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HDHomeRun - Dual ATSC or QAM to Ethernet Box - Page 7

post #181 of 1958
1/7/07 at 1:39pm
Bob, you said
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One really interesting thing is that apparently I can see what others are watching on-demand. I don't know what the scope of who's on-demand I can see and it was all SD but it was interesting. The other day I was watching Dr. Strangelove that someone was obviously watching and I even saw them ff/rw.

My HDHR hasn't been delivered yet, so I haven't had a chance to try it out, but I'm wondering if this capability is unique to Sage. I would love to be able to watch the same show on two displays at once (e.g. also on my kitchen display when cooking). Are you using the placeshifting feature or not? How are you doing this? I wonder if it would work with other PVR software.
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post #182 of 1958
1/7/07 at 2:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fofoca View Post

I'm wondering if this capability is unique to Sage.

No.

He's just watching the VOD that is being transmitted on his node of his cable providers network. Some else ordered it, he's just tapping into it. He has no control over it.
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post #183 of 1958
1/7/07 at 3:02pm
CityK, I don't know much about cable, so my interest is only from curiosity... but if the two tuners were streaming two different programs onto two different PCs, which one would Bob be tapping into (on his 3rd PC)? Could he pick either one?
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post #184 of 1958
1/11/07 at 6:10am
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Originally Posted by rbtconsultants View Post

This thing is pure rock and roll. I had it running with Sage in like 10 minutes. My AccessDTV is now officially retired.

Sage does not automatically handle QAM channel mapping, but it will scan all available QAM channels, and then you can map them manually to the EPG. It's a bit tedious, but it does the job.

I get ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, Fox and CW in HD over-the-air and via comcast. I also get a ton of other digital SD un-encrypted QAM channels on Comcast (Philly) that I am still mapping.

I actually think I may order another. Using this thing in SAGE as a true whole-house HD/SD PVR is like a quantum leap in functionality for me. It's not that often that I need more than two tuners but I do sometimes, especially with everybody in the house able to watch SAGE at the same time. I'll have to see how well recording Digital SD on QAM compares to to the PVR-250 quality to see whether it is worth doing, esp since it is rare that there are more than two HD programs on at the same time I am interested in.

One really interesting thing is that apparently I can see what others are watching on-demand. I don't know what the scope of who's on-demand I can see and it was all SD but it was interesting. The other day I was watching Dr. Strangelove that someone was obviously watching and I even saw them ff/rw. '

Bob


Oddly enough I've had the same experience. I have a Sony XBR2 (LCOS) and the tuner picks up on demand feeds sporatically. I usually scen about twenty channels when I'm bored to see what's on. I've watched quite a few movies from beginning to end, saving some money to pay for my overpriced cable bill.
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post #185 of 1958
1/19/07 at 9:13am
Can the HDHomeRun be placed in an attic? Or will it freeze or fry during temperature extremes?
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post #186 of 1958
1/19/07 at 10:51am
It needs a power source. I could see the heat in an attic wouldn't be good for it at all.
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post #187 of 1958
1/19/07 at 12:45pm
I keep seeing a lot of posts in this thread that were previously addressed in the SiliconDust Forum. If you have questions about the HDHomeRun, you should at least make the effort to look there first. There are a couple of threads dealing with multicasting--one user said it will stream to multicast addresses, but the lead developer said to use VLC for the multicasting. There is a thread mentioning powering the HDHomeRun via a powered Ethernet cable. And no, I wouldn't put any sort of electronic device that wasn't outdoor rated in an extreme environment--not only is it likely to malfunction or fail, but you are taking an unnecessary fire risk. The HDHomeRun is a very small box; frankly, I don't understand people who feel that they need to hide it someplace where you wouldn't normally put an electronic device. MCE development is coming along, but they aren't going to support QAM initially, which is stupid because most people who bought it, bought it for QAM. On the other hand, MCE 2005 has become so buggy that I'm probably going to have to switch to something else soon. Presently, SageTV has the best HDHomeRun support.
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post #188 of 1958
1/19/07 at 1:22pm
Well, I've got the power, as well as a spare network cable up there. It's the antenna coax that I don't have fished downstairs into air conditioned comfort.
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post #189 of 1958
1/20/07 at 6:07am
my educated guess (as an EE) is that it will probably work just fine in your attic....

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post #190 of 1958
1/21/07 at 9:13am
My cable co. (TWC) is supposed to eventually start using switched digital vodeo.
I've read that SDV requires two-way communication, like VOD. Does this mean when they make the switch, the HDHomeRun will do longer work with TWC?
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post #191 of 1958
1/21/07 at 9:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by leebo View Post

My cable co. (TWC) is supposed to eventually start using switched digital vodeo.
I've read that SDV requires two-way communication, like VOD. Does this mean when they make the switch, the HDHomeRun will do longer work with TWC?

That depends upon whether the channels that you're receiving with the HDHomeRun get switched out. You can always get them back by requesting them from a cable box. My Time-Warner affiliate basically only transmits ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS via clear-QAM, and those clearly are not going to get switched out if my affiliate implements SDV.
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post #192 of 1958
1/23/07 at 7:07am
FWIW

The Beta MCE driver is now available for test at the Silicondust web site. Silicondust

They are located in the Windows BDA Driver forum along with installation instructions. You have to become a member of the forum before you can access the Windows BDA forum.

Interesting stiff...............
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post #193 of 1958
1/23/07 at 7:41am
now that the cable co's are converting the analog tier to qam and have encrypted them (and also using switched digital), it leaves this solution as a network HD only solution.... and we may see the day when those are encrypted as well.... maybe too little, too late....

