Are you guys receiving HD movie channels? I'm getting at least 4. Without a guide to figure out what is going on, it is not very useful. Looks like Comcast has ffiltered all the cable channels which I receive via C Band satellite but is not worried about HD. sure wish i could get this TV Guide thing wored out. Still no listings although it asked me to choose between 2 lineups, both of which had errors. Do you all who use cable directly into the 3410A have to setup the channels manually? Out of around 80 channels, 25 or so have the incorrect channel information listed in the guide. this is the channel info. not the listings of which I have none.

Do you all who use cable directly into the 3410A have to setup the channels manually? Out of around 80 channels, 25 or so have the incorrect channel information listed in the guide. this is the channel info. not the listings of which I have none.

That's typical. Most of the analog channels have the correct numbers. But the digital cable channels have numbers like 188 (my NBC), which are beyond the LG's limit of 135. So every time the unit has to get reset for a new guide download, the incorrect channel numbers have to be changed manually. NBC has to be manually changed to 116-5 in my area.

The confusing/annoying thing is that the channel scan finds and maps the channels, but does not pass the mapped numbers to the guide. I've also had the guide revert to the incorrect numbers at random times. Then I miss recordings, since the LG can't tune to 188, for example. Really stupid.

I'd be taking a long look at the Sony, but I need the LG's firewire to play back D-VHS copies made from the Comcast 6412 DVR.

Now that FOX is bleeding over to NBC (as posted above), the LG has really become annoying again. Remember that I'm also one of the folks who can't offload cable HD from the LG to D-VHS. And I use the LG for 99% HD, not analog. So we're talking just six channels, of which I've now lost two.

I guess I'll be sending this thing to LG again. But of course the only replacements will be the real problem units that no doubt can't really be fixed. And it seems they don't always listen when you request that they repair and return the same unit. So things look pretty bleak from here.

And Art, if you are getting movie and sports pay channels, this will eventually change. Comcast is probably in the midst of changes/upgrades in your area. I had some freebies here for while, but all got scrambled eventually.

Now that Fox is bleeding over to NBC (as posted above), the LG has really become annoying again. . .I guess I'll be sending this thing to LG again. But of course the only replacements will be the real problem units that no doubt can't really be fixed. And it seems they don't always listen when you request that they repair and return the same unit. So things look pretty bleak from here.Persistence paid off for me. My 2nd 3410A (the BB open-box $499 demo) took 3 returns before I finally received a 451 (2004 model) with 1.17 FW that has worked fine. I don't know if yours is a 351 (2003 model), but I had no luck at all with four different ones. The problem you report with tuning subchannels sounds like a 351 tuner issue.

Two things made a big difference for me. (1) Getting both my original 351 units replaced with 451's. (2) WTTW-11 replacing WLS-7 as Host Channel for my area.

PhillyC-

fwiw- Local comcast sends ABCHD and NBCHD on 91.2 and 91.7. Originally I was not able to record from the off position due to a very slow (5-6sec) lock time. The picture , however was rock solid. Attenuating the signal a bunch made changing channels and lock times very fast and the picture remained rock solid and scheduled recordings went off without a hitch.

Is it possible you have attenuated your signal too much?

It's hard to comprehend how one channel could just invade another channels space. This would seem like the ultimate in multipath interference. I would expect you to get no picture at all, what with all those 1s and 0s and not knowing how to put them together.

Does your tuner jump to 116.2 or 116.5 when you punch in 116.1? 116.3? 116.7? 116.9? I don't know if any of this matters. My unit jumps down to the next channel on the main channel number (if there is one) and up to the next channel on the main channel number (if there isn't one down from there).

This is for the veteran owners who have extensive experience with this baby.

Let me begin by stating that both my units are 4.51's. The firmware is 1.15 on both.

My original unit does a great job downloading the guide info. from the local OTA when I select Ant./No cable. It is connected to the roof antenna. Everything records and plays back perfectly using the guide to select the programming to be recorded. It stays on over night on rare occasions. I had it sitting on top of a VCR that ran every night. Occasionally, twice in a year it locked up. Since i placed spaers underneath it to permit airflow it works perfectly except for staying on after the last recording of the night. This occurs 4 out out of seven nights a wek on average.

My new unit, a 4.51 with 1.15 is connected to both the antenna and the Comcast cable. I selected cable with no converter box. Letting it sit over night has resulted in 2 different channel lineups, Lineup 1 and Lineup 2 on one occasion and 1 lineup on 3 other occasions. One of the lineups is somewhat correct but mismatches about half a dozen channels. An EZ scan downloaded both Analog and Digital stations from the cable and the antenna on only one occasion. On other occasions, the analog antenna channels are missing but the Cable analog and Digital channels are picked up along with the digital locals. The analog anteena channels are missing.

Although the guide is populated with a channel lineup, there has never been a download of the listing information, what is on and when with the newer unit. Either Comcast blocks the guide information or does not provide it on any channel or my newer unit is bad. I would think that since the roof antenna is connected and it does pick up channels through the antenna, it would revert to downloading the guide from there. Unfortunately, like I said previously, it has only shown analog antenna channels once when I scanned. The tab for analog in the channel edit screen is blacked out so I can't even add them manually.

In addition to all the forementioned issues, I am pleased that when I select cable with no converter box, an EZ-scan yields an HBO HD and an In Demand HD station. Several of the movie channels are presented as digital channels. They appear to be a tiny sampling of the more than 50 HBO, Showtime, Cinemax and Starz movie channels I receive via 4DTV. Nevertheless they are there and I would like to have them appear in the guide. They are not listed in the guide. Are they listed in your systems?

I'm very frustrated that I am not able to download program information and that the listings are wrong. I would appreciate any guidance you might be willing to give.

Is this unit bad? Do your units work the same way?

Stanton,

I've tried the unplug/replug and am gravitating towards the swift kick.

Art-

Here's a teeny bit of info:
1) Most comcast headends scramble everything HD except the local HD OTA's they have agreements with. Locally that means no DiscoveryHD, INHD1 or2, and no ESPNHD not tomention any real premium HD channels. Sooner or later all that extra stuff your getting will go away.

2) When you tell the 3410a you have cable/no cable box, the OTA analog stations and guide info are not accessable as the numbers conflict with the cable numbers. So your3410a is normal in that respect.

3) I would suggest you try using the zipcode of your comcast headend facility.

4) While you're messing with this stuff, check on the good 3410a the "host channel" number in "hex". Be sure the equivalent cable channel is in the guide of box #2 and not turned off anywhere. I was surprised to find mine is 0xC (12-Fox analog).

5) Try swapping your OTA 3410 for the cable 3410.

I have a cable box now because I wanted to be able to record one thing in HD and watch another. My 3410 still picks up almost every HD channel that comcast sends out except discoveryHD which pixelates every now and then.

Did you try to reset the TV Guide information I sent? That usually does it...

If not, go into the setup and tell it you live in Zipcode 60076, and let it try and deal with a radically different Zipcode. after it learns that, tell it to start over again, using your Zipcode!

The "Replacement" unit I was given (And gave back) was actually at the TV station I used to work at as a demo, and it had been somewhere prior to that, as when I set it up at the TV station, it already had data from a different Zipcode, and was pretty confused.

Lewlew,

Something finally downloaded an hour ago. Not a very long list and no cable digitals but I can work with it. Thanks for your help.

I got a download a few minutes ago. Cable yes, Decoder no, OTA Ant plugged in, Cable plugged in. Short Download but I got something. Very happy. Thaks to all of you. I think it just got tired. I was going in to check the hex number and found it had downloaded.

This is for the veteran owners who have extensive experience with this baby.
Although the guide is populated with a channel lineup, there has never been a download of the listing information
...

Is this unit bad? Do your units work the same way?
Art -

I get this occasionally for a few stations, usually FOX. What I've done is to:

Go to the menu->channel editor and select the UHF station, even if it has already been selected. This means sometimes I turn it off and then turn it on. My local fox is UHF 39, for example.
Go to the Guide and edit the lineup, and enter the correct station numbers (25-1 for my local Fox OTA station).
I also delete a lot of channels from the guide. The fewer channels, the more days you'll get.


Let it sit over night, and you should be OK. It works for me.

This is for the veteran owners who have extensive experience with this baby.
Although the guide is populated with a channel lineup, there has never been a download of the listing information
...

Is this unit bad? Do your units work the same way?

Art -
I've another thought. You could have confused the box if you've messed around with different antenna/cable choices. Try clearing all channels and do a fresh re-scan. I cleared all channels by saying OTA only, stopped the scan immediately, and then going to the menu and turning off any selected stations. Then I said OTA with cable, but no box, and turned off any selected stations. I then followed this by a full scan.

GL.

The problem you report with tuning subchannels sounds like a 351 tuner issue.

Two things made a big difference for me. (1) Getting both my original 351 units replaced with 451's. (2) WTTW-11 replacing WLS-7 as Host Channel for my area.

Yeah, mine is an older 351 unit. Someone else in this forum had it before me and returned it for a disk problem. It's been generally OK until now.

This is not a guide issue, but a tuner issue I'm sure. The 2 overlapping channels mean Ill be forced to send it to LG. They told me last year they were extending my warranty 6 months, so I should be covered. Guess I'll have to hope I can get a 451. I'm just worried they won't have anything but the earliest problem-ridden units remaining on hand.

PhillyC-

fwiw- Local comcast sends ABCHD and NBCHD on 91.2 and 91.7. Originally I was not able to record from the off position due to a very slow (5-6sec) lock time. The picture , however was rock solid. Attenuating the signal a bunch made changing channels and lock times very fast and the picture remained rock solid and scheduled recordings went off without a hitch.

Is it possible you have attenuated your signal too much?

It's hard to comprehend how one channel could just invade another channels space. This would seem like the ultimate in multipath interference. I would expect you to get no picture at all, what with all those 1s and 0s and not knowing how to put them together.

Does your tuner jump to 116.2 or 116.5 when you punch in 116.1? 116.3? 116.7? 116.9? I don't know if any of this matters. My unit jumps down to the next channel on the main channel number (if there is one) and up to the next channel on the main channel number (if there isn't one down from there).

Yes, this is a really strange problem. It's not multipath since it's cable only. And the Comcast box is fine on both channels.

When I punch in 116.1, it goes to 116.2 (FOX) as it should, but the channel constantly breaks up. When I go up to 116.5 (NBC), I see NBC for maybe a second, and then FOX "takes over" completely, with constant breakups.

I've tried the full range of amplification/attenuation, a plain old 2GHz splitter, rescanning channels, etc.

Today I noticed that the 2 channels directly below, 115.1 and 115.2, are taking a LONG time to lock (at least 10 seconds). This behavior is also new.

This is another LG failure, and I/they will have to deal with it somehow, but I dread the process and fear the possible problematic results.

My hard drive didn't arrive yet, but I put one in for a friend, and found some surprises:

The 120Gb drive I removed wasn't a Maxtor!!! It was a Seagate!!!

ST 3120025ACE a U Series 9 drive...

With the Maxtor 320Gb 5400RPM drive installed, 34:32 HD or 83:45 SD

:)

My original hard drive is also a Seagate AFAIK

Just try and find information on ST 3120025ACE a U Series 9 drives...

http://www.seagate.com/docs/pdf/datasheet/disc/ds_ce.pdf

AFAIK, all the 3410A's had the Seagate drive. The largest Seagate CE model available when I did a search was only 160GB and did not seem to be available to consumers in the U.S.

The Maxtor, however, had a 300GB CE model.

My Comcast 6412 uses the same Seagate.

With the Maxtor 320Gb 5400RPM drive installed, 34:32 HD or 83:45 SD

:)Are the meters on other DVR's as conservative as the 3410A? The above is allowing 9.27 GB/HR of HD; with the standard drive it allows 9.8 GB/HR. On my recordings 8 GB/HR is plenty for 1080i, with well under 6 GB/HR for 720P. Thus the standard drive is good for at least 15 hours, and the 320 GB should hold more than 40 hours. Am I missing something?

The LG firmware must judge space conservatively. I can get ~40 hrs. of mixed 1080i and 720p on the 300GB HDD. So the 320GB should hold 2+ hrs. more. Of course, by then you'll run into the long HDD initialization problem for timer recordings.

The Comcast 6412 does not try to estimate time, but instead gives the % of disk space used. Once you figure out the %'s per hour for different resolutions, HD compression on some cable channels, etc., the overall % of used space is very accurate. You can easily estimate how to use your remaining space.

You might ask this question in the Sony DVR thread also.

With the Maxtor 320Gb 5400RPM drive installed, 34:32 HD or 83:45 SD
:)

Keep in mind that the unit works good up to 30 shows. I did a test with the unit in the off stated before a scheduled record show it errors out on bootup time if more then 30 shows are on the disk drive. If the unit is on and a recorded show starts then I have had no problems.

Also I have a 300Gb Maxtor drive that has about 38 Hours for HD


Mike

mstanl:

The specs I posted were on a blank 320Gb drive. Quality set for "BEST"..

Looking a Seagate vs. Maxtor drive specs, not only is maxtor faster buss & quicker access, it appears to have lower Idle and Seek power draw, too!

Hey Guys, another reason to love this machine. I now have downloaded information to both machines and renumbered the channels so that the HD feeds will come up from the guide. The neet thing is that when I tried to look at the cable digital channels on my other 2 digital tuners, an RCA DTC-100 and the tuner that comes with my 6 month old Sony KDL-32XBR950. Sadly neither oe of these tuners are able to decipher the digital signals off the cable. I could understand the RCA since it is a Direct TV/ OTA, Cable receiver that says it can do HD from either OTA or cable. It can not decipher the digital cable stuff at all. The Sony tries to lock on the digital cable channels but winds up with a No Signal indication at the channel locations which it says it found during the auto search routine. I have real problems with a $7,000.00 TV that is unable to decipher Cable Digital channels. In all fairness, it did find 3 channels but all the rest failed as I described previously. I am going to use the second LST-3410A in my bedroom where the Sony resides. I'll connect it to the Sony STB through a DVI connection. Seems like a real screw job on the part of Sony. Or maybe a real plus for us. I get a lot of SD and HD digital channels off the cable using the LG and at least half a dozen are HD movies. Maybe that iss why LG had to stop production. Is there some kind of a blocking softwar that is supposed to keep us from watching these shows when we connect directly to a digital tuner?

I get a lot of SD and HD digital channels off the cable using the LG and at least half a dozen are HD movies. . . Is there some kind of a blocking softwar that is supposed to keep us from watching these shows when we connect directly to a digital tuner?Art, you are fortunate that your cable company is not presently encrypting these premium channels. Hope it stays that way for you. If they start encrypting a channel, the LG will show a little box that says "scrambled."

Only the very recent Sony models have QAM digital cable tuning capability like the LG does. If yours does, it should be able to tune the same channels you get with the 3410A.

Finally got my 320Gb...
34:32 HD 67:00 SD
Set for 'Best'
Note: one I posted before was not set for 'Best'... Aparantly you set it, then init drive.
?? Or your setting will be what you had before you init'd drive?

Finally got my 320Gb...
34:32 HD 67:00 SD
Set for 'Best'
Note: one I posted before was not set for 'Best'... Aparantly you set it, then init drive.
?? Or your setting will be what you had before you init'd drive?

Thanks Jan, I need to go look at mine. I did not know that.

Mike

UncD2000,

I am at wits end. While both of my LG LST-3410A's are able to get the local and premium digitals and the HD movies, the Sony KDL-32XBR950 with its built in QAM tuner can not pick up any digitals except for a few religious stations and a barker for something else. I've amplified and adjusted till i'm blue in the face. I really believe there is some type of blockage going on in the Sony tuner. In the auto scan process, it finds lots of channels. When you go to them and try to watch it first says "Tuning" then it says "No Signal". I put a 20dB amp in line thinking the signal was low and the tuner was not as sensitive as the LG tuner. Did not do a thing. Any ideas, anyone. BTW, Everything is coming in perfectly on the LG tuners. One of them is right at the Sony outlet.

