[mythtv-users] pcHDTV 5500 must be set as Analog V4L, hiss, boo

[Michael Basus]

>From: Jim Carter <jimc at math.ucla.edu>
>To: Discussion about mythtv <mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
>CC: Michael Basus <lodurr8 at hotmail.com>
>Subject: Re: [mythtv-users] pcHDTV 5500 must be set as Analog V4L, hiss, 
>boo
>Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2007 12:53:49 -0700 (PDT)
>
>On Mon, 16 Jul 2007, Michael Basus wrote:
>
> > I've gotten DVB drivers to work by setting up two input sources for the
> > card.  I set up the "Television" input source as normal, and set up the
> > "DVB" input source with some dummy data--in this case, the same analog 
>cable
> > data as the "Television" source.  When I start live tv, it starts on the
> > blank DVB input source, but then I hit "C" and it switches to the 
>Television
> > source and all is well--until I try to schedule a recording.  Every
> > recording I schedule has a "Recorder Failed" error that looks like this 
>in
> > the log:
>
>OK, you got farther than I did -- setting up the card as DVB, I never saw
>anything on the analog source.  I'll give it a try and see if, for me, it
>also bogusly tries to set up the DVB tuner.  You are using version 0.20 of
>MythTV, aren't you?  That's my version.

Yep.

>Hmm, if you select a show from the guide and tell the backend to record it,
>my understanding is that the backend is smart enough to pick the "best"
>data source, i.e. DVB.  Perhaps if the guide data attached to the DVB
>section lacked the show you wanted to record, the backend would pick the
>analog section and succeed.  Now, how do you create an empty or irrelevant
>programming source?  I used "none"; I'm assuming that my choice was
>ineffective.

I tried that.  I added a local digital cable service to my Zap2it account.  
I can't even watch Live TV with that setup--I get no picture from tuned 
channels, and after leaving live TV mode and trying to come back, it tells 
me it's busy recording on all inputs (which is false).  The problem with 
that idea in general is that I can't actually scan and add any channels for 
the digital cable service that I don't have.  I have to leave mythtv-setup 
without giving my DVB input any channels, and that might be part of the 
problems I experienced.

> > Back to your message, are you saying you got V4L to work without any 
>hitches
> > on your 5500?  If that's the case I can look to updating drivers or a
> > reinstall to remedy my problems, and just use V4L since analog cable is 
>all
> > I have.
>
>Right, as far as I can see there is no fault with the card or drivers if
>you use V4L (analog only).  There have been issues between keyboard and
>chair, and the machine is seriously underpowered (Pentium III "Coppermine"
>at 1.0 GHz, 256 Mb RAM,  40 Gb disc) but is just barely able to do a proof
>of concept before I blow away MCE and migrate to the new machine.

I'd just settle for that.  Anyway, even when you set your card as a DVB 
card, the Television inputs have "V4L" in front of them--the input quality 
should be about the same.  The other day I bit the bullet and bought a 
Hauppage WinTV PVR-150, and instantly everything worked (although now I'm 
spending hours trying to fix the low volume/poor sound quality problem I 
have, oh and the card itself is extra wide and I had to pry my form factor 
case open so the circuit board didn't make contact with it).  Scheduling 
recordings works, live TV works, and there's no encoding being done by the 
CPU.  My conclusion is that the pcHDTV-5500 is simply a bad buy if you're 
planning on only using its analog capabilities for any amount of time.

-Mike

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