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post #194 of 1958
1/23/07 at 7:47am
and some of us have had encrypted qam all along. Thanks brighthouse!
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post #195 of 1958
1/23/07 at 11:18am
In the US, you should be able to get your local network unencrypted or can complain to the FCC if your cable provider refuses...
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post #196 of 1958
1/23/07 at 11:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fonceur View Post

In the US, you should be able to get your local network unencrypted or can complain to the FCC if your cable provider refuses...

point me to the law that say that.
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post #197 of 1958
1/23/07 at 11:37am
Good luck with the cable companies and the FCC. Unless you have some clout I doubt anything will get done.
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post #198 of 1958
1/23/07 at 11:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Derek K. View Post

point me to the law that say that.

It's not a law, it's an FCC mandate. It's the "Must Carry" rule: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Must-carry
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post #199 of 1958
1/23/07 at 12:37pm
alrighty then. let me print off that wikipedia page and run right down to my cable office.

if you read that page, nowhere does it say that the cable provider must provide unencrypted ota hd channels (the digital must carry portion). actually it says that portion was pulled from the bill.

point me to something on the fcc's site that says my cable provider has to provide me with unencrypted ota hd channels. i think you will find that it doesn't exist.
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post #200 of 1958
1/23/07 at 1:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fonceur View Post

In the US, you should be able to get your local network unencrypted or can complain to the FCC if your cable provider refuses...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Derek K. View Post

point me to the law that say that.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Munkee Boy View Post

It's not a law, it's an FCC mandate. It's the "Must Carry" rule: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Must-carry

As it stands, "must carry" requires that the MSO carry the analog feed. As I understand it, the tradeoff is that the MSO must carry the local stations but need not pay for the privilege.

My further understanding (and the wiki article that Munkee Boy points to supports this) is that there is no current digital "must carry" equivalent. The MSOs and broadcasters negotiate retransmission, and the broadcaster (or the MSO, for that matter) may seek payment.

Put another way, the local broadcaster makes a periodic "must carry" or "retransmission consent" election. If the broadcaster elects "must carry," then the MSO has to carry the channel but does so for free and gets to pick whatever modulation it wants. If the broadcaster elects "retransmission consent," then the broadcaster and the MSO negotiate.

Confused? I sure am.
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post #201 of 1958
1/23/07 at 1:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Derek K. View Post

alrighty then. let me print off that wikipedia page and run right down to my cable office.

if you read that page, nowhere does it say that the cable provider must provide unencrypted ota hd channels (the digital must carry portion). actually it says that portion was pulled from the bill.

point me to something on the fcc's site that says my cable provider has to provide me with unencrypted ota hd channels. i think you will find that it doesn't exist.

You're right, it doesn't exist. Nobody ever said that the cable company has to provide you with unencrypted HD channels. Some markets don't even broadcast HD. They simply said you had to be provided with unscrambled channels that are OTA (over-the-air) in a given market (within 90 miles of the tower). If they happen to be in HD, that's just a plus. http://www.fcc.gov/mb/engineering/part76.pdf. And I agree with SMWinnie, it is all very confusing, and this is probably on purpose.
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post #202 of 1958
1/23/07 at 2:54pm
Has anyone tested out this beta driver yet? If I'm reading correctly, their forum says that the version that does QAM hasn't been released to the public yet? Does this version work with both tuners, or just the one? It'd be nice to get this soon, so that I stop having to worry about 24 and Heroes airing at the same time.
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post #203 of 1958
1/23/07 at 3:07pm
I recorded Heros and 24 last night on comcast QAM :-) Watched Heros, haven't watched 24 yet.

Bob
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post #204 of 1958
1/23/07 at 4:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbtconsultants View Post

I recorded Heros and 24 last night on comcast QAM :-) Watched Heros, haven't watched 24 yet.

Bob

Was that using MCE, or SageTV?
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post #205 of 1958
1/23/07 at 5:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jhoff80 View Post

Was that using MCE, or SageTV?

I thought MCE support would not be QAM, it would only be OTA support. Is that not true?

Russ
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post #206 of 1958
1/23/07 at 5:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jimwhite View Post

now that the cable co's are converting the analog tier to qam and have encrypted them (and also using switched digital), it leaves this solution as a network HD only solution.... and we may see the day when those are encrypted as well.... maybe too little, too late....


I'm afraid you may be right and it may have happened to me today. I subscribe to Charter's extended basic service. Yesterday, using my HDHomeRun with either SageTV or VLC, I was able to view all of the cable channels.

Today, I can no longer view any of the "extended" channels with the HDHomeRun. When using the hdhomerun_config_gui program, you can set the channel and see what subchannels are available. Those that are encrypted are listed as encrypted. Now all of these channels are listed as encrypted (yesterday they were not).

I can still view these channels using our analog tv, but they don't work with the digital tuner.
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post #207 of 1958
1/23/07 at 5:25pm
SageTV
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post #208 of 1958
1/23/07 at 5:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by russwong View Post

I thought MCE support would not be QAM, it would only be OTA support. Is that not true?

Russ

No, it's not true. Visit the Silicondust forums for an update on the situation.
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post #209 of 1958
1/23/07 at 9:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Munkee Boy View Post

No, it's not true. Visit the Silicondust forums for an update on the situation.

Awesome. Looks like they made some recent advancements. I wasn't a registered user, so I didn't see the MCE forum. This is great news. As a matter of fact, I ordered my HDHomeRun just now.
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post #210 of 1958
1/23/07 at 9:33pm
Im ordering mine very soon as well... i want to get it ordered and shipped before it gets backordered.
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