Not sure which system is better.

[slaweko]

Please help which system is better as HTPC and light gaming?
1)

• CPU: Athlon II X2 240 ADX240OCGQBOX 2.8GHz AM3, $57.
• CPU Cooler: Stock cooler, $0.
• Motherboard: J&W MINIX 785G-SP128MB AM2+ AMD 785G/SB710 chipset Mini-ITX, $158 (available at Amazon.com Marketplace).
• Memory: Crucial CT2KIT12864AC800 DDR2-800 SO-DIMM 2 x 1GB Kit, $49.
• Graphics Card: Radeon HD 4200 (integrated in the chipset), $0.
• HDD: Seagate Momentus 7200.4 ST9500420AS 500GB SATA 3.0Gbps mobile 7200 RPM, $68.
• PSU: FlexATX 150W PSU (included in the case), $0.
• Case: Antec ISK 310-150 Mini-ITX, $77.
• Total Cost: $409
  
• 2)
  
• CPU: Athlon II X4 635 ADX635WFGIBOX 2.9GHz AM3, $100.
• CPU Cooler: Cooler Master 風神鍛 (Geminii S) RR-CCH-PBU1-GP, $28.
• Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-880GMA-UD2H AM3 AMD 880G/SB850 chipset microATX, $95.
• Memory: G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ DDR3-1600 2 x 2GB Kit, $106.
• Graphics Card (ATI): Sapphire HD 5670 GDDR5 512MB 100287L, $90. An alternative is HIS H567Q512 Radeon HD 5670 GDDR5 512MB, $95.
• Graphics Card (NVIDIA): EVGA 01G-P3-1235 GeForce GT 240 DDR3 1GB, $100.
• HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB ST3500418AS SATA 3.0Gbps 7200 RPM, $42.
• PSU: Corsair VX450W CMPSU-450VX 450W, $65. An alternative is Enermax ECO80+ II 400W EES400AWT II, $57.
• Case: Antec Fusion Remote Black microATX, with LCD/IR receiver/remote, $140.
• Total Cost: $666 for ATI, $676 for NVIDIA
• 3)
• CPU: Core i3 530 2.93GHz LGA1156, $113.
• CPU Cooler: Stock cooler, $0.
• Motherboard: ASRock H55M/USB3 LGA1156 Intel H55 chipset microATX, $95.
• Memory: G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ DDR3-1600 2 x 2GB Kit, $106.
• Graphics Card (Optional): Sapphire HD 5670 GDDR5 512MB 100287L, $90.
• HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB ST3500418AS SATA 3.0Gbps 7200 RPM, $42.
• PSU: Corsair VX450W CMPSU-450VX 450W, $65.
• Case: Antec Fusion Remote Black microATX, with LCD/IR receiver/remote, $140.
• Total Cost: $651

Thanks

[gingerbee]

3 but remember i am an intel fan boy lol and i loved my i3 there wicked fast

[Rasparthe]

#1 will probably have trouble doing even light gaming, not familiar with the board but HTPC duties are pretty light on graphics processing requirements so should be adequate. Seems fairly expensive for a board that runs the older DDR2 RAM.

Performance wise #2 trumps #3. A stock cooler is fine for #2 if you are not overclocking it at all.

Your DDR3 shouldn't be so expensive either you can find some good sets at Newegg/NCIX on the cheap:

Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

or this one which can run voltages compatible with both platforms (Intel/AMD):

Newegg.com - A-DATA Gaming Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model AX3U1600GB2G9-2G

Other than that, #2 or #3 come down to personal preference if you like to pay the extra for Intel chip. Personally I love the i3 chips but its tough to ignore the added performance of the Athlon II for less money.

[_dangtx_]

gaming, unless done at small resolutions, is mainly put on the gpu's workload. there are exceptions where a few games love quads and the like, but the general rule still stands, today.

go for either 1 or 3. giga mobo plz.

[Rasparthe]

Originally Posted by _dangtx_

gaming, unless done at small resolutions, is mainly put on the gpu's workload. there are exceptions where a few games love quads and the like, but the general rule still stands, today.

go for either 1 or 3. giga mobo plz.

#1 will have trouble accomplishing light gaming (unless you count flash/browser games as light gaming).

Very true that games don't love quads any more than duals but the most applications and OS (and games) are moving to take advantage of the multi-threaded CPUs