Final Build Check

[zipperbiscuits]

Hey everyone, I think im ready to order the parts for my HTPC but i wanted to get some input before i pull the trigger.

My main concern right now is the optical drive, im gonna be using it (or whichever i chose) to rip a few hundred dvd's and blu-rays to the PC, and then it'll still be used for blu ray playback, i've heard that using laptop drives with adapters are better, and im all for that but I don't know where to look for that kind of thing, id like to get all the parts off amazon if possible, so i can build this weekend.

Build

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CJP7kL
 

CPU: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 

 

Motherboard: ASRock H81M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($56.99 @ Amazon) 

 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($39.99 @ Amazon) 

 

Storage: Western Digital Red 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($106.22 @ Amazon) 

 

Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case  ($59.99 @ Amazon) 

 

Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($34.72 @ Amazon) 

 

Optical Drive: LG UH12NS30 Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer  ($50.98 @ Newegg) 

 

Total: $418.88
 

 

Appreciate any help you can give, thanks!

[The Salt Is REAL]

A low performance GPU might help with video playback, other than that looks fine for a HTPC.

[AlbinoTexan]

maybe get 4 core CPU

[FAQBytes]

2 hours ago, AlbinoTexan said:

maybe get 4 core CPU

HTPC's don't really need quad-core CPUs unless you're playing 8K or 16k video. Maybe 4k because the amount you'll be spending on everything else.

[zipperbiscuits]

3 minutes ago, Riki the Legendary Heropon said:

A low performance GPU might help with video playback, other than that looks fine for a HTPC.

I want to keep this as cheap as possible and a low end GPU would bump it up another 50-120 bucks, no gaming will be done on this either, strictly media playback, and maaybbe some light browsing

3 minutes ago, AlbinoTexan said:

maybe get 4 core CPU

Thats what i thought too, but based on passmark and other users reports, this should be fine for what im doing

[MightyMic]

Not sure why you'd go with the Pentium G3258 and a non-overclocking motherboard. If you weren't looking to overclock at all, then I'd go with basically the highest clock speed Pentium you can find. Which is the G3470 (with the 1150 socket). PCPartPicker link. It's $85 on Amazon.

[zipperbiscuits]

7 minutes ago, MightyMic said:

Not sure why you'd go with the Pentium G3258 and a non-overclocking motherboard. If you weren't looking to overclock at all, then I'd go with basically the highest clock speed Pentium you can find. Which is the G3470 (with the 1150 socket). PCPartPicker link. It's $85 on Amazon.

Dont plan on overclocking, want to keep heat and power use low, maybe in the future but ill be running everything at stock. Ive also seen multiple posts here and on reddit saying that the g3258 is enough at stock clock.

 

 

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2293865/integrated-graphics-intel-pentium-g3258-sufficient-htpc.html

[MightyMic]

Both the G3258 and the G3470 draw the same amount of power 53W. And I totally agree that the G3258 is sufficient at stock for an HTPC. The G3470 will offer a slight performance gain over the G3258. It's up to you to decide if +$15 is worth the slight performance increase.

 

You can see here that they are very similar to each other.

[zipperbiscuits]

1 minute ago, MightyMic said:

Both the G3258 and the G3470 draw the same amount of power 53W. And I totally agree that the G3258 is sufficient at stock for an HTPC. The G3470 will offer a slight performance gain over the G3258. It's up to you to decide if +$15 is worth the slight performance increase.

 

You can see here that they are very similar to each other.

Oh sweet thanks, im planning a budget build for my younger cousin and thats gonna come in handy, thanks a ton. as for the HTPC i think ill stick with the g3258. Thanks though!