TV Tuner Cards

I'm moving next month, and the computer in my signature is going into the bedroom. I don't want to have to buy another TV, so I was hoping I could use this computer as a mini HTPC.

I don't have any HD receivers, so my TV comes in standard definition. I have AT&T U-Verse, which comes with a 4-room DVR system, so I don't need a card that has a lot of bells and whistles such as capturing/HD.

All I do need is a simple(cheap) card that has a coax input. I'm a total newbie when it comes to this stuff, so bear with me. The main concern is the fact that I run a 1920x1200 resolution on my computer monitor, so I need a card that will pump out a good quality picture. Going fullscreen in standard definition on this monitor isn't going to look the greatest.

HD over Antenna does not require a receiver. You can get HD on your monitor with just a regular antenna.

TheResidentEvil said:

HD over Antenna does not require a receiver. You can get HD on your monitor with just a regular antenna.

Click to expand...

That isn't what he's asking.

Op, I'm not very familar with uverse. Do you need a set top box for each tv? I'm pretty sure you do but confirmation would be nice. If so, all you need is a decent enough tuner. Check out Newegg for a powercolor 550 pro tuner. Only $30 but it's a very decent, entry level tuner

Wouldn't you just be able to take HDMI/DVI from the STB to your PC Monitor and use a DVI switch to select between PC/TV? You're not looking to record TV, just to watch the output from your cable service on the same display that you're using for your PC? I don't see the need for a tuner card, the DVR does the tuning/decoding/recording.

Dustin

dustNbone said:

Wouldn't you just be able to take HDMI/DVI from the STB to your PC Monitor and use a DVI switch to select between PC/TV? You're not looking to record TV, just to watch the output from your cable service on the same display that you're using for your PC? I don't see the need for a tuner card, the DVR does the tuning/decoding/recording.

Dustin

Click to expand...

And how do you know his STB supports dvi (it won't) or hdmi (which require him to have speakers on his moniter)?

Yes, each TV has to have a receiver with U-Verse. I don't have an HD receiver because those cost more per month. Right now I'm just using a CRT TV connected to the box through a coax cable. The receiver also has component video, but no HDMI.

That's great that I can get a decent tuner for only $30! The only problem is that my monitor runs at a 1920x1200 resolution. It's a 24" widescreen LCD, so the tuner has to put out a good quality picture otherwise my monitor will make it look awful in fullscreen.

Dustin, I have no idea what you said in your first sentence, but yes your last 2 sentences were correct. I know that I don't HAVE to get a tuner card, because I saw a few items on newegg that allow you to switch between your cable/pc. It's basically like a tuner card, but you don't have to put it inside your PC. It sort of works between your PC and monitor. It looks like the external box has input for the coax and then output for speakers/monitor. The only thing is that those external tuners are a lot more money, and I'm not sure if they would give the same quality a PCI or PCIe tuner would give me.

Sandbox Magician said:

That's great that I can get a decent tuner for only $30! The only problem is that my monitor runs at a 1920x1200 resolution. It's a 24" widescreen LCD, so the tuner has to put out a good quality picture otherwise my monitor will make it look awful in fullscreen.

Click to expand...

I've been reading, and the max resolution a set-top box is going to output using a coaxial cable is 480i, which is around the same of a YouTube video. If you consider it has to get that analog signal, and convert it back to digital a final time before Windows can upscale it, the end result is not going to look perfect. What I'm trying to say, is don't spend too much money on it, because the card will have so little to work with that difference is not going to be that big. $30-$50 sounds fair, anything higher and you might be disappointed with the results.

You can check the KWORLD VS- USB2800 ($38.99). It doesn't have coaxial, but uses Composite or S-Video instead. I recommend you use S-Video, just buy a cable from RadioShack, they are very cheap. This particular model is very popular around YouTube, and I find it performs pretty good for the price. To check the quality, here are some videos: Sample1, Sample2, Sample3. Not bad uh?

