Tv Tuner recommendation

Rob1984

Hi all,

I am looking to add a TV tuner to my current HTPC (AMD hex core, 8GB ram, Win7..). I am looking for a twin tuner to receive Irish channels and free UK ones. I guess one DVB-T and DVB-S. I don't require anything that is overkill, not looking to record or anything. My budget is 100Euro or less.

I am new to TV tuner hardware, can anyone give me any recommendations please ?

Rob1984

**sorry forgot to add, I would prefer PCI-Express only

Johnboy1951

IMO the two best brands of tuner card are

TBS
Blackgold

I don't believe TBS do a mixed card .... they do dual cards for DVB-T and DVB-S.

Other manufacturers do mixed cards I believe.
Check out
"BGT3635 – Single DVB‐T/T2/C/C2, single DVB-S/S2, Analogue PCI‐e TV tuner"

I advise getting hardware that is compatible with Linux as well as Windows, as this ensures you will be able to use the hardware regardless the HTPC OS you choose in the future.

***

It is also quite easy to find USB dongle-type DVB-T tuners for less than €20 each.
These are quite good for the price.
I have two ... one for several years and both still working.

EDIT:

This might suit

http://www.amazon.co.uk/DVBSky-T9580-DVB-S2-DVB-T2-DVB-C/dp/B00FVTT966/

Rob1984

Thanks for the reply. Yeah I came across the T9580 while doing more research. Are DVBSky a decent make? BlackGold was mentioned to me by a friend, but the BGT3635 seems to be out of stock everywhere.

Regarding the USB dongles, is it possible to have two of (one DVB-T and one DVB-S running at the same time ?) How do the USB version perform? PCI-E is much faster (than USB2.0)

Johnboy1951

Rob1984 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply. Yeah I came across the T9580 while doing more research. Are DVBSky a decent make? BlackGold was mentioned to me by a friend, but the BGT3635 seems to be out of stock everywhere.

Regarding the USB dongles, is it possible to have two of (one DVB-T and one DVB-S running at the same time ?) How do the USB version perform? PCI-E is much faster (than USB2.0)

I haven't come across a USB dongle for DVB-S.
Multiple DVB-T dongles can be used at the same time.

TBS do USB attached cards also ..... in their own case .... essentially the same hardware as on the PCI-e card as far as I can tell.

I doubt that the speed diff between PCI-e and PCI makes any difference in use, but I would advise against PCI because such slots are becoming scarce on boards.

Generally a PCI-e x 1 slot is sufficient for a tuner card.

You could have a look through the products here also
http://www.tbsdtv.com/

Probably pricey but ......

http://www.tbsdtv.com/products/tbs5925-dvb-s2-tv-tuner-usb.html

http://www.tbsdtv.com/products/tbs5922se-dvb-s2-tv-tuner-usb-box.html

mossym

DVB-S has to provide a voltage level back to the dish to the LNB, so highly unlikely you'll find a usb one due to the power restrictions

had the blackgold cards in the past, highly recommended, i had a 2*dvb-s2/2*dvb-t and it was rock solid

Johnboy1951

mossym wrote: »

DVB-S has to provide a voltage level back to the dish to the LNB, so highly unlikely you'll find a usb one due to the power restrictions

Not a dongle and pricey, but USB connected ....
http://www.tbsdtv.com/products/tbs5922se-dvb-s2-tv-tuner-usb-box.html

EDIT:
Not as dear as I expected
http://www.buydvb.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=108

had the blackgold cards in the past, highly recommended, i had a 2*dvb-s2/2*dvb-t and it was rock solid

TBS do a 'card in a box' that is connected by USB

mossym

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Not a dongle and pricey, but USB connected ....
http://www.tbsdtv.com/products/tbs5922se-dvb-s2-tv-tuner-usb-box.html

EDIT:
Not as dear as I expected
http://www.buydvb.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=108



TBS do a 'card in a box' that is connected by USB

Nice find. Overcomes the problem I said by using an external power adapter so it doesn't take power form usb

Johnboy1951

mossym wrote: »

Nice find. Overcomes the problem I said by using an external power adapter so it doesn't take power form usb

Yep.

But if I was to start out from scratch I think I would splurge on one of these with cards of my choice, in place of building a HTPC myself

http://www.buydvb.net/moi-pro-dvb-iptv-streaming-server-basic-version-without-dvb-tuner-p-103.html

Rob1984

mossym wrote: »

DVB-S has to provide a voltage level back to the dish to the LNB, so highly unlikely you'll find a usb one due to the power restrictions

had the blackgold cards in the past, highly recommended, i had a 2*dvb-s2/2*dvb-t and it was rock solid

Are the BlackGold PCI cards capable of powering the LNB ? I would like the the aerial and dish to be combined down the one cable and then split (filtered) before going in to the card, as there is one cable already in place. This is this possible while supplying the LNB voltage ?

Wheeker

Rob1984 wrote: »

Are the BlackGold PCI cards capable of powering the LNB ? I would like the the aerial and dish to be combined down the one cable and then split (filtered) before going in to the card, as there is one cable already in place. This is this possible while supplying the LNB voltage ?

Yes indeed the Blackgold PCI-e cards are capable of powering an LNB. I have used mine in the same cable scenario as you have described with no bother. BTW- I have a Blackgold BGT 3540 (dual DVB-S & dual DVB-T), I've been keeping it as a spare but sure if you're interested in buying it PM me.

FWIW- I've also used a variety of USB/PCI/PCI-e TV Tuners: Blackgold, TBS, Hauppauge, Avermedia, Compro, Technotrend & K-World. They've all worked well for me, except the Compro. The Blackgold definitely has the best build quality.

Alun

Digital Devices (http://digitaldevices.de/home/) have some interesting cards too. You can start with a base card and add on extra modules, either DVB-S or DVB-T to create whatever combination you want up to 8 tuners in total. It's all a bit complicated though, and although parts of the site are in English, not of all of it is.

Rob1984

Thanks all for the info.

I made my decision. I just bought DVBSky T9580 PCIe card (1x DVB-S2 & 1x DVB-T2 / DVB-C Tuner). I would have gone for a blackgold, but the cheapest on for my requirements was out of stock everywhere.

Any recommendations on the best Windows TV software to go with my tuner ?

captain_boycott

Rob1984 wrote: »

Thanks all for the info.

I made my decision. I just bought DVBSky T9580 PCIe card (1x DVB-S2 & 1x DVB-T2 / DVB-C Tuner). I would have gone for a blackgold, but the cheapest on for my requirements was out of stock everywhere.

Any recommendations on the best Windows TV software to go with my tuner ?

I tried plenty of them, but ended up going with Mediaportal as it was the easiest to get working with 7 day EPG, plus had interface to Kodi clients.