HTPC Conversion

[JimmyMac]

Just after a little more advice, I was looking previously at building a new HTPC but now i'm thinking that I couuld make something pretty damn smart for a lot cheaper by cannibalising my main PC.

As a background, my main PC is rarely used at the moment, i'd say its been turned on only a handful of times this year thus far and so theres a bag of decent hardware there that would surely make for a nice HTPC, just need to look at a different case and some tweaks.

Current setup is as follows :

Q6600
Nvidia 560Ti
128GB Corsair SSD
2 X 500GB SATA
8 GB DDR2
Corsair H50 cooler
700W PSU

So with that lot in mind, is there a decent HTPC case that would look right on my TV stand that would be capable of containing all of that comfortably? Budget wise I think up to about £200 on the case and i'd like it to be compatible with my Harmony one from the off. I will obviously need to change the motherboard from a normal ATX to a microATX but hopefully that shouldn't cost too much


If I did all that then surely that would be far more than capable of playing just about anything I want to throw at it!

 

[Deleted member 39241]

What sort of cases do you like, and how noisy is it?

 

[JimmyMac]

Like the look of some of the Lian li ones, would need to be in black to match. In terms of noise, I want it as quiet as can be really, rather not have something that sounds like a tornado by the tv!

 

[Deleted member 39241]

Lian-Li do some black cases that will take an ATX board - expensive though! Depends what you like and what you want to spend.

With regard to the noise, does your PC sound like a tornado now? If so, then you will need to find out what is making the noise, and ensure that part is swapped out or left behind when you move everything into the new case. The graphics card looks big - I suspect that may be noisy, you may want to sell it and get a passively cooled (silent) one, you don't need a high-end card in a HTPC unless you are wanting to game with it.

 

[JimmyMac]

Just had a look at the lian li website and 2 cases look to support ATX which would be a bonus, any ideas what the key differences between the C60 and C33 are?

Lian Li PC-C33B HTPC Case - Black [PC-C33B]

Lian Li PC-C60B HTPC Case - Black [PC-C60B]



It's not too noisy but would certainly be a little more noticeable in the lounge, its likely the PSU or the GFX card's fan, if it is the GFX card then I could change that cooler to quiten it down, I think changing the case fans to something like Noctua ones might help too overall.

I'd prefer to keep the card, the main pc is my gaming one and I may want to use it for that again in the future so would be better off holding on to it I think

 

[Deleted member 39241]

Looks like there are the obvious aesthetic differences, plus the PC60 has different fans fitted, so it may be quieter, as well as being a bit deeper than the PC33.

If you can keep your graphics card and make it quiet enough to live with in the lounge, then that would be good. But if you quieten it too much, would it overheat if you try and game with it? I use a passively cooled HD6450 in my lounge HTPC, it is perfectly fine with all video playback, silent, and costs about £25!

If you need to swap out your PSU, I use BeQuiet ones in my HTPC's, I have never had any problems with them, they are very quiet and come with a decent warranty.

 

[rojgelf]

These Silverstone cases are popular, but you would need an M-ATX mobo:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverstone-SST-ML03B-USB3-0-PC-Case/dp/B004HE2YZE

 

[JimmyMac]

I do prefer the look of the C33 but if the C60 is a bit deeper it might be more prudent to look at something like that.

Going back to the Gfx card, I think its actually one of the Frozr II version which has a modified fan on it to keep it quieter, I must say I have never noticed it spinning up faster when its getting more taxed so hopefully that will be fine.

I have a feeling that any real noise is coming from the 5 120mm fans that are in the case, i'll pop it open and investigate but if thats the case then it should be fairly cheap to reduce the sound by changing them.

@rojgelf - thanks, I do like some of the silverstone cases and looked towards them for my previous planned build but if I can get a case that takes my ATX board then I think it would be the better option, my board was a damn good one when I bought it and anything now would likely be a downgrade.

So at the moment if I cannibalise my desktop I think I just need a case and at around £150 thats a pretty good price for a damn powerful HTPC

Plus in the future if I do decide to play some games then I can use Steams Big screen just fine! possible win win situation

 

[Deleted member 39241]

Good luck

Those cases you were looking at have fans pre-fitted so you may not need to use the potentially noisy fans that are in your current case.

 

[JimmyMac]

Thanks, will look at the finances tomorrow and perhaps get one on order!

 

[JimmyMac]

Another question has cropped up, as I mentioned initially, I want to use my harmony one remote with it and i'd prefer to have the IR receiver built in rather than attached to the side of it. I notice the C-33 has a wireless remote receiver which I don't think is going to work directly, any suggestions of a good case that fits all my needs?

 

[JimmyMac]

Antec.com - Product: FUSION REMOTE MAX

that seems to fit the bill although finding one in stock anywhere is proving a little tough

 

[DegsC]

Just buy one of these from eBay

http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=190699256474&index=1&nav=SEARCH&nid=40257525206

Or just the ir blaster and use your harmony remote... That's what I do.

Degs

 

[JimmyMac]

aye, I know I could do something like that but if I am going to be spending a decent amount on the case itself then i'd prefer not to have to then stick another device aside it, surely I should be able to get something built in already?

 

[JimmyMac]

Ok things are looking like changing again, I still want to convert my main pc as mentioned before but I am struggling to find a decent case that will fit an ATX board and has an IR remote sensor built in, any help people can provide would be much appreciated.

Otherwise I am going to have to resign myself to adding a remote sensor seperately which I prefer not to do but wouldn't be the end of the world, if this is the case then I will likely look at a less expensive case in something like the Silverstone line

 

[delta_42]

FC10 Fanless Chassis | Streacom
Streacom FC10 Black Full Aluminium Fanless Chassis - ST-FC10B - Scan.co.uk

They're not cheap, but they do look pretty awesome! An internal IR sensor is available, and as its passive, noise isn't an issue either. However, given the price of these cases you could probably a smaller case, AMD A series APU and motherboard for less!

 

[JimmyMac]

Thanks delta, the Streamcom case are pretty stunning but as you say, a little pricey, I don't think the passive cooler would work on the Q6600 though unfortunately, its 105w TDP as I recall and I don't think the socket is supported by the case, shame as I do like it.

I think I spotted one of the Silverstone cases for around £150 that took ATX and had and IR sensor