I want to build a low power HTPC/ file server. I saw the Opteron 846 HE. Its low power 55w, and 2ghz. I heard that Opterons OC very nicely, so if I would need some occasional extra power I would have it. If I get 2 I could use a server board with 2 sockets.
I have a radin agp video card with tv tuner and I would like to use it.
Would this be a good Idea?

Hi there arthur. If your looking to build a low power HTPC/server, ThenI would recommend these parts. You dont need a dual processor system though, a dual core will suffice just fine. Im not sure what your requirements were, so i gave you a Blu-ray drive, and a Motherboard with the best integrated graphics card out there, which can handle Blu-ray and HD-DVD playback.

Newegg.com - LG Black 16X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 4X DVD+R DL 16X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 5X DVD-RAM DVD-ROM: 16X Blu-ray DVD-ROM: 6X HD DVD-ROM: 3X DVD-ROM 40X CD-R 24X CD-RW 4MB Cache SATA Blu-ray/HD DVD-ROM & 16X DVD±R DVD Burner - CD / DVD Burners

Newegg.com - Rosewill TU-155-P Black 0.8mm SGCC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Computer Cases

Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - Internal Hard Drives

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-MA78G-DS3H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards

Newegg.com - Antec earthwatts EA430 430W ATX12V v2.0 Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, CB, C-tick, CCC - Power Supplies
.
Newegg.com - OCZ Value Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Desktop Memory

Newegg.com - AMD Athlon X2 4850e 2.5GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor - CPUs / Processors

Newegg.com - Microsoft Windows Home Server 32 Bit 1 Pack - Server Software ---will be fine as long as you use only a single harddrive


This will be a good system to stream Movies and music from. (not that i know how to do that T.T lol) It can play HD movies, will have low power consumption and high efficiency, and perform well.

cgh cgh. That be a big one!

The cpu is alot! 45w is very nice but $85 is a lot. I was panning on the whole system being half of that XD.

For $40 I can get 2 cpu'f 2.4 each Pair of Opteron 850 HE 2.4GHz OSK850FAA5BM - eBay (item 160245754745 end time Jun-05-08 10:44:18 PDT)

Then for $26 a mobo
MSI K8T Master2-FAR Socket 940 Motherboard -MS-9130-020 - eBay (item 270242858052 end time Jun-09-08 09:40:24 PDT)

I have a ok agp card that I will reuse..

Then some 4gb ram $11
Four 1GB (4GB total) D266L ECC Registered RAM Modules - eBay (item 250254198688 end time Jun-07-08 11:40:15 PDT)

Total: about $70

Ok this is what im thinking about doing.
I have a 5000+BE in my pc. Recently I have been rarely using it, only playing games on friday and sunday. Then I oc it to 3.1 and play. Then for the rest of the week its off. My mom got a new laptop so I use her old one.
If I sell my 5000 for a good $80. I could get the 4850e. The reviews say it oc's to 3.1, so it will also work for my gaming.
But then I wont be able to use m extra agp card.
For that problem, I will sell my current pci 6600 fanless and my extra agp ati 8500, and add a bit a get something good.
Hows that?


EDIT:Ok Ive been looking into some mobos. The one you gave is perfect, but 3 1's in a row? suuu..... not sure of that..
There is the Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards but its microatx, and only has 2 pci ports. I would really like more.

EDIT:Never mind about the mobos, I read the other reviews and its is a good board!

lol.... im a litle confused... what are you planning on getting now lol. I Do not recommend an MSI board. I have had really bad personal experiences with them. Wont ever buy another MSI product. Gigabyte on the other hand ive had great experiences with. That microATX would be good for and HTPC. I just recommended the ATX board out of personal preference. And for $26... nuuu... lol never pay that little for a computer part from ebay. Get it from newegg where you have a Warranty.
EDIT> It should be plenty fast at 2.5 for gaming. When you speed it up, the power consumption will go up dramatically. Unfortunately that is how it is with those cherry picked low-power processors.

Forget about the opterons!

Im getting the 4850e and GIGABTE GA-MA78GM-S2H
I will use it as an htpc but also do some moderate gaming.
Now I have a question about the graphics.
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