Haupauge HVR-3000 queries

[yant]

Hi,

I'd like some opinions of the Hauppauge HVR-3000. Is it worth buying? Is it a good card? How does it compare to a skystar2 or other popular DVB-S only cards.

http://www.hauppauge.co.uk/pages/products/data_hvr3000.html

I am in the process of building a HTPC. I'd like it to be able to get DVB-S, DVB-T as well as analog input to convert old videos etc. The HVR-3000 appears to do it all in one package. It goes for about £80 which is not much more than the price of a skystar2 plus a DVB-T card. For satellite, I have an old Sky dish on my house which I plan to move to 13 deg. I am also considering buying a dual LNB for 13 deg and 19 deg.

From my total newbie to HTPC and satellite by computer perspective, I see the pros of the HVR-3000 as:

- Use only one PCI slot
- Well integrated multiple tuners. I read it is often difficult to have more than one tuner in a htpc.
- Simpler to use than multiple tuners.

Cons:

- All one one means no redundancy. If anything breaks, I lost all.
- No dvb-s2. Not important at the moment but maybe soon. Again, because of the all in one, I can't replace only the dvb-s part.
- Not as popular as the skystar2. So little forum support or third party applications.

I guess I could get away with only a DVB-S card and a VIVO graphic card and use the DVB-T and PAL tuner on my tv but that's not very user friendly.

I also have a few queries about his card:

- It is possible to record on one tuner and watch another one (or even better record two streams at the same time) (i.e. record on DVB-S while watching something on DVB-T) ?
- Is this card compatible with any CAM systems? Either softcam or a external CI and CAM card. I am not currently planning to use CAMs but I'd like to keep the option open for the future.


Thanks for any help

Yan

 

[Prophessor]

Hauppauge is good.
If you don't intend to use it to open channels go ahead and get it. I have no idea if you can use the better dvb viewers I wouldn't count on it. As for having sat and terrestrial channels working together I don't think it would work.

 

[yant]

Thanks for your reply.

So if I understand a softcam wouldn't work with that card and it wouldn't offer a daughter board for CAM and card like the skystar does but it would be fine for free to air channels.

And that I probably can't record from two of the tuners at the same time. I can live with that as long as I can use all three tuners in the card one at a time. I read that Windows Media Centre has problems with more than one TV cards into it. (MS in all their wisdom decided that we didn't need more?) Is that very difficult to get around these problems in Media Centre and do these hybrid cards solve this problem? What about ProgDVB and other programs like that?


Some more background:

I have two goals for that PC:

1- Use it as a general PVR for that I need a DVB-T card
2- Use it as a satellite receiver.
Prime target are for French kids programs for my 2 years old. I am a French-speaking Canadian and I am trying to raise my son speaking French, living in the UK and an English speaking mom so French cartoon would be great :-). I could eventually play with onlocking channels but that is not my first goal. I know I could just buy a standard receiver but it ain't as muchfun as a htpc :-)

Yan

 

[Prophessor]

I don't know much about that card, I googled around and haven't found any relevant info about it. So I suppose that "if" there is an addon card with a CAM interface on it you will get pretty much what you want as channels go at least what I have with my skystar2 (non FTA channels). But a program such as Progdvb or Altdvb is better suited for that, the two share the same plugins that do the busines, no need for an addon card with CAM.

As for FTA channels, that card will allow you to have the lot, its the most complete card I ever seen, never saw one with 3 tuners! I don't think the hardware will allow you to have both analog and digital reception, or sat and terrestrial reception. I have an analog and digital receiver and there is no way of having the two together it's hardware bound. As far as I know no receiver can do it, not even those linux based multituner ones.

There is one make that has a twin sat DVB-S and DVB-S2 (HD) receiver, plus digital terrestrial reception all in one package using addon cards. I t can even read dvds and record your stuff to a hard drive and is linux based.

This could replace your htpc and it sure has a lot better picture quality. PC cards aren't famous for having the sharppest image, it's all software based using codecs.
1000€ and you're set, it's expensive but could be the thing for you. Check it out:

_http://www.reel-multimedia.de/shop/product_info.php?products_id=116
_http://www.reel-multimedia.de/shop/index.php?cPath=32

Check the specs

ReelBox RSX:

DVB-Twin-Receiver, Digital Videorecorder DVD-Burner and Homeserver in one equipment.

