Well, I was recording a half hour program last night on A&E (The Two Coreys) and it recorded it ALL night, erasing EVERYTHING on my DVR. Is this common or a sign that my DVR is dying? I'm pretty pissed right now as I had some things I wanted to watch.
Did you set a series recording not to record so that you could record another program, and then manually set a later airing to record?

If so, that problem is a known issue: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVR_records_endlessly_until_all_space_is_full

Not common, and not a problem with the DVR itself. Problem with iGuide.

Any way to stop it? I noticed a little blurb on the previous page.

Any way to stop it? I noticed a little blurb on the previous page.
Don't manually intervene. Just let the DVR skip recording the first airing while it records the other programs, and let it automatically record the subsequent airing. When you step in to manually set/unset recordings it causes the problem.

Well, I was recording a half hour program last night on A&E (The Two Coreys) and it recorded it ALL night, erasing EVERYTHING on my DVR. Is this common or a sign that my DVR is dying? I'm pretty pissed right now as I had some things I wanted to watch.

Ugh, that sucks. Another reason to mark all programs as Save until I delete. And another reason users should be able to make that the default option.

I have a Comcast Motorola 6412 DVR and am wanting to buy a DVD Recorder to archive shows from the DVR onto DVDs. My main priority is to get a DVD Recorder that will allow me to record 16:9 content (at 480i) onto the DVD, so that when played back on my HDTV it will be full frame 16:9. I know that means the source (my DVR) will have to send a “squished” 16:9 frame onto the 4:3 480i DVD recording. I don’t care about the anamorphic flag being set, since I will not be viewing the DVDs on a 4:3 TV. I don’t want the final result to have to be “zoomed” by the TV, since that cuts off part of the image. I know this has been achieved with other STB sources to a component input capable DVD recorder, but I’m wondering if it can be done with the 6412 (or other Comcast Moto boxes for that matter, I could always request a different version).

As I understand it, the Comcast Motorola 6412 DVR will not send squished 16:9 output via S-Video or Composite (it forces letterboxing), but I can’t seem to find a definitive answer whether or not it can send 16:9 content via component output. I've seen claims that say 16:9 squished (anamorphic) can be done over component with the moto boxes, but I've yet to see that confirmed, meanwhile I've seen several other posts that say it can't be done over component either. At this point I doubt it...but I haven't given up yet...

The odd thing is that the 6412 has 480i as options in two different areas, "TV Type" and "HDMI/YPbPr Output". Under TV type, the options are:

- 16:9
- 4:3 Letterbox
- 4:3 Pan Scan

which leads you to think it can't be done. However, the options for "HDMI/YPbPr Output" are:

- 1080i
- 720p
- 480p
- 480i

I'm wondering if the Moto STB was set to these settings if it would work:

TV Type: 16:9
HDMI/YPbPr Output: 480i

this would require the DVD recorder to accept the 16:9 signal and squish it, rather than it being already squished at the source, which is how I typically understand it would need to be. Hopefully someone has tried this setting, and can let me know if it works or not.

Has ANYONE been able to record full 16:9 content to a DVD recorder from the 6412? If anyone knows a way to achieve this, please let me know what setting combo it takes.

I just recently received my DVR and performed a reset to make it finally download my providers (Shaw Cable) firmware. It is now on and seems to function, however, it has a Locks PIN enabled. This is my unit, I do not wish to have locks on things. Is there a way to remove this? I entered things like "1234" "0000" etc, to which I was eventually locked out. It says "Contact your provider or try again later".

I got this box in the evening when Shaw sales was closed, and had not ordered highdef prior to receiving the box. Would Shaw have a Locks PIN auto downloaded to my box? If I try to view channels that I do not subscribe to, it simply says something about being a subscription channel. So I doubt that Shaw would have a Locks PIN.

I have done the following:
DVR Authorization and Factory Full Reset (http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Resets#DVR_Authorization_and_Factory_Full_Reset)

I have not done the "DVR HDD Reset" mentioned on that same page due to the button combination not working on my screen. I do get some diagnostic screen, but any button presses just cause it to disappear...

Thanks!

If this was a used box you will have to call Shaw and have them delete the old PIN through the billing system. There is no other way to get rid of it unless you do a full factory reset...and if you do that you'll have to call them anyway to have them send a refresh. Shaw can't tell what channels you're watching so they can't send a lock to the DCT. The locks PIN's are user locks for PPV purchase and ratings locks etc. Good luck.

Thank you for your reply, and sorry to sound rude, but do you even own one of these boxes? The Locks PIN is not for PPV or OnDemand services. It is only for parental control, blocking content above certain ratings etc. The Purchase PIN is seperate, and THAT controls access to services. This unit only appears to have the Locks PIN enabled, and no Purchase PIN. I would have to assume that since the latter is supplied by Shaw, this unit does not have one (I have not had it request for one yet).

I also mention in my above post that I did perform a factory reset, and the PIN still seems to be there.

Perhaps we have some miscommunication going on here.

Thanks again.

Is there any new news on the Tivo software and Comcast? I see the Tivo HD on sale at amazon for about 260 bucs and it is very tempting, but it will suck to lose On Demand... :(

I connect my Moto 6412 to a Mits WD-65732 via HDMI. However, I don't use the audio. I have a need for an extra HDMI connection (the Mits has two and I now have three devices). I have two choices:

1. Feed the HDMI connection into my Pioneer Elite VSX-82TXS and use it as a switcher

2. Connect the Moto 6412 via component instead of HDMI.

Has anybody compared a component connection to an HDMI connection on the Moto 6412? Can you tell the difference?

I connect my Moto 6412 to a Mits WD-65732 via HDMI. However, I don't use the audio. I have a need for an extra HDMI connection (the Mits has two and I now have three devices). I have two choices:

1. Feed the HDMI connection into my Pioneer Elite VSX-82TXS and use it as a switcher

2. Connect the Moto 6412 via component instead of HDMI.

Has anybody compared a component connection to an HDMI connection on the Moto 6412? Can you tell the difference?
It's very dependent on your TV; nobody can really answer for you. I saw jaggies and color issues via component, so I stick with DVI/HDMI. You may have better results, and some people prefer the component output.

My prevailing thought is that there is no way a digital->analog->digital signal path can look as good as or better than an all digital one, it's simply a matter of whether you notice any degradation.

Depending on your STB's firmware, you may have HDCP issues using the HDMI switcher in your Pioneer AVR. You'll have to test it to find out on that one.

There is another option, as well. I use a Joytech Tri-Link 3-Port HDMI Switch with Remote (3-to-1) (http://www.buy.com/prod/joytech-tri-link-3-port-hdmi-switch-with-remote-3-to-1-switch-between/q/loc/108/204972580.html). It's cheap, it works without any HDCP issues, it has a remote and a small IR receiver on the end of a wire so you can hide the actual switch behind your equipment, and it can be powered from the USB port on the Moto 6412, so no need to add another AC adapter to your collection. I've been thinking about buying a back-up one, just in case. The price is so good and it works so well.

I connect my Moto 6412 to a Mits WD-65732 via HDMI. However, I don't use the audio. I have a need for an extra HDMI connection (the Mits has two and I now have three devices). I have two choices:

1. Feed the HDMI connection into my Pioneer Elite VSX-82TXS and use it as a switcher

2. Connect the Moto 6412 via component instead of HDMI.

Has anybody compared a component connection to an HDMI connection on the Moto 6412? Can you tell the difference?I have compared both and honestly can't see a difference. But like Exdeus I prefer an all digital pathway instead of one that has an extra conversion step in it. In additon it is more convenient and requires fewer cables to run all your HDMI signals through the Pio and let it handle both audio and video -- i.e., switch the video and decode the audio.

I have my Moto 6412 and my Oppo 970 both connected via HDMI to a Pio Elite VSX-72TXV and it works perfectly. :) That way the digital audio also goes directly to the AVR and no extra cable (coax or optical) is needed. I have used the learning function on the Pio's remote to program the commands for the Moto and the Oppo and use it as a universal remote (not as elegant as a Harmony, but no extra cost either). One button press switches the source and then the remote controls the new source -- both audio and video.

NOTE that as ExDeus said you need the right firmware in the Moto to send its HDMI through an AVR. Must be at least 16.20 or above (or in another series I think it is 12.35 or above). See this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=649941)for extensive discussion of this topic.

I have a Comcast 6412 P3, a Denon 3805 AVR, and a Sammy 56" DLP. I have component running to the AVR, then the DLP, and I have HDMI running from the Moto directly to the DLP. Having compared the pictures from both inputs quite a bit, I find only a VERY slight difference between the two. The HDMI seems slightly brighter, nothing else. Of course, YMMV.

I've been having some other problems with my 6412 lately. Slow reverse doesn't move, it stays paused, even though the indicator bar indicates slow reverse. Also, I have trouble exiting slow forward. I used to just hit "Play" to exit forward slow and resume play, but that now has no effect. I have to hit "Pause" again, then hit "Play." Has anyone else noticed this sort of thing lately?

Curious if anyone knows of any limit to the number of series recording entries that can be programmed into the I-Guide DVR on a Motorola DCT-6412 Phase 2.

I currently have 16 entries in my series recording list. Not all are current, there's stuff like Hell's Kitchen (which is now over), and The Soprano's might still be in there (which of course is done with) etc..

Many time's I go to modify a series recording the box turns off with no warning. It basically reboots itself, much like a malfunctioning PC with a failing power supply, or O/S kernel panic. When it comes back up there is no guide data for a good 30 minutes or so.

I want to avoid this 'spontaneous reboot' like the plague. The only thing that I can think of unique to my box is the somewhat large number of series recording entries. I'll clean these up tomorrow no problem, but I was wondering if anyone knows a hard (or artificial) limit?

Firmware 16.35
TV Guide OS 74.53-4003
Comcast Reading, PA (750 MHz)
FDC 104.5 MHz 21 dB S/N
Average SNR 33.5 - 34.9

Curious if anyone knows of any limit to the number of series recording entries that can be programmed into the I-Guide DVR on a Motorola DCT-6412 Phase 2.

I currently have 16 entries in my series recording list. Not all are current, there's stuff like Hell's Kitchen (which is now over), and The Soprano's might still be in there (which of course is done with) etc..

Many time's I go to modify a series recording the box turns off with no warning. It basically reboots itself, much like a malfunctioning PC with a failing power supply, or O/S kernel panic. When it comes back up there is no guide data for a good 30 minutes or so.

I want to avoid this 'spontaneous reboot' like the plague. The only thing that I can think of unique to my box is the somewhat large number of series recording entries. I'll clean these up tomorrow no problem, but I was wondering if anyone knows a hard (or artificial) limit?

Firmware 16.35
TV Guide OS 74.53-4003
Comcast Reading, PA (750 MHz)
FDC 104.5 MHz 21 dB S/N
Average SNR 33.5 - 34.9

We have a 6412-III and we have always had over 20 Series recordings set. Currently there are 26 and do not have the problem you described.

We have a 6412-III and we have always had over 20 Series recordings set. Currently there are 26 and do not have the problem you described.

Interesting. I can't usually modify them. It's best to delete it and create it from scratch. Perhaps since yours is a series 3 it's a little more stable with the slightly faster CPU.

Or maybe you have a different firmware or guide version. It's hard for me to believe my box is failing (bad power supply), because it only does this when modifying a series recording. So it is a reproduceable event. I think I posted about this last time on the previous page of this thread.

Interesting. I can't usually modify them. It's best to delete it and create it from scratch. Perhaps since yours is a series 3 it's a little more stable with the slightly faster CPU.

Or maybe you have a different firmware or guide version. It's hard for me to believe my box is failing (bad power supply), because it only does this when modifying a series recording. So it is a reproduceable event. I think I posted about this last time on the previous page of this thread.
If you look at the numbers associated with each series recording, is it sequential 1-16 or is there a gap in the numbers? A while back i had a problem where I deleted a series recording and it left a gap in my numbers. After I got the gap, I was unable to modify other series recordings. I don't recall what the fix was, but the answer is either in this thread or in the wiki. I may have had to remove all series recordings, save and exit the menu, then reschedule all series recordings.

Interesting. I can't usually modify them. It's best to delete it and create it from scratch. Perhaps since yours is a series 3 it's a little more stable with the slightly faster CPU.

Or maybe you have a different firmware or guide version. It's hard for me to believe my box is failing (bad power supply), because it only does this when modifying a series recording. So it is a reproduceable event. I think I posted about this last time on the previous page of this thread.

When I replied I didn't focus on the fact that you said "modify". I was more focused on the number of series recordings. The only time we modify series recordings are to tell it not to record a specific episode. I don't know when else we would want to modify a series recording except the channel, and it won't let us modify the channel. The reason we'd like to modify the channel is because if a show is broadcast on an analog channel and a standard digital channel, eventually the future shows always switch back to the analog channel.

Last time I checked our DVR is at version 16.35.
Bernie

When I replied I didn't focus on the fact that you said "modify". I was more focused on the number of series recordings. The only time we modify series recordings are to tell it not to record a specific episode. I don't know when else we would want to modify a series recording except the channel, and it won't let us modify the channel. The reason we'd like to modify the channel is because if a show is broadcast on an analog channel and a standard digital channel, eventually the future shows always switch back to the analog channel.

Last time I checked our DVR is at version 16.35.
Bernie

Well I moved my series recordings from 17+ down to 12. I was then able to modify the "London Live!" entry to only record new episodes and only save 2 at a time without rebooting. Otherwise, London Live is on Mojo like 5 times a day, and I would be constantly maintaining my recordings list to keep my space down!

The reason I modify a series recording is if I just quickly set it up (or the woman sets it up) and notice it's recording way too much, so I go in to save only x number of episodes.

