AVS Forum banner

Magnavox mdr 513h recording issue

4K views 42 replies 12 participants last post by  jjeff 
#1 ·
I just purchased the MDR513H to replace my current Comcast DVR. I thought I will be able to record all my Comcast channels (expanded service). When I run the auto channel set I was very surprised it only went up to channel 135. Is there a way (special connection) to record all the channels? I want to ahead and schedule recordings to the higher Comcast channels. I do not want to have the TV on the channel to record it. Please can someone explain to me how to do it in easy to understand way? According to my understanding I think the higher Comcast channels are scrambled but there must be a way to do it.

Thank you very much.
 
#34 ·
This isn't rocket science. Here are simple connections for a Magnavox HDD/DVD recorder (and other recorders) without a modulated RF output:
 
#36 ·
hi folks...


this is getting painful, now....


JL63 -


when you see channels with decimals, these channels are being tuned DIRECTLY by the tuner that is in your Mag DVDR... these represent ' unscrambled ' digital channels that your DVDR can receive. with your Mag in this mode, the Mag tuner is being used, and your external box is NOT being used for anything...


when you change your Mag to look at ' L1 ' ( as an example ), and you have your external box ( SAT or Cable or whatever ) connected to ' L1 ' , you are viewing whatever your external box is tuned to, which can include the wierd higher channel numbers.... these companies ' re-map ' what their channels are so that they look like, for example, ' 400 ' or ' 432 ' or whatever. the companies essentially use ' fake channel numbers ' ... in this mode, you are using your external box to tune the particular channel, and you are feeding the output of your external box into your Mag via the L1 input just to get the video stuff into your Mag DVDR for recording purposes...


sooooooo, for whatever you want to record on your DVDR, it's probably a good idea to learn exactly what the ' decimal ' numbers are, as they might refer to your company's ' fake channels ' ...


as an example, when your Mag tunes to channel 103.1, that might be your external box's channel ' 305 ' ... the reason you would happen to receive that directly on your Mag is because that particular channel is not scrambled.... for the most part, as long as a digital channel being provided by your provider is NOT scarmbled, your mag should be able to tune it, and it will display some decimal channel, even though it might be the same actual channel as one of your company's fake channels that you see when viewing content directly from your external box...


recording directly to your DVDR using the Mag tuner in this case might produce a better quality recording, but then again, maybe not. you need to test this...


for those ' fake channels ' that are SCRAMBLED, your Mag tuner will NOT be able to see those and, as such, you will not be able to record using the Mag tuner by itself.


as an example, you might be subscribing to HBO, or some other premium channel... let's say it is displayed by your external box as channel ' 495 '..

in this case, your Mag cannot receive this particular channel because it is scrambled and, as such, there will be no ' equivalent ' decimal channel.


so if you choose to record an HBO movie, you would use the external box tuned to channel 495, and set your Mag input to ' L1 ' in order to be able to record that movie...


with appropriate wiring, you'd be able to watch one channel while recording another... for example, you might be recording a non-scrambled channel on your Mag, while watching the HBO movie via your external box... this is just an example...


hope this helps a bit...


rgds,

ron g
 
#37 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by DigaDo /forum/post/21945764


This isn't rocket science. Here are simple connections for a Magnavox HDD/DVD recorder (and other recorders) without a modulated RF output:

hi digado...


this is a good example, however, remember that if JL63 has a ' bi-directional ' STB, that connectivity will not work well because the back channel won't make it back to comcast... ( splitter time if that happens to be his case )...


my son-in-law had trouble with the series connection scheme using the ( in his case ) Philips 3576 as the head-end device, and we had to split the thing so his STB was first in line...


rgds,

ron g
 
#38 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by JL63 /forum/post/21945789


morc258: Yes I can see channels with decimals.

Alright then, it sounds as if you are able to tune the clear QAM channels with your Magnavox. rkg22 described in great detail what you are experiencing with the channels that have decimals.

What you need to decide now is whether or not you want to decipher what each decimal designated (sub-channel) actually is pertaining to your cable services lineup.

Just as others have suggested, this may be more than you or members of your family are willing to deal with. There are other machines that can tune the channels as your cable box does with the aid of a cable card that you get from your service provider for a small fee. Probably the most user friendly for your level of experience would be a TiVo, but you will not be able to realize the cost savings you were shooting for.

It will be hard to compete with the DVR provided by your cable company without some sort of sacrifice or considerable investment. Believe me, I don't like it any more than you do. I have just accepted how much I need to "geek out to be able to cheap out"
 
#39 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by JL63 /forum/post/21944494


morc258:

Yes I can get channels with decimal manually when I am in "L2 front"

1.2,1.3., 2, 2.2, 3.1, 4.1 etc

Just to be perfectly clear here, you are using the Magnavox remote to channel up through these numbers you have displayed right?

The Magnavox will go through L1,L2 & L3 when starting from the bottom of the channel register before getting to the 1.2,1.3., 2, 2.2, 3.1, 4.1 etc.

To completely confirm this, remove any wires going from cable box to Magnavox and try changing channels with the Magnavox again. I know this sounds like ground already covered, but that "L2 front" thing you said was not expected and should be irrelevant.
 
