What Do Tuners Do and How Many Tuners Does the 4th Generation Tablo Have?

For information on legacy Tablo DVRs and tuners, go here.

The 4th Generation Tablo has either two or four over-the-air (OTA) TV tuners, depending on which model you've chosen.

The primary function of these tuners is to decode the signal coming in from your OTA TV antenna but they also perform other functions. 

The 4th Generation Tablo also has either two or four 'virtual' tuners used to stream and record free streaming channels.

Table of Contents

• What a Tuner Is and Is Not For
• Not Picking Up the Same Stations as Your TV or Legacy Tablo?
• Seeing a Tuner Reassigned Error Message?
• Tuner Math Recap

What a Tuner Is and Is Not For

An over-the-air tuner is required for:

• Watching a live OTA antenna TV program.
• Recording an OTA TV program.
• Generating fast-forward previews on all completed recordings.
• Archiving antenna TV recordings when using onboard storage.

An over-the-air tuner is not required for:

• Watching a completed OTA TV recording.

A virtual tuner is required for:

• Watching a live free streaming TV program.
• Recording a free streaming TV program.

A virtual tuner is not required for:

• Watching a completed free streaming TV recording.

This means that the 2-tuner 4th Generation Tablo can support up to two concurrent antenna TV streams or recordings as well as up to two concurrent free TV streams or recordings. 

The 4-tuner 4th Generation Tablo can support up to four concurrent antenna TV streams or recordings as well as up to four concurrent free TV streams or recordings. 

For example, at the same time across all of the smart TVs, streaming and mobile devices in your home, with a 2-tuner Tablo you can:

• Watch a live OTA antenna TV program in the living room.
• Record a live OTA antenna TV program on another channel.
• Watch a free streaming program in the family room.
• Record a free streaming channel.

OR

• Watch a live OTA antenna TV program in the living room.
• Watch a live OTA TV program in the family room.
• Watch a completed OTA antenna TV recording in the bedroom.
• Record a free streaming program.
• Watch a free streaming program in the kitchen. 

Not Picking Up the Same Stations As Your TV or Legacy Tablo?

Over-the-air reception can vary depending on the type of device and the number of tuners being used, as well as the environment and configuration in use. For that reason it's important to remember OTA signals are based on several factors and different types of devices can have different results. This is usually resolved by optimizing the OTA reception for the device you're primarily using. 

The 4th generation Tablo also has an optional in-line antenna amplifier. If you are already using an amplified antenna or live very close to your local broadcast towers, you may wish to disable this setting to avoid overloading your Tablo's tuner, leading to potential signal loss. 

Seeing a Tuner Reassigned Error Message?

Recordings take precedence over live TV streams, so your live TV session may end if a tuner is needed for a recording. You can however, un-schedule the recording in question and return to watching live TV if you prefer.

Tuner Math Recap

*Depending on the quality of your home Wi-Fi network. 

** Generating fast-forward previews and/or archiving of completed OTA antenna recordings (when using onboard storage) will be delayed until an over-the-air tuner is available.