[vdr] Re: second card on loopthrough

[Usenet-372112@zocki.toppoint.de (Rainer Zocholl)]

robert@vis.ethz.ch(Robert Simons)  23.11.01 11:54

Once upon a time Robert Simons shaped the electrons to say...

>I am playing with the idea to buy a second dvb card.
>But I only have got one antenna cable (2 single universal
>lnb A/E). 
>So this should work, if i stay at the same
>polarisation/band/satellite with both cards.

that's right.

But you can set the "second card" to have the "OSD",
so it is the "primary Card" and the card with the loopthru
is now the "second" card, which is first took for recording.
(But there is an other draw back, see below)


One without a loopthru need a "splitter" or can use a half 
connected "multiswitch".
because "loopthru" depends totally on the first cards selection,
while with a switch/splitter only the strongest survived.
(There can't be broken anything:
The splitter uses a diode matrix to decouple the DC-levels
an the Cards will powerdown it's voltage if overloaded.)


>Is there any possibility to tell vdr not to switch
>the first card out of this range while recording
>on the second?

No. There is currently no such resource management.
It's all up to you.

My solution: i record only "h", because "h" always "wins".
(i don't have a loopthru)

>Has anybody tried this combination yet?

Yes. (Besause "loopthru" are not on the market anymore
only with a splitter.)


It works.. but:
You have to set "EGP info =0" else VDR would 
switch the second card to the wrong polarisation to
collect EPG infos...

One real problem (with splitter) occures, when you are watching "h" and
VDR wants to record "v". "h" wins, so VDR records nothing
and is rebooting the cards (both cards...)

Work arround:
Don't watch "v" while "v" should be recorded. or -fool proof-
Don't record "v".
or record on both cards "v" an delete on recording later.


The other problem is not harder to solve:
If VDR had recorded on "h", it does not switch back to
the initial state.
That means you can't watch "v" any more.

Workarround:
Start a manual recording in the "v" you can't see in the moment.


It would be a little easier if VDR would switch the cards back to 
the "initial" state or 
-much easier- simply turns all unused cards to "power off".
(that would save trees too ;-)) (At least for "splitter users"
loopthru-users have to power both cards.)