New HTPC feedback - Page 6 - Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums

OTAJuncqui · 2012-04-28, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Does this mean stations like CITY TV will not be available in a guide format, or is it "smart" enough to capture this since Buffalo could pull in the Toronto station?

If CityTV and others are listed no problem.
And US listings have more info than Canadian(even for Can. stations).

johnvan · 2012-04-29, 09:18 AM

Microsoft uses zap2it to get their programming guide. Just for fun I went to the zap2it website and typed in zip code 14201.
All the stations you receive are there. Set your system up with 14201 and you will be fine. You'll notice WNYB is 26 instead of 15 but WMC should sort it out. It's easy to remap a channel if needed.
http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlisti...eupId=PC:14201

The HDHomerun dual is a great choice. Thats what I have, I wondered if I would need dual tuners but during primetime I'm almost always recording two shows simultaneously.

Eljaca · 2012-05-10, 09:17 PM

Just to clarify when I setup things with a US zip code, do I also need to set up the whole Windows 7 setup with US info as well or is it just for WMC? I will be using the HDHomerun and only OTA.

FYI I am patiently waiting for the remaining parts of my new HTPC to arrive in the mail. I will keep you all posted - everyone's assistance was/is greatly appreciated.

Eljaca

Wayne · 2012-05-10, 10:51 PM

I am pretty sure that you just need the US settings for WinMC, not for the entire OS.

Eljaca · 2012-05-17, 08:44 PM

Thanks Wayne - I have now confirmed that you were correct.

Computer has been built and I am currently trying to tweak all the software to give me full WAF. So far so good and I must say I am loving SSD - just the little time it takes with reboots during the installation of the O/S and updates is worth the extra $ spent.

Eljaca

Wayne · 2012-05-17, 09:02 PM

I agree - SSDs are awesome. I doubt that I will ever buy another mechanical hard drive again, other than for my media server.

ClgShaft · 2012-06-02, 01:24 PM

Eljaca,

Let me know how ou make out with wmc. I used it for a few months, but have found mediaportal to be way superior for my needs. I am now transitioning away from xbmc.

I am using moving pictures, great scraper, and tv series. There are some great skins.

I am thinking of moving everything to an SSD as well.

Good luck.

Eljaca · 2012-06-02, 05:25 PM

ClgShaft,

I am loving WMC with the OTA via HDHomerun and CM4228 antenna. I used media browser with coverart3.0 which looks amazing. I bought a fantastic HTPC guide online that walked me through the setup of absolutely averything from codecs to skins - nothing was left out.

I made the call to cancel Rogers yesterday, they threw just about everything at me to get me to stay, tried to tell me that in Witby I would only be able to receive CityTV OTA and no US stations etc, etc. Felt great to pull the plug!

Have not yet set up the Harmony remote with the system, so it is a bit of a pain to navigate when I am flat out on the couch and don't feel like getting up to move the wired mouse or keyboard but it works like a charm so far.

Ripped a number of my blurays and DVDs and they kids are already fully adept at navigating around the system to get to their favorites.

Can't say I have much to compare it to other than Rogers, my only regret is that I didn't do this sooner!

Eljaca

Eljaca · 2012-06-02, 05:45 PM

Just to close the loop, here are the final details of the build, let me know if you have any questions- I feel like I have learned a lot over the last couple of months.

This is what I thought I would do at last post and what I went with...

ASUS P8Z68-M Pro LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
NOPE - instead went with a newer ASUS Z77
HDHomeRun DUAL - High Definition Digital TV Tuner (Network Attached) HDHR3-US (Black)
YES and loving it
Antec EarthWatts Green EA-380D Green 380W Continuous power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power
NOPE - close, instead went with the antec 400w green since it was on sale
Intel Core i3-2105 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623I32105
NOPE - went Ivy Bridge instead i5....total overkill, but what the hell! Wanted the HD4000 graphics and a better 24FPS though not totally fixed with IB
OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-60G 2.5" 60GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
NOPE, went with the Intel 330 due to the better reputation of their SSDs
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel
YES
SAMSUNG EcoGreen F4 HD204UI 2TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare
YES
LITE-ON Black 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu Ray 3D Feature SATA IHBS112-04
YES
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM
YES

krugan · 2012-07-29, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eljaca

You guys are a riot

Well I've picked up my case - went with Silverstone GD05 - and it's time to start filling it. I also got my CM4228 installed in the attic and I have the following channels coming in (a little off topic, but then again it's my thread!)

