Advice for (soon to be former) TiVo user

#1

Hi everyone. We're probably in the same boat as many others who have been long time TiVo users. We use Verizon and got the message that they'll be deactivating cablecards and with it our ability to use our existing TiVo devices. I've looked at YouTube TV as a replacement but my wife has used TiVo for over 20 years and likes to keep some recordings for far longer than the YT TV window of 9 months.

I was originally hoping that keeping our Verizon Fios subscription and using TV Everywhere combined with Channels DVR would be a great alternative but unfortunately Verizon's TVE channels are pretty limited. The only local channel we can get is CBS as I don't see NBC or CBS. I could probably get an OTA antenna along with an HDHomeRun device to get local NY channels but that doesn't really solve the problem for CNBC which is another channel she watches a lot. I was able to find some M3U packages that do support CNBC, though at what appears to be 720P so it doesn't look the best.

I'd love to figure out a way to get Channels to work as mostly a TiVo replacement for her. I'm open to any suggestions folks here have to be able to record local channels and a few cable channels (we stream for the rest).

Thank you in advance for any advice!

#2

Did they give u a hard cut off date yet??
Look into the Prismcast software for use with Chanel's DVR rather nice etc.

#3

No hard cut off date yet. The email just says "Your Fios TV Digital Adapter(s) and/or CableCARD(s) will no longer work and require an immediate upgrade to avoid a service interruption." I got that message on January 27th so I feel like I'm living on borrowed time. The original plan was to switch to Youtube TV and just deal with the limitations there, or potentially try to Fios DVR.

I looked into the Prismcast software which looks very cool but I don't know how that helps me unless I'm misunderstanding it. The TV Everywhere channels I get from Verizon are missing several that my wife regularly watches. That Prismcast software still needs streaming channels to work so I'd still need to find a source for those channels. I found other M3U sources but they seem to only stream in standard definition and Channels gets no guide data for them so it makes it difficult to use and especially to record.

I'm hoping other TiVo refugees can give some advice here on how they moved off of TiVo. If I could find a source that lets me stream the channels she watches I'd happily pay for it but I haven't found one yet. Channels appears to be the closest thing available to a TiVo replacement so I'm hoping I just haven't discovered the right way to do this.

Thanks for your reply!

#4

I'm also a NYC FIOS user. I've been running Channels DVR for a few years and have enjoyed the experience. We came from TiVo as well and when I set up Channels DVR I took to it and my wife did not so we ran them in parallel. What my wife doesn't like about Channels DVR is the need to go to the web for some things and I consider this a major deficiency for everyday use. I don't mind the web as the admin interface as you don't need it that often.

My original setup was with a HDHomeRun Prime and a cable card. I also used TVE and back when I started there were many more offerings on TVE than today and that served as an overflow tuner and actually provided an additional channel or two.

We have been streaming via Prime Video for a few years and had thought about cutting the cord. We had a legacy package from FIOS that provided many premium channels and thus access to the premium channels streaming services. When we received the notice about the end of cable card service I informed my wife and we talked it over. We noted what we watch and what streaming services provide access to the shows. My wife consumed the recordings on her TiVo while we began recording those shows on Channels DVR. We also got a HD HomeRun 4 tuner box and an amplified antenna which is in my attic. Once everything was working I called Verizon, had them stop TV service and this ended my legacy account which was limited to 100-Mb and they upped our internet to 300-Mb. That makes nearly no difference. The big difference is that we are now paying less for seeing mostly the same shows and the majority of them in 4K with better sound. We lost one or two shows and picked up dozens. We do miss some of the shows yet not a big deal as we are still entertained. I do have to listen to my wife compline about Channels from time to time yet she enjoys her shows and movies as do iI. I highly recommend that you add the plug in Streaming Library Manager for Channels as it will help you track your streaming shows as if they are recordings via it's Streaming Library Manger component.

Enjoy!

#5

Thanks for the reply Morris. It's hilarious because we have a nearly identical setup, though I'm in NJ. I too am on a legacy Fios plan that gives me access to HBO Max streaming (ad free) via my Fios subscription. And I was also on that legacy 100 megabit plan, though they did recently upgrade it to 300 megabit without me doing anything.

What do you have to go to the web for when using Channels?

Getting the local channels via the HDHomeRun seems like the obvious answer to give her ABC/NBC/CBS, etc., so she can watch the Today Show and other live events like award shows. I'm still struggling to solve CNBC as right now I've only been able to find a standard definition feed which works but doesn't look great. I don't know if I can solve that one but I'm still looking.

That plug-in you recommended does look interesting, I will check it out. Looks like a nice way to use Channels as the main interface for everything.

Any other tips/tricks/suggestions for things to look at as a former TiVo user? Cablecards still work for now but I'm guessing Verizon will pull the plug without warning now that they've informed us this is coming. I just want to be prepared.

