Recording to PC from a SA 8300HD via Firewire [Text View] - Page 2

srizvi1

07-17-07, 03:46 PM

Hey guys,

Living Laurel, MD (Howard County) with Comcast right now. I have a SA8300HD (have to get back to you guys on the software version) that will have to go back soon because i'm making the switch to FIOS.

I wanted to pull some of the content I recorded over the years on my HD/DVR and I came across this thread when I searched for "pulling off recordings from SA8300HD." I'm a mac guy so most probably the thread mentioned by paule123 in this post:

.....
How-To: MacOS X Firewire HDTV recording
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=386740

....

would probably be more relevant, but since I'm already here, I thought I'd finish what I started with this post.

I wanted to put together some of the posts for anyone new who stumbles across this thread who's a Mac Person.

Thanks to dannyv@cybernex for firing off the starter question that has (what I hope) will be most of the answers I'm looking for:

I'm going to set up a mac g4 with OSX 10.4 tiger this weekend. Can you give me some detail as to what I will need to set up capturing such as firewire driver, video capture software etc. etc. plus any other hints or tricks you can think of.

And thanks to paule123 for the response:
Follow the steps here:
http://www.pressleypress.com/blog/?p=35

The Firewire SDK package has the AVCVideoCap application already built in. I followed his "AVCVideoCap" method, those were easier than fooling around with the Virtual DVHS "channel 63" weirdness. So, to paraphrase the Pressley site:

AVCVideoCap :

1a) Perform steps 1-4 ...

1) Download and install Apple’s Firewire SDK found at ftp://ftp.apple.com/developer/Development_Kits/FireWireSDK22.dmg
2) Connect your Mac to either firewire port located at the back of the 8300HD while the Mac is off.
3) Power on the Mac
4) Tune to the HD channel you wish to capture. (On your STB)

2a) Run the AVCVideoCap app located under /Developer/FirewireSDK22/Applications/
3a) Select your device in the AVCVideoCap UI.
4a) Click the Capture from Device button.
5a) Choose where you want the video saved.
6a) Enter how long you want to capture in minutes.
7a) Hit continue.
8a) Capturing occurs!

Note I am using the Firewire SDK 23, which is a little bit newer and available here:
http://developer.apple.com/sdk/
You have to set up a free Apple developer account to access it, though.

To answer your previous question, yes, TS files are compatible between Mac and PC. Transport Streams are just the raw data from the broadcaster without any re-encoding, so they are playable on anything that supports TS.

Also wanted to mention the first follow up question which seems to lead to more info:

Paulie does AVCVideocap allow one to set the size of files to save? For example if I wanted to save a 2 hour movie into 4GB files will it allow that type of save or can it only be done manually?

thanks
I really don't remember what the options are in AVCVideoCap. Here's a little AVCVideoCap tutorial I found:
http://project-tigershark.com/people/rob/blog/2007/01/14/cable-tv-mac-firewire-hd-pvr

I also stumbled across this, something called iRecord might be useful to you:
http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20060421212958602

How-To: MacOS X Firewire HDTV recording
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=386740

Google is your friend.

I had a couple other questions/comments to some posts:

....

Just wanted to let everyone know that I did some testing today with a G4 Notebook, has 1GB Ram and is 1Ghz. I tested about 5 mins recording from a pre-recorded movie, got my m2t file, played it on the G4 notebook and it was really studdering. Copied it to my PC and it was very smooth, so it seems the 1GHz is enough to record the file but not play it. The source was 1080i and 5.1 surround and my test file ended up with looking pretty much the same, no audio or graphic issues.
...

I hope my 2.16 ghz macbook pro w/ 3gigs of ram can handle the resulting .m2t file.

...
I use a G4 450mhz and get great captures but as expected it plays back with studder. I transfer it to my PC and convert it to HD DIVx with 5.1 sound and it plays back perfectly with fantastic video quality and sound.

...

How easy is it to convert this file to DIVX? Why can't this be done on the Mac?

You can't get live TV out the firewire port. You have to play back a program that was previously recorded.

Good to know, I only care about prerecorded stuff.

I thought I'd include this post too in this Mac Summary Post:

Just want to follow-up on my attempts with the mac g4 that I setup.
The mac captures far better then the PC. I captured a 1 hour HD program on a network cable channel and a 1 hour HBO HD show and both captured perfectly with no frame dropouts. I had some microblocking and audio dropout which was on the 8300hd original recording. I noticed that after the microblocking and audio dropout on the HBO show. The audio went out of sync for about 5 minutes. On the network show (the program 24 on fox) the microblocking and audio dropouts on the origional recording (8300hd) were present on the capture but did not make the audio go out of sync. The microblocking and audio dropouts were not excessive (once every 20mins or so). I used mpeg2repair on these streams but this did not help. I used avcdvhs to capture and did not need to use avcbrowser to detect the stb. I had to open and close avcdvhs many times before it let me capture anything (capture button remained grayed out). If anyone has a solution or explination as to why this is happening on avcdvhs it would be greatly appreciated.

I copied the stream from the Mac G4 to my PC and used nero vision express 7.0 to convert the stream to DVD and this worked perfectly and resulted in DVD quality video and 5.1 digital audio. Nero also recoginized the stream (.m2t) from the mac and needed no converting.

Hope this helps out some people... I'll post my results in here soon, and I'll try to become a part of the more relevant How-To: MacOS X Firewire HDTV recording thread ( http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=386740 )

delar

07-18-07, 04:19 AM

Paule, I'm not sure of the brand name firewire card (Belkin?), but it says Texas Instrument under Device Manager.

So tonight I tried to capture an HBO program off the 8300 and was unsuccessful. I could only get the "Read at Media" and "Input Bitrate" data fields to populate on VLC's stat tab and ended up with zero byte files. I went back to try Chinatown again (from HDNetMovies) and it worked fine. I went ahead and captured Chinatown in its entirety and a quick review of the transfer shows that it's nearly glitch free.....only a few artifacts and glitches that I find acceptable.

What this all means I really don't know, but the behavior I see does seem to be in line with what others are experiencing......successful captures on some channels, failure on others. I need to test more channels.

xnappo

08-04-07, 11:27 PM

1. I reinstalled the firewire drivers with the vista-arc1 version (sorry I can't find a link) using the method from this site.

Can someone else find this link? I am getting breakups using firestb.msi no matter which software I use (HD only, SD works). I have followed all of the other steps...

Thanks,
xnappo

jrbd90

08-08-07, 10:49 AM

Can someone else find this link? I am getting breakups using firestb.msi no matter which software I use (HD only, SD works). I have followed all of the other steps...

Thanks,
xnappo

Found it!

http://home.comcast.net/~timmmoore/firewire/firestb-vistarc1.msi

xnappo

08-08-07, 11:44 AM

Found it!

http://home.comcast.net/~timmmoore/firewire/firestb-vistarc1.msi

Thanks - will give this one a try. There seem to be quite a few floating around - some work better than others but I haven't found any that work for me with no breakup at all (best is like 1 glitch every 5 mins with HD).

I am using a slowish laptop, but the CPU meter doesn't seems stressed...

xnappo

jrbd90

08-08-07, 02:43 PM

I will glitch if i don't disable processes and wireless for some reason.
I have made many 1 minute clips to test recordings and this has always been the case.

Tmrizzojr

08-10-07, 01:23 PM

I was looking through the list and couldn't find anything about uploading saved shows from my 8300HD to my mac via firewire. Do I need any special programs or drivers so I can simply view the box as a hard drive? I am also running Vista on my pc side, would it be easier to just get the drivers there?

jrbd90

08-10-07, 05:02 PM

mcwups1

08-11-07, 11:14 PM

Hello all. I am new to EVERYTHING on here.

I understand bits and pieces, and was hoping that someone could really simplify all of this.

First, what is "SARA" and "Passport", and what do they have to do with capturing to your PC's HDD?

Next, can anyone find a way to put all the 'vital' info needed to hook all of this up? Like, some sort of step by step procedure, so as to take out some of the non-related garbage posts....eg.- like this one!

After reading through all of this, I'm still unclear how to capture streaming video from my SA8300HD DVR. I am running Windows XP Media Edition, and I have a 'firewire' plugged into the Set Top Box, and my computer. I have downloaded drivers, and associated them where they need to be. I also downloaded the new version of VLC player, but can't get ANYTHING to work.

Can someone make a step by step guide for newbies like me to this new world of HD, and capture ability? College football season is almost here, and I'd like to capture some games.

Thanks in advance.

philherz

08-12-07, 12:20 AM

CANNON-FODDER

08-12-07, 12:21 AM

SARA, PASSPORT, & NAVIGATOR are software types that each cable company uses on their DVR. (somewhat ~ Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Konqueror)

Go here Scientific Atlanta HD PVR's / HD STB MASTER THREAD: General Posts/Links Here Only ! (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=581843) for links to the various pages.

The SARA thread has some pictures of SARA and PASSPORT for comparison.

Go here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=45) to get to your local page, where someone has probably already posted what software you are running, except if you are on TWC and PASSPORT - where you might have one of the new boxes with NAVIGATOR on it (especially if it has a CableCard (PCMCIA card in back).

There are a couple of posts in this thread (that you should have already seen) that have the step-by-step instructions for various platforms. Given the general trend, I would not expect this to be simple easy or quick. Can't help there, I never got around to trying it out yet.

When you have some specific questions, it would probably help to include your location, provider, DVR software version and the like, as they are all different based on how the cable provider sets their network up.

v/r,
C-F

mcwups1

08-12-07, 03:04 AM

Thanks for the timely responses.

After toying around for a while, I was able to record a movie I already had on my DVR (16 Blocks), and it looked pretty decent.

I just spent over 300 bucks for a new video card (HD..yeah right) that can capture, but not like the picture I saw using VLC. The picture was a bit choppy still, from time to time, but still blew away my previous attempts with my card (Hauppauge).

Now, the good thing about my capture card is I can use Nero along with it, and once I'm finished capturing, I can change the format Mpeg-2 to Mpeg-4 without hesitating. However, the (.ts) file is becoming difficult to manage. What is the best way to convert this file over to Mpeg, without losing much quality? If I try to use Nero, while the Firewire is still connected, my system shuts down, and restarts. So, I guess I'm trying to find a faster way to convert from a .ts file, to a file I can use like Mpeg-4, to copy to a disc.

Again, thanks in advance.

mcwups1

08-12-07, 04:13 PM

I tried to change the registry like someone mentioned earlier in the thread, but I don't have what they have, even after downloading the "firewire drivers" from Microsoft.

"1.Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.
2. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\1394_hc _hw_id\1394_instance_id\Device Parameters
3. If the SidSpeed value does not exist in the right pane after you click the Device Parameters subkey in step 2, create it. To do this, point to New on the Edit menu, click DWORD Value, type SidSpeed, and then press ENTER.
4. Right-click SidSpeed, and then click Modify.
5. In the Value data box, type one of the values that are shown in the following table, and then click OK.
Value Speed
0 S100 speed
1 S200 speed
2 S400 speed (default value)
3 S400/S800 speed (Windows XP Service Pack 1 [SP1] value)
Note If you try to use a value that is larger than 3, SidSpeed will use a value of 0 (S100 speed).
6. Quit Registry Editor.

You'll need to know your 1394 Hardware ID....

mine looks like this...

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\VEN_121 7&DEV_00F7&SUBSYS_01CC1028&REV_02\4&2fe911e8&0&0CF0\Device Parameters"

This is the original message.....however, I can only see this....

"HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI"....and then it looks nothing like his. I want to make this work the best way I can. I am using VLC to help capture, TSconverter to change to Mpeg-2, than Avivo (nice program) to convert to Mpeg-4 (which makes file much smaller without losing quality).

Problem is, ESPN is choppy, not VERY choppy, but choppy, when I capture a recorded HD show (CFB Live). How do I fix this? 16 Blocks was very easy...recorded it from HBOHD, and then captured it almost flawlessly. Took me no longer than 15 minutes to do everthing, after movie captured.

I want to have this ready by football season, so I can record my favorite games, and watch them when I want to.

Thanks.

FreeBaGeL

08-12-07, 04:44 PM

CANNON-FODDER

08-12-07, 07:24 PM

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\1394_hc _hw_id\1394_instance_id\Device Parameters

You'll need to know your 1394 Hardware ID....
mine looks like this...

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\PCI\VEN_121 7&DEV_00F7&SUBSYS_01CC1028&REV_02\4&2fe911e8&0&0CF0\Device Parameters"
I wrote a bunch before and lost it trying to get a picture to show...

Basically, the thing you missed was that Windows assigns a string of gobbledygook (its actually descriptive, but looks like nonsense) as the Device ID and a Device Instance ID to everything in your computer.

These can be found in the Device Manager.
Start
-Right Click My Computer
--Properties
---Hardware Tab
----Device Manager Button
-----Find IEEE 1394 Host bus controller
------Expand it [+]
-------Find device
--------Right Click
---------Properties
----------Details Tab
-----------Device ID\Device Instance ID

I do not know how to make the pictures display in the post, you will have to click on them...

v/r,
C-F

mcwups1

08-13-07, 12:11 PM

Ah, okay...cannon. Thank you...I found it. Now, do I type in "2" or do I type in everything on that line?

Also, if anyone had a good setup for VLC, and I know it has an advanced menu, could you please post it. I'm hoping that I'm missing something in VLC when I try to record ESPNHD, and that is causing the picture problems. It looks like a bunch of squares popping up all over the screen, and the audio "statics" out. Is that what it means to "drop packets"?

Thanks yet again.

CANNON-FODDER

08-14-07, 09:29 PM

You will create a DWORD that should only be {0,1,2,3} as input, any other value will be ignored.

Set to Hexadecimal, it will only accept {0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,A,B,C,D,E,F}.
Set to Decimal, it will only accept {0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9}.

Be careful mucking about in the registry...
You can back it up by collapsing everything in the left (tree) pane until only "My Computer" is left and highlighted, then hit "File" and "Export".
Immediately rename it to ___.txt because the default action when double-clicked is to import whatever is in there...

v/r,
C-F

mcwups1

08-27-07, 07:26 PM

Has anyone found a good setup for VLC? I want to make sure I have every setting right here. "16 Blocks" came out okay, but ESPN has A LOT of hiccups. I know it can be done, because I found where someone recorded the Maryland/Purdue (Champs Sports Bowl) from ESPNHD, and it was flawless. I don't know who it was, but I'd love to know how he/she did it. When I try to "capture" from the recorded shows on my DVR, I found that if I don't play while I record, it looks better, but not perfect. I'm just wondering if there is a setting I am not seeing here.

Any help would be great. Most on here know way more than I do, so if you can tell me the settings from VLC, and for my computer, I'd be quite thankful.

jrbd90

08-29-07, 11:37 AM

Most on here know way more than I do, so if you can tell me the settings from VLC, and for my computer, I'd be quite thankful.

My success has only been with TSreader.

VLC never worked for me, but I would try suggested settings as well.:)

penguinphan

09-03-07, 10:05 PM

Hi guys. I have an HP M7757c running Vista and I have installed firestb with no problems. I do have a question though. Is anyone that is using this able to use the LiveTV function? Since my SA8300HD is connected to the pc via SVIDEO, I can only see HD at 480i. I have the firewire connection and it would be great if I can use that connection instead of the svideo. Thanks for your help.

HDTV Freak

09-05-07, 08:09 PM

Just got the 8300HD box today from Time Warner. Is there a guide on how to transfer recordings from firewire to PC ?

mcwups1

09-12-07, 08:17 PM

My success has only been with TSreader.

VLC never worked for me, but I would try suggested settings as well.:)

Now, by success you mean....you can get perfect recordings, or your recordings are just as bad using VLC? I downloaded TSReader Lite, and I had the same results. Only difference is, I could only record for 1 minute.

VLC seems to work, but there has to be a setting(s) that I'm not getting right here. CapDVHS recordings were PERFECT, PERFECT, PERFECT!!!! However, the program died on me within 10 seconds. Whoever made that program, had it right, and is in the right direction. He/she just needs to tweak it.

jrbd90

09-14-07, 09:18 AM

HBOHD, CinemaxHD, STARZHD, ShowtimeHD have all be perfect with TS reader.

I had some problems with NBCHD recordings, but i don't capture TV shows so it doesn't affect me.

guho

09-26-07, 07:54 AM

Vaskill

09-26-07, 09:21 PM

For those of you using SageTV, I've developed a way to use a Macintosh on your home network as a SageTV Firewire Network Encoder. As many have noticed, firewire captures from Mac are often clean whereas from PC it is pixelated. I've only tested it on MacOS 10.4.8 (10.4.x required) and an SA4200HD. Works great. It'll even turn on the box before the recording and turn it off when done.

