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After my almost 2 year old managed to get ahold of one of my DVDs that isn't being produced anymore (hadn't bothered them before), I've decided that I should start getting the process started to convert my DVD collection to being all-digital vs on disc. Eventually, the plan is to build a home NAS to store every DVD/CD I have, but I want to get the HTPC built first and put some of the more commonly watched movies on it.

Anyone here built a HTPC before?

I'm looking to have a relatively quiet system but not too expensive at the same time. I'll mostly be playing DVDs, watching TV (eventually getting DirecTV back), or streaming Netflix on this system (I have a desktop that is my gaming/main work pc). I currently have a 26" LCD (w/HDMI) that will eventually be upgraded to a 40"+ (depending on price). I already have a 7.1 speaker system to hook up to this (currently hooked up to my desktop).

So here is what I have so far - I looked at Amazon, NewEgg, and Buy.com for the parts, so I'll list what is currently the lowest price and through who:

CPU Fan:
Scythe Big Shuriken SCBSK-1000 - $37.99 (total height 64mm)

Graphics:
ASUS Silent GeForce GT 240 1GB - $94.99

HTPC Case LED:
nMEDIAPC PRO-LCD Black Media Center Programmable LCD - $29.99

HTPC Case:
nMEDIAPC HTPC 5000B - $69.99

Memory:
A-DATA 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM G Series - $104.99

Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-MA785GM-US2H AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX - $79.99

Operating System:
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) - $99.99

Optical Drive:
LITE-ON Black 4X BD-ROM - $59.99

Power Supply:
COOLER MASTER Silent Pro 600W - $69.99

Processor:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb - $159.99

Storage Data:
Western Digital AV-GP 2 TB - $159.99

Storage OS:
Western Digital AV-GP 250GB - $44.99

TV Tuner:
AVerMedia AVerTV Combo G2 - $103.99

Total price: $1,116.87

I'm sure I'm probably going well over what I need right now, but I also like to build once, not have to upgrade for a while either, so spending a little more now to not have to worry later is good (hence the Blue-Ray - even though I don't currently own any Blue-Ray DVDs). The AV-GP drives are rated specifically for multimedia, hence the choice for them.

I do know that I currently don't have anything better than the stock CPU fan - which probably won't be the best for quietness/cooling - recommendations?

I am not going to be doing this build for a few months (getting caught up from getting laid off late last year), so no rush on ordering right now.

I'm also thinking about MythTV (probably Mythbuntu) instead of Windows, but I've not really done much with Linux other than LiveCDs, so I'm not sure if the above config would work in Linux (I have seen that Blue-Ray may or may not be supported). ** Update ** This won't happen due to not being able to stream Netflix on Linux at the moment.

Nice Case. I am always disappointed that the major PC companies do not make HTPC's in cases like that one. I hate trying to imagine how I am going to stand a freaking tower on a stereo rack.

Yeah - I looked through the HTPC cases at NewEgg - wanted to go full aluminum for lighter weight, but the really nice ones were $300+ and I don't want to spend that much on a case for it.

They do have quite a few HTPC cases out there - http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=690&name=HTPC-Media-Center-Cases

I have a monster of an HTPC that I have constantly worked on, upgraded, tweaked etc for years. I have my entire CD and DVD collection on it and use it exclusively for tv watching, DVDs and Bluray, netflix streaming etc. A few things to consider when you are building one:

1) It will never be finished.
You might think it will be, but it will constantly be in a state of 99%. There will always be some new idea you have, some tweak you want, some upgrade for just a touch better performance.

2) If you spouse complains at first, let her. And then once she gets used to it, don't ever let it break or you might as well get used to the couch. Once you've lived with it, tweaked it the way you want, no one will be happy without it.

gonna stop numbering) Linux support for the Hauppage analog side on those dual tuner cards is a dead project and the original author has said flat out that he will not even revisit it. I'm not sure if yours falls under that category or not but if it does then Mythbuntu (or any linux based pvr software) is going to be a no go for you. I recommend GBpvr. It's free, works well on Win 7, good community and Sub (the programmer) is right on top of things. I actually like myth better than gbpvr, but if the tunners don't work then there's no point.

Also,to my knowledge and testing, netflix won't stream to Linux, no way no how. I have not yet found a way around that one.

