Installing GB-PVR w/ a PVR-350 - some Q's...

[nzmike]

Hi,

I've installed my PVR-350 in my HTPC and am planning to use GB-PVR but I'm not sure about these things:

1.  Do I need to install the WinTV and WinScheduler if I'm only planning to use GB-PVR?

2. If not, should I install them anyway to make sure the card works properly *then* install GB-PVR?  Or should I just go ahead and install GB-PVR anyway?

3. If I use the A/V output on the PVR-350 how can I use SCART? My TV (a Loewe) has SCART inputs which I want to use - can you get a cable that goes from the A/V out to SCART? If not, am I stuck with using S-Video?

4. Do all the functions of GB-PVR work via the A/V out of the PVR-350... ie: will it stream music and non-MPEG2 streams?  

5. How do I connect it all up? The instructions are pretty useless for a newbie so here's what I've done:
- Connected the RF out of my satellite box (Foxtel Australia) to the TV-in connector on the PVR-350.
- Connected the TV out of my video card (FX5200) to the S-Video input on my TV (since I can't use SCART until I get the right cable)
Is this right? If so, how does the PVR-350 tell the cable box to change channels?

Hope soneone can help me here... I searched the forums but couldn't see any answers to these Q's.

TIA...

Mike

[reven]

Quote[/b] (nzmike @ Jan. 30 2005,12:40)]

Quote[/b] ]1. Do I need to install the WinTV and WinScheduler if I'm only planning to use GB-PVR?

no

Quote[/b] ]2. If not, should I install them anyway to make sure the card works properly *then* install GB-PVR? Or should I just go ahead and install GB-PVR anyway?

DONT install anything from the hauppauge cd that came with the 350! the drivers never work that well, the 350 has had a lot of problems with the drivers from hauppauge. goto http://www.shspvr.com and in their forums they have the latest beta drivers for it, download and use them, otherwise you'll get lockups.

Quote[/b] ]3. If I use the A/V output on the PVR-350 how can I use SCART? My TV (a Loewe) has SCART inputs which I want to use - can you get a cable that goes from the A/V out to SCART? If not, am I stuck with using S-Video?

you should be able to get a svideo/composite converter to SCART from dicksmith.

Quote[/b] ]4. Do all the functions of GB-PVR work via the A/V out of the PVR-350... ie: will it stream music and non-MPEG2 streams?

you'll need to hook up the audio out of the 350 to the line in of your soundcard, and then use the line out of that to your tv, since the 350 only decodes some audio. no biggy.

Quote[/b] ]5. How do I connect it all up? The instructions are pretty useless for a newbie so here's what I've done:
- Connected the RF out of my satellite box (Foxtel Australia) to the TV-in connector on the PVR-350.
- Connected the TV out of my video card (FX5200) to the S-Video input on my TV (since I can't use SCART until I get the right cable)
Is this right? If so, how does the PVR-350 tell the cable box to change channels?

if you can tune in channels on a normal tv from the sat box, you do the same process in gbpvr, under "capture sources" it asks for the "channel" which you can find using the "tuning assitant", if you have to use the decoder to decode channels and change channels on that, you're going to need a IR blaster.

[nzmike]

Thanks reven - I appreciate the help.

In the meantime of course I went ahead and installed the stupid Hauppauge drivers and software and have had nothing but trouble... perhaps I should uninstall everything (drivers, software etc) then just start again with the drivers from http://www.shspvr.com (which I found the other day - great site!

To use the PVR-350's A/V output I attached the A/V-out cable that comes with the '350 to a SCART cable that was previously going from my analog satellite box to my video.  I connected L and R audio out and video out and I do now get a picture from the satellite box - but the quality is appalling... very very grainy and blocky and with slightly muffled sound.  Could that be because I'm using the RF out of the cable box to go into the PVR-350 or isthat usually something else that causes that?  I also only get a picture from the terrestrial channels... cable channels are just a grey fuzz and very muffled audio so I'm not very happy at all so far.  

Quote[/b] ]
if you can tune in channels on a normal tv from the sat box, you do the same process in gbpvr, under "capture sources" it asks for the "channel" which you can find using the "tuning assitant", if you have to use the decoder to decode channels and change channels on that, you're going to need a IR blaster.

No, my Foxtel box doesn't seem to be able to tune into terrestrial channels (or if it does I don't know how)... I think I rang Foxtel once and asked them how to do it and they said it couldn't be done on the box I have.  It seems that I definately need to use the A/V out (and therefore the decoder?) so I guess that does mean I need an IRBlaster - can you recommend one? (I know nothing about them to be honest).

What I can't work out from the crappy Hauppauge instructions is the best way to connect my satellite box to the PVR-350... is it via RF-out from the satbox?  I'm sure that's why I'm getting such a bad picture and sound but not sure what the alternative method of conenction would be.

So far I've gotta admit I'm just really frustrated with the whole thing - I can wire up any audio and video setup but I can't seem to work out how best to do it with the PVR-350!

Mike

[reven]

connect the svideo or composite output from the sat box to the svideo input of the 350, its better quality than antenna. go to the wiki to find out more info about IR Blasters (http://gbpvr.bladerhq.com), ive got one on my 150, but i have nothing to blast. im just using plain antenna input for my 350, and the quality i find is excellent. so if you're finding the quality to be rubbish, play around with different input methods, also record a file, play in back in windows media player and see what the quality is like, the tv out quality should be better than the quality in windows media player, if it isnt, at least you know that the input quality is fine, and its something to do with output.