Does Tivo work with Virgin Media ?

aiboman

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I'm moving to a area that has VM and looking to change from Sky to VM and although I have a Sky + box at the moment I use my trusted and fantastic Tivo for all my recording

Now its a long shot I know but is there any way of getting my Tivo box work with VM ?

Cheers

Dave
 
The UK Tivo website would suggest that you can with an 'adaptor' of some kind. However the instructions relate to a Pace box which Virgin no longer use and the manual talks about Analogue signals. Virgin Media is a digital service so I guess this would not to be compatible.

I cannot see what advantage you would have over what a V+ box can provide. There is no point paying a subscription for two services doing the same thing. Tivo seems to rely on SCART sockets which are not compatible with more recent equipment using HDMI sockets. A V+ is capable of recording HDtv which Tivo cannot do.

You obviously cannot connect any sort of equipment directly to the Virgin Media cable as this is not permitted by their terms and conditions.
 
I have just had a V+ box installed.

I already had a Sky (no +) box connected to a TiVo.

The Sky is being disconnected end of the month.

The V+ has a scart socket for a video recorder which AFAIK the TiVo can use to record in SD. The V+ box uses IR which the TiVo blaster puts out.

So personally, I think it should be possible, though I'm not quit sure which of the three streams from the V+ box the TiVo records. (You can record two channels while watching a third.) I don't have any welcome pack or instruction manual yet, but hey, it was only installed a week ago.

I'm not in a hurry to retire my TiVo box. I've paid a lifetime subscription five years ago so I have nothing to lose. Apart from anything else it has the simplest, clearest, most intuitive interface I have seen on any piece of consumer equipment - only the iPhone comes close. It literally needs no instruction manual.

I intend to rewire the boxes on Monday, so if you can wait until then...
 
There is no reason a Tivo would not work on a V+ or standard V box. The RGB scart socket is disabled when using HDMI on the V+ so you have to use the VCR scart which is composite only.

I do wish Tivo would attempt to come back to the UK market, I reckon it would do really well and wipe the floor clean with Freeview PVRs.
 
I think you've all missed the obvious drawback of using the Tivo rather than the V+ box's own inbuilt PVR functionality. Sure you can connect the Tivo to the VCR SCART, but you can only record what you are actually watching or programmes you've already recorded. You cannot use the Tivo to record anything via the additional tuners and you cannot access the Virgin EPG directly from the Tivo.
 
I'm moving to a area that has VM and looking to change from Sky to VM and although I have a Sky + box at the moment I use my trusted and fantastic Tivo for all my recording

Now its a long shot I know but is there any way of getting my Tivo box work with VM ?

Cheers

Dave

I use a TiVo to control a V box, with no problems.
As others have mentioned,(as I'm sure you know) you can only record what you are watching.


I think you've all missed the obvious drawback of using the Tivo rather than the V+ box's own inbuilt PVR functionality. Sure you can connect the Tivo to the VCR SCART, but you can only record what you are actually watching or programmes you've already recorded. You cannot use the Tivo to record anything via the additional tuners and you cannot access the Virgin EPG directly from the Tivo.

I think from that, you have never used the TiVo interface...

Yes, the V+ has 2 recorders, and records the stream directly, but the user interface is sh*t by comparison. (yes I use both, and Windows 7 MC)

Season passes that can record across channels by repeat or new episode ...
Wishlists that can include actors, directors, gendre as well as/or title.
The guide display is much clearer than any other I have seen.

For a system first introduced to the UK in 2000, no-one else has yet matched it...

<fanboy>
Personally I have three lifetime TiVo's.
</fanboy>
:D:D:D

Tank
 
I use a TiVo to control a V box, with no problems.
As others have mentioned,(as I'm sure you know) you can only record what you are watching.




I think from that, you have never used the TiVo interface...

Yes, the V+ has 2 recorders, and records the stream directly, but the user interface is sh*t by comparison. (yes I use both, and Windows 7 MC)

Season passes that can record across channels by repeat or new episode ...
Wishlists that can include actors, directors, gendre as well as/or title.
The guide display is much clearer than any other I have seen.

For a system first introduced to the UK in 2000, no-one else has yet matched it...

<fanboy>
Personally I have three lifetime TiVo's.
</fanboy>
:D:D:D

Tank



Enjoy, but I can do as much with a 20 year old VCR as you can do with your pretty Tivo.

You obviously prefer looking at the Tivo graphics, but what about the inferior image quality of anything you use it to record??? :D
 
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Enjoy, but I can do as much with a 20 year old VCR as you can do with your pretty Tivo.

You obviously prefer looking at the Tivo graphics, but what about the inferior image quality of anything you use it to record??? :D

Then you agree that the V+ interface is worse than a 20 year old VCR !!!! :rotfl:

I don't think anyone ever called the TiVo pretty ;) ,but then it lives in my AV cupboard and you dont have to look at it.