-edit- Can't believe I forgot this part:

If you want quiet you should be looking at an Intel processor. As much as I love AMD and will only run AMD on my work/gaming rigs. Intel has always run cooler and therefore have quieter fans. Most fans will have a decibel level printed on their packaging, I don't know how common it is for that information to be given when shopping online as I prefer to have things like that in my hand to compare them.

Consider getting yourself an all in one remote. I use the Logitech Harmony 700 and am very happy with it. Fairly easy set up and customization, one button turns everything on or off, no more fumbling around for 4 different remotes and such. Ease of use will make life easier for everyone (you especially since the major grief you might get from others is "How the hell do I work this thing?").

The bluray drive you are looking at comes with a software player by Cyberlink PowerDVD that will play your movie, but out of the box it will not do dolby surround (or let you change the audio stream at all) so they will try and lock you into upgrading or buying their full version software (or obtaining by *ahem* other means.) Lets just say I was pissed off to no end when I purchased this with the expectation of being able to watch my blurays with the included software but they tried to lock me into buying more. This is one time I definitely pursued other options to get my functionality.

Definitely check is that all your component pieces are HDCP compliant. I didn't look for you, but if they aren't then any HDMI, Hidef playback will be stunted or not work at all dependent upon manufacturer of the media you are trying to play.

Three TB is probably a little exessive (but that depends on how many DVDs and such you have and how you go about getting them onto your hard drive. If you go with full quality full disk images and have a large collection then you may very well need all that space. I have about 110 DVDs ripped to my drives (with about 30 more that I still own and need to rip) and with just the movie, no dvd extras it's taken about 500 gigs of space. Thats at full quality if the movie is under 4 gigs of space or whatever compression I need to keep it at the four gig mark for the image file. Hard to explain. I have not ripped any of my blurays to the HDD because an average bluray movie is around 30-40gigs worth of space.

I know that I had more I was going to say but I've lost it in all this other stuff. If I think of it I'll pop back in here.

As for what I'm running:

Intel i5 750@2.67 GHz
4 gigs of DDR3
EVGA P55 mainboard
2 1tb sata drives (forget the brand)
1 sata Bluray drive (only play, no write)
1 sata DVD/CD combo burner
Hauppague HVR-2250 with dual ATSC encoder and Analog capture
Hauppague HVR-1800 with ATSC, NTSC for analog and FM radio. In theory that gives me two analog and two ATSC tuners to use at the same time. In practice the write speed to my HDDs will only allow me to do some combination of three. I've never used the FM capture but I like that it's there should I want it.

All this is hooked up to a 42" plasma via hdmi and using the optical sound out of the board to my Yamaha HTR-5960. For speakers I'm running four Polk Monitor 50, CS1 Center, and a Cerwin Vega sub (Cerwin Vega does awesome bass).

Thread Necromancer said:

I have a monster of an HTPC that I have constantly worked on, upgraded, tweaked etc for years. I have my entire CD and DVD collection on it and use it exclusively for tv watching, DVDs and Bluray, netflix streaming etc. A few things to consider when you are building one:

1) It will never be finished.
You might think it will be, but it will constantly be in a state of 99%. There will always be some new idea you have, some tweak you want, some upgrade for just a touch better performance.

2) If you spouse complains at first, let her. And then once she gets used to it, don't ever let it break or you might as well get used to the couch. Once you've lived with it, tweaked it the way you want, no one will be happy without it.

Click to expand...

I work on computers for a living - it'll always and forever be in 95-99% as technology progresses.

Thread Necromancer said:

gonna stop numbering) Linux support for the Hauppage analog side on those dual tuner cards is a dead project and the original author has said flat out that he will not even revisit it. I'm not sure if yours falls under that category or not but if it does then Mythbuntu (or any linux based pvr software) is going to be a no go for you. I recommend GBpvr. It's free, works well on Win 7, good community and Sub (the programmer) is right on top of things. I actually like myth better than gbpvr, but if the tunners don't work then there's no point.

Also,to my knowledge and testing, netflix won't stream to Linux, no way no how. I have not yet found a way around that one.

Click to expand...

MythTV is mostly an afterthought right now - I'm a 99% Windows guy (even at work) so I knew it was out there and seems good, but with those limitations (esp. no Netflix right now) that kinda ends that thought right now.

