Niveus K2 - HTPC for the "cost is no object" market

We like companies that are honest about how they market their products, so we've got to give Niveus Media some props for coming right out and saying that their K2 home theater PC, which was first unveiled at CES earlier this year, is targeted at the "cost is no object" segment of the market. The K2 (all of Niveus' products are named after mountains) boasts a P4 at 3.6Ghz, 2GB of RAM, a 1TB HDD (yes, you read that right), dual TV tuners, dual HDTV tuners, and High Definition 6-Channel Audio. It's also passively cooled, so you're not going to hear a fan kick in while you're in the middle of a flick. So, just in case cost is an object, how much does all that speed, storage, RAM and video power run? Well, Niveus refuses to post prices for their high-end units on their web site, insisting that you call or email to get the numbers. But we assume it's a bit more than the $5,000 that their Denali system — which is similar to the K2, but has more limited audio capabilities — goes for.

[gleam @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

That should probably read 1TB of storage. It might be two raid-0d 500GB drives, but it's sure as hell not a single 1TB drive..

[Digi Smalls @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

sup with the video cards in these joints?

[OddManOut @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

My thoughts exactly #1. And if it is some monstrous completely proprietary design I'd have to say it's kinds stupid and needlessly expensive.

The 'Cost is no object' crowd ? In that case, I guess this thing will look great next to all those PS3's that we're supposed to be donating organs for...

[Giggles of Doom @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

I just want the case. :)

[Buzzcut @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

Yeah, the case is key.

But how much could this really cost?

P4 660 goes for $600.
MB for $200
2GB ram for $200
VC for $600? Probably could be less. Don't need a great card for HD.
2 analog TV tuners for $100
2 HDTV tuners for $400
4- 250 meg had drives for less than $800
Windows Media Edition for $130
Case and PSU? $250?

These numbers are conservative. You could build this for around $3000. Like I said, the case is key. Passive cooling would make this high end.

I wouldn't use a P4 660 either. I'd use a low end Pentium D. Or go with AMD X2. I don't think that HDTVs need a lot of CPU power.

[Matt M. @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

I emailed to get a price quote.

Only $14999 - hmmm - should I get one of these or 3 Denalis? ;-)

[josh @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

you need to add in the cost of a high end ($2000) audio card :) as well as MANY man hours of engineering to PASSIVLY COOL the P4 and GPU with NO FANS. I'm working close with niveus(talked with CEO and chief engineer last week), as my clients are basically the kind of cliental they want to market to... expect some really cool home control integration with these things as well in the near future :)

[David @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

If this type of setup appeals to you, consider the Zalman TNN-500AF case and a high end audio card (LynxTwo for example). I own these components (older TNN-500A case actually) and they do everything that the Niveus machine does for a fraction of the price. Plus you have a lot more flexibility (notice no PCI slots on the Niveus).

[Gromitron @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

David, I have the TNN-500A too, my wife freaks out about whiny fan sounds so I splurged on the fanless case. I thought it would be my last case ever but I'm finding out I can't really upgrade it to the newest GFX cards and processors

[Nick @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

Buzzcut, you forgot a soundcard. A Creative Audigy 2 ZS would probably do fine but an Audigy 4 Pro would be better. I don't see why someone would need a $2000 sound card as most people won't even notice a difference. This seems like it would mostly be for bragging rights than functionality. I could build a kick-ass gaming rig for uner $6000. And a media center PC is always cheaper than a gaming one. Gamers demand the awesome graphics and superior sound quality that mediaphiles do but need even more in a computer so gaming comps are always more expensive.

Nick

[DJ_Necrogami @ Dec 19th 2005 1:36AM]

Tyan S2895 Dual X2 AMD Opteron $4000
16 SATA Raid 5 400GB Seagate HD's
16GB PC3200 DDR
Throw in 2x Nvidia 6800 Ultra PCI Express

2 HD Tuners PCI-X
2 Tuners PCI-X

Bingo ...
Under $10k
And a hell of alot more power