Originally posted by: orctimuspr1m3
1. This is possible.
2. I would honestly use an internal harddrive, but it doesn't matter.
3. Generally USB tuner cards are trash, try and get a decent PCI card instead. You will also need a good program for capturing the video, cutting it up, and encoding it (for later viewing).
The initial investment into such a setup generally is pretty expensive. You're going to want to have a massive HDD (1 TB or greater) especially if you are going to record and compress shows.
Most TV tuner cards and BoBs (break out boxes) come with a decent program to record, like "CapWiz" or "RecordPro" to pause TV etc, just like a DVR unit. More expensive ones will let you schedule, much like a standard DVR.
I'd recommend a program called "SUPER" in order to encode later shows.
In total, I would say you should expect to pay ~450 USD total, that includes a HDD, the tuner, and all necessary cables.
Thats quite a bit more than it will actually cost.
Grab one or two 500GB HDDs ($90-110 each, I always suggest Seagate for the 5 year warranty, or WD for the GreenPower series). If you aren't recording HD, one will be enough. Try to keep them internal and SATA, just out of principal and because externals can have some wonky power save features that fuck scheduled recordings.
If you only want to capture and watch SDTV, and not HD, a cheaper tuner will be fine. Make sure it is analog and digital, since analog signals are being turned off. A Hauppauge WinTV HVR-1600 will run around $60-90, and it comes with a remote (and is a very decent tuner). Make sure not to go the USB route. Also worth mentioning, is some tuners allow you to record one thing while watching another, and some don't. The HVR-1600 does.
The programs that come with tuners suck balls, check out SourceForge for some open source alternatives (I also think SUPER is shit, but to each their own). These will do anything you want them to if you take the time to configure them.
Outputting a signal to your TV will work fine via your Radeon, you don't need a tuner for that. Just use the S-Video output.
For all of your cables needs MAKE SURE TO USE MONOPRICE.COM. This will keep any and all cable costs to under $15 shipped total. This is the most important bit of advise I can give you. Don't listen to jackasses that claim more expensive cables are better; cable is cable (even a coat hanger can give the same results as a $50 Monster XXXTREME cable). If you are paying more than what is listed on monoprice, you're being scammed.
Overall, I'd say you can expect to spend about $200 shipped after taxes if you just want SDTV recording, and $350 for HDTV (extra hard drive space, better HD tuner card, HD connection since S-Video is only 480i max).
For your needs, $200 should be fine. Don't let orctimuspr1m3 scare you away.
Also, don't try to get a tuner with the hopes of playing a console through your computer monitor. It will suck and lag no matter what.
Because I'm bored, here's what you should buy to be futureproofed until cable/satellite moves from 720P or 1080i to 1080p:
Hauppage WinTV HVR-1600 Tuner - Apparently supports HD up to 1080i, can record while watching another program, is compatible with media center, comes with a remote, and is a fairly popular board. See if you can find a Google checkout $20 off an $80 purchase so you can get this for $64 shipped. If not, use the $10 off new GCO users to get it for $74.
Western Digital GP 1TB SATA HDD - Uses very little power, so it is ideal for media centers. Very quiet, and cheap for a 1TB drive. Costs $235 shipped now, occasionally goes on sale.
S-Video and 3.5mm audio to RCA component cable - For either outputting from your computer to your TV, or capturing via component to your computer. $10.
Regular coax cable - If you want to use both tuners, you'll need two obviously. $5.
For the cables, make sure to get the right length. I just picked an average length. Longer is obviously more expensive.
Altogether, you can get a top of the line bunch of equipment for $320.