Need some advice: 5.1 system and external digital tuner?
Question by Christopher R: Need some advice: 5.1 system and external digital tuner?
Ok so I'm a freshman in college right now, and sharing a room with a couple people. Due to the arrangement I have not been able to enjoy watching movies/tv/ gaming with anything but headphones. I just went through the housing lottery and got myself a 200 square foot single for next year.
I know its not a ton of space, but I wanted to know if its worth it for me to buy a cheap 5.1 system from someone like logitech or creative in order to get a better listening experience. My school has "quiet hours" from 1am to 7am, but other than that its anything goes, so no problems with neighbors. I just want to make sure its even worth it with that small of a space.
Second question is:
I recently bought a 22 inch 1080p monitor that has hdmi/vga/dvi ect ect, the price was good and the quality is outstanding even compared to the much larger and more expensive set my family has at home.
Main problem is that it lacks a tv tuner. My roommate had a big tv this year so it wasnt an issue, but I need to figure something out by the end of the summer. Main thing it needs is the capability to accept coax connections and is digital so it can still be usuable down the road and display the hd channels at my school. (at home I have a regular cable box)
My ideas/options thus far:
1) Get a slingbox pro
pros: Can watch tv on my laptop all over campus as well as on my phone.
cons: Price....its well over 200$ and although I work full time during breaks/summer, I do have a phone bill/ insurance/ ect that I need money for during school
2) Buy an external tuner/usb tuner
Pro: I'm assuming they are cheaper...but
cons: I cant find a decent one anywhere. I need something that isn't tied through my computer, just a direct tuner to my monitor.
So does anyone have any suggestions for an external tuner thats somewhat cheap (under 100ish) ?
Or am I just gonna have to work overtime and get the slingbox pro hd?
Best answer:
Answer by Jim W
What kind of inputs does your monitor have? Make sure you can use whatever solution you select with your monitor.
You can use one of those converter boxes to get SD reception. They're around and if you have the government coupon they're the cheapest option. If you want HD, you'll need to get an HD ATSC tuner. They currently run around 0 or so, but you could check eBay for a cheaper used one.
Should have bought a TV with a PC input.
An alternative to Slingbox is Hava Platinum or Hava Titanium. I use the Platinum and it works pretty well over the LAN. Haven't tried it over the Internet yet. I've seen the Hava stuff on sale at Amazon and Buy.Com. I think I paid around for mine.
Why don't you want to use your PC with a USB tuner? The Pinnacle USB adapters work well and they can be bought inexpensively. The only gotcha is that you need a fast processor to get ATSC signals. Intel Core Duo with 2.0Ghz processor works fine.
BTW, I think if you want to use the Slingbox over the Internet, you have to have it connected to your PC, at least to set it up with the Slingbox servers.
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Q&A: How to Record music from satellite TV to MP3 on my computer?
Question by luckyone_27105: How to Record music from satellite TV to MP3 on my computer?
I usually do not have problems with basic electronic stuff but this one has got my head spinning. I want to use some of the music programs on TV to record mp3's on my computer. Inexpensive would be a big plus.
RCA to USB cable? TV tuner? TV converter? Slingbox or a slingbox competitor? What do I do? And yes, all these are available, they just don't explain how to use them in layman's terms
OOPS!
I want to record in stereo and not sure why a mic in would do that.
Current configuration is Satellite TV provider, minimum broadband, and a decent entry level PC.
Windows XP OS
Best answer:
Answer by Calvin's Network Hosting
Hello,
In order to record TV audio from your Satellite, I have written the following steps to help you:
You will need:
1) Make sure your tv is on, and connect a jack lead from your Headphone socket on your TV, into your PC's Mic Socket.
2)You need to use sound recording software such as "Sound Recorder" on XP or you can use different software and press record
3) That's it, It will save it as an MP3 or WAV and there you have it!
Cheers,
Calvin's Network
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How to record & watch tv on my laptop?
Question by wmarie: How to record & watch tv on my laptop?
Okay, I want to use my laptop to record tv shows and such. BUT, I am completely confused by all of the products that are on the market and I find it extremely difficult to decide exactly what I need.
Here's what I have:
A HP pavilion dv6000 entertainment notebook
wireless internet/router
Windows Vista
Here's where it gets confusing: My family has Charter cable in every room in our house. But the only room with a box is in the den. The rest of the rooms just have "extended basic" cable and we connect with a coaxial cable in the back of the TV.
I would prefer to have whatever device I buy located in my bedroom, so what would I need to be compatible with just the coaxial connection? Or, would it be better just connect to the box in the den? But then, would it interfere with the den's TV in any way? And would my computer have to be in the den?
My laptop came with preloaded software to work with a product called a Slingbox. Would the cable in my room be compatible with this? Here's a link: http://www.slingmedia.com/go/slingbox-solo-connections
I know it's a lot, but please help me out! What all do I need, and what would ya'll suggest?
Best answer:
Answer by Karz
You just need a TV tuner so that you could connect to CATV coax.
http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_hvr950q.html
http://www.everythingusb.com/pinnacle_pctv_hd_pro_stick.html
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How to Record music from satellite TV to MP3 on my computer?
Question by luckyone_27105: How to Record music from satellite TV to MP3 on my computer?
I usually do not have problems with basic electronic stuff but this one has got my head spinning. I want to use some of the music programs on TV to record mp3's on my computer. Inexpensive would be a big plus.