The time displayed on my DCT-6416 is about 2 minutes less than the actual time. Since I do most of my recording by pushing "record" while in the I-guide, the net effect is that all of the recorded shows are missing the first two minutes. I cycled the power (unplugged) on the box... no help. I then called Comcast and was told to cycle the power:rolleyes: They also sent a hit to the box to no avail. The problem was then "escalated", and I've heard nothing since. Anybody else have this problem?

The time displayed on my DCT-6416 is about 2 minutes less than the actual time. Since I do most of my recording by pushing "record" while in the I-guide, the net effect is that all of the recorded shows are missing the first two minutes. I cycled the power (unplugged) on the box... no help. I then called Comcast and was told to cycle the power:rolleyes: They also sent a hit to the box to no avail. The problem was then "escalated", and I've heard nothing since. Anybody else have this problem?

I don't have the problem. But until they figure out what it is, as a workaround, whenever you record something, go into the recording options menu and set it to start a couple of minutes early.

The clock is set at the head end and they need to fix that. You've done what you are supposed to and they might actually do what they are supposed to now that they they know they have a problem.

Is there a way to have a recording start late, or end early?

Many shows now go from lets say 8:00 to 9:01, blocking a recording in the following hour time slot. Can I make it record 1 minute less, since by the time the hour changes, its commercials anyway? In a season pass that is, not manual.

Also, on a different note, can I make a manual recording, at a certain time on a certain day, every week? We watch Best Week Ever on VH1, but its marked as "New" about 5 times a day, every day every week, even though its the same show over and over, so a season pass is out of the question. A traditional VCR like scheduled recording would work well, but I cant seem to make it record more than once.

I don't think there is a way to make a series recording end early or start late for these 1 or 2 minute overlaps they do unfortunately.

You can setup a repeating manual recording but it wasn't obvious how to find it. If I remember correctly you have to go into the DVR section and select schedule recording and put in a channel, time and duration and then you can tell it to record every week. You can't do it from the channel listing unfortunately. The recording also doesn't display the guide info after it's recorded. It just shows the channel and time it was recorded. It works but not a great option for more than a couple recordings at best.

The time displayed on my DCT-6416 is about 2 minutes less than the actual time. Since I do most of my recording by pushing "record" while in the I-guide, the net effect is that all of the recorded shows are missing the first two minutes. I cycled the power (unplugged) on the box... no help. I then called Comcast and was told to cycle the power:rolleyes: They also sent a hit to the box to no avail. The problem was then "escalated", and I've heard nothing since. Anybody else have this problem?

Last night the time display was 1 minute, 40 seconds late. I was going to call this afternoon, but when I checked it again, it was only 15 seconds late, so I didn't call. I'll keep checking, and call if it gets bad again. I have an "atomic watch" which resets itself every am using a radio signal from the US atomic clock in Colorado, so I can be precise on how off they are.

For years, I noticed that the displayed time would slowly get later, until it was about one minute late, and then they would reset. But, for a couple of years now, it is almost always +- 5 seconds, but every few months, gets a minute or two slow, over a period of a week or two. I have NO idea why...

What can I do? Right now, if I set a series recording of all NEW episodes of a show that airs multiple times per week -- it records ALL of them.

Examples: Saving Grace on TNT, The War on PBS, Ice Road Truckers on History (in its season), etc.

HOW can I set this up to only record one particular airing?

You can tell it to record new episodes, but only in a particular time slot.

...I have an "atomic watch" which resets itself every am using a radio signal from the US atomic clock in Colorado, so I can be precise on how off they are.

For years, I noticed that the displayed time would slowly get later, until it was about one minute late, and then they would reset. But, for a couple of years now, it is almost always +- 5 seconds, but every few months, gets a minute or two slow, over a period of a week or two. I have NO idea why...

You have a WATCH that does automatic time synchronization. I work for an organization that has 150 servers that do the same thing every night. I wonder what kind of technology(if any) Comcast uses for time synching?

You have a WATCH that does automatic time synchronization. I work for an organization that has 150 servers that do the same thing every night. I wonder what kind of technology(if any) Comcast uses for time synching?

? That is something I am unaware of. Please explain.

Mine has only record all, record new and repeats, record only new. I don't see anthing about a particular day or timeslot.

Mine has only record all, record new and repeats, record only new. I don't see anthing about a particular day or timeslot.

In the recording options, it has the option to record "Anytime the show is on" or record "only 9:00pm" showings (for example)

I have the Passport Echo software, if you have a different software, you may not have the same option.

In the recording options, it has the option to record "Anytime the show is on" or record "only 9:00pm" showings (for example)

I have the Passport Echo software, if you have a different softwre, you may not have the same option.

1. How/why would I have different software?
2. How do I find out what software I do have?

The menu screen you describe is not familiar to me -- and I'm there a lot.

Another question:

In order to copy programs from the DVR to DVD I have to let the DVR play the show. I'm transferring The War to DVD and would like to do it overnight.

My DVD burner will let edit/finalize in the morning.

What will happen if the DVR plays the show, goes to the DELETE / DO NOT DELETE screen and just...sits there until I turn the TV on in the morning? My main concern is that it would delete it after some time period.

I'd like to watch them in HD on the DVR. Just saving it on DVD.

1. How/why would I have different software?
2. How do I find out what software I do have?

The menu screen you describe is not familiar to me -- and I'm there a lot.

There are 3 or 4 different DVR software programs you could have, depending on your cable operator. Press the DVR button on your remote and the software should identify itself with a logo at the top of the screen.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Firmware_and_Software

How often does Comcast update the DVR software. Looking at the wiki, firmware looks fairly new 7/07, but software is about a year old?!?

What will happen if the DVR plays the show, goes to the DELETE / DO NOT DELETE screen and just...sits there until I turn the TV on in the morning? My main concern is that it would delete it after some time period.



Nope, it will not be deleted. I fall asleep watching a recording most nights. The D/DND screen will hang for a minute or 2, then eventually fade without doing anything. The DVR will revert to whatever channel you were tuned to before playing your recording.

In the recording options, it has the option to record "Anytime the show is on" or record "only 9:00pm" showings (for example)

I have the Passport Echo software, if you have a different software, you may not have the same option.

That's probably the problem as this is the Official 6412 w/ iGuide thread.

What can I do? Right now, if I set a series recording of all NEW episodes of a show that airs multiple times per week -- it records ALL of them.

Examples: Saving Grace on TNT, The War on PBS, Ice Road Truckers on History (in its season), etc.

HOW can I set this up to only record one particular airing?
If you do not delete the recording after watching it, it will not re-record the same episode. Unlike Tivo, there is no memory. Once deleted, it assumes you've never watched it.

If the show is on at the same time, you can set up a manual recording. Set up the first one, then use the wrench icon to get into the advanced settings. Set it to repeat as often as you want (weekly, daily, etc..) The only drawback is that these list in the recorded program list as date and time and not by title.

You can also just go through the Guide and hit RECORD (or use the record icon on the Info screen) to schedule an individual recording.

Be certain to delete any scheduled series recording before you ever set up a guide-selected single recording for the same show. There is a bug where the two conflict, and the box never stops recording!!!

[QUOTE=andyross63;11737054]If you do not delete the recording after watching it, it will not re-record the same episode. Unlike Tivo, there is no memory. Once deleted, it assumes you've never watched it.

QUOTE]

Nope, not here. Example: The War on PBS.

It records them all. They show it at 7 and replay it at 9 and it records them both.

[B]If you do not delete the recording after watching it, it will not re-record the same episode. Unlike Tivo, there is no memory. Once deleted, it assumes you've never watched it.

Nope, not here. Example: The War on PBS.

It records them all. They show it at 7 and replay it at 9 and it records them both.

I have noticed this with a few new shows and I figured out why. The premiere is sometimes commercial free, limited interruption... and thus it is a different show than a normal episode/rerun. Does it do this in the long run with long standing shows? Its never happened to me until this week with all the premieres. You will also notice the shows have diferrent running times, such 1.01 hours vs the weekly 1.00 hours.

Hi guys, my family recently bought a Vizio 32 inch (1080i/480p/480i/720p). For now I am using component


Just wondering what you're box menu settings are?

Right now mine is:

TV Type: 16:9 (which it is)
YPbPr Output: 1080i
4:3 Override: 480i

Not sure on those last two, what settings work good for you guys? Thanks a lot

I have noticed this with a few new shows and I figured out why. The premiere is sometimes commercial free, limited interruption... and thus it is a different show than a normal episode/rerun. Does it do this in the long run with long standing shows? Its never happened to me until this week with all the premieres. You will also notice the shows have different running times, such 1.01 hours vs the weekly 1.00 hours.

Yes, t happens all the time. Colbert Report is an example. It airs originally at 10:30pm CT, and then is rebroadcast around midnight and several times the following day. The problem appears to be iGuide, or the information that is put into iGuide. For many shows the iGuide information indicates if it is a rerun or not. But for other shows, like Colbert, iGuide doesn't know about reruns and thinks every occurrence is an original.

There is another annoying problem and that is for shows that are broadcast on an analog channel and also on a Standard Definition digital channel. If you setup a series recording for the digital channel, the series will eventually revert to the analog channel if the analog and digital channels have the same name. (HD channels have different names that indicate HD so their is no mixup.) It occurs even if you say to record on the specific channel only. The problem probably occurs so that the DVR will record shows even if the cable company relocates the channel to a different number.

Bernie

Hi guys, my family recently bought a Vizio 32 inch (1080i/480p/480i/720p). For now I am using component


Just wondering what you're box menu settings are?

Right now mine is:

TV Type: 16:9 (which it is)
YPbPr Output: 1080i
4:3 Override: 480i

Not sure on those last two, what settings work good for you guys? Thanks a lot

What model? Is it "native" 1080, 720, or 768? Your current settings are probably the most common.

YPbPr might look better at 1080i and it might look better at 720p :) Depends on your TV and in which format the HD content's being shown.

Same for the 4:3 Override. Some like 480i (TV does the scaling), but some like 480p or OFF better.

Try out all the settings and see what looks best to you.

You have a WATCH that does automatic time synchronization. I work for an organization that has 150 servers that do the same thing every night. I wonder what kind of technology(if any) Comcast uses for time synching?

If they have anything, it hasn't been working lately. They did catch up from being 1 min., 40 sec. slow, to only 15 sec. slow. But, over the next couple of hours it went to being 28 sec. slow. I checked it repeatedly for over a day, and it was always slow, but by a random amount, less than a minute. It didn't seem to be getting progressively slower, or faster, just jumping around.

If they have anything, it hasn't been working lately. They did catch up from being 1 min., 40 sec. slow, to only 15 sec. slow. But, over the next couple of hours it went to being 28 sec. slow. I checked it repeatedly for over a day, and it was always slow, but by a random amount, less than a minute. It didn't seem to be getting progressively slower, or faster, just jumping around.

I have been checking the Comcast display time against the official goverment time on my PC periodically since last tuesday when it was about 12 seconds slow. Since then it has steadily lost more time every day. Sunday night it was about 1 minute 20 seconds slow. Two calls to Comcast have yielded nothing except an offer to send a technician out.
Can any of the knowledgeable techs on this forum tell us how the time is managed on these boxes and if this can in any way be helped by swapping out the box?

Yep, I just replied to you on the Detroit area forum. It was about 1 minute slow on Sunday afternoon.

Unless other Comcast customers, in other parts of the country are having the same problem, we should probably keep this discussion in the Detroit forum.

Yep, I just replied to you on the Detroit area forum. It was about 1 minute slow on Sunday afternoon.

Unless other Comcast customers, in other parts of the country are having the same problem, we should probably keep this discussion in the Detroit forum.

I thought this forum would be best to find out if there is any possibility of the STB being at fault. I've had two Comcast support people tell me I needed to schedule a service call for this problem. I have not done so because it does not make sense to me and I don't want to lose my current recordings if they swap out the box. Just covering all the bases....

I have a brand new 3416 Phase 4. It worked fine for the first few weeks I had it, but now when I'm recording something the little red "REC" light does not come on. It records fine, but if I'm watching one tuner while the other tuner is recording something, the red light does not come on.

It's not a big deal, but was wondering if anyone had experienced something similar.

I have a brand new 3416 Phase 4. It worked fine for the first few weeks I had it, but now when I'm recording something the little red "REC" light does not come on. It records fine, but if I'm watching one tuner while the other tuner is recording something, the red light does not come on.

It's not a big deal, but was wondering if anyone had experienced something similar.

There is a thread devoted to this already.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=916296

What would be the latest/best replacement for the original DCT6412, phase I?
I would like to have the optimized SD picture, HDMI connections, and the expanded memory.

What would be the latest/best replacement for the original DCT6412, phase I?
I would like to have the optimized SD picture, HDMI connections, and the expanded memory.

Either a DCT3416 or the new DCH3416. Both with HDMI and 160gb of storage. In terms of SD picture its all about your location.

My 6412's recording light comes on when I turn the box off as if it was recording a program but it's not. When the box is on the light goes out. Does anyone know why this is happening?

My 6412's recording light comes on when I turn the box off as if it was recording a program but it's not. When the box is on the light goes out. Does anyone know why this is happening?

Because it is recording, into the buffer....

Ok I'm not savy in any of this stuff. So what does that mean and how do I correct it?

Thanks

My 6412's recording light comes on when I turn the box off as if it was recording a program but it's not. When the box is on the light goes out. Does anyone know why this is happening?

Best not to turn it off. Ever :)

My 6412's recording light comes on when I turn the box off as if it was recording a program but it's not. When the box is on the light goes out. Does anyone know why this is happening?
It might be this bug:
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#When_I_turn_the_DVR_off.2C_the_Record_light_turns_on.2C _but_there_is_no_recording_going_on

My 6412's recording light comes on when I turn the box off as if it was recording a program but it's not. When the box is on the light goes out. Does anyone know why this is happening?

