I can confirm your bug is present here in North Texas. :(

I see the same bug here in Maryland / Metro DC

FIOS TV was installed a couple days ago. I came from Directv Tivo (HR10-250). I had a couple quick questions regarding the Moto 6416 HD DVR.

1. Is there an easy way to switch between the two buffers? I've verified that dual buffers are enabled, but I can't quickly switch between them -- particularly when one buffer is recording a program.

2. is there a buffer limit (Tivo used to buffer about 30 minutes).

3. is there a button to jump to the beginning or end of a program that is recording? I find that when I tune to an in-progress recording I have to either rewind completely or opt to go through the MyDVR list.

Thanks for any help.

As reported, the dual buffer was working just fine after the image upgrade. My box even buffered 2 channels while it was turned off.
I noticed today that it's no longer working though. I called tech support to see if there was a particular issue with my box or if they had disabled the dual buffer again, but the guy I spoke to wasn't even aware it was ever ENabled.
Is everybody else still getting the functionality, or is my box messed up?
Thanks!
Gski

As reported, the dual buffer was working just fine after the image upgrade. My box even buffered 2 channels while it was turned off.
I noticed today that it's no longer working though. I called tech support to see if there was a particular issue with my box or if they had disabled the dual buffer again, but the guy I spoke to wasn't even aware it was ever ENabled.
Is everybody else still getting the functionality, or is my box messed up?
Thanks!
Gski

My box quit dual buffering for awhile after I had gone into the diagnostics menu. After fiddling with it, hit record, enter new channel, hit last, hit record then stop (not sure exactly in what order), it started working again.:confused:

My box quit dual buffering for awhile after I had gone into the diagnostics menu. After fiddling with it, hit record, enter new channel, hit last, hit record then stop (not sure exactly in what order), it started working again.:confused:

Thanks! I basically did exactly what you said: I hit record on the current channel, then hit "last channel", hit record there, hit "last", canceled that recording, hit "last", canceled that recording, and now it's working again. Awesome! Thanks again!
Gski

ETA: FWIW, I didn't mess with my diagnostics menu, so I know that's not what caused the dual buffer to stop on mine.

Unbelievable! Worked for a bit as noted by another. I think its about time to start asking for a credit of some flavor. These folks are a bunch of buffoons....:(

I too just got the new service in Oregon and didnt even know it would buffer two channels at once. I've had it for 2 weeks now and it never did the dual buffer until I recorded two channels at once, we'll see how long it keeps working. Thanks for the tip.

My Samsung DLP is native 720p. It does a much cleaner job of scaling and deinterlacing than the FIOS/Moto 6416. I leave it at 1080i most of the time, but switch to 720p for football on Fox and ESPN.

Here's the hassle:

The previous version of the FIOS on-screen video format setting allowed you to set the 4:3 override (480i, 480p, stretch or OFF) as well as select the output resolution, (1080i, 720p, etc.)

The newest version limits you to picking the output resolution. But whenever I switch it from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting reverts from my preferred setting of OFF to a default of 480i.

That's a big problem for me, because my set won't accept 480i over a digital connection, either HDMI or DVI. Whenever I tune to a non-HD channel; the screen goes blank and I get a "mode not supported" error on the TV.

To fix it, I have to go into the service menu and adjust it with no image on the screen, using just the display on the box. That means powering off the 6416, hitting select and menu, down twice, then right to reset the 4:3 override to OFF. That holds until the next time I change output resolution.

When I called Verizon, I might as well have been speaking Latin. They say they haven't heard any similar complaints.

I could switch to component, but HDMI looks a little crisper. I could leave it on 1080i all the time, but 720p programs aren't as sharp. I could leave it on 720p all the time, but 1080i programs look washed out.

The 4:3 override should not have a mind of its own. Am I the only one with this problem? Am I just being too picky? Should I listen to my wife and just "leave the damn thing alone before you break it again?"

Anyone have the HD "On Demand" yet. If so, how does it look? Any more info would be great.

The previous version of the FIOS on-screen video format setting allowed you to set the 4:3 override (480i, 480p, stretch or OFF) as well as select the output resolution, (1080i, 720p, etc.)

The newest version limits you to picking the output resolution. But whenever I switch it from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting reverts from my preferred setting of OFF to a default of 480i.

That's a big problem for me, because my set won't accept 480i over a digital connection, either HDMI or DVI. Whenever I tune to a non-HD channel; the screen goes blank and I get a "mode not supported" error on the TV.

To fix it, I have to go into the service menu and adjust it with no image on the screen, using just the display on the box. That means powering off the 6416, hitting select and menu, down twice, then right to reset the 4:3 override to OFF. That holds until the next time I change output resolution.

When I called Verizon, I might as well have been speaking Latin. They say they haven't heard any similar complaints.

Just got confirmation from a poster in my local forum. It's real and repeatable. Every time you switch from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting defaults to 480i. The only way to change it back is to go into the service menu for the 6416.

Verizon reps claim they don't know anything about this problem. They misdiagnosed mine as a faulty HDMI port or weak signal, and the other poster had his box replaced. Both service calls were wasted as the problem recurred. Calling Verizon again got another rep who hadn't heard of the issue.

It's a firmware glitch, and the more people who let them know about it, the sooner it'll get fixed.

Just got confirmation from a poster in my local forum. It's real and repeatable. Every time you switch from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting defaults to 480i. The only way to change it back is to go into the service menu for the 6416.

Verizon reps claim they don't know anything about this problem. They misdiagnosed mine as a faulty HDMI port or weak signal, and the other poster had his box replaced. Both service calls were wasted as the problem recurred. Calling Verizon again got another rep who hadn't heard of the issue.

It's a firmware glitch, and the more people who let them know about it, the sooner it'll get fixed.
I had the same problem several weeks ago. Right after receiving the IMG "upgrade". :rolleyes:
I reported it here on AVS. The FiOS tech knew how to fix the problem (like you did it). Now, at least 3 customers have reported it.

I have HD VOD in Tampa, and gave it a try last week. Only a very small number of movies are currently available. They are priced at either $5.99 or $9.99 (for the most recent releases). That compares to renting a DVD from my local video store for $3.99, or using one of the new DVD kiosks that are popping up at supermarkets for $1.00. I bought Meet the Robinsons for $5.99, and got a message indicating I could watch it for 24 hours. I didn't try to see if I could record it. I suspect the signal is highly compressed, since the picture quality was ok but not as good as I get when I rent a standard definition DVD from my local video store. I don't have a Blu-ray or HD-DVD so I can't compare it to those. There were occasional brief periods of pixelation or the picture freezing up for a fraction of a second, but not enough to be truly annoying. My verdict: A $5.99 rental is ok in a pinch if I decide I want to watch a movie but can't get out to the video store or kiosk, The $9.99 fee is just too high, however.


Anyone have the HD "On Demand" yet. If so, how does it look? Any more info would be great.

Thanks for the input. I am trying to decide if I can dump my BB Online acct and not buy a Blu Ray or HD DVD player. Sounds like the HD VOD is a little ways off and very expensive. Any Ver. FISO people monitoring this and want to comment..........

I had the same problem. I got my HL-T5075S as a christmas gift. Hooked it up Christmas Eve night to my QIP6416-2 via HDMI. I could get the HD programming on the 800 channels but not the SD channels nor could I access the DVR. I called the Fios 800 number 3 times to no avail. They even reset my box which cost me about 20hrs of recorded programs. One verizon "tech" even told me that I probably had a bad HDMI cable. Little did I know that a simple trip to the diagnostic menu of the QIP6416-2 would fix my woes. Of course my lurking on AVSforum was extremly helpful.

I had the same problem. I got my HL-T5075S as a christmas gift. Hooked it up Christmas Eve night to my QIP6416-2 via HDMI. I could get the HD programming on the 800 channels but not the SD channels nor could I access the DVR. I called the Fios 800 number 3 times to no avail. They even reset my box which cost me about 20hrs of recorded programs. One verizon "tech" even told me that I probably had a bad HDMI cable. Little did I know that a simple trip to the diagnostic menu of the QIP6416-2 would fix my woes. Of course my lurking on AVSforum was extremly helpful.

The AVS forum has always been a better source of information than undertrained service reps (or ill-informed sales clerks.) That's why we all hang out here.

That's also why it's important to call back once you have solved the problem on your own to educate Verizon and insist, politely but firmly, that they relay the information upstream.

I now count at least six people in this and other forum threads who have had the same experience. Identical problem, clueless Verizon tech misdiagnoses it, we share info here and fix it ourselves, and they still don't realize what's going on.

I've personally talked to four different Verizon reps, all of whom say they have never heard of this issue and tried to convince me it was my set, my cable, my misconfiguration, my dvr, or maybe just my stubbornness in using a digital connection and refusing to stop switching resolutions in search of optimal PQ.

In fact, it's their update that's doing something it's not supposed to do. The more people complain, the likelier they are to admit that and educate their service reps to actually help paying customers while we all wait for a permanent fix.

Rant mode off. Thanks to everyone here for sharing useful knowlege.

Happy New Year, AVS.

Thanks for the input. I am trying to decide if I can dump my BB Online acct and not buy a Blu Ray or HD DVD player. Sounds like the HD VOD is a little ways off and very expensive. Any Ver. FISO people monitoring this and want to comment..........

HD VOD is too expensive, period. For the cost of watching two or three movies on Comcast or FIOS, I can rent a dozen from Netflix (flat fee and I turn them around quick,) or buy one from Amazon (shopping sales and using discounts.)

The initial investment in an HD DVD player is so low now, and they throw in so many free movies, it's almost a no-brainer considering that you also get a quality upscaling DVD player. I'm also partial to the movie lineup on the HD DVD side, which seems a little more adult-oriented and offers more classics.

Blu-ray players are more expensive, the standards are still evolving and the PS3 crowd that makes up the overwhelming majority or customers sway the selections in favor of summer blockbusters and action flicks.

My old fogey prejudices are showing and this isn't the thread for another blue-vs-red debate. But it's fair to say that waiting for a winner in the format war may take a LONG time and for now you're missing out on an economical way to get the best PQ currently available to HT enthusiasts.

VOD gives you less selection, lower quality and higher price. All IMHO of course.

Just what I was looking for. Thanks for the comments.

The AVS forum has always been a better source of information than undertrained service reps (or ill-informed sales clerks.) That's why we all hang out here.

That's also why it's important to call back once you have solved the problem on your own to educate Verizon and insist, politely but firmly, that they relay the information upstream.

I now count at least six people in this and other forum threads who have had the same experience. Identical problem, clueless Verizon tech misdiagnoses it, we share info here and fix it ourselves, and they still don't realize what's going on.

I've personally talked to four different Verizon reps, all of whom say they have never heard of this issue and tried to convince me it was my set, my cable, my misconfiguration, my dvr, or maybe just my stubbornness in using a digital connection and refusing to stop switching resolutions in search of optimal PQ.

In fact, it's their update that's doing something it's not supposed to do. The more people complain, the likelier they are to admit that and educate their service reps to actually help paying customers while we all wait for a permanent fix.

Rant mode off. Thanks to everyone here for sharing useful knowlege.

Happy New Year, AVS.

My sentiments exactly. I havent had too many problems with FIOS, but I do find their support lacking. I was especially miffed by this issue. The first two verizon folks did "try" to solve the problem, but their "help" cost me all of the shows I had on my dvr. The third person is who really ticked me off with her comment that the HDMI cable was bad. At that moment I knew that barring a miracle I wasn't going to get help from Verizon. I will be calling them to let them now that I know more about their STB and how it interacts with my TV.
But I can say that I am now getting to take in the full glory of my Sammy DLP.
I appreciate all of the knowledgable folks at AVS who have helped a noob like me step into the HD era.

Hi, just joined this thread as a new Verizon FiOS sub. Made my switch from Comcast a week ago Thurs., about 2 weeks after our county was opened to Verizon for TV. I did several searches but didn't find a parallel to my situation.

So now I'm on my second 6416 box. Friday night I determined I could not get 4 of the HD channels on my subscription: NGHD, A&EHD, DiscHD, and LMNHD - "Currently Unavailable". I have a non_DVR HD box (6200) on which I could get these channels. So I called Sat. and after going through the voice response menus a few times I finally got a call back from an agent. Of course their solution was to hit me with a reboot - twice. Neither one fixed the problem.

But here's the first funny result. I didn't lose my program guide on the 6416 but I did lose it on the 6200. I reported the results to the agent and he scheduled a tech to come this morning.

We reviewed the problems which he witnessed and called in. On a Sunday morning at 8:45 he had to wait over 35 minutes to talk to someone!! He said he had to go through the same calling routine as customers and get into a queue. Amazing! - This is our phone company which can't dedicate a path for their service people??!!

Anyway, they tried another reboot that didn't bring in the unavailable channels so he was authorized to switch out the box, and that did fix the problem. He had never run across a box that had such selectivity in pulling in authorized channels.

So I guess I have traded my travails of my Comcast 6412, 6416 and 3416 for this new variety of Motorola's creativity. Glad to join in all your STB experiences here - Happy New Year!

This may be an issue long thrashed and discarded, but as best I can tell (and according to Verizon rep as well), there is no way to buy a FIOS DVR or non-DVR STB, instead you must rent them. As I understand it, Verizon is exempt from the FCC ruling that users must be allowed to purchase whatever STB they want. But if this is the case, why are people selling them on e-Bay, and if they are not hot, would they work?

This may be an issue long thrashed and discarded, but as best I can tell (and according to Verizon rep as well), there is no way to buy a FIOS DVR or non-DVR STB, instead you must rent them. As I understand it, Verizon is exempt from the FCC ruling that users must be allowed to purchase whatever STB they want. But if this is the case, why are people selling them on e-Bay, and if they are not hot, would they work?
No, the Motorola 6416s on ebay would not work. They won't work with any cable company as the Motorolas are not sold to the public in the US. Most of the Motorolas DVRs on ebay are likely stolen or not returned to the cable company they were leased from. The model Verizon uses is the QIP 6416 HD-DVR where the QIP indicates that it supports IP which is used by Verizon for VOD and the guide data. The DVR has to be initialized by Verizon with the codes & guide data. They will do this only for their boxes.

If you want to own the DVR, the choices are the TivoHD, the Series 3 HD Tivo, or a properly equipped PC with cable card. With the HD Tivos, you will need to lease 2 cable cards or one multi-stream card whenever the heck Verizon starts to carry them. The HD Tivo will be much superior to the 6416 DVR, but will not support VOD.

Just got confirmation from a poster in my local forum. It's real and repeatable. Every time you switch from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting defaults to 480i. The only way to change it back is to go into the service menu for the 6416.

Verizon reps claim they don't know anything about this problem. They misdiagnosed mine as a faulty HDMI port or weak signal, and the other poster had his box replaced. Both service calls were wasted as the problem recurred. Calling Verizon again got another rep who hadn't heard of the issue.

It's a firmware glitch, and the more people who let them know about it, the sooner it'll get fixed.

Got a call back from a Verizon rep after multiple complaints. He said it's a "known problem" and Verizon is "working feverishly" to solve it.

Now if they'll just pass that information along to their tech support folks, customers won't have to jump through flaming hoops and perform useless tests for unrelated problems to get it properly diagnosed.

Happy New Year, everybody.

No, the Motorola 6416s on ebay would not work. They won't work with any cable company as the Motorolas are not sold to the public in the US. Most of the Motorolas DVRs on ebay are likely stolen or not returned to the cable company they were leased from. The model Verizon uses is the QIP 6416 HD-DVR where the QIP indicates that it supports IP which is used by Verizon for VOD and the guide data. The DVR has to be initialized by Verizon with the codes & guide data. They will do this only for their boxes.

If you want to own the DVR, the choices are the TivoHD, the Series 3 HD Tivo, or a properly equipped PC with cable card. With the HD Tivos, you will need to lease 2 cable cards or one multi-stream card whenever the heck Verizon starts to carry them. The HD Tivo will be much superior to the 6416 DVR, but will not support VOD.
Thanks for the response. I had pretty much concluded this. I am frustrated that the phone company has once again found a way to rent HW to the customer (as they did before the break up of Ma Bell). And I am frustrated they circumvented the FCC ruling. However, given how fast things are changing, maybe it is best to let them take the technical risk for a while. On balance, my frustration is not such that it overtakes the service, which I am pretty happy with, box resets not withstanding.

Thanks for the response. I had pretty much concluded this. I am frustrated that the phone company has once again found a way to rent HW to the customer (as they did before the break up of Ma Bell). And I am frustrated they circumvented the FCC ruling. However, given how fast things are changing, maybe it is best to let them take the technical risk for a while. On balance, my frustration is not such that it overtakes the service, which I am pretty happy with, box resets not withstanding.Verizon FiOS is not exempt from the FCC CableCard mandate, which applies to all digital cable (QAM) systems of 750+MHz. You can buy the same hardware for Verizon FiOS that you can for any other cable provider.

As noted above, Motorola boxes are only sold direct to cable companies in the United States, so the overwhelming majority of those sold on ebay are stolen. You can tell they are stolen because they sell at absurdly low prices -- Comcast pays over $400/ea for their Motorola DVRs and Verizon pays closer to $500/ea. I am not aware of any cable company in the U.S. that will activate these stolen devices.

Your options to "own" are limited to the TivoHD, Tivo Series3, Vista Media Center w/ CableCards, and the [discontinued] Sony DHG-HDDxxx regardless of your cable provider.

I appear to only be getting 40 or so hours of standard def recording. Somewhere 60gb of the 160gb hard drive a missing. Verizon had me power off the unit, press select twice which brought up a menu. Down towards the bottom is a menu item that tells you haow the HD is used. The display is all wrong and we could not account for about 60gb.

Anyone else seeing this. We have the latest image.

I appear to only be getting 40 or so hours of standard def recording. Somewhere 60gb of the 160gb hard drive a missing. Verizon had me power off the unit, press select twice which brought up a menu. Down towards the bottom is a menu item that tells you haow the HD is used. The display is all wrong and we could not account for about 60gb.

Anyone else seeing this. We have the latest image.What build of the IMG software do you have? There is a known issue with misreported capacity under the first release of the new IMG.