Now, if you prefer to have the card inside your computer, and possibly use the component connection, then try the KWORLD PVRTV-PE360-A ($34.99). Unfortunately I was not able to find videos of this model, but I did find some of the PCI version. Here are some videos: Sample1, Sample2. As you can see, all low-end models from KWORLD perform very similar, so you can expect the PCI-e model to perform the same. This one has tons of different connectors, but I recommend Component. If you can't get the cable cheap locally, get it from MonoPrice, they have excellent prices.

However, if money isn't your main concern, then consider the Hauppauge HVR-2250 ($112.99). That is probably the most recommended one around this forums, and has good reviews in Newegg too. That's going to get you the same 480i, but it has a good converter. You might even plug an antenna and get the local HD channels around your area, if you happen to like them. This should get you better quality compared to your set-top box for the over-the-air channels.

But if you don't care about local channels, and money is less of an issue, then you can try the Hauppauge 1212 HD-PVR ($204.99). This one has component connectors too, like the KWORLD PCI-e, so you might be able to get 480p which I think is the limit for SD subscribers. It also has a good converter, and records in H.264, which is pretty much the best video codec at the moment.

There you have it. Hope the suggestions are useful. Good luck.

CrimandEvil said:

That isn't what he's asking.

Click to expand...

Yeah well he doesnt really know what hes asking because he first says he doesnt need HD but then says he doesnt want to go full screen on SD and wants to use his computer. I understand that he wants to put sd coax into his comp but what he means by he doesnt want to go full screen doesnt fit which is why I said he can have HD on his comp with an antenna.

What I would do is this, get a dual tuner card that supports HD and SD (hvr-1600). Plug in the SD from the STB and watch SD. Also plug in an antenna to the HD input and watch HD when you can on your monitor and SD when you want cable. I imagine when you start watching HD on your comp, that will be your new favorite tv in the house

TheResidentEvil said:

Yeah well he doesnt really know what hes asking because he first says he doesnt need HD but then says he doesnt want to go full screen on SD and wants to use his computer. I understand that he wants to put sd coax into his comp but what he means by he doesnt want to go full screen doesnt fit which is why I said he can have HD on his comp with an antenna.

What I would do is this, get a dual tuner card that supports HD and SD (hvr-1600). Plug in the SD from the STB and watch SD. Also plug in an antenna to the HD input and watch HD when you can on your monitor and SD when you want cable. I imagine when you start watching HD on your comp, that will be your new favorite tv in the house

Click to expand...

Well, this is exactly what I suggested as one of the options in my long post above. I agree, that is the best approach. Is like making a few of his channels HD for free, in a way.
But we have to understand he might not have a lot of money, that's why he's going the cheap route, and just upscale SD. If I was him, I would do the same, HD plans are way too expensive to pay monthly.

Well, after looking at those videos I'm not really excited about getting TV on my monitor anymore haha. I know YouTube encodes the video and it probably looks a lot better than on those samples, but if I put them in fullscreen it was completely unwatchable.

If I'm going to have to pump out that much money for the Hauppauge tuners, I might as well just buy a used CRT TV off of craigslist or something for the same price and get a lot better quality.

I thought that there would be a way to make a 24" LCD monitor have close to the quality a 36" CRT TV has. I would be filled with horror if I saw a 36" LCD monitor try to do this

When you say it would look unwatchable, I think you are exaggerating. Watching those video in HQ in YouTube looks more than adequate, and I have a 37" 1080p LCD monitor. When you consider that the Hauppauge has better quality, might be using Component instead of Coaxial, eliminate the compressing added by YouTube, eliminate the extra compressing of just saving the video to your HDD in the first place, and might be using H.264 codec, then you realize is not so bad after all. Did you also consider that TV channels are going to show real people, and not complex and detailed objects or text. Remember, the show producers already know this, that's why they don't have much detail, so when it's compressed it doesn't look as bad. Have you even watched an HD channel before? They are not the same, they use different text fonts and symbols from the regular SD channels, because they know it's going to look different.

