Vista - Advice on TV tuner cards under Vista(Business, 32 bit)

I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope someone
can give me some pointer!

1. price range: around $100.
2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center. Will
this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry, never used
a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be good
enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with the
tuner?
4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64 3200+,
Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard with the
Creative beta driver for Vista.

Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks very
much in advance for any info!

I did not get any advice, and I went ahead and bought the Hauppauge HVR 1600
tuner along with this Philips indoor HDTV antenna:

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs

It did NOT pick up any one channel--analog or digital!

Then I returned it and tried this indoor antenna:

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs

It could NOT pick up any channel, either--analog or digital!

So what's going on?

Did I do something wrong?

Not that I know of right now! I downloaded the latest vista driver(32 bit)
from Hauppauge's website, and Vista(Business, 32 bit) correctly recognized
the device, and Win2000 app that came with the card installed correctly as
well!

The problem is just that it cannot pick up even one channel!

According to antennaweb.org, where I live is about 27 miles from the TV
stations or their towers. I live in Northridge, CA, 91324, to be exact.

Don't know if anyone else has had better luck in finding the right indoor
HDTV antenna to work with this tuner?

I do NOT have cable--can't afford it. I was hoping that I could pick up
some TV signals--HD or no HD--from off the air and be informed of some
important or iconic moments! So far, however, it has been a disappointing
experience.

Would really apprecaite it, if you could give me some pointer in
recommending the right antenna for me to make this tuner work!

So far as I know, the antenna seems to be the problem! If you think there
might be something else wrong, would appreciate your pointing it out to me as
well.

For the specs of my machine, please see my original post!

Thanks!




"broccolibeef" wrote:

> I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope someone
> can give me some pointer!
>
> 1. price range: around $100.
> 2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center. Will
> this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry, never used
> a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be good
> enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
> 3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with the
> tuner?
> 4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64 3200+,
> Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard with the
> Creative beta driver for Vista.
>
> Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks very
> much in advance for any info!
>

When you try the Tuner software and scan for channels, what happens? Does it
give you an error message or does it seek through all the channels and just
find none? Do you see 'snow' or just black screen? It's been a while since I
used the Hauppauge software, but have you configured it for Over The Air
signals, perhaps it's just seeking cable frequencies?

HD reception usually requires an amplified antenna, a weak signal will mean
'no' signal.

Have you tried a conventional TV set at your present location? Can you pick
up signals with 'rabbit ears' for example?

"broccolibeef" wrote:

> I did not get any advice, and I went ahead and bought the Hauppauge HVR 1600
> tuner along with this Philips indoor HDTV antenna:
>
> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
>
> It did NOT pick up any one channel--analog or digital!
>
> Then I returned it and tried this indoor antenna:
>
> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
>
> It could NOT pick up any channel, either--analog or digital!
>
> So what's going on?
>
> Did I do something wrong?
>
> Not that I know of right now! I downloaded the latest vista driver(32 bit)
> from Hauppauge's website, and Vista(Business, 32 bit) correctly recognized
> the device, and Win2000 app that came with the card installed correctly as
> well!
>
> The problem is just that it cannot pick up even one channel!
>
> According to antennaweb.org, where I live is about 27 miles from the TV
> stations or their towers. I live in Northridge, CA, 91324, to be exact.
>
> Don't know if anyone else has had better luck in finding the right indoor
> HDTV antenna to work with this tuner?
>
> I do NOT have cable--can't afford it. I was hoping that I could pick up
> some TV signals--HD or no HD--from off the air and be informed of some
> important or iconic moments! So far, however, it has been a disappointing
> experience.
>
> Would really apprecaite it, if you could give me some pointer in
> recommending the right antenna for me to make this tuner work!
>
> So far as I know, the antenna seems to be the problem! If you think there
> might be something else wrong, would appreciate your pointing it out to me as
> well.
>
> For the specs of my machine, please see my original post!
>
> Thanks!
>
>
>
>
> "broccolibeef" wrote:
>
> > I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope someone
> > can give me some pointer!
> >
> > 1. price range: around $100.
> > 2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center. Will
> > this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry, never used
> > a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be good
> > enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
> > 3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with the
> > tuner?
> > 4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64 3200+,
> > Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard with the
> > Creative beta driver for Vista.
> >
> > Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks very
> > much in advance for any info!
> >