What build of the IMG software do you have? There is a known issue with misreported capacity under the first release of the new IMG.I just do not understand why some folks still say how much they like IMG. :confused:

I just do not understand why some folks still say how much they like IMG. :confused:

Because it has been useful and does its basic functions correctly. I would like more features, and I do miss the Tivo abilities, but I had my own issues with my DirecTivo boxes. I spend most of my time watching the shows, not playing with the IMG. As long as I can get to where I need to be or record what I need to, I'm good.

I expect more work to be done, improvements to the IMG to be made, but right now it is not preventing me from enjoying the FIOS service.

I'm not able to edit settings in the setup menu. I can access the menu via (from STB power on) power off, select, select, menu. I can browse each of the submenus, but I can't find a way to edit anything. What button/buttons do I use to go into edit mode?

Thanks,
Doug

What build of the IMG software do you have? There is a known issue with misreported capacity under the first release of the new IMG.


I have the newer build. The system just appears to have lost 60gb. I am waiting for a call from tier 2 tech support today. Will report back.

As a side note, has anyone tried to hook up a drive to the firewire port? I know the USB is disabled but someone intoned that the firewire port may be active.

I spend most of my time watching the shows, not playing with the IMG. As long as I can get to where I need to be or record what I need to, I'm good.

I expect more work to be done, improvements to the IMG to be made, but right now it is not preventing me from enjoying the FIOS service.

It's the getting where I want to go and recording what I need to that's not working for me. The search function is the slowest and clunkiest I've ever seen with a poor interface and illogical results. Recording anything with a few minutes of pad at the end requires a separate trip to the guide. The guide itself is limited and slow to scroll chronologically in a single channel.

Comcast wasn't perfect, but their guide and settings menu were much simpler and quicker to use. My wife is now back to using the newspaper listings to find her shows, and I'd rather leave the room to search TitanTV on my PC than futz with the FIOS guide.

FIOS has great PQ, a good lineup and fair pricing. IMG is a dinosaur. But in this case I'm not hoping for evolution, I'm praying for extinction.

FIOS has great PQ, a good lineup and fair pricing. IMG is a dinosaur. But in this case I'm not hoping for evolution, I'm praying for extinction.Thankfully, other DVR options are available for FiOS.

I personally would not be with FiOS today if I were forced to use the QIP6416 DVR.

That said, Verizon should continue to improve the IMG over time.

Comcast wasn't perfect, but their guide and settings menu were much simpler and quicker to use.

I guess this just proves the old adage that you can't please all of the people all of the time. I've been following the various FiOS threads for a while now and the majority of folks have reported that they find the FiOS guide easier to use than the Comcast one.

It's the getting where I want to go and recording what I need to that's not working for me. The search function is the slowest and clunkiest I've ever seen with a poor interface and illogical results. Recording anything with a few minutes of pad at the end requires a separate trip to the guide. The guide itself is limited and slow to scroll chronologically in a single channel.

Comcast wasn't perfect, but their guide and settings menu were much simpler and quicker to use. My wife is now back to using the newspaper listings to find her shows, and I'd rather leave the room to search TitanTV on my PC than futz with the FIOS guide.

FIOS has great PQ, a good lineup and fair pricing. IMG is a dinosaur. But in this case I'm not hoping for evolution, I'm praying for extinction.

Well, different strokes, I guess - I found the DirecTivo interface to be extremely slow, but very useful. I've had to scale back on the richness of the search functions in some regards, but I can still do the basics. I can see your points, they are valid, but not deal killers for me.

I can recommend the Tivo units, having used them before, if richness of features is that important to you, I would rather have basic functions and VOD content. I agree about the program guide, it is too basic, but again not a deal killer for me.

I just traded my comcast HDDVR box for the 6416 FIOS version yesterday. Right away I noticed problems with my Infocus projector.

I am running component video, sync on green to the infocus M1 connector. This worked wonderfully with the comcast box. I have the 6416 set to 720p 16x9, but I am having a few issues.

First, when I switch between standard def and HD channels, the projector re-syncs between 720p HD and some resolution @59Hz for standard def. When it does this, the projector can't seem to get sync and goes blue. Then maybe 10 seconds later, it syncs up to the signal. Very annoying.

Second issue, sometimes the color is all fouled up. from what I can tell, i don't think the projector is seeing the green signal all the time. If I only connect my green, the image is B/W. Red and blue are added when their connections are made. Sometimes rebooting the 6416 fixes this problem, but it sometimes re-appears after the projector is powered off/on.

Third issue, the HD channels are DIM... very DIM! I have to increase the brightness on the projector to around 80, where as standard def channels are normally bright at the standard 50 gain. I have not checked 1080i to see if brightness there is similar.

Thoughts?

Thanks,
-J

I could use some help here.

1) can anyone point me to a comparison between the moto hd dvr and the HD tivo? I'm thinking of joining fios but i have no idea if I need to invest in a tivo or not. right now I'm using TWC and their Scientific atlanta HD dvr and it works just fine. all i care about is season pass, quick UI, and you can watch tv while browsing the tv guide. I suppose if i were to get greedy I'd love to be able to watch divx from the dvr box too.

2) is there a thread that talks about what HD programming is available on fios in southern cali/los angeles?

First, when I switch between standard def and HD channels, the projector re-syncs between 720p HD and some resolution @59Hz for standard def. When it does this, the projector can't seem to get sync and goes blue. Then maybe 10 seconds later, it syncs up to the signal. Very annoying.-J

With everything on and displaying a channel, hit the buttons on the front of the box in this order: Power, Select, Menu. That will take you to a b&w menu with various settings. One of them is 4:3 override. Set that to OFF and all the 480i channels will be output at your selected resolution, 720p or 1080i.

Hit power twice to return to watching TV. That will stop the synch between channels.

But there is a known issue that causes the 4:3 override to default to 480i when you change resolutions to 1080i, so you'll have to repeat the procedure if you switch.

I could use some help here.

2) is there a thread that talks about what HD programming is available on fios in southern cali/los angeles?

Except for local stations and some regional sports networks, all programming on FiOS is the same nationwide. Go to http://www22.verizon.com/content/fiostv/channel+lineup/channel+lineup.htm and plug in your zip code to see what locals/rsns you get.

We're on the new release and build and the thing I find most annoying is how the recorded channel is brought up in real time when stopping a recording, even if another channel was last watched "live". It is ruining my enjoyment of sports that are being recorded and watched from the recording before the event is finished. It's hard not to notice the score or listen in in the time it takes to get back to the point the recording was stopped. I saw this was a condition in the earlier release that it was hoped would be changed with the update. Guess not.

We're on the new release and build and the thing I find most annoying is how the recorded channel is brought up in real time when stopping a recording, even if another channel was last watched "live". It is ruining my enjoyment of sports that are being recorded and watched from the recording before the event is finished. It's hard not to notice the score or listen in in the time it takes to get back to the point the recording was stopped. I saw this was a condition in the earlier release that it was hoped would be changed with the update. Guess not.

This is really annoying to me too. In addition, the comcast software had a swap button that you could swap tuners. While not very useful for recording anything, it was useful when you wanted to quickly switch between 4 sporting events. Combinations of switching tuners and pressing the last button could easily switch between 4 channels.

-J

Has anyone else noticed that the "skip" button on recordings on the multiroom version on the remote boxes is extremely short? Before the change over the remote boxes mirrored the setting on the main DVR - namely it would skip a full minute. Since the new release of 1.04 I only get a few seconds regardless of my setting on the main DVR (and there the skip button performs as it should). Anyone else notice this or found a solution or specifically not having a problem and only need a reboot?

Thanks.

With everything on and displaying a channel, hit the buttons on the front of the box in this order: Power, Select, Menu. That will take you to a b&w menu with various settings. One of them is 4:3 override. Set that to OFF and all the 480i channels will be output at your selected resolution, 720p or 1080i.

Hit power twice to return to watching TV. That will stop the synch between channels.

But there is a known issue that causes the 4:3 override to default to 480i when you change resolutions to 1080i, so you'll have to repeat the procedure if you switch.

FYI: the sequence of Power, Select, Menu buttons should be pressed quickly. Otherwise, the box will not get into the hidden b&w menu.

FYI: the sequence of Power, Select, Menu buttons should be pressed quickly. Otherwise, the box will not get into the hidden b&w menu.

The actual sequence is power-select-select-menu (notice hitting select twice). That sequence brings up the menu for me on the 6416 and the 2500.

However, once in the menu, I can't figure out how to edit the settings. I've tried all the buttons on the box as well as many buttons on the remote. I can navigate to view all the submenus, but can't change anything.

Can someone please help? Thanks.
Doug

The actual sequence is power-select-select-menu (notice hitting select twice). That sequence brings up the menu for me on the 6416 and the 2500.

However, once in the menu, I can't figure out how to edit the settings. I've tried all the buttons on the box as well as many buttons on the remote. I can navigate to view all the submenus, but can't change anything.

Can someone please help? Thanks.
Doug

That is because by hitting select twice it puts you in the diagnostics screen.

Hit Power Off - Select - Menu and you will be in the settings menu. If you are connected by HDMI you may need to temporarily hookup component and switch to that input on your tv in order to access the menu, I have to do that on one of my tvs.

Thanks all. The 4:3 overide fixed my sync issue. Care to explain why 720p is so dim and 1080i is much brighter?

I must say... thus far, the shortcomings of this firmware/box are mad up 10 fold in picture quality. I am watching the orange bowl, and the picture is 100 times better than comcast HD ever was!

-J

Thanks all. The 4:3 overide fixed my sync issue. Care to explain why 720p is so dim and 1080i is much brighter?It could be a calibration issue on your display. Some displays save separate settings for 720p and 1080i.

Or that could just be how your TV handles 720p and 1080i input.

Thanks all. The 4:3 overide fixed my sync issue. Care to explain why 720p is so dim and 1080i is much brighter?
-J

My experience has been that the 1080i picture off of the QIP is superior to the 720p picture, both in terms of brightness and clarify -- even though the native resolution on my set is closer to 720p. I am not sure why this is so, but I have switched back and forth and now am pretty much set on 1080i as the superior input.

Note that I do not see this difference when watching native HD OTA in 720p vs. 1080i, so I don't think it is my television or settings.

My experience has been that the 1080i picture off of the QIP is superior to the 720p picture, both in terms of brightness and clarify -- even though the native resolution on my set is closer to 720p. I am not sure why this is so, but I have switched back and forth and now am pretty much set on 1080i as the superior input.

Note that I do not see this difference when watching native HD OTA in 720p vs. 1080i, so I don't think it is my television or settings.

The simple explanation is that your set is doing a better job of scaling and deinterlacing than the Moto box. That's true with my 720p Sammy DLP, too.

That's why I wish Motorola would offer a pass-through option to keep 1080i at 1080i and 720p at 720p. Failing that, at least give me firmware that doesn't screw up my 4:3 overrride and blank all the 4:3 stations when I switch to 1080i.

You can test for yourself to see what works best with your setup. Let's assume for simplicity that you have a 720p TV.

Go into the settings menu and select 1080i as the output resolution. Tune to a live or recorded 1080i program and pause during a tight closeup. Check the detail in eyelashes, facial blemishes, etc. Make a mental note of one area to compare. Leave it paused, go back into the settings menu and switch to 720p. Is any detail lost, does the image look softer or the colors less saturated?

If the answer is yes, You might want to consider making 1080i your default output and switching to 720p only when you're watching a 720p show and image quality really matters.

I've found that on my set, 720p looks better at 1080i than 1080i does at 720p, so I leave it on 1080i most of the time. I suspect that holds true for 1080p sets as well.

The deinterlacer in the Moto boxes (also used by Comcast,) is not the greatest. Follow the procedue above with a 1080i or 480i source, but this time pause on movie credits or the fine print in a car ad. Look closely at the lines and curves of the letters. Do you see jaggies when viewed at 720p that aren't there at 1080i?

If you do, your set has a better deinterlacer than the box and 1080i might be your best bet for everyday viewing.

Everybody's setup is different, and some displays do a better or worse job than the Moto box, so YMMV.

In NJ we still have the old Microsoft software. Can someone with the new software does the box output on both the HDMI port and the analog video (RCA Yellow, Black, and Red) ports simultaneously?

I have a rather unusual configuration. I have an HDMI tv in my family room hooked up to the DVR and I also connected the analog output of the DVR to an RF video extender to my kitchen to duplicate the output on my small under the counter LCD tv in my kitchen. This is done for 2 reasons,

1) Did not feel like doing a wiring job
2) Did not want or need an big cable box in my kitchen because of limited space
3) still wanted to watch more than just the analog channels in the kitchen and the little lcd tv does not have a QAM tuner
4) Because we timeshift I did not want the kitchen tv to give away the ending of a show we just started.

In NJ we still have the old Microsoft software. Can someone with the new software does the box output on both the HDMI port and the analog video (RCA Yellow, Black, and Red) ports simultaneously?

I have a rather unusual configuration. I have an HDMI tv in my family room hooked up to the DVR and I also connected the analog output of the DVR to an RF video extender to my kitchen to duplicate the output on my small under the counter LCD tv in my kitchen. This is done for 2 reasons,

1) Did not feel like doing a wiring job
2) Did not want or need an big cable box in my kitchen because of limited space
3) still wanted to watch more than just the analog channels in the kitchen and the little lcd tv does not have a QAM tuner
4) Because we timeshift I did not want the kitchen tv to give away the ending of a show we just started.

yes, it's simultaneous on all ports. I run my slingbox off the component port and an RF extender off the composite port.

yes, it's simultaneous on all ports. I run my slingbox off the component port and an RF extender off the composite port.

Thank you for your response. Whenever I create my own configuration I am always concerned that I am one software download away from my having to change everything.

This thing with the IMG switching to live programming when a recording is stopped while the show is still being recorded (make sense?) is driving me nuts. I now discovered that is not the only annoying thing about the faulty logic employed here.

Last night I'm watching the Blazers/Bulls game on TNT from a recording I set via the Guide with an end scheduled for 7:30 PST. While watching, I realize the game isn't going to end before the recording stops. So I go to the Guide and hit the record button to record the following time segment, in this case the next game from 7:30 - 10:00. Fine. I'm watching the exciting conclusion to the game and what happens at 7:30 (1:14 from regulation end)? A brief pause of maybe 1/2 second and I'm watching the game "live" already into overtime! WTF!!

When a recording ends it should tell me so and ask me what I want to do with it, no?? Why does it automatically assume I want to watch that channel "live"? What's the use of timeshifting when you are constantly being put into the position of finding out the ending before viewing whole the story? This is totally illogical. Don't Verizon and Comcast spy on each other to figure out the best of both worlds and try to differentiate their products for the betterment of the viewer? Comcast, I must say, handled the above aspect very well. Verizon should take notes.

I was already using the second tuner to record the Orange Bowl game and that was not interrupted. But there was an interesting event to the end of that recording, as well. At the end of the Orange Bowl game and before the recording window ended, I hit the stop button. The recording continued in the little window upper right on the screen while I deleted the basketball recordings. The Orange Bowl recording was not in the list. I went to full screen and there the OB recording played on. I hit the Info button and the Orange Bowl description came up over that recording on screen. Huh? I go back to the DVR inventory and it's not there. But it plays on. Only when I finally did a channel up then down did I get into what was being broadcast live on that Fox channel (news at 10). I have no idea how much longer that OB recording would have continued. I mustn't have had too much time from the actual end of the game and the scheduled end of the alloted time (9:00?). But I was seeing post game analysis on the lingering recording. Weird.

Conclusion: When you want to watch live programming coming out of a recording you may not be able to. When you don't want to see live programming coming out of a recording you probably will. :mad:

That is because by hitting select twice it puts you in the diagnostics screen.

Hit Power Off - Select - Menu and you will be in the settings menu. If you are connected by HDMI you may need to temporarily hookup component and switch to that input on your tv in order to access the menu, I have to do that on one of my tvs.

That did the trick (off-select-menu, not component). Thanks for your help.
Doug

Just got FiOS setup yesterday - I've read through all of the posts on getting into the service menu and setting up the 4:3 override. Here is my question.

I have the 6416 HD-Media-DVR connected to a Sony 36" Trinitron HS510, which is a CRT picture tube that supports 1080i (I am using component cables).

The HD channels look great and have the black bars at the top and the bottom (no problem). The issue I have is with the SD channels. The only way I can get good looking picutre quality is to set the 4:3 override to OFF, which essentially creates a large black border all the way around the picture. If I set the override to 480i, the picture fills the entire screen, but is blurry and appears stretched beyond the width of the screen.

Is there any way to get the SD channels to work full screen as they would if I connected an SD STB?? When I had Cox Cable, the SD channels worked as I expected, and when I switched to an HD channel, the component cable would kick in.

Thanks very much in advance,
Brandon

If I set the override to 480i, the picture fills the entire screen, but is blurry and appears stretched beyond the width of the screen.

Did you try setting "TV Type" (1st line of user menu) to one of the 4:3 options?

Yes. Makes the picture look the same as the 480i override.

Any other ideas? This is the only thing so far that has frustrated me about this setup. Everything else works great!

==Brandon

Yes. Makes the picture look the same as the 480i override.

Any other ideas? This is the only thing so far that has frustrated me about this setup. Everything else works great!

==Brandon

I played around with the 480i settings last night. Turning the override off sends the signal the same as 4:3 material on an HD channel. Our TV is set to Full for HD, and Just for SD. With the override off, the TV will do one setting for all channels. So, I switched to 480p and can now do Just separately for SD channels again.

I would suggest doing the same - use your TV to zoom/expand the SD channels. Let us know how it looks.

Doug

I didn't anything my Sony TV settings to zoom or expand the signal from the cable box.

The good thing about this situation is that I might be able to convince my wife that it's time to get an LCD to replace this TV. The problem is that I will be limited to a 42" LCD as we are putting it into an armoire.

Does anyone have a recommendation for the best, highest quality 42" LCD that works well over HDMI with FiOS? Also, the total physical size of the screen width cannot exceed 42.5", so whatever I get will have to have a relatively thin bezel.

Thanks again for everyone's help!

