[icebrrg3rd]

Ok, here's what I'm looking for. I currently have Dish network, but I am looking to dump it. I want to make a computer (or something else) that can record air TV, as there are shows both me & my wife want to see but can't always watch at the time they are on. I also have just started NetFlix, using my wii but want to also watch other internet based programs too on the TV in the living room, not at a computer monitor or laptop. Does anyone do this? If so, what are you using? I know TiVo was a DVR system, I want something more stand-alone, away from a subscription type service. Also, is there a TV guide online, I know when shows are on, but sometimes it's hard to find the descriptions of the episode that will be airing or if they are new.

Thanks, Andrew

 

[redfury]

Well, I have a hybrid system and I don't record anything, but my neighbors use a computer to watch TV on, but I'm not sure what they do for over the air broadcasts.

I have a subscription to Hulu Plus and Netflix and for the 20 bucks a month I pay to have both of them, plus over the air programming which I rarely watch, I get everything I need. Plus, with the Netflix and Hulu accounts, I can watch my shows on my laptop or computers if the main TV is being used.

Currently I watch most stuff through my TV which is a smart TV...or I use my Xbox 360. The Wii is junk for TV as it's only running standard def video quality. A good DVD player will have all the online services built into it, and that's what I would suggest if you don't plan to build a computer to run your TV programming.

However, it's not that difficult to build a computer to manage all of your TV needs..it's mostly a matter of setting it up properly...the hardware side is easy. A computer with HDMI out and a wireless keyboard and mouse and a copy of your favorite operating system. Then it's just a matter of configuring how to DVR programming.

 

[JaxSPL]

For over the air stuff, I just wired an antenna (homemade) to the TV and did a channel scan. Got 25 channels that way.

For the computer side, even though I don't record anything, I have most TV channels we watch bookmarked. My computer has a HDMI output as well as DVI. I can use my TV (42" Sony 1080p) as a secondary monitor and still use my 20" monitor.

Then for the shows that I can never remember what time they come on, I use utorrent and eztv (website). I download the shows we like to watch, usually the same night they are aired (sometimes a couple hours before they are aired in my city). This way we can watch the shows at anytime we want. I download the shows to one of my large drives (2TB), in separate folders. The folder layout is something like this:

Name of TV show -
Season1
Season2
And so on.

There are better ways of doing this, but I've gotten used to doing things this way so it's easy for me. We do have cable TV, but, I keep getting the downloaded shows and keep the antenna wired up, just in case something goes wrong. It works well.

There are things like Roku, beebox, google tv, and so on that will give you a lot of options. I was looking into them, but haven't been financially able to afford one, yet (playing catch u on bills after moving to new house).

Hope that helps out a little bit.

 

[kornphlake]

titantv.com is a good site for guide information.

If you want to record OTA broadcasts you'll need a tuner. Hauppage makes a couple, the 2250 (PCI) or the 950Q (USB) are often recommended, or you can look into the Silicone Dust HDHomerun, which is an external device that connects to your network and can be accessed by any PC in your house. Connecting the TV to the computer should be easy.

Once you've got the hardware picked out you'll need some software to record the video, windows media center (included in most of the recent versions of windows) has its own guide feature integrated in the interface which makes finding and recording shows easy. If you're a linux guy, or want to become one, MythTV is something to investigate.

 

[akmo23]

You need a digital antenna, a digital converter and a TV card. It is hard to find a DTV tuner card they stopped making them prior to broadcasting local HD ( Air TV) for piracy reasons. The ATI 550 PCI-e is a good card that works well in VLC.

 

[icebrrg3rd]

Thanks for the reply, but this post is 1 1/2 years old. :lol:

Just as an update, I did ditch Dish, and went with a Magnavox DVR, 500 GB hard drive, with a DVD player/burner. $250, about 3 months of Dish service. It's not as nice as Dish or TIVO for recording programs, you have to program it like an old-school VCR. So instead of programming it to find all "Bones", or just new (not re-run) shows, you have to set it for 6:58 pm to 9:02 pm, channel 6, Tuesdays. If a sporting event pushes the shows by 15 minutes, guess what, you miss the ending. And you get re-runs mixed in with new episodes. Oh well. On the plus side, it buffers whatever you're watching, so you can pause live TV or rewind, and I have it set for the max 6 hours, nice being able to jump back to catch something from a few hours previous. And if you change the channel, it still keeps whatever was on, it doesn't clear out the memory like Dish would. It also has backup & skip, which are programmable like 15 sec, 30 sec, etc, perfect for jumping over commercials. And if I want to record what I'm watching, a simple press of a button and +30 minutes blocks and can head out the door. I just leave it on all the time, set it on a channel for the news, watch a movie from the memory, when it's finished I can go back and watch the news from the beginning.

I do miss some cable shows, but not at $80 a month. I'll just wait it out and they'll be on netflix...

-Andrew