See, we think differently. While the videos drove you away from the idea, it actually made me want to get a tuner myself. LOL. Of course, If I get a tuner, Ill probably get the Hauppauge 2250. The free HD channels over the air just look too beautiful, blow DVDs off the water.

Well something must be seriously wrong on my end then. Watching on HQ in fullscreen it is so blurry and pixelated you can barely read the text or see what's going on in the games. If I don't put it to fullscreen, yes it looks fine, but I don't plan on sitting in my computer chair 10in away from my monitor every time I want to watch TV. And yes, I have seen quite a bit of HD and BluRay. I just don't see why I would spend the money to pay for a HD antenna, plus a very expensive tuner card. If I did that I would get maybe 5-10 great HD channels and then a few hundred channels that are pretty much unwatchable. I would rather spend half the amount of money on a used CRT and get every channel in good quality.

Now I know why there aren't that many people who use tuner cards. Its just sad that there is no way to make a LCD monitor look as good as a CRT with standard definition. My dad has SD U-Verse on his LCD television which looks great, so I was thinking I could do the same with my LCD monitor.

Of course text is going to be hard to read, it's a game, they're meat to be played at HD resolutions. TV shows are different, they don't have much intricate detail, specially SD channels where text is larger in purpose. You were suppose to look at the quality, not the detail, if that makes any sense.

As far as upscaling, PCs are bad, specially when the video is flash. Try to download the MP4 version, and playing it full-screen using VLC (not QuickTime, it sucks). You should see slightly better results. Now, I know this is off topic, but if you want to see real good upscaling, then the PS3 is pretty much one of the best. I try to always watch my movies in the PS3 when I can, because it does a much better job than my PC ever did with any player.

But I do agree, nothing beats driving a signal at its native resolution. If pure quality is what you seek, no convenience, no features, nothing at all, then I have no choice but to support the idea of buying a CRT TV. I hope you find one for cheap, because I haven't seen one in ages. lol.

SRSLY ?? Sandbox..your PC resolution is 1900x1200 and your TV resolution would be 720x480. How can you say the TV would look better than the PC? The PC makes the crappy analog look bad because it clarifies the crappiness of SD. Couple that with a LCD clarity and SD looks somewhat bad even on HDTVs. Watch a 4:3 DVD on your computer then make it full screen. Thats about what a tuner card signal will look like especially if you are sitting back any amount at all.

You say how tuner cards suck and never used one. You say how you need an HD antenna but you just need any old regular antenna (10 year old rabbit ears work).

Tuner Cards > You sir.

TheResidentEvil said:

Watch a 4:3 DVD on your computer then make it full screen. Thats about what a tuner card signal will look like especially if you are sitting back any amount at all.

Click to expand...

Not true. DVDs on my HTPC look fantastic. Not HD fantastic but they look damn good.

I just upgraded to a digital cable package and got an STB with svideo out on it. Connected that to my tuner and noticed a huge improvement in SDTV channels over using regular coax input. I'm also using a 650 tuner which does excellent analog in.

You got an improvement in picture quality because your box was limiting the coax output. Svideo is going to give a higher quality over coax just like component would give an even higher quality than svideo.

DVDs are better quality and look better no doubt but it should be pretty similar from a distance. Its at least closer to that than what he posted, full sized youtube videos..

Well, there is a difference between analog SD and digital SD. If the video was well encoded in the computer, and downsized in digital, of course it going to look good. Even if you upscale it again in a LCD monitor. But he wanted to use an analog cable from his STB, connect it to a tuner, and that's going to compress it even more before it eventually reaches the screen. At that point, he's better of with an CRT TV. Of course, he has to trade detail, for quality, if that makes any sense. And that's considering he gets a decent CRT, with 480p resolution, and not one of the crappy ones with round screens and huge pixels.

