Thanks to the HTPC Gods

[mshollenberger]

I would like to thank the owners of the board and the contributors for creating such a great repository of information. With this information I have finally been able to setup my HTPC with a connection other than S-Video!!!

Here is the story and then a couple remaining questions:

Previous -
ATI x300SE S-Video out directly to S-video in on Mits WS-65313

Current -
ATI x300SE RGB out to Key Digital Transcoder to DTV Inputs on TV. Using Karnis' invaluable post on Powerstrip, I was able to get the 856x480 resolution perfectly displayed after some tweaking. Thank you so much Karnis. (BTW, your right down the road from me. I'm in Urbana.)

A couple questions:

1. Would an upgrade from the ATI x300SE to the ATI X800 Pro have a dramatic effect on picture quality for standard cable and/or HD signal coming from a future installed ATI HDTV Wonder Card? Also, If i were to upgrade to the ATI X800 Pro and use the DVI connection to the TV instead of the VGA to the transcoder would that give me a noticably better picture?

2. The 856x480 resolution IMHO is perfect for surfing, DVD, TV.... I looks great from within MCE 2005 as well. Why all the other resolutions? What would the benefit be to using other resolutions and what would I use them for? Sorry for the stupid question, I am still learning.

Thanks in advance for any input..

[netman]

Well if you insist on a software based HDTV card you better get a resolution for that ready to go.

[mshollenberger]

Hmmm. OK. I was hoping for a bit more information.

Anyone?

[Karnis]

DVI will give you a better image than the VGA transcoder, especially if your HDTV is of a digtal nature, like DLP, LCD, etc. Not sure about x300>x800, I'm using a 9800pro.
The other resolutions, like 1776x1000i, etc, are used to scale DVD to higher vertical resolutions, reducing aliasing from the 720x480 source disc.

[mshollenberger]

Wayne -

Thanks for the response. Unfortunatly my RPTV is not digital and does not support 720p. If I only knew then what I know now...

Thanks again for the timings, they made a world of difference.

[olyar15]

The primary advantage of the x800 is more horsepower for games. I don't believe that the x800 has any additional picture quality improvements.

The higher resolutions available are only useful if your display supports them.

[stanger89]

You may not want to hear this but....



You don't need or probably want to use a transcoder with that TV. It will accept RGBHV (VGA via a breakout cable) or DVI. It should give you a better picture 1) because the less connections the better, and 2) because transcoding is a lossy operation.

[mshollenberger]

Originally posted by olyar15
The primary advantage of the x800 is more horsepower for games. I don't believe that the x800 has any additional picture quality improvements.

The higher resolutions available are only useful if your display supports them.

Charles -

Thanks for taking the time to respond. I assumed that would be the answer I just wanted to be sure.

Regards

Michael

[mshollenberger]

Originally posted by stanger89
You may not want to hear this but....



You don't need or probably want to use a transcoder with that TV. It will accept RGBHV (VGA via a breakout cable) or DVI. It should give you a better picture 1) because the less connections the better, and 2) because transcoding is a lossy operation.

Yup. Unfortunatly, I bought the Key Digital before I knew I could use a breakout cable. DVI is not an option since the X300SE does not have DVI out. I can't return the transcoder but may just switch it out sometime in the future.

Ciao