How to get HDHR QAM working with v6.2

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by Keenan

The below is copied from the HDHR forum which I think we're all bouncing back and forth from.

The instructions provided below from Nick worked for me, after a bit of trial and error. Sage 6.2.7 and 20070830 work perfectly for me on XP.

Hi,

We are busy working on the updated instructions. They were meant to be out today but it will be tomorrow.

Summary:
1) name all the channels in the channel editor.
2) configure sagetv.
3) in the sagetv channel editor click the button to disable all channels.
4) for each channel you need to enable it (green dot will appear), and remap the physical channel. Set the physical channel to the n-n-n number from the HDHomeRun channel editor (click advanced).


I do remember having to try the different physical remap functions to get it right, but it works.

The 700 channels numbers are created by choosing the Comcast digital lineup for the guide info.

The n-n-n remap didn't work for me. Using the first single digit DID.


Gerry

[thatdude90210]

I upgraded to 0830 driver without touching Sage. It's working and still using the previous trigger numbers.

[foolio]

Originally Posted by gplasky

The n-n-n remap didn't work for me. Using the first single digit DID.


Gerry

Interesting instructions - I went about it the opposite way. I scanned for channels in HDhomerun channel editor and selected the ones I want.

I then went in sage, added BDA tuners, disable all channel. I then scanned for channels. The scanned channels corresponded to the channel found in HDHomerun.

I then remaped the channel found in sage to the proper guide channel. Ie, it found 80.1, 80.2, 80.3, 80.4 - I remaped 80.1 to the NBCHD channel, 80.2 to CBSHD, etc.

[Keenan]

Originally Posted by foolio

Interesting instructions - I went about it the opposite way. I scanned for channels in HDhomerun channel editor and selected the ones I want.

I then went in sage, added BDA tuners, disable all channel. I then scanned for channels. The scanned channels corresponded to the channel found in HDHomerun.

I then remaped the channel found in sage to the proper guide channel. Ie, it found 80.1, 80.2, 80.3, 80.4 - I remaped 80.1 to the NBCHD channel, 80.2 to CBSHD, etc.

Are those the actual QAM channels? The numbers I get, as posted above, have no relation whatsoever with the actual QAM channels the signals are on. That's what confused me in the beginning. Where do those n-n-n numbers come from?

[Keenan]

Originally Posted by gplasky

The n-n-n remap didn't work for me. Using the first single digit DID.


Gerry

Odd...at least it's working.

[tmiranda]

Mine also did NOT work with n-n-n but did work with only the first digit.

The SiliconDust guys have done a great job, but now every time there is a new release you have to reinstall everything in a completely different manner. Frustrating. Hopefully when the product is more mature this will stop happening.

[carlgar]

I suspect that part of problems is related to whether you have an existing lineup.xml file or not. I think if you deleted the existing lineup.xml then everyone would be seeing the same thing. I would try it, but I am so tired of reentering my 6 tuners. At this point I almost wish I had never heard of the HDHomeRun.

When I look at my lineup.xmp the first 36 (the number of channels I have) channels have the following format:
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="yes" ?>
- <Lineup>
- <Program>
<Name>WKRN</Name>
<Type>normal</Type>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>555000000</Frequency>
<ProgramNumber>1</ProgramNumber>
<RemapTrigger>2</RemapTrigger>
<VirtualChannel>80.1</VirtualChannel>
</Program>

But then I have a bunch of other stuff in a slightly differ format that I suspect is left over from previous versions.

If it doesn't work just wait a few days and they will have a whole new way to waste there customers time. It will be a long time before I try any new HDHomerun software again.

[clmolnar]

Originally Posted by tmiranda

Mine also did NOT work with n-n-n but did work with only the first digit.

Same for me.

[Keenan]

Out of curiosity, which channel lineup option do you guys use? The one I chose was the the option at the top of the list, I think it said XML and something else. There were 4 options. I don't want to go back in there now because everything is working and I don't want to screw it up.

Maybe that has something to do with the differences in how we've got this working?

