$500 HTPC Console Replacement build help

apk24 · May 15, 2016

Approximate Purchase Date: must be built before june 9

Budget Range: USD500 before rebates

System Usage:

HTPC
capable of playback of 4k HEVC encoded content
Blu Ray reader
S/PDIF out, optical or RCA
Must look like it fits in living room
wifi required, N600 or higher

Console
Console equivalent gaming performance
wireless game pad, probably Bluetooth, prefer DS4 but open to suggestions

Do you need to buy OS: Would prefer it fit into budget, can maybe manage w/o it

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon, newegg, any major US retailer

Location: San Francisco bay area, store pickup from east bay locations

Parts Preferences: none

Overclocking: no overclocking

This will be a completely new build. The basic idea is that for a little more than the price of a console, I can replace the blu ray player and the console. The parts list that I have is far too expensive, and maybe overpowered? I know that console equivalent gaming requires far less power than this. My primary issue is I am unsure as to the computation requirements associated w/ 4k HEVC decoding. I tossed in a 950 to be safe, but perhaps something less powerful will do. Maybe a 750 ti? 260x? I'm wondering if my goal is even possible on this budget.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($114.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus H110M-K Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($57.00 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($34.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card ($143.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone GD09B HTPC Case ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($51.99 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($32.99 @ Amazon)
Other: S/PDIF Out Bracket ($13.99)
Other: DualShock 4 Wireless Controller for PlayStation 4 - Jet Black ($47.00)
Total: $649.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-15 15:46 EDT-0400

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

Yeah about this...
When people set a budget this small they normally think about the main parts : mobo, cpu, ram, gfx, case, and hdd.
This would be 500$ if you remove the last 4 things in that build and i think there's no way you're gonna fit those 4 things in this build (with that budget) without sacrificing other parts which i think in this build are pretty much a must right now if you wanna atleast match Console performance...

Awaiting for more input...

apk24 · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

Thanks for your response

The sound card is on there simply for digital audio pass through via s/pdif. Adding the card was cheaper than stepping up to a mobo that had S/PDIF out. The wifi card is also a bit overkill, just need n600 + bt. I might be able to finagle a windows license by deactivating another one of my pcs and using the win 8 pro license off of that, will update post to reflect that. The goal here is to add a 100 bucks to console price, and end up with the equivalent of Blu ray player and console.

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

um, most mobos like the one in your list have a S/PDIF Out header and then you just need something like this : http://www.amazon.com/SPDIF-RCA-Plate-Cable-Bracket/dp/B0035J9Z7W

Is that not what you want? if it's not i apologize.

apk24 · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

Looked into those, discounted them for some reason, though can't remember at all why.
heck, my earlier revision of this build had one in there. http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QPDVdC

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/rhLLCJ

I still can't quite get there. Even sacrificing the case, controller and audio card.

Hlsgsz · May 15, 2016

If you can stretch the budget(you should!):
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($73.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A88XN-WIFI Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard ($96.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 950 75W 2GB Video Card ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone GD09B HTPC Case ($72.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($31.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.85 @ OutletPC)
Other: DualShock 4 Wireless Controller for PlayStation 4 - Jet Black ($47.00)
Total: $564.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-15 17:20 EDT-0400

If you can't:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD A10-7870K 3.9GHz Quad-Core Processor ($132.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A88XN-WIFI Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard ($96.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($45.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Silverstone GD09B HTPC Case ($72.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($31.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.85 @ OutletPC)
Other: DualShock 4 Wireless Controller for PlayStation 4 - Jet Black ($47.00)
Total: $503.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-15 18:26 EDT-0400

The second one will match while the first will wipe the floor with consoles.
Also, both can do 4K with no problem whatsoever(you actually have two hdmi ports on teh motherboard capable of that).

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

You just changed a 6100 for an 860k and a 7850k. ._.
A platform with future for a platform with none.
The best Budget CPU with a cheap mobo for the 3rd best budget CPU with an expensive mobo.

Hlsgsz · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

These are better suited for the task within this budget. You will not be able to hit under 500 on intel and reach console performance with the OPs requirements.
Also, that motherboard replaces both teh soundcard and wifi card

You must put things in perspective: OP said he wanted a console replacement for cheap, not an imbalanced buid with an overkill CPU that's got no worthy GPU to serve.

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

I understand, i saw what that mobo offers but i bet he would preffer to save a lil bit more than to go down this road.

Hlsgsz · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

That would be a mistake. It's an HTPC. The less components you have to put in in teh better, and you also have less points of failure. For example, i can guarantee that the SPDIF out will work flawlessly on teh mobo? Those adaptors.. not 100% sure.

