Gavtech
Thanks for replying to my query. I did not realize that the AVForums was only devoted to the UK. I thought it was a worldwide forum. I'm not sure I understand everything you told me but let me see if I can say it in my own words and then you tell me if I am on the right track. I am a newbie at this stuff, so please bear with me.
Only about 8% of homes here have terrestrial digital television. I have a cable system which requires a set top box (for digital stations and HD) that accepts a standard DVB-C, QAM 256 feed. In your statement above, are you saying that only digital stations from terrestrial digital can be recorded on a DVR?
OK - There are two factors to consider here in regard of that question.
Normally a DVDR is effectively two boxes in one- that is to say - it is a receiver and a recorder in one box.
The receiver is defined by the type of tuner which could, conceivably, be based on any of the 3 platform types: Terrestrial, Satellite, or cable.
I have heard of DVDRs based on terrestrial and satellite but I have never heard of one based on cable... and judging by your account of what you have been told, it would appear to be the same in Switzerland.
Therefore... assuming that to be the case, you could not get a DVDR that would
receive the cable transmission that you currently receive.
However - you CAN record the digital stations from your existing cable box provided it has outputs to do so.... which can be fed into the DVDR.
But as said earlier, timer control is poor by this method.
The two tuner problem is not a issue for me. I didn't state in my first post that I already experimented with a DVR, it is the LG HR400. It programmed itself with every analogue station, but will not accept any digital stations. I was told by the salesman that it had a digital tuner but apparently it does not. One thing is for certain, it will not record digital stations, it doesn't even see them, even though when setting up the stations one can switch between analogue and digital. I tried several times to setup the digital stations. It scans the frequencies just fine but doesn't store any stations.
Unfortunately I cannot examine the detail of that type of model as in the UK that model number is an LG Bluray player.
But generally here I'm clutching in the dark because I know nothing of systems in use in Switzerland.
You seem to be implying that you had this unit connected direct to the cable system - not an aerial - and we have no equipment remotely like that in the UK.
That you could record a separate channels implies that the DVDR was using its own tuner - which to me implies an aerial. [ unless cable suppliers are multiplexing analogue on your cable system ]
It would be better if I said less in this regard because I cant say anything useful.
Our cable company does not sell or have their own set top box. We are free to buy any STB we wish as long as it accepts a standard DVB-C, QAM 256 feed.
The Technisat STB that I have has both SCART and HDMI output connectors. I use only the HDMI output. I have experimented and connected the SCART connections directly from the STB to the LG DVR and it will record the analog stations, but not the digital ones.
This part does not make sense to me.
If the unit will output the digital channels - via scart to a TV- then it should be possible to record them by connecting that to a DVDR.
Unless it is specifically restricted in your locality, and either the Technisat does not output the digital channels via scart, or it does but they are copy protected channels - in which case the DVDR will prevent you recording them, albeit I would expect you to get an onscreen message saying so.
Actually I can. I have a HDMI switchbox and I connect the cable feed to the STB and then from the STB to the DVR, then loop from the DVR to the TV. Then I connect the STB via a HDMI cable to the B switch and connect the DVR via a HDMI cable to the A switch and finally the "out" HDMI connection via a HDMI cable to the HDMI input on the TV. I can start the start the recording on the DVR on one channel and then switch the box from A to B and watch another channel via the set top box. It even works when programs are setup to record in the future.
That is not my problem. It is the fact that this LG HR 400 will not accept digital stations. It records the analogue stations just fine. But I need to know if I am doing something wrong with this DVR or whether I need to return it and get a DVR that has a digital tuner and can actually find the digital stations coming from my source.
Paul
AS said - I don't have any tech info about this unit - and I know nothing of your local systems so it is difficult to make any useful comment.
All I can say is that it would normally be possible to record digital channels fed via scart into a DVDR.
What you are saying above suggests to me that you are recording analogue channels
directly and internally using the tuner of the DVDR - In other words you are not recording ANY channels provided by the technisat. Neither analogue nor digital.
That perhaps needs verification one way or the other.
It's also strange to me that a cable box would have a 'TechniSAT' name which suggests a satellite receiver rather than cable box - but that may be simply a brand name peculiarity.