Please help a newbie to Video Cards!

[Need4Deal]

I find my way around a PC. I can open up the PC case, install video cards, memory, drives, etc. But, I am a newbie to video cards.

Here is my situation:

I am planning to buy a new PC (in all probability, it will be a Dell). The PC will be used for:

[*]Digital Photo Editing
[*]Analog Video Capture
[*]Video MPEG Encoding
[*]DVD burning

... and ABSOLUTELY NO GAMING.

What kind of video card (and/or video capture card) should I get? Keep in mind that I don't want to spend a lot of money on the video card (yes, I am cheap). Top limit $150 (preferably, below $100).

Here are my questions:

1. Is it possible to get the cheapest video card with the Dell PC (the INTEGRATED graphics card) and then upgrade it to another AGP video (and/or capture card) when I find a good deal on it?

2. Does the quality of video card (not the capture card) affect video editing, encoding and photo ediing?

3. The following are the options I can think of :

[*]Integrated graphics card with Video capture card
[*]An AGP card with a separate Video Capture card
[*]An all-in-one type of card

Which is the best option for my intended uses?

4. Do all video cards have hardware MPEG encoding built-in?

5. Apart from video/catpure card, what features of a PC would affect video editing, encoding and photo editing? Does CPU, RAM, Hard Drive speed or anything else affect the activities I mentioned?

Thanks.

 

[Quixfire]

I would get this ATI All in Wonder 9600 Pro $179 at Circuit City

 

[Matthias99]

The AIW 9600Pro is, indeed, a kickass piece of equipment. However, if you intend to do no gaming, it's probably overkill. An All-In-Wonder 9000 or 8500 would work just fine for you, or you could use their standalone "TV Wonder" to do video capture and just buy a cheap video card (or use the onboard integrated video).

I will try to answer your questions.

1: Yes, as long as it has an AGP slot (for an all-in-one card) and/or free PCI slots (for a capture card). Be careful that you don't get a system without an AGP slot.

2: No. It may affect the quality of how it looks on your monitor (which can be an important consideration if you're a graphic artist, etc.), but it the video card has nothing to do with video capture and encoding.

3: That's not a question, but any of those setups will work.

4: No. However, with a modern CPU, you don't really need it unless you want to do capture in the background while doing other things with the system.

5: Video encoding is mostly dependent on the CPU. Editing video is also largely CPU-dependent, although it will slow down *greatly* if you don't have enough RAM. Loading and saving files is dependent (obviously) on your hard disk, but actually working with them is not. Photo editing tasks are CPU-dependent, but I can't think of any that would stress a modern system at all.

 

[Need4Deal]

Thanks for your suggestion, Quixfire!.

Thanks Matthias99 for answering my questions. Sorry about question 3. I did not phrase it as a question. Here is the re-phrased one:

Which of the following setups is the best option in my case:

[*]Integrated graphics card with Video capture card
[*]An AGP card (NON-AIW) with a separate Video Capture card
[*]AIW 8500 or 9000

Or, will each one of them give same performance in my case?

I really appreciate your help.

Thanks.

 

[McArra]

I'd go with 8500/9000 AIW.

 

[sirspotticus]

Originally posted by: McArra
I'd go with 8500/9000 AIW.

what he said

 

[modedepe]

Originally posted by: McArra
I'd go with 8500/9000 AIW.

I agree. Anything more is really overkill. Some people were finding 8500 aiw's for $54 at office depot a while back. Maybe if you're lucky you can still pick one up.

 

[Gagabiji]

Originally posted by: McArra
I'd go with 8500/9000 AIW.

Because you are not going to be gaming, get the cheaper one.

 

[Need4Deal]

Thanks everybody for all your suggestions and information. I really apperciate your help.

 

[Cerb]

1. Possibly, depending on the model you get.
2. No. That's all CPU, memory and hard drive.
3. With the newer ATi drivers...All-in-Wonder 100%. You will not be dissappointed. I will say that the TV out is much better o the 9x00 cards (which a 9000 is not, BTW), but the TV in and the rest of it looks as good on the 8x00 (including up to the 9200). So if you won't be using it with a TV as a second monitor, get a 8500 AIW or 9000 AIW.
4. No. Most have decoding built in, at least partially, but encoding is typically done by the CPU. Anything from about a Duron 800 or so can do 640x480 and whatever else the high quality MPEG defaults are for the AIW in real time. So any new PC you get will handle it.
5. All affect it, but not terribly much...just don't get a Celeron. ANYTHING but a Celeron. And getting A P4 w/ HT will help when trying to encode and do anything else. Also, the monitor makes a big difference...but no worries there if you get a Dell. They tend to find the right OEMs for monitors. Did I mention you should avoid Celerons like the plague?

 

[Need4Deal]

Thanks very much, Cerb.