[mythtv-users] New System - Looking for Feedback

[Mark Knecht]

On Tue, Feb 9, 2010 at 3:21 PM, Brian Fischer <brianafischer at gmail.com> wrote:
> I just built a new system and wanted to open up some discussion.  I did a
> lot of research, and think that this system would be great for others
> looking to build a new system.  Just wanted to get some feedback from the
> community.
>
>
> Use case:
>
> MythBuntu as the main OS and running Windows XP in VMware.
>
> System:
> GIGABYTE GA-770TA-UD3 AM3 AMD 770 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard -
> Retail
>
> 4 PCI Ports for legacy PVR cards.  On-Board Fire Wire for cable box
> control.  Future Compatability for USB 3.0 and SATA 3.0
>
> AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0GHz Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor Model
> HDX945WFGIBOX - Retail
> Plan to do video editing on this system and lots of transcoding HDTV
> recordings to H.264, thus the Quad Core.
> Still have to do some research on multi-threaded transcoding...
>
> A-DATA Gaming Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
> Desktop Memory Model AX3U1600GB2G9-AG - Retail
> Lots of RAM for virtual machine.
>
> MSI N210-MD512H GeForce 210 512MB 64-bit DDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready
> Low Profile Ready Video Card - Retail
> Cheap fanless GT 210 card for half of the price of a 220.  Have not heard
> good review on 210 but no fanless 220 found on newegg and 220 w/fans are
> twice the price.  Next bump was $90 for a GTS 240.  Will upgrade to a GTS
> 220 fanless when they are cheaper.  However, this review is pretty damning
> of the 210:
> http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/gf-210-gt220_7.html
> Anyone have feedback on this review?
>
> Rosewill R5605-BK 0.8mm Japanese Cold Rolled Steel Front Mesh Design Dual
> 120mm Fans ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
> Rosewill Green Series RG630-S12 630W Continuous @40°C,80 PLUS Certified,
> Single 12V Rail, Active PFC "Compatible with Core i7,i5" Power Supply -
> Retail
>
> System Cost = $450
>
> -Brian
>

Apples to Oranges because I'm interested in audio and not video but I
just built a new desktop system for my home recording studio where I
was contentious about power consumption. I decided to us the Intel
DH55HC MB and the newest Core i5-661 which has a lot of the VGA built
into the processor. The Core i5-661 has a maximum power profile of 82W
running full out. (According to Intel.) The machine has 4GB of Crucial
gaming DRAM, 2 hard drives (350GB/7200/Black and 500GB/5400/Green) as
well as 3 sound cards and an additional NIC. I used an Antec
EarthWatts 500W supply.

My Kill-a-Watt says it draws about 52 W sitting idle with XFCE up on
two monitors. (Monitor power consumption not included but the VGA is
driving both monitors.)

These new Green supplies are doing a good job of reducing how much
they draw from the wall when the machine doesn't require it. I
probably could have gotten away with a 200W supply.

Cheers,
Mark