im building an HTPC purely for videos (no gaming)...
am i going to get any PQ improvement using a 8600 as opposed to a 8400 or 8500?
cheers,
andy
im building an HTPC purely for videos (no gaming)...
am i going to get any PQ improvement using a 8600 as opposed to a 8400 or 8500?
cheers,
andy
I suppose the 8600 series cards will be faster but the lower specced models will run cooler and require less power!! Have you also looked at the ATI 2400 and 2600 series as these will also have potentially good HD video acceleration!
Apparently the ATi cards are better for a HTPC cause they have hardware decoding for HD signals. Can't remember where I read that so do some investigating first!
An Atlantean Triumvirate, Ghosts of the Past, The Centre Cannot Hold
The Pillars of Britain, Foundations of the Reich, Cracks in the Pillars.
My books are available here for Amazon Kindle. Feedback always welcome!
The 8400/8500/8600 are supposed to have HD decoding capability although the 2400 and 2600 series cards are supposed to have a larger feature set(?) !
i would say 8600
but isnt it better to have the nvidia cards running with purevideo?
Not according to those who've tested. ATI pwn NVidia in this one area. Also their Vista drivers are a lot more solid.
To tell you the truth they would probobly all cope with video files well.
I would mabee go for a higher spec 8500 if your only interested in video.
The difference between ati and nvidia HD wise is that nvidia only support the H.264 codec
http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/...mance_preview/Originally Posted by Firingsquad
Last edited by s_kinton; 10-07-2007 at 10:01 AM.
Purevideo HD does Support VC-1 and a bunch of others
See: http://sg.nvidia.com/docs/CP/27894/P...son_060807.pdf
They also make an issue about it being able to decode Bluray / HD-DVD on nvzone
http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_pvhd_build.html
I use purevideo without any issues, and really like it![]()
Must be AMD properganda![]()
I am in a similar boat (Though not similar enough to highjack the thread) and to be honest, if its purely for video, then the 8500GT should be fine. I was looking at one on scan, that was passively cooled, so no noise, which is great for a media PC. Let me find it...
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=586390
And it runs with not that many volts needed. Personally, I want to be able to game a little, at least at HDTV native res, so I am thinking of the 2600XT, but there are a few questions that i need answered first (Size, PSU, Noise). let us know what you decide on!
JP
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)