About to take the plunge...!

[The_Brickster]

Hi,

I've been lurking around these forums quite a bit over the last few months and have finally got together a shopping list.

My requirements are to set up a Hybrid server to play 1080P files to my 46" TV, and also to be futureproof to cope with the latest technologies.

I was wondering whether anyone could cast their expert opinion on the set up and let me know if it looks as though it will work?

Case - SilverStone LC20B
PSU - 400W Silverstone SST-ST40EF+ super silent, 80%+ eFF' , v.1 ROHS
Motherboard - Abit AN-M2HD
CPU - AMD AM2 Athlon 64 X2 6000+ , Windsor Core, Dual Core 3.0GHz, 1MB Cache
Cooler - NORTHQ 3393
RAM - 2GB (2x1GB) Corsair TwinX XMS2 Pro, DDR2 PC2-6400 (800), 240 Pins, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 5-5-5-12
HDD - 80 GB Western Digital WD800AAJS Caviar SE, SATA 300, 7200 rpm, 8MB Cache, 9 ms
Bluetooth - DLink Bluetooth USB (1.1) Adapter (DBT-122)
Optical Drive - Lite-ON LH-20A1S-11C LiteOn 20x DVD±R, 8x DVD±DL, DVD+RW x8 / -RW x 6, DVD-RAM x12, SATA, Retail

Will the case need its own fan as well, or should the setup be cool enough?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[cirion]

I can say this at least... The Abit mainboard works out of the box in LMCE 0710.
I have 2 of those as diskless MD's and all I need to install them is my Fiire Chief remote. (no need for mous and keyboard).

One is connected to a 32" LCD over VGA in 720p and is using analog audio.
AC3 and DTS files still have analog sound.

One is connected to a 40" LCD over HDMI->DVI in 720p and is using the optical spdif to my receiver.
My receiver is reciving both AC3 and DTS sound over the optical cable.

Both are running 64bit and have a internal DVD player that works as well.
They have a Fiire Chief dongle for control.

I have no 1080p TV to test that, so I can not say if it works or not. But I did set up a Mythbuntu installation for a friend of mine using the same mainboard and it's connected to his 1080p TV with HDMI and both sound an d 1080p is working great. It should work just as well in LinuxMCE.

[totallymaxed]

Hi,

I've been lurking around these forums quite a bit over the last few months and have finally got together a shopping list.

My requirements are to set up a Hybrid server to play 1080P files to my 46" TV, and also to be futureproof to cope with the latest technologies.

I was wondering whether anyone could cast their expert opinion on the set up and let me know if it looks as though it will work?

Case - SilverStone LC20B
PSU - 400W Silverstone SST-ST40EF+ super silent, 80%+ eFF' , v.1 ROHS
Motherboard - Abit AN-M2HD
CPU - AMD AM2 Athlon 64 X2 6000+ , Windsor Core, Dual Core 3.0GHz, 1MB Cache
Cooler - NORTHQ 3393
RAM - 2GB (2x1GB) Corsair TwinX XMS2 Pro, DDR2 PC2-6400 (800), 240 Pins, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 5-5-5-12
HDD - 80 GB Western Digital WD800AAJS Caviar SE, SATA 300, 7200 rpm, 8MB Cache, 9 ms
Bluetooth - DLink Bluetooth USB (1.1) Adapter (DBT-122)
Optical Drive - Lite-ON LH-20A1S-11C LiteOn 20x DVD±R, 8x DVD±DL, DVD+RW x8 / -RW x 6, DVD-RAM x12, SATA, Retail

Will the case need its own fan as well, or should the setup be cool enough?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

All looks good to me... maybe a larger HD would be a good idea though ;-)

All the best

Andrew

[The_Brickster]

Cheers for the input! Think I'll get it ordered today then!

All looks good to me... maybe a larger HD would be a good idea though ;-)

Should have mentioned that I already have 1TB of NAS which should be sufficient for now ;-)

I have no 1080p TV to test that, so I can not say if it works or not. But I did set up a Mythbuntu installation for a friend of mine using the same mainboard and it's connected to his 1080p TV with HDMI and both sound an d 1080p is working great. It should work just as well in LinuxMCE.

I'll update you as to how well it works at producing a 1080P output when I get everything together, but at least it does sound as though it will work.

[Zaerc]

If heat worries you, then you might want to choose a CPU that uses less then 125W max.  Otherwise make sure you have plenty of airflow through that case.

[The_Brickster]

If heat worries you, then you might want to choose a CPU that uses less then 125W max.  Otherwise make sure you have plenty of airflow through that case.

Yeah that was an issue, will see if I can get some sort of silent fan for the case just to make sure. Cheers.

[The_Brickster]

Dave,

Thanks for that, I ended up ordering the SilenX 80mm fan to keep the case cool yesterday. Shame I didn't know about the Ninja coolers, they sound pretty awesome. I'll bear those in mind if I end up having issues with the NorthQ one I purchased.

Now just waiting for the parts to arrive...!

[tkmedia]

The Abit board works well, especially in latest version, as core/hybrid or diskless MD. Since hmdi audio is not currently supported , you will need to trim a spdif cable or a add a spdif riser to the internal connector, to get digital audio. ( hdmi connector very close to spdif).



Good luck

Drop by chat if you have problems.

Tim

[cirion]

Tim, does that not work when you have the HDMI plugged is, does it disable the onboard optical connector in that case.

The HDMI output does not disable Optical Out, but the connectors ar too close.
I just trimmed the HDMI cable a bit with a knife, works fine

[tkmedia]

Tim, does that not work when you have the HDMI plugged is, does it disable the onboard optical connector in that case.

The HDMI output does not disable Optical Out, but the connectors ar too close.
I just trimmed the HDMI cable a bit with a knife, works fine

Yup just trim the cable

[The_Brickster]

I think I had read somewhere else on the forums that I would be needing to trim one of the cables. I think the spdif cable was said to be best to trim as there was more excess plastic on that cable.

Thanks for the info Dave about using the RCA jack, however trimming seems to be the best option for someone like me who has only used a soldering iron to make solder balls whilst at school...!