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

"not an imbalanced buid with an overkill CPU that's got no worthy GPU to serve. "

- wat? just wat?
I apologize if i sound arrogant dick or like a smartass. That sentence makes no damn sense.
The 6100 is the budget CPU of preference, it's not an overkill, the words overkill and i3 do not know eachother.
No worthy GPU? What the hell man, you're killing me here.

"That would be a mistake. It's an HTPC. The less components you have to put in in teh better, and you also have less points of failure. For example, i can guarantee that the SPDIF out will work flawlessly on teh mobo? Those adaptors.. not 100% sure. "

-I agree, the less things you buy the less you'll have to worry about failing in a near future but that analogy does not make sense here either.
What would you hate more to fail, the mobo or a cheap cable? The header on the mobo is there for a reason, it's going to work yes or yes.

Edit : Not saying the mobo will fail, not the best example i could've given. I'm pretty much saying both the mobo or the cable (more things can fail in a mobo) can fail but both are expected to fully work.

Hlsgsz · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

We will agree to disagree.
My recommendations stand, with the added info taht i would replace that PSU with this http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seasonic-power-supply-ssp350se as i don't think that evga is realiable.

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

You don't think EVGA is realible? Opinions are not as important as facts. Yes Seasonic is a Fantastic PSUmanufacturer but so is EVGA, thousands over thousands of good reviews of their PSUs and the EVGA one offers more than the Seasonic one here.

Hlsgsz · May 15, 2016

Ari3l :

EVGA doesn't manufacture PSUs and the card i put in the build does not require a PCIE cable

nikoli707 · May 15, 2016

for htpc you are going to want a z170 board for the alpine ridge controller. anything less and you will be upgrading very soon. nothing amd offers is htpc compatible so dont even think of the suggestions above.

otherwise you may want to way for kaby lake to be released at the end of summer for full hdmi 2.0 hdcp 2.2 and native hardware h265/vp9. it likely you could drop in a kaby lake processor later and gain the latter.... but you will want a board that has hdmi 2.0 hdcp 2.2 from the get go.

Ari3l · May 15, 2016

Hlsgsz :

Who makes EVGA PSUs then? Corsair? And I know the 950 you posted doesn't require a PCI-E power connector, that's not the point here though. You also think a 7850k matches console power. ._.

I'm out, this thread will end up killing me.

logainofhades · May 15, 2016

Evga PSU's are made by superflower, fsp, seasonic, and HEC, depending on model.

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

logainofhades · May 15, 2016

Tier 1 and 2 unit Evga are quite reliable. I do agree the AMD solutions are not good ideas.

g-unit1111 · May 15, 2016

nikoli707 :

For media playback? What do you need that for? And are you getting HTPC mixed up with HDCP because those are two very different things.

You could slim that down a bit and go for something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI H110I Pro Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($37.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB Superclocked Video Card ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Silverstone RVZ02B HTPC Case ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Silverstone 500W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Sony BD-5750H Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($85.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $651.80
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-15 22:17 EDT-0400

apk24 · May 16, 2016

Thanks for all your responses. Looks like it really isn't possible/a good idea to try this build on my budget. I'm probably going to try and save up. Maybe I'll be able to afford an 700-800 USD build by the time the budget Pascal/Polaris and Kaby Lake/Zen rolls around. Then, either I can go for those or hope for price drops on current gen.

Hlsgsz · May 16, 2016

apk24 :

Obviously, if you're not pressed for time, this is the best idea as this year in pretty interesting in hardware(as opposed to the last ones).

apk24 · May 16, 2016

Hlsgsz :

Kinda was, was hoping to get it built before my brother's birthday, but I'd rather find him another present for this year rather than an APU build that barely matches consoles. Seeing as consoles have pretty much the same APU in them and optimizations push them much further above PC.

Hlsgsz · May 16, 2016

apk24 :

Hlsgsz :

Kinda was, was hoping to get it built before my brother's birthday, but I'd rather find him another present for this year rather than an APU build that barely matches consoles. Seeing as consoles have pretty much the same APU in them and optimizations push them much further above PC.

The a10-7870k games pretty well, but yeah, way better to wait and fit a proper, discrete GPU in there. Then there's christmas

)

nikoli707 · May 26, 2016

g-unit1111 :

nikoli707 :

For media playback? What do you need that for? And are you getting HTPC mixed up with HDCP because those are two very different things.

You could slim that down a bit and go for something like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI H110I Pro Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($37.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB Superclocked Video Card ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Silverstone RVZ02B HTPC Case ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Silverstone 500W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Sony BD-5750H Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($85.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $651.80
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-15 22:17 EDT-0400

to handle 4k@48/60hz which content will be delivered one would want either a high end graphics card or a skylake chip on a z170 board that has an hdmi 2.0 output. not all z170s are hdcp 2.2 compliant though. but for any htpc i believe the capability of 4k@60hz is a base requirement. we have android boxes for $100 out now that can do that.

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