Hot? or Not?

[deadken]

I have 2 TV tuners (one in each kids PC). I used to like my Daughters ATI TV Wonder Pro until I saw the picture on my sons Leadtek TV2000XP. I also tried the HDTV Wonder way back when and it wasn't very user friendly to say the least, it had a low WAF (also known as the 'Wife Acceptance Factor).

Well, I found this Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1600 at Circuit City for $60. I remember when these were $100 and then saw them go down to around $80 with rebates. Now Newegg carries them for $80 with no rebate. So this seems to be a decent deal.

Any thoughts? Anyone use one of these with XP Pro?

It might just be time to get rid of that TV Wonder Pro and let my Daughter take screenshots of American Idle in HD

 

[El Norm]

I have this card (analog and HD tuners) in my media center along with a older NVTV (single anolog tuner) and it works just fine. The HD programming is a really nice picture. My favorite part is that i can now record two analog cable shows and one hdtv over the air show at the same time. Used to always have that annoying thing when a schedualed recording was comming on when your watching tv and it would ask you if its ok to switch channels... have not seen that once since i added this card.

 

[KK]

I have one of these in my daughters PC running XP home. Had some difficulties loading the drivers but once I called hauppauge for help, I haven't had any issues with it. I just have analog cable coming into it. I got mine from newegg or zipzoomfly with a rebate, price came out to about the same as this deal with the included tax.

 

[bradley]

I only wish this had dual tuners. Believe the WinTV-HVR 1800 is the one I want.

 

[imported_typhoid]

Originally posted by: bradley
I only wish this had dual tuners. Believe the WinTV-HVR 1800 is the one I want.

I'm not certain what you mean by dual tuners. I believe that the 1600 and 1800 are both dual-tuner cards (one NTSC and one ATSC). From what I can tell, the primary difference is that the 1600 is PCI whereas the 1800 is PCIe.

What I would really like is dual ATSC tuners on a single card. I get a good HD signal from all of my local stations, so I don't need NTSC any more.

 

[Crucial]

Originally posted by: typhoid

Originally posted by: bradley
I only wish this had dual tuners. Believe the WinTV-HVR 1800 is the one I want.

I'm not certain what you mean by dual tuners. I believe that the 1600 and 1800 are both dual-tuner cards (one NTSC and one ATSC). From what I can tell, the primary difference is that the 1600 is PCI whereas the 1800 is PCIe.

What I would really like is dual ATSC tuners on a single card. I get a good HD signal from all of my local stations, so I don't need NTSC any more.

HD Homerun

 

[brikis98]

hm, now that I have a 1080p LCD hooked up to my computer, this is quite tempting... how does the HD output of this thing compare to, say, the HD output from my cable box (provided by comcast)?

 

[MiniDoom]

I don't think there are linux drivers for those planning to use their tuner with mythtv. windows will work fine.

 

[Rockhound1]

I got one of these for my father's computer. He has it hooked up through coax cable to a dish box. He uses it to watch television while surfing and doing e-mails (separate window). It has a nice clear picture and stereo sound. He doesn't use it for recording since he has a DVR through his dish provider, so I can't speak to this feature. He is running Vista Ultimate 32-bit.

I got the card from CompUSA for about $75 during their liquidation. This is a hot deal for $60.

 

[HumblePie]

Originally posted by: brikis98
hm, now that I have a 1080p LCD hooked up to my computer, this is quite tempting... how does the HD output of this thing compare to, say, the HD output from my cable box (provided by comcast)?

HD is digital and digital appearance isn't affect the way analog is. You either get the signal or you don't. It all looks the same. That's why I laugh when people sometimes say, HDMI is better than DVI or some other such nonsense. It's all 1's and 0's in the digital world and you either get the picture or you don't. Now, the quality of your screen displaying the digital signal DOES affect your viewing pleasure. But the source and mode of transmission doesn't.

 

[superHARD]

doesnt the pci verson on the 1600 only let you use one tuner at a time...