See http://www.hugolyppens.com/SageTVFirewireNetworkEncoder.html

Guho, this is fantastic. This is exactly the solution I have been waiting for. I have SageTV running on WinXP recording SD via firewire only and my MAC Laptop manually pulling HD via firewire. I am on the road but will try this on the weekend. (Funny because I told someone just today that I was waiting for this since I did not have time and possibly the skills to develop it myself.)

In creating this, were your intentions to correct/bypass the firewire "incompatibilities" of XP? Have you tested it using the MAC SageTV Server? Are there any particular areas you want tested by other users?

guho

09-26-07, 10:55 PM

Guho, this is fantastic. This is exactly the solution I have been waiting for. I have SageTV running on WinXP recording SD via firewire only and my MAC Laptop manually pulling HD via firewire. I am on the road but will try this on the weekend. (Funny because I told someone just today that I was waiting for this since I did not have time and possibly the skills to develop it myself.)

In creating this, were your intentions to correct/bypass the firewire "incompatibilities" of XP? Have you tested it using the MAC SageTV Server? Are there any particular areas you want tested by other users?

That's exactly why I created it. I'm curious whether it'll work with other cableboxes besides SA4200HD (must be able to change channel via firewire) and whether it'll work on PowerPC Macs. I do not have a MAC SageTV server. Those who have it can run the SageTV firewire network encoder on the same computer of course.

Vaskill

09-27-07, 01:30 AM

I will test on the SA3250HD (I also have a SA3800HD but it will not pass live video via firewire, only previously recorded).

Vaskill

09-28-07, 07:17 PM

guho, I really need some help figuring out the mounting stuff cause it is not working for me.

HDTV Freak

09-29-07, 06:18 PM

http://scientificatlanta.com/contactus/customerservice.htm

Let them know of the firewire problems! I already called and told them about the known issues and the rep forwarded it to the engineers. Also, told them about this forum so they could see it for themselves.

GatorTex

10-04-07, 06:32 PM

mcwups1

10-05-07, 08:46 PM

Has anyone figured out yet how to keep "CapDVHS" from crashing upon HD transfer from the SA Explorer 8300HD box to a PC (I don't have a mac so that is out of the question) via firewire? I have successfully transfered 1 one hour show in HD upon install and every subsequent attempt the program has crashed within 2 seconds of starting. I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers to no avail.

This must sound redundent by now considering not only how old this discussion has been going, but how old these drivers are....2005? I wouldn't care so much if "CapDVHS" didn't crash or "VLC" could successfully capture anything in HD without pixelating/skipping all to oblivion.

You and I are in the same boat. I tried using different codecs with VLC like....(.dv, .dvr-ms, .mpg, .mpeg, .mpe, .m2p, .m2v, .mp4, .nd, .vob, .wmv)

Most work, but I have the same problem. Either, it's extremely pixelated, or it seems to record in "fast forward". I'm still messing around with it, but it seems like there may be other methods of doing this altogether.

Cable outputs (QAM)....right? Seems like this Hauppauge video card would work great. Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-1800 (http://www.hauppauge.com/pages/products/data_hvr1800.html)

Does anyone know if this would work? Seems like it would be faster...and less of a headache.

dsc2bjn

10-13-07, 12:14 AM

I have search this forum and can't find any details on where I can get the windows drivers for the SA8300HD. I am running Windows 2000, and would like to connect the box to my computer.

Any details would be greatly apprecieated.

HDTV Freak

10-14-07, 12:35 AM

Merlinium

10-18-07, 02:29 PM

You and I are in the same boat. I tried using different codecs with VLC like....(.dv, .dvr-ms, .mpg, .mpeg, .mpe, .m2p, .m2v, .mp4, .nd, .vob, .wmv)

Most work, but I have the same problem. Either, it's extremely pixelated, or it seems to record in "fast forward". I'm still messing around with it, but it seems like there may be other methods of doing this altogether.

Cable outputs (QAM)....right? Seems like this Hauppauge video card would work great.

Does anyone know if this would work? Seems like it would be faster...and less of a headache.

I have a Hauppauge HVR1600 and that does not work via firewire, does not pick up any QAM channels or any signal. I did get channels to show up via direct cable input but the quality was seriously poor.

Setup:
Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD (Sara programming)
HTPC (Windows XP Pro, Firewire SP1 drivers, SB Audigy 2 for the firewire port, ATI AIW 9600, Hauppauge HVR 1600, 1GB memory, multiple USB/Firewire external drives)
Software tested - VLC (some pixelation showing) TSReader (Some pixelation showing) CapDVHS (Crashes after 10 seconds)

I have tried capturing HD content off of the DVR drive, I will next try a full capture and use VideoReDo to clean up the picture

Are there any Linux drivers for the Explorer 8300HD so that I can test Ubuntu/Kino setup? I get nothing found on the firewire port when using linux.

mullet34

10-18-07, 04:26 PM

xnappo

10-18-07, 04:41 PM

mullet34

10-18-07, 05:39 PM

You know you can add an eSATA drive right? See my sig..

xnappo

I have a 500GB eSata drive, thanks.

HueyPNewty

10-19-07, 12:00 AM

I was wondering if somebody can(or has already) provided step by step instructions on how to transfer from a SA 8300HD to a laptop. What I'm working with:

1.SA 8300HD from Time Warner(IN NYC) that runs Passport
2.Dell XPS laptop with Vista Home Premium

I own a 320GB FreeAgent Pro hard drive that I use for video editing, but almost all of the space on it is available. Before reading this forum, I didn't even know I could use it to store more programs from my DVR! I'm still unsure how, though. I like to think I'm smart, but I'm not, so pleeease help if you can. Please.

Blaq

10-20-07, 01:02 PM

I can't seem to capture (using VLC, laptop w/XP SP2 & Firewire S400 patch, SA 8300HD) without massive errors. (MPEG2Repair reported over 600 errors in a half-hour!)

Here's VLC's Messages log for a test capture, about a minute long. Maybe this will help?

main debug: received first data for our buffer
main debug: prebuffering done 48128 bytes in 24s - 1 kbytes/s
main debug: creating demux: access='dshow' demux='' path=''
main debug: looking for demux2 module: 45 candidates
main debug: using demux2 module "ts"
main debug: looking for a subtitle file in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\
ts debug: DEMUX_SET_GROUP 0 00000000
main debug: starting in sync mode
dshow warning: unimplemented query in control
main debug: `dshow://' successfully opened
ts debug: pid[530] unknown
ts debug: PATCallBack called
ts debug: new PAT ts_id=5012 version=8 current_next=1
ts debug: * number=1 pid=5012
ts debug: PMTCallBack called
ts debug: new PMT program number=1 version=8 pid_pcr=530
ts debug: * descriptor : unknown (0x88)
ts debug: * es pid=530 type=2 fcc=mpgv
main debug: selecting program id=1
main debug: looking for packetizer module: 17 candidates
main debug: using packetizer module "packetizer_mpegvideo"
main debug: thread 4616 (decoder) created at priority 0 (input/decoder.c:159)
ts debug: * es pid=531 type=129 fcc=a52
main debug: looking for packetizer module: 17 candidates
main debug: using packetizer module "a52"
main debug: thread 5324 (decoder) created at priority 2 (input/decoder.c:159)
ts warning: first packet for pid=530 cc=0x8
ts warning: first packet for pid=531 cc=0xd
packetizer_mpegvideo debug: size 1920x1080 fps=29.970
main debug: adding a new input
stream_out_duplicate debug: duplicated a new stream codec=mpgv (es=530 group=1)
main debug: looking for decoder module: 28 candidates
main debug: using decoder module "libmpeg2"
main debug: thread 5916 (decoder) created at priority 0 (input/decoder.c:159)
stream_out_duplicate debug: - added for output 0
main debug: adding a new input
mux_dummy debug: adding input
stream_out_duplicate debug: - added for output 1
libmpeg2 debug: 1920x1080 (display 1920,1080), aspect 768000, sar 1:1, 29.971 fps
main debug: no usable vout present, spawning one
main debug: window size: 1920x1080
main debug: looking for video output module: 6 candidates
vout_directx debug: creating DirectXEventThread
main debug: waiting for thread completion
vout_directx debug: DirectXCreateWindow
vout_directx debug: created video sub-window
main debug: thread 5652 (DirectX Events Thread) created at priority 0 (directx.c:278)
vout_directx debug: DirectXEventThread running
vout_directx debug: DirectXInitDDraw
vout_directx debug: directx-device:
vout_directx debug: DirectXEnumCallback: Primary Display Driver, display
vout_directx debug: DirectXEnumCallback: Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family, \\.\DISPLAY1
vout_directx debug: selecting Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family, \\.\DISPLAY1
vout_directx debug: screen dimensions (0x0,1280x768)
vout_directx debug: DirectDraw Capabilities: overlay=1 yuvoverlay=1 can_deinterlace_overlay=1 colorkey=1 stretch=1 bltfourcc=1
vout_directx debug: End DirectXInitDDraw
vout_directx debug: DirectXCreateDisplay
vout_directx debug: DirectXCreateClipper
main debug: Registering subpicture channel, ID: 2
main debug: Registering subpicture channel, ID: 3
main debug: Registering subpicture channel, ID: 4
main debug: Registering subpicture channel, ID: 5
a52: A/52 channels:6 samplerate:48000 bitrate:384000
main debug: adding a new input
stream_out_duplicate debug: duplicated a new stream codec=a52 (es=531 group=1)
main debug: looking for decoder module: 28 candidates
main debug: using decoder module "a52"
main debug: thread 5620 (decoder) created at priority 2 (input/decoder.c:159)
stream_out_duplicate debug: - added for output 0
main debug: adding a new input
mux_dummy debug: adding input
stream_out_duplicate debug: - added for output 1
a52: A/52 channels:6 samplerate:48000 bitrate:384000
main debug: looking for audio output module: 3 candidates
aout_directx debug: OpenAudio
aout_directx debug: found device: Primary Sound Driver
aout_directx debug: found device: SoundMAX Digital Audio
aout_directx debug: device supports 5.1 channels
aout_directx debug: device supports 4 channels
aout_directx debug: device supports 2 channels
aout_directx debug: device supports 1 channel
aout_directx debug: device supports A/52 over S/PDIF
aout_directx debug: creating DirectSoundThread
main debug: thread 5116 (DirectSound Notification Thread) created at priority 15 (directx.c:372)
aout_directx debug: DirectSoundThread ready
main debug: using audio output module "aout_directx"
main debug: output 's16l' 48000 Hz Stereo frame=1 samples/4 bytes
main debug: mixer 'fl32' 48000 Hz Stereo frame=1 samples/8 bytes
main debug: filter(s) 'fl32'->'s16l' 48000 Hz->48000 Hz Stereo->Stereo
main debug: looking for audio filter module: 24 candidates
main debug: using audio filter module "float32tos16"
main debug: found a filter for the whole conversion
main debug: looking for audio mixer module: 3 candidates
main debug: using audio mixer module "trivial_mixer"
main debug: input 'a52 ' 48000 Hz 3F2R/LFE frame=1536 samples/1536 bytes
main debug: filter(s) 'a52 '->'fl32' 48000 Hz->48000 Hz 3F2R/LFE->Stereo
main debug: looking for audio filter module: 24 candidates
main debug: using audio filter module "a52tofloat32"
main debug: found a filter for the whole conversion
main debug: filter(s) 'fl32'->'fl32' 52800 Hz->48000 Hz Stereo->Stereo
main debug: looking for audio filter module: 24 candidates
main debug: using audio filter module "bandlimited_resampler"
main debug: found a filter for the whole conversion
vout_directx debug: disabling screen saver
main debug: using video output module "vout_directx"
vout_directx debug: NewPictureVec overlay:yes chroma:YV12
vout_directx debug: YUV overlay created successfully
vout_directx debug: End NewPictureVec (succeeded)
main debug: got 1 direct buffer(s)
main debug: picture in 1920x1088 (0,0,1920x1080), chroma I420, ar 16:9, sar 1:1
main debug: picture user 1920x1088 (0,0,1920x1080), chroma I420, ar 16:9, sar 1:1
main debug: picture out 1920x1088 (0,0,1920x1080), chroma I420, ar 16:9, sar 1:1
main debug: direct render, mapping render pictures 0-6 to system pictures 1-7
main debug: waiting for thread completion
main debug: thread 5796 (video output) created at priority 1 (video_output/video_output.c:421)
main warning: dts != current_pts (-134733)
main warning: vout synchro warning: pts != current_date (-33366)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x2 instead of 0x1 (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0xf instead of 0x3 (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x4 instead of 0x1 (pid=531)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x8 instead of 0x7 (pid=530)
a52 debug: emulated sync word (no sync on following frame)
main warning: buffer is 64500 in advance, triggering downsampling
main debug: decoded 106/108 pictures
main warning: clock gap, unexpected stream discontinuity
main warning: backward_pts != dts (22708)
main warning: vout synchro warning: pts != current_date (-22709)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (200739)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (169359)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (137388)
main warning: computed PTS is out of range (162619), clearing out
main warning: late buffer for mux input (106145)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (74180)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (42208)
main warning: late buffer for mux input (10241)
main warning: timing screwed, stopping resampling
main warning: PTS is out of range (133750), dropping buffer
main warning: output PTS is out of range (193838), clearing out
main warning: PTS is out of range (101866), dropping buffer
main warning: PTS is out of range (70678), dropping buffer
main warning: PTS is out of range (38722), dropping buffer
main warning: PTS is out of range (6764), dropping buffer
main warning: PTS is out of range (-25195), dropping buffer
main warning: input PTS is out of range (164271), trashing
main warning: computed PTS is out of range (146599), clearing out
main warning: clock gap, unexpected stream discontinuity
ts warning: discontinuity received 0xd instead of 0x7 (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x0 instead of 0xe (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0xf instead of 0xe (pid=531)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x9 instead of 0x8 (pid=530)
a52 debug: emulated sync word (no sync on following frame)
ts debug: PMTCallBack called
ts warning: discontinuity received 0xa instead of 0x7 (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x7 instead of 0xb (pid=530)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x3 instead of 0x1 (pid=531)
a52 debug: emulated sync word (no sync on following frame)
ts warning: discontinuity received 0x0 instead of 0xf (pid=530)
main warning: buffer is 74575 in advance, triggering downsampling
ts debug: PATCallBack called
ts debug: PMTCallBack called
ts debug: eof ?
main debug: EOF reached
main debug: control type=0
main debug: control: stopping input
main debug: closing input
ts debug: pid list:
ts debug: - pid[0] seen
main debug: removing module "packetizer_mpegvideo"
main debug: thread times: real 0m52.859375s, kernel 0m0.296875s, user 0m1.062500s
main debug: thread 4616 joined (input/decoder.c:191)
main debug: killing decoder fourcc `mpgv', 0 PES in FIFO
main debug: removing an input
main debug: removing module "libmpeg2"
main debug: thread times: real 0m52.750000s, kernel 0m0.156250s, user 0m21.437500s
main debug: thread 5916 joined (input/decoder.c:191)
main debug: killing decoder fourcc `mpgv', 14 PES in FIFO
mux_dummy debug: removing input
ts debug: - pid[530] seen
main debug: removing module "a52"
main debug: thread times: real 0m52.843750s, kernel 0m0.078125s, user 0m0.015625s
main debug: thread 5324 joined (input/decoder.c:191)
main debug: killing decoder fourcc `a52 ', 0 PES in FIFO
main debug: removing an input
main debug: removing module "a52"
main debug: thread times: real 0m52.625000s, kernel 0m0.031250s, user 0m0.656250s
main debug: thread 5620 joined (input/decoder.c:191)
main debug: killing decoder fourcc `a52 ', 0 PES in FIFO
main debug: removing module "a52tofloat32"
main debug: removing module "bandlimited_resampler"
aout_directx debug: closing audio device
aout_directx debug: DirectSoundThread exiting
main debug: thread times: real 0m52.640625s, kernel 0m0.000000s, user 0m0.000000s
main debug: thread 5116 joined (directx.c:598)
main debug: removing module "aout_directx"
main debug: removing module "float32tos16"
main debug: removing module "trivial_mixer"
mux_dummy debug: removing input
main warning: no more input streams for this mux
main debug: Program doesn't contain anymore ES
ts debug: - pid[531] seen
ts debug: - pid[5012] seen
ts debug: - pid[8191] seen
main debug: removing module "ts"
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::Pause
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::Stop
dshow debug: CapturePin::EndFlush
dshow debug: releasing DirectShow
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::EnumPins
dshow debug: CapturePin::QueryDirection
dshow debug: CapturePin::ConnectedTo [OK]
dshow debug: CapturePin::Disconnect [OK]
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::SetSyncSource
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::JoinFilterGraph
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::GetState 0
dshow debug: CaptureFilter::~CaptureFilter
dshow debug: CapturePin::~CapturePin
main debug: removing module "dshow"
main debug: destroying sout
main debug: destroying chain... (name=duplicate)
stream_out_duplicate debug: closing a duplication
main debug: destroying chain... (name=display)
main debug: removing module "stream_out_display"
main debug: destroying chain done
main debug: destroying chain... (name=std)
mux_dummy debug: Dummy/Raw muxer closed
main debug: removing module "mux_dummy"
access_output_file debug: file access output closed
main debug: removing module "access_output_file"
main debug: removing module "stream_out_standard"
main debug: destroying chain done
main debug: removing module "stream_out_duplicate"
main debug: destroying chain done
main debug: thread times: real 1m18.218750s, kernel 0m0.203125s, user 0m0.968750s
main debug: thread 5776 joined (input/input.c:412)
main debug: garbage collector destroys 1 vout
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseSurface
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseDisplay
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseDisplay clipper
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseDisplay display
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseDDraw
vout_directx debug: CloseVideo
vout_directx debug: DirectXEventThread terminating
vout_directx debug: DirectXCloseWindow
vout_directx debug: WinProc WM_DESTROY
main debug: thread times: real 0m53.125000s, kernel 0m0.000000s, user 0m0.000000s
main debug: thread 5652 joined (directx.c:509)
main debug: removing module "vout_directx"
main debug: thread times: real 0m53.000000s, kernel 0m0.125000s, user 0m3.375000s
main debug: thread 5796 joined (video_output/video_output.c:461)

Does any of this ring a bell? It's disheartening to read about others' error-free XP 8300HD captures, and not be able to do the same.