Thank you!

#6

Prism uses your provider's credentials to access all of the channel websites directly and then capture the stream via Chrome. So if you can go to abc.com for example and use your Verizon credentials to link it as the provider and then stream ABC, prism can do it. It has also recently added the capability to access TVE streams directly instead of using the website where possible. I use a combination of TVE supported by channels with most of the rest supported by prism. I then have a few other one-off sources to get the other channels that I want.

If you could provide the channels that your wife needs we might be able to tell you whether or not prism supports them. Or you might be able to find out yourself by going to the TV websites and seeing if you can stream those channels with credentials. Pretty much anything that can be streamed on the web can be captured in channels that way, because you can add your own channels to prism if they're not already supported. You might even be able to get all those channels directly from verizon.com, I think prism supports Spectrum that way.

You do need a decent server with a relatively modern CPU to do Chrome capture because it's a little resource-intensive, so it's not going to run on a low end Intel CPU.

I'm also a former TiVo user by the way, I was on Comcast 3 years ago but we moved to Florida and have a provider that doesn't use cards so I had to give up my TiVo. But I quickly found that channels could do most of what I used to be able to do on a TiVo, enough to where it doesn't matter and there's some things it does better.

I highly recommend if you go this route that you buy a couple of Apple TV 4K boxes as the channels clients, because they support the TiVo peanut remotes with a little setup. I use an old Slide that way. They're also the primary development client that channels supports.

#7

Wow, that's pretty awesome. What is your Channels DVR source for the 4k feed and can you describe "better sound?"

#8

Is that another thing that requires "Docker?"

#9

I was not clear enough, the 4k video is mostly the streaming sources. The better sound is full support for moden sound encoding such as Dolby Atmos and DTS.

There is a Windows version of SLM and also Docker. Docker is not that hard to use. Basically after you have docker set up on your system you simply load the docker container and edit a file that has the configuration.

#10

What SOURCE in Channels DVR are you using to get all that 4k and Dolby goodness? Is it an HDHR OTA tuner, a TVE tuner, or is it something more exotic? We are trying to help a new user here that's coming off a cablecard system where all the media was aggregated from one source/device. I'm not always sure that new users here in Channels DVR are really ready to face the fragmentation that we have to deal with today.

#11

I'm currently have no sources for 4k in Channels. I have had it in the past from some containers that I'm not currently running as there content is not interesting to me. A HDHomeRun FLEX 4K will do it. I'm not confident we will get unencrypted ATSC 3.0 channels. That issue is In front of the FCC right now and may be resolved by Silicon Dust, the manufacture as they are working on licensing issues.

#12

Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying.

#13

Antenna is hopeless going forward. Fine now, useless in the future.

#14

The future of the antenna in the US is in front of the FCC in the form of ATSC 3.0 standards and roll out plans. The cost of a tuner and antenna is that of one to two months of cable TV so well worth it even if it goes away i'd say the odds are that we will get some form of ATSC 3.0. Even if encrypted, there will be ways to receive it though I'm not as positive that we will be able to use it in Channels DVR without playing games.

#15

Well that's the problem, isn't it? If we can't record it and play it back the way we want to then it's worthless IMO.

That's what they're trying to stop. If you think the FCC is going to side with consumers I want some of what you're smoking.

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#16

Recording is already available from other vendors. HD HomeRUN tuners will licence and there DVR software will work. Channels DVR is the question

#17

The channels my wife watches that I can't seem to get through TVE are NBC, ABC, and CNBC. I think I can probably use an antenna plus an HDHomeRun for NBC and ABC but can't see a way to get CNBC in. I was able to find a CNBC stream via the TVPass M3U but it's only a standard definition broadcast. Not ideal and who knows if it'll just disappear.

I'm looking at Prismcast and have it installed, though unclear how to actually make it work with Verizon. It doesn't have Verizon Fios built in as a provider unfortunately. Verizon does allow streaming through their website, but I don't think that will work either. When I use VNC to access to Chrome browser through the container and try to go to the Verizon website, it won't even load and says "Disable developer options to continue." I'm sure this app requires developer options so I doubt that will work. I'll still poke around with it and see if I can make it work.

Open to other suggestions here. I appreciate your lengthy reply and help!

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#18

All of those channels are available directly from the TV websites using the built-in channels in prism. You should probably switch to that thread to troubleshoot.

#19

Seriously, it's not a question. Channels will never support DRM, they've made that perfectly clear. And the DRM ship has already sailed for ATSC 3.0, they're not going to give it up.

So you're going to be left with kludging up an HDMI encoder solution just like we've had to do for other DRM stuff.

#20

Nope, reliability is my top priority for my family's entertainment. Channels DVR will be replaced by a system that natively supports live TV out of the box. I'm not interested in dealing with all the issues we are posted hear every day