Just in time for the holidays - a quick guide to recording your favorite TV shows and converting them into PSP compatible format. I decided to share this with the community because it's hands down the coolest thing to come to a PSP since Lumines. (In my opinion of course. 
)
What you will need
1) A decent computer (minimum of 1.2 Ghz CPU - 512 RAM - 40GB HD - Windows XP)
2) A PSP
3) A video capture card (prefferably the Hauppauge PVR 150 or the Hauppauge PVR USB2)
4) GB-PVR (Completely Free PVR software Download From Here)
What this guide assumes
1) That you are willing to RTFM. I'm only going to cover the broad concepts. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have but I expect you to take the time to educate yourself. You'd be amazed just how much more you'll be able to get out of the products I am introducing to you with just a little reading.
2) That you know how to work on a computer. In order to keep your costs under $100 you will have to purchase the PCI version of the capture card I listed above. If you aren't comfortable with digging into the guts of a PC then expect to shell out another $50 for the USB model. (The USB model is excellent by the way. I own one and love it!) Also, installing software shouldn't be difficult for you.
3) That you know how to transfer files to your PSP. Self explanatory me thinks...
4) That you have analog cable. The cards above will record both over-the-air broadcast television and analog cable. This guide doesn't go into Digital Cable recording (mainly because congress and the FCC have made it nearly impossible for consumers to control the content they pay for but that off topic.) If you have digital cable at home, there is a good chance that the analog signal is also coming in. Just plug that coax directly into a cable ready TV. If you get a picture, you have analog cable.
Ok, now that we have the ground rules established, lets get on with it.
For those of you who don't know, A PVR (personal video recorder) is basically a digital version of your VCR. The only difference is that your recorded content is stored on a hard drive. TiVo and ReplayTV are consumer versions of this. Unfortunately, these "all-in-one" solutions are usually accompanied by some sort of subscription fee.
Enter GB-PVR. A free program designed to turn your multitalented PC into a PVR powerhouse. This program will allow you to watch, pause, rewind, and fast forward televisions shows just like a TiVo with one big difference, it's completely FREE!
Now, in order to get your recording groove on, you will need to purchase a video capture card. Keep in mind that not all cards are created equal. I'm sure many of you have seen capture cards being sold online and at B&M stores for much less than $100. The difference between those cards and the ones we need for this setup is simple, hardware encoding. Those cheapass cards use a software video encoder that forces your CPU to do all of the work whereas a true PVR card does all of the work itself. This is especially important for those of you with PC's whose specs are on the low end (see above for what that means.) Put simply, don't skimp on the capture card. (Hey, a capture card is a good thing to put on a Christmas list.)
Ok, so like any good cheapass, you've hit pricegrabber and picked up one of the two cards I recommended above. (GB-PVR supports other cards as well but cards from this manufacturer work the best.) Now get that puppy installed and make sure it works with the default TV application, WinTV. Assuming everything is working, we can go on to the next step, installing GB-PVR.
Download GB-PVR from the link I posted above and install it. Make sure you have .Net Framework 1.1 and MDAC 2.6 (for Windows 2000 users) installed prior to installing GB-PVR. All of this software can be located from links on the main GB-PVR webpage.
Once installed, you will need to setup your capture source. Immediately following the GB-PVR installation, the configuration menu will appear. From here you can setup your capture source. Click on the Capture Sources tab and press the Add Button to create a new Capture Source.
On the Create Capture Source screen, click the Settings button to the right of Recording Source. On the next screen, make sure your capture card appears as the capture card type (see screenshot below.) If your capture card doesn't automatically show up in the Capture Card Type field scroll through the pull down menu until you find your device. The remaining options are self explanatory. Click OK when finished.
Next, you want to setup your EPG (Electronic Programming Guide). (For the sake of this tutorial, we will only be working with Zap2It, a free guide service available here in the States and Canada.) To setup your EPG you will need to create an account with Zap2It labs. GB-PVR makes this simple by providing you with everything you need to do so. Simply select Zap2It as your EPG source (see screenshot below) and then click the EPG Source Settings button.
In the menu listed below you need to enter the username and password of the account you setup with Zap2It. GB-PVR will use this login information to access your personal EPG info and download it into GB-PVR. (Remember, Zap2It is your EPG provider so you have to setup the Zap2It account before GB-PVR can retrieve anything useful from Zap2It.) If you did everything correctly, GB-PVR should save the capture source as well as download and store the EPG data. (Warning: I'm being extremely general in this step. This is where RTFM will come into play.)
Now that you've configured you capture source and your EPG, you are pretty much ready to watch and record TV. Take this time to familiarize yourself with the GB-PVR interface and feature set, as well as the config menu. Once you've gotten your feet wet and have recorded some shows, go back to the config menu and access the Processing Tab.
Here is where the magic happens. The option we are most interested in is Auto Convert MPG recordings. Select SonyPSP from this pull down menu then set the time you want the conversion to take place. I usually select ASAP (appears in the "Start" time field if you keep pressing the up or down arrows.) After your recordings are complete, GB-PVR will convert them into a full screen MP4 file with the proper file name. Your recordings will even appear on the PSP menu with the correct name! Check the screenshots. (The weird graphic effect your see of the PSP screen is a strange side effect of taking a picture. You don't see those lines when watching the video.)
