Where have all the Digital TV Tuner Cards gone????????????? (1 Viewer)

[Steve.Rayner61]

Ummm, am I the only person that's noticed it's getting more and more difficult to find digital TV cards?

All the companies that used to manufacture them seem to be dropping them in droves!!!

Not only that, what I find EXTREMELY strange, is that they seem to be dropping digital cards but bringing out new models of analogue cards?? Isn't this more than a little backwards?

There also seems to be a lot of USB TV Tuners around. Why would ANYONE wanting to setup a true HTPC choose a USB device in favour of a card that plugs directly into the Bus??

Is it ME that is a bit odd, or the rest of the planet?

I'm confused??

 

[mm1352000]

Ummm, am I the only person that's noticed it's getting more and more difficult to find digital TV cards?

No problem here.
Hauppauge and AVerMedia and Leadtek still exist. As do DigitalNow, Digital Devices, TeVii, TBS, BlackGold, TerraTec, TechniSat, TechnoTrend and many many others. There are newer players too like DVBSky.

All the companies that used to manufacture them seem to be dropping them in droves!!!

Which companies are you talking about?

Not only that, what I find EXTREMELY strange, is that they seem to be dropping digital cards but bringing out new models of analogue cards?? Isn't this more than a little backwards?

If you stop and look at the market for awhile you'll understand why.
One reason is that digital streams are now more often encrypted in such a way that the only way it is possible to view the content on a PC is to exploit the "analog hole". For this you need an analog capture card.
Another reason is that in the last year or two gamers have been buying cards to capture their gameplay and post it on youtube etc.

There also seems to be a lot of USB TV Tuners around. Why would ANYONE wanting to setup a true HTPC choose a USB device in favour of a card that plugs directly into the Bus??

Simple. Lots of people no longer have a PC and instead have a laptop. The most common interface for laptop (and PC) connectivity is... you guessed it: USB.
There's nothing too much wrong with USB.

Is it ME that is a bit odd, or the rest of the planet?

I don't think I'll answer that.

Maybe you could tell us your requirements so we can make suggestions for what to get?

 

[Steve.Rayner61]

LOL, thanks mm1352000 for not answering re my oddity Sorry, I'm a little too dumb to understand the "analog hole" thing. I just thought the TV Stations transmitted a DVB-T signal which requires a DVB-T TV Tuner to receive it? At least that's the way it works in Australia since they dropped the Analogue service.

OK, my requirements are (as far as I'm aware?) very simple. I want a nice neat, tidy and reliable Dual DVB-T PCI-e (Current or recent version) card. I have recently been using the AverMedia AVerTV TwinStar PCI-E A188D card http://avertv.avermedia.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?Id=470. They are beautifully built, rock solid card, with two DVB Tuners and a single Antenna Connection and they are relatively cheap at around AU$80.00. Unfortunately though, it seems they are PCI-e Version 1.0. I purchased two of them and had them delivered to my Dad (who lives about 200km from me) to install in his Dell Inspiron 660 Tower, only to find that the on-board PCI-e Version 2.0 Slots will not even acknowledge these cards :-(

The only cards I can seem to find now are a complex and/or expensive combination of things I neither need, nor want to pay for, like analogue & DVB-T or DVB-T/C/S etc.

So, happy to hear any suggestions

 

[mm1352000]

I purchased two of them and had them delivered to my Dad (who lives about 200km from me) to install in his Dell Inspiron 660 Tower, only to find that the on-board PCI-e Version 2.0 Slots will not even acknowledge these cards :-(

Hmmm, that's not normal. PCIe is backwards compatible, so 1.x cards should work in 2.x or 3.x slots.
The issue is probably specific to the Dell motherboard. Some motherboards say one of the PCIe x16 slots is reserved for video/graphics, but the other slots are usually okay for any other card.
If you can I'd raise the issue with Dell. I certainly couldn't guarantee that any other card I might recommend wouldn't have the same issue. In fact I'd rather suspect you would encounter the same issue with other cards.

 

[mm1352000]

In fact, perfect link:
http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19535771.aspx

The issue is a motherboard issue. You'll almost certainly have problems with the Hauppauge or DigitalNow cards I was going to recommend. Again, I suggest speak to Dell.

 

[mm1352000]

Just to make sure you catch this...
I would not buy the TBS card for now. They use an NXP chipset which is PCIe 1.0. Could be troublesome. I would contact Dell.

 

[Steve.Rayner61]

Yeah, in fairness to other Motherboards of similar vintage, I suspect you are correct in that the Dell MB is not behaving as it should be. I expect that a simple BIOS update from Dell would resolve the issue. I and others have complained to Dell. They are not listening.

I guess my concern is that the issue may arise with any other Motherboard I use in the future as it seems (From what I've seen so far) that most Dual DVB-T /T2 Tuner cards are reasonably old technology now (going back to 2008) and I presume all PCI-e Version 1.0.[DOUBLEPOST=1406699252][/DOUBLEPOST]Yes, I know those complaints well. I've given Dell a few of my own choice thoughts on the matter here http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19480507.aspx?pi21953=7#20660923

 

[mm1352000]

I guess my concern is that the issue may arise with any other Motherboard I use in the future as it seems (From what I've seen so far) that most Dual DVB-T /T2 Tuner cards are reasonably old technology now (going back to 2008) and I presume all PCI-e Version 1.0.

You're probably right about all tuner cards being PCIe 1.0. The thing is that PCIe 1.0 is more than enough for even the most advanced tuner card. A PCIe 1.0 x1 slot is a 250 MB/s bidirectional pipe (= 500 MB/s total bandwidth). Given an average DVB-T 8 MHz multiplex (ie. all channels broadcast on a given frequency) is roughly 2.5 to 3.5 MB/s (20 to 30 Mb/s)... well, PCIe 1.0 is massive overkill, even for a quad tuner card. And PCIe 2.0 is double 1.0. There is zero incentive for tuner manufacturers to use anything more than PCIe 1.0.

If Dell are not going to come to the party then I guess you have two choices.
Either you take a gamble on a Hauppauge, DigitalNow, TBS or BlackGold card and hope it works...
...or you get a different motherboard.
IMO chances of getting a working arrangement are much better with a motherboard from Gigabyte or Asus. However replacing the motherboard is almost certainly more expensive... and still not a guaranteed solution.

 

[Steve.Rayner61]

Hey, thanks for the education re TV Tuner throughput. I wasn't aware that the bus was so underutilised by TV Tuner cards - So yes, as you say, why would any manufacturer bother to upgrade to later PCI-e versions (Assuming all Motherboard manufacturers are playing by the rules? )

Sadly, I concur re the Dell situation. I'm so deeply disappointed with Dell. Up until now, I have always liked their equipment. The AverMedia A188D's are working perfectly in two HTPC's that I've built, both with Asus Motherboards. I was really shocked when they would not work in the Inspiron.

Thanks for your time and advice. Nice talking with you

 

[mm1352000]

No problem, and sorry I can't be of more assistance. Hope you manage to get a working card or motherboard.