In the last couple of weeks, I have spent time to build my own PC.
Requirements
1. Silent or Near-Silent
I plan to use this PC as my entertainment center connected to my TV and use it as DVR which means it will be sitting in my living room and probably like <10 feet from my couch….SO IT HAS TO BE AS SILENT AS POSSIBLE!
2. Low Power Consumption
Running it as DVR also mean it will be running 24×7 (unless I have a way to put it to sleep in the middle of the nite :>). So low power consumption is important to me. <$5/month will be acceptable :>
3. Small Footprint
Who doesn’t want a powerful server hide inside a computer as small as an gadget? I want something smaller than Micro-ATX.
4. Pretty on the outside
I don’t know about you. But I just hate those Computer Case Mods in the market. I still don’t understand why people will like to put a glass over the case and show people how messy the inside of their computer is. And even worse they will put LEDs inside to force people to see it even when the lights turn off! :<
Here is my Shopping List
- AMD Athlon X2 BE-2350 Brisbane 2.1GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor
- BIOSTAR TF7025-M2 AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 7025 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
- Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
- Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
- picoPSU-120, 120w output, 12v input DC-DC Power Supply with Power Kit
- NOCTUA NF-S12-800 120mm Silent Fan
- NEXUS REAL SILENT CASE FAN DF1209SL-3 – 92mm Fan
- Zalman FAN MATE 2 – Fan Speed Controller
- WinTV-PVR-150 MCE TV Tuner
- Remote Control & Receiver for Media Center PC
- Remote Keyboard for Media Center PC
- Windows Vista Media Center
- Costco’s Kirkland Organic Milk :>
- Local Art & Craft store for paper, foam board, magnets etc…
Parts
| CPU | AMD Dual-Core 64-bits BE-2350 45W!!!This CPU is not good for Overclock however. |
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| MotherBoard | BioStar with on- board Nvidia 7025 |  |
| Memory | G.Skill DDR2 800 (2×1GB) |  |
| Hard Drive | WD3200AAKS 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3Gb/S |
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| PSU | Fanless 120Watt Power Supply |
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| Fan 120mm | Silent FanOne of the Best |   |
| Fan 92mm | Silent FanOne of the Best |  |
| Fan Filter |  |
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| Fan Speed Controller | To further lower the noise! |  |
| Case | Milk Box |  |
| Remote Control | Media Center Remote & Receiver |   |
| Remote Keyboard | Media Center Keyboard |  |
| TV Tuner | The Best |  |
| OS | Vista Ultimate & Vista Media Center |
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