MODERATOR'S NOTE: This is a thread combining several threads about SA-8300 issues. Please post setup and operational issues and fixes that do not directly relate to the recording abilities of the STB here. There's an SA 8300 Tips and Tricks (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=471859) thread for the DVR functions of this box going in the HDTV Recorders and Players forum that contains a lot of information. Questions about recording functions should go into that forum. -Doc

There's also an older thread on HDMI audio issues here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=550205).

Some jump points for this thread:
Problem using 8300 with CRT HDTV monitor (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6286121&&#post6286121)
Aspect ratios and stretch problems (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6337603&&#post6337603)
Best way to connect (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6348181&&#post6348181)
PQ: HDMI vs Component (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6625497&&#post6625497)
Finding software version (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6383252&&#post6383252)
Thin line showing down the edge of the screen (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6425149&&#post6425149)
Changing default # of days to save a recording (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6446883&&#post6446883)
Getting to the end of a recording quickly (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6448612&&#post6448612)
Moving through a recorded show in 15 min intervals (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6449503&&#post6449503)
Changing the output format (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6634967&&#post6634967)
Will the 8300 do OTA? (no) (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6689907&&#post6689907)


************************************************************ **
Hopefully someone can answer this question!

I purchased a Sony 50" A10 and hooked everything up. I'm running the cable through my SA 8300HD cable box.

I went through all the cables, and I couldn't to get the video to work. It worked fine using component cables, but just not with the HDMI.

I made sure that the TV was set to input 6 for the HDMI connector. I downloaded the instruction book for the cable box, and followed those instructions. It indicated that the box should normally be set up for pass-through, but when an HDMI cable is used there would be a separate option for that. When I went into the menu, the HDMI option was not there.

I called Brighthouse, and they said that they would send a "diagnostics" through and to then try it. I got home from work, and sure enough the HDMI port was working, and the "Set Picture Format" on the settings menua of the cable box recognized the HDMI.

Then a few nights later, the picture went blank. Sure enough, the port went out again. The next morning I woke up, and it was working again.

Two days ago, the picture went out again. I waited a day to see if it would fix itself again, and it didn't. I called Brighthouse, and the tech support person said that even though they have HDMI ports, they don't support them. Huh?!

He suggested I bring the box in, and swap it out for a new one.

I did that today, and hooked up the new box, and the port is still not working.

Anyone have any idea what is going on?

[I'm getting this really annoying intermittent humming sound from my Scientific Atlantic 8300HD box. Originally I thought this was a problem with the speakers built into my TV but I recently bought a DVD player and the audio is perfectly fine at any volume when watching DVDs.

Both the DVD player and the 8300HD are connected to my TV via RCA cables. I've tried swapping the cables but that didn't seem to have any effect on the humming.

Anyone have any idea what could be causing this?

My 32” CRT HDTV is just dandy. And my SA Explorer 8300HD-DVR cable set top box is a versatile marvel. But it’s not cooperating fully with my 32” Panasonic model CT-32HL44 HDTV monitor.

I prefer to watch most HD programming in the full, standard screen 4:3 mode, the same way that I watch non-HD shows. (I know, that crops several inches off the sides of a 16:9 format image.) I use an HDMI connector between the set and box. The Auto DVI/HDMI picture format setting is recommended by Scientific Atlanta, to obtain the most automatic set adjustments for 1080i, 480i and 480p programs.

But there’s a problem. The Auto DVI/HDMI software acts like it should on a widescreen set--despite my selecting “4:3 type set” on the menu.
1) It shows non-HD programs inside both letterbox bars and side bars, at about the size you would get on a 25” TV.
2) But the worst part is, it won’t show HD programs in HD on the full screen (while lopping off a couple of inches on both ends, of course). When I use the Panasonic remote to remove the set’s letterbox bars, and use the SA remote’s Stretch feature to fill the standard screen, the set shows a 1080i program in 480i.

QUESTION: Is there a software problem? Or, has SA decided that I shouldn’t watch HD in the standard format? Or is it something else? (SA won’t answer consumer questions, and Cox Cable doesn’t know diddly.)

I’m using a workaround, but it requires that I keep my Panasonic remote handy to add or remove the set’s letterbox bars. I changed the picture format setting to Fixed (1080i). By using Fixed, I can use the Panasonic remote to toggle between full screen and letterbox bars, and use the # sign on the S.A. remote to change between Normal 1080i (for widescreen) and Stretch 1080i (for full standard screen). With this method, I can get an HD program to fill the standard format screen.

A SIDE QUESTION, about the fine vertical lines, visible on the screen when you get up close and look carefully. Do they indicate 1080i, or simply any interlaced image--either 1080i or 480i? And, how about the fine grid of both horizontal and vertical lines. Do they indicate either a 480i or a 480p image?

Jim

I want to thank those that have responded to my posts in the past. Its helped clear up some up the frustration Im having here. I have Adelphia cable with a SA 8300HD box and a Panasonic HD tv. In the boxes set up I chose 1080i and 480p sd for my screen selections and pass through for picture size. My problem is that everything is staying at 480. Nothing ever goes to 1080, even shows that are broad cast in HD( all CSI's). I can use Adelphias remote and switch to 1081 but only zoom1 and zoom2. I have to change the pic size to fixed to get 1080 normal. Does this mean I have a bad box ?
By the way I chose 480p as it looks better to me than 480i. When I had 480i as an option everything stayed on that.
I would apprecieate any help here - the cable company is useless.
Thanks
John

Serbonze #1

When your screen went blank, did you try jiggling the HDMI cable’s connectors at the input ports? According to an article in Sept 2005 PC World, “The Cable Game,” ALL BRANDS of HDMI cable lack a good, solid connection. They say Monster’s are most prone to work loose--a case where their cables’ larger size and weight works against them.

My AR brand HDMI cable is finicky, so I route it away from touching a room wall, or a cabinet wall, which may vibrate at some time.

Jim

JRV331 #4

Our problems are partially similar, as you can see in my post precedning yours. In your Panasonic, do you have Mode set to Cable (not TV) in your initial general set-up? I realize this is basic, but my cable guy had it set to TV--which made problems until I changed it.

Jim

jimhh,

I had not changed the mode to cable box. Actually Ive only had the box a few days and never even thought about it. I switched it a few hours ago and still no change, it never moves from 480. Just a question though - my cable goes into the box and I use RBG cables back to the tv. Why does it matter what the tv is set to?
Thanks John

Serbonze #1,

I had a simular problem. Several posts talk infact its even in my tv manual) about the proper way to turn on/off the eqp. When turning on, turn the tv on first then cable box. For off its opposite. Some thing with handshaking. Once I did this no more problems. My problem was the family refused to do it and I would constantly lose settings and picture. Finalyy gave up and went to RBG cables. I dont really notice a difference.
John

John #8 & #9

The “TV” setting is to use with an OTA antenna. I can imagine the wire from a roof or other antenna being connected directly to the set, and the Panasonic TV’s built in tuner(s) doing the work from there.

With the “Cable” setting, of course, the cable is connected to the set top box, the box is connected to the TV, and the set’s tuner(s) are bypassed.

If you don’t mind, I’ll add a twist to your post to Serbonze #1. For those who are as lazy as I am, there’s a way to turn on both the box and TV with only one click. Here’s how I set it up on my SA model AT8400 remote:
1) Press CBL key, then Power key, on the SA remote to turn on the box.
2) Turn on your TV with its remote or at the set.
3) Press the Power key on the SA remote. Both the box and TV will turn off.

You’re all set. Now, when you hit Power, both the box and set will turn on. Hit Power again, and both will turn off.

Jim

Jimhh,
If I have my tv on one of the auxilarly inputs(dvi-hdmi) aren't I by passing the tv's tuner any way?
I originally had my remote set up this way - the problem I had is that the the power up / down sequence turned the cable box on/off first then the tv. No matter what sequence I programed the remote to the cable box came on first. For my hdmi connection to not lose picture after a few moments my tv had to come on first.
john

John #11

I guess you do bypass the TV tuner when you perform a general set-up for cable TV. I was just repeating what my Panasonic manual says--use Cable for the Mode setting.

BTW, my pair of Panasonic tuners did work to make a 50/50 split screen, when I used an S-Video cable between a Sony Direct TV digital receiver (non-HD) and my TV. There’s a dish and OTA antenna on the roof, and they both feed down to me through the same cable. So, for split screen, I could get one channel from the dish, and another channel from the antenna. I had Mode set to TV, not Cable.

It’s too bad your HDMI connection didn’t cooperate better. I guess it’s of no help to you, but here’s what I can observe: I tap the Power key on the SA remote. The box’s panel reads “1080i” instantly, and I can hear a click inside the TV at the same time. The set’s LED On light comes on a fraction of a second after that, there’s a very short hum sound. I clocked it, and the picture comes up in 7 seconds. It seems faster, but who’s counting? The picture stays on.

Strange that your set-up won’t work the same way, huh? Wish I could help, but I’m just another consumer who can’t get decent tech help from the cable company or Scientific Atlanta. So, like you, I’m hoping to get some solutions on the AVS Forum.

Jim

jimhh and others ,

It wound up being my cable box. I got a new one and everything works great. jimhh one thing I forgot to mention is that I have a splitter on my line. One to the cable box and one to the tv. This way when Im recording two shows I can flip to an antenna and watch a third.
Thanks for all the help
John

I've tried jiggling and wiggling everything. :)

I've also tried the proper steps in turning on and off all of the components.

I do get sound through the HDMI cable, just no video.

John & Serbonze,

Whoopee, John! That’s good news. Don’t OD on all those recordings.

Serbonze, again, I’m no expert. But, going by your original post, it sounds like Brighthouse is your cable service provider. And they replaced the box, but that didn’t help. You might have the HDMI connector tested locally. If it’s okay, that only leaves your new TV. I would talk to the seller about having it checked, either by them or by a Sony technician. It’s under warranty, right?

Jim

Here's something that relates to 8300HD record/playback as well as non-DVR viewing. It appears that for most locations 8300HD resolution is limited to <1300 lines maximum resolvable detail. Posts from vegggas, involved with converter tech, suggests this is because the firmware for the 8300HD output chip may be generic code. Since one forum member, FredB, measured 1600 lines resolution by using a CableCard, perhaps revamped or 'tweaked' firmware for 8300HDs can deliver equivalent resolution. This assumes the hardware in the 8300HD is capable of ~1600-line outputs, which seems reasonable. Maybe someone consults with their local firmware upgrade techs and could find out if this is even feasible. -- John

Edit: This updated post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6689549&&#post6689549) indicates FredB's 1600 CableCArd measurement wouldn't have been possible with a 1366-line display panel.

Ok, here is the deal. I have 65" Mits that supports everything except 720p. After going through the 8300 setup wizard in numerous combination, I am unable to output SD in 480p without having the 8300 stretching it!

I want it to output in 480p 4:3 so I can use the Mits's superior stretch modes!

I have tried everything including telling it I had a 4:3 TV!

I'm hooked up via Component and HDMI.

Sorry, I know this has probably been posted before but I searched and still could not seem to find the resolution (no pun intended). :)

Thanks,

Mike

I want it to output in 480p 4:3 so I can use the Mits's superior stretch modes!

I have tried everything including telling it I had a 4:3 TV!

Perhaps the remote is set to ZOOM or Stretch mode. With my setup, pressing # shows what mode you're in. I've set my system for 1080i out only on YPbPr, viewing SD mostly with side pillars on my 16:9 CRT RPTV, but zoom works nicely for letterboxed (and side pillar) images. Using S-video, etc. with 480i SD lets you stretch images with your set, which I sometimes use, but you have to change modes with the display. My RPTV won't accept 480i at YPbPr, and it reads like the Mits won't eiither. -- John

I want it to output in 480p 4:3 so I can use the Mits's superior stretch modes!Superior??? What Mits do you have? I've always found their internal scalars to be awful compared with almost any external box. I do have any 8300HD and granted it is pretty pitiful as well.

ok guys this is my weekend....I hope!!!

I just took delivery of a 50" Panny plasma and I want to make sure I'm connecting it correctly. I have the SA-8300HD. What is the best connection from it to the TV, HDMI? Would connecting it this way affect the SD picture? Any other things I should look for or do? I'm gonna read the manual, I just want some real life recommendations.

Thanks in advance!

jerome8283,
From my reading in the recorders forum, the difference between component and HDMI is mainly in the frustration level of dealing with the problems with the handshake for HDMI. I don't have HDMI capability myself, but very few people have claimed that the difference is worth the hassle.

TerryB

Thanks TerryB, I'm being told this. I did buy a HDMI cable over the web anyway. It's a good thing I got good advice not to pay $100 for one.

I became a forum member after purchasing my first HDTV this year. I’m guessing that the term “handshake” refers to a cable connection, with implied concerns about how good the connection is. I realize that much has already been posted on AVS about HDMI cables--their cost, and how they can be quirky to use. Nevertheless, I would like to pass on the following, which I wrote for a Morningstar.com forum. It describes PC World’s and my own experiences with HDMI cables. According to the PC World article, the industry is aware of the HDMI handshake problem, and may actually try to fix it. Here goes:

Last July, a few of us teamed up against buying luxury-priced Monster brand HDMI connector cables. (See the tail end of ST #1451, "HDTV Question?".) In The Cable Game (http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,121777,pg,1,00.asp), PC World (Sept 2005) tested five brands, including Monster. It begins,

"Salespeople may tell you that exotic video cables deliver a better picture. But the results of our exclusive lab tests could save you money. ... the question is not whether a good cable is essential, but whether you need to spend a lot to get a good one.

"The HDMI cable prices ranged from $31 (CableWholesale.com) to $300 (Monster Cable). And since cable length is an important factor in testing--each additional foot has the potential to worsen the signal--we chose cables that measured about 4 meters (12 to 15 feet) each, long enough for the majority of home theater setups.

"Our conclusion: You don't need to spend a fortune on cables. The HDMI cables performed comparably in both our instrument tests and our visual tests. ... Once you get a good HDMI connection, our tests indicate, you can expect flawless performance from any 4-meter cable, regardless of price."

They noted that HDMI "digital cables are inherently more dependable than analog ones." My sole complaint is that they don't attach as solidly as many of my computer connections do. I was extra careful, so that none of the cable pressed against a room wall, or parts of the cabinet for my STB, that might vibrate over time. One little nudge can break the connection. There is a proposal to cure this by adding latches to make the connections more secure.

"One obstacle we did face involved establishing solid connections with our devices' HDMI ports. In some cases, we connected the cable but no image appeared. Sometimes wiggling the cable fixed the problem, and sometimes it didn't. But the trouble seems to stem from the standard HDMI connector design used by all cable vendors.

"If you jiggle an HDMI connector, one or two electrical lines in the connector might have intermittent connections," says Chad Nelson, an engineer with Maxim Integrated Products, which manufactures chips for digital and analog signaling.

"We don't believe that there is a fundamental problem with the design of the HDMI connector," says HDMI Licensing's Chad. However, he notes that his organization is evaluating proposals for a connector that latches in place.

"For now, the best strategy is to position the cable carefully so that it applies no stress to the connector. In our tests, we had the most trouble when trying to attach Monster's $300 M1000HDMI cable to the Epson's HDMI port. Easily the thickest, stiffest, heaviest model we reviewed, the Monster cable pulled away from the projector's HDMI port, often causing the screen to go blank."

Jim

Hey,
I have the 8300HD TWC/Passport and it seems almost everytime I try PiP the dang thing freezes/locks up what ever and I have to either let it re-boot on it's own which can take 5-10 minutes of go pull the power cable and then wait till it finds the signal again, those blue dots which can take any where from 2-5 minutes.
The "cable guy" said when I first got the HD box and TV that the signal looked fine, "I was getting pixelation is why I called in the first place". Does anyone have an idea as to why this might happen, it's a real pain :mad:
Bad box?
Bad signal?
Bad luck?

Mark

I'm having an odd problem that just started. I was successfully using passthrough to view all of the programs for a week and then 2 days ago...I suddenly got no picture. I was messing around with the remote and noticed if I hit the zoom button the picture came up. It works in anything but "normal". I switched back to "fixed" and could see everything just fine....however, while HD programs work fine, any non HD recordings are offset on the screen. The border on the left side is now about 1/3 the size of the one on the right. The picture looks fine, just not centered. As I said until 2 weeks ago everything worked just fine. I've tried unplugging the unit to reboot it but still have the same issue.

Thanks.

I just moved and switched to TWC. I have the SA8300 DVR and was wondering how to find out version software I have. I can't search, being all I now is dial-up and 26.4 speed.

