Idea for streaming live TV over wireless LAN

[VirtualLarry]

Just wondering how feasible this would be. I've got FIOS, both TV and Internet, with an HD package. I pay $10/mo for the HD set-top box rental. I was thinking, instead of having to select either my TV HDMI input, or my HTPC HDMI input on the TV, what about sending the HDTV into the HTPC. This would obviously require some sort of CableCard tuner for FIOS. Does such a thing exist?

And secondarily, it would be nice to watch TV on other computers, like in the other room, over the LAN. Would I have to install Win7 Pro, and then use Remote Desktop to watch TV, or is Remote Desktop fast enough to watch TV over? Or should I use a different streaming solution? Ideally, the solution would be digital, and just send the (decrypted) QAM data over the LAN directly for viewing, rather than re-digitizing it and re-compressing it.

I have a 20Mhz wireless N 150 LAN, using two routers in WDS mode, all of my computers are wired into the two routers.

An interesting twist would be if I could stream live TV over the internet, for remote viewing when I'm at a friend's house. That might require re-compression/decimation.

 

[Miscthree]

Just wondering how feasible this would be. I've got FIOS, both TV and Internet, with an HD package. I pay $10/mo for the HD set-top box rental. I was thinking, instead of having to select either my TV HDMI input, or my HTPC HDMI input on the TV, what about sending the HDTV into the HTPC. This would obviously require some sort of CableCard tuner for FIOS. Does such a thing exist?

And secondarily, it would be nice to watch TV on other computers, like in the other room, over the LAN. Would I have to install Win7 Pro, and then use Remote Desktop to watch TV, or is Remote Desktop fast enough to watch TV over? Or should I use a different streaming solution? Ideally, the solution would be digital, and just send the (decrypted) QAM data over the LAN directly for viewing, rather than re-digitizing it and re-compressing it.

I have a 20Mhz wireless N 150 LAN, using two routers in WDS mode, all of my computers are wired into the two routers.

An interesting twist would be if I could stream live TV over the internet, for remote viewing when I'm at a friend's house. That might require re-compression/decimation.

Ceton infiniTV cable card does away with set top boxes, costs $400, and probably won't do live streaming. But you will have coaxial to htpc..

 

[bearxor]

I'd agree the best bet would be a tuner for your computer. Might be able to get away with the three-tuner HD HomeRun Prime for $250 (if it's on sale yet. Have no idea these days). With either the HDHR Prime or the Ceton card, I believe they both support tuner sharing over the network. So you could essentialy set your other computers up to play live TV from either and map your recorded TV folders to see all of your recordings everywhere if you're using Windows 7 MCE.

As for Internet streaming... Your best bet would probably be to hang on to the set-top box and buy yourself a sling player.

 

[the DRIZZLE]

HD Homerun Prime

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

It's feasible with either the Ceton or the HD Homerun Prime but possibly not over wireless. A better solution would be using a MoCA setup. You will get far more reliable network throughput and won't have to worry about the dropouts that are often a problem with wireless configurations.

The Ceton can be had for $299 now or even less on sale. The 3-tuner Primes haven't begun shippping yet but the 6-tuner Primes have. imo, for the extra 40 bucks, the Ceton card with 4 tuners is the better deal.

There is a difference between the two. The Ceton card has network tuning capabilities but the tuners are not pooled. You must assign one or more tuners that are dedicated to each HTPC. The HD HR Prime has a tuner pool that dynamically assigns tuners as needed. You can use a media extender with the Ceton so that's not an issue. It's also rumored that Ceton is working on a firmware update that allows for dynamically assigned tuners for those with multiple HTPCs.

I have a Ceton that I'm using with FIOS and I love it. I plan on getting another soon to use in a dedicated server to have a total of 8 tuners to serve all TVs in the house.

 

[bearxor]

I'll just throw out there that I stream 6Mbps HD stations off my cable on a HDHR over a 2.4ghz N connection just fine on my laptops.

It's a real bummer the 3-tuners haven't started to ship yet. Silicon Dust has really dropped the ball on this one, IMO, even with all of their claims of CableLabs holding things up.

IMO, the tuner pooling and "stand-alone" operation of the HDHR may be more valuable in this situation, if watching TV in multiple rooms is important. If the feature moves from "rumored" to confirmed by Ceton, then I might take the chance on the Ceton card since the price has dropped and they are actually available now.