Thread: Help Needed : Buying TV Tuner/Capture Card

Hey guyz, wat actually do I need to watch n record live tv ? coz I am confused about TV Tuner card and Capture card, is there any differnece between these two or are they same ?
And also I need card which can record n save file directly to some small size format (like mpg) n obviously with gud(if not the best) quality, so please help me in buying one and please do tell the price if it's known to u.
Thanx

Get the Hauppauge PVR-150. Good quality tuner!!

hey i have a doubt, if we hav a TV tunner card and a 5.1 surround system, will we get the TV sound in 5.1 ?? Or atleast we can change the sound modes (i mean effects)??.

why not ... if u have set the 5.1 as the primary audio device

Originally Posted by rajan1311

hey i have a doubt, if we hav a TV tunner card and a 5.1 surround system, will we get the TV sound in 5.1 ?? Or atleast we can change the sound modes (i mean effects)??.

Just because you have a 5.1 sound system does not mean that you will get 5.1 sound. The source must be encoded in Dolby Digital 5.1 or AC3. So the answer is NO, you won't get 5.1 surround with TV because TV sound (DTH and digital cable) is stereo only.

With a pure stereo sound input, the amp can loosely convert it to simulated surround or at max Dolby Pro-Logic Surround.

However, Bose Lifestyle systems claim to convert any sound input in to full surround sound (even with mono).

Originally Posted by just4kix

However, Bose Lifestyle systems claim to convert any sound input in to full surround sound (even with mono).

That is done by hardware i guess ??? or is there any software that can do it too. I hav the altec lansing FX5051, so i cant get a bose (i could never afford it anyways).

LOL. Bose uses it proprietory hardware to do this. So the answer to your question is YES.

Originally Posted by varkey

Get the Hauppauge PVR-150. Good quality tuner!!

Thanx buddy, do u know it's cost ??

Originally Posted by just4kix

LOL. Bose uses it proprietory hardware to do this. So the answer to your question is YES.

As I hav seen in many other threads, u have pretty gud tech. knowledge, so I am waiting for ur reply for the TV Tuner card info, plz help me

I do not have exact pricing info on Haupage WinTV PVR-150. I think it is around US$ 150/- equivalent.

Haupage pls....

Originally Posted by rajan1311

hey i have a doubt, if we hav a TV tunner card and a 5.1 surround system, will we get the TV sound in 5.1 ?? Or atleast we can change the sound modes (i mean effects)??.

Originally Posted by just4kix

Just because you have a 5.1 sound system does not mean that you will get 5.1 sound. The source must be encoded in Dolby Digital 5.1 or AC3. So the answer is NO, you won't get 5.1 surround with TV because TV sound (DTH and digital cable) is stereo only.

With a pure stereo sound input, the amp can loosely convert it to simulated surround or at max Dolby Pro-Logic Surround.

However, Bose Lifestyle systems claim to convert any sound input in to full surround sound (even with mono).

Oh you meant 5.1 sound quality did u ? ! i thought u wanted the output thru ur speakers simulated quality ! .....

If you have watched movies or played games in ur life then u should surely know that u need the audio to be encoded for a 5.1/7.1 config .

PS: u can change effects for simulated surround sound also

i mean the sub-woofer will work no matter what format u use dolby or stereo

Originally Posted by ShAdOwCoN

Oh you meant 5.1 sound quality did u ? ! i thought u wanted the output thru ur speakers simulated quality ! .....

Actually that is what i meant.

Originally Posted by just4kix

I do not have exact pricing info on Haupage WinTV PVR-150. I think it is around US$ 150/- equivalent.

well I wasn't just asking for the price, see I inquired from the market here in Patiala, all they have is Intex TV Tuner card (Rs 850) and another one (I forgot the name) of cost around Rs 1300. Well they told me about one more card Pinnacle, but they don't know much about it because they don't deal with those high cost cards.
As the price of Haupage told by you is 7k+ so I want to know what is the difference between these...
& one more thing my budget is around 3k-4k, so any recommendations within the budget would be appreciated

see TechShop.in - Buy Tech Online Now!!! for a large range. read online reviews abt the performance.

Visit videohelp.com for more technical details ...

Originally Posted by rajan1311

see TechShop.in - Buy Tech Online Now!!! for a large range. read online reviews abt the performance.

Thanks...will check it out & which card you are using?

Originally Posted by just4kix

Visit videohelp.com for more technical details ...

Thanks

now i too need to get one... but the hauppauge one is just too expensive... i wud rather get a tv! :lol:... any1 know how the pinnacle one fares quality wise?

go for pinnacle tv tuner

thx for the tip... but do u know bout its picture quality? any1 know about the compro videomate tuner?? i heard its very good with the feature and picture quality wise...

i have an external tv tuner that cost me 950rs.it produces pretty good quality sound for my 2.1
it also has an in-built speaker,but it sounds tinny at high volume levels.

Originally Posted by ag_prasun

i have an external tv tuner that cost me 950rs.it produces pretty good quality sound for my 2.1
it also has an in-built speaker,but it sounds tinny at high volume levels.

what brand is it? is it usb or completely external (no use to me )... i dnt care about the sound, how's the picture like?

Originally Posted by H@rry

Thanks...will check it out & which card you are using?

I WAS using a typhoon external TV tuner. Its very bad. I get horizontal lines(waves) .But otherwise the Quality was good. May be the waves were bcos of a bad chord. came with a remote. Its got 5 games in it. Supports multiple formats. Got if for Rs1000 frm a local store.

TV tuner cards have caught my interests too, may i know some products which are less than 1500 INR ? I havent done my homework on the matter, so please guide me as guiding a newbie

my tv-tuner is tech-com.the picture quality is dependant on the provider.earlier with analog transmission the quality was 8/10.but now with the set top box,the picture is 10/10..
it is completely external.it came with a usb connector as well as a connector to connect to the desktop monitor.

^^ What is the price of the tv tuner card mentioned by u? Does it fall outside the 1500/- bracket?