Thanks,

Charles

GatorTex

10-23-07, 12:28 PM

the firewire port is buggy, can't do anything about it untiil they fix it with a software update...

Does anyone have any news on when these firewire drivers (For Windows XP Sp2) might (if ever) get updated? I'd hate to think in order to capture anything in HD successfully using "CapDVHS" I'll have to switch cable companies completely and get a new box, or buy a Mac. That's ridiculous.

MacProTX

10-29-07, 03:57 AM

For those of you using Macs to record via firewire with success, what is the cheapest model you would suggest? My 8300HDC is getting full and I need to pick up some kind of Mac off of eBay to transfer stuff to.

Depends what you expect to do with it. If you're interested merely in capturing the MPEG transport stream to disk, I did fine with an old Blue & White G3 Mac, into which I added a 150 Mbs/sec PATA PCI card and a large, fast IDE drive. These days, the cost of the G3 is an afterthought to the $200 or so the drive and card will cost.

If you expect to process the transport stream, especially by playing it back to an HDTV, nothing less than a Dual Processor G5 is going to keep up with it. The Mac Mini is really appealing as a potential HTPC, but personally, I don't think you're going to save enough $ by risking the decreased performance of a Core Duo vs. the Core 2 Duo to justify it. G4 and Core Solo Mini's have been tried, with not really great success.

Personally, I didn't find the grief of using the SA8300HD and the SDK's DVHS to be worth the trouble. (And this, despite the fact that my 2-year old Toshiba plasma recognized the G3 as a viable DVHS drive to control and schedule to.) It worked, but not smoothly or reliably enough to bother with. I instead went with an EyeTV unit for OTA and QAM direct into my DP G5, and fed the files directly back via ethernet to a UPnP Media Link Player (AVLP2) connected to the TV. Smooth, easy and the EyeTV software is very well-designed. With the USB stick doing both analog and HDTV and selling well south of $150 today, I'd have to be more stubborn than I am to keep wrestling with that damned FireWire port. YMMV. :-)

mullet34

10-29-07, 06:04 PM

Depends what you expect to do with it. If you're interested merely in capturing the MPEG transport stream to disk, I did fine with an old Blue & White G3 Mac, into which I added a 150 Mbs/sec PATA PCI card and a large, fast IDE drive. These days, the cost of the G3 is an afterthought to the $200 or so the drive and card will cost.

If you expect to process the transport stream, especially by playing it back to an HDTV, nothing less than a Dual Processor G5 is going to keep up with it. The Mac Mini is really appealing as a potential HTPC, but personally, I don't think you're going to save enough $ by risking the decreased performance of a Core Duo vs. the Core 2 Duo to justify it. G4 and Core Solo Mini's have been tried, with not really great success.

Personally, I didn't find the grief of using the SA8300HD and the SDK's DVHS to be worth the trouble. (And this, despite the fact that my 2-year old Toshiba plasma recognized the G3 as a viable DVHS drive to control and schedule to.) It worked, but not smoothly or reliably enough to bother with. I instead went with an EyeTV unit for OTA and QAM direct into my DP G5, and fed the files directly back via ethernet to a UPnP Media Link Player (AVLP2) connected to the TV. Smooth, easy and the EyeTV software is very well-designed. With the USB stick doing both analog and HDTV and selling well south of $150 today, I'd have to be more stubborn than I am to keep wrestling with that damned FireWire port. YMMV. :-)

I picked up a G4 PowerMac on fleabay last week and I'm in the process of transferring everything over.

Specs:

G4 450mhz
768MB RAM
ATI 128 Rage Video
40GB Maxtor + 80GB WD
OS 10.4

All shipped for $109

I added a Gig nic but it doesn't actually seem to be transferring at gig speed. I doubt the chipset even supports it.

MacPro, I have a bunch of n00b Mac questions. Should I ask here or on the Mac HTPC board? I noticed that board doesn't get much traffic.

MacProTX

11-02-07, 11:49 PM

I picked up a G4 PowerMac on fleabay last week and I'm in the process of transferring everything over.

Specs:

G4 450mhz
768MB RAM
ATI 128 Rage Video
40GB Maxtor + 80GB WD
OS 10.4

All shipped for $109

I added a Gig nic but it doesn't actually seem to be transferring at gig speed. I doubt the chipset even supports it.

MacPro, I have a bunch of n00b Mac questions. Should I ask here or on the Mac HTPC board? I noticed that board doesn't get much traffic.

Damned if I'm not staring at the self-same first generation Sawtooth G4 across the living room. Did some work on it, had issues, set the project aside. So maybe we can work through any issues together, if you like. I'm a long-time Mac geek (and Mac professional, from time to time in my career), so I can answer the n00b questions without cracking the books, for the most part. And I'd enjoy doing so. Also have spent several years intensively researching all of this video mess, despite the fact that my initial mission was to capture broadcast video of bicycle races, cut out the commercials, and burn to DVD. Got that done 3 years ago, but somehow the journey didn't end there.... :-)

There are certainly some Mac-folk around AVS (no doubt including many lurkers) who would benefit from the discussion, but let's start with PM (private message) to me, and let's get the preliminaries and minutiae out of the way there. We can always make a few public posts with what we found that worked. I'll be happy to work with you through email initially; it'll be a little faster and easier for collaboration.

And yes, I think we should move this discussion to the Mac HTPC area, lest we run afoul of the mods' desires (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=10350906#post10350906).

MacProTX

11-03-07, 12:00 AM

I picked up a G4 PowerMac on fleabay....

* * * *

I added a Gig nic but it doesn't actually seem to be transferring at gig speed. I doubt the chipset even supports it.

Gig-E will work with the older Macs, but it's not a generic thing; Mac support must exist in the NIC chipset itself. There are only a couple of models around. I've tried several with success, most notably the Presto Gigabit from Sonnet (http://www.sonnettech.com/product/presto_gig.html). Generic NICs won't work with the Macs.

I actually did timings a couple of years ago, and large file copies from one internal SATA drive to another on my DP G5 took longer than a network copy via 1000BaseT to an old G3 with a fast HDD.

mullet34

11-03-07, 04:32 PM

Thanks Mac. My main problem was sharing my 2nd harddrive, which I accomplished by installing Sharepoint. I'm going to try and build a PC hackentosh because this 450 can't playback ANY video without stutter. Even a crappy divx file looks horrible.

loloschulz

11-11-07, 02:03 PM

Has anyone tried this using Vista

hhuggles

11-14-07, 05:13 PM

After spending many many hours brousing the internet to learn all i can, I have tried a few things.
On a new vista laptop with a firewire cable 6pin to 4 pin- not recognised
Cold boots of the terminal and tried to find most up to date firewire drivers for the system.....nothing.

My success is starting to happen now that I bought a 6 pin to 6 pin firewire cable and connected everything up to my XP SP2 desktop.
The computer recognised the 3 parts (terminal/panel/something else).
Unfortunately I did not have internet connected so drivers were not found for them.
I will post more as more is done.

The cable box is sa8300hd and I am in Mississauga with Rogers.

opaque

11-17-07, 02:24 PM

Has anyone used timmoores drivers and Media Center to capture firewire content and have the result dvr-ms file contain no audio?

Hellbreed

11-23-07, 07:10 PM

Well, not sure what's going on over here, basically this is what is happening:

Earlier this year when I came across this thread and page 6 about using a Mac to grab a recorded video from the cable box I thought I would try it. Well, it worked first try on my HD8300. I was running MacOS 10.4.8 and had installed FIrewireSDK22, I had an HD recording saved and I played it and recorded it to the mac with no problems. I ended up with the .mt2 file which I had no idea what to do with, I also got busy so I stopped fooling around with it.

I decided to revisit this again as I found information on to get my .m2t's onto DVD, so I wanted to test this out. I again hooked up my Mac and the same recording, but this time the end result had a bunch of video artifacts and sound glitches, this happens with both standard and HD recordings. The only thing that I can think of that changed is that I upgraded to Mac OS 10.4.10 when it came available. I installed FirewireSDK25 but that didn't do anything for the problem. Just today I tried it again only this time I used a direct feed on our HD3250, it did the same thing on the HD channels but on the standard signals it was fine.

Is it possible that moving away from OSX 10.4.9 could cause these issues? perhaps the firewire cable? Maybe Rogers made a change on their signal that is causing some interference, I don't know, I'm at a loss at this point.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

THanks!

Robby23

11-30-07, 04:34 PM

I have, I believe, successfully setup the drivers from this file firestb.msi.

I am running Windows Home Edition w/SP2 so i had to install using this command in the command prompt:
msiexec /i firestb.msi IDENT=0

After that finished installing it prompted for me to restart so i did. When windows started up again a window saying new hardware popped up. I cancelled the unknown ones and installed both scientific atlanta ones. It said it was successful and under device manager they both showed up.

The device shows up under CapDVHS but the recorded file is unplayable even in VLC. I tried to use VLC player to record or even watch a stream but no picture shows.

Here is the mpg file that I got as a result of recording with CapDVHS if anyone wants to attempt to play it.

http://rapidshare.com/files/73388626/test.rar

Any help would be appreciated

I'm running SARA 1.89.20.1 if that matters at all.

Btw I'm able to change the channel and stuff via firewire but I haven't successfully recorded anything

Robby23

12-01-07, 11:28 PM

Anyone have any ideas about my last post. Sorry to bump this but I'm really anxious to get this working

paule123

12-01-07, 11:42 PM

Robby23

12-03-07, 11:40 AM

Don't know what to tell ya. I ran your test.mpg through VideoReDo and Canopus Procoder 3 (as well as VLC and WMP 11) and they all barfed on the file. Invalid, end of stream, etc.

Are you sure the program you recorded didn't have the flag set for No Copy or somesuch ? You could expect this on any channel that isn't a major broadcast network (ABC/NBC/CBS/FOX)

I've tried recording multiple stations as well as streaming through VLC and all seem to fail. I'm going to test it on my laptop and see how that goes. I'll report back if i get it working.

guho

12-10-07, 12:55 AM

I uploaded a new version of SageTVFirewireNetworkEncoder. I was experiencing glitches on many recordings and narrowed it down to the code that writes the recording and made it more efficient. All my HD glitches gone. I get flawless HD on all channels! Also added a .command file that you can drag to login items to make sure it runs upon boot. And added some Leopard instructions to set up mounts via command line.

See http://hugolyppens.com/SageTVFirewireNetworkEncoder.html.

warnockm

12-18-07, 10:49 PM

I contacted comcast about getting a new firewire enabled 8300HD. The tech informed me that this was possible and to pick up a new box at a service center. at the service center, the receptionist informed me that none of the boxes were firewire-enabled, but said something may have changed w/o her knowing. I got a new box, but found the Copy Protection screen still says "Unavailable" under firewire. I believe this is what the old box said; that or it said "disabled". in any case... the interesting thing is when i run CapDVHS and record on any analog channels (less that 100), it records, but no information shows up in the info box, and the .ts file is empty, but when i record digital channels (over 100), the program crashes. Even when i start recording on lower than 100 and change the channel w/ the remote, the program crashes. My question is, does "unavailable" on the Copy Protection screen mean my firewire is not enabled? If so i will contact Comcast about fixing this. If this box is enabled, could the signal be 5C encrypted, and can i find that out on the box or the computer? and what would cause CapDVHS to crash on upper channels, but not lower?

DaddyLongLegs

12-19-07, 08:24 PM

When editing my registry the value is already at 2 for that firewire fix, am I supposed to change it to 3?

I also get blue screens whenever I use VLC. Something about meistb.sys

warnockm

12-19-07, 10:31 PM

Robby23

12-20-07, 12:03 AM

I had a bit of success tonight!!! I'm currently watching a program I DVRed. I am able to record the playback on my PC over firewire using CapDVHS. Now my problem is it crashes after 5 or 10 seconds. I believe there is another issue w/ my computer, but we're making progress!!!!

Mine also says unavailable and I was too able to record in CapDVHS but i could not play any of the video back. What did you differently to play video?

warnockm

12-20-07, 12:47 AM

I believe Comcast is encrypting all of my channels. I am able to connect to the firewire port, but not record live tv. When i use CapDVHS, it never shows any info. I downloaded TSReader and tried different channels to see what it found. I found that my local Fox HD channel showed several streams, and a show recorded on Discovery HD show a signal. When i try CapDVHS, i get no info on the Fox channel, but i do get info on the Discovery HD recorded show. I can't record Discovery HD live, but recorded. I'm still having problems w/ CapDVHS.exe crashing, but i did have a .ts file that i could play in Windows Media Player. It included sound, and the video was flawless at 1080i.

DaddyLongLegs

12-20-07, 04:45 AM

warnockm

12-20-07, 01:24 PM

I can't figure this TSReader if my life depended on it. I loaded it up with firewire.dll, and when I go to Record and Record Program, it says no channels are defined and to define with manual channels. Then THAT asks all weird stuff like program number and PCR PID hex which I have no idea what any of that means.

I am also now constantly getting blue screens on my PC at random times related to meistb.sys after doing all this firewall stuff listed here.

Can anyone help please? :(

Run TSReader, load the firewire.dll as you stated. Next, when you are on a channel that is the firewire port can read, you will see info at the bottom, and bars regarding the streams (looks like video and audio). I have only found 2 channels that show something, along w/ the show i recorded last night. No need to record or do anything else.

DaddyLongLegs

12-20-07, 01:41 PM

Run TSReader, load the firewire.dll as you stated. Next, when you are on a channel that is the firewire port can read, you will see info at the bottom, and bars regarding the streams (looks like video and audio). I have only found 2 channels that show something, along w/ the show i recorded last night. No need to record or do anything else.

Thanks. I am trying pre-recorded stuff off my DVR but nothing is showing up. The info at the bottom doesn't do anything.

warnockm

12-20-07, 02:56 PM

try different channels. I've heard that local channels can usually be recorded and premium channels cannot. My local Fox & CW HD channels are the only ones that shows up in TSReader, but i still can't record on it. Looks like Comcast has the port open but the channels encrypted. It's trial and error for me, and i'm still learning a lot.

DaddyLongLegs

12-20-07, 04:04 PM

warnockm

12-21-07, 12:55 AM

I was under the impression from everyone in the thread that at the very least prerecorded stuff should work.

