I am planning on upgrading my old Vista Media center so it is capable of playing both .mkv files and also would like to install a blu-ray player. I have got my eye on the below and want to know if it will be powerful enough to do what I want. I dont want it to struggle, but I dont want to go overkill. I am not planning on playing games whatsoever. Will the onboard graphics of the motherboard be enough?
Thanks
Intel Core 2 Duo E2200 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.20GHz (800FSB) - Retail
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-190-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=793
Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD ATI Micro ATX (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-125-AB&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=326
Probaby worth going for a decent graphics card - not for games mind!
The newer graphics cards come with HD processing onboard for h264/x264 etc so this is offloaded from the CPU.
I picked up a ATI 3870 for 150 quid although Im pretty sure the cheaper 3850 and other 3000 range cards can do HD processing.
My HTPC setup right now is;
Core 2 Duo 2.13GHz
3Gb RAM
ATI HD3870 512Mb
Runs 720 and 1080p MKV files without any judder and is completely silent.
The motherboard you listed does seem to have better video processing, Id check for review on how well it actually plays HD though.
Towards the bottom of this page;
http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews.php?type=3&id=186&page=6&desc=abit_fatal1ty_f-i90hd_motherboard
looks good.
Well I went for this one instead. Heard that there were some big issues with blu-ray pioneer drives and the onboard SATA.
Seems pretty good, and got it for £32, so happy too! Just need to get a complimentary CPU now.
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Products/Motherboard/Products_Overview.aspx?ProductID=2691
Any thoughts as to how much RAM I should go for? Never really buy RAM other than just the standard el cheapo stuff. Should I go 2GB or 4GB, linkies for any recommended RAM which would be perfect for waht I want to do?
Thanks :thumbup: