Like many others who tend to post here, I am looking to build my first HTPC. I have read a lot of the other posts and look at others setups.
This is what I have:
Two intel X5450 3.0ghz 12mb cache 1333 Bus speed
8x FBDIMS DDR2 667hz (pc52 or 5300? I can't remember)
5X 750GB Hard Drives Sata 7200
3x 500GB Hard Drives Sata 7200
1x 1 TB Hard drive
I need a Mobo (hardest part), and a graphics card. The case and the power supply will be chosen after the two.
I want to be able to play 1080p at the least, though most of the videos I have archived are only 720p.
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I know right off the bat two quad-core processors is over kill and will give little to no performance gain.
667mhz of ram is a slow ram speed, and I think it being FB gives it more overhead too..
However I would like to install ESXi on the box and port the graphics card hardware two the VM if possible. If not, I want to be able to duel boot at least.
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As for the hard drives: I want to implement a raid 6 or raid 10 type, I haven't decided yet, but I would like to have hot swappable drives with status lights that way I know if one fails. I would prefer it to be part of the case but haven't seen any economical options, so I am looking for some sort of external enclosure.
I want to use my CPUs since I have them should I ditch the RAM?
What graphics configuration should I look at? Would a GTX be complete overkill, or is it justified? (GTX560?)
__
Otherwise, id the 771 socket is to complex, should I just buy a Dell poweredge 2950 chassis, stick the hardware in there and sell it to a local buisness while the technology is still good and use the money to build a super cheap compact HTPC and pocket the cash? a chassis would be about 200$ versus the money I would have to spend to use what I have...
This is what I have:
Two intel X5450 3.0ghz 12mb cache 1333 Bus speed
8x FBDIMS DDR2 667hz (pc52 or 5300? I can't remember)
5X 750GB Hard Drives Sata 7200
3x 500GB Hard Drives Sata 7200
1x 1 TB Hard drive
I need a Mobo (hardest part), and a graphics card. The case and the power supply will be chosen after the two.
I want to be able to play 1080p at the least, though most of the videos I have archived are only 720p.
---
I know right off the bat two quad-core processors is over kill and will give little to no performance gain.
667mhz of ram is a slow ram speed, and I think it being FB gives it more overhead too..
However I would like to install ESXi on the box and port the graphics card hardware two the VM if possible. If not, I want to be able to duel boot at least.
---
As for the hard drives: I want to implement a raid 6 or raid 10 type, I haven't decided yet, but I would like to have hot swappable drives with status lights that way I know if one fails. I would prefer it to be part of the case but haven't seen any economical options, so I am looking for some sort of external enclosure.
I want to use my CPUs since I have them should I ditch the RAM?
What graphics configuration should I look at? Would a GTX be complete overkill, or is it justified? (GTX560?)
__
Otherwise, id the 771 socket is to complex, should I just buy a Dell poweredge 2950 chassis, stick the hardware in there and sell it to a local buisness while the technology is still good and use the money to build a super cheap compact HTPC and pocket the cash? a chassis would be about 200$ versus the money I would have to spend to use what I have...