==Brandon

I didn't anything my Sony TV settings to zoom or expand the signal from the cable box.

The good thing about this situation is that I might be able to convince my wife that it's time to get an LCD to replace this TV. The problem is that I will be limited to a 42" LCD as we are putting it into an armoire.

Does anyone have a recommendation for the best, highest quality 42" LCD that works well over HDMI with FiOS? Also, the total physical size of the screen width cannot exceed 42.5", so whatever I get will have to have a relatively thin bezel.

Thanks again for everyone's help!

==BrandonJust a thought about putting electronics into furniture to make it look good. Beware of the heat monster.

The HD channels look great and have the black bars at the top and the bottom (no problem).Yes, maybe problem. HD channels should not have any bars (unless they are movies, which can sometimes have them). HD Sports- definitely not. A quick check on the internet says your TV is 4:3, but what happens if you change the TV type to 16:9? Might help to understand what the problem is, even if it's not the "correct" setting.

LCD flat panel forum is here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=166

Hey guys, I have the QIP6416-2 from Verizon. I have been seraching through the forums but haven't found anything on what I am experiencing. My DVR audio/video is EXTREMELY out of sync. Hooked up to Samsung DLP with HDMI.

Thanks for any help I can get!

- Jon

Sadly still stuck with 1.03 here. Can't think of any missed recordings lately, but I think the credit for that goes to the writers' strike and less shows to record. I don't understand if the update exists, why they can't roll it out everywhere, especially for someone like me that has called support on many of the issues.

What frequency splitter would I need to use on FIOS to set up the local channels with the QAM tuner on the tv so picture in picture could be used?

hi i got fios a couple of days ago i got two hd boxes for two tvs one box is a dvr and the other is just a hd box. i was wondering how many hours of sd recording will i get and how many hours hd recording time will i get on the dvr. also if i record something with the dvr can i watch it on the other hd box.

What frequency splitter would I need to use on FIOS to set up the local channels with the QAM tuner on the tv so picture in picture could be used?

A 1 GHz splitter will work.
Will your set use the digital input (QAM tuner) for PIP? None of our sets will (Sony, Vizio, Akai)... they only like analog for the 2nd source.

hi i got fios a couple of days ago i got two hd boxes for two tvs one box is a dvr and the other is just a hd box. i was wondering how many hours of sd recording will i get and how many hours hd recording time will i get on the dvr. also if i record something with the dvr can i watch it on the other hd box.

The DVR is rated at 80 hours of SD, for about 20 HD hours. The only way to distribute recorded programming is by the multi room DVR, but it is only able to distribute SD programming now. I heard that some time later that will change, but for now, only SD. The SD is excellent, though.

Hey guys, I have the QIP6416-2 from Verizon. I have been seraching through the forums but haven't found anything on what I am experiencing. My DVR audio/video is EXTREMELY out of sync. Hooked up to Samsung DLP with HDMI. - Jon

I was just talking to FiOS tech support today ... some (not all) of my DVR recordings are out of sync (some more so than others). He did a reboot "push" from the office and said that if that didn't correct the problem, they would have to replace the DVR. Making some recordings tonight and will check them out tomorrow.

Hah...not long after I complain about no update in here... Last night I noticed my box was again off and after I booted it to my surprise 1.04 was waiting for me! So it should be rolled out now in MA.

There are small tweaks and touch-ups to the graphics (just reaffirming that what we had before was not a final product) and the DVR now goes back to where you left off in the program list when you stop a recording. We'll have to see if the recording reliability issues are fixed.

I have 1.0.4 here in MA now too. Still no "real" dual buffering like Tivo though. :(

I have 1.0.4 here in MA now too. Still no "real" dual buffering like Tivo though. :(

True, no Tivo like buffering, which would have been nice, still an improvement to be able to backtrack about 20 minutes or so.

I have 1.0.4 here in MA now too. Still no "real" dual buffering like Tivo though. :(

How are you defining this? I can get dual buffers now.

The dual buffers on the Motorola will periodically go out with 1.0.4. It's not clear what causes this.

You should be able to fix it by rebooting the box. Disconnect and reconnect the power to the Motorola.

So far I haven't had that problem, but it's been only a bit over a day thus far.

The dual buffers on the Motorola will periodically go out with 1.0.4. It's not clear what causes this.

You should be able to fix it by rebooting the box. Disconnect and reconnect the power to the Motorola.

yes, this has happened to me a couple of times for no apparent reason. You don't have to reboot though, start recording a channel, enter a new channel, hit last and stop recording the first channel and you will get the dual buffers going again.

How are you defining this? I can get dual buffers now.

I am defining this by the way TIVO works. You don't have to hit record or any other tricks. Pause the channel you are on. Go to another channel and watch for a while. Then go back to the other channel, it should still be paused. Also in TIVO you really do have two tuners. You can have one tuner paused while surfing other channels on the other tuner. I really miss that. They must have a patent on it or something.

The dual buffers on the Motorola will periodically go out with 1.0.4. It's not clear what causes this.

You should be able to fix it by rebooting the box. Disconnect and reconnect the power to the Motorola.

Right you are. Happened tonight and rebooting fixed it...for now.

I am defining this by the way TIVO works. You don't have to hit record or any other tricks. Pause the channel you are on. Go to another channel and watch for a while. Then go back to the other channel, it should still be paused. Also in TIVO you really do have two tuners. You can have one tuner paused while surfing other channels on the other tuner. I really miss that. They must have a patent on it or something.

I never use my Tivo dual buffers that way, so for me the FIOS DVR works the same way. Of course they need to fix the glitch that causes a temporary loss of buffers.

I recently switched to Verizon from Comcast and went through the learning process for recording to PC with Firewire. I had no trouble in capturing all of my saved programs from the 3416 Motorola with CapDVHS, including programs from channels I couldn't stream live through VLC.

Unfortunately, my new 6416 box refuses to allow any saved programs at all from being captured, even from channels VLC can play live. Is this an intended restriction on the DVR box or is something wrong with my setup?

Is there any way to get the SD channels to work full screen as they would if I connected an SD STB?? When I had Cox Cable, the SD channels worked as I expected, and when I switched to an HD channel, the component cable would kick in.

Thanks very much in advance,
Brandon

I just got FiOS myself and have a samsung 47" HD RPTV. When we installed the 6416, you couldn't watch the SD channels. What we did to make it work was set the 4:3 override in the service menu (not sure WHY this isn't in the standard settings menu of the box, Verizon needs to change that). I believe it was set to 480i. What you need to do is set it to what the component jacks on your TV can handle. I'm surprised the 480p or stretch settings don't work for you. However, from what you stated, it sounds like you need a new TV. Otherwise, to get around the issue, perhaps you could use a second input from the STB to your TV. Let your wife change the video on the TV enough times switching between HD and regular and she'll go buy the TV.

I recently switched to Verizon from Comcast and went through the learning process for recording to PC with Firewire. I had no trouble in capturing all of my saved programs from the 3416 Motorola with CapDVHS, including programs from channels I couldn't stream live through VLC.

Unfortunately, my new 6416 box refuses to allow any saved programs at all from being captured, even from channels VLC can play live. Is this an intended restriction on the DVR box or is something wrong with my setup?You should be able to record local channels via Firewire, but like most Comcast systems (but apparently not yours), FiOS encrypts all their digital cable channels so they cannot be viewed directly with an unauthorized device like a standard PC.

To capture other FiOS HD channels with your PC, you would need either a TiVo (screenshot (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/tivoweb.png)) or a Vista CableCard PC. Or a 5C compliant Firewire device like a JVC HDTV D-VHS VCR.

Just got confirmation from a poster in my local forum. It's real and repeatable. Every time you switch from 720p to 1080i, the 4:3 override setting defaults to 480i. The only way to change it back is to go into the service menu for the 6416.




This can also happen when simply switching inputs. I've gone from my BR or HD DVD player and back to FIOS and found that it switched the 4:3 settings. So perhaps just going from 1080p to 1080i is enough to trigger this glitch.

I am defining this by the way TIVO works. You don't have to hit record or any other tricks. Pause the channel you are on. Go to another channel and watch for a while. Then go back to the other channel, it should still be paused. Also in TIVO you really do have two tuners. You can have one tuner paused while surfing other channels on the other tuner. I really miss that. They must have a patent on it or something.

It is VERY annoying the FIOS 6416 does not have this feature.

-J

You should be able to record local channels via Firewire, but like most Comcast systems (but apparently not yours), FiOS encrypts all their digital cable channels so they cannot be viewed directly with an unauthorized device like a standard PC.

To capture other FiOS HD channels with your PC, you would need either a TiVo (screenshot (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/tivoweb.png)) or a Vista CableCard PC. Or a 5C compliant Firewire device like a JVC HDTV D-VHS VCR.

I was just about to buy a new firewire cable to connect my FIOS DVR to my new pc so that I could burn DVD's for my kids. If there was a program they wanted to keep for a long period of time I was transfering it to vhs for them but that method is so outdated that I figured that I could just replace it with firewire and a DVD burner. I think your telling me that I can't. Right?

I was just about to buy a new firewire cable to connect my FIOS DVR to my new pc so that I could burn DVD's for my kids. If there was a program they wanted to keep for a long period of time I was transfering it to vhs for them but that method is so outdated that I figured that I could just replace it with firewire and a DVD burner. I think your telling me that I can't. Right?For recordings from local channels on FiOS, you can use Firewire. For cable channels, you cannot.

That's one of many reasons why people buy a TiVo, as it lets you download recorded files (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/tivoweb.png) from any FiOS channel to a PC, where you can then remove the commercials (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/videoredo/videoredo3.png), and burn to DVD (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/videoredo/videoredo_dvd.png) with Dolby Digital 5.1.

We got the new IMG on Long Island. I have to look to see which version we got.

For recordings from local channels on FiOS, you can use Firewire. For cable channels, you cannot.

That's one of many reasons why people buy a TiVo, as it lets you download recorded files (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/tivoweb.png) from any FiOS channel to a PC, where you can then remove the commercials (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/videoredo/videoredo3.png), and burn to DVD (http://mysite.verizon.net/~fiosdvr/videoredo/videoredo_dvd.png) with Dolby Digital 5.1.

That's really a shame. Thank you for the info!!

We got the new IMG on Long Island. I have to look to see which version we got.

We got the latest version on Long Island.

I just had FIOS and a 6416 installed. For some reason, everytime I set the box to 1080i it reverts to 720p. I'm guessing this has to do with the HDMI handshake when I switch between xbox360, 6416 SD, & 6416 HD. Everything is routed through an Integra receiver via HDMI.

Has anyone else experienced this and come up with a solution/workaround?

Thanks

Anyone else having a problem with playback of recorded shows? When I playback the picture will freeze sometimes every few seconds. I have 2 DVRs and it is a lot worse on one than the other. One almost everything recorded does it, and the other just does it every once in a while. Live programs do not show this behavior.

I just had FIOS and a 6416 installed. For some reason, everytime I set the box to 1080i it reverts to 720p. I'm guessing this has to do with the HDMI handshake when I switch between xbox360, 6416 SD, & 6416 HD. Everything is routed through an Integra receiver via HDMI.

Has anyone else experienced this and come up with a solution/workaround?

Thanks

Similar thing happens on my Onkyo. You have to either be extremely careful on how you turn things on and switch inputs, or drop back down to component on the dvr and save yourself the trouble.

the audio/video sync appears to be slightly off when watching something on DVR, but fine on live tv. anyone else? it even happens even if live tv is just skipped back 10 seconds.

the audio/video sync appears to be slightly off when watching something on DVR, but fine on live tv. anyone else? it even happens even if live tv is just skipped back 10 seconds.

Nope. Watched 30 Rock and Grey's Anatomy off the DVR last night and had no issues. Unplug and replug and see if that cures it.

Similar thing happens on my Onkyo. You have to either be extremely careful on how you turn things on and switch inputs, or drop back down to component on the dvr and save yourself the trouble.

I'm using a Harmony with one button to turn everything on or switch input devices. I'll try the components this weekend.

Thanks :)

Awful, awful couple of days here.

I had Fios installed 2 days ago and the Fios TV service had me ready to have a heart attack.

Apparently, going into my Hitachi 55'' Plasma through HDMI was causing me to get a completely pink screen!

This freaked me out. The entire screen upon turning the plasma and the set top box on would turn pink. You could see images on screen, but it was as if you put a pink filter over the screen.

I quickly checked all my other source components; Xbox 360, HD DVD Player, SD DVD Player and none of them caused this problem when turning them on with the plasma. Only the Motorola HD DVR box Fios provided was making my plasma screen go pink and wonky.

If I turned the screen off and then back on, the pink screen would go away or if I switched to another component it would go away immediately.

I then decided to see what would happen if I hooked the Fios STB to my plasma through component and voila, the problem went away. No more pink screen. It looked like it was an HDMI issue.

What's confusing is that I tried 2 different HDMI cables and got the same pink screen problem.

Meanwhile those same HDMI cables cause no such problem going from the 360 or HD DVD player to the Plasma.

So clearly there is something wrong with my set top box or it's HDMI port since the TV doesn't exhibit this with any other source components or through the STB component out.

Has anyone else had this problem?

I called Fios and they are sending a tech with a new box in the morning, so I'm hoping this is just an issue with the box they gave me.

However, if it happens again, I'll be forced to go with component video out instead of HDMI which I really didn't want to do.

It's a clear downgrade from what I had with Cablevision whose HD DVR worked flawlessly with the same HDMI cable and my plasma.

Between this pink screen and intermittent white pops and flashes on screen from my Fios TV service, I'm not impressed.

The white flashes and pops they told me would go away if I powered down the router and turned it on again. I did that and everything was fine for 10 minutes and then the white flashes and pops on screen happened again.

If anyone has any experience with the white flashes and pops, please tell me what you did to fix it.

I'm more concerned about the pink screen issue though.

I'll update this tomorrow after I get the new STB.

hadrion,

Is the picture distorted / pink only on SD channels, or on all channels?

It could be that your TV doesn't handle 480i through HDMI. Turn the Verizon DVR off, then press select, then press menu. Set 4:3 override to OFF. Set HD output to 1080i or 720p, depending on what is appropriate for your TV.

See if that fixes your problem.

hadrion,

Is the picture distorted / pink only on SD channels, or on all channels?

It could be that your TV doesn't handle 480i through HDMI. Turn the Verizon DVR off, then press select, then press menu. Set 4:3 override to OFF. Set HD output to 1080i or 720p, depending on what is appropriate for your TV.

See if that fixes your problem.

Actually, it's happening on the all HD channels when it happens. I haven't checked it on SD.

I did go in and play with the menu when we first got the box, but I set it to stretch for the non HD channels.

Otherwise I'm set up for 1080i which is appropriate for my set.

Could it be that mt setting it to "stretch" the 4:3 that could cause this kind of issue?

Actually, it's happening on the all HD channels when it happens. I haven't checked it on SD.

I did go in and play with the menu when we first got the box, but I set it to stretch for the non HD channels.

Otherwise I'm set up for 1080i which is appropriate for my set.

Could it be that mt setting it to "stretch" the 4:3 that could cause this kind of issue?

In the system menu, try switching the signal between RGB and YrPr or whatever it's called. I know on my PS3 if I set it to the wrong one, blu-ray movies come out green tinted.

Update to my previous post.

Verizon sent out a tech this morning and they replaced the box and pink screen issue seems to be fixed.

I did some research on what I was experiencing and apparently, this was a common problem on a Direct TV HD box that had faulty HDMI cards on them and were causing the screen to get pink tinted when using HDMI out.

Apparently, this a problem that happens sometimes with Fios. The Tech who came to my house said he heard of this happening with LG plasma's using the HDMI out on the Motorola box.

It seems like if you have this you have to switch out the boxes in the hopes of getting a good one, which it appears I have now.

If this happens again, my only recourse is to go through component, but right now switching the box seemed to make the difference.

If anyone else experiences this through HDMI out with their displays, make them switch out your box for new one. There could be some faulty HDMI cards in some of the boxes.

That said, the new box has a much better PQ than the bad box and the white flashes and popping on screen seemed to have also stopped.

It looks like I just got a bad box on my initial install.

hadrion,

The pink screen does mean that the HDMI handshaking done between the dvr and the tv for some reason didn't work properly.

Sorry I don't have more information to help but my only suggestion is to make sure the dvr is fully on before you turn on the tv (which you've probably already done).

hadrion,

The pink screen does mean that the HDMI handshaking done between the dvr and the tv for some reason didn't work properly.

Sorry I don't have more information to help but my only suggestion is to make sure the dvr is fully on before you turn on the tv (which you've probably already done).

Thanks. It looks the problem is fixed with the new box they brought me this morning.

If it happens again with this new box, I'll just go component since that works fine.

Right now though, the picture through HDMI is perfect and is much better than what I had with cable.

I've gone into the diagnostic menu (off, select, menu), but I'm not exactly which setting I want.

I assume that I wanted to set a 16:9 TV with override OFF, but I'm not sure

What I want coming out of the 6416:

1080i for HD
480i for SD

Any pointers to a description thread or help would be appreciated.

-Mike

Does anybody have any idea when we can add more capacity? Recording HD is painful on such a small hard-drive. They have the ports on the machine so why is it taking them years to enable them so we can add a nice huge USB2 drive?

BTW: A few days ago they finally gave Westchester county NY the new IMG and the box failed to record anything scheduled. I am checking to see if this is a one time thing or if one of my boxes is now FUBAR.

Does anybody have any idea when we can add more capacity? Recording HD is painful on such a small hard-drive. They have the ports on the machine so why is it taking them years to enable them so we can add a nice huge USB2 drive?Verizon created a front-end (UI) for the Motorola platform. Verizon does not have control over the underlying hardware or firmware.

Motorola does not support -- and has no plans to support -- USB drive expansion, so that's not an option that is on the table.

Motorola did develop firmware to support eSATA drive expansion. Some cable companies are apparently testing that now. Verizon is looking at the possibility of supporting that by mid-year. Unfortunately, Verizon ordered 1/3 (or more) of its Motorola DVRs without eSATA, so those boxes will never see storage expansion. In some markets, no Verizon DVRs have eSATA.