Thread Necromancer said:

-edit- Can't believe I forgot this part:

If you want quiet you should be looking at an Intel processor. As much as I love AMD and will only run AMD on my work/gaming rigs. Intel has always run cooler and therefore have quieter fans. Most fans will have a decibel level printed on their packaging, I don't know how common it is for that information to be given when shopping online as I prefer to have things like that in my hand to compare them.

Click to expand...

Intel's price point is a bit higher than I would like, so I was thinking of staying with AMD and just get a silent/near silent fan to go on top.

Thread Necromancer said:

Consider getting yourself an all in one remote. I use the Logitech Harmony 700 and am very happy with it. Fairly easy set up and customization, one button turns everything on or off, no more fumbling around for 4 different remotes and such. Ease of use will make life easier for everyone (you especially since the major grief you might get from others is \\"How the hell do I work this thing?\\").

Click to expand...

That's in the plan - this is just the hardware for the player - not the overall system.

Thread Necromancer said:

The bluray drive you are looking at comes with a software player by Cyberlink PowerDVD that will play your movie, but out of the box it will not do dolby surround (or let you change the audio stream at all) so they will try and lock you into upgrading or buying their full version software (or obtaining by *ahem* other means.) Lets just say I was pissed off to no end when I purchased this with the expectation of being able to watch my blurays with the included software but they tried to lock me into buying more. This is one time I definitely pursued other options to get my functionality.

Click to expand...

I hate that BS that they do with that. I do typically run VLC for playing my movies now, but depending on the "media center" software I run (thanks for the link to GBPVR, btw - will look into it), I may see what can happen there.

Thread Necromancer said:

Definitely check is that all your component pieces are HDCP compliant. I didn't look for you, but if they aren't then any HDMI, Hidef playback will be stunted or not work at all dependent upon manufacturer of the media you are trying to play.

Three TB is probably a little exessive (but that depends on how many DVDs and such you have and how you go about getting them onto your hard drive. If you go with full quality full disk images and have a large collection then you may very well need all that space. I have about 110 DVDs ripped to my drives (with about 30 more that I still own and need to rip) and with just the movie, no dvd extras it's taken about 500 gigs of space. Thats at full quality if the movie is under 4 gigs of space or whatever compression I need to keep it at the four gig mark for the image file. Hard to explain. I have not ripped any of my blurays to the HDD because an average bluray movie is around 30-40gigs worth of space.

Click to expand...

I realize that 3TB is excessive, but I was also thinking of setting it up in a RAID5 array, so I'd only have 2TB. Though I don't know if Home Premium would support RAID, so I may have to bump that up.

ncts_dodge_man said:

Intel's price point is a bit higher than I would like, so I was thinking of staying with AMD and just get a silent/near silent fan to go on top.

Click to expand...

My experience has been that quieter fans generally require more space and generally just will not fit in the media center cases. Larger heat sinks and fan area push more air without as much speed and have quieter operation, but require a lot more space. With the case I use (Mozart MediaLab) being a full two inches more shallow than my desktop rig most fans just won't fit in it. The height on the case you are looking at is about the same, possibly even more. (I didn't crack my media box case to measure clearance after the mainboard and such are in place, just outside dimensions)
That'll be at least something else you'll want to consider though, fan size measurement.

Forgot to talk about your graphics card requirement. Because you have HDMI out on the mainboard you are looking at you don't technically need the graphics card, no. But it's just the same as comparing built on graphics to dedicated video cards all over again. The onboard will have to share system memory where a video card will have it's own dedicated amongst all the other debate over which graphics card is better. I would compare some reviews for the graphics chip built onto your mainboard vs the card you are looking at, but generally speaking I find it to be a rare case when the onboard graphics are better than a dedicated card.

Here's the list of important questions.

-Do you ever intend on using this system for anything other than HTPC (gaming, NAS box, router or something)?
-Do you want your sound via HDMI, or is analog/add-on sound going to be good enough for you?
-Do you want to store your videos in the HTPC, or somewhere else (NAS)*?
-How much ventilation/space will it have available to it? What size space is it going into?
-How long will it tend to be left running?

I might think of more questions later, but this'll be a good start.

