Last I looked, it was 10.29

OTOH, and while I'm thinking about it ... I have been experiencing EXTREMELY sluggish operation ... slow to respond to remote ... all FF speeds are the same "very slow" and "cyclical and choppy". A hard reset cures it for a brief time.

Are you running with the 750GB drive as a replacement for the internal drive?

Are you running with the 750GB drive as a replacement for the internal drive?I have been. I have been intending to swap back to the 160GB and see if that made any difference; will advise.

It appears that it does not matter if I set the HD to go into sleep mode or not.
I cannot operate the guide or any menus 15-30 seconds after turning on PVR for whatever reason.


What type of TV do you have?

Hey Linden!

Another quirk I have noticed is that ALL recorded programs begin about 16 seconds PAST the start time of the programs. The detail listing universally show recorded programs stating at xx:00:16 or xx:30:15 instead of xx:00:00 or xx:30:00

I'm running the Pace in parallel with one of my Moto 6416 boxes and can switch between them. The Moto always starts on time.

For programs like Law & Order, you miss the entire initial setup!@#$%^&

The detail listing universally show recorded programs stating at xx:00:16 or xx:30:15 instead of xx:00:00 or xx:30:00

There is a bug in diagnostics where leap seconds are not taken into account when displaying time. The actual recording start time does not have this issue.

I'm running the Pace in parallel with one of my Moto 6416 boxes and can switch between them. The Moto always starts on time.

Does this happen with dual recordings or can it happen with single linear recordings? Roughly how many seconds late is it starting?

I have a TDC775 that is brand new running the Shaw firmware version.

I hooked up a brand new Lacie d2 Quadra 750G

When I reboot the Pace it asks if I want to format the external drive, I choose yes and I see activity on the external drive for about 30 seconds.

Activity on the external drive then stops, the Pace reboots and asks again to format the external. This loop continues.

Is there anything else to try or should I return the Lacie and try to find a WD MyDVR drive...

This appears to be the issue with some of the USB/ESATA drives. I would try a different drive and see if that works for you. The WD MyDVR would most likely work for you.

I'm in Canada and there is no source here for the WD MyDVR, painfull

There is some discussion on this thread for drives that do work so you might want to check the last few pages.

I picked up a SATA to eSATA cable for $7 and hooked up a raw Hitachi 500G drive and it works like a charm. The trick is not to have any firmware inline, just go straight to a drive. Of course time will tell if I get any errors ect but so far so good.

It shows 1 format, with unknown date. So I assume that means it didn't reformat over the weekend, so what happened to all my recordings?

After loosing all my recordings a couple of weeks ago, the box is acting up again. At times, the fast forward and other buttons are very slow to respond. Tonight, while watching a recording of last night's LOST, it just froze, and the screen then went blank. After a minute or so, the box shut down and restarted. All TV Guide info was lost, and the recording was still there, but reset to the beginning. Twice I tried to ff to where I was in the recording, and it repeated the same sequence of freezing, going blank, then rebooting. Starting to think this PACE box needs to get returned. Any ideas? Guess I'll have to watch LOST on-line, but kinda defeats the purpose of the DVR.

Just to let anyone who wants to know, know, im running a LaCie d2 Quadra 500gb external hard drive via the e-sata port, and it has been working really really well.

As an update to my 1394 issue, it seems i still cant stream or record anything recorded, but live TV works just fine..

I asked my cable company about the firmware, and apparently they dont have any plans to update Guide, so that means they cant update the firmware... or something of that nature.

After loosing all my recordings a couple of weeks ago, the box is acting up again.

At this point, since your recordings were lost, I'd suggest reformatting the HDD. I still think there could potentially be an issue with it.

I asked my cable company about the firmware, and apparently they dont have any plans to update Guide, so that means they cant update the firmware... or something of that nature.

Firmware updates are not tied to guide upgrades. However, local cable companies can choose which firmware updates they want to release. Who is your cable provider again?

At this point, since your recordings were lost, I'd suggest reformatting the HDD. I still think there could potentially be an issue with it.

I've been seaching for instructions for reformatting the drive, how is that done? I don't see anything in the diagnostics screen for this.

BTW, I did reboot and now it is working OK (for now). Still get some hesitation when selecting the fast forward and play functions.

Also, this may be just a coincidence, but much of the problems started after I installed a battery back up for the box - we were having a lot of wind and my power kept going out (momentaries) and I got tired of all the reboots. Now that it doesn't reboot, I keep having problems. Any problems with using a battery backup?

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

That is the instructions for the Motorola DVR, but the button sequence is the same for the Pace box as well.

Firmware updates are not tied to guide upgrades. However, local cable companies can choose which firmware updates they want to release. Who is your cable provider again?

BendCable or BendBroadBand located in Bend, Oregon 97701

www.bendbroadband.com (http://www.bendbroadband.com)

Jason (or anyone else interested),

Linden, I just got ten minutes to check the discrete power codes

I've had a request (from BillKen) for discrete codes to enable/disable closed captions. I would like to find out how many people would find this useful. If so, anyone have suggestions for the hex values you'd like to see used?

Also, if there are other discrete remote codes that you might find useful, please post your suggestions.

if there are other discrete remote codes that you might find useful, please post your suggestions.Definitely output resolutions: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i.

Is there currently a setting for a passthrough resolution? That is the thing I really long for! I'd really like my projector to to all the conversion.

Definitely output resolutions: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i.

Is there currently a setting for a passthrough resolution? That is the thing I really long for! I'd really like my projector to to all the conversion.

I believe if you enable all output resolutions, the Pace will pass through the native resolution.

I would also like to see discrete codes for resolution selection.

I believe if you enable all output resolutions, the Pace will pass through the native resolution.While that allows 480i, I have never seen 720p on ABC, FOX, etc.

cavu,

While that allows 480i, I have never seen 720p on ABC, FOX, etc.

rockman1_1 is right. If you enable all resolutions in Pace User Settings, you will have passthrough functionality (although that is different than discrete codes for each resolution).

While that allows 480i, I have never seen 720p on ABC, FOX, etc.

I'm 99% sure that Fox broadcasts in 720p - and I know for sure ESPN HD is 720p as well. ABC, CBS and "most" other networks are 1080i though.

If you enable all resolutions in Pace User Settings, you will have passthrough functionalityAlthough the display resyncs with each channel change, SDTV shows as 480i but ALL HDTV show as 1080i.

ABC, FOX, ESPN and NatGeo are all 720p but none show up that way!?!

ABC, FOX, ESPN and NatGeo are all 720p but none show up that way!?!

Are you using component or HDMI? Do both behave the same (i.e. no 720p)?

ABC, CBS and "most" other networks are 1080i though.ABC is 720p along with FOX, ESPN and NatGeo (amongst the majors).

You can find the details here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=164671).

Are you using component or HDMI?Just HDMI to DVI.

Just HDMI to DVI.

When on a 720p channel, please go to diagnostics and navigate to the HDMI page (Interface status, then HDMI) and post what the IN/OUT video formats are. Also, please post the supported resolutions.

When on a 720p channel [...] post what the IN/OUT video formats are.Both IN/OUT formats are 1080i; I checked both east and west feeds of both ABC and FOX.

I even called Shaw to confirm that those channels (200, 203, 205, 208) are, in fact, supposed to be 720p and they agreed they should be 720p.please post the supported resolutions.I have it set to all: 480i, 480p, 720p 1080i

I even bypassed my AVR and my HDMI switch with no changes noted.

Both IN/OUT formats are 1080i; I checked both east and west feeds of both ABC and FOX.

If the IN format is 1080i, then by the time the signal gets to the box, its 1080i and thus your pass through will be defeated. Are you sure the stream isn't being re-encoded?

I have it set to all: 480i, 480p, 720p 1080i

Sorry, I was referring to the supported resolutions in diagnostics and not Pace User Settings.

Are you sure the stream isn't being re-encoded?And where would that be happening?? Shaw claim not to be upscaling the signal.I was referring to the supported resolutions in diagnostics and not Pace User Settings.Preferred and supported resolutions are both UNKNOWN.

And where would that be happening?? Shaw claim not to be upscaling the signal.

I see that you got an answer on DHC--Shaw is upsampling to 1080i.

Shaw is upsampling to 1080i.Amazing! :eek:

I have never heard of a cable company doing that.

On the phone today, they denied it. I have an email into them.

Any remote that works with the 6412 should work with the TDC775, so yes, the codes should be functional on either box.

BTW, who is your Cable Operator?

Is this still the route to take with programmable remotes?

I just switched over to cable and my provider gave me a 6208 for one TV and 775 for the HT. I use a URC – MX 980 and the pre-programmed database has two Pace files to use, niether of which work. I had to learn all the commands of the remote that my service provider gave me into the 980, but as usual, learned codes do not work as well as pre-programmed codes.

I guess what I’m asking is what have other users of programmable remotes used for codes for the Pace 775? I searched at Remote Central and was unable to find them.

I've just recently received my new Tahoe TDC775 HD PVR. Have been pretty happy using it over the last week and have added a 'Seagate FreeAgent Pro - 750 GB - external drive' which recognized it immediately. The assistance that I'm looking for is how I can use the switched power outlet on the Tahoe unit to turn on/off the power to my external eSata drive. I've enabled the switched power outlet on the Tahoe unit but when I power up the Tahoe it appears to power-up to quickly before the external drive has a chance to power on thus not seeing it. I was hoping that by using the switched power outlet on the Tahoe I could mange the power of the external drive by synchronizing it to when the Tahoe is powered up and power down. Any thoughts as to whether anything can be tweaked on the Tahoe to slow its boot up until the external drive has an opportunity to power up? Thanks in advance.
-djb

I've just recently received my new Tahoe TDC775 HD PVR. Have been pretty happy using it over the last week and have added a 'Seagate FreeAgent Pro - 750 GB - external drive' which recognized it immediately. The assistance that I'm looking for is how I can use the switched power outlet on the Tahoe unit to turn on/off the power to my external eSata drive. I've enabled the switched power outlet on the Tahoe unit but when I power up the Tahoe it appears to power-up to quickly before the external drive has a chance to power on thus not seeing it. I was hoping that by using the switched power outlet on the Tahoe I could mange the power of the external drive by synchronizing it to when the Tahoe is powered up and power down. Any thoughts as to whether anything can be tweaked on the Tahoe to slow its boot up until the external drive has an opportunity to power up? Thanks in advance.
-djb


The issue is the DVR is never off unless you remove it's AC plug. The DVR will send a spindown cmd to the drive and the drive will go to low powermode (at least the 778x does) if you just leave the drive's power supply connected to a AC outlet.

The issue is the DVR is never off unless you remove it's AC plug. The DVR will send a spindown cmd to the drive and the drive will go to low powermode (at least the 778x does) if you just leave the drive's power supply connected to a AC outlet.
Ok, I'll assume that the unit will issue a spindown (low powermode) cmd to the external drive. In the meantime I've got to figure out how to turn off the bloody LED lights on the
Seagate FreeAgent Pro drive :-` I'll post that inquiry to another forum :-` I'll try to adjust the lights once I've got my hands on a laptop and connect it to the usb connector on the FreeAgent drive. Anyway, thanks for the reply and clarification of the spindown cmd.
-djb

I initially set up the 775 with HMDI into my receiver (Denon 3808). I noticed that I was only getting two channel compressed audio to the receiver. I know it’s compressed because the receiver allows me to use the “enhancer” feature for compressed audio. If it isn’t compressed, then this function is disabled. Another thing I noticed was the volume is very low. No matter what audio options I select in the set up menu, HDMI audio remains the same. On a whim, I connected the 775 to the receiver via coax. I now have 5.1 channel for HD channels and 5.1 and / or 2 channel for all other channels. None are compressed either. Is this a known problem or is there a super secret setting for this box somewhere?

Ok, I'll assume that the unit will issue a spindown (low powermode) cmd to the external drive. In the meantime I've got to figure out how to turn off the bloody LED lights on the
Seagate FreeAgent Pro drive :-` I'll post that inquiry to another forum :-` I'll try to adjust the lights once I've got my hands on a laptop and connect it to the usb connector on the FreeAgent drive. Anyway, thanks for the reply and clarification of the spindown cmd.
-djb

A note about the Freeagent light. Even if you turn it off via USB when power is removed it forgets that setting and the LED comes back on (at least mine and others do that.)

A note about the Freeagent light. Even if you turn it off via USB when power is removed it forgets that setting and the LED comes back on (at least mine and others do that.)
Thanks for the info, I guess I'll just place it out of site not worry about it.

Is this a known problem or is there a super secret setting for this box somewhere?

Yes. This is a known issue and is fixed in the latest firmware release. Check out the 775 release notes thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=866125&highlight=release+notes) for more info. Do know what firmware release you're currently using?

I read through the release notes, and it says HDMI audio is “higher”, but didn’t see mention about the 2 ch verses 5.1 I’m seeing.

Where’s the menu for finding the firmware version? I’ll let you know which one I’m one.

……thanks.

I read through the release notes, and it says HDMI audio is “higher”, but didn’t see mention about the 2 ch verses 5.1 I’m seeing.

What your looking for is this fix in the 10.04-10.08 releases.

AC-3 works over HDMI

Where’s the menu for finding the firmware version? I’ll let you know which one I’m one.

Here are the direction for Mediacom on the PACE 778. I am sure it will be close to yours as well.

Method 1: Using the diagnostic menu
- start with the DVR "on"
- Press the "pwr button"
- Press the "select" button with in 5 seconds.
- If you see a DASHBOARD, the SW version will be shown at the bottom of the screen.
- If you see a DASHBOARD and want to see the diag menu, press the left arrow.
Item 07 is the menu iten to view firmware.
Item 24 will allow you to see the information for that recording you can't play. If you look at the MPEG File Size for the unplayable recording, it will have {0} on the right I bet.


Method 2: (This depends on your providers menus. But you are looking for a Cable Box Setup item).