RCA to USB cable? TV tuner? TV converter? Slingbox or a slingbox competitor? What do I do? And yes, all these are available, they just don't explain how to use them in layman's terms
I want to record in stereo and not sure how a mic in would manage that.
Current configuration is Satellite TV provider, minimum broadband, and a decent entry level PC with Windows XP.
Best answer:
Answer by blamay22000
Audigy
There should be extra audio outs on the sat box, get a patch cord from radio shack and connect it to the line in on your pc sound input
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How can I make cable box transmit signal over HDMI AND Component output at the same time (keywords:same time)?
Question by Boris A: How can I make cable box transmit signal over HDMI AND Component output at the same time (keywords:same time)?
I have 3 items to connect: Magnavox 37MF231D/37B, my Scientific Atlanta Explorer 4250HD cable box and my Slinbox Pro HD (300-100)
I have stumbled upon a problem: when cable box connects to TV via HDMI cable, it blocks out all other video outputs such as component video, so I cannot use it to connect it to my Slingbox. I can not use component (blue,green and blue) and composit (red and white) audio cable to connect to my tv, since this combination creates sort of a loud static noise from my tv speakers (no problem though when I connect it via HDMI or Coax). So I need to figure out a way to connect my cable box to tv via hdm and at the same time connect to my slingbox via component cable.
Does this mean I am going to have to purchase 2 additional things:
http://cgi.ebay.com/3-RCA-RGB-Component-... - this is a component signal splitter.
and then something like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ShowImage.... - to convert component into hdmi (for tv)?
this seems like it will work, I am just worry about signal loss when i connect all those together. Any ideas as to what I can do or how can I simplify this. Hack the cable box may be??? 
Thanks, but my TV has problem with component video input once I plug it in speakers make static noise along with the sound, I know component cable doesn’t carry the sound but that’s what it does only when I use it. So I decided to go a little bit long way, just bought a component signal splitter, then I bought component/spdif to hdmi converter adapter. This way I will have component going to slingbox and hdmi to TV: perfect. I am just worried about loss of signal if I am using 2 adapters in between cable box and TV
Best answer:
Answer by TV Tech 1
Don't hack the box unless you're willing to buy it from them.
Just use the COMPONENT output to FEED all...The signal is universal in your situation; Recordable and viewable. I suggest just feeding that signal from the box to a Component Distribution Amp
http://www.radioshack.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=component%20a/v%20amp&origkw=component%20a/v%20amp&sr=1
It's the better overall choice for your situation
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What would be the best laptop for my needs under $1,000?
Question by : What would be the best laptop for my needs under ,000?
Requirements:
Price: anything under ,000
Screen: Needs to be very bright and vivid because I stream netflix and tv via slingbox. Also very large. Screen is probably the most important factor
Speed: Something that will let me browse the internet with my 15 mbps connection swiftly. Also should be great at handling HD video (netflix streaming, slingbox, youtube, NO editing). Internet browsing and streaming video are what I will mostly be doing.
Design: Don't care that much about design although the prettier the better obviously
Battery life: not important
Gaming: not important
Brand: not important
Portability: not important
Any help will be greatly appreciated. 10 points to best answer!
Best answer:
Answer by Pengu45
If the screen is the most important thing then you might want to look into buying the computer itself(like the motherboard and all that jazz) and the screen separate. As far as streaming videos, it really comes down to your internet connection and what kind of graphics card. Sorry thats kind of where my experience ends and i don't want to give you bad info so I hope that helps answer at least half your question. As far as graphics cards go look under ATI and GEFORCE models as those are generally the best and most affordable.
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How do I see what OUTBOUND ports are blocked?
Question by Matt M: How do I see what OUTBOUND ports are blocked?
I'm trying to plan for getting a SlingBox but where I go to college they restrict the ports to stop file-sharing and spammers (it's a public/open network). I want to be able to watch TV between classes (say while I eat lunch) but I don't want to waste money on a slingbox if it won't work.
Is there any way I can check what outbound ports are open? I know 80, 110, and 443 are allowed and most others are blocked...but not exactley what's what.
My home ISP blocks ports 80, 25, and 110 to stop home-servers from working. I'm already using port 443 for remote TCP/IP printing, so I'd rather not give that up...I haven't had time to try many others because it involves changing my home network, then checking when I get to class, and the next day repeating the process - so I can check one port a day...not very practical.
Is there some program that will scan all the ports (or a lot of them) and tell me what OUTBOUND ports work so I can narrow my search for a port allowed both out of my college and into my home?
I can't afford to get cellular/satellite internet for my laptop...
I understand at home it's inbound ports.
At college, it's outbound they restrict...I can't even send/recieve mail (ports 587/995). FTP, SSH, Telnet ports are all blocked at the college too...outbound - I can't access any server via those services.
Basically the only thing they intentionally left open is to browse the web.
Best answer:
Answer by Colanth
It's inbound ports that are - effectively - blocked. (They're not actually blocked, they're not available unless they're forwarded, and the school doesn't forward any ports to you.) Outbound ports, since they don't have to be forwarded, aren't "blocked".
"My home ISP blocks ports 80, 25, and 110 to stop home-servers from working."
That's inbound, not outbound. If they were blocked outbound you couldn't browse the web or receive or send email.
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help me ….please..?
Question by : help me ....please..?
i wanna watch live tv from usa ...anybody have slingbox ?can i use it ?i will pay monney . i'm from china
Best answer:
Answer by Cody Cody
google proxy servers
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SLINGBOX – DENTIST
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Sports fans will understand. A guy tries to watch the game on his cell phone while on a date.