SageMCTuner - anyone have this working with cablecard?

[twa8000]

Looks like a beta of SageDCT is released...

http://babgvant.com/files/folders/sa...ntry19846.aspx

* merged *

[btrcp2000]

I think this is awesome esp. with the quick channel changing. That said, I just can't see plunking this much money down to Ceton given the fact that it is clear the cable cos are locking everything down slowly but surely. I used to have firewire everything until it went away overnight, why wouldn't they be labeling everything copy once?

I always read every update to this thread but can't quite get as confident as some of you that the Ceton/Sage window won't be closing soon (if it's even open at all for me at TW, don't know how to check with my SA box)

[xj-boonie]

Looks great and the channel changing in the video is very fast!

Can't wait to try it out. If we are using SageMCTuner, do we need to uninstall it or disable it somehow?

[babgvant]

Originally Posted by QueOnda

very nice work. Were you also working on (at one time) a program were WMC recorded the show and you took out of their encrypted file and converted it to a sagetv format unencrypted?

I wrote a couple tools that converted WTV/DVR-MS files to other file containers for various reasons, but it never unencrypted them.

[babgvant]

Originally Posted by btrcp2000

I think this is awesome esp. with the quick channel changing. That said, I just can't see plunking this much money down to Ceton given the fact that it is clear the cable cos are locking everything down slowly but surely.

I see it going the other way. The Ceton card started out encrypting everything, then CableLabs allowed them to change to only encrypt non-Copy-Freely content, so they obviously know about this use case...

[jason531]

Originally Posted by babgvant

The files I've tested have worked on the HD300, if you have issues with the updated rev LMK it's very likely that more changes will be required.

I rewrote the class that writes the TS packets, which should help with some of the playback issues.

Well, I have an HD100 and an HD200, so once I finally get around to testing (probably tomorrow morning) then we'll have all three tested. Unless, of course, someone beats me to it. I know people are excited about this. I certainly am!

[Mythikal]

Originally Posted by jason531

Well, I have an HD100 and an HD200, so once I finally get around to testing (probably tomorrow morning) then we'll have all three tested. Unless, of course, someone beats me to it. I know people are excited about this. I certainly am!

I have an HD200 and 2 HD300s hooked up. They all work great.

[Mythikal]

Originally Posted by xj-boonie

If we are using SageMCTuner, do we need to uninstall it or disable it somehow?

I disabled the SageMCTuner service before I installed SageDCT. I didn't try it with both services running, but I would assume that it could cause issues if you're using the same ports for both.

[babgvant]

Originally Posted by Mythikal

I disabled the SageMCTuner service before I installed SageDCT. I didn't try it with both services running, but I would assume that it could cause issues if you're using the same ports for both.

Yep. You will want to diable the service and remove the entries in sage.properties for sagemctuner.

[doncote0]

If you decide you want to remove a service altogether, the windows command line syntax is:

sc /delete [service name]

The "service name" of a service is the name that windows uses and very often it is different from the "name". For example, the service name for Telnet is TLNTSVR.

You can verify the service name using this command syntax:

sc query [service name]

If the service name is more than one word, use quotes.

[babgvant]

Or run "uninstall.cmd" included in the zip file.

[doncote0]

Saving for my Ceton card now.

[sundansx]

It appears that the sageDCT addon interfaces with the ceton directly without using W7 Media center..is this true? If so, can this addon be used on Windows XP pro or does it require a MC version of windows 7?
thanks.
Edit: Nevermind, it looks like the Ceton tuner only has Win7 drivers,anyway.

[doncote0]

Nevermind, it looks like the Ceton tuner only has Win7 drivers,anyway.

Yes, it seems that all CC tuners require at least Windows 7. Even the upcoming offering from Silicondust (HDHR Prime) has set an early requirement for Windows 7.

[stanger89]

AFAIK, only Windows 7 has the security foundation necessary to support CableCard DRM.

[jason531]

Well, I got SageDCT installed in time for the Super Bowl, but after testing a few channels my HD-200 locked up and I noticed my server was at 100% CPU for the SageDCT process. Nothing against Andy, since there could have been any number of causes. Anyway, I really wanted to record the Super Bowl so I quickly switched back to SageMC and also set WMC to record the game as well.