I had TW install an SA8300HD DVR last week and overall it is OK but the DVR functions can't compare to my 5-year old ReplayTV. But anyway, had to make the "sacrifice" to get HD recording capability for my new TH-42PX50U :D

Anyway, my question is this. Twice now, I've totally lost the DVR functions on the STB. Can't pause, rewind, fast-forward, skip back, return to live, etc - pushing those buttons does NOTHING. Everything else on the remote works.

If I change channels, or power cycle the STB, then all the DVR stuff starts working again. But both of those "fixes" kinda suck if I'm watching something delayed, cause then I lose all the buffered part I haven't seen yet.

Anyone else had this problem? Is it a known problem with the 8300 DVR? Or have I got a bad box?

Thanks for any input!

I just moved and switched to TWC. I have the SA8300 DVR and was wondering how to find out version software I have. I can't search, being all I now is dial-up and 26.4 speed.
Likely varies with the operating system (Passport, Sara), but with Passport here I press EXIT and SELECT simultaneously on the STB until 'diag' appears on the STB, release them, then press them again. This tunes channel 1999, the local diagnostic channel, and scrolling through the pages displays firmware versions and similar data. If availalble, a local forum thread might help with specifics, as would some of the FAQ-like threads about 8300HDs in the Hd recorders/players forum. -- John

Anyway, my question is this. Twice now, I've totally lost the DVR functions on the STB. Can't pause, rewind, fast-forward, skip back, return to live, etc - pushing those buttons does NOTHING. Everything else on the remote works.

If I change channels, or power cycle the STB, then all the DVR stuff starts working again. But both of those "fixes" kinda suck if I'm watching something delayed, cause then I lose all the buffered part I haven't seen yet.

Encountered that, too. Turns out I've somehow pressed another mode key atop the remote. Pressing TV (or CBL) mode restores functions. -- John

Likely varies with the operating system (Passport, Sara), but with Passport here I press EXIT and SELECT simultaneously on the STB until 'diag' appears on the STB, release them, then press them again. This tunes channel 1999, the local diagnostic channel, and scrolling through the pages displays firmware versions and similar data. If availalble, a local forum thread might help with specifics, as would some of the FAQ-like threads about 8300HDs in the Hd recorders/players forum. -- JohnAnd if you are on Sara, simply point the remote at the 8300 and press and hold the pause button until the message light starts blinking. Then press either the +/- keys at the top of the remote to cycle thru the diag. screens. At least thats how it works on Adelphia here in NE Ohio. PS, I once watched a tech person also press buttons on the box to get in to the diag. screens but cannot remember what he pressed.

Encountered that, too. Turns out I've somehow pressed another mode key atop the remote. Pressing TV (or CBL) mode restores functions. -- John

Hmm, wish it was that easy, 1st thing I checked both times was to make sure the CBL mode was blinking when I pressed a DVR button, and it was.

In fact, while I was writing this I went in to check and the <bleeping> thing is happening AGAIN!!! No DVR functions :( And the CBL mode is selected. Pressing CBL again don't fix it. If I change to a different channel then DVR stuff works.

Only thought I have at this point is, I had NOT changed channels after powering on the 8300 for 1st time today when this happened. It was still on Disc HD which is where I left it last night when I turned the box off. Don't recall if that was the case the other 2 times, but maybe so. Don't see why that should matter though... I'll test it tomorrow by not changing channels before attempting a DVR function.

Thanks for the response though, John!

Lee

Anyone able to get WinXP drivers to PROPERLY recognize and load so the IEEE 1394 output on non-5c material works?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6380734#post6380734

quick question,

Can I run component cable to my front projector and HDMI to my CRT and use them interchangebly?

jmac

FYI, my 8300HD box was working fine, but was reseting itself once a week. It bothered me that the top of the case is always quite warm (and that it seems to always be on).

So, I layed a 92mm computer case fan on the top, attached it to a 6V adapter, and plugged it into the auxillary AC port. The fan is quiet, since it runs at half-speed, and the case is now room temperature. No more resets either.

Also, thank you SA for providing the feature that the harddrive is always recording the current channel, even when it is turned off. However, I wish they had made that a feature that can be turned off (recording the current channel when the box is turned off that is). Or, am I missing a setting here?

I'm having an odd problem that just started. I was successfully using passthrough to view all of the programs for a week and then 2 days ago...I suddenly got no picture. I was messing around with the remote and noticed if I hit the zoom button the picture came up. It works in anything but "normal". I switched back to "fixed" and could see everything just fine....however, while HD programs work fine, any non HD recordings are offset on the screen. The border on the left side is now about 1/3 the size of the one on the right. The picture looks fine, just not centered. As I said until 2 weeks ago everything worked just fine. I've tried unplugging the unit to reboot it but still have the same issue.

Thanks.

Hey, I'm having the same problem. Any solutions out there?
Also:
Any tips on getting the 8300 to jive with TVGOS in a Sharp D5U? I'm new to the STB after abandoning Cablecard (too many problems) and I'm still trying to figure out the best settings/config for my tv.
Thanks!

I have Adelphia cable with a SA 8300HD DVR box. When I connect it to my HDTV via HDMI (using an HDMI to DVI connector) I get a very thin line down the edge of the screen on certain HDTV channels. On NBC it's a thin green line down the right side of the screen, on INHD it's a yellow line down the left side. This only happens on these few HD channels, no problem with analog or any other digital channels.

If I connect the 8300HD to my TV using component cables, none of these lines appear.

Comcast just installed HD at my new house yesterday. they gave me a SA 8000HD box with DVI out. My display is a brand new Sony 50" SXRD. Last night as I was playing around with it, the box would either

1. Freeze or

2. Give me an error message saying DVI/HDMI output Blocked that would either disappear after a second or two and or another message would pop up saying that my TV does not support HDCP (which is crazy it does)

I have this hooked up DVI-DVI with a DVI-HDMI coupler at the TV end. Its driving me crazy! I ordered a few DVI-HDMI cables because the monster adapter I got is huge, but I can't figure this one out any suggestions?

I called comcast this AM and they said they would run some test over the line tonight, but it just doesn't seem right. They also said the SA 8300 and Moto 6412 were not available in my area (why?) people seem to be having better luck with these.

Thanks!

Robbie

Sounds like it's got an HDCP and/or DVI compatability issue with your particular television, it happens, you might have to use the component connections instead. Check the Recorders forum here for info on this box since it's a DVR... I'm sure if other people have seen this issue it'll be posted in there somewhere.

Threads merged.

I have Adelphia cable with a SA 8300HD DVR box. When I connect it to my HDTV via HDMI (using an HDMI to DVI connector) I get a very thin line down the edge of the screen on certain HDTV channels. On NBC it's a thin green line down the right side of the screen, on INHD it's a yellow line down the left side. This only happens on these few HD channels, no problem with analog or any other digital channels.

If I connect the 8300HD to my TV using component cables, none of these lines appear.

I have figured it out! HDMI out from my 8300HD is showing me the entire screen, every pixel, unlike component out. How do I know this? At first, I used my OTA / QAM tuner connected to cable to see if I could see it on that box as well. I did! This made me think it could just be something with my HDMI/DVI cable. So I then connected my tuner to my TV via component. I did not see the problem, but I then used my tuner's "shrink" function and sure enough, on NBC, there was the very same green line on the very right side of the picture! So now I know it has absolutely nothing to do with my HDMI/DVI cable and nothing to do with my TV. Now I wanted to figure out if the problem was occuring at my local cable company or if it was happening at the source, that being the channel source, in this case, WVIT-DT. So I disconnected my cable from my OTA / QAM tuner and connected my antenna and tuned to the OTA channel. Same thing!

So, I guess I'm suffering from being able to view the whole screen. Do you think that if I contacted the affected channel(s) about this, they would fix it? Has anyone ever done this? Thanks.

I recently upgraded two 8000s to 8300s in the milwaukee TW area. The DVI on the 8000s never worked, so I jumped on the 8300s when I learned of them hoping to get some digital action going.

The first TV is a samsung DLP, 2nd or 3rd gen (with the thin silver border). I don't know whether or not it is HDCP compliant, but the cable box (hooked up with an HDMI->DVI adapter) apparently doesn't think it is.

The second TV is a 34" sony XBR (also 2nd or 3rd gen) which is probably 4 years old. I assumed it didn't support HDCP, but the cable box happily uses HDMI with the same HDMI->DVI adaptor. The problem here is that I don't want HDMI direct to the TV, I want it going through my new pioneer VSX-74TXVi. When I hook that up to the TV, I can see the setup screen, but when I switch to the 8300HD, this time hooked up with a standard HDMI cable, I get the message that the display device is not HDCP-compatible.

Now I _know_ the receiver is HDCP-compatible (1.1), and it seems to work with my tv. The cable box also works with my TV. The combination of the 3 however does not. I can't begin to describe my hate for HDCP crippleware. Does anyone have any ideas for debugging this problem?

The handshake bug strikes again, thankfully I have nothing (to date) which uses digital (read HDMI ) connections, The 8300 has to see the display handshake when it comes on. If the receiver gave a handshake directly to the TV who knows what evil devices you might send the video to downstream. I suggest that just as the TV needs to be on and HDMI input selected when you switch on the 8300 direct, the TV must be on and selected to HDMI input and the receiver must be on and switched to the TV before the 8300 is switched on. OR, connect the TV direct to the 8300 with composite cables as few and far between are the folks who pronounce HDMI an improvement over good analog connections. Someday there won't be a hidef analog option, if you believe everything written, but not yet.

good luck,
TerryB

Yeah, I'm using the component connection right now. The issue is that I have a 3in->1 out component switcher for switching between my gamecube and ps2. If I can move the 8300 to the HDMI connection, I can get rid of that switch box and greatly simplify the setup.

Hey guys. I just got my digital cable installed yesterday with HD DVR by TWC. Its the SA 8300HD Silver Box and its connected via HDMI cable. Had it for a day and I notice that on regular cable channels, the picture comes out fuzzier and less clear than it would when I had regular cable connected directly to the cable tuner via coaxial to the back of the tv. I have a Samsung HLR4667W DLP. I did a test where I used a splitter and had one coaxial cable going to the STB and one going directly to the back of the tv and the signal going directly to the TV is clearer. Any suggestions?

Also, when I am watching HD content, such a Discovery HD, it seems as though the picture is zoomed in. Some of the lettering is cut off in the corners and there is nothing I do with the setting to zoom back out. Even if I set it to 4:3 mode, the picture doesnt change.

Thanks.

For the zoomed issue, have you setup the SA8300HD for all the SD/HD modes that your HDTV supports? Once you do this, it should automatically detect and display the correct ratio. You can of course override this in the on-screen settings (press settings button on remote once and scroll down to and select "Normal" or "Zoom"). This should all be covered in the cable/satellite provider's manual. If you don't have these instructions, let me know and I will post them...

As for the non-HD programming, they look fuzzy as well with my SA8300HD unit but they also looked the same with my previous SA3000 unit too. I always thought this was to be expected...

I use the direct to TV signal path if I am not going to record, the 8300 just doesn't do a good upconversion.

The zoom can be happening at the 8300 and shouold be changable by pressing the key to the right of 0 on the remote's numeric keypad "#" I think. This key will cycle through stretch and zoom.

TerryB

Ya, I thought of splitting up the cables wires permanently, but its kind of a hassle and annoying. I don't want to keep switching back and forth.

I have a Samsung HLR4667W DLP. I did a test where I used a splitter and had one coaxial cable going to the STB and one going directly to the back of the tv and the signal going directly to the TV is clearer. Any suggestions?

Suggest setting the 8300HD up for 720p output only (set's native rate); try 1080i only, too. That'll sidestep SD upscaling by the set--from the 8300HD at least. Analog SD, most of the time, shouldn't look significantly better than digitally delivered channels (SD or H/DTV) via the 8300HD. Analog SD is more heavily filtered NTSC, and the filtering, which trims higher resolutions, could just be eliminating details and artifacts that some digital deinterlacers/scalers further distort. S-video delivers somewhat crisper video, and component (YPBPb) or digital HDMI/DVI still crisper video. For DLPs, an all-digital path with HDMI/DVI should work best, but trying YPbPr wouldn't hurt.

Depends on system head ends, but many now deliver SD partially in both analog and digital form, plus digital H/DTV as upconverted or true H/DTV. Getting into your converter's diagnostic mode (see FAQ-like threads in HD recorders/players forum, or the sticky note above) lets you see what channels are digital versus analog. It's possible the deinterlacer/scaler in your display is creating the problem, since some just don't do a good job. Might not be worth using more sophisticated deinterlacing/scaling with a HTPC (see forum here), or a external video processor (see forum here).

There are many setting variations between the 8300HD and the display, and a different combination may improve SD viewing. Sounds like all SD is bad, but if some SD channels are good that implies the PQ of some SD sources--often significant--is playing a role. A local newscast in SD may be crisp, while shots from a shoulder-carried camera at a live golf match may be ghastly. -- John

EDIT: BTW, if you're in zoomed mode, that could screw up most SD/HD viewing due to the extra video processing zoom/stretch requires.

Here's my deal, with hope for help from the Informed—

I've hooked up a SA 8300HD to my LC32D5U after abandoning Cablecard and deciding that I wanted DVR to play with. The problems:

When I use a regular componant cable (Red/White/Yellow), the tv recognizes the cablebox and I can use the smart stretch feature, TVGOS, etc. The SD picture looks alright, a little pixilated maybe, BUT the HD picture looks AWFUL.

When I connect using the cable that TWC gave me (red/blue/green///red/white), the tv won't read "cablebox" but recognizes a componant. HD looks completely brilliant just like it should, but SD looks garish and it seems like none of my carefully chosen (Avia) calibration settings are being used. Also, the formerly black bars on the side of 4:3 content are bright grey, the picture is slightly off center, and I can't use any of my TV's view mode options (like smart stretch). TVGOS is completely out.

I'm using my HDMI connection for my DVD player, so that's not an option, I don't think.

Please help this newbie figure out how best to set up my equipment—
Thanks, and cheers!

Firespinner:

Set up your cable box so it outputs SD channels at 480i instead of upconverted to 720p/1080i. Some searching in the Recorders section here should turn up the instructions.

[mod edit: added poster's name for clarity since I merged the thread. -Doc]

The 8300 is connected by HDMI to the TV and the picture is still fuzzy. I change through all output formats and the picture didn't seem to change. I'll try it again later. Is it possible to set some channels to 720p mode and some to 1080i mode?

Realistically, 1080i should always provide a superior picture to 720p, right? The TV has the ability to output 1080i.

Threads merged.

The 8300 is connected by HDMI to the TV and the picture is still fuzzy. I change through all output formats and the picture didn't seem to change. I'll try it again later. Is it possible to set some channels to 720p mode and some to 1080i mode?

Realistically, 1080i should always provide a superior picture to 720p, right? The TV has the ability to output 1080i.

You can use Passthru or change it to 720p or 1080i via the setup menu.
1080i vs 720p = Too many varibles to deem one better than the other.
There are tons of discussions on that debate through out this site.

Firespinner:

Set up your cable box so it outputs SD channels at 480i instead of upconverted to 720p/1080i. Some searching in the Recorders section here should turn up the instructions.

[mod edit: added poster's name for clarity since I merged the thread. -Doc]

Thanks for the tip! Will that affect my HD channels, or does the TV upscale those by itself?

All,

I have the 8300 hooked with a Samsung DLP bought in late 2003 (3rd gen). My setup is best when I pass through 408i/480p/1080i/720p on to the TV. This automatically stretched my screen on 480i/480p/WSHD feeds(I have Cox Cable).

With 480i/480p I currently get a sig better picture with a component cable setup vs. the DVI-to-HDMI connector setup. I have read that the scaler in the Samsung is simply better than the SA, even when keeping the signal path completely digital (I noticed no drop in PQ when switching back and forth). Also, I could not get any sound from the TV via HDMI.

Finally, my Yamaha C920 DVD PL has a better scaler than my TV! Go figure. :confused:

MG

I have the SA 8300HD DVR connected to my plasma. When I save a recording it indicates the number of days its saved for. In many cases 14 days. I am not prompted for the number of days to save a selection so I guess its the system that decides that. Is there anyway to change that to a period of my choosing??

Three quick issues:

1. Is there anyway to go faster than the 'hit fast forward 3x' to go through a recorded program? For something like a football game to get to the last 15 minutes, this really sucks.

2. Said football game lasted longer than the couple of our block I set it to record on, I dont suppose there is any way to compensate for this in the future is there?

3. My cable company has set up 'HBO on demand' which I can download all the HBO I want from their library for free, which I thought was pretty sweet. However, 20 minutes into fiddling with this feature it locked up on one of the selection screens, and wont respond to it. I can still change to other channels of course, but nothing on-demand will work. I pulled the plug and will replug in in the morning and see if it clears it up, but wondering if its just a buggy box or if I did something wrong.

