Newbe needs advice for basic setup

Not exactly sure what kind of advice you are looking for.

I'd run windows 7 32bit. Use Windows Media Center with Media Browser Plug-in.

Start there and ask more specific questions as you have them.

not sure why 32bit over 64bit but i agree windows 7 with media center. I use mymovies but media browser is pretty cool too.

I'd suggest buying an ati5454 ($50) or larger card as this will give you HDMI and lossless audio (DTS-HD, True-HD) if your reciever supports HDMI

The analog output of the PC to receiver will allow you to manage the sound if you don't have SPDIF output.

You'll be better off having the AVR handle the audio by itself and the video card only providing the video to the projector.

The simplest way is to use the sound card you have (Sound Blaster Live) with the SPDIF connection to the receiver and a DVI to HDMI cable to the projector...

Video card -> DVI to HDMI cable -> Projector

Sound card -> SPDIF optical/digital cable -> AVR

Forget SPDIF and everything else.

Get a ATI 5XXX series video card and bitstream (passthrough) all your audio to the Sony and let it handle all audio.
Any HD 5000 card; from the lowly 5450 ($50) to 5750 ($150) and beyond, will decode HD video and bitstream HD audio over one single HDMI cable.

You have a (relatively) expensive receiver with HDMI inputs and HD audio decoders. Use it!
Just my 2 cents!

Yes, all ATI HD series video cards (2/3/4/5000) have an onboard audio controller chip. The 5000 series has built-in PAP which will allow the right software to passthrough/bitstream untouched HD audio codecs (Dolby TrueHD/DTS-HD) to your receiver using one single HDMI cable. You simply install drivers, that's it, no extra connections.
Read more about them in the ATI 5000 threads, they have plenty of information on installation, drivers, problems, fixes, etc.


Utilizing Full Screen is a scaling issue, not a video chip problem per se. The video looks great (HD as well as up-scaled SD) and there is a scaling slider to adjust screen size in ATI's CCC.


Haven't come across such problems; maybe I'm not understanding you right.

All ATI HD video cards (since the 2000) are fully capable of decoding HD video. I have used at least one from each series and currently own all except the 3000 series.

Hmmm..! What's wrong with having the hardware he has work for him and then let him judge for himself?

If at any point afterwards he's unsatisfied with the results so far he still has another choice. Not to mention a whole other set of quirks trying to get everything working through HDMI. Is not at all as simple as you make it sound, to me that's just another can of worms with a different label, been there done that.


Once installed, the sound card you would be using doesn't need any other cables other then the optical/digital cable you'll be connecting to your AVR. Select the card as your primary audio output source and you're good to go.

True!
That is why I generally add "Just my 2 cents" to any info/advice I post. If I write 'Please', it sounds as if I'm begging for others to follow my opinion. Its just my opinion and users can read and judge for themselves what works best for them.

I try to consider what equipment is being used in conjunction with the question being asked. My thinking tends to run towards using what I paid for.

In OP's case, a Sony STR-DA3400ES is being used. That is a $1000 receiver, (maybe cheaper if you can find a deal).
So why skimp on spending $50 when $1000 (+ more for speakers & sub) have been spent. It doesn't make sense to use SPDIF when HD audio can be had for $50.

Also, more importantly, OP asked about purchasing another sound card or video card.

And of course its not as simple as it sounds; with a HTPC it never is.
This is a help forum. To help and learn is what we are here for. Since no one had posted about HD audio bitstreaming, I figured I would.
I directed OP to other threads to read up about problems and fixes with the 5000 solution.
I assume he will think about it and do what suits him best.

Cheers!

hmm....convert the pin headers into a co-axial port.
With something like this.

Just realized your sound card is a SB Live. That card has a SPDIF port.
The top most port is generally the SPDIF port. Simply run a 3.5mm-to-RCA cable from that port to the 'Coaxial IN' on your receiver and you should be set.
What is the model # of your card? I'm not sure if it would be supported in Win 7.

Just curious, what is the rest of your setup; speakers, subs, display devices?

You have some expensive equipment; isn't the JVC upwards of $5000?
I have my HTPC running to a PJ, it looks great even without calibration.
You should do it asap.

While I agree with Hirent on simply changing vid cards, the existing setup you have may work. What I mean by this is that using SPDIF is only a good choice if you are looking to pass AC3/DTS, but that doesn't help with HD audio. If the audio on your motherboard is decent and your receiver has analog inputs, you could always use the analog outs. This would give you the flexibility of decoding all formats (including HD) on the PC side and sending it to the receiver already decoded. Now if you are someone who only believes in sending an unadulterated signal to your receiver then you will find yourself forced to upgrade vid cards. Of course none of this matters if you are not dealing with HD audio, but you may want consider the advice for future proofing.

As for the video, Nvidia tends to have a little better DXVA compliance than ATI cards, but either is good. Once again this really only depends on what content you are watching.

Hope this helps.

Ok, first thing you should know is that SPDIF cannot transmit HD quality audio due to bandwidth restrictions. HDMI is absolutely essential to get HD audio. Or a HD sound card with analog outs (there are only two choices though, see below).
SPDIF can only pass-through legacy/DVD quality audio.
SPDIF has another problem; if the audio signal doesn't have a legacy track in the HD signal, it will output only 2-channel PCM audio. This might happen if the software player cannot/will not down-mix the HD signal to DD/DTS.

