I created new videos of my Media Center setup now that I have the two CableCards installed (and working) and the second media center extender setup.
My Media Center Tour Part 01
My Media Center Tour Part 02
Linksys DMA2100
I took advantage of the deal at Amazon on the Linksys DMA2100 this past Friday. The unit arrived on Tuesday so I thought I would post a few impressions.
1) Setup was quick and painless. I hooked up the network cable, HDMI cable and then plugged in the power. A few button presses and menu screens later I was connected to my Media Center PC and watching live TV. Overall setup time was less than 5 minutes.
2) I already new that the menu animations did not perform well from online reviews. I tested it out to see it in person and it was sluggish. I turned off the animations and the unit has been VERY quick and responsive. Almost more responsive than my Xbox 360. Not sure what that's about.
3) The unit is SILENT and barely gets warm. After using the 360, I really appreciate the silence of this unit. I actually just leave it on and connected and only turn on/off my TV which is very nice. If another dedicated V2 extender comes out that is as strong as the Xbox 360 from an extender point of view but as quiet as the Linksys I would probably buy that to replace the 360 as my main extender in the living room. I would like to leave that on as well so I could just turn on the TV and start using media center immediately like I can in my bedroom now.
4) The size of the unit is perfect from my bedroom. It barely takes up space underneath the TV.
5) The included remote is not as bad as reported. It's definitely serviceable. If this was a home theater setup I might replace it. In my case the remote was able to learn my TV's power toggle, volume up/down and mute buttons with ease so it serves all my needs.
That's it for now. Look for an updated video of my media center setup now that I have full CableCard working and my second extender installed.
1) Setup was quick and painless. I hooked up the network cable, HDMI cable and then plugged in the power. A few button presses and menu screens later I was connected to my Media Center PC and watching live TV. Overall setup time was less than 5 minutes.
2) I already new that the menu animations did not perform well from online reviews. I tested it out to see it in person and it was sluggish. I turned off the animations and the unit has been VERY quick and responsive. Almost more responsive than my Xbox 360. Not sure what that's about.
3) The unit is SILENT and barely gets warm. After using the 360, I really appreciate the silence of this unit. I actually just leave it on and connected and only turn on/off my TV which is very nice. If another dedicated V2 extender comes out that is as strong as the Xbox 360 from an extender point of view but as quiet as the Linksys I would probably buy that to replace the 360 as my main extender in the living room. I would like to leave that on as well so I could just turn on the TV and start using media center immediately like I can in my bedroom now.
4) The size of the unit is perfect from my bedroom. It barely takes up space underneath the TV.
5) The included remote is not as bad as reported. It's definitely serviceable. If this was a home theater setup I might replace it. In my case the remote was able to learn my TV's power toggle, volume up/down and mute buttons with ease so it serves all my needs.
That's it for now. Look for an updated video of my media center setup now that I have full CableCard working and my second extender installed.
Yougle plugin update
The Yougle Media Center plugin has been update to version 0.4.0. The plugin allows you to stream internet video via Media Center from Youtube, MSN video and other Internet video sources. It seems to be working on the extenders too!!
Check out this great write up on Ian Dixon's blog: Yougle 0.4.0 - Internet Video on Media Center
Check out this great write up on Ian Dixon's blog: Yougle 0.4.0 - Internet Video on Media Center
Linksys DMA2100 & DMA2200 on sale!!
Amazon.com has a great deal on the new Linksys Media Center Extenders. Thanks to Chris Lanier for the info:
Amazon | Linksys DMA2100 - $150 after MSFTDEAL
Amazon | Linksys DMA2200 - $200 after MSFTDEAL
Amazon | Linksys DMA2100 - $150 after MSFTDEAL
Amazon | Linksys DMA2200 - $200 after MSFTDEAL
Both Tuners Working
Both tuners are now working! Time Warner came out again for the third time on Friday and this time we got everything working. The technician brought out 4 more cable cards and 2 of them were good and 2 were bad. It took about 20 minutes to get the card installed and all the proper channels tuned in. Not bad at all.
