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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Consumer Hardware & Components > EyeTV Hybrid

EyeTV Hybrid (Page 2)
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Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 3, 2006, 04:16 PM
 
Originally Posted by powerbooks
Which besides on-air HDTV (five or six stations maybe? in your city?), those a lot more may turn out to be lousy job or redundent anyway. Who is still using analog video input, on a Mac with Firwwire?
Just because you don't care about HDTV doesn't mean it's not a pricey feature. I guess anything would seem like a rip off if you don't care about the extra features. But then, you knew the price and the feature list before buying, so why did you buy it? Besides which, even with just analog video the Hybrid offers stereo sound and the TVMicro doesn't.


The TVmicro can be bought from online academic store, with no restriction, meaning anyone get the same price, not just student. Dig hard you will find it. I forget the exact address on top of me.
So you're comparing the edu price of one product to the retail price of the other? What's that supposed to show?
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 3, 2006, 05:43 PM
 
Originally Posted by Drulian
thanks. Also, can the eyeTV handle Progressive Scan/480p images? Again, this can be tested with a progressive scan-enabled game console or dvd player.
Originally Posted by the_glassman
Can you use the Micro with video game consoles?
I don't have a game console or a DVD player, so I was hoping someone else would help you guys. My g/f has a DVD player though, so I'll see if I can check this out for you.
     
powerbooks
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Oct 3, 2006, 10:36 PM
 
You don't have to be so emotional. Whether it's overpriced or not is only someone's personal opinion. I said in my first post, I bought both of them "for the sake of comparison" (read it again, please), and my personal feeling is that Hybrid is overpriced, not "ripo off" as you tried to read through. Also, I am not trying to influence or question how you feel about it, just my personal opinion.

Furthermore, go back to read my last message. I made it clear: even it's an educational store, there is no restriction, meaning anyone (like you and me not being in education) can buy it at that (obviously you also felt) low price.

Isn't that clear enough?


Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton
Just because you don't care about HDTV doesn't mean it's not a pricey feature. I guess anything would seem like a rip off if you don't care about the extra features. But then, you knew the price and the feature list before buying, so why did you buy it? Besides which, even with just analog video the Hybrid offers stereo sound and the TVMicro doesn't.




So you're comparing the edu price of one product to the retail price of the other? What's that supposed to show?
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 4, 2006, 01:12 PM
 
Originally Posted by powerbooks
I said in my first post, I bought both of them "for the sake of comparison"
That's silly. It's like saying you're comparing a DVD burner to a CD burner based solely on their abilities to burn CDs, and then saying the DVD burner is over-priced because you didn't measure its ability to burn DVDs, only CDs. By that logic, you didn't need to spend a dime, you just needed to look at the price tag, because any feature that one had and the other didn't is ignored.

It's similar to when people say QuickTime Pro is overpriced "just for fullscreen playback," or if you were to say "el gato is charging a 50% markup for stereo audio recording." Really you get much more than that for your money.

even it's an educational store, there is no restriction, meaning anyone (like you and me not being in education) can buy it at that (obviously you also felt) low price.
I don't know what educational store you're talking about so I can't compare the edu price of both products, but the MSRP is not double (and that is what most people will pay). The Apple EDU store for my local school only offers macs, not peripherals. I'm not going to go trying each zip code in succession until I find a school that has a discount on it, and most other people aren't either.
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 4, 2006, 01:14 PM
 
I tried my first HD recording last night, and it was on a station that doesn't come in well. Of the hour long show, it recorded a total of 14 minutes, because it kept dropping the signal. When I tested it before, it was on a stronger channel. I'll try moving the antenna about to see if I can fix it, but since this is the only channel I ever watch in prime time (ABC), if it doesn't start working I'm going to call this HDTV implementation a failure.

In other news, the freezing problem I had earlier hasn't returned, but I haven't tried it with the USB extension cable again, so my hypothesis that it is the cause still stands.
     
powerbooks
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Oct 4, 2006, 04:34 PM
 
Might go back to learn google search?


Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton

I don't know what educational store you're talking about so I can't compare the edu price of both products, but the MSRP is not double (and that is what most people will pay). The Apple EDU store for my local school only offers macs, not peripherals. I'm not going to go trying each zip code in succession until I find a school that has a discount on it, and most other people aren't either.
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 4, 2006, 06:58 PM
 
oh. the google education store. how stupid of me

     
Gamoe
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Oct 4, 2006, 07:09 PM
 
Seems like MacNN has a brief review of the Hybrid up.
     
powerbooks
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Oct 4, 2006, 08:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by Gabriel Morales
Seems like MacNN has a brief review of the Hybrid up.
The Hybrid review could be among the worest you may get from the MacNN. You can find 90% of the information from Elgato sites, except maybe about the remote. Why did the auther not give information about the testing mac (s)he used for the review? How is the image quality? What dooes he mean "need a good reception". Did he test ASTC HDTV, with what kind of antenna? Did he test the video input? If one reads the forum, he will find those are the questions the readers are looking for answers. We normal readers even offer more details than him no matter how different our opinios are. The Hybrid does not come with any manual, not even PDF on the CD: only a one-page quick guide. I may not know how many other features I may have missed. Very frustrated.
     
bommai
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Oct 6, 2006, 04:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by hyperb0le
There's been no indication that iTV will have any kind of tuner. All indications point to it only being able to stream content from a computer elsewhere on the network. So, iTV would really only be useful for watching EyeTV's recordings on a TV.
I am not in a big city. I am in the 29th largest metro area for broadcast - Kansas City, a mid-size city. I live in a south east suburb called Lee's Summit. I can get 8 HD channels OTA. I only care about them as I don't think the cable channels are worth it. A lot of people think that OTA HDTV is only available in a handful of places, but unlike a few years ago, most mid-size cities have all HD stations. Just get a good antenna, go to http://www.antennaweb.org and get the coordinates to point the antenna at and voila, you got a great signal. Just need an ATSC tuner. Currently, I can receive all of these channels with my existing antenna (outdoor). I already have a Sony HD-DVR DHG-HDD250. However, if eyeTV Hybrid works out for me and when iTV comes out and it lets me stream eyeTV recording to my HDTV in the basement, I might ebay the Sony DVR, since it is still fetching $500 online.

My sony DVR does not let me edit content and archive them. I can either keep it in the built-in hard drive and watch it later or delete it. Not flexible. But it sure is easy to use.

I believe the eyeTV hybrid is sitting in my mailbox today. I got it from Buy.com - Anything. Anytime. Anywhere. - Computers, Digital Cameras, Books, DVDs, & much more for $128 free shipping no tax using google checkout.

Keeping my fingers crossed since I have a PCI USB 2.0 card in my Power Mac G4 and not a built-in USB 2.0 port.
     
bommai
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Oct 6, 2006, 09:36 PM
 
Great news. I got my eyeTV Hybrid by mail today. I plugged it into my USB 2.0 port (off of a PCI card, not on the motherboard) and it worked right a way. It was so nice to see the plug-and-play really working yet again on the Mac. eyeTV 2.3.1 software installation and activation was a breeze. I am just using a $8 rabbit ears from Walmart and it picked up all the local HDTV stations. Great reception. I tested recording, pausing, etc. Works great. I am running a PowerMac G4 dual 1.25GHz machine.

Also, I have a Dell 20" widescreen monitor that has a USB 2.0 hub built-in. I moved the eyeTV hybrid from the back of my computer (where it gets hot) to the monitor and it works there too.

I am so happy!
     
druber
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Oct 6, 2006, 10:10 PM
 
glassman, just want to make sure you know that none of these devices accepts HD inputs, so you'd only be getting a standard-definition picture from your 360. I'd guess that's a non-starter for you. For HD, it only accepts an antenna's connection, and I don't know of any device that will let you feed an HD signal into a computer (for fear of The Pirates).

