I'm going to get getting a 1080p HDTV set soon and was looking at BluRay players that seem to start at $250.00USD which seems pricey but meh, DVDs were the same way before. Its also occured to me I could just put a BR drive in my computer and make backups of the BluRay disks as well and store them on my H.D.D, I was reading over the guide here and it seems pretty easy. My only concern is the quality of the video during playback, I plan on hooking my PC up to my HDTV and watching the movies off my H.D.D but does it really playback at 1920x1080 with the same video and audio quality as a regular BR disk? Any advice would be appreciated
It will, as long as you have the proper hardware and software, and filters on your PC. Not all audio cards with HDMI capability will pass HD audio to it's fullest potential, most will downgrade any audio above 16 bit to 16 bit... a lot of HD audio comes as 24 bit. Plus, the video structure should be a certain way to get 24fps playback... which isn't an issue.
Interesting. I've got a Soundblaster X-Fi XtremeGamer and was planning on running that through a home theater system, so you're saying it'll only play 16-bit quality audio if I run it off my H.D.D?
Possibly. I'm not sure of all of the cards that can handle HD audio. I think recent Asus cards, played with the latest version of Arcsoft will bitstream all HD audio. Double check with your PC's A/V card's specs. Also, some HDMI ports on PCs are video only (connected to the video card only). EDIT: Some more info here.
Don't forget the generic specs of your pc too for BD playback. Any dual core will do but video card capabilities are important. A gaming rig should do the job easily. I do'nt worry about the audio tto much. My Asus mobo has a S/PDIF output which I run a digital Co-axial cable to my 5.1 surround AMP. I get DTS 5.1 audio which sounds fantastic, just like a 5.1 DVD would if not better. I've never heard a True HD audio system, but I'm very happy with what I get. My video is via DVI to HDMI cable through the wall to the LCD. I have also set-up a Hauppage remote control to switch displays between monitor and the TV which also controls PowerDVD. If I was you go ahead and do it. The important thing is once you've got it set-up and working. Don't touch it or update any software or drivers, especially Power DVD cause in my experiance, something won't work how it was if you do.
