Legit Reviews

Greetings everyone,

After a long time of not building computers (quit gaming years ago) I'm in the need of building a good computer with a limited budget of $250 to $300 - depending on what I can sell and what stuff goes for.

My plans are to build a MythTV box that will be able to record Standard Definition (SD) using the PVR-150 card - with hopes of expanding another PVR-150 card in it as money is saved. In the future, I'd like to expand it to use a High Definition (HD) card, but that card is not determine what it would be at this time. Therefore I'd like to build a computer that would be able to handle the HD in the future so I don't have to spend more money on building another computer just for it.

Items I need:
1) MOBO - prefer something that has 3 PCI slots - I guess MOBO's don't have much pass this anymore and I'm at a bit of loss of the reason...
2) CPU of course - something that is low in power consumption - I'd like to avoid lots of heat if possible...plus less noise since this box will be located in the family room
3) Case with Power supply - what kind of case is needed? Seems like in my looking at CPUs/MOBO's I've seen an additional little power plug that goes into the MOBO - what is that?
4) Memory - I'd prefer at least 1 gig - expandable to ???

As for video - I've got an AGP card coming from E-bay - one that is recommended for MythTV - however, would it work for the recommended MOBO? (Nivida FX5200)

As for hard drive - I'm going to use an old IDE 80 gig hard drive after I free it up - I'd like to get a bigger drive, but 80 gig should do for now...

Thanks, Michael

Mobo: 780G - Brand does not really matter, some don't have HDMI though.
CPU: AMD X2 - Any model will get the job done!
Case/PSU: Find a case you like with a decent PSU included.
Memory: 2x 1GB - Cheapest kit you can find will do just fine.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813135075
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103243
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case
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820145098
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177.97 + Case/PSU + taxes + shipping - 10$ MIR

The AMD 780G might be an excellent choice for Windows. For Linux, though, not so much - at least not at this moment.

It's kinda hard to find a new board that still has an AGP slot. Better to just get a board with integrated graphics. It'll probably be better than the FX5200 you bought on eBay, too. NVIDIA driver support in Linux is pretty good so I would suggest going with an NVIDIA chipset. PCI slots are kinda rare now because they're being replaced by PCIe. TV Tuners are going the way of PCIe, too. For your budget, I would suggest making do with a board that only has 2 PCI slots. If you want additional tuners for HD, the HD Homerun works pretty well with Myth.

w/2 PCI, integrated gfx
Mobo: NVIDIA 6100/7025/7050/7050PV chipset - $40 ~ $85
CPU: Athlon X2 BE-2350 45W - $90
RAM: Kingston ValueRAM DDR2 800 2x512MB - $25
Total: $155 ~ $200 w/o case

I've seen the ECS 7050PV + Athlon X2 BE-2350 combo on Fry's for $70. Pretty good deal, I'd say. You just have to be religious in checking out the ads. With the funds saved, you can get either more RAM, a nicer case, better CPU cooler (for silent, passive cooling) or save the money for upgrades for when you go HD. If you don't want to wait for Fry's specials, you can save money by replacing the suggested processor with a regular Athlon 64 X2 65W model with Brisbane core. It's just 'coz you mentioned low power consumption that I suggested the more expensive BE-series.

w/3 PCI, discrete gfx
Mobo: Abit IP35-E - $90 ($60 after rebate)
CPU: Pentium Dual-Core E2160 65W - $70
RAM: Kingston ValueRAM DDR2 800 2x512MB - $25
Gfx Card: MSI 7300LE 128MB - $30 ($20 after rebate)
Total: $215 w/o case ($175 after rebate)

No case is included because I have no idea what type of case/form factor you want. Because you need to use the PVR-150, be sure to select a case that can fit full-size add-on cards. As for power supply, most new ones should have the necessary connections already. A good quality, high efficiency 300W PSU should be enough. Several Antec cases come with Antec Earthwatts PSUs. Those are worth a look. Check the eXtreme Power Supply Calculator to better estimate the wattage your system needs.

Another motherboard that would be worth looking at is the upcoming NVIDIA 8200. Drivers for Linux might be kinda delayed, though.