[mythtv-users] Full alsa sound

Michael T. Dean mtdean at thirdcontact.com
Tue Mar 2 02:01:30 UTC 2010


On 03/01/2010 08:31 PM, Brent Bolin wrote:
> On Mon, Mar 1, 2010 at 6:07 PM, Michael T. Dean wrote:
>    
>> On 03/01/2010 06:30 PM, Brent Bolin wrote:
>>      
>>> It gave me the ability to drop Comcast and only use OTA broadcasts and
>>> DVD media.  Saving one bunch of money on recurring billing.
>>>        
>> Yeah.  I do the same.  I spend a /lot/ less buying DVD's of the cable-only
>> shows I care to watch than I would spend on a cable subscription--and I
>> don't have to put up with the cable company and their customer service
>> (which, as Mastercard would say, is "priceless").
>>
>> That said, if you take all the money I've spent on MythTV over the years and
>> compare that to the cost of a TiVo w/ subscription for the same time period,
>> I'm spending a /lot/ more on my luxury DVR than I would on another DVR
>> solution.  Note that this ignores the cost of the cable subscription--which
>> is irrelevant to the cost of MythTV.  Whether you use MythTV or not, you
>> have the option of "voting with your wallet" against the local cable
>> monopoly and choosing to use OTA.  (In other words, OTA instead of cable can
>> save you money, but MythTV does not generally save money--and if it's even a
>> close comparison, you're probably doing something wrong.  :)
>>      
> Maybe...  Back end server with (2) HD5500, (1) Dvico FusionHDTV7
>
> Three  ZOTAC ION ITX A frontend using m350 cases
>
> Comcast Xinfinity and beyond... $180.00X12 = $2160 with no movie channels
>
> Hardware is just about already paid for.
>    

Again:
----
Note that this ignores the cost of the cable subscription--which
is irrelevant to the cost of MythTV.  Whether you use MythTV or not, you
have the option of "voting with your wallet" against the local cable
monopoly and choosing to use OTA.  (In other words, OTA instead of cable can
save you money, but MythTV does not generally save money--and if it's even a
close comparison, you're probably doing something wrong.  :)
-----

MythTV is *not* saving you the cost of your cable subscription.  Just 
like you were saying most people don't know that there's an option for 
receiving TV other than cable and satellite, most people don't realize 
there's an option for having a DVR other than cable-/satellite-company 
DVR's--TiVo.

You can use OTA *without* MythTV and you can still have a DVR with OTA, 
using TiVo.

So, the only money MythTV saves over a cable TV DVR is the cost of 
renting the STB, itself.  The cable versus OTA savings can *not* be 
included in the "savings" from using MythTV.

How's this:

Cable company DVR: $6/mo time 12 mos = $72
MythTV hardware (from your "about already paid for" comment): > $2160

or even if your cable co charges $15/mo for a high-definition DVR, 
that's still only $180 after a year.  So...

But since you can't use a cable-co DVR with OTA, you'd use TiVo, which 
will cost you anywhere from $50 to a few hundred dollars for the 
hardware, then a subscription cost of $12.95/mo, $129/yr, $299/3yr, or 
$399 for the hardware's lifetime.  So, even if you get the TiVo HD XL ( 
http://www.tivo.com/dvr-products/tivo-hd-xl-dvr/index.html dual-tuner 
150hr DVR) for $499 (their most expensive STB) and pay $399 for the 
lifetime service, you're still only at $898.  (And, I've heard that it's 
easy enough to add storage to a TiVo.)

Besides, you're not even factoring in power cost and a *lot* of other 
expenses involved in running MythTV.

MythTV is *not* a cheap DVR--despite what people will tell you.

That said, if you go with TiVo or cable-/satellite-co DVR's, you lack a 
/lot/ of the functionality MythTV provides.  So, you're paying more for 
MythTV, but you're getting more.

So the only thing saving you $2160/yr is your *decision* to forgo cable 
TV.  MythTV is *not* saving you that money.

Mike


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