MSI TV@nywhere MASTER PCI TV Tuner card FAQ

Question

So you’ve just decided to add a MSI TV@nywhere Master card to your PC, you’re gonna need some help installing it then!! Before you continue, I recommend you download the Unofficial New Drivers in the other sticky, to avoid any heart (and brain!) ache.
For best results also, you should be running at least DirectX 8.1. This is included on the driver CD, or you can download the latest version from Microsoft's DirectX Page. If you have a P4 which supports Hyperthreading, you will also need at least Windows XP SP2, otherwise you will have to disable hyperthreading in BIOS.
You should also be in the habit of having the latest drivers for your video card, audio card and motherboard chipset; this can also avoid any future TV software failure. And make sure you regularly run Windows Update (or use the Automatic Update feature) to keep your Windows clean and up-to-date. And also remember when installing new drivers or software, if the installer suggests you restart the computer then do so, before you install anything else! Drivers not installing correctly are common causes of problems, especially with this card!
INSTALLING THE HARDWARE
I’m presuming you’re familiar with the concepts of building and upgrading PCs, so I won’t go into too much detail on obvious stuff (like “remove the side panel of your case, locate a free PCI slot…”).
Fit the TV@nywhere Master card into a free PCI slot. If you didn’t get one with it, you’ll need a CD-audio lead from somewhere (the thin grey lead). If you have one connected between your CD drive and your soundcard CD-Audio In connector, then use that, any version of Windows after 98 supports digital audio extraction, so it is not needed there now. Connect one end of the audio lead to the 4 pin header on the TV@nywhere card and the other to the AUX input on your soundcard (or motherboard if using onboard). If you are installing the Mega TV Tuner in a Mega series barebones, connect it to the TV audio input on the mainboard to the rear. Don’t worry about using the 3.5mm jack plug lead to connect tv card audio, we don’t need it now, doing it this way.
CONNECTING YOUR TV SIGNAL
Depending on your global location, this may vary. Either way you need to connect either a aerial (ANTENNA) or cable (CABLE) to the CATV connector on the card. Someone will no doubt clarify this for me, but cable is for US-type cable, which doesn’t need a decoder box. Most people will be using the Antenna I’m guessing. Your choice of CABLE or ANTENNA needs to be remembered, you’ll need this later.
You will not be able (or have limited success) in connecting a video recorder or set-top box to the CATV connector. Instead you will need to use the Composite or S-Video connector, and connect the audio source either directly to the soundcard or to the Line-in on the TV card.
INSTALLING THE DRIVER
Don’t use the driver on the CD. Download the latest driver from the MSI download page. If you are a Mega series user, make sure that Windows has been installed onto the C: drive. If not you’ll have to reinstall, and disable the USB controller in BIOS to prevent the card readers becoming the C: and D: drives. This also causes problems later.
I would advise temporarily disabling any anti-virus programs at this point, to avoid any complications.
When you start up after first installing the card, cancel any Found New Hardware wizards that appear. OK, so extract the contents of the downloaded ZIP, and run the PVSSetup.exe file to install the drivers. Once this is complete, RESTART your PC and the drivers will be installed for the new hardware found.
Check in Device Manager, there should be four new hardware listed under Sound, Video and Game Controllers related to MS8606. If you see any with the (?) next to them, you might need to try the card in another slot.
INSTALLING THE MSIPVS TV SOFTWARE
If you wish to use other TV recording software other than MSIPVS then please feel free to do so.
MSI do not make their own software. At least not all the time. MSIPVS is a rebranded version of Intervideo’s WinDVR software, with extra features added such as network streaming for TV@nywhere. Some people love it. Lots of people hate it. Generally most people who have posted here hate it. People who love it tend not to post if they don't have problems.  The people that hate it generally mess initial settings up, which can cause problems when they try to change it. The more patient of us will always get it eventually right!
