Back to Windows Vista Media Centre

Well, the combined issues of non-supported dual tuners and network congestion means that the only choice I have is to re-install Windows Vista. Having taken the decision and re-installed it, I must admit I had forgotten how rock solid Windows Vista + Linksys DMA2200 are as a combination. Even when streaming live TV over WiFi.

Network connectivity and 7MC

It turns out that the network connectivity issue that I mentioned in previous entry is a known issue. Apparently, Microsoft are working on it. Good summary thread here.

Shame, it looks like this issue and the dual tuner issue means I will be reinstalling Vista!

7MC and Dual Tuners

Having installed Windows 7 onto the box that I am using as a Media Center everything seems to work fine, except Media Center treats the dual tuner card as if it only has one tuner. It recognises the dual tuners during set-up, but when you try and use the two tuners in practice it says there is a conflict and shows the two tuners are already both in use. Argh!

A little bit of investigation shows that this is a common issue. Try here for a great summary thread that lists the affected cards (which includes the Hauppauge dual tuner that I am using) on The Green Button.

Windows 7 Media Center (7MC)

I have just upgraded the Intel Atom based machine that I have being using to run Vista Media Center. I connect it to my TV using the Linksys DMA2200 Media Extender. The combination works a treat although occasional the Media Extender does need to be rebooted. This set up is described elsewhere on this blog, but I think it is fair to say that running Windows Vista on such a small footprint machine is pushing the limits (1.6GHz HT processor with 1GB of memory).

Well, I thought I would push the limits a bit further and install the Beta build for Windows 7 onto the machine. I am using the Beta build (build 7000) that was released last week and you can download off MSDN.

I did an upgrade from Vista SP1 using the ISO download on a DVD. The process is fairly seamless and can be done completely unattended, except the bit at the end where you need to insert the license key. Amazingly, it came up first time without any problems. Not bad for a Beta! I have included the performance data above. You can compare it to the results from Windows Vista here running on the same box.

OK, so onto Media Center. First time you start it up, it asks if you want to import that previous Media Center. This is what I did and it worked well - it sorted out the tuners (the drivers all worked), it re-tuned the tuners and even imported the existing scheduled recordings. The Media Center UI has been revamped in Windows 7 and it looks a little more polished with some additional features. As always, it is going to take a little time to get used to. More of this once I have had more time to play with it.

I powered up the Media Extender (expecting to have to set it back up again) and it worked first time without any fiddling or re-setting up. I hadn't really thought much about it, but I was pleasantly surprised when the new Windows 7 Media Center UI appeared on the extender. Cool.
I do seem to be suffering from some more network connectivity issues than I have had in the past. But I can't see how this is due to the new version of Media Center. But let's see how it performs over the next week or so.

Intel Atom Media Centre (again)

The Intel Atom Media Center seems to be working well with the Hauppauge Dual Tuner PCI card. It seems to have enough CPU to be able to record 2 channels while playing back a previously recorded programme. Indeed, looking at the performance of the machine shows that this is only using around 15% of the CPU. Overall, the unit is pretty quiet and uses only about 35-40W.

I am using a Linksys DMA-2200 Media Extender to stream TV (Freeview not HD) over WiFi to my TV. The Media Extender outputs 1080i format and is connected via HDMI to the TV. This essentially means that the extender is upscaling the image for display - the unit includes a DVD player as well as the Media Extender (this enables the playback of DVDs which cannot otherwise by played by the extender. The unit works reasonably well, but is a little short of horsepower - this shows up most of the animated Media Center user interface. You can customise the user interface not to use animation, if you want. This improves the responsiveness of the unit.

While this works technically, it isn't a great solution. It is far too expensive. The Linksys DMA-2200 retails for around £200 which makes it more expensive than an Xbox-360 which also plays DVDs and works as a Media Extender (it plays games too and is £40 cheaper!). The only advantage that the DMA-2200 over the Xbox-360 is that it is quiet. Then once you add in the cost of the Media Center, it all gets a bit ridiculous.