#40 ·
I have an old Panasonic DMR-EH50 (non-digital tuner) and it is easy to record any channel I want because it uses a IR blaster which sends the channel to the cable TV box which switches to the designated channel and records the program as scheduled. (cable comes into cable box then to the DVR)


I bought a Magnavox MDR513H, upgraded it to the latest firmware based upon info found here and it works. The problem I have is how to record channels above 135 other than manually tuning the cable box to the channel before the recording time - silly. I've tried connecting the cable via the DVR first, then cable box and vice versa and that is when I finally learned of the problems with trying to record above channel 135.


I saw the great reviews on the 513H here which convinced me to buy one because I could not find any other DVR with a built-in hard drive. Upon starting to use it and reading the manual, I find it has a few nice features, but it is NOT nearly as sophisticated with features (editing, phrase saving, recording, etc) as the Panasonic DVR I bought back in 2005. I still really like it. The remote for the 513H has one of the worst button sizing and layouts I have every used.


After searching this forum and skimming thru lots of articles, I either missed it or there really wasn't an easy way to fix such a basic shortcoming of this machine (or even the current ones from what I can tell reading even the newest manuals for the 535-537 machines. I am also surprised no one has asked Funai for the addition of an IR blaster to solve the recording above channel 135 option. (yes I know that it would defeat the purpose of the built-in tuner - I really don't care about that, more the ease to record what I want, easily)

Is there any way to SIMPLY add an IR blaster (or something else) to easily record shows above channel 135 by having the 513H send a signal to the cable box like how I still use my Panasonic DVR?
 
#41 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by PanasonicDVRUsr  /t/1406299/magnavox-mdr-513h-recording-issue/0_100#post_22615356

Is there any way to SIMPLY add an IR blaster (or something else) to easily record shows above channel 135 by having the 513H send a signal to the cable box like how I still use my Panasonic DVR?
The only way to handle the issue is if your STB has a scheduler in it. Then you could set parallel schedules with the STB and the Magnavox DVDR so the STB changes channel when desired and the Magnavox starts to record at the same time.


None of the funai recorders have ever had an ir blaster and they do lack the sophisticated recording/editing features of the Panasonic or Pioneer recorders. They are budget machines built to a price point for users that are willing to sacrifice sophisticated features for a low price. Those users, often coming from a VCR, are generally happy with the units price/performance. It has been noted many times that Panasonic/Pioneer users that acquire a fuani may be disappointed and take some time getting used to the lack of features they are used to.
 
#42 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by PanasonicDVRUsr  /t/1406299/magnavox-mdr-513h-recording-issue/30#post_22615356


I either missed it or there really wasn't an easy way to fix such a basic shortcoming of this machine (or even the current ones from what I can tell reading even the newest manuals for the 535-537 machines. I am also surprised no one has asked Funai for the addition of an IR blaster to solve the recording above channel 135 option. (yes I know that it would defeat the purpose of the built-in tuner - I really don't care about that, more the ease to record what I want, easily)

What you "missed" is the fact that the Magnavox is heavily optimized for recording off-air broadcasts with its nice built-in 16:9 tuner, but much more limited with cable or satellite. There is such an avalanche of posts from frustrated cable subscribers, that it should be abundantly clear by now the new digital tuners built into DVD recorders are a total PITA when used for cable. If you have basic cable with no interests beyond the broadcast networks and shopping channels, AND you don't mind tediously dialing out the conflict-prone analog channels vs digital channels, AND you don't live in an area with frequent power outages that will erase all your custom tuner settings, then yeah: you can use the Magnavox conveniently with cable. Otherwise, its back to the methods we used 20 years ago with bargain-priced VCRs. Connect decoder box to line inputs, set reminder timers on cable box, and set corresponding timers on the Magnavox. Most cable and satellite companies offer a decoder box with timer options (select up to 8 programs on 8 different channels up to 6 days in advance using their channel guide screen). Some cable systems have dropped the timer feature from newer decoders, in which case you're hosed with the Magnavox (or any other current DVD recorder).


The IR blaster has almost never been offered unless the recorder also incorporated some sort of automated timer scheduling system (TV Guide On Screen or VCR+), like your old Panasonic E50H. When broadcast and cable switched over to digital, the old analog TVGOS was phased out, and VCR+ is a moribund antique. So no recorders after 2006 have had the blaster (except a couple of oddball Panasonics that lacked hard drives). Using the IR blaster with a manual clock timer is no big deal to sophisticated AVS members, but the general public has no clue and is lost without an onscreen guide system (which is why all American-spec DVD/HDD recorders except the Magnavox were discontinued after the digital TV transition).


It would be nice if the Magnavox had a manual IR blaster, but it doesn't, and theres no way to retrofit one (the tuner/timer chips have no pinouts to power it or control it). Times have changed, on-screen guides and IR blasters are gone from new recorders, indeed there are hardly any new DVD recorders left on the market except the Magnavox line and a couple of Toshibas derived from them.
 
#43 ·
I've never seen it mentioned but I've read that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0(iPod like tablet) has a built in IR blaster. No idea what it's for but if it could send our a IR signal at a programable time it could work to change the channel on your STB.......At ~$180 it isn't cheap, but if you already had one or wanted a excuse to get one....

Again I don't know what the IR blaster is for but for some it might be worth checking into
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top