Window Media Center Edition MCE Remote Control

Media Center Edition (MCE) remotes are designed to control PCs running Microsoft Windows with Windows Media Center. MCE remotes come with an external infrared receiver that connects to a PC via USB. Newer PCs may have the IR receiver integrated in the case.

Note: Originally there were two modules lirc_mceusb and lir_mceusb2. These were later merged into a single lirc_mceusb driver. More recently (2.6.35 kernel and lirc-0.8.7) the module was known as just mceusb. You need to adjust all the configuration examples below depending on exactly how the module is named.
MCE Remote
*IR transmit and receive are supported on all generations of mce transceivers, as of lirc-0.8.6.
*Some newer devices may require post lirc-0.8.6 cvs for full functionality
*Historically, there were separate 1st-gen and 2nd-gen drivers, lirc_mceusb and lirc_mceusb2. They were merged into a single lirc_mceusb driver as of lirc-0.8.6, which as noted above, supports transmit and receive on all devices.
MCE Keyboard
*Keyboard is supported as a USB HID device
*IR Receiver is supported
*IR Transmitter is supported with lirc_mod_mce > 0.1.3
MCE Remote alternative
* Based on the mod-mce project
* Version 1 & 2 Receivers supported as a USB HID device
* LIRC not required
You can click here Download kernel module source
Installation guides
Be sure your kernel has support for USB. Most default kernels will. You will only need the USB 1.1 driver (OHCI or UHCI) and USB 2.0 (EHCI) is not required. There is no kernel module specific for this device. Before continuing, be sure your device is recognized by your USB host controller:
# lsusb
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 0471:0815 Philips
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Windows Vista MCE Remote
The new version MCE remote control now responds with the following when you type lsusb:
# lsusb
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 0609:0334 SMK Manufacturing, Inc.
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
This window vista remote requires an updated lirc_mceusb2 driver (newer than current lirc-0.8.2 released: 9-Jun-2007) Download just the updated driver (version 1.30 of the file and newer has support) from LIRC CVS or follow the instructions below for a complete CVS checkout.Use the default mceusb2 lircd.conf file and all of the remote's keys work without modifying the example mceusb2 lircd.conf file.
Download a lirc CVS SnapShot
Generally the latest cvn snapshot from the official LIRC website should work fine. As of writing, the latest snapshot available is lirc-0.8.7pre1. Download and extract it either manually from the previous link or using the following code.
cd /usr/src
wget http://lirc.sourceforge.net/software/snapshots/lirc-0.8.7pre1.tar.bz2
bunzip2 lirc-0.8.7pre1.tar.bz2
tar -xvf lirc-0.8.7pre1.tar
cd lirc-0.8.7pre1
Users of the very latest linux kernels may find they have problems compiling or running code from the svn snapshot. If you have problems with the above install, or just want to run the latest and greatest lirc version, download the latest cvs lirc code using the following method. If that still doesn't work, please report your issues to the lirc mailing list.
Downloading using CVS

1. Make sure you have the cvs, autoconf, automake and libtool packages installed (rpm package manager users search for them and install their rpms).
2. 2. Type the following on a command line and ignore what it says about not finding /root/...:

