[Beer40oz]

Will this be alright? I love the box.
I know a SSD will be better but figured to give a 3.5 HD a shot (price wise).
Win 7/64 - but might do a dual boot maybe.

Thank you for your time.




APEX MI-100 Black / Mirror finish Steel Mini-ITX Tower Computer Case 250W Power Supply

ASRock A330ION Intel Atom 330 PBGA437 NVIDIA ION Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo

Kingston ValueRAM 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR1066D3K2/2GR

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

COOLER MASTER SickleFlow 120 Fan

They say that fan fits nicely inside but is it necessary?

This all comes out to about $240.00...

Please help so I can take the plunge on this.

[Beer40oz]

Anyone? or can something be built better for the same money? I am ready to purchase this I just need to know if it will work. (If the parts listed are all compatible together)

[eskro]

just to know Beer40oz, if you wanna go the miniITX route,
why not just buy the Zotac ZBOX HD-ND02-U ($230 + Free Shipping)??

You'll have the same CPU power ...
you'll have WiFi ....
you can buy this memory --> Crucial 2x1GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM 1066Mhz ($28 + $1)
you can buy this HDD --> WD Caviar Blue 320GB 7200RPM 8MB SATAII 3.5" ($45 + Free Shipping)

now it does come up to $304 shipped! ($40 more than your build)
but you have a very nice small form factor box that looks very good
and has built-in WiFi... its also just as strong as your suggested build!!

but your build is ok... very cheap price too!
you can add a BD-Reader to it later on too if needed... thats good!
and you also have 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 Expansion Slot,
always good for adding lets say a WiFi card ~$20...
so to be faire, you build would cost $285 with that wifi card and coolmaster FAN...

so the Zotac is still $19 more, and you cant add a BD-reader to it....
but it has twice your HDD space... 320GB,,,
and its SILENT....

you do the math

[Beer40oz]

@eskro Really appreciate your help. I did look into that Zotac HD-ND02 (it was $199 just yesterday) but I really like the Apex-MI-100 box. So basically they are both the same. Don't really care about the HDD space since I have external hard drives (but i will get the 320gb since saves on shipping and more space thanx...). On WiFi don't need it. I will have in my hands this weekend a Zotac ZBOXHD-ID40 with a SSD that belongs to my friend (i'm going to set it up for him) it's really a nice system.

[eskro]

very nice buy then Beer40oz! Congratz!

what i like is the fact that you can add a BD-reader to it later on!!!

And im glad i made you buy the WD Caviar Blue 320GB,,, free shipping

[Beer40oz]

very nice buy then Beer40oz! Congratz!

what i like is the fact that you can add a BD-reader to it later on!!!

And im glad i made you buy the WD Caviar Blue 320GB,,, free shipping

LOL who needs a BD-reader? isn't that the point. This system won't be strong enough to rip your Blu Rays anyways right?

[tboooe]

@eskro Really appreciate your help. I did look into that Zotac HD-ND02 but I really like the Apex-MI-100 box. So basically they are both the same. Don't really care about the HDD space since I have external hard drives (but i will get the 320gb since saves on shipping and more space thanx...). On WiFi don't need it. I will have in my hands this weekend a Zotac ZBOXHD-ID40 with a SSD that belongs to my friend (i'm going to set it up for him) it's really a nice system.

I would love to hear your feedback on the Zotac. I currently have an Acer Aspire 3700 and am in the market for another HTPC. The Zotac is nice but it seems that the Acer which has the same Atom/Ion architecture is cheaper since for the same price you already have an OS, HDD, wireless keyboard/mouse, memory. The biggest benefit of the Zotac as far as I can tell is that it is much easier to get inside it for mods.

Anyway,looking forward to your thoughts.

[eskro]

LOL who needs a BD-reader? isn't that the point. This system won't be strong enough to rip your Blu Rays anyways right?

oh yes you can!
if you have a bd-reader of course...
just start the ripping process using lets say MakeMKV,
then go to sleep
Next thing in the morning,
its ready to go

[bmcclure937]

My main concern (as you may have heard me say before) is the PSU in this build! you have to be wary about cases with PSUs included (some exceptions to this rule). I do not particularly recommend the APEX PSUs.

Otherwise, it looks like this ION setup fits your needs. Keep in mind, for the price of that mobo you could also consider snagging a cheap Gigabyte mobo and AMD Athlon X2 for around $110 total.

You would then need a discrete video card such as GT220, GT430... so that would add some cost! But do not let me sway your decision, there are multiple configurations that work well for XBMC... purchase what you think fits your needs and your home theater and overall configuration.

Like eskro said, that Zotac is a nice system. And I do like those 120mm fans you picked out for your build. Finally, it is smart to save a little $$ by not getting the SSD right off the bat. You can always add that later and it makes buying your HTPC hurt the wallet a little less right off the bat.

In order for others to help you out you must provide some information... mainly your budget and your intentions for the machine! For example, if your budget was $500 and you intended to play 3D content then you would need to take a different approach!

[Beer40oz]

In order for others to help you out you must provide some information... mainly your budget and your intentions for the machine! For example, if your budget was $500 and you intended to play 3D content then you would need to take a different approach!

Alright help me out then my budget is $250 to $400 .... will never do 3D.... right now I have a receiver via analog to the tv. In the future I am going to get a better one so it can decode the audio.

What parts would you get? I would really like to keep the cost low doh! I know you get what you pay for.

Thank you.

[eskro]

What parts would you get?

thats why im trying to build a HTPC that could suit the needs for pretty much everybody price/performance wize!!

here --> http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=92375

[Beer40oz]

After further research I have changed my mind on the case I am going to use. I am going back to the case that I liked when I first started to do research.

It's a SILVERSTONE Sugo SG05 and from research the PSU in it is of quality.

I already bought this case and it's sitting ready for this parts.


* That zotac ID40 is my friends.

Can't wait to get it all together. Thank you for your help.



ASRock A330ION Intel Atom 330 PBGA437 NVIDIA ION Mini ITX Motherboard/CPU Combo

Changed my memory from the first post. Thank you eSkRo....
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

[eskro]

nice case indeed! PSU seems fine too...

but as usual, SSD for XBMC is best!

[2WYCE]

I know this is old, but I just stumbled across this post. Last month, I built the exact same build as in your original post. Only difference is I used the stock fan and a spare 1.5TB 5.25 HDD I had laying around. I plan on buying something smaller (for obvious reasons), but the build is GREAT and I love it! The case fits nicely with my other equipment in terms of looks and size. It's not silent; if I have the volume on mute, I can hear the PSU fan just a little, but while playing video or music, you can't tell it's even there.