I would not expect to see storage expansion on the current FiOS' Motorola DVRs. I do expect the next-generation FiOS DVR to ship with a significantly larger drive (at least 250Gb, and possibly 320Gb or 500Gb) and support external expansion. Unfortunately, Verizon's next DVR won't be available in quantity before 2009. A few lucky users might see them in November or December, but it could be six months or more after that before you can get one.

Until then, you'll have to buy a third-party box if you want more capacity. (My Tivo HDTV DVR has ~180 HD hours capacity.)

I've gone into the diagnostic menu (off, select, menu), but I'm not exactly which setting I want.

I assume that I wanted to set a 16:9 TV with override OFF, but I'm not sure

What I want coming out of the 6416:

1080i for HD
480i for SD

Any pointers to a description thread or help would be appreciated.

-Mike


The 1080i output is controlled in Settings, Video Format. In the service menu, 16x9 with 4:3 override to 480i is what you want. (OFF means 4:3 will be scaled to 1080i.)

Those of you experiencing HDMI handshake problems, and everyone else for that matter, can take a hint from those of us who lived with Motorola DVRs for years on Comcast.

Leave the DVR on 24/7. You can turn off your TV, AV receiver, DVD player, etc. Just leave the DVR on all the time and a lot of seemingly unrelated problems will vanish.

There's no penalty in shortened life or increased power consumption. Even when the DVR is "off" it's still drawing juice ands the hard drive is still buffering. That's why troubleshooting often starts with a power reset -- unplugging the unit.

Routinely turning the box turn off then on during normal viewing (or on the timer) can sometimes hose a scheduled recording or screw up a handshake causing a blank or tinted screen, unwanted resolution switch, etc.

On my Harmony remote I have the FIOS 6416 set to "always on." All the other equipment turns off and on depending on what I'm watching.

Those of you experiencing HDMI handshake problems, and everyone else for that matter, can take a hint from those of us who lived with Motorola DVRs for years on Comcast.

Leave the DVR on 24/7. You can turn off your TV, AV receiver, DVD player, etc. Just leave the DVR on all the time and a lot of seemingly unrelated problems will vanish.

There's no penalty in shortened life or increased power consumption. Even when the DVR is "off" it's still drawing juice ands the hard drive is still buffering. That's why troubleshooting often starts with a power reset -- unplugging the unit.

Routinely turning the box turn off then on during normal viewing (or on the timer) can sometimes hose a scheduled recording or screw up a handshake causing a blank or tinted screen, unwanted resolution switch, etc.

On my Harmony remote I have the FIOS 6416 set to "always on." All the other equipment turns off and on depending on what I'm watching.

The 1080i output is controlled in Settings, Video Format. In the service menu, 16x9 with 4:3 override to 480i is what you want. (OFF means 4:3 will be scaled to 1080i.)

Thanks for your insight!

Has anyone else noticed that the "skip" button on recordings on the multiroom version on the remote boxes is extremely short? Before the change over the remote boxes mirrored the setting on the main DVR - namely it would skip a full minute. Since the new release of 1.04 I only get a few seconds regardless of my setting on the main DVR (and there the skip button performs as it should). Anyone else notice this or found a solution or specifically not having a problem and only need a reboot?

Thanks.
Yes! I noticed that too. Glad someone else is seeing this. There are other various bugs in the ff, pause, play features of the multi-room DVR but this is definitely something new in 1.04. It does not occur when watching directly from the DVR but the skip feature is pretty useless from the remote STB's. I suppose I'll call verizon to report this.

I have the pink screen HDMI handshaking problem again with the new box they installed yesterday. Everything was fine last night, but woke up this morning to the pink screen again.

I didn't turn the DVR box off during the night, but I'm wondering if the box is turning itself off when it realizes the Plasma has been powered off for the night?

Does that make any sense? Could that be happening?

At this point I'm ready to go to component which I don't want to do. I don't know if I should keep switching out boxes or if this is just what will happen with this particular box and my Hitachi plasma.

All the other HDMI source components I have do not do this, so this is definitely something confined to the Motorola HD DVR.

If anyone has any other thoughts/ideas/suggestions I'm all ears.

Verizon created a front-end (UI) for the Motorola platform. Verizon does not have control over the underlying hardware or firmware.

Motorola does not support -- and has no plans to support -- USB drive expansion, so that's not an option that is on the table.

Motorola did develop firmware to support eSATA drive expansion. Some cable companies are apparently testing that now. Verizon is looking at the possibility of supporting that by mid-year. Unfortunately, Verizon ordered 1/3 (or more) of its Motorola DVRs without eSATA, so those boxes will never see storage expansion. In some markets, no Verizon DVRs have eSATA.

I would not expect to see storage expansion on the current FiOS' Motorola DVRs. I do expect the next-generation FiOS DVR to ship with a significantly larger drive (at least 250Gb, and possibly 320Gb or 500Gb) and support external expansion. Unfortunately, Verizon's next DVR won't be available in quantity before 2009. A few lucky users might see them in November or December, but it could be six months or more after that before you can get one.

Until then, you'll have to buy a third-party box if you want more capacity. (My Tivo HDTV DVR has ~180 HD hours capacity.)

Thats a shame as USB drives are getting large as well as cheap. I checked and I don't have eSata on one of the boxes (NY). Have not checked the other yet. Maybe somebody will figure out an easy way eventually to just swap out the tiny HD for a much larger one. I read the post about the guy using Linux to at least see how they are partitioned. Maybe he will get someplace. Or maybe I have to buy a modded original Xbox :)

As for going 3rd party I might investigate that later this year, but I feel I am already shelling out enough money to them as is. Those Tivo boxes do look nice though.

Thats a shame as USB drives are getting large as well as cheap. I checked and I don't have eSata on one of the boxes (NY). Have not checked the other yet. Maybe somebody will figure out an easy way eventually to just swap out the tiny HD for a much larger one. I read the post about the guy using Linux to at least see how they are partitioned. Maybe he will get someplace. Or maybe I have to buy a modded original Xbox :)

As for going 3rd party I might investigate that later this year, but I feel I am already shelling out enough money to them as is. Those Tivo boxes do look nice though.Yes, but when you buy a TiVo, you become one of us "TiVo snobs". :D

BTW: A few days ago they finally gave Westchester county NY the new IMG and the box failed to record anything scheduled. I am checking to see if this is a one time thing or if one of my boxes is now FUBAR.
You probably need to set up your series recordings again. Can't remember exactly what happens, you can probably search if you want a real explanation. I just know its not uncommon to see this. Presumably it has something to do with changes in the guide data.

I have the pink screen HDMI handshaking problem again with the new box they installed yesterday. Everything was fine last night, but woke up this morning to the pink screen again.

I didn't turn the DVR box off during the night, but I'm wondering if the box is turning itself off when it realizes the Plasma has been powered off for the night?

Does that make any sense? Could that be happening?

At this point I'm ready to go to component which I don't want to do. I don't know if I should keep switching out boxes or if this is just what will happen with this particular box and my Hitachi plasma.

All the other HDMI source components I have do not do this, so this is definitely something confined to the Motorola HD DVR.

If anyone has any other thoughts/ideas/suggestions I'm all ears.

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

This has happend to me a couple of times. I can't remember what I did to bring the screen back to normal. I think I turned the STB off and on. It's only happend a couple times so I haven't done anything else about it. Glad to know it's not my TV. I have a Panasonic.

Have you tried swapping out the HDMI cables?

Jim

Did verizon release a new update yesterday? (Live in northern VA) I have 2 boxes and the one in my basement acts up and needs to be reset about 2-3 times a month, the updstairs box maybe once ever couple of months. I had to reset the downstairs box on Sat. night because it wasn't keeping 2 shows in the buffer and then again on Sunday, the power light was on but no signal was gettin ot the TV. After the second reset everything worked fine. I go down to watch a show and the DVR was empty of everything I recorded and my list of series to record was empty. The box had apparently reset itself to the factory settings for no reason at all. Any ideas?
Thanks.

Unfortunately, Verizon's next DVR won't be available in quantity before 2009. A few lucky users might see them in November or December, but it could be six months or more after that before you can get one.

All I want to know is: will the new DVR's allow native rate pass thru. If they will I'm sticking with the Motorola, if not a Series 3 is in my future.

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

This has happend to me a couple of times. I can't remember what I did to bring the screen back to normal. I think I turned the STB off and on. It's only happend a couple times so I haven't done anything else about it. Glad to know it's not my TV. I have a Panasonic.

Have you tried swapping out the HDMI cables?

Jim

Jim,

I did switch out the cables and it happens with all of them.

It's really frustrating.

At first I thought my plasma had gone on me when I saw the pink screen, but thank God for these forums. I read about an HD Direct TV DVR box that is notorious for this as well through HDMI.

Right now it's either live with the occasional pink screen when you turn the plasma on or go with component.

It seems if I power my display on and off when I get the pink screen, it goes away. It also goes away when I switch inputs to another component.

I keep the STB on at all times. That doesn't seem to make a difference.

Fios tech support on the phone is useless for this kind of problem.

The tech who came to my house said he knew about this problem with LG plasma's and the box through HDMI, so now that we know it happens with Hitachi (mine) and Panny (yours) I have a feeling this is a more widespread problem and we'll be hearing more about it as Fios keeps growing larger.

Hopefully, they come out with some kind of fix for it in the future.

I don't really feel like changing out my STB for the 3rd time since I have a feeling they're all going to have this defect with certain displays.

Just wish there was something I could do about it.

Jim,

I did switch out the cables and it happens with all of them.

It's really frustrating.

At first I thought my plasma had gone on me when I saw the pink screen, but thank God for these forums. I read about an HD Direct TV DVR box that is notorious for this as well through HDMI.

Right now it's either live with the occasional pink screen when you turn the plasma on or go with component.

It seems if I power my display on and off when I get the pink screen, it goes away. It also goes away when I switch inputs to another component.

I keep the STB on at all times. That doesn't seem to make a difference.

Fios tech support on the phone is useless for this kind of problem.

The tech who came to my house said he knew about this problem with LG plasma's and the box through HDMI, so now that we know it happens with Hitachi (mine) and Panny (yours) I have a feeling this is a more widespread problem and we'll be hearing more about it as Fios keeps growing larger.

Hopefully, they come out with some kind of fix for it in the future.

I don't really feel like changing out my STB for the 3rd time since I have a feeling they're all going to have this defect with certain displays.

Just wish there was something I could do about it.

I'd try a new box again. It's only happened to me a couple times in over a year, so I haven't changed boxes.

Unfortunately, Verizon's next DVR won't be available in quantity before 2009. A few lucky users might see them in November or December, but it could be six months or more after that before you can get one.



I was told today by a seemingly knowledgeable FIOS tech that the next FIOS DVR will not be a Motorola and will have a much larger capacity. Unfortunately I can't recall who the manufacturer was.

Will the next DVR be a media center DVR or not? It may be too early to know, but I hope it is.

called FIOS today to ask them some hardware questions. I am thinking about switching from D*TV. From what I read on the FIOS site, the HD home media DVR can record in HD, but only the SD STBs (up to 3) can tap into the recordings, therefore you could not watch the HD material on those STBs. When I called today, the CSR stated they have changed and that you can get the HD home Media DVR and one (and only one) HD STB can tap into and watch the HD recordings. She said that the website might not have that updated yet. Anyone else hear about this or have this setup?

When I originally looked at switching to FIOS, the home media DVR was the selling point. But when I found out that your could not watch recorded HD material on the other STBs, that was the breaker.

called FIOS today to ask them some hardware questions. I am thinking about switching from D*TV. From what I read on the FIOS site, the HD home media DVR can record in HD, but only the SD STBs (up to 3) can tap into the recordings, therefore you could not watch the HD material on those STBs. When I called today, the CSR stated they have changed and that you can get the HD home Media DVR and one (and only one) HD STB can tap into and watch the HD recordings. She said that the website might not have that updated yet. Anyone else hear about this or have this setup?That is not correct. Verizon does not support remote viewing of HD at this time.

As of a few months ago, Verizon planned to support remote viewing on HD STBs in 2H 2008 (i.e. this summer).

The FiOS guys just left. Everything is working well except for one thing.

The box is hooked to the TV using HDMI. When I put my Pioneer PDP-6010FD into dot-by-dot mode, I get this 1/4" green bar on the far right side of the screen. If the 6010 is in Full mode the bar isn't present, and if the box is hooked up via component it isn't present.

Anyone else experienced this?

Change the setting in the 6416 to RGB....

That is not correct. Verizon does not support remote viewing of HD at this time.

As of a few months ago, Verizon planned to support remote viewing on HD STBs in 2H 2008 (i.e. this summer).

I will have to call back again tomorrow and double check with them before I decide to switch. I called DTV today to ask about cancelling and they offered to give me 2 HD DVRs and waive the fee. I would like to switch, but if what I was told wasn't true, I might reconsider.

I have a Motorola DVR from Verizon with the FiOS service. This morning (Wed) I noticed that the user interface was upgraded. It is much better.

FYI, this is from the system information:

Release 1.0.4
Build Number 05.68
Data Object File Name : odc_0064
Platform ID: QIP-6416 P2
EPG Region: 3409

First, I got my IMG update today in central NJ.

My main question is whether there is a technical reason why one DVR can not view programs on another DVR.

With the multiroom option, a standard box can control a remote DVR. Could a future version of the DVR software do the same thing, or is there some technical limitation to the hardware? I have two HD DVRs, and it would be great if I could watch what is on one using the other one. It would be even greater if I could do that in HD. And greater still if I could do that from a PC over the internet (like a Slingbox).

I believe that Tivos in the same home can watch each others' programs.

Scott

First, I got my IMG update today in central NJ.

My main question is whether there is a technical reason why one DVR can not view programs on another DVR.

With the multiroom option, a standard box can control a remote DVR. Could a future version of the DVR software do the same thing, or is there some technical limitation to the hardware? I have two HD DVRs, and it would be great if I could watch what is on one using the other one. It would be even greater if I could do that in HD. And greater still if I could do that from a PC over the internet (like a Slingbox).

I believe that Tivos in the same home can watch each others' programs.Adding such functionality and making it work reliably can be a lot of work. TiVo had SD MRV on their boxes for years, but they didn't add HD MRV to their HDTV DVR until a year after its release.

Streaming HD requires more memory and disk I/O, and care must be taken so as not to degrade the performance of the box in other areas, such as menu, guide, and DVR function responsiveness.

As indicated a few posts back, Verizon did plan -- as of a few months ago -- to add remote HD viewing capability to the HD STBs this summer. I have not heard anything about remote viewing on the Verizon DVR.

The dvr keeps rebooting itself about every 5 minutes. This new IMG is real unstable.

I am thinking about switching from D*TV.... From what I read on the FIOS site, the HD home media DVR can record in HD, but only the SD STBs (up to 3) can tap into the recordings, therefore you could not watch the HD material on those STBs. ..............When I originally looked at switching to FIOS, the home media DVR was the selling point. But when I found out that your could not watch recorded HD material on the other STBs, that was the breaker.

I switched from D* to FiOS earlier this week. Gotta say, I LOVE it....had Cox cable for internet, verizon phone. Now all three are with FiOS. Granted, could be in the honeymoon phase still, but I'm happy about the change. One - I didn't have to pay for the boxes. Two - I don't have to wait for HD locals (supposed to have been end of 2006, then 2007, now?). Three - the internet, at same plan, is faster than Cox cable.

The media DVR is nice but there are a couple issues. I was dissapointed to find out the HD box can't access the DVR, but as long as they are working on it, I can wait. I spoke with a CSR last night who advised the fix should be in the next update. Even if it's not until summer, I'd be ok with it. The disk drive is too small - can't record as much HD as I'd like. But - the video on demand makes up for it. Something we didn't have on D*.

The dvr keeps rebooting itself about every 5 minutes. This new IMG is real unstable.

I wonder if you don't have another issue. I've had this version since installation and it's been very stable.

The FiOS guys just left. Everything is working well except for one thing.

The box is hooked to the TV using HDMI. When I put my Pioneer PDP-6010FD into dot-by-dot mode, I get this 1/4" green bar on the far right side of the screen. If the 6010 is in Full mode the bar isn't present, and if the box is hooked up via component it isn't present.

Anyone else experienced this?

FWIW: http://www.somelifeblog.com/2007/11/green-line-1080i-fios-img-lcd-screen.html

FiOS list Members,

I'm going to have the ear of high level VZ FiOS staff to address the video studder issue and would like to invite anyone familiar with it to forward their notes/knowledge so that I have the best information available to present. (PM would be OK) For starters they are sending out a "video expert" to my home to do a "complete sweep" of my install. IMHO, they will find no problem with the install so I'll be demonstrating the issue with clips that I have recorded and then will be in contact with some executive types.

Here is a list of my experience on the issue and why I believe it is solely a Motorola STB issue. (...and any information you can offer to poke any holes in my theory would be very helpful and welcome!)

Symptoms:
You're flipping through channels and most of them are in great FiOS form; beautiful, nearly flawless; in other words, everything you'd expect.

BUT...

For some reason on some occasions you notice what appear to be missing frames, Jittery, Juddery, Jerky, Strobing effects. (audio is not affected) Flipping back to other channels you notice that they are not affected, so you may conclude that this is a feed issue and not associate it as an STB problem, but it is, and here's why:

Even though you can record the clip and it will still play back with the judders, if you keep it on your VDR for a long time it will eventually play back the entire clip correctly with no judders. This proves that the video stream makes it intact to the STB.

Also, Others have made note in this thread that they are sometimes able temporarily correct this issue by entering the STB setup menu, changing the resolution settings and then changing them back to 1080i. Although this never seemed to work for me in the past, a couple of nights ago I tried going in to both internal menus and clicking on the default settings option, then resetting my 4:3 override back to 480p & exiting, which did seem to work. (At least it brought the problem down on the current clip I was playing with from an "8" to a "1" on my non-scientific judder scale) I need to do more playing with this method to determine exactly which action has what result.

Other suggested that this is a problem only in NJ. I can't fathom why this would be true, so if any of you can help dispel this (or help confirm) that would be helpful.