cvs -d:pserver:anonymous@lirc.cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lirc login
3. Type the following: cvs -z8 -d:pserver:anonymous@lirc.cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lirc co lirc
4. Type the following:cd lirc./autogen.sh
5. Continue with the following Install section, starting with "./setup.sh".
You now have two choices, you can either run the Lirc Setup script and accept it installing itself where it wants to, or you can carry out a manual configure. Using the setup script is easier, but it means that the various binararies and configuration files aren't placed in the normal Gentoo locations.To use the automated setup process:
./setup.sh
Menu Option # (1) - Driver Configuration (enter)
Menu Option # (8) - USB Devices (enter)
Menu Option # (o) - Windows Media Center Remotes (new version, Philips et al.) (enter)
Menu Option # (3) - Save your configuration and run configure (enter)
make install
Important.png Note: If bash returns 'dialog not found' when running ./setup.sh, install the dialog packageThis will also create a /etc/lircd.conf file which should work. If it complains about missing fedora source files use "yum install kernel-devel" and rerun ./setup.sh.
To perform the manual configuration:
./configure --prefix=/usr --sysconfdir=/etc/conf.d --with-x --with-driver=all
cp remotes/mceusb/lircd.conf.mceusb /etc/conf.d/lircd.conf
If you get errors during the compile, try to change the .configure step to be./configure --prefix=/usr --sysconfdir=/etc/conf.d --with-x --with-driver=mceusb2 instead of -with-driver=all. You should change mceusb2 to mceusb if you are using the old version of the remote.
If you get an error message that the "kernel source is required", it actually means the kernel headers. On my system this Ubuntu package was linux-kernel-headers-2.9.12-9-386 to match the version returned by the uname -a command. Installing the right version of the headers to match your kernel version is esssential. You may also need to install the gcc compiler.Load the module and Start lircdTest it with the irw utility. irw will output the commands received by the IR receiver that match your lircd.conf file. So start irw, point your remote and start pressing buttons.
# irw
000000037ff07bfe 00 One mceusb
000000037ff07bfd 00 Two mceusb
000000037ff07bfd 01 Two mceusb
000000037ff07bf2 00 Home mceusb
000000037ff07bf2 01 Home mceusb
If everything works, then autoload lirc_mceusb2 when your computer loads (how to depends on your distro) and start lircd as well (also depends on your distro).One note, I'm running a late-model Gentoo and I have to load lircd with this option:
# lircd -d /dev/lirc/0
Otherwise it fails, as it defaults to /dev/lircd. You will also need to install an lircrc file (note no dot at the front of the filename in the ~/.mythtv directory so that when the frontend starts up it can see the mythtv configuration settings for your remote control buttons.

Variable Coding and Modulation (VCM) and Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM)

Background
Variable Coding and Modulation (VCM) and Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM) are techniques that are strongly associated with the DVB-S2 standard. VCM can be used to provide different levels of error protection to different components within the service. It does this by allowing different combinations of modulation and FEC rate to be applied to different parts of the data stream. ACM extends VCM by providing a feedback path from the receiver to the transmitter to allow the level of error protection to be varied dynamically in accordance with varying propagation conditions. Claims of performance improvements exceeding 100% have been made for ACM in terms of satellite capacity gain.
What is less well known is that the DVB-S2 VCM and ACM concepts can be applied to traditional Single Channel Per Carrier (SCPC) types of services and can offer similar benefits. This whitepaper gives an overview of how these concepts can be used outside of DVB-S2 satellite services.
DVB-S2 itself is offered by Paradise in SCPC modems and can be used in both SCPC and Multiple Channels Per Carrier (MCPC) modes. However, it is convenient to use a term that can be used to refer specifically to non DVB-S2 SCPC satellite services and the terms ‘SCPC’ and ‘traditional SCPC’ are used in this whitepaper for that purpose (even although traditional SCPC systems have themselves evolved to have an MCPC capability).
For the avoidance of doubt, the traditional SCPC services (i.e. all services offered by Paradise SCPC modems) that are being referred to include, but are not limited to the following: IBS and IDR framed satellite services, Closed Network services, Engineering Service Channel (ESC),Automatic Uplink Power Control (AUPC), Drop and Insert, TPC, Viterbi, Reed-Solomon, TCM, LDPC
(Including the low-latency variety), all traditional modulations (including 8QAM and 16QAM), multiplexing of data from multiple terrestrial interfaces onto a single carrier, MIL-STD-188-165A/B, etc. – all using a variety of terres- trial interface types including IP, EIA530, LVDS, G.703 and HSSI.

