I tried SiliconDust HDHomeRun Dual High Definition Digital Television HDHR3-US (Black) but had pixelation problems several times every show on two channels so I decided to try Hauppauge 2250 PCI-E Dual TV Tuner card and I am so delighted. Not only are my pixelation problems history, I also get better picture, FM radio, and analog channels for no additional cost!This is my setup on Windows 7 64-bit. First let me say that installing the card and setting up the Hauppauge 2250 was the easiest part of my setup. I have TimeWarner cable and am paying $41/month for standard internet (10Mbs download and 1MBs upload) and basic cable. I have a three-way splitter on the cable coming out of the wall. One cable goes directly to the FM radio on this Hauppage 2250 pc card and I receive numerous FM channels which I can access through the radio player in Windows Media Center (WMC).
The second cable runs from the splitter to the TimeWarner modem to my ooma Hub VoIP Phone Device with No Monthly Phone Service Bills where I get a landline for free then to Netgear WNR2000 for wireless connection of printers, tablets, smartphones, etc and then ethernet out to Gateway DX4350-UR21P Desktop (Black) from where I can couch surf on Logitech Illuminated Ultrathin Keyboard with Backlighting, Logitech Wireless Mouse M505, and Logitech Wireless Touchpad with Multi-Touch Navigation (910-002345) which share one unifying USB receiver so only one USB slot is taken in my pc. I especially like the keyboard which lights up only when my hands come near for easy viewing in a darkened room.
The third cable runs to the TV tuner in this Hauppauge 2250 card. I did not install or use anything else included in the box as the ir cable was too short and I don't need extra inputs. The Hauppauge 2250 card is available on Amazon card only without all the extras Hauppauge 1229 WinTV-HVR-2250 White Box for System Builders Dual Hybrid PCI-E TV Tuner Board but I purchased the 1213 instead of the 1229 thinking I was going to use some of the extras which seemed like a bargain for only $9.40 but I ended up not using any of them.
The Hauppage CSR told me that the tv tuner was a dual tuner and that during installation I would have to decide between whether I wanted digital HD OR analog SD OR antenna. However, using Windows 7 64 bit Windows Media Center, I just followed the prompts letting it automatically install and W7 WMC found 2 digital tuners AND 2 analog tuners and I clicked that is correct and let it search for channels finding both analog SD and digital HD on ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, TBS, CW, HSN, and WGN as well as analog only on CNN, TNT, Lifetime, Nikelodeon, USA, MTV, FNC, SPIKE, TWC, AETV, AMC, DSC, BRAVO, MBNBC, CNBC, EP, Food, FX, KUSI, HGTV, TLC, HIST, SyFy, WEP, TCM, Comedy Channel, LMN, Toon, Disn, APLP, TVLAND, BET, and IONSATP. All of the analog channels I was unable to get on the HDHomerun dual tuner as it does not have an analog tuner. While I would prefer HD to SD, I like receiving all these analog SD channels that I did not get on the clear-qamm HD only tuner. Some shows I like are not available anywhere in HD and others are available in a variety of places in HD or SD for various prices. For example, I would not want to live without the Daily Show with Jon Stewart or the Colbert Report which I can watch on HuluPlus in HD for $8/month or on the Comedy Channel website for free or iTunes for $1.99 per episode which comes to about $32/month (tip, buy Apple stock not Apple products)or in SD with this 2250 card for free. So in Windows 7, this one Hauppage 2250 card is viewed in WMC7 as 4 tuner choices but only available to use two at a time with these two hybrid tuners able to free switch around between digital HD, analog SD, and FM radio automatically controlled by WMC7. WMC in Windows Vista was able to control only 2 tuners which may have been with what the CSR was familiar.
I control my WMC with my Logitech Harmony One Universal Remote with Color Touchscreen using the Infrared receiver in the Windows 7 Vista XP Media Center MCE PC Remote Control and Infrared Receiver for Home, Premium and Ultimate Edition with USB 2.0 Extension Cable Type A Male to Type A Female 6 ft, Black to get the receiver on top of my Onkyo HTX-22HDX Ultra-Compact HD Home Theater System (Black) with add-on speaker set making 5.1 surround sound without any tweaking on my Gateway DX4350-UR21P and then HDMI cable out to Samsung 52" HDTV. BTW, the code you need for your Harmony One remote to send signal to the IR receiver to control you W7WMC is Ortek VRC-1100.
It was much more of an ordeal than I anticipated to get this setup. I tried many products and found that all kinds of various electronic issues that were further complicated by no technical support or technical support that did not speak English or was not familiar with their products or was unable to solve their problems or with defective products. I remember the good old days when companies had their products checked out by TWO quality control departments before releasing to the retailer but now the consumer has to figure it out and return defective products within the alloted return timeframe. My FAVORITE technical support was Gateway who said "No Tweaking required, IT JUST WORKS!" So I am watching full 1080p with 5.1surround sound via the Hauppage 2250 tuner card and I am thrilled. My audio and video have never been better even when I was paying $100/month to Times Warner. My PC records faster and searches 1000 faster than the TW box I had to rent for $15/month Good riddance! If I want to pay for more additional channels such as ShowTime or HBO, I would need to rent a descramble box from TW and place it in the cable from the three-way splitter to the tv tuner in the Hauppage 2250 card. However, I like Amazon Prime Instant Video for movies better as there is more available to watch when you want to watch something and my Amazon streaming experience is better than I ever got from Netflix, Blockbuster, or HuluPlus.
