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AnnaS8
join:2005-05-26
Annapolis, MD

AnnaS8

Member

Comcast HD DVR with Slingbox

I am thinking about getting a slingbox and I was just curious what experiences other folks have had with Comcast cable. I have one of the new HDMI HD DVRs that Comcast has. Would I be able to watch things I have recorded on my DVR with the slingbox? I mean like remotely control the DVR through the slingbox. I read some where that it is really only able on a Tivo. Is that true?

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

said by AnnaS8:

I am thinking about getting a slingbox and I was just curious what experiences other folks have had with Comcast cable. I have one of the new HDMI HD DVRs that Comcast has. Would I be able to watch things I have recorded on my DVR with the slingbox? I mean like remotely control the DVR through the slingbox. I read some where that it is really only able on a Tivo. Is that true?
It will work on Comcast DVRs. Depending on the version of Slingbox and version of Comcast DVR, the connection may be Composite, component, or hdmi. A friend of mine has a Comcast SA8x00 of some type and uses the composite connections to drive a 2 yr old slingbox. It works very well.

AnnaS8
join:2005-05-26
Annapolis, MD

AnnaS8

Member

That is a good sign.
gccjr4
join:2004-11-04
Poolesville, MD

gccjr4

Member

I use a sling box classic through the svideo port from my Comcast Phase III DVR. Works great.

AnnaS8
join:2005-05-26
Annapolis, MD

AnnaS8

Member

Are you able to control the DVR with it?
jsfetzik
join:1999-07-28
Glenview, IL

jsfetzik to AnnaS8

Member

to AnnaS8
I am using a Slingbox AV, which only has composite and S-video inputs, with a Comcast DVR and no significant problems. I have had no problem watching live TV, recordings, using the guide, etc. Seeing as the Slingbox AV does not have HDMI or component video I can not comment on HD.

There are two minor issues.

First, clicking on the virtual remote with the mouse feels odd. Basically its a matter of the remote not being in your hand feeling odd. Not a big deal unless you plan on doing a lot of guide surfing.

Second, the audio stream skips occasionally for a fraction of a second when issues commands via the remote, i.e. changing channels, page up/down in the guide, etc. No problems once you select something to watch and not a particularly big deal. Just a little disconcerting.

So overall things work fine.

AnnaS8
join:2005-05-26
Annapolis, MD

AnnaS8

Member

Thank you very much jsfetzik for your very informative feedback. It is nice to know that it has the functionality I am looking for. Too bad for me the speakers on my laptop just died so I think I am going to have to hold off on getting the slingbox til I get a new laptop. Thanks to everyone for your help.

JMac001
Premium Member
join:2006-05-20
Ridley Park, PA

JMac001 to AnnaS8

Premium Member

to AnnaS8
I have the SlingBox Pro -- HD connection via component cable works great! I can view all digital channels (at least all I have tried), DVR recordings, and On Demand programming on any of my networked PCs. I haven't tried it from a remote PC, though I have read others say it works fine as long as the remote broadband connection is good.

Now I just need to find an easy way to connect one or both of my other two Comcast DVRs and I'll be in A/V heaven here!

Jim
ZipperSeven
join:2005-07-27
Tallahassee, FL

ZipperSeven

Member

I have an SB Pro but connected via the component 'breakout' box which seems to increase the visual quality coming from the HD box as well as adding (or freeing up if you will,) another input for something else.

Local LAN viewing is awesome, on my macbook pro I set it to fill the screen and I watch TV in my office while I work. Clicking to remote mode makes sending commands a bit crisper but still not as fast as actually using the remote. This makes watching DVR-ed programs a challenge, but you get used to the timing of it with some use. It could be far worse.

Remote viewing forces you down to a lower resolution but it's still not bad. You have to wait out the compression optimization phase to get the best results, perhaps 15-20 seconds, but once that happens the signal is pretty clean and looks better than most streaming video channels on the net. With remote viewing, the sound gets more compressed than I'd like, but most of the time I'm watching on a box with crappy monitor speakers anyhow, so it's not like it's a big deal. You can switch to a mono mode which seems to clean up the audio at the expense of taking away stereo, but again, on cheap speakers it actually improves the sound anyway.

Currently, I have my PS2, my Divx DVD player, my 6412, and analog cable plugged into the Sling. The analog tuner is nice because I can watch an analog channel thru the Sling while my fiancee watches TV or a DVR-ed program.

AnnaS8
join:2005-05-26
Annapolis, MD

AnnaS8

Member

Why is the PS2 hooked to it?