Confused about HD graphics cards

[Participant]

Hi all. I'm trying to establish exactly what I need in order to be able to watch HD content on my HD LCD. If I have an ATi 1950 Pro with C2D 6400 will it simply be a case of buying a cable that goes from the output port on the graphics card to the HD-in port on the TV?

Are pretty much all graphics cards with DVI-out able to perform this function, or do I need one that is specifically listed as able to output HD?

What's the highest quality of output available on most graphics cards for this scenario?

 

[VeNT]

iirc all current graphics cards can display video at HD res.
the issue comes in with the DRM that is attached to said vids

 

[Participant]

Ok so if I buy or rent an HD video and transport it over a DVI link to my LCD it should work fine on any graphics card that's fast enough? Or if I download a freely distributed HD sample there will be no issues?

Are you basically saying that as long as the HD content is legal and not pirated I will have no problems?

 

[Duff-Man]

Remember that you will of course need a HD-DVD player to play a rented HD-DVD. You can buy blu-ray players for your PC, but they are currently pretty expensive.

That said, there is nothing to stop you using a DVI to HDMI converter to play any HD content you currently have on your hard drive through your HDTV. The only issue for some content is the sound, but as far as I am aware you can always just use a standard analogue cable from your soundcard to the TV.

 

[james.miller]

its a bit complicated.at the moment yo uneed a certain hardware and software combo for it to work. powerdvd 7.0 and above seem to require a hdcp compatible card. If you dont have a card on the list it wont work. pdvd 6.5 doesnt require a hdcp card but its a bit flakey.

you dont need a hdcp display at all. if you use vga it doesnt play any restrictions on the content. if you want to use dvi, it has to be hdcp. crazy i know.

run the cyberlink advisor and that'll tell you wether you can get away with it or not http://www.cyberlink.com/english/support/bdhd_support/diagnosis.jsp

 

[Participant]

you dont need a hdcp display at all

Huh? Now I'm really confused. Do you mean the HD display doesn't have to support the equivalent of DRM for HD or that if I wanted to watch HD content on a normal TV it will downscale it?

Cheers

 

[james.miller]

im saying you dont need a hdcp-compliant display if your using vga vga works just fine and allows me to watch hd-dvd on my 19" monitor as well as my 40" sony 40w2000 @ 1080p. if you want to use hdmi, it has to be hdcp as for a normal tv, i dont know about that. i've not tried it lol


i told you it was complicated lol