Thanks I will look for the option. Mainly it is for me to tell when my wife has already watched a show so I can delete it after I watch it. She finishes it and I can't tell so I leave it until I confirm. The Hopper would let you know but this is a small gripe.
Moving from Hopper to Tivo
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I didn't get that you had to highlight Partially Watched at first. Good to know!
Well I haven't had a Hopper in about a year now but I still thought I'd chime in to this thread. I cut off my Dish bill last December and have been using a PC as a 4 tuner OTA DVR since then. The computer is in an office upstairs and I have been getting live TV the old fashioned way and using Plex and my Xbox One to watch my recordings on the main TV. I have been mostly fine with this setup and it even added some nice features like automatically removing commercials. It was a pretty good solution, especially because all it cost me was the price of 2 HDHomerun Duals.
Apparently my family didn't think it was user friendly enough though because they got me a Roamio basic for Christmas. They took advantage of the current $0 down offer. This gets you a Roamio basic for free but you are committed to paying $20 per month for service for 2 years. They paid the two years of service up front for me and it should be arriving at my house on Tuesday. After the two years are up I can look into lifetime or other service deals or upgrade to a new unit depending on current offers. Going this way saves about $30 over buying the Roamio for $150 from Amazon and then paying the normal price of $15 per month for 2 years.
I plan to setup a Tivo Mini in my bedroom eventually now that they no longer have subscription fees on them too. I'm also going to try it out as an all in one streaming device. I'm currently using an Xbox One for Amazon Prime and an Apple TV for iTunes season passes and rentals, Netflix, Hulu Plus, MLB.tv, HBO Go, and WatchESPN. It looks like the Tivo will cover everything but HBO Go and WatchESPN. I'll be curious how it compares to my current devices.
Apparently my family didn't think it was user friendly enough though because they got me a Roamio basic for Christmas. They took advantage of the current $0 down offer. This gets you a Roamio basic for free but you are committed to paying $20 per month for service for 2 years. They paid the two years of service up front for me and it should be arriving at my house on Tuesday. After the two years are up I can look into lifetime or other service deals or upgrade to a new unit depending on current offers. Going this way saves about $30 over buying the Roamio for $150 from Amazon and then paying the normal price of $15 per month for 2 years.
I plan to setup a Tivo Mini in my bedroom eventually now that they no longer have subscription fees on them too. I'm also going to try it out as an all in one streaming device. I'm currently using an Xbox One for Amazon Prime and an Apple TV for iTunes season passes and rentals, Netflix, Hulu Plus, MLB.tv, HBO Go, and WatchESPN. It looks like the Tivo will cover everything but HBO Go and WatchESPN. I'll be curious how it compares to my current devices.
I also have another reason I'm interested in trying out the Tivo.
With my current setup I have an antenna coming from the roof to a splitter. One end of the splitter goes to my bedroom TV and the other end goes to another splitter that feeds two HDHomeruns for a total of 4 networked tuners and one TV connected to the antenna.
The PC connected to the HDHomeruns and the standard TV setup both report 46 OTA channels when I do a scan. The bedroom TV consistently pulls in all channels and is rock solid when I watch them. When I watch TV using the HDHomeruns I occasionally can't pull some of the channels in but it wasn't a big deal because I had duplicates from another market that worked. I did have pretty common breakup on ABC and Fox recordings even though neither of those channels break up when I watch live on the bedroom TV.
The bottom line is that the Samsung TV in my bedroom gets a significantly better OTA signal than the HDHomerun PC. I'm not sure if this is due to the Homeruns having a weaker tuner or if it's because the signal is split twice before it reaches them while the bedroom TV only has one split between it and the antenna. When I install the Roamio I will be removing the second splitter I was using to provide service to two HDHomeruns. That will mean that the bedroom TV and the Tivo each only have one split between them and the antenna.
Does this mean that the signal for my Tivo recordings should improve because I'm removing a splitter? I hope that is the case but in the end the Tivo will be providing the same number of tuners from one line as a splitter and two HDHomeruns did. Is Tivo basically just taking my splitter and putting it in the box to provide all 4 tuners with a signal? If that's the case I assume my bedroom TV will still have a better signal than my DVR.
With my current setup I have an antenna coming from the roof to a splitter. One end of the splitter goes to my bedroom TV and the other end goes to another splitter that feeds two HDHomeruns for a total of 4 networked tuners and one TV connected to the antenna.
The PC connected to the HDHomeruns and the standard TV setup both report 46 OTA channels when I do a scan. The bedroom TV consistently pulls in all channels and is rock solid when I watch them. When I watch TV using the HDHomeruns I occasionally can't pull some of the channels in but it wasn't a big deal because I had duplicates from another market that worked. I did have pretty common breakup on ABC and Fox recordings even though neither of those channels break up when I watch live on the bedroom TV.
