In the U.S., HDTV is broadcast as MPEG2. The articles I have read about HDTV in Europe have said MPEG4 (probably H.264 / MPEG4.10 / AVC) will be used. H.264 takes much more CPU horsepower to decode. A 3GHz P4 may not ave the horsepower to decode it.
On 12/8/05, Steve Adeff <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On Thursday 08 December 2005 13:19, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > Well seeing as HDTV looks to be coming to the UK next year > > ( http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/12/01/telewest_goes_live_with_hdtv/ ) > > and we're looking at buying a new HDTV 'ready' TV[1] (1080i) I'm planning > > to get HDTV playback set up on my myth box. Only problem is I don't know > > where to start! > > wait till HDTV becomes available before buying a TV. The States are just > beginning to see 1080p sets hit the market, by the time you get HDTV in the > UK I'm sure they'll be there as well, and the prices for HDTV's will drop in > general. No reason to get it now if you won't really be able to use it and > the prices will go down. > > > I'm currently running a P4 2.8GHz with 1Gb, twin Nova-T's and a 128Mb AGP > > Nvidia MX440 with the TV out of composite (AV) at 1024x768 and running SuSE > > 10.0/mythtv 18.1 Disk space is er plenty (2TB+ if need be) > > I'd suggest upgrading the video card to a 6xxx series NVidia GPU. Most support > component output that will let you use 1080i, or if you do end up with a > 1080p you will be able to set your resolution to 1920x1080 and output via the > HDMI port. Again, wait and see where the market is when its time. > > > I've got a few questions that some of our US cousins might be able to help > > me with :-) > > Your being too kind, I prefer bastard children ;-) > > > > 1) How is HDTV connected? Looking at the specs for the TV we're thinking of > > there's Composite (AV), Y/C (S-Video), ANT (RF), Component (Y/Pb/Pr) and > > SCART (which you don't have in the US). > > What type is used for HDTV (or doesn't it matter)? > > Component and DVI/HDMI. SCART, S-Video, and Composite don't have the bandwidth > availability for HDTV over the wires used. > Component is an analog method (basically a modified S-Video for higher > bandwidth. I still maintain S-Video with higher bandwidth abilities would be > better than component but I digress...). > HDMI/DVI is "digital". HDMI is the best. Basically, the more HDMI inputs the > better. > Oh, and Firewire. Some HDTV's will have firewire inputs. relatively useless > for connecting a computer right now, but great for some cable boxes and DVHS > decks. > > > 2) Will the MX440 be powerful enough or will I need a newer card? > see above. > > > 3) Am I likely to need more processing power (I've got a 3GHz P4 in another > > box I could swap over if need be but would I need more than that). > > the 2.8 should be fine. Wait till the time comes and see if the cost of a > faster CPU is worth it. > > > 4) Are my existing recordings going to look awful (PAL 768x576). > yes. most SD material looks bad on HDTV even when its all digital. My dad has > a 50" Sony Grand Wega III (oh. my. god. is it nice....jealous) and with his > SD cable channels it looks ok considering the source, and possibly better > than a 50" SD TV would, but once you get used to HDTV you'll consider it > pretty poor... > > > > 5) Am I just wasting my time? Seeing as the recordings (for probably at > > _least_ 8 months until HDTV actually gets here) would still be in SDTV > > would I even notice any difference? > > Wait till HDTV gets there then look into it again. > > > > I'm assuming that HDTV recording is going to need a HDTV compatible tuner > > card and even assuming they put HDTV out on the freeview channels the > > Nova-T's just won't cut it but I'm hoping the new box would have a firewire > > out or by that time there would be a UK HDTV card. > > The European TV technology is so drastically different than the States your > best bet is to wait and see how they plan on doing things. > > > [1] One of these > > http://www.samsung.com/uk/products/television/crt/ws32z308paxxeu.asp > > www.avsforum.com > don't buy home theatre equipment without first referencing this forum. They're > a bunch of perfectionists, but they understand budgets. I usually just post > similar to: > "I've got $xx to spend on a Yyyyy. What are some of my best options?" and > you'll get good responses of models to look into. > > > > > Thanks > > > > Druid > > > > hope this helps. > > -- > Steve > _______________________________________________ > mythtv-users mailing list > [email protected] > http://mythtv.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users > _______________________________________________ mythtv-users mailing list [email protected] http://mythtv.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users
