Recommend a system for me

[HairyHaggis]

Newbie here so be easy with me.

Looking to buy components to make a HTPC, to connect to my 37" LCD screen and HiFi system. TO be used mainly for Watching pre-recorded films, listening to music and the odd bit of live tv.

I currently have a Core2Duo system with a Radeon X1600. But this system is rather loud, power suppliy being the main culprit. I am not sure if i want to use this system or build a new one. Not looking to spend a fortune, something around the £200 mark.

What sort of hardware do you recommend for this?

[gazoo]

That system already sounds good, just get a different P/S. Any kind of recent dual core should be enough. The video card sounds ok, but someone else should confirm.

[gEd]

This article should help you to choose a near silent power supply, if you want to stick with your current system (which sounds fine to me).

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article699-page1.html

The graphics card is probably fine for now and you could consider fitting a silent cooler to it if it plays all the media that you want it to.

For live tv you will obviously need a tv tuner. The Hauppauge Nova-t 500 is a PCI card with 2 x DVB-T (freeview) tuners fitted and is well supported by gbpvr.

[stustunz]

get a big power supply rather than one that just meets the power requirements
that way it runs cooler as its not getting hot (less fan noise)
and due to the way they work it wont use more power the ratings are at full load not what they use all the time (unlike a light bulb or other resistive load )
as for video card you can get cheap 8600nividia or ati36xx
get the fanless video card but then add a big fan to your case to keep it all cool
STAY away from any fan smaller than 80mm small fan =high pitch noise
another source for noise is harddrives they can make a noise that you think is a fan
any dualcore makes a good htpc
personally i went for a board with the most pci slots(pcie tuners are only just becoming the norm)

[ilovejedd]

get a big power supply rather than one that just meets the power requirements
that way it runs cooler as its not getting hot (less fan noise)
and due to the way they work it wont use more power the ratings are at full load not what they use all the time (unlike a light bulb or other resistive load)

For better efficiency, though, he should estimate the expected load of the system and get a power supply whose 20% load is around that value (e.g. expected idle load - 70W, PSU rating - 350W). Power supplies achieve their rated efficiency from 20+% of their maximum load with peak efficiency around 80%. Therefore, you want your normal load to be within that envelope for highest efficiency.

personally i went for a board with the most pci slots(pcie tuners are only just becoming the norm)

I disagree. As mentioned, PCIe slots are becoming the norm. Most of the newer TV tuners and peripheral devices are being released in PCIe. Also, PCs have a pretty short shelf life. If the OP finds that his build isn't good enough for him anymore, the faster PCIe bus would be of benefit if he decides to re-purpose the PC. For example, if he uses it as a file server and needs to add RAID controller cards.

I currently have a Core2Duo system with a Radeon X1600.

That's sufficient as long as you're not planning on Blu-ray playback. I don't think the Radeon X1600 supports HDCP. Assuming you're quite satisfied with your current PC's performance, my recommendation would be to just replace loud components inside your PC with quieter ones. Start with your power supply first, seeing that it's your main complaint. After that, you can go check the other components.

[Jaggy]

Personally I would just leave the system you have basically as it is apart from tv tuners etc. & get a Popcorn hour A100 to hook to my tv. That way you don't have to worry about the noise, decoders, video cards etc.

This is much what I did when I setup myself three years ago but in those days it was using Hauppauge MVP's instead & I'm still using them now

[zehd]

I think a quiter power supply is the first step.

Something that I do is use a variable speed case fan. It has a little POT that I can set the speed manually. I use SpeedFan to help me watch the temp on the different components inside a case. I lower the speed of the case fan until the overall heat inside the case rises to a level I think is safe, but requiring the minimal amount of fan speed. (THe fan makes a bit of noise at full, but almost inperseptable when at 50-60%)

I don't use the SpeedFans automatic fan control becuase it seems to speed up and slow down the fan often enough that the changing sound drives me nuts.

Also, it's important to have free air flow around the Case. Sometimes cramming the computer into a Home Theatre stand that has doors and backing and lots of cables, can restrict air flow and not let the case fans do their job...

[HairyHaggis]

Cheers for the input guys. Going for a quite PSU, then possibly sillence the g/card. Many thanks.

[HairyHaggis]

Folks,

Seen this PSU for sale ultra quite 500W NorthQ Giant Thunder 12-17db. Anybody have any experiance of them?

[gEd]

never heard of em before, they must be new to the consumer market (or budget end of the market).

Enermax, Seasonic and Corsair are rated amongst the best. Something like this would do the trick (funds permitting).

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduc...r%20ATX2.3

It has a modular cable system so u only have to add the connectors that you need. Plus it is one of the quietest available according to silentpcreview.