Are you saying that Analog channels work fine with the WinTV2000 application
and Digital channels do not work with it? If yes are you sure that the
WinTV2000 application is designed to use digital channels and not just
analog channels? It might be that the digital tuner can only be used with
the Windows MEDIA Center application which is not included in Vista Basic,
only in Home Premium or Ultimate.
"Steve N" <SteveN@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:5121BAE5-6133-4410-B90A-0738A4CE53F0@microsoft.com...
> When you try the Tuner software and scan for channels, what happens? Does
> it
> give you an error message or does it seek through all the channels and
> just
> find none? Do you see 'snow' or just black screen? It's been a while since
> I
> used the Hauppauge software, but have you configured it for Over The Air
> signals, perhaps it's just seeking cable frequencies?
>
> HD reception usually requires an amplified antenna, a weak signal will
> mean
> 'no' signal.
>
> Have you tried a conventional TV set at your present location? Can you
> pick
> up signals with 'rabbit ears' for example?
>
> "broccolibeef" wrote:
>
>> I did not get any advice, and I went ahead and bought the Hauppauge HVR
>> 1600
>> tuner along with this Philips indoor HDTV antenna:
>>
>> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
>>
>> It did NOT pick up any one channel--analog or digital!
>>
>> Then I returned it and tried this indoor antenna:
>>
>> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
>>
>> It could NOT pick up any channel, either--analog or digital!
>>
>> So what's going on?
>>
>> Did I do something wrong?
>>
>> Not that I know of right now! I downloaded the latest vista driver(32
>> bit)
>> from Hauppauge's website, and Vista(Business, 32 bit) correctly
>> recognized
>> the device, and Win2000 app that came with the card installed correctly
>> as
>> well!
>>
>> The problem is just that it cannot pick up even one channel!
>>
>> According to antennaweb.org, where I live is about 27 miles from the TV
>> stations or their towers. I live in Northridge, CA, 91324, to be exact.
>>
>> Don't know if anyone else has had better luck in finding the right indoor
>> HDTV antenna to work with this tuner?
>>
>> I do NOT have cable--can't afford it. I was hoping that I could pick up
>> some TV signals--HD or no HD--from off the air and be informed of some
>> important or iconic moments! So far, however, it has been a
>> disappointing
>> experience.
>>
>> Would really apprecaite it, if you could give me some pointer in
>> recommending the right antenna for me to make this tuner work!
>>
>> So far as I know, the antenna seems to be the problem! If you think
>> there
>> might be something else wrong, would appreciate your pointing it out to
>> me as
>> well.
>>
>> For the specs of my machine, please see my original post!
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> "broccolibeef" wrote:
>>
>> > I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope
>> > someone
>> > can give me some pointer!
>> >
>> > 1. price range: around $100.
>> > 2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center.
>> > Will
>> > this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry,
>> > never used
>> > a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be
>> > good
>> > enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
>> > 3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with
>> > the
>> > tuner?
>> > 4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64
>> > 3200+,
>> > Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard
>> > with the
>> > Creative beta driver for Vista.
>> >
>> > Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks
>> > very
>> > much in advance for any info!
>> >

Thanks for the reply, Steve. After some fidgeting, I did get some channels
via WinTV2000. They were mostly HD channels. But even then, the
signals/pictures are not stable or clear enough. They would often freeze on
me, rendering it useless to me. So, having wasted about a weekend, I
returned the TV tuner card and the antenna back to where I bought it.

