Tom's Hardware > Forum > Homebuilt Systems > New System Build > [Solved] Gaming PC in HTPC casing (around 500$ - 800$)

[Solved] Gaming PC in HTPC casing (around 500$ - 800$)

Forum Homebuilt Systems : New System Build - [Solved] Gaming PC in HTPC casing (around 500$ - 800$)

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Best answer from ewood.

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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: this week

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming (WoW, The Settlers and Flight Sim, No CRYSIS-like)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS (I will use XP PRO)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: I have my own supplier store (www.microengros.com)

PARTS PREFERENCES:

MotherBoard : ASUS M4A78‐PRO 122$
Processor : AMD Athlon X2 7850 88$
Video : SAP RAD HD4850 PCI‐E 1G HDMI/DVI/VGA 155$
Ram : 2x2GB KINGSTON HYPER-X D2 2GB 1066 41$ x2
HD : HD‐I‐WD‐WD6400AAKS (640 GB, 16MB, 7200rpm) 75$
Case : APEVIA X‐MASTER HTPC/MID W/PS 500W 17.7" x 14.5" x 5.5" with 500W PSU 97$

Total : 619$+tx

OVERCLOCKING: No
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1080p FULL HD (the only screen will be a 42" LCD HDTV with HDMI)

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I need a quiet PC, with good cooling. I will put it in my TV unit. The fans need to be in the front and the back of the casing.

Do you have any opinion on the PC or the parts ?

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i have a few sugestions:

same mobo for 25 bucks less:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131362

same case for $28 less
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811144231

why the 155 dollar 4850?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102824
its $99.00 and has a native HDMI port and for now it includes an HDMI cable. sounds perfect for a HTPC if you ask me. The 1gig of ram wont help you in the
games you listed anyway.

or heres a fanless hd4850 (nice for a quiet HTPC)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814125258
$25 cheaper instead of $55 but worth it for a HTPC in my opinion

and spend the $55 you saved on the GPX card to get a better cpu (phenom2 X3s seem to be perfect price/performance for a HTPC)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103649
$119.00

RAM: 4 gigs should be plenty... buy more later if you feel the need, but im assure you dont need 8 gigs.

little bit bigger and more power efficient hard drive for cheaper. may be slower on paper but you shouldnt never be able to tell the difference
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136359

maybe buy a cpu cooler that is quiet with some of the cash saved?

just my 2 cents but i think you will me much happier with the faster cpu.

Well, that video card is a bit high. At that price I would get an HD4870 with gddr5 memory. Can you use newegg for your purchases?

Apevia makes low end equipment, I have found their fans to be noisy and cases to be flimsy. I would expect their power supplies to be about the same quality.

For gaming your really want the best PS you can afford to power your video card. That being said, you could pick up an Antec earthwatts 500W for around $60. It may cost a bit more up front, but then once you found out the hard way that the oem PSU is a piece of crap, you would end up spending more anyway.

If it was an HTPC, I would say ok, maybe you can get away with an inferior PSU.

HTPC's are a bit strange, they don't come equipped with silent fans. If you want silent fans you really need to use 120mm fans at slower rotational speeds. I don't see most HT boxes with 120 fans, only at the upper end with antec or silverstone.
If you can find a mid priced HT box with 120 fans, I say go for it.

Reply to buzznut

Honestly that's waaaaaaaaay too much motherboard for a lowly 7850 CPU. If you want a full sized ATX board then go with 770 based board (I recommend the Gigabyte Ultra Durable). If you want a board with a single PCI-E slot then I would go with

ASRock A780GMH/128M $69.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813157154

or

GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 $74.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128376

and put the savings toward a more power CPU. After all the 7850 runs pretty hot so it will be hard to get it cool & quiet especially if you want to overclock it. If you think you may go crossfire in the future then I also think you should consider this board.

GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P $109.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128387

As for your case it doesn't have the greatest PSU, but it should be o.k with a 4850 and an Athlon X2 or Athlon II X2. I also recommend you get some extra fans as those two Apevia fans won't move alot of air. Replace them with some xigmatek fans, or some Blue LED Antec fans if you want the blue LEDs, that push more air.

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Best answer

Reply to ewood

Hi, thanks for your quick answers,

Which CPU do you suggest to go this my current MB ?

CPU AMD ATHLON II AM3 250 X2 3.0G 98$
or
CPU AMD PHENOM 9650 Q-CORE 2.3G 140$

Ok, my PSU is probably cheap but 500 W of power is it enough ?

Thanks,

megamanx00 wrote :

Reply to jpcote

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[Solved] Gaming PC in HTPC casing (around 500$ - 800$)

Forum Homebuilt Systems : New System Build - [Solved] Gaming PC in HTPC casing (around 500$ - 800$)