Looking for a TV Tuner

[JMoore]

I am not a major TV watcher so I am not looking for something to pricey, but I would like to be able to record some TV shows. I am sort of clueless when it comes to all this media stuff, so I really need some help.

I have a 30" HD Widescreen that I am going to be using with it. It only has Composite,SVideo, and AV inputs (no DVI). I also have a 17" LCD that supports either VGA or DVI. I'd like to be able to run DVI on my LCD monitor. I also have a DVD burner.

1.) I only really want to record a few shows, then send them to my TV to play them or burn them on DVD preferably?

2.) Do I need to get Windows Media Center Edition?

3.) I'd like DVI input on the G Card for my monitor (preferably)

4.) Would it be easier to just buy a box sepretly somewhere?

Thx for all the help in advance.

Edit I forgot my MB is AGP

 

[ClydeFrog51]

You could buy an ATI All-In wonder card, which has a built in TV tuner, and comes with all the software to watch and record TV on your PC, you can get them in a variety of ways like the 9600 All in wonder, the x800XT all in wonder or the All in wonder 2006 edition card which comes with abit more software which is based off the 9600 gpu you can get the 2006 edition for 200 and other editions for higher or lower prices

 

[cw42]

leadtek winfast 2000

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

If you search for tv tuner you'll get tons of results.

 

[JMoore]

I just don't know what I am looking for. I searched the forums some and I still don't really get what I need. Like what is Vivo, and that stuff?

 

[ixelion]

Dont be tempted by AiW cards, the software is poor and has no hardware encoding. The Saphire Theatrix 550 Pro is excellent, any card that has the Theatre 550 Pro is good.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

First result for "what is vivo"

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=31&threadid=1631739&enterthread=y

 

[Jeff7]

I don't know how it'll look on a widescreen, but Hauppauge's WinTV PVR-350 has composite video output. It can only output TV and MPEG2 files (with MPEG audio only, no AC3 support, as yet). It has stereo outputs for sound. I think it only supports a 4:3 ratio right now though.

 

[Trevante]

I have a 30" HD Widescreen that I am going to be using with it. It only has Composite,SVideo, and AV inputs (no DVI)

Did you mean to say component instead of composite? If you don't have any component inputs on your TV then you don't have a HDTV. Anyways, if your TV does indeed have component inputs (which it should), then you should be able to get some kind of VGA/DVI to component adaptor and display a hi-def picture on your TV. I'm betting your TV has a native resolution of 1080i, in which case it would be best for you to set your resolution to 1920x1080. If you want to output picture to your TV and your LCD monitor, 1280x720 (720p) will probably be better, as most LCD's don't support 1080i. I do hope your TV supports 720p though, a HDTV that doesn't support 720p isn't very useful IMO. It's like buying a car that can only turn right.

1. I know it's possible to record with most TV tuners, but I don't know of any other program apart from Windows XP MCE that can record it to DVD. That doesn't mean there aren't any though.

2. No, chances are your TV tuner will come with some software, but even still, there are free media center programs available. Media Portal and GB-PVR are a few.

3. Your TV tuner and your video card should be looked at separately. If you get a video card with VGA, DVI, and S-video/composite output. then you can hook your LCD up to the DVI and get a VGA to component converter and hook your TV up to that. Or alternatively, you could use the s-video/composite connection, which will be cheaper (although the quality won't be as good).

4. Hmm I'm not sure what you mean here, but in the end, it's better to have a video card separate from your TV tuner. Don't bother with an ATI AIW, get a good video card, a Hauppauge PVR-150MCE, and if you want a remote, get a Microsoft MCE remote

 

[bitstorm]

Originally posted by: cw42
leadtek winfast 2000

I have this video cap card and I think it is definitely good for the price. Not the best quality picture you can get out there but it looks fine to me and more importantly, it was cheap.

 

[mike3uz]

Maybe the wintv 350 is good if you can afford it. It has hardware encoding so no overtaxing the cpu.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: bitstorm

Originally posted by: cw42
leadtek winfast 2000

I have this video cap card and I think it is definitely good for the price. Not the best quality picture you can get out there but it looks fine to me and more importantly, it was cheap.

I had this and it's good for analog TV. If you can afford it, digital is a lot better, especially HDTV if you get that where you are. If you really want to research this go to the AVS Forums.