It's not recording...just go into the setup menu under cable box setup and turn "RF bypass" to off. Now when you turn your DCT off the light should be gone.:)

Can any of the knowledgeable techs on this forum tell us how the time is managed on these boxes and if this can in any way be helped by swapping out the box?

The time is controlled by the DAC(Digital Addressable Controller) the DAC controls everything to do with the DCT's. Comcast most likely has DAC's all over the country for the various systems they have. The DAC can be set to get it's time from a NTP timeserver.

The time is controlled by the DAC(Digital Addressable Controller) the DAC controls everything to do with the DCT's. Comcast most likely has DAC's all over the country for the various systems they have. The DAC can be set to get it's time from a NTP timeserver.

Thanks for the response, it confirms my understanding of the process. Last night the time on my DVR was correct to the second for the first time in weeks. Perhaps they have resynched our local DAC.

I have the Moto 6412 from Cox in Orange County, CA.. I called Cox and asked about the 30 second skip function, but they don't know what I'm talking about. Has anyone figured a way to enable this?

I have the Moto 6412 from Cox in Orange County, CA.. I called Cox and asked about the 30 second skip function, but they don't know what I'm talking about. Has anyone figured a way to enable this?

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Programming_the_Remote#Add_30-Second_Skip

I have the Moto 6412 from Cox in Orange County, CA.. I called Cox and asked about the 30 second skip function, but they don't know what I'm talking about. Has anyone figured a way to enable this?

Cox does not use Igude so the 30 second skip will not work.

There is a Cox forum here also.

Starting a couple weeks ago, my DVR started to not record The Office due to a conflict with Grey's Anatomy or Big Shots.

Grey's is on 9-10:02
Office is on 9-10:01
Big Shots is on 10:02-11? (I'm not home to check the actual times, but tvguide.com has 10:00 - not possible with Grey's running 62 min)

So I guess that extra minute on the Office is making the DVR think there are three recordings in the 10:00 hour? Is there any solution?

Thanks.

Starting a couple weeks ago, my DVR started to not record The Office due to a conflict with Grey's Anatomy or Big Shots.

Grey's is on 9-10:02
Office is on 9-10:01
Big Shots is on 10:02-11? (I'm not home to check the actual times, but tvguide.com has 10:00 - not possible with Grey's running 62 min)

So I guess that extra minute on the Office is making the DVR think there are three recordings in the 10:00 hour? Is there any solution?

Thanks.

Wow I don't understand the logic that the DCT-6412 is following. According to that schedule, I would guess that the DVR would record all of those shows. My Kitchen's Nightmares did not record last week but Private Practice did. I noticed this about half way into Kitchen nightmares and I was able to switch off my game and quickly force the recording.

Looks like Big Shots should of started at the exact second Grey's Anatomy ended. Unless it did one of those extra long brain farts where the whole system freezes up for 20 seconds, and by the time it unfroze it was 10:03.

How can I tell if I have a proper 5.1 source? I'm using the optical out but I can't get any station to use the rear channels. I didn't see anything either in the box menu or the guide menu to turn on 5.1. Is a bad source the reason why I can't get 5.1 even in shows that support it?

Starting a couple weeks ago, my DVR started to not record The Office due to a conflict with Grey's Anatomy or Big Shots.

Grey's is on 9-10:02
Office is on 9-10:01
Big Shots is on 10:02-11? (I'm not home to check the actual times, but tvguide.com has 10:00 - not possible with Grey's running 62 min)

So I guess that extra minute on the Office is making the DVR think there are three recordings in the 10:00 hour? Is there any solution?

Thanks.

I actually read an article somewhere that since DVRs are now counted in ratings, a lot of networks are making their shows last that extra minute, so it forces you to either watch it live, or record it at the expense of other shows on other networks that are timed correctly. This way you are locked into only watching shows on one network (since they line up), or watching live.

Tivo gets around it by clipping a minute here and there based on priority, but Comcast boxes dont have that feature.

I actually set several manual recordings to get around this issue. Classical VCR style, Monday at 7:00PM...for an hour.

Starting a couple weeks ago, my DVR started to not record The Office due to a conflict with Grey's Anatomy or Big Shots.

Grey's is on 9-10:02
Office is on 9-10:01
Big Shots is on 10:02-11? (I'm not home to check the actual times, but tvguide.com has 10:00 - not possible with Grey's running 62 min)

So I guess that extra minute on the Office is making the DVR think there are three recordings in the 10:00 hour? Is there any solution?

Thanks.

Another possibility is that one or both of those recordings had it set to record an extra minute or 2 at the end of the recording. Unfortunately the box doesn't seem smart enough to handle the fact that 2 back to back recordings on the same channel don't have a problem if one is set to run long or start early. I found myself going in and removing a lot of those start a early run late settings on my series recordings when I found a lot of conflicts with the new shows starting.

Starting a couple weeks ago, my DVR started to not record The Office due to a conflict with Grey's Anatomy or Big Shots.

Grey's is on 9-10:02
Office is on 9-10:01
Big Shots is on 10:02-11? (I'm not home to check the actual times, but tvguide.com has 10:00 - not possible with Grey's running 62 min)

So I guess that extra minute on the Office is making the DVR think there are three recordings in the 10:00 hour? Is there any solution?

Thanks.

There's been some discussion somewhere in here about changing the order in which you set up the events to record. But that might apply only to one-time events instead of series. You might also change the priorities of the three shows to see if that affects things. As a last resort, you could set up the series recording of one of the shows (the Office would be the first one I'd try) to end one minute early. This should free up the window for Big Shots, if ABC is doing something funky, like overlapping start and stop times for its two shows.

When you look at the iGuide for next Thursday, it should tell you which ones it's recording and have an arrow through the ones it isn't recording. So I'd think you could play around a little and get it to think it should record all of them.

How can I tell if I have a proper 5.1 source? I'm using the optical out but I can't get any station to use the rear channels. I didn't see anything either in the box menu or the guide menu to turn on 5.1. Is a bad source the reason why I can't get 5.1 even in shows that support it?

Most programs make little, if any, use of the rear channels, so you may be setup correctly and just can't tell. Often when a show does use a rear speaker in an obvious way it is so surprising that my wife or I will turn to each other and say "did you notice that?"

Most programs make little, if any, use of the rear channels, so you may be setup correctly and just can't tell. Often when a show does use a rear speaker in an obvious way it is so surprising that my wife or I will turn to each other and say "did you notice that?"

Congrats on having a wife who would even notice "that" - I love her but mine wouldn't have a clue!

Also to Bernie I would add that get familiar with your front display on your receiver, which should indicate the mode it is capturing. If you like more of a surround experience you should be able to boost your surround levels up a bit, even it the program is not coming through in true 5.1.

Most programs make little, if any, use of the rear channels, so you may be setup correctly and just can't tell. Often when a show does use a rear speaker in an obvious way it is so surprising that my wife or I will turn to each other and say "did you notice that?"

Thanks, I'll have to try it during sports or something. I was just confused because I knew for sure that the center channel was working on a 5.1 show (it didn't on a regular show) but nothing I picked from the HD list gave me any sound at all from the rear channels. Maybe I was just testing it out during the wrong shows.

Thanks, I'll have to try it during sports or something. I was just confused because I knew for sure that the center channel was working on a 5.1 show (it didn't on a regular show) but nothing I picked from the HD list gave me any sound at all from the rear channels. Maybe I was just testing it out during the wrong shows.

I keep thinking that football games would use surround sound to give more of a feel for the crowd, but I haven't noticed that. I think it was on "My Name s Earl", of all places, that last week that there were obvious sounds effects that used the rear speakers.


Bernie

Last night's MLB playoff game on Fox had excellent surround. You might try checking that one tonight.

There's been some discussion somewhere in here about changing the order in which you set up the events to record. But that might apply only to one-time events instead of series. You might also change the priorities of the three shows to see if that affects things. As a last resort, you could set up the series recording of one of the shows (the Office would be the first one I'd try) to end one minute early. This should free up the window for Big Shots, if ABC is doing something funky, like overlapping start and stop times for its two shows.

When you look at the iGuide for next Thursday, it should tell you which ones it's recording and have an arrow through the ones it isn't recording. So I'd think you could play around a little and get it to think it should record all of them.

Oh, I'm seeing this in the scheduled recordings list every week. So I know it's always The Office it won't record. I do remember someone suggesting an order to reprogram the series recordings for a similar situation. I'll have to search back to see if I can find it. I think I had a problem with Smallville and some other shows a while back. Since two shows are on the same network I think it has to do with forcing them both on the same tuner?

To answer evan_s, I checked and I don't have any of the series set to pad.

How do I set a recording to end *early*? I thought you could only add time?

Thanks.

edit: I found this post in response to the last time this happened to me: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8911241#post8911241

I'll try reording the priorities first then try deleting and reinputting them in a different order. I think I would need to set Grey's, Office, then Big Shots? Maybe that puts Grey's on tuner #1, Office on tuner #2, and Big Shots back on tuner #1?

Never had this happen before!

My DCT-6412 phase 2 started doing the 15-sec replay function... FOREVER. At least I let it alone for 5 minutes and it was still doing it. Of course I had to mute the TV because it was very annoying. None of the buttons would respond, so I had to unplug the unit.

Ever hear of that one?

I think I remember reading about something similar, but it was due to a gummy remote control button.

I think I remember reading about something similar, but it was due to a gummy remote control button.

We'll in my case I don't think it's the remote control button because power cycling did the trick.

Before power cycling I let it go for a few minutes because I thought the box was just locked up processing backed up remote commands. It does that very often. Every few minutes the DVR just acts like its asleep, and it takes a bit of patience to get the thing going again. I hope they fix that bug. The responsiveness on a Phase 2 6412 is horrible. I hear the DCH-3416's are a little faster, but people have totally different issues with them. My box works, as long as I'm patient with it, and power cycle it when needed, so I'm a little hesitant to swap it out for a newer one. I'll likely stick with my trusty 6412 until Comcast asks me to change it, or the 250 GB Panasonic box becomes available.

How do I set a recording to end *early*? I thought you could only add time?


I've been dealing with a hard disk crash, so I couldn't respond before. You're right, you can't. I didn't look deep enough into the menu. My apologies for the misinformation.

Originally Posted by Mike20878 How do I set a recording to end *early*? I thought you could only add time?

I've been dealing with a hard disk crash, so I couldn't respond before. You're right, you can't.

If anyone at Comcast is listening (haha), this would be a really useful software upgrade, along with being able to easily set a recording to start later (as when you want to record only the last part of a sports event etc).

If anyone at Comcast is listening (haha), this would be a really useful software upgrade, along with being able to easily set a recording to start later (as when you want to record only the last part of a sports event etc).

I agree, plus that way we can get around the stupid recent trend of scheduling shows to be 1:02 or 1:01 hours long.

I feel the pain as well. Another alternative would be the ability to set the following program to start 1 or 2 minutes later. With ads, credits and "previously on XXXXX" filler on many (not all) shows there would be no loss of new content.

Just ordered my HD Tivo. The latest stuff was the last straw - Tivo always handles these network shenanigans smartly. I've got an old S2 with lifetime, so I'm taking the transfer deal. I'm coming home, Tivo!!!

And I'll make sure Comcast gets the message when I cancel my dvr service.

Recording from the 3416 to a DVD recorder, for playback on an upconverting DVD player - in terms of DVD video quality, does it make any difference whether the source material is HD or SD, since the DVD will be recording SD anyway? Does it make a difference in the handling of closed captions?

I agree, plus that way we can get around the stupid recent trend of scheduling shows to be 1:02 or 1:01 hours long.

I've been reading this crap and thinking how fortunate I was not encounter the problem - until last night. I took it up the can. No CSI for me.

Here is the real kicker. You know the other annoying problem - when a program isn't tagged as New or Repeat, and the dvr rerecords a program. Luckily CSI is not tagged on the Sunday rerun, so it was already scheduled to be recorded.

Two wrongs don't make a right, but do two bugs make a bug fix?

THe CSI you will record on Sunday will not be the one you missed last night.
Local stations run older syndicated CSIs on the weekends.

Maybe you saw last nights episode already. It was a repeat from last season and played on April 26, 2007.

Maybe you saw last nights episode already. It was a repeat from last season and played on April 26, 2007.

Really??? That is great news! There was a reason it didn't record! Thanks bobby!

THe CSI you will record on Sunday will not be the one you missed last night.
Local stations run older syndicated CSIs on the weekends.

Buzz kill! ;)

My local Comcast carries the current CSI in ON Demand HD. CSI is one program where I don't have a hissy fit whenever a DVR (Comcast or Vista Media Center) fails to properly record.

Me and some friends were playing video games all night, and for awhile I noticed on the cable box the time was 11:46. It must of said that for a really long time, so I asked one of the guys here what their phone said, and it was only 11:15!

So I switched back to the Cable Box HDMI input and it wasn't locked up or anything, but as soon as I pushed the GUIDE button, the clock on the front went from 11:46 to 11:16. How weird is that?

It like jumped into the future and stayed there until I hit guide. I notice our recording for Desperate Housewives is 119 minutes. Was it really 2 hours this evening? We won't get to watch until tomorrow.

I notice our recording for Desperate Housewives is 119 minutes. Was it really 2 hours this evening? We won't get to watch until tomorrow.
Nope, only an hour.

Ah yes, it magically changes to 1 hour about 5 minutes into the recording... :confused:

Is there a way to display the clock instead of the channel on this model? I've looked at the Wikipedia setup guide but didn't see anything.