Hopefully you guys will find this as useful as I have. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have or at the very least point you in the right direction. Enjoy!
- DaPhatty
)What you will need
1) A decent computer (minimum of 1.2 Ghz CPU - 512 RAM - 40GB HD - Windows XP)
2) A PSP
3) A video capture card (prefferably the Hauppauge PVR 150 or the Hauppauge PVR USB2)
4) GB-PVR (Completely Free PVR software Download From Here)
What this guide assumes
1) That you are willing to RTFM. I'm only going to cover the broad concepts. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have but I expect you to take the time to educate yourself. You'd be amazed just how much more you'll be able to get out of the products I am introducing to you with just a little reading.
2) That you know how to work on a computer. In order to keep your costs under $100 you will have to purchase the PCI version of the capture card I listed above. If you aren't comfortable with digging into the guts of a PC then expect to shell out another $50 for the USB model. (The USB model is excellent by the way. I own one and love it!) Also, installing software shouldn't be difficult for you.
3) That you know how to transfer files to your PSP. Self explanatory me thinks...
4) That you have analog cable. The cards above will record both over-the-air broadcast television and analog cable. This guide doesn't go into Digital Cable recording (mainly because congress and the FCC have made it nearly impossible for consumers to control the content they pay for but that off topic.) If you have digital cable at home, there is a good chance that the analog signal is also coming in. Just plug that coax directly into a cable ready TV. If you get a picture, you have analog cable.
Ok, now that we have the ground rules established, lets get on with it.
For those of you who don't know, A PVR (personal video recorder) is basically a digital version of your VCR. The only difference is that your recorded content is stored on a hard drive. TiVo and ReplayTV are consumer versions of this. Unfortunately, these "all-in-one" solutions are usually accompanied by some sort of subscription fee.
Enter GB-PVR. A free program designed to turn your multitalented PC into a PVR powerhouse. This program will allow you to watch, pause, rewind, and fast forward televisions shows just like a TiVo with one big difference, it's completely FREE!
Now, in order to get your recording groove on, you will need to purchase a video capture card. Keep in mind that not all cards are created equal. I'm sure many of you have seen capture cards being sold online and at B&M stores for much less than $100. The difference between those cards and the ones we need for this setup is simple, hardware encoding. Those cheapass cards use a software video encoder that forces your CPU to do all of the work whereas a true PVR card does all of the work itself. This is especially important for those of you with PC's whose specs are on the low end (see above for what that means.) Put simply, don't skimp on the capture card. (Hey, a capture card is a good thing to put on a Christmas list.
)Ok, so like any good cheapass, you've hit pricegrabber and picked up one of the two cards I recommended above. (GB-PVR supports other cards as well but cards from this manufacturer work the best.) Now get that puppy installed and make sure it works with the default TV application, WinTV. Assuming everything is working, we can go on to the next step, installing GB-PVR.
Download GB-PVR from the link I posted above and install it. Make sure you have .Net Framework 1.1 and MDAC 2.6 (for Windows 2000 users) installed prior to installing GB-PVR. All of this software can be located from links on the main GB-PVR webpage.
Once installed, you will need to setup your capture source. Immediately following the GB-PVR installation, the configuration menu will appear. From here you can setup your capture source. Click on the Capture Sources tab and press the Add Button to create a new Capture Source.
On the Create Capture Source screen, click the Settings button to the right of Recording Source. On the next screen, make sure your capture card appears as the capture card type (see screenshot below.) If your capture card doesn't automatically show up in the Capture Card Type field scroll through the pull down menu until you find your device. The remaining options are self explanatory. Click OK when finished.
Next, you want to setup your EPG (Electronic Programming Guide). (For the sake of this tutorial, we will only be working with Zap2It, a free guide service available here in the States and Canada.) To setup your EPG you will need to create an account with Zap2It labs. GB-PVR makes this simple by providing you with everything you need to do so. Simply select Zap2It as your EPG source (see screenshot below) and then click the EPG Source Settings button.
In the menu listed below you need to enter the username and password of the account you setup with Zap2It. GB-PVR will use this login information to access your personal EPG info and download it into GB-PVR. (Remember, Zap2It is your EPG provider so you have to setup the Zap2It account before GB-PVR can retrieve anything useful from Zap2It.) If you did everything correctly, GB-PVR should save the capture source as well as download and store the EPG data. (Warning: I'm being extremely general in this step. This is where RTFM will come into play.)
Now that you've configured you capture source and your EPG, you are pretty much ready to watch and record TV. Take this time to familiarize yourself with the GB-PVR interface and feature set, as well as the config menu. Once you've gotten your feet wet and have recorded some shows, go back to the config menu and access the Processing Tab.
Here is where the magic happens. The option we are most interested in is Auto Convert MPG recordings. Select SonyPSP from this pull down menu then set the time you want the conversion to take place. I usually select ASAP (appears in the "Start" time field if you keep pressing the up or down arrows.) After your recordings are complete, GB-PVR will convert them into a full screen MP4 file with the proper file name. Your recordings will even appear on the PSP menu with the correct name! Check the screenshots. (The weird graphic effect your see of the PSP screen is a strange side effect of taking a picture. You don't see those lines when watching the video.)
Hopefully you guys will find this as useful as I have. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have or at the very least point you in the right direction. Enjoy!
- DaPhatty
Nice find.
