Choppy iTunes video playback on PC-what do i need?

[bobfitz14]

i searched forums, and since this is a Mac based website i didn't find any help, however my question is simple enough and i have probably already seen an answer and just don't realize it.

back to the point: why are all my iTunes videos so damn choppy?! High Quality Youtube videos are "ok," but HD Youtube videos are just as bad as trying to watch anything on iTunes.

what do i need to upgrade (word choice?) to successfully watch iTunes videos crisply. i'm assuming it's like a graphics card or a processor or something. i could buy a decent computer in the next couple of months but i'm not because my parents are strongly against me upgrading anything because i'm going to college Fall 2010, so they said i'll just get a high-end something or other when the time comes. the point of what i just rambled about was is there something on my current PC that i can upgrade?


i know a fair amount of stuff about computers, but i have no idea what to do about this! i know my computer itself is crap, but i can't just hit up Best Buy at the moment...

 

[MTI]

Your eMachine PC has an integrated ATI Radeon Xpress 200 video processor on the motherboard that takes 128MB from your system ram for handling graphics. You will greatly enhance the systems video capablilities by upgrading to a PCI-express video card with more memory and faster processor.

I'm not sure if your system has a dedicated AGP slot, but I think it does have PCI-E

 

[bobfitz14]

Your eMachine PC has an integrated ATI Radeon Xpress 200 video processor on the motherboard that takes 128MB from your system ram for handling graphics. You will greatly enhance the systems video capablilities by upgrading to a PCI-express video card with more memory and faster processor.

I'm not sure if your system has a dedicated AGP slot, but I think it does have PCI-E

so would something like this be compatible with my computer? it says it's PCI-express, 1GB, and DVI + VGA input which i like because i might add another monitor to my computer over the summer.

is it easy to upgrade video cards? do i have to take any current parts out or do i just put this in a blank slot on my computer?

 

[Undecided]

so would something like this be compatible with my computer? it says it's PCI-express, 1GB, and DVI + VGA input which i like because i might add another monitor to my computer over the summer.

is it easy to upgrade video cards? do i have to take any current parts out or do i just put this in a blank slot on my computer?

Must...resist...temptation....aiieee! I can't take it anymore!

Just get this.

Ah, but you can't.

Well, I don't think the one you selected will work - it's PCI Express 2.0. Why not this?

You might also post your question here.

 

[bobfitz14]

Must...resist...temptation....aiieee! I can't take it anymore!

Just get this.

Ah, but you can't.

Well, I don't think the one you selected will work - it's PCI Express 2.0. Why not this?

You might also post your question here.

haha oh man you don't know how badly i want to....i'm a junior in high school, 16 years old, currently no job, so i hardly ever have money. if i get a job this summer and work enough hours, i'm gonna ask my parents if i can get a Mini (prob one of the higher ends), the only reason i ask is because i hate having guilt from my parents disapproval.

also, they've pretty much shunned me for the thought of getting anything new because when i head off to college i'm gonna get a laptop, though it's coming out of my pocket they don't see the need for me to get anything until then.

EDIT: i updated your quote... would i even notice a difference getting the graphics card you linked me to? it's also 128 MB, and that can't do what i want it to right now, so why would it for the possibility of two monitors?

 

[MTI]

I doubt that the eMachine has a PCI-E 2.0 slot, probably a 1.0.

 

[Undecided]

would i even notice a difference getting the graphics card you linked me to? it's also 128 MB, and that can't do what i want it to right now, so why would it for the possibility of two monitors?

Sorry I'm just not that familiar with PC hardware any more, ever since I made the switch (back) to Macs in 2005. Your best bet, I think, would be to ask at a PC forum (like the one I linked to earlier). Or poke around sites like tomshardware.com for rankings of various video chips.

Good luck!

 

[MTI]

so would something like this be compatible with my computer? it says it's PCI-express, 1GB, and DVI + VGA input which i like because i might add another monitor to my computer over the summer.

is it easy to upgrade video cards? do i have to take any current parts out or do i just put this in a blank slot on my computer?

