PVR advice - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

FurnaceFace · 11-30-2006, 07:21 PM

I summon the collective powers of CP to provide any recommendations on PVRs out there. Mrs. Furnace desires one so I figure when the wife asks for electronics, I'm jumping all over that idea.

For reference I give you this:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=8728&SID=

$300 is about the right price point for me.

Anyone have this model or another model/brand they like?

Thanks.

I_am_Beast · 11-30-2006, 07:47 PM

Do you currently have Shaw cable? do you want digital cable? cause you can kill 2 birds with 1 stone. Motorola have a digital cable box with a build in PVR available. ie 6412, 6414, 6416.... the last 2 digitws in the name is the Hard drive size. 6412 = 120gig, 6414 = 140gig and so on. Also if your recording digital cable or HD signals it uses alot more HD space.

I'm currently looking for the HD version.

Having the cable box / HD decoder / PVR all in 1 unit seems smart to me, cause then the compatibility issues are already worked out, and it's only 1 remote. Face it when getting another remote even if it it programable you still need it around for that one damn function that not programed.

anyhoo... I'd look at what else you need besides the PVR and try to package something, might save you some cash in teh long run and be easier to use as well.

Tailspin · 11-30-2006, 07:53 PM

make sure you get a 2 tuner one.. that way you can watch a channel other than the one you are taping

ken0042 · 11-30-2006, 08:19 PM

Yes, get the one from your service provider. Don't waste your money on a non-HD one.

For one thing; it will be more "wife friendly" because it's all in one unit. Plus you will likely need to have a Shaw box within 2 years anyways.

Engine09 · 11-30-2006, 08:25 PM

Since we're talking about PVRs, I have a question.

I have a Bell HD setup, using a 6100 right now. Want a PVR with a dual tuner and PIP.

Is this my only option?

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...01&catid=21847

ken0042 · 11-30-2006, 08:45 PM

Yes Kryzsky. However the rumour is that by spring we might see some new receivers from Bell. Dishnetwork already has newer ones.

Draug · 11-30-2006, 08:49 PM

Any idea what Bell does for customers (like me) that are renting the current PVR when they release a new version? Do we have to stick out our current term with the crappy old unit, or do we get to upgrade?

Back on topic... I agree, get the PVR offered by your service provider. Bell's unit is pretty good, and Shaw's is very similar. I dont know about Starchoice. But, with all the integrated program guide and recording options, you cant go wrong with the ones offered by the providers.

Make sure to get a 2 tuner model, as mentioned above. I'd get the HD version, even if I didnt have HD, for the larger HDD. However, if you only have SD still, then you might consider spending about half the money and getting the SD version, if and only if, you can substantiate the rumors that better models are coming soon. If so, cheap out now, and then get the HD model in a few months.

Engine09 · 11-30-2006, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Yes Kryzsky. However the rumour is that by spring we might see some new receivers from Bell. Dishnetwork already has newer ones.

Besides new styling, is there any info on what the differences will be? Will they have any new features that will make a huge difference to any of us?

And.....is anyone here interested in gettign rid of their old crappy 9200?

ken0042 · 11-30-2006, 09:39 PM

The new one will have a bigger hard drive, and be ready for the next level of compression; MPEG-4. MPEG-4 will offer better picture quality with less bandwidth. Translation- more HD channels with better picture.

Here it is: http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/p...vr/index.shtml

Draug, you are in a lease with your receiver. Meaning you are stuck with it for the term of your lease; just like if you lease a car for 2 years, and next year's model looks better.

FurnaceFace · 11-30-2006, 09:48 PM

Thanks. We have regular analog peasant cable. I had a thought about suggesting digital but wasn't sure if that would be desirable...although more channels is something I wouldn't wipe my nose at and I don't think she would either.

If I get a digtal box for the primary TV I can still get analog cable on the others in the house correct?

photon · 11-30-2006, 09:50 PM

I keep watching eBay for Starchoice ones, but they always end up at almost the price of a new one.. I can't justify $650 or whatever for a PVR!

Bobblehead · 11-30-2006, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by photon

I keep watching eBay for Starchoice ones, but they always end up at almost the price of a new one.. I can't justify $650 or whatever for a PVR!

