Support Center » Knowledgebase » International » Do I need Elgato hardware to view Free's IPTV?
 Do I need Elgato hardware to view Free's IPTV?
Solution It depends which TV channels you want to view and which Freebox configuration you use.

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1) Configuration without Elgato hardware

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For using this configuration, you first need to enable the "multiposte" mode of your Freebox if not already done. For details see http://adsl.free.fr/tv/multiposte/
Then connect your Freebox to your Mac via Ethernet cable or wireless network.

Important note: if you use your Freebox as a router, you must open the UDP ports 31500 to 31503. More info about the Freebox router mode can be found here: http://adsl.free.fr/admin/routeur.html
Here is an example of Freebox's ports configuration, replace the IP address by your Mac's one:

image

Advantages of this configuration:
- you can receive and record digital TV and radio shows without loss of quality. Free's SDTV, HDTV and radio streams are received and recorded unaltered.

Limitations of this configuration:
- you cannot view TV channels received via the internal DTT tuner of the Freebox.
- you cannot view encrypted channels (Pay TV).

More info about the Freebox and the limitations can be found here:
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freebox_TV
http://www.journaldufreenaute.fr/23/01/2007/tf1-refuse-le-multiposte-de-free.html

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2) Configuration using Elgato hardware

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You don't need the "multiposte" mode for this configuration.
Connect the audio/video outputs of your Freebox to an analogue TV tuner (e.g. EyeTV 250 Plus or EyeTV Hybrid). With the current Freeboxes, you will need the break-out cable delivered with your Elgato hardware and a SCART adapter. Refer to the Quick Start Guide of your product for the possible connections: http://www.elgato.com/elgato/int/mainmenu/support/documentation.en.html

Important note: As Free's hardware may vary in the future, please check that it is possible to connect the outputs of your Freebox to your Elgato hardware before buying one.

Advantage of this configuration:
- you can view all channels of your Freebox (a subscription is of course required for Pay TV).

Limitations of this configuration:
- TV signals delivered by the SCART connector are SD only, HDTV will be viewed and recorded in SD mode.
- TV signals are converted from digital to analogue by the Freebox and then converted back from analogue to digital by your Elgato hardware (EyeTV 250 Plus) or software (EyeTV Hybrid). Using EyeTV Hybrid, the quality of the converted signal depends on your Mac capabilities (see What are the recording qualities for the EyeTV Hybrid?)

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3) Using both the network stream and an Elgato hardware

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This configuration is not fully supported, see for details I want to use multiple EyeTV units (or dual tuners) on the same Mac

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For help setting up the Freebox in EyeTV Setup Assistant see this faq: How to set up the Freebox in EyeTV Setup Assistant?

Please note that you can only view 2 channels of the Freebox at the same, independently of how you view the channels. For more info, see How many channels can I view at the same time using the Freebox?


Article Details
Article ID: 1224
Created On: 21 May 2008 11:32 PM

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