HTPC Mini-ITX build

Hi guys.. been meaning to post this up for a while.



Basically i ran into problems with Channel ONE going to HD.

I had a three year old server i'd setup with mce 2005 (winxp media centre) which if you look around is a major pain to get HD working with Digital TV. And to top it off i'd done the software raid 5 hack so my 6x 1tb hdd's couldn't be migrated to windows 7 without moving stuff around onto other hdd's.

So i bit the bullet and pulled out the Credit card and built this:

CPU second gen Intel i3 3.2Ghz
Mobo GigaByte H67N-USB3-B3 (recently reviewed) (and an impulse buy)
Ram 4gb (2x2gb) Kingmax something generic
HDD 4x 2TB WD Greens
SSD 30gb OCZ (old!) connected via esata port on back panel

TV is provided via a USB Avermedia Twinstar.

With my setup this motherboard ticked all the boxes. 4x SATA plus ESATA, Coax digital sound for the logitech 5500d (optical for ps3). And hdmi out for video.

Also another gain. Old server used 160watts idle. the i3 setup uses 30 watts idle, 70 watts max. So a big power saving.

anyways all pics are here https://picasaweb.google.com/116300640331973570284/ServerHTPCBuild

 

That's neat!

 

thats pretty sweet nice work. got some more pics of it? maby some back a little showing the whole thing?

 

Also the case is a Lubic Aerocool i bought over 8 years ago.

and the power supply is from a Aopen 360c Case i think. I've shortened all the cables and sleaved as much as possible. ruined the motherboard power sleaving on a soldering iron but you didn't notice till i pointed that out?. I've also painted the powersupply casing with chrome auto paint to cover up the aging rusting look they get. and placed led lights inside.

Every panel on the case is custom cut perspex. i've since made a 1cm x 5cm hole in the front of the case for a little airflow.

HDD's sit at 32 degrees on a hot day.

Cpu gets upto maybe 40 degrees on a hot day.

 

These photos are from April btw. maybe nexttime i shut her down i'll take some more pics

 

what is psu and why massive

 

I wish I could still buy the Lubic Aerocool stuff, very handy when updating ancient industrial hardware that has some odd ball box and custom components that aren't compatible with anything else.

 

Wooo made the front page

psu is from an aopen 360 micro atx case. Painted silver to cover rust.
The reason it might look big:
The motherboard is small 17x17cm
And power wise finding a 100 watt power supply is hard. I really do hate these double size 1200watt and up psu's.

Computers were meant to get smaller ppl

 

that looks neat, i made itx box with similar setup on silverstone sg05 early this year but couldnt stand it due to flimsy case. only kept it for few days i think..

 

Nice little unit there.
Do you have it covered, or open like that all the time?
If so, do you get much dust at all?

 

You can find pico-PSU's that use an external power pack, they use next to no space inside the case and can be found up to 150W.

 

its only open at the back where i've made cutouts for the fans and psu. every side has perspex cut to size in the slots. clear plastic. but dust is still a problem as you can see it very quickly

 

sweeet.. more research and more room for harddrives

 

http://www.mini-box.com.au/picoPSU-120 8_5A Adapter Power Kit.html
damnit outta stock

 

Just email them, they were very prompt when I had some questions.