Can't play back DVDs after HDHomeRun install

[mc2wheels]

I just recently got a HDTV and a HDHomeRun -- so I thought I would venture into the world of HD recording.

First thing I did was to upgrade from Sage 4 to version 6. Then I upgraded to the 6.1.3 RC build. I was very impressed with how the DVD playback of widescreen format show was expanded to full screen on my LCD.

Anyway, I ran with that new version of Sage for a while until I was sure that it was relatively stable. Then, I installed the HDHomerun with the latest firmware and drivers. It took a while to get all of the channels mapped, but everything on that front seems to work well -- I can't use vmr9 for hd playback, but oh well.

At that point I was going to declare victory, and I started to show off the new installation of sage. The first thing I did was to pop in a DVD that used to be letterboxed to show off the new zoomed look. But instead, I got a playback error -- either macrovision or css error (-8,0x6).

I originally had the DVD set to playing with overlay and everything else default. I specifically forced it to use the nvidia codec and ac3 filtering, but it still failed.

I didn't want to do it, but I uninstalled everything HDHomeRun related, and reinstalled the nVidia codec. And after putting the dvd playback settings back to what they originally were, I could play back DVDs again.

I reinstalled the HDHomeRun, and I lost DVD playback again. I tried uninstalling/reinstalling the nVidia codec again after the HDHomeRun, but still can't play DVDs.

The DVDs will playback through Windows Media Player, and through VLC that gets installed with HDHomeRun.

Questions:
1) Has anyone else run into this problem?
2) Is anyone else running the 6.1.3 RC build with an HDHomeRun? Is it possible that this release is incompatible with the HDHomeRun? I saw that they did change the way they playback ts files.
3) Do you think I should try uninstalling the VLC player that gets installed with the HDHomeRun? Or is this a necessary component?

I really don't want to remap all of my QAM channels a third time, so I am hesitant to do anything that breaks the HDHomeRun again. But I am looking for advise on what to try next.

[gplasky]

Make sure you actually choose the nVidia decoder for DVD palyback and don't use default for any of the DVD settings.


Gerry

[mc2wheels]

Originally Posted by gplasky

Make sure you actually choose the nVidia decoder for DVD palyback and don't use default for any of the DVD settings.


Gerry

Yes, I tried specifying both the nVidia decoder and the post processor with every combination of audio decoder with every filter -- which took a while by the way.

Any of the hdhomerun users out there that are using 6.0, are you experiencing this problem? I wonder if this is something specific to 6.1.3 RC. I've been reading about all of the instabillity of 6.0, so I went straight to the release candidate. In retrospect, perhaps I should have stayed at 6 for testing purposes. It would have helped me isolate the issue.

All suggestions are welcome. I really don't know how to proceed. I was hoping it was one of those annoying config issues that someone had seen before and knew how to fix.

[Polypro]

I just installed 6.1.3 over the top of 6.0.19 and DVD's play fine from either the HD or Tray. I have an HDHR. Usual suggestions I'd give are DECCHECK, Radlight Filter Manager, Prefer Other Decoder for AC3Filter, etc...

P

[mc2wheels]

I've never had this kind of problem with Sage before. As a result, I don't know about those tools. Thank you for the suggestions. What is "prefer other ac3 filter"? Is that some setting in sage?

One last bit of difference could be that I have their latest drivers for the hdhomerun from 2/4, and the firmware from 1/31. Polypro, which ones are you running with?

[Polypro]

Same HDHR fw/sw.

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...46&postcount=6

P

[Chilli]

2 days ago, I also upgraded from v4 to v6.0.19 w/no change in hardware except for HDHR w/VLC. When I tested DVD playback in Sage, I ran into the same css error, but changing the video decoder from Default to Intervideo CSS fix the problem for me.

[mc2wheels]

It's funny that Chilli had the same experience as me. Unfortunately, I do not have another codec to switch to -- plus I don't really want to lose the nVidia codec. I'm sure I have a copy of intervideo around somewhere -- I may have to try that.