Other facts:
1) Happens on HD and SD.
2) Tends to occur during high bit-rate scenes. For example, a person walking across a fixed background will be smooth, but a camera attempting to pan will trigger the judders.
3)Happens on HDMI, Component, and even S-Video
4)I've tested 4 TVs - 1 Philips 34" tube, 2 Sharp LCDs & my current XBR4 LCD. All have the same results.
5) Happens with both regular HD STB and DVR STB. I have had 4 total, 3 DVRs and 1 non-DVR STB. I have no experience with non-HD boxes.

Unknowns that I love to get more information on:
1) It was suggested by someone here that this is a memory timing issue. Any further information in that regard?
2) Suggestions on what is different or unique about the channels that do show the problem. Discovery HD, Universal HD, and HD NET seem to me to be more prone to this as does Spike & TNT. I don't believe I've seen the issue on an NFL game, but YES has had it.
3) Any Questions that I'm not asking that I should be?

Thanks Everyone,
I don't want to get off topic when I get my chance with the FiOS execs, but should any of you feel there is a burning issue that I would be able to 1) actually demonstrate & ask to be addressed I'll certainly entertain bringing it up while I have the opportunity. (don't even think about asking me to bring up any pricing or bundle type or minor IMG issues... technical PQ issues only please. thank you.)

Remav

I wonder if you don't have another issue. I've had this version since installation and it's been very stable.

It got worse. After talking to VZ on the phone they had me download the software again by holding the power and select buttons down on the box and then pulling the power cord. I then re-inserted the cord while continuing to hold down the the buttons. After about 10 minutes of the box showing different codes on the display it stopped. Nothing on the display. I waited one hour and the pressed the power button. The display then showed a 0. No output from the box. I called VZ back and they hit the box which did cause it to work but every recording had two entries for it and every series was shown 5 times on the series manager. Each future recording was displayed 5 times without displaying a conflict. The frist program it recorded, it used 2 tuners to record it twice.

This morning I called again. They suggested that I dump all my series recordings and start over. I suggested they format my hard drive. The CSR could not figure out how to do that.

This box was installed in July and had no problems with the old guide.

Remav, I posted many times over a year ago with stutter problems. Had about 5 different FIOS guys check signal strength and whatever, replaced the DVR, nothing helped.

Then I had another FIOS guy come over, I think he had some different equipment to measure the signal strength. He replaced the main feed from the ONT to the splitter in my house.
My problems were fixed. I know it sounds too simple, but I was really picky about this stuff. Certain Football games were stuttering and freezing like crazy. It all stopped.

I am in NJ, cant comment on the NJ aspect of it.

Good Luck

Clearly, there are issues with these Motorola boxes.

We're all not getting the same issue, but there is something wrong with some of them that wasn't wrong with my Sci Atl cablevision HD DVR that I had zero problems with.

The pink tinted screen from improper HDMI handshaking persists with me after changing boxes.

The first box they gave me had intermittent white flashes on screen, audio dropouts and popping/cracking sounds.

The second box thankfully, does not do the white flashes and audio issues, but I'm still having to deal with the pink screen on my 2nd box.

I called them and they offered to bring out a 3rd box and try again which I will do.

Their customer service is good. I have no complaints with Fios and their sincere attempts to fix this issue.

Their Motorola hardware however, leaves a lot to be desired in my opinion.

The 1080i output is controlled in Settings, Video Format. In the service menu, 16x9 with 4:3 override to 480i is what you want. (OFF means 4:3 will be scaled to 1080i.)Thank you! Had same problem when I reset the output resolution. IMG upgraded yesterday in Philly.

I think my STB is having the same stuttering issues as previous posts. HD hockey (Flyers - Comcast Sportsnet HD) looked really soft and I noticed some jerkiness to the picture. Also, the sound is out of sync.

Looking at tonight's hockey on HDNet, it still looks soft compared to what I normally sound. Sound's still a bit out of sync.

After about 10 minutes of the box showing different codes on the display it stopped. Nothing on the display. I waited one hour and the pressed the power button. The display then showed a 0. No output from the box. I called VZ back and they hit the box which did cause it to work but every recording had two entries for it and every series was shown 5 times on the series manager. Each future recording was displayed 5 times without displaying a conflict. The frist program it recorded, it used 2 tuners to record it twice.

This morning I called again. They suggested that I dump all my series recordings and start over. I suggested they format my hard drive. The CSR could not figure out how to do that.Did you ever get this straightened out? Have you tried to power-cycle the box to see if the duplicates reoccur after you've cleared them out?

Yes! I noticed that too. Glad someone else is seeing this. There are other various bugs in the ff, pause, play features of the multi-room DVR but this is definitely something new in 1.04. It does not occur when watching directly from the DVR but the skip feature is pretty useless from the remote STB's. I suppose I'll call verizon to report this.

I noticed this also but found out that the skip and back can be adjusted in settings under DVR. Did you try the settings?

I just spent about an hour and a half today on the phone with Verizon tech support to try getting a replacement for my STB, which was stuttering / jerky picture and having really bad audio sync problems. Not a problem, since I was in the mood to deal with it and had some time to kill.

- I reset the STB twice via internet. You can do that if you login to your Verizon account. No improvement.
- Tried to submit a problem report online. After choosing "snowy picture" as the closest description to the problem ("STB" is not a choice), the online form then said "call tech support".
- A long story about how I got put on hold, another agent somehow picked up the line and I got asked the same questions again. Don't ask. My only request was to send a replacement STB.
- Customer agent #2, after 45 minutes of questions- Before I get final authorization to replace the STB, let's try one more thing. Hold Power + Select, disconnect power, reconnect power. When the display says "EF", wait 20 minutes and all should be OK. Agent said that he had noted all the info, please call back and the next agent can help you if there is a problem. This is the dreaded brain-wipe (restart from bootloader). Did that OK, the front panel said "DL" for a while, then went totally blank. Nada.
- After 20 minutes, powered up the STB. It said "0". That's about it.
- Customer agent #3 - No problem, all it needs is to be de-authenticated and re-authenticated. STB got reset and came up. Didn't respond to remote or front-panel menu, but a 2nd power-up fixed that (just like Microsoft Windows :) ).

I think that this "fresh" download might have done the trick. The HD looks fine and the sound appears to be in sync. I might see a glitch or 2 every half hour, but it might be too soon to tell based on the source material. Will have to wait until my "reference" HD hockey happens.

I know it's a true update because all of my DVR settings were double. The other resets didn't affect the DVR side. Caution: Erasing one entry deletes the stored program. I needed to re-enter my scheduled recordings.

My thinking after all this is that it might really be a complicated software problem. The IMG has had several upgrade patches (version 1.x) since I've had it. Then, a major upgrade while trying to preserve the customer's settings. Not easy.

Of course, if the problem appears again, I'm getting a replacement STB. I've now got it on record that I went through every possible troubleshooting path and the only thing left is to replace the box.

Helpful tip: Do NOT do the dump firmware / reload (Power + Select while disconnecting / reconnecting power) without being told to do so by Verizon. Your box will be displaying a "0" until you call them to re-authenticate it. Same as what happened to jgNJ. Verizon has it on record, so they know what they did. If you do it yourself, you will have some explaining to do.

Update: The "EF" on the front panel display means "Erasing Flash"

A pair of FiOS "Video Specialists" visited yesterday. As I suspected, no problems were found in my install. The most interesting point to note: I had to "teach" them to be able to see the problem. In other words, the studdering video that I describe as "barely watchable" was in their opinion not bad enough for them to even have noticed any problem without me pointing it out. Weird indeed. So, I tried the same thing with one of my friends & he said that he never really noticed until I pointed it out. We recorded good examples of the clips. I'll be watching them over the next month to see if they eventually play correctly as has been my experience in the past. Then? Well, I'm not sure where or how to proceed.

I know I've read where some people are simply more susceptible to this. I never would have dreamed that anyone would watch what I was watching & just kind of shrug their shoulders. To me it is "barely watchable". Is anybody familiar with this?

Something to watch out for: If you see stuttering problems on OTA (Over The Air) broadcast channels, try to verify against the actual broadcast channel. OTW: Compare it against your antenna (if you can).

I was ready to call Verizon again to replace the STB after watching my local NBC (10-1) Nightly network news. Audio was way out of sync. Decided to go OTA. Believe it or not, it was being broadcast like that! Numerous comments on the local Philly OTA thread about NBC.

The local broadcast of the Flyers game happened to be on Philly local 57-1 (CW). Widescreen format, so the PQ wasn't all that great. I did see some stuttering OTA. However, it was worse on Verizon.

The AFC championship on CBS has a bit of stuttering on FiOS. Rare on OTA, but I can catch it once in a while.

I'll hold from asking for a replacement STB unless things get worse.

Something to watch out for: If you see stuttering problems on OTA (Over The Air) broadcast channels, try to verify against the actual broadcast channel. OTW: CRight.

On this forum, have complained about stutter on at least two channels where the source feed was the problem, with the same behavior seen on Verizon, Comcast, OTA, etc.

That said, stuttering on the Motorola box can also be caused by a signal issue.

Did you ever get this straightened out? Have you tried to power-cycle the box to see if the duplicates reoccur after you've cleared them out?

Yes, once I deleted all the series (or season passes as the TIVO people call it) and re-established them, the DVR has been working fine.

That said, stuttering on the Motorola box can also be caused by a signal issue.Signal levels: The required signal-to-noise ratio for a 256 QAM signal (HD) is more than a 64-QAM signal (SD). SNR is more noticed as pixelation. Maybe stuttering appears before the signal level drops more, but with the high signal levels at the ONT output (10 dB more than cable), I'd doubt that's the problem. Especially since the install verifies that signal levels meet spec at the TV.

If you're talking about sync issues, I can believe that. The STB has to be fast enough to process real-time. Lack of memory or CPU cycles will cause it to drop frames or lose audio. This assumes that the broadcaster's signal is perfect (needs work...).

One interesting thing to try: Use the "live pause" to see if the stuttering changes. IOW, Pause for a few seconds, then hit Play. It's still there, but the playback is much easier on the eyes. Playback from memory still has the problem, but it looks like there's a bit of filtering (averaging) to smooth things out.

Playback from memory is done using the STB's internal timing. IOW, it will display the field / frame when it's darn well ready. Live feeds force it to keep up and drop frames. Of course, if there is a problem recording it in the first place, it will just make it worse.

Worst performance so far is with the higher bit rate feeds, e.g. Comcast Sportsnet HD. Discovery HD seems fine (lower bit rage). IMHO, that points to the STB.

Well, I had 3 more techs here tonight. New OTN (ONT?) & Router. I Still have Stuttering Video. This time at least they all agreed that I had a serious issue so Horrible Stuttering video wins 5-3 between techs & friends & me. (and apparently my friends are split 1-1). Still, nobody ever believes that the recorded video clips eventually "repair" themselves if left alone on the DVR for a month or so. (except my friends who have witnessed it with me.)

I'm just going to keep recording clips until I can show the techs in a month or so that they are "healed". Along these lines they did offer a great test that I'm going to try. They suggested that I split the signal & run one coax into my media center PC & one to the STB. A - B test to see if I see the studdering out of both or just the STB.

They also said that the tuner in the MC should be able to pick up more channels than the STB does. (who knew?) Everything else they offer always is an attempt to get the signal to the STB, but if my scenario is correct, this will do nothing to help.

I guess there's nothing that can be done if the Motorola box is to blame, but you know about the first step being admitting you have a problem, right? (I don't know what the contract with Motorola is like but it would seem to me like their boxes would be required to meet certain standards... no?)

I've set my moto dvr to record Torchwood on any channel first run only... except that when I look at upcoming recordings... it's recording all runs on BBCA and for some reason every episode is considered new on HDnet. what's up with this?

Don't know if this is the right thread to post this question but.....

Does Verizon now offer a FiOS cable card that I can plug into my computer in place of the TV tuner that's there now?

I rarely used the TV in my den and it was taking up space, so when I recently upgraded to a Dell XPS 210, I got it with a TV tuner and a large monitor. I eliminated the TV set and now run the output of the Verizon STB (SD) into the computer's TV tuner and use Vista Media Center to display video on the monitor. I also get the benefit of VMC's DVR capability. But now I have heard that Verizon may be offering a cable card which could replace the tuner in the computer and eliminate the need for the external STB.

Is this true and does anyone have any knowledge and experience with this? There is a Vista Cable Card thread here with many posts which seems to indicate lots of problems attempting to use these cards but I don't know how much of that would apply to a Verizon FiOS card.

It got worse. After talking to VZ on the phone they had me download the software again by holding the power and select buttons down on the box and then pulling the power cord. I then re-inserted the cord while continuing to hold down the the buttons. After about 10 minutes of the box showing different codes on the display it stopped. Nothing on the display. I waited one hour and the pressed the power button. The display then showed a 0. No output from the box. I called VZ back and they hit the box which did cause it to work but every recording had two entries for it and every series was shown 5 times on the series manager. Each future recording was displayed 5 times without displaying a conflict. The frist program it recorded, it used 2 tuners to record it twice.

This morning I called again. They suggested that I dump all my series recordings and start over. I suggested they format my hard drive. The CSR could not figure out how to do that.

This box was installed in July and had no problems with the old guide.

I wonder if there aren't a couple of things going on with your issue and those that others have explained here. In your case, it sounds to me like the box either isn't accepting 100% of the code or the signal you are getting is dropping some of it. This can be caused by loose or "bad" connectors. And it can be a problem if the coax installed in your house isn't RG6 (used by satellite companies for years but new to digital cable).

The other issue noted about the stuttering that finally subsides after about a month or so sounds like a HD fragmentation issue. It could be that recordings, or parts of recordings, are saved on separate parts of the disk that cause the stuttering noticed as caused by the actuator arms having to move a greater distance. If the system is set up to move recordings around the drive to make space for new recordings, it could be self healing the issue. In the desktop / server computer world, defragmenting the drive would solve the issue. Obviously, we don't have the means to do that with these boxes. But if your provider can send a command to defragment or re-format the drive, that could fix the issue, if not temporarily. If it does fix the issue, keep track of what you record and how you record (one or two programs at a time while watching one live). The time to failure may help them troubleshoot.

Yay, Verizon now offers self-installation!

In preparation for a second HDTV, I wanted to replace my SD fios box with an HD box, and called them up last week. Last time I wanted to get a new box (to get my first malfunctioning 6416 replaced), it took four appointments (Note, 3 were skipped!) for a tech. THANK YOU VERIZON for realizing some of us out there are capable of plugging in a few wires on our own!

The new box simply came in a box via UPS, and paperwork included an activation code. Once hooked up, you log in to the indicated web site and enter the code in. This generated server-side errors twice for me so I instead called the given phone number for the activation line...simply touch tone in the codes and within seconds by box was responding.

SO much nicer than all my previous experiences with fiosTV. It looks like they're finally getting the hang of things.

(also, when I called they mentioned a promo for HBO for $5 a month if you have a DVR, so I jumped on that deal)

Does Verizon now offer a FiOS cable card that I can plug into my computer in place of the TV tuner that's there now?A CableCard is not a tuner. It does not replace a tuner. It is essentially a decryption card that plugs into a CableCard tuner.

Verizon FiOS offers CableCards, but you must have a tuner with a CableCard slot to accept it.

Dell sells such a CableCard tuner as an option, but unfortunately it is not compatible with the Dell XPS 210. It is only compatible with the Dell XPS 420 (http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&oc=DXCWQJ1&s=dhs). The XPS 210 will never be able to display encrypted digital cable channels from FiOS or any other cable provider. If you just got the XPS 210, you might be able to return it and get the XPS 420.

I wonder if there aren't a couple of things going on with your issue and those that others have explained here. In your case, it sounds to me like the box either isn't accepting 100% of the code or the signal you are getting is dropping some of it. This can be caused by loose or "bad" connectors. And it can be a problem if the coax installed in your house isn't RG6 (used by satellite companies for years but new to digital cable).

The other issue noted about the stuttering that finally subsides after about a month or so sounds like a HD fragmentation issue. It could be that recordings, or parts of recordings, are saved on separate parts of the disk that cause the stuttering noticed as caused by the actuator arms having to move a greater distance. If the system is set up to move recordings around the drive to make space for new recordings, it could be self healing the issue. In the desktop / server computer world, defragmenting the drive would solve the issue. Obviously, we don't have the means to do that with these boxes. But if your provider can send a command to defragment or re-format the drive, that could fix the issue, if not temporarily. If it does fix the issue, keep track of what you record and how you record (one or two programs at a time while watching one live). The time to failure may help them troubleshoot.

Thank you very much for your help. Although I have not experienced the shudder problem, I found your explanation to be very interesting. If your theory is correct, swapping the box or just the HD would solve it.

My box did reboot itself last night after I set up a recording, but thats the first time since last week. If it continues to act strangely I will ask V* for a new box.

Thanx for the info, bfdtv.

I originally picked the XPS 210 for its small footprint which I need due to space constraints. I'll continue with my present setup.

I think this has been mentioned in this forum before and I apologize if it has. I could not seem to find any reference to it. Apparently with the new IMG that I have (Release 1.0.4, Build number 05.68), I can no longer start watching something while it is still in the process of recording. Maybe this does not have anything to do with the IMG -possibly a download of firmware to the box. This now occurs on both of my DVR's - just all of a sudden.

While recording, it only gives me the option to "Play" and when I select that, it goes right to the live action. I know that in the previous version that I had, I could start watching something while it was still recording from the very start of that show and eventually, if there was enough time left, I would catch up to the live show. This is as it should be.

Not being able to start viewing an event from the beginning while recording it is a pain. Once it is completely recorded and finished, then the DVR works as it should. i.e. you can start from the beginning or you can start at the point that you stopped viewing it after you have viewed some of it.

Tell me that it is not just me and that other people are experiencing this as well. Not that I would wish this on anybody.

sguod,

You unfortunately have to buy a new PC that includes CableCard support. You cannot add it to an existing PC.

BTW, does anyone know if the "self installation" that Verizon has kicked off includes CableCards? That was one hurdle to that process: the inconvenience and fee for a service call.

