GeForce 9600 and HDTV

Thank God I found HighDef Forum. I was looking for some expert opinion on the topic and has finally found the place where all HD experts reside. I need your advice regarding setting up a PC to LCD TV system to watch HD-DVDs and Blu-rays. I shall explain my situation.

Two months back I bought an LG GGC-H20L Blu-ray HD-DVD combo drive for PC. Since then I have been watching movies on these high-def formats, on my Acer AL1916W 19" LCD Widescreen PC Monitor. I also had to upgrade my graphics card to GeForce 9600 GT 512MB so that I can watch HD movies smoothly using Nvidia PureVideo HD acceleration. I have a pretty good 6 channel digital speaker set connected to my PC - Logitech Z-5500. At present it is positioned correctly and I am really enjoying it. So, other than the small display, the setup is good for me.

Though I am happy with the present setup, I feel the HD experience will be complete only when the display is bigger than my present one. But I can't go out and buy a 50" or 60" monster due to budget and space constraints. I have a wall right behind my computer table. I am thinking of buying an LCD TV and positioning it above and behind the PC monitor, on to the wall. In that way, I can connect with a DVI to HDMI convertor, from GeForce to the TV and enjoy HD visuals. Also I can maintain the sound system in tact as the playback will continue from PC only.

The width of the room is about 10 ft, wall to wall. So, when I mount the TV on the wall, the maximum distance I can sit back is about 7 ft. Therefore I think a 32" LCD TV should be suitable for me as it fits my pocket and the viewing distance perfectly. Now here are my doubts.

1)720p or 1080p. I know 1080p produces the best visuals but I also heard the noticable difference between 720p and 1080p starts when the TV is bigger than like 50" (the video source will be always DVD or HD-DVD/Blu-ray for me). Whats your opinion on this?

2) GeForce 9600 GT supports HDMI. But the output is DVI. So if I use a DVI to HDMI converter cable, will it reduce the image quality in anyway? Also will the converter result in slow data transfer which might in turn result in HD video (Blu-ray and HD-DVD discs) playing in slow motion or going out of sync with the audio?

Please post your suggestions.

I would suggest this monitor. Westinghouse 37" 16:9 8ms 1080p LCD HDTV LVM-37W3SE (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889234025) it will have the DVI inputs as well as component and HDMI so you can hook up without any adapter cables. Then hook up the audio with stereo audio cables. It is a 1080p monitor so you will be able to run at 1920x1080 resolution and use it as a computer monitor at various other resolutions because it is a true monitor not just a HDTV. I have the 42" version and have been quite pleased with it. At $700 this will be hard to beat. 4 years service is $99, btw.

Thanks rbinck.

I wish 1080p TV was that cheap here in India (sorry I forgot to mention I am from India). Here a 720p 32" TV itself will cost about $900. Too bad I could get a 1080p set for that money in the US.

After starting this thread, I was going through various sections in the forum and I stumbled upon DVI and HDMI Explained thread. In that thread it is mentioned that the video quality of DVI and HDMI is exactly the same, and that the real difference is HDMI allowing audio too in the same cable. Like I said, I don't need audio taken to the TV. So does that mean I can simply connect the DVI out from GeForce to the DVI in of the LCD TV?

I have a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi ExtremeGamer sound card which is connected to Logitech Z-5500 PC speakers. I will be playing Blu-rays and HD-DVDs using PowerDVD on PC. I just need to get the video rendered by PowerDVD, to TV without any loss in quality. Audio should continue in the present setup, i.e. Creative X-Fi -> Logitech Z-5500 PC speakers.

Can I achieve this?

Should have no problem.

Ok. So what about TV - 720p or 1080p? It will be a 32".

at 32", I would go for 720p. You probably won't notice the difference on a 32" between 720p and 1080p outside of 4 feet.

Thanks DexterMorgan. I was also thinking about 720p.

Now, will audio go out of sync, if I connect the video from GeForce DVI to TV's HDMI? Remember, audio still comes out through PC sound card.

it shouldn't. I had audio and video running through HDMI from my DVI->HDMI cable to my TV, and the audio and video were in sync perfect.

Since then I'm using an optical audio cable from my PC's optical port to my a/v receivers input, all the while the HDMI is going to the TV. Still, no lag issues at all.

Nice to know that.

Here is another doubt. I am planning to maintain a dual display setup - i.e. one for my 19" Acer LCD monitor and other for the new 32" 720p LCD TV. Now my concern is the resolution. Right now, my resolution is 1440x900 on my 19" monitor. A 720p TV's max resolution would be 1366 x 768. Since it will be a dual display setup, will the 720p TV be able to display 1440x900 resolution of my desktop? What will happen here?

