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Channel Master DVRs For OTA

363K views 982 replies 152 participants last post by  Gibsons 
#1 ·
This should work in Canada too. My TV guide on my old DVD recorder displayed Canadian TV station content, so this machine should too.

From C-Net:

EchoStar TR-50: An HD DVR for those without cable or satellite
(Credit: EchoStar)

If you think everybody has cable or satellite, you couldn't be more wrong. In fact, if you live in an area that's well-served by digital broadcasters, now's a better time than ever to get your TV over the air (or "OTA," as the cool kids say): yeah, you get only a handful of channels, but they're in crystal-clear digital quality--DVD quality at "worst," uncompressed high-definition at best. The problem--as we're reminded by many an e-mailer--is that there just isn't a good DVR solution for the rabbit-ears crowd, especially if you prefer high-def. (You can opt for a TiVo HD, but you'd still have to pay a monthly fee for their programming guide.) But that may finally be changing, thanks to the EchoStar TR-50. For all intents and purposes, the TR-50 takes many of the features found on Dish Networks' excellent satellite DVRs (such as the ViP622 and 722) and brings them to antenna-based TV viewers.

The unit offers ATSC and NTSC tuners, so it can view and record over-the-air HD digital, standard digital, and analog channels. Dual tuner action means you can watch (and record) one live channel while simultaneously recording a second--or record two channels while playing back a previously recorded show. There's also full control over live TV, including rewind, pause, slow motion, 10-second "instant replay," and--for recordings--30-second skip. The TR-50 also sports a 7-day electronic program guide (using over-the-air metadata on the digital band), which should eliminate the pesky VCR-style manual "timer recordings" (you remember: "8:00-9:00 p.m. / Thursdays / channel 4"). The box also has a full range of outputs, including component and HDMI (480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i resolutions supported), as well as standard-def composite and RF outputs for older TVs. Dish hasn't yet specified the internal hard drive size, but the USB 2.0 connector will ensure expandable storage. Perhaps most interestingly, the TR-50 includes an Ethernet port and the ability to decode MPEG-4 video, and EchoStar touts its ability to "access premium Internet-based TV programming via broadband Internet," as well as "DVR management and timer creation via Internet"--though the timeframe for such features wasn't disclosed. Likewise, the exact release date and pricing information remain a mystery. But if it's affordable--and lacks TiVo's monthly fee--the TR-50 may be the perfect fit for TV viewers without satellite or cable who still want to enjoy HD programming on their own schedule.

Separately, EchoStar also announced the TR-40. That model is merely a digital set-top box (no DVR). It will let analog TV owners (or those with HD monitors that lack a tuner) receive digital and high-def signals over the air--a necessity after the scheduled February 2009 analog TV shutdown.
 
#722 · (Edited)
According to CNET, the guide data is supplied free of charge by Rovi.

See the article here. Channel Master tells me via Twitter that you get about 14 days of guide data. It will also function for Canadian users.
 
#723 ·
Questions I have:
- Is the guide data provided free over broadband connection or is it subscription-based? Either way, is it available in Canada?

- If you choose not to use the internet guide data, will the unit still pull PSIP guide data?
I was told the guide data is free for the web connection data.I would think most would have to invest in the WiFi adapter to make it easier to take advantage of the 2 week guide .

From what I was told by a beta tester is both the Canadian and US content is working well in the guide .They are hard wired to the unit .

I believe PSIP is there ,but with a DVR you really want to take advantage of the internet connection.


Also -

We feel that the 90 day's of phone support will be a sufficient amount to help the user install the unit, and answer any functionality questions. At the end of 90 days, Channel Master will still provide support via our online support portal.
 
#728 ·
CM DVR+ and Tablotv seem crazy expensive

For almost a year I have been running the following setup -
- $5 coat hangar antenna
- HDHomeRun Dual
- Synology NAS drive

I installed DVBLink on the NAS drive for recording tv shows. I have a perl script that runs daily on the Synology to grab the tv guide for free from zap2it.com and drop it in a folder for DVBLink to pick up. I have installed the DVBlink app on my ipad so I can view and select shows to record. you can select record once, record a series, only keep so many episodes etc

Tv shows are recorded on the NAS drive and accessible for watching from any uPNP device. Live tv can also be watched from most uPNP devices.

Its been a rock solid setup!

