SageTV and Hauppaugue neophyte setup questions...

[EricBlair]

Hi,

I will be setting up a PVR which I want to network and I have some beginner questions. I'm a total novice at this so please forgive my ignorance.

My OS is XP Pro.

The most important item for me is to be able to watch TV and record a different channel at the same time. I have Comcast non-digital cable(channels only go up to 70--no premium channels)
1: Which hauppaugue card goes best with this, and do I need more than one to achieve this?

The tuner cards I've seen only have inputs, no outs.
2: Do I need to get other hardware beyond the tuner card that will output to the TV?

I just have a regular CRT TV and the PVR PC I will use does not have a monitor.
3: Can I still use the TV as the monitor to control the Tuner card/SageTV settings?

The coax IN from the wall where my TV is does not have Internet on it, that's somewhere else in the house.
4: Is it enough to have a wireless connection so SageTV can pick up the online menus?

I would like to stream video and pictures and audio to other computers.
5: Will SageTV allow me to do this in my scenario?

Again, as you can see, I'm a neophyte at this, so please bear with me

And thanks for your help!!

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by EricBlair

Hi,

I will be setting up a PVR which I want to network and I have some beginner questions. I'm a total novice at this so please forgive my ignorance.

My OS is XP Pro.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

The most important item for me is to be able to watch TV and record a different channel at the same time. I have Comcast non-digital cable(channels only go up to 70--no premium channels)
1: Which hauppaugue card goes best with this, and do I need more than one to achieve this?

You could start with a PVR500, a dual tuner card. You could watch one channel while recording another.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

The tuner cards I've seen only have inputs, no outs.
2: Do I need to get other hardware beyond the tuner card that will output to the TV?

You will connect your PC's video card to your TV either thru composite, s-video, vga, dvi, component or HDMI. Depending on your cards output method and your tv's input method.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

I just have a regular CRT TV and the PVR PC I will use does not have a monitor.
3: Can I still use the TV as the monitor to control the Tuner card/SageTV settings?

Yes-that is exactly what you would do.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

The coax IN from the wall where my TV is does not have Internet on it, that's somewhere else in the house.
4: Is it enough to have a wireless connection so SageTV can pick up the online menus?

If that's the PC you'll be recording and watching on then a wireless connection will suffice for EPG data downloads.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

I would like to stream video and pictures and audio to other computers.
5: Will SageTV allow me to do this in my scenario?

You can. But you will be better off if you use wired network connections rather than wireless. Especially if you have any plans on capturing any type of HD. If not you should be OK for the most part.

Originally Posted by EricBlair

Again, as you can see, I'm a neophyte at this, so please bear with me

And thanks for your help!!

[EricBlair]

Thanks for your response!

Obviously my TV does not display VGA signals. So do I need some kind of VGA to NTSC (or whatever the signal is) converter so I can watch the recording properly?

Will this conversion reduce viewing quality?

My motherboard has built in video, it is an intel DG965OT Media Ready board with a quad core. However is it best to still get a dedicated Video card for this? What is recommended?

Thanks again!

[Slipshod]

Originally Posted by EricBlair

Thanks for your response!

Obviously my TV does not display VGA signals. So do I need some kind of VGA to NTSC (or whatever the signal is) converter so I can watch the recording properly?

Will this conversion reduce viewing quality?

My motherboard has built in video, it is an intel DG965OT Media Ready board with a quad core. However is it best to still get a dedicated Video card for this? What is recommended?

Thanks again!

Avoid converting from VGA, it usually requires an expensive adapter and you're better off just getting another video card which has the right kind of outputs.

Check the inputs on your TV and find a card to match. I'd recommend getting one with an HDMI output in addition to what your TV needs, even if you don't have HDMI on your current TV, for future use.

ATI has a lot of cheap cards that are pretty good for TV. 3450 is the low-end series, and can be had for around $50. As you increase the number, it gets better for games. The low-end is fine for a TV-only card, just find one with the right combination of outputs.

[EricBlair]

Awesome! You rock and so does this forum!