Sam

Casey Jones,
Go to the recordings by pressing list, go to scheduled recordings by pressing B, goto preferences by pressing B and change the save time for furture recordings. You can also change the save time of a current recordings one at a time while looking at the playback menu for that recording.

TerryB

TerryB ,

Thanks for you help.

:)

My 8300HD DVR STB from Cox Cable uses SARA. I use an HDMI to HDMI connector from the STB to the set. The following info from the SA site doesn’t work for me:

“What happens if a sports event that I scheduled goes into overtime?
The Entertainment Server cannot determine whether a live program will end at its scheduled time. If there is a chance that the event you are recording may continue past its scheduled time, you can allow for this uncertainty by extending the stop time on the Confirm Recording screen."

Suppose a Sunday game is allotted three hours, from 1 pm to 4 pm. I would like to tack on 30 more minutes, from 4 pm to 4:30 pm. The STB won’t accept my changing the stop time to 4:30 on the first game, or on the following game. Instead, it records from 4 pm to 7 pm., the allotted time for the second game.

Jim

Three quick issues:

1. Is there anyway to go faster than the 'hit fast forward 3x' to go through a recorded program? For something like a football game to get to the last 15 minutes, this really sucks.

2. Said football game lasted longer than the couple of our block I set it to record on, I dont suppose there is any way to compensate for this in the future is there?

3. My cable company has set up 'HBO on demand' ....

Sam

Re 1. Yes. 1. Start the recording of the game. 2. Click Stop recording button. 3. Select “Go to end of recording.” 4. Use rewind button while in Play mode to go back 15 minutes.

Re 2. See my post above about this. SA’s instructions don’t work for me. Maybe they’ll work for you.

Jim

On regular Sd channels, changing image from 480p to 720p to 1080i doesn't really change my image quality. Am I doing something wrong? And if I want to set all my SD channels to 480p, how do I do it without going to each channel and changing the setting?

Re 1. Yes. 1. Start the recording of the game. 2. Click Stop recording button. 3. Select “Go to end of recording.” 4. Use rewind button while in Play mode to go back 15 minutes.

Re 2. See my post above about this. SA’s instructions don’t work for me. Maybe they’ll work for you.

Jim

Also, when fast forwarding, if you hit the right directional arrow button you'll skip to the next 15 minute interval.

SA 8300HD SPDIF Audio Optical & Coax volume problems.

Left and Right Analog audio volume works correctly. If you adjust volume using the cable box volume and change channels the DB level is very close on all channels.

When using SPDIF Optical or SPDIF Coax the cable box volume does not function. The DB level of the channels vary drastically. I have tested 6 units all units have problem.
SA 8000HD did not have this problem.


Timewarner Hudson Valley New York - SA 8300HD Pioneer Software


Any Ideas?

Also, when fast forwarding, if you hit the right directional arrow button you'll skip to the next 15 minute interval.

kickass, perfect.

Unplugging the unit DID free up my HBO on demand, I just hope it was a one time error and not something I am gonna see a lot of!

Sam

Also, when fast forwarding, if you hit the right directional arrow button you'll skip to the next 15 minute interval.


This doesn't work on mine. Is there a specific mode you have to be in (buffer vs. recording playback)?

You'll find that there are many variations in the software installed by your cable company in your 8300. If you're not in the same service area there are many things you'll see others bragging or whining about that may not apply to you. There are three families of code, SARA is Scientific Atlanta's own code which runs with their head end gear and guide and Passport which runs on the Pioneer guide and a Microsoft version even. Goto the HDTV Recorders and Players forum and check out the hardware specific/software specific threads.

TerryB

You'll find that there are many variations in the software installed by your cable company in your 8300. If you're not in the same service area there are many things you'll see others bragging or whining about that may not apply to you. There are three families of code, SARA is Scientific Atlanta's own code which runs with their head end gear and guide and Passport ....

TerryB
My, do you write well. In this world of fine points, unpublished details and uncertainty, you said a lot in one brief paragraph. I tried out Leko’s tip earlier, and had to conclude that my Cox Comm. 8300’s software does not execute what amounts to a pretty neat trick.

I happen to be a recovering Replay TV model 5040 user, the last one sold that automatically skipped commercials. The box and remote that Replay sold me worked poorly, so the auto skip feature is all that I miss. That, and the $300 I shelled out for a “lifetime” contract.

After using the SA box for a few months, I’ve settled on using the double-arrow 10X Fast-forward speed on 2½ minute long and other commercials. Then Play, 4X Rewind to a black screen, and back to Play. (Personally, I prefer Rewind to Instant Replay.) Spending maybe 20 seconds to return to a program isn’t so bad.

During the past week or two I’ve noticed a brief alert on the screen about an upcoming recording. It says something like: “Notice, in two minutes you will be recording Program X, etc.” It’s up for only a second! I think I would prefer that it stay up longer, or not at all. A speed reader I’m not.

Jim

The upcoming recording message here lasts for about 15 seconds. I'd rather it left sooner, but I think that exit sends it on its way.

TerryB

You'll find that there are many variations in the software installed by your cable company in your 8300. If you're not in the same service area there are many things you'll see others bragging or whining about that may not apply to you. There are three families of code, SARA is Scientific Atlanta's own code which runs with their head end gear and guide and Passport which runs on the Pioneer guide and a Microsoft version even. Goto the HDTV Recorders and Players forum and check out the hardware specific/software specific threads.

TerryB

Yeah, I suspected that might be the case. Time Warner boxes in Milwaukee also automatically jump back a couple seconds to account for reaction time when pressing play during a fast-forward. I saw the tip suggesting you can get that functionality by pressing replay instead of play, so it was unclear whether that did something different (jumped back further) or if that particular box lacked that functionality on the play button.

kickass, perfect.

Unplugging the unit DID free up my HBO on demand, I just hope it was a one time error and not something I am gonna see a lot of!

Sam

I've had my 8300 for a few months now, and this will happen on rare occassion. All you need to do is reboot the box. Unplugging it for a min and plugging it back it solved the problem for me 90% of the time. The other 10% were either solved by calling TWC up and having them boost the signal from their end, or due so local service outage.

I recently bought a Pioneer HDD/DVD Recorder and connected it to my 8300HD via s-video when I noticed all the HD content had both pillars and letterboxes around it. I connected the 8300HD directly to my TV (Toshiba 34HFX84) and noticed had the same effect. When I change channels, the banner showing the channel overlaps the bottom letterbox, so that tells me the cable box is generating those bars to create a 4:3 picture. Consequently, my TV generates the pillars because it is receiving a 4:3 signal. The picture comes out just fine over components, but the Pioneer only has composite/s-vid inputs (though it does have a component output which I thought was weird). I also played around w/ the "Aspect Ratio" and "Output Format" settings but nothing seemed to make a difference. Anyone know if the 8300HD can push out a full 16:9 signal w/o letterboxes over a composite or s-vid connection?

Additionally, in reading the manual and a few other posts, I was looking for the "Set - Picture Format" setting thinking that might help, but I couldn't find it. I also could not find the "Audio Output" setting. Is it possible my cable provider (TWC NYC) disabled these settings?

Every once and a while my 8300HD DVR box goes black or breaks up with the audio stuttering. It does not matter if I am watching a HD or SD channel. I have tried rebooting yet it still happens. This box was brand new and I installed it less than two months ago. Anyone else have this issue?

I recently bought a Pioneer HDD/DVD Recorder and connected it to my 8300HD via s-video when I noticed all the HD content had both pillars and letterboxes around it. I connected the 8300HD directly to my TV (Toshiba 34HFX84) and noticed had the same effect....

Additionally, in reading the manual and a few other posts, I was looking for the "Set - Picture Format" setting thinking that might help, but I couldn't find it. I also could not find the "Audio Output" setting. Is it possible my cable provider (TWC NYC) disabled these settings?
I’m not sure you’re in the appropriate forum, but let me address the second paragrach of your post. Many of the original general settings entered with the 8300HD can be adjusted or changed with your remote. (I believe your TWC STB uses Passport software, while my STB from COX uses SARA software. Although we may both have the SA model AT8400 remote, the following applies to your software, not mine.)

On your remote, click once on Settings--just above the larger Volume button and the yellow “A” triangular button on the left side. That will giver you a menu of some settings. For more settings, follow the instructions or click the Settings button again. (With SARA, I must click Settings twice to reach the menu.)

Jim

Every once and a while my 8300HD DVR box goes black or breaks up with the audio stuttering. It does not matter if I am watching a HD or SD channel. I have tried rebooting yet it still happens. This box was brand new and I installed it less than two months ago. Anyone else have this issue?


I just got a sa8300 today. I bought a radioshack 12' hdmi cable and installed it. The first few hours it worked flawlessly. The last two hours I get an occasional audio breakup or video black screen for a second. I've only been watching HD so far.

Is anyone else besides us two having this problem? Is it the box or my cable?

On your remote, click once on Settings--just above the larger Volume button and the yellow “A” triangular button on the left side. That will giver you a menu of some settings. For more settings, follow the instructions or click the Settings button again. (With SARA, I must click Settings twice to reach the menu.)
Yes, I know about this secondary settings menu, but the 2 settings I mentioned are not in the list. If this is not the correct forum, do you know which one would be more appropriate?

Yes, I know about this secondary settings menu, but the 2 settings I mentioned are not in the list. If this is not the correct forum, do you know which one would be more appropriate?
Actually, I think we both belong in this “SA 8300 Problems and Solutions” thread. But there is another thread that’s dedicated to SA STBs using Passport software. And it’s 72 pages long, with over 2,000 posts! Even before you post there, you may find posts where other TWC subscribers address your same issues.

We’re now in HDTV Area/HDTV Hardware. Try going to HDTV Area/HDTV Recorders and Players. Then scroll down to “SA 8000HD & 8300HD w/Passport software.” Hope that helps.

Jim

Hi all,

I seem to be having an issue using my DVR remote to control my 50px500. I believe I have the 2200 remote for the SA 8300 HD DVR through COX. Anyway, has anyone been able to control this pdp using this equip? Any suggestions?

Also, I seem to be having issues with volume control on the DVR using HDMI. I thought I read somewhere there was an easy fix for this....anyone know what it is? I was previously using componant and the volume adjust on the DVR remote worked fine, but once I switched to HDMI, I can only adjust volume through the PDP remote!? HELP!!

I just got a sa8300 today. I bought a radioshack 12' hdmi cable and installed it. The first few hours it worked flawlessly. The last two hours I get an occasional audio breakup or video black screen for a second. I've only been watching HD so far.

Is anyone else besides us two having this problem? Is it the box or my cable?

My 4200HD box is doing the same thing. I just replaced the splitter and will keep you posted.

Hello, all!

I have an SA 8300 HD/DVR hooked to a standard definition TV. Every now and then, the 8300 will miss a scheduled recording. It was scheduled correctly and will remain in the Scheduled Recordings folder even past the time it was supposed to record. This is a very random occurence, usually happening once or twice a month.

Has anyone else experienced this with their 8300, and more importantly, does anyone know how to fix it? I live in Richmond, Virginia in a Comcast system.

I've combed SA's website for some help to no avail...thanks to anyone who can assist!

New Sony 60XBR1 tv (replacing my 60xbr800), and just swapped my Time Warner Pioneer HD box with the Scientific Atlanta 8300 HD DVR:

Hello all! I just did those two things i listed above, and while i love the idea of the "combo" of the SA8300HD DVR/HD cable box, there are numerous issues that i've encountered so far. it would be great to hear what your combined wisdom/advice might be.

i followed the directions exactly. not turning anything on until all the connections are made. i'm using an HDMI cable between the 8300 and my 60xbr1. Interestingly, by turning on my Sony TV, the 8300 is automatically turned on!! Is that normal?? but i encountered numerous frozen images (for about 5 to 20 seconds), then most of the time, they recover. it happens several times an hour, maybe even every 5 minutes to 10 mins. after a day of exasperation, i decided to unplug the power cord and replugging in back in. THAT changed a lot. it is not freezing up less than once an hour or so, though i don't really know because i just did that.

i change two things at the same time: my 60xbr800 to the 60xbr1, and the pioneer HD box to the SA8300HD/DVR, so i don't really know which device to attribute the image quality to, though i'm sure it's 99% the tv, the image is stunning - when there is a moving image, that is ;)

is my mediocre experience with the 8300 and the unplugging and replugging of the power cord the right thing to do? what are your respective experiences? does your 8300 turn on as well when you turn on your TV if you also use HDMI?

i'm also researching an SATA hardrive to expand the capacity. Unfortunately, it doesn't really say which models are recommended other than >7200rpm and SATA Version 2 drive/cable protocol. may i ask how you guys have done this? does it work well? am i doing something that's going to cause me even MORE problems? i've only had this for 2 days and i'm already seeing frozen images, sometimes not recovering and requiring the unplugging of the power cable!!

by the way, i use a power conditioner ( Exact Power and Chang LightSpeed) and also a "Brickwall" power surge protector. So i think i'm as well protected and my power is about as conditioned as i can be.

thanks in advance and i look forward to hearing your answers and advice.

may i know how to find the version number of my 8300 HD dvr box?

thanks!

on the 8300HD dvr, may i ask if anyone knows how to do a "fast forward 8 seconds"? that can be done on Tivo units just by entering some numbers.

has anyone tried this yet?

thx!

Any idea why the bypass in the menu doesnt seem to do jack?

I found instructions for the Cocast cable box, holding down select and setting it to output 720p. Now EVERYTHING is outputting 720p direct from the cable box, and not seeing 1080i from those channels where its native and 720p from where those are native, like the bypass is supposed to, not sure whats up with that.

Sam

Every once and a while my 8300HD DVR box goes black or breaks up with the audio stuttering. It does not matter if I am watching a HD or SD channel. I have tried rebooting yet it still happens. This box was brand new and I installed it less than two months ago. Anyone else have this issue?

Called Cablevision and they had me unplug both boxes one at a time while they sent a signal to "boost signal strength". It has be a few days and the problem seems to be gone.

Last night I was trying to run the HDTV Setup Wizard and something went wrong. Now, no matter what I do, the box will not come out of 480i mode. Because of this, I can't view an image through the component outputs and I can't run the HDTV Setup Wizard. Any thoughts on how I can get out of this situation?

Thank You,
Lin

I recently bought a Pioneer HDD/DVD Recorder and connected it to my 8300HD via s-video when I noticed all the HD content had both pillars and letterboxes around it. I connected the 8300HD directly to my TV (Toshiba 34HFX84) and noticed had the same effect. When I change channels, the banner showing the channel overlaps the bottom letterbox, so that tells me the cable box is generating those bars to create a 4:3 picture. Consequently, my TV generates the pillars because it is receiving a 4:3 signal. The picture comes out just fine over components, but the Pioneer only has composite/s-vid inputs (though it does have a component output which I thought was weird). I also played around w/ the "Aspect Ratio" and "Output Format" settings but nothing seemed to make a difference. Anyone know if the 8300HD can push out a full 16:9 signal w/o letterboxes over a composite or s-vid connection?

Additionally, in reading the manual and a few other posts, I was looking for the "Set - Picture Format" setting thinking that might help, but I couldn't find it. I also could not find the "Audio Output" setting. Is it possible my cable provider (TWC NYC) disabled these settings?
The HD signal can only be passed through component or DVI/HDMI; your new DVD recorder is SD, that's why there's no component in, BUT, it acts like a regular progressive scan DVD player, hence the component outputs)
The signal generated from the SA8300HD via Composite or SVideo is 4:3 SD, so both peices of equipment you have are doing exactly what they are supposed to be doing.
The only workaround would be to use the SA8300HD pic format settings, and use the 16:9 ZOOM 4:3 setting; for 4:3 matted 16:9 video, you really don't lose too much, and this is how I watch those particularly formatted shows.

Ok, my ability to pause, rewind, ff live TV stopped working this weekend. So, initially, there I had this problem where it wouldn't let me view another channel when I was recording one. The message telling me that I had to stop one of the recording came up, but I was only recording one thing. It said that both tuners were busy, which is BS. I found out that the "record" light was always on when I wasn't recording anything. So I unplugged the STB for half a day and problem fixed. Now, when I try to pause live tv, the image will change to some shopping network clip. When I press play, it will play that shopping network clip and then freeze. I have to change channels to unfreeze it and then go back to the channel I wanted to pause to view it. Whenever I try to pause live TV, regardless of what channel, it goes to the same freakin shopping network clip. It's like its stuck on it. I think something is wrong with the Hard Drive. All my recorded shows work fine though.

