Login at Kodi Home

Stevio · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-04, 17:58 by Stevio.)

Hi, I've been meaning to setup a home theatre PC to do everything for years, but unfortunately there is no chipset or small low power graphics card to do everything. So I am looking at Nvidia Shield TV or other Android box. But how do I set up a 4-5 TV tuner recording solution on them?

The cheapest Android USB TV stick I have seen is around $15 (still not cheap enough). Any cheap suggestions?

I understand normal PC USB tuners (starting much cheaper and I have three already) don't work because of a lack of drivers. Any progress?

I was thinking that I could run an Linux overlaid OS (like they did with Ubuntu on Android, where the calls are routed and translated to Android calls) without rooting the device, and then run Linux software and usb TV drivers, but it seems that all Linux implementations can't use the Nvidia special hardware which puts out processing acceleration and playback of bluray or uhd bluray files (you would think with the sandboxed overlaid OS they would pass playback etc to Android to play on screen). A rooted linux is not out of the question. Any thoughts on if these things will be possible, and how to achieve them?

An interesting thought, is there software to play linux drivers?

Are there any cheap multi tuner Android boxes out there? I do mean to play files from my bluray collection, h265/files from my uhd bluray disks (one day) over HDMI 2a to a good HDR Rec2020 TV.

That is about all I can think of relevant to the issue. If anybody has any other insights, please let me know?

Thank you.

Stevio · 2015-12-03, 03:17

Bump

**katsup** · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-03, 03:54 by katsup.)

I don't think you can do that with Android yet. You are better off getting something like a Chromebox and running the tuners under linux.

Make sure the channels you wish to play/record are not encrypted.

noggin · 2015-12-03, 04:31

Tuner support in Android is very limited. Better off running a TV tuner backend on a Linux (or Windows) box, and using the Android box just as a PVR Client.

RockerC · 2015-12-03, 15:11

Read the answers to similar questions asked previously in these threads:

http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=...ND+android
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=...ND+android
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=...ND+android
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=...ND+android

Summery; Kodi is just a frontend/client which can not directly recieve and tune television signals itself, so you need a third-party "PVR backend" (TV tuner server) software that does the job of signal tuning, and there is no such software available for Android as of yet which is compatible to work as a "PVR backend" (TV tuner server) for Kodi.

For now your best option is to build your own TV tuning server to connect the TV tuner adapters/controllers to and run the "PVR backend" software on. One relativly easy option to do so is to buy a Raspberry Pi 2 and install OpenELEC as it includes Tvheadend and VDR which are two solutions for this.

Stevio · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-03, 21:03 by Stevio.)

Yes, that is what I was asking about, set up a backend. I read somebody was working on software for it. ButbI can't just buy 3 android USB tuners and get them to work? Looking at ordering a nvidia shield TV today.

Thanks.

**bry** · 2015-12-03, 21:22

may want to look into http://www.silicondust.com/hdhomerun/ they are releasing a DVR service very shortly.

https://www.silicondust.com/shop/

noggin · 2015-12-03, 22:41

(2015-12-03, 21:02)Stevio Wrote: Yes, that is what I was asking about, set up a backend. I read somebody was working on software for it. ButbI can't just buy 3 android USB tuners and get them to work? Looking at ordering a nvidia shield TV today.

Thanks.

As mentioned above - there isn't a real 'Android tuner' solution that delivers what is needed for a Kodi PVR back-end. The HD Homerun is a networked solution which MAY have some support in Android Kodi (without recording), and their new DVR system may change this. Not sure.

Most of us just build a separate backend. Android currently isn't a great solution for running this stuff.

Stevio · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-04, 08:09 by Stevio.)

Yes, looked at that, an expensive way of doing it. I wanted android to be a cheap compact hdmi2 all round solution in a single unit presenting less of a fire hazard if I'm away for a month or two. Once I start doing all this, I might as well make an Atom unit (but the right solution for HDMI 2 and bluray 4k is going to require at least a dp to HDMI 2 circuitry, or going to a bigger non atom unit and using a Nvidia 750 card to get h265 10 bit decoding, a lot bigger and extra expense. The power supply to run the Nvidia GPU card and MB greatly increases the power supply and restricts the cases you can use.

