Tuner recommendations - HDTV

[pgman]

I'll try this again. Since no one responded to my last thread, maybe I could get some feedback on a suggestions for HDTV tuners? I was looking at these AVermedia A180 cards that Sage apparently endorses. I also would like to know if there is a consensus in the forums abuot which graphics adaptor is the best choice for an HTPC.

I currently have an ATI X600 PRO (PCI-E with 256MB RAM) and I am not real happy with it overall. It is connected to my television as the only monitor, through the television's PC input (RGBHV). I reported earlier that I had s Samsung HL-S5886 television. It turns out they gave me the wrong manual - it is a 5887 (I bought the floor model). I am going to check for newer video drivers before I give up on the ATI, but I think I might switch to nVidia.

[corykim]

Originally Posted by pgman

I'll try this again. Since no one responded to my last thread, maybe I could get some feedback on a suggestions for HDTV tuners? I was looking at these AVermedia A180 cards that Sage apparently endorses. I also would like to know if there is a consensus in the forums abuot which graphics adaptor is the best choice for an HTPC.

I currently have an ATI X600 PRO (PCI-E with 256MB RAM) and I am not real happy with it overall. It is connected to my television as the only monitor, through the television's PC input (RGBHV). I reported earlier that I had s Samsung HL-S5886 television. It turns out they gave me the wrong manual - it is a 5887 (I bought the floor model). I am going to check for newer video drivers before I give up on the ATI, but I think I might switch to nVidia.

I just installed two ATI TV Wonder 650, and I'm /mostly/ satisfied. I am using two RCA ampified antennas installed in my upstairs closet, joined to a single feed, then split to every room in my house. I get all the local stations, with minimal stutter and no pixel dropouts.

The problems that I have are:
1. The media center program that ATI installs is buggy as hell, and must be uninstalled.
2. With two tuners, watching Live TV will have lots of stutters. If you rewind just a touch, then playback will be smooth. This is not a problem with recorded videos, and is also not a problem with a single tuner.

All told, if I had it to do over again, I would do it exactly the same way.

[wheelrandolph]

Hi,
I have had 2 A-180's for about a year and they are great. I am waiting for a pci-e dual tuner to come out to add more tuners. The V-box 164e dual tuner is due out any day now ????? Been waiting 6 months and they keep delaying it.
I use an Nvidia 6600GT pci-e graphics card and it is great also.

Randy

[pjaffray]

HDTV Tuner Cards:
I have a Avermedia A180 and a Vbox DTA-150. It took a while to get them both to work but with current drivers and the proper setup procedure within Sage, I now have no problems. I haven't really tried but I can't tell a difference between shows recorded via either tuner. If I was to do it over I would likely pick two of the same card rather than two different cards. I would be comfortable recommending either of these cards to anyone.

BTW: I also have a Hauppauge PVR-500 for analog recording. I have had all four tuners recording at once with no problems.

Video card:
I currently have a PNY Nvidia 6600GT based card with dual DVI outs plus a dongle for Component, Composite or S-Video. I am using a DVI to HDMI cable for my Sharp LC-46D62U LCD TV. I also have the Nvidia Purevideo decoders.

With an AGP based motherboard, the number of options for video cards is shrinking. If I was to do it over now, with the same AGP constraint, I would likely get the Leadtek A7600GT Nvidia based card as it has more hardware support for HD content and is still an AGP card. I may actually do this swap sometime soon to try and get the most life out of my current setup with out a complete system replacement.

pdj

[blade]

If QAM support is something you might be interested in at some point you might want to look at the AutumnWave/OnAir.

I think the minimum card many people will recommend is a 7600gt because of the HD support.

[Steve52]

If you live a long way from the TV broadcast towers, and weak signals are a problem for you then go with a Vbox DTA-150. Otherwise the Avermedia A180 or the DTA-150 should be fine.

[corykim]

If you're in the market for a graphics card also, you should limit your choices to those listed on this page:

http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_pvhd_build.html

These cards all support HDCP. Be careful, because some of these cards have part numbers that are very similar to their non-HDCP capable siblings.

[pgman]

Thanks, everyone for the input. I am thinking I am going to have to just put a better video board in this machine because this ATI X600 is just not cutting it.

I got an AverMedia A180 and installed it on Friday night (late). After a little fooling around (I had the wrong driver initially) I got it all loaded and it seemed to work fine with Sage. I have found, however, that there is one channel which will not play smoothly. It starts and stops constantly and the signal strength shows 100% so I am not sure what that's about. Other channels looked fantastic, but were not smooth on fast action (like football). I had to turn VMR9 rendering off to fix this (I have never been able to use VMR9 very sucessfully with this system. Again, I am thinking that the right video board will make all the difference. The quest continues...

[garyellis]

I really want a dual hd tuner. So, the 164e looked good until I saw the specs and noticed that it does not support QAM. When it does, then this could be a good possibility. And by the way, neither does the A180.

So, I'll have to keep waiting.

Gary Ellis

[pgman]

Well, I found a pretty good deal (I guess) on NewEgg for the MSI 7600GT board that they recommended on that link ($143.00 US after shipping and the rebate). Thanks again, corykim (and all others who offered their opinions). Now, I just have to wait 'til it gets here. I do hope this makes the difference. I know it probably will. I have been very happy with Sage and my "budget" HTPC for almost a year now. The ATI card did reasonably well with SD and my NTSC Happague PVR-500MCE. I knew the price of going HD would be more than just the television, but I wasn't counting on a new GFX board when I decided to go HD. I guess you live and learn. Since this is my first HTPC, I guess I am not doing that bad.

[corykim]

You're going to love that card. Download the beta driver which is also linked from that site, get the PureVideo 30-day demo. I'm running a 7600GT w/ a Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz, connected to a 42" 1080p Westinghouse monitor. I had a bunch of friends over this past weekend, and I played some DVD's upscaled to 1080p (The Incredibles, Star Wars Episode III) and jaws dropped.

[psicat]

You may want to consider the HDHomeRun which supports QAM. The first beta for Sage support is coming soon (this Friday).

http://www.silicondust.com/
http://www.silicondust.com/forum/
http://www.silicondust.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2001

[pgman]

QAM would be necessary for a lot of folks, I am sure, but I get all my TV OTA so it really doesn't matter so much to me. I am just hoping that I can add a second ATSC tuner when SD broadcasting goes away (in a couple more years). If not, I guess I will have to pony up again for an ATSC dual tuner (which should be readily available - and tested - by then). Right now, I only get about 7 HD channels OTA, and some of these are the same.