HTPC Build

[Aryon]

Hello Gurus,

 

I am currently using an old laptop as HTPC, but the poor guy is starting to age (having more and more BSODs ).

 

I saw that many peoples were advising to build 2 separate machines : 1 dedicated NAS and 1 HTPC, which would only stream from the NAS. As I don't plan on splurging that much for this build, I would like to know the pros and cons of this setup. I don't have that much storage need, don't intend to store sensitive information and don't need to access my media when I'm away.

 

For the moment, I am planning on building a single machine, for both the HTPC and the storage. It would be responsible for managing all my media content, so I need a bit of storage. For the gaming side, for now I am using the Steam stream function, and it fits my needs (so I don't need a GPU in the build). Also, I don't live in a castle, so I need it to be super silent (hence the Noctua cooler). I'm not settled on the case yet, but I need it to support 3.5" HDD and have console-like form to fit right next to my TV, so no flashy front LED as well.

 

Here's the build I currently envision (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xbr8FT)

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9i
Motherboard: MSI H110I Pro Mini ITX
Memory: Crucial 8GB DDR4-2133 Memory
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB
Case: Silverstone ML07B HTPC
Power Supply: be quiet! BN226 SFX 300W
 

That 400$ build is almost 500€ here in France, so I would like to know where I could/should spend less/differently (around 400€ would be great, so maybe like <350$).

 

Thank you for your feedbacks on this

[Mohenjo]

if you want to save some cash get the g4400. itll be a bit slower but not by much. 

[Starelementpoke]

11 minutes ago, Aryon said:

Hello Gurus,

 

I am currently using an old laptop as HTPC, but the poor guy is starting to age (having more and more BSODs ).

 

I saw that many peoples were advising to build 2 separate machines : 1 dedicated NAS and 1 HTPC, which would only stream from the NAS. As I don't plan on splurging that much for this build, I would like to know the pros and cons of this setup. I don't have that much storage need, don't intend to store sensitive information and don't need to access my media when I'm away.

 

For the moment, I am planning on building a single machine, for both the HTPC and the storage. It would be responsible for managing all my media content, so I need a bit of storage. For the gaming side, for now I am using the Steam stream function, and it fits my needs (so I don't need a GPU in the build). Also, I don't live in a castle, so I need it to be super silent (hence the Noctua cooler). I'm not settled on the case yet, but I need it to support 3.5" HDD and have console-like form to fit right next to my TV, so no flashy front LED as well.

 

Here's the build I currently envision (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xbr8FT)

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9i
Motherboard: MSI H110I Pro Mini ITX
Memory: Crucial 8GB DDR4-2133 Memory
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB
Case: Silverstone ML07B HTPC
Power Supply: be quiet! BN226 SFX 300W
 

That 400$ build is almost 500€ here in France, so I would like to know where I could/should spend less/differently (around 400€ would be great, so maybe like <350$).

 

Thank you for your feedbacks on this

Not the V300.

[Aryon]

7 minutes ago, Mohenjo said:

if you want to save some cash get the g4400. itll be a bit slower but not by much. 

That is actually worth half the price of the i3, thank you ! Would the trade be perceptible from a normal human point of view ?

[Aryon]

3 minutes ago, Starelementpoke said:

Not the V300.

Would you have an advice for a better series aroung the same price point please ?

[Mohenjo]

7 minutes ago, Aryon said:

That is actually worth half the price of the i3, thank you ! Would the trade be perceptible from a normal human point of view ?

im sorry but that did not make sensee to me, If you mean can you use the same motherboard, then yes. Yes you can. 

[Aryon]

Just now, Mohenjo said:

im sorry but that did not make sensee to me, If you mean can you use the same motherboard, then yes. Yes you can. 

 

Ups, sorry. I was asking if the slower speed would be actually noticeable, of if it would just have lower results in a benchmark.

Also, as you mention it, is DDR4 fine too ?

[Mohenjo]

1 minute ago, Aryon said:

 

Ups, sorry. I was asking if the slower speed would be actually noticeable, of if it would just have lower results in a benchmark.

Also, as you mention it, is DDR4 fine too ?

yes, its obviously a little slower as its cheaper, but that comes from it having only 2 cores while the i3 has 2 real and 2 "fake" cores. As an HTPC there would not be a big difference. And yes, ddr4 is compatible with the g4400 

[Starelementpoke]

24 minutes ago, Aryon said:

Would you have an advice for a better series aroung the same price point please ?

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/a-data-internal-hard-drive-asp550ss3120gmc

[Aryon]

On 16/05/2016 at 10:16 PM, Mohenjo said:

yes, its obviously a little slower as its cheaper, but that comes from it having only 2 cores while the i3 has 2 real and 2 "fake" cores. As an HTPC there would not be a big difference. And yes, ddr4 is compatible with the g4400 

 

I was wondering if the Noctua cooler is actually needed for such a low Wattage CPU. Would the default cooler be fine ? In terms of both cooling and noise. (That would also be saving 40€, almost 10% of the price ...).

 

On 16/05/2016 at 10:30 PM, Starelementpoke said:

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/a-data-internal-hard-drive-asp550ss3120gmc

Thank you for that, I included it in my build.

[Mohenjo]

5 hours ago, Aryon said:

 

I was wondering if the Noctua cooler is actually needed for such a low Wattage CPU. Would the default cooler be fine ? In terms of both cooling and noise. (That would also be saving 40€, almost 10% of the price ...).

 

Thank you for that, I included it in my build.

yes the noctua cooler is not needed.