cable box+tuner card how?

[yomanwill]

Background:
For the past 5 years I have paid $13.25 for 60 channels then Comcast just flicked the switch and only broadcasts in HD (no notice nothing just a blue screen that says to call them up) and now I have to pay $30 month and $8 in rental fees. (and for some reason all of the HD boxes are backordered, you would think if they were going to switch over the folks that have HD TVs might want an HD box) so I am stuck using the hd to analog box.

I have two tuners in the computer ATI 550pro + Kworld plustv hd 115.


I just bought the Kworld tuner thinking that Comcast might broadcast a few channels in unencrypted QAM but it looks like the only things I can get is 60 really poor music channels.

Actual question:
Anyway the question is how do I get the cable box to work with my tuner? I would assume an IR blaster but I don’t believe that my tuner card supports an ir blaster, so would I have to buy a new tuner card? Thinking about returning the Kworld tuner and picking up a Hauppauge 1600, and tossing the ati 550 on ebay.

They give out cable cards free so are there any tuners that support them yet?

[sub]

Actual question:
Anyway the question is how do I get the cable box to work with my tuner? I would assume an IR blaster but I don’t believe that my tuner card supports an ir blaster, so would I have to buy a new tuner card? Thinking about returning the Kworld tuner and picking up a Hauppauge 1600, and tossing the ati 550 on ebay.

You can add an external IR Blaster like a USB-UIRT or even the Microsoft MCE remote/blaster. Alternatively replace your kworld tuner with a card that includes an ir blaster.

They give out cable cards free so are there any tuners that support them yet?

No, not really. There is one ATI device but you can only buy it with a complete PC and it only works with MCE.