2.1 WGRZ-HD 1080i NBC - buffalo
2.2 WGRZ-AT 480i NBC - buffalo
4.1 WIVB-HD 1080i CBS
5.1 CBLT-DT 720p CBC
7.1 WKBW-HD 720p ABC
9.1 CFTO 1080i CFTO
15.1 WNYB-SD 480i SUN
15.2 WNYB-HD 1080i
15.3 WNYBSD2 480i
15-4 WNYBSD3 480i
17.1 WNED-HD 1080i PBS
17.2 WNED-SD 480i PBS
17.3 WNED-TH 480i PBS
19.1 C 1080i TVO
23.1 WNLO-HD 1080i CW
25.1 CBLFT-D 720p SRC - French
29.1 WUTV-HD 720p FOX 29
29.2 TCN 480i County Network
36.1 CITS-HD 1080i CTS
41.1 CIII-HD 1080i Global
41.2 CIII-SD 480i Global
47.1 CFMT 1080i OMNI
49.1 WNYO-HD 720p MyN
49.2 Cool TV 480i Buffalo
51.1 ION 720p ION barely comes in
51.2 qubo 480i QUBO barely comes in
51.3 IONlife 480i IONLife barely comes in
57.1 CITYTV 1080i CITY TV
69.1 CJMT 1080i OMN

I am 99% sure I will go with the HD Homerun at this stage. Would love to hear from anyone about plain ol' Windows Media Centre....why would I not want this? OK..this should get interesting!

Eljaca

Eljaca,

Wow, you receive all of these channels? Can you tell me a little more about your setup? Do you use just one antenna with a rotor or are you using two antennas?

Eljaca · 2012-07-29, 11:02 PM

Krugan, the post directly above yours should give you the specs for the htpc and the antenna is an original CM4228. No rotor, and it's in my attic. My neighbor has a CM4221 and has similar results. Where are you located?

Eljaca

krugan · 2012-07-29, 11:27 PM

Eljaca, sorry I meant OTA setup and if you use a Preamp (which kind) and does it make a big difference in the number of channels you receive? I'm in Burlington and currently have one CM4228 mounted outside with no preamp and deciding if I should bother purchasing another antenna and point it to Buffalo for the channels and one to the CN tower.

ScaryBob · 2012-07-29, 11:34 PM

One of the OTA threads is more suitable for that topic.

Foxenhimr · 2012-08-13, 10:26 PM

Probably something really simple, but WMC sees only the analogue tuners on my HVR 2250. I must be missing something ?

Dr.Dave · 2012-08-13, 11:49 PM

WMC doesn't support digital tuners in Canada. If you just want OTA, you could try redoing the setup with a U.S. zip code near you such as 12937. If all your channels show up - you're good to go.

If you don't see all your channels or you want or you want to receive cable or satellite as well, you'll have to use pnear's hack.

2012-07-29, 11:02 PM	#86
Eljaca Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Whitby, Rogers Posts: 153	Krugan, the post directly above yours should give you the specs for the htpc and the antenna is an original CM4228. No rotor, and it's in my attic. My neighbor has a CM4221 and has similar results. Where are you located? Eljaca Last edited by Eljaca; 2012-07-29 at 11:02 PM. Reason: Spelling

2012-07-29, 11:34 PM	#88
ScaryBob Veteran Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: The Dandelion City Posts: 7,133	One of the OTA threads is more suitable for that topic. __________________ At 20 I had a good mind. At 40 I had money. At 60 I've lost my mind and my money. Oh, to be 20 again. --Scary

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2012-04-29, 09:18 AM	#77
johnvan Join Date: Aug 2011 Posts: 116	Microsoft uses zap2it to get their programming guide. Just for fun I went to the zap2it website and typed in zip code 14201. All the stations you receive are there. Set your system up with 14201 and you will be fine. You'll notice WNYB is 26 instead of 15 but WMC should sort it out. It's easy to remap a channel if needed. http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlisti...eupId=PC:14201 The HDHomerun dual is a great choice. Thats what I have, I wondered if I would need dual tuners but during primetime I'm almost always recording two shows simultaneously.