Does anyone know how to reformat the Hard Drive? Maybe this will fix it. Thanks guys.

Any idea why the bypass in the menu doesnt seem to do jack?

Because my users manual didnt tell me to hit info and guide at the same time while the unit was off to bring up the display wizard. Got that done now and I let the Panny do the scaling.

Sam

I just set up my box, but i dont even have an audio problem yet, because i cant get anything to show. On my tv it says "Weak or no signal". I have it connected directly to my tv via HDMI with nothing else. I dont understand why.

PROBLEM SOLVED, but still a grainy pic.

I just hooked up a new DVI>HDMI cable to my HDTV. Everything seems to be working fine so far, but I have one question. When I first turn the TV on a note comes up say that "HDMI is blocked" and then it disappears.

What does this mean?

8300 HD DVR, manhattan here, few problems for a week, now, when swapping from one HDMI cable to another cable, got HDCP error :(

got my new 60xbr1 2 weeks ago, so i trekked to 23rd Street and Park Avenue to swap my HD cable box to the 8300HD DVR. i followed the directions scrupulously and, voila, everything worked, handshake and all, the only issues were frozen screens every so often, which got better after i unplugged and plugged it back in.

today, i took out the HDMI cable and swapped for a new HDMI cable that i intend to keep, and everything went wrong. immediately, when turning the tv back on and the box back on, i got the error message: your tv does not support HDCP, please use component cables instead!! i tried rebooting (unplugging and replugging it back in) to no avail, several times. i tried turning off the tv as well thinking that the tv sends a "turn on" signal via HDMI to the 8300, so maybe starting everything "from the totally off" position might help, no good either.

anyone with experience on this? is the only solution to trek up to Time Warner on 23rd Street again and exchange my 8300 for another unit?

very frustrated here!

i just figured that if my 8300 and 60xbr1 BOTH handle HDMI, i really should take advantage of it since most say that it is an improvement in image quality over component cables. but now, all this frustration and troubles. on the other hand, since i still get occasional frozen screens, like every couple of hours, and occasional wild flicker that seemingly doesn't stop for several minutes (!), maybe exchanging the 8300 for another unit IS the right thing to do anyways!

any advice/shared experiences would be most appreciated! you can also email me directly.

thanks in advance!

Today, exchanged my 8300 box for another one at Time Warner. Got home, carefully followed the instructions (don't plug it in yet, first connect everything...etc) and then powered on. Same HDCP error problem!

i immediately went to Best Buy to get the same, first HDMI cable again to see if it works. Got home, changed the cables and it works!! So, the HDMI from Best Buy (a run of the mill AR brand HDMI cable) works, and the lower priced HDMI cable from a cable specialist in the midwest does not.

Question: the cable seller in the midwest has offered to send me another HDMI cable from another manufacturer to see if this item would work. (all HDMI cables are made in asia by big machines) i am beginning to wonder if i should just "leave good enough alone"!! if it's working now, should i just leave everything alone? the AR cable from Best Buy is around $88, the cable imported by the midwestern cable seller is around $40. while the $40 is not make or break, i originally figured that why "waste" money when perfectly competent cables from quality suppliers work fine (meaning: why buy Monster or AR if a cable seller in the midwest uses Broadcast-quality components to make cables every bit as good but simply doesn't have the logo/advertising that Monster or AR or another bigger name cable company has?).

Now, i'm a bit worried about this. Since everything is working now, should i just leave the $88 AR HDMI cable in my system? Or, should I take the midwestern cable seller up on his offer and try out his "other manufacter's HDMI cable" and see if this would work?

thank you in advance for your advice/comments!

PS: i am also worried about the "bad cable" "breaking or ruining" my electronics. would a "bad cable" have the potential of ruining electronics, i.e. shorting, hurting delicate electronics/circuitry?

Time Warner just came out and installed an Explorer 8000 DVR for me today on my Panny 50" widescreen. I get alot of the HD channels with Fullscreen..but some have letterbox..etc. I hear I need to get rid of the letterbox with Panny remote..then change Aspect with Time Warner remote is this correct? Is it possible with my version 8000? I wonder why I got this model.

HDMI on my 8300 did cause me a lot of trouble until about 3 weeks ago. I have a cable that I paid 40 bucks from Target. I would lose my picture evertime I switched to the 8300 guide or recorded list. I would have to unplug the HDMI cable and turn off the TV and box to get my pic back. After awhile I became good friends with a Samsung Tech, I also have a Samsung DLP. I had him check the cable one day, and he said from the start if was the 8300HD. He said that early version of the HDMI standard are some what grey, and some devices work better than others, with that said, I got a software update the other day on my 8300HD and with the same cable, I have not had a single problem in 3 weeks.IMP its not the cable, its the software on the box

Andyzep:

thanks for posting your comment. may i ask how you received/got your software update on your 8300? did you bring it in? did they do it "on the phone" and just "zapped" your unit remotely?

i have no idea what to do.

thanks.

looking forward to your answer.

Hi there!

i'm on my second 8300 box (the first one i had for 2 weeks) and this one started skipping (live tv skips/flickers so you can't really watch it, every second it flashes blank black screen for a split second and then the next split second, the show). i've only had this one for around 2 days.

i wonder what i should do, go exchange for a 3rd unit??

this 2nd unit came from a new box: they haven't even removed the 8300 from the original cardboard box yet. in fact, they gave the 8300 to me WITH the box.

each time the unit skips and flashes blank/black screens intermittently like that, the only way to get rid of it is to unplug it, wait for a minute, and plug it back in. even turning it on and off won't work.

any advice, please? are there many others with this issue?

PS: both 8300 units came from the 23rd Street Manhattan time warner location.

thanks in advance for your advice/comments.

I posted about this in the TWCNYC thread and never got an answer...does anone here know if I'm likely to get a "Your TV Does Not Support HDCP" error if I run the 8300 through a Gefen 2-device HDMI switch? I'd like to share my TV's single HDMI socket between my DVD player and 8300, but I don't want to shell out for the device (around $250) if there's a good chance it won't do what I want it to.

Andrew,
I don't have anything running HDMI myself, but in my reading here and in the HDTV Recorders and Players Forum, the reports on HDMI switching are not good. It seems like the connection to the 8300 is not good at re-negotiating after a disruption like switching. I recall seeing that someone's DVD player could come back up after a switch but not the 8300. I would suggest you jump to that forum and look at the 8300 HDMI thread for yourself to check my memory.

TerryB

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc. (NasdaqNM:CSCO - News) said on Friday it had agreed to buy Scientific-Atlanta Inc. (NYSE:SFA - News), a leading U.S. maker of cable television set-top boxes, for $6.9 billion in cash in a deal that would move the networking equipment giant more deeply into the consumer market.

Impressive... this could be very good news for the future of STB/CableCARD/software downloadable conditional access technologies.

I'm having a strange experience. I have a Record All New Episodes for Grey's Anatomy. I also have a one-time recording for Poseiden Adventure. I noticed yesterday that Grey's Anatomy was no longer scheduled. So I went to the Guide, selected Grey's Anatomy, and tried to schedule the recording, but it said I could only record two things at once. But the list of possible shows to cancel was only two shows long--Grey's Anatomy and Poseiden Adventure. I tried cancelling Grey's Anatomy, but it still wouldn't take another recording. Basically, at this point it will only allow one recording at 9:00 Central. It's like there's a phantom recording in there that I can't see or get rid of, but which screws up any attempt to record anything else.

Has anybody experienced this?

I've noticed similar things on my 8000. I don't know if I've seen it on my 8300 (both running passport on timewarner). For some reason it seems to get confused about conflicts. I'd first check that there aren't any shows that are like 8:00-9:01 or something silly (I've seen that a few times). Those overlaps can cause all sorts of headaches. If the adjacent timeslots are all clear then I'd try a box reboot.

I've also noticed that if you have an hour that has 3 recordings scheduled -- 1 one hour and 2 half-hours on a different channel, that trying to record an overlapping 1 hour show will only give you the option to cancel the 1 one hour, not the 2 half-hour shows.

The reboot did the trick. Thanks...

I still wonder what exactly happened...

i've had an 8300 for about 3 weeks. the first one flickered and can't be used, this is my second unit.

it has been working alright (some problems) until the last 3 days. now, when i turn my tv on (the tv is a sony 60xbr1 connected via HDMI to the 8300), the 8300 recognizes it (the 8300 is left "on" but it goes to some sort of an "half on" mode since only when the tv is turned on is the resolution displayed and the 8300 seems to "wake up", though at all times, the "on" symbol on the LCD in the front of the 8300 indicates that i leave it on all the time).

the problem is when i first turn on my tv, almost every time for the past 2-3 days, the image is mostly black with the exception of one quadrant!! usually, it's the upper left quadrant that has a reduced image. the other 3/4 of the screen is black. i have to switch to another station, and then switch back in order to rid the screen of this odd situation.

may i know if anyone knows anything abou this?

thanks in advance!

Just got a Yamaha RX-V2600 HDMI AV 7.1 Receiver today...

Sadly, the Yamaha 2600 and my Scientific Atlanta 8300HD DVR from Time Warner don't appear to work together. I get the "Your TV isn't HDCP compliant so please use the component outputs" message. My cable box worked just fine directly connected to my 60" Sony SXRD HDTV (KDS-R60XBR1). (sigh) Any workarounds for this or do I have to wait for a firmware upgrade?

New Sony 60XBR1 tv (replacing my 60xbr800), and just swapped my Time Warner Pioneer HD box with the Scientific Atlanta 8300 HD DVR:

i followed the directions exactly. not turning anything on until all the connections are made. i'm using an HDMI cable between the 8300 and my 60xbr1. Interestingly, by turning on my Sony TV, the 8300 is automatically turned on!! Is

I noticed that behavior as well with the SXRD plugged into my Yamaha RX-V2600 via HDMI. BTW, did you know you can set that remote that came with the SA 8300HD to automatically turn on the TV and the cable box by just hitting the power button? Check the manual that came with your remote for the details on how to do that.

Just got a Yamaha RX-V2600 HDMI AV 7.1 Receiver today...


How do you like the Yamaha? What speakers do you have?

How do you like the Yamaha? What speakers do you have?

I have had very little time with it (I had to go to work not long after I hooked it up). From the little time I have had with it, I think it sounds great. My speakers are about 11 year old Atlantic Technolgies System 250's

http://www.atlantictechnology.com/manuals/atlantic_System_250_manual.pdf

These speakers were Dolby Pro Logic era speakers. After I got them they upgraded them to better work with 5.1. So I probably need to get new speakers eventually. But since I dropped 5K on the HDTV and $1300 on the receiver it might be a while before I get new speakers. That being said, they still sound pretty good.

The only issue I have is the HDCP cable box issue I mentioned.

Greetings all and Happy Thanksgiving!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe the 8300's HDMI spec is only 1.0 . For you folks who are trying to use this box with a receiver with HDMI switching, this is the reason it wont work. Blame the studios paranoia. Current crop of receivers with HDMI switching are HDMI 1.1 compliant. The problem is the HDCP. Until the 8300 is updated to 1.1 , using them with HDMI switching receivers is going to be problematic at best.

Steven
Arizona

I have two questions about my SA8300HD (Houston TWC)

1. How good is the PQ of HD channels over Component? (I'm assuming it outputs HD over component even though HDCP is in effect over HDMI)

2. Any chance of modding these to output SDI or HD-SDI?

(I'm using it exclusively over HDMI right now, but need to explore my options)

Thanks,
Ken

I'm in nyc using the 8300 HD cable box/DVR from Time Warner NYC, and an 60xbr1 TV.

while i have brickwall surge protection as well as exact power's power conditioner, i have no protection agains the cable's possible surges.

it has occured to me that that might not be prudent at all.

may i ask what might be the best yet practical ways to protect against such surges coming from the Time Warner coax?

Looking forward to your advice/answers!

Thanks in advance!

Hello, I have a bit of a question. I had a 8300HD through Time Warner (that used Passport), and I have another 8300 through a different cable provider now that uses SARA.

I use a TiVo with my 8300 to record standard def TV, and I'm having a small problem I was hoping there is a fix for. The box powers itself down automatically after being idle for a few hours. I'm assuming this is something built into SARA because Passport never did that to me. Is there a remote code combo to disable this? It doesn't look like there's one in the menus that I could see.

For those that have tried both Component and HDMI...which has better picture quality?

I am kind of in a dilemma, because the DVD player I am recieving will also have a HDMI connection, but I only have 1 HDMI input on my TV. I always thought the HDMI to SA8300HD would be a better choice, but I'm not sure.

I don't have any HDMI equipment myself, but what I am seeing in these forums is thet the 8300 has a lot of problems dealing with HDMI at this time, and many have reported more consistant success with DVD players. I'd recommend based on this that you hookup component to the 8300 and HDMI to the DVD.

TerryB

For those that have tried both Component and HDMI...which has better picture quality?My opinion would be to go with the HDMI from the 8300 and component from your DVD player.

Your DVD player outputs either 480i or 480p, which the TV will up-convert if you wish. So you're not losing anything going analog with component from the DVD.

Your 8300 will output 720p and 1080i native on HD content, and the Auto HDMI Select mode will send the proper signal to the TV through HDMI, plus you get 2 channels of digital audio on it which you can send to the TV's speakers. Better to stay digital all the way from the 8300 to the HDMI in on the TV, then to send less than half the signal (480i or p) from the DVD player over HDMI. Plus you're more likely to use Dolby Digital out of your DVD into your A/V receiver anyway, as 5.1 doesn't run through HDMI.

Thanks GilWave. I will probably be running audio out from the SA8300 box to my reciever as well. My TV, Samsung HLR4667W DLP, has a Faroudja internal scaler (720P Native Resolution), so I guess Component is better anyways.

My TV, Samsung HLR4667W DLP, has a Faroudja internal scaler (720P Native Resolution), so I guess Component is better anyways.You're probably right. The other problem with HDMI is the weight of most cables - they tend to pull on the connector.

Hi Guys. Don't know if this has been covered somewhere else, but how do I get my SA8300 to output in 720p instead of 1080i?

Need some help, I just purchased a SA Explorer 8000hd I think this was ok to work with my cable but I get a message that This box is not autorized to work with this cable! the cable was from CA and I live in FL. is any way to make that cable box standard or universal ( to work with any cable)
thanks

for me looks the same both, the only difference is HDMI you don't need the audio cables, maybe I'm wrong but is my impression

"Need some help, I just purchased a SA Explorer 8000hd I think this was ok to work with my cable but I get a message that This box is not autorized to work with this cable! the cable was from CA and I live in FL. is any way to make that cable box standard or universal ( to work with any cable)
thanks"

Cable companies rent set top boxes. SA boxes are not for sale in retail. Lets say your cableco in Florida is TWC. They rent SA boxes with Passport software. Other cablecos use either Passport or SARAH software. The software needs updating from time to time.

Questions: Who sold you the box, and can you return it? Are you trying to avoid paying the rental fee to the cableco?

Jim

Hi Guys. Don't know if this has been covered somewhere else, but how do I get my SA8300 to output in 720p instead of 1080i?

I am at work at the moment so I am doing this from memory, but on my Time Warner SA8300HD DVR box here in Columbus Ohio you press the settings button. Then on the settings menu I believe there is an option to see more settings and to get to that you press the yellow triangle. On that page there is a setting where you tell it what signals your TV can accept.

Comcast just installed HD at my new house yesterday. they gave me a SA 8000HD box with DVI out. My display is a brand new Sony 50" SXRD. Last night as I was playing around with it, the box would either

1. Freeze or

2. Give me an error message saying DVI/HDMI output Blocked that would either disappear after a second or two and or another message would pop up saying that my TV does not support HDCP (which is crazy it does)

I have this hooked up DVI-DVI with a DVI-HDMI coupler at the TV end. Its driving me crazy! I ordered a few DVI-HDMI cables because the monster adapter I got is huge, but I can't figure this one out any suggestions?

I called comcast this AM and they said they would run some test over the line tonight, but it just doesn't seem right. They also said the SA 8300 and Moto 6412 were not available in my area (why?) people seem to be having better luck with these.

Thanks!

Robbie


I have same message but he go away after 3 or 4 seconds, and I can watch and record TV with not problem, is only when I turn the tv on or the box. that is not cable problems, I think is the type of connection ( HDMI to DVI ) who cause this, My cable and even the TV Manufacturer have not answer to that.