Thanks,
Dale

Go to the main guid menu. Then under setup. Then cable box setup. You'll see it there

Check out some small I-Guide features being added in certain markets...

http://www.comcast.com/newguide/default.html

Specifically the Smarter DVR features
http://www.comcast.com/newguide/DVR.html

So were playing video games tonight, no big deal because we have a DUAL tuner DVR right? So The Office and Grey's Anatomy record, two of our favorite shows, we figure we'll watch them tomorrow.

Well at 9:46 I look down from Guitar Hero 3 gaming with my friend and notice the DVR just says 9:46... no recording light. So I switch to it and wouldn't you know The Office Recorded, but Grey's Anatomy didn't! I double checked my series recording list and Grey's has a priority of 1, and it says to record all new episodes on Ch 231 ABC HD. Now the guide says NEW next to the description for Grey's and the disk space is only about 55%, so it meets all necessary criteria for a recording.

Anyone know why it didn't record? Will it be on ABC HD on Demand? Or do I have to Bit Torrent it?

Or do I have to Bit Torrent it?

You can see it at http://abc.com. Go to "Full Episodes". ABC's proprietary player is actually pretty good for computer viewing. If you are willing to use the torrent, you must have a speedy-enough connection.

I also noticed yesterday that Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters were not set to record, even though I have them set for series recording and the descriptions claimed they were new shows. I had to set them up for manual record. (I have not watched them yet, so I don't know whether they're really new.) But this is two more instances of ABC series that weren't going to be recorded. Is something up with the ABC guide data?

I just checked: I have both shows set up as series recordings, and both shows recorded fine for me, without me doing anything special.

I also noticed yesterday that Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters were not set to record, even though I have them set for series recording and the descriptions claimed they were new shows. I had to set them up for manual record. (I have not watched them yet, so I don't know whether they're really new.) But this is two more instances of ABC series that weren't going to be recorded. Is something up with the ABC guide data?
Try deleting them from the series list, then recreating the series recordings. Don't forget to delete any 'manual' recordings you have set first. That can really confuse the software, and it never stops recording.
I had something a bit like that with Stargate: Atlantis. I think it may have occurred when they shifted Flush Garbage from 2 minutes overtime to 3 minutes over (to allow for the Battlestar Galactica Razor Flashback). SGA was shifted, too, but I think it got confused, especially if FG was updated in the guide data first.

Try deleting them from the series list, then recreating the series recordings. Don't forget to delete any 'manual' recordings you have set first. That can really confuse the software, and it never stops recording.
I had something a bit like that with Stargate: Atlantis. I think it may have occurred when they shifted Flush Garbage from 2 minutes overtime to 3 minutes over (to allow for the Battlestar Galactica Razor Flashback). SGA was shifted, too, but I think it got confused, especially if FG was updated in the guide data first.

What was interesting was that this week's episodes (last nights) were not set to record. But next week's are.

Not to rub it in, but I used to have the same failure to record problem with our Comcast DVR. For some reason, it just disappeared in early August -- oh, that's right; that's when our crappy DCT-6416 disappeared and was replaced by a Tivo HD. Seriously, I hope this is an issue with the i-guide software implementation and not something that carries over with the Tivo software (i.e. something to do with hardware/firmware or an issue with the guide being stored in system memory instead of on the drive). I'd like to get a Comcast DVR with the Tivo software installed for one of our other TVs, but only if many of its shortcomings have been addressed.

Check out some small I-Guide features being added in certain markets...

http://www.comcast.com/newguide/default.html

Specifically the Smarter DVR features
http://www.comcast.com/newguide/DVR.html

I certainly hope they are removing the "your recording is finished" popup along with the other improvements. That annoys me to no end!

I certainly hope they are removing the "your recording is finished" popup along with the other improvements. That annoys me to no end!
You can hit EXIT to clear the screen instead of waiting.

The dreaded "Hard Drive is full" bug has been back on my DVR for a month or two.

I received the upgraded iguide software yesterday. With the new "smarter dvr" options, I also received some "dumber dvr" options, like...
1) At the end of a recording, it no longer asks if I'd like to Delete or Save the recording. The recording pauses and waits for me to hit Skip. The Play button has no effect on the pause. If I fall asleep while watching a recording and wake up in the morning and the "time-line bar" is still displaying/burning my tv, I'll go postal.
2) When looking at the guide, I was looking an hour ahead of the the current time. Every time I pressed the down arrow, the highlighting would switch back to the current time.
3) The guide has gone heywire. Last night, all series programs scheduled to record for the remainder of the week were gone. The series settings still exist, but all of the programming was listed as "TBA" and were no longer scheduled to record. As of this morning, nearly the entire guide was "TBA", but the recordings seemed to be back on the recording schedule. Hopefully it will fully/correctly reload before this evening.

You can hit EXIT to clear the screen instead of waiting.

Lately, pressing "exit" does not work. I have been having some problems lately where the commands queue up again.

p.s. What does "multi quote" do? I clicked on it and nothing happened except the link turned a different color.

Lately, pressing "exit" does not work. I have been having some problems lately where the commands queue up again.

p.s. What does "multi quote" do? I clicked on it and nothing happened except the link turned a different color.

Yes, the problem I encounter with exit, is that it tends to queue up more often than not, and if you happen to be watching a recorded show and hit exit twice, it will stop/exit from the show you are watching. If you let the message box go away on its own, it will display for 10-20 seconds.

I think multi-quote is broken. Potentially a javascript error.

You can hit EXIT to clear the screen instead of waiting.

Yes, the problem I encounter with exit, is that it tends to queue up more often than not, and if you happen to be watching a recorded show and hit exit twice, it will stop/exit from the show you are watching. If you let the message box go away on its own, it will display for 10-20 seconds.

I think multi-quote is broken. Potentially a javascript error.

Yes, I'm always wary of hitting exit too many times... been there, done that...:)

p.s. What does "multi quote" do? I clicked on it and nothing happened except the link turned a different color.

Multiquote is working. It is to allow you to quote two, or more, posts in one post of your own. Click on "Multiquote" for the first post you want to quote, and for the subsequent posts you want to quote, except the last one. Click on "Quote" for the last one, and you will get a compose box with all of those quotes in it.

The problem I have lately, is that I can no longer do a slow reverse. I can do R>, >>, >>>, and >>>>, but if I hit pause, then reverse, I no longer get slow reverse, it just pauses.

My 6412 DVR with DVI is connected to DVI on my TV, and the resolution is set to 1080i, I used to change it to 720p occasionally, but have left it at 1080i for a while; now recently, the menu won't allow a change. Also, when I sometimes move the DVR to an HDMI TV, using DVI-HDMI cable, the resolution is automatically changed to 720p, and again, it won't allow a change. I read that this can sometimes happen with DVI-HDMI, so I could try Component, and hope it sets it to 1080i, but still the resolution should be able to be changed as it used to be. Does anyone else have this anomaly on their DVR? If so, is Motorola working on a firmware fix for this?

I think that's how DVI and HDMI works...the STB and the TV do a handshake to figure out the best resolution to use. Based on that handshake the box is setting the resolution to 720p as requested by the TV. If you use component cables there is no handshake performed so the STB allows you to adjust the setting.

I think that's how DVI and HDMI works...the STB and the TV do a handshake to figure out the best resolution to use. Based on that handshake the box is setting the resolution to 720p as requested by the TV. If you use component cables there is no handshake performed so the STB allows you to adjust the setting.
I don't think that is how it works, but even if it is, the setting used to be user selectable. Both TVs are 1366x768p, with the DVR setting the output to 1920x1080i on one TV, and 1280x720p on the other TV. Regardless, one should be able to choose.

Just got the DCT6412 iii with HDMI. Have the Onkyo 705 A/V receiver hooked up to Motorola Cable Box DCT 6412 iii with HDMI and to Olevia TV also with HDMI. Am getting no audio or video from the TV via all HDMI connections. My cable company is Time Warner/Comcast.

The 705 says no signal on Cable Box connection ("CBL No Signal") . My DVD is working properly.

Have the following OSD setup on 705:
HDMI Monitor = Yes
HDMI Input for DVD = IN 1
HDMI Input for CBL/SAT = IN 2

Have the following HDMI connections:
705 HDMI Out to TV HDMI (can read the OSD display via HDMI source)
705 HDMI Input 2 to Motoroal DCT 6412 iii HDMI
705 HDMI Input 1 to DVD Player

Why am I getting no Picture or Sound (i.e. No Signal message on my 705).

When I go direct from 6412 Cable Box to Olevia TV via HDMI, I also get "CBL No Signal".

The firmware on my Motorola DCT 6412 iii is 16.35 which is new version which supposedly works with A/V receivers...?

Settings on Cable are:
1080i
480 off

Someone please help! Thanks.

Did you access the HDMI advanced settings menu located in the user setup menu?

DVR power off, press menu,

under 4:3 override you should see a blank line before Closed Captions, this is the HDMI advanced settings menu.

Sometime people can have problems getting the curser to that line, just keep trying till you get it on the blank line, when you do, press left or right arrow to access the menu.




Just got the DCT6412 iii with HDMI. Have the Onkyo 705 A/V receiver hooked up to Motorola Cable Box DCT 6412 iii with HDMI and to Olevia TV also with HDMI. Am getting no audio or video from the TV via all HDMI connections. My cable company is Time Warner/Comcast.

The 705 says no signal on Cable Box connection ("CBL No Signal") . My DVD is working properly.

Have the following OSD setup on 705:
HDMI Monitor = Yes
HDMI Input for DVD = IN 1
HDMI Input for CBL/SAT = IN 2

Have the following HDMI connections:
705 HDMI Out to TV HDMI (can read the OSD display via HDMI source)
705 HDMI Input 2 to Motoroal DCT 6412 iii HDMI
705 HDMI Input 1 to DVD Player

Why am I getting no Picture or Sound (i.e. No Signal message on my 705).

When I go direct from 6412 Cable Box to Olevia TV via HDMI, I also get "CBL No Signal".

The firmware on my Motorola DCT 6412 iii is 16.35 which is new version which supposedly works with A/V receivers...?

Settings on Cable are:
1080i
480 off

Someone please help! Thanks.

Does anyone know at what point series recordings get placed in the upcoming recordings list? I continually battle the "Daily Show" problem of getting many duplicates recorded at all times of the day. I know, I know, I should just leave a few watched programs on the DVR. But with the writer's strike, it's all reruns, all the time. Plus, I'm apparently too anal to leave anything unwatched stay on the box. So I go through the upcoming recordings list daily and remove anything that I don't want recorded. Still, seemingly minutes after I do this, another &^&*# daily show starts recording. It literally wasn't on the upcoming recordings list and then it's being recorded. What gives?

Not the biggest problem in the world, but it bugs me.

Does anyone know at what point series recordings get placed in the upcoming recordings list? I continually battle the "Daily Show" problem of getting many duplicates recorded at all times of the day. I know, I know, I should just leave a few watched programs on the DVR. But with the writer's strike, it's all reruns, all the time. Plus, I'm apparently too anal to leave anything unwatched stay on the box. So I go through the upcoming recordings list daily and remove anything that I don't want recorded. Still, seemingly minutes after I do this, another &^&*# daily show starts recording. It literally wasn't on the upcoming recordings list and then it's being recorded. What gives?

Not the biggest problem in the world, but it bugs me.

When a show has multiple showings in the same day period, and you set the original time not to REC, it will then auto add the next showing in that same day period. it is a good feature as I use it when I need to watch a different show then one that I had set to record, and I know it has a repeat showing / airing.

the only flaw is when you use it on a show that does not have the TAGS: NEW, REPEAT, ENCORE used in the guide data.

Did you access the HDMI advanced settings menu located in the user setup menu?

DVR power off, press menu,

under 4:3 override you should see a blank line before Closed Captions, this is the HDMI advanced settings menu.

Sometime people can have problems getting the curser to that line, just keep trying till you get it on the blank line, when you do, press left or right arrow to access the menu.

Yes, I have difficulty getting that HDMI menu line. Of the 30+ times I have accessed Settings menu, I have gotten this HDMI advanced menu line only once. But amaziningly, I know what you are saying because I did get it once! Having trouble getting it again.

Any suggestions on how best to get this HDMI advanced settings menu to appear...? Turn Box off, disconnect power to box, send cable box reset, or just keep on fiddling with up/down keys until it magically appears...?

Thanks.

Yes, I have difficulty getting that HDMI menu line. Of the 30+ times I have accessed Settings menu, I have gotten this HDMI advanced menu line only once. But amaziningly, I know what you are saying because I did get it once! Having trouble getting it again.

Any suggestions on how best to get this HDMI advanced settings menu to appear...? Turn Box off, disconnect power to box, send cable box reset, or just keep on fiddling with up/down keys until it magically appears...?

Thanks.

Move the cursor up and down till it lands on the blank line.

That is how I get to work, then press left or right arrow to access the menu.


"you have to know the secret handshake to get in!" :rolleyes:

Move the cursor up and down till it lands on the blank line.

That is how I get to work, then press left or right arrow to access the menu.


"you have to know the secret handshake to get in!" :rolleyes:


What is that secret handshake...? Tried about 50 more times to get to HDMI advanced without any luck.

Is it best to use the remote or the set top box arrow keys to navigate between the lines to try to get HDMI advanced to appear?

I have HDMI connected and composite cable connected to read the Settings OSD display on the TV. Have to change TV source to composite to view the Settings OSD. Cannot get that HDMI advanced to show up... Cannot view the OSD with the HDMI TV source selected as HDMI (have to use composite). One time, yesterday, I got that HDMI advanced to show up. But cannot get it to show up again.

Thanks for trying to help. Any other ideas on how to toggle this HDMI settings to magically appear...

