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Digital/analogue Freeview card, which one?

yeah, im looking for something with a composite connection (recommendations appreciated!?) but will the tv card handle a console running through it, how would it look on the monitor? im going to have a google when im off work on Monday. Really, i need to know how tv cards actually work :rolleyes: :D
 
hauppage Nova-T 500 dual freeview is what I have been using for some time and as I use Vista and media centre I have nothing but the basic driver installed and it works flawlessly.
As for connecting a console you really want that connected directly to your monitor not via the PC.

The cards we are discussing in this thread basically turn your PC in to an ordinary televison/video recorder (think of sky+ and TIVO boxes).

Some can do some extra stuff but thats the basics.
 
powned said:
yeah, im looking for something with a composite connection (recommendations appreciated!?) but will the tv card handle a console running through it, how would it look on the monitor? im going to have a google when im off work on Monday. Really, i need to know how tv cards actually work :rolleyes: :D
Click to expand...

Hmm.. I looked into something similar when trying to use decent monitors with my amiga.

The problem with using a TV card's video input (if it has one) is the fact that its converting/sampling an analoque signal into a digital format which is then displayed on your pc screen. As this is generally a mixture of hardware and software it introduces a delay. This is fine when using a viewing source (old video recorder etc) but when using a game console it can cause issues with game control response etc.

Also scaling, rate conversion, colour bit depth etc come into play to try and show the picture reasonably on a pc screen, and that can have varying results. Fast moving images cause the most problems - which basically means the majority of games.

This is generally why dedicated upscalers cost a lot more than tv tuner cards and even they have issues such as stated above.

If at all possible connect to a dedicated input on your tv/monitor rather than going through a tv card. In the case of my amiga I ended up buying a small TFT tv with a scart input (+ VGA as it happens) which works well, as its designed for standard tv/video standards.

Hope that helps?
 
Thanks all for the help!

In the end I got the Nova-t 500 and have quickly set up recommended GB-PVR program and it seems to be working, interface is much better but certain things seem to have a delay for a couple of seconds (e.g. changing channels). Are there any must do tweaks or tips for this prog?
 
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