[shadowb]

Hey guys,

After much playing around I finally got my HDHR to work with bda only. It was something I hadn't intended until I started to mess with my configuration and it wouldn't work again

I found out by selecting hdhr in sage and scanning aftward I just have to manually map the channels I want and they work like a charm. One thing I did run across though I guess with the 69 channel limit, I disabled the channels I didn't care about, but I still had to g back and re-map some of the channels becuase the remaps change with channels you enable and disable with hdhr setup program. So far so good. I'll be switching my htpc over to sage as well.

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by Keenan

Out of curiosity, which channel lineup option do you guys use? The one I chose was the the option at the top of the list, I think it said XML and something else. There were 4 options. I don't want to go back in there now because everything is working and I don't want to screw it up.

Maybe that has something to do with the differences in how we've got this working?

Where exactly are you talking about? If you use the BDA drivers you only use HDHR setup and the channel editor. You don't use HDHR config GUI and you don't use HDHR Manager. Are you talking in Sage? Instructions from Silcon says don't scan for channels. I'm using QAM (cable) and not OTA.

Gerry

[egeller]

Originally Posted by shadowb

Hey guys,

I found out by selecting hdhr in sage and scanning afterward .

Mine is still not working. I don't think it's the Silcondust side. The install and configuration there is simple and easily understood. I like the channel editor.

I've done a clean install of Sage and HDHR. I even replicated the "remove-tuner" issue. That's been particularly annoying and is the only complaint of the HDHR side. Unfortunately, it's a huge issue, so they need to solve it. It's either from the firmware upgrade or the BDA driver install.

However:

1. In Sage, you choose the tuner then, I'm guessing you did not choose a channel lineup. I try that and get nothing from the scan. Can anyone confirm, specifically, how that works for them and what they did? Sage is detecting my HDHR tuners, but not finding channels.
2. Only by reading this thread did I learn that a license.xml file is created. Does Sage use it? That would make life easier, if it did.
3. Did everyone port the information from license.xml to the remap file? I'm trying that and it's not working.

I understand that the HDHR manager is no longer needed. Sage is detecting the tuners correctly. I can use them with the HDHR tools and VLC, but scans and the various suggestions on entering the mapping is not working.

[carlgar]

Originally Posted by egeller

1. In Sage, you choose the tuner then, I'm guessing you did not choose a channel lineup. I try that and get nothing from the scan. Can anyone confirm, specifically, how that works for them and what they did? Sage is detecting my HDHR tuners, but not finding channels.
2. Only by reading this thread did I learn that a license.xml file is created. Does Sage use it? That would make life easier, if it did.
3. Did everyone port the information from license.xml to the remap file? I'm trying that and it's not working.

I fail to understand why people are using the Sage scan. You should already know what channels you get from the HDHomeRun. It should now just be a matter of telling sage which channels you get and what physical number to send to the HDHomerun. You should be using a lineup from the provider you are using and it should be a digital lineup. The lineup should be correct except for the physical channel which you have to remap for Sage.
I do not believe that Sage uses or even knows about the lineup.xml file. But I also do not believe that the HDHomeRun should use or know about the Sage.properties file. Since I lose my tuners every time I mess with the HDHomerun stuff, someone appears to be crossing the line and screwing up all my tuners.

[jlindborg]

Originally Posted by carlgar

I do not believe that Sage uses or even knows about the lineup.xml file. But I also do not believe that the HDHomeRun should use or know about the Sage.properties file. Since I lose my tuners every time I mess with the HDHomerun stuff, someone appears to be crossing the line and screwing up all my tuners.

Same thing happened to me twice yesterday - when switching my HDHR to be a direct connection instead of going through my switch, it wiped out all my tuner configs (Hauppauge capture cards off DirecTV tuners). Very annoying to have to go back and add those tuners back in again and reconfigure the chanel lineups and all that good stuff.

[egeller]

Thanks for the thoughts, but I got the scan to work. It's the Windows Firewall.

Once I turned it off, the scan found the HDHR channels - 2 to 21, as entered in the license.xml and my remap file.

Now I have to figure out what port to open. Guess I better open the manual, unless someone out there already knows the answer.