If you read I suggested the PCI-e model from KWORLD as well, that one has Component, which will look better than the coaxial cable he wanted to use. Or even the more expensive Hauppauge model with H.264 encoding. Or perhaps another brand, that has both a tuner, and component connection alike. Will the trade off be superior with Component+LCD, versus Coaxial+CRT? I'm not sure, but If it was me, I'd take the Component+LCD approach. The added convenience and features are well worth it, and a no brainier for me. But hey, if he wants to preserve the signal as much as possible, and get the opposite, who am I to stop him.

ahh thats true. I didnt take into account that he has a box down converting the signal. My fault. It just annoyed me that he is complaining about tuner cards having never even used one.

I personally have never used one, but a friend of mine has one on his CRT monitor. To be honest that looked awful, but he's just using an old ATI All-In-One card.

I don't care what any of you video pros say, but if you're talking about playing standard def through a receiver->LCD monitor on a computer, there is probably no way it's going to look better than on a CRT unless you have a lot of money. I knew that getting into it, but I thought it would be close in quality.

Now... If there is a way to make it look 2/3 of the quality of what an old 4:3 dvd looks like fullscreen on this monitor, I'm still all for it. The youtube video scared me quite a bit. So which will it be closer to, the DVD or the YT video?

Nope. No way it'll ever look "close." SDTV is broadcasted at 640x720 (not really but it's close to that, a little lower) and it's interlaced. PC moniters, all of them, are at a much higher resolution and they use a progressive signal making for a richer picture. They show exactly how crappy SDTV is.

Sandbox Magician said:

I personally have never used one, but a friend of mine has one on his CRT monitor. To be honest that looked awful, but he's just using an old ATI All-In-One card.

I don't care what any of you video pros say, but if you're talking about playing standard def through a receiver->LCD monitor on a computer, there is probably no way it's going to look better than on a CRT unless you have a lot of money. I knew that getting into it, but I thought it would be close in quality.

Now... If there is a way to make it look 2/3 of the quality of what an old 4:3 dvd looks like fullscreen on this monitor, I'm still all for it. The youtube video scared me quite a bit. So which will it be closer to, the DVD or the YT video?

Click to expand...

I have AT&T U-Verse, and everything changed from analog to digital, so do I have pretty much what you have? I'm not sure if it's considered a "digital" cable package on u-verse, but I'm pretty sure its the same thing. You all keep saying analog, but I didn't think TV signals came in analog anymore. Am I missing something here?

I just double checked on my receiver and it has a few more outputs than I thought. It has S-video, the 3 component outputs, RCA/optical audio, and it also has HDMI. I don't have any HD channels, but U-verse said it would still work. It doesn't have composite though.

*edit* I contacted u-verse and they said that they are outputting a hybrid of ntsc/digital tv signal depending on the hardware you have. If you're using a coax you're going to get analog. The HDMI won't give you HD quality, but it will give you a lot better quality than any of the other choices. Now the only problem is finding a tuner card that supports HDMI. If not, I think Svideo, composite, and component all use digital and not analog.

This is what support told me. Do they know what they are talking about? If I can bypass some of the compressing/decompressing then maybe the quality might improve.

The final verdict from U-Verse was that I should get a tuner card that supports component video and optical audio. This way there should be minimal analog-> digital conversion if any. The problem now is to try to find a card that supports that, just like the problem with finding a tuner that allows HDMI

You cant find one for cheap. There is only one hdmi card but its meant for camcorders and there is only one component and its a USB set top box that cost over $200.

Ok, I think you have it confused.
First of all, when you watch SD channels on a LCD directly from your STB, it's always going to look ugly. Why? Because TVs don't Upscable, they only Resize. They are completely different, with very different results.

