[kingnubian]

After doing loads of reading, I decided to go ahead & build my first dedicated HTPC. I've been in Hardware/Software for a long time & find this HTPC phenomenon very enjoyable. It requires a differen approach to pc building and I wanted to build this for my personal use & as a proof of concept for perspective clients.

I haven't yet put in an optical drive. I'm thinking of waiting until Blu Ray Rom drives dip to around $100 CAD.

Parts List:

Intel E4300 C2D CPU (@2.5ghz Stock Cooling)
Asus P5L-MX Micro Atx Motherboard
2gig (2x1gig) Trancend PC2-6400 DDR2
Seagate 7200.11 500gig SATA2 Hard Drive
Inwin Mt. Jade (BK623) Micro Atx Case (300W PS)
Vista Home Premium 32bit

The case comes apart easily & mounting the motherboard & components really isn't that hard at all. One tip is to try & use SATA devices as their cable's are easier to route and don't disturb air flow, which is precious in such a small cae as this, much at all. I used the C2D E6xxx series cooler as it is larger & has a copper core as opposed to the slim 100% Aluminum coolers Intel ships with their lower end cpu's such as the E2xxx series.

Here the HIS HD3450 is clearly seen. The power supply/cpu orientation is reversed in this case as compared to a typical ATX setup which seems to aid pulling the hot air off the passive video card and expelling it through the case via the PS Fan.

The Inwin BK.623 was designed in cooperation with Intel to achieve a near fanless design with still good thermals. This, for better or worse, is built around the idea that the Intel Stock fan will be used. This inner bracket is designed for the stock fan only but can be removed to allow other Fan/Heatsink combos to be used but this does to some extent go against the original design. I have no problems whatsoever with heat & my setup. The stock fan is actually very quiet with the Asus Q-Fan enabled in the bios. In fact I can't hear it in the case unless putting my ear right next to the enclosure. Reviews I have read have found that the thermal qualities of this case design is pretty good overall.

Here is a pic with the optical drive cage in place. It rests right above the cpu bracket which at first seemd to be a cause for concern but was found after, by a friend who is running his setup with a DVDR installed, to be a non issue as the case design seems to have considered this in it's design.

The business end of the case showing the DVI/HDMI adapter & cable, wireless Trendnet USB adapter & usb connector for my ATI remote wonder. Note that this case takes a standart Micro ATX power supply & not a proprietary unit. This is great for future PS changes or upgrades if necessary. More to come for sure!

The finished Product.......but still a work in progress..................

Some pics with the unit in use both on my 32" Samsung LCD & the Ladie's 42" Panasonic Viera Plasma. The mountains seen are from aan amazing Samsung HD demo of Tahiti done in 1080p. BTW, my LCD will only do 1080i but it still looks stunning.

Plans:

As I integrate this system more permanently as a personal HTPC solution I will add probably a Blu Ray DVDrom drive for sure. Another thing I've been toying with is a future Case upgrade to an Antec Fusion 430 or one of the Omura cases with a more powerful video card swapped in since I do game, but now only on my workstation in another room.

All in all as it stands now this HTPC project has been & continues to be a big pleasure. I even have a close friend building one now and he is as hyped about it as I am.

As things change I'll keep posting any updates.

Comments?