BTW, I'd prefer to use Zone Alarm, but I found it was taking too many cycles and switched to Bill Gates' firewall

[Keenan]

Originally Posted by gplasky

Where exactly are you talking about? If you use the BDA drivers you only use HDHR setup and the channel editor. You don't use HDHR config GUI and you don't use HDHR Manager. Are you talking in Sage? Instructions from Silcon says don't scan for channels. I'm using QAM (cable) and not OTA.

Gerry

I'm talking about the guide selection choices as shown in image 4 below. The images below are the sequence I went through to set up the guide. This is after already checking the channels in the HDHR channel editor. I think carlgar is probably right, there is no reason to do a channel scan in Sage.

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by Keenan

I'm talking about the guide selection choices as shown in image 4 below. The images below are the sequence I went through to set up the guide. This is after already checking the channels in the HDHR channel editor. I think carlgar is probably right, there is no reason to do a channel scan in Sage.

Now I see what you're talking about. The ENTIRE setup of the tuner AND guide. But unless something has changed the instructions from SIliconDust for Sage has always been NOT to scan the channels.

Now none of my n-n-n setups worked. But I didn't scan either. Mine works by using the first digit only. So if we're suppose to scan then another part of the instructions are missing from SilconDust. Very frustraing. Mine's working so I'm leaving is as is.

Gerry

[Keenan]

Originally Posted by gplasky

Now I see what you're talking about. The ENTIRE setup of the tuner AND guide. But unless something has changed the instructions from SIliconDust for Sage has always been NOT to scan the channels.

Now none of my n-n-n setups worked. But I didn't scan either. Mine works by using the first digit only. So if we're suppose to scan then another part of the instructions are missing from SilconDust. Very frustraing. Mine's working so I'm leaving is as is.

Gerry

The directions from Nick I posted above are a little vague especially No. 2(configure Sage), note that he never says to do a scan in Sage. Possibly that exclusion means not to do a scan, hard to say from those abbreviated instructions.

Mine is working right now as well, so I'm leaving well enough alone.

Does anyone know what those n-n-n numbers are and how they are generated? Are they just arbitrary numbers applied by the HDHR channel editor?

[egeller]

Originally Posted by Keenan

Does anyone know what those n-n-n numbers are and how they are generated? Are they just arbitrary numbers applied by the HDHR channel editor?

In short, yes.

Look at the lineup.xml file. The Frequency and ProgramNumber are how the cable company (I'm using cable as a source) is sending the signal. The Frequency equates to a channel that can be derived, if you know where to look or how to figure it out.

The VirtualChannel (both parts) and the RemapTrigger are invented by the channel editor.

Here's an example
<Program>
<Name>3.1 KYW-DT</Name>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>627000000</Frequency>
<ProgramNumber>2</ProgramNumber>
<RemapTrigger>11</RemapTrigger>
<VirtualChannel>81.1</VirtualChannel>
</Program

From my cable system, I know that Frequency 627000000 is channel 90 and that KYWDT is sent on channel 90-2.

[Keenan]

Originally Posted by egeller

In short, yes.

Look at the License.xml file. The Frequency and ProgramNumber are how the cable company (I'm using cable as a source) is sending the signal. The Frequency equates to a channel that can be derived, if you know where to look or how to figure it out.

The VirtualChannel (both parts) and the RemapTrigger are invented by the channel editor.

Here's an example
<Program>
<Name>3.1 KYW-DT</Name>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>627000000</Frequency>
<ProgramNumber>2</ProgramNumber>
<RemapTrigger>11</RemapTrigger>
<VirtualChannel>81.1</VirtualChannel>
</Program

From my cable system, I know that Frequency 627000000 is channel 90 and that KYWDT is sent on channel 90-2.

Where is that file located? I don't seem to have any file with that name. As seen below, the RF frequency, QAM channel number and remap number don't seem to have any correlation to each other. Not a big deal, just trying to understand how they are created.

Basically, how do you get 2-80-1 out of RF 459MHz-QAM 63.7 for example?

KPIX QAM 63.7
KTVU QAM 63.9
KGO QAM 67.1
KQED QAM 67.2
KNTV QAM 76.1