SiliconDust HDHomeRun HDHR-US Dual Networked High Definition Digital Tuner Device (White)
by SiliconDust USA, Inc
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of SiliconDust HDHomeRun HDHR-US Dual Networked High Definition Digital Tuner Device (White)
Customer Review: Great tuner, would highly recommend
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this tuner on sale, and use it to receive ClearQAM digital cable. I used to use a Hauppauge HVR-1600 for this, but it would have audio glitches every few seconds, and the video would occasionally break up (every 5-15 minutes). The HDHomeRun was an immediate improvement, with almost perfect quality on every channel. After putting in an amplifier/splitter, the signal on most channels is 98% and it's more or less perfect. I can't recall noticing any kind of breakups or glitches in the month I've been using it.
I also tried using it for OTA broadcast (ATSC), but it did about the same as the HVR-1600 for the 5 channels I get (so I just use my HVR-1600 for that now).
I'm using this with SageTV. I had initially used it with the linux version (and was also using mythtv), and so just used the HDHomerun setup software on my desktop PC. I found the setup to be a bit confusing, as it didn't actually "do" anything. I just tuned everything in the SageTV and mythtv UI's, and modified it from there. I had it fully set up in mythtv, but never bothered with sagetv because it was so time consuming. Since I'm using ClearQAM, all the channels were simply labelled things like 86-104, 92-3, etc.. and had no indication of what actual channels they were - so I had to manually map them all to get program guide information.
When I eventually switched to the windows version of sagetv, things improved greatly. What I found out was when you run the HDHomerun software on the same system where sagetv is installed, it actually saves .frq files into the sagetv directory, containing all the mapping information. When you do "scan for channels" in sagetv, it then picks up the .frq files, flies through the channel scans very quickly, and everything is immediately mapped to the correct channels.
It would have been nice to know this the first time around, as it's very sneaky - it just drops the files in. I didn't read any documentation that told me that would happen, nor did it tell me it was doing it. In fact, the only reason I noticed is that when I ran the channel scan in sagetv after using HDHomerun, it took ~20 seconds for the scan to complete, where normally it took several minutes, and it also got the names and channel numbers that the HDHomerun had. After looking around, I found out about the .frq files. Be aware of this if you use the HDHomerun software from a separate system than your DVR software runs on.
My biggest issue is I think the software should be web based, or at the very least, store its configuration on the HDHomerun itself. That would have avoided the above problem -- use the HDHomerun software from anywhere, have the configs stored on the device, and then any DVR or other software that connects to it after that will get the configuration and mapping you provided earlier.
Now, the HDHomerun software picks up the mapping information from the signal -- which isn't totally correct (at least with my provider). With the software though, it's very easy to preview channels and figure out what is what, and then just type it in. I also had to rename some of the provider-supplied names to match what the tvlistings called the channel (or in some cases, the channel has renamed itself, but my provider still sends the old name -- for example, I think it sent "STARS" but that is now called "E!"). Silicon dust's website is also pretty helpful to get this information - enter zip/postal code, and they have a lot of the ClearQAM mappings there.
Now that it's all set up, it works really well (been using it for about a month). I would definitely use and recommend these for any digital reception needs. They're great quality, have great reception, and are way easier to deal with than PCI cards. Especially if you have OTA antennas, you can place the HDhomerun close to where the cable comes in (reducing signal loss by long antenna runs) because it just uses ethernet to communicate.
Customer Review: After kinks, works fine
Summary: 5 Stars
I got this to record TV with the same PC that I use for Internet etc. It is a Core2Duo 8500. The included software did not recognize the two tuners so I tried a couple of others, settling on BeyondTV. The tuners of this unit are not as good as those on my DTV converter, so I had to get a better antenna. Sometimes the DTV box would be running the TV OK, but the same broadcast would be unwatchable on the HDHR with the PC. So, for an antenna, I got the Channel Master 4221HD, new version, mounted on the post of a old unused torchiere floor lamp with the lamp bowl removed, indoors. The output is split between the two tuners with RG6 cable throughout. I'm on the 2nd floor, about 25 miles from the two local transmission towers. I've not seen the worst weather yet, but the reception and recording is now pretty good. HDHomeRun's own little application says I sometimes get 100% signal strength, 95% signal quality, 100% symbol quality.
