tv tuner cards

which tv tuner card are good ..i am looking for one and would like to find a decent one not overly priced.all input welcome. i have never use or bought one before.thanks

 

I've been thinking about getting one of the Plextor units. Besides the tuner card you have the capture features for handling files from your digital cameras, VCRs and the like. Those are relatively inexpensive. Watch for warnings about operating system compatibility. Some of the Plextors don't work with Windows Media Center edition of XP. Then there's the ATI units you can get for HDTV and some have remotes. As you probably know, ATI is a big name in computer electronics, so is Plextor. Here's a page at Newegg with some of the styles I was talking about.
http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=47&name=Video-Devices-TV-Tuners
Canopus and Pinnacle are some other brands I like. Check the options and see what fits the bill best for what you want to do. Shop around with PriceGrabber, Newegg doesn't always have the best prices and some other vendors may have a better variety of what you're looking for.

 

the main thing is watch tv & some recording. also copying vhs tapes to dvd...
and i have Windows Media Center edition of XP i believe
edit some dam spelling errors

 

A friend tried one of the Plextors and the vendor didn't tell him they didn't work with MCE. I went to the website and that was the first thing I noticed. As usual he checked with me when things didn't work. LOL MCE rules out most, if not all, of the Plextors for you. Look over the ATI, Canopus and Pinnacle units and see what you think. There's others, so don't let those limit you. Those are just the ones I like personally.

 

have any thoughts on this card?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16815116620

 

Nice one. If it's going to be an entertainment center you may want to go a bit more upscale. If you're going to be viewing and recording, you may want a dual tuner, plus with a dual tuner you can record 2 channels at once.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116631
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116628

 

thats some good information i did not know about cards
i will check those cards out later today.Thanks

 

You're welcome. Hope you find what you're looking for, remember to keep an eye on supported operating systems.

 

pacman777
thanks i do think this one looks good
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116628
but i am not fully understanding type b tuner?
as someone stated in there rewiew..
and i can hook a vcr/dvd player to inputs and record yes?

 

I'd say yes with all the cable, S-Video, and component connectors, but ask a company rep to be sure of its full capabilities. It's not shown on egg, but there's an upgrade. If this is the card you're interested in, it's time to start asking the company reps specific questions. Here's a link to the kit and there's contact info on the page as well. You've got me thinking about one of these. LOL
http://www.hauppauge.com/pages/products/data_pvr500mcekit.html

 

thanks off to bother the company!!!

 

You're welcome. Let me know how it turns out. That looks like a nice card.

 

pacman777
finally called. ok the tvpr 150 single tuner no remote. the 150mcekit all the same with remote.tvpr500 is same as 150 plus radio tuner and 2tv tuners no remote. tvpr500kit has remote and all other funtion
150-49.99
150mce kit 99.99
500 139.00
500mce kit 179.00
the 500 kit is nice i dont know if i want to spend the extra money

 

That's always the hard part, making up your mind how much to pay. The question is, how much do you intend to use the new part of the system and will the extra bells and whistles make that much difference? Then pay accordingly.

 

pacman777
i broke down and got the pvr-500 kit coming i will update when installed and working smooth.lol if anything ever goes easy

 

Was that with or without the remote? Either way it sounds like a sweet deal. Now you'll be able to tell me first hand how much work it takes to install one and get all the software working. Actually I've done it, but not with that particular card. It's just a plug in deal and lock it down. Just takes a few minutes for installation. It usually takes longer to set up the software and get familiarized with it's operation. Your's is nicer than what I normally deal with. It'll be interesting to get your take on that model.

 

pacman777
i went for the remote model it was 164.00 the cheapest.i read horror stories on the install and and other say all went smooth. i will let you know
EDIT does anyone know how or what is need to hook up a second monitor? to have 2 channels going?

 

If you're wanting to use 2 monitors, that's a different ball game and relates to your graphics card. The capture card is for input. Your's allows for a second A/V input.

You may want to check out the Haupauge website for updates and the 3rd party applications needed to run the setup. There's links to Sage TV and the others. There's tech notes, tips and other things you may find interesting.
http://www.haupauge.com/pages/support/support_mce.html

You need the free Adobe reader to open the guides. They're in PDF format.

Quick Installation Guide: (you should have this one)
WinTV-PVR-500 MCE Kit
http://hauppauge.lightpath.net/manuals/qi-pvr150500mcekit_v3.4.pdf

Here's the manual for adding the second A/V input. This is for the second A/V input.
A/V Cable Set
http://www.haupauge.com/pdfs/av_cable_set_rev3.pdf

 

thanks for the information

 

You're welcome. Like I said earlier, I've not worked with one as elaborate as you have. I'm interested in your opinion when you finish getting it set up.