[linux-dvb] Getting started with DVB-S

[johan at knudde.be]

Hello list,

I recently moved and my MythTV system with 3 analog tuner cards became
kind of obsolete because I have no cable subscription anymore.
Analog TV is being fased out in my area, so I want to get started with
DVB-S as this gives me the most freedom.

Being a complete newbie regarding satellite TV, I did some reading on
this subject. I think I have it mostly figured out, but I wanted to
get some things confirmed and some questions answered.

To view all channels I need, I will need a subscription and a CAM.
No problem so far.
But, what cards would you advise me to buy?

I browsed through this list searched Google and it seems the
TechnoTrend budget S-1500 card and CI are quite well suported and
capable of decrypting encrypted channels.

Is this a card you would advise or are there better ones?
For analog TV, almost everybody says "Buy a Haupauge PVR 350 or 500
card". Is there such a "must buy" card for DVB-S?


Once/if I have it running, I want to do multiple tuner cards.
I understand the differences between analog cable and satellite, and
the limitation of the last regarding multiple endpoints.

The question is:

How well are multiple DVB-S cards supported?

Does my second/third tuner card need to be one with a CI, or can the
CAM of the first card be reused?, or
Do I always need cards with a CI and a CAM (or card share hardware)?, or
Is there some way to connect multiple tuner cards (with CI headers)
with the same CI module?

I hope I didn't ask too many questions at once. ;-)

Thanks for taking the time to answer some of them.


Best regards,

Johan Braeken.