The bottom line is that the Samsung TV in my bedroom gets a significantly better OTA signal than the HDHomerun PC. I'm not sure if this is due to the Homeruns having a weaker tuner or if it's because the signal is split twice before it reaches them while the bedroom TV only has one split between it and the antenna. When I install the Roamio I will be removing the second splitter I was using to provide service to two HDHomeruns. That will mean that the bedroom TV and the Tivo each only have one split between them and the antenna.
Does this mean that the signal for my Tivo recordings should improve because I'm removing a splitter? I hope that is the case but in the end the Tivo will be providing the same number of tuners from one line as a splitter and two HDHomeruns did. Is Tivo basically just taking my splitter and putting it in the box to provide all 4 tuners with a signal? If that's the case I assume my bedroom TV will still have a better signal than my DVR.
If the HDHomeruns have about the same signal levels, you probably need a preamp. The same would go for any OTA antenna setup. With OTA, using the correct size antenna is even more important as a too-large antenna is more likely to bring in interference from multipath and adjacent markets.
Remember chaining two-ways is probably worse than one four-way as you likely add some insertion loss with the extra pair of connectors.
Remember chaining two-ways is probably worse than one four-way as you likely add some insertion loss with the extra pair of connectors.
I'm not sure about the signal levels. I just know that the homeruns and the separate TV both show 46 channels when I scan. The homeruns work well for most of my use but the standalone TV is clearly better. I will try a preamp if I don't see any improvement with the TiVo.
The reason the wiring is setup the way it is came from me not wanting to run my own cables. I used the existing wiring from my Hopper/Joey setup. There was already coax from the roof to both places I wanted signal so it made sense to do it that way. I just disconnected the cable from the dish and attached it to the antenna and replaced the Dish node with a splitter.
While the Roamio has excellent tuners, you should be aware that the signal is split 4 ways before getting to the tuners (there are 4 tuners), so I recommend getting the strongest signal possible to the Roamio. Removing as many splits as possible between the antenna and the Roamio will produce the best results.
Well, I will be removing the splitter I was using to feed 2 HDHomeruns. That gave me 4 tuners from the line that will be going to the Tivo so I'm guessing the signal should be at least as good as I was getting on the Homeruns. I'm hoping it will even be a little better because I'm replacing a $3 splitter with whatever Tivo uses internally to provide signal to 4 tuners.
I don't want to overstate my signal problems though. I'm pulling in 46 channels which is more than I thought I would ever be able to get in my area. All I wanted was at least 1 of every major network. I'm getting at least 2 markets for all of them with some having 3. I'm also getting My Network and ION which are channels I wasn't even considering and lots of subchannels. I just occasionally don't receive some of those markets on my HDHomeruns depending on the weather even though they always come in on my bedroom TV that has one less splitter in the way. I also get occasionally channel breakup on ABC and Fox recordings from the Homeruns even though they are rock solid on the bedroom TV. I have at least 1 watchable channel from every major network even if I would like my ABC and Fox signals to be a little stronger.
I'm going to try this setup for a while to see if I am happy before buying anymore hardware. In the future it's likely that I will have a Tivo Mini in the bedroom. When this happens I would be able to remove the only remaining splitter between the antenna and Tivo.
This will be my first Tivo so I apologize for all the questions. I just never researched much about them because I was using satellite. I do have a couple more things to ask about though.
First, does the Mini work just like a Joey now? I have read stuff suggesting that a Mini permanently takes up a tuner whether you are watching live TV on it or not. I would hope that it works like a Joey and only takes a tuner when it needs one so I'm free to record 4 programs at once or record 3 and watch one on my main TV. It probably won't be a big deal with OTA only but I do have some nights where I'm recording 3 or 4 programs at once especially when all the new shows start up in the Fall.
I talked to someone in my local Charter office today and for $33 more than just paying for internet I can have their select package (looks similar to AT 200 on Dish). That $33 includes taxes and 1 Cable Card fee.
I'm thinking about subscribing from March to October instead of paying $130 for MLB.tv this year and $5 per month to unblock-us to get around Tigers blackouts. If I do this I would just subscribe for March Madness and the MLB season and then drop back to OTA. I'm not positive if the extra $66 total for the entire season is worth it to me or not.
My question is what happens to cable recordings if you go back to OTA? If I do this will I lose access to all my recordings, including stuff I could have received OTA, when I turn my Cable Card back in? Depending on promotions I could see myself subscribing just for baseball season every year but if I lose cable recordings every time I do it I'm not sure it would be worth it. From the picture on Amazon it doesn't look like I can have OTA and cable hooked up at the same time so even recordings from local channels would be lost if they require an active subscription.