RGB out on the V box into TiVo (with mode 0 mod) then into a SCART to HDMI converter (720P output)....

Yes, I agree that the image is worse than the V+, but is the same as the V box direct.:thumbsup:

Tank
 
Then you agree that the V+ interface is worse than a 20 year old VCR !!!! :rotfl:

I don't think anyone ever called the TiVo pretty ;) ,but then it lives in my AV cupboard and you dont have to look at it.

RGB out on the V box into TiVo (with mode 0 mod) then into a SCART to HDMI converter (720P output)....

Yes, I agree that the image is worse than the V+, but is the same as the V box direct.:thumbsup:

Tank

You don't even get RGB from the V+ box's VCR SCART. No argument about the Tivo's GUI, but I fail to see why anyone would want a recording device which can only record substandard content? You don't need a Tivo to do this. I've a DVD/HDD that can take the output from the VCR SCART and I'd hazard that its upscaling abilities are superior to that which you get from your Tivo? I don't use my DVD/HDD or its upscaler for either recording V+ output or viewing it, I use the box itself to both record and output the content and I get better results by doing so. The advantages of simply using just the V+ far outweigh the pretty GUI of the Tivo. I'm quite happy to forgo the pretty GUI in favour of picture quality. After all, this is what I'll be sat watching and not the EPG or the GUI ;)
 
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You don't even get RGB from the V+ box's VCR SCART. No argument about the Tivo's GUI, but I fail to see why anyone would want a recording device which can only record substandard content? You don't need a Tivo to do this. I've a DVD/HDD that can take the output from the VCR SCART and I'd hazard that its upscaling abilities are superior to that which you get from your Tivo? I don't use my DVD/HDD or its upscaler for either recording V+ output or viewing it, I use the box itself to both record and output the content and I get better results by doing so. The advantages of simply using just the V+ far outweigh the pretty GUI of the Tivo. I'm quite happy to forgo the pretty GUI in favour of picture quality. After all, this is what I'll be sat watching and not the EPG or the GUI ;)

V box not V+ if you re-read my posts ;)

So the TiVo records the same quality as the box outputs.
No upscaling by the TiVo, the SCART to HDMI does that.
There's no argument about the V+ being better for the picture.

Does the OP mention V+ or just a Virgin install ?

Tank
 
V box not V+ if you re-read my posts ;)

So the TiVo records the same quality as the box outputs.
No upscaling by the TiVo, the SCART to HDMI does that.
There's no argument about the V+ being better for the picture.

Does the OP mention V+ or just a Virgin install ?

Tank

SCART to HDMI???? Not sure as to what you are referring to with that? :confused:

You can't go straight from SCART to HDMI. SCART is analogue and HDMI is digital.
 
Cheers for all then replies and info so it does look like I will be able to use my Tivo after all :thumbsup:

I have to say to all those who are going on about the quailty of the recorded material with the Tivo I am using my Tivo thru my sky + box with the mode 0 mod into my HD tv and I am more then happy with the quality in fact I think it looks really good

Yes I cannot change channel while recording but I live with that

Cheers all
 
As said, you can't go straight from SCART to HDMI. The device is a ADC/upscaler ;)

Never said you could, All references were to "The" SCART to HDMI, inferring something that does the job..... and giving 720P. :p
Being an ex-electronic engineer, I do know the difference between analogue and digital. :D:D
Anyhow, we are wildly OT now as I think the OP has the answer he needed ......
 
Do you still tape the charts on a Sunday evening...:cool:

Can you search your EPG via wishlist, title, actor, director, key word et al and set season passes that always pick up a new series for ever? :cool:

ATB

Max
 
I have just spent the morning trying to get my TiVo to work with V+.

It picks up the picture via SCART just fine - the live stream off air - but the BIG problem is that I can't get the TiVo to control the V+ box and change channels, which would make it like a 3rd recorder, albeit only in SD compared to the V+ output.*

Have to say the TiVo picture does look pretty ropey off the V+ box.

But I'm with those who think the TiVo interface is one of the best ever designed. My wife picked up the remote and started using the TiVo without having to look at an instruction manual once. That to me is the definition of good design. Only the iPhone comes anywhere close.

*If anyone knows how to do it - the control code to use and where to place the IR blaster - I'd be eternally grateful. My kids have grown up with the TiVo, it'd be a shame to retire it.
 
I'm using the IR codes Pace 20020 MEDIUM and having no problems with V+ - turning the blaster OFF!

One wand is set in front of the illuminated panel on the stb - the second is hidden well away from the box.

You may need to turn off the mini-guide on the VM box.


Don't worry about the manufacturer being wrong - as the same codes operate several different makes.
 

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