I had read somebody was working on backend drivers to hookup normal USB tuners, but don't know what happened to that. I've tried to talk about the possibility of using a Linux layer on top of android running Linux drivers and translating to native andriod api and the Nvidia accelerated functionality that is restricted in current rooted Linux versions running on shield. But Andriod Linux is not my area, so don't know how to do it myself.

Andriod is not as bad as it seems for recording potential. Older versions were clunky and basically the commodore 64 of the windows dominated world. Newer versions, starting around 4.0 started cleaning this up, with art engine, and then 5 and shortly 6, with some convergence talk between android and chrome os. But they really need to enable users to install sandboxed linux drivers, like hiwbI saidbabove, and to run full Linux programs sand boxed, as most of the andriod stuff is not sufficent for me. Now with android you can compile native machine code versions of your app, or write machine code sections, which is sufficient for program performance, then it is a matter of how much the rest of the system pulls down performance. So, somebody could do a multiple tuner back end to pickup major networks in parrallel. Shame it diesnt seem to be here.

noggin · 2015-12-04, 10:24

It's possible to run TV Headend and similar systems like DVB Logic TV Source on NAS products. That might be an avenue worth pursuing if you also have a file server? You can also run TV Headend on unRAID, or something as basic as a hacked PogoPlug (though 4 tuners might be a bit much for that). I built a simple travel tuner solution using a PogoPlug a while back.

At the moment there isn't a huge push to develop TV tuner backends for Android.

RockerC · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-04, 13:17 by RockerC.)

@Stevio;

Again read wiki http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR and http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR_backend and then specifically read the comment here http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR_backend#Android where you should note there under PVR recording software for Android that it sais:

"Sorry but there are not yet any generically compatible PVR backend software applications that runs natively on Android and have a PVR client addon for Kodi. Android is currently only added here on this page because requests and enquirers about PVR backends for Android compatible with Kodi is a frequently asked question.
If you want to get access to Live TV, EPG, and the other PVR features in Kodi running on Android today then you currently need to use an IPTV client or use a workaround such as running your PVR backend on a other a computer or device on your local network to stream the video to Kodi running on Android, (like example on a Raspberry Pi)"

Kodi is a frontend client only that needs a PVR backend (server) software, but there are no PVR backends that runs nativly on Android operating-system as of yet. This means that YOU CAN NOT connect USB TV-tuners directly to a hardware device that runs Android operating-system, at least not yet.

Not sure how much clerarer we can explain this without drawing pictures, which I won't.

Stevio · 2015-12-04, 17:56

Ok sorry, II just looked at the original post again, and I should have not put "under Kodi" in it, it was a side issue. There are USB tuners for andriod and running under Kodi is not needed, I can runnut separately alongside. We had further discussion as to how it might be possible (and that somebody is supposed to be out there. Which people can comment on what's happening if they know).

Sorry again, I was wondering why things were getting confused, wrote it too quickly.. I'll go change the original post.

noggin · 2015-12-04, 20:44

If you're not after a Kodi solution - then possibly this forum isn't the best place to be asking the question? A more Android-centric forum might work.

There are Android apps for networked (cabled and WiFi) TV tuners and a couple of USB OTG solutions for Android tablets, but in my experience they are nothing special, and don't have great functionality compared to a decent PVR backend in Kodi.

nickr · 2015-12-04, 20:58

For heaven's sake, get any old pc out of the garage/from an ex-lease seller.

Whack a big hard drive in.

Install mythbuntu.

End of problem.

Stevio · (This post was last modified: 2015-12-06, 06:28 by Stevio.)

Thanks, it was more about getting it working alongside Kodi (in the same box, just use Kodi to play recordings) and anything coming up on using within Kodi.

An old PC's not a solution (more a fire hazard) but it means more abandoning android and getting an atom PC if any come with HDMI 2a at least, but the Android would do h265 10 bit. Seems like the industry has me stuck between a rock and a hard place unless I get a big expensive computer setup. Time to go cheap until something descent is released.

Thanks for every bodies help on.this.