Newbie guidance, Is this possible?

[PshThLimit]

I’m fairly new to sage TV and need to know if what I plan is possible. If yes, could some one point me to the How to sections on implementing my plan?

Currently I am using Sage TV with a media extender and all is well. I have an H.Pauge WinTV USB2 for recording.

What I would like to do is add a Samsung SIR-T451 (OTA HDTV) to the s-video input on my WinTV and record in 480i. I know it’s not true HD but the issue for me is better reception than my analog stations, not to mention being able to use the extender and not build true HD PVR’s. However my plan brings me to several questions before I start.

1. Will I be able to create a channel guide for my HD channels even though I don’t have a True HD Tv-Tuner on the computer?
   
   
2. Could I do this setup with two tuners & two boxes? Then assign one for record only and the other for watching live TV?
   
   
3. What kind of IR transmitter hardware / software combination would work best in this kind of setup? Will Sage TV’s internal IR handling be enough or would I also need girder?

That’s about all I can think of now. Any help and links to the appropriate discussion or documentation would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[GKusnick]

Will I be able to create a channel guide for my HD channels even though I don’t have a True HD Tv-Tuner on the computer?

Sure. Lots of people use external tuners of one sort or another. You just have to tell Sage which channel lineup to use with that video source.

Could I do this setup with two tuners & two boxes?

Absolutely.

Then assign one for record only and the other for watching live TV?

This step isn't necessary. There are no permanent tuner assignments; Sage assigns tuners dynamically to recording tasks as needed. If you never schedule more than one recording at a time, you'll always have one tuner free for live TV.

What kind of IR transmitter hardware / software combination would work best in this kind of setup? Will Sage TV’s internal IR handling be enough or would I also need girder?

I believe you should be able to do it all within Sage using a USB-UIRT or equivalent IR blaster, but I'm not an expert in this area so I'll let someone else give the definitive answer.