Ok...I found a somewhat economical alternative to purchasing a stand-alone DVR recorder. I did a little research on using my laptop and external hard drive as a DVR and came up with a solution that cost a total of $151.97.
I purchased the AVerTV Hybrid Volar MAX TV Tuner (Hybrid NTSC/ATSC/QAM USB TV Tuner) for $52.99 and the Iomega 1 TB eSATA 3 GB/USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive for $98.98 from Amazon.com. I opted for eSATA over USB for the faster transfer speeds and the 1 TB model because it is 7200rmp while the 2 TB model is only 5400.
Granted, I could have coughed up an additional $120 and opted for an actual DVR recorder like the Magnavox MDR515H 500GB HDD and DVD-R with Digital Tuner but my option saves a little money and what little shelf space I have left in my tiny apartment.
The AVerTV Tuner “Kit” was a little tricky to install, primarily because, out of the box it is compatible with Windows 7…which I don’t have on my laptop…I have Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit. For this I needed to go to the AverTV support web site and download/install the proper drivers for Vista. They call this a “Kit” but it doesn’t come with an antenna…that’s optional
. It does come with a short USB extension cable that came in handy. I added a RF splitter and signal booster to my external antenna lead, connected the lead to the TV Tuner USB card, launched Windows Media Center and clicked on Set up TV. It went without a hitch. The tuner picked up the OTA broadcast channels that I normally get with my antenna hooked directly to my HDTV and a couple more. I have my laptop hooked up to my Onkyo TX-NR708 AVR via HDMI and the picture quality for the OTA HD broadcasts was outstanding. I didn’t experience any drop-outs or jitters of any kind. There is a problem with audio on Live TV when hooked up to my receiver via HDMI though…no audio
. It works fine on the laptop with my Creative Labs USB Sound Blaster X-Fi 5.1 Surround Audio System. I need to figure this one out. I sent an email to the AVerTV customer service regarding the issue but haven’t received a reply yet. Another drawback to this solution is that, even though the programs may be broadcast in Dolby 5.1, Windows Media Center will only record in Stereo
. I set up a couple of recordings last night while I watched “Rescue Me: Season 4” on DVD and checked this morning and both programs, “Up all Night” on NBC and “Fringe” on FOX recorded without a problem. The picture quality was great for both programs and now I can skip right through those annoyingly loud and obnoxious erectile dysfunction commercials
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So, if you don’t want to pay monthly service fees for a TiVo or can’t afford or want cable or satellite service, this route may be an option for some.
Edit: Update on audio of recorded TV. It does record in Dolby 5.1
. Verified with my Onkyo which displays the audio input and output as Dolby Digital 5.1 and audio is output through surround side speakers : grin: .
As a side note: I'm using the HippoRemote app on my iPod Touch to control Windows Media Center via WiFi. It has pretty much all the functions that an actual Windows Media Center remote has and so much more. It's too cool
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