If your Sony is Cable Card equipped, it may be that the QAM tuner is disabled until you obtain an authorized card from the cable company. That doesn't explain why yours is able to tune a few channels. Maybe these are allowed to pass through to be sure the tuner is working. (DirecTV receivers will bring in a few advertizing channels without subscribing).

The high-end Sony's don't yet have CableCARD slots. I'm not sure if Comcast is your provider, but they scramble all digital cable channels. In some areas they may temporarily be in the clear, but this will NOT last.

This doesn't explain the difference in reception between your Sony and the LG. I'm just saying that you won't be getting the digital cable channels with either tuner anyway when Comcast gets organized in your area.

At first, I got some digital cable and certain HD channels (like ESPN-HD) with the LG. This stopped after a couple of months.

The local HD stations should continue unencrypted. These can be useful as backups in case of OTA reception difficulties, so it would be desirable if the Sony QAM tuner could at least receive these. Music channels usually aren't encrypted either. The Sony tuner may need service if it fails to tune these channels.

The Sony tuner is reproducing some of the music channels correctly. The ones on 107-1 throgh 53. It also picks up the digital religious channels. None of the locals come through. Last night, both LG's briought in 6 digital movie channels 2 of which were in HD. All the locals worked perfectly also. If they are scrambling, then it only affects the Sony not LG's. One channel on the LG's has no audio. There is no Cable Card Slot.

Art, like Phil I was getting about a half dozen premium channels for about 2 weeks. Then, Comcast went back to scrambling them again and the channels disappeared. I have no idea what's going on with your Sony but enjoy the premium channels you're getting now with the LG because they won't last.

Dan

I've had this connection on the LG's for several weeks now. I took it to my neighbors and found that it worked the same way at his house. He has only basic service too. My main issue is whether my Sony has something wrong with it, has a new type of scrambling/vflag reading system that the LG's did not incorporate. It seems strange that the LG's were pulled from production so early in their life. I get most everything through my C band satellite, so this is mostly an experiment. BTW, the picture that I get from C Band HD is visibly superior to the cable HD. Not sure why. Did not expect it but there it is. They may be bandwidth limiting the cable HD. The HD delivered via 4DTV is magnificent. Also, the OTA feed of the locals looks better than the cable HD.

I've noticed the same thing with the HD locally OTA vs. the Comcast feed. You can really tell in the backgrounds with compression noise. Hopefully when HD-DVD (or Blueray) comes out, the studios don't compress the signal like the cable companies are doing now. Full bandwidth HD looks outstanding!

My main issue is whether my Sony . . . has a new type of scrambling/vflag reading system that the LG's did not incorporate.This is an interesting possibility. Such a system would enable the cable company to offer you expanded basic channels once they have been duplicated on the QAM tier, but flag the premium channels so you wouldn't get them. It may be a bit confusing if we have to deal with this, plus CableCard and 2-way CableCard.

Art -
It also could be that the signal strength of the channels is too low for the Sony tuner. I've noticed that the signal strength of the HD stations that I get via cable is about 60% of the stations I get via my OTA antenna. LG tuners are known for their being able to lock onto weaker signals, so they may be able to display cable stations that the Sony cannot.

Hyrax,

I considered the sensitivity of the Sony tuner vis a vis the LG tuner. I added a +20dB amplifier in line with the Sony. It had no effect although several of the analog channels which Comcast filters with traps in the line were amplified sufficiently to be able to see them.

Art -
Do you think the +20dB amp help me with my LG tuner and local HD stations over cable? I'm currently getting drop outs (I assume that is what is happening - there black squares randomly appearing on my screen when I view the cable HD stations). If you think it would help, can you recommend a brand/make?

Thanks,
Tim

Hyrax,

Those black squares must be encryption from Comcast. i do not believe raising the gain will help. sorry.

Greetings,
I've recently purchased a 3410a off ebay. Nice unit seems to work well. Thanks to all you folks on this discussion forum I think I made a good decision.

But the sig/other doesn't agree. When the harddrive starts to spin it makes a rather load spinning noice. Doesn't bother me, but she goes crazy saying it hurts her ears and either the 3410a can be in the room or her but not both.

Makes it nicer to watch TV without her yammering, but would like to solve the spinning noice problem (so I can sleep in the bedroom again).

Any advice would be appreciated.

First, are you sure that it's the HDD itself making noise? Some units were not quite flat, which was fixed by loosening and re-tightening all of the case screws with the unit firmly on an absolutely flat surface. This eliminated noisy case vibraton. Or just be sure your shelf is flat and level.

Some drives were much louder than others. You could open the case and make sure the HDD screws are secure. Otherwise, you would probably have to replace the drive. One of the larger drives mentioned in this thread would be a good way to go. (I don't know if you have a warranty, which would be affected by opening the case.)

SheerLuck,

That noise is easily tamed by placing a spacer under one of the unit's feet.

Guys,

I'm telling you this tuner has properties we did not realize. I've tested a couple other digital tuners on this cable feed. None of the others come close to getting what this tuner brings in. It is a flag issue. I am convinced. They left something out of this tuner that makes it very valuable.

Comparing specs of the 320Gb Maxtor and the 120Gb Seagate, the 120Gb Segate is rated quieter.... According to paperwork specs....

Ebay Purchaser.... I believe I saw that auction... I kept emailing the seller asking for date code of MFG on back of unit or from box... He never answered....

Just for grins, look on back of unit... please post the datecode and Firmware version...

Would also be interesting to know whether a 351 (2003) model or 451 (2004).

From all I have read here, the 451 model is the "only way to go" People have reported problems with factory updates of pre 451 models and not had them act the same as "OEM 451 models.

Bill,

That is exactly what I tell folks. 3.51's are a disaster.

BTW, Starz HD is not leaving DCII. I'm not sure where you heard that but I have it from a Starz executive that they have no plans to abandon the digital SD and HD market. They, like everyone else will be dropping their analog feeds in the future. We should be careful about spreading misinformation. it can cause people to abandon a technology based on unfounded rumours.

Can any one tell me who to contact if I've got guide problems that are caused by bad data being sent to my 3410A? Something goes wrong with my guide every few weeks and I have to unplug the 3410A at least once a month to clear the problem. Every time I unplug my 3410A and down load a new guide, I have to remap my OTA HD stations from 704 to 4-1, from 705 to 5-1, from 707 to 7-1, and from 725 to 25-1. These are my local networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, & Fox). I hope if I can figure out why the channels get set wrong the problem will go away.

Hyrax, this happened at random times with BOTH of my units. OTA first, then cable. The first unit got worse very quickly. The second got worse over the next year, until it was totally undependable. It's on the delivery truck in Alabama right now, about to be delivered to LG.

I don't know the real cause or any solution. Even worse, the problem would sometimes sneak up on me. Full listings would still be there, but the re-mapped channels you refer to would revert back to the cable numbers, e.g. 116-5 would randomly and silently change to 188. That would cause missed recordings.

Is it bad data? Does TV Guide suck? Does LG suck? All of the above?!? We can guess all day, but nobody is talking.

I'm insisting on a 451- series this time, but I don't know if that will help. Is yours a 351- or 451-?

From all I have read here, the 451 model is the "only way to go" People have reported problems with factory updates of pre 451 models and not had them act the same as "OEM 451 models.

I feel compelled to mention that I am still running a "351" model with ORIGINAL firmware (1.12 I think). Yes, I have had the occasional guide problem and re-boot occasionally, but it's been running without incident for over a month now (again). I continue to believe that EPG problems are the result of bad data, not helped by firmware updates, and a quick (less than 2 seconds) cold boot seems to clear things up (when necessary).

I, too, am running a "351". Upgrading firmware to 1.15 did help with a problem of not turning off following a recording. About once a month I must do a few second unplug to clear some minor glitch, but this thing, otherwise, works just fine. I agree with Stanton that bad download data are the cause of most problems.

It's not bad guide data that causes my channel 116-2 to bleed over into channel 116-5 and make them both unwatchable (other tuners are fine). Or that makes it impossible to copy a recorded cable program from HDD to D-VHS without A/V dropouts every few seconds (cable directly to D-VHS via 3410A is fine).

Yes, my second unit was much more stable than my first and did pretty well for nearly a year. But in each case, more problems kept showing up more often as time went by. There are "lucky" early units, and many (most?) that are not. Maybe this is what is meant by Lucky Goldstar.

FWIW I've had 3 reboots with the 4.51 unit I bought in June of '04. These were several months ago. Otherwise it has worked flawlessly. You all know how I feel a lot of the problem with these is heat. I moved the June '04 4.51 unit to the top of my stack of equipment and PLACED BLOCKS UNDERNEATH IT. Other than the sometimes wont shut off after recordings are finished problem, it has worked flawlessly since then. The second 4.51 unit I purchased 5/24/05 has worked perfectly. As 've said before, I do not subscribe to digital cable but receive many digitals that my Sony will not display. I'm using the DVI connection with the second unit and dstill use the RGBHV with the first. No upgraded HD's. Think heat guys. These things are really sensitive to heat buildup. Those glitches you get sometimes in a recording session can be eliminated with sufficient air flow.

Hyrax, this happened at random times with BOTH of my units. OTA first, then cable ... Is it bad data? Does TV Guide suck? Does LG suck? All of the above?!? ... Is yours a 351- or 451-?

I've a 351 (I was a very early adaptor) and it had been fine. Until this happened I'd gone months without incident. I'm convinced that my problem is the data. The bleeding channel thing *could* also be data, but if it happens outside of the guide it sure sounds like a problem with the tuner.

It seemed that shortly after the Super Bowl that something changed. As I recall, when I shut down the 3410A one night it was full of good data, but when I tried to start it up the next morning things were diffferent. I think that TV Guide made a change to the data at that time. It was about that time that other people started mentioning mapping errors.

I would like to get to the bottom of the problem by talking to some one at LG who knows something about TV Guide ('the Guide Guy'). It is not a huge problem because it only takes a few minutes to fix. However, it could be is a problem if I go on vacation and want to record while I'm away.

Yes, that's the real problem. These units have to be watched constantly. The Guide indicator on my 3410's is normally going on and off day and night, but yesterday I noticed that it was not lighting at all on either of my units. A quick unplug cured the problem, but many owners aren't able to monitor things this closely. Apparently some bad data was received that disabled the downloading of guide info. It would seem that LG could have anticipated such disabling events and programmed the units to recognize them and do an automatic reset.

So far, so good with the 320Gb Maxtor

I'm ready to send mine back. Its gotten itself into a state where when you press the guide button on the remote nothing happens. Oh, and the clock cant be set. When I go to set the clock it says that setting failed and that I should remove my scheduled recordings. But I cant remove the recordings because the guide wont come up.

Someone else posted this in an earlier posting, but Im beginning to think all the guide problems are caused when there is a regularly scheduled recording, but for some reason the program is removed from the guide. The scheduled recording then gets sort of stuck and causes the guide to get screwed up.

So how do I get my guide back, so I can clear the scheduled recordings, so I can set the clock?

BTW, the unit worked just great for several months. But for the past 2 months, I havent been able to keep the guide working for more than 3 days at a time. This is the first time that its been totally locked. usually I'm able to get it working again by just unplugging it for a minutes but thats not working this time.

dickm

I have found that using the guide to find the shows is great. Scheduling is best accomplished with the timer recording button right above the guide button. That works perfectly id you wish to schedule weekly recordings. If it were my set, I would unplug it, reinsert the rear plug. Start the whole thing over again. Until I provided more than adequate ventilation, I had your type of problem. Everything has been working well but then I stay away from repeated recordings using the guide. The trick to getting the biggest bang out of this unit is having it do what it can well. That seems to be timeshifting HD material. One can get it to do that manually, using the timers or the guide. The first two work always while the last requires monitoring. If you set it in the mornin to record during the day or at night using the guide it works perfectly as long as there are no power outages.

I would unplug it, reinsert the rear plug. Start the whole thing over again.

I've done this.
I've unplugged it with and without the rear plug several times and still cant get the guide back. Its usually worked before in the past but this time its stuck.

If it ever comes back, I'm going to try better ventilation.

dickm

So how do I get my guide back, so I can clear the scheduled recordings, so I can set the clock?Remove power from the unit for a few minutes...then delete scheduled recordings...then set clock.

It is a good idea not to schedule recurring recordings using the TV guide.

Most of the recordings wife does on the DVR have been via the TV Guide.

She does multiple daily re-occuring recordings, too!

Remove power from the unit for a few minutes...then delete scheduled recordings...then set clock.

It is a good idea not to schedule recurring recordings using the TV guide.
I seem to have learned this lesson about recording the hard way.

I have tried removing power with and without the plug and the guide does not come back

I'm at a loss..

Has anyone tried reformatting the drive? is the guide data stored there? I'd assume so.

dick

Has anyone tried reformatting the drive? is the guide data stored there? I'd assume so.

dick[/QUOTE]


THe guide data is downloaded from the local analog PBS station onto a chip. Has nothing to do with the drive. A brand new hard drive for a computer with no format is recognized by the 3410A and formatted by the unit when installed. Try unplugging and let it unplugged for a few hours. It should come up and want you to set it up from scratch. IF this does not work, try unplugging power and ribbon to the hard drive, power up, power down and reattaach the hard drive.

I seem to have learned this lesson about recording the hard way.

I have tried removing power with and without the plug and the guide does not come back

I'm at a loss..

Has anyone tried reformatting the drive? is the guide data stored there? I'd assume so.

dick

Sometimes unplugging for 24 hours or more will get things back to normal. That's what it took the last time I was in your situation, where even the demo pin would not reset the unit.

dicko2

Send me an IM with your email address...

This has never failed me when I need to reset and the 3410A doesn't cooperate. I hope it works for you. Unplug the unit. Put in the demo pin. Plug in the unit. Go to the channel listing that you get after a scan (not the guide listing), delete all channels. Unplug the unit and keep it that way over night (I'm not sure if waiting that long makes a difference). Remove the demo pin. Plug it back in. Scan the chanels. Turn it off and wait until the next morning and you should have a guide.

This has never failed me when I need to reset and the 3410A doesn't cooperate. I hope it works for you. Unplug the unit. Put in the demo pin. Plug in the unit. Go to the channel listing that you get after a scan (not the guide listing), delete all channels. Unplug the unit and keep it that way over night (I'm not sure if waiting that long makes a difference). Remove the demo pin. Plug it back in. Scan the chanels. Turn it off and wait until the next morning and you should have a guide.

I agree with all that except the demo pin: I'm not convinced it does anything (and I've tried it). Also, I think anything greater than a few seconds is as good as overnight; I use the "quick" 2 second cold boot to clear lock-ups (and re-start guide) without losing everything else (like the clock).

day before yesterday one of my 2 units, the older one, lost reassigned channel numbers. (Previously, I had to manually assign digital channel locations for the 2 dozen or so cable digital channels I'm receiving. (the cable company uses a box which i do not have so the numbers in the guide were incorrect after the guide updates.) When the guide updated itself day before yesterday, all the channel numbers reverted to the cable company's normally assigned numbers, analog and digital. As I said, these do not agree with the numbers the LST 3410A assigns the channels. I had to spend an hour reassigning the correct numbers. Interstingly, the order of the channels in the guide which I had set originally did not change, only the channel numbers. What a PITA. This thing sure has quircks.

We had same problem a month or so ago, Art. We're on Analog Cable, but you'd think that since it is the ONLY analog cable in this Zipcode... That they would get it right.

Re-assigning the numbers is easy, compared to Re-Assigning the ORDER in the List!!!

Getting them in the right order takes over an hour for just that!

We move the one's we are most likely to use at the top, and align them by channel numbers...

From prior attempts to get a hold of someone at TV GUIDE (Gemstar) I finally got a boss at a company I was working for (who's parent company owned Gemstar) to fix one of 5 separate complaints I had with TV Guide. In paticular, it was getting a 2nd WB Logo, so I could have one for the Analog channel, and one for Digital channel (Because I was working at that channel at the time).

