tv tuner confusion

[kennedyb]

I am considering a tv tuner card. The specs are confusing to me. I would like to view tv (I have a cable line near the pc, but no cable box near), and would like to record to dvd and play on a the dvd player that is with the tv (it plays dvd-r). I also would like to pause live tv etc.

The fm tuner part of a card is nice as well.

Any suggestions?

I am looking at the sub $100 if possible.

my system is:

1 gb ram
3200 xp
200 gb sata hdd
need new video card , currently geforce 2? 32 mb ram

[The Lodge]

I have a Compro tv\fm tuner card that I got from newegg and haven't had any problems with it. I'll dig up the box later and find out what exact model it is. It cost me around $50-55.

[kennedyb]

will it allow dvd burning to dvd-r?

I looked at one at newegg that only did dvd+r. Seems like it should allow for both.

Here is the link to it:

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=15-100-109&depa=0

[The Lodge]

My compro does. It seems it would depend on your dvd burner and not the card. For that price you might as well get one with fm. That one seems kinda shady as it doesn’t list anything about the tv tuner or video\audio decoder it uses.

[kennedyb]

if you get a chance to send a link to the compro that would be great. Do you recommend it for the applications I am looking for?

It will run the cable tv with just coax from the wall right?

Are you able to pause tv live tivo, or do you have to record to the hdd then rewind?

thanks

[The Lodge]

Yeah, I’ll send ya a link. Any channels you can get without a cable box you can get straight from the cable, other than digital and premium channels. When you pause live tv it automatically starts recording to your hdd. It has to put the information that kept playing while you paused it somewhere. I’ve never actually put anything that I recorded on a disc to watch on my dvd player. I think you might have to encode it so it will be playable on a dvd player. Don’t quote me on that, I’m not 100% positive. Like I’ve said, I’ve never put it on disc. Other than that, I know it’ll do everything else you want.

[mobo57]

I can't tell from the specs, but it does not say anything about the encoding/decoding. I personally would not go with it if it does not have hardware decoding. 2 reasons, first, software decoding does need a decent system to record at "dvd" quality to avoid dropped frames, etc. Second, you'll get a much better picture from hardware decoding on programs you record. I went from the Pinnacle Systems PCTV Pro, with software decoding to the VideoH Media Center with hardware decoding. Both installed on a decent system, 3200 XP cpu, 1 gig memory, recording to my Raptors in RAID 0 config, etc. Recording and burning with the PCTV used most of what my system could give because the system had to do the decoding. With the VIdeoH, the cards hardware does all the work, so my system doesn't even blink.
With out a doubt, the recordings I make with the VideoH are a quantum leap in quality over the PCTV. No matter which codecs or programs I used, the PCTV recordings always had some noise, and muddy picture quality when recorded to dvd and played on a regular tv. The Videoh dvd's are clean and crisp, truly dvd quality.
Finally, burning with the VideoH is much faster. A 1 hour program burned to dvd will take about 30 to 40 minutes with the PCTV, and only 10 to 15 minutes with the VideoH.
My PCTV card and software is now installed in my son's system. About all it's good for is watching tv.

[The Lodge]

Hey mobo, what kind of formats does that card record in?

[mobo57]

Check it out here:
http://www.adaptec.com/worldwide/product/proddetail.html?sess=no&language=English+US&cat=%2FProducts%2FAVC-2410&prodkey=AVC-2410

[The Lodge]

A little pricey, but if that’s what you want it for than you have to spend the money. I bought mine to just watch tv on the puter. It’s kind of a convenience thing, the fm was just an added bonus. I couldn't even tell ya if mine has hardware video encoding or not, doubt it though.

[kennedyb]

What recording format is closest to what a dvd is played at?

I am surmizing that recording onto a dvd to playback on the tv will not be that close to dvd or tv quality???

[mobo57]

Depends on what compression you choose and upon the quality of your broadcast signal. I've recorded movies with mpeg2 and burnt to dvd's that look great. You can't tell it was recorded from cable and burnt to a dvd. Most of my recordings using the Videoh when played on a tv are fantastic with no loss of quality what so ever.
Thats why I recommend paying the extra bit o' cash for the hardware. You will be disappointed with the quality of programs recorded using software decoding, the difference is night and day.
If you just want to watch tv on your puter, that''s a different matter. Then you won't need the hardware decoding.
Lodge, I don't know what capture program you have, but try Virtualdub (free at sourceforge). Has great codecs and did improve, somewhat, the quality of my captures when I was using the PCTV over the software that came with it.

[kennedyb]

how do I recognize the videoH specifications. I can't find the specs, or are all hardware based decoders that way?

