r5000 system messages

[Fuzzy]

true, but there are still a LOT of boxes out there, and the Dish ViP-211 is compatable with all dish offerings.

[btrcp2000]

After about 6 weeks of success by downgrading to java 15, I am now getting random r5000 errors. I have done nothing with the server, in fact it was kind of nice to just use it to "watch tv" for a bit, but now I guess we're back to constant babysitting. I have already had version d of r5000 for a while now. This crap is getting so old.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by panteragstk

I've been thinking about getting an r5000 box. Are issues like this common? I don't want to shell out the cash for one and have these kinds of problems.

Also, I thought that these boxes were going to become extinct soon as cable/satellite companies weren't making compatible boxes any more.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

I don't know I reserve final judgment until I get some more time/recordings under my belt. I've had the HD PVR since it came out I think and while it had a painful birth, it's been perfect since I got out of denial and taped over the IR window (that's with AC3 audio).

I bought the R5000 because I'd been annoyed with the trouble the HD PVR had been causing, and the price for a pre-mod was down to only slightly more than a box plus an HD PVR.

Of course then it was initially unreliable, but now it seems OK with the update 15 java and d software. But it's only been a couple days.

At this point, I think the HD PVR is a better investment, slightly to a lot cheaper depending on your box situation. And it will work with any provider. I haven't noticed any PQ difference between the two either.

[Helheim]

I know this is an old thread but has anyone been having problems with the R5000 lately? I’ve been getting halt exceptions and sometimes it doesn’t stop recording.

[RandyJohnson]

As of late I have had very few dropouts with the following:

Sage7 latest beta.
Windows 7 64bit Ultimate
Running 3.1d build 6 from r5000 nextcom software. This build was given to me by the r5000 people to fix a system tray problem on Windows 7 64bit Ultimate.
Java version is 1.6.0_21

Lately the few dropouts that have occurred are in the middle of the night and it is very infrequent now leading me to wonder if something has gone to "sleep" for some reason.

Other than the above, the r5000/Sage7 combination has been working flawlessly

The r5000 will continue recording even when the scheduled recording has completed. Since it does not consume much CPU, I just ignore it.

Hope this helps...

Randy

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by RandyJohnson

Lately the few dropouts that have occurred are in the middle of the night and it is very infrequent now leading me to wonder if something has gone to "sleep" for some reason.

If they're between say 3:00 and 3:05 or so, then yeah, it's your box turning off for the nightly update.

[K O]

One trick I've applied to get around the 'nightly update' bug is to 1: add a set of IR pre-codes to all the boxes and 2: stop the R5000 application at 2:55am and restart it at 3:55am. That provides a blackout hour, but Sage is smart enough to see it and re-schedule programs that might start at 3am once it sees the tuner is disconnected.

For #1, the pre-code I use is on each box is: pwr 750 pwr 750 ok 2500
I also set the pre-start delay to 3000ms.

For #2, I setup a task to run a .bat file that issues kill process commands to the R5000 application. Then another task to start the app again an hour later. The biggest problem with the nightly update is that it royally messes up the software and it can't recover.

Also, a nightly reset of the software minimizes errors in general, especially ones that can drag on for days when you don't watch TV and don't catch the error message.

[n9cqs]

I am not sure whether to post this here or not, and this is a rather stale thread, but here goes.

I have had R5000 with VIP211 for over a year. Prior to that addition, I was running Sage for over 2 years with Dish 301 into a Hauppauge 1600 via S-Video. That combination produced only very occasional rain fade, which is typical. The VIP211 R5000 has been another matter. Frequently, I lose pieces of recordings with the dreaded "device has stopped producing data" error. Here are some of the steps I have taken to remedy the situation.


1-Dish 500 DPP for 110/119
1-Dish 500 single DPP LNB aimed at 129
1-Dish 500 single DPP LNB aimed at 61.5
(I live in a very wooded area, have to have separate dishes to find the right "hole" to see each bird)
All those are routed through a DP44 switch.

