DVB Enhancer for SageTV

[gianpieroizzo]

.

[bjkiller]

DVB Enhancer allows SageTV users to extend it in the following ways:

Zero configuration/maintenance of (sometimes hundreds of) channels.
Simultaneous multiple program recording using a single physical tuner, provided the programs are on the same transponder.
Scrambled content recording using legal subscription cards (with MDAPI-compatible plugins).

dvbe4sage homepage http://code.google.com/p/dvbe4sage/

Installation Documentation: http://dvbe4sage.googlecode.com/file...-13Mar2011.rar

SkyUK setup guide http://diginerve.blogspot.com/2010/0...-with-dvb.html

Australia Foxtel setup http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...324#post473324

hebrew guide http://www.hometheater.co.il/modules...b+sage&start=0

development updates: http://code.google.com/p/dvbe4sage/updates/list
Recomdended card: TechnoTrend TT-connect S2-3650

[gianpieroizzo]

that sounds wonderful !
Unfortunately I'm not able to read hebrew... what I basically miss is: how do you configure the channels in Sage ? You copy and past the .frq file for the "normal" detected card ?

thanks in advance
Gian Piero

[bjkiller]

Originally Posted by gianpieroizzo

that sounds wonderful !
Unfortunately I'm not able to read hebrew... what I basically miss is: how do you configure the channels in Sage ? You copy and past the .frq file for the "normal" detected card ?

thanks in advance
Gian Piero

you do not need any .frq files. the channels numbers, freq, and tranponders dvbe4sage decode from SAT stream.

here my directory structure

PHP Code:

 Directory of c:/dvb4sage

dvbe4sage.exe
dvbe4sage.ini
encoder.dll
FFDeCSA_32_INT.dll
FFdecsa_64.dll
FFDeCSA_64_MMX.dll
<DIR>          Plugins
softcsa.ini

 Directory of c:/dvb4sage/Plugins

NDSCam.dll
NDSCam.ini 


[gianpieroizzo]

I'm a bit lost
I don't understand how this plugin knows about channel numbers.
If I try to select one channel on Sage, nothing happen, dvbe4sage it is not able to tune it.
Here follows the log:

2008-11-15 17:19:14 Loading filter "TechnoTrend BDA/DVB-S Tuner" - succeeded!
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Tuner Filter Info = "TechnoTrend BDA/DVB-S Tuner"
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Loading filter "TechnoTrend BDA/DVB Capture" - succeeded!
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Loaded our transport stream filter
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Added demux filter to the graph
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Connected demux to our filter output pin
2008-11-15 17:19:14 Loading filter "BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter" - succeeded!
2008-11-15 17:19:18 Received command: "VERSION"
2008-11-15 17:19:18 Received command: "NOOP"
2008-11-15 17:19:19 Received command: "NOOP"
2008-11-15 17:19:19 Received command: "NOOP"
2008-11-15 17:19:31 Received command: "START DVBDream DVB-S Plugin Card 1 Sintonizzatore Tv Digitale|318-5200-3401-1|2453531942842|D:\SageTV Recordings\Asuaimmagine-1237827-0.mpg|Great"
2008-11-15 17:19:31 Received START command to start recording on source "DVBDream DVB-S Plugin Card 1 Sintonizzatore Tv Digitale", channel=318, duration=2453531942, file="D:\SageTV Recordings\Asuaimmagine-1237827-0.mpg"
2008-11-15 17:19:31 Cannot start recording for Channel=318, no sutable tuner found!
2008-11-15 17:19:31 Received command: "GET_FILE_SIZE D:\SageTV Recordings\Asuaimmagine-1237827-0.mpg"

What does it mean "no sutable tuner found!"... why channel 318 ? Where dvbe4sage goes to understand correctly Frequency, SymbolRate, Polarization, Modulation and FEC ?

Thanks in advance, I'm so curious about this tool, it seems really promising, because here in Italy we have the same NDS crypto system.

