What TV card or USB TV sticks do you use in your HTPC ??

chaparral · 14 Apr 2012 at 15:48

I need to buy a TV card or a USB TV stick for my HTPC but i have no idea which one to buy..

So i was hoping some you guys could tell me which TV card or USB TV stick you use in your HTPC and what you think of it...

And are there any you recommend ??
I don't think i want or need a Satellite one

LizardKing · 14 Apr 2012 at 16:27

I used a Compro DVB-T duel tuner card before getting a sat card, was a great little work horse that just worked consistantly. Wish i could say the same for the Sat card...
One feature i really miss is its ability to switch on the machine from full off. Afaik only the Compro's offer this.

The remote was guff though, Haupage do good remotes if your not going to buy a seperate one and there cards are top notch to

lurkio · 14 Apr 2012 at 16:58

I have used a compro DVB-T and didnt like it ( was patchy , drivers a bit gash)
Hauppage:
Nova-T PCI dual freeview , was nice
Nova-TD500 dual freeview USB have 2 , pretty good
Nova-HD-S2 HD freesat card , i have 3 other these great card

DragonQ · 14 Apr 2012 at 20:37

BGT3630. Hoping to replace it with a BGT3600 if they ever sell it again.

Lunatic Dreyfus · 16 Apr 2012 at 17:01

A Peak Dual DVB-T Digital card. Sure it's cheap, but it works flawlessly with WMC, which is more than can be said for my expensive BGT3620 :mad:

The 3620 sort of works with Media Portal, but that software is just too user-unfriendly for me and slow.

At some point I need a new HD capable card.

hux · 16 Apr 2012 at 18:38

Peak dvb, again works well with mce.

Did have a compro, and it was nice but their software wasn't the best tbh.

DiCe! · 17 Apr 2012 at 10:26

If I want freeview HD what card would I need to get? Also none of them seem to be "low profile" looks like you just take the backplate off and hope!

DragonQ · 17 Apr 2012 at 13:04

Any DVB-T2 card will work for Freeview HD. There are a few low-profile PCI-E ones to choose from. If you just want Freeview HD (and are not interested in Freesat HD via a satellite) then any of these would work:

TBS TBS6220 (single tuner)
TBS TBS6280 (dual tuner)
Blackgold BGT3620 (dual tuner)
Blackgold BGT3650 (quad tuner)

DiCe! · 18 Apr 2012 at 09:18

cheers for that will give them a look, have £30 worth of Amazon vouchers so will see what I can get from them.

Tealc · 18 Apr 2012 at 09:42

I use the PCTV Nanostick 290e, which is a USB DVB-T2 tuner. It's only a single tuner though but does work well with WMC.

Cheaper than buying a proper card and was perfect for what I needed it for.

http://www.pctvsystems.com/Products...StickT2/tabid/248/language/en-GB/Default.aspx

Confused · 18 Apr 2012 at 22:25

BlackGold BGT3620 - low profile PCI-E Freeview HD dual tuner card.

Works flawlessly in Windows 7 Media Center.

zom247 · 19 Apr 2012 at 12:51

Handy finding this thread as I want to take the plunge and get a Freesat HD tuner card. Can't get Freeview as I don't have an aerial! Bit of a noob question but I take it I will need a dual card if I want to record 2 programmes or record one whilst watching the other? If so, what will I need? Will be running it under W7 32.

ChileanLlama · 19 Apr 2012 at 14:22

zom247 said:
Handy finding this thread as I want to take the plunge and get a Freesat HD tuner card. Can't get Freeview as I don't have an aerial! Bit of a noob question but I take it I will need a dual card if I want to record 2 programmes or record one whilst watching the other? If so, what will I need? Will be running it under W7 32.

Just install the drivers, then you can use it in Windows Media Center without any other software.

visibleman · 19 Apr 2012 at 16:42

Sorry to hijack the thread but apart from the BGT3600, which is rarer than hens teeth at the moment, are there any other decent dual T2 & S2 tuner cards?

ChileanLlama · 19 Apr 2012 at 17:19

Not used T2, but I've found the TBS S2 cards very reliable, they do single, dual and quad tuners.

deadite66 · 5 Aug 2012 at 12:01

one of my PCTV Nanostick 290e just died, wonder if they can't handle being run constantly for nearly a year.

413x · 5 Aug 2012 at 15:36

I have a tbs 6280 dual tuner which is T2 ..freeview hd. It doesnt pick up hd flawlessly tho, media center reports it as weak signal at 56 per cent

Others have said it works well.

Picked mine up for 80£