Please recommend a video card (1 Viewer)

[kenp2600]

I am in the design phase of my HTPC project and would like suggestions on video cards. I want to have HD output (to projector or HDTV) so I don't know if want HDMI or DVI or whatever is available.

I will probably be playing blu-ray eventually so I want to support that.

I will probably not be gaming on this PC, it will be dedicated to Home Theater uses.

I MIGHT (not sure) want to output to 2 things at once (ie: HD to the projector, vga out to a small touchscreen or monitor).

I've not yet chosen my motherboard or processor but I will probably go with an Intel Core2 Duo unless there is a better solution. I'm not sure if this is relevant though for VidCard selection.

So, since there are so many chipsets, ram choices, and output choices, I was hoping I could get a recommendation or at least a minimum spec. I don't want to end up with a card that does most of what I want, but not everything I need.

Thank you!

 

[Lotsofjazz]

You should seriously have look at the ATI 4650 based video cards (there are quite a few vrands that use this chipset), why?

Low power consumption---->quiet! can be passively cooled (not all brands are passively cooled, but there are quite a few), no extra power lead from your power suplly occupied, it takes power from the PCI-e x16 slot
Not So big----> fits better in the rather small HTPC cases
Good performance------> In reviews it is said ATI has rised the performance levels with a giant leap for Mid range graphics cards
large memory----> 512Mb or 1024Mb DDR2 or GDDR3 on board
Supports multiple display modes (DVI, HDMI, VGA, DisplayPort) 2 displays simultaneously
Supports full HD TV (1080P) over HDMI
Supports resolution up to 2560x1600 over DVI
Built in 7.1 audio over HDMI
hardware acceleration supported for full HD

I have now my Gainward HD4650 for more then 3 months and have not regretted this wonderfull upgrade from my on board X1250, HDTV stutter, GONE; Color smearing unsharpness during movement: GONE, Hardware acceleration for 720P50 WORKS, no stutter, no blocking.

My best purchase of the year with only E70

Lots

 

[kenp2600]

I didn't realize you could get onboard 7.1 sound on the vidcard. That would save me having to buy a dedicated sound card too.

Is the built-in sound on those cards good? I mean, are there driver issues, or anything I should be concerned about? Would I be better off getting a sound blaster card of some kind instead?

Thanks for the great information. Anyone else can feel free to post too though.

 

[tourettes]

If you are using Vista I would recommend something Nvidia based, most likely a passive 9500GS. That at least doesnt cause the flickering issue with HW acceleration and MP.

 

[Lotsofjazz]

My ATI HD4650 doesnt flicker with MP OSD, I use Vista 32 Ultimate. I have read something last week about a heat problem with Nvidea cards, not sure which type it was, but worth to be cautious about.. But I am sure with a good Nvidea card you will see similar results... I stuck with ATI, because my Motherboard is somehwat ATI oriented, as it has the X1250 chipset wth southbridge and all, so it is matched better with ATI GFX cards.. and my experience with ATI is so far just fine.

About the sound, this is only for the HDMI out so its only digital, because HDMI can also transport a audio strream, so if you use the audio system on your TV it can be usefull. I have no experience in using it, because I use the realtek HD audio on my motherboard, which has a SPDIF out that I use to hook it up my Home cynema system (marantz S4000 DD/DTS transceiver with mission speakers and a Magnat subwoofer.. wow!)

Lots

 

[kenp2600]

Thanks again Lots, I'm really glad I found this forum. This is the kind of information that will keep me from having to buy and rebuy different pieces of the PC due to trial and error.

I really appreciate any and all of the info.

 

[Eeyore]

Which ever video card you think about buying, you need to make sure you have more then 10GB/s video memory bandwidth to allow smooth playback of HD content.

This 10GB/s number has been a rough calculation from a few users on this forum. My Dell has an onboard video card, with 8GB/s bandwidth, and it worked on HD fine. No stuttering, lagging or artifacts. I have recently upgraded to an ATI HD2400PRO to remove some processor load to the video card.

There is plenty of information available via my friend (calculate video memory bandwidth - Google Search)

 

[etheesdad]

there are a couple of links in this article re current card technology which may be useful.

Personally I think a passive 9500gt or a 4550/4650 is the way to go.

Link:
https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...ardware-selection-4014/index3.html#post343888

 

[zicoz]

Why buy a dedicated videocard at all? Why not go with a motheboard with a integrated chip? Like the 780G or the Nvidia 9200/9300?

 

[Lotsofjazz]

I have started with the on board X1250, and worked just barely.. SD was ok but not brilliant and playback of HD movies from the harddisk worked also fine, using ffdshow. But with live HD TV I had nothing but trouble. I also could not use hardware acceleration with HD movies, so it kept my CPU quite busy.

Reading this forum for a year I see that most people with an on board GFX card, want to upgrade in the end anyways.. but it could be a way to spread the costs a little by starting with the on baord GFX and upgrade later, when the cards you need are then cheaper as well.

A disadvantage of on board cards is that it shares the RAM, so if you decide to use a motherboard with an on board GFX card, make sure you have the fastest memory the board can handle, and plenty of it, (I have 4Gb DDR2, 800Mhz of which I assigned the max 256 to the GFX card).

But looking at the costs of GFX cards these days, with the HD4650 or Geforce 9500 types, these are all good and just around 100 bucks, the performance they provide are phenomenal compared to what was available for that price a year ago, and is more then enough for HTPC applications.. At least you do not need the big expensive power houses that gamers need when they want to have 100 frames a second on their 30" Ultra High defenition LCD monitors.

Talking about on board stuff, if you were planning to buy a soundcard, THAT is something that can very well be handled by on board devices. If you have a home cinema set (or even a stereo set) with digital audio input (coax or SPDIF) I advise you to find a motherboard with a soundcard on board and a SPDIF output, then you can set you system such that all digital audio is send over the SPDIF "as is", and then decoded in your Home Cinema set.. The digital/analogue converters and amplification capabilities of a home cinema set are allways ten times better then the best soundcard you can find..and it saves a PCI slot in your HTPC case, not to mention the money you save with NOT buying a soundcard.

Lots