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Setting-up new TV

Frank E

Frank E

Well-known member
I need a little help/direction...I've bought a TV for my freshly finished basement, but I'm wondering if I'm going to need a cable box for it, because I'm planning on watching Leaf games down there.

Can I (properly) stream all the games, or will I need another cable box?
 
Do you already have a cable subscription for your home? I believe (but this may have changed in the past couple years) if you do then that gives you access to TSN and Sportsnet's streaming services.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
Do you already have a cable subscription for your home? I believe (but this may have changed in the past couple years) if you do then that gives you access to TSN and Sportsnet's streaming services.
Click to expand...

This is correct.  I use TSN and Sportsnet streaming with a cable subscription.  One one TV I use Apple TV, which have their own apps for both services.  On another I use chromecast from an iPAD (again, using the TSN/Sportsnet Apps) or my laptop (through the website).
 
Either way, if you don't have them on your cable package(or don't have cable at all) I think you can independently subscribe to both the TSN and Sportsnet streaming services but I think it's crazy expensive(40 or 60 a month for the two, can't remember) and the better move is probably to just get them on your cable package(if you have one) and like people say that gives you access to streaming them.

With all of that said my experience has been that both Sportsnet and especially TSN have streaming services that are not as polished or hassle free as something like Netflix tends to be. I don't know what platform you'd be streaming them via but it's been a bit of a hassle for me.
 
I've found that streaming via the Apple TV apps have been quite seamless, unless both my wife and I are using wifi in that same room (even though the Apple TV is on my 5 Ghz network, and our phones/iPad's are on the 2.4 GHz network).  Chromecast not quite as much, but that might also be due to proximity to my router. 

I'm planning on doing renovations soon and will be adding a hardwired ethernet connection for all my TV areas so that should certainly help.
 
Coco-puffs said:
I've found that streaming via the Apple TV apps have been quite seamless, unless both my wife and I are using wifi in that same room (even though the Apple TV is on my 5 Ghz network, and our phones/iPad's are on the 2.4 GHz network).  Chromecast not quite as much, but that might also be due to proximity to my router. 

I'm planning on doing renovations soon and will be adding a hardwired ethernet connection for all my TV areas so that should certainly help.
Click to expand...

I hadn't tried Apple TV so thanks for the heads up there but my experiences is/was that typically I stream sports via my PS4(MLB, DAZN and Sportsnet specifically) and while I occasionally get some baffling error messages/sign in problems with Sportsnet it tends to work ok. TSN, unfortunately, doesn't have a PS4 app and neither TSN/Sportsnet have Roku channels.

In fact here's the list of devices you can stream TSN on:

https://www.tsn.ca/streaming-faq-1.1105604#eight

So unless you've got a Samsung Smart TV, Apple TV or Xbox you're basically reduced to Chromecast. I tried their windows app and found it to be a buggy, unworkable mess.
 
I will plug a laptop into the TV and stream from the websites, but I find the quality can be bad. Sportsnet for sure, maybe TSN isn't so bad I forget. It gets so bad sometimes that I go find a stream on reddit and use it instead.

I also use the Sportsnet and DAZN apps on PS4. Sportsnet can be a pain, and I also have some quality issues with it. DAZN tends to be pretty good on both my PS4 and Roku. 
 
Frank E said:
New tv is Roku...so sounds like I'm going to need another cable box damn it.
Click to expand...

You should be able to open the stream on your phone or tablet or Chrome browser on your laptop/computer and "cast" it to your TV I think.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
Frank E said:
New tv is Roku...so sounds like I'm going to need another cable box damn it.
Click to expand...

You should be able to open the stream on your phone or tablet or Chrome browser on your laptop/computer and "cast" it to your TV I think.
Click to expand...
If you're going to buy something to cast to a tv I'd recommend a Miracast by Microsoft instead of a Chromecast. It allows you to put whatever is on the screen of your phone or laptop onto the tv instead of just what's loaded through Chrome
 
Crake said:
CarltonTheBear said:
Frank E said:
New tv is Roku...so sounds like I'm going to need another cable box damn it.
Click to expand...

You should be able to open the stream on your phone or tablet or Chrome browser on your laptop/computer and "cast" it to your TV I think.
Click to expand...
If you're going to buy something to cast to a tv I'd recommend a Miracast by Microsoft instead of a Chromecast. It allows you to put whatever is on the screen of your phone or laptop onto the tv instead of just what's loaded through Chrome
Click to expand...

I'd suspect that Frank would be able to cast to his TV directly without the need for any other devices.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
Crake said:
CarltonTheBear said:
Frank E said:
New tv is Roku...so sounds like I'm going to need another cable box damn it.
Click to expand...

You should be able to open the stream on your phone or tablet or Chrome browser on your laptop/computer and "cast" it to your TV I think.
Click to expand...
If you're going to buy something to cast to a tv I'd recommend a Miracast by Microsoft instead of a Chromecast. It allows you to put whatever is on the screen of your phone or laptop onto the tv instead of just what's loaded through Chrome
Click to expand...

I'd suspect that Frank would be able to cast to his TV directly without the need for any other devices.
Click to expand...

I haven't been able to figure that out with my Roku. There are various tiers though.
 
I've had about 4 versions of the WDTV, a Roku, and a Chromecast connected to the tv over the years, but nothing beats a cheap I3-I5 (if you're doing 4K) small case computer, and a wireless keyboard. That's been my setup for the last 5 years, and it's simple/effective. 

 
Frank E said:
I'm assuming though that I'd lose a bunch of quality by casting it, no?
Click to expand...

Through screen mirroring you might, but that's not really an issue with casting (assuming your internet speeds aren't crap).
 
Bullfrog said:
ya, screen mirroring is garbage.
Click to expand...

OK Frog, give me a damn suggestion...don't just throw me a garbage post.  Get to work, you're a techy guy. Let's hear it...
 
Sounds like the best way to do things is, if you already have TSN and Sportsnet as part of a cable package, either buy an Apple TV or Xbox.
 
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