Why would they brick the Primes ... I guess you are assuming that only Channels DVR users are using the Prime to record... I bet there are more HDHomeRun DVR users that use the Prime than channels.... so why would they cut off their nose to spite their face,
Ceton is still selling cable card tuners, including both internal and external (ethernet) 6-tuner devices - http://cetoncorp.com/products/infinitv-6-ethernet/. Like some others, I have a 3-tuner Prime and a 4-tuner PCIe Ceton if anyone is interested in purchasing on the cheap.
1 Like
Any one know if this 6 tuner device works with channels dvr?
I don’t believe so.
Thanks, would have been nice if it did.
Didn't know there were more. Good to know. With Channels DVR. I have access to so many other feeds of the same channel I don't need more than 3 on the cable tv side personally. I can use TVE too. I'm lucky that my cable channels are not DRM also. That seems to be an issue with a lot of cable systems. Wish it wasn't.
I'm digging up this post to hopefully get some opinions.
TiVo Roamio Pro is getting quite flaky, and I'm considering using a Prime with Channels. Xfinity in the KC market, not sure about DRM content. I'm blind, so I need Audio Description, which TVE cannot provide. Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated.
I still use a TiVo Roamio for OTA and a TiVo Bolt with cablecard for Xfinity.
I also have a HDHR Prime with cablecard for Xfinity cable.
My only Xfinity DRM channels are the movie channels, like HBO, Cinemax, Starz, etc.
I have a DRM Starz series stuck on my Bolt.
If I wanted to replicate it on my Channels DVR, I would have to record it with Play On cloud.
If Audio Description is available on your TiVo with Xfinity, it should be available using Channels DVR and a HDHR Prime tuner as a source.
If you cannot use a HDHR tuner and cablecard with Channels DVR, unless the developers of Channels DVR have a suggestion, I would stick with the TiVo.
So far, Xfinity has not dropped cablecard support and my TiVo Roamio, TiVo Bolt and HDHR Prime still work.
1 Like
To confirm the above: I use an HDHR Prime and Xfinity CableCARD with Channels DVR. As @chDVRuser mentioned, it works with all except the premium channels. I don't subscribe to those.
I don't use or know much about Audio Description, but a Channels Support page says "Channels fully supports the closed captions (CC) and secondary audio programs (SAP) that are included in the TV broadcast you are watching."
1 Like
Closed Captions are visual aids for the Deaf or hard of hearing.
SAP is secondary audio for non-native languages, like Spanish and is close to Audio Description.
Neither would help a blind viewer.
Audio Description is also called DVS.
Here's the Wikipedia entry for Audio Description
1 Like
Yes I understood that well enough, but thanks for the additional detail. However, TiVo (in TE3 at least) lumps Spanish and Audio Description together under SAP. Might that also be the case for Channels DVR as well?
1 Like
I don't know. I have the same settings you show on my two TiVo's.
Not sure how a DVS broadcast works on a TiVo or Channels DVR with a HDHR tuner.
Just assumed it's another audio track you select when watching Live or playing the recording.
I know that all my secondary "Spanish" audio tracks are really just English stereo tracks.
1 Like
As a test, I used Channels DVR to record an episode of Friends on TBS from my HDHR Prime tuner source since the guide data had the DVS tag.
It does have DVS / Audio Description when selecting the SAP audio track for playback.
I wouldn't have guessed that since it labels the SAP track as Spanish.
2 Likes
@doublejskid
I don’t know if you have decided to go the hdhr prime way or if you have one all ready but another forum user is selling a couple
1 Like
I sure appreciate the replies. Please forgive my lack of quoting/multi-quoting, I'm not as fluent with the screen reader as I should be.
Regarding AD/DVS > a Channels support rep said that when using (in my base) and iPhone, with voice-over on (screen reader) the show would automatically play with AD if the show was produced with it. That's a big plus. I really like the idea that shows are tagged/flagged as having a AD/DVS track.
I too do not subscribe to premium/movie channels, we have found that it's much easier and cheaper to subscribe to a streaming service rather than fudging around with Xfinity to add/delete channels.
Thank you for posting the person selling the HDHR Primes. It certainly may be worth an $80-ish experiment to see how I like it. To be honest thought, the thought of calling Xfinity to re-authorize the cable card currently in the TiVo and moving to the HDHR Prime makes me pissed already. I assume it will involve a call, not just remvoing the card from the TiVo and placing it in the HDHR Prime.
If I may ask 1 more question. I'm confused on the pricing of what I need to get Channels up and running. Maybe describing setup I have in my mind would help:
Channels (I think I would need the DVR service)
Channels app on iPhone & on 3x Apple TV's
Channels app on a Windows PC
I wouldn't also need the HDHR app correct?
Again, thanks so much for you time and opinions. Greatly appreciated.
Jeff
Yes you will likely need to re-pair it. There are some phone numbers and websites on the HDHR forum that go directly to cablecard support
Correct. You need the dvr server setup on a PC with storage attached, and then just the Channels app on your Apple TV
1 Like
You just need to pay for the DVR service. No other fees, regardless of how many apps you install. (Ignore the version of the Channels client app that is sold separately; that is for live TV customers without the DVR service.)
2 Likes
Can someone describe how I will be able to tell if the cablecard is paired with the HDHR Prime? Is there a GUI? Thinking this process through and I'm uncertain how I will tell if it is paired properly.
From the Silicon Dust website.
Where it talks about the main menu page of the tuner web UI.
Card Authentication and Card Validation.
When a CC is properly “paired” the reports will all read success.
Basic Diagnostics for HDHomeRun PRIME
They also have Cablecard activation hotline phone numbers for different cable providers in their forum topic
CableCARD Activation Hotlines/Websites
1 Like