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Best Card for Handling Video Playback & Driving Large Display



 
 
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  #31  
Old February 4th 06, 11:56 PM posted to alt.comp.hardware
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Default Best Card for Handling Video Playback & Driving Large Display

Hi Kony,
Please forgive the delay in response...I live and have a business in the
gulf coast region, so as you may imagine, my time is not always my own, thus
the delay. Responses inline...

"kony" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 21:42:19 -0600, "harkhof"
wrote:

There is no need whatsoever for AGP
without dozen of MB or more worth of textures as when
gaming. While AGP or PCI Express is a slight boost to
everyday uses of the system and thus still desirable in a
general way, what you have described does not rule out PCI
any more than anyone else doing anything else would.

DVI, quality-wise sometimes it's useful but the whole
video-scaling and graininess issue, it wouldn't help at all.


Yes, thanks to you and others in this group (and other sources), I
understand that now. However, it would be silly for me to occupy one of
the
few PCI slots I have left when I have an AGP slot sitting there (also, I
plan to use a slot for the HD tuner card). And indeed, I'm hardly one to
take a technological step backward, especially knowing that I will wish to
have the ability to try out new things.


While your needs didn't require AGP or PCI Express, I didn't
mean to suggest you should aim for PCI, only that that bus
in itself is not a problem that would interfere with your
goal.




As far as DVI, there truly is a noticable difference (and I *have* tried
this monitor out with several cards, DVI, VGA, the gamut), but that aside,
I
am using this monitor on two machines via a KVM for the mouse & keyboard
and
the VGA connection for one machine, the DVI for the machine in question.


It does help with high bandwidth (hi res and refresh...
depends on what monitor supports), but I'm beginnning to
suspect your panel type has the most to do with the
graininess seen in video. Is it a TN 6-bit panel? That
alone will cause grains regardless of the video card, a
theoretically "perfect" setup will still be grainy on such
an LCD.


No, it is a Dell 2405fpw, which avails itself of Samsung's LTM240M1-L01 8
bit S-PVA panel.

Even though what you say regarding gaming vs. video and NTSC demands on a
card seems accurate, I still need to install a card that will provide
windowed TV, and the AIWs seem to be the best game in town for that
(AFAIK).


Most any card with a tuner on it will provide that, it need
not be integrated into an AIW or other video card. I was
under the impression that you already had a PCI ATI tuner
card, which should suffice, no?


I no longer have the ATI card. It was not a great performer on this machine.


That being the case, the "lowest grade" DVI AIW is the 9800 pro, and for
an
extra $70, I might as well go with the newer generation. Also, I do tend
to
dabble in many things, and I have failed to mention a few other functions
this card may perform as well (for which you may berate me if you
wish...).
I have been known to do photo editing (via Photoshop) and the occasional
video editing & importing (although I haven't done that for awhile). The
reality is that I often foray into new areas of technology and like to
have
the "headroom" to do whatever I wish with a card.


IMO, you should buy whatever you decide on from a seller
with good return policy. It can be well worth the ~$8
return shipping and a restocking cost to get whatever suits
your tastes.


Yes, I agree. And I have tried out several solutions, as I've posted. The
latest of these was the ATI Wonder Elite mentioned above (and the software
was up to ATI's usual sad standards, but even with other software, it didn't
do too well).

I'd like to thank you for your time and diligence in making your point. The
truth is that I don't mind "hardware overkill", because it gives me options.
I often make forays into territories that tax my hardware, some of them
fleeting, some not, but having the hardware to accomodate such endeavors
has always been nice.

My status as of now is that I have re-installed the AIW 9000 Pro into this
machine. I know you may have difficulty believing this, but their truly is a
discernible difference in color depth and NTSC image (especially when
compared to the X800XT). Also, strangely, with the 9000 in, the display
blanks out. The only way I am able to avoid this is by installing a fan in
the side of the case blowing right on the card (yes, the 9000's tiny onboard
fan is running).

