Choosing a tuner card

[nastasin]

I am trying to choose the right tuner card for my HTPC and could use some advice. My top three choices are: MyHD MDP-130, ADS Tech PTV 380-ef, Kworld ATSC 110. All have strengths and weaknesses. this is used exclusively for HT except when doing HTPC maintenance.

Specs: AMD 3800, 1g RAM, 500g HD, 6800GT, Panasonic AE-900 HD projector (DVI) w/110" Firehawk screen & 17" dell flat panel (analog).
OS: Windows MCE

Requirements:
PCI based card (no PCI-e)
Must operate with windows MCE
Able to operated using a remote
Able to display using digital cable (no OTA necessary)
Able to display in near original picture resolution and clarity
Record shows from digital cable
Priced under $200 is possible

Thanks

 

[jnmfox]

I have the 130 and love it. It is more expensive then other HD tuner cards but I feel the hardware decoding is worth the cost. Are you planning on watching HD channel through your digital cable? If so you will need a card that supports QAM, like the MyHD. As stated in the Anandtech review the non HD performance of the MyHD 130 isn?t has good as some other cards but decent if you have a fast PC.

EDIT: here is a link to the anand review
http://www.anandtech.com/multimedia/showdoc.aspx?i=2634