I want to turn my computer into a DVR.

ETSA

ETSA

New Member
Any suggestions for software or t.v. tuners and what not. They seem to vary in price and reviews. As far as software, I would prefer free. Any suggestions welcome.
 
I've used my WinTV PVR-150 as a PVR once and it did great. For software I used SageTV, but I've recently found free programes that claim they're better(just never tried them) Check Videohelp.com...

When looking for hardware, if you don't get a WinTV like I have, be sure it has an onboard compressor of some sort. I strongly suggest getting a MPEG2 compressor, but I have seen a couple that have divx. Never tried those so I don't know how well they work... If you don't get a hardware compressor, you'll be quite limited to the quality you can capture. The computer just can't keep up with the capture and compression. Think of it like a GPU in a game ;)
 
I too have a Hauppuage WinTV PVR-350, and it is fantastic. It comes with the TV viewing applicatioin (WinTV) and also has a free scheduler, which will automatically launch and record a TV channel for you. You can also pause/fast forward/rewind etc live TV, just like a Tivo. They are a bit pricey, so to cut on cost you could get the model TOO has, the 150, as there isn't a major difference between them. I very highly suggest them.

If you don't get a WinTV, make sure the one you do get, in addtion to what TOO mentioned, is that it connects to your computer via PCI. The USB ones are crap and don't deliver as-high quality picture. The PCI models are generally made higher quality and transfers data faster, etc.

If you want more info about the WinTV (experiences, etc) I'd be glad to persuade you some more. :)
 
a tuner card with onboard divx compression would be AMAZING!

Mpeg-2 compression is nice, and comes with all but the cheapest cards now, but still requires a LOT of hard drive space, and a lot of hard drive activity.

With onboard divx compression, you could easily watch one program while recording another, and your hard drive wouldn't even be phased.

Doing this with mpeg-2 incites a lot of hard drive 'crunching' sounds, and dropped frames :(
 
The video capture quality is independent on the gpu, correct? (I use onboard graphics acceleration right now)

Also, the pvr-250 says something about a resolution of 1600-1200. What is taht about? Does it support high def up to that resolution?

I think i might just get teh pvr-350 though. It sounds like a good buy. However, i heard that it has some type of decoder to watch recorded files on a tv. How would that work? It doesnt have an output. Woud it use the outputs on the gpu? Also, i've seen many different boxes for the pvr-350. Are they all teh same product? On new egg i saw the "pvr-150" label on a few different products.

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10340586&loc=101&sp=1

http://www.amazon.com/Hauppauge-WinTV-PVR-350-Personal-Recorder-990/dp/B00008OOWC

are those two the same product? (cheaper on buy.com with free shipping)
 
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To the best of my knowledge, Hauppauge does not make high definition TV tuners. The resolution of 1600x1200 is just how big the image can go while still be clear (sort of). When you record TV with the 350, it's not like it's a special file format, it's just a normal AVI (well, the way I have it set, you can change it, if you like)...it does come with output cables to connect your computer to the input of a TV. The TV Tuner itself has a few output connectors, so you should be all set there.
 
They probably are, just different designs..look at the tech specs if you really want to know...

The cables coming out of the card that you are thinking of (the Cable/Satellite cables) are indeed input. But, it also comes with cables to connect that are output as well. I've never tried this, so I can't give feedback on quality/ease of use, but that's what its there for.
 
Don't get that K-world. It doesn't have an onboard compressor. K-World, in general, is a very cheap brand. I don't know much about the ATI, but definetly don't get the K-World...
 
Ok. I think i might just settle for the pvr-150 and wait until they start making hd tuners and get one when it comes out. I should be fine with the edtv (720x480) tuner for now. Thanx for all the help, even tho it wasnt even my thread originally lol.

edit: actually the pvr-1600 is hc and they are supposedly replacing the pvr-150s. However, i saw on a site that they do not support digital cable? And i dont see a composite input on any of them, only s-video.
Is it possible to get digital cable on a pvr-150? Is it possible on the pvr-1600? (i dont understand lol. sry. im a noob) And how great is the quality of s-video as opposed to composite since it seems like i'll be in the market for a new cable if i get a pvr-1600 in my box.
 
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