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Windows 10 w/ OTA Live + PVR TV Support

25K views 42 replies 17 participants last post by  lunear 
#1 ·
With the demise of Media Center not being ported to Windows 10, I am wondering what I should use going forward. I just installed Hauppauge WinTV 8 which seems to be a big step up from 6.4 and 7 but it isn't Media Center. Although it does have WinTV Extend.

I am hoping to continue to run Win8.1 w/ Media Center and dual boot it with the free upgrade to 10 and experiment with replacement recording software.
 
#2 ·
Some other options are Kodi, MediaPortal and NextPVR. I use Kodi with NextPVR as the TV back end. MediaPortal is a complete solution for TV and media. Both solutions provide about the same functionality. NextPVR by itself is feature limited but works well for TV. Kodi can be combined with a media server, like Plex, for extra functionality. Don't know how they compare to WMC feature by feature. They may not yet be ported to Win10 but I expect they will.
 
#4 ·
This is a real issue for many of us HTPC users.

Personally, I hope to hang onto my W8.1 with Media Center for quite a few years so I don't have to deal with it!

I tried NextPVR a year or two ago but was unable to get it working.

IIRC, mediaportal requires you subscribe to a TV listing service, does it not? I like with WMC that Guide listings are free!
 
#5 ·
I have Roku as well as Xbox in the house. Either of those streaming devices would be my preference as working into the solution. Kodi is awesome though I use it on a raspberry pi in my office. I am already invested into xbox and roku throughout the house. It has good WAF.

WinTV 8 seems to work ok. It's as clunky as previous versions. The recordings are manual so no metadata. Not the end of the world I suppose, what do I want for free! Lol! They give you a link to titantv to look up the shows to enter into the manual recording. I replaced that shortcut with zap2it since titantv doesn't support Canada. I know NextPVR has all the fancy metadata and a Roku channel for the annual price of a subscription fee. No live TV there though. Then again, the only live tv option for WinTV 8 is the WinTV extend which is not the greatest unless using an iPhone as your watching device.

Also looking at the Roku channel chaneru to see what type of options that might have.

Damn this sucks! I will keep media center going for the short - medium term but long term I want to ditch it. Part of me wants to go SageTV because Google is now somehow associated with it? Stick it to Microsoft for ditching my beloved Media Center LOL!

Perhaps getting the Hauppauge stick for the xbox one so that I can do live tv on the main livingroom tv that doesn't have a cable outlet and do NextPVR for the recording and playback on the Rokus. I would have to get a cable outlet to the Xbox One though. Damn media center just seems to solve all kinds of problems for me. It's going to be hard to let it go!
 
#6 ·
I used SageTV for a while before Google purchased it and ended new development. Now that it's being open sourced, it's becoming interesting again. Unfortunately, SageTV is built using Java. And Java has been a thorn in the side of many users - just look at their support forum threads!

As to where-to next, I'm taking a wait-and-see approach. But I did back the HDHomeRun kickstarter. And I have high hopes.

The big plus about Windows Media Center is that it has a really smooth user experience, it was free, had solid tuner support, and a free guide. The big downside is that Microsoft never released a software-based extender, and they stopped new development post-Windows 7.

The HDHomeRun software will be subscription-based ($30/year), but it comes with guide data, which costs ~$25/year from Schedules Direct. They have committed themselves to creating many different client apps, which is a big win over what Microsoft did with Media Center (and, frankly a big win over SageTV).

Really, the one and only issue I take with the HDHomeRun project is that while they're making a Windows client application, they've never stated that their app is going to be a Universal App. At this point, I think it would be insane not to make it a Universal App, but it concerns me that I haven't seen it stated anywhere that it will be a Universal App. And they talked about the possibility of creating a separate Xbox One app, which suggests that the Windows App that they're making isn't Universal. If the Windows App was Universal, I don't think they would be talking about it and the Xbox One app as two separate things.
 
#7 ·
Part of me wants to go SageTV because Google is now somehow associated with it?
Google actually killed SageTV as a product so that's a reason to "stick it" to Google. It took a couple of years for Google to release the source code for open source development.

