[mythtv-users] Digital cable and two tuner cards

[Steve Frank]

mythtv-users-bounces at mythtv.org wrote:
> mythtv-users-bounces at mythtv.org <> wrote:
>> I'm working on setting up a MythTV system with two tuner cards so I
>> can do picture-in-picture, record two programs at once, or watch a
>> different channel from what I'm recording.
>> 
>> Anyway, I have digital cable, and I understand that to use it with
>> MythTV (or any HTPC), I need to routh the signal through the digital
>> cable box first, then use a serial cable or IR blaster to change the
>> channel. That's the setup I intend to use with the first card, but it
>> raises two questions I hope someone can help with:
>> 
>> 1) If I do this, aren't the tuner capabilities of the PVR-250 and
>> similar cards useless? Does any company offer an MPEG encoder card
>> without a tuner (at a better price, of course). Am I wrong about
>> this? 
>> 
>> 2) For the second tuner/encoder card, I intend to connect it directly
>> to the cable. I realize this will prevent me from getting channels
>> over 125 (or maybe 60, I've heard different reports). This is fine,
>> since It will only be used if I want to watch a second channel. As
>> long as I can get ESPN or CNN, or my girlfriend can find something to
>> watch while I record the Bloodhound Gang's video back catalog on
>> channel 700 (or whatever). Is there any reason why this wouldn't
>> work? And if I later conned comcast into giving me a second cable
>> decoder box, could MythTV handle changing channels on 2 boxes
>> separately with IR blasters? 
>> 
>> Thanks,
>> 
>> Nathan Richardson
>> 
>> Setup (planned)
>> Asus Pundit
>> Celeron 2.4GHz
>> Hauppauge 250 (x2, unless there is a cheaper solution as above) 512MB
>> RAM
> 
> This seems like a pretty basic question - one, I would like
> to understand also. Does anyone know the answer?
> 
> Thanks - Richard

1) The tuner is unused.  This config is how I'm set up.

2) It works, I have a PVR-350 for a primary card slaved to my Motorola
Cable box, and in front of that box is a splitter which takes an analog
signal to a second card (an M179) which I do use the tuner with. I had
to fiddle with mythtvsetup to get it to go.  Once something is recording
in mythtv and the PVR-350 is consumed and I go to watch tv, the system
brings up the analog tuned feed on the M179.  I've not gotten PIP to
work in this, so any insight would be helpful.  

BTW, using 2 IR blasters is an interesting problem to solve. My Moto
cable box is a DCT2000 series and I'm connecting to it via a serial
cable and an external channel changer.  I WISH it had SVIDEO out, I'm
using composite and the quality is a little less than I would hope for.

Steve