The HTPC Thread - Dont buy an HTPC - The Something Awful Forums

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > The HTPC Thread - Dont buy an HTPC

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

Is there a TV tuner card that will take the signal from my digital cable set-top box and let me view/record HDTV through my HTPC? I have been looking at these Hauppauge cards and they only seem to allow for analog cable, unless I am misunderstanding something? (Is the set-top box converting it to analog for the TV so I don't have to worry about this?) I just want to be able to record/PVR HDTV from my digital set-top box with my HTPC. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

# ¿ Jun 6, 2007 02:03

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 15:02

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

BrutusBeefcake posted:

I just saw this deal for a barebones PC (has everything but an operating system) from Tiger Direct. Any thoughts on how this would work as a start for a HTPC? I am very encouraged by the DVI out and the 2 gigs of RAM. The whole thing is just 350 bucks.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3163629&sku=I69-2146%20H&CMP=EMC-TIGEREMAIL&SRCCODE=WEM1379C

Quick specs from the website:

" One of our most extreme barebone kits ever. And we�re selling it for a price that will save you hundreds over an equally powerful pre-built system. This affordable barebone includes an Intel Pentium D 940 3.2GHz DT 800FSB CPU, Intel�s D945GCCRL Socket 775 MicroATX motherboard, a Seagate 250GB SATA HDD with NCQ, an XFX GeForce 6200 TurboCache 64MB GDDR2 video card that supports 256MB, along with an Optiarc 18XD DVDRW OEM SuperMulti optical drive. And our product experts have selected 1024MB of Ultra�s PC4200 DDR2 memory at 533MHz to give your system the versatility and agility it needs to master the most advanced applications. Dressed in our new Power Up Corporate ATX case complete with a 450-watt power supply, your new system will be ready for anything you could possibility imagine.

Plus, for a limited time only, receive an additional 1GB DDR2 PC4200 memory for FREE!"

450 watts sounds like overkill and it will probably be really loud.

# ¿ Jun 6, 2007 17:13

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

Crackbone posted:

Quick lesson in High Def broadcasts:

Over the air signals you get with rabbit ears are ATSC standard. The signals you get over cable is QAM. Tuner cards that record high-def only do ATSC, no QAM - more than likely because of piracy concerns.

The only thing that comes close to what you want is called an HD Homerun. You can check it out over here:
http://www.silicondust.com/
It's made by a very small company that probably doesn't give a gently caress if the cable companies care about it, so it can read QAM signals. However, that being said, it's a pain in the rear end to get it to work in either Linux or Windows MC. Check the forums on that site to get a better idea of what it takes.

Thank you. I have already looked into ATSC but 1) in my area it would require a roof antenna which is not possible in my current living arrangement and 2) would not have HBO/premium channels which is why I am looking for something that can take the unencrypted signal out of my cable box. HDHomeRun looks exactly what I want, only I hope it can take the signal from my box instead of dircetly from the cable coax and let me use it in conjunction with an IR blaster.

edit: Do I even need a tuner for this? Would a coax video card input and a IR blaster to change the channel work? I guess I need a tuner for stuff like program guide?

RibeyeJaksom fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Jun 6, 2007

# ¿ Jun 6, 2007 18:36

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

Fnord posted:

Your premium channels will all be encrypted, making the HD Homerun useless. Unfortunatly, the only way to get what you want right now is to buy a brand new very expensive media center with cable card slots. You can thank cable labs rear end hattery for that.

So nobody except people willing to buy a Velocity Micro media center are able to do this? So how exactly are people setting up their TVs when they have premium cable? Are they splitting their cables before it reaches the cable box and using one TV input for the cable box and one for the HTPC? Doesn't that defeat a large part of the HTPC's purpose? What do they do, switch to the HTPC to use PVR function with ATSC channels and then switch back to the set-top box for premium channels (which they cannot PVR)? That seems like a real pain in the rear end. Is there really no better way?

# ¿ Jun 7, 2007 02:58

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

EC posted:

http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,2143304,00.asp?kc=ETRSS02129TX1K0000532

I saw this article this morning, and its got me intrigued on what these cards could mean for the HTPC market. Does anyone have any thoughts? A $50 DX10 card based on the 8x series from NVidia makes me all excited.

Except they "will probably lack HDMI" which probably means DVI as well. I guess thats not a big deal for some people.

# ¿ Jun 8, 2007 17:26

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 15:02

RibeyeJaksom: Apr 16, 2003

SnatchRabbit posted:

Not sure if this really qualifies as an HTPC or not, but it looks pretty sweet later on I may pick one up as a replacement for my trusty XBMC. Assuming it can do anything above 720p it's as good as a sale. Any thoughts?

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/home-entertainment/archos-tv-plus-also-downloads-movies-surfs-the-web-268961.php
http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/15/archos-tv-plus-details-hands-on/#comments

It says right in that article that it can't.

quote:

# It can only output up to 720p via HDMI; it only records up to VGA resolution MPEG-4 files, so HD programs will be downscaled

Worthless.

RibeyeJaksom fucked around with this message at 22:41 on Jun 15, 2007

# ¿ Jun 15, 2007 22:37

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