SiliconDust Picks MaxLinear Tuner for Next-Gen CATV System

By Doug Lung
published


SiliconDust, manufacturer of the popular HDHomeRun series of IP based ATSC and cable TV receivers, picked the MaxLinear MxL241SF cable TV tuner for its three-tuner HDHomeRun Prime next-generation HD cable TV system. The HDHomeRun Prime connects to a home router and allows anyone connected to the network to watch or record cable TV programming on their computer.

"The television 'set' is evolving to be any device that has a screen, but component size and power requirements can be a hurdle for the systems vendors moving into this space," said Kishore Seendripu, MaxLinear president and CEO. "MaxLinear developed the MxL241SF with these requirements in mind and we are excited at the opportunity to work with SiliconDust as it leads the way in PC television."

The MaxLinear MxL241SF single die IC includes a tuner that works up to 1 GHz plus 64-QAM and 256-QAM demodulators. It outputs an MPEG transport stream. It does not demodulate ATSC signals.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack.
A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.