SCPC VCM
VCM can be used to extend traditional SCPC services in a similar manner to how it is used in DVB-S2. A quasi-error free quality target is set for each remote terminal as normal. The choice of modulation and FEC rate, which determines the strength of the error correction, will be determined by a number of factors including the position of the remote terminal within the satellite footprint.
The DVB-S2 concept of a frame can be applied to SCPC links along with all of the other DVB-S2 concepts including, but not limited to, mode adaptation, stream adaptation, baseband frames, mapping, pilots, dummy frames, scrambling, bit interleaving, constellation bit mapping, slots, generic continuous and generic packetized streams, stream synchronization, FEC frames and Physical Layer framing. When applied to traditional SCPC services, these DVB-S2 concepts perform similar functions and provide similar benefits to those documented for DVB-S2.
At its simplest, the user data (whether packetized or continuous) is put into baseband frames (possibly with padding), FEC information is added and then a Physical Layer (PL) header is prefixed prior to transmission to create the satellite frame for transmission.
The size of the baseband frames is dependent on the particular FEC scheme being used. For block based FECs such as LDPC and TPC, the baseband frame size is related to the block size of the FEC.Mode adaptation and stream adaptation deal with the issues of single and multiple stream inputs and merging and slicing of these streams into a sequence of satellite frames. A particular frame, PL header apart (see overleaf), is always transmitted in a homogeneous manner using a single modulation and FEC rate.
As with DVB-S2, particular information can be conveyed in the baseband header to help with decoding at the receiver, including:
Data format (packetized/continuous)
Single/multiple stream indicator
CCM/VCM/ACM indicator
Stream synchronisation information
Roll-off factor.
Also as with DVB-S2, particular information can be conveyed in the PL header to help with receiver synchronization and demodulation of the frame, including: Frame identification information Details of the FEC type, modulation and FEC rate used to encode the remainder of the frame Indication of the FEC frame length. All of the baseband and PL header fields can easily be extended to accommodate non-DVB-S2 pertinent data that is required for use of these techniques with traditional SCPC services (such as the use of alternative FECs to those specified in DVB-S2).
A key point is that the PL header is always transmitted using a particular robust modulation (BPSK is used in the DVB-S2 standard) and strong FEC rate. This helps the receiver lock onto the signal and it provides the information required to demodulate the remainder of the frame. When not receiving a signal, the receiver is automatically configured to detect any PL header, requiring just a centre frequency and symbol rate to have been set.
Note that the DVB-S2 concept of pilots (unmodulated symbols) can also be applied to make traditional SCPC services more robust.

SCPC ACM
ACM can be used to extend traditional SCPC services in a similar manner to how it is used in DVB-S2. The benefits include greater satellite throughput, reduced link Margins and higher service availability.SCPC ACM is applicable to both point-to-point and point- to-multipoint systems. In terms of a return channel, both a direct return channel over satellite and an indirect return channel via a terrestrial network can be used. Even over satellite, multiple separate SCPC return channels arePossible using receive-only modems at the hub, where the return information can be passed on to the transmit modem to allow it to optimize the strength of error correction for each stream as applicable to the channel conditions.
The concept of the DVB-S2 ACM command can equally be applied to traditional SCPC systems and for the same purpose. Signaling of reception quality via the return channel can be supported in SCPC systems, in particular continuous feedback of the carrier to noise plus interference ratio at the receiver along with other potential reception quality parameters (e.g. Eb/No, Modulation Error Rate (MER), Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) and suchlike).
SCPC ACM is particularly well suited for use in IP networks because mechanisms readily exist in terms of IP protocols such as Quality of Service provisioning, traffic shaping and TCP to feedback changes in data rate to the terrestrial network, allowing dynamic changes in satellite bandwidth due to varying reception conditions to be quickly reflected in the data stream to optimize use of the link.
In summary, the flexibility, robustness and efficiency of DVB-S2 VCM and ACM multistreaming features can now be used to extend traditional SCPC services, bringing the same benefits to all applications including cellular backhaul, ISP trucking and backbones, broadcast, teleports, government, military and SNG.
TBS6925
TBS6925 PCI express DVB S2 TV Tuner Card is a professional satellite PCTV tuner card. It is the first unique TV tuner card of supporting CCM, VCM, ACM mode and multiple Transport Stream receiving. With TBS6925, there are many unknown frequencies. It is the best TV tuner card for satellite hunter or enthusiasts.

