Support: WinTV-HVR-955Q, WinTV-HVR-950Q and Xbox One TV Tuner

WinTV v10 Application Download

Installation notes for WinTV v10:

If you do not have a WinTV v10 Activation Code, you can purchase a new WinTV v10 Activation Code on the Hauppauge webstore.

If you have purchased an Activation Code for WinTV v10 with Extend from the Hauppauge Webstore, the latest version of WinTV v10 with Extend will be installed.

Installation on multiple computers: the WinTV application can be installed on as many PCs as needed as long as you use the same Hauppauge device. We link the serial number of your TV tuner (sometimes it's the MAC address) with the Activation code. So as long as you use the same Hauppauge device, you can install the WinTV application on more than one computer.

WinTV v10

This download is a complete WinTV v10 application, including Windows drivers for supported WinTV products plus utilities.

WinTV v10 installer
For Windows 11 and 10 (with limited support for Windows 8 and 7)
Version: 42031 | File size: 165 MB | Date: Feb 1, 2024
Release notes | Backup download site | Previous version 41041

New feature:

Record to network drive (NAS drive). When you enable this option, WinTV v10 will automatically move your recordings to a network drive after the recordings are complete, freeing up disk space on your PC.

*Please note: due to changes in Microsoft's code signing policy for Windows 7 and 8, new drivers cannot be signed for the 64-bit version of Windows 7 and 8. The WinTV v10 application will work, but the drivers will not install without warning messages.

WinTV v10 installation instructions

The WinTV v10 installer will install Windows drivers before installing the WinTV v10 application. It will also remove any pieces of a previous WinTV version before installing the new version.

  • Step 1: Download the WinTV v10 installer by clicking the download button above. The WinTV v10 installer is normally saved in the Download folder on your PC
  • Step 2: Run wintv10setup from the Download folder on your PC. If you see the message "Windows Protected Your PC, Windows Smartscreen prevented an unrecognized app ...", click 'More info' and 'Run anyway'. Windows Smartscreen is a new 'feature' in Windows 10 to prevent new updates from being installed automatically.
  • Step 3: Halfway through the installation, a message will pop up asking for you to enter the Activation Code.
  • Step 4: At the Activation required screen, click on Enter Activation code and enter the activation code which was emailed to you or is printed on the WinTV v10 activation card. You do not need to enter the dashes, and you can use upper or lower case characters.
  • Step 5: When the installation is complete, you will find the WinTV icon on your Windows desktop. Double click on this icon and the WinTV application will run. On the first run of WinTV, it will automatically go through the TV source selection and will scan for channels.

Windows Driver

To install the latest driver:

Leave your WinTV-HVR plugged into your PC. Follow the following steps:

  • Download the WinTV-HVR driver update
  • Run the driver installer
  • This will install the WinTV-HVR base driver. At the completion of the driver install you should see a message which says Drivers have been updated successfully

Plex with the Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-955Q

You can use the Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-955Q (North America) on the nVidia Shield for live TV in Plex. You will need the latest version of nVidia Shield firmware (5.2 or later).

Setting up Plex TV with a Hauppauge TV tuner on the NVidia Shield

Here are some instructions from the nVidia blog

Here are some ideas on cord cutting from the nVidia blog.

Linux for the WinTV-HVR-955Q and WinTV-HVR-950Q

Hauppauge has support for the WinTV-HVR-955Q in Ubuntu Linux

Please see our Linux page for Ubuntu and Plex instructions:please see here.

For the Hauppauge close source Linux driver, please send an e-mail message to: techsupport@hauppauge.com

3rd Party Applications

NextPVR

NextPVR is a free Personal Video Recorder (PVR) and Media Centre application for Microsoft Windows. NextPVR works with most Hauppauge TV tuners.

JRiver Media Center

JRiver Media Center

JRiver Media Center is a TV application for managing and playing digital media. JRiver Media Center can record and play Over-The-Air and Cable TV broadcast channels using TV tuners from Hauppauge. You can currently record on one machine and watch on another, or on a tablet. All the user has to do in install the drivers for their Hauppauge product and JRiver Media Center can do the rest. You can download a fully featured version of the product on a 30 day trial from www.JRiver.com to experience the magic of JRiver Media Center.

