Building a new gaming pc for my living room

[thedemon1366]

Like an idiot I posted in the wrong section so this thread is a port to the correct section.

[Originally posted elsewhere but I have removed the link. ~Trotter]

But I will copy and paste the main parts over:



I am a little out of the loop with most components as the last time I had a PC built was 2006 so a lot has changed since then.

Here is my idea for what my Gaming HTPC hybrid should be able to do:


1)Running Ubuntu mainly (but will also be installing windows)
2)Plays 1080p (obviously)
3)Plays Blu-Ray discs (maybe burn them)
4)Stream media
5)Possibly use for encoding
6)Quiet when not doing demanding tasks such as running games, quiet running during tv/movie playback really is a must
7)Use for gaming (ie Skyrim)
8)I have a 5.1 sound system and ideally I would like it connected straight to the PC (preferably using optical out)
9)Use as a server (so my laptop does not have to be on all the time), will have my external hdd case (with 2x2tb SPANNED hdds in) connected.
10)Remote Control use (may be a problem using ubuntu....)
11)Be able to watch TV shows (so will include a tuner card)
12) Low power usage when not doing demanding things (as I think the pc will be on most, if not all, of the time.



Decided components (this section can very easily be changed and most likely will be changed)

Motherboard:
Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 Motherboard (Socket 1155, ATX, DDR3, USB 3.0, HDMI, Bluetooth Module)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Asus-P8Z68-V...pr_product_top

Processor:
Intel Core i7-2700K 3.5 GHz Quad Core Processor (Socket 1155, 8MB L3 Cache, HyperThreading Technology, Retail)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-i7-270...2072281&sr=1-1

RAM
Corsair CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9 8GB 1600MHz CL9 DDR3 Vengeance Memory Two Module Kit
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMZ8...omputers_img_c

Case
Lian Li PC-C32B Black HTPC Case
Lian Li PC C60 Chassis Review | KitGuru


Really unsure about this
GPU:
Asus GeForce GTX 570 ENGTX570 DCII/2DIS/1280MD5
Kustom PCs Asus GeForce GTX 570 ENGTX570 DCII/2DIS/1280MD5

Really unsure about this
PSU:
BeQuiet Pure Power L8 730W Power Supply BN183
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/730w-...-quiet-fan-atx
OR
OCZ-ZT750W-UK - 750W OCZ ZT Series Fully Modular PSU 80+ Bronze Certified ~85% Efficiency 140mm Fan 5 Year Warranty
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/750w-...-year-warranty

After that I am a little hazy on what components would be ideally suited for my task.
I believe the rest of my shopping list is:

GPU
RAM
PSU
HT Case
Blu-ray Drive
Sound Card (is this necessary?)
Wireless keyboard and mouse
Remote Control



As the onboard graphics are decent I think I may hold off on buying the graphics card until a later date.

Any equipment I have already listed is very open to suggestions and changes.

Thanks



Update:

After some research I have found that my options are limited due to the Lian Li case only accomodating GPU cards of 270mm or less, so to find a small, quiet, cool, reliable card is tricky, however this seems to be quite good:


Gainward GeForce GTX 580 "GOOD Edition" 1536MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=GX-141-GW

Review:
http://www.tweaktown.com/pressreleas...ver/index.html

Does anyone have experience with this card and if so, would it be a good choice?

The card is 267mm as stated here:
Products :: Gainward GeForce® GTX 580 1536MB GDDR5

Do you think 267mm is too close to 270mm?

 

[jasonalwaysready]

what is your budget?

you wont need a processor that powerful, try an i5-2500k
you probably wont need that many features in the motherboard
don't pay more than a few pounds more for ram of the same quality
in general stick with antec, corsair, and seasonic for psu and you wont need one more than 750 watts, probably 650 watts will be more than enough.

for a htpc, you will probably want a soundcard

unless you love the case, or it has to fit in a certain location in a certain way, you will limit your components inside of it as you discovered.

can you use bluray on ubuntu? will you be using xbmc?

 

[thedemon1366]

Thanks for the info, I have actually picked out a selection of components, made some changes here are there...

CPU
Processor (i5 2500k)
Intel CPU Core i5 Unlocked 2500K Sandy Bridge Quad Core Processor - BX80623I52500K - Scan.co.uk

Motherboard
Asus P8Z68 Gen 3
Asus P8Z68-V/GEN3 Intel Z68 Socket 1155 Motherboard - Scan.co.uk

TV Card
Peak PCI DVB-T
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Peak-DVB-T-...ording/dp/B0018D8J60/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

SSD OCZ Agility 3
OCZ Agility 3 120GB SSD - Solid State Drive - Best Selling! - AGT3-25SAT3-120G - Scan.co.uk

Case Lian Li C60B
Lian-Li PC-C60B Black HTPC Case - Scan.co.uk

PSU
Corsair 600w PSU
Corsair CMPSU-600CXV2UK Builder Series 600W Power Supply (PSU) - Scan.co.uk

Ram Corsair Vengeance DDR3
Corsair Memory Vengeance Blue 8GB DDR3 1600 MHz CAS 9 XMP Dual Channel Desktop - CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B - Scan.co.uk

Blu Ray Drive
LG 10x BD Writer
LG BH10LS38 Blu-ray Writer - OEM with Software - BH10LS38.AUAU - Scan.co.uk

CPU Cooler
Scythe Shuriken CPU Cooler
Scythe Shuriken CPU Cooler Rev.B - SCSK-1100 - Scan.co.uk

Keyboard
Razer Arctosa Black Edition
Razer Arctosa Black Edition Programmable Gaming Keyboard with Hyperesponse - RZ03-00261100-R3W1 - Scan.co.uk

GPU and Sound card added later, what do you think?


I still have a few worries about the PSU and the TV Tuner.
I am happy to just get freeview (with HD channels) so should this suffice?
Will the PSU be powerful enough?

The case really needs to be a HTPC case so it can fit on my shelf under my TV, it just seems to make picking a GPU a bit awkward.

Do you think everything will fit in there?

 

[thegeekfiles]

One of the nice things about running Linux is that you don't need such a powerful processor - so like suggested you can save a little cash there and could maybe put towards increasing in other areas?

 

[Talyor]

If your thinking about getting the gtx 580 i would just get the GTX Kepler 680 :0