My solution for that for the past 2 years was MythTV

I has an older mobo with a 1800+ proc. Initially started with a 60GB HD, and added a PVR350 (should have used a 250) and an IR Blaster, then used this guide.
I run the output from my Starchoice into the capture card, and actually just use a cheap 19" Dell LCD monitor for the display. The IR Blaster switches the channels on the Starchoice box. When the HD was almost full I threw a 250GB drive in and just had the video partition span onto it (using LVM).

It works very well.

photon · 11-30-2006, 10:20 PM

Yeah but then you've got two devices on which to set the record time and stuff. Plus doing HD content would be more expensive.

I've thought about it a few times, but I just like the idea of having a single device to worry about..

Though of course then you can't do anything with the recorded video...

siggy · 11-30-2006, 10:44 PM

I just bought the Shaw HD PVR. Was debating for over a month whether to buy the Shaw one, or buy a Panasonic one which has both a harddrive and a dvd burner.

In the end I chose Shaw for the convenience - no need to set the record time on two devices etc. Also, since the box wasn't for me (for my parents), it will be much easier for them to use, especially when setting up timer recordings etc.

Prototype · 11-30-2006, 10:49 PM

DO NOT BUY A 3RD PARTY PVR...

I say this cause I have one... a Toshiba PVR/DVD-R. It uses TV Guide, which doesn't update with the monthly Shaw channel shuffle. I've even tried to call and find any type of tech support with the TV Guide funtion, and couldn't find any.

I reccomend the house units of whatever provider you are using. You know it will always be updated.

I_am_Beast · 11-30-2006, 11:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FurnaceFace

Thanks. We have regular analog peasant cable. I had a thought about suggesting digital but wasn't sure if that would be desirable...although more channels is something I wouldn't wipe my nose at and I don't think she would either.

If I get a digtal box for the primary TV I can still get analog cable on the others in the house correct?

yup....just don't split the cable too much, weaker signal ='s ****ty picture

MacDougalbry · 12-01-2006, 07:56 AM

Along the same lines as MythTV, I use Snapstream's BeyondTV, another PC based PVR. http://www.snapstream.com/ I also tried MythTV at the time, but I went with BeyondTV because they were the only ones at that time to offer automatically updating Canadian TV guide data. It supports multiple tuners (so you can record several shows at one time) and they just recently released a DVD plug in, which is nice because with one click you can burn shows to DVD. The best feature is the "smart skip" feature, which automatically detects the commercials in your recrodings and lets you instantly skip past them with a single click on your remote.

On this setup, I added a little Haupauge MediaMVP box on our other TV so that we could watch our recordings on either TV. http://www.hauppauge.com/html/mediamvp_datasheet.htm

But if I were buying now, I'd probably just go for the Shaw PVR or TiVo...

Gobsgraham · 12-01-2006, 10:51 PM

I have a Shaw 6408 and a Windows XP Media Center home theater PC. They are both great. Shaw box is extremely easy to use. Media center has way better search functions for the guide.

photon · 12-01-2006, 11:04 PM

FYI Starchoice has a sale on their PVRs right now.. $399 after programming and PPV credits ($389 for new customers).

Draug · 12-02-2006, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken0042;

The new one will have a bigger hard drive, and be ready for the next level of compression; MPEG-4. MPEG-4 will offer better picture quality with less bandwidth. Translation- more HD channels with better picture.

Here it is: http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/p...vr/index.shtml

MPEG-4 is quite a bit better quality. That is what I've been downloading lately, and there is a marked improvement. Unfortunately, a file 42 minutes in length is 1100mb. But, it is worth it to see good quality. In fact, the downloads are better quality than my 9200 HD recordings - sad but true.

Are you sure the new units have a bigger Hard Drive? All the official brochure just says '30 hours of HD programming'. I know the 9200 says '25 hours', but really it is a lot more now. I havent had my 9200 empty for quite some time to see the whole total, but due to the increased compression over the past year, a 1 hour recording now only takes 40 minutes. The 9200 holds a lot more than 25 hours now.