Has anyone seen a side by side comparison of HD AUSID STB vs HD output from a media centre pc?

I want to know whether a HTPC would be a better alternative to HD AUSID STB & Something like a Toppy 5000, but I dont want to sacrifice PQ.


I know there are other issues as well, but I am concerned mostly at this stage with PQ.

Cheers
Timbo

Well a toppy is only SD (Although you can record HD and transfer files to your PC for video editing if you want (bit slow but doable for the odd show).

You might be better off considering a HiDef Twin Tuner PVR (only one at the moment is the Toshiba (bit buggy initially but seems to have seetled down ok now). Several new HiDef PVRs are due on the market over the next 1-3 months so might be worth waiting for those ($1200-$1600).

Just to confirm that you do realise that the AUSID can't output to the Toppy? Bear in mind that skipping ads and pausing live TV becomes quite addictive and so you may find yourself using the SD PVR much more than the HD STB.

Regards

Peter Gillespie

Yes, I know the AUSID cant output to Toppy, but I would use the toppy for recording (until the twin HD PVR price war/drop gets well under way), and AUSID for everyday live viewing. I just wanted to know how the PQ of the HD STB's compared with the PQ Media Centre HD output on the screen. I am assuming that alot of the functionality of the PVR will be part of the HTPC software, so I want to know if I am sacrificing PQ if I go that way.

No probs. Can't answer your query directly although personally I wouldn't expect there to be any hugely significant difference between HiDef boxes of any sort. But you seem to be much more critical of performance variations in this area. Note that setting up a media centre can be cumbersome and the ones you can buy ready made can be signifcantly more expensive than the current HiDef PVRs and less featured.

I'd reiterate, that if you do get a Toppy you'll probably only watch the occassional live HiDef show soon afterwards. My recommendation in this area is to by a good SD PVR now and upgrade to a HD version in a year or sos time (either retire the old PVR to the kids room or sell it for $400 or so).

Please also note I'm not really trying to push you in this direction - you do sound like someone who will really appreciate top notch HiDef broadcasts. Its just that in this whole new area people can end up spending way too much on stuff that doesn't really perform as they'd imagine.

Regardless, enjoy.

Peter Gillespie

PS Not sure if this thread would be of any interest to you:

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=25573