Cable TV on PC

I know microsoft has their media edition. But I'm wondering.
Has anyone connected their cable / sat TV to their computer?
I have VerizonFIOS in my home with a drop in my office on my little 13" POS TV.
I would like to connect it to my PC to double my machine as a DVR.

My question is:
A: What hardware is best for collecting the picture.
B: What software would work best for handling the video feed, timing, etc.

you will need a tv tuner i recommend

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-250 or the WinTV-PVR-350

and than download the free program

MythTV


than you install the pvr into your pc, hook up the cable line to it and install the software than try your hardest to get the damn thing to work lol

ATI AIW cards do it as well, right? That's how my dad rolls.

mdameron said:

ATI AIW cards do it as well, right? That's how my dad rolls.

Click to expand...

yes thats also an option, but dedicated tuner cards work better imo

Fr3@k3r said:

you will need a tv tuner i recommend

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-250 or the WinTV-PVR-350

and than download the free program

MythTV


than you install the pvr into your pc, hook up the cable line to it and install the software than try your hardest to get the damn thing to work lol

Click to expand...

I will mirror his capture card recommendations because hardware MPEG2 capture is vital. However, you can't run MythTV in the background.
For a free scheduling and recording interface that's easy to install and can be run in the background http://www.gbpvr.com is the best option out there.

If you're recording from a Cable TV service that doesn't require a box it's going to be ridiculously easy through Coax because the tuner card can change the channels on it's own. If it requires a box you're going to need the windows MCE remote or something comparable that comes with an Infrared Receiver and Transmitter.