--Patrick

*Yes, I know you said you eventually want to move everything to networked storage, but how much room do you figure you'll need right away?

Ok - I've updated my build - see above.

---------- Post added at 12:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:59 AM ----------

PatrThom said:

Here's the list of important questions.

-Do you ever intend on using this system for anything other than HTPC (gaming, NAS box, router or something)?
-Do you want your sound via HDMI, or is analog/add-on sound going to be good enough for you?
-Do you want to store your videos in the HTPC, or somewhere else (NAS)*?
-How much ventilation/space will it have available to it? What size space is it going into?
-How long will it tend to be left running?

I might think of more questions later, but this'll be a good start.

--Patrick

*Yes, I know you said you eventually want to move everything to networked storage, but how much room do you figure you'll need right away?

Click to expand...

1) Probably won't use it for anything but a HTPC, but will record shows off of TV.

2) Sound via HDMI really doesn't matter to me at the moment.

3) For right now, I'll be storing the stuff in the HTPC - building a home NAS later - I've reworked my design to only have 1 HD for storage right now - should be more than enough for all of my movies and audio.

4) Right now I don't have an entertainment center - everything's sitting on an open TV stand I built - the old entertainment center I had was for a CRT tv that I no longer have. When I get a new one - it'll be fairly open so there shouldn't be much ventilation issues and I'll get one with an area large enough for it to be in.

5) It'll probably be on most of the time to DVR TV - unless the software I use to DVR will automatically wake itself up.

Here's why I ask:
1) Depending on whether you wanted to game, make a router, anything else, you'd have other needs such as power for multiple graphics cards, extra slots for other NICs, etc. If you are only going to use it as an HTPC, you might consider the Silverstone Nightjar 450W PSU, which makes absolutely no noise during use. This should be enough power to drive an HTPC even though it might not be enough to drive an ATI 5780 video card or something else that power-hungry.
2) Right now, ATI is the only vendor really reliably making audio via HDMI a reality. If this doesn't matter, then you are not limited to only ATI video cards.
3) More than one HDD would probably be too much heat to easily dissipate. Eventually, it might be a good idea to put in some sort of small solid state drive (32GB would be plenty and isn't that expensive) for the OS and just load everything else from the network. You would even be able to get away with a slower, cheaper SSD since boot-up time wouldn't matter, just reliability and price.
4) The amount of ventilation means overheating shouldn't be a concern since there sounds like there will be plenty of breathing room, even with the silent PSU.
5) You're going to want to use some sort of power management in order to keep things at a low-power status. Right now, that means Intel CPUs, since they run the coolest (with some exceptions, see below).

Looking over your choices now...ok. I haven't played around with HTPC software, so I have no good opinions on anything specific and will just stick to hardware for now.

Heatsink - Good choice, nice and low-profile. Also quiet.
Graphics - Superfluous. The motherboard already has built-in graphics sufficient for your needs. Save the $95.
Case - Your choice based on looks and function.
Memory - 4096MB should be enough for anybody, right? But...see my next item.
MLB - Right now I'd actually prefer the MSI 890GXM-G65. The only reason I can see for going with anything else would be for more PCI slots (such as the BIOSTAR TA890GXE) or to reuse older components (any board using DDR2) such as if you have to have a floppy drive (the MSI does not). The MSI board uses DDR3, which runs cooler than DDR2. It is the most future-resistant Micro-ATX board I see right now. And yes, getting that SB850 (as well as USB3) really is worth it.
OS - I would upgrade to Win7 Pro instead of Home Premium. The kickers are better XP compatibility and the ability to log into your HTPC remotely using remote access. This means managing it from another computer on the network rather than dragging a keyboard and mouse over to it every time you want to do something with it.
ODD - Your choice, they're pretty much a commodity these days.
PSU - The aforementioned Silverstone Nightjar. Plenty of power with zero noise unless you want to add a screaming graphics card to the unit (which you shouldn't need what with the built-in graphics).
Storage OS - I'd replace that drive with something like the RiDATA 32GB SLC SSD for the reasons I give above. Yes, it's a bit spendier, yes it's smaller (capacity). But it can take the abuse and hold everything you need, even with looooong uptime. Actually, if you can't afford to put in any sort of SSD right now, just put in the drive of your choice to get you by until the price of SSDs falls, then put in something in the 32-64GB SLC range once they drop.
CPU - I would actually recommend the Phenom II X4 910e (not the ordinary 910, but the 910e). It's about $30 or so more, but it uses significantly less power (you'll earn back your $30 over the first year in power savings alone) and generates a lot less heat/uses less power (also handy for silent PSU and cramped quarters).

