Windows 7 Building a new Media PC

[LiteGamer]

Hey guys, I'm planning on buying a new PC for media purposes in the next week or so and this is what I've got so far.

Planar - MSI 890GXM-G65 AM3 890GX 4*DDR3 PCI-E16 GBL DVI / VGA /HDMI/RAID/SATA3/USB3 - $130.00
Video Card - Sapphire HD6770 1G GDRR5 PCIE HDMI DP - $126.00
CPU - AMD Phenom II AM3 955 Black Edition (3.2Ghz) 64-Bit Quad-Core CPU - $119.00
Case & PSU - Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower Case With 450W PSU - $76.00
OS - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM - $97.00
RAM - Kingston 4GB(2 X 2GB) DDR3-1333MHZ - $41.00
HDD - Samsung 1TB Spinpoint F3 SATA II 7200RPM 32M - $59.00
ODD - Pioneer BDR-206BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive SATA Black OEM $125.00

Total - $773.00

Prices are in AUD so just ignore how overpriced it looks

Anyway what do you guys think, am open to change for better performance however don't really want to spend that much. The only thing that I really want in this PC is a blu-ray drive.

 

[Digerati]

Understand that newer integrated graphics solutions are designed for, and are very well suited for use in a Home Theater PC or as a media server and even support some light gaming. If, in terms of graphics processing, all you plan on doing is watching DVDs or BluRays and surfing the net, or using the system as a DVR, you don't need that graphics card! That motherboard already has a graphics solution to meet your needs with ease.

Then with the extra money, you can increase your RAM to 8GB - which will make your 64-bit version of Windows very happy.

Finally, while 450W is enough power, if using this computer in a HTPC, it may be pushed enough to crank up it's fan speed - creating more noise. A bigger supply will have bigger heatsinks, and will not need the fan at speed fan as often.

HOWEVER - if you drop that graphics card, a good 450W PSU will be more than adequate - even with 8Gb of RAM.

The motherboard you have selected is a good board with good graphics and sound. If me, I would skip the graphics card and bump up the RAM without hesitation. In the end, you will save money that you can then use to invest in a "good" UPS with AVR - because a surge and spike protector is little more than a fancy and expensive extension cord.

 

[Ciara]

Hi LiteGamer

I would be tempted to go Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 64MB Cache Hard Disk Drive SATA 6 Gb/s 126MB/s <4.2ms 7200rpm with the HDD and what about a Sound Card ?

 

[Saltgrass]

Where is your video coming from and do you know what format it will be in?

Will you be streaming video?

 

[LiteGamer]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. Here is the new build, changed a few things like removing the Video Card, Adding a Sound and Network Card (Forgot this one ) and Upgrading the RAM.

Planar - MSI 890GXM-G65 AM3 890GX 4*DDR3 PCI-E16 GBL DVI / VGA /HDMI/RAID/SATA3/USB3 - $130.00
CPU - AMD Phenom II AM3 955 Black Edition (3.2Ghz) 64-Bit Quad-Core CPU - $119.00
Case & PSU - Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower Case With 450W PSU - $76.00
OS - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM - $97.00
RAM - Kingston 8GB(2 X 4GB) DDR3-1333MHZ PC10600 - $79.00
HDD - Samsung 1TB Spinpoint F3 SATA II 7200RPM 32M - $59.00
ODD - Pioneer BDR-206BK 12X Blu-Ray Writer Drive SATA Black OEM $125.00
Sound Card - ASUS Xonar_DX/XD/A Sound Card - $96.00
Network Card - ASUS PCE-N13 WLAN PCI-Express Low Profile - $39.00

Total - $840.00