Problem with usb tv tuner

[kenknight]

Hi All,

I've got a ADS Technologies MiniTV USB TV Tuner.

When using the bundled software ADS Tech Media TV ver 3. Picture quality is pretty darn good. Changing channels is instantaneous. However, with SageTV picture quality is terrible on most channels. I'm sure some of this has to do with the cable ends on my RG6 which I need to redo, however, thats another topic. The same channel from one program to the other looks very different.

Changing channels in SageTV goes like this;

Click button -> stutter -> freeze -> stutter -> freeze -> stutter ->tune to channel.

Like many others, I'm seeing the stop/stutter in between programming changes.

Another oddity and this may be the tuner and not sage, but every few seconds I see a roll from top to bottom that looks like somebody's dragging a then round glass cylinder from top to bottom.

I would stick with the ADS Tech TV 3 but it has the following problems;

1) lip sync drift after a few minutes (which basically renders the program to crap).
2) EPG is from titan and I don't like it since its not properly integrated for use with a remote control.

And lastly I've already purchased SageTV and really like the interface.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Cheers!
Ken

[Opus4]

That tuner isn't on the list of supported tuners.

Is it a hardware encoder or software encoder?

SageTV will always have a delay between channel changes because it is recording the show before playback. Perhaps the other software is using some sort of live pass-through playback w/o going through the recording process.

- Andy

[kenknight]

Hi,

Thanks for responding.

I don't mind a slight delay, however, let's say a weatherman was speaking and I changed channels, I'd hear something like, "it'll be raining..". . ."it'll be raining...". . . "it'll be raining..." and then a change to the correct channel.

Yes, I'd be very doubtful that it is hardware based encoding.

And as of today, if I change a change the channel, it is just bombing. TV stops functioning almost like its losing its connection to the drivers.

Thanks,
ken

PS. I'm interested in recommendations for a good USB based tuner. It must be usb though as I'm sick of loud media center PC's sounding like jets taking off in my living room. So I've gone with a tiny quite pc (P42.8ghz)

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by kenknight

I'm interested in recommendations for a good USB based tuner.

I use a couple Hauppauge PVR-USB2 tuners. I don't know much about other USB tuners, since I haven't had the need to add another one in a long time.

- Andy