DIY, How to install a CableCARD tuner in your DIY Media Center
By Ben Drawbaugh 
posted May 12th 2009 11:00AM
posted May 12th 2009 11:00AM
Access to premium HD on computers has eluded most for way to long, so as soon as we heard that it was finally possible for anyone to add a CableCARD tuner to just about any Media Center, we just knew we had to try it for ourselves, and more importantly, share with you exactly how to do it. This doesn't really require any hacking, or anything illegal for that matter -- we're not lawyers -- but it isn't cheap. The internal version of the ATI Digital Cable Tuner pictured above can be found new on eBay for about $195, or new from PC vendors like Cannon PC for just under $300. If that doesn't seem like a bad deal to you and you already have an HTPC up to the challenge, then you should join us on our journey to HD bliss by clicking through.
What you need
It should go without saying that in order for this to work you'll need a pretty new computer running either Windows Vista Premium (or higher) or Windows 7 as well as an ATI Digital Cable Tuner (DCT). The first requirement you probably already have, but the second can be a bit more difficult. Both the internal and external version of the DCT have the same functionality with the only real difference being where it is mounted. Some prefer the external since it is easier to swap out and doesn't require opening the case to install, while others will do just about anything to eliminate yet another box with a wall wart from their setup. We will warn you if you're leaning towards the internal though, it is pretty big and puts off some heat. So to accommodate the internal version you're going to need a decent size case as well as an internal USB port and free floppy power plug.
Not for everyone
We also want to say that this might not be for everyone. For starters, it's totally possible for Microsoft to release an update that would make this stop working, but most importantly, you won't be able to get any support if you run into problems.
Prepping the system
We suggest you run through these instructions before calling your cable provider to come out and install the CableCARD, otherwise you might run into problems and then you won't be ready when they come.
The first step is to get by the requirement that has been holding us back up until now, which is that Windows will only allow you to use a DCT if your BIOS has the required OSFR table. Although unlikely, it is possible that your BIOS has the required table so first thing you want to do is download the OCUR BIOS Check Utility and find out.
Using the utility is really easy. Unzip it and double click on OCURCHECK.bat and you'll probably see the failure message "The ACPI table 'OSFR' is not present" like in the example above. If you are lucky enough to see a successful message, then skip the next section where we explain how to make any BIOS OCUR ready.
How to make any BIOS OCUR ready
Recently an ingenious member of The Green Button forum figured out how to make any BIOS appear to be OCUR compliant by modifying an old utility known as VistaLoader. Basically all it does is load Grub4Dos before Windows boots and change the memory where the BIOS information is stored with the "correct" information. The cool thing about this is that it is relatively easy to uninstall and makes no changes to the actual BIOS like a firmware update would -- be warned that if you have a Dell, you'll have to reactivate Windows after installing this utility. It also appears it would be resilient to any types of checks Microsoft or CableLabs might attempt to use to prevent this from working in the future. All you have to do is download the utility from here and unzip it. Then open up a Command Prompt as an Administrator in the directory where you extracted it and execute install sony and reboot. After your system boots back up, rerun OCURCHECK.bat again and now it should display "The PC BIOS is OCUR compliant" like the next image.
Installing the hardware
Now that your BIOS is up to snuff, it's time to install the tuner. If you have an external tuner, just shut down your PC, plug the power and USB in. If you have an internal you'll have to open up the case and plug it into a free PCI Express port -- which is nothing more than a mount -- then plug in the USB and power.
Setup the tuner in Windows
After you boot the computer one of the LEDs on the DCT should be solid green and if you go into device manager you should see a device called ATI TV Wonder OpenCable Receiver listed under Network -- notice it's not listed with the rest of your TV cards.
Double click on the ATI DCT and your default browser will open displaying the DCT's configuration web page. On the top right of the screen will be the firmware version, you'll want to make sure it's running the latest -- at the time of this writing that is 1.17.1 but the latest can usually be found on ATI's site.
After you download the firmware updater and run the installer you'll eventually be presented with the firmware installer UI. It should find the DCT and allow you verify once again that it needs to be updated. If so, hit start and let it run.
Configuring Media Center
When you launch Windows Media Center for the first time you should be prompted to install the a tuner, if not go to Settings>TV>TV Signal>Set Up TV Signal, and follow the wizard. Along with your other tuners, the ATI DCT should be detected like in the screen shot below -- this image is from Windows 7, Vista looks a little different.
