Turning my computer into a dvr and connecting via roku

[kc78]

I've been playing around with cord cutting and everything is great except for having the ability to easily access local channels where I live. I've ordered an HD Antenna to see how well that works for picking those up. If it works well, I want to use one of my spare pcs to work as a DVR so that I'll have the ability to record shows and watch them later. I've also read that there are some roku channels that will allow you to connect to that PC and watch either live tv or your recorded shows.

Has anyone done this. tech issues aren't a concern, I just don't have time to do tons of research to determine what the best options are. I do want to keep it fairly inexpensive however as the idea is to save money doing this, not drop several hundred dollars on some type of wife connected dvr.

Any ideas?

 

[Bartdog]

I'm not sure if I'm answering your question, but there's an app called playon that will let you record from Netflix, Hulu, HBOGO, Youtube, and dozens of other channels to your pc hard drive. I'm guessing it's these kinds of things you're wanting the ROKU for...?

 

[Nole Lou]

I've been playing around with cord cutting and everything is great except for having the ability to easily access local channels where I live. I've ordered an HD Antenna to see how well that works for picking those up. If it works well, I want to use one of my spare pcs to work as a DVR so that I'll have the ability to record shows and watch them later. I've also read that there are some roku channels that will allow you to connect to that PC and watch either live tv or your recorded shows.

Has anyone done this. tech issues aren't a concern, I just don't have time to do tons of research to determine what the best options are. I do want to keep it fairly inexpensive however as the idea is to save money doing this, not drop several hundred dollars on some type of wife connected dvr.

Any ideas?

GBR is the expert on this subject if he checks in. He's always had the ultimate setup.

I did it for years, and Windows Media Center on Windows 7 eventually worked pretty great, once it was set up.

Here's the bottom line...don't go this way unless you really want this to become your own hobby. So many issues around codecs, networking, transcoding, power management...you WILL go down a rabbit hole that will eat up hours and hours of your life. Even some of the solutions like Tablo which claim to do this sort of thing are glitchy and very expensive.

If you want to get into this and enjoy it as a hobby, constantly debugging, looking for solutions, etc, nothing is superior to a roll your own DVR. The options are endless. But if that's not the case, you don't want this to be a major part of your life for the next several months, and spend hundreds of dollars...buy a Tivo. Find a used Tivo with transferable lifetime service for a couple hundred dollars and be done with it.

I spent years trying to come up with a solution to replace my Windows Media Center DVR HTPC without having to build a new HTPC...tried various DVR softwares, TV cards, systems for feeding it to tv through Android or Roku, etc...it either cost hundreds in setup like Tablo once you took everything into account, or never worked quite right. Then a neighbor put their Tivo up on Nextdoor for $50 and it ended it all.

And after all that, I realized that I end up DVRing about 1 show or event every two months. With video on demand and not watching much network TV, I really don't even need it much. FSU football games on ABC and American Ninja Warrior are about it. I didn't record one thing in the Olympics, because it's all on demand in the app.

 

[kc78]

GBR is the expert on this subject if he checks in. He's always had the ultimate setup.

I did it for years, and Windows Media Center on Windows 7 eventually worked pretty great, once it was set up.

Here's the bottom line...don't go this way unless you really want this to become your own hobby. So many issues around codecs, networking, transcoding, power management...you WILL go down a rabbit hole that will eat up hours and hours of your life. Even some of the solutions like Tablo which claim to do this sort of thing are glitchy and very expensive.

If you want to get into this and enjoy it as a hobby, constantly debugging, looking for solutions, etc, nothing is superior to a roll your own DVR. The options are endless. But if that's not the case, you don't want this to be a major part of your life for the next several months, and spend hundreds of dollars...buy a Tivo. Find a used Tivo with transferable lifetime service for a couple hundred dollars and be done with it.

I spent years trying to come up with a solution to replace my Windows Media Center DVR HTPC without having to build a new HTPC...tried various DVR softwares, TV cards, systems for feeding it to tv through Android or Roku, etc...it either cost hundreds in setup like Tablo once you took everything into account, or never worked quite right. Then a neighbor put their Tivo up on Nextdoor for $50 and it ended it all.

And after all that, I realized that I end up DVRing about 1 show or event every two months. With video on demand and not watching much network TV, I really don't even need it much. FSU football games on ABC and American Ninja Warrior are about it. I didn't record one thing in the Olympics, because it's all on demand in the app.