Recommendations only. Even if you don't end up with the components I suggest, at least consider the reasoning behind why each was chosen.

--Patrick

PatrThom said:

Looking over your choices now...ok. I haven't played around with HTPC software, so I have no good opinions on anything specific and will just stick to hardware for now.

Heatsink - Good choice, nice and low-profile. Also quiet.
Graphics - Superfluous. The motherboard already has built-in graphics sufficient for your needs. Save the $95.
Case - Your choice based on looks and function.
Memory - 4096MB should be enough for anybody, right? But...see my next item.
MLB - Right now I'd actually prefer the MSI 890GXM-G65. The only reason I can see for going with anything else would be for more PCI slots (such as the BIOSTAR TA890GXE) or to reuse older components (any board using DDR2) such as if you have to have a floppy drive (the MSI does not). The MSI board uses DDR3, which runs cooler than DDR2. It is the most future-resistant Micro-ATX board I see right now. And yes, getting that SB850 (as well as USB3) really is worth it.
OS - I would upgrade to Win7 Pro instead of Home Premium. The kickers are better XP compatibility and the ability to log into your HTPC remotely using remote access. This means managing it from another computer on the network rather than dragging a keyboard and mouse over to it every time you want to do something with it.
ODD - Your choice, they're pretty much a commodity these days.
PSU - The aforementioned Silverstone Nightjar. Plenty of power with zero noise unless you want to add a screaming graphics card to the unit (which you shouldn't need what with the built-in graphics).
Storage OS - I'd replace that drive with something like the RiDATA 32GB SLC SSD for the reasons I give above. Yes, it's a bit spendier, yes it's smaller (capacity). But it can take the abuse and hold everything you need, even with looooong uptime. Actually, if you can't afford to put in any sort of SSD right now, just put in the drive of your choice to get you by until the price of SSDs falls, then put in something in the 32-64GB SLC range once they drop.
CPU - I would actually recommend the Phenom II X4 910e (not the ordinary 910, but the 910e). It's about $30 or so more, but it uses significantly less power (you'll earn back your $30 over the first year in power savings alone) and generates a lot less heat/uses less power (also handy for silent PSU and cramped quarters).

Recommendations only. Even if you don't end up with the components I suggest, at least consider the reasoning behind why each was chosen.

--Patrick

Click to expand...

Some comments back from me:

1) Graphics card - I'm on the fence about getting one - may start off without one and see what happens - can always add in later.
2) MB - While the USB3 may be nice - right now the only things I probably will throw at it are an all in one remote and the connection for the LCD screen - no real need for the USB3 at this time.
3) PSU - While the one you suggest is fanless, it's not modular - with a smaller HTPC case that I'm going with I've read that a modular PSU is better - less cables to clutter up the airflow.
4) Home Premium vs Pro - if I really need to remote access I can always throw in a VNC flavor if I really need it. Though I've also thought about a wireless keyboard/mouse for the few times that I may need it - it really won't bother me to plug in a keyboard/mouse if I need to.
5) Storage OS - I'm not sold on SSDs yet - plus cost/mb just seems a bit high right now - may look into it later on when price drops.
6) Processor - can't find the 910e on NewEgg - did find the 905e (same wattage (65w)) but they are currently sold out of them.

Most all of the homebrew HTPC softwares I've seen (mythtv, gbpvr, etc) all come with a built in web administration utility you can set up. This is great for scheduling recordings, tweaking it's software, basic administration. To get into the nuts and bolts of windows I do use a wireless keyboard and mouse that I leave constantly plugged in and they are just tucked away out of view so I just grab them when I need them.

As for the SSD, I'm with Dodge man. They are not functional yet for HTPC purely because of their cost/mb. If there is any ATSC or Hidef capturing and storing going on, 1TB really is the minimum imo and although it might be nice to have the SSD for the OS partition and such it's counter productive when trying to keep the cost of the system down.

