August 25, 200916 yr This is old news but worth pointing out. XBMC on Linux now support VDPAU which means it will run on an ATOM with a geforce8300+ onboard GPU. What does this mean? It means that you can buy an off the shelf atom pc with HDMI and optical and load the live CD onto it (trivial boot and install) and have XBMC boot up silently and play 1080p just about everything. Silent, tiny, cheap flawless 1080p and just about every other video, audio and image type with a proper library support, media scraping and countless other features.
August 26, 200916 yr This is old news but worth pointing out. XBMC on Linux now support VDPAU which means it will run on an ATOM with a geforce8300+ onboard GPU. What does this mean? It means that you can buy an off the shelf atom pc with HDMI and optical and load the live CD onto it (trivial boot and install) and have XBMC boot up silently and play 1080p just about everything. Silent, tiny, cheap flawless 1080p and just about every other video, audio and image type with a proper library support, media scraping and countless other features. Will it bitstream HD audio (DTS-HD MA and TrueHD) over the HDMI connection?
August 26, 200916 yr Author Absolutely no clue you would have to go and check. Dev happens so much you literally see upgrades every day if you wanted. All i know is so far nothing i have ever tried to play hasnt worked but i dont use HDMI audio
August 26, 200916 yr Absolutely no clue you would have to go and check. Dev happens so much you literally see upgrades every day if you wanted. All i know is so far nothing i have ever tried to play hasnt worked but i dont use HDMI audio I did go and check, and looks like it doesn't. So for me, it's not competitive with the PCH!
August 26, 200916 yr Author Thats a fairly extreme example then. I really dont want to try and say which one is better since all I am saying is it now compettive. For me the poor PCH library and GUI is a show stopper when compared to XBMC. But for some comaprision: PCH Video codecs: * XVID SD/HD * MPEG-1 * MPEG-2 * MP@HL * MPEG-4.2 * ASP@L5, 720p, 1-point GMC * WMV9 * MP@HL * H.264 * VC-1 Audio codecs: * Dolby Digital * DTS * WMA, WMA Pro * AAC * MP1, MP2, MP3 * LPCM * FLAC * Vorbis XBMC Video codecs: * MPEG-1 (VCD/MPG) and MPEG-2 (MPEG/SVCD/DVD/VOB/DV/TY) video * MPEG-4 ASP (H.263): DivX (Pro), OpenDivX, XviD and Nero Digital ASP * MPEG-4 AVC - Advanced Video Coding (H.264): Nero Digital AVC, x264, and DivX AVC video #1 * Microsoft's Windows Media Video v7, v8 and v9 (MSMpeg4/WMV v1, v2, and v3) * VC-1 (SMPTE 421M) * RealVideo codecs: 1.0, 2.0 (RealPlayer G2), 3.0 (RealPlayer 8.x) and 4.0 (RealPlayer 9.x) * QuickTime 5.0, 6.0, 6.3 video and audio codecs (QDMC / QDM2) #1 * 3ivx D4 / 3vi1 MPEG-4 video (inc. MSZH/ZLIB Compressed-Header containers) #1 * Sorenson v1/v3 (SVQ1/SVQ3) QuickTime video * Apple Graphics (SMC) video * Apple QuickDraw (qdrw) video decoder * On2 Technologies VP3 (VP3.x), VP4 (VP4.x), VP5 (VP5.x), and VP6 (VP6.2) * AVS (Audio Video Standard) video codec * Intel Indeo 2 (Indeo2) and 3.1/3.2 (Indeo3) video decoder * NuppelVideo (NUV) * VIVO 1.0 and 2.0 (VIV) * Fraps FPS1 video decoder * Snow video decoder * DV50 (DVCPRO50) video decoder, and DV100 (DVCPRO HD) video decoder * ITU H.261 video * Creative Labs YUV (CYUV) video * Supermac Cinepak (CVID) video * ASUS V1 (ASV1) and ASUS V2 (ASV2) video * Smacker video decoder * Motion Pixels video decoder * BFI video decoder * AMV video decoder * Interplay C93 video decoder * Zip Blocks Motion Video decoder * Duck TrueMotion 2 video decoder * Delphine Software .cin video decoder * Bethsoft VID video decoder * QPEG video decoder * Miro VideoXL (VIXL) video decoder * Winnov WNV1 video decoder * LOCO video decoder * TechSmith Camtasia (TSCC) video decoder * IBM Ultimotion (ULTI) video decoder * Autodesk Animator Studio Codec (AASC) video