playback quality, caveats using 350 with radeon DVI out

[jb33]

would you reccomend using my radeon 9200's DVI out for watching digital cable from the pvr-350. I know I'll be bypassing the hardware decoder on the 350 and I think I read I can't do any software deinterlacing or scaling on digital cable. The radeon outputs 1280X720 to my DLP TV.So with only the radeon scaling the picture (does it do line doubling to?), should I be expecting a lousy image?

The other consideration is the TV has an onboard Faroudja deinterlacer which will be active on S-video, but not DVI.

Realize I should have gotten the 250 and the Xcard, but stuck with this now. any advice appreciated.

[stanger89]

You'll have to try both, but I'd say definitely use DVI. DVI is way better than S-vid in general. Whichever decoders you use will decode and deinterlace your recorded video and will be output by your 9200 over DVI at your DLP's native 1280x720. You should get a very good picture that way.

BTW, everything I've heard has said the Xcard is inferior to SW decoder+Radeon for anything but 480i, you'll be running 720p.

[jb33]

OK sweet. From my reading I was actually getting worried I couldn't even use DVI with the 350. No harm in trying both once I've got it.
thanks,
jb

[stanger89]

Yeah, you can use the 350 just like a 250. An extra bonus is you can watch DVDs and they'll look awesome. On my 36" RCA HDTV, DVDs look better than they did with my Pioneer Elite DVDP.

[jb33]

wait, you can play DVD's with the 350? Oh, I get it, just not over the s-video out. Oh sweet. Yeah I just read over at AVS how it looks better than TT (on the 250).

thanks for saving me from some buyers remorse. heck, it was only an extra 30 bucks for FM radio