Only problem I have encountered is the size of the raw recorded files - 8gb for an hour. Usually not a problem since most of my house is hardwired with gigabit switches but the bedroom is wireless to a WD Live box. I suppose I could run a script on the NAS to run Handbrake in the background to convert the files into a smaller file format but haven't got there yet
 
#730 ·
Exactly - it needs to be simple enough for the under 4 to 10 year olds to be able to use.

Plus there's the initial cost of the HDHomeRun and the NAS. If you don't have the NAS that you can write pl scripts on then you'll need some basic computer. Finally, time is money. For the time it would take me to set that up I could do some client billable work and make more than enough to cover the Tablo.
 
#731 ·
Channel Master CM7500 DVR+

Just installed the DVR+ (CM7500) and I am LOVING it.
My setup: ChannelMaster CM5020 Outdoor Antenna, CM7777 Preamp, and CM3418 splitter. I live about 50kms southwest of downtown Ottawa near Ashton.

DVR+ Pros:
-requires only one coax in (Bell ExpressVu required 2)
-record a show and watch another live
-record two shows at once and watch a third, already recorded show
-Wireless internet USB adapter keeps the unit connected to the Internet for an expanded guide and for software updates
-USB external drive means you can optionally buy one of theirs or use your own (I bought their 500GB external drive with 80 hours of HD programming)
-it actually found a couple more OTA channels than my TV tuner which made me VERY happy, including PBS, which I was unable to get with the antenna, preamp and TV tuner alone
-setup is easy -- just plug it in, follow the setup, put in your language, country, postal code, and timezone (for the guide)
-menu is simple and easy to use
-easy to use recording and playback
-live TV rewind and pause
-multiple settings for the instant back and forward buttons, such as 10 secs, 20 secs, etc.
-it's very small and thin. Hardly even know it's there.

Cons
-only has three recording options -- once, every instance of that "name", or by time
-every instance of the "name" means EVERY instance (not sure if it also means every channel, so far that's not been an issue) -- it doesn't differentiate between duplicate episodes or "new" episodes, so asking to record "Big Bang Theory" when you only want new ones, means you get them ALL, which can be 20 in a week for a show that runs multiple times on multiple channels. You could choose to record only once, but then you would have to set it up to record each time, or you could risk recording based on the time, and hope the network doesn't change the programming without updating the guide. To stop all these extra shows from recording, you have to go into the recording history menu and then delete each individual instance of shows you don't want recorded, which is time consuming and not very efficient.
-not supported by the Harmony Universal Remote (yet). They support the CM7400, so I suspect it's just a matter to time

So far I am very happy with the unit. I purchased the 2 year extended warranty as these new boxes tend to have issues.

I will update if I find any more pros or cons or have any issues, but I am currently "two thumbs up" for this unit.
 
#733 ·
Good initial review; thanks for posting. Please keep us updated on how the unit continues to perform.

I do question if an extended warranty is necessary though. Presumably there are no moving parts in the DVR itself (the HDD is external and purchased separately). And based on the feedback on previous CM DVR's, the main issue was HDD failure.

Does the device come with support contacts? For example, does it tell you whom to call should the guide data stop working?!
 
#734 ·
^ Ok, sorry Jase - I went back prior to the DVR+ release date but I didn't notice that. I didn't go through all 500 threads.

Anyway, as much as there were some nice features with this I decided to order the Tablo instead.
Actually, that's my bad. I posted the guide information in the Channel Master DVR thread, and not this one. Apologies for that.

Keep us updated on how the Tablo performs. I'm very interested in this one.
 
#735 ·
Reading the User's guide it looks to me like it uses Linux and various open source software. Means ya should be able to request a copy of the source code they used to develop it. At least anything that was using open source. That's a good thing, cause it leaves a door open for a potential 3rd party developer to come along with a solution, should theirs ever die someday for whatever reason... I'm not a lawyer, but I think there may be something in there about having this responsibility for 'up to 3 years after last shipment'.

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl-2.1.html

LG obliged when I asked them to post the source code for my TV (mfr'd 2009), while Samsung complained that the 3 years had expired (mfr'd 2008). They both have open source distribution sites for this purpose.
 
#736 ·
Ah right - I see that now.

Too bad that no single unit can do it all. If they added the EPG, direct HDMI hookup, and remote control of the CM DVR+ then that would be ideal. I still like to grab an old fashioned remote control rather than using a phone/tablet.

Having Slingbox type of functionality built right in to the Tablo is very appealing too. I'll have to test to see how well it performs compared to a slingbox (PQ wise).
 
