And the decision by the judges...
First the competition. R*nco VX* from a Pr*ceed PM*T. Output on a nicely dialed in Sony G70. The image quality was excellent! Nothing less that what you would expect from $15K of AV processing.
The HTPC again - Duron 700 - ATI KT7 - 256MB Ram - Geforce2 MX - Nightengale cheap SPDIF sound card - WD 10.2GB HD - Latest WinDVD with the latest patch. Powerstrip.
The R*nco reference was at 720P. The HTPC was matched for the test.
As for the HTPC performance, the definitive answer from myself as well as this very experienced AV-Phile was HTPC video was significantly more detailed, and had suprior 3D depth. However the SPDIF output was a hands down winner to the PM*T.
Another notch in the mouse of the HTPC, sorta. I will now purchase the best sound card with SPDIF currently available (Keeping it under $400 is a goal) to see if the HTPC SPDIF can be made to output an SPDIF signal even close to the current DVD transports SPDIF.
As I search around, I'm not sure that I have been able to determine if there is a hands down winner for the HTPC SPDIF output. Even if there is, will the best SPDIF output that the HTPC can offer even be able to touch the PM*T? Only another shootout will determine, after the new soundcard purchase has been made. Your input on that sound card would be appreciated. Audiophile 24/96?
Oz
First the competition. R*nco VX* from a Pr*ceed PM*T. Output on a nicely dialed in Sony G70. The image quality was excellent! Nothing less that what you would expect from $15K of AV processing.
The HTPC again - Duron 700 - ATI KT7 - 256MB Ram - Geforce2 MX - Nightengale cheap SPDIF sound card - WD 10.2GB HD - Latest WinDVD with the latest patch. Powerstrip.
The R*nco reference was at 720P. The HTPC was matched for the test.
As for the HTPC performance, the definitive answer from myself as well as this very experienced AV-Phile was HTPC video was significantly more detailed, and had suprior 3D depth. However the SPDIF output was a hands down winner to the PM*T.
Another notch in the mouse of the HTPC, sorta. I will now purchase the best sound card with SPDIF currently available (Keeping it under $400 is a goal) to see if the HTPC SPDIF can be made to output an SPDIF signal even close to the current DVD transports SPDIF.
As I search around, I'm not sure that I have been able to determine if there is a hands down winner for the HTPC SPDIF output. Even if there is, will the best SPDIF output that the HTPC can offer even be able to touch the PM*T? Only another shootout will determine, after the new soundcard purchase has been made. Your input on that sound card would be appreciated. Audiophile 24/96?
Oz