2012-05-10, 09:17 PM	#78
Eljaca Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Whitby, Rogers Posts: 153	Just to clarify when I setup things with a US zip code, do I also need to set up the whole Windows 7 setup with US info as well or is it just for WMC? I will be using the HDHomerun and only OTA. FYI I am patiently waiting for the remaining parts of my new HTPC to arrive in the mail. I will keep you all posted - everyone's assistance was/is greatly appreciated. Eljaca

2012-05-10, 10:51 PM	#79
Wayne Veteran Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Scarboro Posts: 5,578	I am pretty sure that you just need the US settings for WinMC, not for the entire OS.

2012-05-17, 08:44 PM	#80
Eljaca Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Whitby, Rogers Posts: 153	Thanks Wayne - I have now confirmed that you were correct. Computer has been built and I am currently trying to tweak all the software to give me full WAF. So far so good and I must say I am loving SSD - just the little time it takes with reboots during the installation of the O/S and updates is worth the extra $ spent. Eljaca

2012-05-17, 09:02 PM	#81
Wayne Veteran Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Scarboro Posts: 5,578	I agree - SSDs are awesome. I doubt that I will ever buy another mechanical hard drive again, other than for my media server.

2012-06-02, 01:24 PM	#82
ClgShaft Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 702	Eljaca, Let me know how ou make out with wmc. I used it for a few months, but have found mediaportal to be way superior for my needs. I am now transitioning away from xbmc. I am using moving pictures, great scraper, and tv series. There are some great skins. I am thinking of moving everything to an SSD as well. Good luck.

2012-06-02, 05:25 PM	#83
Eljaca Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Whitby, Rogers Posts: 153	ClgShaft, I am loving WMC with the OTA via HDHomerun and CM4228 antenna. I used media browser with coverart3.0 which looks amazing. I bought a fantastic HTPC guide online that walked me through the setup of absolutely averything from codecs to skins - nothing was left out. I made the call to cancel Rogers yesterday, they threw just about everything at me to get me to stay, tried to tell me that in Witby I would only be able to receive CityTV OTA and no US stations etc, etc. Felt great to pull the plug! Have not yet set up the Harmony remote with the system, so it is a bit of a pain to navigate when I am flat out on the couch and don't feel like getting up to move the wired mouse or keyboard but it works like a charm so far. Ripped a number of my blurays and DVDs and they kids are already fully adept at navigating around the system to get to their favorites. Can't say I have much to compare it to other than Rogers, my only regret is that I didn't do this sooner! Eljaca

2012-06-02, 05:45 PM	#84
Eljaca Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Whitby, Rogers Posts: 153	Just to close the loop, here are the final details of the build, let me know if you have any questions- I feel like I have learned a lot over the last couple of months. This is what I thought I would do at last post and what I went with... ASUS P8Z68-M Pro LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS NOPE - instead went with a newer ASUS Z77 HDHomeRun DUAL - High Definition Digital TV Tuner (Network Attached) HDHR3-US (Black) YES and loving it Antec EarthWatts Green EA-380D Green 380W Continuous power ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power NOPE - close, instead went with the antec 400w green since it was on sale Intel Core i3-2105 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623I32105 NOPE - went Ivy Bridge instead i5....total overkill, but what the hell! Wanted the HD4000 graphics and a better 24FPS though not totally fixed with IB OCZ Agility 3 AGT3-25SAT3-60G 2.5" 60GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) NOPE, went with the Intel 330 due to the better reputation of their SSDs G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel YES SAMSUNG EcoGreen F4 HD204UI 2TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare YES LITE-ON Black 12X Blu-ray Burner with Blu Ray 3D Feature SATA IHBS112-04 YES Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM YES

2012-07-29, 11:27 PM	#87
krugan Rookie Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 5	Eljaca, sorry I meant OTA setup and if you use a Preamp (which kind) and does it make a big difference in the number of channels you receive? I'm in Burlington and currently have one CM4228 mounted outside with no preamp and deciding if I should bother purchasing another antenna and point it to Buffalo for the channels and one to the CN tower.

2012-08-13, 10:26 PM	#89
Foxenhimr Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Barrhaven, Ottawa Posts: 62	Probably something really simple, but WMC sees only the analogue tuners on my HVR 2250. I must be missing something ?

2012-08-13, 11:49 PM	#90
Dr.Dave Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 4,813	WMC doesn't support digital tuners in Canada. If you just want OTA, you could try redoing the setup with a U.S. zip code near you such as 12937. If all your channels show up - you're good to go. If you don't see all your channels or you want or you want to receive cable or satellite as well, you'll have to use pnear's hack.