I just ordered a bunch of parts for a mini-ITX system primarily for StepMania/DDR/ITG stuffs (and also for use as a general "downstairs" system that can handle streaming stuff and web browsing). Here be specs:
Total price for everything was right around $460 (note: I bought the case several months ago for around $40. If you paid full price for the case it would be just over $500). Not too shabby.
Should be pretty awesome! I haven't put together an AMD system in quite a while, so this should be semi-educational when it comes to configuring a Linux kernel on that sucker (I've never configured a kernel on an AMD-based system. I doubt it'll pose much of an issue).
I think my favorite part about that system is the fact that the mobo includes an 802.11ac card onboard. It'll be nice to be able to move the system wherever it's needed at will instead of having to worry about dragging a cable around.
Oh, and here's the specs for the system that it'll be replacing:
So...yeah, it'll be a very slight upgrade.
It is worth noting that the P4 system still maintains around 60fps in StepMania 5 as long as you don't go too crazy with the mods (bag heavy at 0.5x drops it to around 40fps). Main reasons I want to upgrade: 1) finding replacement parts for that system is getting pretty tough; 2) it sucks a lot of power for as weak as it is (the P4 alone has a TDP of 135W. The AMD A10-7800 has a TDP of 65W for both the entire APU); 3) Linux performance is awful for the RADEON 9600, forcing me to use Windows XP; 4) I'm driving a pretty nice CRT and would love to fully take advantage of 100hz+ refresh rates; and 5) I've wanted to do a mini-ITX build for a long time.
I'm initially planning to just run Linux on that system. EFI boot, of course.