Steps to view FW version:
- Press "menu"
- Press "menu"
- select "setup" (May have to press down arrow to see it).
- select "Cable Box Setup"
- select configuration (press select to display)
Firmware version is the lower right side.

What your looking for is this fix in the 10.04-10.08 releases.

AC-3 works over HDMI

I finally had time to look at this last night (I work a lot). The box I have has firmware version 9.52.

I'm also having trouble with this box needing reauthorization just about every day. The cable tech support guy I spoke to last night thinks the box is bad, but he didn’t appear to be up to speed on their gear. I asked if they could push a newer firmware to me and told me they could do that, but when I asked him the version #, he couldn't tell me what it was.

Okay all, I have been lurking trying to determine what eSata external hard drive would work for my Pace TDC775D and I never felt I got a very good answer... maybe it is in there somewhere but it wasn't easy to find. SO, I contacted support at Pace and I finally hit the motherload; they actually responded with directly recommended drives! You know, the sort of thing that should have been in the documentation; lazy if you ask me.

Okay, here it is verbatim:

Pace Recommended e-SATA drives

Overview:

This section outlines the e-SATA drive(s) that Pace has tested and verified to operate with any Pace STB. Although any current e-SATA drive is compatible with Pace STB’s, the following manufacturers have been tested and verified and are therefore recommended for e-SATA use.

Recommended Drives by Manufacturer Model Number

Edge Diskgo: TBM120
Maxtor: R42JER0E
Seagate: ST303204FPA1E2-RK and ST305004FPA1E2-RK
Western Digital: WDG1SU5000N and WDG1S5000

Content recorded on the STB can only be viewed from that specific device. Content can not be transferred or viewed on a home computer or any other electronic device.

>> Next they told me more info on the install... I know amazing!! LOL <<

TDC775D – e-SATA Installation Guide
This section outlines the process on how to properly install an external SATA (e-SATA) drive on Pace Tahoe TDC775D.

Installation:

1. Pace Set-Top Box (STB) must be disconnected at the time an e-SATA drive is connected.

2. e-SATA drive must be connected utilizing the SATA port via an e-SATA cable.

3. Once connected, the STB can be booted up. Boot time should not be affected when a properly working e-SATA drive is connected.

4. Once the e-SATA drive is connected and the STB is powered on, the user will be prompted to format the e-SATA drive. This will mate the e-SATA drive and its contents to that STB. Formatting of the e-SATA drive will only be required the first time the e-SATA drive is connected to the STB.

If an e-SATA drive is connected while the system is running the e-SATA drive will not be recognized.

Is there any way to adjust the quality level of the recordings? I had that feature on the Tivo.

I've also noticed the volume issue others have mentioned in the past. I'm using the RCA out and have to pump the TV volume up quite a bit. But when I jump to another source on the TV the sound comes out way too loud. If I compare the volume of the same channels from analog and then via the 775 the difference is surprisingly large.

I've also noticed the volume issue others have mentioned in the past. I'm using the RCA out and have to pump the TV volume up quite a bit. But when I jump to another source on the TV the sound comes out way too loud. If I compare the volume of the same channels from analog and then via the 775 the difference is surprisingly large.

Same problem here.

Firmware 10.29 (Shaw)
RCA "Primary Audio Out" to Sony receiver.
Some channels must be turned up extremely high...

The Motorola cable boxes (used prior) had no audio problems.

I have tried changing all of the 775's Audio Setup options...
One thing I noticed is that the "Optimal Stereo" setting is unable to be turned off - it is set to "Yes" and is not able to be changed.

If anyone has a solution to this problem (which seems common), please let me know. I will be trying other audio hookup solutions once I check what available inputs are left on my receiver...

I know you can create a list of favorite channels. Wondering if there is any way to remove stations from the guide. For example, all of the premium stations we do not subscribe to.

I know you can create a list of favorite channels. Wondering if there is any way to remove stations from the guide. For example, all of the premium stations we do not subscribe to.

No

Wondering if there is any way to remove stations from the guide. For example, all of the premium stations we do not subscribe to.I would sure like to do that but no, you can't do that!

lindend: are you listening!? ;)

lindend: are you listening!? ;)

This is a feature of the guide, so this isn't something we can change. Sorry.

This is a feature of the guide, so this isn't something we can change. Sorry.

How about passing the word onto the guide software devs letting them know customers are requesting that feature. Really, its ridiculous to have to scroll through a 100 channels I don't get. What a waste of time. Or, if they want to have a main guide that lists everything available from the cable operator they could give us a subscribed to list (which would make far more sense).

How about a discrete IR code that would pull up favorite lists? A seperate code for each favorite would be ideal.

How about a discrete IR code that would pull up favorite lists? A seperate code for each favorite would be ideal.

That's a great idea and would solve the issue completely for our family.

That's a great idea and would solve the issue completely for our family.I AGREE!

Does anyone know if Charter has the external hard drive option enabled in there firmware? My neighbor just got the Pace Tahoe as a replacement for his Moxi. I was in the menu and it has firmware 9.83 or 9.86 can't remember now. But before he goes out and gets a ESATA hard drive he would like to know.

We are in Birmingham Alabama bty.

Does anyone know if Charter has the external hard drive option enabled in there firmware?

I don't think your neighbor has a 775. Are you sure that they don't have a 779 (Tahoe Analog CableCARD)? If so, can we continue this discussion on the Pace CableCARD boxes thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=903826)?

The firmware in Birmingham is definitely capable of supporting eSATA drives, but I'd have to see some diagnostics info to see if Charter has disabled eSATA at that particular site.

I've had the Pace for just short of a week. Things I've run into:

1) 3 hard crashes
2) Lost all of the programming data on two of the above occasions
3) Recorded a movie that got stuck 1/2 way through (asked me if I wanted to delete the program as if it was completed). FFing past this point allowed me to finish the full movie.
4) Sluggish response from the remote
5) Sometimes video doesn't display after switching channels.
6) Parental lock worked for a couple of days and then locked out ALL channels (yes, all of them). WTF!

Sigh...feels like I'm beta testing. We miss our old tivo!

How about passing the word onto the guide software devs letting them know customers are requesting that feature.

I've mentioned this on the thread before, but just a reminder to everyone. I can't bypass the normal processes and relay features and enhancements requests directly to TV Guide (bugs are a different issue). These need to come through your cable company to TV Guide.

Feel free to post suggestions and enhancement requests for our products though. If its something we can fix/address in our software and/or hardware, we'll definitely consider it.

As far as this particular issue, be aware that I'm pretty sure this is an intentional design decision and not just an oversight.

As far as this particular issue, be aware that I'm pretty sure this is an intentional design decision and not just an oversight.

You are probably right and its exactly this type of 'feature' that requires customers to scroll through countless channels they don't have (or want) because some marketing guy thinks its a great way to advertise the premium channels that makes us wish for a different solution. What it really does is add even more value to purchasing a Tivo.

I don't like all of the advertising they have built into the interface.

I've had the Pace for just short of a week. Things I've run into:

1) 3 hard crashes
2) Lost all of the programming data on two of the above occasions
3) Recorded a movie that got stuck 1/2 way through (asked me if I wanted to delete the program as if it was completed). FFing past this point allowed me to finish the full movie.
4) Sluggish response from the remote
5) Sometimes video doesn't display after switching channels.
6) Parental lock worked for a couple of days and then locked out ALL channels (yes, all of them). WTF!

Sigh...feels like I'm beta testing. We miss our old tivo!

How many other users are seeing these types of problems? Trying to figure out if we have a bad box or if this is par for the course. We are running 9.39 of the firmware. I realize its older but not something we can change.

How many other users are seeing these types of problems?I don't think the Pace box is ready for prime-time!!

To say remote control response is sluggish would be VERY KIND! Sometimes it takes almost a minute to respond. :eek:

Pausing, fast winding, slo-mo, etc. are all nightmares. Sometimes stopping playback to resume later it forgets where it was and you have to start from the beginning.

The box routinely starts recordings about 30 seconds or more late. (Missed the entire intro to the recent Tim Russert 'Meet the Press' special !@#$%^&*)

Routinely see image freezing/pausing and audio drops. Rewind and play again .. they happen in different places.

The CPU seems completely overburdened when recording two programs.

I also own two Motorola DCT-64xx DVRs as well and they DO NOT have the same problems.

Ever try frame-stepping?? Works perfectly on the Motos. On the Pace the program jumps around making it impossible.

Pace image pixilates when Moto doesn't ... connected to the same splitter.

How many other users are seeing these types of problems?

1) 3 hard crashes
2) Lost all of the programming data on two of the above occasions
3) Recorded a movie that got stuck 1/2 way through (asked me if I wanted to delete the program as if it was completed). FFing past this point allowed me to finish the full movie.
4) Sluggish response from the remote
5) Sometimes video doesn't display after switching channels.


I don't think the Pace box is ready for prime-time!!

Pausing, fast winding, slo-mo, etc. are all nightmares. Sometimes stopping playback to resume later it forgets where it was and you have to start from the beginning.


Finally someone else having the same problems I've been experiencing on and off for the past year. I've also experienced the first 5 problems listed by Zapster (although not as often). When I've had a show get stuck half way through, the box then reboots. I've had this happen 3 or 4 times. And Cavu, I have had the fast forward problem. It's so annoying to fast forward, hit the play button to resume, and then to have it go way back to where you started. I've posted this problem a couple of times, but it's so random when it happens.

I've been thinking about turning the Pace in for a Moto box, I'm tired of loosing my recordings.

Linden

I complained to my cable provider last week that I was still at 9.40. They did an update yesterday that shows 10.84, but the latest Release Note Thread shows 10.45. What was changed since 10.45?

I knew they did the update because the volume was very loud when I turned it on tonight!!!!
Thx
Jim

My Pace seems to be dead.:( After a power cord insert, the box displays a bright blue power light and 4 dashes across the LCD. The TV display is black and the power button does not respond (i.e. turn off - red). Any suggestions on recovery or debugging? The Tech is not scheduled to come out until Monday sometime between not convenient and really not convenient. I know he will just replace the box (hopefully with another Pace not a Moto) and I'll loose everything (if that has not already happened).

Jim,

but the latest Release Note Thread shows 10.45. What was changed since 10.45?

10.8x builds are starting to roll out at various sites. I'll update the release notes thread with the details as soon as possible.

Is the following a known glitch?

A channel would tune in and then go blank in about 30 seconds. Moving channel up or down would tune the next channel until it also went blank. The guide and other iGuide interface elements could come up fine when the channels were blank. Doing a hard power cycle was the only thing that fixed this, however it also resulted in a loss of the guide data (shouldn't the guide data be stored on the hard drive).

Is the following a known glitch?

A channel would tune in and then go blank in about 30 seconds..

Maybe. If this is happening across multiple boot cycles, its fixed in the latest firmware release.

shouldn't the guide data be stored on the hard drive).

That actually is a feature in the guide. Some EPGs (i.e. Passport Echo) offer it, other EPGs such as TVG don't.

Would I be making a mistake if I bought this PVR?

I don't know, but we are experiencing so many bugs with ours that I plan on swapping it with a Moxi.

I was using a Free Agent Pro eSata/USB with my 775 and replaced it with an eSATA only drive. Of course the 775 formated the Free Agent Drive but now I'd like to be able to reuse the drive iwth my computer since it's no longer being used with the 775. Seagate Drive tools sees the drive with an "unknown partition" and diagnostics says it's working OK but I can't get it to give it a drive letter so I can reformat it so it's usable with WinXP. Anyone know how I can do this? Thanks.

Seagate Drive tools sees the drive with an "unknown partition" and diagnostics says it's working OK but I can't get it to give it a drive letter so I can reformat it so it's usable with WinXP. Anyone know how I can do this? Thanks.

If you go to your computer management mmc (right click my computer and then select manage). Do you see the drive under 'Disk Management' ?

Got it. Should have known that. Found where I could delete the old partitions and format it as NSFS. Admin Tools, Disk Management. Thanks.

Take A Look At This "old" Thread.....the Dates And The Problems Go Right Back To 2006....and That Is For For The "new 775 Pace" And "6412 Motorola" That Shaw Is Trying To Screw Us With...there Are Better Boxes...cheaper Too.. I Know, Cause I'm Going To Be Importing Them Very Very Soon

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=659367

12-24-06, 08:55 AM #28 | Link
lindend
Advanced Member


Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Florida
Posts: 706 Quote:
Originally Posted by wildrock
So obviously this box still has some firmware/software problems. Hope the word starts filtering back to Pace, or whomever is writing the updates for this box.

Hi,

I'm a member of the Tahoe software team and yes we do monitor your experiences on this forum.

Ran into another glitch last night. Had the box set to record an HD movie. Went to watch another show and noticed that the playback was dropping frames on every live station and on all recorded shows. Had to reboot the box to get it back to normal. Unfortunately this caused the box to loose the recording it was making and all of the guide data.

Has anyone seen an odd behavior as follows:

FFFF (quad fast forward) and then when the play button is pressed the video jumps right back to where you started? I've see this a couple of times but not 100% sure that I'm not doing something wrong.

FFFF (quad fast forward) and then when the play button is pressed the video jumps right back to where you started?I have experienced the same quite a few times. I also have seen where you stop the playback and return to it later and the program starts over at the beginning!@#%&*

I have experienced the same quite a few times. I also have seen where you stop the playback and return to it later and the program starts over at the beginning!@#%&*

Yeah, I've seen the stop playback only to have it restart at the beginning. But I figured it was my error.

Its amazing how many glitches I'm seeing in this box.

I bought a 500 Gig Western Digital eSATA drive and tried to get it hooked up to the Pace 775 last night. I have to return the box for a replacement unit and have a lot of movies on the drive that will be lost, (and I’d like to actually watch them before deleting them). I followed the instructions below and as soon as I plug the power cord into the Pace box, it starts to boot up, but then just freezes with four dashed lines across the display. It does not respond at all.

Any suggestions? My local provider didn't even know what eSATA was, so they are no help.


