Looking to build small HTPC

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

as the title says
looking to build a small HTPC
under 10in X 10in X 10in
it will mostly be used for playing movies from an HDD or streaming over a network
not sure if I need an optical drive or not for DVD playback

I will NOT be gaming on this machine

looking for suggestions as I have not found too many small cases and I need advice on the best and cheapest CPU for my needs

I thought the Intel NUC 6 looked great for my needs but it seems like the current version is having a lot of problems..

needs:
play back / stream video and movies (1080p)
browsing web

would like:
to be low cost
integrated wifi
integrated IR
space for an optical drive for DVD playback
playback 4k content for future proofing it?

THANKS

why_wolf · May 20, 2016

this is an idea I've been toying with. No IR though. As far as I can tell this is as small as you can go without it just being a better idea to go with a NUC or a 3rd party version of it. I agree though that the skylake models seem to have a QC problem.

[PCPartPicker part list](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vC4ybv) / [Price breakdown by merchant](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vC4ybv/by_merchant/)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80662i36100) | $110.99 @ SuperBiiz
**Motherboard** | [ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-h110mitxac) | $67.99 @ SuperBiiz
**Memory** | [G.Skill Aegis 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f42133c15d8gis) | $28.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/kingston-internal-hard-drive-sv300s37a120g) | $41.33 @ OutletPC
**Case** | [Silverstone ML05B HTPC Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/silverstone-case-ml05b) | $40.99 @ SuperBiiz
**Power Supply** | [Silverstone Strider Gold 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/silverstone-power-supply-st45sfg) | $87.99 @ SuperBiiz
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$378.28**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](http://pcpartpicker.com) 2016-05-20 12:24 EDT-0400 |

why_wolf · May 20, 2016

PS, there is a slim dvd/bluray slot on the case.

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

thanks for the quick response
I was wanting to go smaller though
something more like
Antec 110vesa
Dimensions
8.66" x 3.07" x 8.39"
just not sure if it is feasable to get everything I want out of it with that small of a case because it would mean no gpu and not a normal sized psu

why_wolf · May 20, 2016

not even an internal psu, it's an external brick.

jtabb1256 · May 20, 2016

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($73.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X-ITX+ Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard ($79.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team Dark 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($27.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GT 730 2GB Video Card ($67.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Silverstone ML04B HTPC Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($81.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($53.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $502.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-20 12:47 EDT-0400

For OS, you could use kodibuntu
I thought short and flat would be nice for a case, but there are more cube-shaped ones that you may like better.

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

why_wolf :

yup that is what I meant by not a normal PSU
so can the i3-6100 handle 4k video with its integrated graphics?
and do you know of any cases similar in size to the one I posted?
and are there any similar cases with IR sensors and wifi built in?

@jtabb1256
that case is much bigger than what I am looking for

jtabb1256 · May 20, 2016

This looks like a cool way to use a remote with it: http://mymediaexperience.com/flirc-remote-control-companion/

It may require you to use kodi on top of windows instead of linux, though.

jtabb1256 · May 20, 2016

newbosaurusrex :

What about: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112394&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-PCPartPicker,%20LLC-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

that is more what im looking for

I guess I am basically looking to build a NUC without buying it because of all the problems ive seen with the recent releases

I have heard of flirc and it is deffinately an option for remote control over an ugly long wire with a big IR receiver on the end

jtabb1256 · May 20, 2016

newbosaurusrex :

Okay. Well, you could probably go without a graphics card, then. I was thinking the graphics card I put would make this build more "future proof". If you wanted to go smaller, you could probably use a samsung mSATA SSD and get rid of a separate drive. Thin mini ITX is also something to look into, but it would require intel. Also, the NUC doesn't have an optical drive. Having a spot for one in the case adds a lot of size.

Inkiad · May 20, 2016

You can look into intel NUC skull canyon. It has Iris Pro 580 graphics. And will be way smaller than the rest. Price is kinda higher though.