Usually that extra line for the HDMI settings only shows up in the menu if there is a HDMI or DVI connection hooked up. If you can't see it then there may be an issue with the HDMI cable or something. The other thing to try is turn everything off then turn everything back on but turn the DCT on last. It could be the DCT isn't seeing the handshake request from the other device. Or try it the other way around DCT first :)
Thats why I keep it simple and just use the component cables :) Darn HDCP gets int the way all the time.

I've had a strange issue with my Moto DCT-6416. When I try to play my recordings or to rewind/fast forward live TV, I get a black screen and I can't get it to respond. Only when I switch the channel do I get out of the blank screen.

After I do a re-boot, I then am able to access recordings from my hard drive, but later the problem will come back. I'm in the Time Warner, So Cal area.

Any suggestions? I really don't want to call TW unless I have to. Should I ask for a new box?

Thanks for trying to help. Any other ideas on how to toggle this HDMI settings to magically appear...
You need to get the Cable Box working with the TV first. Plug the HDMI cable directly from the Cable Box into the TV. If the Advanced HDMI menu doesn't show up, try unplugging the HDMI cable and plugging it with both units on.

Some other things if that doesn't work.

Try both cables to make sure it isn't the cable. You can also test the cable by making sure it works from the Onkyo to the TV with some other input cable.

By the way, you can connect multiple connections from the Cable Box to your Onkyo (component and HDMI). In this way you can verify that the Cable Box, Onkyo and TV are all working. This will narrow down the problem to just the HDMI connection.

If you can't get the HDMI working, have a service call it may just be a bad box.

My box has reset itself twice recently. I believe both times it happened right after I deleted a program I had finished watching. I didn't see anything specific to this in the Wikibook entry. Any ideas?

Thanks.

When a show has multiple showings in the same day period, and you set the original time not to REC, it will then auto add the next showing in that same day period. it is a good feature as I use it when I need to watch a different show then one that I had set to record, and I know it has a repeat showing / airing.

the only flaw is when you use it on a show that does not have the TAGS: NEW, REPEAT, ENCORE used in the guide data.

Thanks. I didn't know that, and it now makes sense. And it would be a good feature, if they would only INDICATE that new recording in the upcoming recordings list. As it is, you don't know if another one will be recorded or not.

I have a 6412 DVR outputting to a CRT front projector (NEC 6PGXtra). The component output runs through a component -> RGB transcoder. I'm wanting to switch to the DCH 3416 for a couple of reasons (capacity, primarily). For those of you displaying to a CRT, did the 3416 match the 6412 well, sync-wise? Ideally it's supposed to be the same 1080i/60, but it would be good to be prepared either way, since I usually have someone come out to re-converge the projector.

Thanks!

Cliff

A recording of Friday Night Lights last week said it was 60 mins long on the info screen and the playback bar said 101 mins. However, at 45 mins in it stopped and asked if I wanted to save or delete. Any idea what happened?

Thanks.

I haven't posted or viewed this thread for a while, so forgive me if this has already been covered. (Kind of hard to search for this issue.)

When I set a program series to be recorded on a network HD channel, it actually records the same program on that network's SD channel. Is there a way to fix that?

I haven't posted or viewed this thread for a while, so forgive me if this has already been covered. (Kind of hard to search for this issue.)

When I set a program series to be recorded on a network HD channel, it actually records the same program on that network's SD channel. Is there a way to fix that?

The problem is the way your local cable company lists the channels in the guide. For example, it should list the SD channel as WCBS and the HD channel as WCBS-DT. Your company lists them both as WCBS, so the 6412 records the first channel listed. There is no fix on your end, you have to contact your cable company and ask the engineering dept. to look into it. Good luck.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVR_records_in_SD_when_you.27ve_set_it_to_an_HD_cha nnel

I haven't posted or viewed this thread for a while, so forgive me if this has already been covered. (Kind of hard to search for this issue.)

When I set a program series to be recorded on a network HD channel, it actually records the same program on that network's SD channel. Is there a way to fix that?
An option is to set up those recordings based on date/time/channel rather than program title. Not very 'user friendly' way to set up recordings, but it is an option...
MM

Where is the IR receiver for the 6412 Phase III HD-DVR? I'm using the Harmony 890 remote and need to know where to put the little IR emitter thingy. Thanks.

Where is the IR receiver for the 6412 Phase III HD-DVR? I'm using the Harmony 890 remote and need to know where to put the little IR emitter thingy. Thanks.

It appears to be on the left side of the oval window, right between the MSG and ON symbols...... Shine a flashlight at that location and you can see it.

You probably don't need to put it directly in front. I have a repeater that sits in front of the box, but sits on the shelf and roughly aimed toward the sensor. That way, it doesn't block any direct remote use (the repeater is so I can control the box from a bedroom.)

I'm having getting the remote (6412 Phase III) to recognize my new Yamaha RX-V1800 audio receiver. None of the codes work and the Code Search feature didn't find one either. Does anyone have any working code for this receiver? What can I do?

Newbie question---

I have been researching power level (signal strength) and Signal to Noise Ratio.

Below is a capture. Can someone tell me how bad these numbers are (or point me at the correct thread to post this question). Thanks. ---

http://i3.tinypic.com/6qbfmtt.jpg

Newbie question---

I have been researching power level (signal strength) and Signal to Noise Ratio.

Below is a capture. Can someone tell me how bad these numbers are (or point me at the correct thread to post this question). Thanks. ---



Wow those levels are horrible. It's surprised you even have a connection at all.

Power level should be between -10 and +10 with 0 being optimal.
SNR should be 33db or above on 256QAM modulation.

Reconfigure all of your splits or have a tech out.

Hi folks, I'm trying to figure out if I shoudl return my box to Comcast or if there is something I'm missing. Based on the comments I've read it looks like i have the right firmware to support HDMI display (16.45) but I'm unable to recognize anything. When I go to diagnostics 11 it shows DVI/HDMI NO for enabled and NO for Active. I've tried to unplug both connections and changed HDMI cables but no luck. Then I tried to go to the menu to see if I get HDMI settings but I do not see anything and scrolling thru I'm unable to land on the blank line underneath 4:3 over ride. Any suggestions? Does comcast have to enable the HDMI port? is it done by just having the right firmware or by changing setings on the cable box? your help is greatly appreciated.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVR_records_in_SD_when_you.27ve_set_it_to_an_HD_cha nnel

Thanks for the link...great resource. Answered another question for me, too. Turns out both are known issues with no fixes. One more reason to switch to Dish or DirecTV!

Wow, so Dish or DirecTV don't have issues? I better switch.

The problem is the way your local cable company lists the channels in the guide. For example, it should list the SD channel as WCBS and the HD channel as WCBS-DT. Your company lists them both as WCBS, so the 6412 records the first channel listed. There is no fix on your end, you have to contact your cable company and ask the engineering dept. to look into it. Good luck.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVR_records_in_SD_when_you.27ve_set_it_to_an_HD_cha nnel

Depends on how you setup your series recording. If you use the Guide to set it up, then find the HD station and the time for your program and set it to record the series.

If you use Find Programs to setup the series, then once you find your program, go to the icon that will show you other times for the show. You'll see the analog channel, the SD channel and the HD channel. Pick the HD channel and tell it to record your series.

The problem is that periodically it will revert to recording on the lowest numbered of the channels. As someone else explained, that is because of the way the Guide has the channels named. When we notice that we delete the series and add it back and that corrects the problem for us for a few weeks. We've never tracked how often it needs to be done.

Bernie

Hi folks, I'm trying to figure out if I shoudl return my box to Comcast or if there is something I'm missing. Based on the comments I've read it looks like i have the right firmware to support HDMI display (16.45) but I'm unable to recognize anything. When I go to diagnostics 11 it shows DVI/HDMI NO for enabled and NO for Active. I've tried to unplug both connections and changed HDMI cables but no luck. Then I tried to go to the menu to see if I get HDMI settings but I do not see anything and scrolling thru I'm unable to land on the blank line underneath 4:3 over ride. Any suggestions? Does comcast have to enable the HDMI port? is it done by just having the right firmware or by changing setings on the cable box? your help is greatly appreciated.


Did you see this? http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#The_DVI_or_HDMI_output_works_intermittently_or_not_at_a ll

Depends on how you setup your series recording. If you use the Guide to set it up, then find the HD station and the time for your program and set it to record the series.

If you use Find Programs to setup the series, then once you find your program, go to the icon that will show you other times for the show. You'll see the analog channel, the SD channel and the HD channel. Pick the HD channel and tell it to record your series.

The problem is that periodically it will revert to recording on the lowest numbered of the channels. As someone else explained, that is because of the way the Guide has the channels named. When we notice that we delete the series and add it back and that corrects the problem for us for a few weeks. We've never tracked how often it needs to be done.

Bernie
You can also go to "advanced recording options" and select "this channel only" instead of "all channels" when you set up your recording. Make sure you initiate the recording from the HD channel though.

Hope this helps... works for me.

c.a.b.

You can also go to "advanced recording options" and select "this channel only" instead of "all channels" when you set up your recording. Make sure you initiate the recording from the HD channel though.

Hope this helps... works for me.

c.a.b.
I wasn't as clear as I should have been. The HD channels generally have a different name in the Guide than the analog and SD digital stations do. But the digital SD stations often have the same name as the analog stations. So even if you tell it to record a series on, say, the digital Comedy Central channel, it will eventually revert to recording that series on the analog channel because they have the same name.

I think it works that way because the series get set up to record on a specific channel name rather than a specific number. That way if they move a channel to a different number your series will still get recorded. But becuase they don't differentiate the names of the analog and digital versions of the channels the DVR picks the first channel it finds with that name - and that is the analog version.

I have a DCH6412 running HDMI through a Onkyo receiver to an LG flatscreen. The picture on non HD channels has lines through the people faces and is not clear. Any idea what would cause this? Any idea how to fix this?

I have a DCH6412 running HDMI through a Onkyo receiver to an LG flatscreen. The picture on non HD channels has lines through the people faces and is not clear. Any idea what would cause this? Any idea how to fix this?

Try and eliminate some of the possibilities.
- Run the hdmi directly to the tv.
- Do you have a bum hdmi cable - test with component cables.
- Turn off any picture "enhanhancements" that the LG has on by default.

I've been doing alot of reading on all the forums about the DCT 6412, but I can't seem to find anyone that can give me a straight answer on some basic questions.

1 - My phase 3 was working perfectly until yesterday, so I brought it in and swapped it out. The box I received is a Phase 2. I noticed with the Phase 2, when I am using the TV guide, the video feed in the small window slows down. Also, the response time is slower than Phase 2. Anyone else have this problem?

2 - I used to have a phase 2, and the auto mute function is annoying. Is this fixed in phase 3?

3 - This is really the key question. Should I swap out the Phase 2 for the Phase 3? I figure the Phase 3 is a newer box since it has HDMI and it's smaller.

4 - I am a little reluctant about swapping out the boxes again because I am afraid I might lose the HD channels that I am not paying for.

Any help would be appreciated. I am going nuts trying to decide.

Go back and get a phase 3. Those channels you are not paying for will go away in a few days anyway.

Really? I've had them for a year now.

Really? I've had them for a year now.
I'm curious. What channels do you get that you don't think you deserve? Most towns don't have a seperate HD fee, although a few people have reported paying an extra $5/month for HD. Simply renting the dvr will usually get you the local channels in HD. It will also get you the HD version of any premium channels. And, depending on the package you pay for, you should also get a handful of other HDs.

Those are the ones. I don't know why they want to charge you 6.95 a month for the HD channels when I have always had all of them except for the premium HD movie channels that I don't subscribe to.

Those are the ones. I don't know why they want to charge you 6.95 a month for the HD channels when I have always had all of them except for the premium HD movie channels that I don't subscribe to.
You may be confusing the "HD Tier" with HD channels. In most cases you get the local HD channels without an extra fee. There is also an "HD Tier", at an extra charge, which includes MOJO and one or two or three additional channels. Check the channel guide on the internet for your local area to see what is where.

No I wasn't confused. I get MOJO USAHD NATGEO..every HD channel including the local ones...it's a hit or miss with the boxes...if you get a box that previously had those channels then you can get them..there must be a way to hack the boxes so you get everything...
The perfect example is when I moved, I had NBA league pass. I took my HD box to my new place, and while the service is still under the previous's owners name who did not have digital service. I still got all the NBA league pass channels when I plugged in my box.
If you are lucky and get a box that has everything, then you will have everything.

Those are the ones. I don't know why they want to charge you 6.95 a month for the HD channels when I have always had all of them except for the premium HD movie channels that I don't subscribe to.
Exactly. I don't believe you are getting anything for free. You paid for the dvr, you are getting the hd channels you are entitled to.

I'd bet if you look closely at the comcast rate chart, the 6.95 fee you are referring to is a monthly fee for the HDbox (non-dvr).

I see. That makes sense now. I am getting charged $13.95 for my box. Anyways, I took your advice and swapped out for another box with HDMI. However, it is different than my first box with HDMI outputs. I haven't hooked it up yet, but I hope it takes care of the problems previously mentioned. If TIVO was just a little cheaper, I would switch in a heart beat.

However, it is different than my first box with HDMI outputs. I haven't hooked it up yet, but I hope it takes care of the problems previously mentioned. If TIVO was just a little cheaper, I would switch in a heart beat.
6412s are rarely available from comcast. You probably received a 3412 or 3416 when you swapped boxes.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12892825#post12892825

Ahhhh..That's what I got..it's a 6412...I had the 3412 or 3416 initially, and I liked that one MUCH BETTER!!!
Do you know which one is better? The 6412 is still in my car, so I can still swap it out!!
I had the 3416!! That box was the best one I've ever gotten from Comcast!!

Edit : and it's lighter...

