Is a DVD controller card worth the money?

[Frocer]

Hi guys, I finally decided to get into the DVD world. I am going to buy the Pioneer 106S slot-load DVD-Rom since I read a lot of great review about it. However, I can't decide if I should get a DVD hardware decoder hard or not (the RealMagic one). Does it really make a huge difference? speed and quality wise? Can software decoder do just a good job as the hardware one? If they can, which one is the best? PowerDVD or WinDVD?

This is a dumb question, will I still need a software decoder like PowerDVD if I decided to purchase the hardware decoder?

Thanks for your inputs.

 

[Arrow]

You'd always need software to play the DVD.

Anyway, what are your system specs? You probably wouldn't need one if you have a newer computer. A hardware decoder will take away some of the stress on your system in decoding the DVD, usually giving better performance.

Rob
Please visit <b><A HREF="http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048" target="_new">http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048</A></b>

 

[Frocer]

I have a Tbird 1.333Ghz with 512MB of DDR Ram. I also have the Asus V8200 Pure, which I am not sure if it has DVD-playback feature on it.

I am sure my computer is fast enough to decode the DVD, but does the RealMagic Hollywood Plus really enhance the quality of DVD's? They are so many good reviews about the card, which made me really curious.

 

[Arrow]

I think you're pretty much safe with that system speed. Most if not all newer video cards can decode DVDs.
If you plan to be running a lot of background processes and programs while playing your DVDs, then you might want to look into getting the card - otherwise I don't think you'll see much of a difference.

Rob
Please visit <b><A HREF="http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048" target="_new">http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048</A></b>

 

[BunnyStroker]

DVD controller cards haven't made sense in a long time.

Even back when I had my 500 mhz PIII, I tried playing DVDs with both Software and Software+Hardware - no discernible difference.

Unless you really want to multitask while a DVD runs, I would skip it.

<b>ßunn¥§troker 0wn§ j00!</b>

 

[Frocer]

Ok thanks a lot guys. I probably won't multitask when I am watching a movie anyway, at most downloading a software or two =)

The controller website was advertising how the card enhance visual quality, that's what I was most curious about. But since 99% of the people don't have it, I trust you guys' judegement

Thanks again

 

[Arrow]

Downloading a thing or two and watching a DVD shouldn't hurt
Good luck.

Rob
Please visit <b><A HREF="http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048" target="_new">http://www.ncix.com/canada/index.cfm?affiliateid=319048</A></b>

 

[digital_trucker]

I'm planning to get a hardware decoder. Seems like using CAD at the same time as watching a DVD is causing things to get a little-um-'stressed'!

Yippeekiiaayyy yippeekiioohhh Ghost rabbits in the sky.

 

[Toejam31]

I prefer a hardware decoder card, myself. The only really good picture I've seen with a software decoder was with a Matrox card. (Or an ATI card, but that's another story.) The visual quality with the MPEG-2 card is better than when just relying on the video card, even with a GF3. And, of course, it uses a few less CPU cycles.

Some people may have not really noticed the difference, but I've watched <i>a lot</i> of DVD's, with and without the card. The picture with a Hollywood Plus card and the DVD station in Win2k is much better than anything I've seen with PowerDVD and a software decoder. The interface is a little more limited, but the visual quality makes up for that, IMHO.

Personally, I got tired of screwing around with trying to enable the hardware acceleration in PowerDVD when I didn't yet have the hardware decoder card. And with trying out different software players that <i>would</i> support it. I also didn't like that I had to turn off the hardware acceleration (<b>if</b> I could get it enabled) when I wanted to take a screen shot.

Toejam31

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