On the computer, I decided to add an ethernet card to give the HDHomeRun its own exclusive port rather than connecting it to my router. Windows will sometimes get into a state where it is endlessly trying to find an IP address for the HDHR even if the address is set manually. Download a simple DHCP server application, like DHCPsrv, to solve this. The solution is not perfect. Sometimes you have to turn off that DHCP server and then turn it on again. Also, once in a long while, say weeks maybe, you might have to power cycle the HDHR to reboot it. The symptom for this is a TV program which plays good for 3 seconds and then hesitates for 2 seconds repeatedly.
Edit: The DHCP server application is unneeded if the Windows DHCP Client service is on as it is by default. See Settings > Administrative Tasks > Services. Even when this is on though, setting a permanent 169.254.x.x address up in the 2nd panel which appears in the setup for the ethernet card speeds up the connection process greatly. The "good for 3 seconds.." phenomenon noted above may have been due to RF interference from a nearby radio amateur.
Now with this, I can actually save electricity by watching TV on the computer without turning on the TV. I can check out programs that I wouldn't have bothered with before. BeyondTV is pretty easy to use and has two interfaces. One is designed for a TV sized screen, but the other is designed for a web browser. You can see much more on the latter and use it with the mouse much more easily. They give you a free remote too when you buy the program, but I've not used it. BeyondTV downloads TV listings from the Net, which you click set up to record.
Also, with BeyondTV, be sure you don't have any other video playing programs active when trying to view TV or recorded programs. There's some kind of contention and you end up with an interlaced picture. Close the BeyondTV window, then quit the other application. Then, BeyondTV will show a beautiful picture again.
All in all, it's a very good product. Give it its own hard disk. Try BeyondTV. Give it a good antenna. And, with any luck, reception will get even better after June, 2009. Lastly, you might have to upgrade your video card to watch HDTV on your monitor. The Nvidia 8500GT Silent Magic works OK. I have no affiliation with any of the companies mentioned above.
Customer Review: Great Product, Outstanding Support
Summary: 5 Stars
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Would give more stars, if I could, for customer service!
We had oddball hesitation problems -- which turned out to be PC hardware (a network card setting). SiliconDust support, via email, was quick, and they know their stuff. There is a software option to allow their support to examine your log, which was key to solving our problem (it turns itself off after 10 days).
PERFORMANCE
The product does what it says, and performs well. Software drivers to access the tuner signal are available for PC, Mac and Linux (I only use PCs). Also, ARCSOFT "TotalMedia" DVR software is included. IMPORTANT NOTE: The current version of the software must be downloaded from the website; it will automatically update the hardware's firmware, too, if needed -- very slick.
CURRENT AND PROPOSED USE OF THIS PRODUCT
We only use the broadcast signal functions, known as "ATSC". I got this after the Analog-to-Digital broadcast switchover. Since we now get 2-4 sub-channels for each primary channel, our selection is far greater than before. We are in a rural area with a tower antenna; digital reception from surrounding areas works well. As long as we can get PBS Kids for the little ones, we're good.
Our plan is to use a PC as a TIVO/DVR, plus Veoh and Hulu via DSL internet, with movies on DVD from Netflix, which also has SOME instant internet access.
Dumping satellite service (DirecTV, at $[...]+/month -- cable is not available here) ought to pay for a big screen, a new PC as a DVR and basic NetFlix.
PROBLEMS WITH MICROSOFT MEDIA CENTER
"Media Center" doesn't work right. Not even "XP Media Center Edition." Nor the Vista versions. All sources I've checked say that Microsoft does NOT intend to fix problems with either version.
The first failure is that you CANNOT set it up for digital only; you will have to get an analog tuner, just to get into SETUP mode. I bought one on [...] (this part may be XP only).
The MAIN FAILURE is that the EPG (Program Guide) does not display sub-channel data -- and there are more subchannels than primary channels! The Guide -- and therefore, the DVR functions -- are USELESS for sub-channels. This DEFECT is inexcusable, in an age where analog broadcast is obsolete. FWIW, my two main computers are less than 1 1/2 years old!
I'm told Vista has the same sub-channel problem, and further, that this will NOT be fixed for either Vista or XP. The words "piss-poor design and engineering" do come to mind...as do "lack of quality control".
That said, my experience is that Windows Media Center has better DVR features. On the plus side, the included ARCSOFT "TotalMedia" actually works, although the DVR options are not that sophisticated. The only problem I've had with the "TotalMedia" software is that it cannot be dragged to a 2nd monitor (Media Center can be).
Bottom line: We will wait 'til October 09, for Windows 7, as I'm told the Media Center problems are definitely fixed.