My Requests for extra's of other networks Logo's and Oxygen, and other PBS Logos needed in this area, fell on deaf ears.

day before yesterday one of my 2 units, the older one, lost reassigned channel numbers. (Previously, I had to manually assign digital channel locations for the 2 dozen or so cable digital channels I'm receiving. (the cable company uses a box which i do not have so the numbers in the guide were incorrect after the guide updates.) When the guide updated itself day before yesterday, all the channel numbers reverted to the cable company's normally assigned numbers, analog and digital. As I said, these do not agree with the numbers the LST 3410A assigns the channels. I had to spend an hour reassigning the correct numbers. Interstingly, the order of the channels in the guide which I had set originally did not change, only the channel numbers. What a PITA. This thing sure has quircks.


I had the same problem with one of my 2 units also, because the order remained the same I was able to reprogram in about 10 minuets (I have the channels arranged numerically and keep a print out of the number assignment).

Now i do too.

I agree with all that except the demo pin: I'm not convinced it does anything (and I've tried it). Also, I think anything greater than a few seconds is as good as overnight; I use the "quick" 2 second cold boot to clear lock-ups (and re-start guide) without losing everything else (like the clock).


I'd start with the 2 second cold boot, but you might need to escalate to a longer (several hours) reboot, or delete scheduled recordings, or even delete saved recordings that have lots of dropouts or are much shorter than scheduled. I think it depends on the cause of the problem. I've used all of these as well as booting with and again without the demo pin. Start with the easiest and escalate as required. The 2 second reboot has almost always been sufficient since I upgraded firmware from 1.12 to 1.15. FYI, my input is solely from a Silver Sensor OTA indoor antenna.

Here's an annoyance:

My OTA of Fox 25-1 has dropouts from time to time. I figured the QAM would be a little more dependable.

Comcast/Nashua NH has Fox 25 at 85-1 and NBC(?) at 85-2. Forget the quirk that you can't label subchannels with different labels.

While watching 85-1, the unit seems to lose lock and changes all by itself to 85-2. Using channel up/down gets me back to 85-1.

What's with that? Is it a 3410 issue or a Comcast QAM issue?

I've seen that. I believe it is because of the scrambling which is supposed to keep us from watching any digitals other than the religious stations and advertising. If you had another brand of tuner, I believe you would see that these channels are not available period. We are fortunate. It may be the reason production was pulled. BTW, I jave learned that the FCC only requires OTA reception of digital local channels. Cable companies and satellite can do what they want.

Here's an annoyance:

My OTA of Fox 25-1 has dropouts from time to time. I figured the QAM would be a little more dependable.

Comcast/Nashua NH has Fox 25 at 85-1 and NBC(?) at 85-2. Forget the quirk that you can't label subchannels with different labels.

While watching 85-1, the unit seems to lose lock and changes all by itself to 85-2. Using channel up/down gets me back to 85-1.

What's with that? Is it a 3410 issue or a Comcast QAM issue?
Mike -
Seems to me that it is a quality of the signal issue. What is the signal strength of Fox? All of my cable HD stations have about 1/2 the signal strength of the same station that I get OTA. You may need to harass Comcast to improve the signal.

Edit: I just read Art's post and he could be right about Comcast doing it on purpose.

BTW, I'm sure I am able to label sub-channels. What you do is assign existing logos to the sub channel. For example if you've got the Sci-Fi network at 80-1 - just change logo of TCM to be channel 80-2 and the logo of AMC to be 80-3. The problem is that your 3410A doesn't allow you to have 2 of the same stations in your guide - thus you cannot have an OTA version and a cable version of the same station.

Mike, if yours is a 2003 model (351 series), the QAM tuner had selectivity problems tuning subchannels, particularly channels with over 50 music subchannels. The 2004 451 series has much improved QAM selectivity, and the 1.17 FW update dealt with an audio problem on a few QAM channels in some cable systems. OTOH, both series tuners have good weak-signal sensitivity, so the typical low cable signal (vs OTA) is usually not a problem as long as it is steady and clean.

Hyrax,

When one reassigns the channel numbers to the appropriate digital ones, it is important to use the correct equivalent digital channel to the one in the slot one is renumbering. Otherwise, the guide will not have the correct information. For example....When I get a guide lineup that includes the analog equivalent of the digital feed, I will replace the analog number with the digital number. All I'm saying is that you cant just use any old logo/position in the setup table. It has to refer to the channel which would otherwise be in that slot in some other form. Otherwise, the guide is worthless. This is harder to describe than to do.

While watching 85-1, the unit seems to lose lock and changes all by itself to 85-2. Using channel up/down gets me back to 85-1.


Same problem here, as posted earlier. I sent mine in, requesting an exchange for a 451 series. I just called LG and was amazed to find that they shipped an exchange unit on the same day they received mine. It should arrive today.

They couldn't tell me if they sent a 451- or 351-. I guess I'll find out later and report back here with results.

Art -
I must not have explained it as well as you did. I was just saying that you can assign sub-channels to existing logos. The information in the guide stays with the logo. I'll try explaining it again... lets say that you've found ABC is 91-3 and NBC is 91-2 on your cable box. However, the guide has them assigned to stations 4-1 and 5-1, which are their OTA stations and you do not always receive them as well as you'd wish. All you have to do is edit the guide to assign those sub-channels to their appropriate logo and all will be well.

As you noted, the channel and the logo need to match or the guide is useless. So if you screw up and assign NBC's channel number (91-2) to ABC's logo (which should be 91-3) ... the logo will say ABC, the guide will contain ABC's info, but the tuner will lock on NBC.

You're right! this is easier to do than to explain.

Hyrax,

My friend, you did a better job of documenting than I did. Way to go. On this issue that the tuner looses the reasigned channel numbers... My older unit does it, the newr one does not. I think I brought both up the same way choosing "No Match" from the multiple lineup list. Any thoughts?

I tried all the tips suggested here to bring back my guide and none of them work. So I bit the bullet and called the 1-800 help number and all they suggested was "unplug the cord for a few minutes". When I said that didnt work, they replied "send it in!", $99, they pay postage both ways.

The $99 is for labor since its still under parts warrenty but out of the 90 day labor warrenty.

So, since its going back to be fixed, any tips as to what I should do to ensure I get the same unit back. Its a '94 unit. Not sure I want a '93 unit what with the discussion I've been reading here.

dickm

There's little to no chance that you'll get the same unit back. I paid the $99 to have mine repaired and returned and I even taped a large message on my unit saying "Please repair and return this unit. Do NOT swap with another unit." It didn't do any good. They still sent me back a different one. Other than to make an extra $10, I don't know why they even offer you that option.

Dan

My third unit arrived yesterday. I had requested ONLY a 451- series in exchange. Not only did they send a 351-, but the S/N ends with 092, making it one of the first 100 manufactured. And we all know what that means.

This one can't find NBC, ABC, PBS, or FOX during a scan, although I can manually force it to tune those channels. It won't download any part of the guide at all. The digital audio jack is so worn out, it takes tape to hold the cable in place. I cannot make usable D-VHS tapes from a cable HD program on the HDD. Etc., etc., etc.

A manager from LG is supposed to call me back. Yeah, right. Deja vu all over again.

Well, LG did call back within a few minutes! The supervisor said that they have no newer units available for exchange and of course no replacement model. She suggested a buy-back. Her boss will push the forms through to the buy-back department. They are supposed to call me in the next couple of days to discuss the terms. I know they will pro-rate this, but I wonder what the offer will be.

This is not what I wanted. I would prefer a working 3410A.

If the buy-back is reasonable, I'll have to decide what to do next. I could try to find a 451- series somewhere, or forget about firewire and go for the Sony HDD500.

Pilly,

I feel your pain. There is a point with these devices that one must accept what they can do and ignore the shortcomings. Sending it to LG at this time is not a good idea. The comments in here all indicate that LG has very few of the newer units in the pipeline for exchage. Your chances of getting a 4.51 unit are poor to impossible. My 2 units have many things that do not work correctly however, I can timeshift HD and watch cable channels that are not available to the public without ...... This is a big deal. I would ask for my money back from LG and then try to purchase a new unit. There are many still available for less than what you and I originally paid. LG has been very pro active in trying to make us happy even when the folks whom we must deal with at LG's customer service do not understand the issues. I believe there is a company mandate to make the American consumer comfortable with purchasing electronics from a Korean manufacturer whose name is not anywhere as familiar as Sony, RCA, Panasonic etc. This was certainly true in 2004. i hope you get this resolved but frankly at this point, i would try to get some money for the lemon they have sent you. BTW, several days ago I called LG concerning my guide reconfiguration issue. I asked about a trade. They indicated that they had no "new" stock to trade for... Only units that had been returned. She indicated that most owners request a unit with the latest changes. They are able to update the software but not supply units with the newer chassis configurations whatever that means. I presume there has been a change in internal wire routing to minimize heat but really am only guessing. Good Luck. Reading your message took me back a year and a half to a very unpleasant purchase and recurring trades and arguments with LG.

I would ask for my money back from LG and then try to purchase a new unit. There are many still available for less than what you and I originally paid.

Art, the buy-back department called first thing this morning and offered 85% of my purchase price. I gladly accepted this deal, as I did get some value out of these units during the times they worked.

I've been struggling all day trying to decide if I should try to get a 451- series or get the Sony. It's a very tough decision because both models have good and bad points. The Sony hasn't been out long enough to analyze fully. Either would do really, for my needs. Each requires a different manner of integration into my system to accomplish what I want.

I would miss the LG's (limited in my case) 1394, but it was useful only to play back archived tapes made from my Comcast box. However, those tapes were only necessary because of the limited HDD space for premium programs on the Comcast DVR. The Sony, with 60+ hours of HD space, makes that irrelevant. I can store many hours of HBO movies and series (the Sony has CableCARD) on the hard disk for long periods of time.

It just occurred to me that, if I find a 451- series 3410A and something goes wrong with it, I'll be stuck again with an exchange for a 351- unit. A second buy-back by LG may not come so easily.

Well, Art, I think I just made up my mind. Talking to you was good therapy. Thanks! :D

Unless you need the RGBHV connection, I would buy the Sony. Do not expect to pick up free channels off the cable with the Sony. I have a brand new Sony TV with bbuilt in HD tuner and it doesn't bring in any digitals other than the religious and barker digitals. God luck.

Has anyone tried or do you know how to remove the hard drive from a 3410 and put it inside a computer and mount the drive and just "drag & drop" the "ts files" to the computer?

I use a Mac, and installed the hard drive straight up, but it didn't recognize the file system and wanted to format the "new hard drive". Now, I am assuming the LG's OS is Linux only because I heard that Tivos are, so I created a Linux partition on my Mac and inserted the hard drive. Linux also recognized that a drive was there, but I was unable to mount it and read from it. But I am a Linux newbee so I could just simply be doing it wrong.

Even if the "DVHS Out" did work, having my Mac emmulate a DVHS deck would require exporting at a 1:1 time ratio, and on a full hard drive is a long time. But if I could just fill up the tuner at will, then install in computer to drag and drop. Remove the hard drive and reinstall in tuner and start over. This would save a lot of time.

Not exactly the answer your'e looking for, but Rumour has it that the Quickview style hard drives have "Retry" locked out, so you wouldn't want to re-use a drive removed from a DVR in a computer. If it recognizes a bad spot on the drive, it will NOT attempt to re-read it.
OK for DVR, NG for computers!

Woo-hoo!

Apple recently released Firewire SDK 20, which includes a new application called AVCBrowser. It allowed me to get my Powerbook to recognize my 3410a and vice-versa. I was able to stream a HD transport stream to the 3410a using both the older version of VirtualDVHS and VirtualDVHS 2! I was even able to get the 3410a to record and play back the transport stream! :)

And all with minimal fuss.

No more flailing with Firebus for me.

I've been lookin' at this LG model for a while now but from reading the post it seems problematic. I was just curious if you guys would recommend this unit. Or should I just build a HTPC and use the HDTV Wonder card I got.

Woo-hoo!

Apple recently released Firewire SDK 20, which includes a new application called AVCBrowser. It allowed me to get my Powerbook to recognize my 3410a and vice-versa. I was able to stream a HD transport stream to the 3410a using both the older version of VirtualDVHS and VirtualDVHS 2! I was even able to get the 3410a to record and play back the transport stream! :)

And all with minimal fuss.

No more flailing with Firebus for me.

That IS good news; problem is, I'm a PC guy. I'm hoping there will be a similar event for Windows users, and my choice of a 3410a (I have one of the first few) will be sealed in the "good" book.

[QUOTE=wilsonsoohoo]Woo-hoo!

Apple recently released Firewire SDK 20, which includes a new application called AVCBrowser. It allowed me to get my Powerbook to recognize my 3410a and vice-versa. :)
QUOTE]


We need more details! What was the sequence of firing up the software so everything recognized everything else? Any specific software settings needed? Let me see if I got this straight, you copied a file from the 3410a to the Powerbook and were able to play the Powerbook file back through the 3410a to your TV and also copy the file back to the 3410a and play it from the 3410a's hard dirve? Wow, I'm gona have to get me one of them there Powerbook thingies.

That IS good news; problem is, I'm a PC guy. I'm hoping there will be a similar event for Windows users, and my choice of a 3410a (I have one of the first few) will be sealed in the "good" book.

I went to the link posted in one of the threads, and told Apple I'm looking for that software for PC.

It is unfortunate that LG did not allow for 2 codes. I use a home theater master MX600 which switches both units unfortunately. I also keep my LG remote on hand so I can turn on only one of the units at a time. I turn on only one unit with the LG remote, then use the HTM 600 to program it and then turn it off which turns the other on. Pain in the a** but it works.
Were you to go all out and get n HTM 800 with 2 stations, you would nave to set one station so it only had access to one of the LGs. The station sends out RF in a wide field and the remote is capable of control of either one or the other station. Not really what you are lookin g for. Another option I have not explored would be to set up the one LG so it could not "see" the mounted HTM station but could be reached by only directly pointing the HTM hand held remote. Then point the hand held toward somewhere else to operate the one LG with the station and directly point it to operate the LG out of range of the station.

Bill, Did you have any problems getting your MX600 to control the LG 3410? I have the LG 4200A and have had problems getting programmably remotes control the unit. I plan on buying the MX600 if it will work for me.
Thanks,
Derek

I have a MX-700 and have remote codes for the 3410-A. Not sure about the 600, but you have to "learn" the commands to it. I have the discrete codes for the MX-700.

Dave

That IS good news; problem is, I'm a PC guy. I'm hoping there will be a similar event for Windows users, and my choice of a 3410a (I have one of the first few) will be sealed in the "good" book.

I've read that Apple is moving to an Intel platform soon. This may completely blur the line between us PC guys and Mac guys. I've read peoples' thoughts that it could allow Windows and the Mac OS to co-exist on the same computer. Who knows if this latter speculation is true, but it does lead to some interesting possibilities for a home theater PC.

I have a MX-700 and have remote codes for the 3410-A. Not sure about the 600, but you have to "learn" the commands to it. I have the discrete codes for the MX-700.

Dave

Where can I get remote codes for the LG 4200A?

Where can I get remote codes for the LG 4200A?
http://www.remotecentral.com
has what you need. The codes are the same as for the 3410

I bought one of these open box from CC. It is the 451 series. I have some problems that I havent seen addressed in this thread. I ran the ez scan, which picked up 20 digital channels. The display says No Signal on all of them, even though they are visible through the firewire>JVC3000. I tried a few recordings, saw that the recordings were made, but got a blank screen when trying to play back. I was able to make a few recordings with the JVC which looked great, but attempts to dub from JVC to HDD resulted in the same No Signal message, even though the thumbnail is there with the correct recording time. Where is this Demo Pin located and could that be the problem?

Woo-hoo!

Apple recently released Firewire SDK 20, which includes a new application called AVCBrowser. It allowed me to get my Powerbook to recognize my 3410a and vice-versa. :)



We need more details! What was the sequence of firing up the software so everything recognized everything else? Any specific software settings needed? Let me see if I got this straight, you copied a file from the 3410a to the Powerbook and were able to play the Powerbook file back through the 3410a to your TV and also copy the file back to the 3410a and play it from the 3410a's hard dirve? Wow, I'm gona have to get me one of them there Powerbook thingies.

