Sony DHG-HDD250/500: Official Thread


HERE'S A LINK TO A RESOURCE GUIDE OUTLINING OPERATION OF THE SONY HDD250/500, INCLUDING OPERATION OF THE TVGOS SYSTEM:

spiffSPACE.com Sony HDD250/500 FAQ (http://www.spiffspace.com/sonydvr.html)

Supposedly they will be shipping them out from SonyStyle on the 23rd of May. If you pre-ordered from somewhere else you are probably looking at the very last week of MAy or the beginning of June for the first shipment. I have mine pre-ordered at datavision...

I preordered from Sony Style early in April in the hope that they would be one of the first to ship. If the date of 23 May is correct, that sounds great. I have been wanting a machine like this for five years now. Even though it is expensive, it sounds excellent for me. Unlike many other posters in this forum, I have no use for TIVO and don't want to have to pay for it along with the phone calls that it makes. I have read the manual twice in considerable detail so I am really ready to get my hands on it.

Cynthia

I too have one (the 250) on order from Datavis. I placed the preorder back in Feb., I believe, and just this weekend got an e-mail from them telling me the item had been back-ordered. I placed the order when they were a bit cheaper than the Sony advertised price, so it will be interesting to see what price they eventually come up with on my order.

End of May would be great, but truthfully I'll be happy if this thing comes out (and works as advertised) anytime this summer.

So, how long before somebody cracks one open to find out if it is possible to buy a DHG-HDD250 and upgrade it to a DHG-HDD500? I kind of have some extra 250GB drives just laying about :D

The Dreamer

Single tuner and no firewire... don't get why someone would want this considering the price tag and available alternatives? Only upside I see is cablecard support along with OTA input - but that's a hefty price to pay.

For me it's just a VCR that can record HDTV. No cable, no satellite, no Tivo, no monthly fees. For that device, there aren't many options regardless of price - at least not without their issues.*

*Certainly not to say that the Sony may not have it's own set of issues, but I've got my fingers crossed.

Yup, all of us OTA people need some good alternatives. Basically we have DVHS decks, the LG deck, or these upcoming Sonys. All about free OTA HDTV. :p

Originally posted by aces


*Certainly not to say that the Sony may not have it's own set of issues, but I've got my fingers crossed. If history is any guide, expect to see at least some issues.

I was really hopeful about this device, but seeing how weak the software is compared to TiVo or even Media Center, I just can't justify it. I just can't go back to what amounts to a glorified VCR.

Because you've used one already?

Just was checking to see if these things are out yet. If this was available at the beginning of the year, I probably would have considered it. Since it was not, I went ahead and built a MCE 2005 box with a single HDTV tuner in it, with 580gig of disk space. I can add a second HDTV tuner if I need one, but am fine using the tuner in my TV for OTA HDTV when recording with my MCE 2005 HTPC.

It would have saved me the headache of building a HTPC, but then I would not have all the functionality that MCE affords me. We have many digital pictures and video, not to mention 4,000 songs on disk. When you can buy a HDTV ready HTPC it will be a no brainer compared to a single purpose device like this at this price point. Just my .02 worth.
Bryan

I built an MCE 2005 box too. I started out with a chassis, motherboard, proc, RAM, and video card (ATI 9700Pro) already in the box. Spent about 700 bucks or so on two 300GB drives, Serial ATA RAID card, a couple HD tuners and an analog card, and the bugger won't record reliably. It won't record CBS at all because the guide that downloads every day pulls down the wrong physical channel info from zap2it. Called MS, they told me to send an email to zap2it. Five days and I've heard nothing back from them.

Sure the music, pictures, and ripped DVDs are cool. But the picture still flickers on the Sony 34" tube I have it hooked up to. I could roll the dice and spend another couple hundred on a newer video card to see if that helps...

My HDD500 is on preorder with SonyStyle. Hoping they really ship them out May 23.

Gbrock,

Getting a HTPC working properly and reliably is not an easy task and not for everyone. I went through quite an ordeal to get it done, but I was faced with no recording vs wait for something so opted for the do it myself route. You will avoid the headache and save time if you can buy an off the shelf product. Being a new product it may have a few kinks to work out, but will be nothing in comparison to building your own. After my trials and tribulations I have a solid reliable HTPC, but it did not come easily. I have my system images of a working system save in multiple places!

I have a guide problem with MCE as well. The information is correct on Zaptoit, but incorrect within MCE for one channel. I don't know why MCE would change the guide information. There is a workaround for it though. I don't want to hijack this thread as this is about the Sony HDD becoming available.

Good luck with your HTPC if that is the route you continue upon and I look forward to seeing the reviews of the Sony once it hits the streets. We need other reliable HDTV recording options beside TIVO, the LG and the RCA DVR10. While the HTPC is great once you get it working, it is by no means mainstream at this point for HDTV.

Bryan

Sony sent me a tracking number: I will have my unit next week: 18 May

How is it being sent(UPS Ground???) They are expected to be in SonyStyle's San Diego's hands on the 20th. When you check the tracking number did it say in route???

Looks like Sony's sending them all to SonyStyle right now... my Sony guy (retailer) says maybe mid-June for him.

Originally posted by kong
How is it being sent(UPS Ground???) They are expected to be in SonyStyle's San Diego's hands on the 20th. When you check the tracking number did it say in route???

it did in fact ship today FedX ground from Ca: won't show up here until 18 May

Mine's scheduled for delivery today.

<Happy Dance>

Originally posted by GBrock
Mine's scheduled for delivery today.


It looks like you get to be the first to give a review on AVS. When should we expect it? About 9 pm tonite? :D

-phil

Originally posted by markrubin
Sony sent me a tracking number: I will have my unit next week: 18 May
Are you going to use this for Digital OTA, Digital Cable, or both?

On the two units that have already shipped, what date were they ordered? I was waiting until they started shipping to place an order. Just placed the order ! Damn this thing is expensive ! (I ordered the DHG-HDD250)

ordered mine May 8 from Sony

tomorrow Comcast installs a SA8300 and an additional cablecard

(edit: you cannot swap cards between displays: it messes up the autorization)

so I will be able to compare the 2 recorders: the SA 8300 does not have DVI working and only outputs 1080i until Comcast updates the firmware

the nice thing about the Sony store is the return policy: you can get a RA automatically by email thru their automated phone system

Sony Style said that they got a limmited number of the first batch. All other orders are on back-order. As for other retailers, it looks like the end of May to the beginning of June. Datavision has not heard anything yet...
SO GBrock fill us in on the initial thoughts!!!

Originally posted by QZ1
Are you going to use this for Digital OTA, Digital Cable, or both?

for Digital OTA & Cablecard HD

I called sonystyle also and they did not have any information on future shipments. They only know that it is not in stock and should ship by May 21.... I don't think they know anything so we will see what happens with the order I placed today.

Well, it won't be me reporting on it tonight. According to the service agent I spoke to at FedEx, the driver got to the curb, scanned the package, and it had been rerouted by the shipper. So they took it back.

I spoke to an agent at SonyStyle, and she said that the "package was misrouted" and that they would have to cancel my order and I'd have to reorder?!?!?! After telling her that that option was unacceptable and I'd ordered it weeks ago so I'd have one of the first ones they shipped, and that FedEx told me it was someone from Sony that had rerouted the package, she tried to talk to FedEx again to see if they could get the box back (at least that's what she said.) Anyway, after going the rounds for 45 minutes with me doing my best to keep my temper in check, I have to call back tomorrow so I can speak to a supervisor. They didn't have any available.

I've gotta say, I've never been this unhappy with a mail-order/e-commerce experience. And I've had a lot of them.

<Angry dance>

If I were you GBrock I would have assaulted the FedEx person and took my package with my name on it inside. It worth a night in jail for your mail. Anyway what's the cop gonna say to the fedex guy, when you tell him the fedex guy teased you with a package that had your name on it and you ordered it. (TV Rule of Law) Possession is 9/10th of the law. This is y I deal with USPS as often as I can. If you get a letter or a package from the mailman and Sony wants it back, they are not going to do that, and at worse they leave it at your door. That's y they call it MAIL-order.

GBrock
What did Sony finally say? Hopefully they let you keep the package...I too would be furious as hell if that had happened to me...

GBrock
What did Sony finally say? Hopefully they let you keep the package...I too would be furious as hell if that had happened to me...

Comcast brought me an 8000 DVR; they said the 8300 is not available yet

it does some strange things: you cannot tune to ch 205 Discovery HD unless you switch to an analog channel first: DVI and firewire ports are not active

I got an extra CableCard for the Sony: I can phone in the info to activate it

Comcast techs have to phone in the CableCard data which then has to be faxed to Plainfield to authorize the card :o

I was talking to a supervisor 10 minutes after they opened on Saturday. He put me on hold to 'get the current status' and came back on and told me the package had already been delivered and they couldn't get it back. He claimed that Sony had not done the re-routing and that the information had been turned over to another department that would investigate why the package had been re-routed.

He said I'd have to reorder. He couldn't tell me when they would have more in stock, but that he would request the info and promised an email to me on Tuesday or Wednesday with an ETA.

I have a coupon code for free shipping. Now I need to decide whether I want to use it or not.

FWIW, the shipping date is now OFF the Sony site. I guess they enjoy yanking us around. Hmmm. JR

mine shows it is on the truck for delivery today

Originally posted by jerrich
FWIW, the shipping date is now OFF the Sony site. I guess they enjoy yanking us around. Hmmm. JR

Uhmm, my guess would be because THEY ARE ALREADY SHIPPING! Why would you put a shipping date that is in the past on your web site? All you need to do is put the product on the site and let the consumers correctly assume the product is available.

-phil

I emailed Sony yesterday to try to cancel my order. I hope it gets cancelled before it ships!

With the price reduction in the DirectTV HDTivo to $699 effective today, this Sony box does not look so attractive any more. Of course I am locked into DirectTV, have to pay the $4.99/month Tivo fee, but the HDTivo box has more features. Plus I can record from DirectTV and OTA at the same time.

I rec'd mine on Friday (5/13/05) afternoon...got it set up mostly on Saturday night. CableCARD won't be installed until tonight so I haven't really worked with tweaking the channel guide or anything. Figured I'd wait until I had access to all the channels first.

From the looks of it I think I am going to like it. I will be using it as well as a Comcast Motorola 6200 (6212 I think? Has 2 tuners) series DVR/HDTV Cable box.

Using the Sony in conjunction with the Comcast box affords me luxury of not missing the second tuner in the Sony.

We archive shows for quite awhile and watch them on our time schedule and the Motorola box just didn't have the HDD capacity, ya know?

From what I've seen of the guide, it sure looks like it blows away most cable system guides.....certainly mine from Cablevision.

Mark, I would certainly be interested in your observations of the Sony unit. Could you post some pics, or anyone else for that matter, of the guide and maybe expound on how it works.

Thanks...

The guide is kind of nice...I haven't really had a chance to sit down and really USE it but what I have seen I like...Setup was extremely easy and it worked the first time. Detected regular cable channels that don't require decrypting immediately during initial setup, even the local HDTV's...

So far so good.....:D

Originally posted by PhilB
All you need to do is put the product on the site and let the consumers correctly assume the product is available.



The problem is it's back to not available. Sony doesn't have them in stock and nobody there has the slightest clue when they'll have them again.

I wonder how many units Sony manufactured in this first lot. If it was a significant amount, they certainly sold out of them very quickly. I know many people have been waiting quite a long time for these units...some over a year!

