# Roamio with no cable card?



## Gregg 00SS (Aug 26, 2005)

I know I'm asking for a miracle, but has anyone had success using a Roamio Plus with no cable card? We close on our new house next week and we just stopped by the local cable provider (Hometown Cable) and I'm now depressed, lol.

I previously used Comcast but HTC has a monopoly on the community we are moving into seeing they ran fiber lines for the entire development. So it is either them or satellite. They do not offer cable cards so I think I'm pretty much screwed when it comes to my Tivos unless someone knows a work around. 

HTC offers a "whole house" DVR but the lady I talked to in the office was clue less. She thinks it only allows 2 channels to be recorded at a time and could not give me a model # or any type of reference so I could look it up online and education myself a little better. The main reason I switched to Tivo from Comcast DVR was Comcast's menu structure sucked. With what I've seen so far, I'm expecting the same or worse with HTC's if go that route.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

Gregg 00SS said:


> I know I'm asking for a miracle, but has anyone had success using a Roamio Plus with no cable card? We close on our new house next week and we just stopped by the local cable provider (Hometown Cable) and I'm now depressed, lol.
> 
> I previously used Comcast but HTC has a monopoly on the community we are moving into seeing they ran fiber lines for the entire development. So it is either them or satellite. They do not offer cable cards so I think I'm pretty much screwed when it comes to my Tivos unless someone knows a work around.
> 
> HTC offers a "whole house" DVR but the lady I talked to in the office was clue less. She thinks it only allows 2 channels to be recorded at a time and could not give me a model # or any type of reference so I could look it up online and education myself a little better. The main reason I switched to Tivo from Comcast DVR was Comcast's menu structure sucked. With what I've seen so far, I'm expecting the same or worse with HTC's if go that route.


Where are you located?


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## Wattsline (Apr 27, 2015)

Gregg 00SS said:


> I know I'm asking for a miracle, but has anyone had success using a Roamio Plus with no cable card? We close on our new house next week and we just stopped by the local cable provider (Hometown Cable) and I'm now depressed, lol.
> 
> I previously used Comcast but HTC has a monopoly on the community we are moving into seeing they ran fiber lines for the entire development. So it is either them or satellite. They do not offer cable cards so I think I'm pretty much screwed when it comes to my Tivos unless someone knows a work around.
> 
> HTC offers a "whole house" DVR but the lady I talked to in the office was clue less. She thinks it only allows 2 channels to be recorded at a time and could not give me a model # or any type of reference so I could look it up online and education myself a little better. The main reason I switched to Tivo from Comcast DVR was Comcast's menu structure sucked. With what I've seen so far, I'm expecting the same or worse with HTC's if go that route.


By FCC law they have to provide you a cable card. Are you sure they don't have them?


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## kokishin (Sep 9, 2014)

AIUI, the FCC requires all Cable TV providers to provide cablecards on request. If HTC cannot provide you a cablecard, report them to the FCC.



Gregg 00SS said:


> I know I'm asking for a miracle, but has anyone had success using a Roamio Plus with no cable card? We close on our new house next week and we just stopped by the local cable provider (Hometown Cable) and I'm now depressed, lol.
> 
> I previously used Comcast but HTC has a monopoly on the community we are moving into seeing they ran fiber lines for the entire development. So it is either them or satellite. They do not offer cable cards so I think I'm pretty much screwed when it comes to my Tivos unless someone knows a work around.
> 
> HTC offers a "whole house" DVR but the lady I talked to in the office was clue less. She thinks it only allows 2 channels to be recorded at a time and could not give me a model # or any type of reference so I could look it up online and education myself a little better. The main reason I switched to Tivo from Comcast DVR was Comcast's menu structure sucked. With what I've seen so far, I'm expecting the same or worse with HTC's if go that route.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

I wonder. Does that rule apply when you are buying the cable/fiber from a HOA and it gets the feed by bulk purchase? Also, does Zap2It have a listing for the zipcode & provider?


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

And is it fiber using QAM, like FiOS, or is it supplying the video via IP like AT&T U-Verse does it? If the latter then a cablecard TiVo won't work.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

JoeKustra said:


> I wonder. Does that rule apply when you are buying the cable/fiber from a HOA and it gets the feed by bulk purchase? Also, does Zap2It have a listing for the zipcode & provider?