Included in delivery:
» DVD-ROM Samsung (expandable)
» 2x DVB-S-Tuner (expandable)
» 128 MB RAM (main storage - expandable)
» HDD mounting-kit (HDD optional expandable)
» Disk on Chip 32 MB M-Systems
» Remote control incl. batteries

Accessories & expandability
» Mini-PCI for future increments
» Upgrade to digital interfaces (DVI/HDMI)
» Wireless (WLAN) optional via Mini-PCI
» Standard IDE-drives (DVD+R(W)/HDD)
» Quad-Tuner Technology
» exchangeable tunercards for DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-C or DVB-T
» Displaycolors: Blue, White
» Live HDTV in MPEG4 (H.264/AVC) up to 1080i
» H.264 from harddisk in Quicktime .MOV (up to 1080p)
» DIVX in .AVI from harddisk (up to 720p)
» Internet-Browser for internet-surfing (in HD)
» Multicast/IP-Streaming

System resources & operating system
» Two Processor Technology (AMD + Equator)
» living room capable, because fanless
» Linux OS & ReelVDR: Open source -> unlimited expandable
» two tuner-slots: DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-C or DVB-T useable
» 4-Tuner-Technology (optional): up to 4 Tuners useable at the same time
» 2x Common Interface-Slots - Irdeto, Conax, Alphacrypt etc.
» 1x Smartcard-Reader - Conax, Viaccess & NeotionCrypt
» Software-Update via network or CD

Digital Twin-Receiver (Satellit):
» record three channels at the same time
» 2x LNC loop through possibility
» High-Definition MPEG-2 HDTV-Modi: 480p, 720p and 1080i
» High-Definition MPEG-4 HDTV-Modi: 480p, 720p and 1080i**
» automatic channel-search
» channel switch under 1 second
» Electronic Program Guide (EPG)
» VPS support (EPG)
» timer programming over local network or internet
» parental control function
» DiSEqC level 1.0, 1.1, 1.2 and Goto X
» unlimited channel capacity for radio/TV

Personal Video Recorder (PVR):
» HDD capacity up to 320GB
» Bookmark
» Immediate Recording at the push of a button
» Automatic Search-Timer e.g. series-recording
» Recordings in best quality incl. all audio tracks
» Cutfunction, edit recordings
» "NoAd" - automatic detection of tv-advertisement
» unencrypted recording of Pay-TV
» Watch one programm, record simultaneously
» Timeshift-function
» Standby-Timer
» Record on internal/external HDD or network device

Homeserver:
» possibility to use as Streaming-Client
» Streaming-Server: Stream data in the network
» access via Samba from PC to the hdd of the ReelBox
» access from the ReelBox to Windows- and NFS-shares
» full control via FTP and Telnet; channel edit
» IP-Streaming of AV-data via LAN, WLAN, Internet
» remote access via LAN, WLAN, Internet: Standby on/out, Timer...
» MediaServer: supports Universal Plug and Play (UPnP)

Network:
» via cable: Ethernet LAN RJ-45 interface
» Wireless (WLAN) optional as Mini-PCI:
CONNECT2AIR WLAN E-5400 USB-D1700 (11g),
CONNECT2AIR WLAN E-5400 USB-D1705 (11g)

Videooutputs:
» CVBS, RGB/YUV, S-Video via SCART
» YUV via Cinch (YPbPr)
» VGA (Sub-D)
» digital interface (DVI/HDMI) expandable*

Videoinputs:
» S-Video (Hosiden)
» 1x SCART input with loopthrough function
» 1x Composite

Audiooutputs:
» AC3-Digital-Output (S/PDIF) optical and coaxial
» 6x cinch for analog surround-devices
» Stereo audiooutput (Cinch)

Audioinputs:
» S/PDIF: optical und coaxial
» Stereo-Audioinput (Cinch)

Other interfaces:
» 3x USB 1.1
» 3x FireWire
» 10/100MBit Ethernet (RJ45)

Noise development:
» noise development less 2 dB

Casing:
» fanless Designcasing (four colors available)
» Graphical LC-display
» Dimensions (W x H x D): 440 x 90 x 330 mm
» Weight incl. HDD, DVD: approx. 8kg

Supported languages:
» user-friendly On-Screen Display (OSD)
» German, English, French, Spanish, Italian, Finnish, Swedish, Grecian etc.

Remote Control:
» IR-Remote control, programmable buttons incl. TV-Databank

Guarantee:
» 24 month guarantee "Made in Germany"

* = For this function is the optional "Extension HD" (Mini-PCI card) necessary.
** = For this function is the optional "Live HD Kit" (Mini-PCI card + DVB-S2 tuner) necessary.

 

[yant]

Thanks for the reply Proph.

Quite an impressive piece of kit this receiver. I decided to go for the hauppauge since I am set on a HTPC. Hopefully this card is not a mistake compared to a SkyStar. Oh well, if I don't like it, I can probably sell it on ebay for twice what I paid :-)

I'll post again in this thread when I get the whole thing up and running to let peoples know how it went.

Yan

 

[eolhc]

Have had problems with the satellite tuner on the hvr-3000
Rest of the card works fine, but the satellite tuner crashes any software I try use with it
Even a fresh up to date windows xp sp2 system with no other pci cards installed had this problem
Would not recommend this card