HTPC or Media Player

I have been using PC with a USB tuner to record HDTV for some time. But my old RPTV Mitsubishi VS-60111 only has component or RGB video inputs for 1080i signal; it is tough to connect it to the PC. I have tried various Nvidia’s solutions in the past; they all failed because the way they support component 1080i resolution is through scaling and re-encode whatever the resolution settings to 1080i. The result was very blur images on this old TV. The other problem is that at in the past not many motherboard has digital audio output for decent audio.

After I updated the TV with the HD Fury to accept HDMI signal and the Yamaha RX-V665 for the new HD audio formats such as DTS-HD MA and DD TrueHD, it is time to revisit the HTPC setup. Before jump into a new HTPC setup however, media players has gaining popularity in recent years and it certainly has its advantages being more like consumer electronics than PC and possible easier for day to day use in a home theater environment.

After looking into the many available media players on the market such as WD TV Live, I was disappointed to found out none of the sub $200 players are capable to act as DVR. In other words, if I get one of these players, I still need the PC to record TV program. Another problem these media player is most of them are not capable to handle HD audio formats. Take TVIX 6620N for example, I have considered it because it can function as DVR. The problem is the TVIX is not only very expensive but also not able to pass through DTS-HD MA and DD TrueHD. For something cost close to $400, I expect more. In addition, TVIX’s local dealer has a rather unfriendly return policy and all the unhappy user feedback on the web make me to give up even give it a try. Then, there are the equally expensive Dune players that seem to be able to handle the DTS-HD HA and DD TrueHD but there is DVR option available. For the price those TVIX and Dune guys ask for, I can build a HTPC and be able to handle both DVR and HD audio.

While it is true, the HTPC can have a lot of issues, lacking proper remote friendly UI is just the most obvious. On the other hand, all those media players seem have their own set of problems too. One just has to search the web to see for example so many unhappy users about them too.

So, at the end I went back to the HTPC option. After the failed trial with XFX GeForce 9300, I have settled with MSI 785GTM-E45 motherboard but only to find out it cannot do HD audio either. The great thing about HTPC is it is expandable and I am not depends on the media player companies to make good on their product. In this case, I added an ATI 5450 graphics and now my HTPC can do both DVR and handle HD audio. To me, this is a better choice by far than any media player on the market today.