Next up you'll see the Digital Cable Tuner product activation screen. You'll need a valid product ID to get past here, but you can try the generic key we found online: 263DJ-2Y9YT-6X9G6-W28DB-697TF.
With any luck it should activate successfully and since you'll be running through this setup without a CableCARD the first time, you're going to see the following warning in the screen shot below. Don't worry, choose "Continue without a CableCARD" and you can still use the tuner as a clear QAM tuner until your CableCARD install. This way you know everything is going to work before the installer arrives.
Now after the wizard is complete you should see your channel lineup and be able to watch clear QAM channels. When the installer comes with the CableCARD, after plugging it in and ensuring the other LED lights up green, go back to the web page to the "Card" tab and click on the "Host ID Screen" link to get the host info -- this link is only there if a CableCARD is inserted -- this will display the details the installer needs to activate the CableCARD with the cable head-end. After the cable installer says the card is paired, go to the "IP Service" page to see if the "Auth Status" is "CP Auth Received." You can also get this information from Media Center, but we find it easier to just use the web page and then go back to Media Center and re-run TV Setup when we know the CableCARD is all set. Either way you should probably make the installer wait until after the setup wizard is complete so you can test as many channels as possible. You'd hate to let 'em go only to find out you have a signal strength issue or aren't subscribed to all the channels you expect.
When things go wrong
Troubleshooting CableCARD problems is well beyond the scope of this how to. If you can't even get the DCT installed or activated you're best best is going to be The Green Button thread where the utility was published. But odds are those steps will go smoothly and you'll have problems with your provider or the tuner itself. If that is the case, then you'll want to head over to The Custom Integrators show where they dedicated five episodes (7-11) to CableCARD tuners and how they work. Good luck and be sure to let us know how it goes.
A special thanks to Utah, Dan and Derek for all the help on this post!
I have had an ATSC/NTSC tuner in my PC for 5 yrs, a KWorld 110 and purchased Beyond TV as my PVR software....my first OTA HD show was a hockey game, the recording was huge, learned quickly that HD requires lotsa hard drive space....LOL
I know the BIOS hack likely Doesn't, but does/can this Card work with MythTV or Linux at all?
You would need to run Windows in Virtual box on your Linux Distro. Then just have your shows record to a Drive that is visible to both OS's.
Nope won't work currently with MythTV, Linux, or anything besides MediaCenter. You can't even play the files on any other computer because they are encrypted. ATI is supposed to release a new firmware at some point that will make it so that not every show is encrypted.
On linux you could use the FloppyDTV from www.digital-everywhere.com
I dont know of any other ones, and im not particularly eager on this since its firewire.
However, this doesn't make Win media center any less of a piece of crap......
Ben you always have the best how tos. I want to jump in to getting this so bad but dont want a Windows fix to stop it.
Now all we need is for the mythical Ceton Corporation "Six Tuner Card" to be released and we'll be all set.
On second though, I won't hold my breath.
I would like to know what is wrong with the dvr you get from your cable/sat provider?
I have Fios HD and the I have no real complaints about the dvr. Yes, you pay a monthly fee and the Hard drive is a little on the small side. But to think about it, when you have a super large hard drive with a couple hundred shows recorded, do you actually watch every show?
For me, it's no.
I prefer to pay the stinking monthly fee and if the dvr goes bad, I call verizon and the send someone the replace it.
I'm have no more patience for htpc/media center/tweaking/ etc.
HTPC's always screw up when the wife wants to watch tv or you have guests over and you are trying to demo the thing and you get some error message and you have to reboot.
My brother had one of the Moto DCH-6416 DVRs. They're terrible. They frequently fail to record scheduled shows, record random undesired shows, etc. They're slow, they're cumbersome. He now has a TiVo HD with an external drive, and he's much happier for it.
Basically, cableco DVRs suck. Bad.
Kevon,
Reasons why I'd never use the FiOS DVR.
160GB hard drive is a joke! I have a 1TB in my Media Center.
Only two tuners. I have twice that in my Media Center and still get conflicts some times.
Real multi-room support (can't MRV between DVRs)
Widescreen user interface.
MUCH better UI, animated transitions as well as translucents.
I could go on.
