Cheap HTPC?

[Lays]

I need a really cheap htpc for my living room, with maybe a couple HDD's in it for storage, preferably as cheap as you can get it, whilst still being able to be used for 1080p streaming from twitch.tv / youtube/ netflix.

 

I'd like to use it as a nas aswell, I'll probably take the 2tb out of my rig now, and put it in there so I can get rid of the annoying noise my HDD makes + move the storage somewhere else.  That also allows me to move my ssd and hide it, and get rid of my HDD cage.

 

Also, I'd like it to be good enough to be able to use the new "steam beta in-home streaming" So I can stream for my PC to that, to the tv in the front room.  

 

 

I'd like to keep the budget under... 400$, but hopefully it's cheaper than that if possible.

[flibberdipper]

A Haswell Pentium, and a 7750 should be more than sufficient. And 4GB of RAM.

[WoodenMarker]

How much more storage/hdd's are you expanding to? Any plans for raid?

[Lays]

A Haswell Pentium, and a 7750 should be more than sufficient. And 4GB of RAM.

 

 

Would it be better to go fm2+ with an APU or something along the APU route?

[Lays]

How much more storage/hdd's are you expanding to? Any plans for raid?

 

 

I've never done anything with raid before, but.. probably only 4tb tops.   I can store games on the NAS and still play them on my PC correct?

[dizmo]

Would it be better to go fm2+ with an APU or something along the APU route?

 

You can stream HD content with a Celeron. It's really not that intensive.I

I'm not sure how the Intel boards price though so it might be cheaper to spend more on the APU and grab a cheaper mobo.

[flibberdipper]

Would it be better to go fm2+ with an APU or something along the APU route?

Yes, but get an A8 at the least. My grandma's A6 has problem with HD video.

[WoodenMarker]

I've never done anything with raid before, but.. probably only 4tb tops.   I can store games on the NAS and still play them on my PC correct?

If you're talking about loading games over the network, yes but not recommended. It would take a long time to load anything intensive. 

[WoodenMarker]

You can stream HD content with a Celeron. It's really not that intensive.I

I'm not sure how the Intel boards price though so it might be cheaper to spend more on the APU and grab a cheaper mobo.

A G1610+ B75 mobo is pretty cheap as well.

[s3ns3]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2KjpA  and choose whichever case you want. but dude hurry for that 19$ cx 430 . for hd videos the integrated gpu in the pentium is more than ok. i know that for a fact.and its very efficient 

[Lays]

If you're talking about loading games over the network, yes but not recommended. It would take a long time to load anything intensive. 

 

Would it be slow because of the network? I have a netgear r6300, not sure if that'd make a big difference or not. 

 

If all else fails I may buy another ssd later on down the road for games, 500gb evo's are only like 300$ 

[WoodenMarker]

Would it be slow because of the network? I have a netgear r6300, not sure if that'd make a big difference or not. 

If all else fails I may buy another ssd later on down the road for games, 500gb evo's are only like 300$ 

Yes. The network is much slower than a traditional hdd. Why not just put games on a hdd?

[dizmo]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Celeron G1830 2.8GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($57.49 @ Staples)
Motherboard:  Asus H81I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($79.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory:  A-Data XPG V1.0 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk  ($69.99 @ Microcenter)
Case:  Silverstone PS08B (Black) MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply:  SeaSonic 360W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive:  LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer  ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $375.43

 

Just an example. Cases are obviously down to personal preference.

[Lays]

Yes. The network is much slower than a traditional hdd. Why not just put games on a hdd?

 

 

it's the last thing in my case that makes noise, even when it's not spinning, it still has an annoying buzz noise to it.  I'm really picky >.<  It may not be a big deal to most people, but I'm sorta OCD about it lol

 

Plus I have extra money so I figured why not. 

 

 

How's this? http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2KjSm I don't think I'd need 4tb now that I think of it, so using the HDD I have now would probably be enough.  Would it be a bit better than the pentium?   I don't know much about lower-end pc parts

[WoodenMarker]

it's the last thing in my case that makes noise, even when it's not spinning, it still has an annoying buzz noise to it.  I'm really picky >.<  It may not be a big deal to most people, but I'm sorta OCD about it lol

Plus I have extra money so I figured why not. 

How's this? http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2KjSm I don't think I'd need 4tb now that I think of it, so using the HDD I have now would probably be enough.  Would it be a bit better than the pentium?   I don't know much about lower-end pc parts

I'd go with Haswell for the power saving: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2Kk8g

[s3ns3]

I'd go with Haswell for the power saving: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2Kk8g

+1. either a celeron or pentium haswell. and the board thats in my list couse it has HDMI too 

[Lays]

I'd go with Haswell for the power saving: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2Kk8g

 

 

ty, I'll do that with the board @s3ns3 suggested for the hdmi.   I may get this PC and audioengine a2 + a sub and an extra ssd for my rig, instead of getting the hifiman he-500+ o2 dac+amp I was looking at, but I'm not sure yet