Are TV Tuner Cards still around?

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Urahara-shoten

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Mar 6, 2017
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If the cards are still used today what am I looking for when it comes to region and digital output. is there a special region code for these? What is the US region code? Do they have HD versions?
 
Solution
Wolfshadw
For recording Free, Over-The-Air US broadcasts, you would need a TV Tuner card that has an ATSC digital tuner. If you're looking to record cable television, you're going to need a cablecard device like the SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime and a cablecard from your cable provide since most cable channels are now encrypted.

All current devices are capable of handling HD content.

-Wolf sends
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Wolfshadw

Wolfshadw

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Aug 3, 2006
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For recording Free, Over-The-Air US broadcasts, you would need a TV Tuner card that has an ATSC digital tuner. If you're looking to record cable television, you're going to need a cablecard device like the SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime and a cablecard from your cable provide since most cable channels are now encrypted.

All current devices are capable of handling HD content.

-Wolf sends
 
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fritzb43

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Jan 5, 2014
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That SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime is 130 bucks at Amazon. That's a little pricey for the ability to stay in my den and not walk over to the TV room. What happened to the PCI tuner cards? All of a sudden they are "out of stock" at both Amazon & Newegg. Is there a TV -PC tuners for Dummies somewhere? TIA (And what's a cable card? I have Comcast/Xfinity.)
 
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Wolfshadw

Wolfshadw

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If you want to watch Live Cable TV in your den, you're going to need a set top box in there. I think only the first two are free, so if you need a third, you have to pay the monthly fee for its use. In a little over a year, you'd have given Comcast more money than the cost of the HDHomeRun Prime. I had my Ceton InfiniTV4 TV Tuner Card (and Comcast) for a little over seven years before it died.

As for why they seem to be out of stock everywhere, given various TV Apps and OnDemand programming, there's not much call for TV Tuner Cards anymore, so manufacturers have stopped making them.

Cablecards are small cards that plug into your cablecard ready device; either a TV or a TV Tuner device like the HDHomeRun Prime or Ceton InfniTV4. They provide communications and decryption of the signal being set from your cable company. No set top box required.

Your run of the mill TV Tuner cards will typically have one or more types of tuners:

- NTSC for Free Over-The-Air analog broadcasts (now defunct)
- ATSC for Free Over-The-Air digital broadcasts
- QAM for unencrypted cable broadcasts

I would note that most cable channels are encrypted these days. Devices like the Silicon Dust HDHomeRun Prime, Ceton InfiniTV devices and Hauppauge WinTV-DCR-2650 can use cablecards (from your cable provider) to do the decryption of those encrypted channels. If you only need one or two set top boxes with DVR at home, then it's not really worth it. Otherwise, it's a good investment.

-Wolf sends
 
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