For the past 4 years prior to my purchase of the modified VIP 211, I have been using a Dish 301 on this system (for SD) only experiencing very occasional rain fade.
I recently added a ViP 222 connected to the computer via Hauppauge HD-PVR, and it is working fine.

Computer system:
Dell Optiplex 745
Windows XP Professional SP 3
latest, fastest Crucial SSD 128 GB for Drive C:,
2 TB drive for video storage
4GB memory
SageTV 7.1.9
latest version of R5000 Sage DVR software (version 'd')
fully updated Java

My problem: I constantly get random errors where SageTV tells me the the "tuner has stopped producing data and will be reset". I have gone to a direct TV connection to the receiver, and it is going through a reset routine that includes having to wait to reload EPG data before it will go back to the program again.


1. When I first connected the VIP 211, I was running a DPP Dish 500 dual LNB with a built-in switch for a third dish (wing-dish) for either 61.5 or 129. At the time I had a nasty old tree in the way and so pointed it to 61.5. I had solid signals on all three birds (61.5, 110, 119).
2. Later, when the tree problem was partially solved, I added a 129 wing dish, and so now have both 61.5 and 129 wing dishes. In order to use all four (61.5, 110, 119, 129), I bought a DPP 44 switch. I also have tested all coax downleads, and actually replaced most of them as I have had trouble. I kept the 61.5 satellite because I don't have such a great signal on 129.
3. I had a Dish 301 connected to the system and have only had the occasional rain fade problems with it. I swapped the connections between the 301 and ViP 211, same problem.
4. I recently added a ViP 222 using Hauppauge HD-PVR. It is actually connected to the line that the 211 was using, and the 211 is connected to a brand new line in. VIP 211 continues having drop-out problems.
5. I have also had a local dish installer with one of those very expensive satellite finder/signal meters come and troubleshoot the system. They found all dish feeds and all three feeds from the DPP44 switch to be very good.
6. The VIP211 dropout problems happen in ALL kinds of weather.
7. There are rare instances when the VIP211 problems are weather/signal related, from what I can tell. For the first week after getting the VIP222, I forced it to record the very same show as the VIP211. In only one case of numerous failures was the problem signal-related, as the VIP222 lost signal. Otherwise, whenever the VIP211 would have a signal failure, I'd go to the exact same place in the parallel recording on the VIP222 and couldn't even see the occasional "digital-picture" dropout that I would expect for a signal related problem.
8. When the VIP211 goes through one of these "reset" situations, I have gone to a direct picture feed from the receiver (not through SageTV) and it shows that it hangs up for a very long time on "step 0 of 5" or "step 1 of 5". I wish there was a way to tell the thing to skip loading the EPG data - that also takes time, and why it has to do that EVERY time it resets is beyond me. I thought that was a start-up routine, not a signal loss issue.
9. Further investigations:
9a. For a long time, I was using release "c" of R5000 SageTV software. The upgrade to release "d" has been in the last 3 months, but did not change the results.
9b. After searching SageTV forums and R5000 forums for a solution, I found the R5000HDProxy program and tried that (just in the last 2 weeks). I understand that this mod was actually incorporated this into release "d", but figured at this point anything would be worth a try. No change.
10. One more piece of evidence: I seldom use the receiver to record SD channels, but an hour of SD records nearly every Saturday morning for my kids. I have never had it drop out in the middle of a recording on an SD station.
11. The only other things I have not tried (but have thought of) are:
11a. Changing R5000 to a completely different computer and having it communicate with Sage via ethernet. I have a gigabit system that should handle the data load.
11b. Adding a USB3 card to my system and using that for input. Unfortunately, my slots are all taken (well, Soundblaster Audigy hogs two and only uses one actual PCI slot). In order to do that, I would have to add a USB sound card to get rid of Audigy. I'd rather not, but the necessary parts to do so are all purchased. I dump an HD FM receiver into the SageTV system via optical into Audigy.