[EDIT: The site apparently has the smaller 250 shipping the next day:

"Usually ships next business day. "


and the 500 as shipping date not available (which doesn't necessarily mean they are out of stock as I've seen this message before and taken delivery almost immediately...items shipped straight from Japan on new merchandise):

"Shipping date not available. We will notify you by email when this product has shipped."

mine arrived and looks good :)

it first asks if you want to scan for OTA channels; I chose No but it scanned anyway (I have no decent ATSC reception because of terrain)

then it takes one hour to read the cablecard to obtain Card data, host ID info to have the card authorized: I phoned it in and am waiting for card authorization

HDMI works well and audio is fed via the HDMI connector (yes it cuts off the component video analog out:( )

however during channel changes I hear lots of static popping in the audio: this is a problem

more: looking at system info, it appears the DHG-HDD500 has two hard drives; software Version 1.2.05: it gives signal strength for both antenna and cable inputs

more OK now I have card authorization: the encrypted channels such as 205 Discovery, INHD 206, 207 look excellent: I have the output set to 1080i using HDMI

The guide is the TV Guide system: no guide data yet

Nobody at SonyStyle knows anything about stock, but my second order has shipped today according the email I just received. I may have to sit out on the porch all day and be ready to tackle the FedEx guy. Hopefully I'll have better luck this time...

the analog audio output is clean: no popping sound during channel change

Mark, what are you feeding with the signals coming from the unit?

Did you try optical or coax audio out to see if noise during channel changes is present?

signal source is Comcast HD

audio:

analog: OK
optical: not checked yet
SPDIF: no coax digital audio out
HDMI audio: noticeable popping while switching channels

What is receiving the hdmi audio signal as it may be the culprit, particularly if that device cannot accept full 5.1 audio and the hdd500 isn't downmixing the audio?

As I understand it, during the initial handshake the devices normally communicate their abilities but I suppose if this isn't implemented properly there could be problems.

display is Sharp LC45GX6U

the HDMI audio works clean from an HD Tivo to this display

Mark, is the PQ on the Sony better than your previous cable HD box?

Originally posted by Ken Ross
Mark, is the PQ on the Sony better than your previous cable HD box?

still looking at that Ken: the PQ from the Sony looks as good as the direct cablecard on the LC45

interesting: the Sony introduces a delay of 3-4 seconds over any other Comcast source including SA8000, SA3250, and Cablecard in the display :(

Sony channel changing is also slower than the SA8000

Hmm, shades of the HD Tivo? Could it somehow be related to the HDMI?

I wonder how the Sony would look on the 63" Fujitsu....I know you'll give that a shot!

Originally posted by Ken Ross
Hmm, shades of the HD Tivo? Could it somehow be related to the HDMI?

I wonder how the Sony would look on the 63" Fujitsu....I know you'll give that a shot!

yes Ken: when I went back to Sony component video the delay is gone: the delay(and audio noise) are through the HDMI output: the HDMI output is how I intended to install it

I will try it on the P63 in the next few days: that would be HDMI for video and toslink for audio

Mark, can't you just break out the audio via the optical audio output of the Sony? This way you'll get the HDMI video connection and avoid the crackling audio.

Originally posted by Ken Ross
Mark, can't you just break out the audio via the optical audio output of the Sony? This way you'll get the HDMI video connection and avoid the crackling audio.

the Sharp LC-45 HDMI input does not offer a separate audio in of any type: audio in is only through the HDMI connector :(

and I wonder if the 4 second delay would show up between audio and video that way: I will check it

I didn't realize that about the Sharp. Strange decision on Sharp's part to omit separate audio inputs.

Can someone post some pics of the TV guide interface?

Interactive demo of TV Guide OnScreen (http://www.tvguideonscreen.com/)

Can one or more of those of you lucky enough to have received one give us a mini-review or two?

Some questions: Can you use the remote to change the display format? Can you use the remote to change the aspect ratio? How about switching between OTA and cable? Any quirks for analog versus digital OTA? Does analog OTA or cable look any worse? Can you pause & rewind a program during scheduled recording (my Zenith does not let you do this)?

There are no reviews out there from someone who actual has one, so please share some knowledge!

Thanks

Got mine today. Thus far the guide hasn't downloaded (expected) and the PQ appears excellent.

You can use the remote to change both resolution and aspect ratios. I don't have mine hooked up to OTA, but my guess is it would be integrated into the guide....maybe Mark Rubin knows at this point? PQ appears better than on my 8300 DVR. I'm not sure about pausing & rewinding during a recording, I'll check that out later.

Originally posted by BondDude
Some questions:

Here is a link to Sony's support website where you can download the "Operation Manual". It will probably answer a lot of your questions.
esupport.sony.com/perl/model-documents.pl?mdl=DHGHDD500

Can you use the remote to change the display format?
Yes, with the FORMAT button. It toggles through the various fixed formats (1080i, 720p, 480i, 480p), then through some "variable" formats, and "native" (which makes the output format match the input format). However, the "variable" and "native" formats tend to slow down the channel changes when they require a video format change.

Can you use the remote to change the aspect ratio?
Yes, the SCREEN button toggles through various choices for aspect ratio conversion. These choices seem to vary depending on the current input and output video formats.

How about switching between OTA and cable?
The channel list is integrated, so you don't have to explicitly switch. OTA and cable channels are combined in a numerically ordered list. Just channel up/down or 10-key to the channel that you want. In the program guide, you can customize the ordering of the channels to suit your needs.

Any quirks for analog versus digital OTA?
I don't think so.

Does analog OTA or cable look any worse?
Haven't noticed.

Can you pause & rewind a program during scheduled recording (my Zenith does not let you do this)?
I think so... I haven't noticed any time I can't pause/rewind.

well it has been 24 hours and no guide data yet:

left it turned off all night and today :(

Still no guide data on mine either and some quirky behavior with my Gefen HDMI switcher. It seems that on occasion, when I switch back to the new Sony, the resolution drops down to 480, requiring me to manually switch back to 1080i or switch to a different input and then go back to the Sony. :(

no guide data doesn't sound good...i would try rebooting the systems or running through the setup again if it is similar to other experiences i've had with tv guide listings.

I rebooted, reset zip code, and have been leaving unit off: after 30 hours, still no clock data, no guide data :(

Nearly a year late, one tuner and still buggy? Ugh!

Is there anyone to call for help at Sony?

Is there anyone to call for help at Sony?

I will take that as a tongue-in-cheek comment !

I have not had too much luck calling Sony technical support particularly on a brand new product

I wonder if Comcast somehow filters out the guide data?

anyhow this morning I still have no clock or guide data

I got a Return Authorization (all done on line) to return this box: I can still reconsider if the guide data shows up

but with no guide data the box is useless: the popping noise in the HDMI audio is also a problem for me

Looks like I will stick with the SA8000: I can't see spending a thousand dollars for a buggy stb

Where does the guide data come from? From cable or OTA?

Update: My unit did show the time when I went down this morning. That's good. I turned the unit on and there was the guide for the first time with all the pretty channel logos on the left of the time grid. That's good. There seems to be no rationale for the ordering of the channels. That's not good. You can reorder the channels in anyway you want. That's good.
I estimate that will take about a week for all the channels that are showing up since it's a time consuming process. That's not good. I have no program information for any channel anywhere. That's not good.

I don't like the number of button pushes to call up your favorites. You press once to call up the favorites menu. Then you must scroll down to the category where you put your favorites in and then you have to press select to call them up. This brings up the channel #s on the right and you scroll to the channel # you want. A bit tedious. I'm finding menus in general to be a bit tedius with this box.

So I'll give it some more time, but if things don't imporve I'll be taking the Mark Rubin approach. I will say the PQ is quite good.

I'm glad I cancelled my order. In the end, I couldn't are spending that kind of money on a product that had only one tuner and was almost guaranteed to be buggy!

I ordered an external sata enclosure, 400gb hd and esata cable for my 8300 and will just hope that the gui is improved further over time...I don't find it to be that bad...of course i've never owned a tivo so I'm in a good position :)


Thanks for your time and efforts mark...I'm sure you saved many here a lot of time.

Originally posted by Foxbat121
Where does the guide data come from? From cable or OTA?

the box setup first asks you if you have an antenna connected: I clicked no and went on the cablecard setup,

so I assume guide info must be carried on both cable and OTA

My OTA is spotty since 9/11 so I did not connect the OTA antenna

Ben, that's really my only real issue with the 8300, that UGLY GUI!! I still don't understand why the menu is obviously designed for a 4:3 set when this is an HD PVR? They could have included an extra hour's worth of data with a 16:9 format. Make no sense to me.

But it is faster than the Tivo and it's PQ is good.

It seems that Cablevison does provide at least the channel numbering scheme for the TV Guide feature, but thus far I see no program information.

I can't imagine any cable operator will offer 3rd party cable guide info through its cable line. Your only chance is OTA via existing broadcasting channels. So if you don't have OTA reception, you probably will never get guide info.

Originally posted by Foxbat121
I can't imagine any cable operator will offer 3rd party cable guide info through its cable line. Your only chance is OTA via existing broadcasting channels. So if you don't have OTA reception, you probably will never get guide info.

I can't even get the clocks to automatically set on the old VCR's via Cable.

Alan

Originally posted by Ken Ross
It seems that Cablevison does provide at least the channel numbering scheme for the TV Guide feature, but thus far I see no program information.

I have an older SD CRT in my bedroom and it has the GuidePlus system. I had been having problems with it just recently, but most recently, when I checked, the guide was there fully populated and up-to-date. I'll have to check tonight when I get home if I remember...I don't usually watch TV on that set any longer although the wife does.

I don't know why these new TV's and STB/DVR's don't have an ethernet port built in so that you can simply plug them into your network and let them grab the data in this manner.

Originally posted by Foxbat121
I can't imagine any cable operator will offer 3rd party cable guide info through its cable line. Your only chance is OTA via existing broadcasting channels. So if you don't have OTA reception, you probably will never get guide info.

That was exactly what I was thinking. Why would a cable company agree to this? The problem with OTA hookup is that it will probably only give you info for the broadcast channels. What about the premium services such as the HBOs of the world?

Originally posted by Ken Ross
That was exactly what I was thinking. Why would a cable company agree to this? The problem with OTA hookup is that it will probably only give you info for the broadcast channels. What about the premium services such as the HBOs of the world?

I haven't seen nor heard of a single area that is properly implementing the PSIP data so I highly doubt that the guide was meant to be obtained from OTA.

I don't think cable operators can "block" the guide intentionally. I'm not sure of the specifics, but maybe if you try removing all splitters and/or plugging it into a "home-run" cable jack. Signal strength and maybe even bi-directionality may be the culprit.

Originally posted by Foxbat121
Where does the guide data come from? From cable or OTA?

EPG on these type of boxes (I have a 3410a) typically come from OTA PBS channels in the area; there may be others, but I believe the box basically searches from Channel 1 on up and locks onto the first one that has the data. My understanding is that cable should pass this data through as it is embedded in the original TV broadcast signal.
I can see from some of the posts that Guide problems don't seem to discriminate between vendors. I will watch with interest as folks who use the Sony try to find all the "tricks" to get consistent EGP functionality (like re-booting); I assume there's at least a Guide download light (ala the 3410a) so you have an idea of what's going on.

This is still sounding promosing for us OTA only people. This hardly sounds like a junk product that still needs a much longer look.

