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<blockquote data-quote="zarmazievex" data-source="post: 16685">Hi, after some readings I decided to post this message....I did not read all postings one by one but prepared myself as much as I could before posting any questions with obvious answers&nbsp; :lol: . (questions are in red)GOAL: build my first HTPC with a best quality/price ratio. I only want to watch TV, record TV shows, burn DVD Video or DVD Data of recorded tv shows, watch DVDs, watch Divx (shared drive from other PC via wireless) and off-course, weather, news feeds. The quality of the picutre is the most important.&nbsp; I would like to fit everything in a small but cool enclosure.&nbsp; I imagine that a small enclosure means a smal mother board, which means a max of 2 or 3 PCI slots. So I am thinking about one slot for the Tuner card (w/ SVIDEO out support) and one slot for a Sound blaster card. I can always use the USB port for a wi-fi component.FINDINGS: - From what I understand, there seem to be 3 major type of Video/VGA configurations.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; #1 - TUNER CARD with TV cable IN, SVIDEO out (optionally VGA out)&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; #2 -&nbsp; TUNER CARD with TV cable IN, SVIDEO out AND VGA out&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; #3 - TUNER CARD with TV cable IN + GRAPHIC CARD with SVIDEO OUT (and VGA, HDMI..higher grade graphic output)Does #3 provide the best quality result in terms of watching TV, playing back DVDs and Divx ? Or the main advantage is to play video games with heavy graphics demand ? Of course if I go with the nvidia 6600GT, I'll get component output , but maybe to pricey for my final use...?&nbsp; Do I need a graphic card to install my PC ? ... If I buy a Tuner/SVIDEO out card only (i.e. PVR 350), and install windows for the first time, I assume I will need a graphic card first ? Correct ? What if I don't have enough PCI slots ? I realized that a lot of members sign with their HTPC config. So, I started looking for all members (including moderator) and search on their name and number of posts as to find their config and classify by their expertise. Bottom line, it would be nice if each members HTPC was listed in their profile. That doesn't mean that the one with the most post is the most knowledgeable...but it helps getting an average configuration from all forum members and find a pattern in choosing enclosures, RAM, software configs..etc. For example, the CPU USage vote result helps a lot for a newbie like me as well as anyone else. Thanks all for any recommendations. :lol: [/list]</blockquote>

[QUOTE="zarmazievex, post: 16685"] Hi, after some readings I decided to post this message....I did not read all postings one by one but prepared myself as much as I could before posting any questions with obvious answers :lol: . (questions are in [color=red]red[/color]) GOAL: build my first HTPC with a best quality/price ratio. I only want to watch TV, record TV shows, burn DVD Video or DVD Data of recorded tv shows, watch DVDs, watch Divx (shared drive from other PC via wireless) and off-course, weather, news feeds. The quality of the picutre is the most important. I would like to fit everything in a small but cool enclosure. I imagine that a small enclosure means a smal mother board, which means a max of 2 or 3 PCI slots. So I am thinking about one slot for the Tuner card (w/ SVIDEO out support) and one slot for a Sound blaster card. I can always use the USB port for a wi-fi component. FINDINGS: - From what I understand, there seem to be 3 major type of Video/VGA configurations. #1 - TUNER CARD with TV cable IN, SVIDEO out (optionally VGA out) #2 - TUNER CARD with TV cable IN, SVIDEO out AND VGA out #3 - TUNER CARD with TV cable IN + GRAPHIC CARD with SVIDEO OUT (and VGA, HDMI..higher grade graphic output) [color=red]Does #3 provide the best quality result in terms of watching TV, playing back DVDs and Divx ? Or the main advantage is to play video games with heavy graphics demand ? Of course if I go with the nvidia 6600GT, I'll get component output , but maybe to pricey for my final use...? [/color] [color=red]Do I need a graphic card to install my PC ? ... If I buy a Tuner/SVIDEO out card only (i.e. PVR 350), and install windows for the first time, I assume I will need a graphic card first ? Correct ? What if I don't have enough PCI slots ? [/color] I realized that a lot of members sign with their HTPC config. So, I started looking for all members (including moderator) and search on their name and number of posts as to find their config and classify by their expertise. Bottom line, it would be nice if each members HTPC was listed in their profile. That doesn't mean that the one with the most post is the most knowledgeable...but it helps getting an average configuration from all forum members and find a pattern in choosing enclosures, RAM, software configs..etc. For example, the CPU USage vote result helps a lot for a newbie like me as well as anyone else. Thanks all for any recommendations. :lol: [/list] [/QUOTE]

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