MCE is still useful even without the EPG. you can still manually record TV shows(w/c any TV software does anyway). other features like online spotlight where you can download movies(that is if you have broadband),synching with your portable device and streaming medias anywhere in your house by using MCX are other stuff to consider in getting MCE.sa ngayon, walang plans ibenta ng retail ang MCE2005 e but you can buy one in newegg.com(and baka available na rin sa GH yun 
).
i used to be a TiVo user but hacking tivo is not that fun(im not that good in linux) and may subscription fee pa.i also considered using BeyondTV kaso ms-fanatic ako kaya nauwi sa MCE. 
by the way, i'm planning to upgrade my audio card for DVD-A and SACD playback but seems like M-Audio can only do analog or digital but not both(i read it in avsforum but forgot the link).i think Audigy 2 can do both.anyone have experience using Audigy cards?
Yeah, MCE can do all of those which is cool... I just feel sad that we dont have EPG data here to take advantage of a TIVO like system here. Another drawback I have about MCE is that its not that flexible when it comes to decoders and post processing. You are basically stuck with what MS recommends.
MCE is available in a lot of on-line retailers, I almost bought one just to feed my curiosity on how it actually performs... I changed my mind because having no EPG will just frustrate me hheheh. MS released MCE under OEM so you can purchase it along with other items. You can find it on directron.com, pcalchemy.com and lots more...
There arent much Soundcards that can playback SACD, I think out of all my google searches I only found one... I can't remember what brand it was though and only the Audigy and M-Audio supports DVD-A. M-audio actually uses creative's DVD-A drivers to take advantage of 96khz capability of the M-Audio Revolution.
What do you mean by "M-Audio can only do analog or digital not both" ? do you mean output spdif and analaog simultaneously? if thats the case even the Audigy can't out put digital and analog at the same time, you still have to choose what output you'd like digital or analog. I have owned both M-Audio Revo and Audigy 2 ZS, for analog audio the M-Audio sounds so much better. Spdif output, can barely tell the difference (since the audio is decoded by my AV Receiver).
If you want a more audiophile sounding system, I suggest using analog instead of spdif to take advantage of the soundcard's DAC. I have 2 connections on my rig, I have one coax to the digital input and analog from the 6.1 output straight into the 6.1 direct input on my amp. So I can just choose what system to use.
Also if you want to use several sound devices in one system, search google for STADS.exe this is an EXCELLENT tray program that lets you switch audio devices on the fly!
I have a Soundstorm Board which does DDlive, but I also have an Audigy ZS with I prefer for games, and I also have a Audiotrak Maya44 4in 4out USB interface for recording. I use STADS.exe to switch audio devices. If I want to play games, I switch to the Audigy, If I want to use DDlive, I switch to the Soundstorm Audio, if I want to do some music recording software I use my MAYA44.