OH... to complete this inventory, I should tell you all the USB devices I'm presently using in addition to R5000:

1. Keyboard/Mouse
2. USB-UIRT (added 6 months after R5000 - no change in the problem)
3. Hauppauge stick tuner 950 (added just 6 months ago - no change in the problem)
4. DVICO external HD tuner (ATSC/Clear QAM) - has always been there
5. PCI tuner: Hauppauge 1600 dual tuner

This is a bit of a long, rambling post. I can tell a difference in picture between the R5000 and HD-PVR (R5000 much better), but I am SO TIRED of the dropouts.

Any help?

[n9cqs]

Nobody replied to my lengthy post here, but just in case someone is watching for a solution... I found out that putting a FAN on my VIP211/R5000 pretty much fixed my drop-out problem. Just after getting a VIP222 (and looking at pictures of the VIP 211k) I see that there are heat vents all over the top of those cases, while the silver VIP 211 has only vents along the side of the top, as well as the side.

My VIP 211 actually really started failing even more when the house grew warmer, and the unit was very warm on a particular day that it was really failing. After putting the fan on the unit, I have suffered only one reset failure (and have been recording 14 hours per day programming with it for the last week).

My equipment is housed in custom built shelving. I ordered a couple of 140mm very quiet computer case fans, which I plan to build right into the shelf supporting the VIP 211, so that the fans will blow air onto the underside of the unit where there are also vents. So if you have occasional to frequent drop-outs and you have been basically successful at ruling out any other cause, try cooling your VIP 211.

Jeff

[Fuzzy]

I have also noticed the 211's get really hot. I ended up years ago making blocks to space them out at the feet. I keep about 2.5 inches in between each 211 in the stack, and they are in a fresh air ventilated cabinet, and have no problems. they are still pretty hot to the touch.

[n9cqs]

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

I have also noticed the 211's get really hot. I ended up years ago making blocks to space them out at the feet. I keep about 2.5 inches in between each 211 in the stack, and they are in a fresh air ventilated cabinet, and have no problems. they are still pretty hot to the touch.

I'm under no illusions that I have fixed anything - just probably put off the inevitable. However, this is a good find for me. It explains the lapses in SAGE programming using the VIP 211/R5000. I had done almost everything possible to solve the problem other than build a new server (which I was getting close to doing, and probably would already be well on the way had SageTV not sold out to Google; now I'm sitting and waiting - but that's another matter). But not having to put up with Sage showing me the dreaded "red information dot" daily (often indicating multiple failures) is worth it.

Apparently the R5000 I have can only be used in the VIP211, (not model "k") which is no longer made. Makes me think seriously about purchasing a spare and keeping it for what might just be a complete failure of my present one. Having used both Hauppauge HD-PVR and R5000, I like the R5000 recordings better. Maybe Colossus will help that situation.

[KJake]

Are people still having success with the _15 Java version and the R5000? Curious if I should downgrade to try and improve my R5000.

I got sick of it and got a Prime to record the majority of stuff and have an HDPVR too - R5000 is now the lowest in merit, when I would prefer it to be above the HDPVR.

[KJake]

Wanted to post an update that might be helpful to others.

I was having consistent problems with my R5000 (DCP501 on Charter cable). I had no detected signal issues or memory issues, but I would continue to lose the first minute or so of my recordings and get a halt detected message from Sage.

After no improvement from the _15 downgrade, I went in search of some other settings that could possibly be tweaked.

I found some things in the sage.properties and googled for release notes that described the settings and then changed them to either resolve the issue altogether or, worst-case, miss 15-ish seconds instead of 1:00 to 1:30 minutes.

Here's what I changed:
seeker/duration_for_halt_detection=60000
seeker/fast_mux_switch=true
seeker/fs_mgr_wait_period=15000
videoframe/fast_file_switching=true
videoframe/safe_fast_file_switching=true

became:
seeker/duration_for_halt_detection=11000
seeker/fast_mux_switch=false
seeker/fs_mgr_wait_period=5000
videoframe/fast_file_switching=false
videoframe/safe_fast_file_switching=false


Since making these changes - I haven't had any halt errors on any of my recorders and have not had any missing time from the beginning of my R5000 recordings.

I will say that I think that some of these settings will break the newer/better LiveTV seamless transition, but I never watch LiveTV in Sage, so if those settings need to be false, then so be it.