Now, for what you are receiving with U-Verse, you have always received digital. Is the same lie DirecTv is using in their commercials. Or how else you think they offer HD channels with Dolby Digital, and a thousand more SD ones, just with the click of a button. The analog to digital transition only applies to the people out there with no cable plans at all, and use their rabbit ear antennas to watch local channels. The moment the signal gets to your STB, they limit it depending on the plan you payed for monthly. Then, you have a choice of how to connect it to your TV. Almost all of them are going to be analog, but that's because of the limitation of the cable itself. The only digital one will be HDMI, but will be SD digital. But now you fall into the hole again, that your TV will not upscale the signal, it will only resize it. Of course, that's assuming the STB itself doesn't upscale using HDMI. But you are right, HDMI preserves the signal the most, when connected to a LCD with HDMI as well.

As for tuner cards, there is none with either HDMI or Optical. I have never seen one, and if there is I'm sure they're not affordable. The best you're going to get is Component video, with Stereo RCA audio. However, you can get an external PVR for computers, like the Hauppauge 1212 HD-PVR. Yes, I know, I have mentioned this a million times before in this thread. That will get you Component video and Optical audio. Plus, that has a better converter than the KWORLD. Sample1, Sample2, Sample3. Watch it in SD to have an idea, and then in HD so you realize that YouTube compressing kills the video. After that, take into account the horrible upscaling method that Adobe flash uses, plus the extra compressing of saving it in your computer, and you begin to realize is not that bad. But hey, I have told you this only a million times before, lol.

I dunno man, make up your mind. Buy a good CRT TV and preserve the signal, or get a tuner/pvr for your computer and keep your LCD. Just pick something already, we have already explained how everything works. I'm sorry we can't show you an accurate comparison image, but that's how this things are, you just have to go by whatever you think is best based on the information you have. If you want, you can buy the 1212 HD-PVR from Newegg. If after trying it you believe it's the worst thing you have seen in your life, then return it for a refund. I think they charge %15 restocking free, which is around $30. After getting your money back, just buy the CRT TV then, and be done with it. That's the best idea in my opinion, I don't know what else to say.

WOW, those last 3 samples actually looked great in HD fullscreen. It's just too bad that it's $200 and you have to be getting an HD signal for it to look that good.

I've been looking for something sort of in between the KWORLD and Hauppauge, but no luck.

Are there any other brands that are a little bit better than those KWORLD models that allow Component or S-Video? I've been spending hours looking for a card that doesn't have capturing but good conversion.

If money is the real problem here, I can totally understand that. I know $200 is a lot of money. But if not, I think you are failing to understand the point I'm trying to get across.

You don't realize that SD channels from a digital STB are probably 480p for most channels. But feel free to ask U-Verse to be sure. In the contrary, YouTube's SD 16:9 videos are 360p. On top of that, you consider the compression they add, and how horrible flash players are, and you begin to realize my point. You don't need HD content for it to look good.

Do you have VLC? If not, install it, and lets prove my point.
Download the 720p version of the Football video I showed you on my last post. Then, resize it yourself using VLC. Set the Zoom to "1:2 Half", which is equivalent to 360p. Play both videos side by side, the one from VLC and the one from YouTube, they're going to be exactly the same size. However, you're going to truly feel how compression killed the signal. They're both 360p, but yet they are day and night in quality. And that's without counting the compression added to the 720p YouTube version, and the compression of simply saving it to your computer.

Don't know how to do it? Just check this screenshot I did just for you:



Do you see it now? They're exactly the same resolution, yet one blows the other one out the water. Bad compression kills the signal a lot faster than pure resolution does, that's my point.

And just wondering, what monitor do you have exactly? Does it have more than 1 digital connection for video? What soundcard you use?
Have you considered just plugging an HDMI cable from the STB, which you claim it does, to your monitor directly for video. If you only have DVI, you can get a HDMI-to-DVI cable. And if you only have 1 digital connector, why not get an HDMI switch. Then use Optical from the STB to your computer's Optical In for audio. If not, just use analog audio and connect it to the Line-in. Of course, that's considering your STB has a feature to split the audio from the video while using HDMI. Devices like the PS3 have this feature, so you might want to check into that.

