Newbie: Need help. Home Media Streaming, Ripping, Encoding

timewaster1700 · Jul 10, 2015

I recently decided I want to build my own computer for the first time with the primary function of being a hub for all our movies and tv shows. I would like to eliminate all our dvd's and blu-rays to save space and make a nice interface to stream them to various tv's around the house. I've had minimal experience in the bast ripping dvd's to my mac using handbrake to take them with me traveling. I recently learned about PLEX and how you can use it to stream your movies and tv shows from a computer that stays on to any device with the plex app. We currently have an apple tv in one room, an xbox one in another, and a ps3 in the third room. If I can't get PLEX to stream through these I may get chromecasts to do the job. But I digress.

My main questions are about building the PC to handle this scenario. I've seen a lot of online tips to building HTPC's but one one seems to have suggestions for building one that not only houses and plays the media, but is also used to rip it and process it to a good storage format. It will need to stream up to 3 or 4 different videos at a time. And I will be using it to rip all the dvd's and blu-rays so I would like to be pretty fast at encoding video and be ok running hard for long periods of time. I'm kind of hoping to do it for around $600 if possible.

Processor:
From the research I've done, I'm considering getting an Intel i5-4590 3.3 Ghz Quad Core Processor ($200) because it seems like it will have sufficient power for multiple streams and lots of encoding. It has a passmark benchmark score of 7261. I'm certainly open to going with a different suggestion.

Optical Drive:
I know I want to go with a blu-ray drive for ripping and I'm considering the LG WH14NS40 because it will only cost me $40 right now at Newegg, has decent reviews, and is not rip locked for blu-rays.

These are the only two components I'm pretty sure on, but I'm open to better suggestions of course. I'm now into the dizzying task of choosing a motherboard.

Motherboard:
I don't want it to be a performance bottleneck. All I really know is that I need one with an LGA 1150 socket for the cpu, it needs to have hdmi so i can plug it into my hdtv and it needs to have at least one PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot if I want to have a discrete graphics cards. I'm pretty confused at this point if the integrated HD 4600 graphics on the i5 are sufficient or if a discrete card is necessary for what I'm doing. I would like at least the option to add a discrete card later if I need. I've read about the chipset on a motherboard being important but I don't know what kind of chipset is good enough for my needs. I see motherboards from $50-150 and wonder what range I should be expecting. I should mention I'm considering a micro ATX for the fact that it would alow me a smaller case, but a full size ATX in a mid tower may end up being what I go with. I would really love some help picking out a motherboard.

Storage:
I'm thinking of having a cheap $40-60 solid state boot drive of maybe 64gb. A big question I'm dealing with on storage is how to handle all these media files. I've considered just two large 2-3 TB SATA III 7200 RPM HDD's with one being a clone of the other for backup. Is it possible to set up an internal RAID 1 system with two drives like this? I've heard multiple suggestions to set up an external NAS, but they seem expensive at this point.

The other components:
I haven't dug into memory yet or the power supply because I know these will depend on the motherboard and other components. I'm guessing 8gb of memory will be enough.

I'm sorry for the long post but I would love help from all of you experienced do-it-yourselfers. Overall I'm excited to take on this project, but just a little overwhelmed trying to figure out how nice of machine this needs to be.

de5_Roy · Jul 10, 2015

cpu - if you can get to a microcenter: intel xeon e3 1241 v3 or a 1231 v3. non-mc - 1220 v3 1231 v3. these cheaper than i7 cpus but will give you more MT perf over the i5.

mobo - asus z97c or z97-a or a uatx asus z97 board with bios for the xeons.
examples:

GIGABYTE GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128716
MSI Z97M Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130773
ASUS Z97M-PLUS LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132130

SSD - get a 128GB at least. try this article:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-recommendation-benchmark,3269.html

ram - 16 GB g.skill ripjaws ddr3 1600 ram compatible with the motherboard. check the mobo's QVL for validated kits.

