ALL in Wonder or Regular ATI Card & Separate TV Tuner

[Q-Bert]

my friend is building a new rig and i am helping him out.

i have an ati radeon 9000 card and a leadtek tv tuner and everything works peachy.

but i was wondering is getting an ATI all in wonder card better than separating the two?

from what i hear the ati tv tuners arent that good themselves.

any feedback?

[drzaius2]

i have an all-in-wonder 7500 and a friend with a 8500DV.. and we both like the "extra" features of these cards.

i do however wish i had just gotten a tv-tuner and card, separate. cause it cost the same for the all-in-wonder 7500 (at the time) as it would have cost for a 8500le.. sure i would of had to spring for the extra cash to get a tv-tuner, but at least when i wanted to upgrade next i'd just be buying just a regular card and not an expensive all-in-wonder.

personally from doing it myself and realizing i do like playing new games more often then watching tv on my computer, i'd say get 2 separate cards, it may cost you a bit more at first, but you don't feel as bad when you upgrade next. i know that's what i'm doing next at least.

[Bink]

drzaius2:

i'd say get 2 separate cards, it may cost you a bit more at first, but you don't feel as bad when you upgrade next. i know that's what i'm doing next at least.

Same here

[Bennyboy]

Yup, two is definitely a better way to go, especially if you like to game. If you like the specific ATi features though then they have a Tuner/capture card for $125 that has all the features of the new AIWs. Apart from remote, that's separate.

It's still a more flexible solution that is worth the extra money for convenience and will save you in the long-run. Like buying hifi separates rather than successive midi systems. When it comes to upgrade time you can get exactly what you want.

Bennyboy.

[Todd a]

I'm going for the combo. The price is only about $50 extra for the Radeon 9700Pro version and it comes with the remote and all the cables needed including the dongle and the componant video cables (which you will have trouble getting any other way). Plus they use the new TV-200 chip, so if you have one of their older TV Wonder cards (like I do) you can use both for a picture in picture features. They also come with a good stck of programs for editting videos and such. Its tough to beat the combo.

As for the TV Wonder VE I have. It is actually a pretty good cheap TV tuner card I picked up on sale for $30. The only thing I do not like is it is mono only. ATI has updated the software rather well and I can now record directly to WMV at 640x480. The cable guide they use is very handy.