All I did was stream something from my Powerbook to my 3410a, which I had never been able to do with either my doorstop (Win XP machine) or my Powerbook. I didn't try to stream from the 3410a to the Powerbook. I was getting ready to try tonight to answer your question; however, someone else already successfully did so in this thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=521123

Would you please try uploading a .avi file to the 3410a and see if you can view it?

Looking for a solid XP version of a program that will get video into and outof the 3410a to an XP box via firewire.

Would you please try uploading a .avi file to the 3410a and see if you can view it?

Looking for a solid XP version of a program that will get video into and outof the 3410a to an XP box via firewire.

If that request was directed at me, I'M THROUGH trying to get my Win XP machine to talk to my consumer electronics stuff via firewire. I've spent more than 30 hours just trying to get the Firebus software installed properly. I also couldn't get the JVC firewire driver installed.

Sorry.

Seems that a mini-mac for $500 is the way to go to get reliable streaming / downlading from 3410.

I had the firebus software working great until last night. I didn't do anything and it just won't connect. Very, very painful.

Where is this Demo Pin located and could that be the problem?


The pin looks like a 3/4 inch nail and gos in the back of the unit. If you are
looking at the unit in the back, the pin gos into a hole lower left side of
the unit. It was taped in my new unit with a cardboard holding the pin.

Mike

The following came up from a member of the 4DTV forum at satforums.com

"Cousins video told me on the phone an early model (?) had some software "issues" that allowed it to pick up some encrypted programming and they fixed that "problem"." That supports my observations. We sure are lucky.

Thanks Mike,
Do you think this demo pin is needed to fully reset the unit? I really want it to work, but no matter what i try no recording will play.

Interesting Occurrance this morning.
Due to some TV Guide problems this week, Last night I changed Zipcode in 3410a to something different, shut off, waited a minute or two, then re-programmed it to our Zipcode again.
This morning, TV Guide prompted me to select the channel list, as expected.
After doing that, I went in to edit the channel numbers on the channels I use that are different than the list.

Remember me commenting about a supervisor of mine contacting Gemstar for me (to add extra Icons) and they only added their own Icon, and not the others? Well, that extra icon (which I had programmed to channel 9-1 months ago), did not reset itself to the cable channel number as all the other network HD logo's did, it remained at 9-1!!!.

Makes me wonder if some of the TV Guide problems we are having may be coming from poor data from Gemstar!

Thanks Mike,
Do you think this demo pin is needed to fully reset the unit? I really want it to work, but no matter what i try no recording will play.

I went back to your first post and reread it and at first I would say you have a bad
unit. But did you say that it did place the show down the firewire to your DVCR?
If the is true then, have you tried the unplug for a few hours and retry. Some times it takes that long power out to reboot the software. So I'm not sure what to think.

My new unit has a new 300Gb hard drive in it and all has been working very well for the last 8 months. But I did have 3 replacements units before I received a good one. I also run 2 fans, one on top and one on the side of the unit.

Mike

I returned this unit to CC and the salesman confirmed that it was defective. Since my cable box is down-rezzing HD to 480i via firewire I really need a source to record HD, so I may take a chance a on a new one.

shugazer9
You may have a bad unit. But try the following as a 'manual reset'. Make sure that none of the channels are blocked (this is a menu item) and the unit is not locked.

Unhook the firewire. Set up the system to be antenna only (I believe this is done in the guide). Do not scan for new channels . Delete every channel that was found by any previous EZ scan. Do not turn off the 3410A. Set up the system for Antenna and Cable, no cable box. Do not scan. Delete every channel that was found by EZ scan. Setup the system for Antenna, Cable, with cable box. Do not scan. Delete every channel that was found by EZ scan.

The above procedure should assure that the 3410A has no knowledge of any channels. Turn it off and un plug it for a few minutes or longer. Now, set it up (in the guide) according to your situation (I suggest Antenna + Cable with no cable box), tell it whatever it needs to know (including your zip code). There is an Menu' option for setting the 'cable type' Make sure it is set to STD the first time . Do an EZ-Scan. Let it sit over night to download data. Plug the firewire back in.

You should be OK after this. If it doesn't work, The last thing you may want to do is try it again with a different zip code (one near you, but with a different cable company would be best.

whoops, too late. Where did you return it. I may want to buy it :)

Hyrax,

What are you saying? I see no setting for Cable and Antenna. When I scan it picks up both if I have the antenna and cable plugged in but the gemstar listings never include the OTA if i set it on cable. God, i love these things. mine are working beautifully. BTW, a while back someone commented about an audio dropout that occurs evry so often during playback of a recording. Mine now does that with cable sources.

Has anyone actually experienced the performance changes caused by the 1.17 software upgrade? i wonder if that wasn't to reenstate the encrypted station reception block that most units I've seen are unable to do? That would be a good reason to not upgrade for anyone considering an upgrade. My two units ran a total of 32 hours yesterday picking up a station I can no longer get via my DCII and VCII equipped receiver. So cool.

http://www.remotecentral.com
has what you need. The codes are the same as for the 3410

How do I put those codes into the MX600?

Are those codes on Remote Central for the 3410 the same codes that would be used in a One For All remote?

I am a little confused with the easiest way to get the 3410 codes into my mx600. I know there are some different ways. Can you please explain the easiest to me.

Thanks,
Derek

Hyrax,

What are you saying? I see no setting for Cable and Antenna.

Art -
You go to the Guide->Setup and you can tell it if you've got Cable or not and if you do have cable you tell it if you have a cable box or not. For some reason this actually impacts what you see when you edit the active stations after pressing the Menu button (out side of the guide).

I found that I needed to manually clear the stations that were active after I scanned in an antenna only configuration because they would interfere when I switched to a antenna + cable setup.

BTW, I agree that it is pretty darn cool if we can decode some stations that other tuners cannot. However, some of the stations do tell me they're scrambled.

I'm sorry Hyrax but I see no setting for Cable plus antenna. I do get both by choosing cable with no box but not he guide info. No big deal never mind.

I have some that are scrambled and not visible also. Apparently the box passes certain feeds that are DCII Fixed Key when it should not. That is why we see what we see.

I'm sorry Hyrax but I see no setting for Cable plus antenna.

Art -
My bad explanation lead to your not understanding. When you select Antenna only, you get all of your stations from the antenna. When you select Cable, you get some of your stations from the antenna (just the OTA digital stations) and the rest of the stations from the cable company. That is what I meant by the setting for cable plus antenna.

The following came up from a member of the 4DTV forum at satforums.com

"Cousins video told me on the phone an early model (?) had some software "issues" that allowed it to pick up some encrypted programming and they fixed that "problem"." That supports my observations. We sure are lucky.

Art, I agree that we are lucky in having this unit. I have two units, a 351 and a 451, and they both preform well, considering the Gemstar glitches. It seems that the 451 is only slight more sensitive that the 351, as it is able to lock on the the singals in less time.

-James

2 points for MrHifi!
I went channel surfing on the cable connection (Analog Cable here, no box) using the 3410a, and found 2 Hi Def channels: Sports on Demand at 108-1 and some wierd HD Dual screen E! on 85-3....
Also a bunch of audio only channels that I knew about, but not going to tie up the equipment for..

Hyrax-
Im considering getting a new one of these (full retail :() My local cable co only has CBS in HD, but Im sure as soon as I bought it they would air the others, thereby rendering the box much less useful. My Moto 6412 has started down-rezzing HD to 480i. I swapped it for the non-DVR 6200, which works, but i get the feeling im one firmware upgrade from not being able to archive from it either. Which is why i feel maybe i should pick up a 3410a while they are still around. If i do, ill keep that reset procedure in mind.
Rick

Jan J-
So if I subscribed to basic cable and connected it to this box, would i recieve additional channels?

I'm getting a couple, but since I don't know what else is being sent, but I cannot receive, leads me to shrug my shoulders and say: "I don't know!"

Shugazer9,

If you read this thread, the answer should be obvious. The answer to your question has been provided at least two dozen times. I believe it istime to stop discussing this.

I've an off topic question... Delete if you feel it is out of place. I'm kinda stumped.

I just added a Cable feed to my video capture system, hooked to a VCR RF in.

I'm getting a ground loop (Hum) in audio & video of my capture system, whenever I hook up the Cable feed to the VCR. No cable connected, no hum in video or audio no matter how pickey I become! Direct feed from cable still does it; All AC outlets in house checked for proper 3 terminal wiring: OK; Tried an amp: Same; Follows shield or center pin of Cable RF Feed. (Approx 3-4 IRE in video). Audio is a combination of Balanced audio at +4 and un-balanced audio at -2 & -10. Without cable RF connected NO HUM Video & audio.

I'm not familiar with RF hardware, but think an RF Isolator that would couple RF without a resistive connection between center pins or shields would do the trick, BUT, I don't know if the product exists...

Only seen at this one location (video capture). TV Sets and HD system OK.

Anybody familiar with this sort of thing, and could steer me in the correct direction?

Thanks! Jan

Jan J-
So if I subscribed to basic cable and connected it to this box, would i recieve additional channels?

I get a bunch of extra digital channels on my 4200a via Comcast with basic cable - not just broadcast. However they come and go on an almost weekely basis. I just lost INHD1, INHD2 and Discovery HD last week ;-(

peter

Anyone interested in a unit that could be used for spare parts? My unit is out of order, the front display doesn't work and I get no picture hooking up to any of the back outputs. The firewire does get recongized by my XBR960 TV as the LG HD DVR but I still get no picture. The hard drive doesn't work anymore and I'm not confusing it with the problem as it does not spin up anymore. I brought it Refurbed in January and it had the FW rev. 1.15 on it and it worked fine up until a week ago. At first I thought it was bad connections but I opened it up due to it not being in warranty anymore (90 day warranty) and checked all the connections and they are tight. But before I truly let this go is there any suggestions the forum could add for me to check? I think I tried everything but perhaps I missed something.

Powerful,
I would send it in for service. Call LG and explain what is happening...you may have to pay for shipping, but the parts should still be under warranty.

Dave

I'm looking for HD recorder, and following this thread. So what do you guys think is a decent price for a used one, upgraded to 300GB ?

$900.00

Dave this is a refurbed item, therefore 90 days was for Parts and Labor. I can get the inside to light up but the front display doesn't light up nor do I get a picture. Just for kicks I brought a 300 GB hard drive and installed it, but it didn't make a difference. I could let it go, but I'd like it if I could get something back for it. Or at the least anyone know how much a non-warranty repair would cost?

You all know own two units hooked to the same cable. One updates information perfectly. For 4 nights, the other just says no listings. God this is wierd.

Art, this would seem to be proof that many of the problems attributed to the Guide really are the fault of LG --- poor or inconsistent quality, parts, design, who knows what else. Why do you think they suggested a buy-back on my third unit? It seems they have thrown in the towel on trying to pretend they made a good product. They must have lost plenty on this thing, and will continue to lose as they are forced to buy back more units from those of us who carefully documented our problems across multiple units from the beginning.

I suppose they eventually will cut and run once the warranty is up on existing units. My fear would be that even the "better" 3410A's will fail eventually. At that point, all those folks will be out of luck.

We just got back from a 3 day vacation.... 3410a recorded 2 of the 4 programs..
From what I gather, it "Forgot" to turn itself off after the 2nd program, and didn't attempt the other 2 recordings...

When we got home, it was powered on...

Between the forgetful recordings, the intermittant TV Guide lockups, and the Luminance/Chromanance timing on SD video, this is getting to be a real POS!

We just got back from a 3 day vacation.... 3410a recorded 2 of the 4 programs..
From what I gather, it "Forgot" to turn itself off after the 2nd program, and didn't attempt the other 2 recordings...


I am curious: was the "forgot to turn off" recording a one-time or recurring event?? I've noticed less problems with the former than the latter, but it hasn't happend enough (luckily) to be more than a hunch.

Stanton or anyone,

I can't get one of my two machines to download listings. The other one downloads perfectly. I changed Zip. Waited overnight. It did not download new listings but it downloaded 3 lineups at the new zip. Today I returned the setting to my zipcode. I'll wait over night. Meanwhile, I'm using the timer recording OK.

The forgot to turn off has happened before, according to wife. She can walk in and tell me there is a problem with the 3410a, because when she left it off, and when she comes back and finds it on, that means that it forgot to turn itself off after a recording (usually the that recording is ok), and all subsequent scheduled recordings after that will not record.

Anyone interested in a unit that could be used for spare parts? My unit is out of order, the front display doesn't work and I get no picture hooking up to any of the back outputs. The firewire does get recongized by my XBR960 TV as the LG HD DVR but I still get no picture. The hard drive doesn't work anymore and I'm not confusing it with the problem as it does not spin up anymore. I brought it Refurbed in January and it had the FW rev. 1.15 on it and it worked fine up until a week ago. At first I thought it was bad connections but I opened it up due to it not being in warranty anymore (90 day warranty) and checked all the connections and they are tight. But before I truly let this go is there any suggestions the forum could add for me to check? I think I tried everything but perhaps I missed something.
Sounds like a power supply problem. The fact that your TV recognizes the LG means that standby power works, at least to a degree. Does the front panel display anything? In standby it should show a clock and a red Power symbol.

With the cover off and power connected, are there any LEDs lit inside the box? There should be one on the Gemstar board (next to the tuner boxes) and another near it on the motherboard. When power is turned on there would normally be two more on the motherboard, one red, one green, plus another red one near the HDD ribbon connector that flashes to indicate drive activity.

I'm looking for HD recorder, and following this thread. So what do you guys think is a decent price for a used one, upgraded to 300GB ?
I've never regretted buying mine. When it works right it's a delight to use, and the problems I've had with it, similar to some posted here by others, haven't been serious enough for me to consider replacing or even upgrading it (original 1.12 firmware). But I think you should at least consider an alternative. I also have two PCs with MyHD tuner cards in them. One is OTA only, the other also does unscrambled cable like the LG. The cost is in the $300 range for the card, depending on whether you want DVI output, plus whatever the PC costs.

I can't say if the LG would pick up more from cable than other tuners, as MrHiFi has reported, since I don't get anything I shouldn't with either of them (though I did when I got the LG over a year ago). I think MrHiFi is lucky to live where he does.

Otherwise, the MyHD system pretty much does what the LG does, though not always as conveniently. And you're dealing with Windows, which has its own issues. The two big advantages are that the MyHD software is still being updated both to fix problems and to add features, and the recordings are ATSC transport streams that can be copied to any storage the PC supports. And of course the card will play .ts files from other sources.

I set the LG and the PC to record shows while I was gone for 3 weeks. Both performed flawlessly, until the PC's hard drive filled up.

MyHD uses TitanTV for its listings; you might want to make sure they list all the channels you hope to receive. Gemstar puts analog and digital channels into one listing. TitanTV keeps them separate, and although it allows some channel remapping, you can't change an analog to a digital. That was an issue when they didn't list a local digital channel, although they listed the analog equivalent. They fixed that, possibly at my request. But Gemstar has never listed that channel or one other, so I have to remap distant channels I don't actually get, and the listings are not always accurate.

I couldn't find it in a review of this thread, but was it ever established that the ATSC OTA chipset in the 3410A is the same as is in the 4200A?

Powerful... If you are interested, I'd be willing to take a look at it for you for free...
Sent me a private mail and I'll explain further.. Jan

ebo... I get no display front panel or on the TV, but I do get all five LEDs inside to light up, I did put in a 300 GB Hard Drive for a little while in but I don't think I remember if the LED by the HD blinking. If you have a situation that can help please come forward. Together we can beat it.
Jan... Check your PMs

I couldn't find it in a review of this thread, but was it ever established that the ATSC OTA chipset in the 3410A is the same as is in the 4200A?

I believe that to be true; performance from both is reported to be better than "anything before" (it's certainly better than either my Sony or Samsung HD receiver--not that there's anything wrong with that).

Stanton or anyone,

I can't get one of my two machines to download listings. The other one downloads perfectly. I changed Zip. Waited overnight. It did not download new listings but it downloaded 3 lineups at the new zip. Today I returned the setting to my zipcode. I'll wait over night. Meanwhile, I'm using the timer recording OK.