Assuming the guide download is a function of TV Guide and not the box manufacturer, it should work like this:

After the first night, you will get guide info for days 1,2,3 and 8. Each successive night will add new days 3 and 8. After five nights the guide should be full (8 days of info).

The guide info arrives via OTA or cable. I've found cable to be more reliable with the LG 3410A, possibly because of the more consistent signal than my indoor OTA antenna.

What I'd like to know about the Sony is how mapped channels appear in the guide. For example, my 3410A maps Comcast NBC-HD to channel 116-5. Yet the guide channel shows up as 188 (Comcast's assigned number). Then I have to go and manually change the channel numbers for each mapped guide channel.

This seems really stupid, so I'd like to know if the Sony handles this differently.

In a direct A/B test via HDMI, the PQ of the Sony is exactly the same as the SA8300. I was a bit surprised by this because I thought the Sony had an edge, but it shows you how dangerous it is to just use your memory in determining PQ. For me that's another strike against the Sony.

To Phil's point, the channel guide mapping seems to be all over the place just as he pointed out with the 3410A. To get any kind of coherent order, you have to manually rearrange all the channels by prioritizing where you want them in the guide. This is a VERY time consuming process since every single channel needs to be re-ordered. At this point the guide is far more cumbersome than I had imagined. Very disappointing. I have no intention of literally spending hours to do that at this point.

I also don't like the methodology for calling up your favorite channels. Too many button pushes.

Another concern is the very frequent resolution changes that take place during switching of inputs. For some reason the Sony frequently down-rezzes as I change to its input. Not good at all and indicative that there's an inconsistent 'handshake' between the display and the box. I don't get this with any other HDMI source via my Gefen switcher. Only very very occasionally have I gotten this with my D* Sony HD200.

So, as you can tell, I'm disappointed thus far (not to mention still having no program information). At least I do have a guide now that shows channels, but that's pretty useless without the actual program information.

To go back to an earlier comment, these devices should all be network compatable. I just added a Roku Soundbridge to my stereo to let me access music stored on my computer. At $250 it even came with a wireless card, so I didn't have to run a network cable to my stereo location. This is the 21st century! I have one of these on order through my store, so I will be in touch with Sony through our service department if the program guide doesn't work. Lew

at 48 hours with no clock or guide data from cable only;

I connected an OTA antenna, did a channel scan (it found several analog and digital channels) and updated the setup for the guide to tell it an antenna is connected

will see if this brings up guide data

Mark, Did you find a PBS OTA station? (Is it possible to write a whole sentence in 3 letter acronyms?). Lew

Ken,

As far as the ORDER of the channels in the guide, yes, there is no order. Not only that (again referring to the 3410A --- I don't have the Sony), some cable channels do not even appear in the guide, while others appear that I don't have. This happens notwithstanding the fact that the guide is "customized" to your zip code.

You can tune the channels that don't appear in the guide, but of course you lack the info and recording setup features for such channels.

It wouldn't be so bad rearranging the order if you just had to do it once. But the LG will, at random times, reset the order and the remapped channels. What a pain! I'm hoping the Sony has improved on this.

This type of box seems to have two possible sets of problems: the manufacturer's hardware/firmware, and the TV Guide. Troubleshooting becomes difficult when the line between these is not clear. I would think that the Sony hardware/firmware would tend to be reliable, and that most problems will be caused by the guide.

I suppose you'll see what happens over the next couple of days. I'm sure many of us are curious about the Sony, and are waiting to see how it acts.

Oh, boy, I wonder how long it will take THIS thread to match the 3410A's 130+ pages?!? :rolleyes:

Phil, it pretty much sounds like your issues with the 3410 are precisely the same with the Sony. Of course I've got the additional issue with the "auto down-rezzing of the Sony). You are correct, I forgot to mention that some of the cable HD channels I do get haven't yet shown up in the guide but yet I can tune them. They reside in the favorites but refuse to integrate into the guide.

If this thing had even a semi-volative memory, I'd think I'd jump out of a window after spending hours rearranging channels. This is why I've done nothing unitl I see if this guide is actually viable.

In the meantime I've got my RMA from Sony. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

If only there were some way to check if the guide data is available, without buying the box....

Or if Sony had built some kind of backup way for it to get guide data, like an optional network interface... Actually, I was wondering how would Sony do software updates, or is that just not possible?

I guess I'm still on the fence on whether I want to build an HTPC or buy this HDDVR. The fact that it can do both cable and OTA is interesting....since I would prefer cable for HD, except that Sinclair runs ABC and FOX around here...so.... Though I do have a regular OTA box (and feed the SD output to a PVR), so the HTPC plan was to record unencrypted HD from cable....

The Dreamer.

Channel order - TV Guide. Rearranged the Channel order in about 20 minutes. Not too difficult. TV Guide - downloaded approx 10 hours worth overnight, and that was it for approx 3 days, (no more than 10 hours at a time), then it disappeared, and showed "no listing". Called the Sony help line, and they suggested I change the Zip code to another nearby, and within hours, I had the TV Guide back. PQ is outstanding, and even more vibrant than my inbuilt tuner of Sony 34" xbr 960. Slow channel changing though, but doesn't worry me, as I usually will only be using it for recording.

ozeyeo-
Are you getting the guide info via OTA or cable?
If cable, what company?
Thanks

Originally posted by ozeyeo
Channel order - TV Guide. Rearranged the Channel order in about 20 minutes. Not too difficult. TV Guide - downloaded approx 10 hours worth overnight, and that was it for approx 3 days, (no more than 10 hours at a time), then it disappeared, and showed "no listing". Called the Sony help line, and they suggested I change the Zip code to another nearby, and within hours, I had the TV Guide back. PQ is outstanding, and even more vibrant than my inbuilt tuner of Sony 34" xbr 960. Slow channel changing though, but doesn't worry me, as I usually will only be using it for recording.

Well, I'm coming on 36 hours with still only the channels #s and still no guide data. Tried rebooting, going through the setup again, nada. On my system, with about 150+ channels, it would surely take far longer than 20 minutes to rearrange those channels in a coherent order. I'm still getting the frequent down-rezzing when switching inputs. For me, this looks more and more like a loser and the PQ is the same as the SA 8300 which costs nothing.

All of a sudden, that ugly cable system guide of the 8300 doesn't look so ugly anymore. ;)

Mine pulled down a day's worth of guide data the first night. Second night yielded no new data, however.

I must say that the guide blows chunks. I'm only using it for OTA, I've cut the listing down to the 8 channels I would ever watch. Reorder was a pain, and I had to change the channel numbers on two stations - the guide data is for our cable system even though I told it I was only using it for OTA. At least it's possible to change the channel numbers, I guess. There is no guide data for my local PBS-HD subchannel (HD is on .2, guide data only comes for .1)

The scroll through the guide is painfully slow. It only shows 1.5 hours at a time? I can't for the life of me figure out how to make it jump ahead a day without scrolling through to it. Can't find it in the manual anyplace. Anybody else found a way? I find it sad that my Dish guide is so much more user-friendly.

The only redeeming qualities I can find right now are that it has 500GB of drive space and I can watch a recorded show while recording something else, which I couldn't do with my previous OTA recording solution.

Oh, and if it can't find guide info for a show you have set to record, it just shows up as "unknown" and won't title the recording with PSIP data. Even the HDR-230 would title the show with PSIP data. Does the LG 3410 fall back to PSIP titling?

If Tivo ever makes it out with their standalone HD recorder I just may have to take the plunge. Outrageous guide fees be damned.

Originally posted by Ken Ross
For me, this looks more and more like a loser and the PQ is the same as the SA 8300 which costs nothing.

Man, don't say THAT.
It will prompt an "I told you so from Rogo".

And one of my missions in life is to surpass Rogo's post record which is what?....over 21K now?

Originally posted by GBrock
I can't for the life of me figure out how to make it jump ahead a day without scrolling through to it. Can't find it in the manual anyplace. Anybody else found a way?
You can jump forward or backward by keying in the number of hours, then right-arrow to jump forward or left-arrow to jump backwards.

So to jump ahead a day, just do 2, 4, <right-arrow>. Anything more than about 3 days and I need a calculator to figure out how many hours.

I guess they figured it was so intuitive that they didn't need to document it.;)

Originally posted by markrubin
I will take that as a tongue-in-cheek comment !

I have not had too much luck calling Sony technical support particularly on a brand new product

I wonder if Comcast somehow filters out the guide data?

anyhow this morning I still have no clock or guide data

It wasn't tongue in cheek, actually.

I'm not one for schadenfreude so I'm not reveling in your troubles with the unit -- or anyone elses.

Those who've read the threads here know I believed this box was never going to ship. I was clearly mistaken as it has.

But perhaps it never should've. I mean it's still a one-tuner DVR when cable and satellite get that two is another world. And if the one thing it had going for is was that it was going to be a superb piece by Sony, the early returns on that are, well, not good.

I never got the idea here and with the year that has passed, it seems like an even less good concept. But that said, I hope all the bugs get squashed because clearly some of you want to make this product work for you.

Originally posted by markrubin
I wonder if Comcast somehow filters out the guide data?
Here is another thread that deals with TVGOS issues...
threadid=510125 (sorry, but they won't let me include a link).

I just happened to notice this post by another NJ guy with Comcast. Maybe Comcast has a problem...

Originally posted by DanofNJ on 2/15/2005
As of yet, I have not had any TV Guide data at all. It has been two months .
I have Comcast, and a 52hmx92 model. Cablecard is installed.
My questions is:
Has anyone with Comcast received TV Guide in NY/NJ area?
Has anyone received TV Guide with a Cablecard installed?
Has anyone received TV Guide on Ant. 2
This problem is really annoying. I wish I could get it because the picture with cablecard is superior.

Thanks,
Dan

hmmm, maybe it's time to start looking at the LG box.

Bye bye Sony!

Well, it's not just a Comacast problem IF it's a problem tied to the cable company. I've got Cablevision and I've now gone 2 days without any program information at all. Zippo. My only progress since first plugging this dog in is that it eventually did get the time (I beat Mark Rubin on that one) and I got a guide of sorts. It's clear this is going nowhere from this point on.

It's also clear that although the guide 'looks' pretty, in terms of functionality, it aint pretty at all. For a $1,000 cable/OTA tuner with the Sony name on it, this thing should sing......the only problem is it apparently doesn't know the words to the song. :(

Originally posted by Lew Black
Mark, Did you find a PBS OTA station? (Is it possible to write a whole sentence in 3 letter acronyms?). Lew

Lew

I am not sure: it found 16 analog and 3 digital OTA stations and I shut it off so it could start the guide search

as of this morning, still nothing

GBrock-

If the Sony guide is the same as the 3410a guide you will need to include the "right" analog station in your guide. The guide from OTA seems to be attached to analog stations. Without it the guide stops loading.


Is anyone getting anywhere with the guide using the cablecard?

Is anyone getting anywhere with the guide on cable without the card?

I've got a PBS OTA analog channel but no PBS OTA digital channel. I still have no guide data.

I'll be putting it back in the box a bit later. I'm done with this, it's just not worth it.

I am going to keep trying over the weekend, and make my final decision on Monday:

at this point I would agree with Ken it is not looking good at all

Originally posted by MrU
You can jump forward or backward by keying in the number of hours, then right-arrow to jump forward or left-arrow to jump backwards.


I'll give that a try - thanks!

