Need EXPERT Help Choosing HD 2600 Card for HTPC

A

arklab

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Nov 2, 2005
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I REALLY need help choosing a video card for a new HTPC build that my wife is INSISTING I do quickly (really!).

THIS WILL BE A DEDICATED HTPC feeding a 52" 1080P LCD TV – not a gaming rig.
So I’m looking at the ATI HD 2600XT family with DDR4 or DDR3, ether 512M or 256M.
A CrossFire setup is possible, as is the “real-soon-now” Gemini cards (those with two 2600 GPU’s on one card).

So …. What helps HTPC 1080P playback (and keeps the load off the CPU) most?
(Please don’t guess if you don’t know)

1) 512M vs. 256M?

2) GDDR4 vs. GDDR3?

3) Faster vs. Slower GPU speed?

4) CrossFire vs. Single card (to allow 256 bit memory bandwidth vs. the 128 bit native)?

Please remember, this is not a gaming rig and I’m willing to pay for a card that gives more “elbow room” to overall operation.

Cooling and noise should not be a problem, as I’ll be using an Antec P182 case.

Thanks for the help!

PS: New HTPC (building)
Intel Q6600 on DFI LP UT P35-T2R (or similar Asus)
2G of DDR2 with fast timings
Two 500Gb SATA HD (not RAID)
DVD-RW SATA Drive
Antec P182 cast (with 120mm fans in all mounts)
Corsair HX650 PSU
Vista Home Premium MCE
 
You may want to post in the Home Theater forum if you haven't already.

Since you're going to use Vista as an OS, I've gathered that ATI is not a good choice for HD playback. Everyone seems to be very pleased with the 8600GT though.
 
Hurdler said:
You may want to post in the Home Theater forum if you haven't already.

Since you're going to use Vista as an OS, I've gathered that ATI is not a good choice for HD playback. Everyone seems to be very pleased with the 8600GT though.
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damn, where did u hear about ATI is bad for HD playback in vista? I thought they outscored the 8600s in hd playback.
actually I'm pretty sure of it =p
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTM2MCwxMSwsaGVudGh1c2lhc3Q=

to the op, I think a vanilla 256m 2600xt should be fine, I'm not sure howthe 2400 series works for UVD, [H] said they will follow up with a 2400 uvd test, but it hasn't come out yet.
 
Digital Viper-X- said:
damn, where did u hear about ATI is bad for HD playback in vista? I thought they outscored the 8600s in hd playback.
actually I'm pretty sure of it =p
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTM2MCwxMSwsaGVudGh1c2lhc3Q=

to the op, I think a vanilla 256m 2600xt should be fine, I'm not sure howthe 2400 series works for UVD, [H] said they will follow up with a 2400 uvd test, but it hasn't come out yet.
Click to expand...

From what I've gathered, there's a problem with at least the old ATI Vista drivers and HD playback stuttering. For more information look in the Home Theater sub-forum, as at least a couple of the guys have bought a 2600 and returned it for the 8600GT, and are very pleased with their decisions.

The 2600 may "outscore" the 8600 in that scenario, but since when do benchmarks matter?! :p;) As I mentioned earlier, Vista seems to be ATI's HD playback downfall.
 
And if you look at that benchmark, you see that the 8600 only used about 5% more of the cpu's time, so performance is pretty much the same. Plus besides ati's lack of driver quality, 8600's also use less power, therefore usually have a quieter fan.
 
im wondering, why do people always want the 2600 or 8600 for their HTPC stuff? AFAIK the 2400 and 8500 (not sure about 8400gs) have the EXACT SAME decoding capabilities, for a lot less cash and less heat
 
DrFreeze said:
im wondering, why do people always want the 2600 or 8600 for their HTPC stuff? AFAIK the 2400 and 8500 (not sure about 8400gs) have the EXACT SAME decoding capabilities, for a lot less cash and less heat
Click to expand...

If heat/power were an issue, thats a good point. But I think people like options, even when they might not ever need them. I know I would be tempted to game on a 52", just atleast once, hehe.
 
