HDTV on Pc?

[nofx]

Does anyone here have HDTV on their PC? I am thinking about getting a tv tuner card, and an antenna so I can watch HDTV on my 22 widescreen. I hear' in 2009 everything is switching to digital so, i am not so sure what to do about that or how to get the most out of my hdtv pc.

If you do have hdtv on your pc any advice before I try to it out, and potentially lose $200?

 

[giant384]

your spending 200 bucks on a tv tuner and antenna? i spent alittle under 100 for my tuner and a antenna. i have a tv tuner card but i had to send it back because the coaxial port was doa. also what they mean by 2009 when all analog signals will be replaced by digital. that does not mean over the air digital stations will be cut off. only the analog ones.

by the way keep in mind that you only need a antenna that can pick up a vhf signal to receive digital stations.

 

[nofx]

I went to the antennaweb.org to get the stations I would receive, and most of them said vhf/uhf so... I am thinking about getting this:

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16882145018
&
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116620

but if i decided to go with comcast's hd offering then I will have to add $30 to that... plus taxes shipping and I have spent 200 dollars.

Will any tv tuner work to get hdtv? Like I said, i have a 22inch wide screen so i want a card that will be capable of giving me good picture and good reception. thanks!

edit: I really want the HDTV portion. I really don't know how this all works, each of the websites I visit tell me something different.

 

[Asus]

There are analog tuners and then there are digital tuners. Need to make sure the digital tuner you buy supports OTA and/or Clear QAM.
HDTV on the PC is iffy simply because of access to those channels.
1) HD over-the-air signals can be picked up depeneding on your area for the basic stations with a digital tuner tv card that supports ATSC.
2) Again, the basic channels are broadcast over most cable company lines in unencrypted digital form (Clear QAM), even with just analog service. Need a digital tuner that supports Clear QAM.
3) All other stations from the cable company are encrypted. Only way to get the rest of the HDTV stations to a PC (in the USA anyway) is to buy a certified PC with ATI's HDTV card which uses Cable Cards. Cannot add it to your own PC. Cannot build a custom PC and use it.

 

[nofx]

There are analog tuners and then there are digital tuners. Need to make sure the digital tuner you buy supports OTA and/or Clear QAM.
HDTV on the PC is iffy simply because of access to those channels.
1) HD over-the-air signals can be picked up depeneding on your area for the basic stations with a digital tuner tv card that supports ATSC.
2) Again, the basic channels are broadcast over most cable company lines in unencrypted digital form (Clear QAM), even with just analog service. Need a digital tuner that supports Clear QAM.
3) All other stations from the cable company are encrypted. Only way to get the rest of the HDTV stations to a PC (in the USA anyway) is to buy a certified PC with ATI's HDTV card which uses Cable Cards. Cannot add it to your own PC. Cannot build a custom PC and use it.

Thanks for the article, very interesting how things may work out in the future.

I thought that if I had bought a cable box, I could just hook it up to the pc tv tuner and it could just transmit the data to the tuner, then to my pc.

 

[giant384]

Terk has very good antennas. i have the tv4 by them and it picks up every digital station crystal clear. analog isnt that great but i didnt get it for that.

 

[Ridge]

I just picked up a WinTV card that comes with a Media Center remote for $140...great little program. Has TV cable, FM radio, Digital Cable Antenna port S-video and Composite ports...Ive been watching TV on my PC all afternoon! Supports NTSC, ASTC and QAM and you can actually record tv shows to your PC if you want to...

I picked up the Hauppauge! WinTV-HVR 1600 Media Center Kit.

 

[nofx]

I just picked up a WinTV card that comes with a Media Center remote for $140...great little program. Has TV cable, FM radio, Digital Cable Antenna port S-video and Composite ports...Ive been watching TV on my PC all afternoon! Supports NTSC, ASTC and QAM and you can actually record tv shows to your PC if you want to...

I picked up the Hauppauge! WinTV-HVR 1600 Media Center Kit.

Do you get hdtv channels? can you post some screenies or message them to me thanks.

 

[Ridge]

I only have basic cable, so I only have one HD channel, and that is the local news...I'll watch during their broadcast and take some screenshots...

 

[Killing2Live]

I was thinking about doing the same thing and here are a couple good articles:

http://www.antennasdirect.com/DB2_Indoor_antenna.html

http://www.hdtvtunerinfo.com/besthdtvtuner.html

I was thinking about hooking up the DB2 Antenna to a Fusion RT Gold card.

 

[nofx]

Any more advice before I turn my computer into a monster?

 

[Ridge]

Well they dont have the HD channel here locally anymore...I can tell you that watching other shows hasnt been the best looking experience...artifacts abound...

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/4103/ehshell2007112600171384ha4.jpg

 

[nofx]

Well they dont have the HD channel here locally anymore...I can tell you that watching other shows hasnt been the best looking experience...artifacts abound...

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/4103/ehshell2007112600171384ha4.jpg

Did you hook your cable line into the tuner card or do you use an antenna ?

 

[No Limit]

I researched this a bit and the technology really isn't there yet for you to enjoy it. Only channels you will be able to pick up are local channels. Not sure if thats really worth it unless you are a huge fan of football. ATI is supposed to release a HD DVR with cable card so you can also watch digital cable TV on your computer but the standard sucks as each computer manufactured has to be certified to use this ati card and as of now I think dell is the only company that has released a couple of computers using it. I would give it another year or possibly 2. By then the cable card 2.0 should be fully implemented and you will be able to run an HDTV DVR on your computer with guides, on demand, and all those goodies. Personally I can't wait for it.

So to summerize, if you dont mind only having local HD channels you can get the HD TV cards that are out there now, if you want cable you will have to wait longer. Also, dont fall for the myth that you need special anntenas to receive HD signals, standard old rabbit ears will work. I am able to pick up all my local HD channels without problems using a $10 wal mart antenna made by phillips.

 

[Ridge]

Did you hook your cable line into the tuner card or do you use an antenna ?

Cable directly into the card via an elbow adaptor...