[NVIDIA] Nvidia 6600 GT AGP and 1080p HD playback, possible ? (1 Viewer)

[chickendavis]

Hi everyone,

I built an HTPC a number of years ago and at that time used an eVGA Nvidia 6600 GT AGP video card. With my current setup i am able to play 720p mkv files just fine (for the most part). But, i have never been able to play 1080p video. The audio is usually out of sync and i dont think the video is running at full speed. I haven't done anything with hw video decoding so it is all decoding on the cpu (athlon 64 3200+). I'm just wondering if it is possible to reconfiure my htpc to offload hd playback to my 6600 gt video card (ie. using dxva or something like that).

Is the 6600 GT capable of decoding 1080p mkv files?
From what i've read it looks like it may be but i was hoping for a more concrete confirmation
Is anyone out there using the same card for this purpose?

Thanks everyone.

-DaViS

 

[petsa]

I'm not sure if HW deconding is possible with 6600... Check Nvidia pages. I have a 8600 and use CoreAVC for HW decoding, works well since CoreAVC supports CUDA. Is 6600 "CUDA-enabled"?

/Peter

 

[Owlsroost]

DXVA Checker - Bluesky's Home Page - will show you what hardware video capabilities the video card has - the 'Decoder Device' tab shows the HW accel capabilities, the 'Processor Device' tab shows the HW de-interlacing capabilities.

Tony

 

[chickendavis]

Well it looks like i'm gonna have to upgrade. Kinda sucks cuz that means i have to upgrade everything, mobo, cpu, ram, vid card, psu, etc...
The only thing i can probably keep is the dvd drive heh. I tried running DXVAChecker and it didn't even recognize my 6600 gt. Just said 'Unknown device'. I'll just have to save some more money to get up to speed.
Thanks again for the suggestions folks.
Much appreciated.

-DaViS

 

[etheesdad]

Ive been running 1080p on a 7100gs with no hassles. The only difference being that the cpu is a 2ghz dual core. For 1080p playback in MP you need an nvidia card with purevideo (6 series onwards) or an ATI card with UVD (any 'HD' prefix). Your 6600GT has Purevideo on it. Its much more powerful than a 7100GS, and is definitely capable of 1080p.

In other words, its not your GPU thats letting you down, its your CPU. The minimum for 1080p with MP is a 2ghz dual core.

They made Athlon 64 3200 in socket 754, 939, 940 and AM2 socket types.

If its a socket 754 cpu or Socket A cpu, you're looking at a new motherboard and cpu.

If its a socket 939 cpu, then you could upgrade to a dual core cpu with no additional out-of pocket expense*. There are a number of socket 939 dual cores available that are over 2ghz. An Athlon 64 x2 would do it.... Their prices start at $us60.

If its a socket AM2 cpu then there are plenty of cheap cpu upgrade options that will allow you to play 1080p on that machine.

------------
*Check motherboard manual AND latest BIOS revision for it to see what max capacity is. Athlon 64 X2 "Manchester" and "Toledo" were both made in 939 variants.

 

[chickendavis]

Thanks for the very informative reply etheesdad. It looks like im out of luck with upgrading my cpu. Unfortunately, I do have socket 754 so gonna have to upgrade everything, as i suspected. If only i had spent the extra $$ to go with socket 939 at the time i ordered all of my hardware. Ahh well, it's been a good run with the current media center pc. I knew i would have to upgrade in the near future. Then 1080p will be as smooth as silk. hehe

Thanks again.
Take 'er easy.

-Dave