I'm interested in getting an internal blue-ray player for my PC, but I'm not sure that I could get the full benefits of the upgrade. I don't want to spend the money and time installing it if it's not any better than a standard dvd. Here's my setup: AMD Athlon 63 X2 Dual Core Processor 5600+ EVGA NVIDIA Geforce 8600 GT 256 MB 2 GB RAM LCD monitor with 3 ms response time Running Windows XP Home Edition SP2 and other stuff that doesn't seem relevant to the topic Are there any other factors I need to mention or is this enough to give the thumbs up or thumbs down? Should I get the blue-ray, or would it be a waste? What do I need to do to handle the upgrade?
I accidentally posted in the wrong area, so reposted in the right one. Sorry for not deleting it. Can anyone help me instead of criticizing me?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136137 The above link is to an LG burner that sounds appealing to me. Thought about getting it, but the system requirements are beyond my computer. Specifically the one about Pentium D as mine is a Pentium 4. Your rig seems like it meets the requirements, be sure to look at the specs tab. Different burners may have different requirements. This one seems to cover all the bases. You would be able to play just about everything and burn all except the dead HD DVD. Newegg is good about posting the tech info you won't find at some other sites. You might find a cheaper price but you won't beat their customer service, at least in my experience. I have never had a problem returning an item when necessary, count me as one of their happy customers. As far as benefits of the upgrade . . . probably only you can decide. High def does look good, but standard DVD is not that shabby. Cost of blank media is high now for Blu Ray, sure to come done in the future. IF you don't need to burn blu ray, consider a play only drive which would be less than the above.
I don't think it will be exactly the same. Assuming that your video card is HD capable and that your monitor is HD capable, then your picture should at least be better than standard def. How much? Can't say as I don't have a high def system. But, it is my understanding that the quality of the connection to the monitor effects the final display to some degree. HDMI cable is best. S video is somewhat less. Three RCA cables are more less. Not sure where DVI fits in the range. And not sure how big the range might be.
I have gone through this experiance and here is what youshould note. 1) Your CPU and RAM are good to go 2) Your 7600 GT can play HD (technically) but is not HDCP compliant. (I had one and had touse AnyDVD to overcome the HDCP handshake required between the GFX card and the Display) 3) You will need a digital connection (DVI or HDMI or a conversion between the two to enable a HDCP signal to be passed) 4) If you cannot achieve HDCP compliance you will need to use either AnyDVD HD runningin the background or use an analogue connection such as component or VGA. 5) If you use an analogue connection the BluRay software player such as Power DVD will not let the movie be output in High Definition resolutions. 6) I have a 32" HD ready LCD and the Bluray picture is superior to DVD but it does vary. Newer films seem to have the edge. One thing for sure is that it is more impressive on very large displays but is not the revolution in video that the industry were pushing. There were statements made that compared it to the difference between the old black & white TV and Colour. Well that certainly was a step change but HD over DVD is not that big of a step I can assure you. Any more questions feel free to ask.
I thought you needed Windows Vista in order to play Blu-Ray disks. My setup is: AMD 2600+, 512MB RAM , MYHD TV card, I am just using a PCI video and capture card till I can find the right PCI express video card to get. I would like to just watch Blu-Ray movies in HD on my PC if I don't have to upgrade to Vista.
Well, it looks like you also need a true HD monitor which I don't have. I will probably just look for a player for my HD TV. Sounds like that will actually be cheaper.
Vista is NOT the only choice to play blu ray. XP will do it as well, check the specs tab on the burner I mentioned before. What I did learn after reading some the posts here is about the term HDCP. Click on the link provided via AfterDawn, it clarifies how you need BOTH a compliant video card and a compliant monitor. My card is, the monitor is NOT. That means, in my case, you won't get HD even if you tried and you might get nothing. byngo stated that unless your monitor is "larger" HD is not that big of a deal on the PC anyway. As I stated before, regular DVDs aren't that shabby either. SO - I will not be making the jump for a while.
Its not a limitation of the PC that makes HD not such a "Revolution". Its the format itself. I was just emphasysing that it aint all its craked up to be by the industry. Hd is very good. It is better than DVD. Just not the step jump you might have ambitions of. Oh, and a 8600GT video card is not HDCP compliant. I even had XFX telling me that my previous 8600GT card (by product number and serial number) was by their records, HDCP compliant. I proved their own specs were wrong when I added a 8800GT on exactly the same set-up and I acheived HDCP compliance. Remember also that Nvidia will state that the GPU will be HDCP "Capable". That means the board manufacturer has to implement the rest of the circuitry and pay a license fee to enable HDCP. Its not Free to them, so they only go that far on more expensive cards. (8600GTS is OK for example)
Not sure an AMD 2600+ is up to the job. You do not need vista but 512mb Ram is only just about there these days. However, in video circumstances the Video card plays the most important role. The minimum specs for RAM on the Video Card for BluRay is 256Mb because the frames that are about to be displayed are stored in the Video RAM (about four frames in advance I read somewhere). I would go for 512Mb Video Ram but then be careful you've not got a card so power hungry that its not only noisy but needs a bigger power supply. When I had my old PC that had an AMD 3000+ 1.5GIG of RAM and a 7600GT video card. The video card was only 128Mb and HD video Clips I had downloaded always stutterd along. I guess this was a limitation of a 128Mb video card and the rest of the system was satisfactory.
