From FX5200 to 7600GT or GS (1 Viewer)

sderuiter

Portal Pro
December 2, 2005
51
0
50
Hi,

I currently have a nVidia FX 5200 video card, and some money to burn. I have a Hauppauge 500 MCE dual tuner tv card and premium cables and connectors. Still, the TV image is not 'optimal'. Would I gain much in TV image quality if I purchased a nVidia 7600GT. I've read the 7600GS is the same card, with lower clock speeds. Would this hurt? I don't play games nor do I plan to. This is a pure HTPC.

Any ideas welcomed.
 

Roberdin

Portal Pro
December 26, 2005
114
3
London, United Kingdom
What connectors are you using to connect to the TV? What precisely is not optimal about your TV picture? I used to have terrible problems with ground loops (well I think it was a loop, it seemed to cure itself whenever I made certain electrical connections between my TV and PC. It was often characterised by bands of lines superimposed over the picture and gradually moving downwards or upwards), and no better graphics card would cure that.

I presume, therefore, what you're looking for is a card that supports a better quality output than being able to render images in a faster time?

The highest quality output will be HDMI, but these are rare and your TV probably doesn't support it unless it is a HD set. Also, cards that do claim to support this are frequently lying and actually don't at all. DVI is great, but your TV is even less likely to support that unless it doubles as a PC monitor. Any analogue connections tend to be fairly poor, in my experience, although I've heard good things about component video (YPbPr), and SCART is usually a safe bet in the entertainment world.
 

sderuiter

Portal Pro
December 2, 2005
51
0
50
What connectors are you using to connect to the TV? What precisely is not optimal about your TV picture?

I presume, therefore, what you're looking for is a card that supports a better quality output than being able to render images in a faster time?

I'm using DVI to HDMI on the LCD. Yes, quality output is my main goal. The image isn't bad (I'll try to make a screenshot and upload), but could be better. Fast moving scenes (sports?) and dark scenes could be displayed better IMHO. As for fans, I don't care about sound, since the htpc is located in the basement.
 

Flerbizky

Portal Pro
July 18, 2005
104
0
50
Copenhagen
Home Country
Denmark Denmark
What connectors are you using to connect to the TV? What precisely is not optimal about your TV picture?

I presume, therefore, what you're looking for is a card that supports a better quality output than being able to render images in a faster time?

I'm using DVI to HDMI on the LCD. Yes, quality output is my main goal. The image isn't bad (I'll try to make a screenshot and upload), but could be better. Fast moving scenes (sports?) and dark scenes could be displayed better IMHO. As for fans, I don't care about sound, since the htpc is located in the basement.

When the HTPC is located in the basement, and sound is not an issue, why not go for a 7900xx where HDCP compliance is required ?...

My 0.02 Euros on a friday :)

Cheers,
Steff
 

sderuiter

Portal Pro
December 2, 2005
51
0
50
For HTPC purposes, what would give a better picture quality:

1. Nvidia 7600 GS with 512Mb memory
2. Nvidia 7600 GT with 256Mb memory

Pricewise, it's almost the same.
 

Flerbizky

Portal Pro
July 18, 2005
104
0
50
Copenhagen
Home Country
Denmark Denmark
For HTPC purposes, what would give a better picture quality:

1. Nvidia 7600 GS with 512Mb memory
2. Nvidia 7600 GT with 256Mb memory

Pricewise, it's almost the same.


7600GT has a higher clockspeed + "Inverse Telecine" and "Bad Edit Correction" which will improve picture quality..

The 256+ megs of memory won't do anything to improve picture quality :)

Cheers,
Steff
 

sderuiter

Portal Pro
December 2, 2005
51
0
50
Thanks. However, I'm still running an AGP system. According to this comparison, there is no difference in features between a 7600 GT and 7600 GS. Am I safe to assume a 7600 GS would suffice for better image quality?
 

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