Replacing a stolen rig

[apopleptic]

Hey everyone, my first post here is looking for some help with what I should replace my main rig which was stolen last week.
Personally I refuse to just buy one at the store since I have been building my own systems since my old 386sx with 2MB of ram, but I have not looked into the new stuff since Nov 2009 when I built this rig.

here are the specs on what was stolen:
Shuttle SG45H7 with 300W PSU
Intel Q8400 Yorkfield
4GB Patriot Viper PC2 6400
LG 8X Blu Ray Burner
2x 2TB SATA 6.0Gb/s
HIS Silence Radeon 5570 1GB 128bit DDR3 video. (I also have a 8800 GTX with 768MB)
D-Link 802.11N 300Mb/s PCI wifi.

My budget is approx $900 USD.
I would prefer to keep the small form factor of the shuttle, but am open to others.
I prefer Intel, but my last AMD was an Athlon 64 2.2Ghz mny years ago.
I use the machine mainly for storage/watching 1080p/720p video as well as some video reencode and some gaming. I didn't have too many issues with the performance except when using webcams it seemed to use ALOT of the CPU/Memory at 1080p and would only do 15 FPS unless nothing else was running.
the storage space is mandatory, although I may switch to external drives if they are fast enough (USB 3.0)
Thanks in advance!



Here is what I am thinking of:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101126
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072 or http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145475
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233143
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106369
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833180078
I also have no idea on a decent video card.
Comes in at $1000. Hopefully the insurance will cover the difference.

 

[rainman33]

That sucks really bad man. Wish you the best in the future and I hope the mobo fried before they got to use it too much.

 

[apopleptic]

That sucks really bad man. Wish you the best in the future and I hope the mobo fried before they got to use it too much.

Thanks for the kind words. I think I know who took it but I can't prove it. I already reported it to the police and filed a report.
I hope they can arrest them, but the detective said they couldn't find any prints.
So dissapointing when it's someone that you trusted... All I can do is keep an eye on them, but it's hard for me to even do that now...

 

[Knufire]

I actually think that's rather overkill for your needs. An AMD APU (CPU+GPU on one chip) hybrid crossfired with a Radeon 6670 gives decent GPU performance, can fit in a miniITX system (a bit smaller than the shuttle), and leaves you money for things that might suit your needs better (SSD maybe?). Here's what I would do (if you want to in the future, you can add an aftermarket cooler and overclock it). After shipping, comes out to just about $900:

 

[merz.38]

:-(

 

[apopleptic]

I actually think that's rather overkill for your needs. An AMD APU (CPU+GPU on one chip) hybrid crossfired with a Radeon 6670 gives decent GPU performance, can fit in a miniITX system (a bit smaller than the shuttle), and leaves you money for things that might suit your needs better (SSD maybe?). Here's what I would do (if you want to in the future, you can add an aftermarket cooler and overclock it). After shipping, comes out to just about $900:

Honestly not a fan of the SSD. I hve a 120GB that hs been nothing but grief for me. I wish I had saved the money (paid like $400 for it when new)
I also have not had good results with the Zotec boards. I built one of thier mini-ITX systems around an Intel chip and found their capacitor/mounting hole placement prevented using any aftermarket CPU cooler (even the stock intel one) and the one they provided with the board didn't keep up under load. I use it for a file server now because if I try to run anything on it it overheats.

If I scale back to 8GB of ram, use a different shuttle board and use my existing Geforce 8800GTX (I also have a quadroFX 5600 if it physically fits which I doubt) I come in at 100 less than your suggestion, with supposedly better graphix results. Thoughts?

 

[Knufire]

Drop the SSD, and you're at about the same price again.

If you're comparing the 6670 to the 8800GTX, you'd be correct. However, you can hybrid crossfire a 6670 with the iGPU in the APU, bringing the performance up to about that of a 6770, a good step up from the 8800GTX.

I've never heard of something like that with zotac boards, however a quick google search should bring up any glaring issues.

