# TiVo OTA can be a basic cable DVR!



## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

I just got my Roamio OTA ($10 from BB with Reward points!) and when I started it up and did guided setup I made sure that I left my tuning adapter connected to it. I selected the express custom installer set up and and it went through as a cable signal instead of over the air. I went through the entire guided set up and it asked for my ZIP Code and then it asked which guide I would be using so I selected my local expanded digital guide. I went all the way through and tested the TA channels that I received and it was basically everything that is in the clear digitally, including the SDV channels I think, because I got MSNBC which I know I only get with a TA on my activated R+. I disconnected the TA and reconnected it to my existing Roamio plus and then I played around with the OTA unit and it was as everyone said, I couldn't do much. All I could do is watch live TV and surf through the channels but I couldn't do any manual recordings and when I hit the guide button it said to activate service just like everything else, so then I decided to reconnect the TA and voilà the guide started working as normal and I could go through the entire guide, select shows, go into the future and select shows to record, as well as select a show currently on to record. I couldn't set up season/onepasses or anything but I could do all the manually selected guide recording I wanted to and it recorded as requested and it is in my shows as normal. This is ALL without a TiVo subscription!

I think this may be a good cheap solution for someone that has Internet and basic cable bundled together for a cheap price ($49, no monthly fee) and just wants a basic DVR they can set manually with a good guide and everything. It acts just like a regular cable box now but with the option of manually setting up recordings in the Guide! I think all you will have to do is tell your cable company that you have a TiVo and you need a tuning adapter so the clear QAM channels can get mapped correctly. I did this when I had basic cable with DirecTV and an old TiVo and they gave it to me no problem even though I only had the basic lifeline cable package.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

Nice. Using the tuning adapter to handle the channel mapping for clear-QAM channels on the OTA is a great trick to know about, since you can't just use an ebay Cablecard to handle the channel mapping like you can with other Roamios. Really, it's even better since you can also access any unencrypted SDV channels. Some cable companies might not even think to encrypt the SDV channels, since they probably haven't thought about people using a tuning adapter in this way.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

tarheelblue32 said:


> Nice. Using the tuning adapter to handle the channel mapping for clear-QAM channels on the OTA is a great trick to know about, since you can't just use an ebay Cablecard to handle the channel mapping like you can with other Roamios. Really, it's even better since you can also access any unencrypted SDV channels. Some cable companies might not even think to encrypt the SDV channels, since they probably haven't thought about people using a tuning adapter in this way.


Yeah, that's kind of what gave me the thought to try it. 

I also checked out the Cablecard slot and the female connector is still there on the motherboard. The Cablecard menu also still shows up in the menus. Now I'm curious if I can just buy an SD Card angled male->male connector, if they exist, and try one of my eBay cablecards in it too.

I just wonder what will happen to the guide after the 7 day trial. It shows 6 days remaining in the Account Info screen. Did the guide actually come from the TA, or did the TA just unlock the restrictions on the TiVo and allow it to be shown and used, eg.....a bug? Hmmmmmmm


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

HarperVision said:


> Yeah, that's kind of what gave me the thought to try it.
> 
> I also checked out the Cablecard slot and the female connector is still there on the motherboard. The Cablecard menu also still shows up in the menus. Now I'm curious if I can just buy an SD Card angled male->male connector, if they exist, and try one of my eBay cablecards in it too.
> 
> I just wonder what will happen to the guide after the 7 day trial. It shows 6 days remaining in the Account Info screen. Did the guide actually come from the TA, or did the TA just unlock the restrictions on the TiVo and allow it to be shown and used, eg.....a bug? Hmmmmmmm


I don't know. Maybe the guide data wasn't able to be displayed because the channels weren't mapped correctly and that's why you got the error message?

It would be very interesting if you could actually get the CableCard slot to function.


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## mrizzo80 (Apr 17, 2012)

The Guide data is definitely not coming from the TA. It will disappear when your grace period expires in 6 days.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

tarheelblue32 said:


> I don't know. Maybe the guide data wasn't able to be displayed because the channels weren't mapped correctly and that's why you got the error message? It would be very interesting if you could actually get the CableCard slot to function.


idk tho, that's not the message I got. It was just one saying that I needed to activate service, which cleared once I reconnected the TA.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

mrizzo80 said:


> The Guide data is definitely not coming from the TA. It will disappear when your grace period expires in 6 days.


Yeah, that's my though too. Nothing is stopping you from activating service on it though and still having a cheap DVR for basic cable that doesn't need a Cablecard and as a bonus that would unlock all the other TiVo features like streaming, Onepass, mini support, stream support, etc.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

HarperVision said:


> idk tho, that's not the message I got. It was just one saying that I needed to activate service, which cleared once I reconnected the TA.


Maybe it meant cable TV service, not TiVo service. Or maybe it just gave you that error message as the default because TiVo never programmed in an error message for "please reattach the tuning adapter so I can receive the channel map".


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## heifer624 (Jul 12, 2009)

I suspect you'll have a spare $10 hard drive after the 7 day trial.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

heifer624 said:


> I suspect you'll have a spare $10 hard drive after the 7 day trial.


Hey, you forgot it comes with a Roamio remote too!


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## heifer624 (Jul 12, 2009)

You got me! Keep us posted on what happens on day eight.


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## HarperVision (May 14, 2007)

Those are actually the reasons I got it, not to actually use it unless I decide to go OTA, which is a capability I lost when I went to the Plus.


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