New SageTV HD Theater Purchase / Options

[bhoseit]

I'd like to purchase the SageTV HD Theater / Netflex and combine hulu.com and remove Timewarner cable ...if I understand it correctly Can someone help me better understand the requirements....

Currently I have 1 HD TV along with 3 other older model TV's in the house all connected to TimeWarner cable. I'd like to acquire the SageTV HD Theater (box) and hook it up to the HD TV and combine Netflex/Hulu.com station viewing. The unit states: Requires SageTV Media Center version 6.5 or later and a compatible HD TV Tuner

What I need to better understand is the unit requirements. Do I need a PC w/ the SageTV Media center (software)? Or does the SageTV HD Theater (box) include the media software.

Can someone please help me understand an end-configuration I want to keep it simple (hoping not to have a PC included in the configuration). I want regular TV viewing (without monthly cable expense) and access to hulu.com & netflex (with internet access)

Last final question ... I originally thought I could use the wireless adapters for my older TV's but reading the documentation I don't think this is a viable option since they are not HD TV's .... again w/ out a PC how could I configure these TV's ?

[PLUCKYHD]

Originally Posted by bhoseit

I'd like to purchase the SageTV HD Theater / Netflex and combine hulu.com and remove Timewarner cable ...if I understand it correctly Can someone help me better understand the requirements....

Currently I have 1 HD TV along with 3 other older model TV's in the house all connected to TimeWarner cable. I'd like to acquire the SageTV HD Theater (box) and hook it up to the HD TV and combine Netflex/Hulu.com station viewing. The unit states: Requires SageTV Media Center version 6.5 or later and a compatible HD TV Tuner

What I need to better understand is the unit requirements. Do I need a PC w/ the SageTV Media center (software)? Or does the SageTV HD Theater (box) include the media software.

Can someone please help me understand an end-configuration I want to keep it simple (hoping not to have a PC included in the configuration). I want regular TV viewing (without monthly cable expense) and access to hulu.com & netflex (with internet access)

You want the hd200 bundle with sagetv software and you will need it running on one of your computers. All that you want is possible but does take some reading up on how to get it all working/installed properly.

[bhoseit]

Thanks for the reply ... I somewhat knew I needed a PC but I was really hoping the "blackbox" had a copy of the media software "flashed" ...

So I understand ...
The media software allows you to watch 'real-time' TV .. vs. a site like hulu.com is a library of pre-recorded shows ... So then, what is the benefit of the SageTV HD Theater (box)? ... single point of entry?

Is there a site that details the startup requirements for someone like me? I've reviewed product information but its really not clear ...

[wrems]

I think Hulu is great, at the same time I personally don’t see it as a 100% replacement of what can be captured with tuners. It is a great way to augment stuff here and there. Now I’m sure others will say differently.

Sage excels at bringing content from all sources to your TV. You can store all your movies, pics and music on your server and have access to them on your TV without much hassle. I think the biggest thing about sage is consolidating everything on a server and then using HD200’s and or full client PC’s at each TV. It is an entire house solution. Your content is accessible ubiquitously.

If you’re adventurous you can tweak it to your liking. Automatic commercial cutting, placeshifting your content anywhere you have web access, and lots more customizations heck you can even create your own. There is a fabulous support community here to assist you on all fronts from spec’ing hardware to putting it all together. Take some time and peruse through the forums, you’ll find a lot of smart folks willing to give their advice. Then ask questions, you’ll start to pick it up pretty quick.

Maybe rather than cutting cable completely you just need to dial way back and fill in with hulu. A Sage setup that is used only for hulu content and netflix would probably be a bit more than you’d need. At that point you could just hook your computer up to your TV. At the very least you could drop time warner and use Sage to capture OTA recordings. That would get you some TV and then you could add in the missed stuff with Hulu etc. Go over to http://www.silicondust.com/ and plug in your zipcode and see what you can get with OTA and or ClearQam.

[FreshOne]

Originally Posted by bhoseit

Thanks for the reply ... I somewhat knew I needed a PC but I was really hoping the "blackbox" had a copy of the media software "flashed" ...

So I understand ...
The media software allows you to watch 'real-time' TV .. vs. a site like hulu.com is a library of pre-recorded shows ...

Is there a site that details the startup requirements for someone like me? I've reviewed product information but its really not clear ...

To be able to record and watch TV using HD200 (HD Home Theater), you will need:

1 PC server running SageTV Server software
1 (or more) Tuner cards (or USB tuner dongles) installed (or available) to the PC server
Playon software installed on server to interface to Netfix
HD200 for the HDTV (this will require only a network jack at the TV)
HD200 at each TV that wants to view recorded TV or online (Hulu/Netflix content)

So then, what is the benefit of the SageTV HD Theater (box)? ... single point of entry?

It allows playback of video / audio files from the Sage Server at a TV without having to have a PC at each TV location.

Sage is very powerful and flexible, but it is not a black box / turnkey solution. It will take some reading of the forums and some tweaking to get everything the way you want.

I transitioned from multiple TIVO units to a Sage System with 4 tuners (2 HD Homeruns), Comskip, and 2 HD200s and I could not be more pleased with the quality and robustness of the solution. For a Windows PC-based solution, it works VERY, VERY well.