:eek: Yes I think this whas like the satellite, ( I come from satellite) you buy you receiver and only pay the connection or extra connection, not need to rent a receiver, is a racket that you can't buy you own equipment at you choice, in my Cable you get what they give to you, example all my things are silver or chrome, I went to my cable to start and they give me a black box, when I ask for a silver box, they told me this is what we have or take or leaved, so I'm forced to put the s.... in my wall-unit just because the cable don't want purchased variety, so that is why I decided buy my own box and I see I lost my money. :mad:

I'm a brighthouse customer with the Scientific 8300hd and at8400d remote. Trying to program my new Sony HT-9900 into the and none of the codes work - anyone know the right ones? Or, in the absence of codes - is there a way to upgrade the remote?

Or, is there a suitable handheld remote that could work fully (I have several including prgrammable that still don't control all the functions)?

Any help would be appreciated....

Go Canes...

Ggrainger #125
My 8400d remote works well with my SA 8300HD. I followed instructions on the SA site, but they are also available on this site. Your sentence about the codes not working is missing a word, and is confusing. Which codes are you referring to?

Jim

I'm having trouble using pass through mode with my GWIII. I have comcast cable and i'm using the component cables.

When i try pass through everything gets stretched, it doesn't seem to matter what setting i use. I rather not keep it in 1080i, then everything gets converted by the box and i doubt it's as good as my tv.

Anyone have any idea how to solve this??

I just got this setup. Using HDMI. Here are my problems. None of the boxes zoom modes work. No matter what I change on the box. If I run the box in SD mode it will work but in HDTV mode the zoom has no effect on the picture. This morning also the box powered down and when it reboooted the record light was on. I proceeded to power on and it imeadiatly shut down. I did this once more and called TIme Warner. Of course they just told me the hard drive was bad. I unpluged it cycled and its been fine. But still no zoom..


Also here is my total newbie question, I was under the impression that 16:9 hdtv feed @1080i would fill my screen. But I still have grey bars top and bottom. Is this correct or not. I just thought and unafected 1080i signal would be 16:9 and take up the whole screen. Please help the wife is getting angry and wants her 4:3 back..............................

judah304,
I can't give you much help on HDMI but I think I've read that HDMI puts a straight through digital signal to the TV so that the TVs functions are the one to use for zoom etc.

On the 16:9 filling screen, yes in deed it does, only question is what is coming down the signal to fill it with. Some stations are broadcasting a real HD picture which contains information in 16:9 aspect ration edge to edge, top to bottom, others like local originated pictures are carried on a 16: format but have fillers in the left and right edges because the station doesn't have HD cameras. A 2.35:1 movie will have black bars top and bottom because its aspect ratio is wider than 16:9.

Good luck on your new adventure,
TerryB

Also here is my total newbie question, I was under the impression that 16:9 hdtv feed @1080i would fill my screen. But I still have grey bars top and bottom. Is this correct or not. I just thought and unafected 1080i signal would be 16:9 and take up the whole screen. Top/bottom bars on a 16:9 usually means a movie is being delivered in its original aspect ratio (OAR), which may be greater than 16:9, such as 2.35:1. Opinions differ, but many think it's an advantage since you'll see details at either side--lots of the images intended by the film creators--that are missing with pan-and-scan to fill even a 4:3 screen.

Zoom works fine with my TWC 8300HD, one of three modes via the remote # key. But it only works with HD component out, which I use with my CRT RPTV. An S-video output here makes use of several zooming and panoramic modes for 480i in the RPTV. An ideal Zoom application is a 4:3 movie, letterboxed so top/bottom bars, plus gray side panels, are visible; Zoom then fills the 16:9 screen nicely. -- John

I have a 8300HD box from Cablevision and I am using the HDMI output through a switch with my Panasonic AE900 everyting works fine except I get a small line on the top of 720P ABC broadcasts. The line is not there on 1080i broadcasts or other 720p broadcasts such as Fox. Any ideas as to what might be causing the line. I did not have it with the non recording box.

On my new Panny 37" plasma I have HDMI and Component hooked up to the TV. The HDMI works fine but I get no picture or sound from the Component input. The STB is set to HDMI Auto. There has been talk that if you have the HDMI connected the component does not work. I also have a Qualia hooked up exactly the same way same STB configuration and I get a picture at both inputs on the Qualia. So what is going on? There is nothing in the Panny guide that states that if you have the HDMI connected the component does not work. Thanks

Arnie

So I'm using the 8300HD w/ a panasonic LCD projector. Here's the thing: using HD channels, HDMI works beautifully. If I change the channel to an SD channel, it goes black. If I output through s-video I see a screen that says "Your TV is not HDCP compliant" (it is). But, like I said, HDMI works great, as does component. Any thoughts?

Does anyone know if it's possible to conntect an OTA antenna to a TWC Explorer 8300HD box and tune in local HD signals?

Thanks

Does anyone know if it's possible to conntect an OTA antenna to a TWC Explorer 8300HD box and tune in local HD signals?

It's not possible.

Just got my 8300HD comcast (FL) box and hooked it up via HDMI to my Sony XBR960, I get video and sound but I cannot control the volume from the Comcast remote, I have to use the TV remote. The comcast remote controls everything else fine, channels, guide, recording and etc. The volume indicator pops up and the bars increase and decrease when I use the Comcast volume, but the volume stays the same. Help!

Just got my 8300HD comcast (FL) box and hooked it up via HDMI to my Sony XBR960, I get video and sound but I cannot control the volume from the Comcast remote, I have to use the TV remote. The comcast remote controls everything else fine, channels, guide, recording and etc. The volume indicator pops up and the bars increase and decrease when I use the Comcast volume, but the volume stays the same. Help!

Change the remote codes to Sony

I will be receiving my VSX 74TXVi on Wednesday and want to get a jump on the best way to connect things.

I have an SA8300HD box with an HDMI option currently connected to a Panasonic 500u (with no problems). Based on HDMI handshaking issues I have read about I believe I will need to connect things in the following manner;

TV -------> VSX 74TXVi via HDMI
SA8300HD -------> VSX 74TXVi via Component (it will upconvert to HDMI)
DVD/VCR (combo) -------> VSX 74TXVi via Coaxial (for DVD)
DVD/VCR (combo) -------> Composite/L/R from the 8300 (for "Copy to VCR" function)

Could someone please let me know if I have this right?

Thanks

The remote codes were changed so I'm not sure that is the problem, but what are the remote codes and how do I change so I can give it a try and see if that works. Thanks

So I'm using the 8300HD w/ a panasonic LCD projector. Here's the thing: using HD channels, HDMI works beautifully. If I change the channel to an SD channel, it goes black. If I output through s-video I see a screen that says "Your TV is not HDCP compliant" (it is). But, like I said, HDMI works great, as does component. Any thoughts?

I suspect that your SD channels are not digital. If that's the case then you will have to connect the STB to another input on your TV using component cables so that it can feed the analogue signal to your TV. If you cannot use HDMI and component cables at the same time, then you will probably have to go with component cables for all channels until your provider goes completely digital.

If you are using component output of the 8300HD and the picture is to bright or to dark I might have a solution. Your TV or one of your AV components in the path might have a problem with the 8300 because it has DC voltage going into the component lines. (Great job SA.)
Audio Authority has a trap that removes the DC that the 8300 puts on the component lines. Call Audio Authority 800-322-8346 and order the 1181 $15.00 + shipping.

"Quote:
Originally Posted by edgar_is_good
So I'm using the 8300HD w/ a panasonic LCD projector. Here's the thing: using HD channels, HDMI works beautifully. If I change the channel to an SD channel, it goes black. If I output through s-video I see a screen that says "Your TV is not HDCP compliant" (it is). But, like I said, HDMI works great, as does component. Any thoughts?

I suspect that your SD channels are not digital. If that's the case then you will have to connect the STB to another input on your TV using component cables so that it can feed the analogue signal to your TV. If you cannot use HDMI and component cables at the same time, then you will probably have to go with component cables for all channels until your provider goes completely digital."

HDMI transfers ALL signals, HD, digital AND ANALOG. Edgar, Did you set up your 8300HD to include 480i with 1080 i?

Jim

Hi there!

i'm on my second 8300 box (the first one i had for 2 weeks) and this one started skipping (live tv skips/flickers so you can't really watch it, every second it flashes blank black screen for a split second and then the next split second, the show). i've only had this one for around 2 days.

i wonder what i should do, go exchange for a 3rd unit??

this 2nd unit came from a new box: they haven't even removed the 8300 from the original cardboard box yet. in fact, they gave the 8300 to me WITH the box.

each time the unit skips and flashes blank/black screens intermittently like that, the only way to get rid of it is to unplug it, wait for a minute, and plug it back in. even turning it on and off won't work.

any advice, please? are there many others with this issue?

PS: both 8300 units came from the 23rd Street Manhattan time warner location.

thanks in advance for your advice/comments.

hi i work for time warner as a tech.. i got a question for you. do you have a phillips tv? i had a customer last week that was having what sounds like the same problem. the problem ended up being that even though her set said it could take a 1080i signal it couldn't handle it.. and ended up going to black screen every few seconds... i went into the advanced settings menu and turned off the 1080i output and only allowed the 720p, 480p and 480i output and that cleared up the issue. i've only seen this the one time but i do remember that it was a phillips 37" flatscreen

Matt

I recently got a westinghouse lvm-37w1 and an 8300hd. Ive got the box hooked up to the tv over hdmi to dvi. Everything works great except a minor issue. When the local hd channels are not broadcasting true HD signals, I get the following anomalies at the top of the screen in the 4:3 portion:

http://inexistence.org/westy/twc2.jpg
http://inexistence.org/westy/twc1.jpg

Im using TWC Cincinnati, passport software. I get this in 480p, 720p, and 1080i. Its only with the local channels, and its not 100% of the time. Wondering if this is the 8300 or my local providers problem. Is this somthing I should contact my cable provider over?

Thanks

-Davs

Hello, I have a bit of a question. I had a 8300HD through Time Warner (that used Passport), and I have another 8300 through a different cable provider now that uses SARA.

I use a TiVo with my 8300 to record standard def TV, and I'm having a small problem I was hoping there is a fix for. The box powers itself down automatically after being idle for a few hours. I'm assuming this is something built into SARA because Passport never did that to me. Is there a remote code combo to disable this? It doesn't look like there's one in the menus that I could see.

My Explorer 2200 did the same thing. I could find no setting to change the behavior. I called Comcast and they were able to make changes remotely to allow the box to remain on indefinitely. It took about a day for the change to be made.

Someone Please Help..!!!
Sometimes when I record a program it just turns out to be a black screen with some random pixels jumbled around the screen and the audio thats recorded is simply loud screeching sounds. It will record the entire espisode in it's entirety, but this is all I will get.

Other times the box works perfect for SD and HD.

I have tried a hard re-boot to no avail. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks

marlboroman,
Trade it in!!!
TerryB

I just signed up for Adelphia the other day, because Comcast is not available yet in my area, and it looks like I'm either getting the Explorer HD8000 or 8300 as my box. I requested the 8300 because it has HDMI and I'd like to use that connection into my Sony A10. Has anyone recently signed up for Adelphia. Is this the current box they are distributing? Seems like the 8000 is a slightly older model.

And if the tech shows up at my house with an 8000 can I ask for an 8300? Anyone had any experience with this?

thanks

I have a Hitachi 50VG825, Time Warner Cable and the SA 8300HD.

When using an HDMI cable everything seems fine until I switch channels. When switching between SD-SD and HD-HD the screen flickers, blocks out and then resizes. This is not pretty but acceptable.

My problem comes up when switching between SD and HD. 75-85% of the time when making this switch I head a rather loud 'static' type noise. It sounds kind of like a speaker shorting out.

When using RGB the switch works great, no flickering, no blocks, no noise.

So, what's happening with the HDMI cable?

"Quote:

HDMI transfers ALL signals, HD, digital AND ANALOG. Edgar, Did you set up your 8300HD to include 480i with 1080 i?

Jim

I did. I tried all possible combinations, 480i 1080i, 480p 1080i, 480i 480p, 720p, etc. Could it just be the hdcp handshake functions differently with the sdtv signals?

thanks,
Edgar

Hello,

I have a SA 8300 HD DVR from Southern Connecticut Cablevision and I am having the following problem.

The TV is a Panasonic TH-50PX50U connected to the cablebox via HDMI. Whenever I turn the TV on it is all static. I have to either change the channel on the cable box or the aspect ratio on the cable box for the picture to show. After that everything is fine until I turn the TV on the next time. Does anyone have a solution to this problem?

Thanks!

Sounds like you haven't gone through the HDTV setup wizard on your SA8300HD? I believe you can get to it by pressing the INFO and GUIDE keys simultaneously. See your manual that came with the 8300 (HDTV SETUP WIZARD). This will allow you to set the correct picture format and aspect ratio default.

TB7025,
When the HDMI connection is in use, the TV needs to be turned on before the TV so the TV can respond to the STB request for "credentials" as a legal receiver of the communications containing the picture. If the STB has initiated handshake before the TV is able to respond, no output.

TerryB

TerryB

Thanks! You lost me a bit though. What is "STB"? So have the TV on first then turn on the cable box?

What is "STB"?Set Top Box

Hello,

I have a SA 8300 HD DVR from Southern Connecticut Cablevision and I am having the following problem.

The TV is a Panasonic TH-50PX50U connected to the cablebox via HDMI. Whenever I turn the TV on it is all static. I have to either change the channel on the cable box or the aspect ratio on the cable box for the picture to show. After that everything is fine until I turn the TV on the next time. Does anyone have a solution to this problem?

Thanks!


This has just started happening to a lot of folks with Cablevision in the NY tristate area. They upgraded their software and now we have this issue. They are looking into it (I won't hold my breath), but no one seems to have an explanation.

Terry B #152

I turn on my STB and TV together, so I'm not so sure this is a "chicken or egg/which came first?" issue. You may want to go into more detail, after reading what works with my 8300HD STB and Cox Comm. cableco.
1. Following my initial STB setup, I turned the TV on at the TV, then turned the STB on with my AT 8400 remote.
2. I hit the power button on the remote. This turned off both the STB and the TV.
3. Ever since then, hitting the remote’s power button turns on both the box and the TV. As well, hitting it again turns off both the box and the TV.

The SA user’s guide has settings instructions for powering your box and TV on and off together with the remote. I just happened to use another method before I read about that.

All remotes don’t work the same way with the 8300HD. Following the recent addition of On Demand by my cableco, my remote (an AT 8400) developed problems. Cox replaced it with a universal remote bearing the Cox name, made by Universal Electronics. Following their instructions, I now hold the power button down for three seconds to turn the box and TV on or off. The box comes on first. After three seconds, I hear a click in the TV set and the set’s On light comes on. (BTW, it’s a great remote. Very well designed.)

The experiences described above suggest that your #152 isn’t entirely accurate. That said, noppe01 #155 points the finger at a general problem with Southern Connecticut Cablevision, and that probably trumps our comments.

Jim

I did. I tried all possible combinations, 480i 1080i, 480p 1080i, 480i 480p, 720p, etc. Could it just be the hdcp handshake functions differently with the sdtv signals?

thanks,
Edgar


we've been told actually that the hdmi does not support 480i try turning it off and see if that works for you. i've run across situations where people woudl get the SET IS NOT HDCP COMPLIANT through the HDMI and the only thing that worked was to turn off the 480i

If you are using component output of the 8300HD and the picture is to bright or to dark I might have a solution. Your TV or one of your AV components in the path might have a problem with the 8300 because it has DC voltage going into the component lines. (Great job SA.)
Audio Authority has a trap that removes the DC that the 8300 puts on the component lines. Call Audio Authority 800-322-8346 and order the 1181 $15.00 + shipping.




This message got my attention, since I noticed something peculiar on my Samsung 6178 DLP. When the power is off on other components (DVD connected by DVI-HDMI) is off, I cannot select this source. When the power is on, the source is selectable. When the 8300 power is off (connected by component), it is still selectable. Does this have anything to do with the supposed DC in the component cables?

If you are using component output of the 8300HD and the picture is to bright or to dark I might have a solution. Your TV or one of your AV components in the path might have a problem with the 8300 because it has DC voltage going into the component lines. (Great job SA.)
Audio Authority has a trap that removes the DC that the 8300 puts on the component lines. Call Audio Authority 800-322-8346 and order the 1181 $15.00 + shipping.


Have you used it, and did it make a difference? What type of TV do you have (CRT, DLP, LCD, Plasma etc...)?

Happy holidays, Everyone.

This is my first post on this forum. Please forgive me if my question has been answered elsewhere. I did try searching, but was not able to find an answer.

Okay, here's my problem. Whenever I try to record from the VCR output on my SA 8300HD, the quality is poor. What I mean by that is that is that horizontal lines seem to be missing. I'm guessing it has something to do with converting from progressive to interlaced (or vice versa), but am not positive that is the problem. Nor have I been able to figure out how to solve it.