Okay all, I have been lurking trying to determine what eSata external hard drive would work for my Pace TDC775D and I never felt I got a very good answer... maybe it is in there somewhere but it wasn't easy to find. SO, I contacted support at Pace and I finally hit the motherload; they actually responded with directly recommended drives! You know, the sort of thing that should have been in the documentation; lazy if you ask me.

Okay, here it is verbatim:



>> Next they told me more info on the install... I know amazing!! LOL <<


Quote:
Pace Recommended e-SATA drives

Overview:

This section outlines the e-SATA drive(s) that Pace has tested and verified to operate with any Pace STB. Although any current e-SATA drive is compatible with Pace STB’s, the following manufacturers have been tested and verified and are therefore recommended for e-SATA use.

Recommended Drives by Manufacturer Model Number

Edge Diskgo: TBM120
Maxtor: R42JER0E
Seagate: ST303204FPA1E2-RK and ST305004FPA1E2-RK
Western Digital: WDG1SU5000N and WDG1S5000

Content recorded on the STB can only be viewed from that specific device. Content can not be transferred or viewed on a home computer or any other electronic device.

>> Next they told me more info on the install... I know amazing!! LOL <<


Quote:
TDC775D – e-SATA Installation Guide
This section outlines the process on how to properly install an external SATA (e-SATA) drive on Pace Tahoe TDC775D.

Installation:

1. Pace Set-Top Box (STB) must be disconnected at the time an e-SATA drive is connected.

2. e-SATA drive must be connected utilizing the SATA port via an e-SATA cable.

3. Once connected, the STB can be booted up. Boot time should not be affected when a properly working e-SATA drive is connected.

4. Once the e-SATA drive is connected and the STB is powered on, the user will be prompted to format the e-SATA drive. This will mate the e-SATA drive and its contents to that STB. Formatting of the e-SATA drive will only be required the first time the e-SATA drive is connected to the STB.

If an e-SATA drive is connected while the system is running the e-SATA drive will not be recognized.

Crap…. I think I did now…..

I tried to get the 775 to recognize the e-SATA drive again. I left it alone for a couple hours with the dash lines on the display thinking it just needed more time to do its thing. When I got back home a screen was up saying the ASTB needed to download software. It’s downloading now. What the heck did I do?

Has anyone seen an odd behavior as follows:

FFFF (quad fast forward) and then when the play button is pressed the video jumps right back to where you started? I've see this a couple of times but not 100% sure that I'm not doing something wrong.

This issue is discussed in detail in the Pace CableCARD HD Boxes thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=13754012#post13754012). There are several posts (and followups) on the topic in that thread.

The same issue can/will happen on the 775 if there are errors in the content (we are actively investigating the issue).

I bought a 500 Gig Western Digital eSATA drive

Is this a WD drive with a combo USB/eSATA interface? The symptoms sure sound like it may be generating CRC errors.

What the heck did I do?

See my question above. This can happen if you connect a drive that generates CRC errors (and many USB/eSATA combo drives do). If the software fails to boot several consecutive times (likely due to communication problems with the drive), it will attempt to redownload the software image.

Yes Linden, the hard drive I am using is a combo USB / Firewire / eSATA. The model number is: My Book Home Edition – WD5000H1CS

The 775 would continue to re-download software from the cable provider, even with the WD hard drive disconnected. I gave up and took that cable box back to the cable provider and they gave me a new one. They had to give me a different one anyway because the one they initially gave me would repentantly need to be reauthorized. I’ve been trying to save some of my recordings before swapping them out…….

After I hooked up the new 775 and verified that it worked, I tried the WD hard drive again. This time when I plugged the power cable into the 775, same thing happened. It just had the four dash lines showing on the display. This time however I noticed the power on indicator light on the hard drive would fade on and off and the 775’s display would go from four dash lines to two, then back to four and on and on. After about ten minute or so, the 775 turned itself off. I turned it back on and it booted right up and seams to be working just fine. I can only assume that the WD hard drive is functioning and the 775 decided to format the drive on its own.

Is there a way to verify if the WD hard drive is working correctly and being recognized or not?

Yes Linden, the hard drive I am using is a combo USB / Firewire / eSATA. The model number is: My Book Home Edition – WD5000H1CS

Very likely that it is generating CRC errors. To confirm, see question below.

Is there a way to verify if the WD hard drive is working correctly and being recognized or not?

If you go into the HDD status page in diagnostics, press the select button to navigate to the eSATA drive and then report the value in the CRC field.

Note: the CRC field will only be present in later firmware releases so its availability will depend on whether or not your cable provider has rolled the firmware release out.

:confused:

Hello Linden and TDC 755 owners:

I had to register only to ask this technical question.

About three weeks ago my HD PVR decided to get stuck on the front panel with a "0". I would turn on and off the unit, unplug it, leave it a day and night unplugged to see if it would go back to normal... leave it on for 48 hours, and no success...

Even the remote stopped working.

Then one day out of the blue... the unit decided to go.. back to normal and work as if nothing had ever happened.

I read Linden´s post about a Warm reset fix... I don´t know if this would work...

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

1. Warm reset fix. This solves the problem where some Tahoe's got stuck with 0 on the front panel after a warm reset was attempted to cure the nationwide guide issue.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

I wrote Tech support and this is what they stated:

Pace Technical Support to me, pacetechnicals.
show details Jul 9 (9 days ago) Reply


The 0 on the front panel requires a signal to be sent from the cable company to reinitialize the box. You need to contact them.
Software can not be loaded directly to the box. It must be delivered via the cable lines by your cable provider.
Regards,
Pace Technical Support

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Once again the unit worked for about a week and a half, and it is now back to the dreaded... CERO... on the front panel with no response to the remote control.

I called the cable company today, and they said they had sent a reset signal, and to unplug the unit for about 15 to 20 minutes...

As I am writing, the unit is still stuck with a CERO... and no response whatsover.

Is this DVR defective or does it need a firmware upgrade?
It says it is at 9.21 firmware.

Looking forward to an answer on what to do... :o(
Has this situation happened to anyone else..?


Thanks,

George

...
Is this DVR defective or does it need a firmware upgrade?
It says it is at 9.21 firmware.

Looking forward to an answer on what to do... :o(
Has this situation happened to anyone else..?


Thanks,

George

I don't know if your unit is defective or not (If it were me, I would ask for another one), but I can tell you that 9.21 is a very old firmware revision. Press your cable company to load an update to it.

Very likely that it is generating CRC errors. To confirm, see question below.



If you go into the HDD status page in diagnostics, press the select button to navigate to the eSATA drive and then report the value in the CRC field.

Note: the CRC field will only be present in later firmware releases so its availability will depend on whether or not your cable provider has rolled the firmware release out.

The CRC feild is not there. My firmware version is 9.52

Is anyone else having a issue with recording more then eight or nine episodes of a series recording at a time?

I initially encountered this problem with a Motorola DCH3416. I tried to record a marathon of Eureka season 2 on Sci-Fi HD. Even though I deleted the box down to 50% full or so the newest recording would delete the oldest so no more then nine were on the box at a time. I had the series recording set to delete them only when I wanted to. It doesn't appear I'm the only one that had this issue with the DCH3416.

Hi,

Random question. I have the DCH3416 with Comcast, and I have a series recording that I have set to not delete until I delete the episode. However, it won't seem to let me have more than 9 episodes at a time. Each new episode deletes the last one. Is there anyway around this setting? Any help would be great. Thanks.

Harry

I thought this might be an issue isolated to Moto boxes so I traded it in for a TDC775D. I was wrong. I made a series recording of How Its Made on Discovery Science HD set to all showings including repeats, delete when I say, and encountered similar behavior. Any recording past eight will delete the oldest one in the group. I am currently at 26% full.

My cable company is Bresnan Communications in Bozeman, Montana.
Firmware Version is 10.45
TV Guide Version is 74.64 - 3337

I was hoping to use the Pace box to record several HD shows while away at college but if I can't get more then eight or nine at a time I think I'll buy a Tivo again. Monthly subscription fee bites but the interface is much better then this silly TV Guide thing.

I got a Pace TDC778X today and will report if I see the same issue.

Is anyone else having a issue with recording more then eight or nine episodes of a series recording at a time?

When you configured the series recording, did you have the save option set to "all episodes"? If not, this type of behavior could happen.

The series recording was indeed set to all episodes.

The TDC778X I got yesterday seems to be working correctly though. Ten episodes of How Do They Do That and counting. Now if I can get the 1 TB WD10EVCS I bought to work with some stability I'll take the TiVo back.

Any suggestions on what external enclosures seem to work well with Pace boxes? From reading the threads I've gathered using a high quality eSATA cable and a external enclosure without USB is best.

Before the AVS crash I responded that I have no problem recording an entire season (13 episodes) on the Pace box (w/750gb).

I had to have my Pace replaced by the cable company because it failed to boot. I had an external drive connected to the original box and it is now connected to the new Pace. I noticed that the percent of disk space used seemed high for the few files that we had recorded. In the diagnostic menu, there are a lot of <<Metadata corrupt>> files listed. What is the suggested way to remove these files?

I had to have my Pace replaced by the cable company because it failed to boot. I had an external drive connected to the original box and it is now connected to the new Pace. I noticed that the percent of disk space used seemed high for the few files that we had recorded. In the diagnostic menu, there are a lot of <<Metadata corrupt>> files listed. What is the suggested way to remove these files?


Same thing happened to me.

I had to have my Pace replaced by the cable company because it failed to boot. I had an external drive connected to the original box and it is now connected to the new Pace. I noticed that the percent of disk space used seemed high for the few files that we had recorded. In the diagnostic menu, there are a lot of <<Metadata corrupt>> files listed. What is the suggested way to remove these files?

Since you had to get a new box, any recorded content on there is pretty much trash anyway.
If it were me i would connect the external hard drive to my computer and do a full format on it. I would then turn off and unplug my pace unit and hook the external up to it. I would then plug the pace back into power, and im betting it would ask you to format the external blah blah. Then everything should be working great.

In the diagnostic menu, there are a lot of <<Metadata corrupt>> files listed. What is the suggested way to remove these files?

Recordings made on one set top box are not playable or usable on another set top box. The only way to remove these recordings made on the previous machine is to reformat the eSATA drive from diagnostics.

I'm in Canada and there is no source here for the WD MyDVR, painfull

i don't know if this has been answered....... i bought a WD SE16 500GB SATA2 16MB NCQ and a Vantec Nexstar enclosure. works great. i was trying to find the MyBook also, to no avail.

i was wondering, i saw in a previous post but can't find it.... about a regular interval sound cut out. i may not have worded that proper like :), but youze smart guys know what i mean.

Recordings made on one set top box are not playable or usable on another set top box. The only way to remove these recordings made on the previous machine is to reformat the eSATA drive from diagnostics.

How exactly is that done Lyndend? And I'm asuming that it will wipe out anything on the hard drive, including recognizable files as well?

How exactly is that done Lyndend? And I'm asuming that it will wipe out anything on the hard drive, including recognizable files as well?

Yes... it will wipe out everything. I gave you instructions (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=14559094&postcount=1349) on how to do a format of it on your computer so that you could reformat it via the DVR when you plug it back in.

Do you know how to get into diagnostics?

Here is the process to format the external drive via diagnostics: (You can enter the diagnostics menu by pressing "Power" and then "Select" on the front of the pace within 2 seconds of each other).

Press these on your remote:

Repeat
List
List
List
Live

Be sure to select the second drive (drive 2/2) before you start the format. Otherwise, you will end up formatting your internal drive. (You can select the second drive by pressing "OK/SELECT" on your remote, or by pressing "Select" on the front of the pace).

Then just arrow down till you see "Full Format" and select it.

i don't know if this has been answered....... i bought a WD SE16 500GB SATA2 16MB NCQ and a Vantec Nexstar enclosure. works great. i was trying to find the MyBook also, to no avail.

i was wondering, i saw in a previous post but can't find it.... about a regular interval sound cut out. i may not have worded that proper like :), but youze smart guys know what i mean.

I noticed that Delta Cable is now on 10.85. As far as sound cutting out from what I've experienced I wouldn't say it's a regular interval but whenever I am viewing an HD recording and a analogue recording begins I will usually lose sound. I will have to stop and start the recording for sound to come back. Sometimes I can just hit guide and the sound will come back.

Couple of side notes for Lindend. I had one recording of The Ultimate Fighter in HD from Rogers Sportsnet and I happened to have closed caption on while viewing the recording. I believe that show did not have any closed caption available for that show. While watching I would occasionally get black caption bars with no text and sometimes garbage text. After watching for 10 minutes or so the box would freeze, crash, and reboot. I tried to watch the show a few times forwarding past the part that it last crashed. I would be able to watch another 10 minutes or so before crashing again. As soon as I turned off closed captions I was able to watch the rest of the show (roughly 40 minutes left).

Another note. You were asking for discrete remote codes we would be interested in. Is turning closed captions on and off a possibility? Very annoying to have to turn off the receiver to reach the settings to turn closed caption on/off. Especially if I have recordings happening at the moment. I would possibly leave it on except for the above problem might not make it possible. Also, is it possible to cache the guide information on the drive? If the receiver reboots it takes quite a while to retrieve the guide information for the week again.

Sorry for the rant. Haven't had a chance to participate in a while.

I have two Pace boxes (and also a Moto 6416).

The newer Pace box is in the kitchen and my wife seems to have no issues with it.

I have been using our original 775D in our theatre with an external 750GB Seagate which is has about 350GB of saved programs including one entire 13-episode series we have not yet started.

While I love having the extra storage over the Moto, I have been tearing my hair our over how flaky the Pace has been!!

Lots and lots and lots of audio dropouts and lots of video breakup/pixelation. Some times stopping and restarting the program improves this, sometimes not. Sometimes its in the recording ... the playback is the same fault in exactly the same place every time. Sometimes its strictly in the playback ... drops out/breaks up one time but not the next.
Very, very, very slow to respond to remote commands (sometimes a minute or more).
Wierd responses to all of my remotes (Moto, Shaw, Harmony) ... ie. press "up channel" and it jumps up one channel, pauses then jumps two more. Same thing with other commands such as "replay" and 30-second jump.