decoder * Autodesk FLI and FLC Animation Audio codecs: * CDDA (Audio-CD) playback * WAV/WAVE (WAVEform) and PCM audio format * AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) audio * MPEG layer I, II, and III (inluding MP2 and MP3) audio #5 * OGG (Ogg Vorbis audio codec) * WMA - Windows Media Audio v1 and v2 (WMA1 / WMA2 / DivX Audio v1/v2) #5 * WMA - Windows Media Audio 9 (WMA9) #5 * WMA Pro Audio Codec (Windows Media Audio 9 Professional)#5 * RealNetworks RealAudio codecs: 1.0 (14.4), 2.0 (28., SIPRO, COOK, COOKER, DNET and ATRAC3 * AC3 2.0 or 5.1 and Dolby Digital EX 6.1 or 7.1 audio in video (AC3 digital cable S/PDIF pass-through) * Dolby Digital AC3 and AC3-WAV/AC3-CDDA 2.0 and 5.1 audio in video software decoded to stereo analog-out * Dolby Digital Plus (a.k.a. E-AC3), and Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio software decoder * Dolby Digital Plus (a.k.a. E-AC3), and Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio in Blu-ray rips via digital cable S/PDIF pass-through * DTS (Digital Theater System) 5.1 and DTS-ES 6.1 audio in DVD-Video (DTS digital cable S/PDIF pass-through) * DTS (DTS and DTS-WAV/DTS-CDDA) audio in DVD-Video (software decoded) * AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) profiles: Main, LC, HE, LTP, LD, ER, and aacPlus v1/v2 (AAC+ SBR/PS) audio #5 * M4A and MP4 (MPEG-4 Audio) (including Nero Digital MP4) #5 * PureVoice (QCELP) audio decoder * AVS (Audio Video Standard) audio codec * FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) audio * WavPack lossless audio * MPC (Musepack, a.k.a. Mpeg+) lossless audio #6 * APE (Monkey's Audio) lossless audio * SHN (Shorten) lossless audio * ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) lossless audio #6 * MLP (Meridian Lossless Packing) / Packed PCM (PPCM) audio decoder * AMV audio decoder * Sonic audio decoder * AIFF/AIFF-C audio dcoder * Macromedia ADPCM decoder * Creative ADPCM audio decoder (16 bits as well as 8 bits schemes) * Nellymoser ASAO decoder * True Audio (TTA) decoder * TrueSpeech audio decoder * Intel Music decoder * QDM2 audio decoder * Delphine Software .cin audio decoder * 8SVX audio decoder * MIDI music using Timidity * Tracker Mod's audio, see list below: o Adlib (AdLib and Sound Blaster OPL2/OPL3 and Dual OPL2/OPL3) FM audio o SID (Commodore 64 tunes) audio o YM (ATARI ST) audio o NSF (Nintendo NES Sound Format) audio o SPC (SPC700) audio o GYM (SEGA Genesis) audio o ADX/AST/ADP/DSP/YMF/HPS CRI MiddleWare and Gamecube ADPCM) audio o MOD/AMF/669/DMF/DSM/FAR/GDM/IMF/IT/M15/MED/OKT/S3M/STM/SFX/ULT/UNI/XM * vgmstream playback of 51 more streamed audio formats used in video games: o aax, asd, asr, ass, bgw, bh2pcm, capdsp, ccc, dcs, de2, emff, fag, gbts, gca, gsb, idsp, idvi, isd, joe, kraw, mihb, msvp, mwv, omu, p2bt, pdt, rnd, rwar, rwav, sap, seg, smp, spd, spsd, spw, ss7, ssm, thp, vgs, vs, waa, wac, wad, wam, xa2, xmu, xsf, xvas, ydsp, ymf, zwdsp Both lists are likely out of date
August 26, 200916 yr Thats a fairly extreme example then. I really dont want to try and say which one is better since all I am saying is it now compettive. For me the poor PCH library and GUI is a show stopper when compared to XBMC. But for some comaprision: It depends what you want to use it for. I have an Xbox running XBMC. I know it's great. However, my unRAID box has nothing but Blu-ray rips on it, and for me, HDMI video and audio is not "extreme", it's the new standard, and it's the only way to get HD audio to my amp. I only care if my media player can play H264, VC-1, MPEG2 and BD rips over HDMI. If XBMC can't, it's no use. The PCH has no library or GUI, but here's mine (YAMJ):
August 26, 200916 yr I like XBMC, but using it on something other than an XBOX is not ideal for me. I need the "TV ready" component output the XBOX provides. A PC just won't do that without a ton of tweaking.
