Anyone own their own DVR?

Question

I'm tired of Directv's crappy DVR's I need to lease. I would like to buy my own but can't find one where you don't have to pay fees/memberships to the companies (satellite, cable, tivo, etc.). Does anyone have a good quality DVR they bought themselves that will not cost me an arm and a leg?

Answer 1

yes

Answer 2

Sure, build yourself a MythTV system.  Mythbuntu is a great place to start.

You'll want to build a multi-tuner system.  Guide data isn't free, but is very reasonably priced - $20/year (schedulesdirect.org).

The guys at 169time.com sell upgrades to standard DirecTV receivers to allow them to output video over Firewire.  This is a good thing, since you can connect 2 receivers to your MythTV box and be on your way.  By outputting firewire into your Myth box, you're getting exactly what would get sent to the TV without signal degradation.

It's not for the faint of heart. You'll have a fairly steep learning curve ahead of you, but the reward is a DVR that's expandable without limits, that's fully under your control, and you won't be stuck with a DVR that you hate any longer.

Answer 3

we have something called dvr, its a dvd recorder, dunno if that is what you mean or not, it is a cyberhome for about 120 bucks.