You can imagine the frustration trying to skip through a commercial break with six presses of the 30-second jump and having it not respond right away and then executing a random number of 30-second jumps and then having to press replay an unknown number of times to get back to where I intended but as those are also random, it is VERY difficult to simply skip commercials!!!!

But, finally, the last straw tonight! After I watch the recorded news, I press DELETE. The Pace just hangs for 20 seconds on the command, as usual, but this time, instead of deleting the program and leaving the delete box lingering on the screen for yet another 30 seconds, the Pace produces an error message "CDIN" and says to call tech support. In the meanwhile, while I can scroll through the guide and recorded program list, if I select a channel to which I do not subscribe I get the standard subscribe message but beyond that the Pace will neither display ANY subscribed channel (black screen) or play ANY recorded programs. The program timer bar shows the same wacked out data, ie. I am 4 minutes into a 7 minute program for every program on the disk.

So I call Shaw. While on hold for 20 minutes, I go into the diagnostics pages of the Pace. Everything looks normal. The box has been "up" for 40 days. SNR is "Good". DVR stats look normal. Program content lists all of the programs, and the few I checked seemed OK for file sizes, etc.

So eventually, I get the TSR on the line and, big surprise, they have NO IDEA what a "CDIN" code is. So they immediately reset the box and now it is effectively toast. The Pace won't respond to the remote at all. When powered on by the front panel button, it shows either a "0" or a "5" or random "dashes" on the display and sometimes turns itself off. My projector reports that it detects a 480i signal but the display remains blank.

So Shaw is sending someone out in two days. TWO DAYS!@#$% Apparently the tech can force a firmware load on-site but, he tells me, this will likely reformat the internal drive and I will lose whatever is on there (not much I think). But, he suggests, the tech is more likely going to swap the box altogether. Now if the box has been schizophrenic because of a pending failure, I am thrilled at the idea of getting a unit that mightn't drive me insane.

BUT, as our Pace rep Lindend has warned, I will lose ALL 350GB of recorded programs that we have not yet seen!

So my question to Lindend or any knowledgable cableco personnel is:
Is the "775D personality" (ie. imbedded serial number or box ID code) burned into a permanent surface mount device or is it on a swappable module or chip which could be transferred or rewritten from our dead unit into the new, replacement unit to allow my external drive to continue to operate on the new PVR and allow my existing programs to the saved and watched?
To pay large sums of money for the Pace box and the cableco HD services just to lose ~70 hours of programming is simply unacceptable.

PS. While some of the software/interface features of the Pace are "cute" and quite likeable, if the Moto box supported external drives I would change back in a heartbeat! The Moto boxes are quick! Responsive! Solid!

Lots of information

I have a feeling my unit is similar to yours cavu... but maybe not quite as extreme. My cable company still only has the pace unit on 9.xx firmware and at times (at least once a day) when trying to do something on the DVR, the unit "freezes up" or gets really slow to respond. You press the 30 second skip button (for example .. it also does this when trying to do just about anything), and the display freezes the frame and the unit does nothing else. You press it again, and it still does nothing. You try it again a few more times and the init still does nothing. Finally, you wait and the unit "catches" up with itself. Basically executing all the commands you previously attempted. Its very frustrating!
I called my cable company about it and they sent a tech out. He told me that the unit was getting too hot probably causing it to lag out like that. He said that it needed more airflow underneath it not just on top of it (there is nothing on top of mine but a **** load of air).
I put peices of cardboard underneath each leg to give it a 1/2 inch lift... but i still get the same result.

Now hearing your testomonial cavu, i have a feeling that i just have a unit that is on the fritz, and i need a new one. The biggest problem i have with that (and it seems you do to) is that i will lose everything i have recorded which at this moment in time is unacceptable... and likely its going to be much worse this fall with all the good televison that is on!

I too wish there was a way to save what we have recorded!

The sluggishness you report is not normal. How many recordings do you have on the HDD?

lingering on the screen for yet another 30 seconds, the Pace produces an error message "CDIN" and says to call tech support.

This is a known issue with TV Guide. If an error occurs when deleting content, it will hang for ~30 seconds. This is not Pace specific behavior as I've seen the same thing on a 6412 running TV Guide.


they have NO IDEA what a "CDIN" code is.

This is a TV Guide error code which can and will occur on both Pace and Motorola boxes. It stands for device in use (i.e. basically, the EPG doesn't think its recording or playing back, when it fact it actually is). Basically, its a synchronization state mismatch between TVG and the firmware. Sometimes the EPG will eventually get into the correct state, but often, a reboot is required to get out of this state.

So they immediately reset the box and now it is effectively toast.

What does reset mean? Did they do a warm reset or an Init?

random "dashes" on the display and sometimes turns itself off.

Are you seeing four dashes on the front panel?
Have you tried booting without the eSATA drive connected?


So my question to Lindend or any knowledgable cableco personnel is:
Is the "775D personality" (ie. imbedded serial number or box ID code) burned into a permanent surface mount device or is it on a swappable module or chip which could be transferred or rewritten from our dead unit into the new, replacement unit to allow my external drive to continue to operate on the new PVR and allow my existing programs to the saved and watched?

I can't answer specifics like that in a public forum or via PM. However, as I've stated before, there is no way to play content on a box if that content was recorded on another box.

The sluggishness you report is not normal. How many recordings do you have on the HDD?

Off the top of my head i dont know (im currently at work), but i do know im about 55% full and my 500gb external is connected via e-sata.

Just jumping in after a while away. I have been using a Pace 775 for a while -- and have experienced a lot of the same problems seen on this thread.

But then last night as I was struggling with watching a sports event (and as luck would have it the FIRST HD F-1 race from Spa since we just got Speed HD in Alaska!) the box DIED in the middle of lap seven. I've been advised that while it did restart (after about 4 minutes of watching dashes and lights on the front) that it would be best to swap the box out. Oh well -- I had already lost about 20 hours of programming when it died 3 weeks ago and we did a full reset. So, I'm not losing anything as I swap out today for a "new" 778 box with a bigger drive.

Any tips for updating my incoming new Pace 778 to the latest firmware would be appreciated.

The sluggishness you report is not normal. How many recordings do you have on the HDD?42 recordings totalling 403GB.What does reset mean? Did they do a warm reset or an Init?Shaw hit it with a signal that caused the box to power off and they lost all contact with the DVR. They had me cycle the power, etc. No go.Have you tried booting without the eSATA drive connected?Yes, Shaw had me try that too.Are you seeing four dashes on the front panel?Initially there were four dashes .. then animated dashes, left to right - then eventually just a "0" later followed by a "5". But the box was dead. Shaw said it would not respond to them. It would not respond to me.

I left it displaying a "0" and went to bed. Twelve HOURS later when I returned, it said "9488" on the display and DID respond :eek:

Amazingly, while it still had black screen, no audio and continued to display "9488" on the front panel, it had recorded both "Meet the Press" and "Face the Nation"!!! The Pace would now play back recorded programs but would not display "live" programs.

I pulled the power and restarted the unit. NOW it works great! Quick response to remote commands. No jumping or freezing.

If I were to guess, I would say the Pace unit suffers from a memory leak and toasted itself. It HAD been running for 40 DAYS when it died. I suspect Shaw's actions forced it to reload the firmware from scratch. I wonder how long it will continue to work smoothly.

Shaw showed up today with a replacement box but the tech suggested that I keep the existing one and see how it goes. He said he had seen a LOT of lost recordings because of DVR failures and he said it hasn't been pretty dealing with the irate customers!

But I'm not going to get caught like this again and end up sleeping on the sofa because Pace lost my wife's recorded programs!!! :mad:

Where there is a will, there is a way:

I think it will be a trivial matter to write a program which can patch the recordings on the external drive with the build number of a "new" replacement DVR, enabling suckers customers like me to recover from this sort of BS. I will post here when I have finished that and will make it available to others. :cool:

I have a Pace 775 that has “jerky” or “stuttering” playback when using an external drive. I have read most of the threads here and I appreciate any help to fix this problem or find an external drive that will work. I have the following setup:


Firmware 10.29 with Shaw cable
A Vantec NexStar 3 enclosure model NST-360SU-BK. It is a combo USB eSATA.
Hitachi Deskstar 750GB model 7K1000

I have had the Pace for 3 weeks and the hard drive is new (purchased for this system one week ago).

My symptoms are identical to ScienceMan in post 165 and 173 of the Pace 778 forum (Forum Title: Pace CableCARD HD Boxes (TDC779X, TDC778X and DC757X))

In my case, the external drive installed with no problems and if I operate without the external drive, everything works well. If I reboot the system with the external drive it works well for a period of time but within 24 hours the video problem reoccurs. I tried the Hitachi utility to change the interface speed, sleep mode, and quiet mode but no combination seems to work. Spread spectrum clocking is off. The drive is healthy based on PC tests with SpinRite software from GRC.com

Compared to ScienceMan, my enclosure is different as well as the hard drive brand but they are the same capacity.

I would appreciate any confirmation of success with the enclosure. Is anyone successfully using a 750GB drive with the Vantec? Should I simply purchase another drive? I have found many posts with people using smaller capacity drives with the Vantec and not reporting any problems. I appreciate any help you can provide.

Thanks.

I have a Pace 775 that has “jerky” or “stuttering” playback when using an external drive. I have read most of the threads here and I appreciate any help to fix this problem or find an external drive that will work.

My symptoms are identical to ScienceMan in post 165 and 173 of the Pace 778 forum (Forum Title: Pace CableCARD HD Boxes (TDC779X, TDC778X and DC757X))

If I reboot the system with the external drive it works well for a period of time but within 24 hours the video problem reoccurs.

Compared to ScienceMan, my enclosure is different as well as the hard drive brand but they are the same capacity.


Sounds like your drive is over-heating in the passively cooled enclosure. I have that enclosure and I make sure the drive spins down when the unit is off to cool down the enclosure because it gets pretty warm. If you follow user review on that enclosure most recommend against putting high performance hot running drives in it.

If you follow ScienceMan posts you will see his drive failed completely after a while. I am sure you can tell that the PACE DVR writes to the drive 100% of the time while it is on. An actively cooled enclosure would be better for this 100% duty cycle DVR usage. I would have bought the WD My DVR Expander if it was available when I was looking.

I have the following setup:


Firmware 10.29 with Shaw cable
A Vantec NexStar 3 enclosure model NST-360SU-BK. It is a combo USB eSATA.
Hitachi Deskstar 750GB model 7K1000

Compared to ScienceMan, my enclosure is different as well as the hard drive brand but they are the same capacity.

Your enclosure looks the exact same to me. What am I missing? Do you think the color matters BK=Black, BL=Blue
It's a Vantec Nexstar 3 NST-360SU-BL enclosure.

1. To keep the Hitachi, I will have to look for an active enclosure, I'm open to recommendations. I changed the Hitachi to reduce it's performance and to run quieter but it did not help.

If heat is the issue, I may also be able to find a cooler drive.

2. Sorry, I followed the link in ScienceMan's post and it leads to a drive showing a 1394 connector, I see now that the suffix is only for the color.

Thanks.

2. Sorry, I followed the link in ScienceMan's post and it leads to a drive showing a 1394 connector, I see now that the suffix is only for the color.


Now I understand why you thought the cases were different. He only linked that page for the user comments. This was the comment that was important back then:

got my answer:
“The NST-360SU uses the SunPlus SPIF215A chipset for the USB-SATA bridge. The eSATA port is a simple passthrough connection.
Regards,
Vantec Thermal Technologies
43951 Boscell Rd
Fremont, CA 94538
Tel: 510-668-0368
Fax: 510-668-0367″

after deleting some files from dvr i lost all video signal to dvr,tried to reboot and get no video,went into diagnostic mode and says dvr status is poor and not enabled.is there anyway to fix this?thanks in advance

after deleting some files from dvr i lost all video signal to dvr,tried to reboot and get no video,went into diagnostic mode and says dvr status is poor and not enabled.is there anyway to fix this?thanks in advance

Call your cable company and they can reprovision your DVR. With my cable company, while you are on hold, you can press a touch tone button to send your DVR a "hit" that may fix your issue.

Not sure if this has been covered but here is what I did to get more recording space. Instead of using the eSATA connector (and having another piece of hardware sitting in my entertainment unit) I upgraded the hard drive inside my Pace.

The drive that comes with the Pace TDC775 is a Seagate 160GB 7200.7 ST3160023AS drive. I read somewhere it could also be a Seagate 120GB drive.

I went and bought a Seagate 7200.11 1TB ST31000340AS drive. I then simply opened up the Pace, pulled out the old 160GB drive, put in the 1TB drive and fired it back up. The Pace took care of automatically formatting the drive and it was ready to go within 5-10min of start-up. A quick check of the diagnostics menu verifies that the Pace is using the entire 1TB.

http[COLON]//img292.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pvrposthdupgradeuo3.jpg
(Sorry for the non clickable URL but it appears you guys have a spammer problem and I'm not going to make 3 dud posts just to post URLs)

This of course will wipe all your recorded shows and scheduled recordings. Oh and it will void your warranty.

For those of you who would like to see the inside of the Pace here it is:
http[COLON]//img208.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pvrtopdownopenpd0.jpg
(Again I am sorry for the non clickable URL)

Since I had some shows still to watch on my old 160GB drive I took some drive imaging software and cloned the 160GB drive on to the 1TB drive. I then put the 1TB drive back into the Pace and it started up and all my scheduled recordings were still listed and everything recorded was still on the drive as well. Once I manage to watch everything I will use the method posted in this forum to format the 1TB drive from the diagnostic menu and then be able to use the 1TB drive in full. If that doesn't work then I just need to take the drive out again, screw up the partitions and put it back into the Pace. The Pace will see the damaged partitions and re-format the drive automatically.

