Recommendation for a video card?

[den372]

HI, I am in the process of building a sage based htpc. Can anyone recommend a good video card that will
a: line double on sd content to display on hd content
b: have a hdmi out connection
c: combine audio and video for hdmi connection (is it possible?)
d: good for pc games on hdtv

Any help greatly appreciated

[paulbeers]

Whats the budget? You can get cards for as little as 24 bucks that have audio over HDMI w/ HDCP

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121087

However, it won't be the best gamer card in the world. For gaming, the skies the limit.

$600:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814143138

[den372]

Thanks for the quick reply I appreciate it.

[jhkoenig]

I recently put in an nVidia 8600GTS and couldn't be happier. Well under $200 at Newegg, factory overclocked and HD is smooth as silk. Single slot, too.

[thomjw]

Hi JKoenig,
Does the nvidia 8600Gts card you put in have HDMI port out, and does it supply video AND audio over the HDMI cable to the tv?
I just bought a nice new thin HD tv, and I want to output Sagetv from my computer directly to the HD tv over HDMI wire.

I am running Sagetv on computer with 2 hauppauge pvr-150 cards (regular comcast analog cable), to watch and record tv shows.

[CollinR]

Mine does, its an MSI model IIRC NX8600GTS. You will need an SPDIF output somewhere on the system. If it's a coaxial jack on the back the card comes with a jumper. It also has a jumper for a 2 pin internal connection.

Also make sure you get a copy of the optional (and $20) PureVideo software from Nvidia.

IIRC I paid $70, very pleased.

I don't have an HD PVR yet to really put it through the paces but 1080i and 720p MPEG2 is no problem for it.

[jhkoenig]

Thom, I am using the DVI out on my card (EVGA 256-P2-N768-A1 GeForce 8600GTS) to the HDMI port on my TV. I plan on running the audio through a surround amp via SPDIF in the near future, so audio over HDMI isn't a goal for me. I didn't see any mention in the video card manual about a way to jumper audio onto it.

Good luck!
--John