Digital Cable TV capture

[harky]

Hi all,
Here is my another help need.


I want to ask how to capture live cable TV?
Which device can direct record ts and save it to hdd?
It in digital HD
It pay cable provider + FRee air

Work like a DVD hdd recorder


It a setup box , which can bypass by composite, s-video, component, or HDMI?


If possible i want to rec the .ts .tp file (computer media)

[netmask56]

I don't know Singapore's TV system or any restrictions that may exist but you can certainly do it with the Australian Beyonwiz T4 PVR that has a HDMI record in. There is also a Topfield model much the same. The Beyonwiz produces standard unencrypted TS files either with MPEG2 video or MPEG4. There may be a Humax model as well. Free to air you should be able get a USB digital TV tuner locally to suit?

[harky]

i think they have restrictions but most of ppl here recommended to build a htpc ..., so u can have HDMI-in & RCA-in

shop here also dont sell pvr.. even it allow to record from pay set-top box, the hdd is encrypted by the cable provider
some claim it work to "bypass" HDMI-in by using tht device but there isnt much discussion on this..

I don't know Singapore's TV system or any restrictions that may exist but you can certainly do it with the Australian Beyonwiz T4 PVR that has a HDMI record in. There is also a Topfield model much the same. The Beyonwiz produces standard unencrypted TS files either with MPEG2 video or MPEG4. There may be a Humax model as well. Free to air you should be able get a USB digital TV tuner locally to suit?

[jagabo]

I don't know about Singapore, but in the USA most cable TV providers now encrypt most channels and there are no devices that will capture those encrypted streams except Cable Labs certified devices that keep the video encrypted. Those encrypted recordings will only play on the device that recorded them. Channels that aren't encrypted (usually limited to local broadcast TV stations) can be captured with any clear QAM tuner device.

Recording an HDMI source usually requires an HDCP stripper to remove encryption.

[harky]

is there any device i can rec by HDMI source or RCA?

Set Top box -> Device HD

[jagabo]

There are tons of HDMI recorders available now. Like those from Hauppauge and Avermedia. But they don't record HDCP protected HDMI -- which is pretty much everything you might want to record. You'll need a device that strips HDCP -- like some HDMI splitters. I think there are software hacks that allow some of the Avermedia devices to record HDCP protected HDMI.

[harky]

Ok u got my meaning wrong

Beside getting capture card / usb.

Is there any better idea to rec Digital TV or direct from TV which is similar like DVD HDD Recorder?


Digital TV or direct from TV (Hdmi or RCA) ---> Recorder (mpeg-2?) ; which use hdd, which allow me to take out the file easy.
but not using PC

There are tons of HDMI recorders available now. Like those from Hauppauge and Avermedia. But they don't record HDCP protected HDMI -- which is pretty much everything you might want to record. You'll need a device that strips HDCP -- like some HDMI splitters. I think there are software hacks that allow some of the Avermedia devices to record HDCP protected HDMI.

[jagabo]

Is there any better idea to rec Digital TV or direct from TV which is similar like DVD HDD Recorder?

Yes, the Avermedia Live Gamer Portable, the Hauppauge HD PVR Rocket, etc. But as with all HDMI recorders they don't record HDCP protected HDMI.

[usually_quiet]

There is probably nothing that will be as easy to use as your HDD DVD recorder.

The AVerMedia EZrecorder 130 ER130 is a stand alone device that can record audio and video from HDMI. At one time it was possible to hack this model to ignore HDCP, but AVerMedia re-designed it so that the hack no longer works. Recording HDMI out from a cable box now requires using an HDMI splitter that removes HDCP as a side effect. Unfortunately, there is only one event timer, but that is one more than most other stand-alone HDMI capture devices have. It records H.264 video and AAC stereo audio.

The AVerMedia Game Capture HD II C285 is a similar-stand-alone recorder with one event timer. It can record from component video connections as well as HDMI. Recording HDMI out from a cable box requires using an HDMI splitter that removes HDCP as a side effect.

Someone recommended this device with multiple timers last year, but it uses the FAT32 file system and splits recordings into 2 GB pieces: http://www.ebay.com/itm/HDTV-Digital-Video-Recorder-HDMI-1080p-H-264-Bypass-DVD-Blu-ra...wAAOSw~otWe18y

[Edit]
More information about the AVerMedia EZRecorder 130. Some of it may apply to the AVerMedia Game Capture HD II as well:

A few of things to be aware of:

1. The EzRecorder 130 has watermark feature that can be turned on or off with a menu setting in the EzRecorder 130's firmware, but it is apparently on by default. You will want to turn off the watermark.

2. The EzRecorder 130 flags the video headers for interlaced (1080i, 480i, 576i) mp4 files with the field rate, not the frame rate. Editing software and most players expect the frame rate and usually don't know how to process it correctly. The fix is to use My MP4Box GUI to demux the audio and video streams, then remux them with the frame rate set to half the field rate. (There are 2 fields per frame in interlaced video) That way 50/59.94 fields per second will be corrected to 25/29.97 frames per second in the remultiplexed video.

3. An NTFS formatted external hard drive with capacity of at least 500 GB is recommended for use as attached storage for the EzRecorder 130. The maximum storage capacity allowed for the the hard drive is 2T.