The details are as follows: I have my Cox Cable (Phoenix) SA 8300HD connected to my Integra DTR 5.4 AV receiver using the compononent cables and coax digital audio. My Integra is connected to my Sony KP-46WT510 wide screen projection TV via component cables. Also connected to my Integra via component cables and an optical digital audio cable is my brand new Panasonic DMR-EH50 DVD recorder (w/ hard drive). I have the VCR out (S-video) from the SA 8300HD connected to one of the inputs on the Panasonic. The SA 8300HD is set up for pass-thru.

I have tried recording a couple of TV shows and a couple of movies from the SA 8300HD to the Panasonic but in almost every case (I think there has been only one exception), the recording the Panasonic is not very good (FYI recording speed on Panasonic is set to SP, which is 2 hours of video per DVD). It doesn't seem to matter whether I record to the Panasonic's hard drive or directly to the DVD. The quality of the original recording on the SA 8300HD, however, is noticeably better. As I said, the only thing that I can think of is that the SA8300HD is not converting progressive scan recordings to interlaced when outputting to the DVD recorder (all the recordings on the SA 8300HD that I have tried recording recording to the Panasonic were in 480p or 720p mode). Is this possible? Specifically, I've tried transferring to the Panasonic the following: Lost (believe this was recorded in HD but don't know the resolution), Grey's Anatomy (believe this was recorded in HD but don't know the resolution), Racing Strips (SD at 480p), and two episodes of House (SD at 480p).

Last night I tried playing a DVD that I created by transferring a movie (Napoleon Dynamite) from the SA 8300HD to my computer (an iMac) via an EyeTV device, which converters analog signals to MPG files. I had the same problem with that DVD--seemed like horizontal lines were missing. Thus, this is one more reason why I suspect the issue has something to do with the output from the SA 8300HD rather than my Panasonic DVD recorder.

In any event, I appreciate any assistance anyone out there can offer.

Wishing you all a very happy holiday and New Year.

Jay

TB7025,
When the HDMI connection is in use, the TV needs to be turned on before the TV so the TV can respond to the STB request for "credentials" as a legal receiver of the communications containing the picture. If the STB has initiated handshake before the TV is able to respond, no output.

TerryB

That is why I went back to Component Input. I like to use the AT8550 remote to turn the STB and the TV on using the one button feature. With HDMI I had to turn on the TV wait till it booted and then power up the 8300HD. Sometimes I would get the HDCP error message. To clear this I had to hit the power button for the 8300HD once or twice before it recognized the TV and did a handshake. Too much trouble. I cannot tell the difference in PQ between HDMI and Component.

Just a quick question, I am getting my SA 8000HD replaced with a SA 8300HD on Saturday. I currently have a DVI-HDMI cable for the 8000, so I need to get a straight HDMI cable for the new box. I'm ordering from monoprice, but there's a few choices. Which is the best one to get? I'll probably only need about 3ft.

I'm running an HDMI cable from my 50" Sony A10 LCD to my 8300. Which setting should I use for the picture format?

Fixed or Auto DVI/HDMI?

It's currently on Fixed.

thanks

I just picked up a scaler and have been trying to get all my sources to pass native res of the source material... ultimately allowing the scaler to do ALL the processing/Scaling.

I read through the "Getting Statred with 8300HD" user guide...

On page 6 SA indicates "Pass Through mode allows non-HD channels to be displayed using their native picture formats. Great huh... Now Here is the rub.... the "Pass Through" shows up on all connections EXCEPT HDMI.

The manual adds a note in the middle of the page:
NOTE: When the HDMI Connector is connected to the HDTV, the General Settings - Set - Picture Format screen displays the "AutoDVI/HDMI" option.

Can anyone tell me what the AutoDVI/HDMI option actually does. Is it sending a native signal for the channel (SD/HD) being displayed? If is passing a processed/scaled picture?

I want to maintain digital interconnects wherever possible. I'll go to component if I have to... unhappily.

Please Help!@#!@#

Brian

P.S. - Are there any SA techs participating in this thread? Just curious.

Buckyball30 & Brigont

Buckyball, it may or may not help you if we compare notes. I use an HDMI cable between the 8300HD and my Panasonic CRT HDTV set. I settled on “Fixed.” A close inspection of the screen shows only vertical lines for all signals--standard, digital and high def. I don’t claim to know why, but it looks good.

I tried “Auto DVI/HDMI.” It made the expected changes between 480i and 1080i signals, but at too steep a price. I had to increase Brightness, and the image still didn’t look as good as when I used “Fixed.”

Brian, your post about scalers is over my head, but I’ll add this. I use an HDMI/HDMI connector because it allows both DIGITAL video and audio signals to reach my HDTV without compression and expansion. It’s the only way, I believe, to get DIGITAL audio to my TV’s stereo speakers. If I’m wrong, I hope someone will correct me.

I only wish a SA techie posted here! I’ve never noticed one. As you must know, their Website accepts questions, but only as fodder for future Q & As. My cableco phone help accepts questions. But it’s too bad they don’t have many answers. There’s something wrong with this picture, of course. I wouldn’t expect to find much help from committee chairman Ted Stevens.

Jim

I just got my DTV box, and have an 8300 HD guide issue with TW Cincinnati, my guide doesn't show as full width on screen, but always has gray bars on the sides. I searched this site and the SA website, and I don't see this addressed in the manuals or menu settings anywhere, though the pictures in the SA manual imply that the guide should be full screen width.

I have the box set up for all outputs (1080i, 720p, 480p, 480i) and to standard 16:9, stretch 4:3, and have the TV set up similarly. I get the content of the channels in the appropariate widths whether it's in HD or not (the TV and the box verify that I'm getting 1080i, 720p, 480p - and the content stretches to screen width fine), but the guide always shows up with gray bars. Will this be corrected once the box updates it's software? Should the guide be full width?

My hardware
Hitachi 42HDT52 HD Plasma w/2 HDMI inputs
TW Cincy 8300 HD DVR HDMI to TV HDMI input 1

On page 6 SA indicates "Pass Through mode allows non-HD channels to be displayed using their native picture formats. Great huh... Now Here is the rub.... the "Pass Through" shows up on all connections EXCEPT HDMI. Can anyone tell me what the AutoDVI/HDMI option actually does. Is it sending a native signal for the channel (SD/HD) being displayed? If is passing a processed/scaled picture?The AutoHDMI is "pass through" by its very nature, as it is just sending the original digital signal through to the TV if you do not use the 8300 remote to stretch non 1080i source material.

I want to maintain digital interconnects wherever possible. I'll go to component if I have to... unhappily.If that's the case, since most HD programming coming from your SA8300 is going to be 720p or 1080i, why not use the HDMI out of the 8300 into the HDMI or DVI input of your TV (if you don't have 2 HDMI inputs) and use the scaler for all DVD and non-HD source material? I can't imagine that your scaler will make a noticeable difference on 1080i material coming out of your 8300. Let me know if you find otherwise.

-gil

Gil,

Thanks chiming in on this. I appreciate your perspective on the AutoHDMI setting and imagine you are correct. That said, are you certain (from a technical standpoint) that there is no upconversion or manipulation of the picture. The word "AUTO" smells of some type of processing.

Is there any technical data, white paper, or other info you can guide me to confirm.

Please advise.

BG

-----------------------

The AutoHDMI is "pass through" by its very nature, as it is just sending the original digital signal through to the TV if you do not use the 8300 remote to stretch non 1080i source material.

If that's the case, since most HD programming coming from your SA8300 is going to be 720p or 1080i, why not use the HDMI out of the 8300 into the HDMI or DVI input of your TV (if you don't have 2 HDMI inputs) and use the scaler for all DVD and non-HD source material? I can't imagine that your scaler will make a noticeable difference on 1080i material coming out of your 8300. Let me know if you find otherwise.

-gil

hi i work for time warner as a tech.. i got a question for you. do you have a phillips tv? i had a customer last week that was having what sounds like the same problem. the problem ended up being that even though her set said it could take a 1080i signal it couldn't handle it.. and ended up going to black screen every few seconds... i went into the advanced settings menu and turned off the 1080i output and only allowed the 720p, 480p and 480i output and that cleared up the issue. i've only seen this the one time but i do remember that it was a phillips 37" flatscreen

Matt
Hello
I almost have a similar problemw ith my maxent 42" plasma TV and i know for sure that the TV supports 1080i . the issue i have is that when i am watching a show, it starts flickering(goes blank and comes back again). The flickering mostly occurs for about 2 or 3 secs and it goes back normal again. Canit be a problem with signal strength? How can i cheak signal strength.

Gil,

Thanks chiming in on this. I appreciate your perspective on the AutoHDMI setting and imagine you are correct. That said, are you certain (from a technical standpoint) that there is no upconversion or manipulation of the picture. The word "AUTO" smells of some type of processing.

Is there any technical data, white paper, or other info you can guide me to confirm. On page 6 of the PDF of the 8300HD owners manual, it explains (although it is a bit obtuse) that, when using HDMI out, the Pass Through mode is no longer available, and becomes AutoHDMI. This leads me to belive that it is the same feature set as Pass Through.

I checked it out on usage, and indeed it passes 480 as 480, 720p as 720p and 1080i as 1080i, all automatically. My Sony SXRD does it's own upscaling if I want it too, which I don't. I can manually select the 8300's stretch and zoom features on the HDMI signal, so I donpt think the 8300 is doing anything you don't tell it to at that point.

My Sony reads the same setting as displayed on the 8300 front panel, further backing up my assumption.

the issue i have is that when i am watching a show, it starts flickering(goes blank and comes back again). The flickering mostly occurs for about 2 or 3 secs and it goes back normal again. Canit be a problem with signal strength? How can i cheak signal strength.It's not signal strength, it's a bug in the SA 8300. You have to reboot, or in some cases, go to a SD chanel and come back again to HD.

If you read back through this thread you'll see many people with the same problem.

-gil

My setup is SA8300HD to TH-50PX50U via HDMI from Cablevision Oakland NJ

Every time I power down the TV, the STB switches to 480i. When I turn the TV back on, the STB stays on 480i and does not change when I switch to HD channels. I repeat the setup and everthing is OK, until the next time.

Sometimes, It also stays on 480 when I view SD channels and then switch back to HD, but not everytime.

I have tried every combination of formats, Auto/Fixed, Easy/Advanced, powering up and down the TV / STB order......

HELP!!!!

Should the guide be full width?The current guide on Passport is always 4:3 for me. Maybe SA or Pioneer did not mean for it to stretch.

v/r,
C-F

The current guide on Passport is always 4:3 for me. Maybe SA or Pioneer did not mean for it to stretch.

v/r,
C-F
Argh... got the same response from a TW rep today. That's just retarded. My brother's got a 3250HD and it does full-width.... I hope this gets changed in a software update. Thanks for the response though.

Cablevision - NJ customer...
------------

Guys... what is the consensus on highest picture quality.

I may need to switch my hookup from HDMI to component and am trying to determine if there will be any loss of PQ...

Are we getting better PQ via HDMI or Component?
Is there any difference in SD and HD PQ via HDMI or Component?

The SB can be fixed to a specific output (I have been running mine on HDMI 720p). Can this be done on the Component input as well?

All Ramblings on this topic will be welcome...

Brian

Can anyone help?

I have an Hitachi 51UWX20B and SA8300 connected with DVMI-DVI cable.

When viewing HD channels the color is terrible. I have a green/yellow tint. Other channels are great. No problems with TV before switching the box for HD/DVR.

No adjustments to color settings seem to make a difference.

Any suggestions?

Thanks...I'm a newbie.

Helps to mention what type of set this is. DVI all-digital hookups should benefit plasma, DLP, and some LCoS displays. But with others the signal is converted from digital (DVI) back to analog in the final display stages. Suggest trying analog YPbpR outputs. -- John

Greetings all and Happy Thanksgiving!

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe the 8300's HDMI spec is only 1.0 . For you folks who are trying to use this box with a receiver with HDMI switching, this is the reason it wont work. Blame the studios paranoia. Current crop of receivers with HDMI switching are HDMI 1.1 compliant. The problem is the HDCP. Until the 8300 is updated to 1.1 , using them with HDMI switching receivers is going to be problematic at best.

Steven
Arizona

this is a copy of something i posted on the yamaha 2600 forum. i'm hoping someone here can help me. please!!!

got my second 2600 today and my first was indeed broken. i did one thing stupid on the install but yamaha tech was patient and nice to me.

the big problem is still the HDMI. i have a 4600 connected to a cablevision 8300hd via HDMI and it passes the signal no problem. with the same connection setup on my other tv the 2600 will not pass the HDMI signal from the 8300hd. Yamaha says the problem is that the 4600 is not 100% HDMI certified and therefore passes the signal to the TV, on the other hand, since the 2600 is 100% certified i need different firmware on the STB in order for the switching to work. i'm sorry i missread youyun's post but i still stick by the fact that the whole HDMI this is a pain...

Cablevision - NJ customer...
Are we getting better PQ via HDMI or Component?
Is there any difference in SD and HD PQ via HDMI or Component?This has all been covered here before, but as I am also a NJ Cablevision customer with an 8300HD here are my findings:

STB HD signals are digital to start with. Using HDMI keeps them so, directly in to your HDTV. SD signals transfer fine over HDMI, up to the native resolution of the original source material. If the source is old, dirty or grainy, it will be revealed more using HDMI. Newer shows on SD with greater PQ will come across as such. Some AVS members prefer to watch SD content OTA or split from the cable coax before the STB and fed to the coax input on your HDTV.

The SB can be fixed to a specific output (I have been running mine on HDMI 720p). Can this be done on the Component input as well?If you mean the Component Input on your TV, that depends on your TV. If you mean the Component Output of your 8300, the answer is yes. You may find that the upscaler in your HDTV is better than the one in your 8300 though.

-gil

I just read on another forum where SA has released an HDMI upgrade (sometime late last year), but the cable companies are responsible for getting it to the STB's. Anyone heard this as well, or had any experience with it?

I've been lurking here for quite some time and now , I guess it is my turn to give something back here.

I had a problem and found a solution by trial and error; I have not seen this problem mentioned here so I thought I should post it.

Problem: Missing stretch/zoom option from the menu and # button (HD ZOOM) not working.

I noticed that upon connecting my new Plasma via component to the SA8300, I lost these options. Actually the option of stretch...etc in the menu was never there.

But the # button worked.

I searched high and low everywhere for two-three days but could not find a solution. Even called Comcast, they just said they will send someone days later. I was getting impatient and landed upon the solution by mistake.

Solution:

I did a hard reboot as described in the main thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=471859


Hard Reboot. A Hard Reboot will refresh all available software and modules on the system, as well as clear out the memory cache. The IPG and other data may take up to 30 minutes or more to fully download.
Turn off the 8300 and wait 5 or more seconds.

Unplug the power cord from the 8300 and wait 5 or more seconds.

If you are resetting an external drive too, unplug it's power cord at this point and wait 5 or more seconds, then plug the power cord back into the external drive and wait 5 or more seconds.

Press and hold the power button on the 8300's front panel.

While the power button is depressed, plug the 8300 power cord back in.

Continue to hold the power button until the 8300 display says "boot" and/or begins to cycle a few times (usually about 15 seconds).



After the reboot, everything was working fine.

Some HD channels are so nice that it seems I am looking out of the window! I notice that 720p seems better than 1080i on my TV.

I hope this helps someone.

Cheers
Rajiv

Has anyone experienced this? I have my 8300HD connected to my AVR via digital coax and HDMI to my VP30 Video Processor feeding a 7210 Front PJ.

I tried to search, but have not found this specific problem mentioned.

The sound just stops for a brief period - maybe .25 to .5 seconds.

Since I mostly watch HD, it happens on all HD material. I have not noticed it on SD, since I almost never watch.

does it happen when the screen goes to black? started happening on my box recently... my old 8000 used to do this too.. i think its a box glitch but can't be sure

Well after some searching I am able to get into the 8300's diagnostics menu.
It appears I have Sara version 1.47 software.
I have heard that there is some way to see channels that Time Warner has up for testing, but are not shown in the regular menu.
Is there any truth to this?
If so does anyone know how to peek at these channels?

MatthewR

Screen does not go black, just an intermittent audio dropout.

I have the same audio driopout issue, sometimes accompanied by picture breakup. I wonder if the disc needs to be defragmented. Anybody know if this is possible?

I have the same audio driopout issue, sometimes accompanied by picture breakup. I wonder if the disc needs to be defragmented. Anybody know if this is possible?

You can reformat the disk, which may solve the audio dropouts, but you will loose all your recordings.