I purchased an internal Lite-On OEM Blu-Ray drive from newegg for $119 and they even included two copies of PowerDVD blu-ray edition playing software, but it only has two channel sound. I went with PowerDVD Ultra which decodes all currently known surround sound formats. The drive plays quite decently thus far and was reasonable fast ripping a blu-ray movie to my hard drive considering their size. I don't recommend going with Blu-Ray burner unless you're prepared to pay $15 for a single media, just get a Blu-Ray rom playback unit. Blu-Ray movies can be compressed and burned to a single or dual layer disc that will playback in many Blu-Ray players. jdobbs the author of DVD Rebuider claims to have ripped, compressed, burned a 1080P disc that played well in his blu-ray player. To me that sound more like value although I would probably still go with a dual layer disc because $1.75-$2.00 just sounds like a better deal than $15. Just imagine getting one of those as a coaster. LOL
A small point that I overlooked in my previous post. In order to playback 1080P you will need at least a 24" LCD monitor, 1080P requires 1920 by 1080 and a 24" monitor has 1920 by 1200 screen resolution. I haven't tried to play an HD DVD or Blu-Ray movie on anything smaller so I can say what the quality will be like.
Actually I looked again and my processor is a 3500+ but I am still lacking in other areas. My monitor is only 17" LCD, it has a DVI input but I doubt it is HDCP compilant. I could always get more RAM and a good video card but looks like I would still need a new monitor. In the end sounds like it would be more money than its worth. Unless there is a work around the monitor problem please let me know. thanks
17" LCD is a little small so you can't possibly get the full benefit of a blu-ray drive. As far as HDCP is concerned AnyDVD will room HDCP so that it doesn't affect playback.
I hate to burst a few bubbles here about blu-ray and hd-dvd's but where it really can matter is the video card. Thankfully dvi is usually compliant... but it usually needs to be a card over a 256mb. A small hand full are but they either need to be a super-clocked or an over-clocked card. Strangely enough it doesn't matter if its Pci-express, or agp card; from what I've seen as I work in computer retail. Now your 17 inch monitor... because its got a 3ns response time, if I'm not mistaken it ought to beable. Usually most monitors that have this response timing are hi-end capable, but it all needs to be digital! This is the other key, if your card does have dvi ports and your using a dvi cable which sounds to be the case, I'd say there's a good chance your okay... however you won't be able to get the depth factor of 1080i or p. Now just one thing the whole 1080 aspect is the recommended requirements. That's one of the dirty little secrets, and a lot of people may also say get hdmi. I'd agree that if you want the true quality that blu-ray brings you need hdmi. I don't care what any one says about this I've heard so many arguments about 'component' that its a dead subject. Proof is always needed, and unfortunately... being in computer retail you got to prove it each and every day. Thankfully if you want proof I'll tell you go buy a PS3 play a game on component first, and then do it to an hdmi. Do the same thing with a movie... specifically a blu-ray movie and you not need to have it 1080 capable either (another dirty little secret). I promise you'll see the difference! Now then, they do make cards out now that have hdmi, but unless your building a high-end gaming machine its not worth the 600+dollar price tag. I give total credits, and kudos to byngo; he is DEAD RIGHT about some of the cards out, also for his step by step analysis of your system, I agree completely; and to rulisky for his accuracy about xp being able to handle blu-ray or hd-dvd. I do have one last concern, and that is your mobo... what are using? I have seen a good system be of no use for this medium because they bought something cheap. If you have a mobo in the 49 to 89 dollar range... you just probably shot yourself in the foot. (Namely msi, ecs I don't like these brands its a personal thing because they always come back bad, and neither do half of the tech that work where I do). If its a low end gigabyte, abit, or asus within 100 dollars you ought to be just fine. If you got something higher end... you inadvertently may have saved yourself grief!
I have an ASUS A8N-E mobo for about $100 with an Ultra Wizard case (great case), with 3500+ AMD processor. So, your saying it would be a waste of money if I tried it with the 17" monitor.
