If your TV signal comes from a cable TV jack in the wall or an over-the-air antenna, follow these steps to set it up in Media Center:. If your PC has more than one tuner, you can use a cable splitter to divide the TV signal, and then connect it to each tuner. This will enable you to record multiple programs simultaneously, or to watch a live program while recording another program.

To receive a TV signal using multiple tuners, each tuner must have a TV signal connected to it, and the signal must be the same for each tuner. If you see a message saying that changing the settings will affect TV recording, it means you already have a signal set up. To go through the set up process again, select Yes. Follow the steps to set up your TV signal. These steps will vary depending on the type of tuner or tuners that you have, as well as the type of programming to which you subscribe.

If a TV tuner is not showing up on this screen, make sure that it's connected properly to your computer, and that you have the appropriate drivers installed. For more information, see Update a driver for hardware that isn't working properly.

On the TV Signal Provider screen, scroll through the list and select the signal provider that most closely matches your location and service, and then select Next. If you set up a digital TV tuner during the setup process, you can scan for additional channels that might be available.

You can also check the signal strength for each channel, and turn off channels that aren't receiving a strong signal.

Select Scan for More Channels , and then follow the instructions. Media Center will look for additional channels that might be available for your TV tuner. Media Center will scan each channel individually and display its signal strength. On the Adjust Digital TV Antenna and Choose Channels screen, you can clear the check box next to channels with little or no signal so they won't show up in the Guide.

Note: When Media Center appears finished scanning for more channels, it might still be working in the background. If you didn't see the channels you were expecting during this scan, it's best to wait about 15 minutes before trying the scan again. Many cable or satellite subscribers have a cable box sometimes referred to as a set-top box or satellite receiver. Cable boxes and satellite receivers can include channels that are either standard or high definition. In Media Center, a digital high-definition signal that is transmitted through one of these boxes will be converted to an analog standard-definition signal.

Connect the cable from the cable source wall jack to the cable input jack on the cable box or satellite receiver. If you have two cable boxes or two satellite receivers that you want to use with Media Center, you can use a splitter to divide the TV signal from the wall jack to the boxes. Each cable box or satellite receiver must have a TV signal connected to the cable input jack. Connect an IR blaster to your computer and your set-top box.

For more information, see the documentation that came with your IR blaster. Follow the steps to connect a TV signal, depending on the type of tuner or tuners that the cable is connected to, as well as the type of programming to which you subscribe.

If you have a digital cable service from your local cable provider, and you own a specially certified PC known as a Digital Cable Ready computer, you may be able to watch and record digital cable TV in Media Center. To do this you'll need a couple things: a digital cable tuner , which is a device that comes with most Digital Cable Ready computers, and a CableCARD , which is a device that must be inserted into your digital cable tuner to allow it to receive digital cable.

A CableCARD serves as a replacement for a digital set-top box, and can only be obtained from a participating digital cable provider. With the proper CableCARD inserted into a compatible digital cable tuner, you can watch digital cable channels both standard and high definition that are available by subscription from your cable provider.

It's recommended that you work with a cable technician from your service provider to set up a digital cable tuner and signal. Many of the steps below should be performed by them. If you have a Digital Cable Ready computer, follow the instructions from your computer manufacturer to set up your digital cable tuner.

You'll need these numbers for the activation process in step 7. This step is usually performed by a technician from your digital cable provider. Connect the cable from the cable source wall jack to the TV-IN jack on the digital cable tuner.

Contact your service provider to pair your CableCARD with the digital cable tuner—this will activate both so you can receive digital cable content. You will be required to provide the following information to your service provider:. This number will be reported in Windows Media Center on the Call your cable company page.

Example: Host ID. Data ID. Example: NGTA Note: If you have a digital cable tuner or another type of digital tuner but no digital cable service, you might be able to use an antenna to watch and record over-the-air high-definition television HDTV sometimes referred to as ATSC , standard TV, and digital cable channels that are not encrypted such as "clear QAM" channels.

Some premium digital cable channels might contain protected content that can't be recorded. If you upgraded your computer to Windows 7 from Windows Vista, you might be able to preserve your TV signal settings from before the upgrade. If Media Center detects previous TV signal settings, you'll see a welcome message asking if you want to set up the TV with the same settings. Note: If you see a message saying that TV setup was not successful, make sure that you have the latest driver installed for your TV tuner.

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