Internal PC TV tuner card upgrade check please

bluedog

My pc was originally a Gateway GT 5056b Media Centre desktop PC running Vista. I want to upgrade the internal tv tuner so I can watch and record from both my sky box (Freesat) and Freeview if possible on my pc. I'm am a bit lost with understanding some of the techie-jargon regarding signal types though so am not sure if I've gone for the right thing.


My pc now runs Windows 7 Professional, has a 500GB hard drive and Palit Force Nvidia GT520 graphics card.


The current (original) tuner is a Hauppauge WinTV - PVR - 150 and the one I'm thinking of replacing it with is the Hauppauge HVR 4400 like this (if the link works that is) :


http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003G9XL08/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE






Can anyone can confirm or advise me on it please?




many thanks!

emptybox

Looks OK to me, as long as your PC has a spare PCI-express slot, and from a review I saw, it seems to have.

That has a DVB-S2 tuner, so you'll get the HD channels via satellite dish.
It also has a DVB-T tuner but lacks DVB-T2, so you'll only get the SD channels via terrestrial aerial.

Not sure what you mean by "watch and record from my sky box"?
You'll really need a separate feed from the LNB on your dish to the F connector on the card to receive the HD channels.

But if your sky box has analogue RF out, you could perhaps connect that to the analogue tuner on the card and record that way.
Wouldn't have thought that's what you wanted though?

It looks like that card should work fine with Windows Media Centre, or you could use the bundled software or other third party PVR software.

bluedog

Thanks for you reply emptybox and I really appreciate your input. I'm sorry if my lack of tech-speak led or leads to confusion.


Basically, my aim is to use my pc to its fullest potential as a pvr, which is why I bought it in the first place. I know there are probably easier options but decided this will work best for me personally after much research into them.


I'm having a re-think which type of card to get now. Following your comments and with help from a friend, I'm beginning to understand more about the tv signals and tuner card types now. My ignorance of these combined with my silly impatience at getting it sorted out meant I over-looked the basic elements of looking at what is compatible with regards to my sky box, aerial and so on! The only thing I am certain of is that I have to change the current tuner card as although I've downloaded the most up to date driver from Hauppauge, it won't complete the set up as it requires certain information/codes from the tuner card's installation disc and this wasn't supplied with the pc when I bought it. Obviously this means I will definitely have a spare slot in the pc!


My original thinking was to use the sky box as the primary source for setting it up with the pc tuner as Freesat has the channels I watch and doing this would not interfere with Freeview on the main tv set . I don't have Sky HD anyway as my sky box is one of the old white ones, a Thomson DS14214C, and this is used for Freesat only now. One of the reasons I didn't go for a Freesat recorder type of set up was the need to run more lines from the LNB!


I mostly use Freeview via roof top aerial on the main tv set which is a Samsung T28C570 (Full HD) and get a good picture, so seems more logical as well as cheaper to get a Freeview tuner card with HD proprties instead. (If it can also do sky, then that's great or I guess there's still the possibility of installing an additional/separate satellite card?)


I hope I've been able to better explain my need and aim .... and am now off to check them out. If you or anyone else does have any suggestions or advice on this, then I'll be very grateful please.