Depending on how much antenna you're willing to raise, and the surrounding topography, HD isn't necessarily out of reach. Granted, I live in town, but I can receive the major networks (9 channels total) and seven PBS stations, 2 in HD. That supplies all the TV I could hope to keep up with, though I'm not painting myself as a heavy TV watcher. Look up your location at antennaweb.org and see what you can receive. In my experience, digital standard definition puts analog to shame. I've gone digital and can fathom no reason to go back, especially as the cut-off for digital broadcasts approaches.

If you want to record TV shows from your cable company, their DVR set-top box is your best bet. If you want HD you can record to your Mac, edit, save and burn however you please, here's your solution.
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alternapop
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Oct 20, 2006, 03:48 PM
 
my understanding is that the eyeTV Hybrid only does over the air HD and will not display/record HD that comes from an HD cable box. is this correct?

so if i wanted to record ESPN HD, what are my options? the only thing i can think of is to use the firewire out port on the back of the HD cable box and plug that directly into my mac and then use some 3rd party software to record the signal.

any other ideas? if not, it might just be better to use an HD DVR cable box for the bulk of the work and then if i want to save a program permanently then use the firewire port. but being able to easily watch shows on my mac is also a requirement for me.
     
druber
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Oct 20, 2006, 04:11 PM
 
That's correct, no ClearQAM recording.

Not many options, because the cable companies/networks don't want you to have them. If you can record their shows in HD, how will they convince you to buy the DVDs when they come out (and, eventually, the high def DVDs when they follow). Yes you can plug the firewire cable into your Mac, as long as you're there to babysit it. There's a world of IR blasters and people trying to make this work.

"being able to easily watch shows on my mac is also a requirement for me." That's a nice requirement, but that doesn't mean a solution is out there. Ask your cable company (or research and find out) what HD channels they're sending in-the-clear. Hunt down an EyeTV500 on ebay or elsewhere. Yes they're more expensive than the Hybrid, but you can't have it all ways.

FWIW, when recording OTA HDTV, it will record whatever audio is in the stream. If the station's sending a stereo signal, it will record stereo. If it's sending 5.1 surround sound, that's what it will record.
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zwiebel_
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Oct 20, 2006, 05:19 PM
 
For the sake of comparison, I've got the EyeTV500 (FW), hooked into a QS G4/933, and a 23 inch Cinema display. My antenna is a Terk antenna (don't know the model, about 4 feet wide) spiked on my roof, about 4 feet up.
I can watch a total of 16 channels (HD and SD), and eagerly awaiting the iTV thingie. Used to have cable for a 30 day trial; cancelled it, Comcast refused to remove their cable from my premises, after asking them for it. Took maters in my own hands, cut the cable from the pole and house and threw it away.

Oh ya, I am running EyeTV v2.3.x, and except for occasional signal drop-outs it works perfectly. Recording is also awesome, especially with TitanTV's scheduling feature. Love it, and looking forward getting one of them Hybrids next.
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Oct 20, 2006, 05:42 PM
 
Originally Posted by druber View Post
Yes you can plug the firewire cable into your Mac, as long as you're there to babysit it.
You don't necessarily have to babysit it. Depending on the cable box you get, AVCBrowser can change the cannels over the FW connection (the box I had was a moto 6200 from comcast). Since it's open source, I went ahead and added a few command-line arguments to its abilities, so I could set up Applescripts to record shows (changing channels), launched by iCal. Regular recordings, all automated, and you can watch the streams as they download in VLC. I used that with little trouble (sometimes comcast's tv signal would drop out) for 2 years, before I switched to the Hybrid last month (I wanted fewer blinking boxes on my desk). I'll send you my version of the app if you're interested in that at all.
     
druber
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Oct 24, 2006, 03:36 PM
 