August 26, 200916 yr No, a PC won't do component out easily, but it will do HDMI or VGA, both of which are good enough for HD video, and better than component. A PC is a good match with a modern HDTV, but not as good with older CRT TVs, since generally the best it can do is S-Video.
August 26, 200916 yr Yea, unfortunately I only have component and VGA. I could use the VGA, but I haven't been successful dialing in the refresh rate and exact resoultion for the TV. Fortunately for me its a Pioneer Elite that has been ISF calibrated. I just can't see getting rid of it in order to get HDMI.
August 26, 200916 yr It must depend on your video card. I have a Nvidia 8600gt in my HTPC & I used to run component out. It had a great picture. It was on a Philips 37" LCD. It was 720p so I didn't mess with HDMI on that TV. My new TV is a 42" Philips & I did use HDMI since it is a 1080p set. Still a great picture. If you have the right video card then component out works great...
August 27, 200916 yr It must depend on your video card. I have a Nvidia 8600gt in my HTPC & I used to run component out. It had a great picture. It was on a Philips 37" LCD. It was 720p so I didn't mess with HDMI on that TV. My new TV is a 42" Philips & I did use HDMI since it is a 1080p set. Still a great picture. If you have the right video card then component out works great... It will work great with an LCD since it can accept multiple scan rates and resolutions, but a CRT cannot.
August 27, 200916 yr I have an Asrock 330 ion maching running ubuntu with xbmc hooked to my home theater system in my living room and i absolutely love it. works perfect. some of the best put together open source software i have ever seen. the xbmc team really is amazing. i just got my limetech box today ;D going to be copying all of my hd movies to it and streaming it to the xbmc box via my home network very soon. ahh bliss... http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/2792/asrock_ion_330_bd_nettop_affordable_overclockable_and_1080p_hd/index.html
August 27, 200916 yr It must depend on your video card. I have a Nvidia 8600gt in my HTPC & I used to run component out. It had a great picture. It was on a Philips 37" LCD. It was 720p so I didn't mess with HDMI on that TV. My new TV is a 42" Philips & I did use HDMI since it is a 1080p set. Still a great picture. If you have the right video card then component out works great... It will work great with an LCD since it can accept multiple scan rates and resolutions, but a CRT cannot. I'm not meaning to be argumentative. But HD CRTs most certainly can handle multiple scan rates. Even if yours can't handle multiple rates, you can output from the computer the scan rate & resolution that you're TV can handle. I've used component on 2 different CRT HDTV rear projection TVs with no problems & have had a great picture. In addition to the 2 LCDs. That's what custom resolutions are for. LCDs may be able to handle multiple resolutions inputted through the back inputs but that is misleading. All LCD TVs are FIXED resolution displays. They will scale whatever is inputted to their native resolution. CRTs on the other hand when you change resolution, the screen will jumble up & then it will lock onto the new resolution. That is if that particular TV has the capability to handle multiple resolutions. If you or anyone is having problems with component with a HD CRT, I will be happy to help. Of course this will not work with a standard non high def CRT. Some people get the term component & composite mixed up. Component is 3 cables & only works on High Def Equipment, 480p & up. The jacks are usually color coded Green, Red & Blue. Composite is one cable & it is usually a yellow input jack on the back of your TV. Most non High Def CRTs have S-Video, Composite & Coax inputs on the back. And yes they only have one resolution in the US. 480i
August 28, 200916 yr It must depend on your video card. I have a Nvidia 8600gt in my HTPC & I used to run component out. It had a great picture. It was on a Philips 37" LCD. It was 720p so I didn't mess with HDMI on that TV. My new TV is a 42" Philips & I did use HDMI since it is a 1080p set. Still a great picture. If you have the right video card then component out works great... It will work great with an LCD since it can accept multiple scan rates and resolutions, but a CRT cannot. I'm not meaning to be argumentative. But HD CRTs most certainly can handle multiple scan rates. Even if yours can't handle multiple rates, you can output from the computer the scan rate & resolution that you're TV can handle. I've used component on 2 different CRT HDTV rear projection TVs with no problems & have had a great picture. In addition to the 2 LCDs. That's what custom resolutions are for. LCDs may be able to handle multiple resolutions inputted through the back inputs but that is misleading. All LCD TVs are FIXED resolution displays. They will scale whatever is inputted to their native resolution. CRTs on the other hand when you change resolution, the screen will jumble up & then it will lock onto the new resolution. That is if that particular TV has the capability to handle multiple resolutions. If you or anyone is having problems with component with a HD CRT, I will be happy to help. Of course this will not work with a standard non high def CRT. Some people get the term component & composite mixed up. Component is 3 cables & only works on High Def Equipment, 480p & up. The jacks are usually color coded Green, Red & Blue. Composite is one cable & it is usually a yellow input jack on the back of your TV. Most non High Def CRTs have S-Video, Composite & Coax inputs on the back. And yes they only have one resolution in the US. 480i Points well taken, and I'm not saying it can't be done, but with the video card I was using at the time it just wasn't worth it. I spent quite a well trying to dial in and just couldn't get a clean picture. It had to run at 1080i through it's VGA port. There are extensive threads about this issue over at avsforums. Given more time I'm sure I could make it work, but I figured I'd just buy a popcorn hour instead.