psu - seasonic s12g 450 or 550 (550 is cheaper right now iirc).

example:
SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119

cpu cooler - stock, or a cryorig h7 or noctua l9h down draft cooler.

case - corsair 200r but the choice is very subjective.

example:
Cooler Master N200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119274
Thermaltake Core V21 Black Extreme Micro ATX Cube Chassis CA-1D5-00S1WN-00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133274

if you need a discreet gfx card (as mostxeons don't have igpus) - a geforce gt740 1 GB GDDR5 or a gtx 750/750ti.

timewaster1700 · Jul 11, 2015

THanks for the tips. I notice the Xeon E3-1220V3 3.1 Ghz is about the same price as the i5 4590 3.3 Ghz, but it seems to be a touch lower on the Passmark Cpu score so I figure they're about the same. What is the advantage of using the Xeon vs the i5?

I noticed a lot of motherboards use the z79 chip. I guess that must be a decent chip then.
Of those motherboards you recommended they all seem to have similar features and all would work for my setup but I notice there is as much as a $60 difference in price with the GIGABYTE being the cheapest. Is it poorer quality or are they all about the same?

Thanks for the article, gives me a good idea that apparently samsung and sandisk are making some of the better SSD's. You suggesting 128 so you can hold all programs along with OS?

I appreciate the other recommends as well including that power source. Do you size the wattage by adding CPU wattage + Graphics Card Wattage + extra? Or how do you decide on 550 W?

de5_Roy · Jul 11, 2015

timewaster1700 :

i don't give much credence to passmark scores. sorry.

the xeon offers 4 cores and hyperthreading (4c/8t) at the same price as the i5 4590, which has only 4 cores and less L3 cache. you can even get a faster one at 3.5 GHz clockrate. intel's consumer cpus with 4 cores and HT are th i7 cpus which are quite a bit more expensive. right now the fastest one is the 4.9 GHz i7 4790k selling for $340. the slower, non-overclockable i7 4790 is at $310. getting an e3 12xx v3 xeon is like getting a more expensive i7 at i5 prices (with some catches obviously). in ripping and encoding workloads the more cores/threads the better. there is no way a similarly clocked octo-threaded cpu will lose to a quad core cpu (of the same uarch) in multithreaded encoding workload. for your requirements the xeon cpus seemed to represent quite a value IMO.

however, the xeon has one weakness over the 4590. the i5 4590 has an integrated gpu on it's die. so you can use the igpu for display, you can also use intel quicksync, if you choose. the igpu also eliminates the need for a discreet gfx card if you can make to with it. with the xeon you will need a gfx card even for display outputs. the xeon doesn't have an igpu so the display output ports on the mobo will be useless.

timewaster1700 :

z97 is intel's latest pch. it succeeds the older z87 but is almost identical to z87. the gigabyte and the asus had the same older prices but dropped differently. the GB one is an entry level mobo under the "gaming" guise. seemed to fit your requirements.

timewaster1700 :

you wanted to buy cheap, so i went with 128 GB ones. but a quality 250-256GB will be better. a 128 GB drive will host the OS but i am not sure about the rest. it will depend on how much storage space your software library occupies.

timewaster1700 :

the main aspect to watch out for is how much current your +12v rail can deliver reliably and continuously. this is the rail from which cpus, gfx cards draw power from. 550w isn't a precise estimate but a rough one.

you can buy the cpus at microcenters at a much cheaper price if you can access one. they are for in-store pickups only though.

all of my recommendations are based on price only.

timewaster1700 · Jul 11, 2015

Wow thanks for all the explanation that helps a lot. Sounds like the Xeon will be a better fit for me. Maybe I should splurge for the 1231 since its significantly more performance for only $50 more. I'm beginning to think the $600 budget is going to most likely be blown.