Sounds right. I just recorded another DVRed show on playback, recorded on the computer in 1080i. Again, Discovery HD. However, i tried recording DVRed shows on other channels w/ no luck. I'll post more info as i find it.

jrbd90

12-21-07, 10:06 AM

TS reader may have to be restared once you have the prerecorded show running.

I have to do this for ShowtimeHD recordings.

Even if the channel is "record once" in the diagnostics, i sometimes can still record it. My new channel, TheMovieChannelHD, is copy once, yet I can still use TSReader to capture prerecorded stuff.

Unfortunately, recently HBOHD went copy once but I suppose thats what HDBits*dot*org is for.

warnockm

12-21-07, 12:44 PM

I use TSReader to see if a visible stream is available. I then use CapDVHS to record the video. I have found that sometimes TSReader sees a stream, but CapDVHS doesn't always record. When CapDVHS records, the stream is always visible in TSReader.

Are the copy-protection/broadcast flags stored in a DVRed program?

snodman

12-22-07, 12:11 AM

The easiest way I have found to directly convert .m2t/.ts files directly to DVD is with VisualHub (Mac OS X). It can't convert files that even VLC won't play, but if you can get VLC or MPEG Streamclip to read the file at all you are good to go. VisualHub is the only software I know of that will directly convert a transport stream to DVD format. It is surprisingly fast as well. IIRC it comes with its own codecs, so you MIGHT not need the $20 QT Pro and the additional $20 QT MPEG 2 authoring codec (which would be sweet since VisualHub sells for less than $25 itself).

ketamine

01-02-08, 03:09 PM

warnockm

01-02-08, 03:21 PM

So after over 300 posts no one has really figured out how to successfully record HD content to PC (not a mac or a PC w/ OS X)? When I say successful I mean a full feature (for example a 2hr. movie @ 720p) without audio or video artifacting.

I'm able to record. It's just limited to DVRed programs (no live tv) and using TSReader Lite (because CapDVHS crashes on me). It also seems to work on most, but not all programs. It looks and sounds great at 1080i. no skips.

BTW, i tried recording an On-Demand program. It records content, but nothing can read the .ts file that is recorded. I've never had that before. Typically, when its recorded, it doesn't record anything and the file is 0 bytes.

xnappo

01-02-08, 03:28 PM

warnockm

01-02-08, 03:58 PM

What are your machine specs?

xnappo

Intel Core Duo 1.86GHz, 2GB ram, Windows XP SP2

ketamine

01-03-08, 07:28 PM

I'm able to record. It's just limited to DVRed programs (no live tv) and using TSReader Lite (because CapDVHS crashes on me). It also seems to work on most, but not all programs. It looks and sounds great at 1080i. no skips.

BTW, i tried recording an On-Demand program. It records content, but nothing can read the .ts file that is recorded. I've never had that before. Typically, when its recorded, it doesn't record anything and the file is 0 bytes.

I actually was only referring to recorded video. That's great news to hear. I've tried both VLC and CapDVHS. VLC records but anything above 480i the recorded materal is full of skips. Like you experienced CapDVHS just crashes constantly.

mike-mtl

01-03-08, 09:20 PM

... It looks and sounds great at 1080i. no skips.Well good for you because I tried recording with TSReader and I got the same glitches I get with VLC. I wonder what you did differently to get a perfect recording without any artifacts. :confused:

Anybody else get a clean recording using TSReader?

jrbd90

01-04-08, 10:20 AM

Yes.

TSReader works for HBOHD, ShowtimeHD, STARZHD, and CinemaxHD (if your cable company has them set to copy freely). MoviechannelHD works sometimes even though it is set to copy once. All no glitches.

Surprisingly, CBSHD can glitch for me.

warnockm

01-04-08, 11:09 AM

How do you see if it is set to copy freely, or copy once?

has anyone had any luck complaining to their cable company about the broadcast flags?

jrbd90

01-04-08, 05:05 PM

warnockm

01-04-08, 10:29 PM

with Sara, enter the diagnostics.

To do this press and hold down pause while watching tv.
once the mail light starts blinking(on the front of the 8300hd), press PAGEUP on the remote (while still holding pause)

This enters the diagnostics. You can still navigate the channels. PAGEUP or down to 38 or 39 of the diagnostics (not sure).
In the upper left it will show "once" for copy once or "free" for freely.
Stay on this diagnostics page and go through all the HD channels to see what you can copy.

I have still had some luck with copy once with TS READER.

Hmm... i found the diagnostics menu, but my pages must be different. I tried going through each page and didn't see anything about "once" or "Free". do you know the title of the page or what other info was on the page?

Edit:
I noticed the first page has "Status - B'cast only". This must be the broadcast only flag. It appears on all channels, HD, Digital cable, and standard cable channels. bummer....

mike-mtl

01-04-08, 11:39 PM

Hi Warnockm,

Maybe I can help. If you have the same Sara version as I do, you'll find the information on page 31 entitled "1394 INFORMATION". Beside the labels "SRC EMI" and "SRC CCI", I can see "once" or "free" when changing the channels. In my case, it takes between 5 and 8 seconds before those 2 fields are updated when changing the channel. So you have to wait a bit to get the exact flag for a channel.
I can also see this information on page 32 entitled "COPY PROTECTION". At the bottom of the screen, there are 3 lines of info showing the flag in the "EMI" column.

One interesting thing is that the diagnostic screen indicates that my 1394 port is not active although I can record to the PC. :rolleyes:

Hope this helps...

warnockm

01-04-08, 11:52 PM

thanks for the description. I have 1394 Information on page 22. Next to these fields i have "unavailable". I have noticed i can't record live TV and this must be why. I am only able to record DVRed shows.

edit:
Just when i thought i was figuring things out.... i am playing a show that i DVRed. I am able to record it on the PC over firewire, but the Firewire Information screen still shows the labels as "Unavailable". Maybe this information isn't true?

netimp

01-19-08, 04:37 AM

[QUOTE=warnockm;12688353]Hmm... i found the diagnostics menu, but my pages must be different. I tried going through each page and didn't see anything about "once" or "Free". do you know the title of the page or what other info was on the page?

Edit:
I noticed the first page has "Status - B'cast only". This must be the broadcast only flag. It appears on all channels, HD, Digital cable, and standard cable channels. bummer....

The Status - B'cast only indicates your box is not 2 way which typically indicates the return path from the box back to the Headend controller is not operational. This state will only impact any V.O.D. functionality and the collection of any IPPV events purchased at your end of the equation. There is more but beyond the scope of this message.

Chas

netimp

01-19-08, 04:51 AM

Hmm... i found the diagnostics menu, but my pages must be different. I tried going through each page and didn't see anything about "once" or "Free". do you know the title of the page or what other info was on the page?

Edit:
I noticed the first page has "Status - B'cast only". This must be the broadcast only flag. It appears on all channels, HD, Digital cable, and standard cable channels. bummer....

Page 31 of the diag screens is one good place to look. If you look in the upper left corner of screen 31 you will see the Src EMI field and if you sweep through the HD channels you will need to wait a few seconds on each channel for this field to update. The options on older SARA versions like 1.88... are simply "once", "free" and ("undefined" which does mean NO)...still shows the stuff you need.

Chas

Robby23

01-23-08, 01:54 AM

I was able to record with TSReaderLite. Thanks!!!

I'm still testing what channels i can record but so far I just recorded something off of my already recorded programs. :D

EDIT: I can;t find any channels that i can record directly from but i can record with the dvr then after its done recording i can then record with TSReader. If anyone knows of a way around this that would be awesome. It would save a lot of time :D

BobKat6

01-23-08, 11:45 PM

PrestonD

01-24-08, 12:15 AM

I cant even get my Dell Inspiron 1100 to recognize the firestb drivers. I have Adaptec firewire pcmia card. I went through all the posts here in this thread but didnt have any luck.

I ran MSIEXEC /i firestb.msi IDENT=0 in command prompt and it went thru the installation but I do not see the tuner drivers in the Image section in Device manager. Of course when I click on Capdvhs I get the no device found message. Am I supposed to have the firewire connected to the 8300 when I am doing this installation?

Anybody have any further steps or suggestions? Do I need to have the 8300 connected in order for XP to see the tuner drivers, etc? When I connect I dont get prompted for found new hardware...

Any ideas here?

PrestonD

01-25-08, 02:33 PM

PrestonD

02-02-08, 07:34 PM

I gave up...I dont think the SQ 8300HDC firewire ports are active. I just went ahead and bought one of the QAM ATSC USB tuners. Its a shame they cant get this to be a bit more seamless and not such a struggle. It should not be all that difficult in todays tech world to accomplish.

One of the reasons I gave up is I found out Brighthouse in Central Florida does not have the firewire ports enabled. I thought FCC had some word on this but apparently no one looks out for the little guy - in this case the consumer/taxpayer

Eugene157

02-05-08, 11:13 PM

I need a driver for a JVC DVHS tape deck. It was on my old computer, called "JVC Tape Device"
On the 3 XP computers we have here that file is NOT there.
Can anybody email me that file?
Thanks Eugene

4u2bust

02-06-08, 06:46 PM

I installed TS reader and all the drivers are loaded.

I can not get a single from my recorded program from my 8300hd. Can anyone help? Can I just select play from the DVR program list and expect to see TSreader capture the video?

4u2bust

02-06-08, 06:54 PM

I recorder the SB and was at the game...me and my son were on TV and I want to capture the video and make a nice still out of it....The local computer place wants $300 to get the feed off my DVR to a laptop....please help!

Eugene157

02-09-08, 02:10 PM

Same problem here. I can record from the T/W 8300hd to a JVC 30000 DVHS , if the bitrate is high, like on the discovery channel, there are occasional breaks in the sound, video is mostly ok..
And the JVC will record from the 8300hd live as well as DVR PB.

That seems to confirm that the 8300hd firewire is turned on.???

I can capture those JVC recordings to a XP computer , drivers from ExDeus.

CapDVHS will see the 8300hd but recordings to the computer are not possible, neither live nor DVR HD nor SD.

I would like to thank ExDeus for his efforts!!!!.Very well written instructions (idiotproof) and no problems with the December drivers.

BTW , can you capture to an external 8300hd drive and then just hook that drive up to the computer?

How do you record with the TSRligt?

Eugene

Edit:

I live near Palm Desert, CA, Time Warner

All copy once, copy freely and 2nd copy once are all turned off
1394 port: Enable 1394 port always
Sata: authorized
Passport Echo 2.6.002

Can anybody shed light on this?

Soybean

02-18-08, 11:11 AM

I got my girlfriend a MacBook for Christmas and the other night finally had a chance to try recording some content. I only tried recording for a few minutes, but so far so good. I'm so thankful for this thread letting me know this was possible.

The easiest way I have found to directly convert .m2t/.ts files directly to DVD is with VisualHub (Mac OS X). It can't convert files that even VLC won't play, but if you can get VLC or MPEG Streamclip to read the file at all you are good to go. VisualHub is the only software I know of that will directly convert a transport stream to DVD format. It is surprisingly fast as well. IIRC it comes with its own codecs, so you MIGHT not need the $20 QT Pro and the additional $20 QT MPEG 2 authoring codec (which would be sweet since VisualHub sells for less than $25 itself).
This sounds great. Will it transfer the Dolby Digital soundtrack properly too? I don't mind doing it the multi-step way (convert m2t to some intermediate format, then burn to DVD), but that leaves a stereo soundtrack. If I can get the 5.1 soundtrack without hassle, it'll easily be worth paying for VisualHub.

Robby23

03-04-08, 07:41 PM

I have sucessfully been able to record with TSReader as I stated earlier but is anyone else getting video with slight blockage and twitches mid video? Its rather annoying and it leads to many issues with demuxing and converting without out of sync audio. The original recording on my dvr doesnt have the twitchy video but after recording it does. I thought it could have been a one time thing but I recorded again and it did the same thing. Could the problem be in my DVR or TSReader?

As for the questions above me in TSReader when you are playing a recordable program it should pop up with a screen shot on the left of what youre playing. Once that happens press ctrl+r to record. TSReaderLite can only record 1 min so you would have to upgrade to record more than that.

mcwups1

03-05-08, 03:02 PM

I'm not sure if this is just for "free" methods, but I received a copy of Adobe Elements 4.0, and then I DVR'd a UF basketball game for a few minutes while it was playing. Then, I went back, plugged in the firewire cable, and opened the program. I went straight to the "record" function, hit play on the DVR'd game footage, and hit Record in Elements, and it recorded the game, PERFECTLY! It took a long time to convert and whatever it did, but the end result was a perfect picture, with no sound problems, and it looked just like the game did on my SetTopBox.

I think I found all I needed.

xnappo

03-05-08, 03:11 PM

I think I found all I needed.

Was this on a PC or Mac please!?

xnappo

HDTV Freak

03-06-08, 12:06 PM

mcwups1

03-07-08, 06:12 PM

Did you change your setup ever since you encountered all the problems transferring video via the firewire?

This was on a PC...Media Edition. I did all the other steps in this thread in order for the PC to "identify" the SA 8300HD. I've tried VLC, and DVHS, to no avail.

I did not change any type of setup that I'm aware of, and I've probably destroyed some things on my computer in the process:confused:, but I was able to record without any problems. On the Elements program video playback of the game, it looked terrible.....like half the screen was pixelated, and the other was fine...but when I went into the file I saved it in, and played with Showtime (Nero) or better yet, with RealPlayer....It looked great.

I kid you not....the picture looked exactly like it did on the TV...in HD. I believe the game was on CBSHD, so I'm not sure how well it will do on another channel.

I could try to record a movie, to see how it works, say...from HBO or something. I'm really trying to get this to work for football games in HD.

I am not computer literate, but I'm highly interested in this stuff, so be patient if I don't answer you the way you'd like. Coax me through what you want to know, and I'll try my best to answer.

Thanks.

NeverEnuf81

03-18-08, 10:55 PM

Hi. I have had the 8300HD for years now, and I always dump my favorite documentaries to my computer and convert them to MPEG2 to put on DVDs and H264 MPEG4s for iPod/iPhone to watch between classes.
While History Channel, A&E, etc etc standard def 480i's were always open to save and convert ever since I started saving stuff to DVD and iTunes in like '01/'02, the HD versions are now copy protected sometimes. The EMI is always "copy once" like the HBO and pay stations. ScienceHD is always open, but History and A&E seem to usually be "copy once". There's a number of documentaries that have full HD versions that I'd really like to save to DVD (HD channels downconvert to DVD with settings I'll email to anyone that wants them in Compressor3 so well that they're almost indistinguishable from the HD original on my 42" tv in my room, and I'm EXTREMELY anal), and I was curious WHY Brighthouse Networks in Orlando was copy protecting standard programming like A&E. I'd also like to know how to defeat that protection and save/convert the stuff that I should normally be able to save/convert. Is there anyone I could PM that works for Brighthouse that could give me an answer to this...or has anyone here figured out how to allow a codec change? (specifically to one of the only 2 useful codecs...H264 and MPEG2)
Even Universal HD allows completely free copying of their movies, and virtually all other HD specialty stations. So this is kind of vexing.

Thanks much everyone,
Alex

jrbd90

03-24-08, 12:43 PM

Is it photoshop elements that you are talking about or something else.

What file format does it record to? Does it remain a .ts transport stream or is it a .wmv, etc?

mullet34

03-24-08, 04:45 PM

I tried Elements 4.0 out and it would initially crash everytime I launched it. I narrowed it down to the STB drivers. If those were disabled, the program would launch, but of course I couldn't record anything because my STB was N/A. Oh well, back to the Mac method.

mike-mtl

03-24-08, 05:07 PM

I tried Elements 4 too. Got the same result as mullet34. :confused:

xnappo

03-24-08, 05:46 PM

I tried Elements 4 too. Got the same result as mullet34. :confused:

Same here.

xnappo

Robby23

03-28-08, 10:05 PM

Nobody has really answered my question but for those of you who are able to record do you sometimes get flickers in the screen and twitches. Sometimes it will only happen for a split second but other times it will go on for like 2 seconds. Its rather annoying and its preventing me from making perfect rips. I've run the files through mpeg2repair but the glitches in the video are still visible.

Here's an example of what the glitch in the video looks like
http://i26.tinypic.com/jrp92d.jpg

Its really annoying and I'm wondering if its TSReader's fault or its the actual dvr.

xnappo

03-29-08, 08:40 AM

Its really annoying and I'm wondering if its TSReader's fault or its the actual dvr.