That will give you nice quality too, and for a very affordable price (cables, and possible switch). You also keep to use your same monitor, and speakers.
Or perhaps the very reason you are here is because you already tried that, and is NOT a possibility?

Ugh. VLC? You're telling him to install that POS??

Yes, I've been using VLC and CoreAVC for H264 files for a long time. I just got done watching an XviD at 624x352 and that looks completely fine to me in full widescreen. If anything can look equivalent to that, I'm a very happy camper.

This is my monitor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001295

This is my soundcard (onboard)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131299

My monitor has 1 DVI and 1 D-Sub(VGA) input. I'm not sure what the onboard sound has, but it looks like it just has 6 standard analog for surround sound speakers and SPDIF digital out. There is no optical in.

I use the DVI to connect to my GTX260 video card. Is there something I could get to connect the S-video/component/composite from my STB to the VGA on my monitor? And would this stretch the 4:3 picture out quite a bit onto my 16:10 screen? If I could get that to work I could just use the RCA audio out from the STB and plug that into my headphone jack on the top of my case. I could also do HDMI->VGA if that was possible, but I don't have optical in on my sound card. My STB might get confused if I try to use HDMI + RCA audio? Man this is confusing.

By the way, thanks a LOT for all of your help Odin. Some good karma should come your way some day.


*EDIT*
Here is the link for my STB. Sorry guys, I should have provided these links a long time ago.
http://www.motorola.com/business/US...toid=fd60f38886e46110VgnVCM1000008406b00aRCRD

Ok dear friend, I got you good news. I spent a few hours doing my own research about the questions I keep asking you, and also took the time to make a diagram in PhotoShop to illustrate it all. Now, tell me that's not love. lol

Ok, here are a few quotes from the PDF Manual as well as the Specification Sheet of your STB, which is the Motorola VIP1200.

Digital video scaling and hardware support for Picture-in-Picture

Click to expand...

High definition: 720p, 1080i

Click to expand...

If your HDTV has a DVI input, you can use an HDMI-to-DVI converter cable to connect to the VIP1200 HDMI connector. Use a cable with an HDMI connector on one end and a DVI connector on the other end. We do not recommend using an HDMI-to-DVI or DVI-to-HDMI adapter. Because DVI does not carry audio, a separate audio connection is required for a DVI TV.

Click to expand...

Ok, what that means is that your STB upscales the signal. I did some research, and it indeed supports 1080i upscaling while using HDMI. If you wish to change the aspect ratio of a 4:3 video to 16:9, you have to do it within the STB itself, not the monitor. I predict the monitor will leave black bars in top and bottom, which is perfect compared to stretching, since 1920x1080 is smaller than 1920x1200. However, I'm not 100% sure, you have to test it yourself. Try forcing a custom resolution under Windows to 1080i or 1080p, and see how the monitor behaves.

As for audio, you read it yourself. Although they don't recommend using a HDMI-to-DVI cable, because you have to use a separate for audio, the option is there. Since your computer had no digital input, you are forced to use analog. For higher quality you would plug the 3.5mm jack to the speakers directly, but hooking it to a computer first is fine too. It gets converted to digital and back to analog, but you will appreciate the convenience of not unplugging cables all the time.

Ok, here's is the illustration. This method, while longer than your DVI-to-VGA method, will in effect preserve the signal longer since you will remain digital the entire path. I know you don't have Optical-In, but I put it anyways in case you ever upgrade your soundcard:


HDMI Switch: 2in-1out Manual HDMI Switch - Push Button Type ($15.50)
HDMI/DVI Cable: HDMI-toDVI cable - 28AWG 6ft ($3.56)x2
HDMI Cable: HDMI 1.3a cable - 28AWG - 6ft ($3.56)
3.5mm/2RCA Cable: 3.5mm-to-2RCA cable - 22AWG 6ft ($2.55)
-----------------------------------------------------
TOTAL: $28.73 + Shipping

Ok friend, that is all. I spent quite a few hours putting all this together, hopefully you consider it. It's a very cheap solution that's worth a try.