ATSC Tuner applications for Windows

ATSC Tuner applications for Linux

  • Kaffeine
  • MythTV
  • NextPVR
  • Plex
  • SageTV
  • SichboPVR

HD Video recorder applications for Windows (HD PVR 2 and Colossus 2)

HD Video recorder applications for Linux

  • NextPVR
  • SageTV
  • MythTV (only for the HD PVR model 1212)

WinTV Support Videos

The Hauppauge YouTube channel

WinTV v10 Introduction
click to play video
WinTV v10 Installation
click to play video
Setting up Plex TV with a Hauppauge TV tuner on the NVidia Shield
Click to play video
Four tuner Picture-in-Picture
with the WinTV-quadHD
click to play video
Scheduled recording with the built-in EPG
in WinTV v10
click to play video
WinTV v10 scheduling recordings with TitanTV
click to play video
Wipe out your channel database and
rescan for channels
click to play video
Having a problem with Windows Defender Anti-virus when installing? Here's how to temporarily turn off Defender
click to play video
How to change the battery in a
Hauppauge -005 remote control
click to play video

WinTV-HVR-955Q Frequently Asked Questions

What Operating Systems are supported by the WinTV-HVR-955Q?

  • Microsoft® Windows® 11, 10, 8 and 7, either 32-bit or 64-bit versions
  • Linux support is in Ubuntu. Please see this page for more information

What type of channels will I receive with the WinTV-HVR-955Q?

NTSC Analog CableTV or over-the-air analog TV: You can use your cable TV from the wall to connect to the WinTV-HVR-950Q and receive all of your basic Cable TV channels. You can also use a roof top antenna to receive "over-the-air" TV.

Note: After June 2009, most areas in the United States no longer broadcast over-the-air analog signals.

ATSC over-the-air digital TV: Supports all ATSC formats, up to the high definition 1080i format!
Note: For ATSC digital TV, a rooftop/out door antenna is recommended for optimal results/signal strength.

ClearQAM cable TV Channels: Clear QAM digital cable TV channels are unencrypted digital cable TV channels. Clear QAM allows users to watch unencrypted digital TV channels from their cable TV provider without a set-top box.
Note: WinTV v8, v8.5, WinTV v10 or Microsoft Windows 7 is required for clear QAM reception
Note: Check your local cable TV provider for clear QAM reception over your cable TV network.

Can I get HD with the WinTV-HVR-955Q through my Cable or Satellite box?

No. The WinTV-HVR-955Q has an ATSC over-the-air digital TV tuner built-in and supports all ATSC formats, up to the high definition 1080i format . The WinTV-HVR-950Q will support ATSC broadcasts that are currently being transmitted over-the-air. It will not be able to decode HD broadcasts that come through your cable or satellite box. The WinTV-HVR-955Q also supports clear QAM cable TV channels through your direct cable TV line if available from your cable TV provider.

What type of recordings can I make with the WinTV-HVR-955Q?

Using the WinTV v8, v8.5, WinTV v10 application, the WinTV-HVR-955Q will record in a transport stream (TS)
For ATSC and Clear QAM digital TV recordings, the recording format and bit rate is exactly the same as the broadcast format (i.e. ATSC 1080i is recorded at 1080i).
For NTSC analog cable TV recordings, our SoftPVR is used to create Transport Stream files (TS)

Note: TS files can be converted to MPEG files using options in the WinTV 7 configuration menu.

Note: The WinTV 6 application recording are in MPEG format for both digital and analog.

Note: Not all recordings made with ATSC/QAM signals are DVD compliant.

Can I record one show while watching another with the WinTV-HVR-955Q?

No. The WinTV-HVR-955Q will only be able to record the program that is being viewed using the WinTV v8, v8.5, WinTV v10 application. But the Hauppauge WinTV v8/8.5/10 application allows up to 4 WinTV-HVR-955Q's to be used in one system at a time.

Black video window or choppy video when watching a digital TV channel

If you are watching a digital TV channel and you see choppy video, no audio or a black screen, then it is possible your PC is not fast enough to decode and play the digital TV channel you are watching. Please verify that your system meets the minimum requirements for using the HVR-950Q

Digital TV, especially ATSC high definition digital TV, is very CPU intensive. Many graphics cards have special built-in hardware to speed up decoding of high definition TV channels.

On graphics cards without special video decoding features, you can often improve the playback performance by using the Video Renderer settings located in the settings menu of WinTV 7. To open the setting menu click on the “gear” button located in the lower left of the WinTV 7 screen.

The default mode is EVR. The other modes are VMR9, VMR7 and Overlay. Each mode uses a different process to render video. Try each mode and use the one which gives you the best results. To use hardware acceleration put a check in the box “use hardware acceleration when possible. This will allow your graphics system to use hardware acceleration for video decode. Note: graphics hardware acceleration does not work on all systems. After making a change in video rendering settings Wintv must be restarted to take effect.

