[mythtv-users] New Comcast DTA, grrrrrrrr.

[Tom Hayward]

On Thu, Apr 30, 2015 at 1:54 PM, Craig Huff <huffcslists at gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm still using my circa 1998 Sharp 27" CRT TV, so HD is irrelevant.  I may
> one day switch to something like the Ceton InfiniTV 6, but inertia and other
> projects (like my never ending attempts at migration from Ubuntu 10.04 based
> MythTV 0.23.20100314-1 !!!) make this a low priority.
>
> My set up is four DTAs controlled by hardwired optoisolator links plugged
> into the rear IR extender ports (in lieu of IR LEDs taped to the DTA faces
> with attendant cross-talk issues) from an IguanaWorks USB iguanaIR
> transceiver feeding two Channel 3 & 4 signal combiners which in turn feed
> into a pair of Hauppauge PVR-500 PCI capture cards.  No firewire involved,
> just USB and video signals.  Yeah, I'm paying Comcast $16 per month for the
> DTAs, but it hasn't been painful enough to justify buying a $280 "fix".
> Besides, I suspect that I'd have a _big_ problem getting anything like the
> Ceton to work with my current Ubuntu 10.04 / MythTV 0.23 system.  Even with
> my current capability to record four shows concurrently, I occasionally have
> recordings that get postponed to later due to overloaded programming, so two
> or three stream (channel?) devices would have to be bought in multiples,
> upping the capital outlay.  So I endure. ;-)

I apologize for trying to solve a different problem than the one you
asked about, but I still think you'd be better served by a CableCard
tuner. The price of the CableCard varies by franchise, but on my
Comcast bill it results in a net $1 credit. The HDHomeRun Prime
handles SD just the same as HD (but you'd be ready for HD when your TV
eventually dies). They're currently $100 on Amazon. Assuming you ditch
the DTAs, that'll pay for itself in six months. Double that if you
want 6 tuners instead of 3. It's an Ethernet device, so you don't need
to worry about drivers in Ubuntu. The MPEG data gets dumped straight
to disk, so it's a lossless process with minimal CPU usage.

The HDHomeRun is cheaper than the Ceton, but that's an option too.
Other than the price and connection method, all the same details above
apply.

Also, yuck, upgrade that 0.23 system!

Tom