You can reformat the disk, which may solve the audio dropouts, but you will loose all your recordings.

Do you know the procedure to reformat it?

Do you know the procedure to reformat it?

From the remote:
Hold the "pause" button down until the message light on the box flashes (about 10 sec)
push the "page down" button
push the "list" button 3 times

I have audio/video glitches as well with the 8300 that I do not see live.

I do find one thing very interesting. I archive most HD Movies (via other means) on 250GB Maxtor Drives and have several hundred of them. Because of this, I do hit a number of bad drives (around 10% failure) and have made several connections higher up at Maxtor.

If you are unaware, Maxtor Drives are used in the SA 8300. You can see this in as you scroll through the diagnostic screens.

The Maxtor Techs at first said they felt I needed to be using their higher priced MaxLine drives for archiving 1 HD Movie at a time to Hard Drive and felt this was a part of the failure rate.

I noted to them that several hundred thousand units had been used in the SA8300 Explorer boxes that could actually be recording 2 HD Programs at the same time and playing back a 3rd.

I simply asked why the drives would fail from recording 1 movie to hard drive when the 8300 has much more wear and tear on it with 3 times the throughput on their cheap drives.

Their response was they feel that the Hard Drive in 8300 is overtaxed and they are not fans of it the unit. Thus, they feel their drives cannot handle that consecutive throughput under most conditions.

I have connected a scientific atlanta cable box explorer 8300HD to an LG 50PX1D plasma tv via an HDMI cable. The video and audio for the channels the cable company labels as "digital" and "high-definition" are transmitting wonderfully by HDMI, no problems. However, I am unable to get audio on certain cable channels labeled by the cable company as "analog basic service" and "analog expanded basic service" using the HDMI cable.

If I run an s-video or component connection with rca audio cables from the cable box to the TV, I then receive video and audio on the "analog" channels. However, that means I have to switch the TV input depending on what channel I'm looking for, which is a real pain!!!!! Has anyone experienced this problem and have a solution?

I have tried to adjust the audio digital output setting on the SA8300HD to HDMI", "Dolby Digital", and "Other", but no setting has an impact. I also went back through the HDTV setup wizard on the SA8300HD without success, and have toggled SAP on and off, again with no success.

Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

I have an NEC 50XR5, a SA8300HD and an HDMI cable. I am using Charter Service in Southern California and it does not work. I keep getting a "copy protection error" HDMI blocked.

The specific error is "your TV does not Support HDCP" , use component outputs.

The wierd thing is, when I used a DVI-->HDMI cable w/ a different cable box (MOXI) , it works just fine


Any ideas?

Sorry for the elementary question: If I set my 8300HD to output 720p and 1080i only, when I record a 480i or 480p show, does it record in the lower resolution or a higher one? i.e. do SD recordings take up more space if I am outputing at a high resolution?

I think it records at the original resolution, but that is just my guess.

Thanks!

AFAICT, it stores what came in off the wire, any resolution changes are done on the fly...

There was a recent (<=1 month) post on this I think, maybe search for that + hall (I think he answered it).

v/r,
C-F

Remember to check your scheduled programs to make sure the recorded highlight is not an hour too late. You may have to delete the scheduled item and reselect the desired program.

TerryB

I have had a SA 8300 box for almost a year now. About 4 days ago i noticed i couldn't watch any HD shows that i had DVR'd. They would come on, i could hear the audio, but no video. Non-HD recorded shows could be watched without any problem. The strange thing is that i could watch HD channels live without any problem. As a test, i recorded a few more HD programs after i noticed this starting to happen and i could not watch those either. So as it stands right now, i can watch any channel with no problem, i can record any channel without any problem, but for recorded shows, i only get audio for HD shows.

I know i can get a replacement box but i have about 10 shows i haven't watched yet which i would REALLY prefer not to lose. Anyone know if this can be fixed? Thanks.

if rebooting doesn't fix it then you will need a new box

Hi all - just got a brand new out of the box SA8300 HD DVR from NYC Time Warner. I am connected to a new Hitachi 55 inch plasma via HDMI. Everything seems good - but after reading all the posts I wanted to play around with the Advanced Settings menu. I followed all the advice - turn STB off, hold down INFO and GUIDE - nothing happens. No Menu. Any idears?

Thanks

Hi all - just got a brand new out of the box SA8300 HD DVR from NYC Time Warner. I am connected to a new Hitachi 55 inch plasma via HDMI. Everything seems good - but after reading all the posts I wanted to play around with the Advanced Settings menu. I followed all the advice - turn STB off, hold down INFO and GUIDE - nothing happens. No Menu. Any idears?TW NYC uses Passport. INFO + GUIDE is for the SARA diagnistics screens. SARA and Passport are two different software platforms on these boxes.

See here for more Passport information:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6383252&&#post6383252

Okay...I have HDMI hooked up from SA8300HD box to TV. All seems to be working okay, however when I have a 4:3 480i source that is letterbox (black bars top and bottom) the image is shifted more toward the bottom such that the top black bar is bigger than the bottom? What is up with this?

When I hook up using component , the image is in the middle of the screen and black bars are the same size..everything is fine.

Anyone know why?

I have a Marantz RC9500. Does anyone know if a discrete code exits for the 8300HD box?

I did. I tried all possible combinations, 480i 1080i, 480p 1080i, 480i 480p, 720p, etc. Could it just be the hdcp handshake functions differently with the sdtv signals?

thanks,
Edgar

Anyone have a solution for this? I'm also unable to view SD channels over HDMI. Is it my new TV? My monster HDMI cable? Faulty box? Some magical combination of settings?

Anyone have a solution for this? I'm also unable to view SD channels over HDMI. Is it my new TV? My monster HDMI cable? Faulty box? Some magical combination of settings?


I've been trying to use HDMI from the 8300HD to my Westinghouse 42w2. I'm a TW customer in NYC. The HD channels were showing up fine, but switching to SD channels caused me to lose video and audio. Both worked over component input.

After trying a brute force search of the options, I was able to determine that 480p output has to be disabled. I was under the impression that only 480i had to be disabled. I'm not sure I understand why it works, but I now have picture and video across all of my channels.

I have a Marantz RC9500. Does anyone know if a discrete code exits for the 8300HD box?

The 8300HD does not have discrete codes for on and off, however the follow workaround is very effective. It will work if your 8300HD has Sara software.

Press Setting twice to get to the General Setting Menu. Change Set: Power-On Keys to "Power and Numeric". Press A to accept the change.

Send the following keys to turn 8300HD On. 0(Zero) and Exit

Send the following keys to turn 8300HD Off. 0(Zero), Exit, 1/2 second delay and Power

0(Zero) will turn on 8300 without changing channel since it is a invalid channel number.

Exit clears channel display after 0(Zero)

I sent an e-mail to Time Warner Corp. about 3 days ago in regards to all the [known] problems with the SA8300HD boxes and HDMI dys-functionality (ie. repeater problems, HDCP error, etc.,..) and I got a simple reply back today stating:

"Thank you for your inquiry.

Unfortunately, the HDMI output is not compatible with all TV's. We are
currently working on the firmware to enable that feature. We do not have
a date as to when the upgrade will be available.

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us
via our Live Online Help. Our Live Online Help Representatives are
available Monday through Friday between 9 AM to 7 PM at:
http://www.TimeWarnerLA.com/chat/ .

Time Warner Cable
(888)TW-CABLE"

Hi all!

Sorry to add another problem to this thread, but I don't know where to look for help. I have a SA 8300HD hooked to my SXRD using HDMI cables from monoprice.com

It has been working flawlessly for the past 2 months. But today, for no apparent reason, when I try to use the 8300hd input, I can see maybe 1 second of image, then the screen goes black. The TV makes some strange noises, then after maybe 60-90 seconds of black screen, another half second of image comes up. Don't know how to explain it better, but it makes the TV unwatchable.

I've tried connecting the 8300HD using composite cables and it works fine (though ugly). So I guess the problem is either the HDMI output of the 8300HD, the HDMI cable, or the HDMI input of the SXRD. I've tried plugging/unplugging the cable and it didn't solve the issue. Unfortunately, I don't have another HDMI cable to swap and I don't want to buy another one until I'm sure it can cause this behavior.

So what do you guys think? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

Doesn't eem like my DVR records the dolby signal even on shows I know are broadcast in 5.1. Is this being caused because I use the optical output for sound? Anyone with similar problems? :confused:

Martinb1,
Are you using HDMI for the video or component? I use component (Early adopter and i have no HDMI or DVI equipment) but I understand there are issues with sound when using HDMI.

TerryB

The HDMI cable I've used since Feb, 2006, has worked fine. Someone who knows more about your type of problem may suggest that you reboot and take other steps with the 8300HD's software.

Congrats on explaining your situation so clearly.

Jim

Hi all!

Sorry to add another problem to this thread, but I don't know where to look for help. I have a SA 8300HD hooked to my SXRD using HDMI cables from monoprice.com

It has been working flawlessly for the past 2 months. But today, for no apparent reason, when I try to use the 8300hd input, I can see maybe 1 second of image, then the screen goes black. The TV makes some strange noises, then after maybe 60-90 seconds of black screen, another half second of image comes up. Don't know how to explain it better, but it makes the TV unwatchable.

I've tried connecting the 8300HD using composite cables and it works fine (though ugly). So I guess the problem is either the HDMI output of the 8300HD, the HDMI cable, or the HDMI input of the SXRD. I've tried plugging/unplugging the cable and it didn't solve the issue. Unfortunately, I don't have another HDMI cable to swap and I don't want to buy another one until I'm sure it can cause this behavior.

So what do you guys think? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

I've had the exact same issue since the last software "upgrade"...I haven't found a great solution. Try turning to channel 0, let it shake hands again and go back to your station you would prefer to watch.

Good luck.

I have the SA 8300HD hooked up to an HP5880N that I just got last week. It is connected via HDMI and everything works fine so far with one annoying exception. When looking at the guide and scrolling through the channels if I scroll "too fast" the box freezes and has to go through the entire power off / reboot. Is there anyway around this feature?

Steve

By the way my 8300HD has a 160gig Western Digital hard drive and not a Maxtor as is mentioned in one of the above posts.

Steve68,
That is a feature of the current firmware. They Scientific Atlanta are working to correct this and many other "features" which are hated.

TerryB

TerryB
I am currently using the hdmi for video, straight to the TV, and the Fiber out straight to the Reciever. I'm soon going to switch this to Component from PVR to reciever and component from the reciever to the TV. Sound will remain fiber. I had the HDMI doing sound as well with no problems but my new reciever will hot handle HDMI. Not sure if the HDMI provided any change in either PQ or SQ. But it was worth experimenting with. I also expermened with the IEEE 1394 firewire with no success. This seems to be completely un supported. The main question is still whether it records the dolby with the video, the SA website says it does but I have yet to see it in action. I'll keep playing around with it this weekend, should be some shows on tonight with HD and 5.1 that I can annoy the nieghbors with :)
Thanks for the advice - have a good weekend all!

8300hd scale or tv scale. I have a new panny 42" plasma (the new model) and I am thinking that it would scale better than the 8300hd. Unfortunately, i can't find a way to make me allow straight passthrough.

So... set it to 16:9 with 4:3 stretch, or
set it to 4:3 with 16:9 shrink

or the 8300hd does a better job?

The problem i have is that using the 8300hd to control AR, leads to the 8300hd grey bars. but there's a small black ribbon - and that could be a real probelm for burnin. Meanwhile, if i use the tv, it runs the grey straight up to the picture, with no artifacting.

Also, since i have a set that is 1024x768, does it make sense to have 1080i checked in teh available resolutions? so the set can downsample, or should i just limit it at the box to 720.

Both of these are lookign for the best pic... thanks for your help.
make sense?

TerryB
I am currently using the hdmi for video, straight to the TV, and the Fiber out straight to the Reciever. I'm soon going to switch this to Component from PVR to reciever and component from the reciever to the TV. Sound will remain fiber. I had the HDMI doing sound as well with no problems but my new reciever will hot handle HDMI. Not sure if the HDMI provided any change in either PQ or SQ. But it was worth experimenting with. I also expermened with the IEEE 1394 firewire with no success. This seems to be completely un supported. The main question is still whether it records the dolby with the video, the SA website says it does but I have yet to see it in action. I'll keep playing around with it this weekend, should be some shows on tonight with HD and 5.1 that I can annoy the nieghbors with :)
Thanks for the advice - have a good weekend all!

Hi, I have the 8300HD and use component connection and fiber. opt. to the receiver and have recorded DD5.1 off the HD/HBO,SHO,MAX,and INHD channels
I'm not using HDMI for anything.
TWC-Charlotte/Passport = poc :(
Mark

Hi, I have the 8300HD and use component connection and fiber. opt. to the receiver and have recorded DD5.1 off the HD/HBO,SHO,MAX,and INHD channels
I'm not using HDMI for anything.
TWC-Charlotte/Passport = poc :(
Mark


Hey Bucket_HDTV
I checked this last night and did some further searching online. My conclusion is that it does record the DD5.1 but it stores it in a stereo format that the AVR then decodes and plays in surround. My confusion was arising from the fact that the AVR (reciever) sill show which speaker signal that it is recieving and during this scenario it only shows the L/R speakers as recieving a signal. It does however appear to decode these and creates/plays a very good sound stage from them. If i am watching an actual HD show with 5.1 sound it shows all 6 signals as present. All in all I don't think I can tell the difference anyway - more my brain over thinking the situation. :rolleyes:

Martin1,
My receiver has a blue light and a 5.1 indication direct from the playback or live. If you are setup for HDMI, you may not be getting 5.1 to the receiver.

TerryB

You nailed it on the head TerryB - I just noticed that the audio out had switched back to HDMI and was going to post what I had found! You beat me to it :)

I can't get any closed captions to display on any channels since I got an SA8300HD. Before that, I got closed captions on my HDTV (Toshiba), which was connected directly to the cable line (no box or cablecard; I was watching only analog cable). I have tried changing the various closed caption options on the cable box, and I have tried changing them on the TV as well, and I still can't get any captions on either digital or analog channels. The cable box is connected via HDMI to the TV. Any suggestions?

I have a quick question. I want to watch a recording that's in progress. However, when I do that it won't let me watch it. I go to the menu of recording shows, see my show in red, then hit the select button but all it does is switch the DVR to that channel. I do not see a menu allowing me to watch it from the beginning. Anyone else have this issue?

Time Warner Columbus this past week must have upgraded the firmware on their SA 8300HD boxes as well. On my Sony SXRD (using HDMI) if I switch away from the HDMI input (like to play my XBOX 360 on another input) and then switch back I get what would be best described as a snow picture. The only solution I found was to reboot the box. I got annoyed enough that I switched to back to component cable connection.

My friend also just noticed that his widescreen flatpanel LCD panels connected via DVI to the same TW SA 8300HD cable box no longer work. The cable box complains that they aren't HDCP compatable (and they are not, but unfortunately ONLY work with DVI (no component). These were nice widescreen LCD panels for SGI workstations (1600SW's) that he got some years ago.

Time Warner Columbus this past week must have upgraded the firmware on their SA 8300HD boxes as well. On my Sony SXRD (using HDMI) if I switch away from the HDMI input (like to play my XBOX 360 on another input) and then switch back I get what would be best described as a snow picture. The only solution I found was to reboot the box. I got annoyed enough that I switched to back to component cable connection.

Change the station using the up or down arrow, then wait for the resolution change to cause the box to resynch.

My friend also just noticed that his widescreen flatpanel LCD panels connected via DVI to the same TW SA 8300HD cable box no longer work. The cable box complains that they aren't HDCP compatable (and they are not, but unfortunately ONLY work with DVI (no component). These were nice widescreen LCD panels for SGI workstations (1600SW's) that he got some years ago.

Have your friend call TWC to have them hit it with a signal. Mine did the exact same thing...I am using a Sony SXRD with my setup.

Good Luck.

What's needed to split an OTA antenna signal? Do I need some kind of signal booster device first?

redjr...

Have a Toshiba 37hl95 LCD that I am connecting via HDMI to a SA8300 from Cablevision. The picture has no problems except when I switch from DVD or another input back to HDMI to video screen has a green haze all over it. The only way to fix this is to reboot the cable box. I've changed HDMI cords so I am pretty sure that isn't the problem. When Toshiba sent a tech out he claimed the box was not set up to use the HDMI port. I am now using component to connect from the cable box and have no problems. My SONY is also connected to a SA 8300 via HDMI and has no such problems. Is there anything in the SA8300 setup that can fix this?

