[solved] Searching PCIe DVB-S2 TV card - experiences/recommendations? (1 Viewer)

Andy_2639

Portal Member
February 25, 2017
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Stuttgart
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Hello

I'm searching a PCIe DVB-S2 tv card.

In 2018/2019, I already tried three cards:
  • TerraTec Cinergy S2 PCIe Dual 2x interne HD TV-Karte (DVB-S2, DVB-S)
  • DVBSky S952 V3 mit 2x DVB-S2 Tuner (Dual Twin Tuner), low profile PCIe Karte
  • TBS 6902 DVB-S2 Doppel-Tuner,PCIe Satelliten-HDTV Empfangskarte
With all three, I had the same problem: after watching TV, the card didn't turn off the LNB voltage:
After stopping the TV Service, the LNB voltage turned off.
I verified this with a voltmeter. Does anyone had/have the same problem?

Does anyone have experience with a (currently in Germany available) PCIe TV card? A dual tuner would be nice but is not a must.

A quick search on German Amazon shows these cards:

I'm looking forward for any comment :)
 

flintstone99

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  • April 19, 2008
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    Germany Germany
    Hi,
    I am using the digital devices card, however the 6.5 version with the extension card, so 4 receivers. Very happy with it, stable operation.
    But I never checked on the LNB voltage....
     

    404

    Portal Pro
    January 11, 2005
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    Afaik thats normal behaviour, many receivers have the option to enable voltage in standby to prevent freezing during the winter months.
     

    Andy_2639

    Portal Member
    February 25, 2017
    25
    6
    Stuttgart
    Home Country
    Germany Germany
    At first, I measured the overall power consumption of my PC. With my PCTV DVB-S2 Stick (461e), the power consumption rises when I start recording tv and goes back when I stop it. With the three tested PCIe cards, the power consumption rises but didn't go back after stopping the recording.
    (The PCTV DVB-S2 Stick (460e) had a similar behavior: it has an LED showing that the TV card is active. Even with the manufacturer software, it didn't stop listening to the satellite signal.)

    So I decided to dig further into it. I startet recording, unpluged the coax-cabel and used a voltmeter to measure the voltage between the inner and outer conductor. It showed the expected 14V/18V. After re-connecting the cable, I stopped the recording, unplugged the cable and measured the voltage again.

    The TBS card turned off the LNB supply voltage as soon as I stopped the MediaPortal TVService. Also with the software TBS ships with the card (I think DVB Viewer (?)), the supply voltage was turned off when I stopped watching TV.
    I contacted TBS and IIRC they said that the continued turned on LNB supply voltage is a compatibility problem of MediaPortal as it's turned off after watching TV with the software they ship.

    That's all from my memory as I did these testings 2 years ago ...
     

    Andy_2639

    Portal Member
    February 25, 2017
    25
    6
    Stuttgart
    Home Country
    Germany Germany
    I'm now using the Digital Devices Cine S2 V7A.
    I had 2 blue screens when recording + network load (DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION with NSIS und tcpip.sys in stacktrace) but that seamed related to my network card: after installing the driver from the mainboard website, it runs stable.

    I'm still surprised that the power delivered by the PCIe port is sufficient for this card to supply the multiswitch and LNB with power.

    When I'm not watching/recording TV, I can measure an LNB supply voltage of 0.75 V - which is way less than an operational supply voltage. Also, the log of the card says that the tuner is turned off. So the Cine S2 doesn't have the problem that it does not turn off the LNB.

    Edit: The cards driver is not signed by Microsoft, so I had to disable secure boot to get Windows to load it :(
     
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