 

[imported_typhoid]

Originally posted by: HumblePie

Originally posted by: brikis98
hm, now that I have a 1080p LCD hooked up to my computer, this is quite tempting... how does the HD output of this thing compare to, say, the HD output from my cable box (provided by comcast)?

HD is digital and digital appearance isn't affect the way analog is. You either get the signal or you don't. It all looks the same. That's why I laugh when people sometimes say, HDMI is better than DVI or some other such nonsense. It's all 1's and 0's in the digital world and you either get the picture or you don't. Now, the quality of your screen displaying the digital signal DOES affect your viewing pleasure. But the source and mode of transmission doesn't.

Yep. The only advantage of HDMI over DVI is that HDMI will carry audio over the same cable. Depending on your setup, this may be a nice thing or a "don't care". Well... that is if you ignore the whole HDCP/DRM subject :thumbsdown:

 

[dakels]

Is this good to put into my normal PC (radeon X1950 pro video card) and use the PCI slot? I know nothing about HTPC stuff. I'd like to have my (comcast) cable being shown on my 2nd monitor while on my computer. I'll look into capture/mythtv software later. For now I would just like to watch my cable feed on my 2nd monitor. I didn't get an HD box from my cable company though. I guess I will need one.

Also can I bring this print out to the store and get it B&M same price?

 

[CosmosRewind]

doesnt the pci verson on the 1600 only let you use one tuner at a time...

The 1600 has two separate turners. I have this card and my Sage box can and has recorded one analog and one digital show at the same time. The digital side is only digital, it can't "fall back" and record an analog show.

VJC

 

[deadken]

Originally posted by: dakels
Is this good to put into my normal PC (radeon X1950 pro video card) and use the PCI slot?

.... I'll look into capture/mythtv software later....

I didn't get an HD box from my cable company though. I guess I will need one.

Also can I bring this print out to the store and get it B&M same price?

1) I think so.

2) I am pretty sure that this won't work with MythTV.

3) I'm not sure what you are thinking here.... This will accept your plain cable input and give you up to channel 125 on your PC (that's regular TV). You can also connect an Antenna and get OTA HDTV. No cable box needed as long as you can get good OTA reception in your area. Visit WWW.AntennaWeb.org and enter your ZIP Code to see what stations you should be able to get from your location.

4) This is valid in B&M stores, no need to print anything out. There aren't any available online at the moment. Just add it to your cart and then click on 'checkout' and then select local pick-up from the drop down menu.



Thanks for all of the repies. I think I will get one an 'play' with it while I am on Vacation next week.

 

[accguy9009]

if I go with this card what indoor antenna would you suggest for over the air HD?

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: typhoid

Originally posted by: HumblePie

Originally posted by: brikis98
hm, now that I have a 1080p LCD hooked up to my computer, this is quite tempting... how does the HD output of this thing compare to, say, the HD output from my cable box (provided by comcast)?

HD is digital and digital appearance isn't affect the way analog is. You either get the signal or you don't. It all looks the same. That's why I laugh when people sometimes say, HDMI is better than DVI or some other such nonsense. It's all 1's and 0's in the digital world and you either get the picture or you don't. Now, the quality of your screen displaying the digital signal DOES affect your viewing pleasure. But the source and mode of transmission doesn't.

Yep. The only advantage of HDMI over DVI is that HDMI will carry audio over the same cable. Depending on your setup, this may be a nice thing or a "don't care". Well... that is if you ignore the whole HDCP/DRM subject :thumbsdown:

perhaps i didn't phrase the question correctly as i'm not asking about dvi/hdmi or any connection related question at all. the issue is that my lcd tv doesn't have a tuner, so i need something else to take this signal of 1's and 0's and turn it into an image... the question is, how is the quality of this image compared to the comcast cable box? ie, if i attached the comcast cable box via DVI to my TV and I connected this tuner via DVI to my TV - will the quality be the same?

