Build a Personal Video Recorder

worth doing.

I decided I just want a TiVo that can do HD and just work. I like tinkering, but I don’t want to be responsible for missing a bunch of shows because my hacky PVR didn’t work again.

Really, I kid you not. I am not even going to try to explain all the joys of having a PVR, if you have one you already know and if you don’t you will not get it. Even my GF the technophobe loves it.

I bought a fairly cheap pentium-4 motherboard with onboard LAN and AC97 sound, chucked in 2 Hauppage PVR-350’s, a decent video card and a very large HD. Followed the HOWTO from this page and bam! Instant PVR. note some fiddling was necessary; not for total linux n00bs or people unwilling to invest some time browsing forums. All in all it took me the better part of a day to get everything going just the way I wanted it. But since then it’s been rock solid.

Check out what I just copied and pasted from my PVR’s web interface: 202 programs recorded, using 90 GB (224 hrs 32 mins) out of 200 Gb. All these programs are programs I want to see. Stripped of commercials. Converted to DivX format.

Ohhhh yeah!

I want to build a PVR with multiple tuners so that I can record multiple shows (as many as 4) simultaneously.

Who has been using GNU/Linux on my desktop since 2001. I am GUI dependent. I can point and click, but not much else. Still, I would like to get a Linux computer before the broadcast flag hits in the US in July, 2005. Thanks in advance for the help.

Christian Einfeldt
einfel@yahoo.com

It’s easy to build a Linux-based PVR. Harder to do something at a reasonable cost w/ the desired featureset:

• component video
• digital coax and spdif, 6 channel analog preferred as well (Envy24 based card?)
• gigE ethernet
• graphic VFD screen (the Noritake GU126×32F-K612A4 is a sweet screen that fits in a 5.25” bezel)
• quiet, good looking case (preferrably smaller, consumer device type form factor, but may have to compromise if nothing is available w/ other features)
• remote control

Ideally, fit in my home theater rack and not be noticed. Not requiring much dremeling would be nice.

I recently finished my PVR. I used MythTV and a hauppauge PVR 350. It’s great. A very rewarding project. If you’re experienced in linux, it could be done in a weekend, otherwise it will probably turn into a month long debacle, possibly longer.

ivtv wiki
http://ivtv.writeme.ch/tiki-index.php

Myth docs
http://www.mythtv.org/modules.php?name=MythInstall

An alternative to Myth that looks much easier (no compile since its in python)
http://freevo.sourceforge.net/

I would like to build a TIVO clone. I am experienced in assembling PCs but I don’t know much about video hardware, encoding, etc.

• Choose technology (hardware, OS, software, etc.)
• Optimise bill-of-materials (reduce cost)
• buy components
• Build box
• Install software
• Configure service