Install the MSIPVS software. Easy as that. Its setting it up correctly that’s the tricky part. Listed below are the main things to look for when performing initial setup. If you are unsure about anything else then read the manual! Only a complete genius would dare install any unfamiliar hardware without having the manual handy for reference - how do you suppose I learnt anything? 
Device
Video Input:
"Device" is always the Conexant Cx2388x Video Capture"
"Source" - select TV if you are connecting your signal to the CATV connector (antenna or cable), select S-Video or Composite if using these instead
"Standard" - set this to your local TV standard, eg if in UK set to "PAL-I". if unsure, do a Google search and find out!!
If you don't set these correctly you won't receive any channels and/or they will appear incorrectly.
Audio Input:
"Device" will be your soundcard or onboard audio device
"Source" will be the connector your TV card audio output is connected to, this will be "TV" on Mega series, otherwise check!! If you connected the internal lead to AUX on your soundcard or mobo, then set it to "AUX". If you used external lead to connect to Line-In, this will be "Line-in" etc etc.
If you don't set these correctly you may or may not hear audio while watching live TV, and you will hear no audio on recorded TV.
TV
Tuner:
"Input" will be Antenna if you have an aerial connected, or Cable if you are connected to unencoded cable TV.
"Country or Region" - if need to explain this one then maybe you shouldn't have this card!
Channel
Now we will see if your settings and TV signal are good! Tick the Freescan box, and then click on Autoscan. This may take a while, and for a short time it may appear that the program is doing nothing. Patience! It will soon start, and then pick up any available channels it can find.
Make sure you have a good strong signal if you are using an aerial, otherwise TV@nywhere won’t pick up as many channels. UK viewers – just using a simple set-top aerial and signal booster, I could even receive Channel Five (or “five” as it is known now!)
So at this point now, if all has gone well, you should be able to watch and record TV on your PC!                                     If it hasn't...

Answer 1

"I've lost my CDs and MSIPVS needs a serial number to install!"
MSI in their wisdom printed the serial key for MSIPVS on the actual CD. This serial key is the same printed on EVERY CD. Which kind of defeats the object in my humble opinion. Anyways, the answer can be found in this post: MSIPVS requires serial number!
"When installing MSIPVS, the program hangs then shows a message saying "remote procedure call failed" "
If you are a Mega user, you have installed Windows onto a partition other than C:. You will need to reinstall Windows, making sure you disable USB controller in BIOS, so that the card readers do not take up C: and D: drives. Upon first restart (after Windows has created partition), you may re-enter BIOS and enable USB controller before Windows continues installing itself.
"MSIPVS installs, but when I start the application I get an error message "WinDVR has caused a problem and needs to shutdown" "
hpkuo credits this to sizzle in his hints and tips thread, but I'll elaborate a little. The problem is caused by QuickTime codecs installed by Nero 6.3.1.15. It is unclear whether later versions of Nero were fixed, but earlier versions should be okay. "A "quick fix" is to rename the files "NeQTADec.ax" and "NeQTVDec.ax" in "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Ahead\DSFilter\"."
Another alternative suggestion is to uninstall the codecs from the registry. I found this solution in another forum for another TV card with same problem:
Go to Start > Run (or press Windows key + R) and enter:
regsvr32 /u "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Ahead\DSFilter\NeQTADec.ax"
regsvr32 /u "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Ahead\DSFilter\NeQTVDec.ax"
The only consequence seems to be that Nero Vision can’t decode Apple Quick time format after this (something I can live with)
If you do require QuickTime codecs to be installed, there is the Quicktime alternative available from here: http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm . Or you could just use an earlier version of Nero.
PS if you are using a non-english setup of Windows, then the above paths will relate to how windows translates on your PC - ie subsitute Program Files etc for your local translation 
"I have connected the external audio lead to the Line-In (blue) jack on my mobo, and set it correctly in MSIPVS, but I hear no TV sound"
If your mobo supports 5.1 speakers but only has three jacks on rear, the Line-in and Mic jacks have been configured to act as Rear Speaker and Center/Sub outputs. If you have only two speakers, they should be connected to the green Front Speaker jack. You will need to go into your audio hardware's configuration panel / Windows Audio Device Properties to correctly configure the rear jacks.
