New HTPC build.. m-itx... thoughts?

[streetster]

This motherboard maybe of interest to you:

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/mot...ion-mini-itx/1

http://www.mini-itx.com/2009/05/04/z...and-salivating

It is expensive though:

http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=53

hmmm interesting...

so thats ~ £180 for a dualcore (330) *or* £120 for mobo+£55 for cpu + ~£60 for a picoPSU assuming the psu in the case (60w, 80w peak) cant handle any more...

I think i'll wait for confirmation that the 330 can comfortably play 1080p x264's, else it'll be the e5200 route which is potentially £60 more (new psu) plus ~£10 + effort for adding a 92mm fan to the top of the case..

lets see whats happening come payday

thanks for the help/feedback as always guys!

[arthurleung]

Highly unlikely a 330 can deal with 1080p x264 unless hardware accelerated.
CPU usage peaks at 85% on my Core2Duo T8300 (GMA X3100). The Atom would have far less processing power than this.
If you're just using a E5200 may be just buy a Shuttle?

[streetster]

shuttles are huuuge though, comparatively, to the mitx case i've bought... anyone know if the 9400 mgpu can do dxva - ie mpcmc?

[arthurleung]

shuttles are huuuge though, comparatively, to the mitx case i've bought... anyone know if the 9400 mgpu can do dxva - ie mpcmc?

Yes the 9400 will do DXVA. BUT This will only work on Blu-Ray movies. For stuff like 1080p rips most user-encoded content are not DXVA compliant and can only decode by CPU.

[McPhee]

This ION kit looks like it'll make a pretty good system. Might have a punt myself, but i'll wait for someone to release a Nano ITX board for it. If NVidia could do it with one of the reference designs then i'm sure 3rd parties can manage.

[streetster]

Yes the 9400 will do DXVA. BUT This will only work on Blu-Ray movies. For stuff like 1080p rips most user-encoded content are not DXVA compliant and can only decode by CPU.

not quite dxva enough for my needs then looks like i'll have to go the e5200 route...

[peterb]

This motherboard maybe of interest to you:

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/mot...ion-mini-itx/1

http://www.mini-itx.com/2009/05/04/z...and-salivating

It is expensive though:

http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=53

Thanks for those links - I've been thinking about an itx system for a while for a web, file and mp3 streamer. Not quite in the same league as the OP but decided I'll probably use these as the basics:

http://www.itx-warehouse.co.uk/produ...?ProductId=631

http://www.itx-warehouse.co.uk/produ...?ProductId=828

http://www.itx-warehouse.co.uk/produ...?ProductId=801

and a couple of 2.5" drives on a Raid controller board, powered by a Linux distro (probably 10, although I have a working 6 system at the moment, so I may use that then upgrade later). No DVD bay, but I'll load the OS out of the case and then install it.

[walibe]

Highly unlikely a 330 can deal with 1080p x264 unless hardware accelerated.

The ION boards can, stick a blu-ray drive on it and it WILL play back just fine, and with just a dual core atom in support. Aparantly Quicktime stuff in 1080 and 720 plays back OK aswell.

[streetster]

The ION boards can, stick a blu-ray drive on it and it WILL play back just fine, and with just a dual core atom in support. Aparantly Quicktime stuff in 1080 and 720 plays back OK aswell.

that's h264 though, x264 is usually the stuff wrapped in a mkv wrapper and is used to encode most of the 720/1080p downloads...

[eek]

Hey guys,



Zotac 9300 itx motherboard [image] [link] [£120]

I'm in the same boat at the moment. currently I've got a full size hfx classic box under the telly and I'm looking for something lighter (lead weights would be lighter if you must know, it really does weigh a ton).

However I've read that the zotac 9300 board does not power the usb when in S3 mode. If you wanted to switch on via the remote this may make things rather awkward and I wouldn't personal risk purchasing the board until I had confirmation one way or the other.

I don't think the J&W 780g has the same S3 problem but that is the AMD route.

[McPhee]

Would go for the J&W Minix and a 7750BE if it was me. Cheaper than the Zotac/E5200 combo by as much as 30 quid and more powerful. Only real downside i can see is that it only takes SODIMM memory.

[scaryjim]

The J&W Minix is reputed to get very hot though, so you'd need a lot of good airflow through the case. Also, the 7750BE is at the very top of its rated support TDP-wise. On the other hand, you could always watercool it...

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The J&W Minix only as a PCI-E 4x slot though!!

[McPhee]

The J&W Minix only as a PCI-E 4x slot though!!

He already said he's not using the PCI slot. It's next to useless as the cases the OP is looking at don't have space for a PCI bracket.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I would switch the X2 7750+ for an X2 5050e as the former has quite high idle and peak power consumption. For a normal build I would go for the X2 7750+ but for a SFF build I would either go for the X2 5050e or E5200 instead as the lower power consumption and operating temperatures make more sense in this situation.

[McPhee]

I would switch the X2 7750+ for an X2 5050e as the former has quite high idle and peak power consumption. For a normal build I would go for the X2 7750+ but for a SFF build I would either go for the X2 5050e or E5200 instead as the lower power consumption and operating temperatures make more sense in this situation.

Good point there. My E5200 idles at ~45'C (passive) in the SG05! I want to swap it out for a quad soon-ish but kinda worried by the heat (and the silly price of the 65nm Quads in this country )