I see no reason to make HDHomeRun PVR an app at all. It's a PVR, not a player. It's best implemented as a service. The interface and player are a different issue. I'd rather see a Windows desktop interface first. That would make it compatible with all current versions of Windows, not just Win8 and Win10. Making a universal app interface and player would be a bonus.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for the feedback, which reminds me, the other issue I have with the HDHomerun PVR Kickstarter project is that I found out the KODI Live TV plug-in for HD Homerun does not support my version! :( I am concerned the PVR is going to be the same.

http://kodi.wiki/view/Add-on:HDHomeRun_Live_TV

That said, I would need a new WinTV USB stick for the Xbox One as well. I currently have the 950q and it requires the 955.

Perhaps now is just not the time to be worrying about this and that some solution will come together and be a no brainer!

#ifitaintbrokedontfixit (yet! ;)
 
#9 ·
ExDilbert said:
I see no reason to make HDHomeRun PVR an app at all. It's a PVR, not a player.
Then who will write the front-end UI? Your comment is puzzling. If you point a front-end UI like Plex at your recorded TV files there are no provisions to view and schedule new recordings from a EPG for example. They've committed to making a handful of front-end UIs to go with their recording engine.

ExDilbert said:
It's best implemented as a service.
I'm sure the recording engine will be implemented as a service on Windows and a unix daemon elsewhere.

ExDilbert said:
The interface and player are a different issue. I'd rather see a Windows desktop interface first.
My guess is that most tech savvy users will be upgrading to Windows 10 for free during the first year. Why not take advantage of being able to write for a wide range of devices in one go? Besides, a desktop UI sucks on a HTPC, which is the primary use case.

j0dest3r said:
I found out the KODI Live TV plug-in for HD Homerun does not support my version!
Yeah, I'm going to need to upgrade my tuner hardware as well. The HDHR3 doesn't support their new HTTP-based interface. I guess I'll just keep my eyes peeled for a NewEgg or Amazon special.
 
#10 · (Edited)
@audacity Well if you come across one let me know.

Looks like I am upgrading my WinTV HVR stick from the 950q to the 955q as well. I really want to try the OTA thing through the Xbox One. I have a $10.00 in store card so I should be able to pick this up for $50.00

Apparently the HDMI port gets added to the channel list after you add the 955q to the mix. This looks like a good place for the Chromecast or the MS wireless display adapter.
 
#12 ·
if you can get it to work, MythTV can be fantastic


it requires by FAR the most hand holding, and fiddling and outright fixing of any other solution


the linux guys will tell you it's simple, but if you can sit down with them and make them do it in front of you, they'll admit it's a ton of work to make it work




when it works tho, it's really pretty good


media portal was my 2nd choice after MCE, and it's not bad at all
 
#13 ·
MediaPortal configuration has improved in the most recent versions. I still prefer KODI for ease of setup. KODI typically just works as supplied. Just point it at the media sources and it's usable. The TV backend does require the usual configuration but all that KODI requires is enabling of the plugin and an IP address.
 
#14 ·
I tried Wild Media Server free trial to serve up my Windows 10 / WinTV 8 test recorded content. Played very well on the test PS3. (PQ on par with WMC) I couldn't get a proper profile setup for the Roku though. I may come back to testing this again at some point.
 
#15 ·
I'm in same boat as you guys, starting the search for replacement of sweet windows media center setup. I've heard xbone (xbox one) has a beta out atm for OTA recording, not sure how/if that would work with any extendors, i personally prefer having a central pc/server to do the recording and streaming to various cheap (and quiet! Cant wait to get rid if my old 360 the fan noise is too much) extenders around the house so tried kodi only to find theres no actual pvr functionality (but i assume it will eventually, it has some cool plugins tho so not a complete waste) then tried mediaportal a couple weeks ago, tvs working and the interface is decent similar to what other folks are saying there doesnt seem to be an EPG offering "out of the box" for canadians, decided before i start tinkering with that i'd check some forums (led me here) im familar enough with scripting i figure might go that route (to scrape epg info from zap2it and convert to whatever xml format mp expectin) dont wanna commit to mp tho till i do some extendor research (or get the kodi plugin working, seems that its got a client for just about everything ie i might have found a use for my ouya after all! Kodis mp plugin didnt work on first attempt but i assume could be windows firewall didnt dig much). Anyway just thought i'd share my experience thus far in case it helps, will post back if/when i find a working alternative. looking forward to checking out mythtv when its back ive never used it but ties with google and fair amount of hype/shoutouts in this forum it sounds promising as well
 
#17 ·
I haven't heard about XboxOne recording if you could pass on a link that would be great. I just started playing with the smart glass streaming of OTA from XboxOne. It works quite well. The new 360s are quiet but getting a new one may not be a wise investment at this point, depends I guess. (It is the only new extender left)

There seems to be a number of contenders poking their head up at the moment such as KODI plug-ins for Silicondust, Silicondust DVR on kickstarter, PLEX, NextPVR (been around for a bit has a Roku app etc.) Us OTA'ers have a few more options than the CableCARD crowd at least for now. Media Center is also not going away for now, but many fear the EPG support will get pulled at any time + being able to actually purchase the $10.00 add-on in the future.
 
