i need your help please.. about Zotac 9300 for my HTPC

[djsmallz]

Hey guys

im sort of a newbie to this..
I was thinking of purchasing this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-000-ZT

for my htpc.. the thing is, i might be looking to build some sort of mid-end htpc..

can I rely on the onboard hdmi graphics to output a beautiful 1080p? also i will want to add a soundcard asus D2 HDAV and a good TV tuner, the only problem is that this only have 1pci slot...

what should i do? also.. any good recommendation for best tv tuner card?

Thanks

 

[Total-Game]

Welcome djsmallz! You can have a look at my build using this board, it is available here.

can I rely on the onboard hdmi graphics to output a beautiful 1080p?

You can indeed, it plays every Blu-Ray disk I have thrown at it without any issue. General desktop tasks and Vista Media Centre also run very well.

i will want to add a soundcard asus D2 HDAV and a good TV tuner, the only problem is that this only have 1pci slot... what should i do?

You will not be able to have both in the PCI-Express slot I am afraid. The onboard sound quality is not too bad; outputs 5.1 via HDMI, standard analogue outputs and S/PDIF.

If you want to have both, then you can always get a USB based sound card or TV tuner, or use an external amp.

any good recommendation for best tv tuner card?

If you want a normal dual freeview card for PCI-Express, then have a look here.

 

[djsmallz]

Oh thanks buddy.
erm.. Im going to trust you and go ahead with the onboard graphics.. i have an onkyo 905..it's an AV receiver, rvery powerful not sure if you're familiar with those.. i take it if i connect it to my htpc i won't really need a powerfull card?

as of tv tuner i have ntl and satellite.. is it any need for a quad tv tuner?

Welcome djsmallz! You can have a look at my build using this board, it is available here.

 

[Total-Game]

Oh thanks buddy.
erm.. Im going to trust you and go ahead with the onboard graphics.. i have an onkyo 905..it's an AV receiver, rvery powerful not sure if you're familiar with those.. i take it if i connect it to my htpc i won't really need a powerfull card??

I unfortunately do not have the space or funds for a decent home theatre setup. The 905 looks like a nice piece of kit.

A correction from my post above; the nVidia 9300 chipset on the Zotac board actually outputs 8 channel LPCM audio via HDMI, the onboard realtek sound is used to provide the analogue and S/PDIF outputs, which are limited to 5.1.

The HDMI connection should work very well with your AV receiver.

as of tv tuner i have ntl and satellite.. is it any need for a quad tv tuner?

I cannot really help there, I am stuck with Freeview. If you have a set-top box, then you might need to look at a hybrid card. I have one in my build so that I can continue to use my 10-year old Dreamcast console!