I tried resizing the (media) partition using a bunch of different tools but it appears to be able to access and alter a gpfs partition you've got to pay IBM a licensing fee. So unfortunately you can't clone the 160GB drive onto a new drive and then just resize the media partition.

So if you've dropped some cash on a eSATA drive that isn't working correctly you might try this method of getting more recording space. Pop the SATA drive out of the eSATA carrier and try just upgrading the drive inside the Pace.

I have Shaw Cable in Canada and this worked for me.

I upgraded the hard drive inside my Pace.I did the same thing many months ago but found the Pace seems to start to choke when the disk fills above about 400GB.

Our resident Pace rep lindend has suggested that the Pace firmware has not been tested with internal drives above 160GB ?!

You will find that with a large drive, the Pace will get more supposedly useful capacity when the drive is used on the internal port, as opposed to the external port. It seems that when used externally they use a more conservative partitioning scheme.

I think one of the drives on my 775 is malfunctioning. Before I call the local store, I figured I might as well ask for input here first. I am on my third box since I swapped to cable about four months ago and really don’t feel like loosing all my recordings and reprogramming / searching for the shows I like to record a forth time…….

Whenever there are two shows set to record at the same time, only one get’s recorded. When one is being recorded and I happen to be watching that particular recording, and try and switch to the other show being recorded, I get the dialog window asking if I would like to switch to the other drive. When I select yes, a screen pops up telling me to wait and the channel will soon become available.

Does that sound like a cable provider issue or is there something wrong with my Pace box? Or, is there something that I am doing wrong?

Very happy with my 775D, never had a moment's problem with it, it's really quiet. :p

Imagine my surprise recently when I'm randomly clicking buttons on the remote and look up to see PIP running on my non-PIP capable HDTV!! :eek:

Not been able to reproduce that feature. :confused:

Of course, the human interfaces at tech support (Mountaincable) state that my 777D is not PIP capable, sent me the PDF manual to prove it. :rolleyes:

Anyone know the magic sequence to get at PIP? Thanks. :cool:

Linden, any release notes for 11.58? I was just updated here at Bresnan in MT.

Hello all,

I've had a few times the Pace has locked up (I think only when viewing a recording although I can't be sure) , no response to controls (not even power). Calling Shaw, they suggested I unplug the Pace, wait and plug back in.

This solved the problem the few times it has happened and it has been stable for the last few months. Except tonight.

It locked up, I unplugged the unit, plugged back it and I got the "do you want to format the external drive" message. Yikes ! I said no. The drive contents are no longer listed in recorded programs. The drive (and contents) are not showing up under diagnostics. I am sad.

Shaw is coming out tomorrow and before they try to replace the unit I would dearly love to try to get it working again. I know that if they replace the unit the recordings are toast.

So....HELP!

Other stuff
SW version is 10.29
DVR status is enabled and authorized
Encoder 1 in use, 2 idle
# check disk failures is 0

External Drive is a Seagate 750GB in a nextsar enclosure (it is dual eSata/USB).

Has worked liked a dream since I got it.

Marc

Does anyone have the drivers to make vista recognize my Pace TDC 779X? I've tried the drivers in the sticky, as well as some that i found using google, but to no avail. It recognizes the DVR but fails in the drivers for the AC/C tuner and the "Pace Micro Technology (plc) DC757X AV/C Panel." If you have them can you email them to me at mgkumar@mchsi.com? Or post a link here?

Thanks.

Linden, any release notes for 11.58? I was just updated here at Bresnan in MT.

Sorry for the delayed response. There's one fix in that release for HD VOD macroblocking. However, its not a universal release for all sites at this point, so it probably won't make it into the release notes thread in the near term.

Marc,

External Drive is a Seagate 750GB in a nextsar enclosure (it is dual eSata/USB).

I suspect that you got hit with the USB/eSATA bug discussed extensively earlier on in this thread. Unfortunately, there really isn't a way to recover until a firmware release is provided by the enclosure/drive manufacturers is made available.

I suspect that you got hit with the USB/eSATA bug discussed extensively earlier on in this thread. Unfortunately, there really isn't a way to recover until a firmware release is provided by the enclosure/drive manufacturers is made available.

If he has the Nexstar 3 enclosure, that one has not had the USB/eSATA bug. That is the one PACE tested as OK and many of us are running.

I wonder if his HDD overheated in the NexStar enclosure? Might need to reformat or replace the drive.

Lindend, this bring up another feature request for the diag. menus. The SONY DVR I have lets you view the SMART parameters of the HDDs. This allows you to check for failing drives. Is that a possible feature for the various PACE DVRs?

The SONY DVR I have lets you view the SMART parameters of the HDDs. This allows you to check for failing drives. Is that a possible feature for the various PACE DVRs?

Can you post a screen cap of what these SMART params look like in the Sony diags? Do they provide docs that help you diagnose the bad drive?

Can you post a screen cap of what these SMART params look like in the Sony diags? Do they provide docs that help you diagnose the bad drive?

No documentation. It is ussable by those that know what they are doing or others could post the information in a forum like this one for those that know to decode it for them.

Here are the screen shots for the two HDD (Sorry for the large size).

http://www.upload.mn/download.php?file=f8cwsghr9whgciqwgz1q.jpg
http://www.upload.mn/download.php?file=wn6y4ofvjirawknfp3cv.jpg
http://www.upload.mn/download.php?file=p5ixx6rxtom9i0q7nar5.jpg

If he has the Nexstar 3 enclosure, that one has not had the USB/eSATA bug. That is the one PACE tested as OK and many of us are running.
...
It is the Nexstar 3. Finally gave in and reformatted it. Will keep an eye on things.

Thanks
Marc

Lindend, not sure if this is a bug, a feature or something I did. I was upgraded to 11.57 (Bresnan, Grand Junction CO) and now if I turn off the box for some period of time (like overnight) when I turn it on it starts off on channel 1 - VOD channel. If I turn the box off for just a few minutes then it comes back on to the channel I was last on - what I would expect the box to do. Any thoughts?

Lindend, looks like you can ignore my question. Things seem to be back to normal. Must have been a setting that Bresnan didn't get right when the new version went out.

Lindend, looks like you can ignore my question. Things seem to be back to normal. Must have been a setting that Bresnan didn't get right when the new version went out.

I bet you will see it again if you have a external HDD. This is a bug I reported on the 779x and PACE confirmed it. Has to do with external HDD spin up delay. If you don't mind your external HDD getting hot and wasting more power you can turn off the HDD spin down feature from the user menu (at least on the 779x you can.)

I bet you will see it again if you have a external HDD. This is a bug I reported on the 779x and PACE confirmed it.

You are right. This is a bug which affects all Pace HD DVRs (the problem may be intermittent for some users, others may never see it and others may see it all the time). Should be fixed in the next iteration of maintenance releases.

Indeed it is still happening. Just so you are aware Lindend, I do not have an external hard drive and this only started happening after 11.57.

Hi all. New to this forum.
I have a TDC775 from Shaw Cable in Canada. I have added a Western Digital 750GB HDD in a Nextar 3 USB/SATA enclosure. The firmware version is 10.29.

The HDD works fine so far but when I first added it 4 weeks ago it used to spin down and cool off at night (a good thing). In the last 2 weeks it now runs 24/7 and generates a fair amount of heat even though the STB is turned off. I have to believe this will shorten the life of the drive. I can find no reference to a user adjustable spin down on/off setting for external HDD's in any menus.

Second more minor issue: There are large volume swings between digital and analog cable stations both in recording and just watching shows.

Unfortunately the Shaw Customer Service people are poorly trained and less than helpful in all but the most basic, hookup type questions. They even claim not to support external HDD's, though the box the TDC775 came in was a SHAW box with External HDD SATA port listed as a feature right on the box. Perhaps standard cable company incompetence?

Thanks all,
Any help would be appreciated.

Blind Pew

I can find no reference to a user adjustable spin down on/off setting for external HDD's in any menus.


Well if it is like the 779x from PACE you go to the "PACE user settings" menu (power off then press menu in under 2-3 seconds). Look for "Hard Disk Sleep Mode".

Well if it is like the 779x from PACE you go to the "PACE user settings" menu (power off then press menu in under 2-3 seconds). Look for "Hard Disk Sleep Mode".
Hi,
Thanks for the help. I found the menu and the "hard disc sleep mode" option. The setting was already "on". I guess I should try resetting the entire system with a power down.

Thanks again,
BP

When I'm doing a search for a TV show, say Heroes, the software will often only give me the option to record the HD version even though I want to record the SD version. Is there something to be done to see all instances of a show across multiple channels.

Is there something to be done to see all instances of a show across multiple channels.When you get your search result, select the "clock" icon. It will then list all other occurences of your program on all channels, all times.

So I bought a MyBook 500gb (WDH1CS5000). Doesn't work. Pace 775D keeps rebooting. I believe this is one of the units that doesn't work with the Pace, but can someone confirm for me so I can stop trying?

Also, I have a high-pitched buzzing sound (robotic and tinny audio) on SD when:
1) recording an HD channel
2) switching to SD
note: only while recording HD.
Any ideas on this?

So I bought a MyBook 500gb (WDH1CS5000). Doesn't work. Pace 775D keeps rebooting. I believe this is one of the units that doesn't work with the Pace, but can someone confirm for me so I can stop trying?

Also, I have a high-pitched buzzing sound (robotic and tinny audio) on SD when:
1) recording an HD channel
2) switching to SD
note: only while recording HD.
Any ideas on this?

I can confirm the Mybook USB/eSata drives do not work with the PACE unit. I tried one in early 2008. Get the Western Digital MyDVR expander.

Has anyone on Delta Cable had problems since they rolled out firmware 12.03 a couple of weeks ago?

Ever since then, about every 3 or 4 days my list shows 0% (it's actually about 60% full), there is no DVR functionality, and any channel I change to goes black after about 10 seconds. I have had to unplug and reboot 5 times in the last two weeks. When I do this, all recorded content returns to the list. Also, it seems to have introduced a new bug which I've seen mentioned in this thread but never experienced myself. After zooming through commercials, I hit play only to have it start playing from where I originally was. My box was running flawlessly for months prior to this FW upgrade so it's very frustrating.

Lindend, my cable provider has advised that I may have to have my drive formatted to fix this. Do you think that will fix the problem? I believe we were on FW 10.85 before (can someone on Delta Cable please correct me if I'm wrong). What was changed in FW 12.03?

Thanks

Bry

Has anyone figured out how to watch the video feed of the Pace in a second room without a 2nd receiver? I have seen some video extenders from X10, but do not know if they work. Does anyone out there know of system that would work?
thanks

Lindend, my cable provider has advised that I may have to have my drive formatted to fix this.

It might. TVG blanks video when it tries to start and recording and fails. If your HDD has become corrupt, a reformat could eliminate this issue.

Do you put your box into standby? If so, before you format the HDD, try this. Go into the Power Menu, and change the "Hard Disk Sleep mode" from Yes to No. Older firmware releases may say "Energy Save" rather than "Hard Disk Sleep mode". Either that or just don't put it in standby.

Let me know if that prevents the video loss after channel surfing after several days.

I am a total noob. I did ask Linden but I was wondering if anyone online knew how to find how much space is left on the hard drive for recording. I can not find it in the menu.
thanks

I am a total noob. I did ask Linden but I was wondering if anyone online knew how to find how much space is left on the hard drive for recording. I can not find it in the menu.
thanks

If you just want to see %free, bring up your My Dvr list.

If you want approx. hours of HD or SD recording space or MB left use the Diagnostics menu.

Using the diagnostic menu
- start with the DVR "on"
- Press the "pwr button"
- Press the "select" button with in 5 seconds.
- If you see a DASHBOARD, press the left arrow.

There are a couple pages there that will show the information you want.
Look for DVR status and (Drive status or something like that).

If you just want to see %free, bring up your My Dvr list.

If you want approx. hours of HD or SD recording space or MB left use the Diagnostics menu.

Using the diagnostic menu
- start with the DVR "on"
- Press the "pwr button"
- Press the "select" button with in 5 seconds.
- If you see a DASHBOARD, press the left arrow.

There are a couple pages there that will show the information you want.
Look for DVR status and (Drive status or something like that).


Thanks very much. I appreciate it.

Try this link, and look for what Seagate has that is Pace Certified

http://www.seagate.com/showcase/

Linden ,
Here in Great Falls, MT Bresnan just upgraded us to 11.58 and I have the same symtems as schaffer970. Is there a setting I have to change or what? It 's happening after it goes to sleep mode and its going through the animation upon waking. Also any notes on this release? Thanks Andy Lindend, not sure if this is a bug, a feature or something I did. I was upgraded to 11.57 (Bresnan, Grand Junction CO) and now if I turn off the box for some period of time (like overnight) when I turn it on it starts off on channel 1 - VOD channel. If I turn the box off for just a few minutes then it comes back on to the channel I was last on - what I would expect the box to do. Any thoughts?

Linden ,
Here in Great Falls, MT Bresnan just upgraded us to 11.58 and I have the same symtems as schaffer970. Is there a setting I have to change or what? It 's happening after it goes to sleep mode and its going through the animation upon waking. Also any notes on this release? Thanks Andy

Did you follow the direction I posted in response to Schaffer970?
"you can turn off the HDD spin down feature from the user menu".
Have you looked in the user settings menu? Power off then press menu (within 2 seconds).

Yes I read it but I want the standby spindown "on". It has always worked before and powered on to the previous channel, why not now? Thanks, AndyDid you follow the direction I posted in response to Schaffer970?
"you can turn off the HDD spin down feature from the user menu".
Have you looked in the user settings menu? Power off then press menu (within 2 seconds).

Yes I read it but I want the standby spindown "on". It has always worked before and powered on to the previous channel, why not now? Thanks, Andy

Its a bug. Sorry.

Did you follow the direction I posted in response to Schaffer970?
"you can turn off the HDD spin down feature from the user menu".
Have you looked in the user settings menu? Power off then press menu (within 2 seconds).