Ahhhh..That's what I got..it's a 6412...I had the 3412 or 3416 initially, and I liked that one MUCH BETTER!!!
Do you know which one is better? The 6412 is still in my car, so I can still swap it out!!
I had the 3416!! That box was the best one I've ever gotten from Comcast!!

Edit : and it's lighter...
The 3416 is a newer box, with a bigger harddrive (40gig more). It has no analog tuner in it, like the 6412 does.

Ahhhh..That's what I got..it's a 6412...I had the 3412 or 3416 initially, and I liked that one MUCH BETTER!!!
Do you know which one is better? The 6412 is still in my car, so I can still swap it out!!
I had the 3416!! That box was the best one I've ever gotten from Comcast!!

Edit : and it's lighter...

The last two digits tell you the size of the hard drive. 12=120GB, 16=160GB

The 34xx are digital only, 64xx are digital and analog.

For more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_3412

So newer is better? I don't care for the analog tuner.

6412s are rarely available from comcast. You probably received a 3412 or 3416 when you swapped boxes.


Here in NY I've only seen 6412 (I think all Phase I, maybe some Phase II) boxes distributed.

I'm experiencing the following problem on my 6412 phase II box. On only certain channels, I'm getting a good quality signal (36 SNR) on tuner 1, but a fair or poor quality (<30 SNR) on tuner 2. There is only one splitter between the tap and the box. I noticed this when I put another splitter in front of the box, for a total of two (to get the QAM channels on my TV directly for when I'm already recording two programs). When I put this new splitter in, tuner 1 was still good, in the 35 SNR range, but tuner 2 fell to 27 SNR and had thousands of errors. The problem is, the DVR tends to use tuner 2 when recording since I'm usually watching something else on tuner 1. I tried re-inserting the coax; it works fine (35 SNR on both) for about 15s, then tuner 2 starts to get errors again.

Is my 2nd tuner failing? Is the splitter bad? Why does it only affect one of the tuners? Do I need to suck it up and not add in the splitter?

Suggestions on how to fix or how to get Comcast to fix?

Here in NY I've only seen 6412 (I think all Phase I, maybe some Phase II) boxes distributed.
Really? I've been under the impression that the box has been discontinued since early last year.

...
Is my 2nd tuner failing? Is the splitter bad? Why does it only affect one of the tuners? Do I need to suck it up and not add in the splitter?

Suggestions on how to fix or how to get Comcast to fix?
This sounds familiar. It seems I remember something about the box splitting the signal 3 ways internally. And the reduced db isn't uniform across all 3 splits. Maybe somebody with a better memory than mine can chime it and clarify.

You might find some help if you search this thread hard enough for posts like the following: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=10498256#post10498256

Yes some replys!!
I spent the whole day yesterday trying to swap out my 6412 Phase III for the 3416, and after calling countless times and going to 5 different locations to track one down (I even got lost in the ghetto, which was pretty scary). I was unsuccessful. NO Comcast locations in Jacksonville have the 3416, at least no yesterday. They had plenty of the 6412s. (I wonder why)
So feeling frustrated and tired from driving around all day, I pull into my neighborhood and spots a Comcast van. I thought to myself it was a miracle from God. I stopped and talk to the technician. Unfortunately, he did not have any 3416 with him; however, I did get two piece of very valuable information. He told me all the 6412 boxes are refurbished, and most of them if not all of them will have glitches. Second, he told me that the warehouses have been supplying him with these new DCT boxes with the front display being completely black (like a LCD display), almost look like a TIVO box. He showed me one without the DVR, and it looks SWEET!!
So I went home and made an appointment with Comcast to have a technician come out and hope he brings one of those new boxes, and trust me, I will keep having the technician come out until he brings me one of the new DCTs.
Oh yeah, the 6412 Phase 3 I took home with me didn't work right. My girlfriend was recording Real Housewives last night, and I was watching 50 first dates in HD while it was recording. The entire time I was watching the movie, it was skipping, like every few minutes Adam Sandler is talking like a retard...in slow motion.
I know it's a long post, but I needed to vent.
If you have a 6412, swap it out...if you can find one.

Really? I've been under the impression that the box has been discontinued since early last year.

Maybe in IL, in rural areas, such as Jacksonville, we are always behind on everything. They probably shipped all the crap boxes here.

I'm experiencing the following problem on my 6412 phase II box. On only certain channels, I'm getting a good quality signal (36 SNR) on tuner 1, but a fair or poor quality (<30 SNR) on tuner 2. There is only one splitter between the tap and the box. I noticed this when I put another splitter in front of the box, for a total of two (to get the QAM channels on my TV directly for when I'm already recording two programs). When I put this new splitter in, tuner 1 was still good, in the 35 SNR range, but tuner 2 fell to 27 SNR and had thousands of errors. The problem is, the DVR tends to use tuner 2 when recording since I'm usually watching something else on tuner 1. I tried re-inserting the coax; it works fine (35 SNR on both) for about 15s, then tuner 2 starts to get errors again.

Is my 2nd tuner failing? Is the splitter bad? Why does it only affect one of the tuners? Do I need to suck it up and not add in the splitter?

Suggestions on how to fix or how to get Comcast to fix?

Get a new box.
It's not worth it in the long run especially since you are renting.

Maybe in IL, in rural areas, such as Jacksonville, we are always behind on everything. They probably shipped all the crap boxes here.

Drag, sorry to hear that. I've been hearing that many areas are already getting rid of the DCT box and going with the new DCH boxes.
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Identifying_your_model

I'm getting a good quality signal (36 SNR) on tuner 1, but a fair or poor quality (<30 SNR) on tuner 2.
Suggestions on how to fix or how to get Comcast to fix?I had the same problem. There's nothing you can do to fix it - it's a hardware problem. Comcast swapped the box for me with no questions asked and the replacement has worked much better than the old box. So just get a "new" box from Comcast.

Drag, sorry to hear that. I've been hearing that many areas are already getting rid of the DCT box and going with the new DCH boxes.
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Identifying_your_model

The Comcast technician is coming tomorrow. I hope you are right!!

Drag, sorry to hear that. I've been hearing that many areas are already getting rid of the DCT box and going with the new DCH boxes.
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Identifying_your_model

Haha, rural areas! I checked the wikibook and I definitely have a Phase I, issued an hour outside of Manhattan. I was thinking about it, and a friend of mine was able to get a Phase III by "special request" because he told them he really needed HDMI.

Haha, rural areas! I checked the wikibook and I definitely have a Phase I, issued an hour outside of Manhattan. I was thinking about it, and a friend of mine was able to get a Phase III by "special request" because he told them he really needed HDMI.

I thought Comcast (and others) were required to deploy the DCH style boxes (e.g. with m-cards) because of the separable cas requirement. So won't you be guaranteed to get a newer style box?

The can continue reusing existing boxes as long as they are functional. Any new boxes they buy from the MFG have to be DCH style boxes.

They can continue to distribute DCT boxes as long as they have been deployed at least once before the cutoff date.

I thought Comcast (and others) were required to deploy the DCH style boxes (e.g. with m-cards) because of the separable cas requirement. So won't you be guaranteed to get a newer style box?

cas requirements? Please explain.

I am seriously losing sleep over this. The DCT 6412 sucks. I don't care what phase it is. It's huge, it's non-responsive. It's terrible!!!

Oh yeah, the technician came yesterday, and he couldn't locate a newer box. what a bummer.

This isn't good. I was about to switch to a local provider and that would come with my choice of a 6412 or 6416. They said this is the newest, yet I see it's been out since '04:eek:

What issues do the 6412 and 6416 have that I should be aware of and research before deciding if I want to switch from D*?

The DCT- and DCH- series DVRs are the latest available from Motorola. The DCH- series is newer, but it different only with regard to separable security, something which IMHO makes it less desirable than the DCT- series. There is a new generation of DVR that has been announced, but it will be many months, if not a year or so, before the first make it to the field. So what you were told, that they were the newest, is true.

Like all DVRs, the Motorola DVRs have their issues. You can find lots of messages here online to dissuade you from switching to them, if your intention is to be dissuaded. The reality is that they work; they do what they need to. They're good, not great. Much like the HR20, from what I've read.

I believe your decision should be based on the service characteristics, your own personal tolerance for the specific differences between the services, and what kind of deal you can negotiate for yourself. A lot of the local cable companies are offering very nicely priced "Triple Play" deals (cable, high-speed Internt, and telephone) that makes switching very attractive.

If you have DirecTV working in your home, and you're not experiencing weather-related problems with the service, why are you switching? Personally, evaluating the two choices, I'm indifferent between the two, and stick with cable just because it doesn't have a lot of up-front investment of time and money.

This isn't good. I was about to switch to a local provider and that would come with my choice of a 6412 or 6416. They said this is the newest, yet I see it's been out since '04:eek:

What issues do the 6412 and 6416 have that I should be aware of and research before deciding if I want to switch from D*?

The 6412 has a 120GB hard drive, the 6416 has a 160GB hard drive. The 6412 can only hold about 15 hours of HD, so get a 6416 if you can (I couldn't).

There are several versions of the 6412. The early models had really crappy non-HD picture quality. You want the "phase III" box if you get a 6412. Only the phase III boxes have HDMI outputs, so make sure you get one with HDMI, even if you don't use it. The 6416 is newer so they are all the same.

As the previous poster said it can be unresponsive at times. It is not consistent or repeatable. Sometimes when you push a button there is a delay before anything happens, but don't keep pushing the buttons again, because eventually it will process all the button pushes. It can be a couple of seconds or occasionally it may hang for a minute or more. This is probably the biggest flaw. Some people seem to have more trouble than others, most of the time mine works pretty well.

There are numerous other quirks you get used to. They say the TIVO has a better user interface, but I've never had one.

Because of my bill for almost the same amount of channels is ~$38 more a month.(both top tier HD packages)
I get almost no weather related issues even in my vastly changing living area, but some occasional macro on a fairly routine basis.
I also would gain comcastHD, which is the exclusive provider of my teams(philly--where I live comcast service is not offered even though we are 50 miles from philly??)

I need to find out exactly which HD channels I would lose and if they are ones I watch.


I did search for my local area, but there are about 5 total people in my local thread and posts are generally months apart so not much info. to be gained there.

The 6412 has a 120GB hard drive, the 6416 has a 160GB hard drive. The 6412 can only hold about 15 hours of HD, so get a 6416 if you can (I couldn't).

There are several versions of the 6412. The early models had really crappy non-HD picture quality. You want the "phase III" box if you get a 6412. Only the phase III boxes have HDMI outputs, so make sure you get one with HDMI, even if you don't use it. The 6416 is newer so they are all the same.

As the previous poster said it can be unresponsive at times. It is not consistent or repeatable. Sometimes when you push a button there is a delay before anything happens, but don't keep pushing the buttons again, because eventually it will process all the button pushes. It can be a couple of seconds or occasionally it may hang for a minute or more. This is probably the biggest flaw. Some people seem to have more trouble than others, most of the time mine works pretty well.

There are numerous other quirks you get used to. They say the TIVO has a better user interface, but I've never had one.

Thanks. It was the Phase 3 6416 offered.
The delay is something my other providers box had and is livable if you get a decent one, so I get that.
I need to find out if D*'s mpeg4 HD channels are of higher quality than my local can provide but that information is not able to be found anywhere and not known by my local guys' techs. :(

When I make changes in the Setup Menu everything works out fine. But if the PVR gets turned off, the Setup Menu defaults to the previous settings. I can't believe it's designed to do this. Anyone else had this problem.(I've tried searching but haven't found a solution to this one)

...
But if the PVR gets turned off, the Setup Menu defaults to the previous settings.
...


Don't turn it off:
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Bugs#Software.2C_Firmware_or_Hardware

I have seen some guides to get video off of the DVR, but I was curious if there was any way to get it on and if so what formats would it support?

I have seen some guides to get video off of the DVR, but I was curious if there was any way to get it on and if so what formats would it support?
The only possible way is if it's still programmed to receive some analog channels, and you can get an RF modulator on that analog channel.

I'm not certain why you would want to do it anyways?:confused:

O.k. guys, I need some help.
When I switched providers I asked for a Phase III - 6416.
They brought a 6412.
So I called and asked for the 6416 again.
Today they brought a 3416 and said that is the newest??

So what box am I looking for?
I want the newest one with the most HD recordable time.
My options are:
DCH-3416
DCT-6416
DCT-3416

O.k. guys, I need some help.
When I switched providers I asked for a Phase III - 6416.
They brought a 6412.
So I called and asked for the 6416 again.
Today they brought a 3416 and said that is the newest??

So what box am I looking for?
I want the newest one with the most HD recordable time.

Not sure if your box is the newest model, but you do have the biggest drive available. As somebody indicated in an earlier post to you, the "16" at the end of the model number indicates 160 gig. A "12" would be a 120gig drive.

DCH are the newest.

O.k. guys, I need some help.
When I switched providers I asked for a Phase III - 6416.
They brought a 6412.
So I called and asked for the 6416 again.
Today they brought a 3416 and said that is the newest??

So what box am I looking for?
I want the newest one with the most HD recordable time.
My options are:
DCH-3416
DCT-6416
DCT-3416

DCH 3416 is the latest. It is actually an all digital version of the dct6416.

Until we get the new Panasonic or the Motorola DCX series later this year, either 3416 will be the "latest".

Wow, they actually knew something then....big shocker for this smaller company.

I will be paying close attention for when the DCX's come out.

Thanks so much guys!

Does anyone know how I can request to get a DCT-6412 PIII DVR box? I currently have a DCT-6412 PII box, with the DVI output, and the SD picture is really bad.

I went to my local office to try to swap it out for a PIII and they told me that because I live in a condo building (still runs analog channels so I need an MDU box) they are not allowed to give me a PIII box.

That explanation doesn't make any sense to me, since the boxes are pretty much the same and it seems like any of them can be coded to receive analog signals.