It may already be working, but I found that selecting a zip "out of state" (or least well beyond your local market) is the best way to give the EPG the "kick" it needs to recover.

I couldn't find it in a review of this thread, but was it ever established that the ATSC OTA chipset in the 3410A is the same as is in the 4200A?

Actually I believe that the 3410 is a 3rd gen chipset and the 4200 is a 4th gen chipset. I own both and have read most of the avs postings on both and that info I believe was in a thread talking about LG's 5th gen chip.
:)

Stanton,

I changed the ZIP, changed it back and last night it downloaded. Fixed the channel numbers today. I'm getting 26 digital feeds 10 of which are HD including 2 HD movie channels and 4 InDemand stations. Amazing. The In Demand stations come and go. Wish i understood what makes this thing act the way it does. Like EBO said, when it's working, it can' be beat. Even when the Guide is down, it is still wonderful.

I'm thinking about getting my Dad a 4200.

Art... Since Sunday, TV Guide works one day, not next... So I'm trying something.

I went into channel edit and removed all the channels that I may not ever want to record, such as CNN, CNBC, and such. I can still receive those channels by punching the channel in, or scanning up/down. This removed about 30 or more Icon's from the Gemstar list that gets updated.... I'm hoping that by removing extra data information needs, or by just 'stirring the pot' that things will return to some sort of normalcy...

I've also sent an email to the station that Diagnostics say is where I get my Gemstar data.....

I think I may be on to something... 3rd day that TV Guide & recordings were OK. Post above this indicated what I did. I also went through and verified that all channels were assigned to the channels I wanted them to be. (I use duplicate icons of same network to program both the SD & HD chanels, as some of them have dual programming in Chicago).
Anyway, as I was scanning the channels, I noticed that the 2nd WB logo (Which I had programmed for 9-1 to force it to use outside antenna, not cable), and changed back to channel 192, which is correct for digital cable in Zipcode 60076, but I have analog cable, and WGN-DT shows up on my analog cable as channel 92-2, not 192.

So between removing un-needed Icons from TV Guide, and re-assigning the 2nd WB Logo from 192 to 9-1, TV Guide has loaded, all programmed recordings have recorded, and wife is happy, so maybe this will stabilize things again.

Of course now that I've posted this, you know what will happen!!!! :)

Jan J-

Think about this for a moment. All the cable customers in your area are receiving digital cable. Not all the cable customers in your area have stb's capable of decoding digital signals. The 3410a is capable of decoding QAM unscrambled digital signals (video and/or audio). (Remember all those digital music channels?)

How do you like digital cable so far?:D

92.2 is a QAM digital channel. 92.2 is the original cable designated channel that is remapped to 192 by your cable co.

Jan J-

Think about this for a moment. All the cable customers in your area are receiving digital cable. Not all the cable customers in your area have stb's capable of decoding digital signals. The 3410a is capable of decoding QAM unscrambled digital signals (video and/or audio). (Remember all those digital music channels?)

How do you like digital cable so far?:D

92.2 is a QAM digital channel. 92.2 is the original cable designated channel that is remapped to 192 by your cable co.

If I enter 192 I get no channel. If I enter 92.2 I get a channel...
My idea of previous post was that the programmed WB Logo I edited to 9-1 on TV Guide changed to 192 (change was not done by me --- Finger pointing at Gemstar).
Eileen says she recorded something off 9-1 a month or so ago, and it worked fine,
so sometime between a month ago, and 3 days ago (The timeframe when I was having trouble getting current TV GUIDE data and frequent TV Guide lockups), the channel programming on the 2nd WB Logo changed from 9-1 to 192. and I'm wondering if that since I programmed the 2nd WB Logo back to 9-1, to force it to my outside antenna, all has been good (Watch! post twice on it is bound to break my luck), so maybe the mis-directed channel number had something to do with the TV Guide Lockups (Again pointing a finger at Gemstar).....

Now if I could only fix the Luminance/Chrominance Mis-timing in the SD signals .......

Any quick responses to these three alternatives? I'm not in a hurry but the objective is to have something fully set up and tested before the fall start of Lost and NFL football (already have a Sony 30" HDTV monitor and Onkyo HTIB for this installation)

1. Get a 3410A

2. Just wait for a smoother, less expensive, HDTV recorder

3. Get a set-top-box (4200a, say) and DVD recorder that will control it via IR blaster (any suggestions?) to settle for less, while waiting for HDTV recorders to really come down in price.

willie

Jan J-

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough in my earlier post. I was only trying to point out that you do receive and decode digital cable, albeit just the unscrambled channels.

What happens when you tag your second WB 92.2? Do you get reliable recordings? Lose the guide? Number goes back to 192 after some period of time?

Here in Portland subs the OTA is stronger and more complete than comcast. Nothing gets by comcast here by accident for free, so for me this box is strictly OTA.

wildwillie6-

I think most would agree that if you have cable you should rent your cable co's dvr.
If you are sat I have no idea.
If you are OTA the sony seems to be similiar to the 3410a and they are still making them in 250 and 500 sizes.
If you have an uncurable desire to archive to D-VHS, you will need a firewire equipped box such as the 3410a or 6412

wildwillie6, If you're in an area served by Comcast, you might consider renting their 6412 DVR for $9.99/month. I started doing this last week even though I have two 3410A's. I got tired of doing without Cinemax HD, Comcast SportsNet HD, INHD 1 & 2, & TNT HD. I don't get these from my D* subscription, and they're scrambled on my local Comcast so the 3410A can't help.

In some ways, the 6412 represents what the 3410A could have been. The guide works fine, and with 2 tuners you can record two programs and view any earlier segment of either while they are being recorded. It can also buffer 2 channels at once so that you can "pause live TV", etc. on either. VOD, video on demand, a lot of which is free, also works quite well with the 6412.

Well, so far, so good! lewlew, We've got a good outside antenna, so we're picking up all HD feeds from that, as opposed to cable. Why? Because we can.... (no other logic than that! :) ).
I just programmed 5 back to back recordings, back & forth between SD, HD, and a couple same channel's back to back... If they all go down OK, I'm going to assume the un-necessary LOGO removal (Turn channel off) and the WB channel re-direct had something to do with it...

Emails to people regaring Gemstar stuff are being 'examined' whatever that means...

Would like Chicago user's information.... Please confirm:

Are you getting your Gemstar data from WFLD-SD or WLS-SD, and via cable, or outside antenna???? If cable, what type, analog or digital, and who's...
Also, indicate they type of problems (none, or ________) you encounter, and I'll forward it.

Thanks. Jan

Any quick responses to these three alternatives? I'm not in a hurry but the objective is to have something fully set up and tested before the fall start of Lost and NFL football (already have a Sony 30" HDTV monitor and Onkyo HTIB for this installation)

1. Get a 3410A

2. Just wait for a smoother, less expensive, HDTV recorder

3. Get a set-top-box (4200a, say) and DVD recorder that will control it via IR blaster (any suggestions?) to settle for less, while waiting for HDTV recorders to really come down in price.

willie

I'll bite; ask an honest question, get an honest answer.
1) If you can even get one (that works), I highly recommend it for OTA HD
2) That's not going to happen anytime soon. Even I thought there would be more by now, but I think the lack of demand for HD recording is hurting this segment. For once it paid to be an early adoptor (I've had over a year's worth of good use out of mine with no end in sight).
3) This does you no good if you want to record HD; an integrated solution is going to be the only thing going with HD copy protection restrictions (either perceived or real).

I agree with Stanton on this one. I've had mine since September and was worth the $400 I paid for it. Now, between cable and my 3410, I have two tuners and one records! Now I can watch one thing and record another...video nirvana!!

Yippee! the 5+ back to back hours of recordings all worked fine! The 3410a powered itself off after the recordings, TV Guide still works, and all recordings recorded!
Maybe this Icon repair thing is a viable fix!

I've had mine since September and was worth the $400 I paid for it...video nirvana!!I got started then too thanks to the BB closeout and wound up with two 3410A's. Sure made the 2004 TV season a lot more enjoyable.

Recently I signed up for the Comcast offer that gives $42/month off the Digital Silver package for 6 months. I was missing too many Sox/Cubs HD games since Comcast SportsNet HD is scrambled here; also I was tired of doing without INHD 1 & 2, Cinemax HD, & TNT HD that I can't get from my D* subscription.

I'm renting the 6412 DVR for $9.99/month. A very nice unit with dual tuners and several features that I wish LG had included on the 3410A. Looking back a year, things have really improved with respect to HD recording.

UNC....I've been tempted to sell my 3410 and just go with the comcast box...have you been tempted to do the same?

Set my 3410 to time shift last night before bed. Wanted to get up and shift to the beginning of the Tour D France. Anyway, my power was shortly interrupted during the night. Got up and my 3410 was totally lights out, the power switch did nothing. Pulled the cover off and everything looked ok, the PS fuse checked out. Plugged it back in and it started working again. It took about a minute + to initialize, much longer than normal. Now every thing works and my recorded programs are still intact.

Do these things have some kind of protection circuit to prevent rapid on/off cycles from hurting the thing? Hope it keeps working!

UNC....I've been tempted to sell my 3410 and just go with the comcast box...have you been tempted to do the same?Yep. At this point I may have more HD recording capacity than I need, and I sure don't like having to pay both D* and Comcast to receive the limited selection of HD services now available.

Guess I'll wait and have a look at the D* MPEG-4 DVR before doing anything. I really wish the 3410A had CableCARD. Comcast doesn't charge for the Card, but without that functionality the 3410A is limited to the unencrypted channels (and OTA, which fortunately is fine at my location).

ebo... I get no display front panel or on the TV, but I do get all five LEDs inside to light up, I did put in a 300 GB Hard Drive for a little while in but I don't think I remember if the LED by the HD blinking. If you have a situation that can help please come forward. Together we can beat it.
Jan... Check your PMs
Sorry to take so long to respond. Some things to try:
You said you had replaced the hard drive in the past. Was it still working afterward? How did it fail? Were you using it, or was it turned off? Any thunderstorms in your area around that time, or anything else you know of that might be involved in the failure? Not that these boxes need a reason.

Does the power switch have an effect (e.g. more internal lights when on than off)? Have you tried unplugging it for a while to see if that revives it?

With the unit unplugged, disconnect the HDD data and power cables and take a close look at the pins. Make sure none on the data connectors are bent over, possibly touching another pin. Check the 5-position DIP switch J101 (front edge of the main board near the front of the HDD). If a switch is in the wrong position or not making good contact it can prevent the unit from turning on, although I think you should still have some front panel indication. The proper positions are:

1 - OFF
2 - ON
3 - OFF
4 - ON
5 - OFF

Exercise these switches to clean the contacts and make sure they are in the right positions. Put everything back together and plug it in.

I measured voltages on various connectors. If you have a voltmeter with a small enough probe you can measure voltages where the wires go into the connectors. Be careful. There are no deadly voltages near these connectors (though there are back at the power cord and fuse), but if you short a couple of contacts you could do more damage. Don't worry if your readings are off a bit from mine, as long as they're ballpark. All readings are DC; I didn't check for ripple or the possibility that some should be AC.

There's probably a way to do columns, but I don't know it. The format is
Color...Label (if any)...Voltage_OFF...Voltage_ON

P101

WHT...PWR ON/OFF...0...4.8
WHT...33 VA...31...31.2
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...5.5 V...5.4...5.3
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...3.3 V...0...3.2
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...3.3 V...0...3.2
WHT...3.3 V...0...3.2
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...5.0 V...0...4.9
WHT...5.0 V...0...4.9
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...9.0 V......8.9
RED...3.8 V...3.9...3.8

P102 (HDD Power)

RED...5.0 V...0...4.9
WHT...GND...0...0
WHT...GND...0...0
GRN...12 V...0...11.9

P103

RED...FD (+)...-19.6...-20.3
BLK...FD (-)...-23.0...-24.3
WHT...-29 VA...-26.6...-28.0
BLU...GND...0...0
GRY...GND...0...0

J118 (FRONT I/F CONN) (No labels)

RED...0...0
BLK...4.9...4.9
WHT...4.9...4.9
BRN...4.7...4.6
BLU...4.9...4.8
GRY...4.7...4.6
ORG...5.0...5.0
GRN...0...0

Sure wish LG would let loose with some servicing info. Especially what the DIP switches are for. And let us do our own firmware upgrades, as they do for some of their other products.

Do these things have some kind of protection circuit to prevent rapid on/off cycles from hurting the thing? Hope it keeps working!

I have mine on a APC UPS with A/C voltage control, surge and brown out protection, to me the 3410 is just like any other computer equipement. I do not think that LG put much protection in this unit. I would recommend for long life on this unit a UPS. But that just my opinion, I also run two fans on the LG 24x7.

Mike

I have mine on a APC UPS with A/C voltage control, surge and brown out protection, to me the 3410 is just like any other computer equipement. I do not think that LG put much protection in this unit. I would recommend for long life on this unit a UPS. But that just my opinion, I also run two fans on the LG 24x7.

Mike

I'm using a surge suppressor power strip. So hopefully the nastiest stuff is filtered out. But, I am also planning on getting a UPS. My rear projection hdtv also does not like power interruptions. The display lamp needs to be properly cooled during shutdown with the fan.

Have whole house surge supression system in the circuit breaker box, plus I've a surge supressor power strip at that location for Display, DVR, DVD, VTR's, etc.

I just got a 3410 and I've got a few questions...

How do I find out the software version?
Is it possible to upgrade the software?
My 3410a doesn't boot reliably, Sometimes it takes several tries to get the unit to power on. Is this a common problem?

Lastly, the 3410a doesn't seem to correctly handle transport streams with dual audio (e.g. mpeg & ac3). I can switch to the second audio channel, but if I pause/REW/FF/Slow, the audio doesn't resume when I press play. I have to select Audio 1 and then Audio 2, then the sound returns... (I used OS X VirtualDVHS from FW SDK 20 to put the TS on the 3410a)


Thanks,

Techtom

Find troubleshooting in menu, and it is at the bottom selection...

Also, On back of the unit, post the datecode, that should tell you the firmware version

Unfortunately, This unit was not made to be field upgraded, and I think that was a mistake.

I've had 4 firmware upgrades on my Mits 62525, via compact flash card, and it made a world of difference in the operation of the unit. I was all over them about a paticular problem, and they fixed it, and made the automatic switchable analog to digital audio fully functional...

Just think of the features, bugfixes, (the infamous SD Y/C Timing Error that their own lab had to bring to LG's attention comes to mind) and overall improvement this unit would have... if they created a software program that would talk to the LG 3410a via Firewire, or RS-232 port, to upgrade/improve the unit!!!

Jan,

As far as I can tell, you are the only person who considers the "SD Y/C Timing Error" to be infamous. AFAIK, they do not have any fix for this problem. As we have discussed several times before, I still am unaware of a Y/C timing issue. And i am watching on a 96" wide screen. Nevertheless, I agree with you that it would have saved a lot of shipping costs if they had provided downloadable fixes to those who coud implement them. Let us not forget the extrordinary job of keeping us happy that LG has performed. They have repaired and taken back units which customers were unhappy with. Often they returned the full purchase price after exchanging several units. Sure the units had problems but I bet SONY would never have handled it as well.

BTW, both my units are working very well.

I have one LST 3410A available. It is new in box. I never opened and/or set it up. I do not know the version and/or software update because it is unopened. It is no longer available because of the "infamous" firewire. If interested, PM or email me.

What's a 3410A worth these days?

There are 3 or 4 on sale on eBay. You can check it out. I do not think it is being made anymore.

I have a series 451 with firmware 1.17 LST-3410A and was wondering how much I should advertise it for? It is the latest hardware and firmware.