My Tahoe is on 10.53. I was having the same problem a few months ago and I did this spin down off thing. It killed my external drive in 3 days! So, I advise against this if you have an external drive. Who knows, sooner or later the main HDD will overheat as well if the spin down is off.

My Tahoe is on 10.53. I was having the same problem a few months ago and I did this spin down off thing. It killed my external drive in 3 days! So, I advise against this if you have an external drive. Who knows, sooner or later the main HDD will overheat as well if the spin down is off.

Your external drive was going to fail anyways (It was obviously being heat stressed as you used the unit). You need to buy something made for DVR usage like the WD My DVR Expander or the new Seagate DVR Expander that is PACE certified.

The internal drive uses temperature monitoring to shutdown the box if you were to plug all the air vents or have a very hot room.

A lot of people jumped into these Tahoes when they first came out because of the claim that it can be expanded (by using an eSATA drives). Nobody was talking about heat stress nor those so called Expanders. My eSATA HDD was spinning down when the main drive spins down. Until the FW of my STB was upgraded to 10.53... That's when it began to show some symptoms including those that schaffer970 has mentioned.

Is there anyone here who has an Expander for long time now and never have any problems? What's so special about this Expanders that a regular eSATA HDDs do not have?

What's so special about this Expanders that a regular eSATA HDDs do not have?

Quiet and Cool - A unique no-fan passive cooling system and special hard drive design makes it quiet for the living room or bedroom.

They are designed to 24/7 operation.
They have a direct eSata connection, no USB/eSata chipset causing the dreaded eSata transmission errors.
Special loaded FW in the drive to optimize for large video file storage with fewer head movements for less noise and heat buildup (This is part of Quiet and Cool).

If you decide to dump your monthly DVR/HD box rental fee, these are the only drives that TIVO HD will allow without hacking (so you can use the drive on the TIVO if you dump your cable DVR). The TIVO fees (+CC fee) are ussally less then the DVR fee + HD DVR box rental fees that the cable company charges.

Linden, Now in Great Falls, MT. Bresnan rolled out a new SW version 12.34. Its only been about four days since the last update. Any idea if this will take care of the bug I inquired about? Any notes on this version? I take it that the TDC775 that I have must be getting replaced by a newer version since I don't see too much chat on this thread, or is it just getting fine tuned? Any way have a Good Holiday Season! Thanks, AndyIts a bug. Sorry.

Andy,

Any idea if this will take care of the bug I inquired about?

Yes. The primary reason for that release was this bug.

Any notes on this version?

I'm away from the office for a few weeks so it may be a while before I can update the release notes threads with the latest details.

I take it that the TDC775 that I have must be getting replaced by a newer version since I don't see too much chat on this thread

Since the TDC775, there have been two generations of boxes, the CableCARD boxes (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=903826) and the relatively new MPEG-4 boxes (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1053440).

I recently picked up the Pace IR Remote Eye from our cable office and plugged it into my pace 775 in the IR Receive port on the back of the box. Nothing I seem to do gets it to activate and the box continues to take commands from the front of the box and not the remote eye. I have tried plugging it in with the box completely powered down, powered down and unplugged, about the only thing I haven't tried is to go into the office and send it an init after plugging it in.

Is there any trick to get the Remote Eye to work?

Edit:
Still looking for an answer to the remote eye question, but I did find out what setting on my Sony LCD was interfering with the IR from the remote to the Pace box. In case anyone else is having a similar problem try turning off the light sensor in your TV settings. Once I turned it off the remote has worked perfectly with the Pace ever since.

I was experiencing major problems with firmware 12.03 on Delta Cable recently. I was getting constant choppy playback live or recorded show. A reboot would seem to relieve the problem for a few minutes and then go back to choppy playback. Originally I was using a Vantec Nexstar 3 enclosure and a Seagate 1TB drive. I was using a 320GB drive in it a few months ago. I was running this setup for over a year.

I believe the problems occured sometime after 12.03 update. I noticed that my external drive would no longer spin down most likely the bug mentioned before. The choppy playback was occurring after I deleted several hours of old recordings. I suspect the drive was active as it was defragging the drives. After a few days of the constant access on the drive the choppy playback started.

I formatted both the pvr hard drive and external drive with no effect. As soon as I removed the external drive and reformatted the pvr hard drive again the pvr was acting normal. The enclosure seems to work fine on my pc through usb but I decided to get a new drive as 160GB is nowhere near enough space. I ended purchasing the WD DVR Expander. After a day I've had no problems but I'll continue to monitor things.

The choppy playback was occurring after I deleted several hours of old recordings.

I have also experienced choppy playback after deleting a bunch of content from the DVR. In my instance, a soft reboot from the diagnostic screen seemed to fix. I also noticed that before reboot and after reboot, my % full dropped an additional ~15%. It dropped when I deleted the content, but not to where it was when the machine was rebooted.

Until I read your comment choppy after delete comment, I had suspected my choppy playback was was due to some memory leak or something - my up time was right at about 60 days before rebooting. Seems like one of the longest periods I've seen since I've had the Pace.

I was experiencing major problems with firmware 12.03 on Delta Cable recently.

Why did DC update your STB's firmware? Did you call them and reported a problem? I am kinda scare to call them these days because everytime I call to report a problem their first resolution is to see if it could be fixed by a firmware upgrade. Their last update on my box gave me more headaches and the problem was not fixed!

As far as I know Delta Cable rolls out firmware updates across the network at one time and they occur automatically. What they could have done was manually reset or reload your firmware specifically for your receiver.

When I had an issue before I found that the tech support over the phone was pretty useless asking you to do resets and reboots for any problem. It was until I asked to speak to one of their lead techs who usually doesn't do phone support did I get useful information. He directed me on how to do reformats of my drives which fixed my problem. (I probably could have found that info here as well).

I want to record some analog recordings from the hard drive on my Pace Tahoe (mostly pbs stuff). Would be nice to do it through firewire but I'll be happy just to play back and record from that. I connected output1 from my pace box to the input on my stand-alone Pioneer dvd recorder. I get sound and picture - the only problem is the picture is black and white. Any suggestions how I can change the output from b&w to colour.

I know the problem is not with the Pioneer because I've used it to capture some old vcr recordings and it works fine and in full colour.

If this has been answered elsewhere please point me there.

Thanks.

Has anyone on Delta Cable had problems since they rolled out firmware 12.03 a couple of weeks ago?

Ever since then, about every 3 or 4 days my list shows 0% (it's actually about 60% full), there is no DVR functionality, and any channel I change to goes black after about 10 seconds. I have had to unplug and reboot 5 times in the last two weeks. When I do this, all recorded content returns to the list. Also, it seems to have introduced a new bug which I've seen mentioned in this thread but never experienced myself. After zooming through commercials, I hit play only to have it start playing from where I originally was. My box was running flawlessly for months prior to this FW upgrade so it's very frustrating.

Lindend, my cable provider has advised that I may have to have my drive formatted to fix this. Do you think that will fix the problem? I believe we were on FW 10.85 before (can someone on Delta Cable please correct me if I'm wrong). What was changed in FW 12.03?

Thanks

Bry

I've been having this problem lately too (H/W version 12.03). My Cable was out/poor from Boxing Day until last week until DC removed water from the pole at the street. Yesterday I noticed the DVR Functionality was not available so I rebooted. Then my recorded programs list showed 0% and DVR was missing from my menu. My diagnostics page showed my old programs still on the the HD though. I just tried another reboot now and the DVR is back on my Menu and the recordings are there. This is the very first problem like this I've experienced.

I'm having a problem with my Pace 778. A few days ago the dvr started freaking out and power cycling every 10 seconds or so. I had an Xbox 360 sitting on top of it so I moved the Xbox and it kept doing that for a while. Anyway that problem seems to be resolved after I unplugged it for a few hours and let it cool off. After that episode all of the recordings are not showing up in the recordings menu but it still says the space is being used. I have nothing on the recordings menu but it shows 80% full. The shows are listed on the select menu that shows you your recordings. What can I do to fix this problem? I would rather not exchange the box out but if I have to I will.

Before I kick this thing to the curb I thought I would see if there is any way to solve this.

I was away for a couple of days and the kids told me the Pace box was acting flaky-could bring up the contents (LIST button) but couldn't play anything and could not record programs.

When I checked this morning the external drive contents aren't listed at all. Diagnostics confirmed that only the internal drive is being recognized.
SW version is 11.5 TVG Version 250
Some stats, not sure how much help they are since they only refer to the internal drive:

Checkdisk failures 0
Linear Record Reboot 5
Total overflows seen 10

Enclosure is a Vantec Nextstar 3 with a Seagate drive.

I have not tried a reboot or turning off the Seagate just in case.

Thanks
Marc


Hello all,

I've had a few times the Pace has locked up (I think only when viewing a recording although I can't be sure) , no response to controls (not even power). Calling Shaw, they suggested I unplug the Pace, wait and plug back in.

This solved the problem the few times it has happened and it has been stable for the last few months. Except tonight.

It locked up, I unplugged the unit, plugged back it and I got the "do you want to format the external drive" message. Yikes ! I said no. The drive contents are no longer listed in recorded programs. The drive (and contents) are not showing up under diagnostics. I am sad.

Shaw is coming out tomorrow and before they try to replace the unit I would dearly love to try to get it working again. I know that if they replace the unit the recordings are toast.

So....HELP!

Other stuff
SW version is 10.29
DVR status is enabled and authorized
Encoder 1 in use, 2 idle
# check disk failures is 0

External Drive is a Seagate 750GB in a nextsar enclosure (it is dual eSata/USB).

Has worked liked a dream since I got it.

Marc

I have not tried a reboot or turning off the Seagate just in case.

Marc,

The first thing I'd try is to reboot.

Marc,

The first thing I'd try is to reboot.
Hi Linden,

Rebooted and got the dreaded "Do you want to format the drive" message. Any hope of recovering the recordings ?

Marc

Hi Linden,

Rebooted and got the dreaded "Do you want to format the drive" message. Any hope of recovering the recordings ?

Marc

Marc,

Symptoms sound like you may have a problematic HDD. What firmware release are you on?

Marc,

Symptoms sound like you may have a problematic HDD. What firmware release are you on?
Hi Linden

I'm on 11.5

I spoke with Shaw this morning and they claim that it is a known issue with Pace boxes. They say that if a reset or power interruption occurs while it is writing to the HDD then it could cause drive contents to be corrupted.

I stopped short of calling b*lls**t as I cannot be 100% certain there was not a reset or power problem while I was away though I do not believe this to be the case.

Marc

Marc

Linden,

I'm at 12.34, and have a real annoying "feature." I've got a scheduled series recording (Colbert, if you must), set to save 1 episode, new ones only. So I haven't watched the recorded one from last night, but want to. And the notice comes up tonight saying that the recording of tonight's show is about to start comes on, and that it wants to change the channel. So I tell it to cancel, because I don't want it to delete last night's episode. Then when I go to watch last night's episode, it has already been deleted. Annoying.

The timing of deleting previous episodes to make way for the new episode is a little out of whack. The previous episode shouldn't be deleted until I hit the OK button, instead of being deleted when I hit the cancel button (or when the notice comes up). I get the same behavior with several other programs I have set to record single, new episodes.

Needless to say, I didn't get to see Steve Martin with Colbert. C'est la vie. :rolleyes:

Make sense?

I have a Pace TDC775d which has a sata port for expansion. I understand many people recommend the WESTERN DIGITAL MY DVR EXPANDER 500GB eSATA DVR EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE. Wikipedia shows sata and esata as incompatable. Can I use these units together?
Thanks

I've been using the DVR Expander by Western Digital with that DVR with no issue.

Thanks a lot - that's what I needed to know.
Andy

No problem. Just to be certain, te model number is WD5000F032. Good luck.

For those of you who have upgraded the internal drive, by this time have you encountered any problems? Especially those of you have gone fairly huge internally... does the unit start to act funny the more it gets filled up? Or would you say unit performance has increased compared to the stock 160gb drive? No Difference?

Your feedback would be greatly appreciated.


Oh, what do you guys feel about attaching the unit to a battery backup? I know its good practice for alot of electronics, but is a DVR one of them?


Thanks!

have you encountered any problems? Especially those of you have gone fairly huge internallyWith the latest firmware (11.5) my internal 750GB works fine.

With the latest firmware (11.5) my internal 750GB works fine.

Thats what really sucks, my provider still has the pace on 9.39....

1st to say is lindend, u are the reason that companys succeed.
i will buy anything u try and sell even bags of garbage for i know the garbage will have support. LOL
when people don't care about my problems with their products i never buy them again.

ok i have way too much too post on this subject.

but i won't

so i will keep this short
as a long timeuser of the 775 and contant cable provider harraser
i must say that just before my warranty ran out (bought the 775 $299)they got the new 776
every littlebug that buged me has been addressed in my opinion (except the triple interface bug is still making errors on the "segate my book usb/fire/esata") im giving up and getting an internal 750

ok for the info bar on the bottum of the screen now shows if live also during pause just hit exit and it's gone. nice for the stock ticker.

the unit runs much cooler and quieter looks better as well since my setup is mostly black as most are these days.

goback button now works without bugs on live tv also info bar shows if live

diag screen has become much much better all around and easier too use
the front display for screen resolution is good for some
frankly i can usually tell by the look of the picture but it's not bothersome nonetheless


i know i have forgotten some so sorry but getting old
I am very happy with my new 776
pace u r the master

Well i put in a new 500 gig this weekend, and it works fine. The unit actually seems a bit faster and more responsive... but that could be just from being basically a clean install and not the new hard drive. I think its a combination of that and the 500 gig i put in there is a faster drive. Only time will tell.

