DirecTV Serial Control Guide

[SWKerr]

Per request I am posting a guide on how to setup DirecTV USB\Serial control in SageTV.
This is really a collection of things in a lot of other posts.

First of all let me say that this is not particularly difficult if you have the correct hardware. Not all USB to Serial cords have the correct chip to work with DirecTV hardware. I am listing the links to the one I purchased that worked with my DirecTV H20 receiver.

This is basically what you need.
Monoprice.com \ Reasonable shipping showed up fast.
Updated Links: 2-16-09
Null Modem $1.50 http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2
USB to Serial Convert $7.50 http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...t=1#largeimage (might need two)

This link to a MythTV Wiki gives a lot of information about which cables may be compatible with your receiver.
http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php...TV_STB_via_USB

Also: Patersontech offers a device that seems to be almost universally compatible with DirecTV receivers and is guaranteed to work. It is pricier at $50.
Paterson Device: http://www.patersontech.com/

************
I have this working on Intel and AMD hardware with both USB to USB and Serial to USB. This is Windows XP MCE Service Pack 3. SageTV 6.4.?
If you do not have a serial port you will need two USB to Serial Converter cords.

First plug the USB to Serial Converter cord into the PC and use the disk that came with it to install the driver. It will create a COM port in windows. Go into Device Manager and find out what COM port was assigned. (You will need this later.) Add the Null Modem to the end of the cord and attach the second USB to Serial Converter cord. Attach this to the DirecTV receiver. If you have a serial port on your machine you will only need one cord and plug the Null modem into the machine and then the USB to Serial converter into the DirecTV box. You will still need to know the COM port #.

At this point you will want to make sure the cord is working before you even mess with Sage. Download the DirecTV Serial Control Utility. You will need to make sure it is setup to use the correct COM port. Just power the DirecTV receiver off with the utility. If it works you are good if it does not it will not work you likely do not have a cord that is compatible with your receiver.
DirecTV Serial Control Utility: http://www.dtvcontrol.com/

***** Update: The Current version of Sage has an option in the setup under Customize that should eliminate the need to the below registry hack.
Simply set set "DirecTV Serial Channel Changing Mode" to Fast *****

If your setup will power of the receiver in the DirecTV Serial Control Utility then you will need to hack the registry in windows next. With Sage closed (Service shut down)

1. Click Start --> Run and type "regedit".
2. On the right hand side are some folders. Navigate to "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Frey Technologies\SageTV"
3. Click Edit --> New --> DWORD value
4. When a new entry with the name "New Value #1" pops up, I replace "New Value #1" with "DirecTVSerialFastChannelChanges". It is just like renaming any other folder in Explorer.
5. Right click on my new entry and click Modify
6. Change the Value Data field from "0" to "1".

You should be ready for setup in SageTV. If you have an old setup that you upgraded you could possibly have more than one version of the DirecTvSerialControl.dll installed. I would do a quick search of the SageTV install directory for the “DirecTvSerialControl.dll” file and make sure there is only one. If there is another copy just delete the older of the files.

Now just go into the Sage setup utility and you should see DirecTV serial tuner as an option when you setup your tuner card. Make sure you set the correct COM port that you tested earlier.

I have been running this for more than a month now and it has never missed a change and actually responds much faster than the old USB-UIRT setup.

Note: I tried an incompatible cord the first time and there is nothing you can do to make it work. It is very frustrating. I discovered later that I was able to use the bad USB to Serial converter cord to complete a USB to USB setup on one machine as long as the cord with the DirecTV compatible chip was plugged directly into the receiver.

[antonehenry]

thanks for this.

however, the USB to Serial cable that I bought doesn't make a COM port. I guess that's my problem. It didn't come with any software to do so. Is there software available that makes this work with any cable?

I should mention I'm using usb-serial > null modem > usb-serial. As far I have known, this should work. I have no serial ports on my computer, and no PCI space on my htpc.

Thanks

[SWKerr]

Mine moschip 7703. I think this link will allow you to download the driver.
http://www.moschip.com/mcs7703_downloads.php

This will only work if you have the same chip. I am assuming that you probably have an undefined device on your system right now. Did Windows ask for a disk when you plugged it in or at least make a sound?