Originally posted by Penton-Man
ozeyeo-
Are you getting the guide info via OTA or cable?
If cable, what company?
Thanks

Guide via OTA. After changing to another Zip code, first 24 hours, downloaded approx 16 hours worth of guide. This morning, after 48 hours, now have approx 3 and bit days worth of guide. Appears to be working as it is supposed to be.

As for editing my channels, as I only use it for OTA channels, and get my other channels by Satellite, I only included the major local channels in my edit, and therefore could organize them very quickly into the order I wanted

PBS - OTA Guide Carrier.

I did read somewhere that the PBS station carries the OTA Guide data, and as well as using a different zip code to where I live, I also ensured that the local PBS, both analogue and digital, were turned on for the channels received. You don't necessarily need to have them on in your program guide, but just turned on as stations received. So far, doing all of the above has worked for me. Give it a try.

I had a full guide within 3 days of plugging in the cable (without a CableCARD at first). I have Comcast in the Chicagoland area. They came out and installed the CableCARD and after the technician phoned in to have it activated the channel guide changed almost immediately to reflect channels that I couldn't access without the CableCARD.

Initially, my HD channels were mapped funny too without the CableCARD installed but once that was installed everything came together. I didn't have to remap any channels. I did take about 45 minutes and go through and disable channels that I don't care about or that I don't subscribe to. I also changed the channel order in the guide so that all my favorites are on the first page of the channel guide (so I don't have to worry about the lengthy procedure of marking and pulling up favorites)

I've had one minor problem with the time on the box slowing down by 15 minutes but it corrected itself overnight and hasn't happened since.

Otherwise, this thing has been completely plug-n-play for me. I guess after reading some other comments here I should consider myself lucky but, for me, this thing came out of the box performing like a $1000 machine should. So far I am very pleased. :D

Just ordered mine from www.onecall.com it is supposed to be here on Wednesday!!!

Originally posted by 0t1s1
Otherwise, this thing has been completely plug-n-play for me. I guess after reading some other comments here I should consider myself lucky but, for me, this thing came out of the box performing like a $1000 machine should. So far I am very pleased. :D

Either you're lucky or Mark and I are very unlucky. Between the two of us we've got 2 different cable companies but the same results.

I've now had mine for about 3 days. I set up without a CableCARD initially because a tech needed to come out to do the install. I had analog and digital OTA listings after about 18 or so hours. OTA digital reception is generally easy as I am only 5 miles from the towers and PQ is excellent. I was thinking I might like side-strech mode more, but its unintentionally comical in appearance.

Once the CableCARD was installed, it has been another story. Been 36 hours, No Listings. Also, I can't receive any channels in our HBO and Cinemax block. This may well be a signal problem, as I can sometimes get 3 or 4 frames before it blacks out or freeze frames, but my Showtime block is normally the weak one and its fine. Go figure. ;-) My line is already amplified, so I am not sure what to say...machine diagnostics show Normal digital cable reception on those channels.

I really *want* to like this machine. It does (almost) everything I want for a one box, spouse-friendly solution--but without a Guide its useless; I'll follow up once things progress a bit more.

If no one objects, I'd like to extend this guide issue to those of us who have satellite reception.

I'm assuming that this model, similar to the HX900, will not control my sat. receiver. So, I was wondering if anyone knows whether or not my Hughes remote will control the Sony for recording functions? Currently, my remote will control most of the functions of my JVC SVHS vcr.

Thanks.

Originally posted by Stork3000

Once the CableCARD was installed, it has been another story.

Whose your cable co. ?

Originally posted by Penton-Man
Whose your cable co. ?

CableOne. In particular, their Sioux City Iowa office. But the folks doing the phone support for the onsite tech was in Phoenix. The card itseld is a Motorola card.

Sony was unable to cancel my order and I received my DHG-HDD250 yesterday. So I hooked it up to check it out and see if it is worth keeping. (I will be keeping either the DHG-HDD250 or the DirectTV HD DVR) Followed the instructions to set up and turned off the DVR as instructed to get my guide data 'within 24 hours'.

This morning the DVR had the correct time but no guide data or channel listings. Turned off the unit after checking. Tonight at midnight, still no guide data or channel listings. Turned it off again. We will see what happens in the morning.

I have the DVR connected to OTA antenna's only. I am combining the signals of two UHF antennas onto one wire (which is OK with digital TV and HDTV signals but not a good idea with analog signals). I hope I am able to receive the guide data with this setup...

First impressions:

* Unit seems well constructed
* All the cables I needed (with the exeption of the digital optical to hook to receiver) were included
* Setup was simple
* OTA digital tuner seems equal to the built in tuner in my Sanyo TV
* Picture quality is very good if not excellent (need more time to evaluate)
* I recorded one show manually since I don't have any guide data or channel listings yet. I could not tell the difference between the recorded show and a live show. Looks good. I am using the HDMI cable and audio via TV speakers for now.
* Need to figure out the best way to skip the commercials. The 30 second advance and commercial skip capabilities of my ReplayTV seem to be easier than the Sony DVR
* TV Guide capabilities look good per the manual and the 'demo' at the TVGuide website... If I get guide data and the channel listings soon, I will post more impressions.

Update: Before going to bed last night I decided to give it one more try by changing the zip code again. This morning there is guide data, but of course it's all wrong and thinks it's on the Time Warner system (maybe that's a system the TV Guide likes?). So I put back my correct zip code and of course my guide data is gone now.

It's now telling me I'll have the guide data within 24 hours. Yeah, where did I hear that before.

So at this point, I'm about 99% leaning toward returning it regardless of what happens. My thinking here is that this thing, based on my experience and others, is very very unreliable. I don't want to be in a position where a few days from now my guide data mysteriously appears and I'm happy for a few weeks only to have it disappear AFTER I can no longer return it.

I just have very little confidence in the unit and my down rez switching issue continues. This makes the unit a real pain to use even if the guide data is functioning.

For a thousand dollar cable box, this thing needs to be far far more reliable.

HDMI works well and audio is fed via the HDMI connector (yes it cuts off the component video analog out
...and my down rez switching issue continues.

What do you guys mean by this?

Does this unit downrez the HDTV (we paid to see AND OTA?) if we connect it to our HDTVs via component video??? Do these Sony units only pass HDTV(1080i/720p) via HDMI outputs?

No Merc, in my case there is a problem with the 'handshake' between the Sony box, my Gefen HDMI switcher and my plasma. I have four HDMI components hooked up via the Gefen HDMI switcher and only the Sony DVR exhibits this frequent down-rezzing where shows that should be displayed in HD are down-rezzed to 480i. When this happens it necessitates me pushing the resolution button on the Sony about 4 or 5 times to get back to 1080i.

So something is not quite right with the communication between the Sony box and the switcher/plasma. In other words, this is not the way it's supposed to be.

The other comment refers to the fact that the Sony box does not output both HDMI and component video simultaneously. If you hook up HDMI, you'll get no output via component video.

I put mine back in the box:

I am sure this is a nice unit but the guide seems to be problematic: so for me the SA8000, which also has its issues, is what I stay with

Thanks for the info Ken.

I guess the primary concern/buying factor for me then is how good the online guide is in my area?

The TWC HD DVR is only $7 a month, but the guide sucks.

Those of us with Tivo/Replay units know how important a good, easy to use guide really is...

One more question...

I have digital OTA stations which have station numbers like 13.0, 13.1, 13.2. Will the unit have problems displaying the "point zero" stations correctly?

When I made my previous post, I had OTA listings but none for Cable. After a night of sitting off, I now have no listings. I did make an interesting discovery. Somehow, my OTA PBS station was removed from my Guide. I'm not 100% sure what happened there (I may have done something stupid when playing with the guide), but I added it back in and am letting the unit sit off again.

I am now more sure my earlier problem with the HBO block is a signal problem. I de-amped the system, and now my Showtime block behaves the same way. I'm going to have someone come out to look at this.

You should have no problem with the OTA digitals. The Sony properly mapped all my OTA HD channels with no issues.

Why not try another zip code that is still in your area...but that isn't your zip code? It's obvious it does work, ie it's capable of pulling guide data, because you saw it happen. So why not try an area code in the same cable region or what not?

From an OTA standpoint this doesn't seem like a stumbling block for me. I live in the los angeles area, and there are hundreds of zip codes that I could try.

Originally posted by nathan118
Why not try another zip code that is still in your area...but that isn't your zip code?
Good idea, I was thinking the same thing; there is almost surely more than one zip code in each system's service area.

I live in Denver. When these come in to out store I will try one and see how it works on Comcast. I will post the results. Lew

I live in the los angeles area, and there are hundreds of zip codes that I could try.Don't be so sure of that? I live in the Houston area and there are probably a dozen different channel mappings on the cable. For example, two miles away, Channel 2 local is on Cable channel 2 but in my neighborhood it is on 12. Selecting a zip code where channels are mapped differently would result in you recording some other shows than what you wanted.

Putting my OTA PBS back into the guide lineup seems to have done the trick for me. I now have guide data for everything.

Originally posted by nathan118
Why not try another zip code that is still in your area...but that isn't your zip code? It's obvious it does work, ie it's capable of pulling guide data, because you saw it happen. So why not try an area code in the same cable region or what not?

From an OTA standpoint this doesn't seem like a stumbling block for me. I live in the los angeles area, and there are hundreds of zip codes that I could try.

I did, but all of the nearby zip codes fall into the Cablevision servicing area. I'm not sure how this may be tied to the issue. The only time I got guide data was when I plugged in a zip code that was in the Time Warner servicing area. Doesn't make much sense since the cable input is only carrying Cablevision data, but who knows how this thing works.

I just find this thing very unpredictable as others have found out too.

Is there a phone connection on this unit?
Maybe it is like my Replay units where it uses an external database based on my zip code and cable operator in order to pull the right guide data for me? If that is so, that is FANTASTIC?

No phone connection.

I think comparing OTA with cable is apples and oranges...

Los Angeles stations are pretty standard OTA for a VERY big area. However, neighboring cities have completely different cable companies, where station info would of course be different.

My suggestion was for OTA....you could try beverly hills, los angeles, huntington beach....all the same.

HELP! Got a question about the operation of the DHG-HDD500. If you refer to the playback operation listed on Pg. 55 of the manual it says holding the play button down for a second will start playback of the highlighted program. This does not happen on mine. If you go to Pg. 67 it gives you another method for playback which does work. Anyone have the same thing happen. Hate to return the unit if it is just a manual error. Otherwise it does an excellent job at recording. It's nice to be able to set up a manual record. This was one of my complaints about the MOXI. It's also nice to have the NTSC video output at all times, MOXI doesn't. Did a DVD recording from the output of the Sony and it looked spectacular.
The other BIG issue with MOXI was the 16x9 stretch for the non HiDef channels. That really sucked! The Sony has fixed most of those irritating problems. I'll be keeping it.

HELP! Got a question about the operation of the DHG-HDD500. If you refer to the playback operation listed on Pg. 55 of the manual it says holding the play button down for a second will start playback of the highlighted program. This does not happen on mine. If you go to Pg. 67 it gives you another method for playback which does work. Anyone have the same thing happen. Hate to return the unit if it is just a manual error. Otherwise it does an excellent job at recording. It's nice to be able to set up a manual record. This was one of my complaints about the MOXI. It's also nice to have the NTSC video output at all times, MOXI doesn't. Did a DVD recording from the output of the Sony and it looked spectacular.
The other BIG issue with MOXI was the 16x9 stretch for the non HiDef channels. That really sucked! The Sony has fixed most of those irritating problems. I'll be keeping it.