I picked the 2600XT because it had HDMI 5.1 sound. You really cant go wrong with any of the 2400 or 2600 cards. I went for the 2600 just incase I ever wanted to do some mediocre gaming. I really havent gotten a chance to use mine for HD decoding because my HTPC seems to do fairly well without using the GPU. If you get the 2600PRO you'll be happy. Make sure it comes with the HDMI adapter that has sound. As far as I know Nvidia doesnt offer this.
 
The HDMI sound on the ATI cards doesn't support TrueHD, DD+, or DTS-HD.
 
True. I probably dont use my HTPC the way most users do. I use it for TV shows that I download. I have a bluray and HD-DVD player seperate. So the stuff I watch on the HTPC usually doesnt even support those formats anyways.

Also OP

Dont worry about ramsize or GDDR 3 or 4 or crossfire. All those wont get you any better results. Just get a 2600pro and you will be fine.
 
azuldenial said:
If heat/power were an issue, thats a good point. But I think people like options, even when they might not ever need them. I know I would be tempted to game on a 52", just atleast once, hehe.
Click to expand...

hehe TRUE, i would love gaming on something that size as well, but for that i would lugg my heavy ass gaming rig to my TV, not try and abuse a teensy HTPC (or just hook up my 360)
 
DrFreeze said:
hehe TRUE, i would love gaming on something that size as well, but for that i would lugg my heavy ass gaming rig to my TV, not try and abuse a teensy HTPC (or just hook up my 360)
Click to expand...

HeHe - funny you should mention ... :p

Thanks for everyone’s help and opinions

Although I’ve not received all the pieces (much less assembled and tested) here’s the “final” build:
Video Card – MSI Diamond HD 2600XT (GPU 850MHz and 256M DDR4)
CUU - Intel Q6600 (G0 steping)
Motherboard - DFI LP UT P35-T2R
Memory - 2G (2x1G) Corsair XMS2 (4-4-4-12)
Two 500Gb SATA HD (not RAID)
DVD-RW SATA Drive
Case - Antec P182 cast (with 120mm fans in all mounts)
PSU - Corsair HX650
Vista Ultimate MCE

I’ll post back when all is up and running!
(Never skimp on Quality) :D
 
Nice setup for a HTPC, thats a crazy processor for HD content, lol. You probably could have used an old P4 really, but with that setup you really have a closet gaming maching as well.
 
Hurdler said:
From what I've gathered, there's a problem with at least the old ATI Vista drivers and HD playback stuttering. For more information look in the Home Theater sub-forum, as at least a couple of the guys have bought a 2600 and returned it for the 8600GT, and are very pleased with their decisions.

The 2600 may "outscore" the 8600 in that scenario, but since when do benchmarks matter?! :p;) As I mentioned earlier, Vista seems to be ATI's HD playback downfall.
Click to expand...


those tests were done in Vista X64 0.0, mainly the reason I'd take the HD2600 over the 8600s is for the HDMI, and before you say ATIS HDMI doesn't support the 1.3 HD spec for audio, how many receivers are there out that even accept it?and how many of them are UNDER $1500?

plus, don't you have to buy Pure Video HD?
 
Just get the cheaptest HD2400 card you can find if you don't plan on gaming at all. Otherwise pick up the 2600XT or 8600GT.
 
Quad is probably way overkill and will heat up your HTPC quite a bit, why not go for a cheaper C2D?
 
Digital Viper-X- said:
how many receivers are there out that even accept it?and how many of them are UNDER $1500?
Click to expand...
There are plenty that accept it. The Onkyo TX-SR605 is a great receiver at less than 1/3 the price you listed.
plus, don't you have to buy Pure Video HD?
Click to expand...
Under the Vista drivers, PurevideoHD is integrated into the drivers. I think right now it is even in XP too.
 
Digital Viper-X- said:
... the reason I'd take the HD2600 over the 8600s is for the HDMI, and before you say ATIS HDMI doesn't support the 1.3 HD spec for audio ...
Click to expand...

Neither do the Nvidia cards which have HDMI out (some examples listed here), so I don't see why the ATI is any better (at the moment) -- other than avoiding the need for an internal SPDIF cable.
 
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