First, does the Mini work just like a Joey now? I have read stuff suggesting that a Mini permanently takes up a tuner whether you are watching live TV on it or not. I would hope that it works like a Joey and only takes a tuner when it needs one so I'm free to record 4 programs at once or record 3 and watch one on my main TV. It probably won't be a big deal with OTA only but I do have some nights where I'm recording 3 or 4 programs at once especially when all the new shows start up in the Fall.
I talked to someone in my local Charter office today and for $33 more than just paying for internet I can have their select package (looks similar to AT 200 on Dish). That $33 includes taxes and 1 Cable Card fee.
I'm thinking about subscribing from March to October instead of paying $130 for MLB.tv this year and $5 per month to unblock-us to get around Tigers blackouts. If I do this I would just subscribe for March Madness and the MLB season and then drop back to OTA. I'm not positive if the extra $66 total for the entire season is worth it to me or not.
My question is what happens to cable recordings if you go back to OTA? If I do this will I lose access to all my recordings, including stuff I could have received OTA, when I turn my Cable Card back in? Depending on promotions I could see myself subscribing just for baseball season every year but if I lose cable recordings every time I do it I'm not sure it would be worth it. From the picture on Amazon it doesn't look like I can have OTA and cable hooked up at the same time so even recordings from local channels would be lost if they require an active subscription.
From: https://www.tivo.com/shop/mini#tab3
"TiVo Roamio DVRs allow for dynamic tuner allocation, so the tuner is only used when the Mini needs it and is released back to the DVR for use when the TiVo Mini isn’t in use." Unlike the Hopper, the Roamio basic does not have MoCA built-in, so you either need a MoCA adapter or good Ethernet networking in your house.
You do not lose access to anything already recorded when switching back and forth between cable and OTA. You should be aware that the Roamio basic only supports one at a time OTA or Cable, not both, like the Premier does.
I'm all set with gigabit ethernet so that won't be a problem.
Great! That is exactly what I wanted to hear. If I do the temporary cable for baseball season I will just record everything from cable. I won't need OTA and cable at the same time. I just didn't want to record everything from cable and then lose it all when I cancel after the season. I was thinking cable recordings might have some type of encryption that requires an active cable card to view them.
Not view, just record. One thing you may not have considered is you will need edit and possibly re-create season passes when switching back and forth. Your local OTA stations are not the same as your cable stations from your Tivo's point of view. Just thought it was worth mentioning.
You can change providers too and still watch all your recordings. I have moved TiVos between my two houses, one with CableOne and one with Time Warner Cable, and throw in some OTA, I can still watch every show recorded. The only catches are that some channels are copy protected and you cannot move those recordings from one TiVo to another (for archiving, or replacement). You can watch them or stream them to the mini's or other TiVos, you just cannot move the recording.
Broadcast TV channels should not be marked as protected on the cable system. If they are the cable company has made a mistake.
Broadcast TV channels should not be marked as protected on the cable system. If they are the cable company has made a mistake.
It's too bad Fios isn't more widespread. Most of us only have one cable option but it would be nice to be able to flip flop every year for new customer promos without losing anything.
I haven't been around the forum for a while, but I will try and throw in my 2 cents about switching to Tivo. ( From DirecTV) and how I set up the networking through the house to service the Tivo Minis.
I have an 8200 Aerial on the roof feeding an AD CDA8 amplified splitter in the basement. The Roamio is connected to a WD MyNet 8 port switch in entertainment center for network access. In the basement I have another MyNet 8 port Switch mounted next to the CDA8 splitter. The Tivo Mini have Moca built in, so I grabbed a box full of Actiontec Moca adapters and as each line comes out if the CDA8 splitter it goes into an Actiontec Moca along with a Cat6 cable from the Network switch. From there the RG6 cables run through the house.
I have never had any problems with the Minis, or any of the other networked devices communication ( well except for that time I was working in basement and unplugged the power strip powering the network switch and MoCo adapters). Yes I know I probably could have gotten away with only putting 1 Actiontec in the basement, and then splitting afterwards,but I got a good price buying Actiontecs in bulk . It just seemed easier to me to run 1 dedicated line from the basement to each room and not have to worry about splitter loss. Then at the other end in rooms with more than just the Mini needing network access I have another Actiontec adapter feeding Trendnet 5port switches.
I have an 8200 Aerial on the roof feeding an AD CDA8 amplified splitter in the basement. The Roamio is connected to a WD MyNet 8 port switch in entertainment center for network access. In the basement I have another MyNet 8 port Switch mounted next to the CDA8 splitter. The Tivo Mini have Moca built in, so I grabbed a box full of Actiontec Moca adapters and as each line comes out if the CDA8 splitter it goes into an Actiontec Moca along with a Cat6 cable from the Network switch. From there the RG6 cables run through the house.