WARNING Update!
Got damn it, I forgot to add a cable, it's an extra HDMI-to-DVI for your video card. That goes between your PC and the HDMI Switch. That's how you change back and forth from regular PC usage and TV watching. I just added it to the list prices and fixed the total. I'll update the picture tomorrow, I'm going to bed now, it's late. I know you understand the concept by now, and there is not need, but I just want to keep it clean so I can link back to it in case someone else needs it.

I just want to verify a few things.

This method, while longer than your DVI-to-VGA method, will in effect preserve the signal longer since you will remain digital the entire path.

Click to expand...

I have one DVI and one VGA input on my monitor, so I'm guessing you suggested the DVI switch because it's a lot better quality than the simple HDMI->VGA or Component->VGA method?

By my STB upscaling, you mean that even though I don't have an HD package it will upscale the SD to HD resolution? I'm guessing this will only work with HDMI, because I tried that on my Dad's setup. He has a 1080p LCD TV with the same STB, and it will only come in at 480i. He's using component video though.

You can change the AR within the STB, because I did that on my Dad's setup, but it doesn't change the picture's AR. I changed it to 16:9 in the STB settings menu, but all that did was change the menu and guide AR. My main concern with this method is that I'm hoping that with HDMI it won't stretch the screen. If I went the tuner method I could size the window to the correct AR, but this will probably be a lot better quality. I hope my monitor adds the bars, but even if it doesn't, this is well worth the try like you said since it's so cheap.

WOW. If I wasn't a broke college student I would send you some money just for all of this help. I don't know how to thank you man. HardOCP should pay you guys.

Yea, DVI should indeed be better quality than VGA. Will you notice the difference? That I am not sure of.

And about upscaling, the manual says "Digital video scaling". So maybe the reason you are not getting 1080i as an options is because you are using analog cables. I read a few threads online and people indeed are getting 1080i upscaling with the same STB as yours. But there is no real way to prove it, because I pretty much read the whole manual and it doesn't really explain it, except for quote I put above.

Ok about changing aspect ratio, you have to understand about the black bars. Some channels actually encode the black bars as part of the video, so you are unable to change the aspect ratio. The only way is to have a ZOOM or OVER-SCAN option in either the STB or the Monitor, that way you can crop the image to remove the black bars. In the contrary, other channels like DISCOVERY actually stretch the video to 16:9 themselves before sending it to you, regardless of how it was shot. That's why people on that channel look fat.

But yeah, there are also channels that actually send the signal how it was intended. For those channels, you are in luck, because your monitor indeed supports aspect ratio correction. This is a quote from Newegg's product specification tab for your monitor:

Image Size (1600x1200 unscaled capable)

Click to expand...

So it will indeed display 4:3 content in it's true aspect ratio.

Ok, good luck.

Okay, I finally bit the bullet and spent a whole $33 (including shipping) from monoprice.com. It took over a week to ship, but I finally got everything yesterday. Scroll down to the "Bottom Line" section of the post if you don't want your eyes to bleed.


Sorry for the HUGE post, but I wanted to put in as much detail for the noobs such as myself who are thinking about taking this route. To the future noobs reading this thread: this is the best and CHEAPEST way to go about getting TV on your monitor without insanely expensive equipment and cards. All I needed was a switch, a couple cables, and some help from my new buddy Odin75.


I set up everything exactly like his diagram shows (with the exception of the missing DVI->HDMI cable going from the switch to my video card and the fact that I'm using RCA->line-in/not using optical audio).

I flipped the switch and it actually worked! However, my initial response was total disappointment. The picture was stretched 100% up and across my 24 inches of screen, it looked grainy/pixelated, aspect ratio and faces stretched all to hell, looked just downright awful, and there was no sound coming through.

