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Latest Ceton InfiniTV 4 Info Thread - Page 91

post #2701 of 4509
4/20/12 at 10:21am
If Im running W7 do I need something like tuner salad if I am using the ceton card with a happauge 2250. Will I be able to use all 6 tuners at once?
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post #2702 of 4509
4/20/12 at 11:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Babbitt 1080P View Post

If Im running W7 do I need something like tuner salad if I am using the ceton card with a happauge 2250. Will I be able to use all 6 tuners at once?

No worries with that combo. The Ceton and Hauppauge are different tuner types - you can use 4 tuners of each type without doing anything special.

If you wanted to use 2 Ceton cards, then you'd be exceeding the 4 tuner of each type limit. The new Ceton drivers are supposed to take care of this, but I found that I still needed Tuner Salad when I rebuilt my system several weeks ago as the Ceton drivers didn't take care of the limit for some reason.
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post #2703 of 4509
4/20/12 at 11:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gsr View Post

No worries with that combo. The Ceton and Hauppauge are different tuner types - you can use 4 tuners of each type without doing anything special.

If you wanted to use 2 Ceton cards, then you'd be exceeding the 4 tuner of each type limit. The new Ceton drivers are supposed to take care of this, but I found that I still needed Tuner Salad when I rebuilt my system several weeks ago as the Ceton drivers didn't take care of the limit for some reason.

Odd, the drivers should remove the limit. Did have an issue where WMC "forgot" and gave me fits but a reinstall of the drivers took care of the limit again.
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post #2704 of 4509
4/20/12 at 2:26pm
Just had an update notice in my ceton diag tool. I am curious what versions everyone is running, here are mine:

Software Package: 1.5.4304.6
Diagnostic Tool: 1.5.0.0
PCIe Driver: 1.0.2.4
Firmware: 1.1.7.2
Hardware: 4884

I have first gen hardware as I was in the initial run of people who got them outside of the very first Microsoft employees.
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post #2705 of 4509
4/20/12 at 3:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cybrsage View Post

Just had an update notice in my ceton diag tool. I am curious what versions everyone is running, here are mine:

Software Package: 1.5.4304.6
Diagnostic Tool: 1.5.0.0
PCIe Driver: 1.0.2.4
Firmware: 1.1.7.2
Hardware: 4884

I have first gen hardware as I was in the initial run of people who got them outside of the very first Microsoft employees.

I've got the same hw version, but still running few 1.0.9.5 (pretty sure that's what it is, on vacation now so cat check). I'm curious if you've had any issues with your firmware upgrades as you've been going along; I've stayed away from all of them since I haven't had any issues.
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post #2706 of 4509
4/20/12 at 4:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Babbitt 1080P View Post

If Im running W7 do I need something like tuner salad if I am using the ceton card with a happauge 2250. Will I be able to use all 6 tuners at once?

I'm using a Ceton PCIe along with a Hauppauge 2250 and have used all 6 tuners at the same time. As mentioned, TunerSalad is not required.
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post #2707 of 4509
4/21/12 at 8:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken.F View Post

I'm using a Ceton PCIe along with a Hauppauge 2250 and have used all 6 tuners at the same time. As mentioned, TunerSalad is not required.

Great thanks. I thought it might be ok as everything installed fine and appears to be working. I did not try recording with all 6 tuners so I wasn't sure.

How many of you have your cetons working good enough that you were comfortable getting rid of a STB if you had one?
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post #2708 of 4509
4/21/12 at 8:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jreese831 View Post

I've got the same hw version, but still running few 1.0.9.5 (pretty sure that's what it is, on vacation now so cat check). I'm curious if you've had any issues with your firmware upgrades as you've been going along; I've stayed away from all of them since I haven't had any issues.

No problems at all. Once, a long time ago, I had to redetect my tuners, but have never had to do it since.
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post #2709 of 4509
4/21/12 at 1:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Babbitt 1080P View Post


Great thanks. I thought it might be ok as everything installed fine and appears to be working. I did not try recording with all 6 tuners so I wasn't sure.