Audio signals are captured by microphones and digitally sampled & modulated using PCM. All audio signals (CD, DVD & BD) are PCM at their basic level. And PCM is the purest form of audio you can get. The quality of the digital track compared to the analog signal is dependent on the sampling frequency and the number of bits available to carry the information. Obviously, the more you sample and the higher the number bits, the better the signal. The spec is referred to as, Sampling Frequency & Bit Rate.

[1] CD - Uncompressed, unadulterated signal
[2] DVD - Compressed and encoded to a spec created by Dolby Labs using lossy codec. Some DVDs have DTS tracks; but one DD track is always present.
[3] BD - Uncompressed PCM, and/or encoded Dolby or DTS track. This encoding is done using lossless codecs; DTS-HD MA & Dolby TrueHD (these are the most common). There are some BDs out there which have legacy tracks (DVD quality).

SPDIF - DVD quality audio - 5.1/6.1/7.1 Dolby Digital, DTS etc. and 2-Ch PCM
HDMI - 5.1/6.1/7.1 All Dolby/DTS formats incl. HD and 7.1 Ch PCM

For BD playback on PC, you need something called a PAP (Protected Audio Path). If PAP is not present the audio is downgraded by the software player.

There are three ways to get audio from a PC to a receiver;
[1] Software player completely decodes the encoded audio signal and sends it out over the analog ports, which you can then connect to the Multi-Channel input on a receiver/amp.
[2] Software player decodes the encoded audio signal to PCM (kinda like unzipping) and sends it over HDMI to your receiver.
[3] Software player passes the audio signal through without any modification to the receiver.

The problem with this is that there was no device with PAP available during the early years of BD. Hence all software down-sampled the HD quality audio to 48KHz/16Bit. Most HD audio tracks have a 48/16 spec but there are many tracks which are much higher. They can go from 48/24 to 192/24, especially concert discs. Lack of PAP meant the audio signal was degraded, it was still better than legacy tracks but butchered nonetheless.

So depending on personal preferences, options [1] & [2] are no good to some people.
Option [3] of course, is the best choice as the audio signal is sent unmolested out of the PC, it is called Bit-Streaming, the audio track is streamed bit-for-bit as it is, out over the HDMI port.

As of today, there are 4 choices for PAP:
[1] Asus Xonar HDAV: $150-$250
[2] Creative Auzentech: $225
[3] ATI HD 5000 series video cards: $50-$500
[4] Intel Clarkdale Graphics with Core i3/i5 CPU

Each solution has its own share of bugs & problems, fixes & solutions, and supporters & detractors.
ATI generated a lot of buzz in recent times since they are the cheapest solution.

[1] comes in three flavors: Std., Slim & Deluxe. Slim is a PCI card with HDMI bitstream out, Std. is PCIE with HDMI out and Deluxe has an additional daughter board with Analog Outs. [2] comes with Analog Outs as well. [3] & [4] are purely Digital Out (HDMI), no Analog Outs at all. So if your equipment doesn't have HDMI inputs and is good enough to not warrant an upgrade, you might want to choose either the HDAV Deluxe or the Auz. Hi-Fi HT.
In addiiton, [1] & [2] are tied to proprietary software, TMT and PDVD respectively; while ATI & Intel are supported by all three players (PDVD, TMT, WinDVD). Also, the freeware player MPC-HC (with ffdshow) supports ATI.

$150 can buy the cheapest PAP sound card or get a ATI 5750 (or thereabouts) with great video post-processing capabilities.

If a user has an old receiver and/or they aren't setup to fully appreciate HD audio, recommendation would lean towards SPDIF.
However, with your kind of equipment, I would strongly advise you to get a PAP solution to maximize your HD experience.

This info is a rough guide to get you started. You will need to read more about it (here and elsewhere). There are numerous threads regarding HD audio and the above mentioned audio solutions.

You will have to choose what's best for you.
Good Luck!

I have an MSI 785GTM-E45 with onboard HD4220 and 8channel audio. I also have an HD5450 card. Can this onboard video/audio combo bitstream HD autio similar to the HD5450 so I can use teh HD5450 elsewhere?

Also, if I have another motherboard with no onboard HDMI/8channel support, can I install the HD5450 and get full bitstream support? I just want to confirm that the card is not dependent on any onboard requirements for bitstreaming.

No onboard board supports PAP (HDaudio).
The 5450 isn't dependent on any board to bitstream the HD audio. It's all builtin to the card.

I'd suggest buying another 5450 or larger to have HDaudio on both machines. Also the 5xxx series cards only do audio over HDMI.

Thanks for the clarification as I wasn't sure about PAP with the onboard stuff. Plan is to use HDMI to my 7.1 AVR.

The 785G chipset has the HD4200 IGP. Even though the nomenclature suggests it is from the HD4000 series, the audio capabilities are not the same. It is plain SPDIF passed through the HDMI port, unlike the 4000 series video cards which can do multi-channel PCM.

The 5450 will do HD bit-streaming independent of the IGP.

Also, Intel's Clarkdale (i5 series, I believe) has onboard PAP. AMD doesn't and probably never will. Check the Intel Core i3/i5 thread for more details.