SageTV 2.0 Review

[Anonymous]

does sagetv/pvr350 let you watch tv live through the tv output, or can you just playback clips you've already recorded? do any other packages let you output to the tv? hows the quality compared to cable going straight into the tv? thanks
-matt

[sdogg1m]

I am sorry to hear about everyone having problems with Sage. Rampy the Sage 2.0/WinTV 250 MCE bundle that you suggested for me from PCalchemy has worked wonders :)

I am so glad I made the purchase!

I do have a couple of questions:
1) Do you need a serial cable or IR blaster for Sage 2.0 to automatically change channel on your receiver to record?
2) Is there any option to set that will not record commercials with Sage?
3) Which record format works best for burning multiple episode of a show to DVD? As of now I am have it set at Best which is recording @ 3gigs an hour (1 or 2 episodes a DVD)?

Other than that the functionality of the program is AWESOME. The program guide makes it easy for you to select the programs you want to record and there is even an option to search for the TV shows by name.

The $148 (Card, Software, + Shipping) was well worth it! You maybe one of the WinTV PVR 350 customers who are having an issue with the software but if you a 250/250MCE card then this software is a must have.

Here is my suggesting to those with Media Center dreams:
My current video card did TV out so all I needed was the 250MCE card. I would suggest having a video card that does TV out that way you don't need a monitor hooked up to computer to record TV. All you need is to hook you cable/receiver in the 250/350 card and the run your S-Video cable from you Video Card to your TV's S-Video input. Works with no issues. I wish I had a diagram to explain this further.

[rampy]

I am sorry to hear about everyone having problems with Sage. Rampy the Sage 2.0/WinTV 250 MCE bundle that you suggested for me from PCalchemy has worked wonders :)

I am so glad I made the purchase!

That's great sdogg!  Just for the record, we like to hear about your success stories, ideas, concepts, dream system/components, etc... not just when you have a problem or a question =)  The community is here to support everyone through good and bad.  (that's just a general statement not directed at anyone).  Also it's nice when you users get  things running and graduate from noob to HTPC expert to come back and help answer new, newbie questions....  In other words don't be shy.

I do have a couple of questions:
1) Do you need a serial cable or IR blaster for Sage 2.0 to automatically change channel on your receiver to record?

If you are recording digital cable or via Sat reciever... you need one or the other, unless you plan on changing the channel manually (on your cable/sat box)  everytime Sage is set to record... which is pretty unlikely/silly

2) Is there any option to set that will not record commercials with Sage?

There is no such option currently in sagetv.  And that's asking alot of ANY PVR.  Most PVR software that does "commercial skipping" simply senses/marks where an apparent commercial is (by changes in volume, fade outs/ins, etc) and fast forwards past them.  

so, PVR's will generally record commercials, BUT some PVR software (but not sage yet) make it easier/automagic to skip commercials... I believe snapstreams beyondTV currently does this, fwiw (review forthcoming... ).

3) Which record format works best for burning multiple episode of a show to DVD? As of now I am have it set at Best which is recording @ 3gigs an hour (1 or 2 episodes a DVD)?

Eh,  I think it depends on the source material and how picky you are about artifacts... I usually use Long play DVD setting, I think... (i'm at work, will check later)

Other than that the functionality of the program is AWESOME. The program guide makes it easy for you to select the programs you want to record and there is even an option to search for the TV shows by name.

The $148 (Card, Software, + Shipping) was well worth it! You maybe one of the WinTV PVR 350 customers who are having an issue with the software but if you a 250/250MCE card then this software is a must have.

Here is my suggesting to those with Media Center dreams:
My current video card did TV out so all I needed was the 250MCE card. I would suggest having a video card that does TV out that way you don't need a monitor hooked up to computer to record TV. All you need is to hook you cable/receiver in the 250/350 card and the run your S-Video cable from you Video Card to your TV's S-Video input. Works with no issues. I wish I had a diagram to explain this further.

Glad to hear it!

rampy

[rampy]

does sagetv/pvr350 let you watch tv live through the tv output, or can you just playback clips you've already recorded? do any other packages let you output to the tv? hows the quality compared to cable going straight into the tv? thanks
-matt

Hi Matt,

Yes sagetv/pvr 350 lets you watch live tv through the tv out.  You can also playback clips you've previously recorded through the TV out.

