Ready to start on Channels - a few quick questions

Channels DVR Server
#1

Hi,
New user here. We just cancelled Dish TV after over a decade.

I plan to use Channels to record/playback OTA.

We have a good antenna in our garage with 13' ceilings and get excellent reception.

I plan to use a HD Homerun Flex Quattro, this computer using Windows 11:

[Beelink PC with Windows 11]

and this disk drive with either 8TB or 12TB capacity.

[WD Elements powered drive]

Do you see any problems here? I know that Windows 11 is not ideal but I am familiar with it, comes pre-installed and we will not have over two local users or a single remote user at a time.

Apple TV will be the client.

#2

Do you have the specs of the Beelink PC in question. You may want to look at the Flex 4K ATSC 3.0 version as well. It is $50 more and you get the ATSC 3.0 tuner too which might help prolong the use of your tuner when they switch over to ATSC 3.0. Hopefully the government will make it to where encrypting channels will be illegal then your good to go without re-purchasing.

Other than that sounds good to me.

#3

Looks like a great setup. The 8tb drive might be overkill. On an 8tb you could store approximately 1,000 one hour 720p tv shows or approximately 750 three hour 1080p blu ray movie rips. Some people have that much content but the vast majority don’t need 8tb of storage.

You will likely need to enter the bios on the Beelink and change the power state settings to automatically restart after a power outage. The default is to not power back on.

#4

Thanks. From reading reviews, it seems like folks have more problems with the 3.0 HDHR version. I have had poor luck paying up to future-proff in the past, so I probably will go with the quattro.

This is all I have on specs:

Beelink MINI S12 Mini PC Basic Specifications

Intel N95(4C/4T, 4M Cache, up to 3.4GHz) enable better multi-tasking

Dual HDMI ports, support dual display, Which can simplify and double your work efficiency

Fully capable of browsing the internet, word processing (runs Microsoft Office and LibreOffice smoothly), watching movies, photo processing.

CPU: Intel Celeron Processor N95(4C/4T, 4M Cache, Up to 2.9GHz)

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics

Language: Multi-language

RAM: 8GB/16GB

Hard Disk: 256GB/500GB

Network: WiFi IEEE 802.11/b/g/n/ac, 2.4+5.8G WiFi, Ethernet 2.5Gbps LAN, Bluetooth 4.2

Adapter: Input: 100-240V AC, 50/60Hz , Output: 12V 3A

#5

Thanks. I'll make a note try disconnecting power and re-powering to see what happens and go from there.

#6

The n95 beelink is a great dvr server with plenty of power and can easily also run many of the community projects you may be interested in. One of my favorite for adding free and legal content to subsidize ota is adding Pluto. Lots of content is provided from tv shows to movies.

Add a custom source and copy and paste those URL’s in for m3u and guide data and pick a starting channel number. It’s super easy.

#7

Your system is fine and Windows 11 is also fine. 8TB of storage is more than enough, it depends on how much you record. 2TB is what I have and I attached a USB SSD to my system as SSDs use less power.

Enjoy!

Morris

#8

One issue to consider is CPU horsepower. With my older lesser laptop, recording 1 show live, commercial skip running while recording and playing back one show could get dicey. Meaning, that getting that 1 show to play may time out and refuse to play due to timeouts. Stop comskip and no issues.

Comskip is the heavy hitter in the mix. So a better CPU helps if you use this feature. You could set comskip to run after the recording is finished to keep concurrency down.

I looked at mini pcs early on, but ultimately, I like using older laptops because if anything needs attention, I have a keyboard, mouse and screen handy. I mostly manage remotely, but sometimes, hands on is handy.

I just picked up this used Dell Latitude 5420 on Friday with a 4TB internal SSD for $500. My older machine was a Dell E5550 5th gen i5. I have 2.2TB of remaining free space, but I'm not a huge library kind of guy.

#9

The n95 beelink will comskip an hour show in 5 minutes using 2 of the 4 cores. It has plenty of cpu for channels dvr and no overheating issues unlike “some” laptops with poor thermals.

#10

Thanks, good to know. My old dog could hardly spell cores. That's why I upgraded.

This new machine is approaching 24 hours of re-indexing content that was relocated during the upgrade. I flipped over to a Docker install, which was interesting, having never used Docker before.

#11

Thanks everyone for all of the info. Great community. We have viewed Pluto a few times with good luck.

Right now, I am just wating to see of any of these items go on a Black Friday sale.