Sounds cool. Have you posted it online anywhere? I couldn't use it myself--no cable TV here at all. Drop the word at the Mac HTPC forum at AVS Forum, probably several people there would be real glad to see this. Obviously using the command line isn't impossible. It's certainly deeper than I'd prefer to dig myself, but I'm sure I'd do it for a working solution.
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webenchantressde
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Oct 30, 2006, 07:24 PM
 
I want to buy an EyeTV Hybrid but I have stacks of VHS tapes I really need to get imported as well. Has anyone been sucessful importing/recording the VHS video with the EyeTV Hybrid? The Elgato website says it is not supported, but I didn't know if anyone was able to do it and if it was fairly easy to do. Please let me know! Thanks!
     
webenchantressde
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Oct 30, 2006, 07:27 PM
 
I have stacks of VHS tapes to import, has anyone done this and was it fairly easy to do? The Elgato website says it is not supported, but I was hoping it was still doable. Please let me know, wanting to buy one soon!
     
vmarks
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Oct 30, 2006, 08:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton View Post
Miglia is now owned by EyeTV I think,
Factually untrue. Miglia is a separate company that decided to partner with EyeTV for the software and compete on the hardware.
so I would be wary of buying one of them since the hardware is likely to be discontinued;
Also factually untrue. The hardware is not going to be discontinued.
But when I was comparing the features between Miglia and EyeTV I decided Miglia's were overpriced (I don't blame EyeTV for doing so).
Ah, but the Miglia devices do different things, so you aren't comparing Apples to Apples

ElGato's Hybrid is an analog/ATSC (over the air) only device with no hardware compression.
Miglia's TVMini HD is an ATSC/QAM (digital cable) digital only device with no analog.

(note, digital needs no compression as it's already an MPEG-2 stream coming in over the air or over the wire.)

In terms of analog devices, the Miglia TVMax has no ElGato equivalent: It has s-video and composite RCA inputs along with coax, and an MPEG2/MPEG4/DivX encoder chip built-in.

TVMicro is an affordable tuner and is still probably the easiest choice for a buyer unconcerned with HD, just because of its price.
( Last edited by vmarks; Oct 30, 2006 at 08:49 PM. )
     
vmarks
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Oct 30, 2006, 08:38 PM
 
Originally Posted by webenchantressde View Post
I want to buy an EyeTV Hybrid but I have stacks of VHS tapes I really need to get imported as well. Has anyone been sucessful importing/recording the VHS video with the EyeTV Hybrid? The Elgato website says it is not supported, but I didn't know if anyone was able to do it and if it was fairly easy to do. Please let me know! Thanks!
Try the VHS assistant under the help menu.
     
richwig83
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Oct 31, 2006, 10:55 AM
 
Ive got a hybrid plugged into a usb hub which is connected to my mac. And now my mac wont sleep!! As soon as it goes to sleep, it wakes straight back up.. Does anyone else find this?

Rich
     
nagromme
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Oct 31, 2006, 01:18 PM
 
Re VHS:

El Gato site says YES you can can digitize from old tapes.

Re HD from a cable box:

ElGato says no. Only analog from cable box. HD is over-the-air only.

Re HD from X-Box/consoles:

Ditto. Analog only.

(The above are specifically about EyeTV Hybrid. They have a good searchable FAQ. Some other HD-in solution, using Firewire or something, may still be possible.)
nagromme
     
residentEvil
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Nov 9, 2006, 08:40 AM
 
My goal is to import several VHS and 8mm camcorder tapes. Sounds like I shouldn't have any problem doing that with EyeTV hybrid.

Are there other audio/video connection options? Cause wouldn't iMovie or iDVD capture the stream too? Or do those only capture digital video?
     
Uncle Skeleton
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Nov 9, 2006, 11:55 AM
 
iMovie only captures DV, and iDVD doesn't capture anything.
     
Big-C
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Nov 12, 2006, 06:03 PM
 
I'm interested in the eyeTV hybrid, but had this question: Can you use more than one for dual-tuner like capability?