It is Microsoft's bad FireWire driver from what I can tell. Apparently it works fine on a Mac.

xnappo

Robby23

03-31-08, 04:07 PM

It is Microsoft's bad FireWire driver from what I can tell. Apparently it works fine on a Mac.

xnappo

Is there a good app that I could use for linux possibly?

dannyv@cybernex.

04-02-08, 03:49 PM

I got my girlfriend a MacBook for Christmas and the other night finally had a chance to try recording some content. I only tried recording for a few minutes, but so far so good. I'm so thankful for this thread letting me know this was possible.

This sounds great. Will it transfer the Dolby Digital soundtrack properly too? I don't mind doing it the multi-step way (convert m2t to some intermediate format, then burn to DVD), but that leaves a stereo soundtrack. If I can get the 5.1 soundtrack without hassle, it'll easily be worth paying for VisualHub.

You can actually convert the .M2T file to MPEG on a PC using videoredo plus. The process takes about 20 minutes for a 2 hour show. It will retain the 5.1 audio. You can then feed the resulting file directly to nerovision express. I do this all the time and it works great. In nerovision express you can even create your own menu and chapter points. Videoredo plus is not free but not very expensive either. www.videoredo.com

For those of you on a PC videoredo will work on .ts files. Its a fantastic easy to use editor to get rid of those commercials. and it fixes broken streams.

I myself convert the HD stream in HD divx at a resolution of 1280x720 using the high defination profile. If you do a 2 pass encode setting your bitrate to 3500bps you will not be able to tell the difference between the original HD stream and the DIVX file. But a word of caution. Its fine if you want to play it on your PC but there are not many dvd players or settop media players that can play this format. The 2 that I know of are the buffalo linktheater (discontinued) and the MVIX media player. They are just now coming out with media players that play H.264.

NeverEnuf81

04-02-08, 04:04 PM

for the guy who got the macbook...the m2t files open with MPEG Streamclip where you can "cut" the commercials and/or "trim" the length, then "save as" to a .TS file...this is the full 1080i or 720p file with the AC3 track intact.
Handbrake can then open that and convert it to the required format.
Skip any PC nonsense, going into bootcamp to install trojan-filled codecs to run buggy programs on a 32-bit OS (many with 32-bit file size limitations that causes errors instead of displaying their inability to do so) is a waste.
Handbrake is effortless, and also rather feature-filled if you want to find-tune the output. MPEG Streamclip is really stable. The only times I've had it freeze up are when I had an overwhelming amount of data-breaks in the m2t file ("overwhelming" on any c2d mac is a lot more than "overwhelming" on the same c2d pc, in my experience...i have both a pc and a mac to work on...and my 2.4Ghz, 4GB ram macbook pro encodes faster than my 2.8ghz 4gb ram vista x64 pc)

mcwups1

04-03-08, 03:39 PM

Is it photoshop elements that you are talking about or something else.

What file format does it record to? Does it remain a .ts transport stream or is it a .wmv, etc?

Adobe Premiere Elements 4.0 and I can't remember what it saves as, but you can convert it immediately to mpeg (.mpg) in the program.

I wish I could show you the video, but I'm not sure how to upload it for you to see.

Here are some screenshots of my converted game using the program.....it's as clear as the game was on TV, and was 720p...full widescreen.....

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_003.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_002.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_001-2.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_000.jpg

These are smaller than the actual picture, so they may look a little distorted, but I had no pixelations, and it was the best, pure picture I've seen yet, out of all I've read on here and tried.

xnappo

04-03-08, 05:25 PM

Adobe Premiere Elements 4.0 and I can't remember what it saves as, but you can convert it immediately to mpeg (.mpg) in the program.

I wish I could show you the video, but I'm not sure how to upload it for you to see.

Here are some screenshots of my converted game using the program.....it's as clear as the game was on TV, and was 720p...full widescreen.....

These are smaller than the actual picture, so they may look a little distorted, but I had no pixelations, and it was the best, pure picture I've seen yet, out of all I've read on here and tried.

Argh. Can you go through your exact install procedure including drivers? Myself and a couple of others tried this and Elements crashes as soon as you try to capture.

Thanks,
xnappo

JAdamz

04-04-08, 03:39 PM

Argh. Can you go through your exact install procedure including drivers?

I'd be really grateful if you could post your entire setup process for us as well. I just came across this thread as I'm amassing episodes of a TV series onto my DVR that I'd like to put on DVD. After reading through all of the pages and coming across your success with Adobe Premier Elements (which sounds like it may be the easiest tool to use out of any of those mentioned thus far!), I'm hoping this may finally be a reliable solution for ripping recorded programs off our 8300's. When you find some free time could you please give us the procedure?

mike-mtl

04-04-08, 05:30 PM

Same here. It would be very nice of you. TIA :o

KoolGuy

04-05-08, 12:58 AM

Is it normal to be able to cap only SD and not HD?

I have the SA8300HD and I followed the instructions in this thread.

I use CapDVHS and I can capture SD without problem. But whenever I try any HD channels the program just freezes and I get nothing.

Is this normal? Anyone have this kind of experience?

Thanks!

Robby23

04-06-08, 09:19 PM

KoolGuy

04-07-08, 12:15 AM

^Hi Robby23,

Thanks for replying to me.

Well, I only tried it with Live TV.

Should I try it with a recorded show? What would be the difference?

I can cap SD live tv and also SD recorded tv. That works fine, without any problem at all.

Thanks!

KoolGuy

04-07-08, 07:56 PM

^Update to that post above:

Well, I now tried it also with a recorded show and the same thing happened.

It's strange though because I can cap SD just fine. Both from live TV and recorded TV.

But anytime I try capping HD, my PC freezes... :(

Even attempting to play HDTV through VLC freezes the PC. I never see any picture or hear any audio. It just instantly freezes once I hit the play button.

holl_ands

04-07-08, 09:13 PM

Don't feel too bad....I get instant freezes with SA8300HD Firewire to D-VHS....HD, but not SD,
whether under old Passport Echo or new Navigator operation system.

And "live" SD recordings are unreliable...

KoolGuy

04-08-08, 01:01 AM

^Yeah this sucks... why is it happening? Doesn't make sense... :(

And "live" SD recordings are unreliable...

What do you mean by that? :eek:

PrestonD

04-08-08, 04:51 PM

Alex,
Whatever you do dont let them take your 8300HD and replace it with the 8300HDC, the firewire ports on the 8300HDC are not enabled per Brighthouse in Central Florida.

Hi. I have had the 8300HD for years now, and I always dump my favorite documentaries to my computer and convert them to MPEG2 to put on DVDs and H264 MPEG4s for iPod/iPhone to watch between classes.
While History Channel, A&E, etc etc standard def 480i's were always open to save and convert ever since I started saving stuff to DVD and iTunes in like '01/'02, the HD versions are now copy protected sometimes. The EMI is always "copy once" like the HBO and pay stations. ScienceHD is always open, but History and A&E seem to usually be "copy once". There's a number of documentaries that have full HD versions that I'd really like to save to DVD (HD channels downconvert to DVD with settings I'll email to anyone that wants them in Compressor3 so well that they're almost indistinguishable from the HD original on my 42" tv in my room, and I'm EXTREMELY anal), and I was curious WHY Brighthouse Networks in Orlando was copy protecting standard programming like A&E. I'd also like to know how to defeat that protection and save/convert the stuff that I should normally be able to save/convert. Is there anyone I could PM that works for Brighthouse that could give me an answer to this...or has anyone here figured out how to allow a codec change? (specifically to one of the only 2 useful codecs...H264 and MPEG2)
Even Universal HD allows completely free copying of their movies, and virtually all other HD specialty stations. So this is kind of vexing.

Thanks much everyone,
Alex

holl_ands

04-08-08, 08:03 PM

^Yeah this sucks... why is it happening? Doesn't make sense... :(

Quote:
Originally Posted by holl_ands View Post
And "live" SD recordings are unreliable...

What do you mean by that? :eek:
It means SD programs break up while watching LIVE via Firewire I/F to DVHS.

Which guarantees SD program LIVE recordings on DVHS also have frequent dropouts.

I haven't had a chance to try playing back SD/HD recordings from DVR to DVHS....

apd183

04-09-08, 12:36 AM

Can someone with with a working VLC setup please do the following and post the results here? I cannot get any output from VLC. It shows that there's data coming in, but it doesn't seem to know what to do with it. At this point I think I need to find the proper 'demuxer' for it to use.

1. Open VLC
2. Click 'View' > 'Messages...' (or ctrl-M)
3. Clear the message window.
4. Open the SA8300 the way you normally do.
5. Let it play for a second.
6. Stop the video.
7. Copy/Paste the text in the message box here (or send me a PM).

Here's what I get in the messages when it tries to play:

main debug: using access2 module "dshow"
main debug: pre buffering
main debug: received first data for our buffer
main debug: prebuffering done 48128 bytes in 0s - 505 kbytes/s
main debug: creating demux: access='dshow' demux='' path=''
main debug: looking for demux2 module: 45 candidates
ts warning: TS module discarded (lost sync)
ffmpeg debug: couldn't guess format
ps warning: this does not look like an MPEG PS stream, continuing anyway
main debug: using demux2 module "ps"
main debug: looking for a subtitle file in C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\
dshow warning: unimplemented query in control
main debug: `dshow://' successfully opened
ps warning: garbage at input, trying to resync...

Robby23

04-10-08, 01:51 AM

@Koolguy

Try recording with TSReader. I can record any program just fine except some stations I can't record prerecorded shows like CBSHD. Thats the only station I've come accross that I was unable to record but I still get constant loss of packets.

It means SD programs break up while watching LIVE via Firewire I/F to DVHS.

Which guarantees SD program LIVE recordings on DVHS also have frequent dropouts.

I haven't had a chance to try playing back SD/HD recordings from DVR to DVHS....
I'm only able to record prerecorded shows and when I try I get tons of drops. When I asked this about half a page up I was told it was due to windows firewire drivers. Is there a way to prevent this and if it is due to windows drivers do you know of a good program to use in linux specifically ubuntu?

The errors that show up in mpeg2repair are as follows:

MPEG2Repair: C:\Documents and Settings\Robby\Desktop\1.mpg

Sequence Frame 167(0-B) / Time 0:00:05 :
Info: End of MPEG2 sequence

Sequence Summary:

File Size Processed: 2.66 MB, Play Time: 00h:00m:05s
544 x 480, 29.97 fps, 15.00 Mbps (3.50 Mbps Average).
Average Video Quality: 13.77 KB/Frame, 0.43 Bits/Pixel.
AC3 Audio: 2/0 Channels (L, R), 48.0 kHz, 192 kbps.
Dialog Normalization: -24.0 dB
0 of 167 video frames found with errors.
0 of 168 audio frames found with errors.
0 corrupted video bytes in file.
0.000000 seconds of video timestamp gaps.
0.000000 seconds of audio timestamp gaps.

Sequence Frame 4571(23-P) / Time 0:02:38 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (15+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 63440976
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 350 bytes at file offset 63440596

Sequence Frame 4572(26-P) / Time 0:02:38 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (6+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 63443796
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.064000 sec. ending at file offset 63437488

Sequence Frame 4575(29-P) / Time 0:02:38 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (1+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 63489104
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 408 bytes at file offset 63488894

Sequence Frame 4608(28-B) / Time 0:02:39 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 2. Timestamp gap of 0.066733 sec. ending at file offset 63428771

Sequence Frame 19806(17-P) / Time 0:11:06 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (13+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 265694760
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (5+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 265694948
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (14+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 265695512
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 4528 bytes at file offset 265694568

Sequence Frame 19807(21-P) / Time 0:11:06 :
AudioError: Corrupted AC3 frame of 1382 payload bytes at file offset 265682624
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.064000 sec. ending at file offset 265682624

Sequence Frame 19809(23-P) / Time 0:11:06 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (1+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 265742888
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 354 bytes at file offset 265742720

Sequence Frame 19845(23-P) / Time 0:11:07 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 3. Timestamp gap of 0.100100 sec. ending at file offset 265700191

Sequence Frame 23016(13-P) / Time 0:13:03 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (9+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 312152192
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 15 bytes at file offset 312151989

Sequence Frame 23017(19-P) / Time 0:13:03 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (4+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 312156704
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.

Sequence Frame 23020(22-P) / Time 0:13:03 :
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.032000 sec. ending at file offset 312206672

Sequence Frame 23067(37-P) / Time 0:13:05 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 2. Timestamp gap of 0.083411 sec. ending at file offset 312126342
VideoWarning: Unexpected TFF/RFF flag change in previous GOP.
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 3. Timestamp gap of 0.116789 sec. ending at file offset 312182080
VideoWarning: Unexpected TFF/RFF flag change in previous GOP.

Sequence Frame 29154(16-B) / Time 0:16:33 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (12+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 395784744
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (15+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 395784932
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (2+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 395786812
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 741 bytes at file offset 395784584

Sequence Frame 29157(21-P) / Time 0:16:33 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (1+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 395833060
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 44 bytes at file offset 395832850

Sequence Frame 29158(22-P) / Time 0:16:33 :
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.032000 sec. ending at file offset 395826252

Sequence Frame 29208(40-B) / Time 0:16:35 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 1. Timestamp gap of 0.033367 sec. ending at file offset 395818898

Sequence Frame 39819(2-I) / Time 0:22:30 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (2+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 537517004
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (15+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 537517192
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (4+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 537517380
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 8869 bytes at file offset 537516733

Sequence Frame 39820(8-P) / Time 0:22:30 :
AudioError: Corrupted AC3 frame of 1102 payload bytes at file offset 537504336
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (1+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 537564944
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.128000 sec. ending at file offset 537554752
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 25 bytes at file offset 537564735

Sequence Frame 39845(30-P) / Time 0:22:31 :
VideoWarning: Unexpected TFF/RFF flag change in previous GOP.
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 1014. Timestamp gap of 0.083411 sec. ending at file offset 537498407

Sequence Frame 39874(28-P) / Time 0:22:32 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 3. Timestamp gap of 0.116789 sec. ending at file offset 537565015
VideoWarning: Unexpected TFF/RFF flag change in previous GOP.

Sequence Frame 70720(0-B) / Time 0:40:03 :
Info: End of MPEG2 sequence

Sequence Summary:

File Size Processed: 914.15 MB, Play Time: 00h:40m:02s
544 x 480, 29.97 fps, 15.00 Mbps (2.80 Mbps Average).
Average Video Quality: 11.63 KB/Frame, 0.36 Bits/Pixel.
AC3 Audio: 2/0 Channels (L, R), 48.0 kHz, 192 kbps.
Dialog Normalization: -27.0 dB
9 of 70720 video frames found with errors.
5 of 75085 audio frames found with errors.
29457 corrupted video bytes in file.
0.600600 seconds of video timestamp gaps.
0.320000 seconds of audio timestamp gaps.

Sequence Frame 14(0-B) / Time 0:40:03 :
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.032011 sec. ending at file offset 958785860

Sequence Frame 900(0-B) / Time 0:40:33 :
Info: End of MPEG2 sequence

Sequence Summary:

File Size Processed: 927.94 MB, Play Time: 00h:40m:32s
544 x 480, 29.97 fps (0.37 fps Telecine), 15.00 Mbps (2.81 Mbps Average).
Average Video Quality: 927.99 KB/Frame, 29.11 Bits/Pixel.
AC3 Audio: 2/0 Channels (L, R), 48.0 kHz, 192 kbps.
Dialog Normalization: -27.0 dB
9 of 900 video frames found with errors.
5 of 76022 audio frames found with errors.
29457 corrupted video bytes in file.
0.600600 seconds of video timestamp gaps.
0.352011 seconds of audio timestamp gaps.

Sequence Frame 27305(17-P) / Time 0:55:53 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (12+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 1339124000
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (10+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 1339124188
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (15+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 1339130768
FileInfo: Last video errors span 9594 bytes at file offset 1339123816

Sequence Frame 27307(19-B) / Time 0:55:53 :
AudioError: Corrupted AC3 frame of 1102 payload bytes at file offset 1339105252

Sequence Frame 27309(21-B) / Time 0:55:54 :
VideoWarning: Discontinuity of (1+) packet(s). First packet ending at offset 1339173256
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.