Also, I have upgrade my cable service to include HD. The HD channels are
very much in line with what I had hoped to acheive. Unfortunately, the HD
line up here is limited to about 10 channels, but via the component inputs,
the fullscreen picture quality is great, even from 2' away! Of course, the
2405 has no sound capabilities (without the Dell "soundbar"), but all I need
do is fire up the AIW TV on one of the PCs connected to the monitor and I
have sound. Also, the PIP features of this monitor means that I can watch
the HD on any PC connected. I'm liking this monitor more everyday...

My plan in the next few days is to make a decision concerning PCI HD
Tuners, most likely the Fusion 5 Gold or the Fusion 3 and see what kind of
QAM channels I can pick up (the cable company is understandably somewhat
tight-lipped on this subject). This may, if the HD card is to cpu hungry,
prompt a cpu upgrade. The point is that I will deal with the video card
issue once I decide what other upgrades I may or may not do. After all, if I
upgrade to PCI-E (that would depend on how fast a cpu my NEO2 Plat will
support), buying a high end AGP card now would be a waste.

As far as the image quality of NTSC broadcasts, I suppose I have to accept
that full screen picture quality is just going to be poor. Happily, there
are the other options I mentioned above.

So, although this has been a lengthy path to the point, your objections to
the high end cards has given me pause to better consider my future options.
Perhaps not in a way you had anticipated, but constructive (for my purposes)
nonetheless.

Thanks.



Will it ever end?



End? No it never does.


The question was rhetorical, but it's nice to know others suffer the same
affliction .


Thanks again,
Hark


  #32  
Old February 5th 06, 01:14 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware
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Posts: n/a
Default Best Card for Handling Video Playback & Driving Large Display

On Sat, 4 Feb 2006 16:56:56 -0600, "Harkhof"
wrote:


It does help with high bandwidth (hi res and refresh...
depends on what monitor supports), but I'm beginnning to
suspect your panel type has the most to do with the
graininess seen in video. Is it a TN 6-bit panel? That
alone will cause grains regardless of the video card, a
theoretically "perfect" setup will still be grainy on such
an LCD.


No, it is a Dell 2405fpw, which avails itself of Samsung's LTM240M1-L01 8
bit S-PVA panel.



It is a nice monitor, but I think it is the cause of your
video noise, as Tom's Hardware also observed this,
http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/01/...now/page9.html


I'd like to thank you for your time and diligence in making your point. The
truth is that I don't mind "hardware overkill", because it gives me options.
I often make forays into territories that tax my hardware, some of them
fleeting, some not, but having the hardware to accomodate such endeavors
has always been nice.


There's nothing wrong with hardware overkill, it was just
that given the goal you expressed, it didn't seem of benefit
towards that end.


My status as of now is that I have re-installed the AIW 9000 Pro into this
machine. I know you may have difficulty believing this, but their truly is a
discernible difference in color depth and NTSC image (especially when
compared to the X800XT). Also, strangely, with the 9000 in, the display
blanks out. The only way I am able to avoid this is by installing a fan in
the side of the case blowing right on the card (yes, the 9000's tiny onboard
fan is running).


If that's what you want to use, I"d think about an
aftermarket heatsink, or at least taking off the present
'sink, examining the interface, lapping it down if warranted
then applying a nice fresh coat of thermal compound-
preferribly a synthetic base type not silicone based.

It's quite possible to have differences in different cards
but it's more of a random variablity issue, and isn't
"supposed" to happen using DVI if the driver
brightness/contrast/etc remain constant.



Also, I have upgrade my cable service to include HD. The HD channels are
very much in line with what I had hoped to acheive. Unfortunately, the HD
line up here is limited to about 10 channels, but via the component inputs,
the fullscreen picture quality is great, even from 2' away! Of course, the
2405 has no sound capabilities (without the Dell "soundbar"), but all I need
do is fire up the AIW TV on one of the PCs connected to the monitor and I
have sound. Also, the PIP features of this monitor means that I can watch
the HD on any PC connected. I'm liking this monitor more everyday...


You wouldn't want to hear sound out of it even if you could,
all flatpanel sound is poor due to speaker size.

So, although this has been a lengthy path to the point, your objections to
the high end cards has given me pause to better consider my future options.
Perhaps not in a way you had anticipated, but constructive (for my purposes)
nonetheless.



If you want a high-end card that's your call, I only
objected within the context of the goal.

 




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