Most if not all software PVR solutions have this functionality -- outputing live tv/prerecorded shows to tv (but in the case of the pvr 350, sage does a good job (for me anyways) of outputing the interface menu's through the pvr350's tv out... check out my review of the pvr350 if you don't know what I mean)

Depending on the quality  setting (highest quality == more disk space per show), and quality of the tv out card being used, it's equivalent to the analog signal going straight through to your TV.

rampy

[Edited on 7/23/04 by rampy]

[Anonymous]

Yes sagetv/pvr 350 lets you watch live tv through the tv out. You can also playback clips you've previously recorded through the TV out.

Rampy,

While I know you watch TV with the 350 unless you are recording stardard cable then I would suggesting hooking your Video Card (If it has Video Out functionality) into the S-Video output of you television and hook the satelite/digital cable receiver into your WinTV using an S-Video cable.

Diagram:
Computer Video Card S-Video TV-Out <-----> TV S-Video input
Satelite/Cable Receiver S-Video Out <--------> WinTV 250/350 S-Video input
Satelite/Cable Receiver RCA Audio output <-------> WinTV 250/350 Audio input

Also, If you want to have volume to your TV all you need is a Y adapter which converts RCA Audio to a connection to plug into your sound card. Example:

TV RCA Audio Input <----> RCA Cable <-----> Y Adapter <----> Sound Card Output

Sorry for the sorry description, I will post pictures ASAP

The logic for such a suggestion is this: If you are using the WinTV card to watch and record TV then you are sacrificing quality as you will have to use the RCA Video jack. S-Video has a better picture quality than RCA.

I have the hookup and it records beautifully.

[sdogg1m]

I posted the above message: Was logged out.

[rampy]

*snip*

good points.

Just for the record that's pretty much how I have it setup (except i have analog cable coming in via RF/coax not d.c. or sat) and the signal going out is s-video (of the pvr350) to my TV's svideo in.

rampy

[Anonymous]

Using the PVR 250 and SageTV, would I be able to watch movies (on my TV) that I have downloaded?  Is there some sort of media player?

[Anonymous]

Er, make that PVR 150... I see that the 250 has been discontinued.

[RedR]

Howdy,

Just wanted to add my 2c on SageTV 2.0.. I've been using it for about three months now. Out of the box, it didn't work. I had audio but no video. Visiting their web site, sure enough on the front page for support there was an indicator of the very problem I was having. Seems the drivers for my PVR-250 were lacking. I updated them, and all was well.
Getting to know SageTV was the next big step. The wife was already quite upset that a computer was taking over the TV. After a couple afternoons of tinkering with SageTV, getting my settings just right for me and my cable setup, all was ready to go. Little known to me, she spends that very eve trying to figure out the remote and our "new" TV setup. Now mind you, my wife is the most anti-computer person you've met. We've been together for 15+ years now and she is just now starting to surf the net.
I come home from work the next day and she comes in to my office and exclaims, she loves the new setup with the TV, she loves SageTV!! WOOT! Come to find out, in just a couple hrs of watching TV and playing with the remote to learn her way around SageTV, she was completely hooked! Even last night she found a cool feature she didn't know about. We saw an ad for a history channel show she wanted to see. I smirked and poped into the "Search for Programs to Record" key'd in the first few letters and whamo, there it was. I think she saw stars!
Now mind you, SageTV as with all the other PVR products that I've played with are not drop and go. Just with any new computer hardware you not only have to install it, you have to configure it. This includes getting the CORRECT drivers, aside from what may be offered on the vendor?s web site. Poke'n around, searching, google'n, reading up on a problem you may encounter, or even asking folks on forums or IRC channels. In all honesty, if you are not willing to spend some time getting your PVR just the way you want it, then TiVO or such products is prolly the better solution for you.
Now with that said. I have added a few custom plugins to my SageTV setup. It wasn't easy; it wasn't drop and go by no means. But the end result, and few headaches later, it was VERY worth it. I have several custom radar views for my local weather, including local conditions, forecast, and three other locations setup with the same features. Newsfeeds setup in SageTV. OSD of remaining storage space on my PVR (simple but very nice). And prolly most importantly, commercial skip! It works post recording by going through and creating a text file of the frames that the commercial starts and ends. I also have SageTV setup so it automatically skips the commercials when watching any recordings. Again, this was not a default install, nor default configuration. These are changes I made to my configuration, or setup or menus for my needs. It wasn't hard to do, but I did have to dig forums, post questions and ask around to get exactly what I was after. The end result I am VERY happy with. My only wish for SageTV is that it was Linux cross-platform-view compatible. Though guess what, just a few days ago, 3.0 was announced to have Linux support. So now I can watch via SageTVClient on a Linux or Windows box.
My only other interest would to be check out MythTV some day soon.

Enjoy,
RedR