I recently purchased a Sharp XV-Z200. I have my SA 8300 and a Panny DVD connect thru my Yamaha receiver with component cables. I have horizontal discoloration lines moving up my screen when the DVD or Cable is on. At first I thought it was the projector... then the receiver... but then I unplugged the component cables from the 8300 and the lines went away. Is this common? In my research, I read someone talk about DC voltage on the component lines? Could this be causing the problem? If so, any suggestions on how to fix. Any help would be extremely appreciated. Thanks!

unbelievable - I just wrote a whole dissertation on my testing & dilemma, & somehow hit some ad button & got the denon ad & lost it all.

anyhow, I'll just ask a question. as you all probably know, one has to set the 8300HD w/ Passport to "Dolby Digital" to get DD 5.1 on their processor/HT.

while using the HDMI connect for video, is anyone able to also get sound from their TV, probably by using the analog audio outs on the 8300 to the HDMI audio input (R&L) on their TV?

I've come to the conclusion that it's either the box shutting off the analog audio when when it senses an HDMI connection; or, my Sony SXRD HDMI analog audio inputs won't accept anything 'cept LPCM (linear pulse code modulation), which it hints to in the SXRD manual.

if you're doing this w/ an 8300HD & YOUR tv, then it's MY TV that's the culprit.

thanks!

Mick

My Explorer 3800HD DVR box keeps shutting down and rebooting, even with something as simple as pausing the program that is being recorded. Once it loaded back up, the program resumed recording. I tried to rewind to the beginning of the show and it froze and shut down again. This is my second box. The first one froze up even more than this one. This one seemed to be able to do what it is supposed to until I ask for a simple thing like pausing, but this is ridiculous. I am already frustrated dealing with this from Tivo (dang them for no HD unless Direct TV) , but was willing to handle certain things that I knew would be different or inferior from Tivo. However, not being able to pause or rewind a currently recording show? Isn't that kind of the point of having a recorder? I have checked all connections and as far as I can see am doing it right. Can anyone tell me if I am doing something wrong? It is hooked up to a Hitachi Plasma tv via HDMI cord and sound through Optical Cable. Anything you could tell me would be great; you all seem to pretty much be having success. I appreciate any thoughts. Thanks!

ej

A friend just got a new DLP and the SA8300HD. It's nice that it has picture-in-picture, but I'm wondering if it can be configured/optimized for a 16:9 screen. The 8300 lets you move the PIP window to four locations on the screen, but all of them are the "corners" of a standard 4:3 screen area. So on a widescreen tv, the PIP window isn't anywhere near the corner and is very much in the way.

Can this be changed?

A friend just got a new DLP and the SA8300HD. It's nice that it has picture-in-picture, but I'm wondering if it can be configured/optimized for a 16:9 screen. The 8300 lets you move the PIP window to four locations on the screen, but all of them are the "corners" of a standard 4:3 screen area. So on a widescreen tv, the PIP window isn't anywhere near the corner and is very much in the way.

Can this be changed?
Lately I've been using my 8300HD PIP to monitor two similar sports events at once, such as golf, pressing SWAP on the remote to view the most interesting action.

The graphics-chip-produced PIP windows (2 sizes, 4-corner positioning) work fine with 16X9 HDTV, of course, or if you use the # key to zoom or stretch 4X3 screens to 16X9. But since I dislike the zoom/stretch geometric distortion, I only use zoom for video images with both side pillars and letterboxing (top/bottom black bars) since they aren't distorted with zoom. IFC, Sundance, PBS, etc. often have letterboxed 4X3 that zoom nicely.

Since my PIP two-channel sports monitoring usually involves two 4X3 programs, I've become accustomed to using the 8300HD PIP windows inset into 4X3 images with gray side pillars on my 16X9 64" CRT RPTV screen. -- John

I have a quick question. I want to watch a recording that's in progress. However, when I do that it won't let me watch it. I go to the menu of recording shows, see my show in red, then hit the select button but all it does is switch the DVR to that channel. I do not see a menu allowing me to watch it from the beginning. Anyone else have this issue?


I noticed you got no response to your question.

I am having the same problem with my SA8300HD. Also if I am watching a recorded program, the DVR will switch itself to any program that is set to be recorded which means I have to fast-forward through the show I was watching to get to where it cut me off.

I haven't called TWC yet as I have only had this DVR for 2 or 3 weeks. So far, compared to the Sony Ultimate TV DVR, I am less than impressed.

Any help for the above problems would be greatly appreciated.

The watch a recording in progress from the beginning is dependant on having a firmware revision which will support the operation. It is available in som elocations and not in many others. Please post your location and cableco information and you will get better matching replys. Better yet go to the local HDTV info and reception and find your location and service OR go to the 8300 Tips and tricks thread on HDTV recorders forum and see what people in your area have to say. The functions are very location dependant (which drives firmware program and revision) at this time.

TerryB

The watch a recording in progress from the beginning is dependant on having a firmware revision which will support the operation. It is available in som elocations and not in many others. Please post your location and cableco information and you will get better matching replys. Better yet go to the local HDTV info and reception and find your location and service OR go to the 8300 Tips and tricks thread on HDTV recorders forum and see what people in your area have to say. The functions are very location dependant (which drives firmware program and revision) at this time.

TerryB

Thanks for the information. I am currently with TWC in the Greensboro, NC region. Being new to cable (D*TV for the past 12 years) I wasn't sure where to get help. Once MPEG4 is available in this area I may be switching back though I hear the H20 D*TV receivers have there own set of problems.

Saw a similar post but no answers. I have the SA 8300 HD and a Samsung DLP (HLR5078W) connected via HDMI cable. If I set the 8300 to 1080i mode (hold down SEL on the box for a moment, VOL-, VOL+) then HD channels display how I want and SD channels are how I want. If I turn the TV off or change the TV's input source to the PC input or component, then the 8300 switches back to 480i mode. Can't switch it back via remote. Have to walk up to it and set it back with the procedure I described. This is absurd so I must be doing something wrong, right? How can I get it to stick at 1080i?
I also tried the setup routine you're supposed to do when you first get the box. I pretended that my TV did not support any other format than 1080i (by not hitting anything when it tested other formats). Doesn't matter. 8300 is going to switch back to 480i anyway. Help!

If I turn the TV off or change the TV's input source to the PC input or component, then the 8300 switches back to 480i mode. Can't switch it back via remote. Have to walk up to it and set it back with the procedure I described. This is absurd so I must be doing something wrong, right? How can I get it to stick at 1080i?

I have the same problem with the 8300, attached via HDMI to a different brand of TV (i.e., it's not a Samsung problem). There must be some kind of "handshaking" information between the HDMI cable and the TV that causes the 8300 to forget its settings when you switch inputs on the TV. I don't know a fix. I'm about to dump the HDMI cable completely because of this problem and the fact that I can't get my TV to display any closed captions when it's connected via HDMI.

Switching the 8300 to an SD channel and then to an HD channel while the TV is selected to the HDMI connection should allow them to handshake. The drop of resolution to 480i does mean the handshake is lost by switching away from the HDMI to the 8300 and back again. It is also lost by using a switching device in between. All of the HDMI playbacks require the display to have a valid handshake to run full resolution.

TerryB

Happily all my stuff is running component.

our 8300HD box reboots on its own every so often. Today was the worst -- it has rebooted four time since 12:30 and every time it reboots it takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete the cycle so we can watch TV again. We have had this problem -- not this bad -- off and on for about a year and replaced several boxes. Anyone else have this or solved it?

I have the same problem with the 8300, attached via HDMI to a different brand of TV (i.e., it's not a Samsung problem). There must be some kind of "handshaking" information between the HDMI cable and the TV that causes the 8300 to forget its settings when you switch inputs on the TV. I don't know a fix. I'm about to dump the HDMI cable completely because of this problem and the fact that I can't get my TV to display any closed captions when it's connected via HDMI.

I tried the solution of switching to an SD channel and then back to an HD channel, but my 8300 remains at 480i unless I go through setup screens. I called my cable tech support (Adelphia) today. The first rep told me I should get tech support for this problem at Radio Shack, and I insisted a supervisor call me back. The supervisor seemed more on top of this problem, and said he'd talked earlier today to someone with a Samsung set who had the same problem I've had with the 8300 and my Toshiba. Therefore, he believes there is some kind of programming error in the 8300 and will pass that info to whomever works on those problems. Meanwhile, he said, stay with the component connection.

pbarach et al:
I had similar problems with using an HDMI connector. The solution involved returning to the TV's setup menu, and selecting HDMI there.

pbarach et al:
I had similar problems with using an HDMI connector. The solution involved returning to the TV's setup menu, and selecting HDMI there.

Can you clarify what you mean? My TV has all kinds of inputs, including 2 HDMI inputs. But there's no "setup" for these inputs except for TV picture settings (color, tint, sharpness, etc.). If I switch the TV from the cable box's HDMI input to anything else, the SA 8300 cable box immediately goes from displaying "HDMI" and "1080i" indicators, to displaying "480i." And I can't return the cable box to 1080i without turning everything off and then going through the cable boxes setup screens to reselect 1080i.

I tried the solution of switching to an SD channel and then back to an HD channel, but my 8300 remains at 480i unless I go through setup screens. I called my cable tech support (Adelphia) today. The first rep told me I should get tech support for this problem at Radio Shack, and I insisted a supervisor call me back. The supervisor seemed more on top of this problem, and said he'd talked earlier today to someone with a Samsung set who had the same problem I've had with the 8300 and my Toshiba. Therefore, he believes there is some kind of programming error in the 8300 and will pass that info to whomever works on those problems. Meanwhile, he said, stay with the component connection.

I too am having this exact same problem using a new Pioneer 4360 HDTV with the 8300HD in Austin, TX via TimeWarner. After spending two frustrating days trying different settings, reading forums, and checking manuals, I finally gave in and called TW support today. The guy spent about 30 minutes running through various setup combinations, none of which solved the problem. Oddly, he had never heard of this problem. At least he didn't try and blame my TV. The bottom line is no matter what I try, the 8300HD reverts to only displaying 480i once the TV has been turned off and then back on.

At this point, I'm about ready for a stiff drink. Then tomorrow I will probably switch to component cables.

I too am having this exact same problem using a new Pioneer 4360 HDTV with the 8300HD in Austin, TX via TimeWarner. After spending two frustrating days trying different settings, reading forums, and checking manuals, I finally gave in and called TW support today. The guy spent about 30 minutes running through various setup combinations, none of which solved the problem. Oddly, he had never heard of this problem. At least he didn't try and blame my TV. The bottom line is no matter what I try, the 8300HD reverts to only displaying 480i once the TV has been turned off and then back on.

At this point, I'm about ready for a stiff drink. Then tomorrow I will probably switch to component cables.

pbarach & brucelev,

This sounds more and more like a handshaking problem between your HDTV and 8300HD STB. When using the HDMI port, I believe the TV must be turned on first and then the STB, so the STB can determine if the TV is an HDCP compliant device before sending it a digital signal. I remember reading about this on some thread here in the AVS forums, but don't remember which one.

I experienced this once when I had my 37" Polaroid and was baffled too. I wasn't sure exactly how it happened, but reading about the handshaking got me thinking and what order things had to be turned on. I got it corrected, but had since switched to component-video, so it never turned up again.

When you turn off your TV, the HDCP handshaking is broken in the digital chain, and the STB reverts back to SD or 480i. I believe all you need to do is turn the STB off and then on again after the TV has booted up.

Hope this helps. It's my best explanantion tonight. I'm out of town on business and still waiting on my new Westy LCD panel to be delivered, so can't try to recreate it.

redjr.... :eek:

pbarach:
One of the options, when setting up my TV (not STB), it to tell the TV that my connection is by an HDMI connector. Is that clear?

redjr:
About what to turn on first, the TV or the STB. I have always been able to turn them on together with the remote. I like the silver-colored Universal Remote that Cox Cable upgraded to last December. With it, when you press Power to turn on the STB, you keep holding the button down for 3 seconds. At that point the TV comes on.

Jim

....With it, when you press Power to turn on the STB, you keep holding the button down for 3 seconds. At that point the TV comes on.

Jim

While this approach seems to work for your setup, the TV is still turned on later than the STB (3 seconds). In my Westy manual, they clearly tell you to turn on the TV first and then the STB for the HDCP authentication to take place properly. Another option for pbarach, is to simply use component-video. With my Polaroid, as hard as I tried, I could not tell a difference in PQ when I switched over to c-video. Doing so also freed up my HDMI port for use with my Oppo 971's DVI connector.

redjr...

[QUOTE=jimhh]pbarach:
One of the options, when setting up my TV (not STB), it to tell the TV that my connection is by an HDMI connector. Is that clear?

Still not sure what you mean. On my set, I simply choose which input I want to see: One of the two HDMI inputs, one of the two component video inputs, or one of the three "video" inputs (which I don't use--these accept either composite or S-video signals). There is no "setup" option that relates to choosing HDMI.

Others have suggested that the STB will retain its resolution setting at 1080i if I turn on the TV first. Yes, this works immediately after I have yet again set up the STB to show everything at 1080i. However, when I'm done watching and turn everything off, this setting is forgotten; the next time i turn on the TV and the STB, the STB shows everything at 480i and I have to set up the STB all over again. I think I'll follow redjr's suggestion and stick with component video, although the HDMI connection looks sharper than component even after setting Sharpness properly for both connections using my Avia disc.

I live in the West San Fernando Valley of L.A. and have Time Warner. I tried to use HDMI to connect My Sony KDS-R50XBR1 to my 8300HD box.

When I go to Video 6 (HDMI) I would often get a flashing display that alternates with the picture about once every second. I also got a 5 inch wide black line that goes vertically from top to bottom and horizontally right to left near but not at the center of the screen display. The black lines go away if I change the channel.

I thied everything - new 8300HD box, expensive cable (Monster $125), other HDMI input to the TV. Nothing solved the problems.

I had to connect it via component inputs. But I'd line to use component for other equipment. TW came here and says my signal is strong.

Any suggestions?

Hi all. Sorry if this has been covered in this thread. I couldn't find it through searching. Back when I had a SA 3250HD box, the cable tech showed me how to get to a screen (or maybe series of screens one of) which would show me the singal strength from the cable. I don't remember exactly what the keys were but it was something similar to getting to the setup wizard on the 8300HD where yo hit Info and Guide while it's off. Is there a similar function in the 8300HD (to check signal strength)? If so, what buttons do I need to push? Thanks a lot for the help! :)

I tried to use HDMI to connect My Sony KDS-R50XBR1 to my 8300HD box.
I would often get a flashing display that alternates with the picture about once every second. I also got a 5 inch wide black line that goes vertically from top to bottom and horizontally right to left near but not at the center of the screen display. The black lines go away if I change the channel.

So, to clarify, you're connecting [directly] from 8300HD HDMI OUT-> to KDS-R50XBR1 HDMI INP? (not thru an AV reciever correct?)

Technically this configuration should work fine. Only thing I can think is some issue with 8300HD, possibly firmware related.

Is there a similar function in the 8300HD (to check signal strength)? If so, what buttons do I need to push? Thanks a lot for the help! :)See the section on how to get into the diagnostic mode in this post:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4682052&&#post4682052

A friend just got a new DLP and the SA8300HD. It's nice that it has picture-in-picture, but I'm wondering if it can be configured/optimized for a 16:9 screen. The 8300 lets you move the PIP window to four locations on the screen, but all of them are the "corners" of a standard 4:3 screen area. So on a widescreen tv, the PIP window isn't anywhere near the corner and is very much in the way.

Can this be changed?

Let me try to re-phrase my question to see if I can get a better response. When you guys go into the menu (program guide or any on-screen menu) on the 8300, does it display in 4:3 or 16:9 ratio on your widescreen HDTV? So far, we've only been able to get the program guide, PIP, etc to display in 4:3 mode. I can't find anywhere to tell the 8300 to show all its on-screen displays in 16:9, this making full use of a widesceen display. Again, this is especially frustrating when trying to use its PIP feature, because the PIP window is displayed in the "corner" of a 4:3 box in the center of the screen... not out in the corners of the 16:9 display.

Thanks again for any info!

Let me try to re-phrase my question to see if I can get a better response. When you guys go into the menu (program guide or any on-screen menu) on the 8300, does it display in 4:3 or 16:9 ratio on your widescreen HDTV? So far, we've only been able to get the program guide, PIP, etc to display in 4:3 mode. I can't find anywhere to tell the 8300 to show all its on-screen displays in 16:9, this making full use of a widesceen display. Again, this is especially frustrating when trying to use its PIP feature, because the PIP window is displayed in the "corner" of a 4:3 box in the center of the screen... not out in the corners of the 16:9 display.

Thanks again for any info!
The guide on the 8300 is 4:3 only.