 

[dakels]

I got this last night at CC at 86th in Manhattan. It was listed as $100 but rang up as $60. Thanks OP! I also picked up a Linksys WRT54GS router ($54ish).
I saw what looked like an amazing deal. I didn't pick it up though. I am trying to remember the model, I think it was Free Agent 500gb external
For about $103-109.

Sorry, my memory is hazy. I am pretty sure it was the Free Agent model and I know it was 500gb and under $110. Great deal and I wanted to buy it really bad, I may go back tonight after work.


Back to the TV card: 125 channels... So all my movie channels that are 150-180, 300-340 I can't see/record on this card? Also all my HD channels for Comcast are in the 200's...

Not sure what this means. Seems a bit absurd. I guess this means without the cable box? If I use the cable box -> TV card I should be fine right? If not I'm not even going to open this card and return it.

 

[cboath]

Originally posted by: brikis98

Originally posted by: typhoid

Originally posted by: HumblePie

Originally posted by: brikis98
hm, now that I have a 1080p LCD hooked up to my computer, this is quite tempting... how does the HD output of this thing compare to, say, the HD output from my cable box (provided by comcast)?

HD is digital and digital appearance isn't affect the way analog is. You either get the signal or you don't. It all looks the same. That's why I laugh when people sometimes say, HDMI is better than DVI or some other such nonsense. It's all 1's and 0's in the digital world and you either get the picture or you don't. Now, the quality of your screen displaying the digital signal DOES affect your viewing pleasure. But the source and mode of transmission doesn't.

Yep. The only advantage of HDMI over DVI is that HDMI will carry audio over the same cable. Depending on your setup, this may be a nice thing or a "don't care". Well... that is if you ignore the whole HDCP/DRM subject :thumbsdown:

perhaps i didn't phrase the question correctly as i'm not asking about dvi/hdmi or any connection related question at all. the issue is that my lcd tv doesn't have a tuner, so i need something else to take this signal of 1's and 0's and turn it into an image... the question is, how is the quality of this image compared to the comcast cable box? ie, if i attached the comcast cable box via DVI to my TV and I connected this tuner via DVI to my TV - will the quality be the same?

Your answer is that it will vary by your location.

Yes a digital picture is 1's and 0's. But not all 1's and 0's are created equally. Cable companies and satellite companies do put a bit of compression on the signal. Depending on where you are and who your provider is will determine your answer. What I have heard on the avsforums is that generally people tend to get a better picture over the air. There are those who claim they get the same quality picture as well. The breakout is usually about 20% saying the picture is better over the air, 20% saying it's the same, and 60% saying they never tried over the air and they're just very happy with the quality they get from their provider.

 

[cboath]

Originally posted by: dakels
I got this last night at CC at 86th in Manhattan. Thanks OP! I also picked up a Linksys WRT54GS router ($54ish).
I saw what looked like an amazing deal. I didn't pick it up though. I am trying to remember the model, I think it was Free Agent 500gb external
For about $103-109.

Sorry, my memory is hazy. I am pretty sure it was the Free Agent model and I know it was 500gb and under $110. Great deal and I wanted to buy it really bad, I may go back tonight after work.


Back to the TV card: 125 channels... So all my movie channels that are 150-180, 300-340 I can't see/record on this card? Also all my HD channels for Comcast are in the 200's...

Not sure what this means. Seems a bit absurd. I guess this means without the cable box? If I use the cable box -> TV card I should be fine right? If not I'm not even going to open this card and return it.

What that means is if you plug the cable directly into the card, you only see 125 channels. If you route the signal from your cable box to the card, you can see all the channels you have. This bit usually involves having an IR blaster connect from your PC remote to your cable/sat box. The computer changes channels on the STB for you - that signal goes from the set to box to your computer and out to the TV/monitor. You can then record what you want.

