Hauppage 950q - Before I buy

[Nuttyguy]

I just wanted to make sure the analog NTSC side of the 950q works great with NextPVR (using softPVR) before I purchase. I pay for basic analog cable (the 60+ channels) and do not need a cable box to pick up the channels on my tv. In the US, does that mean all I need is an analog NTSC tuner to pick up those channels?

Would anybody suggest anything other then the hauppage 950q? Dual tuner support isn't needed (might be fun though) and I don't need digital channels or HD support.

Thanks in advance for the help/suggestions.

[johnsonx42]

Yes, the 950q works great with NPVR. I have the 850, which is exactly a QAM-less 950Q (as opposed to the regular 950, which is actually a different chip or at least it was). That said, my long experience over multiple systems and tuners is that USB tuners work quite well, but are not quite as reliable as PCIe tuners. My HVR-2250 and HVR-1250 before it have both been rock-solid; whenever I have a problem with a tuner, 10 times out of 10 it's the HVR-850. Before that I had a KWorld ATSC-340u which also worked well but again had problems from time to time. My current KWorld ATSC-315 never causes me a problem, but it's also very lightly used.

If you have a PCIe slot available, I'd strongly recommend you look for a deal an HVR-2250. It's worth every penny and then some. Even if your budget really won't allow the HVR-2250, but you have the PCIe slot, then look at the HVR-1250; it's basically the PCIe equivalent of the HVR-950Q, a little cheaper, and much more reliable in my experience.

[Nuttyguy]

Thanks! Sounds like exactly what I need. I haven't even considered an internal tuner as an option. With this going in my HTPC in my entertainment center, it's already a pretty small case packed full. I'm sure I could make room for it but a external one just seems like it would be better with my setup.