Need help with complete GBPVR solution

[Innocence]

I'm trying to find a solid solution for watching and recording LiveTV on several TVs, other media (pictures, music etc.) being of secondary importance.

GBPVR sounds really interresting, but even after searching the forum and wiki, I've got a lot of unresolved question. Here's the setup:

MediaPC
The PC I'll be using as media center is a 4GB, Core2 Quad PC running Vista 64-bit.
This PC will handle all media, including the TV signal (2-3 tuners) and will be locked up in the basement (inaccessible).
Ethernet wired hardware extender are needed for each TV set.
GBPVR Question: Does GBPVR work on Vista 64-bit?

Tuners
The signal is cable (DVB-C). Analogue signal is free, but all digital content is subscription based, so I'll need digital tuners with CI, Irdeto CAM modules and a valid subscription card pr. tuner.
So far the only DVB-C tuners featuring CI supporting this seems to be FireDTV and Terratech Cinergy, the latter selling at about half the price of the former.
GBPVR Question 1: Does GBPVR support this setup?
GBPVR Question 2: If so, is FireDTV so much better than the Terratech to validate twice the cost?

Extenders
I'll need support for HD 1080p and surround sound.
I've read a lot about the GBPVR client for the Popcorn Hour media streamer, but I can't figure out if this client is still very alpha.
GBPVR Question: Is the PCH/GBPVR combo ready for general use (rest of the familiy), who will primary use it for LiveTV and TV recording/viewing?

[JonnyCam]

While I can't answer a lot of your questions, I hve a go with some:

Tuners Q1: I am pretty sure you can use a multidec plugin & subscription card with reader instead of CI modules. I'm unsure if they CI modules are even supported at all.
I think Sub will bew the best to answer regarding this, and the best DVB-C cards, as he has probably tried them.

Extenders: The software is not really alpha - but waiting for the makers of the popcorn hour to release more code so mvelland can enhance it.

I use it, and my partner is able to use it without any trouble.
The biggest problem was having to load telnet before gbpvr when starting from a cold boot - but that has been fixed with nice auto-loading html front pages where you can just select GBPVR, and away it goes.

[sub]

Sorry, CI modules are not supported. As mentioned, multidec support can be used for viewing these channels in some countries.

[Innocence]

I see. I've never heard of MultiDec but luckily I've got a friend called Google.

I've read the nice guide on http://www.hyperlinkx.com/pmwiki/pmwiki....s.MultiDec. Does this mean I'll only need one cardreader and one subscription card total for the whole system, or will I need one such combination pr. tuner I install?

Not needing a CI+CAM+extra card will greatly reduce cost of each tuner - if this multidec/softcam solution is stable, it sounds almost too good to be true.

Has anyone here been running it for a long time?

[aflat]

As fort he 64Bit question, yes it does. I'm using it now on 64bit Vista, but I disabled UAC, so I'm not sure if that would cause issues if you still have it enabled.

[Innocence]

As fort he 64Bit question, yes it does. I'm using it now on 64bit Vista, but I disabled UAC, so I'm not sure if that would cause issues if you still have it enabled.

Good point. I've been running Windows 3.x, 95, 98, 2000 and XP, but Vista is the first one trying to protect the users at the OS level. This is fine for daily use, but when fiddling with multiple pieces of software and drives like this media solution, turning off User Access Control for administrators is definitely the way to go.

[tuckster]

I am looking for a solution like the original poster. Does PCH do livetv or will it only access recorded programming?

[sub]

It also does live tv, but it takes about 10 seconds to change channels, so I dont think you'd want to do all you live tv viewing that way.

[Innocence]

It also does live tv, but it takes about 10 seconds to change channels, so I dont think you'd want to do all you live tv viewing that way.

Oh... I was convinced I saw a demonstration on YouTube showing PCH+GBPVR doing 1 second LiveTV channel switches?

[sub]

Martin is experimenting with improvements for a future version. It'll probably be a while away though since there is still lots to be done.

It definitely wont be one second channel changes though. It'd be more realistic to hope for 3 seconds. Any shorter would be nice, but may not be achievable in real world usage.