I have never had any problems with the Minis, or any of the other networked devices communication ( well except for that time I was working in basement and unplugged the power strip powering the network switch and MoCo adapters). Yes I know I probably could have gotten away with only putting 1 Actiontec in the basement, and then splitting afterwards,but I got a good price buying Actiontecs in bulk . It just seemed easier to me to run 1 dedicated line from the basement to each room and not have to worry about splitter loss. Then at the other end in rooms with more than just the Mini needing network access I have another Actiontec adapter feeding Trendnet 5port switches.
I got the Roamio up and running tonight. So far I'm really impressed with a few things and still getting the hang of a few others. First, I will say that I got what I wanted from the OTA performance. I am getting every channel I was getting directly on the Samsung bedroom TV plus a couple extras. Not only that but the ABC and Fox channels that were giving my HDHomeruns trouble appear to be rock solid on the Roamio.
I also setup Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu Plus. If I dont go with cable for baseball season I will be using this for MLB.tv as well. This might be my new favorite video streamer. The reason I like it is because it's the first device I've tried that will stream Netflix and Amazon in 1080p24. This helps remove The occasional judder on panning shots I was seeing on my Apple TV and Roku. It also gets the DD Plus 5.1 streams from Netflix while the Apple TV got standard DD 5.1. I'm not sure if I will see any real world improvements from that or not.
I did have a little trouble figuring out the menues but I'm sure I will get used to them soon. The one thing I didn't like had to do with season passes. I get 3 different markets for some networks. WEYI and WBSF are NBC and CW affiliates in my area. The WEYI tower broadcasts WBSF on 25.2 and the WBSF tower broadcasts WEYI on 46.2. From both towers you get 720p and stereo on both channels even though both CW and NBC are supposed to be 1080i. The missing 5.1 on both channels is a deal breaker and the picture quality looks weaker than other markets due to each channel broadcasting a HD subchannel and an additional SD subchannel.
Here's my problem. The Roamio insists on choosing this NBC and CW with weak picture quality and stereo sound when I make season passes. I have 2 other CWs and 1 more NBC with much better 1080i picture and proper 5.1 sound. Even when I select a show on the guide from the CW station I want the to do list still shows the wrong channel. I have confirmed that I'm getting good signal on the stations I want to use. It looks like I can change the preferred channel from the season pass manager but when I try to do it on these specific timers it won't let me change them from all channels. I've noticed that I am able to pick between all 3 of my CBS options on timers for that network. It doesn't make sense to me.
I also setup Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu Plus. If I dont go with cable for baseball season I will be using this for MLB.tv as well. This might be my new favorite video streamer. The reason I like it is because it's the first device I've tried that will stream Netflix and Amazon in 1080p24. This helps remove The occasional judder on panning shots I was seeing on my Apple TV and Roku. It also gets the DD Plus 5.1 streams from Netflix while the Apple TV got standard DD 5.1. I'm not sure if I will see any real world improvements from that or not.
I did have a little trouble figuring out the menues but I'm sure I will get used to them soon. The one thing I didn't like had to do with season passes. I get 3 different markets for some networks. WEYI and WBSF are NBC and CW affiliates in my area. The WEYI tower broadcasts WBSF on 25.2 and the WBSF tower broadcasts WEYI on 46.2. From both towers you get 720p and stereo on both channels even though both CW and NBC are supposed to be 1080i. The missing 5.1 on both channels is a deal breaker and the picture quality looks weaker than other markets due to each channel broadcasting a HD subchannel and an additional SD subchannel.
Here's my problem. The Roamio insists on choosing this NBC and CW with weak picture quality and stereo sound when I make season passes. I have 2 other CWs and 1 more NBC with much better 1080i picture and proper 5.1 sound. Even when I select a show on the guide from the CW station I want the to do list still shows the wrong channel. I have confirmed that I'm getting good signal on the stations I want to use. It looks like I can change the preferred channel from the season pass manager but when I try to do it on these specific timers it won't let me change them from all channels. I've noticed that I am able to pick between all 3 of my CBS options on timers for that network. It doesn't make sense to me.
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Select to record a show on the channel you prefer. Once it is set up for recording, click on the show and choose get season pass. It should then choose the correct channel.
Another thing to try is to remove the 720p channels from your preferred channel list. I believe the TIVO will choose from the preferred list first, but I am not positive on that one.
Another thing to try is to remove the 720p channels from your preferred channel list. I believe the TIVO will choose from the preferred list first, but I am not positive on that one.
For season passes if you have more than one station with the program you can select which station to record from. In Minneapolis they have 9-1 & 9-9. Both are Fox (one comes from RF29, one from RF9) and I know when I have set season passes I can select which one (I use 9-1 as the RF station is UHF and my antenna set up there is UHF only at that location)
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