XBMC Fan, Looking for Input on DVR & NAS Video Software

Currently I'm running XBMC on an AppleTV and an HTPC (Linux Mint OS), for watching videos located on my NAS (.avi, .mkv, VOBs, and .mp4 primarily). I like the XBMC interface, in both instances it just works.

I want to cancel satellite TV, but need to put together an easy to use DVR system to replace the unit that would be lost upon cancelling Dish. Thus far I've purchased a HDHomeRun that is excellent...a very cool piece of gear. So I'm building the DVR functionality around that. I've got an old desktop PC that I'll use as the server backend for any DVR I build, but I haven't found any software that I like so far....am I missing something?

XBMC with a simple option that says "Live or Recorded TV" in addition to the existing Movies, Music, etc options, would be perfect, but I don't think that exists. So here's where I'm at so far.

I've tried the off the shelf SageTV demo....the TV interface seems dated, and the NAS video interface was more like drilling down through a directory file structure than browsing a library. I do like the idea of the small extender though (HD300 I think?).

I've also tried Media Center on Vista Ultimate, the overall interface is nice and the TV/DVR functionality is simple. However I followed a guide here on AVS for setting up the codecs, but I haven't had any success playing VOBs, and the interface to navigate to NAS videos isn't as simple as XBMC.

Lastly I've tried Mythbuntu....that's been a true PITA. By luck I loaded it one day from a USB drive, tried configuring it (database, then TV, then graphics drivers...live TV never did work on it), then mistakenly deleted the failsafe Xorg config file....now it won't install from the USB drive.

So....am I missing something? Are there plugins which make any of these options close to the XBMC experience I'm looking for? I'm open to Windows 7 or Linux OS, but prefer to stick with Linux if possible.

Hey, thanks for the responses everyone.

Spent the day today loading a fresh copy of Linux Mint 9 and then Mythtv on the old desktop that would be the backend. Found success getting the backend server and database working, albeit the TV feed stutters every few seconds or so, recorded and live. Running the Mythbuntu live CD on a client laptop however, the frontend crashes every time I try to start it. There's no way I'm going to install it on the laptop without first proving it using the live CD given the issues I've had...might try another laptop tomorrow.

The SageTV server application failed to load on the Linux machine...shame too, I wanted to try that.

Last I loaded Media Browser for Vista MC...wow, works great, and plays the VOBs I couldn't previously. Not quite an XBMC interface but close, and several other files Windows still can't play...but it's progress. I also like the way TV, network video files, and Netflix are integrated in one place. As much as I want Linux to work, it's proving too much hassle...what if something fails while I'm away taking down the ability to watch TV? My concern with going to Windows 7 is whether I'll have to upgrade the old desktop I'm re-purposing as the PVR server.

Tomorrow I'm going to try the XBMC live TV, read about it quickly but not in detail yet.

No, I did not check out any plugins for Sage...I demo'd v7 BTW. I'll check those out, including MyMovies....as well as the Media Browser article.

I came to the sad realization the other night (after several Linux OS loads on my planned server) that Windows does not support a server/client architecture that would take advantage of my existing equipment. I went so far as installing Vista (Vista b/c I own it - did trial of Win7 and saw that extenders can only be added to activated versions) only to learn that under Media Center adding an extender isn't synonymous with linking to another PC running Win7 that would playback the host's recorded/live TV.

So what started this post as a simple desire to find the right software has taken me back to re-think the architecture of all this, what I want out of it, and how to best get there with the hardware I've got on-hand (or minimal investment).

Ultimately I want an integrated environment where I can watch live TV with DVR ability on one primary TV, as well as videos from my existing NAS and Netflix, all in one machine for high WAF from an ease of use standpoint. A second TV in "man town" is connected to an HTPC w/XBMC (running Linux Mint), I don't necessarily need an integrated environment there. All TV recordings co-located, separate from the NAS (which could change - it might be best to go with a single media storage server...just seems a waste to stop using the NAS when the machine I want to use supports up to 4 SATA drives, which I have on-hand).