NTSC DvD Recorder and Tuner Question?

Question

I just bought a NTSC DvD Recorder and Tuner and have a few questions.

First, what channels am I able to record since its NTSC only.

Second, would that be possible to hook it up to my Dish Network?

Third, once the FCC plan takes affect next year am I going to be out of luck recording shows?

Answer 1

If you hook it up to your satellite dish, you will be able to record through your satellite dish.  If you are using a satellite dish, those broadcasts are already produced digitally so you don't need to do anything in order to switch over.  You'd only need a tuner if you had a TV, no dish or cable.

Answer 2

You can hook it up to your Dish Network receiver, although you can't use the tuner section of the DVD recorder to select channels. This will be done by your Dish receiver. For best picture, use the S-Video or composite (or HDMI if so equipped) output of your Dish receiver to the inputs on your DVD recorder. You can still set it up with a timer, but you'll need to make sure your Dish receiver is on the proper channel. It's a little more complicated, but some models will let you set up an IR blaster that will change the channel on your Dish receiver for you.

If you have one of the two-tuner DVR receivers that lets you have two TVs, I'd recommend connecting your DVD-R to the TV2 outputs. That'll keep your TV1 (Main TV) free while you're archiving shows to DVD.