HDTV TUNER Questions- Which setup will do what I need?

[watchmainspring]

I really really want to watch sports channels on HD. I am considering buying an HDLCDTV, but I have the 24" dell which could very well do the trick. If I am to use this monitor I see several options.

1. Purchase a Non-computer oriented HD Tuner
I would want to purchase a HDTV tuner, from an electronics store, and connect it to the HD input on the rear of my LCD tv. I purchased one of these before, but I could only get the HD chanels and not regular cable. I might have just been doing it wrong, but I felt confident. What my college dorm has the standard co-ax cable emit both HD and regular cable. I plugged this into the rear of the box, and then plugged to box into the rear of the monitor. We only got HD channels Does anyone know of a TV tuner that supports cable AND HDTV. All these boxes that they market are very deceptive. What good are these boxes if you only get like 8 channels!!!!???!!

2. Purchase an HD Tuner from Eyetv
I really hate having to use computer resources to watch tv. This is my last straw. Does the EYETV HD tuner allow cable channels too?

Thanks guys!

 

[watchmainspring]

anyone?

 

[Peyton]

wait til tonight, it will get busy then.

 

[xparaparafreakx]

I thought the boxes were able to get both. Oh well I can't help you because in my house I buy T.V. with the HDTV tunner in them and the living room even has the cable card thing too. Usually college dorms do not carry HD cable.
As of this moment, I do not see a HDTV cable tunner.

Form the eye tv site, "Delivers both free-to-air channels via digital antenna (ATSC) and free/unencrypted channels digital cable (Clear QAM) television."

 

[nws0291]

you cannot revieve cable and HDTV on the same box unless it is from your cable company. Channels like espn HD and HBOHD are encrypted and will not come in on a seperat tuner box or quam tuner. I have the myHD130 card for my pc and from time to time i get some hd channels from time warner but not much. The only thing that quam is good for is to use your cable line to get perfect signal strength if you have basic cable. If you have no cable then you have to use the antenna to recieve OTA HD. if you need more information then check out www.avsforum.com for some good HDTV info on tuners and cards for your computer.

P.S. the price you pay to get HD is high but its the same reason we buy mac stuff because of the quality