If you are using WinTV 6 then the render options are part of a separate program called Primary.  Changes in the Primary applet must be made with the WinTV application closed.  Open the Primary program by going to Start – All Programs – Hauppauge WinTV – Primary.  After making changes close the Primary applet and open the WinTV application.

Can I use the WinTV-HVR-955Q with Media Center?

Yes, the WinTV-HVR-955Q can be used with Windows Media Center in Windows 8, 7, Vista and with Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005.

To use the WinTV-HVR-955Q with Windows Media Center, download and install the Windows Media Center driver installation package, which will install the WinTV-HVR-955Q Windows driver and the Hauppauge MCE Soft Encoder.

Note: Under Windows 7, the Hauppauge MCE Soft Encoder is pre-installed as part of Windows 7. Therefore, you can skip the installation of the MCE Soft Encoder and simply install the WinTV-HVR-950Q Windows driver.

Note: under Windows Media Center, you will only be able to configure WinTV-HVR-955Q as either an Digital tuner or an Analog tuner. You will not be able to switch between Digital and Analog channels.

How do I enable my remote control so it will work with the WinTV-HVR-950Q?

The IR software should be installed by default. To check look for a small remote control icon in the Windows task bar on the lower right. IF it is not present you can reinstall Wintv from the installation CDROM or download IR32.EXE from our support web site. The remote control must also have “line of sight” with the HVR-950Q.  The IR receiver of the HVR-950Q is the round bulb on the side of the unit.

I receive a "Low bit rate" error message when using Windows Media Center in Windows 7.

Microsoft has released Windows Media Center patches for the "Low bit rate" error message.
Click to view the information from Microsoft.

WinTV application locks or stops responding during analog scan under Windows 7.

In order to fix this issue, please check that your Power Options setting is not set to ‘Power Saver’. Please change it to ‘Balance’ or ‘High Performance’.

To change these settings on Windows 7, please do the following.

Click on Start and then Control Panel.

If Control Panel is set to View by: Category then click on ‘System and Security’ and then ‘Power Options’.

If Control Panel is set to View by: Large or Small icons then click on ‘Power Options’.

If you do not see Balanced or High Performance please click on the option for ‘Show additional plans’.

Once you make the change please restart your system. When the system restarts please rescan again for channels.

What file size will the recorded videos be?

Digital Broadcasts (ATSC or QAM)

The file size of a digital signal capture depends on the bitrate of the digital signal.  The bitrate is set by the broadcaster and cannot be user configured.  Bitrates for digital signals can range anywhere from about 1.2 Mbits/sec up to 19.3 Mbits/sec.  Most of the time these bitrates are variable and not constant.  Capture sizes for ATSC & QAM recordings are approximately 1.7 Gigabytes per hour up to 8.3 Gigabytes per hour.

Analog Broadcast.

The WinTV application has to convert analog signals to digital in order to record. There are four recording profiles. The following list shows recording file sizes for burning to 4.3Gb DVD:

Best - Approx 1 Hour+
Better - Approx 1 1/2 Hours
Good - Approx 2 Hours
Fair - Approx 3 Hours

Windows cannot verify the digital signature for the drivers required for this device error code 52?

This appears to be a bug in Windows 64 bit OS. Our drivers are signed.

"Windows cannot verify the digital signature for the drivers required for this device. A recent hardware or software change might have installed a file that is signed incorrectly or damaged, or that might be malicious software from an unknown source. (Code 52)"

The following is probably the easiest fix to Error Code 52 on Windows 7 or Windows 8 64bit.

In device manager right click the Hauppauge product under Sound Video and Game Controllers with the exclamation mark and select Uninstall. If you have a USB product you might multiple listings, please right click the first one on the list.

For this example we will use the HVR-950Q.

On the Confirm window please check the box for "Delete the driver software for this device" and click OK.

Repeat the uninstall for the other two 950Q entries. (note you won't be asked to 'confirm device uninstall' again).

Once the drivers are gone on right click on "Sound, Video Game Controllers" and "Scan for Hardware Changes".

Windows should now look online automatically for the 950Q drivers.

Take a look after a few minutes if the drivers are installed automatically properly under Sound Video and Game Controllers.

If they still come back as "unsigned" try the procedure again.

Making connections to your WinTV-HVR-955Q

The WinTV-HVR955Q is a multi-format TV receiver, and there are several ways to connect your video source to it.