[antonehenry]

it installs drivers automatically. but no magic com port appears. it says it's installing a device, but no com port shows.

of course my usb > serials have no brand on them, and i've long forgotten where i bought them. probably ebay. i tried a "virtual serial port" program, that has a trial, but that doesn't seem to work either.

i've got 14 days left on my trial to make this work. =] hopefully i get it and then make my sage purchase and live in tv bliss.

[Skarr11]

Excuse me for asking a potentially dumb question, but I have two DTV receivers that I'm planning on using, one for Sage, and one for watching regular TV. Will the DTV receiver dedicated to the Sage box be affected by changing channels on the DTV receiver for the TV, since both DTV receviers can be controlled with one remote? Or does the DTV receiver dedicated to the Sage machine only respond to channel changes commanded by the serial setup described above? I've been wondering about this...Thanks.

[HelenWeathers]

Originally Posted by Skarr11

Will the DTV receiver dedicated to the Sage box be affected by changing channels on the DTV receiver for the TV, since both DTV receviers can be controlled with one remote?

On the receiver to be controlled via serial, put tape over the receiver's ir sensor or it will respond to ir commands from your remote.

[Skarr11]

Got it. Thanks.

So I finally broke down and ordered a SWM and a 1 X 2 splitter. I was hoping that I could just run another coax line from the dish to my living room for the 2nd tuner, but after crawling around in my attic I determined that fishing the line through the walls would be a major PITA, and I didn't want to go excavating in my walls. The SWM seemed like the only other option, so there you go. Should arrive by the end of the week, and hopefully I can get it installed and running this weekend.

[dmckie]

I am having some similar strange problems with the DirecTV serial control as well.
My config is:
SageTV 6.5.7.201
SageMC 6.3.8a
Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1600 Tuner Card
Sony SAT-A1 Receiver

I have an antenna for OTA ATSC and S-video/analog audio from the SAT-A1 both hooked to the H1600.

The serial control works fine if I manually change channels through the SageTV guide.

However, programs scheduled (in SageTV) to record from satellite input don't seem to get recorded properly (or maybe more precisely the channel doesn't get changed properly). The recording exists but it contains a message from the satellite receiver that just says "Channel not available" for the entire length of the show. OTA recordings all work fine.

The "DirecTV Serial Channel Changing Mode" was set to "Normal". I plan to try "Fast" tonight to see if it helps.

At this point, I'm not sure which piece of the setup is the culprit. Has anyone else seen this problem? Any ideas?

Thanks,
dmckie

[Skarr11]

Hmmm. I followed the directions above for setting up DTV control using the exact hardware linked above (Syba USB-Serial adapter SY-USB-S), but I can't get it to work. The links for the hardware actually don't work anymore, but I'm quite certain I used them as a guide to purchase the hardware.

I downloaded the latest Moschip 7703 driver and installed it. I connected the two UBS-serial converters with a null modem adapter in between, and a COM3 port is created. However, when I run the DTV serial control plugin, I get no response to amy commands. Even powering down the receiver doesn't work (I'm trying to control an H21-100).

I've matched various baud rates (4800, 9600, 115200) in Device Manager and in the USB adapter utility, and that didn't work.

I wonder if this adapter is no longer compatible with this receiver? Seems unlikely given how recently this thread was started (Dec 2008).

I ordered a Paterson device so I'll wait for that and see if that solves the problem. They came down in price a little ($35 now).

But in the meantime, any clue as to what I'm doing wrong?

**EDIT** The setup fails the external loopback test when I run the diagnostics on the COM port. I don't know what that means, but I'm sure it's contributing to the problem...

[mahcsm]

The fast setting under customize was exactly what I needed - worked like a charm.

Thanks everyone!

[SWKerr]

I use one of these cords for the timer on our Pinewood derby track for scouts. I learned last weeks that even though there is a Vista64 driver for the cord that it is not digitally signed. Vista 64 will not load unsigned drivers unless you hold down the F8 key at boot and tell it every time that it is ok to use it. (Blinking Microsoft) This would probably make this process useless as a DirecTV solution if you are running Vista64.

