TV Cards + Monitors EXPLAIN!?

[Jack-]

Hello all,

I've config'd this gaming PC setup:

Case
InWIN BLACK DRAGON RIDER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3550 (3.3GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® P8Z77-V: PCI-E 3.0 READY, WIFI, SLI, CROSSFIREX
Memory (RAM)
8GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz, X.M.P (2 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W ENTHUSIAST SERIES™ TX750 V2-80 PLUS® BRONZE (£86)
Processor Cooling
SPIRE THERMAX ECLIPSE II UNIVERSAL DT EXTREME CPU COOLER (£39)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
BULLGUARD INTERNET SECURITY - FREE 90 DAY TRIAL
Keyboard & Mouse
LOGITECH® K200 USB MEDIA KEYBOARD (£10)
Mouse
LOGITECH® OPTICAL USB MOUSE (£5)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £1,132.00 including VAT and delivery.

This spec is aiming to run games such as Skyrim on full settings + graphics mods, and the PSU is overkill for future SLI

BUT! Now for the stuff I don't have a clue about-

I want to get a monitor, probably one of the llyama ones. I also want to be able to watch TV on it, so I'm looking into getting one of the TV cards listed on PCS..

a) Would 24" suffice for tv viewing of around 10ft?
b) How do the TV cards work? I assume it'll arrive installed and any software the same(?) but what application would i be watching tv through and does it share good functional equivalence to a normal tv?
c) Just to make sure- this won't have any knock-on effect on the gaming side will it?

 

[Wozza63]

The 24" should be enough for 10ft, im about 8ft away and it seems pretty big to me

The TV cards use a software which will come with the card itself, you can then choose the programs through this, it probably includes more channels than a lot of standard freeview TVs

And what do you mean knock on effect? the TV card wont have an effect on gaming

 

[Jack-]

Awesome, ta.

So I boot up, and open an application, like i would Photoshop, and select a channel (which hopefully includes the standard Freeview selection like BBCs, E4 etc)??

By knock-on effects, i was referring to the threat of installing a whole host of software that would hinder performance (it wasn't so much grounded in fact or experience ^^)

Also, Wozza- does your 570 offer 30-40+ fps on games of Skyrim's calibre (max settings)?

 

[vanthus]

You can watch all freeview channels as with a normal tv,you need to connect card to an aerial,
some people can get away with using an indoor amplified aerial but thats a hit or a miss depending on signal strength in your area.
Software will be supplied with the card but I have mine set up with Windows media center,
I find it very good.

 

[Wozza63]

I can play every game I have tried at maximum settings 1080p, and for Skyrim, I have about 10 graphical mods and it still plays fine to me

No you wont need to install tonnes of programs for the TV card, it should be one program and probably the driver for the TV card, which may be installed before hand

 

[Jack-]

right, gotcha.

Now this last question is going to sound the stupidest of all i expect:

------------> [My PC]
^ Aerial | Computer^

Where is the aerial lead going to be going? lol

 

[Wozza63]

either to a wireless reciever or the aerial socket in the wall, just the same as a normal TV

 

[Jack-]

I meant where does it attach to the PC? On my TV, it's a simple and obvious port on the back- Will it have to go into the PC and attach to the card itself or??

Sorry :/

 

[Wozza63]

The card will be on a PCI/PCIe slot, and these are tucked up against the back of the PC, and there will be a backplate with the socket on it, put it in there

Here it is labelled as expansion slots, it will be in one of those

 

[Jack-]

Couldn't ask for more! Thank you

(unless you happened to have a video... Ah I'm just kidding! ^^)

REP to you both, thanks

 

[vanthus]

The socket to connect your aerial to will be just as obvious on the PC as the TV.
Be aware though,that this may need to be connected from your existing TV aerial whether it be a loft aerial or outside aerial ,if so you may need to use an amplified aerial splitter as near to the aerial as possible then run a cable from the splitter to the connection on the card.
I live in a bungalow so it was actually easier to install another aerial in the loft & run a cable to it from the PC,thats on my old PC,the one I have from PCS is actually an HD satellite card connected to a dish I installed out back,this of course gives me freesat.
Having said that as I said,an indoor aerial might suffice for freeview depending on signal strength.
Not trying to put you off because it's really brilliant when set up,you can minimise media center to the size you want & browse the net for example while watching your favourite TV programmes.