New HTPC Build

disneyjoe7

Glowrdr wrote: »

As far as transcoding is concerned - that's kind of a catch 22. RAM really has nothing to do with transcoding. My previous PC was a 3.2 gig, dual core system with 4 gig of ram. Anytime I would do anything with video - I would max out both cores @ 100% and my system would lock up (or become very laggy) and my thermal alarm would sound due to the improper cooling I was running for a system that would be running at 100% for hours on end.

Interesting I never seem to be over 10% in cpu usage, playing back video.

PrazVT wrote: »

Windows 32 bit should have died 2 years ago, but the advent of netbooks and low end core i3/i5 notebooks kept it alive.

It businesses which are keeping it alive, and not the consumer side since the market is on the business side.

Face

Syndil wrote: »

If you don't want to take my word for it, do the research yourself. Here's a good place to start:

Tom's Hardware - Do You Really Need More Than 6GB Of RAM?

That article is out of date, for gamers at least. BF3 benefits from having 6 gigs of RAM thanks to Origin and their web browser based server browser.

My video card has enough RAM to run Win7x32. :P

Glowrdr

Disney - I'm not talking about playing back videos, I'm talking about taking an MPEG video and changing it to a different format/framerate (i.e. taking a video and recoding it to play on my iPhone or Android phone) That's where I take a huge hit.

And as mentioned above (I did go an read that article) - the one linked was from 2009. Look at any of them from 2011 and they say 8 gig MINIMUM for RAM. Granted, they also include the caviat of being "future proof" - so this may not necessarily be needed for an HTPC. But to put a blanket statement out that says anything over 4 is a waste (or that 64 bit OS's are worthless) - is just plain misleading.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ram-memory-upgrade,2778.html
"Based on our measurements and impressions (and taking falling prices into account), we thoroughly recommend a minimum RAM size of 8 GB. Using 12 or 16 GB only makes sense if you're planning on using 4 GB of more of this higher amount as a RAM disk, helping accelerate the reading and writing of temporary files. This applies equally to file compression, video encoding, and heavy image editing.

Other than this, you might want more RAM so the graphics card can allocate more system memory for its own use. We saw this pay dividends in GTA IV, for example. You won't see an overwhelming performance increase unless you're using very memory-hungry programs, but you will get a system with enough RAM for the foreseeable future.

Given our observations and low prices on memory upgrades, this is the time to hunt down a high-capacity memory kit for your system. In the end, it?s never wrong to make a step knowing that it will improve performance and provide some reserves."

Syndil

Face wrote: »

That article is out of date, for gamers at least. BF3 benefits from having 6 gigs of RAM thanks to Origin and their web browser based server browser.

It's not that out of date, 2009. Still very relevant. There are a handful of games that are huge resource hogs that I would consider power user apps. For many (if not most) people, games are probably the most taxing application they will ever run on their computer. But of course this is not applicable to an HTPC.

As for 32 vs 64, it's really a question of needs vs potential drawbacks. If you don't need more than 4GB of RAM, then you don't need 64-bit. And to beat a dead horse, for a HTPC, you will see no benefit from having more than 4GB of RAM. So then the question is whether or not there are potential drawbacks with 64-bit.

I agree with the general sentiment that there shouldn't be drawbacks with 64-bit, and that the difference should be absolutely transparent to the end user. However that is not the reality of the situation. The problem is not the actual difference between the two architectures, it's the difference in support for the two differing architectures. It is much easier to find drivers and codecs that will play nice without tweaking for 32-bit than for 64-bit. This is compounded by the fact that, for 64-bit Windows 7, the Media Center app itself is 64-bit, and therefore must be paired with 64-bit codecs. It can be made to work with some effort, but why bother if 64-bit provides you absolutely no benefit?

In the end, you have nothing to gain by going 64-bit other than the potential satisfaction of chasing down and resolving various little beasties in an effort to get things working the way you want them to. If that idea doesn't turn you on, stick with 32-bit.

strider

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

Since I used his information for my parts to build a HTPC, and when I tried to update my HTPC but it didn't work as well. If I was to do it again, and wanted to buy only good parts which should work good together I may buy his recommend for $4.00. I think it would be interesting what he recommend by 64bit or 32bit OS.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=940972

I bought his latest edition of it, well worth the $4.

I ended up ordering parts based on the system he recommends near the beginning of the guide. I did end up going with 8gb of RAM and Windows 7 64 bit, though. This computer will probably morph into much more then an HTPC as time goes by, and I'd rather have a bit more on the hardware side then I require now so I will be more prepared for the future. J Rivers Media Center 16 and Windows 7 64 bit don't seem to have any specific compatibility issues, at least that I've read about.

PrazVT

I use J River Media Center 16 w/ Win 7 x64. No compatibility issues at all. I use my W4S DAC-1, WASAPI, and playback from RAM w/ no issues.

disneyjoe7

strider wrote: »

I bought his latest edition of it, well worth the $4.