How many of you have your cetons working good enough that you were comfortable getting rid of a STB if you had one?

I haven't had a stb in a long time. Though up until this latest Ceton & TA firmware I had frequent partial recordings. Also adjusted the # of splitters to give the best signal possible to the Ceton.

Since the monthly fee is only a few $ for the cablecard, I would suggest getting the Ceton up and going for a few weeks before you turn anything into the cable co.
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post #2710 of 4509
4/21/12 at 2:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Babbitt 1080P View Post

How many of you have your cetons working good enough that you were comfortable getting rid of a STB if you had one?

If I didn't have the 29/59 bug on the premium channels I'd get rid of my STB.
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post #2711 of 4509
4/21/12 at 2:25pm
Speaking of the 29/59 bug, can anyone recommend a video card? I have an i5-650 Clarkdale that isn't supposed to have the 29/59 stutter. I'd hate to buy a video card that isn't supposed to stutter but does.
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post #2712 of 4509
4/21/12 at 3:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken.F View Post

Speaking of the 29/59 bug, can anyone recommend a video card? I have an i5-650 Clarkdale that isn't supposed to have the 29/59 stutter. I'd hate to buy a video card that isn't supposed to stutter but does.

I'm having good luck with an asus gt 430, here's the link http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121448. There's also a low profile version, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121471,
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post #2713 of 4509
4/21/12 at 11:16pm
I posted the following in the 7MC thread a couple of weeks ago (April 9), and nobody answered. I'm posting it over here now in the hope that someone participating in this thread will know the answer:

Quote:
Originally Posted by JorgeA View Post

We enjoy "The Dick Van Dyke Show," and the other day I saw that one of the subchannels for a regional broadcast station is carrying the program (in addition to TVLand), so I added it to the Windows 7 Media Center schedule (on the channel's cable number, not the OTA signal which we can't get).

The next day when I checked, though, the program hadn't recorded and we had the following message in 7MC:

"Restrictions set by the broadcaster and/or originator of the content prohibit recording of this program."

OK, I thought -- I've seen this before. Sometimes it's a mistake, other times it's a deliberate decision not to allow recording of a particular program. What has me scratching my head, though, is the following:

The PC is in the family room. We also have a DVR in the bedroom that's not connected or networked to the PC in any way, each one has its own separate coax feed off the box in the basement. As an experiment, Sunday afternoon I set 7MC (through our Ceton InfiniTV4 PCIe tuner) and the cable company DVR each to record "Dick Van Dyke" via cable on that same channel at the same time. I was surprised to see that, while the show did not record on the HTPC, it did get recorded on the DVR.

Now, the DVR is a Motorola DCX3400 series, with a CableCARD in the back just like the PC. So what gives -- why can we record that show through the DVR CableCARD, but not the PC CableCARD? Aren't they the same thing? Why would the copy flag be active on one but not the other?

Anybody have a clue as to what might be going on?

Thanks for any insights.
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post #2714 of 4509
4/22/12 at 4:21am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dbailey75 View Post

I'm having good luck with an asus gt 430...

Thanks for the recommendation.
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post #2715 of 4509
4/22/12 at 4:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JorgeA View Post

As an experiment, Sunday afternoon I set 7MC (through our Ceton InfiniTV4 PCIe tuner) and the cable company DVR each to record "Dick Van Dyke" via cable on that same channel at the same time. I was surprised to see that, while the show did not record on the HTPC, it did get recorded on the DVR.

That's interesting. Does it happen every time you try to record that show on the PC from that channel?
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post #2716 of 4509
4/22/12 at 5:53am
I got my Ceton PCIe Tuesday and cablecard from Comcast. By 7pm it was paired and working. I am impressed it works pretty good.

I used one of my DCX3400 outputs from a splitter which has outputs labeled -3.5db, for modem and 2 at -7.5db; each of these go to DCX3400 DVR.

Now to the question, at my Ceton the utility reads -13.5db for signal and -37db for signal to noise. On my modem it reads 0db.

If I use a unity gain drop amp to replace the splitter will I get about -7.5db at the Ceton or will it read 0db?

