I recently made the switch from Comcast to Verizon FIOS and I love it. However, one of the big issues I had after the switch was getting EyeTV and my EyeTV Hybrid working correctly. After searching the internet and the Elgato forums, I found a solution.
Let’s step back a minute: When Comcast, EyeTV was connected with the coaxial cable there were no problems with EyeTV switching channels and recording my scheduled shows for recording.
However, with FIOS it does not work that way. FIOS requires a set-top box, and as a result EyeTV has to work like a VCR used to be. You have to record what you watch, AND more importantly EyeTV cannot control the channel switching. You would have to leave the application on channel 3 and set the box to the channel you want to record before recording starts.
This method works, but is annoying, and you know you are going to forget to set the channel on the box.
What to do? There is a solution. You need something called an IRblaster or infrared blaster. This is a piece of hardware that connects via usb and when EyeTV changes the channel the box sends a signal to your cable box (like a remote) and changes the channel. Believe it or not it works great.
Apparently, there are only a few IRblasters available. The one I purchased is called the ZephirIR and was $60 after shipping. Setup was a little confusing, but once I figured it out everything started working great.
I still think there are some kinks to work out, but the IRblaster is definitely a workable solution. If you have FIOS and an EyeTV unit, this is something you MUST have.
There is your MyMac Macspiration break…we now return you to your regular programming…..Oh and leave your comments below!
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