So is getting a motherboard with a z79 pch going to be sufficient for me? You mention the GIGABYTE is entry level. Is the MSI better? I do remember reading somewhere the GIGABYTE boards don't let you set the individual fan speeds whereas the MSI and Asus do. Not sure if I'll need to do that.

Yeah I can see where the bigger the better with a SSD would be. This is a tough project overall to spec out with it A. being my first computer build. and B. I've never really had a high performance machine. Right now I'm using a Macbook Air, 2.00 GHz i7, 8 gb ram, 256 gb SSD. Its been a great machine but obviously will not work for a streaming and encoding workstation.

Thanks for the help with the power. Makes sense the current draw would be important. I'll have to figure it all out when I get everything else spec'd out.

Wow thanks for the tip on Micro Centers. I've never heard of them. They're website does have a lot cheaper prices. Although darn they don't have one in my state. Any other places besides Newegg or Amazon with good prices on processors?

de5_Roy · Jul 11, 2015

you can try using pcpartpicker.com to spec out a build. it's pricing isn't always right or list updated but they're pretty close.

timewaster1700 · Jul 12, 2015

So here's what I've picked out so far using pcpartpicker.com
I would greatly appreciate your scrutiny. Thanks

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/wxcKD3

timewaster1700 · Jul 12, 2015

Here's an alternative to the above option using a blue themed inside instead of a red themed inside.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/YTmcLk

de5_Roy · Jul 12, 2015

timewaster1700 :

ah, pcp fudged with your settings the way it did with mine. you need to manually change the motherboard's vendor from microcenter to newegg, or some other vendor you'd be buying from, in order to view the proper tally. microcenter usually does in-store pickups.

your cost seems to have increased due to the storage subsystem and due to the bluray burner. was the $600 including the storage? you can meet that limit. you can keep some of the cost down by going with a core i3 ($120-150~, 2 cpu cores, 4 threads with hyperthreading) and by using an entry level h97 motherboard like asrock h97 m pro for around 70 bucks.

as for the ram, you must check with gigabyte (or any other mobo brand of your choice) QVL/memory support list to see if your kit is on it.

the gfx card is for display output only. but, if you want to game on it you'll have to start from a radeon r7 250x or gtx 750.

timewaster1700 · Jul 12, 2015

Well for as awesome as the pc part picker website is, its also pretty clunky. I tried saving two copies of the build, each with a different mobo and ram combo and it keeps overriding them both when I save. So here's the first mobo and ram combo I considered:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128716
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231606&cm_re=g.skill_ares_16_gb-_-20-231-606-_-Product

here's combo two, for a blue interior. BUt I'm not sure if these two mobo's are equivalent quality to be comparing.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130780
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231848&cm_re=g.skill_ares_16_gb-_-20-231-848-_-Product
Hmm I didn't know I needed to check into this QVL/memory support list. I was just looking at the type and speeds.

So initially I really wanted to keep it around $600 but as I've looking more and more into these parts I want to do it right and it is basically not just a streaming server, but also kind of a workstation so I'm considering letting my budget raise closer to 1k.

As for the storage, I may go with a 128 gb SSD to save some money. I feel stuck going with two 2TB HDD due to the massive media library I want to store and the fact that I don't want to risk losing it without a backup drive. I picked a WD red because they are rated well for server type use and then a WD green as the backup because its cheaper.

de5_Roy · Jul 12, 2015

timewaster1700 :

if the memory kit isn't validated it may not work with the motherboard and cause problems afterwards. one thing to watch out for is that more 2x 4GB kits are validated than 2x 8 GB although support varies by vendor, even by motherboard model and board revision. so it is difficult to nail down a surefire solution. i used the g.skill kit as a reference as g.skill is one of the most widely compatible brand. but they're not the only one. corsair, kingston, crucial all of them offer wide compatibility and memory configurator service in case you need to find out a kit's compatibility with motherboards.

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Newbie: Need help. Home Media Streaming, Ripping, Encoding

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