Choosing best tuner for needs

[lily1029]

I am looking at the options for tv tuners and I'm not sure what is the best choice for my needs. I'd love some votes on what you experts think! It will be going on a brand new desktop computer with Windows 7. I subscribe to Time Warner cable. My home has wifi and I own an xbox360 but I don't really plan to watch the tv anywhere but on my pc. I've analyzed the Silicondust products and can't really tell which I would need or if I need anything that fancy to begin with. All of my previous tv tuners just came installed in my desktop towers and didn't require this much thought! Any input is appreciated!

[RyC]

SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime + CableCARD (and possibly tuning adapter) from TWC is what you want, if you're looking at SiliconDust products. They connect to your computer via the network, so they aren't in the physical computer. If you want a tuner actually inside the computer, the Ceton InfiniTV 6 plugs into a PCIe slot, and you get 6 tuners vs 3 for the Prime.

[lily1029]

Please forgive my lack of knowledge RyC. What is a PCIe slot and what kind of skills would I need to go this route? I was debating the Prime vs the Extend for the Silicondust options. I couldn't understand why 3 tuners vs 2 and the bonus ability of the cablecard costs less?? Do you have to use a cablecard or only if you want bonus channels like my Showtime? Should any channels showing up in my current set up still show up without it?

[LuckyDay]

Please forgive my lack of knowledge RyC. What is a PCIe slot and what kind of skills would I need to go this route? I was debating the Prime vs the Extend for the Silicondust options. I couldn't understand why 3 tuners vs 2 and the bonus ability of the cablecard costs less?? Do you have to use a cablecard or only if you want bonus channels like my Showtime? Should any channels showing up in my current set up still show up without it?

For your first question, a PCIe slot is inside your computer, and it's what the tuner would be installed into. It is not difficult to set up, but as mentioned above, the HD Homeruns are just hooked up to your home network (usually near your router) and then you can use it on any PC or device in the house.

If you have digital cable currently, you will need a cablecard tuner. This would be the PRIME model from Silicondust. You will need the cablecard to use it. The card can be requested from your cable company, and is usually either free or close to it (I pay nothing from WOW, it may be up to around $5 a month from other providers). It's honestly easier to just tell them you got a TIVO and need a cablecard for it than it is to try to explain what a HD Homerun is.

As for the pricing difference, between the PRIME and EXTEND, I'm not entirely sure of the cost reasoning. I know the PRIME used to cost more and has gone down over time.

[mdavej]

For the record, Ceton also makes network tuners of course. But I would still choose the Prime. It often goes on sale for around $80. You can probably get a used one for even less.

[mdavej]

FYI, Woot has $80 Primes right now (thanks olyteddy at AVS).

[gary94080]

I currently have an HDHR Prime at my house and at my sister's.

the one at my sister's may be going out, one tuner is currently AWOL. I haven't been able to check it out yet, but seeing this thread I thought I would ask about the recommendation of the Prime over a Ceton unit.

if I had to replace my sister's I was thinking of the Ceton because it has more tuners. are there more problems with Ceton? is there much difference in performance between the internal card, Ethernet or USB model.

I realize the USB has 4 tuners vs 6, but if it performs better I might consider it unless the consensus is that the Prime is better.

one other question, the Silicondust commercial units with 6 and 8 tuners, anyone know if they work with WMC and what they might cost?

[Scallica]

Get another HDHR Prime. They are $99 now, but If you wait a bit, you may be able to get one for $79 on Woot when it goes on sale. They price will also likely drop when SD releases their 6-tuner model.

[mdavej]

Prime generally works better than Ceton, is faster tuning, DLNA capable and more trouble free. However, I use Ceton because it has 6 tuners, and I'm too cheap to pay for a second cable card. Requires a reboot every couple of months, but besides that is pretty solid. I have 2 Primes in my closet standing by for the day WMC stops working, at which time I'll switch to SD's promised DVR software.

I prefer the ethernet version mostly because it's portable and creates no heat issues in my small, virtually fanless case. If I move the PCIe version from one PC to another, I have to call the cable company to reauthorize the card. I don't have to do that with the ethernet version. I can switch out PCs without affecting the authorization.

A used ETH can be had quite cheaply, especially if you buy direct from an individual. I buy nearly all my hardware (extenders, tuners, etc.) that way.