07-03-2006, 05:34 AM
[quote sscutchen]So how would a Mac video solution, with EyeTV or Plextor, for example, replace the ability of the cable company's box to tune to the digital channels?
It can't, neither can Tivo, nor Replay. You have to have your cable systems decoder box, or the DVR your cable company rents.
Not even a "Test Box" (illegally purchased cable box) will work on the new two way systems that the cable company uses these days. The box must be registered at the main office before it works.
I fortunately have some friends in high places at the local cable company, and in the past borrowed a couple of cable boxes to experiment with.
With iEyeCaptain software, and a couple of IR Blasters, I was able to record digital channels with no problems. I had to program everything manually, that was a pain. I turned in the extra boxes because at the first of the year, my cable company moved everything I record down to the analog side. If I had to pay for the extra boxes, I never would, it is not worth the extra bucks. I would go strictly analog, but the digital package that is bundled with my internet connection is $35 cheaper than analog, with internet connect.
BGnR
It can't, neither can Tivo, nor Replay. You have to have your cable systems decoder box, or the DVR your cable company rents.
Not even a "Test Box" (illegally purchased cable box) will work on the new two way systems that the cable company uses these days. The box must be registered at the main office before it works.
I fortunately have some friends in high places at the local cable company, and in the past borrowed a couple of cable boxes to experiment with.
With iEyeCaptain software, and a couple of IR Blasters, I was able to record digital channels with no problems. I had to program everything manually, that was a pain. I turned in the extra boxes because at the first of the year, my cable company moved everything I record down to the analog side. If I had to pay for the extra boxes, I never would, it is not worth the extra bucks. I would go strictly analog, but the digital package that is bundled with my internet connection is $35 cheaper than analog, with internet connect.
BGnR