Next I setup a PC with MythTV, the opensource DVR software, using the Mythdora distribution for Redhat linux. Mythdora is an excellent distribution, and makes trying MythTV pretty painless (like Trixbox for Asterisk). Unfortunately MythTV itself is not so easy to use, and there is a fatal flaw: the cable interface adapters such as the pcHDTV 5500 card can only tune unencrypted QAM256 signals, whereas Comcast was encrypting almost everything except channels available over the air. The firewire port on the Comcast Cable boxes also had 5C encryption, so I couldn't get premium content that way either.
As I looked for ways to capture HDMI, decrypt QAM256, or Cablecard tuners, I realized these were either too expensive or not yet tackled by the opensource community. While researching these options, the Tivo HD came out, which is a far better deal than the Tivo Series 3. I paid $250 each for them, and they have two cablecard slots, so you can use either 1 Multistream cablecard (a.k.a. M-Cards) or 2 Singlestream cablecards (a.k.a., S-Cards). Get the M-Cards if you can, because you pay a service charge per card per month.
Unlike the Comcast DVR, you own the Tivo, so you can easily upgrade Tivo to 1TB disk storage using WinMFS. With two Tivos (with 4 tuners total and a total of 2TB of storage) I can record thousands of hours of SDTV or hundreds of hours of HDTV on four different channels at the same time. On my older SD video Tivos, I can use the Tivo multi-room-viewing (MRV) transfers and thereby get rid of all of my cable boxes, which saves me the box rental fee each month. There are service fees for the Tivos, but I am happy to pay Tivo for a service that is vastly superior and costs less. I don't have video on demand anymore, but I can get on-demand content over my broadband connection from Tivo partners, like Amazon unbox or Jaman.
The most difficult part was getting the Cablecards installed in the Tivo. The first thing that caused difficulty was I hadn't unboxed my Tivos before Comcast arrived, so I didn't have the most up to date version of the Tivo software, and you need it. Then I could only get the OTA channels because the cards weren't properly paired (For MCards, Val: ? is displayed on the Cablecard pairing screen on the Tivo) with the head end servers at Comcast. There are some great support articles in the Tivo knowledge base, so I would be sure to print them for your installer. In particular, I recommend this article: http://tivosupport2.instancy.com/TiVoCollection/f8f40dc6-5fb6-4ed8-ac41-d8cd0d5c0824/ins_Content.html
There are a few myths you might hear from the cable company that you should be aware of:
1: "I can't hit your box, it will damage your Tivo" - completely untrue. There are three different kinds of signals your cable company can send to a cable box or cable card and the Tivo is fine with all three.
2: "Your system is fine, don't worry that it isn't receiving any channels, it will take a few hours for the channels to come in." It might take time for the program guide to appear, but the channels should tune right away, don't let your installer out the door telling you this.
3: "We don't support Tivo." Cable companies have to support Tivo and other cablecard devices. If you get this from a stubborn customer service rep, remind them they are supporting the cablecard, not the Tivo, and while it may be inconvenient, the FCC requires this.
When you schedule the appointment, you should ask for someone with cablecard and Tivo experience. Tell them to write it in the notes for your appointment. And if you live in the Boston metrowest area, ask for Rob Wheeler, he is the best contractor they have.
1 comment:
Excellent post! I chose essentially the same set-up you describe (TiVo HD with Comcast cable cards). While it is somewhat off the beaten track, the superior result made the slight inconvenience worthwhile.
Post a Comment