Is there a way to add channels to the DVR that aren’t available in any Guide?
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Yes, to be honest this would be a very handy option, which could save a lot of headaches!
How exactly would you go about doing that and what purpose would it serve?
It would serve to simply stream videos and (if needed) record them on the fly, without any advanced option.
Of course an EPG is much better, but if in some circumstances it is problematic to get/configure/maintain (e.g. because you want to create highly customized channel lists), it would be nice to be at least be in a position to stream the video.
You can create your own XMLTV file or use a XMLTV provider to configure the DVR to use an XMLTV file instead of selecting an EPG provider.
That is what I thought you were going with and there may be legal issues with doing that as most streaming providers do not like or even allow recording of their shows unless they are providing the method. It also looks like some significant changes to the way the system works would need to be done to allow for this and I doubt that they have the resource available to make those changes if they even can.
I think a better angle would be to record channels that you get in your area that are not on the EPG. I received two OTA channels that I can’t get in Plex because they aren’t part of the guide.
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Have you tried a different zip code when setting up the DVR? Same issue with other users in Canada that receive OTA channels in Canada and US. Others have picked a zip code close to the border and been able to configure DVR with all channels they receive.
The issue would be with that type of recording as well. The DVR uses the information in the EPG to know when to start the recording and for how long. It also uses the data in the EPG to name the file after the recording completes. If you were to add a channel that is not in your EPG, where will Plex get that information? Where it may be possible to watch live TV that way, recording would not be possible. As said above, I would try a different zip code and see if that resolved the EPG issue.
Why does it need it? Why can I just set a channel and tell it to record from from times ABC to XYZ like I used to do with my VCR. 
I can fill in the other info I need later just like I used to do with labels. All Plex needs to know is that there was a recording on a date.
…wow… Never thought I’d be dating myself here…
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Because your VCR does,t need to name the recording after it completes. It’s just positional on the tape with the VCR. What image would it show for the recording and how would it group them if they are different shows for the same series. Again, not something done automatically or at all with a VCR. Plex also currently doesn’t have the ability to directly set start times and lengths. You can modify these settings on shows it’s set up to record but those are once again, based on information from the EPG. I am unaware of any DVR that offers this capability so I wouldn’t count on it happening here either. I’m not saying that it is a bad idea, I just doubt that it’s ever going to happen due to both legal and implementation issues.
Another use case: I really don’t care about recording; I just want to stream live TV to Roku sticks without
(i) having to match EPG to channels, which my cable provider reshuffles frequently
(ii) the overhead of downloading and processing EPG data, which my servers seems to spend half the day doing
My own provider’s STB certainly allows recordings based on the EPG or on explicit start and stop times (which may, of course, span different programs). It’s a fairly basic feature.
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There’s no legal issue… and @bfloeagle is right, Plex doesn’t need to know anything about what I’m recording. “Record channel 200 starting at 9am, ending at 10am”. Save it as “Recording 1” somewhere, then users have the option to edit the file to be able to identify what the content is. There’s no legality issue here… otherwise I wouldn’t be able to edit a recording of a TV show as if it was a completely different show. I can record Archer and rename it as Funniest Home Videos if I want once it’s in my library. As for the claim that no other DVRs do this… TiVo does it, which is THE original DVR – it’s called a manual recording.
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The HDHomeRun extend now adds a number of channels via internet feeds that I am unable to add via Plex because of this EPG issue. It would be great if I could select the box, and then choose which channel it is since these are widely used stations:
The weather channel, CNN, HLN, MSNBC, Comedy, SyFy, Food, Travl, Disney, and a ton more but you get the idea.
So for now, using the HDHomeRun app to watch, but we’re a Plex family know what I mean?
Another Plex User documented a process that can be used for this scenario.
You can also delete the DVR and configure it with a local cable lineup as outlined in a YouTube video posted by Lon.TV (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Hd3jhVgtmQ) but as I understand there are both East and West coast feeds for different channels that SiliconDust provides.
I haven’t signed up for HDHR Premium yet but If you use Schedules Direct and add 3 lineups: one for your OTA then one west coast comcast and one east coast comcast based on the timezone lineup on:
https://www.silicondust.com/premium-tv/
You should be able to map all the channels. Keep in mind there’s still the bug that a ton of stuff will show up as ‘Movies’ which is annoying but beyond that it should work fine.
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