What is the benefit of having a tuner built in?? Can anyone tell me what advantage there is to having a built in tuner, as opposed to a tunerless recorder?
1812169
Dear B. Cameron There are at least two reasons why you might want a DVD recorder with a built in tuner. 1. In my case, I don't have a TV with a digital (ATSC) tuner. I have a 2003 HD television with an analog (NTSC) tuner, and I receive my TV signal over-the-air via an outdoor antenna. When the digital transition occurred earlier this year, I had a limited number of choices if I wanted to keep my current TV and free OTA set-up: I could buy a converter box and have the digital signal converted to analog for my TV; I could buy an external digital tuner; or I could buy a DVD player with a built in digital tuner and get the best possible picture with a DVD player/recorder thrown in to boot. I chose the last option and bought the Toshiba DR560. My set-up has some drawbacks... like, if the DVD player breaks I get no TV signal while it's in the shop, and I can't record one program and watch another at the same time; but over all I'm happy with it because it is just what I need and no more. If you have a similar set-up and have questions of a more specific nature, I'd be glad to respond. 2. The QAM tuner should allow you to receive and record unscrambled digital cable channels directly, without renting a set-top box. Cable providers don't advertise this, and some may even insist that it isn't true; but they are required by the FCC to provide rebroadcasts of locally broadcast programs in analog, or in unencrypted HD digital format, so that customers are not forced to rent their digital-to-analog set top boxes. You will only receive unscrambled signals of locally broadcast programs in this way, and these may vary from locale to locale. I do not have any personal experience with this set-up, but if you are interested, there is a more in depth description at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QAM_tuner. There may be other advantages to having a tuner included in the DVD recorder/player, but I wouldn't know `cause I'm not that well versed in the technology. Hope this was helpful.
1870925
This is a great recorder, and it record in high quality... I think if you just want to record conversations, you could probably find a simpler recorder. I use that all the time as musician, because I can have a real notion of how I played listen to the recording that this thing make. Yes, if you just want record conversations, it is better to find a simpler recorder... :)
153246
Actually, this unit is similar to an earlier model that I have had for years, and you should be able to watch a program on the hard drive while it is recording another program. You would not be able to record a program and watch a different program that has not been prerecorded on your hard drive unless it had two tuners. But if you are watching a program that is on the hard drive and had been recorded earlier, it should not affect the ability of the unit to record using its tuner. Since I don't have this unit, I can't really say conclusively.
1995339
The system itself only transmits the sound, it does not record. You could presumably plug the tuner into a computer and record from there as if it were any other microphone.
1117271
i am very happy with the receiver but i do not use the tuner function...sorry
1283680
I have spent the last two weeks trying to find an external TV tuner that is ready for the digital TV next February. I have searched all over the internet. I am also looking for a stand alone tuner. I have found analog standalone's. I have found digital usb tuners. But I have not found a digital standalone. I gave in and ordered a $40 coupon from dtv.gov so that I can buy a digital converter and use the analog tuner. Hope this helps! Dave
1534094
Not sure I fully understand the question (what does "sons" mean, for example?), but if you are simply asking why you would go with a 'stand alone' digital recorder, and why, perhaps, the Zoom R16 in particular, I can think of several reasons/advantages of considering this in addition to a computer: 1. Portability - if your computer is not a laptop, or if your computer is a laptop and it is your main computer and you do not like to 'risk' it leaving your abode, then something like the Zoom R16 is portable. 2. Easy ergonomics - having faders that you can pull up and down provides the kind of balance/adjustment that some people prefer - easier to adjust for some people than grabbing a computer mouse, or clicking to an electronic option on some digital recorders. 3. Unlike a lot of other 'stand alone' recorders', the R16 provides multiple functions - it is 'stand alone' recorder; it can function as an audio interface, and it can function as an audio control surface (i.e., provide control, via the faders, of your computer recording software). This means that the R16 has several advantages over carrying around an audio interface (which can only act as a conduit for sound sources), and a laptop. 4. The built in microphones are actually surprisingly good, and one can activate them very quickly which is handy for capturing songwriting ideas, and/or band rehearsals. 5. Unlike some other stand alone digital recorders, the Zoom R16 records directly to .WAV format - not a proprietary format - so transfer of files to a computer is easy. 6. The compressor is really good on this unit. Those are most of the reasons that I can think of that one might want this unit. The only major disadvantage that I can think of is that the R16 does not have drum machine built in, which I would dearly have loved for songwriting purposes. (And its more elaborative stable mate, the R24, has a drum program which is not the easiest to use). I hope that this has been useful. GVDV.
