new member over here with some doubts

[kennyt]

To my knowledge all LCD's that are 120 Hz do 1080p/24.

[prerich]

Originally Posted by leviathan18

i want to have the minimal clutter of equipment so i thought why not an htpc you can have blue ray hd dvd dvd avi mp3 mp4 games internet pvr everything in just one little box but my biggest concern is how i must proceed with the sound car i want my receiver handles all the decoding

for the speaker wow those look neat, i was looking at these http://www.amazon.com/Harman-Kardon-...8301520&sr=8-6 i dont know what you guys think about the brand or quality of sound so any help i would be grateful.

i was also looking at the XBR4 but they are kinda expensive i was looking at this Samsung LNT4071F 40" 1080p 120Hz LCD or the Sharp aquos 42" the 62u series but im afraid of banding issues with them

i dont have big budget but i want to get the best out of my money, im really open to suggestions as i dont know a lot about all this stuff been reading like crazy but i cant find many sites with decent reviews of all the stuff

really thanks for the help

Fellow computer geek here, does your motherboard have an optical or coax digital out? If you are going into a receiver and not using your HTPC as a pre-pro this is the best way to do it. If the receiver is doing all of the decoding - all you need is the digital bitstream to get to the receiver. A sound card with a coax or optical out is your solution (unless your motherboard already has one). I'm also using the Xbox 360 HD addon and the Lite-On Blu-ray drive. Make sure you have PowerDVD Ultra (Blu-ray version comes with the Lite-On blu-ray product). Also run at least 2gb of ram if you are doing HD.

Tuner cards? You are overseas so I can't recommend as specific one. I know the Technisat cards are popular overseas (HD-5000). These cards will do QAM,ATSC, and Sat communications. Most people overseas tend to use DVBViewer for PVR software also. Google BBTI Technologies and you can find a card there.

[prerich]

Originally Posted by leviathan18

well let me introduce myself in my first of many posts over here, im from Venezuela computer engineer Overcloking aficionado car enthusiast and well general lover of every bit of technology.

i might know almost everything from the computer world but when it comes to A/V i'm a complete newbie i feel so out of place that i dont even know where to start.

the idea:

a nice LCD 42" with 1080p capabilities brand i dont care as it looks superb and does everything required (which i dont know what are good requirements are lol )

a slim A/V receiver i think the only option i have is the JVC RX-D702B which i've read is quite good.

a nice set of 5.1 which doesnt cost a kidney i was looking over Harman Kardon HKTS-18 5.1 but i'm open to suggestion

and of course that is why im posting this here, i want an htpc to handle my music and video needs, the basic hardware layout i have it figured it out is a little bit overkill but i also do work for the world community grid so is a double purpose machine core 2 quad 6600 4gb ddr2 800mhz 8600gt video and 750gb hdd but i want to know what kind of sound car should i get and what kind of tuner if i want to use the HTPC as PVR i want HD video so it will have BR and HD dvd player i guess i will use the HDDVD player from the xbox and a liteon blu ray driver

also we have here in venezuela directv which is the one you guys had like 10 years ago still SD and the receiver is C**P sorry to say it only has s-video output and composite and the normal RF

so i want to get a good all around start in this and maybe later i will start upgrading i dont have a set budget but also i dont want to spend a lot of money if its possible i dont need a videophile and audiophile system just all around good and nice with almost everything in just one device

With your card and the right dish, you can pick up free OTA HD channels overseas if I'm correct. Check the DVBViewer forums and join - many helpful people over there. I see that you have 4gb of ram - great! Also pick a card that allows you to have a video in (s-video, winfast makes a card that accepts component). This way you can record you receiver stuff to your harddrive.