Its not that the cableco DVR's are BAD, per say (they are pretty sucky though, to be honest), but its a combination of things:
*its a MEDIA CENTER, not just a DVR. the MC can rip/stream DVDs, CDs, and display photos, in addition to cable shows
*DIYers love this- I built every PC in my home, and I don't think that will ever change
*widescreen interface, as Ben mentioned
*WAY MORE ROOM- not only can you stick a couple 2TB drives into your MC, you can expand the storage space quickly with external or network drives (and burn shows to DVD)
*ability to transfer shows to PMPs
*only one box on your shelf- it may be much larger than the cableco box, but its still only one box
"But to think about it, when you have a super large hard drive with a couple hundred shows recorded, do you actually watch every show?
For me, it's no."
I have a very old Moxi box from charter which allows a USB2.0 external HDD (unlike those unfornate souls who cant add an extra drive), I upgraded the 80 gig (which the idiots at the cable company said was more than enough), with a 1tb external. I would prefer a media center PC to what I have, better interface, more capabilities, unlimited mods that I can make, etc. Personally, I rewatch a lot of shows like history channel documentaries and top gear, my DVR is more like a video library. So yes, I do need all that extra store space, because when its a few months down the road and I want to watch something that came on months ago, I dont have to wait for the broadcasters! Thats exactly why I got a DVR in the first place.
Had lots of trouble with my Comcast DVR.
- Many recordings would skip every few seconds when the drive became very fragmented. The only solution was to clear out all my shows and start over.
- The UI was horribly slow
- The remote sucks. Some comcast remotes don't even have 30 second skip buttons. WTF?
- I don't know how big the internal drive is, but it's not nearly big enough
The main advantage of having the box vs. cable card was maintaining access to ondemand. But thats another buggy story for another time.
Win Media Center is garbage itself, the interface is horrible, so less option, content your record there's no way to convert them, and worst you can't play them in other type of media player.
I know this is a stretch, but will this work with Boot Camp? I already have a Mac with Win7 plugged to my TV, so this would be perfect.
Cablecard recordings as part of the DRM require a full DHCP from the tuner through the computer to the video card to the display or the medai center extender. If your mac has DHCP it would be interesting to see if it matches the Cablelabs OCUR requirements.
Isn't that what the bios utility is for. It bypasses the whole HDCP requirement right?
No, it just takes care of the signed BIOS requirement.
Output to VGA or analog whatever to get around not having an HDCP display.
12TH!!!!!!!1111oneone
I think installing a regular TV tuner is a better way to go. I'm installing a HVR-1600 TV tuner today. This will get me free over -the-air HD and accepts cable signals. Mine also has a FM tuner. And the Windows 7 RC Media Center is great.
http://jamesmsingleton.com
How stupid. I hate big content and Cable Labs.
Juan,
Someone at TGB has already gotten this working in bootcamp on their Mac Mini.
Awesome, thanks. Will give it a try soon. This will make my media center experience complete!
Not suprised that it works on mac's because they said it works on any computer and last time I checked, the mac have bios' that you can hack.
Macs do not use a BIOS.
He got it to work almost. His mini had DVI and wasn't HDCP and he could see a picture, but aside from that, it worked. (Don't know if he got sound but probably not if he couldn't display a picture).
Could you view live cable if you have an XBOX 360 using XBMC or just the recorded shows?
There is no reason why you wouldn't be able to watch live tv. Xbox 360 running as extenders give you just about all the same functionality that you would get if you were sitting in front of media center PC.
yes you can watch live TV over the 360 extender.
Are there any ramifications of using the "generic" product key vs. getting an actual one with the card from someone on eBay... example...more likely for an update from MS to make things stop working... or are odds are the same for both situations?
I went down this HTPC road about 6 months ago, thinking I would create the ultimate media center and run myth tv. First thing, MythTv wouldn't work with my tuner HVR-600 I believe, even though it is listed as supported. Then I went down the road of Vista Ultimate to use Windows Media Center, this actually worked great except the shows take up huge amounts of space, recording quality is only SD. I dreamed of the day when cable card support would come to home built PCs until now. I'm afraid this is all a day late and a dollar short.
Why bother wasting time recording shows when you can setup utorrent or any other torrent client to subscribe to your favorite shows via RSS feeds and download them in open formats, commercial free automagically. Not only do they download about an hour after the show airs, but you can even get most of them in 720P encoded in Divx!!!
