Playing Hi-Def from the PC

BenST

BenST

BenST

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Hi,

I have a 26" HDTV. I also have a HDMI->DVI lead. Unfortunately my Radeon 9500Pro doesn't support HDTV output.

So, what graphics card around £60 supports HDTV output from the DVI port? I am not a gamer so all I need really are two DVI ports (one for the TFT and one for the HD lead) and HD support. I'm also not too bothered about if it's PCI-E / AGP as I'm thinking of upgrading my PC anyway. Also what Windows program do most people use to play HD video?

Thanks :-)
 
i had a HDMI>DVI cable for my PC to TV and it looked ****.
Changed to a VGA to VGA one, using a DVI to VGA convertor on back of graphics card, and it looks a lot better, but might have just been a bad cable!
 
I'm a bit puzzled as to what you're after.

I use a DVI - HDMI cable to connect my PC to my LCD TV (LG 32LX2R). It looks perfect (1:1 pixel mapping).

To connect a PC to an HDTV you don't need a graphics card with a HDMI output, you just use a standard DVI or VGA port, then connect it to your LCD's DVI / HDMI / VGA port. Your PC shouldn't output any differently to when it's just connected to a regular PC monitor. You should have your PC resolution set to 1360x768 (or something close), and the LCD TV should accept this fine. Which model LCD do you have? It'll help find out which connection will work best.

For HD stuff, it depends on what files your playing. If it's MPEG2 Transport Stream (TS), then a few players are available. Personally I use TheaterTek, there's a free demo available on their website.
 
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I know I don't need a HDMI port on the GFX card but I thought there would have to be some 'mode' enabled on the DVI port to allow HDTV output. It appears I was wrong. The model of LCD is a Samsung LE26R41.

Theatretek? Thanks :)
 
No, I output HD on my Ti4200 and my subsequent 6200, just set the resolution to 1280x720 and you have HD (1366x768 may be better for you). VGA will be your best bet so you can have 1:1 pixel mapping.

Theatertek is great but if funds are tight you can get Media Player classic and add the Nvidia decoders to it to get the same result for less money (interface isn't as good).
 
Do you think my 9500Pro may just be crap then? I played some HDTV content through my TV and was expected to be 'blown away' but instead was somewhat disappointed :(
 
Kind of hard to answer as I have no idea what you watched or how you set things up.
 
I watched a 1080i HD video and set up with the same resolutions as you described. Neither looked amazing.
 
Samsungs do not support computers using a HDMI - DVI cable. I tried and the res was a lot lower or stretched passed the screen. Get a VGA vable, plug into card and monitor. Enjoy :D
 
Sounds to me (unless I am reading your original post wrong) like you were outputting the image to your TV using composite or s-video, which will look flipping awful.
 
splitz said:
Nope, outputted via the 9500Pro's DVI port.
Click to expand...

Doesn't your 9500Pro have an analogue 15-pin VGA Output? That's what you need to connect to your monitor's 15-pin VGA input.


devilkazuya said:
does anyone know if a 7800 GTX is compatible/capable of HDMI output? as in 1080p ?
Click to expand...

Well your graphics card does a resolution of 1920x1080, so yes it is 1080p compatible. There seems to be a lot of confusion about HDTV and HDMI output. To watch HD from your PC on your HDTV you need to connect in 1 of 2 ways:

1) Digital connection - Connect DVI output of your PC to DVI (or HDMI) input on your HDTV
2) Analogue - Connect VGI output of your PC to VGA input of your HDTV

Both methods will carry the same resolutions.
 
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It does, but I don't have a VGA lead to test it yet. If you say it'll work then great but can anyone confirm that DVI-HDMI lead on a Samsung will not get good HDTV results? I can't see how it will be much different from VGA.
 
splitz said:
It does, but I don't have a VGA lead to test it yet. If you say it'll work then great but can anyone confirm that DVI-HDMI lead on a Samsung will not get good HDTV results? I can't see how it will be much different from VGA.
Click to expand...

The Samsung doesn't do 1:1 pixel mapping over HDMI, but it does do 1:1 over VGA. Hence the picture quality will be noticeably better using the VGA connection for PC use.
 
devilkazuya said:
does anyone know if a 7800 GTX is compatible/capable of HDMI output? as in 1080p ?
Click to expand...

just to clarify PCs have been HD since about the windows 95 Days

Standard Definition is 480 lines. in pc monitor terms thats a resolution of 640 x 480, which is normal VGA

how long have you had a PC that could do 800 x 600 SVGA. That is higher definition than standard TV.

heck most people have run their PCs for the past 10 years or so at about 1280 x 1024 or 1024 x 768. "Full HD" is 1080, which most recent graphic cards are capable of. I think even a lowly Geforce 2 card is capable of 1920 x 1440 which is higher than "Full 1080 HD" Spec.

So all graphics card are "HD"

a HD ready TV will have to have a HDMI port. Which is digital, the same as DVI. so any card with a DVI port can output to HDMI via a converter. And even if your card didnt have a DVI port, and had the old VGA style input, most Hi Def TVs have a PC input in the form of a VGA port as well. So any graphics card is capable of HD output.
 
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splitz said:
Bingo. Is looking, and sounding (through my 5.1 system) pretty good :)
Click to expand...

pretty poor show by Samsung, that they drop your PCs resolution when using DVI > HDMI converters.

nvm though, as you've just said VGA looks stunning enough :D
 
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