#737 ·
@majortom

Bell requires two inputs if you have the dual recording unit -- record two shows at the same time, or in my case, use the second TV output for another TV. I had the 9242 unit for the last four years. Had to have two.

The price was $249 USD before the hard drive. As I said, you can supply your own. Extended 2 year warranty was $39.99. Wireless USB adapter was also $39.99. 500GB drive was $99.99. I had it shipped to Ogdensburg and picked it up there, so no shipping. Just GST at the border.

I bought it from the ChannelMaster site: http://www.channelmaster.com/Products_s/329.htm#DVR+
 
#738 ·
It was me that mentioned the fact you only need 1 line for a 9242 and that is indeed the case. The fact you had 2 probably means yours was either a self installation or was done before Bell rolled out DPP, in October 2011 I believe.

At $249, that sounds impressive. I will check the Website, as I need a clear QAM Tuner, which I am sure it will have.

EDIT;

No mention of QAM, on the Web Site.
 
#739 ·
@Jase88

I bought the drive with it, so that's why the extended warranty. For $39.99, if it fails, they send me a new one. I get the no moving parts, but still, flakey power supplies, bad connectors, etc. Being a new product, I figured it was worth the $40. My theory for everything I spend, is how many bottles of wine is that. I figure it's worth two bottles.

As for support, the documentation steers you to their online support site, where you can post questions. They do not appear to have a phone number under "contact us" and there was nothing in the documentation.

I did find phone numbers for both the US and Canada in the Extended Warranty
https://channelmaster.zendesk.com/h...xtended_Service_Plan_Terms_and_Conditions.pdf

BTW, the drive they supplied was a Seagate Slim Portable Drive STCD500102 USB 3.0 500GD Drive. If I read the extended warranty correctly, it is covered as it was part of the original accessories provided on the original invoice.
 
#742 ·
But you only need one from the DPP LNBF to behind the receiver, where you use a Seperator, with short jumpers to feed BOTH Tuners. This is the same for the 3200, 5200, 9241, 9241+, 9242 and the 9400.

Now back to the CM Receiver.
 
#743 ·
Not sure why that little fact matters, it is still one line from the outside, or did I miss something.

The OP has 2 lines from the LNBF/Switch, I pointed out that only one is required from the LNBF/switch, nothing has changed, this is still the case.

I can see people who buy this DRV from Channel Master, still wanting to feed the TV with signals from the Antenna as well, so they can record 2 shows and still watch a live one using the ATSC Tuner in the TV, so they would then need 2 lines as well. Would you suggest bringing another from the Antenna, or just use a splitter.
 
#744 ·
Well, weird stuff is already happening. I had hoped to record Downton Abbey on WNIP-HD from Watertown. That's one of the three OTA channels the DVR+ found when tuning. I was watching it yesterday. It still appears on the guide, but NOTHING shows on the screen. No problems with any of the other stations it found. I find that very odd. It doesn't say anything about the signal. I decided to rerun the auto-tuning again to see if it was signal problem, and sure enough, none of the three WNIP stations it previously found show up. I figured once it found it, it would keep it. Guess not. Signal must be intermittent. Oh well, I will keep trying to figure out how to get it. Might have to repoint my antenna.
 
#745 ·
I use a splitter and since I already had a coax directly into the TV tuner, I left it there. I then put the other into the back of the ChannelMaster. That way, as you say, I can record two shows at once and watch a third live, although that almost never happens. I actually had three coax to my old 9242, two input, and one for the output to a TV in another room.
 
#746 · (Edited by Moderator)
DVR+ to get whole home PVR functionality

Seems like CM will be adding a HW add-on box that will give the DVR+ whole home capability at some point this year ... no details yet on what's required or the price point but this sounds awesome :)

gigaom.com: Channel Master wants its new DVR+ to be the TiVo of people who don’t like to pay TiVo’s fees – and now, it’s developing whole-home DVR functionality as well.
I must admit, I'm pretty happy with what I'm seeing from CM's new DVR product. It's a good strategy: offer a solid base model at a reasonable price (DVR+ is less than what I paid for my CM7000PAL 3 years ago), don't milk people for guide info by giving it for free (rumours of a premium pay guide to come in the future?), and then let people add-on what they need whenever they want it (WiFi dongle, external HD of desired size, whole-home PVR, Slingbox). Smart move to go with customization instead of a one-size-fits-none approach.

The only downside as someone pointed out is that it's only HDMI-out, which may turn off some people with older TVs ... but the future is coming eventually, not sure how much longer we'll see component and composite coming standard.
 
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