Sequence Frame 27311(26-P) / Time 0:55:54 :
AudioWarning: Timestamp gap of 0.160000 sec. ending at file offset 1339176976

Sequence Frame 27347(28-B) / Time 0:55:55 :
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 2. Timestamp gap of 0.066733 sec. ending at file offset 1339114847
VideoWarning: TemporalRef gap of 1. Timestamp gap of 0.033367 sec. ending at file offset 1339169745

Sequence Frame 36494(5-P) / Time 1:01:09 :
VideoError: Invalid Huffman code in non-intra MPEG2 block. MBA=134(512,48)
Additional error(s) detected. Increase VerboseLogLevel in INI file for details.
FileInfo: Last video errors span 105 bytes at file offset 1464419691

Sequence Frame 36495(5-P) / Time 1:01:09 :
Info: End of MPEG2 sequence

Sequence Summary:

File Size Processed: 1.36 GB, Play Time: 01h:01m:09s
544 x 480, 29.97 fps, 15.00 Mbps (2.81 Mbps Average).
Average Video Quality: 34.44 KB/Frame, 1.08 Bits/Pixel.
AC3 Audio: 2/0 Channels (L, R), 48.0 kHz, 192 kbps.
Dialog Normalization: -27.0 dB
11 of 36495 video frames found with errors.
7 of 114659 audio frames found with errors.
39155 corrupted video bytes in file.
0.700700 seconds of video timestamp gaps.
0.512011 seconds of audio timestamp gaps.

End of Log

One of the errors specifically the one at 0:11:06 has an output that looks like this:

http://i28.tinypic.com/8xlgs4.jpg

I went back and checked if the video on the dvr itself was damaged but it wasnt.

If anyone has any idea how to prevent this please help. Thanks

Schnard78

04-10-08, 03:16 PM

Ok I read through the entire thread, but can't seem to find my answer in plain english.

where do I get the drivers for my XP machine to recognize my 8300 box ??

Thanks for the help!

MM

mcwups1

04-11-08, 11:29 PM

Alright gents....

It's a no-go. I tried again with a Law and Order episode, and it had problems. I haven't tried with a longer video, but the Law and Order was only for 5 minutes.

However, I hear of a capture device coming out by Hauppauge, that reads HDMI, and outputs to firewire to the computer in Mpeg-2...I think.

This may be our best option.

Maybe CBS is okay to record, maybe NBC isn't. I followed this thread to the teeth, but added Adobe later. The basketball game footage is perfect, but only about 2.5 minutes. However, there's no way I could tell you my EXACT setup.

I've got Blades of Glory on my DVR (don't ask, my wife recorded it), so I'll try to capture some of it to see if it works. Other than that, I can't tell you any more than what this thread does.

Sorry....

mcwups1

04-12-08, 12:31 AM

Okay...did a quick, 10 minute "capture" of Blades of Glory, and here's what I got....

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_000-1.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_001-3.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_002-1.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_003-1.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_004.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_005.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/mcwups1/NDVD_006.jpg

Now, I can see lines in a few of these, but it's because they are "stills". I do not really notice them in 'real time'. Perhaps you just can't record on some channels, but this one worked fine.

Here's what I did....

1) I followed everything in here.
2) I installed Adobe Elements 4....was a gift
3) I reset my computer each time I want to capture something, because if I used Nero, or any other capturing before this, it won't work at all.
4) After I reset my computer, and it boots up entirely, I took the firewire cable, already plugged into my computer, and plugged it into the cable box. If it's off, it will turn on instantly, if it's on, it doesn't really matter.
5) It asked "What do you want to do"....or whatever the "plug and play" thing does.
6) I pressed "Adobe"
7) I put the program I wanted to record, at the very spot I wanted it to record. It may HAVE to be at an HD spot....no commercials, but right when it starts to be in HD.
8) When Adobe finished loading, I made sure the settings were set at 720p in HDV mode. Consequently, I once thought the SA8300 had to 'record' in 720p, but that appears not to be the case, since Blades of Glory is showing at 1080i.
9) I hit play on the movie, then switch to the computer screen, and hit, "Get Video". If you see the timer start to move, you're capturing something. Just make sure you capture to a place with enough space, and easy to find. I put mine straight to my secondary drive of 500gb, and put it under E:/Recorded TV/Temp.

When I stopped it, I went to the folder, and played it with Real Player. However, it works with Windows Media Player and Nero Showtime. I think it looks better in WMP, but you can't fast forward it.

That's it. I don't know how I could be any more helpful....sorry.

JAdamz

04-12-08, 11:32 AM

Thanks for the description mcwups1...I'll have to try it for myself and see how things work out.

That Hauppauge device sounds interesting, and as long as the HDCP handshake works correctly that may allow us to record any channel we want.

Just out of curiosity, I have an 8300HD with SARA software on it. I was looking through the diagnostic screen and noticed that 1394 was "Disabled". I haven't had a chance to hook the box up to my computer yet, but if it says disabled in the diagnostic menu does that in fact mean I won't be able to output through the firewire port?

Robby23

05-21-08, 08:20 PM

sherwinan

06-19-08, 08:58 PM

BobKat6

06-22-08, 11:33 PM

I have read this entire thread but still can't get my 8300HD working.

All I want to do is watch live television on my PC. I don't care about recording at all. My 8300HD is connected via Firewire to my Vista PC.

I got the firestb.zip drivers for Vista RC1, and I installed them. My "Tuner" and "Panel" are recognized now by Windows. However, when I go to VLC and do DirectShow, I can select them, but when I play it just shows the time increasing and there is activity in Messages, but simply no video.

Please help. I just want to watch live cable HDTV on my PC and I'm amazed at how difficult it is.

Just connect the SA 8300HD directly to your monitor via the component or the S-Video output. The component could give you HD but the S-Video will be SD at best. If you have only a VGA or DVI connections adapters can be purchased from CyberGuys or Parts Express along with splitters for a permanent connection.

Bob:)

nfslangley

06-30-08, 11:37 AM

Hey everybody, new to this forum. Just have a few questions about the streaming. So far I've installed the firestb driver for vista, and managed to save recorded video from SA 8300HD using VLC.

Is there a way to reduce the artifacts that show up during the streaming to the computer?
and
Is there a way to stream/save live TV? when I try the screen just remains blank.

Thanks for any help.

xenophonite

07-12-08, 04:14 PM

I too get digital artifacts that show up once in a while. I tried on a vista laptop with built in firewire and an xp laptop with firewire pc card, both get the digital artifacts at the exact same location of the DVR recording using VLC. Are there other programs? CapDVHS bombs out after a minute. I tried Nero capture but it bluescreens at startup if firewire is attached.

Alsoi, I'm not able to record live tv, i have to dvr the content first.

Sebaz

07-20-08, 04:41 PM

Do we have any new drivers for Vista or are we still in the same place as months ago? Any new discoveries?

superdud1400

11-13-08, 07:48 PM

Has anyone successfully recorded HD content through a SA 8300HD box?

John P

11-14-08, 01:05 AM

Has anyone successfully recorded HD content through a SA 8300HD box?

Great question! I have watched this thread for years and do not think anyone is getting quality consistent HD recordings via Firewire from the 8300 HD or HDC.

xnappo

11-14-08, 07:47 AM

Great question! I have watched this thread for years and do not think anyone is getting quality consistent HD recordings via Firewire from the 8300 HD or HDC.

It works fine on a Mac. I have been meaning to try with Ubuntu but haven't gotten around to it.

xnappo

John P

11-14-08, 09:56 AM

It works fine on a Mac. I have been meaning to try with Ubuntu but haven't gotten around to it.

xnappo

I would buy a MAC to make this work. However I see thousands of posts in the MAC forum with users trying to make this work. Would you be kind enough to share exactly what MAC hardware and software you are using to do your recording. Thanks

xnappo

11-14-08, 09:58 AM

I would buy a MAC to make this work. However I see thousands of posts in the MAC forum with users trying to make this work. Would you kind enough to share exactly what MAC hardware and software you are using to do your recording. Thanks

Sorry, I was going off of posts from Mac users earlier in this thread saying that it worked for them no problem. Second hand information :)

xnappo

4xyota

12-31-08, 08:48 PM

It works fine on a Mac. I have been meaning to try with Ubuntu but haven't gotten around to it.

xnappo

good to know...so a dual-quad ProMac with all Final Cut Pro and Premier should work?

Steve Flow

01-03-09, 06:35 PM

jondlogan

01-17-09, 11:14 AM

Hi all! Very happy to have found this forum!

I too have this DVR, and also a computer (PC). Reading through this thread, I still cannot determine the answer to this question: Is it possible to transfer files from the DVR to the computer (so I can eventually convert the files and then watch them on iTunes and my iPod)?

Thanks very much,

Steve

Ditto,

I've tried to read through so much of this thread my head hurts. ;)

This post by NeverEnuf81 (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=13414309#post13414309) seems to indicate that you can pull from the DVR to the PC but I haven't gotten a clear indication how.

Sebaz

01-17-09, 01:26 PM

Robby23

01-17-09, 11:32 PM

Capturing using Apple's AVCVideoCap from the Firewire SDK 2.6 used to work great up until a few days ago. Now it does nothing. I have Time Warner Cable in Raleigh, NC, with a SA 8300HD. Maybe Time Warner did an update to their stupid Navigator OS to disable firewire transfer. My Mac still sees the device but when I want to capture it does nothing at all. I tried re-installing Mac OS X and the Firewire SDK but it's not working.

I have a SATA 1 spare drive in my PC that I could use to install Win XP if I knew that would work, but in the past when I tried that the captured footage had lots of artifacts. Have they come up with new drivers lately?

Or, is it possible to do this on Linux, preferably Ubuntu? I have stuff on my DVR that I need to capture ASAP and I'm going nuts trying to find a solution. The stuff that I want to capture won't be released on Blu-ray or even DVD, so if I don't capture it I lose it.

I use ubuntu.

What I use to record is something called test-mpeg2. Its a command you type in the terminal and it saves raw recording for you.

Follow this only for plugreport. Don't actually install MythTV unless you want to. (SA8300 doesn't work well with MythTV because you can only record prerecorded material.)

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MythTV_Firewire#Check%20Out%20Your%20Connection

Install test-mpeg2

Once you've installed it type in to use it:

test-mpeg2 -r 1 > test.mpg

1 being the node that shows up under plugreport.

Its always best to start ubuntu with the firewire already connected. I've found that if test-mpeg2 outputs a file of 0kbs, I need to reboot both ubuntu and my dvr a few times until it works.

Sebaz

01-18-09, 12:24 AM

Thanks for the tip. So far I've tried to install both 32 and 64 bit versions of Mythbuntu and they just stop after loading some stuff. I'm downloading Ubuntu 8.10 and I'll try it tomorrow. Are these programs you mention (test-mpeg2 and plugreport) included with Ubuntu, or are they a separate download? Also, do they work with both the 32 bit and the 64 bit versions of Ubuntu?

I use ubuntu.

What I use to record is something called test-mpeg2. Its a command you type in the terminal and it saves raw recording for you.

Follow this only for plugreport. Don't actually install MythTV unless you want to. (SA8300 doesn't work well with MythTV because you can only record prerecorded material.)

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MythTV_Firewire#Check%20Out%20Your%20Connection

Install test-mpeg2

Once you've installed it type in to use it:

test-mpeg2 -r 1 > test.mpg

1 being the node that shows up under plugreport.

Its always best to start ubuntu with the firewire already connected. I've found that if test-mpeg2 outputs a file of 0kbs, I need to reboot both ubuntu and my dvr a few times until it works.

xnappo

01-18-09, 02:55 PM

Are these programs you mention (test-mpeg2 and plugreport) included with Ubuntu, or are they a separate download? Also, do they work with both the 32 bit and the 64 bit versions of Ubuntu?

Yes please! More details on installing test-mpeg2! Plug report is in the package referenced in the MythTV page.

xnappo

Sebaz

01-18-09, 04:51 PM

OK, I followed these steps and I'm in the same place I was before. test-mpeg2 gives me a not found error, even though I installed all the required packages, and I did the compile and make. As usual, Linux is a ton of frustration with all these terminal commands and such.

Can anybody give me a step by step guide to make this work? I installed Ubuntu, Mythbuntu, nothing works. I followed different guides, but they just don't work. I was able to run plugreport but test-mpeg2 was impossible.

Help, please!

I use ubuntu.

What I use to record is something called test-mpeg2. Its a command you type in the terminal and it saves raw recording for you.

Follow this only for plugreport. Don't actually install MythTV unless you want to. (SA8300 doesn't work well with MythTV because you can only record prerecorded material.)

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MythTV_Firewire#Check%20Out%20Your%20Connection

Install test-mpeg2

Once you've installed it type in to use it:

test-mpeg2 -r 1 > test.mpg

1 being the node that shows up under plugreport.

Its always best to start ubuntu with the firewire already connected. I've found that if test-mpeg2 outputs a file of 0kbs, I need to reboot both ubuntu and my dvr a few times until it works.

Robby23

01-18-09, 06:22 PM

I use Ubuntu 64bit. I wouldn't recommend mythbuntu because mythtv doesnt work with SA8300HD. Like I said before all you can record is prerecorded material which is pointless with mythtv.

Compile test-mpeg2 with the following:
gcc test-mpeg2.c -o test-mpeg2 -lraw1394 -liec61883

then copy it to /usr/bin/
cp test-mpeg2 /usr/bin

(I'm not the best with ubuntu so I'm sure theres a step to shorten what I did above, but thats what worked for me.)

then what I do to record is
test-mpeg2 -r 1 > /home/robby/Desktop/test.ts

Again, 1 being the node that is outputed in plugreport.

Make sure you are playing back a prerecorded show on the dvr since that is the only way to record from the SA8300HD

xnappo

01-18-09, 06:54 PM

epitaphmike

01-18-09, 07:41 PM

Capturing using Apple's AVCVideoCap from the Firewire SDK 2.6 used to work great up until a few days ago. Now it does nothing. I have Time Warner Cable in Raleigh, NC, with a SA 8300HD. Maybe Time Warner did an update to their stupid Navigator OS to disable firewire transfer. My Mac still sees the device but when I want to capture it does nothing at all. I tried re-installing Mac OS X and the Firewire SDK but it's not working.

I have a SATA 1 spare drive in my PC that I could use to install Win XP if I knew that would work, but in the past when I tried that the captured footage had lots of artifacts. Have they come up with new drivers lately?

Or, is it possible to do this on Linux, preferably Ubuntu? I have stuff on my DVR that I need to capture ASAP and I'm going nuts trying to find a solution. The stuff that I want to capture won't be released on Blu-ray or even DVD, so if I don't capture it I lose it.

Sebaz,

OK, Good news. Somehow I got this working. I read a blog and it worked
http://www.super-cooper.com (http://www.super-cooper.com/archive/2009/01/04/ripping-recorded-video-from-a-cox-dvr-on-os-x/)
Basically what I did was plug the firewire into the mac, then opened AVCVideoCap. I started the program on my DVR and then paused it. Then I plugged in the firewire to the DVR. I started the capture in AVC then pressed play on my remote.

Wa-La it worked.

This is after this not working all of the sudden.

My guess is it has something to do with the firewire connection. Before I just left my firewire connected to the DVR.

I hope this helps someone.

Steve Flow

01-18-09, 08:58 PM

I'm so glad to see that the conversation has been revived! Thanks to everyone for the assistance so far, however, I'm a big non-techie, and I'm using a PC.

I'm wondering if anyone knows where I could find step-by-step instructions, designed specifically for an idiot like me :-), on how to answer the following question:

How exactly do I transfer files (not a real-time recording) from the DVR to the PC (so I can eventually convert the files and then watch them on iTunes and my iPod)? Do I need to adjust any settings on the DVR? What software do I need to install on the PC? What PC settings do I need to change?

If anyone has anything like this, I will be GREATLY appreciative.

Thanks again,

Steve

Sebaz

01-18-09, 09:07 PM

Sebaz,

OK, Good news. Somehow I got this working. I read a blog and it worked
http://www.super-cooper.com (http://www.super-cooper.com/archive/2009/01/04/ripping-recorded-video-from-a-cox-dvr-on-os-x/)
Basically what I did was plug the firewire into the mac, then opened AVCVideoCap. I started the program on my DVR and then paused it. Then I plugged in the firewire to the DVR. I started the capture in AVC then pressed play on my remote.

No, that didn't work for me. I re-installed Leopard and now I am back to what it was like before. I still can capture but all of a sudden it will start capturing garbage and I do all kinds of things (including the procedure you described) but it accomplishes nothing. Then probably tomorrow or some other day I turn it on and I captures without a problem. It's really unbearable. I wish I could find the way to do it in Ubuntu with that test-mpeg2 thing, but I haven't been able to. I need a step by step for the Ubuntu process, without leaving anything out, because I don't know anything about Linux.