August 28, 200916 yr I've never had much luck using VGA for HD video. Terrible screen tearing during pan shots. Scouting around at the time revealed it might be a TV specific problem but it happened on both my Pioneer and Panasonic plasmas. Switching to HDMI on both sorted it out.
August 28, 200916 yr I've never had much luck using VGA for HD video. Terrible screen tearing during pan shots. Scouting around at the time revealed it might be a TV specific problem but it happened on both my Pioneer and Panasonic plasmas. Switching to HDMI on both sorted it out. That sounds like a problem with the sync timing from your source... I've never had an issue with tearing in any way using VGA. My projector does not have a native HDMI input... but then, it was built before HDMI was invented. I run it in 480i, 720p, 960p, and 1080i. It is a Barco Graphics 1208, a true multi-sync front-projection CRT. (It can sync to 1080p, but the scan lines overlap and it is not as sharp as 720p or 960p) It looks like this http://myhometheater.homestead.com/CRT.html With results similar to these: http://myhometheater.homestead.com/Gallery2.html Those were not my theater, or my screen-shots... but same projector...fed via VGA from an HTPC. There is no tearing when panning. Joe L.
August 28, 200916 yr more than likely the source. For the cost of a cable I didn't fancy doing much investigation. Path of least resistance and all that.
August 28, 200916 yr It must depend on your video card. I have a Nvidia 8600gt in my HTPC & I used to run component out. It had a great picture. It was on a Philips 37" LCD. It was 720p so I didn't mess with HDMI on that TV. My new TV is a 42" Philips & I did use HDMI since it is a 1080p set. Still a great picture. If you have the right video card then component out works great... It will work great with an LCD since it can accept multiple scan rates and resolutions, but a CRT cannot. I'm not meaning to be argumentative. But HD CRTs most certainly can handle multiple scan rates. Even if yours can't handle multiple rates, you can output from the computer the scan rate & resolution that you're TV can handle. I've used component on 2 different CRT HDTV rear projection TVs with no problems & have had a great picture. In addition to the 2 LCDs. That's what custom resolutions are for. LCDs may be able to handle multiple resolutions inputted through the back inputs but that is misleading. All LCD TVs are FIXED resolution displays. They will scale whatever is inputted to their native resolution. CRTs on the other hand when you change resolution, the screen will jumble up & then it will lock onto the new resolution. That is if that particular TV has the capability to handle multiple resolutions. If you or anyone is having problems with component with a HD CRT, I will be happy to help. Of course this will not work with a standard non high def CRT. Some people get the term component & composite mixed up. Component is 3 cables & only works on High Def Equipment, 480p & up. The jacks are usually color coded Green, Red & Blue. Composite is one cable & it is usually a yellow input jack on the back of your TV. Most non High Def CRTs have S-Video, Composite & Coax inputs on the back. And yes they only have one resolution in the US. 480i Points well taken, and I'm not saying it can't be done, but with the video card I was using at the time it just wasn't worth it. I spent quite a well trying to dial in and just couldn't get a clean picture. It had to run at 1080i through it's VGA port. There are extensive threads about this issue over at avsforums. Given more time I'm sure I could make it work, but I figured I'd just buy a popcorn hour instead. I agree with you there. Sorry for sounding rough yesterday. Had a bad day. If your video card doesn't make things easy & your tired of messing with it, the popcorn hour is the way to go. For the bedroom I did basically the same thing. I bought a HD200 to play my files with. Again sorry for yesterday if what I said didn't come out right..
August 28, 200916 yr No problem at all. It did seem like you were giving me a lesson on various inputs and their connectors though, haha. One day this TV will die and I'll move on to an HTPC then.
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