If I Buy A Tv Tuner Card

[swarnel]

Im looking into buying a tv tuner maybe even off ebay. But i have a few questions first.

Will it be able to pick up tv signals by itself or will it need to be programed?
Does it need an aerial, if so how would this attatch to the pc?
And can a dvd player or vcr be plugged into my computer to watch movies, if so how would this connect to the computer?

Any help appreciated.

[Virtualbody1234]

First question: It depends on the model you want.

2. Yes you need an antenna or cable service. Connects to the back of your tower.

3. The easiest way to watch DVD on you PC is to use one of these:

http://www.lgeus.com/Product/CD/images/drd_8160b.jpg

[swarnel]

so any aerial will work? like one of an old tv?

and yeah i have one of those i really meant vcr's

[TheFilePirater]

im not sure wat an aerial is, but yes if u buy a tv tuner u can watch vhs movies on ur pc, or convert them...thats wat i do, although the quality isn't something great like dvd rips its pretty nice for old VHS tapes to VCD

[Evil Gemini]

One problem i have noticed about my capture card, is when i plug the aeriel staright into the card, i can hardly get a picture.

The best way is to connect a VCR and then use the VCR's tuner and for some reason you get a better reception.

Its good having it connected like this because you can record from your video tapes and you can record from the TV :)

[swarnel]

So the vcr has a tuner? So if i can connect that o my pc there is no need to buy it off ebay?

[TheFilePirater]

he meant instead of tuner directly to cable, yes u need a tuner

[Evil Gemini]

sorry about that.

I meant connect the VCR to your capture card and then the aerial to the VCR

[SeK612]

Will it be able to pick up tv signals by itself or will it need to be programed?

The TV card software (the program which you install on your computer to view the signal) will have a scan feature which will pic up signals. You should get some prepackaged software or you can use 3rd party programs like Intervideos Win DVR and Cyberlinks PowerVCR II.


Does it need an aerial, if so how would this attach to the pc?

Yes, there will be a slot in the card which you plug the aerial in to. This will allow you to view standard terrestrial TV channels. This method often gives poor results though (unclear and fuzzy picture). As mentioned it is better to hook the card to a VCR or Cable TV box as these provide better pictures.


And can a dvd player or vcr be plugged into my computer to watch movies, if so how would this connect to the computer?

You can but you often need extra cables (such as scart leads) to do so.

For more info check out TV-Cards.com (http://www.tv-cards.com/)

[Robert00000]

Originally posted by Evil Gemini@9 January 2004 - 06:08
One problem i have noticed about my capture card, is when i plug the aeriel staright into the card, i can hardly get a picture.

The best way is to connect a VCR and then use the VCR's tuner and for some reason you get a better reception.

Its good having it connected like this because you can record from your video tapes and you can record from the TV :)
Have you tried changing the region settings i.e from PAL to NTSC or vice-versa? because this affects the picture quality.

[Robert00000]

The quality of the picture you can record on your PC will depend on your PC specs, unless you buy a TV card that has a bulit-in encoding chip.

To record at dvd quality you will need digital tv input and a processor higher than p4 1.8 Ghz or Athlon 2000+.

I have two pinnacle tv cards and record all my tv progs. on my pc's, it has made the vhs recorder obsolete :D

[3RA1N1AC]

Originally posted by TheFilePirater@8 January 2004 - 21:58
im not sure wat an aerial is, but yes if u buy a tv tuner u can watch vhs movies on ur pc, or convert them...thats wat i do, although the quality isn't something great like dvd rips its pretty nice for old VHS tapes to VCD
"aerial" is a british term-- in the u.s. we call it an antenna.

seems like a lot of people have problems tuning with antennas on capture cards though. it's prolly best to use the signal from cable/satellite television, or if you don't have that then try using something like a VCR as the tuner. a coaxial signal amplifier/booster might help in some cases, too.

[leonarmston]

Yeh I brought a TV tuner card, it was fuzzy when running off the aerial, so I had to buy a booster it now is perfectly clear and it is good watchin TV on me 22inch monitor with remote control :D

[ck-uk]

Any of you guys recommend a good card?I want to capture some paramount comedies like becker etc from sky satalite to avi at least 5xx x 2-3xx resolution.My specs are no probs ,i know what all the connectors and things are i want to know a card that do produce decent quality.Tnx. :)