Can anyone recommend a hw/sw combination to allow me to preview a Component input with audio on a Mac?
I would highly recommend the Elgato line of capture hardware as they are reasonably priced, well supported, come with the software you need and have been in the business for quite some time.

Even for some prosumer applications, Elgato hardware is good enough for the job as some input sources are not going to be improved by spending $2000 on hardware that can do impressive amounts of A/D conversion and fancy time sync olympics.

You could go cheaper on the hardware (especially if you only need composite instead of component input), but my experience is if you know exactly what you're doing - you already can judge what cheap thing you can press into service and what is a waste of your time. I'd buy from a retailer that has a nice return policy or can make sure you buy the appropriate package.


http://www.adorama.com/EG1040.html