Question about building an HTPC

magnificentoxo

Honorable
Jan 10, 2013
11
0
10,510
so I am in the mood for building a htpc and I was thinking of going with intel i3 as this set up will not be used for gaming. I have my main rig for that!
Anyways here's what I want to accomplish:
Something that doesn't get too hot or use a lot of power. I really don't like 125W unless ofcourse I underclock/volt I suppose. I am fine with 100w though so 5800k should be alright.
I want something that can watch HD movies without a struggle- Netflix or any other service that would show HD movies ( I do have a blue ray player and few movies for it)
I have a discrete video card already sapphire 6870 so if I wanted to play games in the future on it I could with this card.
I want my system to be quiet ( I can tolerate fans in this build so long as its not overly loud)
this pc will be on 24/7
I am thinking of putting all this in the Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced case
I have a 42 inch tv to which I will connect to
I will be adding either 1866 8 gb ram or 1600 gb depending on whether I go 5800k or i3 3220
For budget- the lowest possible would be awesome. I want to keep it all under 400 if possible. If its i3 then I certainly don't need a expensive mobo since it would do no good so that's money saved. If its 5800k then atleast a a85 mobo for it.


My choice so far is either intel i3 3220 or a10 5800k but that's in the 100W. However I really like the ability to overclock this cpu! I read few places that i3 might not be good seeing as its a dual core and we are moving towards multithreaded software-not sure if this would work for say watching movies and occasional photo shop.

Will an i3/5800k be enough for watching movies and general browsing and playing flash games, as well as occasional photo shop?
Please no fanboism.....I don't care for either, amd or intel. I want something that fits my needs not a uber god like system.

 
Solution
yes.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($99.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75 Pro4 ATX FM2 Motherboard ($59.88 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.14 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Gigabyte GZ-X5BPD-500 ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.49 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($59.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total...

noob2222

Distinguished
Nov 19, 2007
2,722
0
20,860
photoshop.png


Add in the fact that trinity has the better gpu by far, the choice is clear for your usage. It will handle 3d, youtube or netflix HD, and mild gaming with ease.

a10 5800k if you want to overclock it, or A10 5700 for the low power 100% silent option.

http://www.techpowerup.com/173111/AMD-Shows-Off-Silent-A10-5700-System.html
 

Dougie Fresh

Distinguished
Jan 3, 2010
545
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19,060
If all you're doing is watching 1080p HD movies and Netflix it doesn't take an A10 or i3 to accomplish that. A G860 will do that easily. The G860 is basically an i3-2100 with no 3D or QuickSync support. You'd only need to step up to an i3 if you need 3D.

It really depends on how important that occasional Photoshop is vs. keeping the cost, noise and heat down in the system.
 

magnificentoxo

Honorable
Jan 10, 2013
11
0
10,510
from Canada and my max budget would be 400 but less then that would be ideal!
@ Dougie- wouldn't photoshop like struggle with a G860? I was looking at that option earlier however, I read around and so many people are saying two cores are just not enough to even watch movies and that I should go with atleast hyper threading? OI keep hearing so many different things about intel and amd that I am honestly lost lol.
Basically I just want to watch HD movies with no stuttering, photo shop, browsing internet and possibly playing flash games.
 
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Aemw
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Aemw/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Aemw/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($99.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75 Pro4 ATX FM2 Motherboard ($59.88 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($37.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Gigabyte GZ-X5BPD-500 ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.49 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX12V Power Supply ($39.61 @ Canada Computers)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $383.93
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-29 01:02 EST-0500)

Base Total: $393.93
Mail-in Rebates: -$10.00
Total: $383.93

that should do the trick.

 
yes.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/AgQZ/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($99.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75 Pro4 ATX FM2 Motherboard ($59.88 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.14 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Gigabyte GZ-X5BPD-500 ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.49 @ Newegg Canada)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($59.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($17.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $386.47
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-29 10:20 EST-0500)

Base Total: $406.47
Mail-in Rebates: -$20.00
Total: $386.47

that should do it :D

 
Solution