Sebaz

01-18-09, 11:37 PM

OK, I was able to make it work (to a certain extent) after I downloaded the packages from linux1394.org and went through the whole awkward installation process. I did have to run a lot of these commands with the sudo prefix because of permissions problems. Now, I captured a minute and played it back and all I get is garbage. One question here is, when the terminal window is open and the test-mpeg2 script is receiving the stream, how do you tell it to stop? I just closed the terminal window, but my gut tells me that's not the most appropriate method.

I think my cable DVR doesn't work well, sometimes I can capture just fine and sometimes I get this awful garbage, all pixels, mostly green, with no sound. I tried two different firewire cables, which don't seem broken or damaged in any way, one is ten feet and the other fifteen. I would try with a shorter one but the ten feet is the minimum distance I need. But they work flawlessly many times, so something tells me the problem lies with the DVR.

I use Ubuntu 64bit. I wouldn't recommend mythbuntu because mythtv doesnt work with SA8300HD. Like I said before all you can record is prerecorded material which is pointless with mythtv.

Compile test-mpeg2 with the following:
gcc test-mpeg2.c -o test-mpeg2 -lraw1394 -liec61883

then copy it to /usr/bin/
cp test-mpeg2 /usr/bin

(I'm not the best with ubuntu so I'm sure theres a step to shorten what I did above, but thats what worked for me.)

then what I do to record is
test-mpeg2 -r 1 > /home/robby/Desktop/test.ts

Again, 1 being the node that is outputed in plugreport.

Make sure you are playing back a prerecorded show on the dvr since that is the only way to record from the SA8300HD

Robby23

01-19-09, 12:57 AM

OK, I was able to make it work (to a certain extent) after I downloaded the packages from linux1394.org and went through the whole awkward installation process. I did have to run a lot of these commands with the sudo prefix because of permissions problems. Now, I captured a minute and played it back and all I get is garbage. One question here is, when the terminal window is open and the test-mpeg2 script is receiving the stream, how do you tell it to stop? I just closed the terminal window, but my gut tells me that's not the most appropriate method.

I think my cable DVR doesn't work well, sometimes I can capture just fine and sometimes I get this awful garbage, all pixels, mostly green, with no sound. I tried two different firewire cables, which don't seem broken or damaged in any way, one is ten feet and the other fifteen. I would try with a shorter one but the ten feet is the minimum distance I need. But they work flawlessly many times, so something tells me the problem lies with the DVR.

Are you playing back a prerecorded show or are you trying to record something live? If you try and record something live you get a bunch of garbage data. From my experiences I've had to reboot both the dvr and pc until things worked properly. Also, to stop recording just press ctrl+c.

Err... And where do you get test-mpeg2.c from?

xnappo

Heh, yeah that would be helpful.

http://rapidshare.com/files/185824455/test-mpeg2.c

Sebaz

01-19-09, 01:36 AM

Are you playing back a prerecorded show or are you trying to record something live? If you try and record something live you get a bunch of garbage data. From my experiences I've had to reboot both the dvr and pc until things worked properly. Also, to stop recording just press ctrl+c.

I was finally able to capture small portions of several different shows I had on my DVR successfully. I think what made it possible (although it might be just a coincidence) was that I ran this command I found in a tutorial:

sudo plugctl -n 1 "oPCR[0].n_p2p_connections=1"

And then:

sudo test-mpeg2 -r 1 > Whatever.m2t

I have to run everything using sudo because it won't work otherwise. It's not a big deal anyway, it's just word. One thing that is a big deal, though, is how to make it capture only a certain amount of time, like for example capturing a show that is one hour long. Do you know how to do that?

Sebaz

01-19-09, 01:51 AM

I think I jinxed it by posting too quickly. Now I'm back to capturing green pixel garbage. Hopefully after a few cable disconnections and reboots I'll be able to fix it.

Robby23

01-19-09, 03:31 AM

I'm not sure about capturing for a certain amount of time. I just do it manually :x

4xyota

01-19-09, 07:38 PM

Hi all! Very happy to have found this forum!

I too have this DVR, and also a computer (PC). Reading through this thread, I still cannot determine the answer to this question: Is it possible to transfer files from the DVR to the computer (so I can eventually convert the files and then watch them on iTunes and my iPod)?

Thanks very much,

Steve

I picked up a Diamond "one-touch" VC500 from Fry's for under $40...comes with all needed software...plug and play. (they had a bunch of this sort of thing but this seemed the simplest to use) My wife took it with her...size of a medium sized cig lighter + cords...to download a bunch of video from a video library in DC to her laptop...worked great.
For the DVR we use the same laptop with external USB 500g drive...works great. From there you can edit (with proper software) and do whatever you want. No HD, just analog.

dochartung

01-22-09, 04:11 PM

Sebaz

01-22-09, 04:43 PM

I have successfully captured using tsreader and the firewire.dll

What is the "firewire.dll"?

dochartung

01-22-09, 08:15 PM

It is part of the TSReader Program.

wongnog

02-05-09, 08:31 PM

are there firewire drivers available for Vista x64??? I really want to connect my SA 8300HD via firewire but can't seem to get the drivers installed in my system.

dochartung

02-05-09, 09:21 PM

I have successfully captured using tsreader and the firewire.dll The files is in .mpg format. Has anyone had success editing these files after capture to say delete/edit the commercials out?? I have Pinnacle 12 Studio but it locks up when trying to open the file. I have just dumped Cablevision and I am moving to Fios and I want my DVRed content before I turn in the box.

Thanks

Just an update on editing captured MPG TS stream using TSreader for those interested. Download a free program called H264 Cutter , it will allow you to fully edit out commercials or anything you want from any catureed DVR recording you bring into your pc via TSreader. Hope this helps anyone who is interested.

Digital Fool

02-09-09, 10:27 PM

I swear I've read hundreds of pages on trying to get this right.

I've tried CapD-VHS and it will crash after about 45 seconds. The video is choppy anyways.

I can get the stream to work with VLC, but I can't for the life of me save it. When I go to Convert/Save, choose the capture device...then choose play locally, create a file and chose dump raw input.

It does nothing, it seems like VLC is counting as if it is doing something, but the file it creates is 0KB.

Am I missing something simple?

dochartung

02-10-09, 09:08 AM

Digital Fool

02-10-09, 06:47 PM

OK - I'm trying TSReader...I have the dll loaded and I see the PID. When I go to Record PIDs, I see the file creating as a .bin file. It is associated with VLC, but doesn't play. Could you give me some help on using it?

dochartung

02-10-09, 07:21 PM

You have to click on the PID and then the Record Program should be selectable. If you have a trial version it will not work. Also I found VLC to be very laggy so I had to use my remote and jump back and forth. Exactly how I did it was to run the dvr with the program I wanted to record, jump back to pc (only using 1 monitor to do this) then select the pid, go back to DVR rewind to beginning, pause it then back to PC, record then unpause DVR program, lol, sounds like a waste of time but it works flawless. PM me if you need any more help and I will do my best.

dochartung

02-19-09, 05:08 PM

Someone asked me for a tutorial for TSREADER so here it goes.
First off you need the $99 version of TSreader as the trial will not work.

I run a Vista HTPC and I found the drivers for the SA 8300HD here:

http://home.comcast.net/~timmmoore/wsb/html/view.cgi-showresources.html-TopRes-STB-20Firewire.html

OK after the drivers and TSreader are installed reboot the machine.

Now open TSreader and choose the firewire.dll as the source interface from the dropdown list.

Ok now you are ready to capture from the DVR, I have not tried live TV but I am sure it will work.

Start the playback of your DVR and then go back to HTPC (best to do this with pip or 2 monitors) click on the PID (which is the stream of the TV recording) so it is highlighted.

Now go to the top menu of tsreader and choose record, and if you chose the pid correctly another windows will pop up and ask you to name the recording and then all you have to do from there is choose the destination.

I hope this helps and for sure this is a crude tutorial but it should get you through with some trial and error.

kaffeen

02-19-09, 05:42 PM

Thanks dochartung! Does anyone know if eSata would work like Firewire for this process of using TSReader?

bunnysuicide

02-26-09, 10:31 PM

has one been able to get this to work on Vista 64?

dochartung

02-27-09, 10:06 AM

Never tried 64 bit, and then again I have not found solid codecs for it either, that is why for my HTPC systems I stick with x86...

Pizza-Man

03-09-09, 02:15 AM

I'm having issues getting my SA 8300 HD to work in XP MCE with the firewire connection. I've installed the drivers and I'm able to change the TV channels with the command window, but when I go into MCE it tells me I don't have any capture hardware. Any suggestion?

holl_ands

03-09-09, 02:00 PM

If you read back through thread, you'll find firewire port on SA8300HD doesn't work w PCs.

The SA3250HD and 4250HD are only boxes that do work.

dochartung

03-09-09, 03:55 PM

If you read back through thread, you'll find firewire port on SA8300HD doesn't work w PCs.

The SA3250HD and 4250HD are only boxes that do work.

The firewire port worked for me fine on my 8300HD.

Pizza-Man, I am running Vista so not really sure about what you are trying to do. If it is capture off the DVR then if you read my post and install the proper drivers it should work, but again I am running vista not xp...

Rosa1

03-20-09, 02:41 PM

dochartung, do you get flawless Hd captures using TsReader?

Hardcore Legend

03-21-09, 08:57 PM

I tried using tsreader (a full version) and it detects NO PIDs. The screen sits there blank with no PIDs loading in any menus. This is on a 8240 HDC from Time Warner.

Hardcore Legend

03-21-09, 10:02 PM

Actually, I finally got it to recognize some PIDs but I'm unclear how to record both the video and audio.

dochartung

03-21-09, 11:21 PM

dochartung, do you get flawless Hd captures using TsReader?

Yes I do get flawless video and audio. My specs of my HTPC is AMD 5000+ black edition, 4GB DDR800, Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-SH2, WD 500GB HD running Vista Ultimate x86...

Could be you have a bad firewire cable? just guessing here or your pc cannot keep up...

Hardcore Legend

03-22-09, 01:25 AM

Yes I do get flawless video and audio. My specs of my HTPC is AMD 5000+ black edition, 4GB DDR800, Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-SH2, WD 500GB HD running Vista Ultimate x86...

Could be you have a bad firewire cable? just guessing here or your pc cannot keep up...

My firewire is fine, my PC records clear off a Motorola box. Yet, when I was able to use this method to watch a DVR'd copy of an NBC program (HD) I got a considerable amount of artifacting.

nemo07

03-27-09, 01:54 PM

- Got SA 8300HD two months ago
- purchased firewire cable and firewire pci slot for computer
- Running vista
- was not successful in install the drivers, however when i plugged in the firewire to computer everything got installed
- VLC can recognized my 8300HD and was successful in transfering a recorded show but was choppy and unwatchable.

I guess I am in the same boat as most people. I am going to try the Adobe Elements solution and see how that works. I hope some new drivers get released soon!

JAdamz

03-27-09, 09:32 PM

Confirmed that the 8300HD using XP Pro 32-bit, TSReader 2.8.46b, and ExDeus' STB firewire drivers (http://home.comcast.net/~exdeus/stbfirewire) works.

Man it's taken so long to get to this point but it finally looks like it's feasible to record from the 8300HD without using a Mac.

For those unsure how to record using TSReader, once the video is playing back from the DVR click on the "PMT PID 0x1394 - Program 1" object that appears within TSReader on the left side. Then go to Record->Record Program, enter an output file name (*.mpg) and then click Start. To stop recording, just click Record->Record Program again.

It takes a couple seconds for the PID to show up once the DVR is playing, so if the show on the DVR begins before the PID shows up, you can start recording the program, and then just play the show from the beginning again on the DVR. You'll have to edit the resulting video output if you want to cut out the earlier video from the final output.

This is the first time I'm getting it to work so I'm still working through some things. I'm not able to open it in Windows Media Player for some reason (I imagine the output file might need to be run through some program first to correct something...real descriptive right? :)). It plays fine in VLC though.

yater90spn

03-29-09, 11:34 AM

Has anyone tried to do this on Time Warner? I don't have TSReader 2.8.46b but even with the Lite version or an earlier version I can't get it to load PIDs. It does recognize the Tuner though. Any help is appreciated. I used to get this to work with some programs on a MAC but back in January something changed and it doesn't work anymore.

Hardcore Legend

03-30-09, 04:58 PM

bfdtv

03-30-09, 05:00 PM

A couple questions.
1) does it work on non-clear QAM stuff? I'm not talking HBO or anything like that but stuff like regional sports HD, ESPN, etc?No.

Hardcore Legend

03-30-09, 06:11 PM

That's unfortunate. What is it even good for at that point? Local stations? You can get most of those using a $50 USB tuner device, usually in uncompressed quality.

bfdtv

03-30-09, 07:04 PM

That's unfortunate. What is it even good for at that point? Local stations? You can get most of those using a $50 USB tuner device, usually in uncompressed quality.I misread your first post. This does work on encrypted channels, so long as they aren't flagged with a copy control (CCI) bit. Brighthouse, Cox, and Time Warner flag most of their channels (besides locals), so those can't be copied.

There are some providers like Comcast that do not flag many of their cable channels. This thread is primarily for those people, because for as you note, it's much easier to record local HD channels on a computer with an inexpensive USB tuner.

umenon

04-11-09, 03:35 PM

I tried both TSReader and VLC with my SARA 8300hd box (client is XP laptop). I am able to record but the video glitches every few seconds. Tried several tests with the same video source. Does not appear to be a pattern as to where in the video it glitches.

The only DV cable I have is about 15 feet long (6pin to 4pin). Could this be a problem ?

Thanks.

Robby23

04-18-09, 04:19 AM

has one been able to get this to work on Vista 64?

The drivers are for 32bit versions of windows.

After many tests with different programs on both windows and linux I've come to the conclusion that test-mpeg2 in ubuntu seems to be the most reliable and has the least amount of lost frames.

Eyedoctor2

04-18-09, 10:08 PM

Thanks for the clarifications from dochartung and JAdamz.

I think I am ready to give this a whirl. I am a little reluctant to shell out $100 for TSreader before I know for sure how much of my dvr content will be copy protected. My cable provider is Atlantic Broadband, Miami Beach, Fl.

Can I test this somehow with either WMC or TSreader Lite to see if it will work prior to purchasing the full TSReader version?

Coder53

05-06-09, 11:02 AM

First I want to thank everyone here for the great information.

I've been trying to get this to work on and off for several months. Here's what I have so far:

I'm on Brighthouse in the Tampa Bay Area with an SA8300/HDC.

I've got the firewire STB drivers loaded successfully and the PC recognizes the STB and the data stream. I can stream via VLC but the picture and audio is choppy and the video is pixilated. The only thing I've been able to record via CapDVHS is a playback of an SD broadcast on SpeedTV, everything else bombs CapDVHS (I'm assuming because of the poor stream quality) although the SpeedTV playback recorded perfectly. Pretty much everything I've tried will stream on VLC, albeit poor quality.

My questions are this:

#1 Would you think the poor quality is due to the firewire driver speed restriction problem I’ve read about?

#2 The firewire driver patch only works with service pack 2, I'm at service pack 3. One would think that MS would have fixed this with service pack 3 but in my experience with MS that's a mighty big assumption. I read an article on how to manually roll back the drivers to SR1 level but I've searched and searched and can't find it again, anyone got a link?
[Edit: found this and did roll back the drivers. Will test it later]

#3 I'm running XP MCE 2005 but I haven't been able to get tray.exe to recognize the tuner so MCE doesn't see it. Not a big deal but it would be a nice feature to have. Is there some registry hack I have to perform to make this work or something else?

#4 Are my assumptions about CapDVHS bombing out because of the poor stream correct?

#5 Also I'm assuming if I can get it to stream via VLC then I can record it as well i.e. no 5c restriction, is this correct?

#6 Yes I've searched for all of these issues but haven't found a definitive answer on any of them. So please don't tell me to search for an answer I've been searching for 3 days :)

Thanks in advance for any and all input.

[Update: Well I rolled back the firewire drivers and did the registry hack to get the port up to speed, I saw a lot of improvement. I guess it would be watchable, but it ain't gonna impress my friends and family for sure. I have a firewire pc card thinking maybe that would show some improvment with pretty much the same results. Also tried TSReader for the capture, it's showing a lot of data loss so it's looking a lot like the Windows XP firewire just plain sucks. Going to try pluging in another hard drive and giving it a shot with linux, unless someone has some suggestions?]

flguy

09-05-09, 05:13 PM

Thanks to all the info here I was able to copy programs from my Comcast 8300HD (SARA v1.89.22.2) to Vista laptop no problem. I followed the instructions here and loaded the STB drivers, paid $99 for the TSReader program (the free version only records for 60 seconds), connected the firewire cable between my box and the PC, started playing a program saved on the DVR, saw the PID, and recorded the program. The quality is perfect, no pixelation.

