Cheapest working DVB-C card that works well with Softcam/MediaPortal

simeonipicker

simeonipicker

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Hi been a away for a while, Seem to have ID issues.

Now I'm back! With a vengance!

I have just moved house and am building two theatre rooms both with there own HTPCs and both needing cable inputs. I have searched and of late the DVB-c scene has got a lot better, so now its my time to join!

Can some please recommend the cheapest card that will work in Vista 32bit and needs to fully work in MediaPortal.

I would be interested to know anyones experiences with this and media portal.

I am currently looking at this Technotrend Budget C-1501 + TT-Viewer - DVBSHOP - Technotrend,Mystique,TeVii,Kathrein,Shop,DVB-S,DVB-C,DVB-T,HDTV,H.264,DVB-S2

But would hope for something cheaper...

Any ideas?
 
simeonipicker said:
Hi been a away for a while, Seem to have ID issues.

Now I'm back! With a vengance!

I have just moved house and am building two theatre rooms both with there own HTPCs and both needing cable inputs. I have searched and of late the DVB-c scene has got a lot better, so now its my time to join!

Can some please recommend the cheapest card that will work in Vista 32bit and needs to fully work in MediaPortal.

I would be interested to know anyones experiences with this and media portal.

I am currently looking at this Technotrend Budget C-1501 + TT-Viewer - DVBSHOP - Technotrend,Mystique,TeVii,Kathrein,Shop,DVB-S,DVB-C,DVB-T,HDTV,H.264,DVB-S2

But would hope for something cheaper...

Any ideas?
Click to expand...

i use a floppydtv - bit pricey now but some people use these

HISAT : Satellite equipment and information : Triple-Dragon, GbSat, Twinhan, Visionnet, MVision, Dreambox

sure someone using one of these will verify

cheers
 
The TwinHan should work fine.

There's very little to these cards - basically just a tuner module and a pci interface. All the intelligence for sorting/seperating the incoming streamdata is down to the host PC.

So, as long as you can find a driver for a particular card with your chosen system then it will work. To check drivers just look at the manufacturers website.
 
nozzer said:
The TwinHan should work fine.

There's very little to these cards - basically just a tuner module and a pci interface. All the intelligence for sorting/seperating the incoming streamdata is down to the host PC.

So, as long as you can find a driver for a particular card with your chosen system then it will work. To check drivers just look at the manufacturers website.
Click to expand...
Have done a google search the Twinhan does seem to buggy with Media portal scanning.

Any other card options?
 
simeonipicker said:
Have done a google search the Twinhan does seem to buggy with Media portal scanning.

Any other card options?
Click to expand...

pretty sure u need bda driver support fo MP i also got a tt2100c which i can't get to work with MP but works fine with ritzdvb, my theatre, the ttpremium app and others so ur first choice is probably the best bet....like i said for my htpc i use a floppydtv, hardcam and vistamce.
 
nozzer said:
The TwinHan should work fine.

There's very little to these cards - basically just a tuner module and a pci interface. All the intelligence for sorting/seperating the incoming streamdata is down to the host PC.

So, as long as you can find a driver for a particular card with your chosen system then it will work. To check drivers just look at the manufacturers website.
Click to expand...

No no no no no. That is incredibly misleading advice I am afraid. Although you are correct in stating there is very little to the H/W complexity of DVB-C cards, the electronics which they are formed of is crucial, especially within the UK where signal strength is much lower than on the continent for whom these cards are manufactured.

There is a reason why the FloppyDTV costs so much, the H/W tuner is fantastic at decoding low signals. I would always recommend this card, despite the ridiculously high cost. The TT-C1501 also receives good reviews for its tuner. However make sure you stay well clear of the TT-C1500, especially the latter revisions which have the Philips TD1316AL/IHPX8M tuner. These are known for their poor tuners which will provide you with 'choppy' picture and audio on various transponders. If you must go for one of these cards (note, they are no longer manufactured), make sure you get one with the Philip TD1316A/SIHP tuner.

But to save yourself lots of grief and give you the option of using a H/W CAM in the future, I'd still recommend the FloppyDTV.
 
Of course the signal levels are important as all this equipment is meant for continental use but on an average signal there's a much higher chance of a dvb-c card working than something like a dreambox. This is because the sensitivity on all dvb-t card tuners tends to be better than the tuners used in dreamboxes/starviews etc.

Generally, (as someone who has a particularly weak signal) i've not really discovered any particular difference in performance between the more expensive manufacturers cards and the cheaper far east versions.

The differences between the C1500 and C1501 with the different tuners you mention just doesn't seem to bear out except in some cases where there may be problems due to proximity of the old analogue TV channels. This problem should reduce shortly as VM switch off these old analogue channels.
 