The other alternative is to use the internal audio connector - simply use a CD-audio lead to connect it to the AUX or CD internal connector on your mobo or soundcard. CD audio leads (the analog grey lead from your CD drive to the soundcard / mobo CD audio connector) are redundant now, as Windows now uses digital audio extraction through IDE channel. Make sure you set the audio signal correctly in MSIPVS to match this.
"When I start up Windows I can hear a hissing like "static" / the radio is playing"
One issue that was fixed in the latest Drivers; if that still doesn't work then the Radio volume is not muted at Windows startup. I'll let hschroed take over here:
"Both MSI Radio and MSI PVS, unmute the TV card at program start, and mute the TV card at SUCCESSFUL program exit (remember we are not talking about the soundcard mixer state here). What this means is as long as a single program start and a single SUCCESSFUL program exit takes place, the TV card tuner will be muted, regardless of what the soundcard mixer audio source states are. If the PC is rebooted (without a PC power-off), for whatever reason, while the MSI Radio or MSI PVS program is executing (a successful exit has not been performed), the TV card will remain in an unmuted state until the next startup and successful exit of either of the two programs.
The TV card mute/unmute status is carried over a reboot without PC power off. What this means is that after a PC power on, once the TV card has been properly muted by a start and successful exit of the MSI program, the TV card mute/unmute status should be in proper synchronization with the applications (regardless of the soundcard mixer status), as long as the PC is not powered off. (Romulus mentions computer coming out of standby. I did not test that scenario but I would expect that if going into standby means power is stopped to TV card, the effect would be similar to a PC power off)."
"My regular TV receives all 5 channels (even Channel Five!), but when I connect aerial to TV@nywhere I only get 3"
Common to all TV tuner hardware (not just MSI's!) is the need for a good strong signal. A moderate signal might appear okay on a regular domestic TV, but might not be strong enough for the TV tuner hardware. Consider investing in a good signal booster, or getting your aerial changed.
Consequently, I have also learned today that TOO strong a signal is bad for TV tuner cards, as soon as I know more I'll let you know...
"I have connected my VCR to the CATV connector, but it does not appear when autoscanning."
"I cannot receive any channels when I connect my Sky box to the RF (CATV) connector."
Thanks to a wonderful technology called "Macrovision" protection, many VCRs and satellite/cable boxes won't work in this way by connecting them using their RF output. Anyone who gets a result is very lucky. There's always the Composite and S-Video In connectors to try. But either way, the TV@nywhere card won't scan all their channels, you'll still have to change them manually.
"Windows XP Media Center says that my "tuner hardware is malfunctioning or not installed" but I have installed the latest TV@nywhere drivers from MSI"
Neither the Vox or the TV@nywhere cards are compatible with MCE2005. MCE2005 requires an analogue TV card capable of hardware MPEG2 encoding, or a software DVB-T (digital) card that already receives an MPEG2 video stream over-the-air.
You can however still use the Vox or the TV@nywhere using the MSIPVS software outside of the MCE2005 application.
"MSIPVS keeps defaulting my location back to Afghanistan, even though I set it to US / UK/ Sweden / Latvia / Kazahkstan"
You will need to reinstall the drivers and software due to a glitch. Uninstall MSIPVS and the tuner drivers (with its PVSSetup.exe setup program) then restart your PC, and ignore the Found New Hardware wizard. Install the tuner drivers with the PVSSetup.exe program, then restart your PC. Then install MSIPVS, restart your PC and you're good to go again!
"Where can I find these "Unofficial New Drivers" that people keep referring to here?"
The "Unofficial New (BETA) Drivers" became obsolete when MSI officially released them. You can find them on the Product Support page for this card, as they are now the latest drivers. MSI TV@nywhere Master product page
[Last edited 8th October 05 by Dr Stu]