Fyi, when I went into the system settings for my 8300HD I noticed it said Firewire "disabled", but sure enough it still worked. I am in Orlando, by the way.

I was able to copy very nice HD programs like Science Channel HD, as well as regular programs. Have not tried HBO.

One thing I had to figure out is what type of file the TSReader is saving my program as. By default it was creating .bin files. Turns out that regardless of what file extension you give it, it's creating a "ts" or "transport stream" file type. Some programs like Mplayer can play this by default. I was able to get Windows Media Player to play it after renaming the extension to .mpg, but again this was on Vista and may have to do with having the latest version of everything. If you have the right codecs you can probably play anything, but most cannot, so you may need to convert it.

If you are a technical person, as I am, then use free FFMPEG to convert the ts video to something like AVI. Then you can convert the AVI to Flash (FLV) if you want, also using FFMPEG. You might also try "WM Converter 2.0", which is GUI-based and freeware.

Now what I am going to do with all this video? Well, mostly it is for editing fun a la YouTube. But theoretically I can burn it to DVD and save for future. I don't usually watch programs over and over, not even movies, so I don't know. What do others do with their programs they've saved to PC?

Thanks!

cocomonk22

09-13-09, 06:44 AM

EDIT:Using TSReaderLite version 2.8.46e (http://www.tsreader.com/tsreader/TSReaderLite2.8.46e.exe), recordings suffer from continuity errors in HD when using Vista or XP. Vista and XP recordings appear to be the same. I also tested both IEEE ports on the back of the SA8300HD. I'm using ExDeus' STB Firewire Drivers (http://home.comcast.net/~exdeus/stbfirewire/).

This is the latest lite version, but the standard version may be more updated. I'm hoping that the latest TSReader Standard version fixes the continuity errors. However, I'm not willing to spend $99 on something that may or may not work, so if anyone has the a later version, could someone upload the TSReader_Firewire.dll file? The default location is in C:\Program Files\COOL.STF\TSReader\Sources\TSReader_Firewire.dll. That way I could test the areas where continuity errors are fixed in the latest version and if the reason is the firewire.dll.

Eyedoctor2

09-19-09, 02:30 PM

Was wondering if anybody has successfully transferred files with TS Reader using a Windows 7 computer?

naphtul

11-05-09, 12:44 PM

Was wondering if anybody has successfully transferred files with TS Reader using a Windows 7 computer?

I have tried it with Windows 7 and it works. Of course to the extent of pixelation and jumps while recording HD. I've tried every tweak in this thread.
I've tried it first on my 64-bit machine, but there are no drivers that I could find.

My system:
Lenovo laptop C3000 N100 E7U-0768.
Windows 7 Ultimate, 32-bit edition.
Located in Manhattan, working with TWC, have their SA 8300HDC.

I wish that someone would solve the jumps while recording HD and post it here.

Truckeic

12-10-09, 11:01 PM

Anybody got this working on Win7 x64? I have tried to use the drivers listed and they don't work. I am probably hosed because I have x64 Win 7 but hopeful someone may have an answer......
When Windows saw the FW connection it loaded some drivers that say SA 8300 HD tuner and panel but CAP does not see a input device..

Truckeic

12-10-09, 11:03 PM

So how did you get it to work with no drivers? Just trying to figure out what drivers to use for WIN7 X64

cocomonk22

12-11-09, 01:06 AM

It doesn't work on x64. He used Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit edition.

johnb003 is currently working on 64-bit drivers: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1145429

Cain

08-22-10, 06:09 PM

Any updates to this for folks using Win 7 64 ??

maruzo

12-08-10, 06:03 PM

Hi all,

I tried to connect the firewire port from 8300HD to a dvr that accepts firewire inputs. No video or audio were detected on the dvr. So I tried the s-video and regular rca audio inputs and the dvr showed both the video and audio coming from the 8300HD.

I was able to make a cbs hd recording that i streamed from the 8300hd.

What was really weird was the video feed that came from the 8300HD was elongated into letterbox format on the dvr.

Has anyone tried this and had the same result as me?

I tried to correct the screen format but the image remained the same.

88iroc

12-09-10, 04:04 PM

Hello! I've been following this topic for years and finally last week I decided to give it a whirl after about two years ago the drivers I installed toasted my VAIO. My wife works with special needs children and records a lot of educational and informative programs. In the past we've recorded to tape so she could take to the office but transferring to laptop is now a better solution. So now I'm on a Lenovo T400 with DeusEx's drivers and streaming recordings from my 8300HD to the laptop via firewire with TSReader full version (latest). It took a couple tries but I was finally able to transfer part of the Joy Behar interview of Temple Brandin with spectacular results. I did Record Program and got an mpg format file which played flawlessly.
The problem is, every time I've tried since then, I get great video but no audio. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

mit3gt

12-16-10, 05:37 PM

I have been using Cap DVHS for a couple of years without any issues. I recently switched ISP's and had to switch DVR's. I used to have a motorola which worked flawlessly. I now have SA 3800 HD which is giving me many problems. Cap DVHS seems to be out of the question because it will only record DVR'd material, then it crashes after a couple of seconds. I then read about irecord on the mac and tried that. It seems to work but I have a hell of a time playing back the recording. So far, I have only found 1 player that will play back the material. When I finally get the recording to play it stops after bout 6 seconds.

So, the port is definitely open on the SA 3800. It is communicating, the channels I am trying are copy freely. I just cannot get this thing to work. I am thinking of trying TSreader, I just don't want to pay $100 to see if it will work. I need a little bit more info before I make that plunge. Anyone have any suggestions on what could be happening?

TNO821

12-16-10, 07:54 PM

Cap DVHS seems to be out of the question because it will only record DVR'd material, then it crashes after a couple of seconds. I then read about irecord on the mac and tried that. It seems to work but I have a hell of a time playing back the recording. So far, I have only found 1 player that will play back the material. When I finally get the recording to play it stops after bout 6 seconds.

It sounds like there could be a lot of errors in the stream. Try downloading VideoReDo TVSuite V4 (http://www.videoredo.com/en/Download.htm?download=tvsuitev4) (It has a free trail) and use its "QuickStream Fix" option. It'll show you if your files are filled with errors. In many cases it can fix them, but if the output from your cable box is too messed up, you'll have dropped frames, etc.

mit3gt

12-16-10, 09:44 PM

Thanks for the suggestion. I really appreciate it. Unfortunately, Videoredo did not help. I still get the first 6 seconds of the video. I don't seem to be getting any errors as far as I can tell. Is their a more in depth way to find out if the file has errors? Whats strange is I always get the first six seconds of the video. I wonder if the video is starting out as a copy freely stream then goes to protected, ie, my new service provider is being a pain in the ass.. I read about someone having a similar issue in the AVC noodle thread. I'll see if I can dig it up.

mit3gt

12-16-10, 09:51 PM

This was taken from the AVCnoodle thread. Someone had similar issues and sent the recorded stream to the developer who had this to say:

"Hey Steve-

Any leads with the file I sent?

-Jeremy

The file is bad news.

In summary, it starts well with a perfectly good looking video packet on pid 0x85 with a valid PES header, 00 00 01 e0 indicating the start of the video elementary stream. No encryption flags in the header, etc.

47 40 85 12 00 00 01 e0 0000 pid=0x85 (133) Not scrambled PES header with payload
47 40 85 12 00 00 01 e0 00 00 84 80 13 27 51 ad G@...........'Q.
0b 33 ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff ff .3..............
00 00 01 00 00 df ff fb b8 00 00 01 b5 83 33 3b ..............3;
5d 80 00 00 01 b2 47 41 39 34 03 4a ff fc 80 80 ].....GA94.J....
fa 00 00 fa 00 00 fa 00 00 fa 00 00 fa 00 00 fa ................
00 00 fa 00 00 fa 00 00 fa 00 00 ff 00 00 00 00 ................
00 00 00 00 00 00 01 01 32 58 59 fa b7 1a 4b 0e ........2XY...K.
c5 b2 82 bd 0c ec ea 9e 9a 3a c1 35 91 9e 26 eb .........:.5..&.
32 4c 7a a5 d2 c9 23 2e 4a c3 33 bb d4 4e 58 d1 2Lz...#.J.3..NX.
d6 5c 95 93 a8 9d 92 b4 8c 33 f9 cd 17 96 cf c6 .\.......3......
a7 cd 47 00 fa 87 e2 0d 09 03 3a 66 f5 f3 1f 09 ..G.......:f....
a7 cd 46 ce f5 33 68 ef 89 0f 4e 81

This continues for a while, including good quality unscrambed audio until BAM!....

47 40 85 94 d6 22 e8 0c 49ae pid=0x85 (133) Scrambled PES header with payload
47 40 85 94 d6 22 e8 0c 49 ae 8f 24 65 cd aa 8c G@..."..I..$e...
f0 fb 2b 76 0a 15 1f 02 1b 0f 1c 7b a0 05 9f 3f ..+v.......{...?
e5 48 b2 2f 50 d6 34 d8 3b 3c f9 55 44 c4 70 23 .H./P.4.;<.UD.p#
13 21 fe c0 a7 bc 84 2c da c0 e5 90 5d b1 f9 be .!.....,....]...
60 50 7a 90 4a d0 51 0e 9a 5a 83 43 4e a0 f1 a5 `Pz.J.Q..Z.CN...
c5 a1 c9 13 a1 54 61 40 2f ad cd 5e 17 10 4b 2c .....Ta@/..^..K,
80 b1 6e d6 3d ae 52 bd 0b 43 13 98 91 41 1e 69 ..n.=.R..C...A.i
f6 30 b0 48 03 ca ef 6f 6f 1d 6d 86 fa 74 d0 d7 .0.H...oo.m..t..
08 e5 b6 c1 74 95 51 50 50 ed bc 2b 78 e1 05 f0 ....t.QPP..+x...
cb 40 4a 04 57 d0 78 dd 13 43 ab 6a c4 b1 5d 4c .@J.W.x..C.j..]L
b6 9b e6 34 e9 b3 07 54 31 0e ef ae 90 51 0b ae ...4...T1....Q..
d2 ec 7c 57 8d 5e 17 a3 45 63 40 d9

The packets are now scrambled, the PES header is flagged, which means we should see 00 00 01 e0 in a clear stream. However the scramble bit is set, meaning the STB has not decrypted the content.

The stream is also missing PAT and PMT packets, they're being filtered by the STB which DTCP debugging difficult. This would also confuse VLC and other media players, who use them for service information on codec types and stream positioning, explaining your earlier findings. This is not a total loss, these can be re-created on the fly if the entire stream had been Copy Freely.

Based on the clip you sent, which my debugging tools turned into 7.2million lines of debugging, the scrambled data started at line 513423, so most of the clip was scrambled. It's hard to say time wise what this represents without running more numbers based on bitrate and throughput etc.

The fact AVCNoodle is reporting 'DTCP Protection' (as you indicated earlier), sounds like the stream starts out clear then turns scrambled. Perhaps you switched to this channel from another channel and the STB briefly unscrambles the content until the next DTCP marker appears on the networks (missing) PMT table (causing scrambling to re-occur). Speculation at this point but the fact remains that the stream went quickly from Copy Freely to a higher security level, meaning the recording contains encrypted content. AVCNoodle is unable to do anything about this.

Other than that the stream is recorded perfectly, no errors, no junk from the STB, no missing packets (continuity counter wise). The firewire stack appears to be doing what it was designed to do, no obvious buffer alignment issue or dropped buffer.

Just a plain old case of your network provider being a pain in the ass.

Sorry."

I wonder if this is what is happening to me. Is their any way I can find out? Trying to make sense of this. Unfortunately, it's a little over my head.

joutlaw

06-09-11, 09:07 AM

After reading through this entire thread, I have found the best to capture video from my 8300HD after much trial and error.

I used a Dell E5410 with Windows 7 Enterprise 32bit with the following results:

I tried VLC. It worked, but choppy video and sound.
I tried TSReader Lite. Same issues with choppy video and sound
I got a demo of Adobe Premier Elements. I couldn't even get it to capture without crashing.

I then thought about Linux since I have Ubuntu 11.04 dual booting on this machine. I am no means an linux expert, but was able to capture flawless 1080i video with test-mpeg2.

Ubuntu 11.04 should come with the necessary components to make this work. Being a linux novice, it took me several days to realize my problems when trying to use test-mpeg2.

You should have a folder named libiec61883-1.2.0. If you don't download it's tar from the web and extract it wherever.

Once extracted open terminal and go to the extracted libiec61883-1.2.0 folder. Then do a ./configure and make. Then go to examples folder in libiec61883-1.2.0. This is where test-mpeg2 resides.

Connect your 8300hd and type plugreport in the terminal window under libiec61883-1.0.0/example.

You should see the firewire nodes. My device was under node 1.

I then issued the following command ./test-mpeg2 -r 1 > test.m2ts .
Then I saw starting to receive below. To stop capturing hit ctrl+c .

At that point I viewed the file with VLC in linux. I got concerned because it was choppy with image tearing. I then copied that test.m2ts to my windows C:\ drive . Then booted into Windows 7 and it played 100% flawlessly.

test-mpeg2 is rather crude with its command line operation, but it is the best method I have found for the 8300HD.

corrupted

08-08-11, 08:46 PM

First off, thanks to everyone who contributed in getting this working. I'm so happy to be able to clear out my dvr.

Thanks to dochartung for the link to the drivers and the instructions.

I have a Scientific Atlanta 8300HDC. I tried this on 3 operating systems,two computers and in vmware. The first computer had xp pro installed on it. While trying to install the drivers it said I needed xp media center edition.

So, I installed that on the first comp, which has a 2.5ghz processor, 1gb ram and onboard video. With this setup, it recorded just as well as on a much more powerful comp. I then installed the Vista RC1 firestb.msi drivers and tsreader 2.8.46b. The firestb.msi drivers would crash on windows startup every time.

If you're using xp mce don't forget to look through the readme and pay attention to these steps:
1)Open the MyTray dialog and enable "Recording over firewire"
2)Make sure "Do nothing with MCE recording" is selected
3)When you plug in the STB via firewire, 3 devices will be detected: Unknown, AV/C Tuner and AV/C Panel.
Cancel the New Hardware wizard for the Unknown device.
Next you should see AV/C Panel Device or AV/C Tuner Device as the hardware that was found. Choose Install the software automatically (Recommended) and click Next.
The driver should then be installed, click on Finish when prompted.

Then, I just followed dochartung's intructions:
You have to click on the PID and then the Record Program should be selectable. If you have a trial version it will not work. Also I found VLC to be very laggy so I had to use my remote and jump back and forth. Exactly how I did it was to run the dvr with the program I wanted to record, jump back to pc (only using 1 monitor to do this) then select the pid, go back to DVR rewind to beginning, pause it then back to PC, record then unpause DVR program, lol, sounds like a waste of time but it works flawless. PM me if you need any more help and I will do my best.
and
Someone asked me for a tutorial for TSREADER so here it goes.
First off you need the $99 version of TSreader as the trial will not work.

I run a Vista HTPC and I found the drivers for the SA 8300HD here:

OK after the drivers and TSreader are installed reboot the machine.

Now open TSreader and choose the firewire.dll as the source interface from the dropdown list.

Ok now you are ready to capture from the DVR, I have not tried live TV but I am sure it will work.

Start the playback of your DVR and then go back to HTPC (best to do this with pip or 2 monitors) click on the PID (which is the stream of the TV recording) so it is highlighted.

Now go to the top menu of tsreader and choose record, and if you chose the pid correctly another windows will pop up and ask you to name the recording and then all you have to do from there is choose the destination.

I hope this helps and for sure this is a crude tutorial but it should get you through with some trial and error.

On the second computer I used win 7 32bit. This computer is much more powerful, but the end result of the recording was the same. I get 50-400 continuity errors per hour of recording a HD programming. To me, this is still very watchable for personal use. Also, keep in mind it will take up to 7gb of hard drive space per hour of HD recording.

Lastly, I tried to get this working on a virtual machine. I couldn't find any virtual environment which supported firewire in this application.