I think this has been mentioned in this forum before and I apologize if it has. I could not seem to find any reference to it. Apparently with the new IMG that I have (Release 1.0.4, Build number 05.68), I can no longer start watching something while it is still in the process of recording. Maybe this does not have anything to do with the IMG -possibly a download of firmware to the box. This now occurs on both of my DVR's - just all of a sudden.

While recording, it only gives me the option to "Play" and when I select that, it goes right to the live action. I know that in the previous version that I had, I could start watching something while it was still recording from the very start of that show and eventually, if there was enough time left, I would catch up to the live show. This is as it should be.

Not being able to start viewing an event from the beginning while recording it is a pain. Once it is completely recorded and finished, then the DVR works as it should. i.e. you can start from the beginning or you can start at the point that you stopped viewing it after you have viewed some of it.

Tell me that it is not just me and that other people are experiencing this as well. Not that I would wish this on anybody.

Hi FIOSINTAMPA,

I think this is a bug that has not been fixed yet, but there is an easy workaround. The first time you go into a show that has been (or currently is being) recorded the only option is "Play" and it may take you into the middle (or live) portion of the show. Just go back to the "Recorded Programs" menu and select the same show again and this time there will be a "Play from Start" option. Select this and indeed it will start to play from the beginning even if this show is still being recorded. I do this all the time.

I think the bug is that the "Play from Start" should be an option all the time but it only shows up the second time you go to watch a show. If I remember correctly, the original guide software always had the Play from Start option. When the new guide came out I think they screwed it up but at least the work-around seems to be OK.

Gerry

P. S. I live in the Land O Lakes area!

you can also hit info (twice i think) and also play from start. a little quicker than going back into the dvr menu.

Has anyone had issues with their Guide not working after the upgrade. The channels will come in but there is no guide data. Nothing has changed except the software update. Thanks.

Has anyone had issues with their Guide not working after the upgrade. The channels will come in but there is no guide data. Nothing has changed except the software update. Thanks.

Do the widgets work? If not, try resetting your router. Sounds like your STB is not getting on your network.

Hi FIOSINTAMPA,

I think this is a bug that has not been fixed yet, but there is an easy workaround. The first time you go into a show that has been (or currently is being) recorded the only option is "Play" and it may take you into the middle (or live) portion of the show. Just go back to the "Recorded Programs" menu and select the same show again and this time there will be a "Play from Start" option. Select this and indeed it will start to play from the beginning even if this show is still being recorded. I do this all the time.

I think the bug is that the "Play from Start" should be an option all the time but it only shows up the second time you go to watch a show. If I remember correctly, the original guide software always had the Play from Start option. When the new guide came out I think they screwed it up but at least the work-around seems to be OK.

Gerry

P. S. I live in the Land O Lakes area!

Gerry: Thanks for the information! I will give that a shot. I live in the Wesley Chapel area and not Tampa as my Username would lead you to believe. Thanks again!

Has anyone had issues with their Guide not working after the upgrade. The channels will come in but there is no guide data. Nothing has changed except the software update. Thanks.Disconnect and then reconnect the power to the box.

I am becoming very frustrated with the Guide sending me to the live feed of a channel that is still being recorded when I stop watching a portion of the recording. Example: Last night a basketball game (Blazers/Hornets) was being carried by a local NBC affiliate but the guide was not updated to show the game and still had half-hourly program listings for news, ET, etc. for what I would consider the period during which the game would be on. It was dinnertime so I instructed the guide to record each of the 1/2 hour segments separately - no problem. The DVR acted correctly and recorded each. I also changed the channel before I turned the TV off to preclude seeing a later part of the game when I turned it back on.

After dinner, I went to the guide and to view my recordings and they're all there as planned. The game is still going but I began to watch the first recording. When it ended ~9 minutes later, the live game feed pops on! WTF! OK, I learned (after same frustration watching the NFL playoffs) to mute my audio while I avert my eyes from the live action and navigate to the next recorded segment. I had to do that for each of the recorded segments. Whew! Do I really have to do all this to get the utility I want out of my DVR? What kind of logic is this? It's not a bug but poor design. Or maybe I don't know how to properly operate the DVR.

The process with my Comcast DVR (same Moto XX16) was much more intelligently designed. And I could navigate between my recording and a live broadcast using the "last" button. Can't do that with the IMG.

One other peeve about the IMG is that when I am watching a recording and hit the "stop" button, the software always takes me to the live feed of the channel the recording was taken from. I want it to take me to the channel it was last tuned to. Is that not too much to ask? Arrgggh!

The process with my Comcast DVR (same Moto XX16) was much more intelligently designed. And I could navigate between my recording and a live broadcast using the "last" button. Can't do that with the IMG.

One option would be to switch back to Comcast. My buddy told me at lunch he just got a letter from them saying they're raising their rates by $10 a month. :eek:

I'll put up with some idiosyncrasies to save $800 over the next couple of years over Comcast.

One option would be to switch back to Comcast. My buddy told me at lunch he just got a letter from them saying they're raising their rates by $10 a month. :eek:

I'll put up with some idiosyncrasies to save $800 over the next couple of years over Comcast.

I, too, like the savings I'm getting even more so now after the Comcast announcement. I'm just hoping the various rants posted here about IMG deficiencies, be they bugs or bad logic, will be addressed by Verizon. They certainly get lots of input to work with. As far as I know, there is no direct path where you can vocalize these kinds of complaints (or suggestions) to Verizon. Their email and chat devices are a joke and telling a CSR, well ....

Verizon supposedly monitors these threads. I mean, one can hope.

Just off the phone with the morons at verizon again, and again they disappoint me.

They are telling me that other Hi Def boxes can not receive the multi-room DVR. Can anyone else confirm this is true?

Just this week I did a self-install upgrade of my secondary SD box in the bedroom to a hidef (QIP6200-2) box. We've always used the multiroom dvr on this. I had always paid extra for the Home Media DVR because a year ago they promised mac support "soon." It ever came, so I cancelled it, but I didn't realize the multiroom dvr is part of that (to me, it would logically be part of the DVR service). The new 6200 does not show that multiroom dvr, so I called back tonight but they are telling me that even if I subscribe to home media again, it will not work with this new box. "Those boxes run special software, multiroom dvr only works with the black boxes" So it is pointless for me to pay for home media again.
...but of course in my many many phone calls to VZ I find the techs are morons 99% of the time. Are they right here? If so why on EARTH are the 6200s not capable of receiving the DVR stream?

Edit: It looks like Verizon confirms this here:
http://www22.verizon.com/ResidentialHelp/FiOSTV/Set+Top+Boxes+And+DVRs/Multi-Room+DVR/QuestionsOne/84884.htm

Once again, I need someone at verizon to scream loudly at. :(

Just off the phone with the morons at verizon again, and again they disappoint me.

They are telling me that other Hi Def boxes can not receive the multi-room DVR. Can anyone else confirm this is true?

Just this week I did a self-install upgrade of my secondary SD box in the bedroom to a hidef (QIP6200-2) box. We've always used the multiroom dvr on this. I had always paid extra for the Home Media DVR because a year ago they promised mac support "soon." It ever came, so I cancelled it, but I didn't realize the multiroom dvr is part of that (to me, it would logically be part of the DVR service). The new 6200 does not show that multiroom dvr, so I called back tonight but they are telling me that even if I subscribe to home media again, it will not work with this new box. "Those boxes run special software, multiroom dvr only works with the black boxes" So it is pointless for me to pay for home media again.
...but of course in my many many phone calls to VZ I find the techs are morons 99% of the time. Are they right here? If so why on EARTH are the 6200s not capable of receiving the DVR stream?

Edit: It looks like Verizon confirms this here:
http://www22.verizon.com/ResidentialHelp/FiOSTV/Set+Top+Boxes+And+DVRs/Multi-Room+DVR/QuestionsOne/84884.htm

Once again, I need someone at verizon to scream loudly at. :(
I am in no way an expert on the multi-room DVR system so I went to the FiOS online web pages to see what they say. It looks to me like they all say that the system only works with the FiOS SD boxes in the remote sites. One sentence is especially pertinent:

"Important information:
• Programs recorded in Hi-Def cannot be played back on remote Set Top Boxes."

Do you read these pages as meaning that also?

My Moto DVR stb in my office keeps freezing and flickering "dul" on the stb screen. I called vz tech support and got them to send me a new stb. Now the new stb turns on but i get no program data. I still haven't sent back the other stb beacuse I have recorded programs I want to try to retrieve from the dvr.
Does anyone know how I can do this? I connected the stb to my computer but apparently I need some sort of software to access the files.
Any help is greatly appreciated. thanks.

..............The new 6200 does not show that multiroom dvr, so I called back tonight but they are telling me that even if I subscribe to home media again, it will not work with this new box. "Those boxes run special software, multiroom dvr only works with the black boxes" ............. :(

What you heard was correct. Due to code in the 6200, it can't access the media DVR. HOWEVER - I've been advised by a few FiOS techs that a fix is in the works. I've seen that reported elsewhere on this board as well.

My opinion is the 6200 and 6416 are the same box with the same code, only sans hard drive. So Verizon and Motorola have to work out the bug that will allow the box to recognize other DVRs on the network.

If I were you, wait for the fix to be reported, then get the media DVR.

"Important information:
• Programs recorded in Hi-Def cannot be played back on remote Set Top Boxes."

That's true at this time. I'm hoping it's due to the current limitation that only SD boxes can access the DVR. Once they fix the bug for HD boxes, I'm hoping that DVR HD content will be accessible to them. If not, I'll be disappointed.

That's true at this time. I'm hoping it's due to the current limitation that only SD boxes can access the DVR. Once they fix the bug for HD boxes, I'm hoping that DVR HD content will be accessible to them. If not, I'll be disappointed.

Nope, it's due to the fact that HD content is (currently) way too much bandwidth for them to stream from DVR to other boxes. That's what my verizon employee friends told me, anyway.

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BG

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BG

I don't have a Tivo, but if you want to record lots of HD you don't want the Fios DVR.

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BG

I have both, but I let the kids use the Fios DVR and I use the Tivo. I got fed up with the Fios DVR and got a S3 Tivo and have but a 1 TB drive in it so I can now record a lot of HD and the user interface is much better. The Fios DVR works but as you can see there are still issues that need to be fixed and it seems to take Verizon a long time to roll out updates.

I finally got my DVD recorder (JVC DRMV77S) hooked up to the 6416, and have been able to offload some of my recordings from the DVR. However, when I copy a show to the DVD recorder, it appears with widescreen, 16:9 format, but with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen. When I watch the same show directly from the DVR, it fills the screen of my HDTV, without the top/bottom black bars.

Am I missing something from the 6416 setup that should output the full screen to my DVD recorder, as it outputs to the HDTV? The output to the HDTV is via HDMI. The input side of my DVD recorder only has component connections (no cable or composite input connections), though.

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BG
I'm a long-time TiVo user that switched to FiOS and their DVR when it came to my area. My #1 absolute biggest complaint about the FiOS service is the lack of disk space on their DVR, and the complete inability to expand it. We recorded the "Comanche Moon" miniseries recently and have no watched it for various reasons. That 6-hours of HD takes up a third of the available storage space, and is causing us to record some things in SD, erase some things early, etc. Totally unacceptable!

My only concern with going back to the TiVo is that it is very likely to become obsolete within the next couple of years as FiOS moves to their own proprietary brand of IPTV. I'm not sure if they plan to have some kind of workaround for existing QAM/CableCard users or perhaps have some kind of switched video option, but it is a risk to be aware of.

The upside is the TiVos are not overly expensive, so you could -- in the worst case -- look at it as a 2-year investment in better and bigger DVR support. Note that TiVo also support the "TiVo to Go" capability, which allows you to move recordings to your PC, and then burn them to DVD, move to your portable player, etc.

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BGI had a FiOS HD DVR at first and hated it so I dumped it. I now have a Series 3 TiVo HD and am very happy with it. I don't know how familiar you are with the various TiVo models so please don't be offended when I say that you have to do your homework before buying any TiVo model. They are very different in what they can and cannot do. Also, be careful of the FiOS signal strength going into your TiVo. TiVo will have problems if the signal is too strong. The FiOS installation tech will probably have a few inline attenuators with him and he can easily reduce the signal strength. As you probably already know, with digital, unlike analog, as long as you have a picture it is strong enough. No need to try to max out everything to 95-100% for any equipment.

The logic tree for sequencing in the FiOS machine is baffling and it doesn't work too well when it is working as is. Go TiVo.

Guys,

Anyone monitoring this thread move from the Fios DVR to Tivo? I am going to schedule a fios install and want to know if its worth dealing with the Verizon DVR or just using the TIVO. Educated opinions please...

My primary need: recording lots of HD... period.

BG

I have the FIOS DVR and I'm very happy with it. Recording lots of HD, while it would be nice, is not at the top of my list. Access to VOD is, as long as the DVR works well.

You've made it very simple - given your primary need, you want to go Tivo. This shuts you out from VOD (including the new HD VOD), but Tivo is a very good alternative here.

Nope, it's due to the fact that HD content is (currently) way too much bandwidth for them to stream from DVR to other boxes. That's what my verizon employee friends told me, anyway.

I highly doubt that, if there's one thing we have it is plenty of bandwidth. I'm not sure what speed the router sets up for the IP network on the coax side but I would guess at least 10 meg if not 100...both should be enough.
The multi-room playback is SD because the SD box can't decode HD. Sad thing is, part of the reason I upgraded the SD box to HD is because I thought I would now be able to remotely play both SD and HD shows from the DVR.
So another thing to wait on from verizon...and you know they don't have the intellectual capability to notify me when they do release the fix.

I highly doubt that, if there's one thing we have it is plenty of bandwidth. I'm not sure what speed the router sets up for the IP network on the coax side but I would guess at least 10 meg if not 100...both should be enough.
The multi-room playback is SD because the SD box can't decode HD. Sad thing is, part of the reason I upgraded the SD box to HD is because I thought I would now be able to remotely play both SD and HD shows from the DVR.
So another thing to wait on from verizon...and you know they don't have the intellectual capability to notify me when they do release the fix.



HD MRV works fine on tivo.

HD MRV works fine on tivo.It does if you have two HD TiVos. You cannot view HD content on an older SD TiVo.

Nope, it's due to the fact that HD content is (currently) way too much bandwidth for them to stream from DVR to other boxes. That's what my verizon employee friends told me, anyway.

I don't think this is the case. Current HD content is 1080i at most, giving a required bandwidth of ~5 Mbit/s for good throughput (I think, please correct this if you know better). The distribution of content from the Multi Room DVR is done by IPTV AFAIK, just like HD VOD, which is delivered just fine. The required bandwidth on the MoCa specification, which is the carrier for the FIOS TV signal is 175 Mbit / s.

Even 1080p signals (plus audio) is probably about 15Mbit/s. This seems like more than enough to serve video at a good clip. The limitation is in the HD Set top box, the pipe is broad enough.

Nope, it's due to the fact that HD content is (currently) way too much bandwidth for them to stream from DVR to other boxes. That's what my verizon employee friends told me, anyway.

I've heard that too, but you'd have to convince me the network can't handle the data stream. It can certainly handle HD to the two boxes in the house. And other solutions can handle HD like media PCs. The only limitation I've heard of is wireless HDMI which requires 3 GB of bandwidth.

I don't think this is the case. Current HD content is 1080i at most, giving a required bandwidth of ~5 Mbit/s for good throughput (I think, please correct this if you know better). The distribution of content from the Multi Room DVR is done by IPTV AFAIK, just like HD VOD, which is delivered just fine. The required bandwidth on the MoCa specification, which is the carrier for the FIOS TV signal is 175 Mbit / s.High-definition signals are up to 20 Mbps. Usable MoCA bandwidth after overhead is close to 120Mbps.

Here's a quote from one of my previous posts:

FiOS HD bitrates as of Dec 23.
Channel Resolution Average Bitrate Peak Bitrate

TNT 825 1920x1080 17.8 19.4
ESPN 826 1280x720 18.1 20.0
ESPN2 827 1280x720 17.8 20.0
NFL Network 828 1920x1080 16.8 17.0
CSN MidAtlantic 829 1920x1080 16.6 17.7
HD Net 833 1920x1080 17.3 19.2
HD Net Movies 834 1920x1080 17.2 18.7
Universal 835 1920x1080 10.5 ?
HD Theater 836 1920x1080 17.2 18.2
Wealth TV 837 1920x1080 13.3 14.0
National Geo. 838 1280x720 13.3
MHD 839 1920x1080 17.0 18.1
Food Network 840 1920x1080 14.2 15.0
HGTV 841 1920x1080 14.0 ?
A&E 842 1280x720 18.0 18.2
Lifetime Movie 845 1920x1080 15.0 18.0
Discovery 846 1920x1080 12.5 15.0
HBO 851 1920x1080
Cinemax 852 1920x1080
Showtime 853 1920x1080 12.0 14.5
TMC 854 1920x1080 12.0 14.5
Starz! 855 1920x1080 11.0 14.0

Numbers are based on the average of several recordings from each channel.


FiOS SD bitrates as of Dec 8.
Channel Resolution Average Bitrate
USA 50 704x480 5.05
TBS 52 704x480 3.25
FX 53 528x480 2.51
CNN 80 704x480 3.10
CNBC 83 704x480 4.97
Disc 100 528x480 4.87
TNT 101 704x480 4.92
SciFi 160 704x480 2.42
TCM 200 704x480 2.63
AMC 201 704x480 3.64
Starz 340 704x480 3.56
Showtime 361 704x480 2.75

Average bitrates on some of these SD channels will vary by up to 20% depending on content.
The DVR must be able to record two different HD streams while it plays a third. As seen above, MRV with SD requires just 2.5-5Mbps, which isn't much of a strain.

High-definition MRV requires more memory and I/O bandwidth. Verizon must be careful to balance tasks so as not to significantly affect the performance or reliability of the DVR. For example, you wouldn't want the DVR's UI to grind to a halt while someone is fast forwarding a HD stream on a remote HD STB elsewhere in your home.

Hi all I am new here and to FiOS.
I live in LI NY got it installed.
for the most part i like it but i tried to hook up the video inputs in the front of my Verizon FiOS QIP6416 DVR. I could not get it to work.
I called Verizon and the told me that there not meant to work.

