Multicard setup? (1 Viewer)

[meierk]

Still just researching the idea of building my own HTPC. If I decide to take this route, I plan on implementing a system that accesses IPTV and satellite. I am puzzled as to how MediaPortal or TV-Server will handle this. My questions are:

1) In order to be viewing live tv while recording, I know I need at least two tuners. Does that mean two cards with their own tuners or multiple cards with one tuner?

2) If I am viewing the guide on my HTPC and I choose to record a program, how does MediaPortal determine which card to use?

3) I assume that I can add several cards to support my IPTV service and somehow MediaPortal manages them, but what happens when I toss in the satellite card or perhaps two satellite cards? Does Media Portal show separate guides for each type of service and manage the cards?

4) How do I control all of these cards with one remote? I have the latest Harmony One from Logitech and only want to use 1 remote. Is this possible? Is this handled by this IR Blaster I keep hearing about?

Please provide any other information that may help that I may not have thought to ask questions about. With one card, this all seems clear as mud, but with many cards and more than one type of service, I am at a loss for where to start.

Thx,
Kevin

 

[meierk]

No replies. It would appear that I am not the only one confused. Please feel free to answer just the points you are confident in answering.

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[meierk]

I guess I have just experienced my first red flag about using MediaPortal. I know this is an open source project, but I would still hope that there is someone on the project team that takes the time to answer questions. I can't believe that my questions are that hard to answer.

Kevin

 

[milhouse]

I am relatively new to Tv Server (but have been using MP for 2 years), and have only one card, but will take a stab here.

1) Either will work. TV Server will support multiple cards, and each card can have multiple tuners.
2) I believe each card is assigned a priority (which you can change). You can also have a card assigned to view only, no record. The highest priorty available card would be used to record. I am at work right now, so can't say exactly where that is set up.
3) I don't have IPTV or Satellite cards, but from what I can see, channels would be assigned to multiple cards, and channels can be grouped. So MP would know that to record a channel it could go to channel x on card 1 OR channel y or card 2. I believe that each channel (by grouped channel) would appear in the guide at a time (all sources lumped together), but can't be sure. If you don't want them mixed, I believe you can have other channel groupings, so hitting the Guide button multiple times would go between the groupings.
4) You don't control the cards - MP does. You just control MP, so only one remote is needed. If you have set top boxes (e.g. for satellite) you'd use an IR blaster, and MP would control that, too.

Milhouse

 

[finrudd341]

I am not sure on some of your questions, but my understanding is that you can either have multiple TV cards, or one card with a dual tuner, like the Hauppauge 500. This should allow you to watch on channel and record another. I have been reading about people who have 2 of these, and can watch 1 channel and record 3 others at the same time - not sure how they do it though! The article also referred to the same person using just one remote control to do this (he also name-checks Mediaportal as being one of the only HTPC packages that allow this):

TV-Cards.com / Can we install two tv cards in desktop pc?

I know what you mean about sometimes getting a black hole when asking for help, but stick with it, and someone usually comes to the rescue!

One other thing - not sure about your time zone, but I have noticed that a lot of the contributors and developers seem to be European, so will be on a very different time zone to you, (and me, based in Singapore) so may respond at what appears to be slowly.

 

[tompa]

Hi meierk!
some additional info;

1) if using TV-server and receiving DVB-S (or DVB-T, DVB-C) you can use one card for all channels on one transponder (MUX). If using an analogue card you must have one card for each channel. If using MP1 without TV-server the answer is as with analogue card.

2) one thing u can control is the mapping of cards, i.e wich card that should handle which channels. Otherwise it uses card from priority list.

3) I dont know. Have not tested.
4) as milhouse describes.

Regards,
/Tompa

 

[infinite.loop]

3) I assume that I can add several cards to support my IPTV service and somehow MediaPortal manages them, but what happens when I toss in the satellite card or perhaps two satellite cards? Does Media Portal show separate guides for each type of service and manage the cards?

IP-TV is not supported in MediaPortal nor in TV-Server at the moment.
this might be added to TV-Server after the 1.0 release.

 

[meierk]

If using an analogue card you must have one card for each channel. If using MP1 without TV-server the answer is as with analogue card.

Are you saying that if I have 300 channels that I need 300 cards if they are analogue?

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[infinite.loop]

If using an analogue card you must have one card for each channel. If using MP1 without TV-server the answer is as with analogue card.

Are you saying that if I have 300 channels that I need 300 cards if they are analogue?

if you want to record all 300 channels at the same time, then yes

 

[meierk]

if you want to record all 300 channels at the same time, then yes

I think I misunderstood the comment at first. I thought I was hearing that I would need a card bound to each channel that I might want to view., but after your post, it sounds like I need to have 1 card for each recording stream, not per channel. So if I want to be able to record 4 channels at one time, I would need 4 cards.

Is this correct?

Thx.