Gian Piero Izzo

[gianpieroizzo]

ok, I went to check directly the code, I see that it is hardcoded on the israelian tv.
However it should be possible to change the DVB parser and read a file .frq created by sage in order to know things about transponders and channels. I'll try to do it, if someone is interested as well, just let me know.

Gian Piero

[JMFR]

Hi GIan, I also I'm interested in the possibility of dvbe4sage able to read others freq. not just israelian TV ... will be the last solution for me to be able to watch my tv provider with my legal card ...

tks

JMFR

[svalmorri]

Hello!

Are you having any luck with this tool?
I personally don't understand how to set it up ...

SV

[gianpieroizzo]

Hi,

hope to work a bit on this during christmas holiday.
You can not set it up as it is, just because it is hard coded for israelian tv.
In the meanwhile the best solution I found is the DVBViewer Recorder by stephanem. It works perfectly, the unique problem I have with it is that with my softcam the graph shall remain open and it consumes a lot of cpu

ciao
Gian Piero

[grooves12]

Look into the DVBDream Network Encoder... i have been using DVB with sage for quite some time and it is by far the best solution to date.

[bjkiller]

the software has open source code, you welcome to download and makes fixes for your country.

[mpogr]

Hi guys,

Allow me to introduce myself: I am the developer of DVBE4SAGE.
I started developing it after I figured out that NDSCAM, together with a valid subscription card, can be used for decrypting all encrypted channels of my satellite provider (YES Israel). Unfortunately, that didn't help me much, as I've been “hooked” on SageTV which couldn't work together with NDSCAM.
So, I created DVBE4SAGE, which is essentially a standalone recorder with minimal UI allowing one to record specific channels encrypted with NDS using NDSCAM with a Phoenix reader and a valid subscription card. In addition to that, it exposes SageTV network encoder interface allowing it to be used by SageTV server as network encoder. I use this setup since Aug 8th 2008 very successfully, fully replacing my previous analogue setup with analogue capture cards, STBs and IR blasters. I’m able to record practically any number of parallel programs on all channels I have subscription for, including HD ones.
It works like this: I have several DVB-S cards (currently 3), 1 Phoenix serial card reader and a valid YES subscription card. In DVBE4SAGE I defined 7 virtual tuners which are exposed as distinct tuners using SageTV network encoder interface. Then, in Sage, I use all 7 of them as tuners. Each time Sage needs to record a program, it sends a command to DVBE4SAGE which picks up a physical tuner to record it. DVBE4SAGE does internal optimization, so, if the new program to record resides on a transponder which is already recorded for a different program, it uses the same physical tuner. Because of YES transponder layout, it allows me to record almost any number of programs in parallel using only 3 physical tuners.
I open sourced this project for everyone’s benefit, hoping other people will jump on it and contribute their development. This hasn’t happened yet, but I hope this community can help to popularize it, so, eventually, someone will pick up the task.
I tried to make it provider agnostic, however, some provider-specific stuff sneaked in. For example, people here asked how it can work without some sort of FRQ file. The answer is quite simple: most satellite providers transmit so-called NIT (Network Information Table) packets carrying tuning information (frequencies, symbol rates, polarization etc.) for all providers’ transponders, as well as SDT (Service Definition Table) packets carrying information about specific services (channels). This allows generic decoders to discover all channels of that provider alongside with the information necessary for tuning to each specific channel. DVBE4SAGE can use this information for tuning, so, one just needs to provide it with a SID (Service ID) for a specific channel and it will tune to it automatically. For YES, I went even further, and managed to find out a way to automatically map these SIDs to the “Remote” channel numbers, but it should work for other providers too using just SIDs.
This way you need only to supply it with minimal initial transponder information and all the rest will be discovered automatically. This initial transponder information can be specified in the .INI file.
I did have plans to generalize DVBE4SAGE and allow manual tuning information definition (like FRQ file) for providers that don’t transmit NITs and SDTs, but haven’t find time to implement it yet. This is quite necessary when using the tool together with Sage for such providers, because Sage can use only a single number as a channel ID when asking a network encoder to record it. As a standalone tool, it can be used for recording a service on an arbitrary transponder specified using its own UI.
There are a lot of details (including configuration) regarding this tool that haven’t been published yet, so, if you need more information, please, PM me.
Again, my primary target at this stage is to find more developers who would like to contribute to this project.
Last but not least, for some people compared this project to other attempts to bridge between SageTV and existing DVB recording software that can use MD-API CAMs. I’ve seen a couple of projects like this, including DVBViewer and MyTheatre recorders.
The biggest difference between those and DVBE4SAGE is the fact that DVBE4SAGE has only one function – to record. It does nothing more, so it’s very, very thin and robust. As someone already mentioned here, we conducted trials with almost 30 parallel recordings using a single Phoenix reader with a single subscription card, and it worked perfectly. All other solutions are based on DVB watching software which has many functions (watching, recording by schedule, creating visual EPG, channel scanning etc.). All these are absent from DVBE4SAGE, it was written just for speed and efficiency.
Anyway, everyone interested in obtaining more information about it is welcome to PM me.

