[mythtv-users] Re: Hardware MPEG2 encdoder really worth it?

Keat Lim mythtv at keatlim.com
Thu Jul 31 15:12:08 EDT 2003


I think it is a good idea. It does offload a lot of work from the CPU to
the card not to mention MPEG2 compression. 

The thing is that most people will think that a new Athlon 2400+ is dirt
cheap now but if you get a nice low CPU with low power you can actually
compensate with the cost of power consumption. I calculated that I will
save about $4/month that makes it $48/yr. Moving to a lower powered CPU
like a VIA Nemiah will bring that down a bit further also.  

Also with lower power and dedicated hardware encoder card means less heat
means less cooling needed means low powered fans means lower noise.

Not to mention the fact that the files are in MPEG2 and therefore if you
have a windows machine it is quite possible to watch the video files
without even re-encoding it.




More information about the mythtv-users mailing list