HDMI to USB and Capturing Off-Air Video

[Electrojim]

Any number of eBay and similar online sellers offer low-cost adapters that take an HDMI feed from your satellite/cable box or whatever and route it to the USB port of your computer. Using software, such as VLC Media Player, can that incoming stream be watched in real time and simultaneously recorded as an MP2/MP4 file for further saving, conversion and processing?

[Cornucopia]

You may or may not have to worry about HDCP (copy protection of hdmi stream).

If the program is flagged as protected,
And
If the device is designed to honor that protection,

You will have problems.

If things are different, it depends.


Scott

[jagabo]

Just look for any HDMI video capture device. But, as mentioned, most commercial sources will be protected with HDCP. Some HDMI splitters can remove the HDCP protection, allowing those sources to be captured.

[Tom Saurus]

I know I will have to get this kind of equipment at some point. Now I use the Hauppauge HD PVR and use the component cables and record at 720p. However I wouldn't be surprised that component output on newer receivers will not exist.

I should look into this as the Hauppauge isn't going to last forever and I need a backup computer just in case. It is best to prepare for the future.

[usually_quiet]

@Electrojim If by "low-cost adapter" you mean one of the HDMI to USB 2.0 capture devices that output up to 1080p30 video and cost under $20, I think you'll be wasting your money. At those prices with a USB 2.0 connection on the PC side, they can't be capable of doing a good job. USB 2.0 doesn't have enough bandwidth to provide uncompressed video at 1080p30 and a device that costs under $20 is too cheap to have good encoder chips.

[raffie]

As others stated, many HDMI splitters will remove protection so you can record any HDMI source.

[Electrojim]

Thanks, all. Yes, HDCP can constitute a real P.I.A., but a splitter may do the job. I don't quite understand how the 'splitter' works, unless it has a bona-fide HDMI receive chip inside. Correct me if I'm wrong, but per my understanding the transmitting device (Dish box) re-encrypts specifically for the receive device (Sharp TV), and simply 'bridging' the output HDMI still gives you an encrypted signal on the second splitter output.

I'm not sure why broadcast TV would be copy-protected, but getting anything out of a satellite box might prove a chore. My need is to transfer some old TV-show episodes on my Dish DVR to DVD before either the sat box gives up or I dump Dish. Don't need even 1080 resolution; would be a 480/DVD for archive.

[jagabo]

I don't quite understand how the 'splitter' works, unless it has a bona-fide HDMI receive chip inside.

It does.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but per my understanding the transmitting device (Dish box) re-encrypts specifically for the receive device (Sharp TV), and simply 'bridging' the output HDMI still gives you an encrypted signal on the second splitter output.

Normally the source and the sink negotiate an encrypted transmission. If a sink doesn't support HDCP the source will not send the video (some devices may send an unencrypted low resolution signal when there is no HDCP). The splitter negotiate an encrypted transmission with the source. That encrypted signal is decrypted within the splitter. The splitter is then supposed to negotiate new encrypted transmissions to each of its outputs. But some splitters don't obey the rules and will pass the unencrypted video to its outputs.

[Electrojim]

Aha!

Jagabo, that explains it. Then the splitters you allude to (and I'm sure that Intel, et al. would love to get these off the market) supply an unencrypted HDMI signal to both outputs, and my TV or AV Receiver simply says, "Ah, an unencrypted HDMI, I wonder where that's coming from" and displays or passes it.