Was it downconverted HD that you recorded on the DVD? If so, I would expect it to look very good. Lew

After initial setup(about 25 minutes) it scanned everything ok...It actually picked up more digital music channels than my Moto 6208 has. Surprisingly it picked up Discovery HD(mapped diffently) without the cablecard. After switching from my Moto box and the Sony the is no difference in PQ. The bottom line is that it is a gorgeous picture on both units! I have to wait to see how long the TV Guide takes to download. Will post more later...So far so good!!!

After 4 days, no program guide or channel listings. I double checked and I am not receiving any picture on any of the analog channels, so I am sure that is the problem. I am receiving many digital and HDTV channels...

I don't know why TVGuide does not get one of the digital channels to broadcast the channel guide her in San Diego... bummer.

I now have the time on the unit and a partial non working TV Guide interface...Will check back tomorrow...Does anyone know how my HD channel 39.1(Discovery HD) on my Sony is the only channel of the HD package that I picked up. I've seen some postes were other people are getting all the HD's...

It was a HiDef 16x9 recording onto a DVD. It was recorded squeezed to 4x3 and the stretched on playback to restore widescreen format. It took almost no hit in quality.

HELP! Got a question about the operation of the DHG-HDD500. If you refer to the playback operation listed on Pg. 55 of the manual it says holding the play button down for a second will start playback of the highlighted program. This does not happen on mine. If you go to Pg. 67 it gives you another method for playback which does work. Anyone have the same thing happen. Hate to return the unit if it is just a manual error. Otherwise it does an excellent job at recording. It's nice to be able to set up a manual record. This was one of my complaints about the MOXI. It's also nice to have the NTSC video output at all times, MOXI doesn't. Did a DVD recording from the output of the Sony and it looked spectacular.
The other BIG issue with MOXI was the 16x9 stretch for the non HiDef channels. That really sucked! The Sony has fixed most of those irritating problems. I'll be keeping it.

Cover, I noticed the same thing when trying to play back a recorded program. The play button does not start playback as indicated in the manual. You have to press the enter button (the scrolling button) to start playback.

Sound & Vision just reviewed a 52" Toshiba DLP. Guess what part of the TV the reviewer couldn't get working and was disappointed in? Yup, you got it, the TV Guide. He said he never got the TV Guide information to download properly. He went on to say that Toshiba is aware of the issue and is 'working on it'.

I really believe this feature is not yet ready for prime time.

Where does the TV Guide stuff come from?
Do you need to use the DVR for SDTV in order to get the guide or is it somewhere on OTA/cable HDTV?

Can you somehow use this unit to record JUST OTA HD and TWC HD but have no SD channels at all in the guide?

here is a good link about the guide:

http://www.crutchfieldadvisor.com/ISEO-rgbtcspd/learningcenter/home/tvs_tvgos2.html

I think one problem with the guide is that it's supplied by a third party

so if you buy a TV or DVR and the guide does not work, the manufacturer may blame it on the Guide or failure of a calbleco to distribute it properly etc

Thanks Mark... but, I'n not sure if that FAQ answered my question?
This Might(?) be the answer, but I'm not sure?
...they stopped sending out their old analog signals. Since On Screen's information was embedded in these signals, On Screen customers stopped receiving program information.

Even if the guide comes from analog cable stations, which one does it come from and do I need to have SD "enabled" on the Sony in order to get the guide?
Or, does the guide also come down via OTA HD PBS... although my OTA HD PBS is the NY feed and the digital SD PBS is the local one???

If I buy this unit, I'll be getting it from an online dealer who charges a restocking fee for returns... so I must be sure this will work for me before I get one???


Thanks for any help anyone can offer! Anyone have one of these in Houston on TWC?

So even if the guide doesn't work or is total crap...you can still use this thing like an old vcr right? Input a date and time you want to record, a channel and a quality...and presto, it records right?

I know this guide is supposed to be nifty, but i've got my regular shows each week to record, and I can just setup some timed recordings.

So even if the guide doesn't work or is total crap...you can still use this thing like an old vcr right? Input a date and time you want to record, a channel and a quality...and presto, it records right?

I know this guide is supposed to be nifty, but i've got my regular shows each week to record, and I can just setup some timed recordings.

That would be an incredible amount of money to have "old vcr" functionality.

I really expected so much more from Sony, especially at this price point.

Nathan,

I appreciate your opinion, but you speak like someone who doesn't have either a Tivo/ReplayTV, or, a Samsung 165/DVHS combo. :)

I have both and seldom use the manual record HD combo but my 3 ReplayTV units are ALWAYS full. Because.... of the ease of use and the guides. We use the ReplayTV units in order to see what's on every night even if we record nothing. Because of the guides, the ReplayTV units are the only piece of gear I ever bought that my wife thanks me for buying. ;)

So far it downloaded all the info. I tried a "scheduled recording" from a specific timeframe last night(CSI) and it worked. This morning I turned everything on and everything was downloaded completely. I am going to record Married... at 10:00am and my HD Discovery(not listed in the program info). What is interesting is that on my cable system all my HD channels are as follows(515,516,517,518,519,520) It shows up on the TV Guide system(with "No info"). I guess once I get the CableCard(Mid June) I'll have complete OTA and cable HD hopefully without a hitch.

kong,

Did you get the Guide for your HD channels too, or only for analog cable? Is it possible to set up the Sony so that only the channels you want(Cable HD and OTA HD) are displayed in the guide?

I was amazed that Cablecard rental here on TWC is ONLY $1.75 a month??? Can that possibly be true?

merc,

I did get the guide for my HD channel package. It shows 3 days now of events and shows in all categories and channels.

"Is it possible to set up the Sony so that only the channels you want(Cable HD and OTA HD) are displayed in the guide?"

I don't know yet...I did delete some crappy OTA analog signals from the channel lineup.

My cable company will only sell the card now rent or lease...It is $125 to purchase it...

Well.... I just couldn't help myself and bought one of these units.

It will arrive on Friday, and I'll make sure I pick up my cablecard on Thursday.

Guess I should take my wife on a mini-vacation on Saturday, as she requested, in order to keep the peace in case this unit sucks compared to our ReplayTV DVRs??? :D

That would be an incredible amount of money to have "old vcr" functionality.

I really expected so much more from Sony, especially at this price point.


BenDOver, in my case I get one HD channel for "free" with no info. SO, in theory all I have to do is find out what time the show I want to record is on and then manually set a recording. The only drawback is the info section it shows up as "unknown". That after a few recordings will get on my nerves because you will not know what is what in the recording list...

Merc, I don't think you will be sorry. SO far this unit is working as described. It is ashame that some people can't get the TV Guide downloaded. I know if that happened to me it would be going back as defective. I don't know what Replay GUI looks like. My CAble company's Moto 6208 GUI is alot to be desired...The TV Guide is colorful, informative, and relative easy to navigate for myself.

merc, I have the same issue as you do. My wife loves our 3 ReplayTV's. I hacked two of them and have 160hr and 250 hr "5040's". I sure wish DNNA would make HD units! Guide is great!

Well.... I just couldn't help myself and bought one of these units.

It will arrive on Friday, and I'll make sure I pick up my cablecard on Thursday.

Guess I should take my wife on a mini-vacation on Saturday, as she requested, in order to keep the peace in case this unit sucks compared to our ReplayTV DVRs??? :D

It was a HiDef 16x9 recording onto a DVD. It was recorded squeezed to 4x3 and the stretched on playback to restore widescreen format. It took almost no hit in quality.

That is good news. I have used an old HD tuner on an NTSC set in the basement. The HD stations look incredible, especially when I am far enough away to not see the scan lines. Anything sourced in HD still looks good downrezd. Your HD recording must look like a really good film/DVD transer, which is pretty darn good. Lew

Nathan,

I appreciate your opinion, but you speak like someone who doesn't have either a Tivo/ReplayTV, or, a Samsung 165/DVHS combo. :)

You are very intuitive. :)

My point of view is that I have never paid to watch television, and I've never paid for a guide type service (ie. TIVO). The tvguide system seems more like a freebie than an absolute must from my standpoint. Remember, ignorance is bliss. :)

I think some of the early reports were a little too harsh on the sony unit itself. It's not so much that the Sony deck is having problems, but the tvguide service and accessing that is fidgity. It obviously does work, that's not really up for discussion. The real question is how does the tvguide service work, and is it reliable or not? And that is something sony doesn't have any control over.

Is anyone claiming they have another tvguide powered device that works perfect, but fails to work with their new sony deck? That might mean something.

Well, I paid around $350 each(average) for my three 3060 ReplayTV DVRs, and they came with lifetime guides included... although usually, the lifetime guides cost extra on both Tivo and Replay units. Still, in this case you get what you should pay for, as the Replay and Tivo guides are wonderful, accurate and make using the unit very, very easy. And... there are no ads on the guides so you can see a few hours at a time on the screen.

For $1000, I'd expect that the Sony would include a guide at least as good as the ones on the Tivos and ReplayTVs??? Of course, doing that would decrease their profitabilty on the item since I'd guess that the TV Guide is free to them since it includes the ability to bombard us with ads every time we look at the guide?

The real question is how does the tvguide service work, and is it reliable or not?

Yes, that's the million dollar question for sure. Hopefully someone will figure it out and let the rest of us know.

I had the guide working for a couple of days and then I messed with it editing and reordering the channels. Grrrr! Now I have "No Listing" showing on every channel. Can't seem to find the solution. Sony says to pull the plug for a minute and try again. Who knows, I'll give it a try tonight. I have the analog station that transmits guide data enabled and in the guide. Don't know what else I can try. Any suggestions?

How do you know which channel has the guide on it???

How do you know which channel has the guide on it???

Everyone keeps saying PBS transmits it, but I dunno. Probably worth googling.

Just found this, haven't read yet. TV Guide On Screen (http://www.tvgos.com/).

Not sure it provides any new data, though it does mention frequency and duration of OTA transmissions. Why some people are failing to get them though isn't clear. It's probably dependent on the region and who is "in charge" of transmitting.

Don't assume it's PBS. In Milwaukee, it's the local UPN station (WCGV).

Don't assume it's PBS. In Milwaukee, it's the local UPN station (WCGV).

How'd you find that out? It seems like someone wasn't getting any data, but then added their local station that transmits the data, and then they started to receive the guide. I'm too lazy too look back through the post though.

Man, all this talk is making me want to buy one and test it out, haha.

I just did the unplug routine and the box went through a pretty lengthy reboot process showing "Welcome..." on the LED display. However it didn't prompt me with the setup routine again. It retained my zipcode and other setup information. We'll see tomorrow morning what effect it may have had.

How'd you find that out? It seems like someone wasn't getting any data, but then added their local station that transmits they data, and then they started to receive the guide. I'm too lazy too look back through the post though.

Man, all this talk is making me want to buy one and test it out, haha.


I think the post you're referring to was regarding the LG3410.

We have a local web site for HDTV http://www.milwaukeehdtv.org/ and there are technicians from some of the local stations that post there. One is from WCGV and he posts quite often regarding technical stuff. He was telling us about the guide data inserter and how it runs 24x7 and the data is on line 17 of the vertical interval.

That's not to say that PBS doesn't also transmit. I wonder what problems that might cause if two local stations are transmitting the guide data. Hmmmm.....