Trust me, don't go down this road, this is a total waste of time. Don't build the loud rig like I did, when you can get something like the EEE box b208 or the Aspire Revo to sit silently under your TV ,consuming low power, and downloading all your favorite shows automatically. You will even be able to get external blu ray drives soon to connect and you will have the perfect machine. Then, put xbmc or boxee on it to give you that slick media interface you always wanted. Best of all, this setup only requires interent. Ditch your cable tv and just pay for internet, get all your shows commercial free, and stop wasting time channel surfing so you can waste more on engadget ;-).
Live sports on TNT HD and ESPN HD
I knew I forgot something. Still then keep cable for live sports. Won't be long before that stuff is webcast live in HD through their websites. They have more incentive every day to offer subscription based streaming and cut out the middlemen (cable).
The quality isn't the same from torrents than it is compared to getting it direct. Sure, lots of the popular shows are in 720P on torrents, but some of those same shows are broadcast in 1080i, so you're losing some detail. Also not every 720P torrent show will have multichannel audio.
As for commercials, DVRMStoolbox & Comskip works fantastically for skipping commercials.
Furthermore your second comment post negated your first one. If I am going to keep cable for live sports, then I might as well build a HTPC/ Media Center PC for recording. That doesn't make sense to me, to have cable and use it only for sports and then use torrents for everything else. You're paying a bill, might as well get the most use out of it. Finally, I don't think all sports are going to move to live webcasts and like a said earlier in the post, the quality is not the same.
Off topic but I see I'm not the only "Demolition Man" here on Engadget lol.
That's exactly how I feel. I had a computer that I was planning to use as a DVR, but after all the trouble I went through to get HD programming (didn't happen), I just gave it to my mom and found another route.
Is there a legit way to obtain an activation key if the generic one fails?
I just bought a brand new ATI internal DCT from ebay for $195.00 and and going to do this hack ASAP. I've been waiting forever to view/record shows on my media center other than what the HDHomeRun can pick up over QAM.
Check out http://connectedcommuter.com/?p=48 for a review of Z-Wave dimmers you can integrate into your Vista/Windows7 HTPC.
-Dennis
I just bought a brand new ATI internal DCT from ebay for $195.00 and and going to do this hack ASAP. I've been waiting forever to view/record shows on my media center other than what the HDHomeRun can pick up over QAM.
Check out http://connectedcommuter.com/?p=48 for a review of Z-Wave dimmers you can integrate into your Vista/Windows7 HTPC.
-Dennis
LOL... Good luck with this hack... Getting cablecards to work on an legit OEM system is damn near impossible without the right tools.
Actually this "hack" was very easy to get running. The cable company came out, installed the card and I was up and running. Had trouble a day later because I was messing around with splitters etc, and had to unplug-replug the usb cable, but no problems since.
Well, I read the entire article, and proceeded directly to eBay. Unfortunately, no CableCARDs left. I guess all of the other ninjas reading engadgetHD beat me there. /cry
Why cableCARD fails: it's outrageously priced; it only works in Vista Media Center; cable companies want very little to do with it and rarely have any *experienced* cableCARD technicians; at best, it delivers cable company's compressed, sub-OTA HD; it (reportedly) runs hot in a PC; recordings made with a cableCARD aren't editable like DVR-MS files (in VideoReDo); by virtue of licensing alone, Hulu.com offers a wider selection of content than any cable provider's VOD. Remind me again why anyone would want to get anywhere near a cableCARD?
HD-PVR ftw, folks...
you don't want to by a CableCard. the cable companies are required by the feds to provied them to you.. will it take hours to get it to work because the installer is clueless? yes.. would i use a HTPC over a normal cable DRV.. hell yes!
I've installed a few OEM bought HTPC/cablecard PCs and they are pretty sexy... now.. if directv finally made their HTPC box.. yummy. (my cable company is timewarner in nyc and they totally suck!!)
You don't know what you're talking about. I got my Ccard HTPC working in less than 10 minutes with Comcast. Lots of people have. Some have had trouble, but I suspect that most of those people have signal strength issues with their service regarless. Also, the early production runs of ATI DCTs was riddled with bad units.
I have posted two ATI CableCard tuners on eBay just now... No Reserve.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=180356542771
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=180356542946
Jaison, are you including the OEM authentication keys? That would be preferred in case the generic key ever gets locked out.
Yes, I could... I have the product key.