Recording PS3 with Hauppauge HD PVR2 and HDMI

This is a real quick tutorial on how to use HDMI to record your PS3 game play using the HD PVR 2 Gaming edition. I don’t know why but it always annoyed me that you had to use component video to record PS3 on the HD PVR 2. Yes it upscales to 1080 but… does it really? I dont know…

I have not looked into it that far. So why cant you do this normally, simple HDCP protection, basically since Sony PS3 has the capability to play movies, stream videos from Vudu and other such services, Sony wanted to protect the content.

As with all things, HDCP can be bypassed in one way or another. My purpose of bypassing this is not to record movies or anything like that. Please note that recording movies or video from these services is piracy and is not condoned by GunGeek. Honestly in this internet age why would you want to take up hard drive space with video when it is easily accessed in the cloud by any device anyway. So thats enough of the disclaimer, on to breaking HDCP.

As most do I went out and bought a Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition with out really researching this feature. And as most were kind of pissed off when we found it. Below is a quick list of items you will need to complete the PS3 HDMI recording with the HD PVR 2

  1. Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition High Definition Game Capture Device with HDMI In and Out and Real Time Passthrough for Use with PC, Xbox 360 and PS3
  2. Monoprice 4X4 True Matrix HDMI Powered Switch w/ Remote (Rev. 3.0)
  3. BlueRigger High Speed HDMI to DVI Adapter Cable (6.6 Feet/ 2 Meters)
  4. BlueRigger Digital Optical Audio Toslink Cable (3 feet)
  5. Monoprice DVI & S/PDIF Digital Coax/Optical Toslink Audio to HDMI Converter
  6. And a few HDMI Cables. BlueRigger High Speed HDMI Cable with Ethernet 6.6 Feet (2m) – Supports 3D and Audio Return [Latest Version]
  7. Your PS3
  8. TV with HDMI Inputs
  9. Computer with available USB port. (Sorry HD PVR does not support USB 3.0 yet)

There is one item the 4X4 true matrix switch that you could cheap out on and get a smaller one BUT, I recommend this one highly. It allows you to split and switch the video with multiple inputs and outputs on one device. This allows you to bypass the HD PVR 2 video pass through (note my HD PVR output is not plugged in on the illustration below). They say that there is almost no lag however especially during online game play I have noticed lag going through the HD PVR 2. Nothing like coming around a corner seeing nobody then getting killed with a knife in the face.

So here is the step by step.

  1. Plug the HDMI end of the HDMI to DVI cable into the PS3
  2. Plug the DVI end of the HDMI to DVI Cable into the Converter
  3. Plug the Toslink/Spdif cable into the PS3 and the Converter on the IN side.
  4. Use an HDMI cable to go from the Converter to the INPUT 1 on the TRUE MATRIX
  5. Use another HDMI to go from OUTPUT 1 to your TV
  6. Another HDMI goes from OUTPUT 2 to our HD PVR 2.
  7. Plug your HD PVR 2 USB to your computer.
  8. Install software that comes with it or find your own.
  9. Plug all power components in and turn on.
  10. Turn on TV
  11. Turn On TRUE MATRIX
  12. Turn On Converter, Turn on PS3

And that is pretty much it. The true matrix devise should automatically set the outputs appropriately. You should be able to start recording true 1080p video now.


The image is a quick  illustration of my set up including the Wii U. I also have the Turtle beach PX5 between my PS3 and the Converter but left that out for clarity. You can click on the image for a larger version.

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