I feel I have optimized getting the best tv entertainment experience for the least cost in my area and for my preferences. I think I am set now for the next year as Times Warner gave a 12-month price guarantee. Apparently 1080p will no longer be the best video quality out there when 4K is released this 3Q12 being 8 times better they say but it will be awhile before broadcasts, discs, and other video sources get up to that quality.
If my review was helpful to you in any way, would you please click on HELPFUL below?
First, my system: Core 2 Duo 2.53GHz, 4GB DDR2RAM, 256MB ATI graphics card w/HDMI out, 640GB HDD, Vista Home Premium 32bit. I am located in the mountains of SoCal, where OTA doesnt quite work, and so ClearQAM from TimeWarner is my only option.
Let me start off by saying if you are looking for a dual-tuner for digital/analog viewing, this is one of your best choices. However, expect to spend a night or two of surfing forums, updating drivers, installing hotfixes, etc... The problem is that Vista Media Center (initially) doesnt recognize the ClearQAM tuner, only the analog tuners. How to fix this? Well, my 8 hours of pain can be your simple gain.
Disclaimer: you will be adding a value to Vista's registry if you follow this review, so anything you do is on you alone!
1) If you've been trying to get the tuner to work, wipe all the tuner's drivers off utilizing the utility on the CD (select total and the checkbox below it) and restart Vista.
2) Update Windows.
3) Install the HVR-2250 and the BETA drivers from Hauppauge's USA website.
4) Install TV Pack 2008 (search online for it)
5) Install PC Ready Play (from MS download site)
6) Install the 2 hotfixes (KB951585 and KB950754 from MS download site)
7) Update Windows. (there will be a cumulative update for TV pack)
8) Open the registry (run/regedit)
9) Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\hcw89
10) Add a new Folder (key) and name it: Parameters
11) Add a new DWORD to that and name it: AllowQAM_PowerToy
12) Make that value for the new string: 1
13) *Repeat 10-12 for: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\hcwPrx89
14) Reboot Vista
15) You should be good to go. When in Media Center, the automated set-up might still tell you that it found two analog tuners, which you then select manual set-up and go through the steps. You should see a choice for ClearQAM!
*Notes: the hcwPrx89 folder did not exist in my registry, so I had to create the folder and then add the DWORD.
For $130, I would expect Hauppauge to have either better drivers or better support. Scouring the forums will result in similar fixes like I describe above. I guess something similar to this works for Windows 7.
Oh, the good: it works like it's supposed to (after forementioned).
Hope this helps and GOOD LUCK!
Buy Hauppauge 1213 WinTV-HVR-2250 PCI-E x1 Dual TV Tuner Now
Ok, I ordered the Hauppauge 1213 WinTV 2250 on Amazon. The device arrived promptly and the price wasn't all that bad. However, this was to the full extent of my pleasant experience with the product.The Receiver/Blaster would not work even after installing new drivers from the manufacturer's website. I called tech support (which, by the way, is available M-F 9 to 6PM ET only) simply to determine that the supplied cable was defective. The tech representative-a fella named Brice Junior-assured me that he would send out a new cable and I should be up and running in a 3 or 4 days.
Seven days came and passed. I received no cable. I called back tech support and stumbled on Brice Junior again. Except this time, he had no idea who I was and had no recollection of his promise to ship me a replacement cable.
So we went through the same diagnostics again-as if this time the repair fairy had come to my house and repaired the cable. Well, again the WinTV did not work. Then, Brice assured me, again, with absolute conviction that he would send a new cable and usb adapter for the device as soon as he got off the phone with me. Another two weeks went by, and...a BIG nothing arrived.
As I did some research on the matter on the Internet, I begin to uncover that the company engages in a policy of systematic lies to its customers to avoid honoring its obligations under its warranties. The technic is simple. They give the customer a round-around for a few weeks at which time it's too late to return the device to the store of purchase. And, since they are out reach, you, the unhappy customer, chase after them until you get tired and give up.
Meanwhile, Brice Junior, their scum tech support, is happily doing the company's bidding by lying to customers.
So in conclusion, buy the company's products only if you are sure (a) you can install them on your own, and (b) you can return them immediate if something is wrong them. Ignore the promise of the 2-year warranty that you read on the box. It is NON-EXISTENT.
Read Best Reviews of Hauppauge 1213 WinTV-HVR-2250 PCI-E x1 Dual TV Tuner Here
This product works perfectly with Snap Stream Beyond TV 4. [.........]I have 2 digital tuners and 2 analog tuners on my pc. This records multiple inputs and automatically downloads the cable TV and local TV program guide. The picture is great. The software takes some time to tweek to your inputs and program guide. You must be willing to spend some time.
Want Hauppauge 1213 WinTV-HVR-2250 PCI-E x1 Dual TV Tuner Discount?
I had 2 requirments for a TV Tuner Card. It had to be half-height and it had to be a dual tuner (so I can record one show and watch another). This card meets the bill. So far it has worked great. Sometimes when I tune to a channel in Windows Media Center the screen is blue and I have to change channels and then go back for it to appear. I don't know if this is because of the tuner or because of something else. Other than that I really haven't had any problems. Possibly a driver update will fix that problem.Save 27% Off
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