 

[dakels]

Originally posted by: cboath

Originally posted by: dakels
I got this last night at CC at 86th in Manhattan. Thanks OP! I also picked up a Linksys WRT54GS router ($54ish).
I saw what looked like an amazing deal. I didn't pick it up though. I am trying to remember the model, I think it was Free Agent 500gb external
For about $103-109.

Sorry, my memory is hazy. I am pretty sure it was the Free Agent model and I know it was 500gb and under $110. Great deal and I wanted to buy it really bad, I may go back tonight after work.


Back to the TV card: 125 channels... So all my movie channels that are 150-180, 300-340 I can't see/record on this card? Also all my HD channels for Comcast are in the 200's...

Not sure what this means. Seems a bit absurd. I guess this means without the cable box? If I use the cable box -> TV card I should be fine right? If not I'm not even going to open this card and return it.

What that means is if you plug the cable directly into the card, you only see 125 channels. If you route the signal from your cable box to the card, you can see all the channels you have. This bit usually involves having an IR blaster connect from your PC remote to your cable/sat box. The computer changes channels on the STB for you - that signal goes from the set to box to your computer and out to the TV/monitor. You can then record what you want.

Thanks!

 

[accguy9009]

Picked it up today at CC B & M. As previously stated it was listed on the shelf at $ 99.99 but at the register it scanned $ 59.99. I am considering this over the HDTVa Amplified Directional Indoor HDTV Antenna for over the air HDTV.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16882145017

 

[Crucial]

Originally posted by: dakels
I got this last night at CC at 86th in Manhattan. It was listed as $100 but rang up as $60. Thanks OP! I also picked up a Linksys WRT54GS router ($54ish).
I saw what looked like an amazing deal. I didn't pick it up though. I am trying to remember the model, I think it was Free Agent 500gb external
For about $103-109.

Sorry, my memory is hazy. I am pretty sure it was the Free Agent model and I know it was 500gb and under $110. Great deal and I wanted to buy it really bad, I may go back tonight after work.


Back to the TV card: 125 channels... So all my movie channels that are 150-180, 300-340 I can't see/record on this card? Also all my HD channels for Comcast are in the 200's...

Not sure what this means. Seems a bit absurd. I guess this means without the cable box? If I use the cable box -> TV card I should be fine right? If not I'm not even going to open this card and return it.

From the CC website: Note: ATSC digital TV is NOT digital cable TV or digital satellite TV. The WinTV-HVR-1600 cannot receive digital cable TV or digital satellite TV.

The 125 channels are analog cable channels. the HD channels you get through your cable box are digital cable channels which this does not support.

The ATSC tuner in this card is used to receive over the air Digital channels. Some of these channels are HD some are not.

You can hook up the card to your cable box and tune the HD channels but it won't be in HD. You will be viewing them through the analog tuner which is only SD.

Confused yet?

 

[imported_typhoid]

Originally posted by: Crucial

From the CC website: Note: ATSC digital TV is NOT digital cable TV or digital satellite TV. The WinTV-HVR-1600 cannot receive digital cable TV or digital satellite TV.

The 125 channels are analog cable channels. the HD channels you get through your cable box are digital cable channels which this does not support.

The ATSC tuner in this card is used to receive over the air Digital channels. Some of these channels are HD some are not.

You can hook up the card to your cable box and tune the HD channels but it won't be in HD. You will be viewing them through the analog tuner which is only SD.

Confused yet?

To add even more confusion, *some* of the different models of 1600 *can* receive QAM, which is digital HD from a cable box. However, I'm fairly certain that this will only get you non-copy-protected HD cable channels. I don't have cable, but I would expect the premium HD cable channels like HBO, Cinemax, etc., to be copy protected.

I don't know what model number(s) are on sale at CC, but here are the QAM/non-QAM model numbers from the Hauppauge web site:

"Product codes 74021 and 74041 support QAM, while product codes 74031 and 74551 do not.. The product code can be found on the tuner label on WinTV-HVR-1600."

 

[TwiceOver]

Does anyone have that link that showed HD Broadcasts in your area? I've been trying to google for it with no luck so far.