Check out this site. It has a decent description of how the system works from a high-level.


http://www.dvdplusrw.org/Article.asp?mid=-1&sid=-1&aid=79

You are very intuitive. :)

It's not so much that the Sony deck is having problems, but the tvguide service and accessing that is fidgity. It obviously does work, that's not really up for discussion. .

Oh it's up for discussion, trust me. It seems to work sometimes in some places on some systems. But yes, it's not a Sony 'specific' problem as the Sound & Vision reviewer found out when the TV Guide within the Toshiba DLP failed to provide info. This issue is way too widespread for this software to be considered even remotely reliable.

I returned the Sony for fear of being past the return period when something else happened via the TV Guide. Once I went back to the SA 8300, all of a sudden it didn't seem so bad. I think the Sony could be a very nice piece with the proper software.

I sent mine back also. I respect Sony for trying to provide a device that would not have any monthly fees for the programming guide. But unfortunately, if you can't get the guide data OTA or from your cable company, the Sony DVR's are not worth the price.

Too bad TV Guide does not provide an alternate method for receiving the guide. Since they provide the guide to the broadcasting stations via VPN over the internet, it seems feasible that they should provide the consumer the option up updating the guide data over the internet.

andydrew, sorry to hear that it didn't work out for you. I agree that they should have other options available to download the TV Guide system...With the open USB port, too bad we can't use a USB memory stick to pull the info off our home computer then upload it via the unit USB port...A question to SOny I believe!!!

Too bad TV Guide does not provide an alternate method for receiving the guide. Since they provide the guide to the broadcasting stations via VPN over the internet, it seems feasible that they should provide the consumer the option up updating the guide data over the internet.

Actually, Sony probably could have if they wanted to. My old ATI All-IN-WONDER Radeon uses the GemStar/TV Guide Data. You had to have a net connection to get the guide listings.

Alan

kong,


I was amazed that Cablecard rental here on TWC is ONLY $1.75 a month??? Can that possibly be true?

Cablecard rental here ( Chicago Comcast ) is only $0.00 and is considered part of cable service, as it should be. A digital "cable" box has a $5 rental fee associated with it, it you need one.

HDTV box rental here is $7 a month.

I agree with internet guide data. Our Replaytv's are perfect and even get show time changes. It would be great if there was an internet link that updated each day. Time on our Replay's is perfect as well.

I guess Sony may have a lot of open box specials. :D


I sent mine back also. I respect Sony for trying to provide a device that would not have any monthly fees for the programming guide. But unfortunately, if you can't get the guide data OTA or from your cable company, the Sony DVR's are not worth the price.

Too bad TV Guide does not provide an alternate method for receiving the guide. Since they provide the guide to the broadcasting stations via VPN over the internet, it seems feasible that they should provide the consumer the option up updating the guide data over the internet.

Any updates from people that actually got the tvguide data to work? Is it staying updated for all 8 days out?

I just re-read this thread. There are 6442 hits on 171 posts from 40 different posters. There seems to be 5 units working with some degree of satisfaction owned by: Kong, GBrock, O+lsl, Ozeyeo and Stork3000. Merc expects his friday? MarkRubin, AndyDrew, and Ken Ross sent theirs back, and BenDover said he cancelled his order.

I may have missed some info, but that's most of it.

Is there anyone else that actually has one of these? and if it's you, please tell us how it's working for you.

Lew

Any updates from people that actually got the tvguide data to work? Is it staying updated for all 8 days out?

Mine is updated until 3:00am Thursday morning...I am going to check out the guide later this evening...I won't be able to get the Cablecard until mid-June(expensive month!!!).

lewlew, I checked with NW Sony Only and my Qualia salesman is going to see about getting one and seeing how it works on cable.

Dave....up the street from you. :D

I just re-read this thread. There are 6442 hits on 171 posts from 40 different posters. There seems to be 5 units working with some degree of satisfaction owned by: Kong, GBrock, O+lsl, Ozeyeo and Stork3000. Merc expects his friday? MarkRubin, AndyDrew, and Ken Ross sent theirs back, and BenDover said he cancelled his order.

I may have missed some info, but that's most of it.

Is there anyone else that actually has one of these? and if it's you, please tell us how it's working for you.

Lew

TV Guide updated until Friday 3:00am...It seems to be only getting 3 days worth of guide info. I am not complaining, maybe that is what is being transmitted from the towers.

Still no luck here. Talked to Sony support again today. They're escalating my issue to a "technical" group. I told them I want to force a complete reset of the unit to erase all configuration info. One guy I spoke to says it definately has a service menu that would allow one to do this. It would also allow access to the Gemstar module for monitoring the download process and any errors that could be occurring. He said thay haven't posted the tech manual yet, so he doesn't know the keystrokes to get in. He says the units are so new, there's hardly any support solutions in the knowlege base. They're going to have a different person from their "product technical group" call me tomorrow. Hopefully they'll help me get the guide reset and operating again. It hasn't been fun getting through the "layers" of customer support, but I think I'm getting close to the "technical" people that should be able to help.

I also placed a call and sent an email to an engineer at the local TV station that provides the guide data in their broadcast. I want to make sure their Gemstar encoder is online. I could certainly be barking up the wrong tree if the data is not in the stream.

If I learn any reset or service menu codes, I'll be sure to post them here.

Also, if anyone has figured out any service menu access codes on their own, I'm all ears.

dlhoppe,

In the manual on page 83, just above "lost password", it states that pressing the front panel EXIT and TV GUIDE buttons will reset the unit.

Cynthia

I just re-read this thread. There are 6442 hits on 171 posts from 40 different posters. There seems to be 5 units working with some degree of satisfaction owned by: Kong, GBrock, O+lsl, Ozeyeo and Stork3000. Merc expects his friday? MarkRubin, AndyDrew, and Ken Ross sent theirs back, and BenDover said he cancelled his order.
Lew

Just thought I would update folks on how things are going with the recorder. Since getting my guide info a couple days ago, it has been filling in slowly but surely. I think I have around 4 days of stuff now. Several blocks I had to turn on myself (Encore, ESPN-HD, among others). Others (notably TNT-HD and my PBS-HD) I must tune manually as there are no entries for them in the channels I can assign.

I also mentioned in previous threads that I had trouble tuning stations in my HBO block with my CableCARD. I was last chalking that up to signal issues. Well, today a couple techs came out and cleared up my signal issues...I am receiving quite a strong signal now. However, HBO channels still will not decode. The symptoms are the same as before: either a black screen or a few frames of video folowed by a freeze frame. The diagnostic on those channels now show a "Good" digital cable signal (around 87%).

My cable provider now suspects Sony -- so I imagine I have entered the first stages of being a go between them in order to figure out what's wrong. I can get by without those channels for now, but in the long run, I'll have trouble convincing my wife that we can live without HBO on that set.

Well, my Sony has arrived at out local Fed-Ex office, so I guess I'll go and pick it up later today after picking up a cablecard at the TWC office.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed....

dlhoppe,

In the manual on page 83, just above "lost password", it states that pressing the front panel EXIT and TV GUIDE buttons will reset the unit.

Cynthia

Thanks Cynthia. I saw that and tried it before. It's the same as pulling the power cord. It doesn't clear any configuration or guide data from the unit.

Just as a note, I noticed I have guide data for most of this Friday and Saturday. I saw this yesterday and when I looked this morning, no change. I was hoping the guide was starting to fill in. Hopefully the tech will help me if he calls today.

Just heard from the engineer at the local TV broadcaster. He found the Gemstar encoder "locked up". :eek: I'm sure glad I looked into this. :rolleyes:

Jeez... it is hard enough getting the engineers to flip the HD switch at the locals much less have them monitor the Genstar encoder... :(

Is this the same guide that is being used by TWC on their own HD DVR???

Anyone know of any software that would allow someone to monitor the guide data stream using a PC and TV Tuner card? That would be a utility worth having for us Gemstar users.

I would like to suggest that those whose guides have not filled in for the full eight days(this should take several days to accomplish) make contact in their local thread. Ask for info from owners of 3410a or other gemstar guided products as to how reliable the guide is in your area.

Here , west of Portland OR the guide works perfectly on the 3410a.

If someone actually gets all 8 days I may have to buy one. (the 250 when it comes out)

I now have all 8 days in the guide. It took about a week. I got days 1&2 (and probably 8) the first night, nothing the second night, and then it added day 2 and day 8 again every day after that. Slow and frustrating, but it's all there now.

And since somebody here told me how to skip a day at a time in the guide, I only cuss it half as much as I did at the beginning.

Other than the guide, I have to say this thing works beautifully. It's great being able to watch a recorded show while something else is recording. The only glaring omission in the box is a second tuner. And maybe that Ethernet port for a reliable guide download. It would have been nice to start out with 8 full days of data, but I can be patient when I'm forced into it.

For someone (me) who's used to using a VCR and is interested in only recording HD OTA, this sounds like it's worth a shot. From what I can tell, the guide data in the Mpls/St. Paul area works OK, so I'll likely order a 250 when they are more available. Thanks for the reviews all!

Looks like the engineer got the encoder going again. He's got a call into Gemstar to discuss reliability and such. It seems Gemstar gave them a PC loaded with special software to monitor the encoder. He says it's not a very good monitoring tool though. It obviously didn't notify anyone that the encoder stopped working. Jeez. There's no telling how long it's been down.

Hopefully there'll be more data in my guide tonight or tomorrow.

Has anyone noticed if the guide updates the listings "hour" by "hour"? Or does it wait until it collects an entire day's worth of data before it plunks it in the guide?

And since somebody here told me how to skip a day at a time in the guide, I only cuss it half as much as I did at the beginning.

How do you do that? I don't recall seeing it in this thread.

How do you do that? I don't recall seeing it in this thread.

When in the Gemstar guide listings screen, to skip ahead x number of hours, key in x then hit the right arrow using the circle part of the remote control. The same can be done to go back x number of hours by pressing the left arrow.

Cool, thanks!

Fed Ex just delivered mine... gotta go and get the cablecard. :D

Okay... except for TWC's part in this... everything has gone very smoothly so far.

The unit went out and found all the analog and digital OTA stations(too many IMO, :) ) but then I had to activate the new and inserted cablecard... and TWC disconnected me twice and then kept me on hold for ONE HOUR and Ten Minutes before they answered me.

Then, at the end of the call... they guy tells me that he will send that department an EMAIL to tell them to activate the freakin card?????

So... TWC still left lots of opportunity to eff this up and delay my ability to get the new channels which I am sure I will be charged for starting today... ARGGGGGHHH. :mad:

Otherwise, the unit pulls in the OTA HD stations seemingly better than my Samsung T165, and it has a cool front panel display which shows the info and channel. Also, when you tune in the channel, there is an overlay which shows the incoming resolution, and other info.

So... other than TWCs part in all this, the Sony grades an A.

More to come tomorrow... hopefully.

If you leave this unit on 24/7, will it still receive guide data? Or do you have to remember to turn it off every night? I wonder if leaving it tuned to the channel that happens to transmit the Gemstar data would be enough?

If you leave this unit on 24/7, will it still receive guide data? Or do you have to remember to turn it off every night? I wonder if leaving it tuned to the channel that happens to transmit the Gemstar data would be enough?

It has to be turned off to receive guide data. It actually has an "auto turn off" feature that is set by default to turn off at 1AM. So if you forget to turn it off, no worries, it'll do it on it's own. You can change the time setting for this feature as well.