It's very easy to install a video card. The graphic cards seem reasonably priced. The only thing you need to be careful about is the type of expansion slot you have the in the PC. I'm pretty sure you have a PCI-E in your eMachine, but not sure if it is 1.0, 1.1 or 2.0 compliant. All that means is that the card will fit and run, since the 2.0 cards are backwardly compatible with 1.0 & 1.1, but you won't be getting the same performance spec if it was in a matching 2.0 slot.

 

[bobfitz14]

It's very easy to install a video card. The graphic cards seem reasonably priced. The only thing you need to be careful about is the type of expansion slot you have the in the PC. I'm pretty sure you have a PCI-E in your eMachine, but not sure if it is 1.0, 1.1 or 2.0 compliant. All that means is that the card will fit and run, since the 2.0 cards are backwardly compatible with 1.0 & 1.1, but you won't be getting the same performance spec if it was in a matching 2.0 slot.

i attached an image of what i think are the expansion slots inside my PC. i have no idea what they are, but on (the motherboard?) it said PCI-1, PCI-2, etc..and you can actually see this in the picture if you look hard enough
anyways, it appears the top empty slot is noticeably larger than the other 3, and in the last slot on the bottom of the picture is something that came with my computer, and on the outside of my computer it looks like two ethernet ports or something, and one says phone but i forget about the other.

hope the image helped!

EDIT: oh and this image i found on CompUSA's website just helped me notice that it's not AGP, otherwise i don't see a difference...i need a pros help!

 

[MTI]

What I see are three (1 occupied) PCI expansion slots and one PCI-E (express) expansion slot. There are PCI video cards, but the PCI-E offers better performance for video.

 

[bobfitz14]

What I see are three (1 occupied) PCI expansion slots and one PCI-E (express) expansion slot. There are PCI video cards, but the PCI-E offers better performance for video.

do you think this PCI-Express card would be enough to watch videos/movies in iTunes? keep in mind it is only 128 MB, which is the same i have now and it's not enough.

 

[txnoob]

bob - I am an experienced PC builder, and have supported a network in an enterprise environment. I only say that tell you I won't suggest you need something you don't.

First, are you running Windows XP or Windows Vista?

If you are running Windows Vista, one of your main problems may be the amount of RAM in your system. Vista is a HOG, and 2GB of RAM is the minimum to run it efficiently. If you're running XP you're fine.

Secondly, the Last card you linked to is right on par with your existing card. The 7200 series nvidia cards were very low end.

If you want something that will improve video playback, I would one of these to your system. They're not overly expensive and should help.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121235
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131142



The other thing to consider is your internet connection. A lot of the lower end DSL packages out there just don't stream high quality video well, especially if they are sharing with other computers. Check your bandwidth

 

[bobfitz14]

bob - I am an experienced PC builder, and have supported a network in an enterprise environment. I only say that tell you I won't suggest you need something you don't.

First, are you running Windows XP or Windows Vista?

If you are running Windows Vista, one of your main problems may be the amount of RAM in your system. Vista is a HOG, and 2GB of RAM is the minimum to run it efficiently. If you're running XP you're fine.

Secondly, the Last card you linked to is right on par with your existing card. The 7200 series nvidia cards were very low end.

If you want something that will improve video playback, I would one of these to your system. They're not overly expensive and should help.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121235
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131142



The other thing to consider is your internet connection. A lot of the lower end DSL packages out there just don't stream high quality video well, especially if they are sharing with other computers. Check your bandwidth

i am running XP with 1.37 GB of RAM, i think that's a combination of a 1gig stick i added last year and the stock 512MB.

my Internet connection shouldn't be the problem because streaming Netflix and Youtube is fine (fine as in nothing to brag about, but i get "okay" quality), and i'm on a wireless connection through cable internet.

i'll check out the two cards you linked me to, do you recommend one of them over another for a specific reason? one is $10 more but i don't know if there would be a noticeable difference. thanks for the help!

 

[Bad Paper]

Kid,

this is a forum for consumer Mac desktop hardware. What are you doing here?

 

[bobfitz14]

this is a forum for consumer Mac desktop hardware. What are you doing here?

why did you find the need to waste a post to say that? because i obviously couldn't tell that this is a Mac-based website right? nor did i acknowledge that fact in the original post....

this isn't necessarily just a Mac-only website. there are plenty of posts about non-Mac products. plus, Macs have graphic cards too.