Since the Media Center is on all the time (to "hoover up" those TV programmes), I have decided to use it as a Print Server too. It would be really neat to see the Media Center capability built into Windows Home Server (you know the one that provides backup, file serving and remote access. This would mean taking all of the "Services" that should be running all of the time and combining them to run on a single (highly efficient) hardware platform.

Hauppauge Nova TV PCI Card

I built an Intel Atom based box a few months ago. I installed Windows Vista Ultimate on it and used the Media Center functionality to record TV programmes off Freeview. You will find the original post here.

Up until now I have been using a Hauppauge Dual Tuner USB stick, but decided to upgrade to a PCI card. The USB stick solution works well, but it isn't a particularly elegant solution. I like using this computer to record programmes since it uses such lower power (around 30W) and can be left on all the time.

The main challenge is that the mini-ITX case that I am using has space for only one PCI card and this card is positioned parallel to the motherboard so requires a right angle PCI extender. I used a Hauppauge WinTV Nova-T 500 Dual digital DVB-T PCI TV card. This provides dual Freeview tuners. The card is half length card (which is just fits in the mini-ITX case). I was a little confused since the image on the outside of the box clearly shows a full-length PCI card (see the image above). Compare this image to the image of the actual card installed into the unit shown below.

Even with a half-length card it is a tight squeeze to get all of this into a single box. As always, when the space is tight, it can be fiddly to get all of the cables installed and ensure that none of the fans are fowled. The main issue that I can see is that the PCI card lies very close (maybe 3-5mm) to the fan on the motherboard - there is only one fan on this motherboard and that is on the graphics chip. However, there aren't any major components on the PCI card that further reduce the clearance. You can see this on the image to the above.

The hard drive is then installed on top of this card, so there really isn't a lot of space inside this case (it is a Noah 3988 case).

Over the next couple of days, I will install the relevant drivers and get this unit back up and running. Hopefully, the lack of clearance over the fan will not cause any major issues.

Hauppauge WinTV USB Stick with Dual tuners

I have been using one of the Hauppauge Win-TV Nova-T USB sticks for a while with my Vista Media Center without any issues. However, there have been a number of occasions when it would have been useful to have had access to two tuners.

With this in mind, I decided to upgrade to the Dual tuner version of the USB stick. For around £50-60, this looks like a bargain. The USB stick is only slightly bigger than the single tuner version and I thought that it was going to be a dawdle to set up. After all, the single tuner version was a breeze - just plug it in and let Vista find the drivers for it automatically and it worked first time.

Well, this only half worked with the dual tuner version. In fact, it exactly half worked because, while it seemed to install correctly, I could only access one tuner and not two.

Here's how I did it:

1. Remove the old drivers if you have previously installed a Hauppauge USB stick. You can do this using the HCWclear application that you will find on the CD that shipped with the device. If you want the latest version of the software, you will find it here: http://www.hauppauge.co.uk/site/support/support_digital.html


2. You need to install the Diversity tool that is on the product CD. I have an aversion for bloatware and generally do not install software that comes with a product unless I really have to or it is a key part of the product. Again, this tool in contained on the product CD and it is possible just to install this tool (it is the checkbox at the bottom of the list). Once you have installed it, launched the application from the Start button and select dual tuner. For some reason, this seems to be set to single tuner mode by default. Strange. Can't imagine why someone would pay the extra money for the dual tuner version of the product and then use it in single tuner mode. You would be better off buying the single tuner version and saving the extra money.
3. Reboot. Media center finds this "new" dual tuner device and insists on going back through the setup process, but once done it works a treat.
   

Anyway, having been through these three simple steps, Vista Media Center can see both of the tuners. If you had previously installed it in single tuner mode, it will need to go through the re-scanning process again, but it will work afterwards.