I'm looking to upgrade my X1950 Pro for the best HDMI-capable graphics card for Blu-ray disks and HD file playback.
I'm not a gamer, so I don't need a card that's good for that, unless it's the best card for videos too. I'm a movie buff, I have a 30-inch LCD display with an HDMI input, and I want to power it to the max for movie-watching purposes and video editing. I don't want to spend more than I have to, but I don't mind spending whatever I need to if it will make movies look and play better on my display and give me the editing capabilities I need.
All things being equal (if they actually are), ATI Avivo HD or Nvidia Pure Video HD are both fine -- I don't have a brand preference unless I can derive meaningful playback and/or editing advantages from a Crossfire setup, in which case I'd need two ATI cards for my Intel motherboard.
My current system (in addition to the X1950 Pro): Intel D975XBX2 motherboard, QX6700 CPU, 8 GB Mushkin DDR-2 800 RAM, Corsair 620W (3 12V rails) PSU, HT Omega Striker Sound Card, Vista 64-bit OS.
I'd be very grateful for any help. Thanks!
I'm not a gamer, so I don't need a card that's good for that, unless it's the best card for videos too. I'm a movie buff, I have a 30-inch LCD display with an HDMI input, and I want to power it to the max for movie-watching purposes and video editing. I don't want to spend more than I have to, but I don't mind spending whatever I need to if it will make movies look and play better on my display and give me the editing capabilities I need.
All things being equal (if they actually are), ATI Avivo HD or Nvidia Pure Video HD are both fine -- I don't have a brand preference unless I can derive meaningful playback and/or editing advantages from a Crossfire setup, in which case I'd need two ATI cards for my Intel motherboard.
My current system (in addition to the X1950 Pro): Intel D975XBX2 motherboard, QX6700 CPU, 8 GB Mushkin DDR-2 800 RAM, Corsair 620W (3 12V rails) PSU, HT Omega Striker Sound Card, Vista 64-bit OS.
I'd be very grateful for any help. Thanks!