Review: TBS6984 PCI-E DVB S2 QUAD TUNER TV CARD

TBS has developed a unique TV card represents that easiest way of equipping a PC with no fewer than four DVB S2/S satellite tuners. The new TBS6984 quad tuner card was reviewed in the latest issue of What Satellite (a professional and authoritative satellite magazine from UK) and received a Silver award from review ranking! Thanks to Martin Pipe, the author of this review. We really appreciate your contribution and Professional evaluation. Now we would like to share this great review with you!Author: Martin Pipe
Preface
 Digital TV tuner cards facilitate the monitoring of TV or radio programmers on your computer desktop. They'll also turn a computer into a PVR-bitstreams plucked out of the ether can, after all, just as easily be written to a file for future playback as passed to decoder software for live viewing. If your computer is networked, then other connected devices around the home, like multimedia players, Can access these files. With appropriate software and configuration they can be streamed to private locations across the internet too. Only now are commercial PVR manufactures like TiVo waking up to such flexible possibilities-those with tuner cards fitted to their PC's have enjoyed their benefits for years.
The first TV tuner cards had only one tuner, this restricted you to one channel at a time, although some software (such as DVBViewer) lets you simultaneously watch and record channels carried by the same transponder. If you wanted channels on different transponders-e.g BBC Two and Channel 4.-It was neccessory to install a pair of tuners, the problem with modern PCs is restricted expansion potential; gone are the days when a PC would have five and more expansion slots for the peripherals of your choice. The only get-around was to reply on a USB second tuner.
Hardware manufacturers like BlackGold noted this and introduced TV cards with multiple tuners. PC bound satellite viewers could now independently record and view multiple channels form different transponders.
A dual LNB was ideal for UK viewers with a 28.2°E minidish. Dishes trained on different satellites could be connected to each input, although flexibility would be lost. But most tuner cards will support Diseqc 1x/2x switchboxes. With appropriate setup in this vein, much can be achieved. Most modern satellite cards cater for DVB S2 as well as DVB S2, and can thus be used for HDTV reception if your PC is powerful enough, which brings us to the next evolutionary stage.
The TBS6984 PCIE DVB S2 Quad TV tuner card ups the ante by building four DVB S/S2 tuners into a single card. With a quad LNB on that dish, you will able to simultaneously receive a quartet of transponders, Astra/Eurobird viewers with their dishes can therefore simultaneously stream or record programs carried by BBC Two, BBC Four, ITV1 and Channel 4. Impossible with any current PVR, such a system could serve the viewing requirement of an entire viewing requirement of an entire household- one TBS6984 equipped PC, a Gigabit Ethernet network, and streaming media players installed in the appropriate rooms, Free-to-air (FTA) channels are fair game. For encrypted channels, though, you PC must be equipped with the necessary conditional access hardware and software (TBS5980 or TBS69828 DVB S2 CI Card with CAM can do it). TBS6984's DiSEqc2x compatibility gives rise to further reception possibilities.
Build and Connectivity
At 80mm. this card is taller than average and might not fit in some slimline cases, As a PCI express card, it should be compatible with most recent PC motherboards, Each pair of tuners (which lack loopthrough) is covered by a screening scan, and severed by a Trident CX24117 dual demodulator chip.  Other components on the board are associated with the power supply circuitry, among other things. A supplied cable takes a 12V feed directly from PC's power supply. DC-to DC conversion circuitry on the board processes this to obtain the 13V or 18V supplies needed to switch polarity.
To minimise unwanted voltage drops, the cable is connected to no fewer than three of the power supply\s drive connectors. We recommend that your PC is fitted with a decent power supply. if one isn't already present. Elsewhere on the board are DiSEqc and band switching tone generators, There's also a socket , standard with many PC tuners, for a trailing infrared sensor, This enables channels to be changed with the supplied handset, provided your software is compatible.
Basic use
On which subject, quite a lot of this is provide on an accompanying CD-ROM. You get TBSViewer(a cut-down version of DVBViewer), an OEM version of DVBDream(an alternative to DVBViewer) and TBSVHID(which maps handset buttons to the appropriate keyboard for different applications).
On top of this are the drivers-the software that allows the operating system and applications to recognise and work with the tuner hardware, TBS has been very thoughtful here. In additional to Window200, XP,Vista and 7 is support for Windows media center(built into Windows Vista/7) and Linux. The latter drivers, which are most welcome, will interest anyone interest in building a complete TV solution around MythTV(covered in a Wotsat series a while back)
Installing the card is relatively straightforward, although you'll need to open up your PC to reveal the motherboard slots.If you're worried about this, a local PC technician could do the job for you. Attaching LNB cables to the four sockets located on the backplate, which is accessible from the rear panel of your PC, can be a rather fiddly task.
When the PC is booted the tuners are detected and the drivers are then installed, These are compliant with the BDA(Broadcast Driver Architecture）standard, and as a result you're not restricted to the supplied TV software.We were, for example, able to use TBS6984 with full (GE) version of DVBViewer. Naturally, the software you are using will influence how the TBS6984 is used.This, together with your system hardware, will determine picture and sound quality as well as what features are your disposal.
PVR and multimedia
Naturally, Microsoft Media Center and the supplied DVBDream and TBSViewer Programs also recognised the four tuners that were now at their disposal. Features vary across the software, but with this powerful tuner all will enable you to record multiple channels or watch one while recording another. The capabilities of TBS6984 will satisfy even the hungriest of telly addicts. With DVBViewer GE we once viewed one show while recording eight others carried on the four transponders accessible to the card
Performance
Window Media Center, which conveniently enough, can deal with up to four tuners-benifits from a delicated "Set UP TV signal" wizard. Originally, we had nothing but problems with this, - out Yoyotech PC, a 64 bit quad-core machine running Windows 7 Ultimate. Would crash approximately 90 per cent into the examining TV signals phase. We then discovered that no other digital TV software would work either. In the end the firmware of the PC's Biostar motherboard was updated and we used the TBS6984 successfully with all the TV software.
Sensitivity compares will with other PC tuner cards, and search speeds are fast. With the PC hardware described earlier, an all-channels scan of Hot Bird with our DVBViewer GE reference software took just over five minutes, which compares well to many standard receivers.
This program dovetailed neatly with the card's facilities, in the options/hardware menu, any of the four tuners (labeled from A TO D) can be turned on or off- a function of the card's drivers.
Verdict
Not everybody needs such power, but if you do the TBS6984 is a clear choice, It's certainly ideal for TV a multimedia servers, such as MythTV, the Linux support is of obvious benefit here. It is also ideal for IPTV provider for commercial use.
Scan Copy from What Satellite

