Ordered a bunch of parts today

[jasonlitka]

I decided that it was time to build my HTPC system. Here's a list of the stuff I ordered:

Silverstone Lascala SST_LC02 (Silver)
Abit AN7
Gigabyte Radeon 9600XT
2x Corsair Value Select PC3200 256MB
Hauppauge WinTV-PVR250MCE
StreamZap PC Remote
1U PCI Ribbon Cable Riser

I ordered the 1U PCI Ribbon Cable Riser because the AN7 is missing the PCI slot below the AGP slot. I'm planning on running SageTV on this box.

Does anyone have this board? Any comments on sound quality of nVidia's SoundStorm-certified boards?

 

[xonik]

Any comments on sound quality of nVidia's SoundStorm-certified boards?

Sound quality is pretty much determinant on the codec used in conjuction with the SoundStorm encoder/decoder. Usually the Realtek ALC650 or similar codec is used, which isn't all that great for any decent system. Using a soundcard from the Audigy 2 series, or using a soundcard based on the Envy24 series audio controller, will give you great sound for the price.

 

[jasonlitka]

Unfortunately, can't do it. The case that I'm using only has room for two cards, one AGP and one PCI. They're both going to be full.

I'm not sure what sound chip is used. It's only listed at "6-Channel AC97 CODEC". Still, if I use the DD Encoding and the digital out it shouldn't matter much, should it?

EDIT: I just looked it up, the chip that is used is the ALC658.

 

[xonik]

Right, the digital out is probably your best bet if you want to preserve sound quality. Still, it will resample audio to 16-bit, 48 kHz thanks to Windows Kmixer.