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alseides

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  1. I think most people emphasize too much on temps. I mean its nice to have 28C but honestly, it can run about 40C (50C?!) and won't do a thing to the lifespan of ur system, unless you plan on using it for 30 years. I dunno maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm not.
  2. Ok, that makes sense. So basically when I listen to anything that is a digitally encoded source (DVD) the soundcard outputs the digital sound without doing anything to it. It goes straight to the reciever as a digital signal. Well if this is the case then I can actually use any soundcard I want that can output the digital sound and it wouldn't make a difference in the audio quality at all, since its just really 1's and 0's. Correct? And for games which are not digitally encoded, a soundcard such as the Mystique are needed to encode the audio. Right? My Bose reciever only takes digital sound with a coaxial cable. That's why I'm planning on getting the Mystique since it has digital coaxial output. (I was also wondering - when I output a digital signal, will I still have full control over individual speaker volume, effects, and everything else in the cards's drivers and software?) Sorry, as you can tell I was pretty unsure about all this. Hopefully I got it cleared up.
  3. Why wouldn't the soundcard decode the the DD audio? I thought soundcards do this.
  4. That's right. Having a dedicated soundcard will lessen system resources and memory. So in the end, with a soundcard you get better PC performance and better sound all at the same time. There is really no drawback to dedicated sound except the price, oh wait soundcards are pretty cheap too.
  5. Thanks xPETEZx, I think that makes sense. I thought that if something wasn't digitally encoded, then it wasn't 5.1. That's why I thought that games that supported 5.1 were already digital. Although I'm mostly gonna use this thing for DVD movies, playing games is still slightly part of the reason I am going to build this computer. With that in mind (and ornlu's comment about the ZS cards being crappy for home theatre), are there any sound cards made SPECIFICALLY for HTPCs? I am going to look into the mistique you mentioned, but even though it has the ability to encode sound, I am not sure if it is a good HT card. edit: Well I looked at several reviews for the Mystique card, and I must say I am happy with what I've read. What really suprised me was the digital coaxial output that I use. I don't know if anyone else was blown away by it, but I'm sure glad it's there. So I am getting the Mystique as my final choice. All I'm not sure about is that if the sound card decodes DD, what happens if it goes into my Bose reciever which can also decode DD? Is there a problem with this?
  6. Hey thanks for the fast reply. I was adding the edit to my original post when you replied. Why would I want a card that encodes? I'm not sure what that means. As long as it decodes DD or whatever the source is encoded in, then that is fine, right? I will be able to get 5.1 with DVDs, and what about multichannel PC games? As for my edit, do you happen to know anything about the double decoding thing I was asking about? Thanks
  7. I'm planning on installing an Audigy 2 ZS for my HTPC. I am using an old Bose Lifestyle 5.1 system in my living room. Here's how the system is designed: [source (dvd, pc, etc)] | [bose "reciever"] | | | | | Speakers: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] The "reciever" isn't a typical reciever. It's a proprietary one designed to use specifically for these speakers. You can have basic control such as volume and adjusting the front and rear volumes individually, as well as selecting which of the 4 audio sources I want to use. (Although I sure there's lots more running under the hood) Anyways, the only digital input that the reciever takes is coax, not optical. (both types have the same audio quality, if im correct) The Audigy 2 ZS does have a digital line out, but it is in the form of the standard pc minijack. I'm curious as how to output from the soundcard so it goes into the digital coax for my Bose reciever. Does the card come bundled with an output dongle or something like that? I'm familiar with most PC hardware, but not in the audio dept so if someone could help, thanks. edit: I was looking in another forum and it seems that the solution I need is this item: http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?cata...%5Fid=274%2D897 I plug this little thing into the line out of the ZS and then just connect the coax cable into it like normal. Although I am curious about decoding the sound. Say I am playing a DVD that uses Dolgy Digital 5.1. The soundcard will decode the audio. But then after it goes through the output and into the reciever, what happens if the reciever decodes it again? Is there a problem with this? I guess I can disable decoding on the soundcard to let the reciever do it only. And just to confirm, my Bose reciever is able to decode Dolby Digital, right? (as well as DTS and other digital audio) I don't have the manual to the reciever, but it seems pretty rediculous that it can't decode Dolby Digital and DTS.
  8. I'm running a 9600XT AIW and it came with an input adapter where I can plug in s-video from an external source. So I use it to capture video from vcr and camcorders, but what I like is plugging in my PS2 or any other consoles to play on my computer monitor. The picture quality is excellent but what I noticed was that there is a slight video delay. So like when I press kick it wont do it on the screen for a fraction of a second later. It's a very short delay that some people might not notice but it does change the gameplay a lot. I figure that it might be that it takes a little time for the video card to process the video. But that might or might not be the reason. Any solutions?
  9. heh this is actually a really old story. I read it quite some time ago, and I thought it was funny when I read it. Don't get me wrong it's sad he died but funny story. Speaking of which, I have a murder that is completely unrelated to this thread, but I thought you guys might want to see it. Crazy stuff. First, read this guy's Xanga entry. It is the latest one, May 12: http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=toto247 Then, read this news article about that Xanga entry: http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/310320p-265498c.html Seeing what someone says before they die changes how you feel about it. Makes it somewhat personal, especially reading his info and stuff on Xanga. I keep imagining how he died and it's a terrifying image. Yea sorry for the off-topic.
  10. Well, I've come back to overclockers club after a realllyy lonngg time. After I built my PC almost a year ago I pretty much disconnected myself from anything PC hardware, so now I have no idea what's going on. Dang, things change so FAST. heh. Anyways just a few hours ago I was looking for hardware to build a home theatre pc when I saw a silverstone case that used nano-itx (or mini-itx). So then began my research on this tiny motherboard standard. First of all, what is the fastest board out there? And by fastest I mean both currently released and soon to be released as well. Almost all boards I've looked up have everything integrated - so all i would need is a psu, case, and ram and im good to go. But the integrated cpus only go up tp 1.3 ghz. So i've tried to find other boards and some have non integrated stuff so i can add my graphics card, soundcard and cpu as well. http://www.deviceforge.com/news/NS6171500227.html http://hardware.newsforge.com/article.pl?s...6&tid=87&tid=23 http://www.mini-itx.com/store/default.asp?c=2 any help and advice would be appreciated, and links too! edit bah it gets more confusing as i do more research. theres micro, mini, and nano, and then thers itx and atx. ah! someone elighten me.
  11. Huh? Isn't OEM ram just like OEM products for everything else? An OEM motherboard is identical to the retail version. I just doesn't come with any accesories and sometimes the manual. Basically is the product ONLY, and nothing else. Packaged in a non retail box sometimes. That is why they are cheaper. But all that aside I always thought OEM products performed identical to its retail counterpart. Unless of course ram is different than pc hardware when it comes to oem... I got oem corsair value select ram (512x2) ddr400 CAS2.5 and it OC like none other. So unless someone proves me wrong when buying oem ram just look for a good brand. if it is oem then that is better for you. save some money for the same thing.
  12. Its been said once and I'll say it again: Big Deal heh.
  13. i would still say the liteon and nec are the best, but that is just my preference. in reality any of these drives we are talking about are very good. it comes down to how much you want to pay. but still if they all perform the SAME i dont see why you would spend more when you dont have to. its just a name brand thing that sticks to your head and you end up thinking something is better based on just that.
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