Forums | MacLife

jayster · 2006-04-15 7:07 pm

I'm looking for a way to record TV shows on the fly from my cable in a format that the ipod can read. Does any one know how to do this?

Currently I have a media center PC hooked up to the cable but it's a pain (and very time consuming). I have to re-encode the video's one by one the copy them over to my iMac and get them into iTunes. I just want a single one step way to record TV and have it show up in a compatible format or just add them straight into iTunes. The fewer steps the better.

I know Apple wants you to buy TV shows off iTunes but for starters if I pay for something I don't want DRM that forces me to use one product. roll And secondly the TV shows we play in the car for my daughter are not on iTunes.

And before any one gives me smack about having a XP media center PC it's the only PC I own because apple refuses to add DVR capaibility to Front Row. If they did I wound be first in line to pick up a new mac mini for my Home Theater.

big_smile

Greg Grant · 2006-04-17 4:43 am

I use a Windows Media Center PC, been doing so predating the Windows Media OS. No shame in the game, really as there's a lotta DVR packages for cheap not on the make like all the Haupagaun (SP?) stuff.

You won't be able to direct copy to the iPod format unless for some reason your capturing software supports Quicktime, otherwise you need to convert. However if you happen to have a Mac with Final Pro or DVD Studio Pro, it should come with compressor which you can do batch converts which would be pretty good as you could drop a weeks worth of TV in to be reencoded in a few clicks and just like the computer do its thing. There are some less expensive apps that serve as QT front ends that sorta let you to do the same. As far as record the TV and re-encode to iPod MP4 then copy to the iTunes, yet to see that.

jayster · 2006-04-17 7:09 pm

Thanks for the info Greg I didn't know compressor could do batch incoding. I have a new 20" iMac core duo with 1.5 GB of ram so I know it can run compressor. I was thinking about buying final cut and using some sort of script with automator to compress and add to itunes but I think I found an even better solution and answered my own question. While looking for a DVR tunner for my mac to bypass the PC all together I found that Elgato just updated their DVR solution with 1 click ipod support.

http://elgato.com/index.php?file=products_eyetvmain

So I'm going to buy that and give it a try. I just hope there compressor is fast and optimized for dual CPU's so it doesnt take 2 hours to encode 1 hour of video.

MacBoy4139 · 2006-04-17 8:36 pm

iTunes can also batch encode for the iPod. A lot cheaper than the Final Cut Studio.

jerwin · 2006-04-19 11:57 am

does your cable box have a IEEE 1394 port? big_smile

jayster · 2006-04-22 12:53 am

I don't have a cable box, we get our HD over the air with the Media Center PC and then just standard cable. The cable boxes were a hassle to get working with the media center

Forums | MacLife

#1 2006-04-15 7:07 pm

getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

#2 2006-04-17 4:43 am

Re: getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

#3 2006-04-17 7:09 pm

Re: getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

#4 2006-04-17 8:36 pm

Re: getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

#5 2006-04-19 11:57 am

Re: getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

#6 2006-04-22 12:53 am

Re: getting TV shows (from cable TV onto iPod)

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