Ongoing Card sharing for DVB-s (1 Viewer)

[bbackx]

Hi,

I'm new here and still working on my HTPC. Almost everything is working now, except for dvb-s. For the moment, there's a Technisat Skystar2 card in my pc and it's working fine, but offcourse only for the fta-channels.
Now, there's a new dvb-s provider in Belgium we would like to use instead of cable-tv. Therefore, I need a dvb-s-card with CI. For the moment, I'm thinking of getting a TwinhanDTV Sat-CI (1034 Mantis), I think it's compatible with mediaportal (anyone who can confirm this? There's a slightly different model in the list with supported cards).

Second question is my most important question: will I be able to tell the skystar2 to use the CI of the twinhan card? In that way, I can record one encrypted channel while watching another.

 

[funkstar]

You need a CAM and subscription card for each encripted source. SoftCAMs and card sharing is not supported at all. There are several threads about this on here.

 

[bbackx]

Ok, I read the post about softcam and the point of the team.
I can understand them, in some way. Case closed

 

[Jack Sparrow]

Card sharing is completely different of watching a channel while recording another channel.
For this you need two tuner and a smart (really smart) CI handling.

That's not the case of TwinhanDTV ...

 

[bbackx]

Card sharing is completely different of watching a channel while recording another channel.
For this you need two tuner and a smart (really smart) CI handling.

That's not the case of TwinhanDTV ...

How is that different?

I'm new in this stuff, so I would be glad to know more.
I do know the dvb-s provider is selling a PVR (Arion AF-9280PVR) and it's possible to view and record 2 encrypted channels with one CI with that PVR.

When I buy a TwinhanDTV, I will have 2 tuners. That's one problem solved. Only the CI-handling will be a problem, if I understand it right...

 

[funkstar]

i don't think it is different. The only time you could *possibly* get two tuners with one CI is if you had a dual tuner card that duplicated the CI and CAM internally, making it look like each tuner had a seperate CI for the likes of MediaPortal to use.

I have no idea if that is possible, let alone likely to ever be seen in public

 

[bbackx]

Thanks for the replies and info. I've also read the developpers statement, so I will ask no further here and see if there's a workaround elsewhere

 

[Amnesiac]

i don't think it is different.

I think it is TOTALLY different. Card sharing for purposes of using other people cards etc etc is not the same as recording a stream to watch later or time-shift while watching another encrypted channel.

Or are you talking technically?

The only time you could *possibly* get two tuners with one CI is if you had a dual tuner card that duplicated the CI and CAM internally, making it look like each tuner had a seperate CI for the likes of MediaPortal to use.

I have never looked at the APIs around but I suspect that you cannot push a recorded stream to the CI/CAM of a tuner card but I don't know. What you suggest is exactly what is required - at least the ability to steer raw streams to a CI/CAM regardless of where they originate. Given that electrically the slot is PCMCIA the possibility to drive a CAM directly from MediaPortal exists... but I wouldn't hold my breath.

I have no idea if that is possible, let alone likely to ever be seen in public

Go buy a Sky+ box in the UK or indeed pretty much any other Satellite PVR. These record the encrypted stream which is then decoded on playback later using the card in the slot. This in fact protects rights as the encrypted not unencrypted stream is recorded. (Some will decrypt a recording in "downtime" for archving but that's another story).

For me also it is a very important feature of a HTPC Satellite system as any old Satellite dual tuner PVR from Humax or whoever can perform this function easily with multiple mapping of tuner to CAM for multi slot machines.

To argue against doing it on the basis of it *might* be misused is a bit like arguing for the banning of cars as they *might* get used in a getaway from a bank raid!

To argue its too fiddly, supporting APIs and CI/card/CAM combinations is a nightmare etc is something I'd much more readily understand.