[mythtv-users] seeking video hardware recommendations

[Richard Bronosky]

It's time to bury this system http://www.bronosky.com/?p=21  And one
thing I learned from my first MythTV build is that I should start with
reliable video hardware support and build backwards.  I'm going to
separate the FE and BE this time to optimize the playback experience.
Here is what I am thinking.

1. I'd prefer low power consumption.  (which adds the side benefits of
low heat and low noise)
2. I'd like to use VIA cpu, but I am not dead-set on it.
3. It must be able to playback HD from an HDHomeRun (MPEG2 TS)
4. It must be able to output an industry standard 720p and 1080i
signal so my HDTV will "just work" like it does with my $40 upsampling
DVD player

The options seem to be (in order of my preference):
1. Unichrome video hardware that is present on many VIA mini-mobos
2. Intel video hardware that is present on many "on-board video" configurations
3. nVidia who does seem to be show must OSS-love lately
4. ATI who has traditionally been an OSS nightmare.

Keep in mind that I haven't thought about hardware since August of
2005.  I'm sure a lot has changed.

After I decide on video, I will then choose a mobo with optical (maybe
coax) audio.  I am going to research the viability of CF storage for
an FE only system.  Then I will figure out how much ram I need to make
sure I never swap.

What do you think?  (Mainly about the video hardware.)

-- 
.!# RichardBronosky #!.