Jan,

As far as I can tell, you are the only person who considers the "SD Y/C Timing Error" to be infamous. AFAIK, they do not have any fix for this problem. As we have discussed several times before, I still am unaware of a Y/C timing issue. And i am watching on a 96" wide screen. Nevertheless, I agree with you that it would have saved a lot of shipping costs if they had provided downloadable fixes to those who coud implement them. Let us not forget the extrordinary job of keeping us happy that LG has performed. They have repaired and taken back units which customers were unhappy with. Often they returned the full purchase price after exchanging several units. Sure the units had problems but I bet SONY would never have handled it as well.

BTW, both my units are working very well.


You know, There have been times in this thread I'd swear you work for LG!


The Y/C Timing issue was documented in LG's own lab!! They hadn't tested for it, and when I contacted them, they couldn't believe that it would have been possible for this to occur, until they tested it...

It is un-conceiveable that you aren't seeing it. What is your ouput format and settings?

I've seen it personally on 5 different units, and they unit LG gave to me for exchange was no better, no worse than mine.

To see it, tune in any Standard Defination TV Signal, and note that the Chroma (Color information) is Above and to the left of the luminance information.

LG's lab said it is because they made the Tuner's IF section for the high bandwidth of HD, the narrower bandwidth of the SD signal bounces back and forth in the wider IF bandwidth, and the luminance and chromanance get out of time due to this 'bouncing off the walls' of the HD wide IF section.

Here's how you can proove it. Tune in something like QVC where the same set will be on the air for long periods of time. Make a recording of QVC from the LG 3410a tuner. At the same time, receive QVC on a cheapy VHS deck, and patch the video from the VHS deck to the video input of the LG 3410a, and make a recording of that....

Then, play the two recordings and notice that the LG Decoded signal is 'fuzzy'. Looking at the edge of a QVC box, or a Highly saturated static item in the recording will show the color information is off to the left, and above of the image it is supposed to be married to.... THAT's the Y/C timing error I refer to...
The VHS decoded signal recorded will have sharper detail (Because the Luminance & Chromanance are in time with one-another)....

Try the test yourself!

I really think that this box (3410a) was either:
A. Not beta tested correctly, and multiple bugs were left in the system... or...
B. They figured no-one would notice the Y/C timing issue, or they never caught it themselves.... I know for a fact that the LG Lab didn't know of it... Because they told me as much!

I don't want to hear you telling me that the Y/C issue doesn't exist, as there are multiple posts here pointing to this problem (not posted by me). I was just the fellow who gave it the technical reason for the description.

My unit is now working as it should, after a few weeks of constant lockups and missed recordings.
The fix was to eliminate as may un-necessary (Turn off) channels in TV Guide, and double-checking the channel numbers assigned to Logo's.

I'm going to try it right now.

OK. Here's what I did.

Turned on my 10 ft. DWIN FP and Transcanner and the JVC 777 through which SD signals travel in my system. I use S cables everywhere to transmit 480i. From the JVC switcher, the 480i signal goes to the DWIN Transcanner where the line density is multiplied to produce 780+ lines of resolution. Next, I tuned in Digital and analog cable staions. The LG was set on the Video output so all signals are outputted at 480i. I saw no delay or the artifact you described. Then, I looked at the Digital SD feeds with the ouput set at 1080i. When I do this, the signal is routed through the RGBHV output to a Zektor 4 to 1 switcher then it passes without modification through my Transcanner to the projector. The projector automatically syncs at the appropriate frequency. There is no peceivable difference regarding timing delays between the HD and SD pictures I know what Chrominace/Luminance timing delays look like because i can induce them manually with my Pioneer Elite DV-09 DVD player. I can create exactly what you describe with this unit. My LG does not show the artifacts you describe.

I also turned on my Bedroom LG unit and the Sony KDL-32XBR950 a newish LCD component TV which produces outstanding video. I have the LG connected through the DVI output to the Sony's DVI input. I watched QVC. The cable analog picture is quite terrible however I could not see any timing issues.

To be coimplete, I also looked at the SD output from my RCA DTC100. It has no artifacts either. The LG picture is a bit sharper.

I am not sure why I do not see the artifact you see. Perhaps the upscaling removes the bad effects. Just to be complete, i hooked up my 1971 15" Sony to the LG. No artifacts.

I am not sure Why you are seeing a timing problem but whatever the reaon is, I do not think the LG is at fault.

BTW, I do not have any working relationship with LG. I have had a problem with my unit since the beginning regarding brightness level shifts through the RGBHV output. My DWIN HD700 changes the overall brightness of the field whenever a bright white object appears or disappears in the field of view. I have never been able to resolve this. It was observed by a member of the HD230 forum who observed the phenomenon in that machine's interaction with the HDD700. I've come to understand that it does not matter whether the incompatibility is in my DWIN or the LG. It's just there and it is annoying. In spite of that minor annoyance i love this set and would not give it up for the world. I also receive a lot of free material with this unit that every other tuner in my home is unable to decypher.

Jan, I believe you are seeing something. I am not able to reproduce it. Are you using S cables to route the SD video. Perhaps it is something simple like that.

Thanks for the post, Art....
Here's my history of the Y/C error.

Using Comcast Analog Cable at home. I see it on 3410a DVI or YUV output at Native, 1080i, 720p modes on Mits 62525. Tried multiple YUV inputs on Mits, same on each, and DVI. Other YUV feeds look good into Mits.
A second 3410a was tested at the TV station I was working at last year, at 1080i and YUV interconnects to a Sony Vega CRT based display. It was attached to the "House RF" cable system. I got to borrow it, and for a while had it at home as 2nd unit. Switching between main (Native, 1080i, 720P via DVI) and 2nd unit (Native, 1080i, 720P via YUV didn't matter; same Y/C error. While I had both units, tried increasing or antenuating the RF signals to one or other without success. During all this, multiple VHS decks were fed same RF, and they did not show Y/C error. Up till that point, I was wondering if it was an oddity with the RF system here, But when VHS decks didn't show the problem, but LG3410a did, it kind-of pointed in the 3410a's direction. It was at this point where I took video out of VHS and fed it into 3410a and discovered that video input recordings (Demod VHS) on 3410a looked better than decoded by 3410a recordings did.
Took the 2nd deck back to TV Station, and fed 480i YUV ouput of 3410a to a Betacam SX Professional VTR's component input. This deck has Y/C timing adjust in the TBC.
I found I could correct the horizontal portion of the Y/C timing error (error off to left of image) but that still had chroma 'above' the image. It was at this point I had my "Smoking Gun" on the Y/C error, as I could correct part of it in the TBC of the SX deck, but the delay range was only plus or minus a few microseconds, not a whole line. The Y/C error I see is chroma is nearly one whole horizontal line ahead of luminance, that accounts for the chroma above and to the left of luminance.
Armed with this information, I approached my boss at the station, who gave me the fellow to contact at the LG lab. Fellow at lab listened to my comments in dis-belief. He couldn't believe that LG would make a product with that error, and he said he'd test a unit at the lab just to confirm this. When I contacted him a week later, he was amazed on his own findings. He confirmed my diagnosis, and explained where the problem origionated, in the Tuner IF area.
He said he would contact the company for me. I have contacted him twice since, and both times I could tell he really didn't want to talk to me any more.

I have since seen this problem on 3 other LG3410a's.... (One of these last 3 was tested at a different TV station from before, on their "House RF" system). Same symptoms as all the others. On this test, I used Native, 1080i, 720P using YUV into a Sony BVM-D14H5U Professional High Defination Monitor. Same results. I've also received emails from 3 others indicating they've reproduced my findings.

I'm thinking it is not an adjust-able setting... it is designed in "feature". If I discount the 3 emails, I've still seen all 5 of the unit's have the same amount of Y/C delay, on all outputs, on diferent display types.

Ok, well it's been awhile since I posted anything regarding the 3410. Mostly because up until now my units have been fine. But so much for that. I had been using my box with 1.17 firmware without trouble ever since getting it back from LG. That firmware allowed me to get the audio on TNT-HD, something my 1.15 boxes can't do. Well a couple weeks ago I noticed a problem after being away for a couple of days. When I came back the time on the unit read 12:00 and it was around 8pm. First thought was that the power went out. Nope, checked everything else and nothing else showed any signs of the power going out, including the other 3410 I have hooked up in the bedroom. It looked like the box somehow reset itself. It required me to go through the setup when I turned it back on. And no, I had not had anything scheduled to record when I was gone. What's strange is that the clock was just stuck at 12 until I updated the time. Anyway, I was thinking everything was fine after I went through and set it back up. I was wrong. The first problem I encountered was a rolling/flickering picture. I use the DVI output to my tv and the cable connection is fine. I was thinking about trying another box on the tv to see if it was perhaps the TV causing the roll, but the another problem occurred on the LG leading me to believe it is indeed the LG with problems. The second problem was the box started turning itself off and back on while I was using it. I had recorded Into the West on TNT-HD and during playback the unit suddenly turned itself off and back on. It happens in a split second so that is what I am assuming is occurring. It's either that or the unit is trying to power ON when it is already ON, because the HELLO message pops up and the dvr reinitializes. I hope that makes sense. And it's never turned itself on when it was off. I've tried unplugging it and plugging it back in to no avail. It seems that the roll is worse on certain channels like ABC and FOX, both cable HD and OTA HD, which is even more perplexing. Anybody experience any issues like this?

Folks, it's been fun (well, maybe not) being here for nineteen months and all gazillion pages of this thread. But I have the buyback check from LG in my hot little hands, and must move on to new adventures in HD recording. You are a fine bunch and I hope those of you with working units can keep them going. I will miss "what could have been" with the 3410A. It was a great idea that was poorly implemented. I give credit to LG, however, for stepping up and buying back my unit.

One final thought for you: The buyback process involved receiving a letter that instructed me to remove the serial number label from the back of the 3410A, affix the label to the letter, and return it via UPS with the included shipping label. Yes, that is correct --- LG did not request return of the unit itself. The letter said the unit is to be "field scrapped". I assume that, since I've received the check, they will not be asking for the unit and that I'm supposed to toss it into the nearest garbage can.

LG has apparently officially deemed the 3410A "junk".

See you over in the Sony DVR thread. The guide actually works. But getting the CableCARD activated by Comcast has so far proved impossible Ah, don't we love the cutting edge?!?

ebo I'm sorry to tell you that none of the recommended ideas of yours worked but since my state has strict lemon laws I may be able to get back some of what I lost if not all. I appreciate everyone's help and hope to be joining you soon with a working one.

Follow-up to my last long post... The deck I used to correct the horizontal part of the Y/C error my have been a Digital Betacam with analog input option (DVW-A500) not Betacam SX as previously posted. Sorry, I sometimes get my hardware confused...

Just got off the phone with LG. I was hoping they would offer to buy back my non-operative box like Phil was offered. No such luck. I was told that they don't know where I got that information from buy LG is not buying back these boxes. In other words, either LG is trying to keep the number of buybacks to a minimum or else the CR is just clueless as to what's been going on with these things. This isn't the first time a company's CR knows less than readers of this board and you can be sure it won't be the last.

So, I now have the option of paying another $90 + shipping to get this box fixed (most likely it'll be swapped for a 350 model) or I can just eat the whole $700, dump the thing and get the Sony DVR. Getting this box swapped would seem like the logical choice except that we all know it's just a matter of time before the refurb. they send me will go bad too.

Any ideas/advice?

Dan

I would ask for a supervisor as well as the name of the VP of sales and marketing for the USA and an address and phone number to contact them with. Be very calm and professional on the phone. Once you have that information, then send a letter or a phone call to one of the parties if the supervisor doesn't take care of you.

Call back again - I was asked to fax them proof of purchase/receipt for the buyback to progress. I have been given a case number as well. The CSR had to speak with the swap department to initiate the buyback. Once I fax the receipt I am expecting a dollar figure.

A supervisor needs to sign off on the buyback. Then the buyback department will contact you. Keep calling back until you get someone who can help you.

Thanks for the post, Art....
Here's my history of the Y/C error.
...snip...
Fellow at lab listened to my comments in dis-belief. He couldn't believe that LG would make a product with that error, and he said he'd test a unit at the lab just to confirm this. When I contacted him a week later, he was amazed on his own findings. He confirmed my diagnosis, and explained where the problem origionated, in the Tuner IF area.
He said he would contact the company for me. I have contacted him twice since, and both times I could tell he really didn't want to talk to me any more.


I can confirm that error and raise you one. It is in the video circuitry. I have fed in clean video and the upconverted output chromance (live, or from the hard drive) is shifted up and to the left of the luminance. The video lags the color information. My test uses clean video from a big satellite dish. The same video (composite) is fed to my 34" Panasonic HDTV and there is no problem (other than the Panny's own poor video circuits). The LG upconverts this video to 1080i and feeds the TV with component. The LG clearly has a color timing issue. It is sad that so many manufacturers of HD products pay little attention to normal video, which will be around for a long time.

I see the problem as you stated in the analog tuner also. Because it is visible in the video input, I do not believe it is an IF issue, but a sloppy video circuit design.

Gee...when wwtech is online Jan J is offline and when Jan J is online then wwtech is offline...coincidence?????
:D

I assume your Kidding....

As I edit this.... I am reporting that I'm "offline" (Green button 'off')

??? I must be doing this via some sort of mental action!"

Gee...when wwtech is online Jan J is offline and when Jan J is online then wwtech is offline...coincidence?????
:D

Geez, get a life. I am so glad to make my SECOND post an answer to a flame. If you have a problem with my technical post, then speak up. But I guess personal attacks are more your speed. Now where is that ignore button???

lighten up Francis...of course I was kidding...we need some sarcasm tags on this board...I guess it's harder to recognize than I thought.
Jan J I was just pokin' fun at the "infamous" timing issue you have and wwtech I didn't have a problem with your technical post and technically if I had called you a know-nothing hack that would have been a flame so technically I didn't flame you or your post...just implying that Jan J had a new imaginary friend.... :)

Does anyone have a remote they can send my way for the LG-LST3410A?

I've got a brand new extra remote that I can sell you. PM me.

I just got a 3410A with firmware 1.15. Does anyone know what the 1.17 firmware specifically fixes?

It was posted awhile back that it deals with an audio problem on TNT-HD. That channel is encrypted here, and probably in most systems, so I wonder if that's all 1.17 does.

I think Gemstar is stirring the pot again..... In the Chicagoland area....

Today, 3410a TV Guide asked me to "Select which channels match your area"....

Prior to this, This selection had always used MSNBC and CBS as the selection stations....

"Choose 1 if MSNBC is channel 64 and CBS channel 2"
"Choose 2 if MSNBC is channel ____ and CBS Channel ____"
"Choose 3 if ______________________________________"
then there was Don't match...

Not Today.... The selection is based upon Where TV Guide Channel is located on our cable feed:
Choose 1 if Channel 30 (As it is in my area)


So, selected 1, and then went back to channel edit to see what new or other Icons have been added changed, deleted, or in general, screwed with compared to the last time I've gone through and deleted channels, the last time I went through this.

I found all HDTV channels have been routed back to the Cable numbers, instead of the Terristerial Antenna I've edited them to: CBS 2-1, NBC 5-1, ABC 7-1, WGN 9-1, WTTW 11-1, Fox 32-1 (that's all the DUAL Icon channels I've got)

So, then looked through the cable channels, verifiying their channel number (which was good, which means that they either fixed the errors Gemstar had since the last Channel selection, or, it didn't change these back... Take your pick.)

However...... Many Channels that I had Turned OFF the last time I edited the channels, (so as to limit the amount of data that TV Guide would need to be successful...) Were TURNED BACK ON AGAIN!!
So I had to delete about 6-8 channels... Then verified all the channel numbers were correct... All back to normal!!!

I had forwarded information to Gemstar (through a prior employer) about the icons that were missing, but I find no new Icons that I needed....

I think this was a Gemstar thing, not LG thing..

I did not check to see if the host channel had changed.....

Anyone else have this happen???? (Comcast Analog Cable on Antenna 2, Outside Antenna on Antenna 1)

Sign me: Looking for the "Stop resetting my channel system" Button!

:eek:

Jan, I didn't have any recent problem like this. My host channel is WTTW 11.