Now, I happily find that I could watch a lot of the TV programs I want to
watch on line! I guess that kind of solved the problem for me for right now.

I've messed with PC's for a long time, and with different kinds of
configurations. However, have not had success with TV tuner cards. This is
the second time I was playing with it. No success, either, just like the
first time. Either no reception or the reception is so poor that it is
almost meaningless to have the TV tuner card inside the machine.

The specs of my machine should be good enough to receive the HD or SD
signals, but I don't know why the screen would often freeze on me!

Thanks again for the reply!

"Steve N" wrote:

> When you try the Tuner software and scan for channels, what happens? Does it
> give you an error message or does it seek through all the channels and just
> find none? Do you see 'snow' or just black screen? It's been a while since I
> used the Hauppauge software, but have you configured it for Over The Air
> signals, perhaps it's just seeking cable frequencies?
>
> HD reception usually requires an amplified antenna, a weak signal will mean
> 'no' signal.
>
> Have you tried a conventional TV set at your present location? Can you pick
> up signals with 'rabbit ears' for example?
>
> "broccolibeef" wrote:
>
> > I did not get any advice, and I went ahead and bought the Hauppauge HVR 1600
> > tuner along with this Philips indoor HDTV antenna:
> >
> > http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
> >
> > It did NOT pick up any one channel--analog or digital!
> >
> > Then I returned it and tried this indoor antenna:
> >
> > http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
> >
> > It could NOT pick up any channel, either--analog or digital!
> >
> > So what's going on?
> >
> > Did I do something wrong?
> >
> > Not that I know of right now! I downloaded the latest vista driver(32 bit)
> > from Hauppauge's website, and Vista(Business, 32 bit) correctly recognized
> > the device, and Win2000 app that came with the card installed correctly as
> > well!
> >
> > The problem is just that it cannot pick up even one channel!
> >
> > According to antennaweb.org, where I live is about 27 miles from the TV
> > stations or their towers. I live in Northridge, CA, 91324, to be exact.
> >
> > Don't know if anyone else has had better luck in finding the right indoor
> > HDTV antenna to work with this tuner?
> >
> > I do NOT have cable--can't afford it. I was hoping that I could pick up
> > some TV signals--HD or no HD--from off the air and be informed of some
> > important or iconic moments! So far, however, it has been a disappointing
> > experience.
> >
> > Would really apprecaite it, if you could give me some pointer in
> > recommending the right antenna for me to make this tuner work!
> >
> > So far as I know, the antenna seems to be the problem! If you think there
> > might be something else wrong, would appreciate your pointing it out to me as
> > well.
> >
> > For the specs of my machine, please see my original post!
> >
> > Thanks!
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "broccolibeef" wrote:
> >
> > > I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope someone
> > > can give me some pointer!
> > >
> > > 1. price range: around $100.
> > > 2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center. Will
> > > this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry, never used
> > > a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be good
> > > enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
> > > 3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with the
> > > tuner?
> > > 4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64 3200+,
> > > Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard with the
> > > Creative beta driver for Vista.
> > >
> > > Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks very
> > > much in advance for any info!
> > >

"JW" wrote:

> Are you saying that Analog channels work fine with the WinTV2000 application
> and Digital channels do not work with it?

I am not sure whether the above is true! I only noticed after some
fidgeting with the card and the software, I did pick up some channels--both
HD and SD, if I am correct. But the pictures or reception is so poor that
they often freeze on me!

>If yes are you sure that the
> WinTV2000 application is designed to use digital channels and not just
> analog channels? It might be that the digital tuner can only be used with
> the Windows MEDIA Center application which is not included in Vista Basic,
> only in Home Premium or Ultimate.

On Hauppauge's webpage for this particular tuner card, it clearly says that
WinTV2000 has limited functionality in Vista and that it has to work with
Vista Home Premium, which has Media Center. In my case, I only had Vista
Business, so I guess that is one important reason why the TV tuner card did
not work out for me!