Now, a couple of weeks ago I had some issues recording some NFL games. This is a "known" issue. Well, "known" if you experience the issue the scour the Green Button to find the thread which tells you to install the beta firmware. Alas, in order to install the beta firmware you must open a support ticket with Ceton so they will add your serial number to a magic list, otherwise you cannot install it. The changelog actually says "fixes for recording football games."

So, as of last night, I was running HW version 4790 and FW version 1.0.1.51. After my contact with support a couple of weeks ago, I asked them if they were pretty sure it was fixed since there was only one NFL game remaining and it was a big one. Well, it failed. Precisely at the end of the third quarter, the recording stopped and I got this message in the event log: "NFL Football: Super Bowl XLV: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Green Bay Packers was not recorded. Recording of this content is prohibited by the content provider." On top of that, the WMC recording was marked to "expire" about 30 minutes after the game.

From what I gather, this is on Ceton. There is nothing Andy or anyone else could have done. If you have a Ceton card and weren't running the very latest firmware (according to some reports) your recording got killed. After I got home and realized what happened, I discovered that a new (private beta) firmware was released a couple of days ago. Maybe that would have prevented the issue. I'll never know.

According to hearsay, Fox set some type of RC flag at the end of the fourth quarter which should only affect analog broadcasts and Comcast didn't bother to change the flag for the digital broadcast. The InfiniTV is supposed to ignore this flag because a higher-priority flag is supposed to be set to Copy Freely or something like that. I don't know, except that it is absolutely insane that it is far easier to illegally download shows than it is to exercise my Fair Use rights and record content to which I legally subscribe with equipment that has been blessed by FCC through CableLabs. Why?!?

Here is a good summary of all that is wrong with digital TV.

Sorry this turned into a bit of a rant. I am just pretty bothered by the fact that Ceton doesn't mention this flaw on their driver download page and didn't bother to notify me of the newest firmware, despite the fact they knew I already had NFL recording issues. Their bugs are a perfect example of why DRM does nothing to stop piracy but only stifles innovation and hurts the consumer.

[Mythikal]

Originally Posted by jason531

So, as of last night, I was running HW version 4790 and FW version 1.0.1.51.

According to hearsay, Fox set some type of RC flag at the end of the fourth quarter which should only affect analog broadcasts and Comcast didn't bother to change the flag for the digital broadcast.

Maybe this was a region specific thing, but I also have Comcast and I'm using SageDCT with HW version 4790, firmware 1.0.1.51 (20110118_1_0_1_51). I was able to record the game with no issues.

[jason531]

Originally Posted by Mythikal

Maybe this was a region specific thing, but I also have Comcast and I'm using SageDCT with HW version 4790, firmware 1.0.1.51 (20110118_1_0_1_51). I was able to record the game with no issues.

Interesting. Did you use SageDCT or SageMCTuner? I don't think that would make a difference, but just checking. Also, are you able to watch the game on an extender? I can watch it (the 3 quarters that recorded, anyway) on my server but the HD200 just gets the spinning ring of death.

Here is the thread over at TGB. I'd love to know what really happened and why certain people weren't affected. Perhaps it was a regional thing.

I'm pulling for Ceton, but this is pretty frustrating. I've been using two TiVo HD units with CableCARDs for over three years without a single issue with NFL games or anything else. I kept Sage for all non-TV functions and was excited to bring everything back together, but now I'm not so sure. I never liked TiVo that much but it was an appliance -- it just worked.

[Mythikal]

Originally Posted by jason531

Interesting. Did you use SageDCT or SageMCTuner?

SageDCT

Also, are you able to watch the game on an extender? I can watch it (the 3 quarters that recorded, anyway) on my server but the HD200 just gets the spinning ring of death.

Both my HD200 and HD300 are able to play the recorded game. I did miss pretty much everything from the 2 minute warning until the end, but that's because the game ran over it's allotted time and I didn't account for that when I set up the recording. Other than my own mistake, I didn't have any trouble.

[sic0048]

Originally Posted by Mythikal

I did miss pretty much everything from the 2 minute warning until the end, but that's because the game ran over it's allotted time and I didn't account for that when I set up the recording. Other than my own mistake, I didn't have any trouble.

Time to install Sage Recording Extender (SRE). It is a great plugin that will automatically increase the recording time when major sporting events go over their allotted time. It is easy to set up and it works!