I have noticed one point of interest. When I change Zipcode to get guide data back, my unit with 1.15FW will lose the OTA HD channel numbers and revert to the Comcast numbers as you describe. My refurb unit with 1.17 FW does not have this problem; it holds all the channel numbers that I have entered. I don't know if 1.17 has anything to do with this. (BTW, I've been using 114-1 instead of 2-1 for WBBM-DT. This tunes it from cable rather than OTA, and avoids the occasional bad weather problems that bother that channel.)

Thanks for the confirmation. You know, at times, I don't know if I'm posting data based upon logic, Halucenating, or just out and out guessing!

Interesting post on V1.17, though!

As a side issue, I vaguely recall their being an RS232 connector on the back.....

Anybody do some sniffing to see what goes on there??

Quite some time ago, a post gave a number to enter from the remote to open the page where a hexadecimal number is found to identify the Gemstar host channel. I tried it, but only succeeded in changing the viewing channel. Obviously, there's more to it than just turning on the 3410a and punching in a number. Will someone please explain? Thanks.

turn on TV Guide --> cursor up --> cursor left twice to 'messages' --> cursor down --> key in 753159852

Paul,

That's exactly what I needed. Thanks very much.

I just received a refurb unit as a replacement for my defective 3410a. However, I can't get it to go into the TV Guide menu. It has 1.15 software however the unit did not go thru the initial setup like it should so I could set up TV Guide and the inputs.

As a result, it just sits at Channel 2 in either Analog or Digital tv inputs and it won't run EZ Scan until TV Guide is set up.

I've tried the hard reset by unplugging it, but it always returns to channel 2 and the TV Guide won't load.

Is there any way to re-initialize the unit? Unfortunately, I don't have a demo pin but I can try to make one. I assume it is just a shorted pin that goes into the q link connector???

At this point, LG is worthless and they have said they will replace it however I think the unit just needs to be kick-started and I am hoping someone has been down this road before...

Thanks for any help!

If you just turned it on.... Yes, you won't be able to get to TV Guide until you program a Zip Code, answer a couple questions about your cable connection, and then turn it off for overnight....

Once it knows your Zip, and cable interconnect, and downloads some data, TV Guide will then come up....

Here's a tip that I came across... If you have trouble with TV Guide getting corrupted, or unit not recording reliably, once you get your channels showing in TV Guide, EDIT OUT the channels you will not be likely to record.... you can still view them directly, just won't show up in TV Guide as record-able. Once I did that, the 3410a was less apt to lockup TV Guide, and has been much more reliable....

Jan

Is there any way to re-initialize the unit? Unfortunately, I don't have a demo pin but I can try to make one. I assume it is just a shorted pin that goes into the q link connector??
Thanks for any help!

The demo pin is not necessary; DON'T try shorting anything. Listen to Jan J., and try a different zip code for a "kick start", but you have to give it at least an overnight session to start downloading. You can also search my old posts for the zip code thing (there's a couple of things to check).

I believe you have to have scaned in stations before you can open the guide. So make sure you go to the Edit menu and do a station scan.

The demo pin is not necessary; DON'T try shorting anything. Listen to Jan J., and try a different zip code for a "kick start", but you have to give it at least an overnight session to start downloading. You can also search my old posts for the zip code thing (there's a couple of things to check).

Stanton is correct - you do not need the demo pin. However, it is impossible to add a Zip code if you cannot start the guide. Every once in a while my guide will not start. The solution I've found to turn off the box, unplug it for 2 seconds, plug it back in and then turn it back on. This should allow you to start the the guide. Once you get to the guide you're OK.

Where did you buy the remote from? I never got one with my open box buy but would like to have one for resell purposes. I just use my MX700 and never really worried about it. Now that Comcast is offering dual tuner DVR's for only $10 per month. I haven't had any problems with my 3410, but with all of my OTA stations that I watch are on cale, I'm not sure I need it anymore.

Every once in a while my guide will not start. The solution I've found to turn off the box, unplug it for 2 seconds, plug it back in and then turn it back on. This should allow you to start the the guide. Once you get to the guide you're OK.

That's the ticket! The old "2 second cold boot" always does the trick (any longer and it resets the time, etc.). I haven't had to do it for a while now, so I hope I don't jinx it.

I'm convinced this replacement unit is DOA. I've attempted to power it off for hours and also tried the 2 second power off.

The problem is that I can't even get it to go into the TV Guide setup menu so I can select the zip code. If I press the TV Guide button, nothing happens - it just flashes a green dot on the display panel but nothing happens.

It's like the chip that controls the TV Guide interface has fried because it is totally non-responsive. If I go into EZ Scan - it tells me that I must first configure the TV Guide. It's a catch-22, can't configure without TV Guide setup, but I can't get the box into a mode where I can configure TV Guide.

Argh, this is frustrating...

Any other ideas? If not, I really appreciate everyones comments and attempts to resolve this situation...

Thanks!

Funster
I just got my 3410 back from LG after my guide disappeared. Nothing I could do would bring it back. It was still within warrenty so for $99 I sent it back for repair (its a pretty crappy warrenty in my opinion).

Surprisingly, I had asked to get the same unit back and I did. I noticed right away that the software version had been updated to 1.17 from 1.15 but I didnt write down all the other version numbers so I cant tell what else had been updated.

The guide still disappears, and on the first day after I turned it on! So I'd definitely say they havent yet fixed the cause of the problem. However, I made sure not to schedule any recordings so I've been able to get the guide back just by removing power for a short time.

Its has another anomoly that it never did before. So far, in the 3 days its been plugged in, the "download" light on the front panel display hasnt turned off. its like its just permanently turned on. However, the guide has been populated with data so it work well enough to do that but when put into diagnostic mode, the entry for "last download time" is still n/a. So it must have failed in its last download but gotten enough to populate the guide. Maybe tonight when I get home the light will be turned off.

Anyway, its still as flakey as its always been and i dont trust it enough yet to put a recurring timed recording into memory. I figure I'll let it fully populate the guide first before I try to do a timed recording.

dickm

Here's an idea to try.... It fixed the TV Guide corrupted on our unit...

Go into the Edit channels, and REMOVE all channels that you wouldn't normally record.
By removing them (Turning them OFF) you have that much less data to download.

Also, after you do that, look at each of the channels you have allowed to remain on, and verify the channel numbers that is in the list Match exactly the channel numbers you expect them to be on, including HD channels... For example, on of my HD channels (9-1) was indicated as the channel # that it appears on cable, and for some reason, that would lock up TV Guide.

(KNOCKING FURIOUSLY ON ANY WOOD OBJECT) That has worked wonders for our unit!!

Hi, I recently connected the 3410A I got several months ago to the JVC 30000 DVHS that I had previously connected only to my Samsung 165 receiver. Although I had previously used either system ONLY for timeshifting, i.e., I had never wanted to archive any recording I had watched, I finally recorded something on the 3410A that I felt I wanted to archive (an HD Swan Lake production by the ABT). After a few tests, I figured out how to edit the program on the hard drive, and then to copy it to a DVHS tape on the JVC, and I was subsequently able to view it via either the 3410A or the Samsung

I then realized that there was a half-hour program in the MIDDLE of another DVHS tape that I also preferred to keep, so I tried to upload it to the 3410a hard drive, so that I could subsequently copy it to the end of another DVHS tape (in particular the end of the tape with Swan Lake on it). However, although the menu that came up on the 3410a appeared to have full functionality for controlling the JVC, when I tried to scroll down to the button for recording to the hard drive, it would not go to this bottom button. I could use the scroll up/down and right/left to reach everything BUT the bottom row, which includedthe DVR button.

I tried switching the 1394 cables around so that the one from the 3410a went directly to the JVC, rather than through the Samsung, but this didn't change anything, except that the Samsung (which therefore connected to the JVC through the 3410a) would no longer record on the JVC. I can't figure the latter problem out, but in any case, I switched the cables back to have the 3410a go through the Samsung, rather than vice versa, therefore reducingmy unexplained problems to the orginal one, i.e., why the 3410a would not let me copy from the DVHS tape to its hard drive.

Anyone have any experience with this problem or suggestions about it?

Thanks - Tony

Anyone have any experience with this problem or suggestions about it?

Thanks - Tony


I'll test it out tonight, I have the same setup.

Mike

Yes I've seen this problem==dvhs recordings via 165 that could not be uploaded to the 3410 HD. Seems to be tv station dependant. I have no problem uploading recordings made from UPN and PBS, however the WB station recordings will not up load at all or will do so with alot of pixilation. The problem seems to lie in how each station encodes the ASTC bit stream. Try a different VCR say a mits 1100. Somtimes this helps.

hmmm...I guess I'll try uploading a different recording....but I doubt the problem is the particular station, since it won't even allow me to scroll down to the button for uploading!

If I may change the subject slightly......

Comcast sent a letter indicating that certain channels my wife likes to watch are being removed from analog cable.......

So now that everything is working smoothly, of course we need to 'Stir the Pot' !!

Seeing that I'm either going Digital Cable, or Direct TV... in a month or so,
and I'm un-familiar with both....

Would user's of Both Digital Cable and Direct TV post the ease with which the LG3410a deals with the boxes and SD & HD signals off the boxes?

At this point, I've verified that I do have SSW access to the sky (off my tower!) so I could go either way....

I'd love to hear your success and horror stories interfacing Digital Cable or Direct TV to the 3410a...........

Thanks to all in advance! This has got to be a learning experience!!!

You may be a little disappointed with the 3410A functionality with DirecTV or encrypted digital cable. It can record from those STB's in SD via composite. The 3410A would need an onboard DirecTV tuner w/access card, or be CableCard equipped, to be able to record in HD from either source.

DirecTV should probably be avoided for the next 6 months or so. They are implementing the new MPEG4 system for HD, and new STB's, DVR's, and dishes will be needed. In the first part of 2006 they will be able to offer a Home Media Center server/client setup with multiple tuners, large capacity HDD, etc.

Your best bet for the near future might be to take advantage of Comcast's $29.99/month (for 6 months) offer for On Demand Silver Package w/HBO (includes Expanded Basic, Digital Plus, HBO/HBO plex). You'll need a digital box. The 6200 is just an STB for $4.99/month, but instead you should get the 2-tuner DVR (6412) for $9.99. This will be an amazing enhancement for $5 more/month. This will add up to $39.98/month (plus local fees), which is less than plain expanded basic. You'll have to pay a $15.99 DVR installation fee.

I added Cinemax to the above (an extra $10/month) in order to get Cinemax HD. My total bill is $49.98 plus $2.74 local fees for a $52.72 total. I am a DirecTV subscriber, but I added the Comcast package because I got tired of waiting for D* to add Cinemax HD, Comcast SportsNet HD, INHD1 & 2, and TNT HD. The 2-tuner DVR is also a nice piece of equipment which addresses most of the faults of the 3410A. I expect to be able to drop Comcast when D* gets the new system working and adds the HD channels it now lacks.

Note: The 3410A will have access to the Digital Classic & Digital Plus channels during the free preview 8/23 - 9/5 since they usually remove the encryption during these freebies. They will be on their QAM channels, so we'll have to search for them. Also the digital HBO channels will be previewed 9/3 - 9/7. They usually don't remove the encryption from the HD channels for these events, just the SD stuff.

So, if it is cable that wins, Then let me approach this from another direction.....

The Mitsubishi HDTV is a no-brainer... Insert card and re-program....

But, does the digital cable box have an RF output, that the 3410a can connect to, so I could program the 3410a to record, and connect the IR Link to the cable box, so as to change channels? Thanks..

Maybe someone will verify to be sure, but I'm pretty certain the DCT6200 STB has RF out. The 6412 DVR definitely does not, although the Phase 3 version (none reported in Chicagoland yet) is rumored to have RF out and also an SATA port to interface with an external HDD. The 120GB HDD on the current 6412 is not enough. Some other issues with the 6412 that may or may not be addressed in the Phase 3:

(1) The "delayed response" phenomenon. The CPU is evidently inadequate, because commands from the remote are often ignored for several seconds.
(2) The Closed Captions cannot be activated/deactivated without turning the unit off and entering a menu. Very inconvenient.
(3) The buffer capacity (for "pausing live TV", etc.) is only 15 minutes for HDTV material.

Having 2 tuners, it's able to record two shows at once, and you can view earlier parts of either during recording, or watch something else previously recorded. It's able to buffer two channels simultaneously; very handy for sporting events. Despite its faults noted above, the 6412 is very handy, and tends to relegate the 3410A to secondary usage.
Definitely worth the extra $5/month, IMHO, at least for the 6 months or so that I expect to need Comcast as a supplement to DirecTV.

I made a valiant attempt to contact both Direct TV and Comcast....

Deer in the Headlights is the response I received...

Comcast manager told me to go online and get the information I need off the Motorola website, (And when I did, I found out the model number he gave me is for internet connection to computers, not cable box to TV sets...

On my call to Direct TV, I hung up 15 minutes into a 5 minute hold que...

Just trying to find out if either service supports RF out to HDTV or SDTV receiver without a cable card slot (LG 3410a), and if their box supports a IR link for remote channel changing....

I found my 3410A doesn't show any Closed Caption when channels are PBS(KQED Encore, World, Life and Kids(9-2, 9-3, 9-4, 9-5), and I asked my friend who has a Sony HDD250 to check this issue, and he said all of PBS channels CC work correctly.

Do you have this kind of problem? Is that a 3410A bug? My F/W version is 1.15, I am just wondering if it needs to be updated to 1.17. I made a phone call to LG custom service, their guy has not ideal for that.

I found my 3410A doesn't show any Closed Caption when channels are PBS(KQED Encore, World, Life and Kids(9-2, 9-3, 9-4, 9-5), and I asked my friend who has a Sony HDD250 to check this issue, and he said all of PBS channels CC work correctly.

Do you have this kind of problem? Is that a 3410A bug? My F/W version is 1.15, I am just wondering if it needs to be updated to 1.17. I made a phone call to LG custom service, their guy has not ideal for that.I have the same problem with my Sammy SIR T-151 -- captioning works on all my HD channels EXCEPT PBS-HD. So I think it may not be just your problem.

I then realized that there was a half-hour program in the MIDDLE of another DVHS tape that I also preferred to keep, so I tried to upload it to the 3410a hard drive, so that I could subsequently copy it to the end of another DVHS tape (in particular the end of the tape with Swan Lake on it).

Anyone have any experience with this problem or suggestions about it?

Thanks - Tony

Tony -
I've successfully uploaded from my JVC D-VHS deck to the 3410A several times. The only time I had the same situation you describe was when I tried uploading a show I recorderd in SD. It baffled me until I realized that I had indeed recorded the show OTA and I had recorded it at a lower bitrate than HS. Perhaps this is your issue as well.

Tim

Comcast manager told me to go online and get the information I need off the Motorola website, (And when I did, I found out the model number he gave me is for internet connection to computers, not cable box to TV sets...

Just trying to find out if either service supports RF out to HDTV or SDTV receiver without a cable card slot (LG 3410a), and if their box supports a IR link for remote channel changing....The Motorola DCT6200 is the STB currently supplied to new Comcast HD subscribers. It does have RF out, so it should interface with the 3410A if connected as on page 21 of the LG manual. The DCT6200 does not need to support remote channel changing since the G-link Cable Box Controller (with the IR emitter) supplied with the 3410A takes care of that. Page 21 Notes state:
"Select "Cable box" menu option to watch cable programming via cable box," but it doesn't say anything about timer recording (so good luck on that).

Thanks UncD2000 for that information.... You seem to know more about the box than does Comcast... !!!!

The RF output.... when you select a HDTV channel.... Does that output HDTV on the RF output that the 3410a will then record as HDTV?

Thanks.....

Silly question - why not just split the cable so you can timer record the un-scrambled stations. Also I wonder about the RF out from cable boxes- does it support HD or any digital? Since the industry seems to loath anything smacking of the 'Analog Loophole', I suspect the RF out would either be only the analog cable (CATV) signals or it would be the same (scrambled) signal that came into cable box. If either of my guesses are correct, splitting the cable would give you the same results.

My understanding is that the RF output (selectable as Ch. 3 or Ch. 4) transmits whatever channel the STB is tuned to, downconverted to 480i. Thus it will output the HD channels, but they will be displayed as letterboxed SD.