Another option is a miniITX with your current GPU and a lower end SB processor. You trade off a bit of the GPU power for more CPU power and Lucid Virtu, which really speeds up transcoding.

 

[apopleptic]

I actually think that's rather overkill for your needs. An AMD APU (CPU+GPU on one chip) hybrid crossfired with a Radeon 6670 gives decent GPU performance, can fit in a miniITX system (a bit smaller than the shuttle), and leaves you money for things that might suit your needs better (SSD maybe?). Here's what I would do (if you want to in the future, you can add an aftermarket cooler and overclock it). After shipping, comes out to just about $900:
View attachment 106530

Drop the SSD, and you're at about the same price again.

If you're comparing the 6670 to the 8800GTX, you'd be correct. However, you can hybrid crossfire a 6670 with the iGPU in the APU, bringing the performance up to about that of a 6770, a good step up from the 8800GTX.

I've never heard of something like that with zotac boards, however a quick google search should bring up any glaring issues.

Another option is a miniITX with your current GPU and a lower end SB processor. You trade off a bit of the GPU power for more CPU power and Lucid Virtu, which really speeds up transcoding.

Only note I have is that I have 2x2TB drives in my setup. Thanks!

 

[Knufire]

I really wouldn't recommend buying 4TB of storage now, with HDD prices as high as they are.

Whether you want to go the Intel or AMD route is up to you. Intel will be faster at transcoding, while the AMD will be a better gamer.

 

[apopleptic]

OK, according to my insurance they will cover the replacement cost up to what I had spent to build the original system as long as I can provide receipts.
That means that I should be able to spend up to $1370.

That needs to include a wireless card, wireless KB & mouse, 16GB thumb drive, 1080p Webcam and the core components. It is also supposed to include the OS and office, but let’s assume that I don't need to but copies of those... (Linux/open office or use your imagination)
I will also be recycling my existing hard drives into this build. The parts I have selected come out to $1330 shipped and I am willing to come out to $1450maximum total so please provide me your feedback on maximum bang for the buck.
I am open to AMD or Intel and would prefer Micro ITX for the small form factor. But, I have a micro ITX board already in a full size case right now, so a full size board is OK, but I will still be getting the case I have listed either way, then doing the motherboard shuffle...
I'm also pretty certain on the USB Thumb drive I picked out.
My uncertainty centers mainly on the core components.
Thanks in advance for the feedback!
Hopefully the image will be viewable this time.
I circled in red the two items not really up for debate.

 

[Knufire]

Edit your post, look for the clipboard icon and insert the image in your post, otherwise it's too small to read.

 

[apopleptic]

Sorry for the small image before, I thought it would be zoomable but apparently not.
I have upped a larger one at this point.
Thanks!

 

[Knufire]

Why the 2133MHZ memory?

 

[apopleptic]

Why the 2133MHZ memory?

honestly, because the board says it supports up to 2133 and it only costs $13 more than the 1333 and $8 more than the 1600Mhz of the same ripjaws memory.
It somes out to $55 shipped for the 2133 and it's $42 for the 1333 and $47 for the 1600
for most builds I usually buy super cheap generic memory, but it seems that there is no savings in doing that this time.

 

[Knufire]

$22 more expensive than 1600 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345

The 2133 stuff is $65 shipped, not $55.

 

[apopleptic]

$22 more expensive than 1600 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145345

there is a coupon code for 15% off so it's really only $12 or $13 more plus it somes with a 4GB microSD card which I can give to my sister since she only has a 2GB in her phone. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231456

but I'd be willing to substitute if you really dont think it's worth the difference.

My last system was running 800Mhz DDR2 so anything current should be a nice step up, but I probably won't be builing another system after this for quite a while.

I also noticed that there is a microcenter in Phildelphia which is only an hour and a half from here if you know any deals they have going on (I've never heard of them before two days ago on here).
Thanks!

 

[apopleptic]

Boo, the $30 instant discount on the SSD just expired.

 

[Knufire]

MC has their entire stock for every store online, just look and see, a lot of stuff is usually cheaper (CPUs are dead cheap).