It looks like the Ceton has a drop of 7.5db looking at what is now installed.

Does this make sense?

I know from what I have read my current signal is low, although it does work.
i
Thanks
Rew
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post #2717 of 4509
4/22/12 at 7:51am
I am having a lot of problems with my PC locking after upgrading my NVidia drivers. I also have the flashing issue.

Can someone point me to the best/least trouble free version of Nvidia drivers? Thanks.
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post #2718 of 4509
4/22/12 at 7:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken.F View Post

That's interesting. Does it happen every time you try to record that show on the PC from that channel?

I tried it again a couple more times Monday/Tuesday that week, and the same thing happened. Haven't tried it in the last 10-12 days, though. The error messages were annoying my wife (and, therefore, me ), so I removed that channel from the scheduled recordings.

TVLand is still recording great.
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post #2719 of 4509
4/22/12 at 8:07am
Just finished by first HTPC build:
Silverstone GD05B case
Asus P8Z68-M Pro mobo
Intel Core i3 2100
Scythe Big Shuriken CPU cooler
G Skill Rip Jaws 4 (2 X 2)GB Ram
Sea Sonic PSU
Crucial M4 SSD (for OS)
Recycled 100 Gb 2.5 drive from laptop (little storage)
LG BD/DVD combo drive
Ceton InfiniTV 4 Quad tuner
Logitech Harmony 7 with HP IR reciever
Remote Hippo
Win 7 64 bit and Arcsoft TMT5

Observations of the Ceton tuner: I first had a cable splitter setup (one to my HTPC and one to my modem/router) but immediately noticed pixilation and interference anytime there was internet traffic. So I removed the splitter and moved my modem/router to another location in the house, and that solved the issue.
So far, the card is working great in WMC. I have only had 2 instances of pixilation since then, which I had experienced before even with a Comcast box. I will continue to keep an eye on that as it could be caused by other things as well.
Comcast setup only required 2 calls to them - first lady flat out told me she hated setting up cable cards! She was a self fulfilling prophecy as I had to call back again!
The only other issue so far is when I boot up, it takes a few moments for the tuners to "load" so I think by keeping the HTPC on will take care of that.
All in all, pretty awesome!
I haven't recorded anything yet or setup any Xbox extenders, but for the simple fact that I don't have a Comcast box is well worth it!
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post #2720 of 4509
4/22/12 at 1:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by JorgeA View Post

I posted the following in the 7MC thread a couple of weeks ago (April 9), and nobody answered. I'm posting it over here now in the hope that someone participating in this thread will know the answer:
. . .

why can we record that show through the DVR CableCARD, but not the PC CableCARD? Aren't they the same thing? Why would the copy flag be active on one but not the other?

The whole system is not the same thing just the cable card part of it is (for instance your DVR does not use Windows Media Center as its software, or playready as its drm manager). The "copy flags" are/exist the same on both but the cable company's dvr does not need to go through cable labs certification (or at least not as thoroughly) and can ignore other forms of protection. Local stations are often not given a CCI value on cable systems. I used to see none/unknown on a few of my channels but now all the clear qam report CCI 0x00 which would explain why I haven't seen this error for a while... I used to always see it if I recorded something after M*A*S*H which used cgms-a. As a result, the cable company's dvr can record and play it since they can ignore CGMS but third party, cable labs certified equipment, must obey other copy restrictions when cci isn't present that are in the original signal such as CGMS, Macrovision, etc. and as a result WMC behaves this way (CCI is supposed to override the others). If you record it through clear qam and/or OTA, you might not have this problem but media center can still get picky about it.
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post #2721 of 4509
4/22/12 at 4:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by signcarver View Post

The whole system is not the same thing just the cable card part of it is (for instance your DVR does not use Windows Media Center as its software, or playready as its drm manager). The "copy flags" are/exist the same on both but the cable company's dvr does not need to go through cable labs certification (or at least not as thoroughly) and can ignore other forms of protection. Local stations are often not given a CCI value on cable systems. I used to see none/unknown on a few of my channels but now all the clear qam report CCI 0x00 which would explain why I haven't seen this error for a while... I used to always see it if I recorded something after M*A*S*H which used cgms-a. As a result, the cable company's dvr can record and play it since they can ignore CGMS but third party, cable labs certified equipment, must obey other copy restrictions when cci isn't present that are in the original signal such as CGMS, Macrovision, etc. and as a result WMC behaves this way (CCI is supposed to override the others). If you record it through clear qam and/or OTA, you might not have this problem but media center can still get picky about it.

