Looking for TV Wonder Elite Advice

[Ross]

Getting ready to install ATI TV Wonder Elite on Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE). Hoping to have the best of all worlds with their Theater 550 Pro and GPPVR's software and EPG. Any advice or tips on the installation of both? Should I install the ATI card and their software (PowerCinima) first and THEN intall GBPVR second? Or the other way around? Will GBPVR replace the PowerCinima software completely once I set the appropriate settings? Will my MCE interface at all with GBPVR? Anything else I should know about?

[sub]

Should I install the ATI card and their software (PowerCinima) first and THEN intall GBPVR second? Or the other way around?

I dont think it really matters.

Will GBPVR replace the PowerCinima software completely once I set the appropriate settings?

GB-PVR doesnt need anything from PowerCinema, so you can think of them as entirely separate apps. Just dont run them at the same time since they both want to us ethe same capture device.

Will my MCE interface at all with GBPVR?

Not really sure what you're asking here.

You need to remember to stop a couple of services on MCE, otherwise the capture device will be in use and GB-PVR will not be able to access it.

[GAR]

Let me know what you think of the card. I tried the same card last week with GB-PVR and had very noticeable motion artifacts. There were no driver adjustments that I knew of, so I returned the card and went back to using the PVR-150.

[Ross]

I will let you know. I am nervous as heck about installing the card so it may take a while. I keep thinking that the "perfect" TV Tuner Card will come on the market and once I unpack and install the ATI Elite, I won't be able exchange it. But I must say I am very grateful for Sub and GVPVR. I think they have solved my biggest concerns about being able to have an EPG with my Tuner Card. I will definately make a donation for all the work that has gone into this and especially for having this forum to get all my questions answered.

[GAR]

Ross, I initially purchased the PVR-350 but had dissapointing reception on the upper channels and there were few tweaks that could be performed to improve the quality of the encoded mpeg. I also tried the ATI Wonder Elite and had problems with the extreme motion artifacts. I'm now using the PVR-150 and have tried the many different driver sets and tweaks to get good results. There's still some visual anomolies, but out of the 3 cards I tried, the PVR-150 is the best for me at the moment. There will always be something new and better coming out in the future. Let us know how the Elite works.

[Ross]

I will surely let you know. I may not get it installed for a week or so. I can see why you would want to replace the PowerCinama software that comes the ATI. But why would you want to replace the Hauppauge software. I had heard it was pretty decent and came with a good TV program scheduler.

[GAR]

I haven't looked at the software that came with the Hauppauge card yet. The look and feel of GB-PVR was enough for me to stay with it. I've always liked third party software better than the bundled applications.