#19 ·
My questions about the Xbox One DVR:

1. Does it record TV programs while you're doing other things (e.g. gaming)?

2. Does it allow other "client" devices to watch recorded shows and schedule new recordings?

3. Can it use network storage devices to record all that data?
 
#21 ·
Well if the current setup is any indication....

1. Yes. Basing this on being able to access the tuner for smart glass streaming of OTA content while gaming. That said only one (USB) tuner is currently supported.

2. I would assuming recordings would be accessible via smartglass the same way live currently is. Same thing with scheduling.

3. I suspect Nope. The Xbox uses a different storage format and currently can only address it via USB 3 port.
 
#20 ·
isn't the author of Sichbopvr Canadian?
Woulda thunk some of you Canadians may have tried it?
http://www.sichbopvr.com/#download

Once upon a time when I used windows, I used to use NextPVR (was called GBPVR at the time). All these apps are free and pretty much having the same functionality.
 
#22 · (Edited by Moderator)
Moving from WMC - I am at a loss

I have tried Kodi and MediaPortal2.

I can't believe how much set-up they require! I followed a few tutorials - this is insane. I have not even been able to see TV (I have a PC TV Tuner) like I do with WMC.

I also tried SageTV but it bugs me on my postal code (Canada here). I entered ZIP codes, same result.

What is the best (read most similar to WMC) software that will handle simple a PVR function and TV schedule?
 
#29 ·
I also tried SageTV but it bugs me on my postal code (Canada here). I entered ZIP codes, same result.
That may be because SageTV is being turned into Open Source software so they had to remove the ability to get guide data, even for trial versions due to licensing issues. Hopefully that will be resolved in the near future.

I have tried many of the PVR solutions through the years including WMC, BeyondTV and SageTV and I found SageTV to be the best for a variety of reasons, not the least was the client-server architecture and extenders that make it easy to have many end points in your house.

Check back with SageTV in a few months when the Open Source version has been released.
 
#24 ·
I don't agree with Kodi requiring too much setup. It's pretty much ready to go, even with a fresh installation. The only setup usually required is to point it at media sources but that's required of any media server. The biggest job is getting the backend TV server configured but that's not part of Kodi. Configuring the TV server in MCE requires a lot of setup as well, especially for Canada. Once that is done, just configure the TV module in Kodi, which is fairly easy and basically just consists of enabling it and pointing it at the server. (It can use the MCE TV server so the difference from MCE is trivial. I use NextPVR which, in Canada, is easier to set up than MCE.) The nice thing about Kodi is that there is lots of choice for TV servers so pick the one that works best or is easiest to set up.

I'd agree that MediaPortal is a chore to set up. Worst parts are the TV server and CODECs with the latter being the most finicky.
 
#26 ·
I use KODI with NextPVR. It works well, provides a nice EPG too. It's not too hard to setup either. A nice supplement to OTA is the FTV add-on which provides an EPG loaded with most of the UK Freeview channels, provided by FilmOn, which are completely legal to use everywhere except in the U.S., and they are geo-blocked there anyways. The only Freeview channel geo-blocked in Canada is Motors Tv
 
#27 ·
I feel your pain Saintor. I've been trying a few different things over the last few months. I gave up for a while but really need to consider all this again as Windows 10 is here!

Being that I have a PCI tuner and also an older Silicon Dust that isn't used that much. My last resort is to upgrade my HTPC to 10, abandon the PCI card, and use the built in Hyper-V to host a Windows 8.1 MC installation that uses the Silicon Dust over the network rather than the PC card. Then it can sit there forever and who cares! If I replace the HTPC I can just carry the VM forward. My only concern with that setup is the cost for another license + media center add-on and the storage. I don't want the recordings to reside in the VM so some sort of NAS / shared storage solution will be required.
 
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