Thoughtful DVB-S2 Stick with faulty driver policy

First of all, in my rating solely flowing my experience in the operation of the PCTV 461e 7 64 bit when using a BDA driver under DVBViewer DVBLink and Windows Media Center on Windows. I use neither the included TVCenter software nor the remote control.

The DVB-S2 Stick is a real problem solver. Less for the Road Warrior, the evening on the laptop still maintained in the hotel would look a little TV, but for followers stylish HTPC case in which simply is no room for a standard PCI or PCIe plug-in card.

With this in mind, I have two of the PCTV 461e drives purchased in order to run my Media Center with dual tuner can. And what can I say, it works! Both drives run after driver installation (more on that later) to the extent any problems. The reception performance is good, there are no glitches, blocks, or other artifacts to notice. A precondition is a professionally built satellite system, where it appears to hapern frequently with many other reviewers in the PC-satellite area.

The switching between the channels are in the usual range of what I'm used to from other DVB-S2 TV tuners, ie at about 1-4s. Of course switching depend whatsoever on the LNB / multiswitch and the PC software used.

Even computer-standby and waking to receive makes me no problems. Up to this point is therefore first go to the greens.

However, the USB stick can at initialization for my taste a little too long. After starting the respective television application elapse from the first channel selection until the appearance of the image approx 10s. I tested this behavior with DVBViewer DVBLink and WMC, and yet different on two computers, and in all cases there were delays of this magnitude. Once the tuner is however initialized, the other switching processes go fix vonstatten, so there are only half a star deduction.

What, however, do not go, this is the driver's policy of PCTV. Since I only need the BDA driver for the tuner, I have the CD first not unpacked, but have equal searched on the PCTV website in the appropriate section for the latest drivers. Only, since there is no 461e for the! 460e The driver for the previous model, and all other available there for download do not work with the 461e.

Slightly taken aback, I then perforce unearthed my old USB CD drive from the basement in order to take the sticks into operation. On the same evening I stopped a relevant request to the PCTV Support. After a few days came in response a link to download the version 6.4.6.942 of the TVCenter application by pointing out that this also includes the drivers for the 461e. Well there you have it come first! Download size: 620 MB! Funnily enough, this version is not offered through the support website. There in the TVCenter section of 461e is also mentioned nowhere. Only for the previous model 460e referenced a version 6.3.1, but there also is not available for download, with the comment: ". Just a CD version, right now". Obviously PCTV therefore has absolutely no interest in offering the latest drivers for the 461e sticks to download. Having paid feature upgrades are available from the TVCenter out, I can almost imagine why ...

Anyway, there is for this customer unfriendly policy drivers still graciously sized two star deduction.

What day of the PCTV 461e then ultimately still saves is a really brilliant unique feature among the USB DVB-S2 tuners. When operating on a multi-switch, which supplies the LNB with power, the drive can be operated without additional power supply. The prerequisite is that the power consumption of the multiswitch to the outputs is sufficiently low. In my this is the case, and both sticks run without the included power adapter. What's even better: The power consumption of the drives is also in operation so low that I can both operate together on a passive USB3.0 hub. "Unicable" gets as equal a whole new meaning! There are back a star.

Thus, I come to a total rating of 3.5 stars, I the mainstays on three stars. Would not the poor driver policy, I would forgive five stars despite the long initialization time. But poor customer service must be punished.

Three more observations at the end:

+ The tuner indicates by a green light emitting diode once it is initialized and ready to receive. I find that very convenient because it is very helpful during installation and troubleshooting.

+ PCTV operates an FTP server (ftp.pctvsystems.com). There can be found under the path TV / application / TVC6 / different versions of the TVCenter application to download. The straight latest available version there is 6.4.8.984, dated 01.14.2014. In this installation package are located in the TVCenter installation \ Driver \ PCTV eMPIA folder the latest BDA driver for the 461e (version 5.2013.1206.0 dated 12/06/2013).

+ The power of my HTPCs increases, as measured by the outlet, each connected, but just inactive, stick to just 0,7-0,8W. This is a peak value compared to the idle power of so many PCI / PCIe card.