Freeview PVR Suggestions

I've posted this in a UK PVR group but in view of the high tech nature of
this group I thought I should ask here as well :-)

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I'm getting a bit fed up with paying Sky subscription and want to switch
to Freeview, I currently have a Thompson set top box that seems to pick up
all the channels OK, but I have to use an external aerial with mast-head
amp (the village is in a valley).

I want to take the opportunity to cut the clutter a bit so I'd like:

Freeview reception (with option for the pay card or whatever it's called)

pmj...

Is that "HD" as in "Hard Disk"? & not "HD" as in High Definition?

If it's Hard Disk, then that's normally referred to as HDD.

Jeff Gaines...

Yes. HD - Hard Drive, too deeply enmeshed in computers to call it an HDD
I'm afraid :-)

HD recording
DVD Playback (MP3 and JPG a bonus)

pmj...

The DVD Playback (&/or Recording) is going to limit the available
Models a fair bit.

SCART output with RGB
Optical digital output (seems a bit cleaner to my ears into a Yamaha

pmj...

& I dunno about which Models do (or don't) have Digital Optical
Output as well.

DSP-A5).

I have been doing some searching the web and have found the Humax site - bit I
can't see a unit that does all 3 (I may have not looked very well!) and
also the Panasonic DMR-EX85EB-S which looks nice.

I'm pretty good at buying things the day before the price collapses or a
new model comes out so some pointers would be appreciated.

pmj...

LOL!!!
Well, with that sort of thing you can be *certain* that the Price
is only ever going to go down!
& the specifications & features will increase.

Suggestions for makes with sensitive tuners and good reliability would be

pmj...

I haven't got one, so I can't make any specific recommendations,
from my own experience of them. (I use the PC, with a Digital/Analogue
TV/Radio Tuner Card in it)

appreciated. Any comments about what else I should look for (e.g. HDMI
terminal) would also be appreciated to try and stop me buying yesterday's

pmj...

Look for something that has a Socket - Ethernet or USB 2 or FireWire,
so you can Transfer the stuff you Record out from it, if you want to
keep the stuff.

Most of them seem to make it very difficult to access the actual
Files that are Recorded on the Hard Disk.

& also think about whether you want one with a Dual (or Triple) Tuner,
so you can Record one (or 2) different Channels, while watching a 2nd
(or 3rd) Channel.

That's something which, with Analogue TVs & Videos, we all take for
granted, but with Digital Recording (FreeView, Sky or NTL/Telewest
Cable), it's much harder (& more expensive) to do.

technology :-)

***********************

So if anybody here has any suggestions I'd be pleased to hear them!

Graham...

We've had a Humax PVR-9200T for around 3 months now and are very
pleased with it. It has a twin tuner and our tv also has a tuner so
that we can record two Freeview channels while simultaneously
watching a recorded program or a live broadcast.

pmj...

Can you tell me something?
If you (or someone who was using the Humax PVR-9200T) had something
like Telewest or NTL Cable (or Sky Satellite), could the Humax thingy

Jeff Gaines...

My current Panasonic records Sky via a SCART cable from the Sky box. If
your cable box has SCART then you should be OK as long as they don't
scramble the output or use Macrovision or some other protection

Record from *that*?

I gather they can't, cos they don't have either an Analogue Tuner
or a Scart Input, which are the Outputs that a typical Cable/Satellite
Set Top Box has.

Jeff Gaines...

You would need to choose carefully, when I bought the Panasonic I didn't
realise it had a tuner until I got it home, no good to me though as it's
analogue.

A big problem I see with all these Digital type things (Cable/Satellite
Set Top Boxes etc,) as opposed to the good old, standard Analogue
System, is the fact that it's difficult (or impossible) to Record stuff
from different Channels that need the Box.

Jeff Gaines...

Thanks Graham :-)

Humax do seem to have a good reputation, I will dig a bit deeper into
their web site.

pmj...

Sandra (Rabbit) Posted up a Link to an interesting Site, the other Day,
which you may find useful?...

Jeff Gaines...

I missed that, now book-marked.

Let us know which one you get, won't you?
& what you think of it.

Jeff Gaines...

Will do, I've got 6.5 tons of topsoil being delivered today so it may not
be immediately. Once that's spread I have a horrible feeling I will need a
second load!