However, as I have said, I have since discovered that I could watch some or
many of the programs that I want to watch via the internet. And that kind of
solves the problem for me right now!

Thanks once again for the reply!


> "Steve N" <SteveN@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:5121BAE5-6133-4410-B90A-0738A4CE53F0@microsoft.com...
> > When you try the Tuner software and scan for channels, what happens? Does
> > it
> > give you an error message or does it seek through all the channels and
> > just
> > find none? Do you see 'snow' or just black screen? It's been a while since
> > I
> > used the Hauppauge software, but have you configured it for Over The Air
> > signals, perhaps it's just seeking cable frequencies?
> >
> > HD reception usually requires an amplified antenna, a weak signal will
> > mean
> > 'no' signal.
> >
> > Have you tried a conventional TV set at your present location? Can you
> > pick
> > up signals with 'rabbit ears' for example?
> >
> > "broccolibeef" wrote:
> >
> >> I did not get any advice, and I went ahead and bought the Hauppauge HVR
> >> 1600
> >> tuner along with this Philips indoor HDTV antenna:
> >>
> >> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
> >>
> >> It did NOT pick up any one channel--analog or digital!
> >>
> >> Then I returned it and tried this indoor antenna:
> >>
> >> http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Custo...Review.do#tabs
> >>
> >> It could NOT pick up any channel, either--analog or digital!
> >>
> >> So what's going on?
> >>
> >> Did I do something wrong?
> >>
> >> Not that I know of right now! I downloaded the latest vista driver(32
> >> bit)
> >> from Hauppauge's website, and Vista(Business, 32 bit) correctly
> >> recognized
> >> the device, and Win2000 app that came with the card installed correctly
> >> as
> >> well!
> >>
> >> The problem is just that it cannot pick up even one channel!
> >>
> >> According to antennaweb.org, where I live is about 27 miles from the TV
> >> stations or their towers. I live in Northridge, CA, 91324, to be exact.
> >>
> >> Don't know if anyone else has had better luck in finding the right indoor
> >> HDTV antenna to work with this tuner?
> >>
> >> I do NOT have cable--can't afford it. I was hoping that I could pick up
> >> some TV signals--HD or no HD--from off the air and be informed of some
> >> important or iconic moments! So far, however, it has been a
> >> disappointing
> >> experience.
> >>
> >> Would really apprecaite it, if you could give me some pointer in
> >> recommending the right antenna for me to make this tuner work!
> >>
> >> So far as I know, the antenna seems to be the problem! If you think
> >> there
> >> might be something else wrong, would appreciate your pointing it out to
> >> me as
> >> well.
> >>
> >> For the specs of my machine, please see my original post!
> >>
> >> Thanks!
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> "broccolibeef" wrote:
> >>
> >> > I need advice on a TV tuner card under Vista(Business, 32 bit). Hope
> >> > someone
> >> > can give me some pointer!
> >> >
> >> > 1. price range: around $100.
> >> > 2. I don't have Vista Ultimate, therefore don't have Media Center.
> >> > Will
> >> > this be a problem for me to use any of the TV tuner cards? Sorry,
> >> > never used
> >> > a TV tuner card before. Will the software included with the card be
> >> > good
> >> > enough to replace the Media Center in Vista Ultimate?
> >> > 3. Don't have cable, so what kind of antenna should I buy to go with
> >> > the
> >> > tuner?
> >> > 4. Key specs of my rig: Asus A8N-E mobo(939 socket), AMD Athlon 64
> >> > 3200+,
> >> > Geforce 6800 GS, 2 GB generic PC 3200 RAM, Audigy 2 Value soundcard
> >> > with the
> >> > Creative beta driver for Vista.
> >> >
> >> > Need to watch some TV to be informed of some iconic moments. Thanks
> >> > very
> >> > much in advance for any info!
> >> >
>
>
>