Seeking feedback on $500 HTPC rig

[wantitbad]

Hello everyone,

I'm trying to build an HTPC for my living room, after giving up on DLNA I'm planning to store my media on a NAS, and install XBMC on the HTPC. Main purpose will be to stream 1080p from the NAS. Here's my setup:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($36.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($106.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 6450 2GB Video Card ($49.97 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case ($57.50 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Rosewill 350W ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $456.41
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-01 22:04 EST-0500)

Looking for feedback on the build; this will only be the third time I will have built a PC. Still some nagging thoughts at the back of my head (Is the SSD a good choice? Will I need a cooling solution? etc)

Thanks for your time.

 

[hbeduryan818]

Hello everyone,

I'm trying to build an HTPC for my living room, after giving up on DLNA I'm planning to store my media on a NAS, and install XBMC on the HTPC. Main purpose will be to stream 1080p from the NAS. Here's my setup:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-2100 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($36.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($106.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon HD 6450 2GB Video Card ($49.97 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case ($57.50 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Rosewill 350W ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $456.41
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-01 22:04 EST-0500)

Looking for feedback on the build; this will only be the third time I will have built a PC. Still some nagging thoughts at the back of my head (Is the SSD a good choice? Will I need a cooling solution? etc)

Thanks for your time.

Heres what i recomend. Replace the i3 and the gpu with an amd a10 apu perfect for htpc. It will cpst you the same but feature a way better gou than what you selected at the same price if not cheaper.

 

[hbeduryan818]

APU: http://us.ncix.com/products/?sku=76269&vpn=AD580KWOHJBOX&manufacture=AMD&promoid=1310

Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157339

Oh btw an apu is a combo of a cpu and gpu. The one i selected for you is an quad core and has a 6600 gpu better than the one you selected

 

[wantitbad]

Thanks hbeduryan818, I did some looking around at APUs before I settled on the i3. I googled which platform would be better for my rig, and most people chose Intel. Example here [http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2263374]

My primary gaming rig is an AMD, so I'm no stranger to their world =) Can you explain why you didn't choose the A10-5700, which comes in at 65W, opposed to the 5800K at 100W?

 

[hbeduryan818]

Thanks hbeduryan818, I did some looking around at APUs before I settled on the i3. I googled which platform would be better for my rig, and most people chose Intel. Example here [http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2263374]

My primary gaming rig is an AMD, so I'm no stranger to their world =) Can you explain why you didn't choose the A10-5700, which comes in at 65W, opposed to the 5800K at 100W?

Im actually sorry i dont think ncix sells the a10 that is why. Since this a htpc you wont be do any oberclocking i recomend the apu rather than the i3 just because a newer generation and i beloeve lower wattage usage