Review: TBS6284 PCIE DVB T2 QUAD TUNER TV CARD

The TBS6284 PCIE DVB T2 quad tuner TV cardwas reviewed in the latest issue of What Satellite (a professional and authoritative satellite magazine from UK) and received a Silver award from review ranking! Thanks to Martin Pipe, the author of this review. We really appreciate your contribution and Professional evaluation. Now we would like to share this great review with our TBS fans!
Author: Martin Pipe
We've certainly come a long way since the earliest days of digital terrestrial TV reception on PCs. And yet not so long ago the idea of getting this new-fangled digital TV malarkey on your desktops. Generally with a mammoth PCI card full of "chippery", was quite a novel one. With the supplied software you could also record programmers onto your PC's hand disc-thereby effectively converting it into a PVR at a time when there these not commonplace items. Now the average modern PC has a hard disk measured in terebytes. And there are a lot more digital terrestrial channels to choose from a handful of which are broadcast in high definition.
Building and connectivity
To make the most of this we have the unique TBS6284- a card with no fewer than four terrestrial tuners on board. That means you can record three (or more) channels while viewing a fourth. Better still, all four tuners are compatible with not only the established DVB T standard but also the newer DVB T2 technology that carries HD channels. Like its satellite equivalent, the TBS6984 DVB S2 Quad Tuner TV card, it takes the form of a PCI expressx1 card. Most of PCs made over the past five years should be compatible with such hardware.
The TBS6284 is purely a tuner, for encrypted channels your PC must be equipped with the necessary conditional access(CAM) hardware and software, The card, which is 80mm tall and thus might not fit in some slimline cases, splits its tuners into two pairs-A/B and C/D-each of which has its own input and output.
Setup
Using a supplied patch cord the output from first pair of tuners can supply signals to the input of the second-and so you might only need one aerial cable. In contrast, the TBS6984 needs separate LNB feeds for each tuner, owing to its need to independently switch band and polarization, and the single UHF band used for broadcasting doesn't need switching, The only other rear-panel connector itself a 2.5mm mini-jack for an infrared sensor, which works with the supplied handset. On the board it lurks an optional power connector that's interface to your computer's power supply if the motherboard’s PCI-Express slot is incapable of supplying enough current. It’s highly unlikely that you will need it (and in any case it's not even referred to in the documentation)
Also supplied in the package is a mini CD-ROM that contains the drivers. These support Windows2000,XP, Vista and 7 and Media Center can deal with a maximum complement of four digital tuners(certainly if you are using Window7). Thanks to their BDA compliance, the drivers allow the tuners to work with a wide variety of third party software such as the full version of popular DVBviewer,Progdvb, media portable. The TBS6284 will also courtesy of its manufacturer' wise decision to cater for Linux-appeal to those who hope to build an open source PVR around software like MyrhTV, VDR
Basic use
In additional to the drivers a small collection of application software is included. These programs are TBSViewer(a cut-down version of DVBViewer), an OEM version of DVBDream(an alternative to DVBViewer) and TBSVHID(which maps handset buttons to the appropriate keyboard commands of your digital TV software). Sadly, none of these programs id documented with the exception of a DVBDream help file.
Getting the card into our Yoyotech quad-core Window7 PC and installing the drivers from CD-ROM was straightforward. Setup will depend on the application, but TBSViewer and DVBDream were easy enough to drive, The tuning menu of most software gives you control over the range of frequencies to be scanned(the TBS6284 will deal with VHF and as well as UHF channels）and the channel bandwidth(8MHZ in UK). You can usually also turn off one or more of the tuners, if desired.
PVR and multimedia
For standard-definition viewing with the supplied software, a Pentium 4 processor will suffice, but if HD is envisaged you will need a multi-core processor with a copy of DVBVivew GE, which supports the reception of multiple programmers from each tuner if they are in the same multiplex, we were able to record no fewer than nice channels simultaneously, That should be more than enough for anybody.
Performance
The TBS6284  DVB S2 Card worked superbly. Its sensitivity was judged to be better than that of many DVB-T cards. Even the Crystal Palace HD channels, which will be carried with lower power until switchover (a couple of months, always at the time of writing) is complete, were received without glitches in our Lssex location, It worked very well with Microsoft Media Center, DVBDream and TBSViewer, the four tuners yielded the kind of recording and viewing flexibility that is currently impossible with set top PVRs
Verdict
The TBS6284 is not cheap, but if you do need such power (in a professional capacity perhaps) there is nothing around to touch it, you need never miss another program again.

