Video Capture Cards

[James N.]

Ok, here it is... Bare with me, it's been a while since I built my own system. Were talking Pentium 4 days! Yeah, I'm that old! Not quite up to date on all the new tech. I'm building a new system and I want to stick a video capture card in it but not sure how they work. Although I do like the ability for streaming but, that is not the reason why. Basically. I want to run the video from the cable tv box though it and have it available on my screen while I do other things like surfing the net. Back in the day I had an ATI card that would do this. Kind of like picture in picture type setup. Worked great! Is this still possible with new capture cards?

 

Thank you for your time!

Game on!

James N.

[ShureBob]

Thats a tricky one, does your cable service stream online as well? I have something similar but i can access a livestream of the channels live over the internet, i dont know if you have foxtel now where you are but thats the only option i can think of

[James N.]

My ISP also provides a service kind of like that. However, last time I tried it, it would only play back shows that I had already recorded. Good thought though! Thanks!

[harryk]

Does your cable box output an HDMI signal or coax? Elgato is one big brand for capture cards these days with both PCIe cards and USB devices. But honestly for the cost of a good capture card you could purchase a second monitor or small TV.

[James N.]

Yes, it has a HDMI output. Just need a way to get the video into the computer and display it. I just don't know how the video shows on the computer though. Does it display in something like a media player? Can it show video while i'm doing other things on the computer? Stuff like that. As you can see in the pic I have a big enough tv that I can do a lot on the same screen. No need or room for a monitor.

 

[revdv]

Nice game station !)

[James N.]

Thanks revdv! Did all the woodwork myself.

[revdv]

1 minute ago, James N. said:

Thanks revdv! Did all the woodwork myself.

Skillful hands !!!

[LogicalDrm]

-> Moved to Peripherals

***

 

Capture cards will take in video signal from another device. Usually they are used in livestreaming or similar setups where you want to stream/record consoles or video cameras. Picture-in-picture mode is also possible, if you find software that works for you. Usually you would rather get monitor with multiple inputs for that.

[James N.]

43 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

-> Moved to Peripherals

***

 

Capture cards will take in video signal from another device. Usually they are used in livestreaming or similar setups where you want to stream/record consoles or video cameras. Picture-in-picture mode is also possible, if you find software that works for you. Usually you would rather get monitor with multiple inputs for that.

Ok, as you can see an additional monitor is not an option. I was thinking about my original old school solution. This has made me think more about the ATI card that I mentioned above. That was actually a tv tuner card. So, I'm looking into those right now. I see they do have ones with rca inputs and my cable box has rca outputs in addition to the HDMI output. I know this would not be the best picture quality but, If I just want to kick back and watch cable and not use the computer I can always switch over to the HDMI inputs on the tv. Heck, for $32 it might be worth a try. If you come up with any other ideas, feel free to fill me in. Thanks for the help, I do appreciate it!