Only one problem so far. If i view my DVR listings, it shows a recording that was there from before i swapped in the new hard drive. I also have an external hard drive which i have the feeling it pulled that recording from. However, i did format my external also right after i formatted the new internal. I tried to delete the recording, but it wont let me. It gives me an error (probably cause it doesnt really exist anymore). If i go into the diagnostics menu, and check the listings, that recording is not there. I have a feeling if a shut it down, and pull power it will fix it, but i havent done that yet.

My PACE running 10.85 looks like it might have a bad sector or something on the internal HD. I went to play a recently recorded show and shortly after it started, the box rebooted. I found couple other shows that did the same thing. One of them had been interrupted and actually ended up recording for 600 minutes. I deleted the shows. Shortly after that, the PACE started recording a show and about 1/2 hour into the recording the box reset. The diagnostics menu show the recording on the internal drive.

My PACE running 10.85 looks like it might have a bad sector or something on the internal HD.Unplug the PVR from the wall for a few minutes then repower it. It will probably "clean-up" the hard disk when restarting. It will also reload the guide, etc.

Whenever I set my TV's (Samsung LN40A550) power saving option to Auto (or anything other than "off"), my Pace box stops accepting commands from the remote control!! as if the remote is dead. I have tried 3 different remote controls (Logi Harmony, and two other remotes from my cable company) and they all behave the same. Has anyone else experienced such issue?

Whenever I set my TV's (Samsung LN40A550) power saving option to Auto (or anything other than "off"), my Pace box stops accepting commands from the remote control!! as if the remote is dead. I have tried 3 different remote controls (Logi Harmony, and two other remotes from my cable company) and they all behave the same. Has anyone else experienced such issue?

Something to look into... I have a colleague who also has a Samsung (LN40A650) and he had issues with interference. The cable company installed an external RF receiver (one that plugs in the back of the pace) and he has not had a problem since. He stated that the receiver could be place right on top of the other standard one. It must do a better job. He said the cable tech relayed that the he has seen a bunch of Samsung's causing this issue.

An external RF receiver? Then wouldn't I need an RF remoe control?

An external RF receiver? Then wouldn't I need an RF remoe control?

Yikes! Sorry I was trying to respond quick and had a senior moment, external IR.

The resolution gets reset each time a different HDMI monitor is connected (we query the device to find out what resolutions its supports/prefers). When a receiver is connected, only one HDMI device should be seen by the 775 (and those are the resolutions we show).

Based on your symptoms, it appears like your receiver is surfacing itself as an HDMI display (which is correct), but sometimes, its also exposing the TV (which should not be). This is why I suspect you have the PCM issue with the A35. The A35 sees the TV (which only supports PCM) whereas it really should only see the receiver.



At this point, this still appears to be a problem with the receiver. Can you please go into diagnostics, go to the Interface status page (21), select HDMI and tell me what you see (i.e. all the fields on the screen)?

Thanks.


Hi Lindend, just wanted to drop in and say that I found the solution to this problem that you might want to take note of for future reference (lol, I refused to give up!)

Anyway, after setting the 775 to output ONLY 1080i, after it was taken out of standby, it would reset those resolutions. Looking under HDMI in the menu settings, I discovered that by default the 775 is set to AUTO DETECT HDMI connects on every restart. BINGO! So, with Auto Detect off, the 775 does not look for any HDMI devices, it assumes they are all 1080i since the rest of the resolutions are off.

You don't know how happy I was when I finally figured it out. To be honest, it would be helpful to users if the Auto Detect was in the same directory as the resolution settings. Again, I think this still stems from using my receiver as my HDMI hub, which was confusing the Auto Detect on the 775.

Cheers!

Whenever I set my TV's (Samsung LN40A550) power saving option to Auto (or anything other than "off"), my Pace box stops accepting commands from the remote control!! as if the remote is dead. I have tried 3 different remote controls (Logi Harmony, and two other remotes from my cable company) and they all behave the same. Has anyone else experienced such issue?

The Power saving mode on some displays interferes with the front panel IR receiver. The latest builds have an option to disable the front panel IR. Check the Pace User Settings in your build and see if that option is available.

The Power saving mode on some displays interferes with the front panel IR receiver. The latest builds have an option to disable the front panel IR. Check the Pace User Settings in your build and see if that option is available.

My service provider (Novus) has recently switched to Pace boxes and apparently they are using as older firmware.

On a similar topic, are there any approved external IR receivers that Pace would recommend?

Linden,
Bought a new Yamaha RX-V665 receiver since old one was going out. It has 4 input and one output HDMI. I can get the kids xbox 360 to work through the HDMI's but when I hook up the Pace 775 alls I get is audio. Any ideas? I tried several settings and nothing works. Thanks

Andy

I cut and pasted the HEX provided in this thread to the universal browser for an Universal Remote MX-900 and created two buttons.

The codes do not work properly. It usually take two press of the commands to work. The regular power on/off command works fine.

The strange thing is that if I turn ON the box with the on/off command and then turn it OFF with the discrete OFF, it works 100% of the time. The reverse scenario works exactly the same.

I've tried two different remotes and two different PACE boxes, one being the MPEG4 box, and the results and consistent.

Anyone else having this problem?

Anyone know what the max size is for an external esata drive?

Anyone know what the max size is for an external esata drive?I believe it used to be ~750gb but that restriction was apparently lifted and I heard they supported 1tb

Running firmware 12.33. Prior to this firmware upgrade series recordings worked well. But since the upgrade things aren't working as they should. For example, the box will now miss a new episode when it should be recording it. Here's the strange thing, the box 'thinks' it is recording these shows but it isn't. For example, just now I checked to see if it was recording an episode but there no rec LED lit and no entry in the DVR recordings list. However, when I tried to manually record it nothing would happen when I pressed the record button but I could get it to give me a message telling me it was recording the show and asking me if I wanted to switch to the other tuner. So its acts like its recording but the show doesn't show up in the list of recorded content. I've done a hard reboot multiple times but this problem continues. Anyone else seeing this type of behavior?

hi Lindend,
I also have the cable Bahamas Tahoe Dvr. Over the last few days I have not been able to view any recorded programming. I have about fifteen shows on my list and can schedule recordings but when I try to playback i get the message "one moment please' For about a minute and then it goes back to whichever channel was on at the time. I can also pause ,rewind live tv normally. What to do ?. I would also like to expand the hard drive,any info on how to do this. thanks in advance for the help. Joe macaulay.

I know someone who has had three different Pace aspen set tops and seem to get a different aSTB staging error every time they swap. I have had field techs rule out RF and Headend issues. The last set top was locking E007 and starting the boot loader over, so the set top would completely dump the code and begin attempts to download in the foreground. The last set top has locked the set top and the front panel only displays EO03...perhaps someone is a bit more familiar with this error? Thanks.

___________

Robbie

Hi Joe,

hi Lindend,
I also have the cable Bahamas Tahoe Dvr. Over the last few days I have not been able to view any recorded programming.

I see that you asked this question on the Pace Passport Thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1023744&highlight=pace+passport). I'll try to help you over there.

lindend, do you have any info on the problem quoted below?


Running firmware 12.33. Prior to this firmware upgrade series recordings worked well. But since the upgrade things aren't working as they should. For example, the box will now miss a new episode when it should be recording it. Here's the strange thing, the box 'thinks' it is recording these shows but it isn't. For example, just now I checked to see if it was recording an episode but there no rec LED lit and no entry in the DVR recordings list. However, when I tried to manually record it nothing would happen when I pressed the record button but I could get it to give me a message telling me it was recording the show and asking me if I wanted to switch to the other tuner. So its acts like its recording but the show doesn't show up in the list of recorded content. I've done a hard reboot multiple times but this problem continues. Anyone else seeing this type of behavior?

Running firmware 12.33. Prior to this firmware upgrade series recordings worked well. But since the upgrade things aren't working as they should. For example, the box will now miss a new episode when it should be recording it. Here's the strange thing, the box 'thinks' it is recording these shows but it isn't. For example, just now I checked to see if it was recording an episode but there no rec LED lit and no entry in the DVR recordings list. However, when I tried to manually record it nothing would happen when I pressed the record button but I could get it to give me a message telling me it was recording the show and asking me if I wanted to switch to the other tuner. So its acts like its recording but the show doesn't show up in the list of recorded content. I've done a hard reboot multiple times but this problem continues. Anyone else seeing this type of behavior?

I am not sure how similar the SW is between this and the 12.56 version on the 779x PACE box. But with the 12.56 i had these goofy behaviors and then went to the user setup menu and disabled the Sleep or Spindown feature and 12.56 went back to the same behavior as 10.60 version. So try to disable that setting in the user setup menu.

My wife & I upgraded to a cable DVR household on Mediacom sometime late last fall. Since that time, we've gone through 3 different Motorola units due to various breakage: first one only had one tuner in it, second one couldn't load VOD, and the latest one had up to sixty-second remote control delays that really frustrated recorded-program viewing.

Last Thursday, I took the delayed Moto unit into the local cable office and upgraded to a Pace 778 box. In the 4 days since its installation, the unit's reset itself and lost program guide no fewer than 3 times.

I've tried all of the following to no effect on our symptoms: resetting/rebooting the box, having Mediacom reset the box and reformatting the internal HD. Going through onboard diagnostics, the sole anomaly I can find is that our out-of-band SNR is about half what is reported for the two in-band tuners.

SW: 10.66
OOB SNR: 18.xx (FAIR)
IB SNR for both tuners: 34.xx (GOOD)

Am I missing anything?

This is an issue with the guide data feed. Should be resolved by thursday morning.

Lindend,

Got a question, have a DTC775D and have it connected directly to a Epson 6500UB projector using 15' HDMI. Problem I have is when I switch channels, the Epson has to lock back onto the signal, even when switching between 2 HD channels. This causes the projector to blank the screen for 2-5 seconds. This gets quite anoying, I can understand if I was switching between HD to SD and project neede to readjust vidoe processing, but my guess is my DTC is going to an intermediat state and PJ is loosing lock.

My work arround I was going to test is do up conversion in DTC and not in PJ, so it always is seeing 1080i.

Thanks in Advance.

Lee

Linen

Recently my box has been exibiting the following:
1. When playing a recording and then selecting fast forward #1, the playback is still slow and jerky. When FF #2 is selected , there is no immediate response. About 20 sec later, the box finally responds OK.
2. When I selected FF today, the box shutdown and seemed to lock up. There was no response. I unpluged the power for a hard reboot and it came back.
3. When watching a normal broadcast, the box sometimes does not immediately respond to a channel change request. maybe 5-8 secs later it responds and changes channels.

I had a quick look at the Diagnostics and I dont see anything abnormal to my untrained eye. Let me know if you want some actual diagnostic data.

I'm at 10.84

Thoughts??

Thanks

When I selected FF today, the box shutdown and seemed to lock up. There was no response. I unpluged the power for a hard reboot and it came back.

Is it behaving better since it rebooted?

My work arround I was going to test is do up conversion in DTC and not in PJ, so it always is seeing 1080i.

Lee,

Are you surfing between 720p and 1080i channels?

Is it behaving better since it rebooted?

Linden

Thanks for the quick response.

Yes - it is behaving better now - will keep testing it to see if the problems return.
Would you suggest I go after our local cable company (in a small town of about 10,000) to do an upgrade beyond the current 10.84 - or leave at this revision? It seems I have to prompt them to do any upgrades . ( I'm not sure how many Pace boxes they have)
Thanks again
Jim

Linden, sorry if this has already been asked - Does the Tahoe 775 support the 1GB Western Digital DVR Expander (P/N WDG1S10000VN) and will it format the full 1GB or be limited to 750GB?

Thanks

Bry

I have a 775D that has been working with mythtv to record via firewire. Recently it stopped working. When I go to the diagnostics page 21, the 1394 status is listed is disabled.

Does this mean that something has changed on cable providers end? I don't recall what it said when it was working. The firmware hasn't changed in the last few months.

I also have a motorola DCT-6200 that is still working via firewire.

Does this mean that something has changed on cable providers end?

That is most likely what happened.

Bry,

Linden, sorry if this has already been asked - Does the Tahoe 775 support the 1GB Western Digital DVR Expander

It depends on the firmware release you are using. Do you know what firmware release you have?

Jim,

Would you suggest I go after our local cable company (in a small town of about 10,000) to do an upgrade beyond the current 10.84 - or leave at this revision?

Let's see how long it goes before you experience problems. Based on that info, we can determine the next course of action.

Bry,



It depends on the firmware release you are using. Do you know what firmware release you have?

Sorry about that, I should know not to post a question without including the FW. I'm on 12.03

Thanks

Bry

That is most likely what happened.

Thanks for your response. Is they any other reason it would show the 1394 status as disabled?

Does it show that if there is a problem with communication between the pace box and the firewire device?

Tim

Thanks for your response. Is they any other reason it would show the 1394 status as disabled?

Does it show that if there is a problem with communication between the pace box and the firewire device?

Tim

My cable provider (in Canada) inititial told me that they don't enabled firewire and if it was working in the past it was an oversight. After pressing the issue, their engineering departement stated that it should be functional, but it may be a broadcast flag issue.

I explained that it affected all channels and was disabled in the diagnostics. I suggested that they reactivate my box. Once they did that, it is enabled in the diagnostics page, and is working again.

Tim

Linen

Recently my box has been exibiting the following:
1. When playing a recording and then selecting fast forward #1, the playback is still slow and jerky. When FF #2 is selected , there is no immediate response. About 20 sec later, the box finally responds OK.
2. When I selected FF today, the box shutdown and seemed to lock up. There was no response. I unpluged the power for a hard reboot and it came back.
3. When watching a normal broadcast, the box sometimes does not immediately respond to a channel change request. maybe 5-8 secs later it responds and changes channels.

I had a quick look at the Diagnostics and I dont see anything abnormal to my untrained eye. Let me know if you want some actual diagnostic data.

I'm at 10.84

Thoughts??

Thanks

Linden

The same problems have come back. Hard reboots have not solved the problems. When trying to use the FF function today, the box just suddenly shutdown (did it twice) After re powering, there was an error message that the DVR was unavailable. It did come back a few minutes later.
I took some shots of the diagnostics right after the shutdown if you need some more info to help me find the cause of the problems.

