No Picture with WinTV Card

[mormondad]

I ordered SnapStream PVS 2.0 and WinTV Stereo/Radio TV Tuner Card from SnapStream and have installed both.

Using the viewer included with the WinTV card I can properly see video and hear audio and tune the channel. Everything seems to be working.

Yet, SnapStream only has audio but no usable picture. Instead, the top half of the picture is static and the bottom half is black. So, I hear audio but don't get a picture.

I set everything up according to the instructions included with SnapStream, but no dice. I'm running Windows XP.

[MattS]

Make sure you are using the latest driver set available from Hauppauge for your tuner card.

First of all, you won't need to use the installation CD for the hauppauge from this point on. Just put it aside somewhere where we can keep the VFW drivers from jumping back on.

1) Run the Hardware clear utility from Hauppauge to remove the VFW drivers from your system.

http://hauppauge.lightpath.net/softw...s/hcwclear.exe

2) Run the latest WDM (3.31) driver update for your winTV PCI card.

http://hauppauge.lightpath.net/softw...m331_20112.exe

3) After the new drivers have been installed, verify that the installation is complete under control panel->system->device manager->sound, game, and audio devices. Here there will be two drivers listed for the Hauppuage device, both will have "WDM" in the device name if they are WDM drivers.

4) Run the Snapstream hardware wizard again (from the start menu->programs->snapstream pvs->hardware setup wizard) and have it scan your channel lineup.

5) In snapstream under configure->video sources->primary->edit make sure you have the following settings.

Capture Interface = DirectShow
DirectShow Video Device = Hauppauge WinTV
DirectShow Audio Device = (your sound card)
DirectShow Video Input = Video Tuner
Enable Preview Pin = Disabled

Tuning Interace = DirectShow
Broadcast Source = (your broadcast source, antenna, cable, svideo..)
Auto Adjust Mixer = Enabled

This configuration should solve your problem.

[mormondad]

Thanks.

Actually, it was easier than all that.

The trouble was that SnapStream assumed that if I was connecting a Satellite receiver to the TV card, that I was connecting it via the Composite port - while, in fact, I was connecting via the Coax connection.

Once I went in and told SnapStream that the connection was "Cable", the preferences changed and I was allowed to AutoScan until the TV Card found the frequency of Channel 3. From there, I was able to see the picture. Why it let me hear the audio - I don't quite know.

In doing this, I found a very neat feature of the WinTVPCI card and SnapStream application. You see, I thought I was going to have to buy a IR A/B video switch to switch between both Satellite receivers I am using. I found that I could plug one receiver into the Coax and the other into the Composite and that SnapStream will let me choose the input when I schedule a recording.

The one trouble I think I'm going to have is that I don't know if I'll be able to tell Snapstream to choose a different IR setting, when using the ActiSys IR Blaster that is in the mail to me right now, for each Receiver. I need it to use the IR settings for receiver A when I want to record from receiver A and use the IR settings for receiver B when I want to tune to a channel to record from receiver B. I guess I'll find out its limitations once the cable arrives. Luckily, receiver A has a great electronic program guide that will automatically tune to the channels for me. However, the more elegant solution would be to have SnapStream do it for me.

Again, thanks for the info. I may come in handy later or someone else with a similar problem may need it.

[mormondad]

My computer just was not powerful enough to handle all that I needed it to do (Dell Pentium III 500mhz) so I moved everything to my primary computer (Dell Pentium IV 1.5Ghz).

I followed your instructions (removed VFW - replaced with WDM drivers) and now the recording does the audio but not the video. It's just a black screen.

I can see both inputs (tuner and composite) in WinTV2000 - but SnapStream isn't showing the tuner video when recording. Recording from the composite input works fine (well, except for the 1 line of static at the top of the screen - working on that - it's there in WinTV2000 too).

I've run the hardware setup wizard and set up the channels, but no dice on channel 3.

[mormondad]

I ran the Diagnostic Test in the Configure menu and it worked. Then I scheduled a recording - and it worked.

Um...

Don't know what happened but it seems to be working now.

[MattS]

This may have happened only with your first recording. Sometimes the when using the Hauppauge WDM drivers this will occur for a 'first' recording done.