I have a directv dual tuner box that's starting to die, and would prefer to replace it with a mac mini/eyetv (or similar) product just for the extra functionality (ipod, dvd burning).

Does anyone happen to know if this would work? If not, do you happen to know of anything that would?

Thanks!
     
nagromme
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Nov 12, 2006, 06:11 PM
 
Originally Posted by residentEvil View Post
My goal is to import several VHS and 8mm camcorder tapes. Sounds like I shouldn't have any problem doing that with EyeTV hybrid.

Are there other audio/video connection options? Cause wouldn't iMovie or iDVD capture the stream too? Or do those only capture digital video?
You wouldn't need to capture in iMovie or iDVD I don't think: EyeTV's own recording software would do the capturing. Then you'd just import the clips into iLife/iDVD. Seems like that should work fine, to me: iLife these days accepts a wide range of video formats.
nagromme
     
iG FleX
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Aug 30, 2007, 04:45 PM
 
I am using the eye tv hybrid to record from my xbox 360. Everything is fine except one thing.....I am running my xbox through component on my TV and using the Standard Def cables to plug straight into my hybrid. Problem is the colour is coming out different, some colours are picked up fine but others are different, yellow is green etc.. Ive played around with all the display options and I cant even get it close let alone perfect, anyone come across this problem before ? If so can you let me know the solution PLEASE.....Thanks in advance.
     
nagromme
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Aug 30, 2007, 04:52 PM
 
What do you mean by standard def cables?

Is it a composite cable, coming out of the TV which you can see has good color coming in?
nagromme
     
iG FleX
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Aug 30, 2007, 04:55 PM
 
No, on the xbox 360 you get the component cables and compositive cables. Ive plugged the component into my TV and the compositive cables directly into my hybrid. This way im not having to use a splitter cable because they are two seperate cables anyway. With me ?
     
nagromme
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Aug 30, 2007, 05:10 PM
 
Do other devices, like the TV or a VCR, show good color if connected to the Hybrid via composite?
nagromme
     
iG FleX
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Aug 30, 2007, 05:17 PM
 
All my other devices are run by SCART so I wouldn't know ?

You think it might have summin to do with me using component and compositive cables at once ?
     
Rev2Liv
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Sep 3, 2007, 01:54 AM
 
Just to let y'all know, Elgato just uses a rebadged Hauppage HVR-950. the EyeTV 2 software will control non-Elgato branded hardware.
     
Gamoe
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Sep 3, 2007, 11:01 PM
 
Since this thread came up again-- I finally did get the Hybrid. It works well with my Mac mini. I'm pretty satisfied. I only wish this thing could accept component for better quality.

Unfortunately, it cannot directly access the digital HDMI satellite feed or change channels. I knew this, of course, but it still bugs me. It isn't Elgato's fault, though. The Hybrid is a great solution until that changes and better solutions become available.
     
ChamaeleonSky
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Sep 18, 2007, 04:58 PM
 
hey everyone,
I'm thinking of buying an EyeTV to go with my new Macbook and cinema display, instead of buying a new TV. My only concern is gaming. How do consoles look when going through the system? With the cinema display, im a bit concerned that connected a system (such as a 360 or PS3) with composite cables wont really do justice to the console's capabilities, and will look even worse than it would with composite on an SD TV. Is there any break away cable to set it up with component cables? The EyeTV seems to be capable of HD (720p, 1080i) but I don't see how I could take advantage of that with consoles without a different breakaway. any suggestions?
     
nagromme
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Sep 19, 2007, 12:02 AM
 
It won't look WORSE than other composite SD solutions. But it won't look better either, and a modern console is capable of high-definition output. EyeTV Hybrid would not be ideal for gaming, unless composite SD is acceptable to you.
nagromme
     
ChamaeleonSky
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Sep 19, 2007, 10:14 AM
 
thanks for your help. can you think of any other add-on that would serve my purpose?
     
 
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