Is this true? I find this hard hard to belive that all inputs on this dont work.
Is there a work a round.
Thanks

Is this true? I find this hard hard to belive that all inputs on this dont work.That's correct. The inputs are not functional on any cable company DVR.

There is no workaround.

I've heard that too, but you'd have to convince me the network can't handle the data stream. It can certainly handle HD to the two boxes in the house. And other solutions can handle HD like media PCs. The only limitation I've heard of is wireless HDMI which requires 3 GB of bandwidth.

Yeah, I don't recall the specifics, but it has something to do with bandwidth and the various things they have to manage when transferring HD content from box to box. You have to remember the box would have to still be doing it's normal tasks (buffering/recording two streams, watching a third) so it could be anything, perhaps even something as silly as the Verizon people lacking the technical skills to implement it correctly.

I will say though, last I heard, FiOS was only utilizing 3 or 4 of the little fiber wires in the cable that encloses the bundle of wires (there's something like 5-10 of them). So they have plenty of bandwidth capabilities, they just aren't doing anything with it.

High-definition signals are up to 20 Mbps. Usable MoCA bandwidth after overhead is close to 120Mbps.

The DVR must be able to record two different HD streams while it plays a third. As seen above, MRV with SD requires just 2.5-5Mbps, which isn't much of a strain.

High-definition MRV requires more memory and I/O bandwidth. Verizon must be careful to balance tasks so as not to significantly affect the performance or reliability of the DVR. For example, you wouldn't want the DVR's UI to grind to a halt while someone is fast forwarding a HD stream on a remote HD STB elsewhere in your home.

Thanks for the info, really interesting to see all of the bitrate values. You are right, bandwidth is only one aspect, the other is the stress on the MRV hardware as more is requested of it. I have one MVR, 2 DVR's, and only one STB which could place demand on the MRV. Given this, even if all four devices were using IPTV, I still would be using 66% of the total MoCa bandwidth.

Given this, even if all four devices were using IPTV, I still would be using 66% of the total MoCa bandwidth.That brings up another issue. The network controller on the BCM7038 CPU in the Motorola 6416 maxes out at around 60Mbps, and 30-40Mbps in real world applications. And that level of throughput could have a negative impact on the responsiveness of the DVR.

Streaming HD to more than one box at a time is really out of the question, I think.

At least they fixed the "mute" function. It was very annoying having mute come off at any channel or resolution change, or even station ID.

Now they need the "green line" on the side of my TV fixed. If they only enabled the video position adjustments that Comcast does, it'd be a cinch to just adjust out of my misery.

They seem to have increased capacity through software, maybe altered the storage algorithm to be more efficient. But they really need to simply allow bigger HDrives... or the use of an external drive.

Man is that a SLOOOOOW cpu, time to upgrade to something a little more advanced. Wonder if it's overclockable!!!! :D

If you are using HDMI, the green line is a bug in the IMG. Go into the advanced settings and change the color space from YCC to RGB and see if that helps. Info about this is posted in a few threads.

That brings up another issue. The network controller on the BCM7038 CPU in the Motorola 6416 maxes out at around 60Mbps, and 30-40Mbps in real world applications. And that level of throughput could have a negative impact on the responsiveness of the DVR.

Streaming HD to more than one box at a time is really out of the question, I think.

Given my current setup, I can't try it to test (ins SD, obviously), but it would be interesting, since V* touts this as a money saving situation (one MVR, many SB's). The only thing I've tested is that SD serving doesn't have impact on my internet access speed.

Can you tell me how you reset via the internet? The FIOS reps in the direct forum are telling me that this is not possible. I've setup my login credentials for verizon.com, but I don't see anyway to reset a STB remotely.

Can you tell me how you reset via the internet? The FIOS reps in the direct forum are telling me that this is not possible. I've setup my login credentials for verizon.com, but I don't see anyway to reset a STB remotely.

You can reset any box in your house - it's a basic reset. Supposedly, the techs can do a more advanced reset. Not sure about the difference. Here are the steps:

Log in to your account on verizon.com
In My TV, click view details
In My TV Equipment, select the box to reset, then the "reset box" link
You should see your box go through the steps on the display.

You have to know the serial number (this is unfortunate - DirecTV has the names of the boxes - I miss that)

Hint: Be sure to use Internet Explorer. The pop-up status bars choked on Firefox. Takes about 30 S.

The techs do have something more advanced. Probably because they can work from the server side and check both sides of the link.

You can reset any box in your house - it's a basic reset. Supposedly, the techs can do a more advanced reset. Not sure about the difference. Here are the steps:

Log in to your account on verizon.com
In My TV, click view details
In My TV Equipment, select the box to reset, then the "reset box" link
You should see your box go through the steps on the display.

You have to know the serial number (this is unfortunate - DirecTV has the names of the boxes - I miss that)

What does this reset do?
Does it wipe out any of the scheduled recordings, or recorded content?
Is it any different than unplugging the box for a minute, and plugging it ack in?

I was just talking to FiOS tech support today ... some (not all) of my DVR recordings are out of sync (some more so than others). He did a reboot "push" from the office and said that if that didn't correct the problem, they would have to replace the DVR. Making some recordings tonight and will check them out tomorrow.

Did you (or anyone else) find a way to resolve their audio sync problems? I've had FIOS for about a week and my HD box is having some audio sync problems. Not everything is out of sync, but various recorded show and even some live stuff (seems to be mostly HD stuff) is about 1/4 of a second out of sync. Just enough to be annoying.

I'm using an HDMI cable to hook my box to my Panasonic 42PZ0U plasma.

Any tips or suggestions to resolve this issue would be appreciated.

This may be strange, but a guy I work with had a problem with the 4:3 override. I told him how to go into the setup menu and turn it off.

This morning he says "thanks for the help, and by the way my audio sync is fixed". He never mentioned anything about the audio sync problem. He set the 4:3 override to OFF and also set the HDMI color space to RGB.

Doesn't make sense, but try that.

This may be strange, but a guy I work with had a problem with the 4:3 override. I told him how to go into the setup menu and turn it off.

This morning he says "thanks for the help, and by the way my audio sync is fixed". He never mentioned anything about the audio sync problem. He set the 4:3 override to OFF and also set the HDMI color space to RGB.

Doesn't make sense, but try that.

That's interesting, I had an audio sync problem on Starz HD, when I switched the 4:3 override to 480i it fixed my audio sync issue also. It shouldn't have, but if I switch it back I get the audio sync problem back.

Something to post over on the IMG Bugs-n-Missing Features thread at the DSL Reports Verizon FiOS forum? http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19831384-IMG-Bugs-and-missing-features-Ver-20~start=100#end. Nothing like a new bug to get the posting count up. :)

Something to post over on the IMG Bugs-n-Missing Features thread at the DSL Reports Verizon FiOS forum? http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19831384-IMG-Bugs-and-missing-features-Ver-20~start=100#end. Nothing like a new bug to get the posting count up. :)
The problem seems to be that the bugs are coming faster than the fixes.

I started a thread over on DSL reports on how to access the STB's Diagnostic menu. http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19899756-The-other-hidden-menu-in-your-STB-Diagnostic. Though it would be useful over here, so here's a summary:

With your STB powered on, hit "Power, Select, Select" quickly in sequence from the front panel. Don't use your remote. To exit the menu, hit "Power" to turn off the STB. The next power up will be back to normal.

The setup menu is where you configure the display, 4:3 override, HDMI settings, etc. is accessed by hitting "Power, Select, Menu". That's different than the diagnostic menu described here.

This menu is how your STB tells you what's going on. Everything from signal quality to channel encryption status to it's IP address and who it's talking to over the MoCA ethernet. A description of what the screen looks like and how to find SNR and AGC: http://cjhengineering.com/hdtv/cablehdtv/dctdiag.htm. However, it's old and Verizon's menu contains additional entries. I don't think you can hurt anything as this menu doesn't allow for user entry. Read-only. I think...

D06 Current Channel Status: Displays details about the flags used to set copy protection. Those interested in recording over firewire may want to visit AVS forum to understand the CCI and other bits to determine if a program can be copied / recorded: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=403695&page=148. The menu shown in the link above is old.

D16 Connected Home: Page 4 (scroll up/down) shows the STB's TX data rates, in Mbps. I think it might be useful for those with home media DVRs that transfer their videos around the house. I don't know, as I don't have one. But it looked interesting. My data rate is around 230 Mbps.

D11 Interface Port Status: You can find the display EDID data here. It's a map of supported video resolution formats. Helpful for debugging 480i vs. 480p vs. 720p vs. 1080i.

D03 OOB Status: Out Of Band, meaning this is the RF channel for the program guide. 75.25 MHz.

D04 Inband Status: The status of the current channel. Select the channel of interest, then access the diagnostic menu. The menu will report the channel it's currently tuned to.

Note: Be careful to note which tuner is in use. My HD-DVR has 2 tuners, the current channel was on Tuner 2, not Tuner 1. I did not enter the diagnostics menu while it was recording as I didnt' know what would happen and didn't want to risk lose anything.

I checked the SNR, AGC, and correctable errors for a few channels. SNR is >37 dB, AGC "Good", 0 errors. Helpful if you have pixelation errors or lose a channel. I mapped a few channels:

Channel Name Frequency Modulation
75 Versus SD 795 MHz 256-QAM
829 Comcast Sportsnet-HD 639 MHz 256-QAM
833 HDNet 501 MHz 256-QAM
846 Discovery HD 669 MHz 256-QAM
Knowing the right frequency is very helpful if you think you are having signal problems. Like if you are having a problem on a channel at 800 MHz and not having problem at 100 MHz, check your coax. Or, if you are using a QAM tuner without an STB, you could map frequencies to channels and see why your QAM tuner won't decode a channel.

My new TV came in today (Samsung 4081) and I finally have HDMI support (my old HD CRT was component only). Much to my disgust, I almost thought my TV was broken when I suddenly found a green bar to the right of the screen. Of course I knew to instead point the finger at verizon. Switching to RGB color space makes that go away but...

I also have an issue on the LEFT side of the display. At 1080i, a bar about three times as wide as that green bar is pixel-shifted from where it should be. Or in reality, pixels are suddenly skipped, and what is missing is shown in black pixels (previously green) on the far right. It only goes away if I change to 720p, but now I'm wasting the wonderful 1080p resolution of my new set! Does anyone have any other ideas on how to remove this? Clearly related to the green bar bug.

Also, I thought there was a setting to pass through whatever resolution the channel is, weather it be 480, 720, or 1080, and let the TV handle it. Is there a way to force that? That might fix the above problems as well.

Yet AGAIN let down by verizon...this is happening weekly now. :(

My new TV came in today (Samsung 4081) and I finally have HDMI support (my old HD CRT was component only). Much to my disgust, I almost thought my TV was broken when I suddenly found a green bar to the right of the screen. Of course I knew to instead point the finger at verizon. Switching to RGB color space makes that go away but...

I also have an issue on the LEFT side of the display. At 1080i, a bar about three times as wide as that green bar is pixel-shifted from where it should be. Or in reality, pixels are suddenly skipped, and what is missing is shown in black pixels (previously green) on the far right. It only goes away if I change to 720p, but now I'm wasting the wonderful 1080p resolution of my new set! Does anyone have any other ideas on how to remove this? Clearly related to the green bar bug.

Also, I thought there was a setting to pass through whatever resolution the channel is, weather it be 480, 720, or 1080, and let the TV handle it. Is there a way to force that? That might fix the above problems as well.

Yet AGAIN let down by verizon...this is happening weekly now. :(

The issues you mention have been known problems since the new IMG guide update .. hopefully they will be resolved during the year w/ updates ...
As far as native pass-thru....
The moto box can't do that, however, if you set the 480 override to 480i ("hidden menu"), & the HD resolution to 1080i, you will get all the SD channels passing thru native at their 480i, & all the 1080 HD channels passing native at their 1080i .. Only the handful of 720p stations (ABC, Fox, ESPN, NGC ect).. will be upconverted by the box to 1080 to be fed to your set..... & it's no big deal to go into ther regular settings & switch to 720p if you're say, going to watch "Lost" on ABC that hour, if you'd rather your set do the upconversion.

I also have an issue on the LEFT side of the display. At 1080i, a bar about three times as wide as that green bar is pixel-shifted from where it should be. Or in reality, pixels are suddenly skipped, and what is missing is shown in black pixels (previously green) on the far right. It only goes away if I change to 720p, but now I'm wasting the wonderful 1080p resolution of my new set! Does anyone have any other ideas on how to remove this? Clearly related to the green bar bug.

You're not "wasting" the resolution of your set. Your TV is a fixed-pixel display, so it's always displaying 1080 lines of resolution regardless of what kind of signal you feed it. If you switch the STB to 720p your TV upscales the image to 1080. Most modern TVs have very good upscalers, and you probably won't be able to tell the difference between the two images. I know I have trouble telling the difference between a regular DVD upscaled by my TV (or my DVD player) and a Blu-ray DVD. They both look fantastic.

It's annoying to see it on the screen, but realistically the problem is not that big a deal and there are at least two workarounds: have the STB output 720p or set your TV to an overscan mode (if it has one).

My new TV came in today (Samsung 4081) and I finally have HDMI support (my old HD CRT was component only). Much to my disgust, I almost thought my TV was broken when I suddenly found a green bar to the right of the screen. Of course I knew to instead point the finger at verizon. Switching to RGB color space makes that go away but...

I also have an issue on the LEFT side of the display. At 1080i, a bar about three times as wide as that green bar is pixel-shifted from where it should be. Or in reality, pixels are suddenly skipped, and what is missing is shown in black pixels (previously green) on the far right. It only goes away if I change to 720p, but now I'm wasting the wonderful 1080p resolution of my new set! Does anyone have any other ideas on how to remove this? Clearly related to the green bar bug.

Also, I thought there was a setting to pass through whatever resolution the channel is, weather it be 480, 720, or 1080, and let the TV handle it. Is there a way to force that? That might fix the above problems as well.

Yet AGAIN let down by verizon...this is happening weekly now. :(There are presently no TV stations broadcasting 1080p ... only 720p or 1080i. The 1080p comes with the new HD disks at your home which FiOS has nothing to do with.

Just got installed today. Is there a way to fix the video output on all channels (SD and HD) to 1080i or 720p. I don't see anything in the settings that allow this. As it is my tv's have to re-sync when it switches resolution and it's killing me.

Any help would be appreciated. :)


The issues you mention have been known problems since the new IMG guide update .. hopefully they will be resolved during the year w/ updates ...
As far as native pass-thru....
The moto box can't do that, however, if you set the 480 override to 480i ("hidden menu"), & the HD resolution to 1080i, you will get all the SD channels passing thru native at their 480i, & all the 1080 HD channels passing native at their 1080i .. Only the handful of 720p stations (ABC, Fox, ESPN, NGC ect).. will be upconverted by the box to 1080 to be fed to your set..... & it's no big deal to go into ther regular settings & switch to 720p if you're say, going to watch "Lost" on ABC that hour, if you'd rather your set do the upconversion.

My new TV came in today (Samsung 4081) and I finally have HDMI support (my old HD CRT was component only). Much to my disgust, I almost thought my TV was broken when I suddenly found a green bar to the right of the screen. Of course I knew to instead point the finger at verizon. Switching to RGB color space makes that go away but...

I also have an issue on the LEFT side of the display. At 1080i, a bar about three times as wide as that green bar is pixel-shifted from where it should be. Or in reality, pixels are suddenly skipped, and what is missing is shown in black pixels (previously green) on the far right. It only goes away if I change to 720p, but now I'm wasting the wonderful 1080p resolution of my new set! Does anyone have any other ideas on how to remove this? Clearly related to the green bar bug.

Also, I thought there was a setting to pass through whatever resolution the channel is, weather it be 480, 720, or 1080, and let the TV handle it. Is there a way to force that? That might fix the above problems as well.

Yet AGAIN let down by verizon...this is happening weekly now. :(
This is a known problem. Rather than using 720P with your HDMI, use 1080i through component out. The picture is indistinguishable from 1080i HDMI, except that the bug is no longer there.

You're not "wasting" the resolution of your set. Your TV is a fixed-pixel display, so it's always displaying 1080 lines of resolution regardless of what kind of signal you feed it. If you switch the STB to 720p your TV upscales the image to 1080. Most modern TVs have very good upscalers, and you probably won't be able to tell the difference between the two images. I know I have trouble telling the difference between a regular DVD upscaled by my TV (or my DVD player) and a Blu-ray DVD. They both look fantastic.

It's annoying to see it on the screen, but realistically the problem is not that big a deal and there are at least two workarounds: have the STB output 720p or set your TV to an overscan mode (if it has one).

I disagree. If the source channel is broadcasting at 1080 (1920x1080 pixels, half each field..), the box will then degrade that to 1200x720 pixels, thereby throwing away information. The tv will then upscale it back to 1080 and the result is smoothed pixel-level details.
And I've seen many examples where I can easily see the difference between 720 and 1080.
It might be added that my couch is only about 4 feet from the television, certainly it might not matter at larger distances (but then why would anyone bother buying a tv with any kind of extended resolution?)

As excited as I've been to finally be able to use a digitally-pure HDMI, it looks like I will switch back to component to avoid the verizon curse--I mean bug.

Just got installed today. Is there a way to fix the video output on all channels (SD and HD) to 1080i or 720p. I don't see anything in the settings that allow this. As it is my tv's have to re-sync when it switches resolution and it's killing me.

Any help would be appreciated. :)
Yes, the 480 override setting can also be set to "off" , & this will convert the SD channels to either the 720p or 1080i resolution you selected for HD content.

Yes, the 480 override setting can also be set to "off" , & this will convert the SD channels to either the 720p or 1080i resolution you selected for HD content.

Where is the 480 override setting? :confused:

Where is the 480 override setting? :confused:The 480 override setting determines how SD channels are output.

If 4:3 override is OFF, the Motorola processes and upconverts 480i SD channels to whatever HD output resolution you've set (ex: 1080i).

If 4:3 override is 480i, the Motorola outputs 480i SD channels in their original 480i resolution. Your TV does the SD processing / scaling.

