Need advice for a new (simple) system

[htech]

For the last several years I've used an old Hauppauge WinTV-Radio card over WinXP and using just the WinTV software with it.

My new system is Vista Business, so I need a new tuner card and would like to "upgrade" to a hardware-encoder card so that I can pause live TV and occasionally do a recording. I'm talking just analog cable NTSC, no ATSC, although this QAM thing sounds like something fun to play with. I don't have a STB. HD isn't something I really care about.

SageTV might be overkill for this - maybe I can get away with just using WinTV with a new Hauppauge card again, but I'd like to leave myself with the option of using SageTV if not now, in the future.

So, I'm looking at the WinTV-hvr-1600 - seems to do everything I would need and more. However it is PCI and since I also have PCI-e in my new system, I'm wondering if I should get a more current card, like the hvr-1800.

But then I see that SageTV bundles their software with the hvr-1600. Maybe that is the way to go? If I do the bundle, would I get a current board revision or is it possible that I'll get some dusty three year-old board on SageTV's shelf? Why doesn't SageTV bundle some of the newer boards?

Then there is the matter of the remote. The hvr-1600 comes with Hauppauge's 45-button remote, the same that I have for my WinTV-radio card. The newer boards however come with either no remote or an MCE remote (USB). I'm concerned that the MCE remote won't work under my Vista Business because there is no Media Center installed. If that is true, and I get a newer board without a remote, how do I go about getting a remote that will operate SageTV and/or WinTV? The StreamZap remote is there but it seems like it hasn't changed in years and I'm concerned it won't work in Vista??

Thanks for any advice!

Htech