What are the cheapest usb atsc tuners?

Lassar

SatelliteGuys Guru
Original poster
Jul 16, 2007
149
1
Illinois
Been thinking about getting over the air tv on my PC.

What are the cheapest usb atsc turners to get over the air on my PC?
 
I would suggest the HD Homerun by Silicondust. You can find them used on Ebay.

There are "cheaper" ones, of course, Hauppauge among them, but you'll see a lot of negative experiences with those who have them attached to their Dish receivers... I am using both. I have an HDHR and a Hauppauge unit.
 
I would suggest the HD Homerun by Silicondust.
These are neither cheap nor USB connected. They are the top of the line but at that price point you're treading in Roamio OTA territory.

I second Magic Static's KWorld suggestion. They are truly inexpensive, USB connected and if you're just a little bit careful, you can find one that is Linux compatible without spending any more.
 
These are neither cheap nor USB connected. They are the top of the line but at that price point you're treading in Roamio OTA territory.

I second Magic Static's KWorld suggestion. They are truly inexpensive, USB connected and if you're just a little bit careful, you can find one that is Linux compatible without spending any more.

The Hauppage is USB connected. You get what you pay for.
 
The Hauppage is USB connected.
That depends on the Hauppage tuner. Some of their models are PCI-e.
You get what you pay for.
If only that were the case. When the starting price is nearly $100, it should do a whole lot more than tune TV stations. Having to involve a computer to set the thing up an record programs isn't what most expect when they buy such a solution. This is especially problematic now that WMC has been put out to pasture.
 
That depends on the Hauppage tuner. Some of their models are PCI-e.If only that were the case. When the starting price is nearly $100, it should do a whole lot more than tune TV stations. Having to involve a computer to set the thing up an record programs isn't what most expect when they buy such a solution. This is especially problematic now that WMC has been put out to pasture.

Aware or the crippling of WMC, Silicondust has now built in a functioning guide and DVR capability into their native software. I haven't tried the DVR function, but the basic (free) guide seems to use PSIP data. A two-week extended guide is available for a fee.

We use one on our network at the office and even the janitor knows how to use it to watch TV on his PC. Seriously.

I'm a believer in the HDHR as an OTA solution and have used them for years. I'm happy to assist anyone who has questions or wants help/advice on them :)
 
Been thinking about getting over the air tv on my PC.

What are the cheapest usb atsc turners to get over the air on my PC?

I'll send an ARTEC ATSC USB tuner for free that I haven't used in several years. I also use Silicon Dust LAN tuners. PM if you are interested. No documentation or drivers. They have been sold for years, so should be easy to find.

artec_ATSC_USB.JPG
 
I'll send an ARTEC ATSC USB tuner for free that I haven't used in several years. I also use Silicon Dust LAN tuners. PM if you are interested. No documentation or drivers. They have been sold for years, so should be easy to find.

Be careful; I dug my Artec out to do some testing with it a few months ago and could not find the drivers online. I've long since misplaced the disc, so it's essentially useless to me now.

- Trip
 
Be careful; I dug my Artec out to do some testing with it a few months ago and could not find the drivers online. I've long since misplaced the disc, so it's essentially useless to me now.

- Trip

Trip, have you tried it on Windows 10? I've found that 10 is able to identify many drivers that previous OS couldn't find
 
driverscape.com also appears to have Artec TV tuner drivers (although they don't speak to which of the four tuner models) and they don't come as part of a "Driver Update" executable like several of the other sites.

You have to be careful about the executable distributions as many of them may contain adware. I prefer to get the files bare (.inf, .cat, .sys, etc.) and tell the windows driver finder that I "have disk" and point to them.
 
You should also consider how strong the signals are with the antenna you are going to attach to the tuner. You may need a good sensitive tuner if you have any weak stations, and also the quality of the driver. Now I'm not saying a cheap stick is bad, but just some factors to consider as you don't want it to crash your pc if the recording fails, or for the channel to breakup if the single is low.
So two factors to consider
1) Sensitivity of the tuner
2) Quality of the driver (crashing, will it work coming out of suspend or sleep mode?, will it work with the application you are going to use?)
 
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I have read that the KWorld usb atsc tuners get really hot when working.

That one guy had to use a fan to keep it recording.

Any one have experience with this?
 
recording or viewing should have no difference in operating temps. I have never noticed mine being hot. Warm but not abnormally so. I have never used the software that came with it though.
 
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