HDAV (emphasis on the 'A') options

[SuperMarioBro]

Hey guys, I have a couple somewhat n00bish questions (it was this or bump a very old thread).

If I were to get a Radeon 5000 series video card, would I need any special software or hardware to be able to output HD audio codecs (Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD and PCM bitstreaming), or would the card be capable of this out of the box with its own built-in DSP or something?

Would this be a suitable audio solution even for gaming?

Would I need to disable my mobo's on-board audio to be able to get audio from the card? Cuz I would kind of like to still be able to use the stereo input and output jacks for headphones and microphones from time to time.

Also, would any 5K series do the job, or do I need to stick to certain models? As far as I know, ATI cards are the only video cards that even have this capability right now.

I know that's a lot of questions. () Answers to any of them will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[lopri]

If I were to get a Radeon 5000 series video card, would I need any special software or hardware to be able to output HD audio codecs (Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD and PCM bitstreaming), or would the card be capable of this out of the box with its own built-in DSP or something?

You do not need a special ($$) software, thought that's probably an easier route. (Besides which, you will need one to play protected Blu-Ray disc anyway unless you already have everything ripped) You can configure MPC-HC and ffdshow both of which are free to use. If you want to use it in WMP/WMC, you may need to configure it in ffdshow. (There are guides somewhere around the web) You need to install ATI HDMI audio drivers which may come in a Catalyst driver package or as a separate download. Alternatively Realtek provides its own ATI HDMI audio drivers and some say they're better. But yes, the hardware is capable of bitstreaming with proper drivers.

Would I need to disable my mobo's on-board audio to be able to get audio from the card? Cuz I would kind of like to still be able to use the stereo input and output jacks for headphones and microphones from time to time.

No, if you're using Windows 7, the OS will know/remember which applications asking for which audio path once you set up the applications and will output to the correct device.

Also, would any 5K series do the job, or do I need to stick to certain models? As far as I know, ATI cards are the only video cards that even have this capability right now.

Intel's Clarkdale CPUs are just as capable, afaik. I believe there is a slight difference compared to HD 5000 series cards but it probably matters only to the most demanding audiophiles. And NVIDIA's GF104 is supposed to have the same capability once supporting drivers arrive.

 

[SuperMarioBro]

Thanks a lot for the reply, lopri. I just ordered this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102874

I hope it will get the job done well.

So does anyone know about the gaming question? Will this offer any disadvantages over a dedicated sound card for gamin? Although the only sound card that seems to offer what I want is this, which probably wouldn't be any better I think:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-012-_-Product

 

[ViRGE]

Yes, that would be fine for gaming. At this point all of the mass-market solutions are about the same, so you're doing no worse than on-board audio.

 

[SuperMarioBro]

Cool. I just hope my stock Inspiron PSU can handle it, heh.

Are these GPUs pretty capable of being overclocked?

 

[ViRGE]

The 5570? I have no idea.