I ended up ordering parts based on the system he recommends near the beginning of the guide. I did end up going with 8gb of RAM and Windows 7 64 bit, though. This computer will probably morph into much more then an HTPC as time goes by, and I'd rather have a bit more on the hardware side then I require now so I will be more prepared for the future. J Rivers Media Center 16 and Windows 7 64 bit don't seem to have any specific compatibility issues, at least that I've read about.

Nice I think he also may have learned a few things about windows 7 64 bit. Just what is J Rivers Media Center 16, does this replace Windows Media Center?

strider

Yep, J Rivers is media player software. Designed with sound quality in mind, has a real nice interface that's designed to be read from 10 feet away, newest version supports Bluray discs. It also organizes photos and works with a tuner card to make the computer into a DVR.

http://www.jriver.com/

strider

What exactly is the difference between the OEM and and non-OEM versions of Windows 7? Besides $100.

PrazVT

I think you're only supposed to use it on one computer - ie. OEMs (Dell, etc.) install the OS on a computer and it's tied to that computer. If you try to install that copy on another machine or on a machine that ends up being upgraded significantly (ie. you replaced everything), you'll probably have to call up MS when activating to say why.

Syndil

Yep that's it. OEM means the software is tied to the hardware it is originally installed on. It is not transferable to any other PC. A retail (non-OEM) license is transferable. Also OEM-licensed software is usually supported by the OEM instead of the software publisher. So if you need help with your OEM copy of Windows that you bought and installed yourself, then you would call yourself, since you are the OEM.

strider

It's been assembled for a week now, spent last night getting the video shaken down and working pretty well. Basic functionality and audio were up and running the day after I assembled the machine. Overall, the build went smoother then I anticipated my first computer build to be.

The final hardware list:

Silverstone Grandia G04B case

ASRock Z68 motherboard

Intel i3-2105 3.1Ghz Sandy Bridge processor

8Gb G-Skill DDR3 2133 RAM

Crucial 64Gb SSD

Antec 430W power supply

IOGear wireless mini keyboard

Seagate 2Tb hard drive

Asus Bluray burner

Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit SP1 is the OS I went with, other then that I've installed J Rivers Media Center 16 and DVDFab Passkey.

Lietuvis91

I like it! Well planned and executed. I am assuming you are using the built in video card for now?! That is one thing you might find the need to upgrade next. That all depends on how heavily you end up using this machine.

strider

The case is really nice, .8MM thick aluminum powder coated black, integrates well visually into the stereo equipment. It's the fastest machine I've ever owned. I don't have the 2Tb drive hooked up yet to see how fast it is (waiting on a SATA cable from Newegg), but start up, opening programs and pulling up files are all blink of the eye deals. The keyboard is very functional for it's task; mainly working with Media Center scrolling through music and movie files, some internet surfing and little typing. You hold it like a big remote in both hands, the sides of the 'board have pads for you palms to grasp, which puts your fingers in a good position to operate the trackball, scroll wheel and mouse buttons above the function keys on either corner of the keyboard. Wireless works from farther then I can read the screen, the trackball's glitched maybe twice, not enough to tell if it's a physical thing with the trackball or an issue with the wireless connection.

J. Rivers is really the only program I run, except antivirus software and DVDFab which is needed to play Blu-ray discs through Media Center. The audio is set up to play from memory using WASAPI to output to the DAC. J. Rivers' Red October HD handles the video playback. Before updating the video processor driver I was stuck using Red October Standard, which caused DVD playback to appear to stutter and really smear during shots with quick motion. Haven't burned any DVDs yet, or downloaded Db Poweramp so I can burn discs to the external HD I've had my music on for a bit now.

The sound is better then I've had my computer audio sound with any other set up. Overall there is more weight to the notes, evident as more body and resonance to piano, and punch to the bottom end. Soundstage is taller, wider, and more cohesive. Imaging's improved as well. There are a few things I'd attribute this to. I did go throught the wiring on my DAC just before this build, twisting all the pairs of wires, re-routing power and signal wires, and redoing a couple of grounds to improve them. Now that the computer fits by with the audio gear I can also run a much shorter USB cable. WASAPI does sound the best to my ears from the output options I can use (my machine won't play WASAPI event style for some reason), but I think the biggest cause of improvement is the files being played from memory rather then the hard drive. Not only does the external hard drive not run as much, I feel like there should be less jitter and timing releated problems when the file is stored in RAM (attached directly to the computer's motherboard) vs being read in real time from an external drive that's attached via USB.

Video quality is good, I am running an HDMI cable from the computer to a 26" Sharp Aquos LED TV that I got off Amazon for $229 shipped. It'll do until we get a bigger display that we can comfortably watch movies on, when the Sharp will go up to our bedroom and replace the last CRT in the house.

strider

Lietuvis91 wrote: »

I like it! Well planned and executed. I am assuming you are using the built in video card for now?! That is one thing you might find the need to upgrade next. That all depends on how heavily you end up using this machine.

Thanks for the kind words. I am using the processors built in GPU for now. I picked this particular Sandy Bridge because it was the cheapest processor that uses Intel's top of the line integrated graphics. So far so good, but like everything else in this hobby there's always room for an upgrade.

Ben