The funny thing is, I do see the nVidia tray app come up, but I get the play back Macrovision or css error -8,0x6. If I switch to the sage codec (which I know doesn't work for DVDs, but I wanted to compare messages), I get a different error -8,0x2. Any sage experts out there no what the difference is?

Anyway, Polypro, thank you for the link. I will try those tools tonight. I was out all day with the family, so I didn't have a chance to download tools and mess around.

[mc2wheels]

I installed DECCheck, and it said that my nvidia decoder was preferred, and I installed Radlight Filter Manager, and I checked "prefer other". But I still got the same macrovision or CSS error (-8, 0x6). I tried installing the latest version of the ac3 filter, but no luck.

Next, I installed winDVD. I can play DVDs in winDVD, but not in sage when I pick the intervideo decoder (I changed it for both video and audio). In fact, I can still play DVDs in windows media player or VLC, but just not in sage with any codecs or filters specified.

I did try uninstalling VLC, but that broke my connection to the HDHR, so I had to re-install it.

Any other suggestions out there?

[malbec]

The ugly one ... sounds like your system is as gummed up as mine was 4-5 months ago. I did a complete reinstall of Windows, Sage, etc. and it has been workling like a dream ever since.

[mc2wheels]

I don't have time to rebuild the machine. I can ghost back to my pre-version 6 upgrade, but event that is not appealing.

I am not giving up. Hopefully, when I find the answer, I can post it here.

If Chilli and I are any indication, this will become an issue for many others. Upgrading sage has been increasingly dangerous; I have had sage since version 2.something, but every release since has had some fairly significant stability issues. I stopped upgrading at the first version of Sage that seemed stable with MediaMVPs (4.something).

With the dual HDTuner that handles over the air and qam (HDHR) and HD LCD prices dropping, I now have a reason to upgrade to version 6. But I waited for them to shake out some of the stability issues. I would guess that a lot of people out there are going to go through the exact same upgrade path for the exact same reasons.

I think when I get home from work tonight, I am going to play with the AC3 filter settings. This morning when I tried checking "prefer other decoder" on the AC3 system tab, I lost sound for my normal tv viewing. It would seem that AC3 is now the default filter for audio. I think I was using nVidia's before.

Can one of the sage developers out there tell me what the -8,0x6 error is? As I said I got a different error when I switch to a codec that can't do dvds (-8,0x2). Perhaps that difference is key.

Perhaps I should contact support too.

[mc2wheels]

I've tried poking and prodding at every setting I can find in sage, nvidia, and ac3. I still can't get it to work. I just submitted a support request. Don't know if they can do anything.

I may try rolling back to version 4 and retrying the upgrade -- I have a ghost image of the os drive from then. If I do, does anyone know what I would need to keep from my current installation so that all of my shows are still in sync with sage (I have removed some shows and recorded som high def shows). Also, I have added new import directories. In v6, I hooked up my ipod recordings with sage.

[malbec]

FWIW ... since upgrading to 6.1.13 I too can no longer play my imported DVD files. I had not checked this before until now. I haven't much time to play with it, but I am wondering if it might be 6.1.13 related.

[mc2wheels]

Well as you know we don't support the HDHomerun. One thing you can try is to install it and then uninstall and then reinstall Sage after to see if that helps.

Wonderful. The dvds will only not play back under sage. They play using the nVidia codec under VLC and media player. I specifically asked if there was anything I could do to try to the problem, and what the -8,0x6 error was. I also asked what I would need to keep from my v6 installation, if I went back to version 4 and tried the whole thing again. No answer to any of that.

I am a developer. I have been on both sides of these situations. I understand not wanting to support someone else's product, but how about answering the sage specific questions. I am very disappointed.

I guess I will ghost the machine in it's current state and then try rolling back to 4. Perhaps if I upgrade just to 6.0 the dvd player will work. Maybe I'll try installing winDVD again but before my upgrade to see if I can switch decoders.

[mc2wheels]

I posted this issue in the SiliconDust forum here. They provided a new build. I then had to uninstall the drivers that are not needed for sage -- I am not sure what this exactly meant, but the instructions are in that thread, and they worked for me.