Barty1884 · May 20, 2016

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($67.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Kingston ValueRAM 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($14.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: PNY CS1211 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone RVZ02B HTPC Case ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 300W 80+ Certified SFX Power Supply ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Samsung SN-208FB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Directron)
Other: USB Wireless IR Computer Media Remote Controller ($9.35)
Other: Slimline SATA to SATA Power/Data Cable ($4.79)
Total: $387.07
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-20 13:16 EDT-0400

You could drop a 750ti in that case too - you should be able to play 4K over HDMI @ 30Hz.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($67.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Kingston ValueRAM 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($14.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: PNY CS1211 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PNY GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Enthusiast Edition Video Card ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone RVZ02B HTPC Case ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 300W 80+ Certified SFX Power Supply ($38.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Samsung SN-208FB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Directron)
Other: USB Wireless IR Computer Media Remote Controller ($9.35)
Other: Slimline SATA to SATA Power/Data Cable ($4.79)
Total: $482.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-20 13:18 EDT-0400

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

thanks for all the responses

I don't haaave to have 4k i just figured if I could then I would
I'm not sure if its possible with how small I wanted to go (no space for gpu or internal psu)?
I do not know exactly what is needed for 4K?

@Inkiad
I did look at those but the price seems high compared to building one

@Barty1884
those cases are bigger then what I was looking for

Barty1884 · May 20, 2016

Size-wise, I think you're going to struggle. Intel NUC and Gigabyte Brix are probably your only viable options for a really small form factor. And won't support an optical drive.

why_wolf · May 20, 2016

they're not available yet but there is the coming 5x5, STX form factor. An inch or so each dim bigger than a NUC, but it allows for socketed CPUs. http://www.tomshardware.com/news/asrock-deskmini-mini-stx-pc,31683.html

Inkiad · May 20, 2016

newbosaurusrex :

You can not build something small and powerful like the intel nuc skull canyon.
For 4K i3 is somewhat sufficient.

Consider this build if you can live with an external DVD drive -
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($67.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Kingston FURY 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.98 @ OutletPC)
Case: Silverstone Sugo SG13B Mini ITX Tower Case ($45.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 360W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Other: SANOXY® Wireless USB PC Remote Control Mouse for PC ($9.99)
Total: $371.91
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-20 15:55 EDT-0400

Note that working on a mini ITX case is time consuming and is hard to work with overall.

newbosaurusrex · May 20, 2016

here is what I found so far

Antec Mini-ITX Case ISK110-VESA

Antec ISK 300-150 *Has optical drive slot

M350 Universal Mini-ITX PC

Morex 557 Universal Mini-ITX Case

Silverstone Tek Aluminum Top Cover/Steel Body Thin Mini-ITX Media Center/HTPC Case PT13B

the antec isk 300-150 the smallest ive found so far with an optical drive slot

anyone use any of the above cases? good / no good?

Inkiad · May 21, 2016

The ISK 300-150 does not have any 3.5 drive bay. Also the optical drive is the slim one. If you can live with only SSD and 2.5 laptop hdds, go for it.

All miniITX cases will require you to plan and work on the case for building. Get a modular power supply for clean and easy build.

Edit: Checked the Antec 300-150 does not support standard PS2/ATX power supply. The included one has 10A on +12V rail. This is also a thing to consider.

newbosaurusrex · May 31, 2016

Here is an update...

I'm looking at this case
Streacom F7C ALPHA HTPC Chassis

with their flirc addition
Streacom Flirc SE Universal Remote IR Receiver

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($110.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($112.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($36.99 @ Newegg)

anyone know the size of the i3-6100 with stock cooler installed? (only room for 32mm in the case)

then I was thinking an ssd or m2

than maybe WD Blue 2TB

and some kind of slim slot loaded dvd drive.. any recommendations?
would this work?
Dell DV-W28SL ($25)

also need recommendations on how much PSU wattage I need for the external PSU?

last question is if anyone sees any conflicts with the parts listed please let me know

thanks

Looking to build small HTPC

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