Windows 7: Building an HTPC from an old PC

Hi Friends,

I plan to build an HTPC for playing 1080p MKV and Blu-Ray in future. I plan to do this by taking the processor, motherboard, RAM and DVD Drive from my old PC and then adding in the rest. Then I put in a new processor, motherboard and RAM for my old PC.

Here are the components of my old PC that I wish to use for my HTPC

Intel Core2 6300 @ 1.86 GHZ
Intel DP965LT Motherboard
2GB DDR2 RAM
Samsung DVD Combo drive
Pinnacle PCTV 110i TV Tuner

And, I wish to put in the additional components to complete my HTPC



Cabinet: Zebronics Slim Series "Flair"
LINK

Hard Disk: Samsung 1TB SATA 3.5"

Keyboard & Mouse: Logitech Wireless Desktop MK250
LINK

Remote: Logitech Universal Remote Harmony 525
LINK

Video Card: Powercolor HD 4350 512MB DDR-II
-[OR]-
Point of View Geforce GT210 512MB DDR2


here are the doubts i have:

* Will my Motherboard fit into the Slim cabinet? The Intel website says that the form factor of the mother board is microATX and the zebronics website says that it supports microATX. But, Afterdawn says its a ATX board. I'm confused

Intel Link - LINK
Afterdawn Link - LINK

* Is Western Digital 1 TB better than Samsung?
* Is the 4350 a good choice for an HTPC video card? Or is the GT210 a better buy?

Will you be running 32 or 64 bit version of Windows 7 for this application?

Im planning to use 64-bit for this setup

Another doubt I have is how will I connect the Logitech remote to the PC?

You will find the tuner is not 64 bit compatible, a Hauppauge 2250, or 1250, 1850 will be about the best for 64 bit and they come with a Media Center Remote about $100 if you do a little research or you could use 32 bit and your tuner should work, the rest is acceptable for what you plan.

Seems a little pointless to be using 64bit when it's only going to have 2GB of ram.

Currently the TV card is being detected in Windows 7 x54, but I have not tried using it.



What is the problem if a PC having 2GB RAM runs x64?

It can be a pain to get codecs working with x64, so I always recommend using x86 for HTPCs.

About the remote,
Logitech Harmony 525 Advanced Universal Remote Reviews



"...You program it on Logitech site using web interface and then sync your remote via USB cable..."
"...you have to load a program onto a computer and then add devices to the remote using the provided usb cable ..."
Logitech Harmony 525 Advanced Universal Remote Infrared Universal remote control for DVR, TV, VCR, DVD player, Audio system - Read Reviews

seems you'll have to spend few hours programing it. Its a online setup if I understand correct.

I use a laptop with 7 pro 32 and it's fine but would not consider using a 64 bit without at least 4Gb, my own has 12Gb which may seem like overkill but processing large photos with a 64 bit photo program uses large chunks of RAM (photos in RAW are 30-40Mb each that's a lot of data).

conflicting reports on size - why not simply measure it and see ?

9.6" x 9.6" is maximum size for mATX