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  1. About 2 years back, I bought a $50 TV tuner card for my PC. Is was a ATI TV Wonder VE. When I installed it with the software and connected it directly with the coaxial cable I was only able to watch around 10 channels. So I reurned it because I wasn't happy with watching only 10 channels. Now I was thinking, would it be possible to connect the incoming coaxial cable to a cable box and from the cable box go to a PC tuner card, so then all the channels are available for viewing,and from the cable box switch the channels? With a non-expensive card that is. If so, any specific brands names of tuner cards, or any analog card will do the job, meaning that all give the same audio/video quality...
    Thanks...
    Danny
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  2. Member glockjs's Avatar
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    yeah it would be just like anything else, turn the tuner card to channel 3 or 4 and switch channels through the box....ya might wanna consider hooking the video up via s-video if you plan on making any captures
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    or any analog card will do the job, meaning that all give the same audio/video quality...
    No, but you may not notice that the "card" has a poor tuner as you will only be using one channel, either 3 or 4 as a pass through.

    That only addresses the quality as to the tuner part of the capture device.
    The overall quality will be dependant on the ability of the device to capture good quality period, your system.

    The only thing you will be doing is to bypass the built in tuner of the card itself. (to some extent, depending on how you connect imput)
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  4. I have that Ati Card.I was able to watch every channel that i had..I'm i reading your post wrong? Because it sounds like maybe it wasnt set up right??
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  5. Canadateck, I connected directly to the tuner card, no device in between. I only got local channels, no cable channels at all. I did a split connection, one going to my TV cable box and one going to my computer. Did you connect that tuner card with a cable box?
    Danny
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  6. Most video capture cards have both cable coax and composite or S-video inputs.

    Using the cable coax input (directly from the wall, bypassing the cable box) you can tune all the analog stations (except the premium channels) but not the digital channels. You will be able to record while whatching something else on the TV. The cable box doesn't even need to be on for this to work.

    You could split the cable coax between the cable box and the TV. In this case the capture card should be tuned to channel 3 or 4 (whatever you're TV is tuned to) and you can only record what the cable box is tuned to. But you will also be able to record encrypted premium channels and digital channels.

    Most cable boxes have compisite and s-video outputs. If your capture card has these inputs you can watch and record any channel your cable box can receive. The picture quality for for analog channels may be slightly better than using coax, and for digitial channels will be much better than coax.
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  7. Originally Posted by bambamrl
    Canadateck, I connected directly to the tuner card, no device in between. I only got local channels, no cable channels at all. I did a split connection, one going to my TV cable box and one going to my computer. Did you connect that tuner card with a cable box?
    The problem may have been that the card had a TV tuner, not a cable tuner. Or you may have set the software up that way.
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  8. Is what you have..The ATI TV Wonder VE "PCI" Not sure if they ever made a VE agp card..But anyway. With my cable i get like 54 channels. Now this is not digital Cable.Just REG Cable. With this card All that needed to been done was conect the cable wire "coax" comming from the wall to the Card and i had all the channels and could capture all of them..If this is what you are doing and you are only getting 10 Channels.. There is somthing not right with the way the software is set up.OR maybe the card is not working right..
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  9. The problem may have been that the card had a TV tuner, not a cable tuner. Or you may have set the software up that way.[/quote]

    Is there a differece between tv tuner or cable tuner cards?
    Danny
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  10. I had the regular PCI card.
    Danny
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  11. Originally Posted by bambamrl
    Is there a differece between tv tuner or cable tuner cards?
    This I have no idea but i dont think so.



    But seems we have the same card.there must be a problem with the way you installed it. Because mine shows all the channels i have with cable.
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  12. In the USA channels 2 to 13 are common to both broadcast TV and cable TV. But channels above that are separate. Most TV tuner and video capture cards for the PC ask which band you want to use when you install the software.
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  13. Originally Posted by junkmalle
    In the USA channels 2 to 13 are common to both broadcast TV and cable TV. But channels above that are separate. Most TV tuner and video capture cards for the PC ask which band you want to use when you install the software.
    You mean the free channels you get without having Cable T.V? we have a few free channels to, But it all comes from the same Cable wire.The card i have i bought on ebay from the US. I think i remeber it asked to do an auto Chanel search, You can also Skip that option, but then you will only have afew channels.
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  14. Originally Posted by canadateck
    Originally Posted by junkmalle
    In the USA channels 2 to 13 are common to both broadcast TV and cable TV. But channels above that are separate. Most TV tuner and video capture cards for the PC ask which band you want to use when you install the software.
    You mean the free channels you get without having Cable T.V?
    Yes, cable channels 2 to 13 are the same frequencies as you get with an an antenna (broadcast). Broadcast channels 14+ are different than cable channels 14+ -- so to tune those channels you need to tell the software which system you are using. If you are in another country you might have different frequencies still.
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  15. Originally Posted by junkmalle
    Originally Posted by canadateck
    Originally Posted by junkmalle
    In the USA channels 2 to 13 are common to both broadcast TV and cable TV. But channels above that are separate. Most TV tuner and video capture cards for the PC ask which band you want to use when you install the software.
    You mean the free channels you get without having Cable T.V?
    Yes, cable channels 2 to 13 are the same frequencies as you get with an an antenna (broadcast). Broadcast channels 14+ are different than cable channels 14+ -- so to tune those channels you need to tell the software which system you are using. If you are in another country you might have different frequencies still.
    Ok but what we want to prove here is that His card will Show more channels then 1 to 10. And i think we have.He must have installed wrong.what do you think?
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  16. When I used the card before returning it, I only used the ATI software to view the channels. I still remember how bad that software was. It didn't give me a lot of options. I'm thinking of getting the ATI wonder PRO. Is there another software that IS BETTER than ATI software to view channels?
    Danny
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