4. The EzRecorder 130 has built-in editor, but it is rather limited. Editing with a PC will probably work out better for you.

[harky]

the ebay look good as got everything but splits recordings
i remember i see this before but it only launch in tw, due to the cost, not much ppl using it so i dont really dare to buy too

There is probably nothing that will be as easy to use as your HDD DVD recorder.

The Avermedia EZrecorder 130 ER130 is a stand alone device that can record audio and video from HDMI. At one time it was possible to hack this model to ignore HDCP, but AVerMedia re-designed it so that the hack no longer works. Recording HDMI out from a cable box now requires using an HDMI splitter that removes HDCP as a side effect. Unfortunately, there is only one event timer, but that is one more than most other stand-alone HDMI capture devices have. It records H.264 video and AAC stereo audio.

The Avermedia Game Capture HD II C285 is a similar-stand-alone recorder with one event timer. It can record from component video connections as well as HDMI. Recording HDMI out from a cable box requires using an HDMI splitter that removes HDCP as a side effect.

Someone recommended this device with multiple timers last year, but it uses the FAT32 file system and splits recordings into 2 GB pieces: http://www.ebay.com/itm/HDTV-Digital-Video-Recorder-HDMI-1080p-H-264-Bypass-DVD-Blu-ra...wAAOSw~otWe18y

[usually_quiet]

the ebay look good as got everything but splits recordings

Apparently there is no perfect solution for a stand-alone HDMI recorder unless someone lives in Australia or New Zealand.

[dellsam34]

Is there any better idea to rec Digital TV or direct from TV which is similar like DVD HDD Recorder?


Digital TV or direct from TV (Hdmi or RCA) ---> Recorder (mpeg-2?) ; which use hdd, which allow me to take out the file easy.
but not using PC

- Recording from RCA is not digital HD, it is analog SD 4/3 aspect ratio
- Recording from HDMI an interlaced cable stream involves some loss of quality, and the De-interlacing effects sometimes could be disastrous, the cable box decodes the signal and sends it thru HDMI as uncompressed interlaced MPEG2 stream, The HDMI capture device re-encode the signal right away back to another codec usually H.264/MPEG-4 progressive.
Besides the above lossy two options you are in the mercy of your cable company, But for OTA and clear cable there are tons of DVR's out there.

[harky]

Do you think build a hptc is better?

Is there any better idea to rec Digital TV or direct from TV which is similar like DVD HDD Recorder?


Digital TV or direct from TV (Hdmi or RCA) ---> Recorder (mpeg-2?) ; which use hdd, which allow me to take out the file easy.
but not using PC

- Recording from RCA is not digital HD, it is analog SD 4/3 aspect ratio
- Recording from HDMI an interlaced cable stream involves some loss of quality, and the De-interlacing effects sometimes could be disastrous, the cable box decodes the signal and sends it thru HDMI as uncompressed interlaced MPEG2 stream, The HDMI capture device re-encode the signal right away back to another codec usually H.264/MPEG-4 progressive.
Besides the above lossy two options you are in the mercy of your cable company, But for OTA and clear cable there are tons of DVR's out there.

[usually_quiet]

- Recording from RCA is not digital HD, it is analog SD 4/3 aspect ratio

Wrong, except for RCA being an analog connection. Technically RCA is a type of connector, which might called a phono connector or cinch connector in some places. Component video is an HD video connection which can use RCA type connectors, although BNC is also possible.

[usually_quiet]

Do you think build a hptc is better?

I have an HTPC that I use for recording. An HTPC won't necessarily give you better quality than a DVR.

I have recorded cable TV with an HD capture device. I have also recorded the original broadcast transport streams from digital cable and over-the-air digital TV. If recording the original transport stream was no longer an option for me, recording with an HD capture device would still provide acceptable quality. Picture quality is 90% of the original and having the ability to record something is better than not recording anything at all.

[dellsam34]

- Recording from RCA is not digital HD, it is analog SD 4/3 aspect ratio

Wrong, except for RCA being an analog connection. Technically RCA is a type of connector, which might called a phono connector or cinch connector in some places. Component video is an HD video connection which can use RCA type connectors, although BNC is also possible.

I assumed the OP is talking about yellow RCA, Thanks for clarification.

[harky]

which type of DVR?

or the above 2 which u mention?

Do you think build a hptc is better?

I have an HTPC that I use for recording. An HTPC won't necessarily give you better quality than a DVR.

I have recorded cable TV with an HD capture device. I have also recorded the original broadcast transport streams from digital cable and over-the-air digital TV. If recording the original transport stream was no longer an option for me, recording with an HD capture device would still provide acceptable quality. Picture quality is 90% of the original and having the ability to record something is better than not recording anything at all.

[usually_quiet]

which type of DVR?

or the above 2 which u mention?

Do you think build a hptc is better?

I have an HTPC that I use for recording. An HTPC won't necessarily give you better quality than a DVR.

I have recorded cable TV with an HD capture device. I have also recorded the original broadcast transport streams from digital cable and over-the-air digital TV. If recording the original transport stream was no longer an option for me, recording with an HD capture device would still provide acceptable quality. Picture quality is 90% of the original and having the ability to record something is better than not recording anything at all.

I was talking about DVRs in general, not a specific model. I have no more DVR suggestions for you.