Is there somebody or a particular office I can call to get my hands on one of these boxes?

Thanks,
Pani

Wow, they actually knew something then....big shocker for this smaller company.

I will be paying close attention for when the DCX's come out.

Thanks so much guys!
Don't be in a rush for 'the latest'. The current latest are the DCH series, and they have some issues. The biggest being that the record light may not work, depending the firmware and other factors. The newest may be a bit faster or have bigger drives, but it's the firmware, and especially the software, that makes the biggest difference. Different models may use slightly different firmware, but all use the same software.

I have a 6412 Phase 2, and it works fine, especially since we got the 16.42 firmware/75.58 software. Those version appears to be only available by me, as far as I know. It was a surprise when I got it. It fixed a few bugs, greatly improved parental control setup, and added a few minor features (LIVE programming overtime, program overlap.)

I have had a 6412 Phase III box for a long time now. I'm constantly running out of space as I record more and more HD content. 120GB just isn't cutting it anymore, but I hesitate to bother trying to obtain a 160GB model if something better is on the horizon, since my box seems to work pretty well. (I do have to occasionally do a power recycle).

When are we going to get some decent-sized hard drives in these DVRs? You can buy 500GB external drives for only a little over $100 these days. Will the next DVR models at least offer that size or enable a SATA port to allow us to expand with our own extra drives? I think I read that the Tivos allow for that now.

What about better compression? Will they be going to MP4 anytime soon?

What about better compression? Will they be going to MP4 anytime soon?

The DCX boxes when ever they start showing up will support MP4 aka h264 or avc. I expect it will only be for playback and it will at least initially only be used for limited things since any channels using it either have to be broadcast also in mpeg 2 for older boxes or not be accessible to those boxes. As things are now any digital broadcast will be recorded as it is broadcast and not reencoded. I'd also expect analog sd will still be encoded to mpeg2 because realtime mp4 encoding is still a pretty challenging task.

I have a DCT6412 that I used at a previous address. It is full with recordings that I have not watched. I do not have comcast cable service at my new address yet. Without active comcast service, it will not enable the DVR. I simply want to watch the contents of the DVR then return it. Any ideas on how to activate the DVR (just the viewing portion) without service? Somewhere in the diagnosis menu or somewhere?

Thanks

I have a DCT6412 that I used at a previous address. It is full with recordings that I have not watched. I do not have comcast cable service at my new address yet. Without active comcast service, it will not enable the DVR. I simply want to watch the contents of the DVR then return it. Any ideas on how to activate the DVR (just the viewing portion) without service? Somewhere in the diagnosis menu or somewhere?

Thanks

I believe you must have active cable service to watch the DRV.

I have a DCT6412 that I used at a previous address. It is full with recordings that I have not watched. I do not have comcast cable service at my new address yet. Without active comcast service, it will not enable the DVR. I simply want to watch the contents of the DVR then return it. Any ideas on how to activate the DVR (just the viewing portion) without service? Somewhere in the diagnosis menu or somewhere?

Thanks

When you unplug the 6412 it loses it's brains. The firmware is reloaded from the cable when you plug it back in. No cable = no firmware (the software than runs the box). There is no way around this except to subscribe to cable at your new address and get the box activated.

Sorry if this is covered in an FAQ somewhere but my attempts at finding one were fruitless.

Can anyone here confirm that any Comcast-supplied DVR with HDMI and component hi-def output will send output through both at the same time? I'm asking because I've been using a setup with a 6412 with DVI and component where I use the DVI for my big TV and send the component through the wall to the kitchen for use on a set there. I recently had to replace my main TV with an HDMI-equipped model which I'm presently connecting with an HDMI/DVI converter. I've already had some instances of miscommunication with the cable box and am tempted to turn it in for an HDMI-equipped box.

However, my understanding of HDMI is that one of its principal purposes was to establish HDCP controls which forbid hi-def output via any other means if hi-def is being sent out via HDMI.

This would put a crimp in my present setup which I'd like to avoid. So, to reiterate the question, has anyone here successfully obtained hi-def output via component AND HDMI simultaneously?

Thanks in advance,
Alan

I have Comcast with a 6412 P3, and I have both HDMI and component HD hooked up, HDMI directly to the display, component to the AVR, then to the display. Of course with only one display, I can only view one at a time, but I can switch between inputs on the display, without any adjustment to the 6412, and everything works fine.

Can anyone here confirm that any Comcast-supplied DVR with HDMI and component hi-def output will send output through both at the same time? Yes, both HDMI and component outputs are live simultaneously.

Thanks for the confirmations. I'll have to see if my local office has a Phase III 6412 or better box available.

ABG

I have a DCT6412 that I used at a previous address. It is full with recordings that I have not watched. I do not have comcast cable service at my new address yet. Without active comcast service, it will not enable the DVR. I simply want to watch the contents of the DVR then return it. Any ideas on how to activate the DVR (just the viewing portion) without service? Somewhere in the diagnosis menu or somewhere?

Thanks

You could hook it back up to the correct cable system, long enough for the guide information to load, powered through a UPS then take it to your new address and plug the UPS/DCT back in and hook it up to the TV. Your guide info for the stored programs should remain so that you can access the recordings list.
Something to try if you're desperate to watch the saved stuff :)

You could hook it back up to the correct cable system, long enough for the guide information to load, powered through a UPS then take it to your new address and plug the UPS/DCT back in and hook it up to the TV. Your guide info for the stored programs should remain so that you can access the recordings list.
Something to try if you're desperate to watch the saved stuff :)

This may still not work. It's not the missing guide info causing the problem. Once it sees the new system, and it's not registered to that node, it will lock everything out. If it's reregistered at the new location, it may keep the recordings if you are lucky.

This may still not work. It's not the missing guide info causing the problem. Once it sees the new system, and it's not registered to that node, it will lock everything out. If it's reregistered at the new location, it may keep the recordings if you are lucky.

And isn't it true that even if you remained powered on (i.e. plugged into a UPS while driving over to a friend's house), if you didn't have an active cable at your new location, you still couldn't access the saved programs? Or, if the cable goes out at your house but the power remains on, you can't watch anything stored on the box.

I don't know that this is true, since I've never experienced this. But that's what I've heard.

This may still not work. It's not the missing guide info causing the problem. Once it sees the new system, and it's not registered to that node, it will lock everything out. If it's reregistered at the new location, it may keep the recordings if you are lucky.

Don't hook it up to the new cable system...just connect it to the TV and watch the recorded shows. Because the box doesn't power down due to the UPS it will keep the guide info (MCA) that's required by the box to see the listed recordings. If a box doesn't see the signal from the new cable system nothing can happen to it. Even if a DCT does get hooked up to a different system it won't lose authorization because that systems billing system doesn't even know about it. What could change is the firmware version and the channel map.

You can try this right now...start watching a recording and disconnect the cable input...the recording keeps on playing.
You don't even have to wait for the entire guide to load in. The recordings list will show up as soon as the configuration screen says MCA connected at the bottom.

And isn't it true that even if you remained powered on (i.e. plugged into a UPS while driving over to a friend's house), if you didn't have an active cable at your new location, you still couldn't access the saved programs? Or, if the cable goes out at your house but the power remains on, you can't watch anything stored on the box.
It's likely to lock itself up if it can't get a signal after a few hours.

I would like to connect my new Sony LCD TV to my new Comcast Motorola DCT-6412 Phase III via HDMI. The 6412 is providing no output via HDMI. Black screen.

When I picked up this 6412 in person at my local Comcast office, I specifically requested one with HDMI. The Comcast rep foraged in the back room and came up with one. Everything about this box is perfect, except it has no HDMI.
The firmware version is 16.20. The 6412's diagnostics display says the HDMI port is not enabled. Is there any way to enable the HDMI port on this box?

I spent hours on the phone with Comcast support and after finally getting them to vaguely understand my problem, their only suggestion was to return the box to the store and hope for a new one that worked. This kind of trial and error doesn't appeal to me. I hope someone out there knows a way to enable HDMI. Are there some magic words to use with Comcast?

This should help. It sounds like you have to turn HDMI on. http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Setup#HDMI.2FYPbPr_Output


I would like to connect my new Sony LCD TV to my new Comcast Motorola DCT-6412 Phase III via HDMI. The 6412 is providing no output via HDMI. Black screen.

When I picked up this 6412 in person at my local Comcast office, I specifically requested one with HDMI. The Comcast rep foraged in the back room and came up with one. Everything about this box is perfect, except it has no HDMI.
The firmware version is 16.20. The 6412's diagnostics display says the HDMI port is not enabled. Is there any way to enable the HDMI port on this box?

I spent hours on the phone with Comcast support and after finally getting them to vaguely understand my problem, their only suggestion was to return the box to the store and hope for a new one that worked. This kind of trial and error doesn't appeal to me. I hope someone out there knows a way to enable HDMI. Are there some magic words to use with Comcast?

Is there any way to enable the HDMI port on this box?

Are you sure you have the Sony tuned to the correct input (sorry, I had to ask :) ) I will assume you do.

The following website explains how to setup up the DVR box. http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Setup

Basically, power the box off and hit the menu button.
I would make then make the following settings. NOTE:If you can't see anything on your TV you can use the DVR LCD screen to see what the settings are. Also, you can hook up a component cable (don't forget to change the TV input).

TV Type: 16:9
HDMI/YPPbPr: 1080i
4:3 Override: 480i
Additional HDMI settings:
HDMI/DVI mode: HDMI
Color Space: YCC:4:4:4
Audio: Auto

To turn the cable box back on, hit the power button.

If you are still having trouble, try and unplug the HDMI cable and plug it back in to the Sony. If you have another device that outputs HDMI (for example a DVD player) try that to make sure the cable and TV input is working. You can also try the HDMI input on the TV.

If you can verify everything and the box still is not working with HDMI, have it replaced.

Good Luck!

TV Type: 16:9
HDMI/YPPbPr: 1080i
4:3 Override: 480i
Additional HDMI settings:
HDMI/DVI mode: HDMI
Color Space: YCC:4:4:4
Audio: AutoThe problem is I get no HDMI related display or choices. I.e., the box allows me to select YPbPr but not HDMI/YPbPr. There are no "additional" HDMI settings. The box's HDMI is totally disabled. Believe me that everything is hooked up correctly, I'm a techie. I was hoping for some magic words that the Comcast reps would understand to either enable HDMI on this box or to get me one with HDMI enabled.

From what others have said, the HDMI menus only show up if an HDMI device is connected.

Try unplugging and plugging in the HDMI cable to your TV when both devices are on.

From what others have said, the HDMI menus only show up if an HDMI device is connected.Yes. I just tested this and no HDMI menu choices are available if there is no HDMI device connected.

Hello there. I setup my DVR to record new episodes only, yet all the reruns are recorded as well. like the Daily Show repeats 5, 6 times a day, my DVR would record all 5, 6 times.

Anyone else has this problem? Is there something wrong with the guide?

Hello there. I setup my DVR to record new episodes only, yet all the reruns are recorded as well. like the Daily Show repeats 5, 6 times a day, my DVR would record all 5, 6 times.

Anyone else has this problem? Is there something wrong with the guide?

Everybody else has this problem and yes there is something wrong with the guide. If the guide is not flagged as "repeat" or "new" then the DVR assumes it's "new" and records it.

I just set my DVR to record daily at 11:00-11:30 for the Daily show.

To be clear, this is a problem with guide data provided by Comedy Central to service providers.

Recently I have found that the delay in executing commands had gotten far worse. I notice this when I go ahead in the guide for 24 hours, to program what I want. I normally switch to CNN when I do this. Well, CNN started HD service recently. Today, I didn't want to watch the program that was on CNN HD, so I switched to MSNBC, which is SD. In 20 minutes of going through the guide, only once was there a slight delay in executing a command. So, I switched back to CNN HD and tried it. Lots of long delays! So, it seems to me that watching an HD channel greatly exacerbates the command delay problem. Opinions, anyone?

I just set my DVR to record daily at 11:00-11:30 for the Daily show.

Can I ask how you do this? Do you go from day to day setting it to record?

I just wish we had an option like there is on the Dish DVRs I used to have where you can set it to record THIS time slot and THIS channel 5 days a week or 7 days a week or once a week. It shouldn't be that hard for the programmers to give us that option rather than the worthless options we have now with "only new episodes" "new and repeats" "all with duplicates". Worthless because as anyone knows, the guide isn't very accurate as far as "new" or "repeat" episodes.

Barry

Oh, thanks. I have problem with HBO shows like Wire as well.

There is something wrong my manual recording as well. Sometimes, it just doesn't record anything. Oh well.

Can I ask how you do this? Do you go from day to day setting it to record?
Hit MyDVR, then go to 'Set a Recording', then 'Create a Manual Recording'. Set the start and end time, and the FIRST day you want the recording to start, select the channel, then choose 'View recording settings' (wrench icon). On the 'Record' line, use left-right to choose how often to record.

To be clear, this is a problem with guide data provided by Comedy Central to service providers.

I think the cable companies could put a little of their 400 pound gorilla weight on THEIR vendors to get the job done right. They've had over three years to get everyone on board. Time to maybe make some changes.

No "Buck Stops Here" signs in the office, I guess.
I don't write the check to i-guide.

Quality of service has never been a serious concern, however.

Oh, back to TV, my last 10 keypresses finally happened on my Comcast DVR after typing all this.:D

Hit MyDVR, then go to 'Set a Recording', then 'Create a Manual Recording'. Set the start and end time, and the FIRST day you want the recording to start, select the channel, then choose 'View recording settings' (wrench icon). On the 'Record' line, use left-right to choose how often to record.

Well I'll be damned! :rolleyes: It just didn't seem right that there wouldn't be that option......I guess I just didn't look hard enough.