That's great! Sounds like an improvement over the LG LST-3410A. How long does it take to start up (from power on until you get a picture)? From reading the thread on the LG box, that unit takes quite a while especially with a nearly-full, larger upgraded disk.

As soon as I hit "WAtch TV" on my Harmony 880 remote I have the TV GUide on start up...One thing that perplexes me right now is that I lost my HD Discovery channel. Does anyone know why? I redid the scan for cable and it didn't find it.

Mark Fontana

I have a 300GB in my 3410 and only have 4 hours left available for HD recording. When I power it on the picture comes on rather quickly to whatever the last channel tuned, what doesn't though, is the DVR recorded programs availabiltiy, which takes about 2 minutes. Hence the problem with any scheduled recordings when the unit needs to power from off and begin recording, which it won't do then. If the unit is on when the recording is to begin then no problem, except that the unit stays on until you shut it off. This didn't start to occur until I had about 12 hours remaining time left of HD on the drive, up until then it would power on 2 minutes before and begin recording one minute before the actual scheduled recording.
joe

That's great! Sounds like an improvement over the LG LST-3410A. How long does it take to start up (from power on until you get a picture)? From reading the thread on the LG box, that unit takes quite a while especially with a nearly-full, larger upgraded disk.

My remote has a macro feature that turns on all my equipment with a single button. By the time it executes the macro, which is about 5 or 6 seconds, the TV is just fading in with the video already showing from the Sony box. I would bet it's only a couple of seconds or so for the Sony by itself. I don't have a lot of recorded material on my HD right now, so I can't comment on whether that would have any impact like the 3410.

As soon as I hit "WAtch TV" on my Harmony 880 remote I have the TV GUide on start up...One thing that perplexes me right now is that I lost my HD Discovery channel. Does anyone know why? I redid the scan for cable and it didn't find it.

In most markets, Disc-HD is scrambled (or will be soon). You will get it back when you get your CableCARD.

When Comcast first upgraded my area, I got Disc-HD and ESPN-HD on the 3410A. But that changed a couple of months later.

My remote has a macro feature that turns on all my equipment with a single button. By the time it executes the macro, which is about 5 or 6 seconds, the TV is just fading in with the video already showing from the Sony box. I would bet it's only a couple of seconds or so for the Sony by itself. I don't have a lot of recorded material on my HD right now, so I can't comment on whether that would have any impact like the 3410.

The real question: Is the HDD available immediately? The LG picture comes up fairly quickly, but it's the temporary unavailability of the HDD during initialization (because of a long program list) that causes the problem. (This is with a 300 GB drive, not the 120 GB original, which of course does not have this problem.)

With 500 GB built in by design, I would think Sony made sure that slow inititalization of the HDD's would not affect the successful start of a timer recording. But we'd like to confirm this once someone accumulates 50 or so hours of recordings.

My Cablecard got initialized this morning and I spent the last few hours just flipping and watching... the PQ from this unit is Wonderful! Combined with cable HD, this unit is already coming close to being worth the money to me. :D

As simply an HDTV tuner, it is far quicker and more responsive than my other two HD tuners. I gotta read the manual and find out what this unit can do and how customizable it can be? For example, is there a remote button which goes back to the last channel you watched? I like to switch back and forth between two channels during sports weekends. :)

Next up.... I'd love to see what the Guide looks like with some data in it. ;)

Does the Guide data ONLY get inserted after midnight, or can/does it happen all the time while it is off?

For example, is there a remote button which goes back to the last channel you watched? I like to switch back and forth between two channels during sports weekends. :)

Next up.... I'd love to see what the Guide looks like with some data in it. ;)

That was another oversight I just couldn't understand. I never saw anything on the remote that served the "last channel" feature nor did I see anything in the book that addressed it. That is a major oversight. I use that feature all the time.

I hope you have more luck with the Guide than I and others had.

The guide data streams 24x7. Any time the unit is off, it will look for and download the guide data.

As for the "last channel" feature, there doesn't seem to be a way to do that with a single button push. You have to push the "Favorites" button then select something like "Recent Channels Viewed" (don't recall the exact label), then select which of the most recent channels you want to see to switch to it. I believe the "most" recent one will be at the top of the list. I don't like this one at all. I'm so used to switching back and forth with a single button click. This one is harder to get used to, but I've been using it this way for a week or so. It takes about 4 or 5 seconds to switch channels using this method.

Does the guide data download for all possible channels, or can you shorten the download time by removing channels which you never intend to watch?

Does the guide data download for all possible channels, or can you shorten the download time by removing channels which you never intend to watch?

The data in the TV signal will always be the full guide. I'm waiting to hear back from the engineer at the local station as to what the baud rate is for the data and how many times it cycles in a 24 hour period. I don't think you can speed it up at all by altering the Sony box. The download speed is limited to the bandwidth of the how the data is carried in the signal. Don't forget it's analog too. So there may be a fair amount of errors and such depending on the signal strength, interference, etc. at your antenna. From what I understand so far, the data is a sequential stream that just keeps on looping. The Gemstar server at the local station gets a data update once a day to refresh the stream data. At my local station the Gemstar update occurs at about 5:45PM. As I learn more about this process, I'll post it here.

I'm still very interested in finding a way to monitor the guide data with a computer. The local engineer told me that's exactly how they do it, but the software belongs to Gemstar. We need to find a programmer that's written some TV tuner applications to see if it's possible to extract the guide data using a TV tuner card in a computer. Any thoughts on this?

Just checked again and the Guide Download has started. So far, so good. :)

I can't believe that I get so MANY channels. I sure hope I can hide/delete about half of them after the guide downloads. I also kinda like the way they order the stations, alphabetically, with a seperate "news" channel section. I can't beleive how many Discovery Channels there are on this cable? :)

I'm finally getting guide data again. I guess it was the Gemstar encoder at the local TV station that was the culprit.

Another cool little feature is when a show end at say 8:30 a small info window pops up on what the next show is...I also love the fact that it has the station logos with the number it is assigned to. I do wish it had a "previous" button to switch back and forth.

The Guide is continuing to load and last night I used it to record two HD shows, one off OTA HD and the other off cable HD. It worked perfectly and looked absolutely incredible and indistiguishable from the original broadcast. Seems like the guide folks are on the ball here in Houston? I'd guess that when I check today, I'll have 8 days of guide? :)

Now... for the tedious task of removing some channels and putting together a favorites listing.

So far, my only wish(other than firewire output to DVHS) is that it had two tuners which allowed me to watch an HDTV show on channel 311 while recording one on channel 312. Hmmm, I wonder if the OTA HD tuner and the cable HD tuner are seperate and if I can record a cable HD show while watching an OTA HD show???

The Guide is continuing to load and last night I used it to record two HD shows, one off OTA HD and the other off cable HD. It worked perfectly and looked absolutely incredible and indistiguishable from the original broadcast. Seems like the guide folks are on the ball here in Houston? I'd guess that when I check today, I'll have 8 days of guide? :)

Now... for the tedious task of removing some channels and putting together a favorites listing.

So far, my only wish(other than firewire output to DVHS) is that it had two tuners which allowed me to watch an HDTV show on channel 311 while recording one on channel 312. Hmmm, I wonder if the OTA HD tuner and the cable HD tuner are seperate and if I can record a cable HD show while watching an OTA HD show???

The lack of a 2nd tuner is a shame, but I have a built in HD tuner in my Sony TV, so that will be my method of watching one while I recording one. Lew

I have a simple question about the Sony unit, can you program it to automatically record any show containing a certain keyword in the title or description, like you can with Replay & Tivo?

You can search on a keyword/titles/movies etc and schedule the recording from the results.

The lack of a 2nd tuner is a shame, but I have a built in HD tuner in my Sony TV, so that will be my method of watching one while I recording one. Lew True. I have two OTHER HDTV tuners, but I was hoping to sell at least one of them and, I'm out of HD inputs on the back of my HDTV anyway. :)

You can search on a keyword/titles/movies etc and schedule the recording from the results.

So it sounds like it won't automatically record anything based on a keyword... for instance, if another program comes along in the future with the keyword, it will not automatically record it -- you have to search to see if anything is coming up in the guide (as far out as that goes -- a few days or week), then schedule whatever it might find??

ReplayTV can do what I'm looking for (and probably Tivo too)... just set up keyword and it'll automatically record anything it finds until you delete the keyword. No searching / scheduling.

merc,
I am having the cable guy out here on Wed. Does your TV GUIDE work properly with your HD channels? I am only 24 hours away from having an 8-day TV GUIDE list...So far so good!!!

Does your TV GUIDE work properly with your HD channels? I am only 24 hours away from having an 8-day TV GUIDE list...So far so good!!! Yup. I have a full guide and it works perfectly so far. I've recorded and watched three shows so far and am recording the entire Nascar race tonight on Fox HD.

Yup. I have a full guide and it works perfectly so far. I've recorded and watched three shows so far and am recording the entire Nascar race tonight on Fox HD.

Hey, merc!

You have the full 8 days of guide info after only 3 days? So this is faster than the 3410A download process?

And how would you rate the Sony as compared with the LG so far?

Phil,

I think my Guide download might have more to do with the local TWC folks than anything else? They even called me yesterday to make sure that my cablecard was working and that my unit was downloading the guide. I was shocked....

As for the 3410, I never ended up buying one after all the complaints about the PSIP based guide and the inconcsistency of the PBS based guide on my Samsung HDTV tuners.

Gotta go and watch the HD recording of tonights Coke Cola 600... :)

It loooks like this unit (the software) does not really do name base recording (ala season pass, and even the s/w in the moto 6412) Would someone confirm this form me? In other words do things like:

1) get all epsiodes of <show name> regardless of day/time
2) get only NEW (not rerun) episodes.

Thanks for the information! Is there *any* standalone OTA HD DVR that does this yet?
Thanks.

Ut Oh....

Just looked again at the Guide... and it hasn't downloaded anything for the last two days. :(

Time to call TWC....?

Does this receiver allow you to watch a previously recorded program while it is recording a new program?

Ut Oh....

Just looked again at the Guide... and it hasn't downloaded anything for the last two days. :(

Time to call TWC....?

I think the cableco just passes the TV Guide data from the original local broadcast station. Or maybe I'm misunderstanding how CableCARD works with the guide. Does CableCARD give you the cableco's guide or TV Guide?

merc, I could have sworn you bought a 3410A. Look at all the fun you missed! (I just arranged to send my second unit in for exchange.)

Does this receiver allow you to watch a previously recorded program while it is recording a new program?


Yes, it does. Or you can start watching a currently recording program from the beginning of the program.

Anybody found discrete on/off codes for this thing yet? Sure would like to program my Pronto with them...

[I]I just re-read this thread. There are 6442 hits on 171 posts from 40 different posters. There seems to be 5 units working with some degree of satisfaction owned by: Kong, GBrock, O+lsl, Ozeyeo and Stork3000. Merc expects his friday? MarkRubin, AndyDrew, and Ken Ross sent theirs back, and BenDover said he cancelled his order.

I may have missed some info, but that's most of it.

Is there anyone else that actually has one of these? and if it's you, please tell us how it's working for you.