Here is a chart which shows some of the things you need to know about each type of connection

Connecting to an over-the-air antenna

Cable or satellite TV set top box
using the RF output from the box

Cable or satellite TV set top box
using the A/V output from the box

Connecting to a cable TV wire from the wall (Digital QAM)

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

click to enlarge
Which type of TV can this connection be used with? Over-the-air digital TV Cable or satellite TV
set top box
Cable or satellite TV
set top box
Cable TV direct connection
What types of video do I select when scanning for channels in the WinTV application (Device Setup Wizard)? Digital ATSC Analog TV (cable/antenna) External inputs
(S-Video or Composite video)
Digital QAM or
Analog TV (if available in your WinTV tuner)
What remote control do I use to change channels? WinTV remote control Remote control from your set top box Remote control from your
set top box
WinTV remote control
Notes You can use a roof top antenna for best reception.

Most set top boxes allow you to switch to Channel 3 or 4. When you scan with WinTV, it will pick up the TV signal on the correct channel.

Some satellite receivers use channels 60, 70 or 73. But when you scan for Analog TV channels, WinTV will pick up whatever channel is being used by your set top box.

Most set top boxes have A/V connections on the back, which can go into the WinTV's A/V input.

Some cable TV networks transmit analog TV channels, so we recommend scanning for both Clear QAM and analog TV.

Not all cable TV networks transmit clear QAM. Check with your local cable TV operator for the availability of clear QAM in your area.

TV Antenna Troubleshooting

The reception of TV channels in the WinTV application is dependent upon two things:

  • you need to have a strong enough TV signal for the Hauppauge TV tuner to achieve 'signal lock'. Once a TV channel has a signal strong enough to 'lock', it will appear in the Channel List during the channel scan. This often means that your antenna needs to be in the "line of sight" from the transmitter. If there is a building blocking the TV signal coming from the transmitter, you might not be able to achieve 'signal lock'.
  • once the TV channel appears in the Channel List, it also needs a signal strong enough so that the WinTV application can display a clear TV picture. We sometimes hear that there are channels which appear in the TV channel list but cannot be watched (frozen image, black screen or an image with lots of defects). This is due to the TV channel having just enough 'strength' to achieve signal lock, but not strong enough for a good TV image to be displayed.

Good reception - roof and window

Good reception - roof and window

Good reception roof, bad reception window

Good reception roof, bad reception window

Bad reception roof and window

Bad reception roof and window

The signal strength is related to the size (and quality) of the antenna, and the 'line of sight' to the transmitter. If you have a large antenna but it is not pointed toward the TV transmitter, the TV signal will be weak and may not be received.

In addition, please check the antenna connections to the Hauppauge TV tuner. If the connector is not securely plugged in, then signal loss will occur and you will not get an optimal TV picture.

When TV channels cannot be received or if the TV quality is poor, here are a couple of things you can try:

Using the Hauppauge 'stick' antenna

The Hauppauge stick antenna will work up to roughly 10 miles from the transmitter, and needs an unobstructed line of sight to the transmitter. Otherwise a larger antenna will provide better results.

Symptoms of needing a larger (better quality) antenna include scanning for channels in WinTV works, but when trying to watch a channel, they may achieve tuning 'lock' but the TV signal breaks up heavily.

If you cannot use an outdoor antenna, you might need an indoor antenna with a booster.

Receiving TV in an apartment

You can use either 'stick' antennas or flat antennas when you are in an apartment. In general, you will get good reception as long as your antenna is 'pointing' toward the TV transmitter.

  • place your antenna in a window, as high from the floor as possible
  • if possible, place the antenna facing the direction of the broadcast towers. Over-the-air TV is most effective when it achieves "line of sight" to the transmitters. TV reception will still work without line-of-sight, but then you are dependant upon the TV signal bouncing off of a building or other structure
  • a TV signal booster can sometimes help bring in some of the weaker TV channels.

We recommend the purchase of a portable amplified antenna for indoor or outdoor use to be connected to the WinTV product to ensure correct reception of the TV channels.

Receiving TV at a home

When you are using a Hauppauge TV tuner to watch TV at home, most times you are further from the TV transmitter and a larger TV antenna is needed.

  • outdoor antennas will perform better than indoor antennas.
  • if possible, use an outside antenna located as high from the ground as possible
  • if using an indoor antenna place it near a window or wall facing the direction of the broadcast towers.
  • a TV signal booster can sometimes help bring in some of the weaker TV channels.

If you are in the US, there is a website where you can enter your ZIP code and see from which direction a channel’s signal is coming and what type of antenna is needed to receive that signal.