I have been in the process of planning an htpc for a few motnhs now (almost all of my media is digital). I assumed it would be easy but the more I read the more confused I get. The plan has been to build a windows 7 htpc using an everything onboard motherboard with windows media center serving as my primary interface. From there the plan was to output, via hdmi, to my new Marantz 5005 receiver. I assumed this approach would give me bit perfect sound but I am starting to realize this might not be the case. My questions are:
Assuming I want to use windows media center as my primary interface is there an easy way to get bit perfect audio via hdmi?
Does anyone have a recomenation for a htpc motherboard with onboard audio and video that will meet the needs of an audiophie/videophile?
Any advice suggestions would be appriciated.