I don't have personal experience with the DCT6200, but I do have the Sony SAT-HD300 DirecTV receiver. It outputs at HD resolution only via its component and DVI outputs. The S-video, composite, and RF outputs are 480i. Still, this box does an excellent job of downconverting, and if I record HD material to DVD via S-video, it looks surprisingly good. I use the RF output to send DirecTV to other rooms on Ch. 3. The RF remote works fine all over the house.

Jan, the 3410A can only record in HD from unencrypted channels that can be tuned by its onboard tuner. That normally limits its HD recording to OTA and the 6 local channels that Comcast passes through "in the clear." There are a few inconsequential SD digital unencrypted QAM channels, and occasionally there will be free previews. Freebies coming up soon are Showtime 8/5-8/12, non-premium digital channels 8/23-9/5, and HBO 9/3-9/6. Comcast usually removes the encryption for these events, and the 3410A will be able to tune them on their QAM channels. Unfortunately they usually don't include the HD channels in these previews.

This situation is why I recommend the 6412 DVR for an extra $5/month over the 6200 STB. The 6412 has its own set of issues, but it's still a very nice piece of equipment. It does demote the 3410A to secondary status, but they can work together effectively, especially when the new TV season arrives next month.

Tony -
I've successfully uploaded from my JVC D-VHS deck to the 3410A several times. The only time I had the same situation you describe was when I tried uploading a show I recorderd in SD. It baffled me until I realized that I had indeed recorded the show OTA and I had recorded it at a lower bitrate than HS. Perhaps this is your issue as well.

Tim

Thanks - since I posted this problem, I too have successfully uploaded a couple of things to the 3410a, so maybe it was the same issue. Not ture, since whenever I tape using the 165 I just let it do its thing without setting anything manually, and I'm pretty sure the thing I failed to upload was a digital broadcast, though not HD.

However, I also noticed that for one HD program I had taped from the Samsung 165, it played back fine via the 165, but - when I tried to play it back via the 3410a - it tended to stutter and freeze, as though it were an OTA signal that wasn't quite strong wnough to lock in....puzzling since it played fine with the 165.

Tony

A final thought about getting the 3410A to record in HD from encrypted cable. Both the 3410A and the Motorola DCT6200 digital cable STB have enabled IEEE1394 "Firewire" ports. Both devices, however, are programmed to communicate only with specific other devices (mostly DVHS recorders), so presumably they would not interface to permit the 3410A to record via Firewire from the DCT6200. Has anyone ever tried just to be sure it won't work?

If any 3410A owners also have a DCT6200, you might consider getting the appropriate Firewire cables and giving this a try.

Congratulations to all for keeping this thread alive for 100 pages!

I guess it's fortunate that we have so many that are interested in the 3410a.

I guess the alternate explanation is that we - um - have so much to discuss :D

I plan on going to Comcast location Saturday, armed with all my drawings and configuration settings, to see how their moving showtime and hbo from analog cable will be "dealt" with in whatever options they have....

At present, I can record hbo & showtime on any of 4 vcr's scattered around the home, and of course my 3410a DVR. 3410a gets Local HD feeds, but I'm using an outside antenna, and it seems to have better quality than the cable does, so Local HD feeds are not an issue.

If I go a single HD box to the 3410a DVR (with cablecard in Mits allowing full SD/HD viewing), I'm thinking that may get me hbo & showtime (plus others) into the 3410a, but only downconverted HD to SD off cable box. This will involve re-configuring the 3410a for cable box, and learning the IR configuration of that Box. This part I know I'll be encountering.....

Here's what I'm not entirely sure of, though....

If I put a Box in front of the 3410a Cable RF input, doe the box pass all channels (like TV/VCR) when not specifically decoding one channel, say hbo & showtime? This way, she could record an analog channel not needing the box, when the box is not decoding hbo/showtime/______ ???
If She receives a HD program through the Comcast box, I'm hearing the box downconverts it to SD and outputs it via channel 3/4/___, and then the 3410a can record that SD signal.
How does the 3410a differentiate between channel 3 analog, and channel 3 being a premium channel downconverted????

I'm kind of hearing that other analog channels will remain to vcr's, except that they will not see hbo & showtime any more...

I've one HD component feed left on the Mits, and analog audio (TV, via Mits) and one extra digital audio available on the Bose, so a 2nd DVR is not out of the question.... which might be an option, instead of an HD/SD box in front of the 3410a. This would seem to indicate that I could then record on the 3410a Local HD via outside antenna, and analog cable feeds less hbo & showtime. If that is correct, then: Does Comcast's DVR record & Playback (via component output, analog & or digital audio output) Both SD & HD?

Just trying to keep the most flexibility and least amount of programming confusion for the wife.... Everything is absolutely bulletproof now, and I guess that is why Comcast is 'stirring the pot', to see if I can keep up with thier master plan...

It's gonna be a very intense conversation Saturday with Comcast.

I hope to heck the person there knows their hardware!!!!

(What do you want to bet??? Phooey!!!!)

It's too bad about HBO & Showtime being removed from the analog tier. The HD versions are very nice to watch, but they can't offer the convenience of having them on every TV and VCR in your house without a converter box.

The 3410A and the Motorola 2-tuner DCT-6412 DVR will function together as you have described. The 6412 has both optical and coaxial digital audio output.

The $29.99/month special on Digital Silver package mandates HBO as the premium, but you can add another for $10. I chose Cinemax because D* doesn't have Cinemax HD yet, and I'm very happy with it. $52/month total isn't bad for HBO HD, Cinemax HD, Comcast SportsNet HD, INHD 1&2, ESPN HD, Discovery HD, TNT HD, and the 6 local HD channels that Comcast carries, plus the 6412 DVR. The rate jumps $15 after 6 months, but I'm hoping D* will have the MPEG4 system in operation by then, with a new DVR and the missing HD services added to the lineup.

In talking to guys at work, another option came up.... If the cable box or DVR downconverts to SD on RF Channel 3 or 4, this box.....
http://www.tselectronic.com/pico/scx.html
Could be of use.... Tune in the channel you want, set box to CH3, and add it to the cable you get, in place of the channel 3 you were given. Same for channel 4, too, with second box...

In theory, you leave box(s) or Box & DVR on, set to channels you want, or DVR Playback, and Poof!!! they are distributed to the whole house, with a little artful use of cabling!!!

As I preposed to my wife.... Analog cable on all channels as now distributed as now, with the addition of 2 channels (3&4) that get downconverted from box &/or DVR, and these two channels are then fed to the entire house, with channel 3 & 4 being "User Programmable" channels!!!!

Hmmmmm!!!! That seems do-able!! I'll know more Saturday!!!!

I've had my 3410A for about four months. Really love it. Have only had to pull the plug for a reset twice.

However, last Wed evening I had a problem with the program going blank and a error message popping up saying, "DVI Blocked". The program and this message swap back and forth each staying for about 5 seconds and then switching. I pulled the plug waited several minutes and plug her back in. Nothing changed.

I had bought a second unit and received it the next day so I pulled the first unit and set up the new one. Everything fine until the channel guide loaded the overnight. This morning the second unit is doing the exact same thing; the switching of program with error message, "DVI Blocked".

Also each unit had a green light on the front of the unit panel that says, "Reserved".

Anyone have any ideas whats going on? I'd hate the thought that both units are becoming toast.

In talking to guys at work, another option came up.... If the cable box or DVR downconverts to SD on RF Channel 3 or 4, this box.....
http://www.tselectronic.com/pico/scx.html
Could be of use.... Tune in the channel you want, set box to CH3, and add it to the cable you get, in place of the channel 3 you were given. Same for channel 4, too, with second box...I've had poor experience with the Tru Spec SC-3.
It degraded Ch. 2 to the point where it was unwatchable. It also cut the signal level on non-adjacent channels far more than the 1 dB insertion loss spec. This was many years ago, and it's possible these signal combiners have improved. I would suggest that you try the SC-4 model first. Comcast Ch. 3 isn't too important, and with STD cable channel setup (which I'm pretty sure Comcast uses) there is a 4MHz "guard band" (72-76 MHz) between Ch. 4 & 5 which would protect Ch. 5 somewhat from the adjacent channel rolloff.

Using two of these combiners in tandem would be a disaster IMHO. Anyway, the 6412 DVR doesn't have RF output, so a second combiner may be a moot question.

Anyway, the 6412 DVR doesn't have RF output, so a second combiner may be a moot question.


OH DARN!!!!! I guess that is why I'm going there tomorrow to examine their hardware.....

Ask if they have any info on possible availability of the "Phase 3" version of the 6412 DVR in Chicagoland. These have HDMI output, SATA port for external HDD, and RF output.

Showtime has started up their free preview week in Chicagoland, and 12 channels, including Showtime HD, are available "in the clear" for our 3410A recording. I have posted the QAM channel numbers in the Chicago Comcast thread.

Thanks for the info UncD2000!
3410a picked it up, but not the Mits 62525 !!!

Ask if they have any info on possible availability of the "Phase 3" version of the 6412 DVR in Chicagoland. These have HDMI output, SATA port for external HDD, and RF output.

No RF Out... Must be Phase 2....

I want to publicly give credit to a fellow who works for Comcast in Tinley Park...
Kevin. When person at Skokie office didn't know anything about what I was asking, she called a number, and I spent 20+ minutes on phone with Kevin, and he answered all my questions..... He had to get confirmation on a couple of the questions I asked, which is good. Confirmation is good!!

The guy deserves an "Atta Boy!"

The Maxtor 5A300J0-QV 5400rpm 300GB drive has apparently been discontinued! What upgrade drive is recommended for the 3410 now? Maxtor has the 6L300R0 7200rpm quickview CE drive. Does anyone know of any issues in using this drive?

I used a: Maxtor Maxline II 5A320J0 320GB Ultra ATA/133 5400RPM Hard Drive [ SKU: HD-5A320J0, Qty: 1, Price: $189.00 ] a few months ago... I was going to buy the 300Gb unit, but they told me it was being replaced by the 320. I've installed 3 of them, one for me, one for my boss, and one for his boss... All work fine!

I got it from: www.etech4sale.com

Hope this helps...

You must remember that as the large hd's fill up the boot time also increases. If you have scheduled recordings in the tvguide they will not record if the boot up time is to long. the only solution to this is to leave the unit on -- but of course if you leave it on all the time the tvguide will not populate.

I alerted my wife that we may at some time, have to leave unit on.... because of hard drive spinup file reading problems...

She tells me she has had as much as 27 hours of SD/HD material stored on drive, and has not missed one scheduled recording With unit powered off.....

In fact (QUICK!! Knock on Wood!!) since removing the un-needed channels from the TV Guide (turned them off, so TV Guide would not need to download channel data from channels she might not record from)..... The system has been FAR MORE STABLE in the past 2 months, (New drive went in 3 months ago) than at any time since we owned it (purchased October of 2004)....

Luck, Dumb Luck, Skill (NO! Definately Scratch that one out!!).... Dunno....

I am working on getting my TV Guide to populate on the replacement 3410 I just received from LG.

After 2 days of no info and mutiple attempts at the zip code reset - I called LG.

Their tech was helpful and gave me some info I have not yet seen on this thread:

To reset TV Guide settings:
1) Go To the LST-3410 Menu and highlight EZScan (do not execute it - just highlight it)
2) Using the remote, enter: 100102

I then went into the TV Guide diagnostics menu (753259852) and saw that the Host Channel is now 0x0.

I ran the setup again to make sure the zip code info is correct and now I have it powered off. Hopefully, it will download tonight...

She tells me she has had as much as 27 hours of SD/HD material stored on drive, and has not missed one scheduled recording With unit powered off.....



I hit the wall at about 30-32 shows on the harddrive.
With a 300GB Maxtor.

Mike

funster..... You're post did not go un-noticed.... Printed it out for the manual!!

mstanl thanks for that info.... guess we were just shy...

This may be old news, but my guide data recently became unavailable (you press the TV Guide button on the remote and nothing would happen). Perusing this thread came up with the solution which was unplugging the 3410 for 2 seconds and plugging it back in. The guide data came back, but now my guide data is neatly ordered by station type not by channel number. For example all the PBS stations are grouped together (I receive a total of 4 analog and digital PBS stations) all the CBS stations are grouped together etc. Just thought I'd share one more weird observation on the mysterious TV Guide data.

funster..... You're post did not go un-noticed.... Printed it out for the manual!!


I guess that page should read "Host Channel Reset". Seriously, we SHOULD have a "tricks" cheat sheet. The scary thing is, I could probably write it (if I ever find the time).

Wife just called me at work to indicate that as she was scheduling a recording for later today, she scrolled across Sci-Fi Logo, and noticed that it had changed it's channel number from 72 to 140.
I know we lost that channel last week, (We're on Analog Cable) but I hadn't got around to turn it off yet... It had been one of the channels that I had to edit to get right number.... I know I edited 72 in there, and know that it is presently residing in 140 area...
What I'm trying to get across is Gemstar changed the channel numbers on me, after I edited it.
Remember my post couple months ago, where suddenly channel 9-1 (off outside antenna) got 're-programmed' and locked up my TV Guide, until I found and re-edited it?
My sympotoms were identical to what mdputham just posted.....

I suggest you double check your channel numbers against where they really are...
and delete un-necessary channels.

Well, unfortunately I had my first major problem with my 3410a Saturday night, so I am looking for some help....Sorry this is so long.....

Has anyone else had problems with their HDD? I would still like to get access to my previously recorded files. Does anyone know of a way to use a regular computer to copy the files off the HDD, since my LG unit won't recognize the hard drive? Below is what happened and what I was doing at the time....
----------------------
I had the factory 120GB HDD installed. Never got around to upgrading to a larger one. I had scehuled to tape CSI and my HDD was just about full. (I have filled it up a few times before, and never had issues). The unit started to record at the apprpriate time. I also regularly stream what I record to my computer using the firewire at the same time I am recording to the HDD. If the stream works fine, I then delete the copy on the HDD. I use "iRecord" for the Mac to stream the files.

But there was a game on earlier, so CSI wasn't starting on time. So I manually stopped it with the stop button. Likewise I manually stopped the stream.

I rescheduled to start recording 30 minutes later, which the unit did start the recording. But there was a problem and my streaming did not start. It bothered me a little, but the software is a fairly new version, so I figured it was just a bug.

After about 30 minutes I went to check on it and the video was frozen on one scene, but the audio was still going. (I don't have this hooked up to a tv, just a tv tuner card on my computer.) I decided to stop it and restart recording during a commercial, but the "Stop" button did not respond with the remote. So I hit the power button. It took about 3 presses before it powered down. I then powered it back up, but the HDD wouldn't initialize so I couldn't resume recording. What's worse, I also couldn't access any shows on the HDD for viewing or extracting with DVHS. Also, no streaming of live DTV would work either. The only thing that did work was I could still watch DTV.

I let it sit with the power off but still plugged in overnight, but the HDD still wouldn't initialize. I unplugged it for about 4 or 5 hours, and it still failed to initialize. Afraid I might have turned my HD DVR into an expensive "HD Tuner only", I pulled a 200GB drive out of my computer and placed it in the LG unit. It did power on and immediately the new HDD initialized. I went to the menu and formated it for good measure. I recorded a show, for 1 hour and it worked fine. I haven't tried to stream anything yet.

I am looking for some input on things to try. I ran out of time last night and will try some other things later after work.

contact me off line. If you are interested in an origonal drive, I have a 120Gb drive (removed from my 3410a)....

Computer drives have a 'retry' feature built into the drive... Quickview drives don't Retry.

If you find a way to get files successfully off and on the 3410a, using Windows based PC, I would be VERY MUCH INTERESTED!!!

Jan

joshMV4.... Was thinking about your post again last night...

If you have the time I'd put the drive in another computer and blast it with Fdisk.

Then put it back in the LG... If it works again, my guess is the file allocation table was scrambled to the point where LG saw it as a drive with data on it, but couldn't successfully read all the files off it... and that is why it didn't initialize...

Just a guess.