

Windows also has access to GB-PVR (free) and BeyondTV. SageTV can also be used for the Windows OS which is useful if you’ve chosen to dual boot the two operating systems. The Linux operating system has MythTV (free option) or SageTV. The software options you have are determined by the operating system you’ve settled on. So long as you like the software, it can save you time and money looking for additional software. Your chosen video capture card might even come with its own DVR software that you can choose to use or not. Some of these options are even free for use. When it comes to the software needed to run a DVR, there are plenty of options available. Look online for a power supply (PSU) calculator to determine how much power your DVR is going to need.

HD and Blu-ray will require a video card with some decent horsepower. You’ll want a powerful enough card that can process the video signal being sent to your TV. Graphics/Video Card – This will be the more costly portion of your DVR setup.

However, if you’re stuck for cash, you can always expand later on once the initial hard drive fills up. Hard drives have become rather cheap over the years so purchasing a new one shouldn’t set your wallet on fire. This sort of thing can add up quickly so having enough space to keep your DVR going is a must. Hard Drive – Recording a single movie, especially in HD, will normally cost you a gigabyte or more of hard drive space.The encoding for the DVR will be handled by a TV capture card, taking the heavy lifting off of the processor’s shoulders. Processor – So long as you have a processor that can run the latest operating systems, it won’t need to be anything special.When setting up your DVR, you’ll want to pay attention to a few specific parts. The higher the definition, the more power will be needed. Recording and watching high definition (HD) videos or Blu-ray is a different beast entirely. Recording standard definition (SD) videos won’t require much in the way of power. A Mac is also a decent choice but a PC will normally have far more available options. You could use a laptop but it’d be difficult to update as most are very limited in the expansion department.