[mobo57]

Yea, they are all that way. Bottom line is you can't go wrong with either the Adaptec or Happaug 250-350 series. As I posted earlier, hardware decoding by the card is without a doubt the best way to go. Even with the best Intel system, having hardware decoding takes a HUGH load off your system and gives you the best quality of recording you can get. I've tried all of the different programs and codecs for software decoding, none can compete with hardware decoding IMO.
Click below and select the specifications sheet. It'll give you the specs in pdf format.
http://www.adaptec.com/worldwide/product/proddetail.html?sess=no&language=English+US&prodkey=AVC-2410&cat=%2fTechnology%2fVideo%2fVideo+Capture+and+Crea tion

[kennedyb]

thanks for your help mobo57. I looked at the specs in pdf, just could not tell about the video h.

Is it worth the extra $$ for mpeg 4?

[The Lodge]

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-160-017&depa=0 Here is the card I have kennedyb.

[kennedyb]

I was just looking at this one. I am assuming it to be software decoded? Hard to find.

Thanks for checking it out for me.

[The Lodge]

It lists a video\audio encoder so maybe it does. I can tell you that whenever I’ve recorded stuff from tv it looks just like it usually does on the computer.

Edit: I think mobo57 has a little more experience with these cards than me. Maybe he can shed some light on it.

[kennedyb]

does it eat up your processor power?

Are you able to burn a dvd and play it on your tv without loss of quality, as mobo57 was able to?

[herosrest]

The box l am posting from is fitted with VisionPlus VisionDTV and used in UK, it works rather well. The interface is very clunky, the signal must be boosted to recieve all tv channels - radio is excellent.
Recording to hd is a breeze. No burner incorporated.

This box is Tyan 2462 dual amd mp 1200+.
When the TV app is running l use the 3 finger salute to set affinity to a single cpu.
Utilization runs at an average 25%.

Having tried many tuners and tv apps, this one is up there.

With little effort or cost U can pick tv cards off Ebay at will.

[The Lodge]

40-50% cpu usage when recording. I have ten tabs open in my browser, and a few other programs running. It peaked up to 100% twice while I was watching the cpu usage. So yeah, I guess this is software video encoding. Never burned anything to watch on my dvd player so couldn't tell ya about the quality.

[mobo57]

IMO, if today, the PCTV was free and the VideoH cost twice what it is selling for, I'd pay the money. Its that big of a difference. Video capture is not perfected but, hardware decoding is a quantum leap IMO above ANY decoder that is software based.
My VideoH beats any thing I ever recorded on VHS, even the best quality with the best tape. PCTV was equal to the low quality, "super extended" play, 6 hours of recording per tape. VideoH = dvd quality.

If you want decent or above quality recordings to watch on a tv, don't bother with anything but a capture device with hardware decoding. And don't trust the quality of any you see just on a puter moniter. You got to capture, burn then play on a tv set to really tell. All of them look pretty crappy on your regular pc screen compared to a tv. This is due to dpi, line scan, etc. All saved for another post/topic.

In conclusion my friends, romans and country men, go VideoH!

I must go now and morn for my Chargers.

[The Lodge]

Originally posted by mobo57
All of them look pretty crappy on your regular pc screen compared to a tv. This is due to dpi, line scan, etc. All saved for another post/topic. True that.

Kennedyb, from what you said you want to do. You might as well throw $20 bucks in and get what mobo has. My compro won't cut it for what you want it to do.

[ricomania]

Have you considered an external device such as a usb 2.0 tv/fm tuner?

Looking into getting me one of them. Haven't seen enough to know enough about what to get yet.

Would any of you guys recomend one of these verses a pci device? I'm getting mine mainly for laptop so I have to get usb.

Just wondering how do they compare? Does usb automatically mean hardware encoding?

Rico

[kennedyb]

I agree with putting out the extra few bucks, I do however like the fm tuner function, the card mobo57 has does not include it from what I can see.

There is the option too of an all in wonder. I do need a decent video card too, may do all I need. I am also assuming that this is a hadware decoder/encoder???

[mobo57]

Review and basics on 2 usb setups:
http://www.tv-cards.com/usb.php

[kennedyb]

I must go now and morn for my Chargers.

Could be worse mobo57, I am a Raider fan!!!

Hoping to get a decent pci version but like the fm tuner too. Is it worth the extra dough to get mpeg 4 decoding?

[mobo57]

Mpeg 4 is handy though not absoulutly needed. I recommend staying away from an integrated tv/fm card if you want the best results. Seems the better capture cards do not have integrated fm. Just my opinion. That said, I've heard great reviews about Hauppauge cards, 250 and above.
Here is another good place to look for reviews by users:
http://www.videohelp.com/