Any suggestions on this?

ASUS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model DRW-2014L1T OEM - OEM $30.99
or a Samsung DVD was suggested to me?

Antec Sonata Designer Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply - $139.99

SAMSUNG SpinPoint T Series HD501LJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $109.99

MSI NX8600GTS-T2D256EZ HD GeForce 8600GTS 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $149.99 -$20 mail in rebate
is there anything better fanless w/o going to water cooling?

Patriot Extreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model PDC22G6400LLK - Retail $80.99 -$40 mail in rebate

MSI P35 Platinum LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $144.99 -$20 mail in rebate
or
ASUS P5K-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $139.99


Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6750 - Retail $194.99

Scythe SCNJ-1100P 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler - Retail $34.99

prices are from Newegg.

I plan at running at 1680x1050 for games, 1920x1080 for TV.
I will connect it to my 65" TV via the component outs and to my reciever via SPDIF. Mostly to play TV shows & such I DL via bit torrent. Mainly shows in 720p format.

any ideas/comments? thanks

seems enough for HTPC really nothing to change

The new Sonata is like an exact copy of the Solo except for the color & inclusion of a quality psu. The cases have polycarbonate material on both side panels & harddisk suspension straps in the drive cages that cut noise down to a minimum. In other words, you can choose the Solo + a psu if you prefer silver front bezel & black sides.

You're gaming at 1080. What kinds of games do you play? The 8600GTS is lacking if you play new games. At least an 8800GT which still stutters/slows down when my 1440x900 screen gets busy.

You're not going to overclock, correct?

The 8800GT is not exactly a near silent video card. However, a 8600GTS will not be able to play games at 1920 x 1080 with reasonable performance.

for the 8800GT, sparkle offered a passively cooled version available last i checked... would be perfect for use in a htpc/gaming pc such as this.

http://www.sparkle.com.tw/News/SP8 [...] ve_EN.html

Nice find.

The only caveat is that the heat pipes sticks up over the card itself so that case must be tall / wide enough to accommodate it.

The sparkle 8800gt looks great, when/how much for it?
Main game atm is EQ1, so no real system drain there, but want to be ready for the next couple years.
I'm not gaming at 1920x1080, just watching the 65" TV. I'm gaming at 1680x1050 on my 26" monitor. It defaults to 1920x1200, but text is too small for my liking at that res. Too many things don't let me up the font size, so it's easier to just lower the res a bit.
With a Solo, what PS would you reccomend to be most silent?
I know with most things now what slows me down by far the most is the hard drive. I don't suppose there's something quiet, affordable, and faster?
thanks

jaguarskx is absolutely right about the 8800gt being noisy. It IS. If you do get the 8800GT, either get the Sparkle or replace the hsf with Thermalright one:

http://www.thermalright.com/a_page [...] _03gt.html

If you go with Lifestyle Solo, you can use any standard atx psu. Look at some reviews:

http://www.silentpcreview.com/section10.html

& make sure it's a tier 1 or 2:

http://www.tomswiki.com/page/Tiere [...] ngs?t=anon

The Samsung is a good one. Someone here bought it, but was disappointed with its wobbling like mad. You can slide it into the suspension straps & it's still silent when it wobbles. Don't move the case around in this config. The 2nd choice would be WD. Seagate being the last: hot & a bit noisy.

I recommend the Seasonic S12 500. It is pretty quiet and the current generation is a little more energy efficient than the older series (which is what I have). More efficient means less electricity wasted as heat.

If you are looking for a PSU with modular cables (detachable), then consider the Corsair 520HX (also made by Seasonic).

Ok, just to offer a few alternatives.

When I think of HTPC I don't think of vertical cases, so you might want to think about this:

GIGABYTE GA-G33M-DS2R LGA 775 Intel G33 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - $135
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128053

Antec New Solution NSK2480 Black/Silver 0.8mm cold-rolled steel MicroATX Desktop Computer Case 380W Power Supply - $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129034
(it has 2 x 120mm fans so it will be very silent)

And you might need a beefier PSU:
ENERMAX Liberty ELT500AWT ATX12V 500W Power Supply - $95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817194003
(it's modular and has 1 120mm fan, and it's a very respected brand/model)

This is just a suggestion, if you like the idea, go for it. Just thought I'd throw in the alternative.

^^^ Good idea. If you like the Solution case, here's a much better deal:

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Prod [...] e=10006028