I launched the Motorola STB menu with the remote (and even the menu looked awful, as if I was running my monitor WAY below the native resolution) and went into advanced settings. When I got to the aspect ratio menu I was surprised to see how many options I had available. My dad has the same STB/service provider that I have + has a 1080p HDTV to go with it, but since he's using component and not HDMI, he can only choose between standard and widescreen which results in 480i output.

The reason I was so disappointed is because I'm an impatient prick that wants everything to work out of the box. After spending 5 seconds in the menu I realized that the AR was set to "4:3 Standard Definition." My STB also gives me the option of using "Widescreen Standard Definition," "720p on High-Definition Screens," and "1080i on High-Definition Screens." Keep in mind that I'm only paying for the standard def package, so even though the options are there, the programming doesn't actually come in as 720p or 1080i, this just tells the STB what AR to output to my monitor.

Switching the AR to "Widescreen Standard Definition" solved the stretching problem by padding in black bars to the sides of the video. However, the picture and menus/guide still looked low-quality and individual pixelation was still very visible. I then pumped the AR all the way up to "1080i on High-Definition Screens" which made the menus/guide look almost perfect. The colors were spot-on, didn't look blocky/pixelated, and had perfectly crisp/clear edges. The video quality wasn't perfect, but it definitely exceeded my expectations.

One problem with the 1080i setting was that it made the picture stretch in an odd manner because of my 24" monitor having a 16:10 ratio. My monitor is the same width as a 22" 1920x1080 monitor, but has an extra 2" in height making it 1920x1200. This caused the 1080i AR setting to stretch the video and it made people look thinner and taller. This causes the picture to be "squeezed" into a smaller space, which makes the picture quality MUCH better than the Widescreen standard-def AR option, but at the cost of adding larger bars to the sides and you end up with an even smaller video.

And another problem I have is with some channels/certain programs or movies that automatically output widescreen format programming. Instead of removing the black bars from the sides and letting it come in true widescreen format, it leaves the side bars AND adds bars to the top/bottom, leaving me with a box of video within a larger black box. And when I have the AR set to 1080i the box of video that is visible is actually smaller than the box that I get when I have the AR set to "Widescreen Standard Definition."

Bottom Line:
The solution to all of this is to not run 4:3/Widescreen standard def OR 1080i, but to set the AR to "720p on High-Definition Screens." It still isn't perfect, but it seems to be the best compromise between standard def and full 1080i. The video and menu/guide GUIs aren't nearly as grainy/piexelated as the standard def options, but at the same time they aren't quite as crisp/clear as 1080i. However, the aspect ratio seems to come out much better than the other options giving you the best picture quality without sacrificing the size of your video to larger black bars. There are still black bars on left/right of 4:3 programming as well as black bars on all sides of widescreen programming, but the bars are much thinner than when using 1080i.

I fixed the audio issue by downloading and installing new drivers for my onboard sound card. Using the Realtek HD Audio Manager, I had to go to Recording Devices to enable the Line-In input. Then I had to mute the recording volume of the Line-In device and max out the playback volume. That finally gave me sound, and I can honestly say that it is GREAT quality!

The only motivation that remains in me to get a new sound card would be for the remote control of the volume, but not to make use of the optical output from my STB. Buying my cheapo Logitech speakers was the best $20 I have ever spent. The combination of:
Motorola STB + monoprice RCA->3.5mm Line-in cable + Asus P5Q Pro onboard sound card + Logitech S-220 2.1ch 17Watt speakers = THE best sound quality money can buy at that price.

I am SO glad that I actually went this route instead of getting a tuner card and I can't BELIEVE the quality of everything I'm seeing/hearing for only $33.07! All of my thanks goes to Odin75. I might upload a few pics tomorrow, but my cheap camera will barely capture what I actually see.

Hey man, I'm glad it worked out for you.
Yes, please post some pictures, those will be fun to watch.