posted
Anyone have a tv tuner/laptop set up to work like a DVR? I have all the stuff, but am having issues setting it up.
If anyone has set one up, and has it all working and what not, I'd appreciate it if you could post here just to let me know so I can ask any specific questions about issues I'm having. I'm gonna try to fix it tomorrow after work, and when I get it working, im gonna kill this thread.
posted
Alright, so, I got the thing installed, but I'm a bit disappointed with it. I was under the impression that with DVR, you could watch one thing while recording another, or better yet, could record multiple shows at one time, when in reality, DVR is basically just a fancy VCR.
Who else has DVR and is yours better than mine? Maybe there's a trick to it I don't know?
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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posted
You need multiple tuners (ie: two TV cards) to record multiple things at once. Even then, you need software that can handle multiple tuners.
You really do need good software. I use the microsoft media center, but I have heard good things about myth TV as well.
As for it being a fancy VCR, in a way it sort of is. The benifit are the easier recording...particularly if you want to record a season of a show (you can set your DVR to record every episode), searching for shows (depending on your software), and not having to deal with tapes.
Posts: 1901 | Registered: May 2004
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posted
True, it IS easier than using tapes, though, leaving my laptop on for extended periods of time to record stuff makes me rather nervous, I don't want it to overheat, or explode, or anything bad for that matter.
I use Microsoft Media Center as well. Can MMC handle a second tv tuner?
Is it just as simple as buying a second tuner, jacking it into the cable box, hooking it into the computer and then using MMC to program two different sets of recording programs?
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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posted
Another question. What if I used a splitter to split the signal between the laptop signal and the cable boc signal? Could I watch a channel on tv, and record a different one on my laptop that way?
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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posted
My DVR allows watching one thing that was pre-recorded while the DVR is recording something currently being broadcast. But even on mine you can't watch one thing live and record another thing live at once.
(sorry, not too helpful I know.)
Posts: 6394 | Registered: Dec 1999
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posted
Microsoft Media Center can handle up to 6 tuners: 4 Analog, 2 HDTV.
My Media Center has 2 Analog, 2 HDTV tuners. I use the Cable Box control so that it controls both cable boxes. Since I have two media centers running in our house, we have it setup so that programs recorded on either are visible to both.
We keep a 2.0TB array online as a NAS which stores DVDs we ever want access to, and use My Movies 1.55 to handle them, rather then keep popping in discs.
posted
The easiest thing to do is to get the sequence straight in your head. Or, what they call in electrical engineering, the signal path (also called the signal chain -- whatever). I use it to visualize what exactly is going on when setting up AV or network stuff. The analogy of the signal as a stream is also used quite a bit, at least in the sense of the broadcast center (cable company transmission station, in this case) being the head of the stream, and the display device (TV or laptop, in this case) being the mouth of the stream.
Or, in practical language, it goes like this (I apologize if you know all or some of this; I'm not trying to pander to you):
The signal starts at the cable transmission center (someplace local), where all of their offerings are bundled together and transmitted in real time over the same coax cable network. In other words, the cable wire that you plug into your TV doesn't just bring the channels you subscribe to, but everything the cable co. offers. It's all mashed together and it's up to your tuner to decode it and put it on the screen. Back in the day the tuners were inside the TV's. Now, the tuners are mostly digital cable settop boxes.
So each tuner can decode and display one channel at once, by definition. You select a channel, and the tuner filters out all of the signal except the channel you've asked for. So as long as you have just the one tuner, you're limited to watching one live program at a time. Two tuners == two live broadcasts at once. And so on.
What you've done with your DVR is add another stage, between tuner and display device. So, after the signal is decoded (which happens pretty much instantly - at least from our point of view) it is run through the DVR. The DVR can pause, rewind, save, and do a few other things to the signal, but only to the portion that it has recorded. It cannot do anything to the live feed, which continues on its regular path regardless of what the DVR's doing.
So, you can watch something that has already been recorded while recording something else (depending on your specific DVR). You cannot record two things at once, or watch one live show while recording a second live show with only one tuner.
posted
That sounds quite easy to understand thank you.
One question though. Is there a way I can split the signal BEFORE it gets to my box, or does it HAVE to come through the box to my laptop? In otherwords, if the cable settop box is one tuner, and the tuner for my laptop is a second tuner, can I split the signal beforehand, and get the same benefits of what I would have had with two tuner cards?
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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posted
If you need to use a cable box to watch cable, you would need to split after the cable box since otherwise the second signal would not have the benifit of passing through your box
I don't use a cable box, so I don't have to worry about it. I only use one tuner, and have the older Media center that can ony use one tuner (so I can only record one thing at at time) however, I also have my TV hooked up to cable, so I can watch live TV and record at the same time.
My set up: ..............................................==> TV (via coax cable) Cable from the wall ==>Splitter | ..............................................==> Computer (via coax cable) --> TV (via RCA inputs)
You only need the second computer based tuner if you want to use the DVR for two shows at once. If you want to simply watch live TV (without DVR) while you record, you can copy my setup.
I also have my computer connected to my TV through the inputs on the front, so I can watch whatever shows I record on my TV if I choose.
If you want to record more than one show at once, or if you wish to use your DVR to watch one live show while you record another, you need two tuners.
As for buying a new TV card for your computer, check the Media Center literature since not all brands work with Windows Media Center. I think the microsoft webpage lists which ones are compatable. I've always used Hauppauge tuners. This one with dual tuners that works with Windows Media Center: http://www.hauppauge.com/pages/products/data_pvr500mce.html
However, you are more limited due to the fact that you use a laptop rather than a desktop computer.
Oh, and your concern about leaving your laptop on all the time. I have left my computer on pretty much 24/7 for the past several years and have never had a problem. Just reboot it every once and a while. You should also make sure it is on a hard surface, and not sitting on something like a bed that can block the vents. Also, don't forget to defrag your hard drive regularly since you are going to be frequently adding and deleting very large files from your computer.
posted
Well I don't NEED the cable box to watch TV, it just sorts out the signals and makes the channels easier to find, but jacking it right into the TV works as well. But I'm not sure if it works the same way for the DIGITAL cable box. I'll have to play around with it, or call the Cable company and ask them directly.
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