Thinking about SageTV

[litlbob]

Hello All.

Here's my dillema and let me apologize first for writing this, I have read a bit in the forums and I am thinking about moving to SAGETV but I am not sure if I should make the jump but I like to get as much information as possible. Here's some background:

After shelling out near $17 a month for a charter DVR I finally got fed up and bought me a Hauppauge PVR 500 to turn my PC into a PVR. I started with MythTV since it was free and began trying the long process to get that to work which was abyssmal. I lacked the patience and knowledge to finish the project and never got it to work. I also decided I did not want a dedicated linux box with little functionality for the rest of my house just to watch TV when I could find a windows based software to record and watch TV and still do all the windows things we love and enjoy. Then came the dilemma: SageTV, BeyondTV, or some other software. Since I do not want to buy all the products and I must choose one, I came here seeking advice. I have tried the beyond TV trial but have yet to try Sage since I will be out of town for a week, but here's what I am looking for and I am hoping that there will be some experienced users to advise me as to which product seems best for my needs:

1. Easy to use interface my wife can handle.
2. The ability to set the machine to turn off when there is no recordings for a few hours then restart before the next recording (Myth TV does this, not sure if any others do)
3. Compression of recorded files in order to conserve space (Beyond TV supports DIVX and WMV compression after a file has been recorded. I saw a program in the forums ffdshow that can compress, but will it still be recognized in SageTV?)
4. Remote recording setup through an internet connection so I will be able to schedule shows from work or anywhere.
5. The abitity to access livetv or music from the remote through 1 button press of a remote without having to open SageTV with a keyboard or mouse.
6. I want to run at least two PVR 500's (four tuners over all) so that I am able to record at least 3 programs and still watch live tv and I was not sure if SageTV supported this or how many total it supports.
7. Stream TV to multiple places in the house through SageTV wirelessly and at the same time.
8. Create DVD's of my favorite shows with chapters for each show.
9. Easy (or automatic) commercial removal from recorded shows.

These are the main things I am looking for right now. From what I saw the program looks impressive and I am hoping to try it out soon.

I was also wondering what peoples experience with Placeshifter and the wireless media extender have been (quality, range, ease of use, lag [if any], overall thoughts). Thanks in advance for responses!

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by litlbob

1. Easy to use interface my wife can handle.

Lots of wives can handle the default SageTV interface w/o a problem. If you don't like the default interface, there are custom ones you could try. A lot of people like the SageMC interface as an alternative.

2. The ability to set the machine to turn off when there is no recordings for a few hours then restart before the next recording (Myth TV does this, not sure if any others do)

SageTV can work with Windows' power management to go into standby & wake itself in time to make scheduled recordings.

3. Compression of recorded files in order to conserve space (Beyond TV supports DIVX and WMV compression after a file has been recorded. I saw a program in the forums ffdshow that can compress, but will it still be recognized in SageTV?)

There are ways to compress the recordings.

4. Remote recording setup through an internet connection so I will be able to schedule shows from work or anywhere.

There is a web server customization you can use via a browser to control your recordings/schedule/etc., or the SageTV Placeshifter can be used from a remote PC w/the full SageTV UI.

5. The abitity to access livetv or music from the remote through 1 button press of a remote without having to open SageTV with a keyboard or mouse.

You can use a remote to control SageTV, but you may or may not be able to wake the system from stnadby via remote, depending on the IR receiver. I think the USB-UIRT can be configured to wake the PC somehow.

6. I want to run at least two PVR 500's (four tuners over all) so that I am able to record at least 3 programs and still watch live tv and I was not sure if SageTV supported this or how many total it supports.

That would work; some people use more tuners. The number of tuners is just limited by your system's capabilities.

7. Stream TV to multiple places in the house through SageTV wirelessly and at the same time.

You can use the SageTV Client or MVP media extender to use SagetV in other locations on your LAN. They can all be watching any of the available recordings.

8. Create DVD's of my favorite shows with chapters for each show.

It is not built in, but there is a customization that is available which might suit your needs.

9. Easy (or automatic) commercial removal from recorded shows.

Available via another customization.

- Andy