Customer Review: After 4 Years of Reliable Use Comes a Cheaper Replacement
Summary: 5 Stars
[Update: Silicon Dust has shipped the HDHomerun Dual as a replacement for this product. I've purchased a copy for testing, and it is nice, replacing my original HDHomerun seamlessly in my antenna system. Signal quality on the newer device seems more consistent with fewer dropouts of marginal channels. As it is cheaper, somewhat more energy efficient and smaller, the only reason not to buy the newer model is if you intend to devote 1 tuner to QAM cable, and the other tuner to an antenna, which would be impossible given the single coax port.]
What I like about this product is the flexibility a networked device delivers. All the computers in my house can access it as needed: the Linux box running MythTV, the Vista PC running Media Center, the Mac running EyeTV. Even my iPhone can access the HDHomerun to check on antenna signal quality (using an iPhone application I wrote: Signal GH). A tuner in a PCI slot or on a USB dongle would not be nearly as useful and would tend to be harder to setup as special device drivers would be required. And if every computer had its own tuner, my antenna signal strength would be split down to nothing.
I was an early adopter of this gadget, purchasing one in November 2006. It has been reliable and has good sensitivity for over the air broadcasts hooked up to my rooftop antenna. The manufacturer has released a steady stream of firmware updates resulting in a gadget you can rely on not to crash. As a software engineer I'm impressed with the quality of the publicly available code for controlling the device.
I've found it to be extremely easy to use with MythTV, making it one of the few easy things about MythTV. Both tuners are connected to my home's antenna system. I have a large UHF antenna with a pre-amp on a short mast on my roof about 30 miles from the big cluster of antennas near Boston, MA. On occasions when the trees are full of leaves, I get some intermittent picture loss on two of my channels, but for most of the year I get free network television of great quality, although I wish NBC and PBS would cut down on their sub-channels.
My Kill-A-Watt tells me my HDHomerun draws 6W, which isn't horrible, and newer revisions are known for slightly better power usage but something to keep in mind for people worried about yet another constant electricity sink.
In spring of 2010, I also purchased the blue single tuner model. It appears to be just the same quality, ease of use, and signal locking of it's higher priced sibling. I bought it over another dual tuner as there are never four good programs on at the same time but sometimes there are three.
Customer Review: Magic!
Summary: 5 Stars
This device is MAGIC. I had XP with Media Center 2005 with a dual-tuner analog (NTSC) card. I needed to add digital (ATSC) tuners for the OTA digital transition in June, but still need analog for some in-house devices that broadcast analog via RF modulators.
I tried several different analog/digital combo and hybrid cards. I had the best luck with the Hauppauge 2250, but that "best" still meant random lockups in MCE, corrupted recordings, codec problems, and hours with technical support and different driver versions. None of the cards provided anything approaching stable operation.
Then I found the HDHomeRun. The install worked first time, XP Media Center saw both the new tuners, and everything works perfectly. I now have FOUR tuners (the two old NTSC, and the two new ATSC in the HDHomeRun) and all work flawlessly. No lockups, no reboots, no driver nightmares.
Some technical tips:
- If you want to use HDHomeRun with XP Media Center 2005, you must have an analog tuner card installed before installing HDHomeRun. This is because XP MCE2005 requires a analog tuner. Vista MCE and Windows7 MCE do not have this requirement, so they can use HDHomeRun without any internal tuner card. Similarly, third-party TV/PVR apps can use the HDHomeRun on XP without an internal tuner card.
- With XP and Media Center 2005, you must have the Media Center Rollup update installed. There are instructions and links for this on SilconDust's web page.
- Two concurrent video streams from the HDHomeRun will generate about 60mbps on your local network. That's 60% of a 100mbps network, which is fine if you don't have much other traffic on your LAN. If you have a lot of other traffic, consider upgrading your LAN to gigabit Nics/Routers/Switches.
- If you have a router and are using MAC filters, be sure to add the HDHomeRun MAC address to your router's MAC filter table. The MAC address is printed on the bottom of the HDHomeRun.
- The HDHomeRun requires DHCP (no way to set a static address, although if your router supports DHCP reservations you can use that).
I have one disagreement with the previous reviewer who said to "use 2MHz-rated splitters". First, I think he meant "2Ghz" since "2Mhz" is far below the TV band. Second, SiliconDust's setup instructions warn that "splitters rated for 2GHz operation should be avoided..." because they "...do not perform well at cable/antenna frequencies." SiliconDust recommends using splitters rated for "50Mhz-900Mhz or 50Mhz-1000Mhz operation" with the HDHomeRun.