Yes, if they have their own guide and the channels match up to the raw clear QAM channels, then you can use it without a cablecard as normal. You just say you'll get a cablecard later when asked in guided setup, then after it's done, do a cable channel scan in the Channels menu.


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## Gregg 00SS (Aug 26, 2005)

I'll be living in Tradition in Port St Lucie,Fl. I will look into the FCC ruling, not that I expect that to get me too far. I went back to the office again today and asked about cable cards and was told by totally different person they didn't have them. 

System is fiber optic for entire community to include cable/internet/alarm/phone.


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## telemark (Nov 12, 2013)

Knowing the manufacturer / model number of their "whole home DVR" would go a long way to figuring out an answer.

Time to meet your neighbors.

In general, fiber runs can give great internet.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

Gregg 00SS said:


> I'll be living in Tradition in Port St Lucie,Fl. I will look into the FCC ruling, not that I expect that to get me too far. I went back to the office again today and asked about cable cards and was told by totally different person they didn't have them.
> 
> System is fiber optic for entire community to include cable/internet/alarm/phone.


I think you should take a look at their website.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Based on a quick Google search it sounds like they use IPTV which is not compatible with TiVo. So even without a CableCARD it probably wont work.


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## kdmorse (Jan 29, 2001)

telemark said:


> Knowing the manufacturer / model number of their "whole home DVR" would go a long way to figuring out an answer.


Looks like an Entone Hydra/Amulet video over ip distribution system from the manuals on their web site. But it's hard to know for sure.


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## jmbach (Jan 1, 2009)

Based on the limited information about their system I found so far on their web site, I think it is IP based like at&t so you are probably out of luck. Go into their office and ask them to see one of their units and ask them how does it hook up. If all it requires is an Ethernet cable to get the video, then you are definitely out of luck.


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## telemark (Nov 12, 2013)

We're all taking about Home Town Cable Plus?
The reviews are not pretty.
https://plus.google.com/112507722303886754582/about?hl=en&gl=us
http://www.yelp.com/biz/home-town-cable-plus-port-saint-lucie

One place calls it SDV and PON
http://www.te.com/content/dam/te/gl...m-case-study-home-town-cable-plus-1288842.pdf
One spec said those boxes can do QAM.
If I had to guess, I'd guess basic cable to be analog and clear QAM, and the other packages require hardware.
One way to find out is ask if a HD Cable Ready TV requires a set top box.
Or disconnecting the ethernet on a working box. See what still tunes.

Does your unit face the right direction for satellite? I'd think that's SW.

The FCC's been trying to get rid of exclusivity contracts. I haven't been following it closely but there's news now and then.
http://www.broadbandlawadvisor.com/...-deployment/disputes-over-mdu-access-persist/
I'd call Comcast, see if they've managed to gain entry.


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## leswar (Apr 14, 2005)

..and this:
Passive Optical Network may seem to be an immediate solution for solving the backbone connectivity need that is relatively simple. However, what people are not aware of is that Passive solutions impose significant difficulties as the network evolves. Passive Optical Networks tend to be very complex to manage as they grow which is due to the dispersion of the optics in several different layer-2 switches, routers and ADMs at different physical locations and/or departments of the organization.

This results in challenging maintenance, network expansion and fault isolations of problems that may occur down the road. In addition, it imposes many restrictions. One such restriction is the requirement of using vendor specific optics that are often very expensive and prevent the WDM back bone infrastructure to be vendor agnostic.
http://www.packetlight.com/technology/white-papers/active-passive-optical-networks


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## Gregg 00SS (Aug 26, 2005)

Unfortunately y'all were right. My cable is IP based and uses an Ethernet cable for signal vs standard coaxial. I've played around with both of my Tivos trying to get it work with and without a cable card I have from previous cable company that is still active and no luck. Sucks because I really hate their dvr's after using Tivo's for many years. Anyone happen to know of any decent aftermarket dvr's out there that would work with IPTV, or whatever it is called?


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## b-ball-fanatic (Aug 5, 2003)

Satellite's not an option? It's certainly no TiVo, but DirectTV's DVRs aren't horrible, and I suspect their PQ should be at least as good as the IP system.

That's really too bad the community has "closed" service like that. I've known a few other people in similar situations....not to be overly-dramatic about it, but it just seems so..."un-American."


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## telemark (Nov 12, 2013)

What's on the coax? Are you saying there's no coax anywhere?