I had a TT1500 in my old HTPC, and I had no problems with low signals. In fact, I had to use a ton of attenuation to lower the signal to a usable level, after which there was no freezing and stuttering at all, and my recordings were 100% error free. Maybe it would be an issue for people with low signal levels, but I've never had that problem.
 
nozzer said:
Of course the signal levels are important as all this equipment is meant for continental use but on an average signal there's a much higher chance of a dvb-c card working than something like a dreambox. This is because the sensitivity on all dvb-t card tuners tends to be better than the tuners used in dreamboxes/starviews etc.

Generally, (as someone who has a particularly weak signal) i've not really discovered any particular difference in performance between the more expensive manufacturers cards and the cheaper far east versions.

The differences between the C1500 and C1501 with the different tuners you mention just doesn't seem to bear out except in some cases where there may be problems due to proximity of the old analogue TV channels. This problem should reduce shortly as VM switch off these old analogue channels.
Click to expand...
I have to completely disagree. STB's such as the aforementioned dreamboxes/starviews have far higher sensitivity than PCI Tuners. You've said yourself that these are manufactured for the continental EU market where signals in general are higher. I thought this was all common knowledge, clearly not :s?

In regards to the two tuners used on the C1500, a simple google will reveal various discussions regarding the inferior tuner used on the latter cards.
 
EViS said:
I have to completely disagree. STB's such as the aforementioned dreamboxes/starviews have far higher sensitivity than PCI Tuners. You've said yourself that these are manufactured for the continental EU market where signals in general are higher. I thought this was all common knowledge, clearly not :s?

In regards to the two tuners used on the C1500, a simple google will reveal various discussions regarding the inferior tuner used on the latter cards.
Click to expand...

All the boxes - Starviews/Eurovox/Dreambox are manufactured for continental Europe, as are the PCI cards. Generally there is little or no difference between them. If anything, I usually find the PCI cards are a little more sensitive than the stb's, especially the dreamboxes.

Low signal is always going to be a problem for some people in the UK and, as there are no devices specifically designed for UK cable (except possibly the KryptView box) there's not really much you can do about it.

Of course, even though the signal levels in the UK are, on average, lower than the rest of Europe, some people will actually have higher signal levels than that average so the continental boxes/pci cards will work fine and without problem.

The tuners on the C1500 & C1501 have remarkably similar specs in everything that matters. Like anything else though, no two tuners are ever the same. You may find one C1500 works fine in a given situation whilst the next one off the production line does not. Same for the C1501. Both devices may well be within manufacturing tolerances but it may just be the devices are being pushed slightly beyond their spec.

At the end of the day you either get one that works or you dont. There's really no way of pre-determining the outcome with any particular device unless its specifically designed for UK conditions.

oh, there's also a little more to the problem than signal level. There's a distinct problem in certain areas due to other factors which i'm not going to discuss.
 
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Well we've both clearly been brought up on different hardware and from different research backgrounds so no point arguing this as neither of us have any detailed spec's to compare. I guess it is important for everyone reading to be aware of both sides (and experiences) though :).
 
nozzer said:
The TwinHan should work fine.

There's very little to these cards - basically just a tuner module and a pci interface. All the intelligence for sorting/seperating the incoming streamdata is down to the host PC.

So, as long as you can find a driver for a particular card with your chosen system then it will work. To check drivers just look at the manufacturers website.
Click to expand...

I just brought Twainhan 2301 from Hisat.
i cant get any channel on it. not even a FTAs. I been messing around for 4 days now still no luck
try with
DVBviewer
DVBdream

please help or it going back to Hisat
 
Firstly, forget 3rd party apps to start with. Use the programs that come with the card.

Next you have to know your details for scanning. Nearly all these cards will come with profiles for Europe so you are going to have to either tune manually or add your own profile.

The frequencies and symbol rates you want will be the same as the dreambox settings for your area. Thats usually a good place to start. If you cant find that then make a post about your location (preferably give your NetId region) and someone will likely to be able to tell you the symbol rate/default frequency for that area.

When connecting the card - connect it straight to the cable feed. Dont take it through any splitters etc. This guarantees that you get the best signal to start with.
 
reggie124 said:
I just brought Twainhan 2301 from Hisat.
i cant get any channel on it. not even a FTAs. I been messing around for 4 days now still no luck
try with
DVBviewer
DVBdream

please help or it going back to Hisat
Click to expand...

Driver, Twinhan the first one under "other models" (1.2.3.8)
need to know your provider DSL ZoneUK - ntl Region checker for symbolrate etc. DVBDream 1.4 h works for me on xp home.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
thank for your help Willin. I just try twinhan 2301 at my friend house and it pick-up few sky channels on ntl cable. I will let you know out come late, when i re-install in my htpc.
thanks again
 
Finally i got it working with Mytheatre. I had problem with progdvb (keep freezing and crashing) dvbviewer will not pick-up any channels same with dvbdream
Now!!!
How do i update the keys in Vplug?
 
just a quick question, do these pci cards come with remote control or is their a standard remote control (like the Microsoft one for the Media Centre) one can use.
 
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