I was also able to add the splitter back in and get both tuners working off of one cable line.
I had the first test of the system this past weekend as I had a house full of family visiting. We watch live TV, recorded TV and movies off of the hard drive. It worked great!! I had one small hiccup, but it was very minor. Nothing that was noted by my guests.
So far so good. I still am trying to WebGuide and remote scheduling working before I can close phase 1.
I was also able to add the splitter back in and get both tuners working off of one cable line.
I had the first test of the system this past weekend as I had a house full of family visiting. We watch live TV, recorded TV and movies off of the hard drive. It worked great!! I had one small hiccup, but it was very minor. Nothing that was noted by my guests.
So far so good. I still am trying to WebGuide and remote scheduling working before I can close phase 1.
CableCard Install Tips
After my first attempt at getting cablecard installed in my ATI Digital Cable Tuners I have now have some lessons learned that I would like to share. If you are interested read on after the break.
First let me share some resources that I used and had available:
*) Chris Lanier’s CableCard FAQ
*) Microsoft CableCard FAQ
*) DCT – What could go wrong
*) S1 Digital Guide
*) CableCard Woes Thread @ TGB
Here are some lessons learned to supplement the above information:
1) Setup the DCT’s ahead of time with regular cable signal.
2) Setup 1 tuner at a time during the cablecard install. If you have a splitter installed for #1 above, REMOVE THE SPLITTER!!! Setup the first one with a direct line. Once that one is up and working then introduce the splitter and the second tuner. I went around in circles and my splitter was the issue. If the splitter is the issue then you may have to buy a new one or get the cable tech to increase your signal strength. Worst case you will need a whole new line run and not be able to split the line.
3) When you install the CableCard, if you have a good signal from the cable line you will get a carrier lock and the cable card will then be able to give MediaCenter it's host id during the setup. You can also get the host id by going to the diagnostic website for the tuner (Start>Network> double click on the tuner). When you open up the website you will want change the url to point to advindex.html and not index.html. This will give you the advance screens with all of the info you need. Bookmark it!
That's all I can think of right now. I will revise as I continue my CableCard adventure.
First let me share some resources that I used and had available:
*) Chris Lanier’s CableCard FAQ
*) Microsoft CableCard FAQ
*) DCT – What could go wrong
*) S1 Digital Guide
*) CableCard Woes Thread @ TGB
Here are some lessons learned to supplement the above information:
1) Setup the DCT’s ahead of time with regular cable signal.
2) Setup 1 tuner at a time during the cablecard install. If you have a splitter installed for #1 above, REMOVE THE SPLITTER!!! Setup the first one with a direct line. Once that one is up and working then introduce the splitter and the second tuner. I went around in circles and my splitter was the issue. If the splitter is the issue then you may have to buy a new one or get the cable tech to increase your signal strength. Worst case you will need a whole new line run and not be able to split the line.
3) When you install the CableCard, if you have a good signal from the cable line you will get a carrier lock and the cable card will then be able to give MediaCenter it's host id during the setup. You can also get the host id by going to the diagnostic website for the tuner (Start>Network> double click on the tuner). When you open up the website you will want change the url to point to advindex.html and not index.html. This will give you the advance screens with all of the info you need. Bookmark it!
That's all I can think of right now. I will revise as I continue my CableCard adventure.
One Tuner Working...I think?!?
Time Warner Cable came out yesterday to do my install. I had all documentation ready to go and it still did not go as smooth as I had hoped it would. By the time the tech left I had one cable card working which unfortunately I cannot tell if it's still working because we had a cable outage in my area last night due to weather. I can't even think of the last time we had an outage and of course we had to have one last night.
I was going to put my install notes in this post, but I think I will do a separate post that would be easier to share and summarize. I will try to take screenshots tonight and add them to the post.
I was going to put my install notes in this post, but I think I will do a separate post that would be easier to share and summarize. I will try to take screenshots tonight and add them to the post.