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## abovethesink (Aug 26, 2013)

I would just switch to satellite. Both DirectTV and Dish Network have pretty good DVR options. Comparable to a Roamio anyway. I would do some research and see what would work better for you. Hopefully you do not have anything obstructing a potential dish.


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## jsherknus (Jan 2, 2009)

Dan203 said:


> Based on a quick Google search it sounds like they use IPTV which is not compatible with TiVo. So even without a CableCARD it probably wont work.


Bottom line is TiVo needs to get on the stick and allow IPTV channels on the back end. An IPTV source is just an m3u playlist with URLs that point to the channel. If TiVo is capable of using a stream from a cablecard an IPTV stream is a no brainier...its not even encrypted...it's just a h.264 or h.265 stream. TiVo should also uncouple their guide data from the providers and allow you an a-la-carte guide where you can map the epg data to individual IPTV channels. This would give TiVo users greater flexibility.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

jsherknus said:


> Bottom line is TiVo needs to get on the stick and allow IPTV channels on the back end. An IPTV source is just an m3u playlist with URLs that point to the channel. If TiVo is capable of using a stream from a cablecard an IPTV stream is a no brainier...its not even encrypted...it's just a h.264 or h.265 stream. TiVo should also uncouple their guide data from the providers and allow you an a-la-carte guide where you can map the epg data to individual IPTV channels. This would give TiVo users greater flexibility.


If that's true then this system is not typical. Most IPTV systems are encrypted using proprietary technologies that TiVo is not allowed to access unless they have the cooperation of the MSO.


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## eherberg (Feb 17, 2011)

He's not referring to a legit IPTV system - he's referring to those resellers (usually foreign) who sell pirated streams of channels for $5 - $10 a month that can be played via Kodi.


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

JoeKustra said:


> I wonder. Does that rule apply when you are buying the cable/fiber from a HOA and it gets the feed by bulk purchase? Also, does Zap2It have a listing for the zipcode & provider?


wouldn't it be tvguide.com now since rovi bought tivo?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ajwees41 said:


> wouldn't it be tvguide.com now since rovi bought tivo?


That post was from 2 years ago. And Screener (zap2it) gets its data from Nielsen now.


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## johnfasc (Dec 24, 2014)

You probably don't want to hear this but for what its worth do a antenna scan, I use DTV antenna app. Then save a lot of money and go OTA. That along with the likes of netflix, amazon tv etc. who needs cable or satellite anymore...you would only need a high speed internet connection..


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

johnfasc said:


> You probably don't want to hear this but for what its worth do a antenna scan, I use DTV antenna app. Then save a lot of money and go OTA. That along with the likes of netflix, amazon tv etc. who needs cable or satellite anymore...you would only need a high speed internet connection..


People like me need cable or satellite.

TV Fool


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## jsherknus (Jan 2, 2009)

eherberg said:


> He's not referring to a legit IPTV system - he's referring to those resellers (usually foreign) who sell pirated streams of channels for $5 - $10 a month that can be played via Kodi.


That's not 100% true because many cable channels offer android apps where you can watch their live stream, either for free, by giving them your email and personal info, OR you login with your cable provider login and can watch the channel. We are moving past the typical physical TV provider model, and as 5G cell service rolls out, even more cord cutting will occur. In fact many cell companies are giving you HBO now on your cell phones...like T-mobile. Tivo should really examine the KODI model and see how they could monitize that to their benefit, and fast!


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## jsherknus (Jan 2, 2009)

eherberg said:


> He's not referring to a legit IPTV system - he's referring to those resellers (usually foreign) who sell pirated streams of channels for $5 - $10 a month that can be played via Kodi.


Tivo is just a tool. It's mainly a device for recording TV streams and providing accurate guide data. Tivo shouldn't give a crap where the streams are coming from...even if it is an overseas IP ts stream. You can watch YouTube and Crackle on your Tivo (it's just an app).

It's just like recording the Superbowl with a Sony VCR. You don't sue Sony because someone made a copy of the Superbowl game...you sue the guy that copied it, and actually you don't sue him, unless he plays it for the public...or charges people to see it.

If Tivo doesn't get moving on IPTV, they will soon be obsolete. Companies like Roku, Tivo, Kodi, etc. should be embracing IPTV not avoiding it. Even Plex already supports IPTV streams!


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