I’m going to make some assumptions, can you tell me if my points are right or wrong?
-Live TV & DVR is not just for OTA stuff, but it is also for cable channels.
-All I need is a HDhomerun prime that takes a cablecard from my provider.
-How much I can record is limited by the hard drive space of my PC or whatever folder I choose.
-The point of this feature on Plex Pass is so you don’t have to pay a monthly fee for the guide and recording service from other companies.
-I can access and view my recordings on any device that has the plex client even outside my home.
Regardless of how well it’s functioning, since almost everything in tech is YMMV nowadays… Does its purpose check all those boxes above? Thank you!
Notes #2:
With a supported tuner you should still be able to test the live tv functionality without needing a Plex Pass until end of June 2020 (there’s some restrictions compared to Plex Pass users: guide data limited to 48 hours; live tv only, no DVR)
Having just switched from Tivo to Plex + HDHomeRun Prime, I’ll say that the answers to most of your questions are positive. The only issue I’ve had (which everyone has) is that some cable channels are marked ‘copy once’ (my cable provider marks HBO, FX, FXX, and some others that way) and those cannot be recorded by Plex, even though Tivo could record them.
Oh, and since you’ll be buying a used HDHomeRun Prime, be sure to head over to the SiliconDust website to get the latest firmware for it, and to follow the CableCard activation guide.
I might experiment with this without cutting ties with Tivo just yet. I actually have a M-cablecard laying around that was last used with Frontier. You think Spectrum will activate it? Also, is the HDHomerun Prime the only one out there that takes cable card?
Yes, that is the only model of HDHR which will accept a CableCard. There are actually two versions, one with 3 tuners and one with 6, but the 6-tuner version is pretty rare.
Depending on your cable provider, you may be able to access some channels without a CableCard installed, which would allow you to test the configuration before switching. That’s what I did, I only had access to local broadcast channels (OTA channels), but they were sufficient for configuring and testing Plex and the HDHR.
