3 Tuners not enough for consecutive shows?

[Spark]

As more and more of the cable companies here in the US eliminate clear QAM, it would be really great if sub could come up with a method to get padding on consecutive shows on the same channel with Cablecard recordings.

There isn't anything that sub could do about the restrictions that the cablecards FORCE the hardware makers.
This is how cablecards operate, and all fault is with them.

They could have allowed multiple streams from one source, like with QAM, but, since the idiots are in charge, they won't allow that. :mad:

Wish all cable companies would drop the damn DRM, it just makes paying customers PO'ed, and pirates laugh.

However, having said that, I suppose it is possible for NPVR to see that the tuner will be in use for X hours on the same channel, and it could just record the whole thing as one big file, and then,when done, split the file up into the two shows. Wouldn't be perfect, since who knows when they actually end the show, but, it may be good enough for most.

[RedPenguin]

That's actually what I've been doing somewhat. Setting up consecutive shows as manual's and just documenting the episode titles (if show doesn't already have in opening), otherwise I'd prob have way more problems when I have recordings on different channels close to each other.

Seems so stupid to have 3 digital tuners, in which digital was praised as multiple (sub)channels at once per tuner, then for a CableCARD to take you back to the analog stone-age of one program/channel per tuner. It just seems like so much fun and makes you wonder why you buy a digital tuner other than to gain HD and a tad better quality.

[mvallevand]

Seems so stupid to have 3 digital tuners, in which digital was praised as multiple (sub)channels at once per tuner, then for a CableCARD to take you back to the analog stone-age of one program/channel per tuner. It just seems like so much fun and makes you wonder why you buy a digital tuner other than to gain HD and a tad better quality.

For HD channels you probably were optimistic. Even with QAM 256 many still use QAM 64 you only have the bandwidth about 3 HD channel on one mux compressed lower quality then ATSC Yyou would be at the mercy of your cable co on putting the popular networks on the same mux not good odds with 100's of HD channels.

Martin

[RedPenguin]

For HD channels you probably were optimistic. Even with QAM 256 many still use QAM 64 you only have the bandwidth about 3 HD channel on one mux compressed lower quality then ATSC Yyou would be at the mercy of your cable co on putting the popular networks on the same mux not good odds with 100's of HD channels.

Martin

Yea, I know about the 3 HD "limit". They do use QAM 256 and 3 HD's per channel or sometimes maybe 10 SD's with 1 HD, or however they feel their VBR video/audio will "balance" out.

I just was a tad bummed when my HDHomeRun DUAL can record multiple channels in ClearQAM on the same tuner, like 84.1, 84.2, etc. Yet an HDHomeRun PRIME with CableCARD loses that exact same ability on the exact same company when playing encrypted channels or even some ClearQAM channels the card maps to that are in the Limited Basic package.

[jrockow]

RedPenguin

"Is there anyway to get another HDHomeRun Prime or similar unit and "link" it, in a way that NextPVR can use it, without paying for another CableCARD? "

I run 2 cablecard tuners and actually get credit ($2.50 each) off my bill for using them, instead of a Comcast STB.

[RedPenguin]

RedPenguin

"Is there anyway to get another HDHomeRun Prime or similar unit and "link" it, in a way that NextPVR can use it, without paying for another CableCARD? "

I run 2 cablecard tuners and actually get credit ($2.50 each) off my bill for using them, instead of a Comcast STB.

Yea they seem to do it so differently in my area. For the longest time we were mostly analog with extra digital add-ons. To support TiVo Romario Boxes, they started doing digital simulcast's of all the analogs. So technically it's analog cable with a CableCard $2/mo to access the simulcasts. So no credits due to not technically needing a STB to begin with.

I prefer the digital simulcasts completely to the analog for recording due to depending on where you have to split the cable, you get snow and other junk, the digital seems to be mostly unaffected by splits unless you go insane and the signal drops, I suppose.