HTPC Question - Buy now or wait?

[Neillithan]

Hi, I am now having second thoughts about building an HTPC and it is due to news of the coming AMD Trinity and Brazos 2.0 APUs.

As of right now, I have specs picked out for an HTPC that will run me about $360 (Case and everything inside it). I would like to maintain this price range ($350-400).



The parts I've picked out include:

CASE: IN WIN BP655.200BL Black Steel Mini-ITX Desktop Computer Case 200W Power Supply

MOBO: ASRock A75M-ITX FM1 AMD A75 (Hudson D3) SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Mini ITX AMD Motherboard

APU: AMD A6-3500 Llano 2.1GHz (2.4GHz Max Turbo) Socket FM1 65W Triple-Core Desktop APU (CPU + GPU) with DirectX 11 Graphic AMD ...

SSD: OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-60G 2.5" 60GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

RAM: G.SKILL Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-1600C9D-8GAO

DVD: Pioneer CD/DVD Burner Black SATA Model DVR-219BK - OEM

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I'm not sure when the new CPUs will arrive, but I don't want to feel like I've made a huge mistake by getting this HTPC now instead of waiting.

Just a couple of questions...

1. Will 200watts be enough for the parts I've picked out? The newegg calculator reports that I need about 210 watts for that system. Should I pick a better PSU? If so, any recommendations for a VERY quiet PSU replacement? (Must be "Standard TFX 12V Power Supply")

2. Should I wait for the new APUs before building this HTPC? I'm trying to hit the $70-90 price point for an APU.

3. I require a mini ITX motherboard. When the new APUs get released, will it take a while for mini ITX motherboards to arrive or will they arrive at the same time?

4. Should I use the stock CPU cooler? If not, do you have any recommendations for a good low profile CPU cooler? (Must have a very quiet fan).

5. Is there anything else I should know about anything? Ideas, suggestions, feedback in general, shoot.

Thanks!
-Neil

 

[avok95]

It's a nice build.
I don't know if there are any new APU architectures for to be released but the one you have is great for an HTPC.
As for the fan , stock fans are usually really quiet, however if you think it's loud you can just lower the RPM using a program called Speed Fan.
As for the RAM , I suggest you use AMD Entertainment ram to go with the AMD setup.

The PSU is good enough. PSU calculators are usually very wrong. They show that the PC needs 30% more power when it doesn't. The APU is already 65W and that leaves another 135W(Or let's just say 100W since most PSU-s don't give constant wattage they are rated for) for everything else, which is very acceptable.

 

[Knufire]

Speedfan is really glitchy and tends not to work that well.

Matching RAM brand has zero effect on anything.

I wouldn't trust a low-wattage PSU included with a cheap case to power anything, frankly.

The Llano SHOULD be plenty of power for an HTPC...but Trinity is supposed to be so much better, I'd just wait.

Then again, Bulldozer was supposed to beat Sandy Bridge. So you never know if the hype is true.