Non-Subscription DVR???

844 Views 6 Replies 6 Participants Last post by gigaguy, Oct 3, 2006

WizJr

Discussion Starter · Oct 2, 2006

Hello All,

I am looking for a DVR that works without a subscription. Basically what I want is a Tivo without the Tivo if that make sense. Also, it would be nice if I could find one with an ATSC/QAM reciever to record HD and Digital Broadcasts. Does anyone have anny suggestions??? Do they even exist??? Also, I guess I should have mentioned it this before, I am assuming that if I were to record in HD and then downconvert through S-Video to a DVD recorder the picture would still be an improvement over the standard NTSC SD images I am recording now. I hope this all make sense. Any and All help will be Greatly Appreciated.

Thanks,

Elliott

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7558037

· #2 · Oct 2, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by WizJr
Hello All,

I am looking for a DVR that works without a subscription. Basically what I want is a Tivo without the Tivo if that make sense. Also, it would be nice if I could find one with an ATSC/QAM reciever to record HD and Digital Broadcasts. Does anyone have anny suggestions??? Do they even exist??? Also, I guess I should have mentioned it this before, I am assuming that if I were to record in HD and then downconvert through S-Video to a DVD recorder the picture would still be an improvement over the standard NTSC SD images I am recording now. I hope this all make sense. Any and All help will be Greatly Appreciated.

Thanks,

Elliott

Here's a LG HDTV DVR that might be of interest.

Here's a HDTV thread in this Forum on the unit.

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amdspitfire

· #3 · Oct 2, 2006

http://us.lge.com/products/model/det..._LRM-519.jhtml

heres another LG one i found

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WizJr

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 2, 2006

Thanks for the responses! I'm still curious about the second part of my post. I have to assume, which of course is just in my nature to do, that even a downconverted HDTV signal recorded on a DVD will look better than a standard NTSC signal recorded on a DVD. Am i incorrect or is it just that not many people try this at home? Please forgive my ignorance. While I have 3 DVD recorders and have been using the tech sine it was first introduced I am new to the area of HDTV and am still slightly confused about it.

Thanks,

Elliott

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sivartk

· #5 · Oct 2, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by amdspitfire
http://us.lge.com/products/model/det..._LRM-519.jhtml

heres another LG one i found

Only an NTSC tuner here.

If you can wait, do it. In March (or thereabouts) you should be able to find a DVD recorder with an ATSC (QAM also??) tuner. Will it record HDTV to a hard drive and then down convert to record 480p to a DVD? Who knows.

If you need something right now, your choices are the following discontinued products.

LG LST-3410A (mentioned above)

Sony DHG-HDD250 / DHG-HDD500 (a long thread at here, a search should find it).

Of course, there is always the HTPC route if you want to build your own.

I am going to try to hold out until March and then sell my current DVD recorder with hard drive and buy a new DVD Recorder with hard drive and ATSC tuner.

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jtbell

· #6 · Oct 2, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by WizJr
I have to assume, which of course is just in my nature to do, that even a downconverted HDTV signal recorded on a DVD will look better than a standard NTSC signal recorded on a DVD.

Yes, it does, unless you have excellent reception of NTSC signals, without any noise or interference whatsoever. I no longer use the NTSC tuner on my DVD recorder, but instead record the 480i output from my Sony HD DVR. Sometimes I do it live, sometimes I record on the Sony first and then dub it later to the DVD recorder. It doesn't make any difference in the PQ.

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gigaguy

· #7 · Oct 3, 2006

I have two of the Sony DHG-HDD500 models, 500 gigs each, (up to 60 hours HD) no fees. They work great for me. Some people have trouble with the TVGOS program guide. But if your local station is sending out the data correctly, these work great.

They can receive every OTA or cable channel, with a Cablecard. I just use basic cable and use the QAM tuner to get my local HD channels. I've used over-the-air HD too.

You can send the 16:9 signal to many DVD recorders if you want to copy to a disc. I've used both Sony and Panasonic DVD recorders for this.

The Sony DVR has every kind of output. HDMI, component, S, and AV.

These were discontinued last year but are still in demand. I notice the prices have gone up on ebay recently, probably due to more and more people getting HD TVs.

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