[Skarr11]

I purchased and received the paterson cable and I think I have it hooked up properly. I can power on/off the directv receiver through the DTV serial control utility, update the signal strength, get the date and time, etc. I can set up timed recordings and it seems to be selecting the correct channel and recording properly. However, all this is with the DTV receiver on (obviously). I can't get this setup to power on the DTV receiver for a timed recording. I have my PC set to go into standby, and when a recording is scheduled, Sage wakes up the PC a couple of minutes prior to the recording. I was hoping that this would also control the power to the DTV receiver, but so far I can't get it to work. Am I missing something here? Do people just leave the DTV receiver on 24/7, or can the paterson device (or any serial control scheme) power on/off the DTV receiver? Thanks.

[davidb]

I have the same issue. The dtv box must be left on otherwise the show is not recorded. This is a problem if the power goes out as I have the pc configured for ac power loss restart but the dtv box doesn't power back on after a power loss. I see there is a specific code for the dtv power on and a different code for power off so it wouldn't be hard for sage to ensure it is on first!

David

Originally Posted by Skarr11

I purchased and received the paterson cable and I think I have it hooked up properly. I can power on/off the directv receiver through the DTV serial control utility, update the signal strength, get the date and time, etc. I can set up timed recordings and it seems to be selecting the correct channel and recording properly. However, all this is with the DTV receiver on (obviously). I can't get this setup to power on the DTV receiver for a timed recording. I have my PC set to go into standby, and when a recording is scheduled, Sage wakes up the PC a couple of minutes prior to the recording. I was hoping that this would also control the power to the DTV receiver, but so far I can't get it to work. Am I missing something here? Do people just leave the DTV receiver on 24/7, or can the paterson device (or any serial control scheme) power on/off the DTV receiver? Thanks.

[Skarr11]

Yeah, I can see power outages being a problem.

So can anyone confirm that this is normal behavior, or is there another setting that would allow the DTV receiver to be powered on and off through the serial control?

[HelenWeathers]

I run two DirecTV receivers (H20-100s + two HD-PVRs) and they turn on and off with my system, which is on a timer.

My receivers come back on when my timer cuts on if they were on before the timer cut them off.

EDIT: My whole system is on a UPS and the timer is plugged into the UPS with the computer, HD-PVRs and DTV receivers plugged into a power strip that is plugged into the timer. I also have three H21-100s attached to TVs, I'll check out their behavior when I get the chance.

EDIT 2: I just yanked the plug on one of the H21-100s, left it unplugged for 10 minutes, plugged it back in, the unit came back up and turned on (it was on when I pulled the plug).

[SWKerr]

I have two DirecTV H20s and they also return to the on position after a power outage. I just leave them on all the time and have never had a problem. I have been meaning to get a UPS considering all the mini brown outs we get here in NC with big thunder storms.

Looking for good recommendations on a cheap UPS if someone has one. Not wanting to run for ever just a few minutes.

[Beefcake550]

What's cheap? I spent $100 on the cheapest UPS with AVR (Auto Voltage Regulation). You want to get Voltage Regulation if you have brown outs (low power and high power).

I've always stuck with APC and I bought 2 of them. One for my server in the basement and one for the entertainment center in the family room. Best purchase ever. Although, during the recent ice strom and we lived on generator power for 4 days, the UPSs didn't like the output of the generator, so I couldn't use them during the generator usage. I think all UPSs wouldn't like non-sine wave output from a generator.

I just threw in the generator stuff just in case you need to use one during power outages.

[Skarr11]

Thanks for checking that, Helen. But does Sage have the ability to turn the H21 off/on as required when the system goes into/comes out of standby?

Right now I'm just leaving the H21 on 24/7, and Sage wakes up for recordings, then shuts down when not recording. As far as I can tell, it will not power on/off the H21, and I'm wondering if this is nornal.

[SWKerr]

No the generator comment was a good point. I have a generator that I can plug directly into the house. I can't power everything but it is enough to get by. I was without power for 10 days after Hurricane Fran and the one thing I learned was that if you are on Well water that without power you are without water. I learned a similar lesson after an ice storm and now have updated my gas logs and bought a Kerosene heater.

It is kind of surreal to be surrounded by downed trees and various destruction and being able to watch TV without problems.

I will be sure to look for good reviews on AVR (Auto Voltage Regulation) for whatever I buy.

[Ron]

For some reason, I can't seem to get Sage to change channels on my DirecTV STB. I'm using the Paterson TV Translator. The TV Translator utility is changing channels just fine, and the DirecTV Control Utility also operates the STB. I've got it all set for Com 3 in Sage, but Sage won't change channels.

What am I missing?