Hauppauge HD-PVR - can quality be improved?

[stevech]

The viewed HD 1080i quality of recordings via the HD-PVR, connected by component video cables (short/good) to a Cable TV Set Top Box needs better quality. The cable box's CableCARD is necessary to get the content we watch.

The recordings are "soft", lacking in crispness and high frequencies. Is this simply as good as it gets, since digitizing the component video takes the image down a generation (resampled by the HD-PVR)?

The same content viewed from the set top box to the TV is dramatically better quality. The CableCo DVR (Samsung) thus has the same quality - no generation-down issue with its playback.

BTW, the HD-PVR with Sage7, Windows XP, drivers off the CD-ROM, is working quite reliably. Tuner is USB-UIRT with sun/ambient light shielding (tape/cardboard), and the gear is in the garage where other IR remotes are not present. The HD-PVR's IR window is taped-over.

[sleonard]

The recorded video from my two HD-PVR's and my one Colossus are indistinguishable from the cable box output. Just sayin'

S

[Spectrum]

What bitrate do you have the HDPVR set to record too? At 13.5Mbps I can't tell a difference between the HDPVR recordings and direct from the box.

[mistergq]

I tried lower file size settings and while the wife did not complain, I thought the quality was significant downgrade.

[stevech]

Originally Posted by Spectrum

What bitrate do you have the HDPVR set to record too? At 13.5Mbps I can't tell a difference between the HDPVR recordings and direct from the box.

Hmm. Sage detailed setup says "Best" which is 5.9GB/hour. A 3-1/2 hour recording of Tour de France is 19.82GB which is about right. But, the replay via the HD300, with HDMI to the TV, is much softer looking than the cable company's Samsung DVR, also connected via HDMI. The difference is enough that the WAF is higher on the cable DVR than the HD300 and I too can see a remarkable difference.

The HD-PVR connects to the cable box via 2 ft. long component video cables of good quality.

[Beefcake550]

well, you could always get the Colossuss....it records I think in the area of 18-20Mbps...

[stevech]

Isn't the fundamental issue here that recording from the "analog hole" (component out from set top box) necessarily takes the video down one generation?
D/A on set top box output
A/D on HD PVR digitizing

that resampling costs quality, says Claude Shannon?

[Beefcake550]

Well, also depending on your STB, you may be able to use the HDMI output (if it's unencrypted), thus eliminating this perceived problem.

Technically, yes, you are correct. You lose "something" through each D/A and A/D conversion. I guess I am one of the lucky ones who can't see the difference.

There is also a thread I found from someone else which is able to up the bitrate of the HDPVR. The premise is that 13.5Mbps = 13.5 * 1024 * 1024 instead of *1000*1000.

[Beefcake550]

Here's the Line to add to your sage.properties file:
mmc/python2_encoding/HDPVRMax=videobitrate\=14155776|vbr\=0|outputstreamtype\=1

[Beefcake550]

you should now see a "HDPVRMax" setting in the quality setting and it goes at 6.9GB/hour. Hopefully that will make a difference to your eyes.

[jerryb33]

Originally Posted by Beefcake550

Here's the Line to add to your sage.properties file:
mmc/python2_encoding/HDPVRMax=videobitrate\=14155776|vbr\=0|outputstreamtype\=1

Does this apply to both external and internal HDPVR?

Does it work with version 6.6 as well as 7.19?

What is "python2_encoding"? Nothing like this in my sage.properties file.

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by jerryb33

Does this apply to both external and internal HDPVR?

Does it work with version 6.6 as well as 7.19?

What is "python2_encoding"? Nothing like this in my sage.properties file.

There is only an external HD-PVR. There is an internal Hauppague Colossus though.

These encoding lines exist in both versions 6 & 7 of Sage.

Make sure you are looking at the correct sage.properties.

Gerry

[jerryb33]

Thanks,

I am using 6.6 now and installed that line in my sage.properties file. Went into setup and increased to 6.9gb. Also in TME set to 13.5mhz.

[stevech]

Originally Posted by Beefcake550

you should now see a "HDPVRMax" setting in the quality setting and it goes at 6.9GB/hour. Hopefully that will make a difference to your eyes.

Thanks. I'll give that a try.