 

[MTI]

this is a forum for consumer Mac desktop hardware. What are you doing here?

That's the kind of response I'd expect a Mac user would get on a PC forum . . . but Mac folks "think different."

 

[txnoob]

this is a forum for consumer Mac desktop hardware. What are you doing here?

as if because he's PC user he's not welcome? Granted, there is probably a better forum where OP could get more thorough help. But what harm is it if people are able to assist?

Get of your soap box.

 

[txnoob]

i am running XP with 1.37 GB of RAM, i think that's a combination of a 1gig stick i added last year and the stock 512MB.

my Internet connection shouldn't be the problem because streaming Netflix and Youtube is fine (fine as in nothing to brag about, but i get "okay" quality), and i'm on a wireless connection through cable internet.

i'll check out the two cards you linked me to, do you recommend one of them over another for a specific reason? one is $10 more but i don't know if there would be a noticeable difference. thanks for the help!

Both are same price after rebate. I'd go with either if that was surely the problem. I'm not entirely convinced that it is, but since I don't have your machine a test bench, I can't tell.

 

[bobfitz14]

That's the kind of response I'd expect a Mac user would get on a PC forum . . . but Mac folks "think different."

as if because he's PC user he's not welcome? Granted, there is probably a better forum where OP could get more thorough help. But what harm is it if people are able to assist?

Get of your soap box.

thanks guys

Both are same price after rebate. I'd go with either if that was surely the problem. I'm not entirely convinced that it is, but since I don't have your machine a test bench, I can't tell.

thanks for the advice, i'll look a little more into it and probably order one this weekend.

 

[Bad Paper]

This is a forum for Apple hardware, specifically iMacs, eMacs, and Minis. OP's question has nothing to do with this forum; he may as well be asking for souffle recipes. Perhaps this is a more appropriate forum.

I suspect the reason OP is having trouble is that he doesn't know how to look for answers in the first place.

 

[bobfitz14]

This is a forum for Apple hardware, specifically iMacs, eMacs, and Minis. OP's question has nothing to do with this forum; he may as well be asking for souffle recipes. Perhaps this is a more appropriate forum.

I suspect the reason OP is having trouble is that he doesn't know how to look for answers in the first place.

what gives you the right to tell me what to do? i'm being serious. give me a legit answer to this question.

 

[kurosov]

what gives you the right to tell me what to do? i'm being serious. give me a legit answer to this question.

Well the post WAS made in a forum titled "iMac, eMac, Mac mini".

Those who could have helped most are probably not even looking at this forum section anyway.

 

[bobfitz14]

Well the post WAS made in a forum titled "iMac, eMac, Mac mini".

Those who could have helped most are probably not even looking at this forum section anyway.

i already acknowledged that, and Mac's do have graphic cards too. but it doesn't mean he had to be rude saying "what are you doing here"


what do you want me to say? "next time i'll think twice about mentioning anything here, because i guess just because i don't have a Mac i'm at a disadvantage."

 

[txnoob]

Well the post WAS made in a forum titled "iMac, eMac, Mac mini".

Those who could have helped most are probably not even looking at this forum section anyway.

No one is denying that the post was not made in the correct forum, but that is no excuse for anyone to be rude about it. He's 16, give him a break. I'm sure none of you were ever 16 before and did nothing impulsive or without completely thinking it over.

 

[bobfitz14]

No one is denying that the post was not made in the correct forum, but that is no excuse for anyone to be rude about it. He's 16, give him a break. I'm sure none of you were ever 16 before and did nothing impulsive or without completely thinking it over.

thaaaank you. i'm not ignorant by any means (not saying anyone called me ignorant however) but i truly did not think this through 100% before i posted, i was multitasking at the time i posted (homework & MR of course!). i figured eh what the heck it couldn't hurt to ask, but i guess some people just got ticked off about it.

i am going to say when i posted all i really wanted was some tips on what i would need, which i now know is a new graphics card, not on the differences between PC and Mac. i do want a Mac, but that is out of the question.