Choosing a TV Tuner Card to Record Digital TV on PC

What is a TV Tuner Card?
A TV tuner card is a kind of television tuner that allows television signals to be received by a computer. Most TV tuners also function as video capture cards, allowing them to record television programs onto a hard disk much like the digital video recorder (DVR) does.
The interfaces for TV tuner cards are most commonly either PCI bus expansion card or the newer PCI Express (PCIe) bus for many modern cards, but some USB interface tuner cards are specially designed for laptop, which also works fine.
Why Buy a TV Tuner Card?
If you want to watch TV on PC, you might consider buying a TV tuner Card. When you hook up your cable or antenna to a television, all you're essentially doing is connecting a signal to a monitor. All televisions are equipped with tuners that allow the monitor to decode the signal coming through the cable into comprehensible images and sound. Such a TV tuner card also allows you to record these signals digitally on your system. It performs much like a DVR device that records programs from your television.
Generally speaking, these TV tuner cards are not standard in PCs you buy off the shelf at your local electronics store. Therefore, you have to buy a TV tuner card from a third party or some professional TV tuner manufacturers. For personal, you can use a TV tuner to build HTPC. For business usage, some companies will buy the card for IPTV application.
How to choose a TV Tuner Card?
When choosing a TV tuner card, consider what you want to accomplish by installing this component on your computer's motherboard. You should also ask yourself the following questions: Is the computer you currently own capable of supporting the tuner? Do you have the knowledge and skill to install it yourself? Are you planning to use the TV tuner as a replacement for cable, satellite or other television services? Each TV tuner card on our lineup has different features and capabilities; we rated and ranked all the best TV tuner cards on the market today. When our review of the best TV tuner cards ended, the Hauppauge WinTV HVR-2250, the TBS6984 PCIe DVB S2 TV Tuner Card and the AVerTVHD Bravo each claimed one of the top spots on our best TV tuner card comparisons and reviews. There are also several factors should consider on how to cut your home entertainment budget using this technology.
Compatibility
Most computers don't have the latest and greatest operating system available. This is especially true in the Microsoft Windows universe. The best TV tuner cards not only work with the latest iteration of Windows, but also with past versions that still reside on a majority of computers currently in use. Some professional TV tuner producers, such as TBS, even offer the Linux drivers compatible, that’s big good news for Linux users. Linux TV tuner cards also will be one of spread in the future.
Picture Quality
High definition is the new standard for media in all forms. Unfortunately, a lot of technology has not caught up to this rich resolution. The best TV tuner cards pipe HD signals into your computer system in all their deep, colorful glory.
Help & Support
Even though a TV tuner card is easy to use and install, you can run into trouble occasionally. The best TV tuner cards are supported by their manufacturers with a warranty, and those companies provide technical support when necessary.
At the end of the day, a TV tuner card performs a simple yet powerful task. It routes television signals through your computer, allowing you to watch, record and store television shows and programs.