I think you are right with the idea of going without the graphics card at first and unless you think there is the chance of having an external source that you'll be worried about plugging into your HTPC (I could see this happening if they'd start releasing movies on USB thumbdrive someday) I think you'll find the need for USB3 is unlikely to show up any time soon. Safe bet to skip that.

(I had a more complete post when I first read this at work, but work ate it when I forgot to copy it before submitting. Doh!)

-HTPC software has built-in remote access capabilities? I did not know that. Cool.
-USB3 isn't really relevant right now, and I know that. But I'm sure that someone will invent something cool for it in the future, and when they do, you'd be ready. The MSI board still has USB2 ports for things like a receiver for remotes, BIOS updates, etc. I just wonder what the future will hold. USB3 is plenty fast enough to feed raw/uncompressed 1080p video, for instance. Or 12.1 surround or something.
-SSDs are the choice for an HTPC boot drive due to their fast random access times and pure durability. Yes, they are unfortunately very expensive right now, but that will change. And soon (though not soon enough, of course).
-Airflow through PSU cables isn't really that big of a deal if you run 'em once, tie 'em up, and tuck 'em out of the way. But being modular does make it even easier. Just not as quiet.
-I had trouble finding the 910e on Newegg, also. Of course, Newegg isn't the only vendor out there. The only reason I suggest the 910e is that it is the best AM3 CPU you can get (performance-wise) at the 65W level. If you need plenty of CPU power to do a lot of transcoding or something, I'd go for the 95W variant of the 6-core Phenom II 1055T (HDT55TWFK6DGR/HDT55TWFGRBOX) instead. 6 cores at a reasonably low power level should get plenty of work done.

--Patrick

PatrThom said:

(I had a more complete post when I first read this at work, but work ate it when I forgot to copy it before submitting. Doh!)

-HTPC software has built-in remote access capabilities? I did not know that. Cool.
-USB3 isn't really relevant right now, and I know that. But I'm sure that someone will invent something cool for it in the future, and when they do, you'd be ready. The MSI board still has USB2 ports for things like a receiver for remotes, BIOS updates, etc. I just wonder what the future will hold. USB3 is plenty fast enough to feed raw/uncompressed 1080p video, for instance. Or 12.1 surround or something.
-SSDs are the choice for an HTPC boot drive due to their fast random access times and pure durability. Yes, they are unfortunately very expensive right now, but that will change. And soon (though not soon enough, of course).
-Airflow through PSU cables isn't really that big of a deal if you run 'em once, tie 'em up, and tuck 'em out of the way. But being modular does make it even easier. Just not as quiet.
-I had trouble finding the 910e on Newegg, also. Of course, Newegg isn't the only vendor out there. The only reason I suggest the 910e is that it is the best AM3 CPU you can get (performance-wise) at the 65W level. If you need plenty of CPU power to do a lot of transcoding or something, I'd go for the 95W variant of the 6-core Phenom II 1055T (HDT55TWFK6DGR/HDT55TWFGRBOX) instead. 6 cores at a reasonably low power level should get plenty of work done.

--Patrick

Click to expand...

Sure, USB3 may be plenty fast for that type of stuff, but when it's not really doing anything that I want to right now, doesn't seem worth it to spend the money on it now, since I'm 100% sure that when the technology changes enough, I'll swap out the inner parts with newer stuff - then USB3 might be in the picture.

The PSU I picked out is mostly silent - 135mm silent fan included, but being >85% efficient is important as well - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171036

I'll probably drop down to the 910e - lower wattage should run cooler but still be fairly powerful since it's still a QC.

Other than TigerDirect, what are some good and reliable places that I could look at pricing for everything besides NewEgg, Amazon, and Buy.com? I've not really looked into many other places yet - haven't purchased a new computer that wasn't prebuilt in a while (prebuilt deals through previous work were cheaper than building my own).

I find that http://www.pricewatch.com/ is a fairly good place to look for prices and such.

FYI, AMD just released the Athlon X4 610e, which is a 45W processor at only about a 10% horsepower drop from the 65W 910e. I would still go for the 910e if possible, but if you tend to get really paranoid about heat then the 610e is something to investigate.

I usually go to Newegg first, but I have also been pretty satisfied with MWave, AxionTech, Spartantech, and Provantage.

--Patrick