I hadn't even considered purchasing a tivo. What would I need to look at in that. The only ones I'm familiar with were ones that came with service from cable like I had with Mediacom. Is there a website you can point me to with all of the specifics I need to be aware of if I'm trying to find an old tivo to use for this?

Really, when I think about it, this all comes down to me trying to find a way to watch CBS shows without paying for the CBS All Access app. lol. Maybe I'd just be better off to drop the 7 dollars a month or whatever it is for that and be done, but something about paying for network tv just irks me. In the end I want to be able to record live sports on the network channels and watch MacGyver on CBS.

 

[kc78]

Also, what about something like this device? Is that what you're referring to that you say turns out to be glitchy?

HDHomeRum - CONNECT DUO

 

[Nole Lou]

I hadn't even considered purchasing a tivo. What would I need to look at in that. The only ones I'm familiar with were ones that came with service from cable like I had with Mediacom. Is there a website you can point me to with all of the specifics I need to be aware of if I'm trying to find an old tivo to use for this?

Really, when I think about it, this all comes down to me trying to find a way to watch CBS shows without paying for the CBS All Access app. lol. Maybe I'd just be better off to drop the 7 dollars a month or whatever it is for that and be done, but something about paying for network tv just irks me. In the end I want to be able to record live sports on the network channels and watch MacGyver on CBS.

I hear you...I've lived it. I guarantee it's not going to be a value proposition when it's all said and done.

It looks like the cheapest new Tivo with lifetime service included is about $400. I don't know what a used one with lifetime service on ebay would be, maybe a couple hundred bucks. You'll want to get the serial number ahead of time before you buy it, and call Tivo to verify it has the lifetime service and it will transfer, to make sure you don't get taken.

 

[Nole Lou]

Also, what about something like this device? Is that what you're referring to that you say turns out to be glitchy?

HDHomeRum - CONNECT DUO

Yeah, I've tried them all. Sometimes they work well, sometimes not so well. Vary rarely perfect and up to the standard of a cable company DVR, at least without troubleshooting. You might get lucky and everything lines up perfect though.

Check for sure, I think HDHomeRun's DVR service either requires a $100 subscription or a monthly fee.

 

[kc78]

Yeah, I've tried them all. Sometimes they work well, sometimes not so well. Vary rarely perfect and up to the standard of a cable company DVR, at least without troubleshooting. You might get lucky and everything lines up perfect though.

Check for sure, I think HDHomeRun's DVR service either requires a $100 subscription or a monthly fee.

Looks like it's a 35/annual fee if I'm reading the website properly.

 

[TennNole17]

Better off getting the CBS all access tbh

 

[MIKE_G]

I've been playing around with cord cutting and everything is great except for having the ability to easily access local channels where I live. I've ordered an HD Antenna to see how well that works for picking those up. If it works well, I want to use one of my spare pcs to work as a DVR so that I'll have the ability to record shows and watch them later. I've also read that there are some roku channels that will allow you to connect to that PC and watch either live tv or your recorded shows.

Has anyone done this. tech issues aren't a concern, I just don't have time to do tons of research to determine what the best options are. I do want to keep it fairly inexpensive however as the idea is to save money doing this, not drop several hundred dollars on some type of wife connected dvr.

Any ideas?

If you are able to pick up your locals with an antenna, there are cheap digital converter boxes you can get at Walmart. You'll need to attach a hard drive to record video. I bought one of these off Amazon years ago, and it did the job. Software was a little flaky, but I'd imagine the newer devices from more reputable companies (mine was an "iView") probably are more reliable.

 

[ericram]

I hadn't even considered purchasing a tivo. What would I need to look at in that. The only ones I'm familiar with were ones that came with service from cable like I had with Mediacom. Is there a website you can point me to with all of the specifics I need to be aware of if I'm trying to find an old tivo to use for this?

Really, when I think about it, this all comes down to me trying to find a way to watch CBS shows without paying for the CBS All Access app. lol. Maybe I'd just be better off to drop the 7 dollars a month or whatever it is for that and be done, but something about paying for network tv just irks me. In the end I want to be able to record live sports on the network channels and watch MacGyver on CBS.

There are many other DVRs that will record all of those and OTA stations you can purchase too. Not just Tivo which I was a huge proponent of, but they lost out when they didn't license their services correctly.