following specs:

Athlon 64 X2 5400+ 65W (2.8GHz as reported by NCIX.com)
2GB DDR2-800
Jetway NC62K w/MCP78S http://www.jetwaycomputer.com/AMD3.html
Silverstone Nitrogon NT07-AM2 Low Profile Heatsink Fan
Nexus 80MM Silent Case Fan
Inwin BM648.AD120BL mITX Slim Tower Case w/120w PS
Seagate Momentus 5400.4 250GB 2.5" HDD <--- too big, but cheaper than SSD

And using a wired Xbox360 controller as the remote, since the xbox controller is what i'm addicted to most -- i know, i know, i could use a wireless one. perhaps in the future, the controller isn't the issue at the moment.

I'm also a bit worried that the PS won't be able to handle it, but I can't find any info on how much the mobo draws.. all I know is that the CPU itself draws 65W (max)

[gurkburk]

I have the NC62K, you need VLP memory if you are gonna use the NT07 cooler.
PicoPSU 120W can handle the MB with 4850e and 5000+ 65w processors so if the powersupply are of good quality there should not be a problem.

[dannybullit]

Still, I would like to see what other people have setup for their own XBMC Media Center systems. My TV is a 720p (1360x768) set, so I am only aiming for that level of output but I still want the ability to decode 1080p material without issue.

I've been thinking about a system with the following specs:

Athlon 64 X2 5400+ 65W (2.8GHz as reported by NCIX.com)
2GB DDR2-800
Jetway NC62K w/MCP78S http://www.jetwaycomputer.com/AMD3.html
Silverstone Nitrogon NT07-AM2 Low Profile Heatsink Fan
Nexus 80MM Silent Case Fan
Inwin BM648.AD120BL mITX Slim Tower Case w/120w PS
Seagate Momentus 5400.4 250GB 2.5" HDD <--- too big, but cheaper than SSD

And using a wired Xbox360 controller as the remote, since the xbox controller is what i'm addicted to most -- i know, i know, i could use a wireless one. perhaps in the future, the controller isn't the issue at the moment.

I'm also a bit worried that the PS won't be able to handle it, but I can't find any info on how much the mobo draws.. all I know is that the CPU itself draws 65W (max)

I wish you the best of luck. Seriously, I´ve lokked at a similar setup and sure a AMD CPU could perhaps do the trick with most 1080p material. Still it is a solution that is living on the edge. If I remember correctly, the jetway motherboard that you want to use, is it on the list over HFX Micro M2 compatible motherboards?

Br, Daniel

[gurkburk]

If I remember correctly, the jetway motherboard that you want to use, is it on the list over HFX Micro M2 compatible motherboards?

Br, Daniel

With major adjustments and heatpipe bending

[dannybullit]

With major adjustments and heatpipe bending

I bought a HFX Micro M2 to build a HTPC with XBMC Live that is 1080p compatible.
I found it to be too much trouble, especially when it seemed like nobody had done it before.

I didnt want to by a motherboard/CPU that

A) perhaps wont play 1080p
B) perhaps wont fit in the HFX Micro M2

for me, it felt like a too expensive experiment.

Br, Daniel

[rbonon]

@dannybuilt

tks for your feedback. I feel the same way, meaning, too much on the edge and quite some money.

Althoug some people there in mcube forums reports succesful building with Intel DG45, with some bricolage (pipe bending, low profile RAMs, etc).

Still it is quite appealing to me. A fanless pc running newest Core 2 Duo. In some weeks/months we may even have Geforce 9300 chipsets available in mini-ITX format (google Zotac Geforce 9300 mini-ITX). That would be hard to resist.