windows media center 2005

[nvening]

I wanted to buld a media center pc, so i just install it (you can get it oem) and get a remote right? Do i NEED a tv card with it and if i do whats HDTV and is it better than freeview? Do you get HDTV freeview or what? Will the tv card work with windows media center 2005 and what is actually different with windows media center, can i use it just like a normal pc for like ofice, internet and games?

[weebroonieuk]

read around the graphics section and you will see some stuff about tv cards when shopping for one make sure its compatable with mce 2005 u could search google or ask on here or maybe check the microsoft site not sure

hdtv is our future format of digital tv sky will be bringing out hdtv channels an no doubt other companys will provide it too its a much higher quality picture and u will have to build a decent spec pc to have it running smoothly and a very larg hard drives or drives if u want to record

[nvening]

I think i will just get a normal freeview pci card. Im getting a 6600gt and as far as i can tell Nvidia is loving it in media centers. Its also got tv out or video out. Are they the same? Because i want to watch films and junk on my widescreen 100Hz sony7 sdtv, microsoft says that will work. so do i need and other extra hardware apart from the remote and tv card?

[nvening]

With the tv card, do i just install the drivers and windows is the software or do i have the cards software too? I was going to get the Nebular electronics Digital Television - PCI card version http://www.nebula-electronics.com/in....asp?Code=0001 Do i use that remote or the windows media center one?

[nvening]

i will email them some questions

[Jonathan500]

I think you will find that the Nebular card is not compatable with MCE 2005

[nvening]

nooooooooooooooooooooooooo what ones r then?

[Byatt]

I think one of the requirements for a card to be MCE compatible is that it requires an mpeg-II encoder on the actual card - such cards are the hauppage 250/350, but you should be able to google any specific card to see if it is or not.

Have you considered using XP (or, if you're after an adventure, Linux and Mythtv) instead? Many top quality products - like the nebula card, for instance, come with a whole suite of software similar or better to MCE functionality. It's also possible to use most remotes for more than one application - so the remote that you'd get with the digitv could be fudged into working for your music player, or indeed anything.

Similarly (in regards to your thread in graphics forum) the 6600GT is looking like an excellent card for a htpc in everything other than power/cooling requirements - there seems to be a lot of hype regarding the purevideo stuff in terms of dvd playback (looks justified from the screenshots I've seen), and also the 6 series cards seem to be pushing their TV out as consumer electronics standard.

[nvening]

I found the page on the MS site which lists the cards. I was gunna ask about mpeg2 encoders cause it said i needed one but that clears it up. I want media center so i can use it on my tv.

[-mb-]

Media Center is only an application.

When you buy XP MCE, you just get XP Pro with MC build in. You have normal windows untill you fire up MC.

This may interest you btw:
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...1742236,00.asp

Here may be helpful too:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forum...?s=&forumid=26
and here:
http://www.htpcnews.com/forums/index.php

[nvening]

i know that after reading the whole of the F&Qs lol

[nvening]

Do they have freeview in the US, are any of the WMC certifyed cards freeview? http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/m...erlisting.mspx

[-mb-]

No they don't but yes one is.

It's not on that list, but there's an official press release from the manufacturer (Hauppauge) that says it is compatible.

The Hauppauge Win-TV Nova-T:
http://www.hauppauge.co.uk/pages/pro...ova-t-pci.html

The release:
http://www.hauppauge.com/pages/produ...ova-t_mce.html

[nvening]

At the moment im just trying to find a WMC certifyed freeview pci card.

[-mb-]

Actually, having told you there is one (above) I may be wrong! Look at this:
http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=cac...a+center&hl=en

There seems to be many problems with XP MCE; you can have an HTPC without MCE you know...

[nvening]

i think that you have to get the nova-t MCE and then it works. You will notice that there is an extra socket 4 something on the mce one.