High End HTPC Build

Amadeus Klein · Jun 29, 2013

I'm just curious what people think about my newest build. It is going to be a very high end HTPC, I am building this as a toy, I know it's super overkill for a media PC but hey, I'm just playing around...

What do you all think?

Case: Silverstone Tek Grandia GD08
Motherboard: AsRock Z87 Fatal1ty Professional
CPU: Intel Core i7 4770K
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650-Ti SSC
SSD: Samsung 840 Pro 256GB
Storage: 4 Western Digital Red 3TB
PSU: Corsair AX760i 760 Watt
Optical: LG Bluray Reader/DVD Bruner
CPU Cooler: Arctic Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2
Memory: 32GB Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR3 1600 (4 x 8GB)

It will be running Windows 7 Ultimate along with a few media serving/organizing apps...

Like I said, Super overkill, but I'm just building it for fun mostly...

I'll post build info in about a week when it's built and up and running...

For reference this build's approximate cost is: $2,100 Sans software other than OS...

Someone Somewhere · Jun 29, 2013

First off, there is completely no reason for that, even if you are using it as a media server. I play 3D Blurays off an E8400 @3.7GHz and a 6570. Integrated graphics on an i3 would be my recommendation.

I'd suggest splitting your storage and viewing systems to keep noisy HDDs and coolers away from you, unless you plan to put it in the next room or attic or something.

scoobydenon · Jun 29, 2013

You only need 8GB of RAM for that, yeah it's major overkill, but I like it.

Amadeus Klein · Jun 29, 2013

Someone Somewhere :

Yes it is overkill, That's kind of the point honestly... I've been using a gen 2 i3 for several years but I'm playing around now

It's time for a ridiculous build... The Grandia has enough sound dampening to allow for all the fans and HDDs to be quite quiet... (I've built many systems with this case as high as an i7 3770K with 21TB of storage without noise issues...)

Your advice is solid though, 99% of people really don't need squat to serve/play just media...

Amadeus Klein · Jun 29, 2013

scoobydenon :

Yeah, I'm actually running a gen 2 i3 now with just 4GB of memory and it works fine, but it's playtime now

Someone Somewhere · Jun 29, 2013

I'd suggest spending the money on a better TV or sound system; your 2nd gen i3 is probably perfectly fine (and if it's iGPU can't do 3D something like a 6570 does). Storage ==

though.

That RAM is just a waste of $150 though, as is the CPU and MB.

Wolfshadw · Jun 30, 2013

I agree with everyone else, if you've got that kind of cash to throw away, throw it at a better audio/video system. Look for a nice 1080p projector (don't think 4K projectors have come down in price yet), a nice 150" screen from Elite Screens, and a nice 7.1 surround sound system.

-Wolf sends

Someone Somewhere · Jun 30, 2013

Not so sure on the projector thing - yes, they get very big relatively cheaply, but the back luminance is usually relatively poor, especially if there is even a small amount of ambient light.

150" is a massive screen - that's three and a bit meters wide.

Amadeus Klein · Jul 2, 2013

Honestly, I'm doing this for fun, to see what the ultimate high end Home Theater PC can be...

(I'm not someone with a bunch of cash to blow, but I work for a very high end home theater company and super rich people tend to ask us to throw out very high end components because they "don't look right" or they "just get bored" with them... so every Theater component I have has been "thrown away" by a client...
Thanks to them running a 105in screen off a Sony VPL-VW1000ES 4K projector. With audio running through a Marantz SR7007 to a full 7.1 compliment of Bowers & Wilkins 800 Diamond Series speakers.... Thanks to this I have no need to look for better A/V components...

Honestly I see where you all are coming from, But like I said, this is just to see what it could be...

I'm not doing this from a practical standpoint, just for fun... If I was going practical I would have stuck with an i5 (only because of the large amount of media serving that is done) and used on-board graphics in the haswell chips... only 8GB ram, and a much lower end PSU...

I've been running a simple Gen 2 i3 with excellent results, but now that I finally got my hands on a haswell processor and Mobo (thanks to a review I did for another site) and a few other components the same way, I decided to see what insanity I could get into for an HTPC...

dragonlord12832 · Jul 2, 2013

People are gonna hate on me for this, but, go with Win 8 Pro. Okay, yeah, Win 8 kind of sucks, BUT, the whole Direct X 11.2 and IE 11 exclusives will probably make it worth it in the long run.

mastrom101 · Jul 2, 2013

I'm good at making overkill rigs
Cut down to 16 GB, 32 is just stupid.
Maybe bump up the GPU to a 3 GB 660?
Switch to 3 4 TB WD Black drives

Someone Somewhere · Jul 3, 2013

I'd suggest putting separating your encoding/storage and your playback (or putting it all in a box out off earshot). Fans are bad, and more processing power == more fannage.

I play uncompressed 3D blurays over GbE, so there's not any issue with bandwidth.

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