Moving; need STB, satellite vs cable advice for mythtv

[C. Martens]

If any of you don't know yet, I got my new apartment finalized today, I'm quite happy, and I hope to be ditching both rogers (cable and isp) and bell (phone). Therefore, it may have to be Star Choice, although I'm not sold yet, and may have to grin and bear the alternatives. It's an opportunity to ditch not only the lousy service from rogers and bell, but also get a better STB that will finish the last mile of my mythtv installation. 

The bugbear, of course, is that hardware of the setop box: I'd really like a serial port to be able to use that to configure a lircd.conf file instead of the 2-bud IR blaster--one for transmitter taped to STB, other bud for mythtv/tuner receiving-- that came with the Hauppauge 150 tuner. I certainly don't understand the receiver models, the serial ports on only a select few e.g. motorola 6200, I had a scientific atlanta 8300 when I was still usiing HDTV) that will actually change the channels of the STB, as well as get the tuner and mythtv to register the channel change. That's the only thing that's not working well with my myth installation: I have to physically be here to change the STB's channel with its universal remote, and then the Hauppauge remote works fine for everything else. The Hauppauge remote works perfectly with everything (inc. the STB channel changing) on my WinTV application on the winblows drive, but I hardly ever use that drive anymore.

Any advice on a good receiver/STB with a serial port that will work with Toronto tv providers? Any advice on star choice? I have a bit of $ to spend on STB hardware, but am totally swimming in remotes. Which providers will allow me to buy a receiver of my choice? instead of one from them where they've disabled any serial port that does exist on the model?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions, model names, etc.

 
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