Also is this the kind of cable I need to connect my GeForce's DVI out to LCD TV's HDMI input?

http://cgi.ebay.com/6-ft-DVI-DVI-D-TO-HDMI-CABLE-FOR-PLASMA-HDTV-HD-TV_W0QQitemZ180276695677QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item18 0276695677&_trkparms=39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A15%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Nice to know that.

Here is another doubt. I am planning to maintain a dual display setup - i.e. one for my 19" Acer LCD monitor and other for the new 32" 720p LCD TV. Now my concern is the resolution. Right now, my resolution is 1440x900 on my 19" monitor. A 720p TV's max resolution would be 1366 x 768. Since it will be a dual display setup, will the 720p TV be able to display 1440x900 resolution of my desktop? What will happen here?

If you want to run in mirror mode (where both screens are duplicates of each other) then I'm not sure. I know my graphics card has the ability to downscale on a TV output, but I can't speak for all graphics cards. If I had to bet, you could downscale and set it to whatever.

For a mode where the 2 displays are independant, you will be fine there too. I've had one monitor at a high resolution, and then the other lower, like so:
http://i330.photobucket.com/albums/l406/mrjspeed/desktops1.jpg


As far as the cable you linked, that should work perfect.

Thanx Morgan. Ordered those cables.

BTW, please check out this USB remote at eBay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-Remote-Control-PC-Windows-XP-Media-Centre-Slim_W0QQitemZ270265598790QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item 270265598790&_trkparms=39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A15%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Does it work with Windows XP SP2 or will it require Windows XP Media Center Edition? Also will it work with applications like Windows Media Player, PowerDVD and Winamp?

I'm not sure, it would be a software issue. I have a remote a lot like that, except it uses the serial port. It's a thin IR remote just like the one you linked, and it worked great in XP SP2.

The issue is the software. The software that comes with your remote might be just fine, then you're golden. If it isn't working or not working as well as you'd like, you could try looking into Girder. Girder is a very nice program used for programming remote funtions. I used it back when it was freeware, now I think it costs like $20 or something. You might be able to find the old free version floating around somewhere, I dunno if it works with that remote or not.

The nice thing about Girder I could program the remote to do just about anything. The general process is you pick a simple function, or you make a custom one. For example, I wanted it to control my winamp, so I opened up a window that displays system functions/actions, then clicked "Start capturing." Then everything I do (click, drag, type) is capture in a list. I press play in Winamp, and I see it in the list, and I tie that to a button. I controlled winamp, media player, I even assigned tabbing to the arrow buttons so I could do some moderate web browsing/clicking. You can assign several functions to one button. I assigned one button to open winamp and play a certain playlist, set my comptuers volume to 10%, and load a program that shuts down my computer after an hour. I used this went I went to sleep and wanted to listen to music, I press one button and all is done for me. Neat!

But I digress, the bottom line is that the remote you linked should work fine with XP SP2. I'd only look into 3rd party software if the one included with it doesn't do what you want.

here is a review of my remote that i have. Probably very similar to yours:
http://www.bjorn3d.com/read.php?cID=316

Thanks for all the support. I got the cable yesterday and tested the connection with a friend's LCD TV. Works perfectly. Now I need to get the TV set.

Regarding that, how crucial is response time for a 32" 720p LCD TV, for watching Blu-ray movies? Is 8 ms enough or should I go for a 5ms model?

8ms is fine. 8ms equates to about 120hz. Right now, most all HTPC's (graphics cards for that matter) can do a maximum of 60hz (~16ms)

If your TV is rated for 60hz, and it has 8ms, then it has plenty of breathing room. You may not want to spend the extra money to get 120hz.

*MOST* of the time when you walk into an electronics store and see TV's playing Blu-Rays, they will be at 60hz. You'll probably see some TV's with split screens showing the difference between 120hz anti-jutter and without. Here is a reveiw I found on the subject:

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6449_7-6792632-1.html

My LCD TV is 8ms and 60hz, and it looks plenty sweet to me.

When I went TV shopping, the biggest criterion I noticed was contrast ratio. I would see some TV's go for really cheap, but with a low contrast ratio. The color wasn't very crisp and the blacks were purplish.

Thanks Morgan. Right now I am looking at Panasonic TX-32LX75. It is an affordable model for me and is available at local shops here in India. Please take a look at the specifications and tell me if it meets all the requirements for blu-ray playback and occassional TV (SD) viewing.

http://www.compareindia.com/specification/televisions/panasonic-tx32lx75/23465

Panasonic is a good manufaturer of HDTV's, one of the leaders.

7000:1 contrast ratio looks good to me! :yippee:

Good to know.

Btw, do you use any specific software to manage the dual display setup?

No, I have ATI hardware so I just use the ATI Control Panel software.