A rack-mounted HDHomeRun

HDHomeRun is a network-attached digital television tuner box, produced by the company SiliconDust USA, Inc.

Overview

Unlike standard set-top box (or set-top unit) appliances, HDHomeRun does not have a video output that connects directly to the user's television. It instead receives a live TV signal and then streams the decoded video over a local area network to an existing smart phone, tablet computer, smart tv, set top streaming device, computer, or game console. This allows it to stream content to multiple viewing locations.^[1]

General details

There are currently some HDHomeRun models on the market:

• single-tuner ATSC/clear QAM
• dual-tuner ATSC/Clear QAM
• dual-tuner commercial (TECH) ATSC/Clear QAM
• dual-tuner DVB-T/unencrypted DVB-C
• three tuners CableCard/Clear QAM

All models are designed to receive unencrypted digital broadcast or cable television and stream it over a network for use by any PC on the network. HDHomeRun normally receives an IP address via DHCP but will also work via an auto IP address if no DHCP server is available.

The HDHomeRun Windows driver presents the tuners as standard BDA tuners, enabling BDA-compliant applications to work with the HDHomeRun. The HDHomeRun can also be controlled via a command-line application which is available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, FreeBSD, and other POSIX-compliant operating systems. The open-source control library is available for custom applications under the LGPL.

Select retail packaged HDHomeRun units are distributed with Arcsoft TotalMedia Theatre.

Technical specifications

Compatibility

The HDHomeRun can be controlled and viewed from a wide variety of DVR/PVR software. Microsoft provides Windows Media Center for Windows XP through 8, but discontinued the product in Windows 10.^[2] Apple macOS 10 runs EyeTV 3.^[3] Linux runs Myth TV.^[4][5]

Newer models of HDHomeRun are DLNA device compatible.^[6]

HDHomeRun Tuners

Consumer Tuners

Commercial Tuners

Sources:^{[9] [10]}

HDHomeRun PRIME

Introduced in Fall 2011, the HDHomeRun PRIME provided the ability to view and record all the digital cable channels they subscribe to without using a cable-supplied set-top-box. The device employed a CableCARD to replace the set-top box. The rental fee was usually much less than the rental fee for the cable box. The HDHomeRun PRIME is integrated easily with Windows Media Center (WMC), included with Windows 7 and available with Windows 8, and turns your PC into an HD DVR. With 3 tuners, the PRIME let you record two programs and watch another live simultaneously. Although a few HDHomeRun Prime boxes can be sold online, they are no longer in production. Cessation of production has been attributed to a change in FCC regulation, which no longer requires cable service providers to make CableCARDs available to their customers.^[8]

• Cable cards are still available from many US digital cable providers.
• The Prime can be used without a CableCard in cable systems with clear QAM channels.
• The Prime does not support digital cable on-demand but can receive PPV ordered on the phone from your cable provider.
• The Prime is a dedicated cable TV device with no ATSC tuner and thus can not be used with an antenna.
• Windows Media Center is the most widely used software available with Prime, and the only one with Digital Rights Management (DRM) to view and record premium cable channels like HBO. Many other software options are available; please see the list in this Wiki and the Silicondust website for details. When running WMC, an additional, separate ATSC tuner can be used with the PC, and WMC will combine both the Prime and ATSC tuner in the live TV and recording guide. By default, WMC has a 4 tuner limit for each type (ATSC, CableCard) of tuner, but a 3rd party software product called TunerSalad increases the number of tuners to 32 per type; you can use up to 32 cable tuners (11 Primes = 33 cable tuners) and 32 ATSC tuners, for a total of 64 tuners. Another 3rd party software called My Channel Logos adds channel logos to the WMC channel guide. For a detailed discussion of WMC, please see TheGreenButton.tv website.

WMC was included with Windows 7 but is an additional $100 for Windows 8/8.1 and $10 for Windows 8/8.1 Pro. It is not available from Microsoft on Windows 10, but members at The Green Button are developing a way to use a modified version of WMC with Windows 10.

HDHomeRun DVR

The HDHomeRun DVR is a DVR software designed for installation on a network-attached storage device. It is intended to be used with an HDHomeRun tuner and is expected to overcome digital rights management complications.

HDHomeRun Premium TV

Launched in 2018, HDHomeRun Premium TV was a virtual MVPD service that worked with the HDHomeRun Prime and HDHomeRun DVR service. A unique feature of this service over most other MVPDs was the ability to record the channel streams to a local hard drive for time-shifted viewing. In March 2019, HDHomeRun announced that it would shut down its Premium service.^[11]

See also

• Monsoon HAVA
• Dreambox
• DBox2
• Slingbox
• LocationFree Player

References

External links

• Official website