If 4:3 override is 480p, the Motorola tries [often unsuccessfully] to correctly deinterlace 480i SD channels into 480p for output.

I disagree. If the source channel is broadcasting at 1080...

That assumes the source is broadcasting at 1080, and the box isn't already putting out a 720 signal that it's upscaled to 1080. I've seen plenty of reports that that is not the always the case for many broadcast sources and that they are actually broadcasting at 720.

And I've seen many examples where I can easily see the difference between 720 and 1080.

Then you should switch to component if you can tell the difference. I watch my 60" from about 12-13' away. It does such a good job of upscaling that I usually feed it the lowest resolution I can.

The 480 override setting determines how SD channels are output.

If 4:3 override is OFF, the Motorola processes and upconverts 480i SD channels to whatever HD output resolution you've set (ex: 1080i).

If 4:3 override is 480i, the Motorola outputs 480i SD channels in their original 480i resolution. Your TV does the SD processing / scaling.

If 4:3 override is 480p, the Motorola tries [often unsuccessfully] to correctly deinterlace 480i SD channels into 480p for output.

Thanks for your help!

One last question, where in the menu system am I able to toggle between Off,480i, 480p. In the main menu under settings I only have Video Format or Video in IMG as options.

I see a button on the remote (#) labeled Aspect underneath but when I push it nothing changes.

That assumes the source is broadcasting at 1080, and the box isn't already putting out a 720 signal that it's upscaled to 1080. I've seen plenty of reports that that is not the always the case for many broadcast sources and that they are actually broadcasting at 720.



Then you should switch to component if you can tell the difference. I watch my 60" from about 12-13' away. It does such a good job of upscaling that I usually feed it the lowest resolution I can.You are missing the point, this isn't an issue of how good your tv's upscaling is, this is an issue of resolution. If you have a 1080p set, you will probably set the stb output to 1080i. That means when you watch something that was originally 720p, during conversion from 720p to 1080i, each 720p field (720 lines) has to be fit into a 1080i field (540 lines), resulting in a loss of 180 lines of resolution (a 25% reduction in vertical resolution!). No scaler can add resolution beyond what's in the original image.

The 480 override setting determines how SD channels are output.

If 4:3 override is OFF, the Motorola processes and upconverts 480i SD channels to whatever HD output resolution you've set (ex: 1080i).

If 4:3 override is 480i, the Motorola outputs 480i SD channels in their original 480i resolution. Your TV does the SD processing / scaling.

If 4:3 override is 480p, the Motorola tries [often unsuccessfully] to correctly deinterlace 480i SD channels into 480p for output.

Is this 480 override setting able to be accessed when using the HDMI video output or is this only available with the component video output?

Is this 480 override setting able to be accessed when using the HDMI video output or is this only available with the component video output?Yes. It can be accessed with either and it applies to both.

Turn the box off, press select, then press menu.

IOW, with the STB ON, press "Power, Select, Menu" in quick succession.

Many thanks. :)

I asked the VZ tech if the box could be set to output everything in 1080 or 720 and he said it was not possible. :rolleyes:

You are missing the point, this isn't an issue of how good your tv's upscaling is, this is an issue of resolution. If you have a 1080p set, you will probably set the stb output to 1080i. That means when you watch something that was originally 720p, during conversion from 720p to 1080i, each 720p field (720 lines) has to be fit into a 1080i field (540 lines), resulting in a loss of 180 lines of resolution (a 25% reduction in vertical resolution!). No scaler can add resolution beyond what's in the original image.

You're right. I'm wrong. You win. Verizon sucks and my picture is utter crap because of this bug. I'm going to cancel my contract and switch to Dish.

You're right. I'm wrong. You win. Verizon sucks and my picture is utter crap because of this bug. I'm going to cancel my contract and switch to Dish.I wasn't trying to say your tv looks bad (obviously, I've never seen it :) ). It sounds like you're very happy with the picture quality, congrats! I was just saying that it could look better if the box supported native resolution pass-through. One of the reasons many of us chose FIOS TV is because they don't perform additional compression on the source material (like almost every other provider does). If you're of a like mind, seems like a shame to leave 25% of the vertical resolution on the table.

I wasn't trying to say your tv looks bad (obviously, I've never seen it :) ). It sounds like you're very happy with the picture quality, congrats! I was just saying that it could look better if the box supported native resolution pass-through. One of the reasons many of us chose FIOS TV is because they don't perform additional compression on the source material (like almost every other provider does). If you're of a like mind, seems like a shame to leave 25% of the vertical resolution on the table.Well, you do have other alternatives to the Verizon DVR, such as a (1) CableCard TV, (2) CableCard DVR, or (3) CableCard HTPC from the like of Dell.

Well, you do have other alternatives to the Verizon DVR, such as a (1) CableCard TV, (2) CableCard DVR, or (3) CableCard HTPC from the like of Dell.Or option 4> Manually adjust the resolution to match the native rate (that's what I'm doing). The Tivo solution is tempting, but I wonder how viable it is in the long run with IPTV coming...

Hi all,
I've been reading the QIP6416 DVR saga since I have the same thing. So far so good since the IMG update BTW!

I'm taking the plunge for an HDTV. Knowing the limitations of the Mot 6416, what would be my best bet as far as what to buy? It almost seems like the limitation of the 6416 doesn't make much of an issue for what HDTV is installed. I'm planning on something 1080P, plasma or LCD, but I don't want to buy the cheapest model either. I doubt if I ever will hook up an outside OTA antenna, but I'm within the range of Phila's transmitters if I absolutely need to test it.

Hi all,
I've been reading the QIP6416 DVR saga since I have the same thing. So far so good since the IMG update BTW!

I'm taking the plunge for an HDTV. Knowing the limitations of the Mot 6416, what would be my best bet as far as what to buy? It almost seems like the limitation of the 6416 doesn't make much of an issue for what HDTV is installed. I'm planning on something 1080P, plasma or LCD, but I don't want to buy the cheapest model either. I doubt if I ever will hook up an outside OTA antenna, but I'm within the range of Phila's transmitters if I absolutely need to test it.I really like my Pioneer 50" plasma. Beware: some of the cheap 'box stores' sell the same TV as the expensive 'HD boutique stores' but they substitute a less capable remote with it. My local 'boutique' matched the box store so I went that route for a really great deal. A really close examination of the specs is required along with a careful comparison of model numbers. Different model numbers mean there is a difference in what you are getting! Try to find your favorite HDTV in both types of stores and do the comparisons before you buy. Have fun with your new HDTV! :)

Hi all,
I've been reading the QIP6416 DVR saga since I have the same thing. So far so good since the IMG update BTW!

I'm taking the plunge for an HDTV. Knowing the limitations of the Mot 6416, what would be my best bet as far as what to buy? It almost seems like the limitation of the 6416 doesn't make much of an issue for what HDTV is installed. I'm planning on something 1080P, plasma or LCD, but I don't want to buy the cheapest model either. I doubt if I ever will hook up an outside OTA antenna, but I'm within the range of Phila's transmitters if I absolutely need to test it.If you are willing to spend the money, Pioneer's KURO plasmas are the best 1080p displays available today. Search Amazon on "KURO" and check the pricing on the PDP-5010FD (50") and PDP-6010FD (60") to get an idea of what they cost.

The 50" is appropriate if viewing from 8' or less. The 60" is appropriate for viewing from 8' or more.

If you're looking for something under $2500, check the Amazon pricing on the Samsung 52" LCDs. Another option under $2000 would be the 720p Pioneer PDP-5080HD.

If you are willing to spend the money, Pioneer's KURO plasmas are the best 1080p displays available today. Search Amazon on "KURO" and check the pricing on the PDP-5010FD (50") and PDP-6010FD (60") to get an idea of what they cost.

I'll second that. I've got a 6010 and it really is a great picture, even with SD material like Stargate Atlantis. They ain't cheap though. If you were willing to consider a 720 (actually 768) set you could go with the 5080, which is still an awesome set. My neighbor bought a Panasonic plasma (768) about the same time I bought the Pio, and I've been pretty impressed with the picture on it as well.

I'm avoiding Samsung for future purchases due to their fiasco with DLP light tunnel designs. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=758625&page=67

However, the Verizon Fios forum on DSL reports has a number of members posting problems with the FiOS STB and their display. You might want to search there for the brands that are reported: http://www.dslreports.com/forum/vzfiostv

is there a way to dim the front display on this STB when it is turned off?

Arghhh... Tried to DVR 'Lost' tonite. 6416 was only 72% full, claimed to have recorded the 2 hours. When I play, my Samsung 4061F can't sync to the HDMI for 'Lost' and at least one other show DVR'd last nite. And the DVR is now only 37% full.

Anyone else seen this behavior?

Arghhh... Tried to DVR 'Lost' tonite. 6416 was only 72% full, claimed to have recorded the 2 hours. When I play, my Samsung 4061F can't sync to the HDMI for 'Lost' and at least one other show DVR'd last nite. And the DVR is now only 37% full.

Anyone else seen this behavior?

never mind - it's a "feature" of the latest IMG and my TV. I taped "Lost" in SD (why not warn user of this when an HD chanel is available?) and was playing around with the IMG display resolution. When you change the IMG display (from 1080i to 720) using the remote menu, it resets the 4:3 override to 480i. I think this has been reported before. My Samsung can't sync via HDMI at 480i, only 480p...

Lost is found!!!!:)

Arghhh... Tried to DVR 'Lost' tonite. 6416 was only 72% full, claimed to have recorded the 2 hours. When I play, my Samsung 4061F can't sync to the HDMI for 'Lost' and at least one other show DVR'd last nite. And the DVR is now only 37% full.

Anyone else seen this behavior?

No, but I did notice FiOS stopped recording the 2nd hour (the premiere episode) a minute or two before it ended. Fortunately this time, I was watching real-time, so I didn't miss anything. I need to remember to edit the DVR settings for Lost to add about 2 minutes for the future.

Doug

Don't tell me that...I DVRed lost and plan on watching them tonight!
Which reminds me of yet another complaint of the new IMG, where is the preference that we used to have where you could tell it to start X minutes early and end X minutes late?

Fox is notorious for doing that to simpsons, so I have a manual recording set up for sunday from 7:58 to 8:50..but I really don't want to have to do that for every show!

Which reminds me of yet another complaint of the new IMG, where is the preference that we used to have where you could tell it to start X minutes early and end X minutes late?

You have to set the series to record, then go into the Series Manager (something like that) submenu of the DVR main menu item. You can change various attributes of the recording there.

You can also set a system-side default somewhere in the main menu. I'm at work right now so I don't recall the name of the item.

Doesn't anybody just poke around in the menus? The night I got FiOS installed I spent about an hour going through every menu option to see what was there.

I wasn't trying to say your tv looks bad (obviously, I've never seen it :) ). It sounds like you're very happy with the picture quality, congrats! I was just saying that it could look better if the box supported native resolution pass-through. One of the reasons many of us chose FIOS TV is because they don't perform additional compression on the source material (like almost every other provider does). If you're of a like mind, seems like a shame to leave 25% of the vertical resolution on the table.

I see several people commenting on the STB not passing thru the video in source quality. Does anyone know if the cable card passes native quality - 720 or 1080i?

is there a way to dim the front display on this STB when it is turned off?

The best solution I have found is black electrical tape and cut out for the IR sensor.

I see several people commenting on the STB not passing thru the video in source quality. Does anyone know if the cable card passes native quality - 720 or 1080i?

The answer would be yes if they are cablecards in your tv. The cablecards just authorize the tv to display the channels. Tivo also allows native pass thru(I believe).

... Doesn't anybody just poke around in the menus? The night I got FiOS installed I spent about an hour going through every menu option to see what was there. I do poking around when I get something new too. Just be careful not to suggest that anyone here in the AVS Forum do it also or you will be slaughtered by the bleeding hearts. Instant gratification is the name of the game. Laziness is a virtue nowadays. My view only. Signed: "Roadkill". :D

When you're all done with the IMG, try poking around the STB's menus: http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19899756-The-other-hidden-menu-in-your-STB-Diagnostic#1991846. Enjoy.

When you're all done with the IMG, try poking around the STB's menus: http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19899756-The-other-hidden-menu-in-your-STB-Diagnostic#1991846. Enjoy. I have already done so a long time ago. As you already know I went elsewhere for my main STB. :D

I am in Central NJ, and had the IMG update a month or two ago.

Since then, I have had 2 pretty major problems.

1) The 16:9 video mode keeps changing from 1080i or 720p to Ycr or whatever that strange option is. It gets quite frustrating as my TV does not support this video mode, and while I have no problem navigating the menu blind, my wife is not having such a good time of it. This is happening once every other day or so.

2) In 1080i, on my Samsung 720p LCD, I get a vertical "tear" in the picture, about 1/10th of the way over from the left side of the screen. Why not use 720p? Well my sammy is one of the ones with the dreaded horizontal tearing in any progressive input mode. I know it is the STB that is causing this, as connecting my TV to another 1080i source, yields no tear.

Has anyone seen either of these issues? Any tips?

My box is exhibiting some awful weird behavior. The 10-sec skip back takes you back to the beginning of the show (sometimes), 30-sec skip forward sometimes skips back, there is no Resume Play any more (stop takes you back to the beginning of the show), the progress bar is missing when paused, the front panel reads "PLAY" when paused, a scheduled recording didn't fire for no observable reason ... that's about all we've noticed so far. It started mid-day yesterday.

Did VZ push down some crazy update, or do I need to do some kind of reset. Tried cycling power from the front panel, no effect.

Is there a reboot key sequence that won't obliterate all my recordings?

I'd like to try that before the adventure of calling VZ tech support for help.

Did you try a power-cycle of the dvr? Unplug the box from the power, wait 30 seconds, plug it back in.

Is this 616 the Motorola 6416?
If so, I'm about to change from D* to one of my local cable providers and wanted to know if I should get the 6412 or the 6416 and also what bugs/firmwares/or issues they have?
Thanks so much for any assistance!

Is this 616 the Motorola 6416?
If so, I'm about to change from D* to one of my local cable providers and wanted to know if I should get the 6412 or the 6416 and also what bugs/firmwares/or issues they have?
Thanks so much for any assistance!

Not sure what you are asking, but the QIP6416 is a specially designed box for FiOS that receives program guide and VOD via IP.

To answer your other question, 6412 = 120gb HD and 6416 = 160gb HD, so I would opt for the 6416.

The bugs and firmware problems will be specific to whoever your cable provider is because they will all have different user interfaces.

Thanks for your response kes601.
I follow most of it.
Meant to type 6416 twice by the way in that post, sorry.
So the moto 6416 offered by my local provider is not the 6416 in this thread? Sorry.
Where can I look into the bugs and firmwares needed for my local provider?(didn't have any with my HR21 from D*, but my bill is astronomical)

Thanks again for the help.

Thanks for your response kes601.
I follow most of it.
Meant to type 6416 twice by the way in that post, sorry.
So the moto 6416 offered by my local provider is not the 6416 in this thread? Sorry.
Where can I look into the bugs and firmwares needed for my local provider?(didn't have any with my HR21 from D*, but my bill is astronomical)

Thanks again for the help.

You'll need to track down a forum specific for your provider. There are so many forums here that I am not going to tackle it.

A good place to start might be typing in 6416 "provider name" in the "Google Search AVS" box toward the top of the page.

I did, I believe my provider is too small and there are no threads for it on avs.
RCN
Lehigh Valley, PA

My box is exhibiting some awful weird behavior. The 10-sec skip back takes you back to the beginning of the show (sometimes), 30-sec skip forward sometimes skips back, there is no Resume Play any more (stop takes you back to the beginning of the show), the progress bar is missing when paused, the front panel reads "PLAY" when paused, a scheduled recording didn't fire for no observable reason ... that's about all we've noticed so far. It started mid-day yesterday.

Did VZ push down some crazy update, or do I need to do some kind of reset. Tried cycling power from the front panel, no effect.

Is there a reboot key sequence that won't obliterate all my recordings?

I'd like to try that before the adventure of calling VZ tech support for help.

Getting the same thing. Was really irritating yesterday during the SuperBowl. I am in NorthTexas and my wife had observed this behavior at least a week ago.

I did, I believe my provider is too small and there are no threads for it on avs. RCN Lehigh Valley, PATry asking in the Philly Verizon thread. It's for the whole area: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=792568&page=26

I am in Central NJ, and had the IMG update a month or two ago.
Since then, I have had 2 pretty major problems.

1) The 16:9 video mode keeps changing from 1080i or 720p to Ycr or whatever that strange option is. It gets quite frustrating as my TV does not support this video mode, and while I have no problem navigating the menu blind, my wife is not having such a good time of it. This is happening once every other day or so.

2) In 1080i, on my Samsung 720p LCD, I get a vertical "tear" in the picture, about 1/10th of the way over from the left side of the screen. Why not use 720p? Well my sammy is one of the ones with the dreaded horizontal tearing in any progressive input mode. I know it is the STB that is causing this, as connecting my TV to another 1080i source, yields no tear.

Has anyone seen either of these issues? Any tips?1) Nothing should cause your STB to change output resolutions. Ycr sounds like component (YPbPr / YCbCr). Suggest you get a new STB.

2) That's a bug with the IMG when using HDMI. Switch to component if you can. Info about it is at the DSL Reports Verizon FiOS forum. I couldn't find it quickly, so here's the link to the forum: http://www.dslreports.com/forum/vzfiostv. It's called the "green line" bug in here somewhere.

My box is exhibiting some awful weird behavior. The 10-sec skip back takes you back to the beginning of the show (sometimes), 30-sec skip forward sometimes skips back, there is no Resume Play any more (stop takes you back to the beginning of the show), the progress bar is missing when paused, the front panel reads "PLAY" when paused, a scheduled recording didn't fire for no observable reason ... that's about all we've noticed so far. It started mid-day yesterday.

Did VZ push down some crazy update, or do I need to do some kind of reset. Tried cycling power from the front panel, no effect.

Is there a reboot key sequence that won't obliterate all my recordings?

I'd like to try that before the adventure of calling VZ tech support for help.

I've got the same issues!!!! Hven't had time to play aroung with it yet. Any results on your end.