Broadcast to Broadband - Open Standards for IPTV

What is DVB-IPTV?

DVB-IPTV is the collective name for a set of open, interoperable technical specifications, developed by the DVB Project, that facilitate the delivery of digital TV using Internet Protocol over bi-directional fixed broadband networks. The work is taking place in two tracks, where Track 1 covers delivery over managed networks and Track 2 covers Internet delivery.

Key specifications already published in DVB IPTV Standard include:

- TS 102 034 : Transport of MPEG-2 TS-Based DVB Services over IP Based Networks

- TS 102 539 : Carriage of Broadband Content Guide (BCG) Information over Internet Protocol

- TS 102 824 : Remote Management and Firmware Update System for DVB IP Services

 DVB’s interactive middleware specifications, DVB-MHP and GEM, also include IPTV profiles.

Background

Traditionally DVB services have been delivered over broadcast networks, i.e. a one-to-many uni-directional architecture. The advent of high-speed bi-directional consumer broadband networks means that that there is increasing demand to

Offer DVB services over an IP network. The delivery of TV using bi-directional IP over a broadband network presents a particular set of challenges, especially when integrated with a range of other IP services. DVB’s task, in response to calls from the industry, is to help define and develop appropriate standards for the delivery of DVB services over such networks, and to provide a means of integrating these with other broadband services, whilst maintaining maximum interoperability with existing DVB broadcast standards. In view of the complex nature of IPTV, and the varied facets of such services, there are numerous DVB groups dealing with IPTV. DVB’s unique approach is based on consensus approval between its diverse members based on commonly-agreed Commercial Requirements.

How does it work?

The initial phase of DVB’s work concentrates on the interface between the IPTV set-top-box (STB) and the IP-based home network. DVB’s work in IPTV can be divided into three broad areas:

(i) STBs and PVRs on IP networks: the definition of appropriate standards to facilitate the automated connection and configuration of a STB connected to an IP network. This extends to how MPEG Transport Stream based services are encapsulated onto an IP network, and covers Service Discovery & Selection (SD&S), Broadband Content Guide (BCG), remote management, firmware update, etc.

(ii) Home Networking: the definition of an appropriate sub-set of existing standards for a DVB home network (based on IP). DVB’s Home Network specification will be based on the DLNA/UPnP guidelines where possible.

(iii) Additions to the DVB-MHP middleware specifications, to allow interactive TV applications running on MHP to use the resources available in a DVB-IPTV environment.

Market Deployment
Commercial IPTV networks have been rolled out to a greater or lesser degree in a number of countries. Many of these are using non-standardized proprietary technologies to deliver a range of services including television, interactive services, video-on-demand, etc... IPTV is expected to become an ever more popular means of delivering such services to the home, particularly when offered in conjunction with other forms of broadcast network, such as terrestrial or satellite. So if you want to build IPTV server, you might need some DVB Satellite or terrestrial cards to get IPTV streaming.