Thank you Andy!

Time to set set up The Daily Show, and a few others.:D

Oh, thanks. I have problem with HBO shows like Wire as well.

There is something wrong my manual recording as well. Sometimes, it just doesn't record anything. Oh well.

That happened to me today....nothing there. First time that I recall that a recording didn't fire off although I don't set all that many manual recordings.

I think the cable companies could put a little of their 400 pound gorilla weight on THEIR vendors to get the job done right.Comedy Central is not a vendor of program guide data. They provide it for free to Tribune and Gemstar (not even Comcast). Your logic simply don't fly. Sorry.

Quality of service has never been a serious concern, however.Indeed, customers are FAR FAR more willing to switch service providers due to the number of HD channels and pricing than they are with regard to quality of service.

I get it.

It's not Comcast's fault.

Bicker Does Comcast do anything wrong?

These forums, constant delays, and my DVR say yes, but you always......

I suppose there is nothing wrong with Comcast having representation here as well.

I get it. It's not Comcast's fault. Bicker Does Comcast do anything wrong?Let me ask you: Is it possible for something to be not-good and yet not be anyone's "fault"??

In context, acting in the best financial interests of a for-profit company's owners is not wrong.

I suppose there is nothing wrong with Comcast having representation here as well.Even my best efforts don't balance the scales to anything close to reality.

Let me ask you: Is it possible for something to be not-good and yet not be anyone's "fault"??

Even my best efforts don't balance the scales

I admire you don't hide your true cause.
You are quietly consistent.

Public relations firm?
Strictly web forum work?
Large scale stock owner?
Freelance?
Or just a good old devil advocate type?

I can understand. AVS Forums has developed a great deal of influence.
The forum is now quoted by a number of other sites.

A little bending of opinion is a wise move for any company that has image problems with it's own customers.

Anyway, good luck.

I admire you don't hide your true cause.
You are quietly consistent.

Public relations firm?
Strictly web forum work?
Large scale stock owner?
Freelance?
Or just a good old devil advocate type?No: Just an American.

So, it seems to me that watching an HD channel greatly exacerbates the command delay problem. Opinions, anyone?

I've noticed the same thing. I assume that it's due to the much higher data rate of HD video.

My 6412 rebooted last night, and I lost EVERYTHING on it when it came backs up.

All the recorded shows ... all the series info, etc..

Does this happen sometimes?

It never happened to me when I had a 6412, but I have read reports of it happening to others. I did have some of the other reported problems with my 6412 (such as the key queing issue), but my current 3416, by contrast, has been rock-solid.

Been trying to set up a series recording on the HD Sci-fi channel. I had a previous one for the same show, but on the standard def channel. So far, 3 times, as soon as I hit the button to record with these settings, the box reboots, looses all things in the guide and has to download everything again, and does not set the recording. Is this happening to anyone else?

Been trying to set up a series recording on the HD Sci-fi channel. I had a previous one for the same show, but on the standard def channel. So far, 3 times, as soon as I hit the button to record with these settings, the box reboots, looses all things in the guide and has to download everything again, and does not set the recording. Is this happening to anyone else?Wow, that's a strange one. I haven't seen it and haven't seen it reported before. But maybe another poster has.

But I'd call Comcast. Maybe they know about it and have a fix. Minimally they could send out a tech to diagnose/fix the problem. Good luck with it.

Well, I dont think the issue is with the box. I just tried to do the same on the other box I have in the bedroom and it did the same thing. Maybe someone doesnt want me to set a series recording for Battlestar Galatica.

Been trying to set up a series recording on the HD Sci-fi channel. I had a previous one for the same show, but on the standard def channel. So far, 3 times, as soon as I hit the button to record with these settings, the box reboots, looses all things in the guide and has to download everything again, and does not set the recording. Is this happening to anyone else?

I've been having the exact same problem with trying to set up a series recording for John Adams on HBO. I have a 6412 in Lancaster and one in Philadelphia (different comcast systems). Same thing on both boxes. Could the large number of reruns and mutiplicity of titles for these programs be causing a system crash?

Well, I dont think the issue is with the box. I just tried to do the same on the other box I have in the bedroom and it did the same thing. Maybe someone doesnt want me to set a series recording for Battlestar Galatica.

I'm having the same exact problem with my DVR with the same show, and a few others. I just now got off the phone with Comcast and the tech just had me reboot the box, which I had already done since it reboots each time I try to set a series recording, and he shot a "signal" down to my box. He said that if it still does it, to go in and have the box exchanged. Now I'm not too sure that's going to "fix" the issue as the last few posts make it seem.

Comcast in Charles Town, WV, just outside DC.

Anyone have any info on this?

Well, I dont think the issue is with the box. I just tried to do the same on the other box I have in the bedroom and it did the same thing. Maybe someone doesnt want me to set a series recording for Battlestar Galatica.

Obviously the work of those nasty Cylons!

Actually, I have had a sort of similar problem, where the box automatically reboots when I am going through the channel by channel program guide. Since I learned to make sure neither channel was set to a HD channel while I do this, it has not recurred, and response to command times are almost always instant, instead of lagging. I think both problems are overloading problems.

Two of the shows in particular that I attempted to record and had problems with are Top Gear and Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America. What was happening is that it was recording the same show on both tuners at the same time. I now know why...

I have several channels that appear twice in my channel guide and BBC America happens to be one of them. These channels all have one which appears with a double digit channel number, while its twin will have a triple digit number. I select a recurring recording of a particular show and it try to record both at the same time from both channels. (Basically, I'm asking the DVR to record each new episode of these two shows when they air) How can I fix this?

Does everyone with Comcast have several channels that appear twice but are exactly the same?

Two of the shows in particular that I attempted to record and had problems with are Top Gear and Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America. What was happening is that it was recording the same show on both tuners at the same time. I now know why...

I have several channels that appear twice in my channel guide and BBC America happens to be one of them. These channels all have one which appears with a double digit channel number, while its twin will have a triple digit number. I select a recurring recording of a particular show and it try to record both at the same time from both channels. (Basically, I'm asking the DVR to record each new episode of these two shows when they air) How can I fix this?

Does everyone with Comcast have several channels that appear twice but are exactly the same?

We have Time Warner (formerly Comcast in this area). The channel numbers below 100 are analog and the numbers above 100 are digital. All of the analog channels have digital equivalents. We've never had the problem with duplicate simultaneous recordings though.

If you check your series recordings, you haven't set it up to record the series twice on two different channel numbers have you? If you look at Future Recordings, does it show it scheduled to record on both channels? What version of the software is your box? (http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Firmware_and_Software#How_To_Check_Your_Firmware_and_Softwar e_Versions_.28i-Guide.29)

We have Time Warner (formerly Comcast in this area). The channel numbers below 100 are analog and the numbers above 100 are digital. All of the analog channels have digital equivalents. We've never had the problem with duplicate simultaneous recordings though.

If you check your series recordings, you haven't set it up to record the series twice on two different channel numbers have you? If you look at Future Recordings, does it show it scheduled to record on both channels? What version of the software is your box? (http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Firmware_and_Software#How_To_Check_Your_Firmware_and_Softwar e_Versions_.28i-Guide.29)

I'll have to get back to you about the software version...I'm not at home at the moment.

All I did was go forward an hour, highlight the show, and select record. I asked it record new episodes. An hour later I would be watching a different program and it would give me the option of canceling the recording or switching the channel. I then tried the other tuner...same thing. One tuner is recording the lower version of the channel while the other tuner is recording higher version of the tuner.

If I do not have the newest version of the software...it is possible for me to update or can only the provider do that?

UPDATE: followed the wiki link you provided. In the info for the newest software available...there is a intro video from Comcast. That is not the software I have. Just so you know...I am using old software.

Alright tech just left the house and they brought us a brand new receiver...a Motorola DCH6416. I haven't even seen it yet (wife was home and called me) and I know nothing about it. Wish me luck!

I tried searching inthe 340+ pages about this but can't find the answer.

I have the 6412 III with firmware 12.35 (Time Warner). It's attached to my Onkyo 605 receiver via HDMI and the Onkyo is connected to the HDMI input on my Panasonic TH-50PX60U Plasma HDTV. Moto => HDMI => Onkyo 605 => Panny TH-50PX60U HDTV. On the Motorola set up menu I choose 1080i for the "HDMI/YPbPr Output" (and 4:3 override is at 480i) but when I eventually turn off the TV and the Onkyo receiver (leaving the Moto cable box on all the time) it everytime automatically changes the HDMI/YPbPr Output on my Moto box to 720p when I turn the TV and receiver back on. I notice for a split second that something seems to pop up on the screen of the cable box that looks like "dui" or "du1" just after the TV turns off. Any help is appreciated so I can keep it set at 1080i (assuming that is the best choice).

You broke the HDMI data handshake between the STB and the TV/Monitor.

Some HDMI switchers keep the connection when set to off or other devices, your Audio Switcher does not. HDMI requires a Always there connection between the 2 Devices to maintain a proper connection. when the connection is gone, you will need to start the Handshake process in the correct order for the 2 devices to talk to each other..

This was a nice feature of the v4 software on the Moxi DVR. It had a setting for Timeslot where you could set All Times, or pick from a specific time. I used to set Daily Show to only record new and only at the 11pm-11:30pm timeslot. Alas now that I have the 6416 I am back to going through the future recordings and cancelling everything not at the 11pm-11:30pm timeslot. Sigh. :(

This was a nice feature of the v4 software on the Moxi DVR. It had a setting for Timeslot where you could set All Times, or pick from a specific time. I used to set Daily Show to only record new and only at the 11pm-11:30pm timeslot. Alas now that I have the 6416 I am back to going through the future recordings and cancelling everything not at the 11pm-11:30pm timeslot. Sigh. :(
Instead of setting the Series recording, you might prefer to set it to record the show at the specific time and channel. That is what we do for The Colbert Report to avoid the problem you describe.

Trabajo en un centro de reparacion y me gustaria que me enviaran informacion acerca de la unidad DCT6412, dct6416 & OTROS MODELOS que presentan en la lista de grabaciones del hard drive el evento 12/31/1989. envienme el Numero de serie de la unidad para verificarla.....

I WORK IN REPAIR CENTER, I'LL LIKE TO YOU SEND ME A SERIAL NUMBER OF THE BOXES THAT HAVE EVENT 12/31/1989.. PLEASE. I DONT WRITE ENGLISH JEJE:rolleyes:

Guys..a quick question. I have 6412 that freezes up quite often (does not respond to commands and then all of a sudden it responds to all previous commands). I know this is a common issue, but perhaps it is because I have an old box?

Do you think a new box would solve this problem or is it still ongoing?

It still happens with my DCT3416.

Guys..a quick question. I have 6412 that freezes up quite often (does not respond to commands and then all of a sudden it responds to all previous commands). I know this is a common issue, but perhaps it is because I have an old box?

Do you think a new box would solve this problem or is it still ongoing?

Been happening to me lately too. About once a day it seems like and it lasts for 4 or 5 minutes or so. If I could get my locals I'd be back to satelite. I used a Dish DVR for a week last month, I'd forgotten how good a DVR can work. The worst part is there are so many bugs with the Moto box and even the simplest ones never seem to get fixed.

I'd be surprised if a new box will fix your problems.

Barry

Guys..a quick question. I have 6412 that freezes up quite often (does not respond to commands and then all of a sudden it responds to all previous commands). I know this is a common issue, but perhaps it is because I have an old box?

Do you think a new box would solve this problem or is it still ongoing?

pos moto box. get a tivoHD

I have been able to minimize this problem by making sure that any tuner I am not using is on a SD channel, not a HD channel. When I would have the second tuner tuned to a HD channel, have the viewing tuner tuned to CNN HD, and try to use the guide to run through the next 24 hours of programming, to see if I wanted to record anything, it was constantly jammed, almost no commands responded promptly. So, now I make sure the second tuner is set to a SD channel, I watch CNN in SD (in the box) while I go through the guide. It freezes so rarely, that I am genuinely surprised when a command hesitates for a second or two, before going through. Of course, I shouldn't have to do it that way, but it helps a lot.

Since my DCT-3416 was upgraded from firmware 12.31 to 16.20, the remote lag issue has almost completely vanished. If it does happen, it only lags for a few seconds at most (and usually when I'm switching channels rapidly). That said, I have experienced an occasional DVR lock-up where it stops responding completely (only a reboot fixes it). This typically happens if I skip through a recorded show too quickly (I rarely have it happen when watching something live or time-shifted). If this lock-up happens while something is recording, the recording usually continues but is left in a somewhat broken state (for example, FF and REW don't work in the portion past the lock-up point). The problem does not appear to get worse if HD channel(s) are tuned, though I have noticed some very slight remote lag (maybe a second) if both tuners are on an HD channel.

My DCT-6412p2 lags REAL BAD. I cannot even channel surf in the old school way of just hitting the CH up arrow constantly. It WILL freeze and queue up all button commands.

Firmware 16.35 here did nothing to fix the problem from the prior version 9.19. We've been on 16.35 for about 18 months or so now. Bout time for a new version, but it keeps getting pushed back due to Seachange VOD problems.

Here is the exact procedure to program a swap or 30 second skip to the remote.

1) Press the "Cable" button at the top of the remote to put it into Cable Box control mode.
2) Press and hold the "Setup" button until the "Cable" button blinks twice.
3) Type in the code 994. The "Cable" button will blink twice
4) Press (do not hold) the "Setup" button
5) Type in the code 00173 (for 30 second Skip) or 00236 (for Swap).
6) Press whatever button you want to map the skip or swap function to.

Marc

I sent these instructions to my sister-in-law and she accidentally mapped the 30 second skip function to the menu button. Is there a way to clear this out and try again?