Lew

Lew, I've had mine for about a week and a-half. Just got a digital cable card with the HD package installed on Friday and it took until yesterday to fill in all listing info. I didn't check to see how many days out the listing goes, though. I use it mainly for my HD watching as I kept my digital cable box - the wife and kids are used to it- for regular cable viewing. I really like it. I've been recording movies off of HBO HD, Starz HD and Cinemax HD as well as Jay Leno and some prime time programming. It's been quite a treat for me to watch HD anytime that I want. This box fills a niche for me very nicely. I am very pleased with it. Bob

It loooks like this unit (the software) does not really do name base recording (ala season pass, and even the s/w in the moto 6412) Would someone confirm this form me? In other words do things like:

1) get all epsiodes of <show name> regardless of day/time
2) get only NEW (not rerun) episodes.

Thanks for the information! Is there *any* standalone OTA HD DVR that does this yet?
Thanks.

Any info for this stuff? Thanks!

1) get all epsiodes of <show name> regardless of day/time
2) get only NEW (not rerun) episodes.
You can set up your unit to record the show on the channel "Weekly", or "Regularly" which means that anytime that show is scheduled, on that specific channel, it will record it. So, when you do your search, if that show is on several channels, you need to select the first instance of it on each channel, and set your unit to record them "Regularly". However, the Guide does not note if ANY show is a rerun or a new showing... so you cannot set the unit for that option. :(
Hope that makes sense?

I checked this morning and all of the Guide is now filled in again. I guess the engineer responsible for the Guide encoder took the holiday weekend off? ;)

You can set up your unit to record the show on the channel "Weekly", or "Regularly" which means that anytime that show is scheduled, on that specific channel, it will record it. So, when you do your search, if that show is on several channels, you need to select the first instance of it on each channel, and set your unit to record them "Regularly". However, the Guide does not note if ANY show is a rerun or a new showing... so you cannot set the unit for that option. :(
Hope that makes sense?

I checked this morning and all of the Guide is now filled in again. I guess the engineer responsible for the Guide encoder took the holiday weekend off? ;)

Thanks Merc, interesting, that's not what I understood from reading the manual (linked from this thread somewhere). It suggested regularly meant any time the show is on the SAME CHANNEL and at the SAME TIME.

Also I guess if there is an odd show of a series on a different day than usual it just would not get it?

Thanks again!

Thanks Merc, interesting, that's not what I understood from reading the manual (linked from this thread somewhere). It suggested regularly meant any time the show is on the SAME CHANNEL and at the SAME TIME.Oops... I rechecked my manual and you are absolutely correct. Regularly means same time and channel but any day.... :(

What show are you looking to record anytime and anywhere it shows? (just curious)

Oops... I rechecked my manual and you are absolutely correct. Regularly means same time and channel but any day.... :(

What show are you looking to record anytime and anywhere it shows? (just curious)

well nothing in particular, but this happens every season with Survivor at least. It comes on on an odd day here or there as well, the final episode is on an odd day. I like to set it and forget it so to speak.

I just want same functionality as Tivo for at least basic recording stuff (don't need other tivo stuff like keyword recording and auto recording, etc...)

The new iGuide on my comcast HDDVR even does this though, so it's sufficient, but I want to drop cable and get my HD over the air. Want a standalone HD DVR with some acceptable software. Sadly this seems to be too much to ask!

Thank you very much for the confirmation though. Hopefully by the end of the year something new will be out. oy.

Maybe the name of this thread does not suit the discussion any more... anyway, where are people buying this device from?

I know that SonyStyle has it for $999, and now VANN'S seems to have it in stock, also for $999. Camcordersplus claims to have it in stock at $899, but I have not heard of them (any experience with them?).

It seems that it is starting to show up at the regular online places. I wonder what the street price is going to be after the initial availability hurdles settle.

The programming options for this unit is no where near that of my ReplayTV units, but, it is worth the effort to me to be able to program record HDTV(OTA and Cable based) on a disc based unit. And, much much easier and convenient than using my T165/DVHS setup.

As for shows like Survivor, or any other SDTV show, I just use one of my SDTV ReplayTV units. :)

I got mine at Onecall for around $900.

The cable guy came and installed my cable card. EVerything went without a hitch or hiccup. As soon as the operator got the info they needed, it was a matter of seconds and there were my HD channels. Then I went to the TV Guide listings and the info was there also. My official rating as of right now is a "10". This is working exactly the way it was advertised and marketed...

This quote is from an engineer at the local UPN station in Milwaukee. He supports the Gemstar encoder there and works with Gemstar to support the equipment. I've been having some issues with my guide and all the while I was assuming I was getting the data from WCGV. Turns out the Sony box must have the latest Gemstar decoder and my guide data really comes from WMVS. I've been removing WMVS from my guide listing every chance I get. DOH!!!!

"Now to answer a few questions..............

Does Gemstar provide information for the Digital Channels? Not at this time.

Will the guide still work if the channel that sends the information is deleted from the receivers channel list? Depends on the receive device. Most likely it will stop working.

Can ATSC receivers find Gemstar guide information? No, it's sent analog only. They are currently working on ATSC insertion equipment. Perhaps later this year.
When analog goes away they still plan on providing their guide info.

I learned something new. Milwaukee area has a total of four Gemstar Hosts.
They are WITI, WCGV, WMVS, WJJA. Of these four stations WMVS sends the data designed for the newest Gemstar decoders (2004 & up). The problems posted above may not be due WCGV's encoder but perhaps WMVS's or a reception issue with channel 10 or deletion from your channel lineup."



I wonder what we'll do when analog stations go away? I suppose we'll have to get a firmware update to receive guide data from digital broadcasts.

I wonder what we'll do when analog stations go away? I suppose we'll have to get a firmware update to receive guide data from digital broadcasts.

We can only hope. Why do I have the feeling our current Gemstar boxes will become obsolete?

Very interesting post, BTW.

I had missing data for Saturday and Sunday in my guide. I added WMVS back into the guide. We'll see if adding it fills in the rest of the guide. I'll post the result if/when I see anything.

I'm going to be contacting Sony with serious intent to find out about the version of the Gemstar encoder in these new DVR's. I'm also going to find out about if/how we'll upgrade when Gemstar transitions to sending their data via digital broadcasts. Hopefully we're not SOL when the transition happens. I will not be a happy camper if that's the case. I wish I would've had these questions in my mind before I purchased this unit. I like the unit, but if the guide gets disabled in a couple of years, it won't be worth much.

Has anyone figured out the service menu codes?

What's the USB port used for?

Is the only difference between the 2 Sony units the HDD size?

Is there a memory stick port?

Would you recomend this unit to those of us who haven't bought one yet?

What's the USB port used for?

Is the only difference between the 2 Sony units the HDD size?

Is there a memory stick port?

Would you recomend this unit to those of us who haven't bought one yet?

USB is for "future" use.

Yes, harddrive size is the only difference.

No memory stick slot.

Don't know if I'd recommend any Gemstar guide equipped unit until I learn more about future development and digital migration strategies. This thing could be obsolete when the analog broadcasts go away.

Don't know if I'd recommend any Gemstar guide equipped unit until I learn more about future development and digital migration strategies. This thing could be obsolete when the analog broadcasts go away. I think the soonest that analog broadcasting will go away, right now, is December 31st, 2008. And, if I understand correctly, that only includes OTA analog broadcasting, and does not preclude cable systems from sending analog data transmissions through the cable if they desire. Also, if the National Broadcasters Association has anything to say about it, I'd expect to continue to see analog broadcasts till 2010.

I don't think any of the more than 11 million Gemstar/TV Guide subscribers have much to worry about...?

As for me, so far, I am very happy with my purchase and could not now imagine doing without this unit for HDTV recording. YMMV.

I think the soonest that analog broadcasting will go away, right now, is December 31st, 2008. And, if I understand correctly, that only includes OTA analog broadcasting, and does not preclude cable systems from sending analog data transmissions through the cable if they desire. Also, if the National Broadcasters Association has anything to say about it, I'd expect to continue to see analog broadcasts till 2010.

I don't think any of the more than 11 million Gemstar/TV Guide subscribers have much to worry about...?

As for me, so far, I am very happy with my purchase and could not now imagine doing without this unit for HDTV recording. YMMV.

Until now, I was a big proponent of getting rid of analog. Now that I might be stuck with this "legacy" dependency on analog, I guess my stance has changed on that. :)

If you're right, these DVR's will probably be obsolete before the switch over happens anyway. However, I've got to believe Sony and Gemstar were forward lthinking enough to put a "digital" Gemstar decoder in an ATSC based device. Or at least a firmware upgradable one. If not, it's probably "planned obsolesence" on Sony's part.

I've been rattling cages at Sony trying to get access to an engineer type person. Don't know if I'll succeed or not. They're going to get to know me very good either way. :cool: I'm also waiting for a call back from Gemstar as well. Since they created the technology and have had to work closely with the manufacturers, I'm hoping they'll have some info on decoder capabilities that are currently out in the field. I already know that they will be digital capable towards the end of this year. Imagine how much faster they'll be able to load a guide over a digital sub-channel!?!?

Can a larger hard drive be installed? Does the 500gb Just have two 250gb drives or one 500gb? I've never seen a 500gb. Any one willing to pop the top and post some pix??

There are 2 250GB drives inside. There's a temperature monitor for each somewhere in a diagnostics menu I ran across once.

Mine has a big "Warranty void if opened" sticker across the cover and back panel, so the top will be staying on mine for another 11 1/2 months.

If you're right, these DVR's will probably be obsolete before the switch over happens anyway. However, I've got to believe Sony and Gemstar were forward lthinking enough to put a "digital" Gemstar decoder in an ATSC based device. Or at least a firmware upgradable one. If not, it's probably "planned obsolesence" on Sony's part.Or... cable companies will just give you a little box which you attach to your coax cable feed, and which does a D/A on the incoming Gemstar/TV Guide data signal, thereby making it readable by our 4-5 year old DVRs.

In any case, my guide is almost fully loaded. This DVR certainly is a pleasure to use when the guide is there. I just scheduled a couple more recordings. I love how easy it is to use. The excellent picture quality doesn't hurt either.


I'll post any additional findings I come across regarding the Gemstar features.

First Error I received on this unit. While recording Charlie's Angles on ABC HD OTA I was switching to a previous viewed program(What's Kewl at Cedia 2005) during commercial breaks. Everything was working fine up until a few minutes ago. It said it encountered an hdd error and is rebooting. After about 1 minute the unit showed the SONY logo for a bit then the unit shut off...I waited another minute or so and I manually turned on the unit power. As soon as the TV Guide showed up it started to record Charlie's Angels... Very strange...I am going to check the temp. in the preferences setting to see if the temp isn't to high...

temp is 98...

Has anyone tried to connect this DVR to TW Cable in New York City (especially Staten Island) via a CableCard? There is only one representative for the whole city that can process a CableCard request. She insists that this DVR is NOT supported via a CableCard on NYC's TW Cable. Sony says that it is supported. I do not know how to convince the representative that it is supported.

Cynthia

Cynthia,

My unit is working just fine using a TWC cablecard here in Houston.

Here in Houston, you go and pick up the cablecard from a local TWC store, and then when you get home, you put it into the Sony and a screen pops up with the data/info you need to give to TWC. I called them and gave them the info off the screen, and early the next morning, I checked and the cablecard had been activated by TWC. Although it was a two day process, it was still relatively painless.

We got ours in at our store yesterday (Denver). Last nightI hooked mine up with just analog cable to see if it could find everything without an antenna. The guide was filling up nicely when I turned it on this morning. It sure is a busy, confusing, menu compared to my Replay unit. Hopefully I can get the hang of it and get the channels organized over the weekend. Lew