Here are some recommended TV tuner cards for IPTV building

DVB S2 Satellite Cards
TBS6984- A quad DVB S2 card, with four tuners for ideal building IPTV
TBS6981-A dual DVB S2 card, download two satellite transponders data simultaneously
DVB T2 Terrestrial Card
TBS6284- DVB T2 Card with four tuners, working great with Linux IPTV Streaming Server

TBS6280- DVB T2 Dual Tuner Card, download two terrestrial transponders data simultaneously

With the publication of the first set of DVB standards for IPTV, services can be launched that benefit from the advantages that come with open standards. The industry has particularly welcomed the standardization of the Broadband Content Guide, similar to the EPG used in “traditional” digital TV, and the Service Discovery and Selection mechanism. Thanks to standardized information, the SD&S mechanism allows a STB to efficiently recognize the multicast and unicast offerings of IPTV service operators on a broadband network. Many DVB member companies have participated in the working groups and are now integrating DVB-IPTV into their product lines.

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DVB IPTV: How Does IPTV Work

DVB IPTV: How Does IPTV Work

What is IPTV
IPTV or IP Television is a process, a method of preparing and distributing television signals over an IP based data network. Content streams are acquired, demodulated and decrypted if necessary, then re-encoded digitally for IP transport possibly with additional compression and new encryption. IPTV signals, or streams, are distributed on an IP based network and viewed on a IPTV capable viewing device, usually a Set Top Box. With multi digital TV Tuner cards, you can build a TPTV server and transfer the data to the end users.
Note: This article discusses building and operating a complete headend, for the purpose of competing with or replacing a traditional CATV service, to provide coverage to a metro or regional area.
The key steps to delivering IPTV to the end user

Acquiring the Programming – The vast majority of this content will be received via satellite, requiring a headend facility. Additional content, local network affiliates, may be received off-air in either analog or digital off air format, or even terrestrially, as an ASI or SDI stream provided over fiber optic transport from a nearby broadcaster.
In the mostly digital environment, the receiver will be connected to an input from the satellite dish or splitter. The receiver will be tuned to a transponder, which represents a frequency or a channel. Other settings, such as symbol and forward error correction rates must be set, as well as other technical settings as per the requirements of the programmer’s uplink operations center. The receiver will demodulate the stream or streams, and it will decrypt the encryption that the programmers have used to protect their intellectual property for the trip to outer space and back. The programmers designate the type of encryption used, and this in turn dictates the receiver manufacturer and sometimes the model. The digital output of the receiver is the Asynchronous Serial Interface (ASI). ASI is a compressed format designed to carry multiple MPEG2 streams.

Encoding the streams– The digital or analog content that has been received has to be re-encoded for multicast IP transport. This stage would also encompass the encryption that will be required by the programmers. These digital outputs from the various receivers will be injected into an encoding device to be assigned a multicast IP address. In a standard definition environment, these streams can be encoded in MPEG2 format or in MPEG4 format. The higher cost of MPEG4 encoding equipment encourages the encoding as MPEG2 if sufficient bandwidth on the distribution network is available. We will discuss this in detail later on. If the content in question is High Definition (HD), then without question it will need to be encoded in MPEG4 not to overwhelm the distribution network.

IPTV Distribution Network – The distribution network obviously needs to be some kind of wide area network, as it needs to deliver IPTV services to the customers’ homes. This network needs to have adequate bandwidth with the ability to implement Quality of Service (QoS) to the end users to deliver IPTV content. These requirements can be attained with the mixing and matching of many current technologies.

Middleware –Middleware is the glue that holds the IPTVSP together. Without the middleware the
IPTVSP has a lot of expensive but useless equipment. It may have been noticed that up until this point in this series all reference to content has been identified as streams, not channels. This effort not to address streams as channels was directed toward this purpose; without middleware there are no channels, just streams. The end user, the television customer, expects a user friendly viewing experience. Typically presented in the form of an Electronic Program Guide. The middleware presents this to the viewer via the Set Top Box.

IPTV Viewing Device – This is generally considered to be the Set Top Box, not too different in appearance from the STB provided by the cable company for their digital service tier, or the STB included with a home satellite package, which is also a satellite receiver. The IPTV STB works hand in hand with the middleware.
Recommended TV tuner cards for IPTV building

DVB S2 Satellite Cards
TBS6984- A quad DVB S2 card, with four tuners for ideal building IPTV
TBS6981-A dual DVB S2 card, download two satellite transponders data simultaneously

DVB T2 Terrestrial Card
TBS6284- DVB T2 Card with four tuners, working great with Linux IPTV Streaming Server

TBS6280- DVB T2 Dual Tuner Card, download two terrestrial transponders data simultaneously