1970356
So did you ever solve your tuner problem? I hooked mine to my cable box to record programs that would fill in my cable co. DVR or did you try connecting this to one of the $40 government ATSC to analog boxes?
1430643
All I know is my Magnavox tuner/recorder is hooked up to a HDTV (High Def) & when I play back the recordings which were recorded on the recorder (saved to the recorder's hard drive), I cannot tell the difference from my live TV regarding high level of quality. For a better answer I suggest you contact Magnavox customer service & ask them. No doubt they have that answer & they have answered that before.
438683
The guitar does not have a built in tuner, but there is a tuner that comes with the whole package. It's not built into the guitar. It is as helpful as a built in tuner.
2265995
you can't compare the two. The tuners technology is made for a specific use. based on my findings I have not experienced any dropouts or slow buffering just great consistent sound.
111342
I am looking into this product, also. Do I need a tuner? I have Directv with goes directly into tv. If I want to watch on dvd on my current player, I have to hit source on the tv. Would I be able to record tv this way? Nothing has explained if a tuner only works with cable and not directv.
1465344
It's a wonderful tuner! Especially for a guitar maker to set up nut and saddle compensation. Clip on tuners don't have this level of real time sensitivity.
280518
The channels above 150 are fully digital channels. Therefore they cannot be tuned in without a digital tuner. The tuner built into the recorder is analog only.
1927033
I currently use 3 different models constantly (for hours everyday) and my favourite is Magnavox MDR533H/F7 Hard Disc Drive and DVD Recorder (2013 Model), with it you can record to an internal hard disk drive or onto a dvd ( I use the rerecordable DVDs over and over so I never miss a thing) you can also dub between drives in either direction and watch a drive while recording at the same time. Maybe the most impressive thing to me about this is that one SUNDAY afternoon I had a problem with the unit after a power outage and I called the 800 number which is prominently displayed on the manual and remote, actually expecting to get a recording if anything at all, instead I got a live technician that lived in the USA, spoke perfect English and understood the product enough to perfectly resolve the issue.. ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON!! I'll definitely get another one. The Iview that you apparently are looking at is ok too but rudimentary in odd ways and you must supply your own USB HDD and not sure if you can rig it to record on a DVD Haven't tried that yet, but the tuner is fast when flipping through channels. Good Luck!!
1115518
if you have the original set, you can only record 1 at a time. the set has just 1 tuner. depending on the size of your hard drive is how much space you have. I have 1 tbite and have not ran out of space. had this set for 9 months, and still think it is worth the $
1129433
Product has two tuners, one is analog and the other digital. They both produce clear, crisp pictures although the digital, of course, is considerably better. Our recorder is connected to cable with a limited number of digital channels. Our recordings have been quite good, near the quality of the live broadcast; of course the speed you choose for recording has a lot to do with it, too. The 500 GB model provides considerable space for a lot of recordings, and since I have several programs that are recorded daily or weekly, I appreciate the ability to just select them to not record rather than having to delete it from the que. The one problem we've experienced twice thus far is that it recorded a channel other than the one that was programmed. We're also having an issue with the sound. While it's in the midst of recording, we wanted to watch a previously recorded program. We got the picture but no sound, and there was no sound coming from the program that it was recording. Still working on resolving it. The recorder has a lot of capabilities that I haven't even attempted yet. Overall we're quite satisfied with it.