I'm still at 10.84

Thanks
Jim

Firmware 12.33

I hope someone has an idea on this one because my cable company hasn't been able to come up with anything and we'd rather not lose all of our content (we were a couple of weeks behind on some of the favorite shows). A couple of days ago we lost the ability to playback any of our recorded content (apparently it was after an update was pushed). Its all there, I can select it, but it won't play or delete. Box is at 92% of capacity. It will still record but I can't play or delete that new content either.

When I try to delete any of the content I get one of two behaviors:


1) Originally it would say "Unable to Process Request. A service problem has been detected. Please contact customer service at xxx-xxxx. Code NH"

but lately it has changed to

2) After pressing the delete button the delete UI stays on screen for 15 secs and then the delete UI is dismissed as if nothing has happened. The show is still there.

For playback when the play button is pressed live TV is shown with the progress bar displayed showing a title of "To Be Announded" and a playback time of X mins. X is not the time of the recorded show. I have seen x = 3 mins, 15 mins, 22 mins, and 45 mins, each from different hard power cycles (all times for all shows will be the same until the box is power cycled). The progress bar is always at the very end and is dismissed after a few seconds leaving live TV playing.

I do not have an external drive attached but was thinking maybe if I added an external drive it would give us some extra space, or is that just wishful thinking?

Is there any other way to get the box to rebuild its directories?

Update to symptoms reported in previous post.

Recording doesn't work either. What happens is that the title of the show appears in the DVR content list once, twice, three times. The description includes a message saying the recording was interrupted. I can delete those (they do not play back).

Firmware 12.33...When I try to delete any of the content I get one of two behaviors:

Can you tell me what information is in the content listing in diagnostics?

Can you tell me what information is in the content listing in diagnostics?

No Data Available

Lindend (or others)

Just wanted to confirm something before I buy the cables.

Can you run both HDMI & Component out, one to receiver and one to TV? I want to simplify my setup so that I can run direct to the TV with component when I don't want full surround sound. In this setup the receiver and other HDMI components would be off and I would just have the Pace and the TV running.

I found the manual online and it looks like you can do this. I have the Harmony One to take care of switching the inputs, hoping I don't need to make any changes on the Pace (simultaneous output?)

All outputs are active while the box is on.

I if I have a bunch of shows listed under My Recordings (that don't play) but then there is no content listed in diagnostics menu, what does it mean?

The Content Listing function for the diagnostics menu reports:

No Data Available

I if I have a bunch of shows listed under My Recordings (that don't play) but then there is no content listed in diagnostics menu, what does it mean?

The Content Listing function for the diagnostics menu reports:

No Data Available

Any ideas on the above?

Any ideas on the above?

Unfortunately, it means your recordings are gone/lost. Do you have diagnostics hidden page 82? If so, can you post the details.

What is happening is the the TV Guide internal data base indicates that the recordings should be present (and it shows it in the MyDVR screen). But the recordings are actually gone and thus aren't playable.

Can you run both HDMI & Component out, one to receiver and one to TV?

Yes, component and HDMI outputs are simultaneously active on Pace HD boxes.

Jim,

Linden

The same problems have come back.

I'm suspicious about the health of your HDD. Have you tried to format it? If you don't have recordings that you can't afford to lose, I'd try that option.

I've had two 775's for quite a while now (bought the first when Shaw started carrying them in my area, the second shortly before they stopped), and in general I've been happy with them.

Today I went out to buy a couple of the Shaw-badged 1TB WD PVR Expanders as a Christmas present from my wife :) I remembered that at one point the 775's didn't support 1TB, but couldn't find any definitive information so asked at Shaw before buying and they didn't know of any problems.

After bringing them home, I've found that they both formatted to 662GB. Shaw phone support was convinced that this was a mis-report and that the PVR would continue recording when this displayed limit was reached, but it sure looks to me like that's the real partition size and I don't really want to wait until I have almost 700GB of data recorded to find out :) They're sending a tech around next week to have a look because I expressed some concern about this, and I just want to make sure I have my ducks in a row.

Does it sound reasonable that, with the 13.54 firmware running on these boxes, the 662GB is the true partition size, and I will not be able to take advantage of the unpartitioned area? And that this is something that can not be fixed outside of a firmware update or swapping out for a PVR that does support 1TB drives?

I also found that for one of the expanders, the drive diagnostics screen was showing 86 CRC errors after only recording a couple shows, and it rebooted while my kids were watching/recording hockey; the other one is still showing 0 CRC errors and hasn't shown any problems. Is it likely that the CRC errors indicate a bad drive or eSata cable?

Thanks!
-Jason

Unfortunately, it means your recordings are gone/lost. Do you have diagnostics hidden page 82? If so, can you post the details.

What is happening is the the TV Guide internal data base indicates that the recordings should be present (and it shows it in the MyDVR screen). But the recordings are actually gone and thus aren't playable.

How do I reformat the internal drive?

Does it sound reasonable that, with the 13.54 firmware running on these boxes, the 662GB is the true partition size, and I will not be able to take advantage of the unpartitioned area? And that this is something that can not be fixed outside of a firmware update or swapping out for a PVR that does support 1TB drives?

How are you determining they formatted to 662GB?

Is it likely that the CRC errors indicate a bad drive or eSata cable?

Never seen a bad eSATA cable cause CRC errors, but I suppose its not impossible. Since you have two STBs, might be easiest to move the drive over to the other Tahoe and see if the CRC errors follow it.

Thanks for the response!

How are you determining they formatted to 662GB?

Couple places in the diagnostics: the HDD status screen shows this for the total size of the second disk, and when adding up all of disk 1's partitions in DVR status they match pretty close.

Never seen a bad eSATA cable cause CRC errors, but I suppose its not impossible. Since you have two STBs, might be easiest to move the drive over to the other Tahoe and see if the CRC errors follow it.

I called again today because with this expander installed even just the buffer recording on one tuner would occasionally cause stuttering/freeze-ups. I could trigger a freeze->reboot at any time by recording two shows and then rewinding one of the recording shows and watching an earlier section. The TSR did a remote reset, and also walked me through re-formatting the HDD, but it doesn't seem to have made a difference, and neither did my earlier attempts of re-seating the cable, etc.

I'm going to try returning that drive to the distributor I bought it from tomorrow; not sure if they have an exchange policy. If they don't, I'll try swapping that unit to the other STB temporarily, which will at least give me a bit more information on this second issue for the tech next week.

Jason

How are you determining they formatted to 662GB?

Also, connected the drive to one of the eSATA ports on my PC, and it shows a large un-partitioned space at the end of the drive:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3227198/Tahoe_Expander_Format.png

As an update, I swapped the drive that was showing CRC errors to the other STB and it worked fine. I also swapped cables on the working configuration with no difference. On bringing the drive and cable back to the original STB it isn't even recognised on boot, so I guess it's likely that the eSATA controller or port on that STB is faulty.

-Jason

And as a footnote...

The one STB's eSATA port was defective and the STB had to be swapped out.

The partition size limitation was acknowledged as a (not very well) known issue with the Tahoe, and they hoped it would be addressed in a future update.

And as a footnote...

The partition size limitation was acknowledged as a (not very well) known issue with the Tahoe, and they hoped it would be addressed in a future update.

Hi Lindend

My 775D is on firmware 12.03 on Delta Cable. My 1TB Western Digital Expander also formatted to 662MB.

Is there any currently released firmware version for these boxes that will recognize the full 1TB? If not, I will go ahead and use it as is, but I don't want to have to re-format it in a couple of months when my provider rolls out a new firmware that will support it.

Thanks

Bry

Bry,

Is there any currently released firmware version for these boxes that will recognize the full 1TB?

Sorry, been out of the office for a bit. According to the release notes I have, that firmware release should support 1TB drives. I will look into this when I get back to the office next week.

Bry,



Sorry, been out of the office for a bit. According to the release notes I have, that firmware release should support 1TB drives. I will look into this when I get back to the office next week.


Thanks Linden - much appreciated.

Bry

Bry,

I apologize. I was looking at the release notes for the Tahoe CableCARD and not Tahoe. There currently isn't a public Tahoe firmware release that supports the full capacity of 1 TB drives.

I will post the release notes when a 1 TB release is widely available.

Thanks very much for looking into this Linden. Glad to get the info from a reliable source instead of Shaw - I don't trust them. I bought the same Shaw branded Western Digital expander that JasonCB mentioned in his post. Their packaging specifically lists TDC775D as compatible. I guess they didn't feel it was worth mentioning that it might not use the whole capacity.

A release note post when 1TB is supported would be great so we would know when to start chasing our cable providers.

Thanks again

Bry

I just wanted to report that I am successfully using a thermaltake blacx duet which allows you to dock up to two "internal" hard drives see here: thermaltakeusa.com/Product.aspx?C=1346&ID=1895

I stuck a 160 gig seagate that I had laying around in it, booted up the DVR and formatted it so far so good. I have a Pace 779X.

I saw where this question has already been asked, but I haven't seen an answer. Does the esata port support port multiplier?

Firmware 12.34 - TDC775D

I had a series recording set up to record new episodes of "Lost" for the low def channel, but when I got ABC in high def I deleted that series recording and configured a new one for the HD channel.

Then, somehow, the DVR reconfigures itself to record on the low def channel. I deleted the series recording and set it up again only to have it change again on its own. It doesn't change immediately, but it happens some time during the week.

This happens with other series recordings and other channels as well. :(

Firmware 12.34 - TDC775D

I had a series recording set up to record new episodes of "Lost" for the low def channel, but when I got ABC in high def I deleted that series recording and configured a new one for the HD channel.

Then, somehow, the DVR reconfigures itself to record on the low def channel. I deleted the series recording and set it up again only to have it change again on its own. It doesn't change immediately, but it happens some time during the week.

This happens with other series recordings and other channels as well. :(

When you setup the series recording, did you click "View all settings" and then choose Record programs on: "This channel only" ? Then the recording will only be done on the HD channel.

Hi Linden,

I'm writing about an issue that I've been experiencing for a couple of years. I get pixilation in the upper right-hand corner of my LCD TV, particularly when the image is panning from right to left. This appears both on live and recorded shows. It has gotten progressively worse, and yesterday a technician came and swapped boxes. At first this seemed to correct the problem, but this morning I see that it is starting again.

The strange thing is, while the box was disconnected from the input cable, I tried to find the part on a recording where the pixilation was particularly bad, and it had disappeared completely. It seems to only occur when the coax cable is connected to the box. The technician checked the ground on the cable, and it seems to be OK. Any ideas?

When you setup the series recording, did you click "View all settings" and then choose Record programs on: "This channel only" ? Then the recording will only be done on the HD channel.

Yes, "This channel only" is set and it still reverts. Thanks for the idea tho.

I think the workaround is to set a manual recording for it to not switch to the SD version.

Hi Linden,

I'm writing about an issue that I've been experiencing for a couple of years. I get pixilation in the upper right-hand corner of my LCD TV, particularly when the image is panning from right to left. This appears both on live and recorded shows. It has gotten progressively worse, and yesterday a technician came and swapped boxes. At first this seemed to correct the problem, but this morning I see that it is starting again.

The strange thing is, while the box was disconnected from the input cable, I tried to find the part on a recording where the pixilation was particularly bad, and it had disappeared completely. It seems to only occur when the coax cable is connected to the box. The technician checked the ground on the cable, and it seems to be OK. Any ideas?

I had reported this on the 779x thread and it was never fixed. I sent video captures to Lindend and never heard anything back. (The issue goes away if you set both tuners on a SD channel and play back a recorded HD recording.)

The PACE 787x DVRs fix this issue, and that is what I have switched to.

I had reported this on the 779x thread and it was never fixed. I sent video captures to Lindend and never heard anything back. (The issue goes away if you set both tuners on a SD channel and play back a recorded HD recording.)

The PACE 787x DVRs fix this issue, and that is what I have switched to.

Thanks for the info; it does go away when tuners are switched to a SD channel, but I wish there was another fix. It certainly appears to be a cache/buffer issue, but I wonder what else is contributing to it, as it only seems to appear in some locations (I don't hear others complaining about it).

Thanks for the info; it does go away when tuners are switched to a SD channel, but I wish there was another fix. It certainly appears to be a cache/buffer issue, but I wonder what else is contributing to it, as it only seems to appear in some locations (I don't hear others complaining about it).

Based on the fact that Lindend never responds to it on the forum, I think it is a hardware issue in the DVR that was fixed in the next generation.

As for why other don't complain, I think when these DVRs were released the number of HD channels available made the occurrence of tuner being on HD channels while playing back HD programs less often occurrence (power users have moved on to the later generation DVRs) . And I also think most people don't have a way to determine that the issue is the DVR and not the source. I had multiple QAM tuners and a SONY cablecard DVR to compare with to isolate the issue to a PACE bug.

Are you using a external HDD? (I am think that may also make the issue worse.)

Based on the fact that Lindend never responds to it on the forum, I think it is a hardware issue in the DVR that was fixed in the next generation.

As for why other don't complain, I think when these DVRs were released the number of HD channels available made the occurrence of tuner being on HD channels while playing back HD programs less often occurrence (power users have moved on to the later generation DVRs) . And I also think most people don't have a way to determine that the issue is the DVR and not the source. I had multiple QAM tuners and a SONY cablecard DVR to compare with to isolate the issue to a PACE bug.

Are you using a external HDD? (I am think that may also make the issue worse.)

Yes, I am. And I'm getting a little pixilation watching the playoffs live on high def, even with the other tuner on SD.

My TDC775D thinks it's a VCR. About half the time when I watch a recording it starts at the end and I have to fast rewind to get to the start. The "return to the beginning of the show" menu button usually does not work. Shaw cable replaced the PVR but the new one behaves just like the old one. Their latest suggestion is unplug it once a week but that seems to help for only a couple of days. Any other ideas?