Seeking advice for a simple, budget HTPC

Enzio64

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Nov 29, 2014
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Approximate Purchase Date: Two weeks from now at the latest, ideally sooner.

Budget Range: As close to $300 (or less) as I can manage, though I can go up to $600

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Primary usage will be as a DVR for OTA channels, but I'd also like it to serve as a streaming device for Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc. Doesn't need to stream to other devices or serve as a hub for the house, it's just one TV it'll be attached to - though the option to possibly stream to one other device someday would be nice, if it doesn't add to much to the price.

Are you buying a monitor: No, hooking it up to my plasma

Parts to Upgrade: Starting from scratch

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Prefer newegg.com or Micro Center (cause there's a store in the area and I'm impatient)

Location: St. Louis, MO

Parts Preferences: I don't have much brand loyalty, I just want it to work

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: No idea

Your Monitor Resolution: 1080p

Additional Comments: The quieter the better, also something that uses as little power as possible

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I'm trying to completely cut the cord from cable, and my wife "needs" DVR for OTA channels. Every build or guide I've seen has had way more features than I need (it won't be hooked up to surround sound or a projector, there's no need for it to serve as a hub to 18 other devices, I don't want it for gaming), I just need it to serve as a TV tuner/DVR without a DVR subscription price.
 
have you heard of kodi and its addons? i built something similar to what you have but skipped dvr and just run xbmc/kodi. otherwise by todays standards any cheap desktop soc will handle 1080p and recording without issue. g3220+h81 is a very simple yet powerful setup that should be very inexpensive from microcenter though. i would recommend a silverstone htpc case for simplicity and looks. but if you just need the hardware.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Pentium G3240 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($52.98 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H81M-DGS R2.0 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($47.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill NS Series 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($28.59 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.49 @ OutletPC)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Antec 450W ATX Power Supply ($28.98 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.79 @ OutletPC)
Total: $358.80
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-15 03:11 EDT-0400

thats just a general idea of components... the pentium and motherboard should cost a bit less if you get a combo from microcenter. 2gb of ram would work i assume but you would only save about $10 over 4gb of ram. $50 for a 1tb hard drive is about the norm now so you cant really save any money there. the case is somewhere you could save $20-30 if you dont mind what it looks like. i really cant recommend any other power supplies cheaper than the antec vp450. otherwise if you wanted to go with an intel celeron q1900/j1900 or amd 5350 for cheaper you could, and they both can handle 1080p/bluray without issue.

after that... the android boxes are becoming very popular and as far as ease of use they might be what you want. the android os is stripped down, similar to what you may find on you or your friends phone, many have infrared remote support, and they offer all the streaming apps and can some can dvr to an external harddrive.
 

Enzio64

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Nov 29, 2014
4
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4,510
I totally forgot to add I'd like Blu-ray service, and the device needs to be wireless. Is there enough room left in the case to squeeze those two in there? I'd need to fit a tuner in as well.
 

Enzio64

Reputable
Nov 29, 2014
4
0
4,510


Beautiful. Thanks for your help!