Thanks and best regards,

Michael.

[grooves12]

Is there any way to get it to work with the genpix Skywalker tuner??

For us in the US, that is really the killer feature... if it supports that and an MDAPI plugin, it would be perfect.

[mpogr]

Originally Posted by grooves12

Is there any way to get it to work with the genpix Skywalker tuner??

For us in the US, that is really the killer feature... if it supports that and an MDAPI plugin, it would be perfect.

I have no clue what this Skywalket tuner is. DVBE4SAGE was coded with DVB in mind, however, I believe DVB-S flavor-specific stuff is currently hardcoded. I also believe with minimal work it can be adapted for generic DVB/ATSC, but if you're looking for anything else than DVB-S, don't expect it to work just as it is right now...

[grooves12]

a few more questions than... is this program only compatible with devices with BDA drivers, or will it work with other?? The genpix device does not have BDA drivers, which is why at this point we HAVE to use a network encoder interface?

[mpogr]

Yes, it's compatible only with devices having BDA drivers.

[Mark SS]

Originally Posted by mpogr

The answer is quite simple: most satellite providers transmit so-called NIT (Network Information Table) packets carrying tuning information (frequencies, symbol rates, polarization etc.) for all providers’ transponders, as well as SDT (Service Definition Table) packets carrying information about specific services (channels). This allows generic decoders to discover all channels of that provider alongside with the information necessary for tuning to each specific channel. DVBE4SAGE can use this information for tuning, so, one just needs to provide it with a SID (Service ID) for a specific channel and it will tune to it automatically. For YES, I went even further, and managed to find out a way to automatically map these SIDs to the “Remote” channel numbers, but it should work for other providers too using just SIDs..

It sounds like your app will be perfect for UK users with a enhancements. At the most basic, sounds like we just need a way to map the SIDs (or maybe audio/video PIDS to ensure correct sub channels and audio streams are chosen) discovered automatically from the NIT (which is transmitted for UK Sky) to EPG channel numbers?

[mpogr]

Mark,

Yes, that should work, provided everything else works as well. So far I discovered one parameter hardcoded for YES provider, which is the CAID (0x90C and 0x90D), but that can be easily fixed. Please, PM me if you want to start debuggung your configuration.

Thanks,

Michael.

[bjkiller]

found some article on the web - may be it's userfull

Digital Spy forum members who receive digital satellite TV on their home computer have been able to view the stream after installing appropriate codecs. They report that the service information table for the 11.428H transponder is carrying, in addition to the ITV HD stream, data services named "FreesatHome", "FreesatCommonC", "FreesatSSU", and "FreesatOAD".

Freesat is making few public comments until the consumer launch of the new service on May 6, and ITV HD's launch date has yet to be officially confirmed. However, service ID 10510 has been confirmed as present in pre-launch Freesat EPG data, and ITV's online marketing material only advertises it as being "available on Freesat".

http://www.satelliteonline.co.uk/latest_news.htm

[Mark SS]

Originally Posted by mpogr

Please, PM me if you want to start debuggung your configuration.

Great, will do. Am on holiday for the next week or so but will be in touch when I'm back.