I have a Humax 7000 HD STB,& a KVHR36m31 Sony crt set, & am now looking at a HDD DVD recorder. My question is can I watch 1 channel via stb, & record another channel on the HDD recorder, or will the recorder automatically record off the analouge network, since Im using the stb to watch tv.?
I was also a bit dissapointed to learn that to record digital tv I would need to leave the set top box set on the channel I want to record. At least the Humax has a timer, so I can set it to come on & off at a set time, to coincide with the recorder.
The problem really is not being able to watch 1 programme on the digital network, & record another digital channel at the same time. Is their a way? Have I got it wrong? or do I need to wait for HDD DVD recorders to come out with digital tuners to be able to truly use it as a vcr replacement?
A HD pvr would be the answer but unfortunatly I dont have the funds for the Tosh, & I still wouldnt want to waste a new HD box, that is absoloutley brilliant as far as reliability and pq is concerned.
The recorder I was /am considering is the pioneer 520H, any feed back, Id really only use the HDD, in fine mode.
Thanks Amy

Unless you really want to burn DVDs for posterity then a PVR is the answer. So if you are considering a PVR then why not a SD PVR? A HDD/DVD combo will only ever record SD anyway and a SD PVR (single tuner only, because you will still have your HD box as a second tuner) should be in the $500 price range, not the $1000 of the HDD/DVD combos or $1500+++ of a HD PVR.

Best of luck,
Dik