If anyone has a Ceton InfiniTV, and cannot record a show due to various restrictions, but also has a MSO-owned DVR box that can record the same show, please PM me - we would love some real-world examples of this, as we can use it to try and change the rules for the better.
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post #2722 of 4509
4/22/12 at 4:18pm
I'm having an issue with my Cablecard suddenly. I got home on Friday and I couldn't get any stations except for locals. I called comcast and they sent a signal, and it seemed to work for a bit but I had to call back again right after. I just got home again today and now I can't get any premium stations. I called once again and the guy says he shows that all the right codes are there and he shows the signal went through successfully. After he sent the signal I can tune a premium station for about 3 seconds before it goes off and I get a Subscription Required message and he says it won't let him try again for 45 minutes so he would call me back. I still have a red dot in box #6 (Cablecard has not received CP Auth). Any idea's what could be wrong? Could the CableCard suddenly go bad? I have shows scheduled to record on Showtime and HBO tonight and now it's looking like I won't get to record them.
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post #2723 of 4509
4/22/12 at 5:29pm
I just fixed that problem on my computer a hour ago. I uninsalled the nvidia drivers and rebooted and let windows 7 install the drivers.

so far no flashing and no lockups. I was about to use the video card on my motherboard.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Lawguy View Post

I am having a lot of problems with my PC locking after upgrading my NVidia drivers. I also have the flashing issue.

Can someone point me to the best/least trouble free version of Nvidia drivers? Thanks.
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post #2724 of 4509
4/22/12 at 6:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SLAYER6669 View Post

I'm having an issue with my Cablecard suddenly. I got home on Friday and I couldn't get any stations except for locals. I called comcast and they sent a signal, and it seemed to work for a bit but I had to call back again right after. I just got home again today and now I can't get any premium stations. I called once again and the guy says he shows that all the right codes are there and he shows the signal went through successfully. After he sent the signal I can tune a premium station for about 3 seconds before it goes off and I get a Subscription Required message and he says it won't let him try again for 45 minutes so he would call me back. I still have a red dot in box #6 (Cablecard has not received CP Auth). Any idea's what could be wrong? Could the CableCard suddenly go bad? I have shows scheduled to record on Showtime and HBO tonight and now it's looking like I won't get to record them.

Is this a Motorola card? If so, make sure the Data# is correct
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post #2725 of 4509
4/22/12 at 8:09pm
I just upgraded my gforce gtx 560 driver to 301.24 BETA and no flickering or lockups so far


Quote:
Originally Posted by tootal2 View Post

I just fixed that problem on my computer a hour ago. I uninsalled the nvidia drivers and rebooted and let windows 7 install the drivers.

so far no flashing and no lockups. I was about to use the video card on my motherboard.
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post #2726 of 4509
4/22/12 at 9:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by erickotz View Post

Is this a Motorola card? If so, make sure the Data# is correct

Nope, Cisco/SA card. It appears Comcast has screwed up my account somehow and has the cablecard as a cable BOX in their system and they can't input the proper #'s (serial/host etc.) Makes me wonder how the thing has worked for the last 9 months or also how others were able to "successfully" send signals to the card. It's been escalated and they are saying I will likely have to turn this card in and get a new one because they can't change the card on the billing end or something.
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post #2727 of 4509
4/23/12 at 4:32am
They can change the card type in their DB but you can't get to the right person. Really stupid that their CC support folks can't do this, it's not an unusual problem. You can try emailing we_can_help@cable.comcast.com to see if they can get the right person to fix it, otherwise they have to roll a tech with a new card. I would make them do it at no charge, don't waste your time otherwise.
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post #2728 of 4509
4/23/12 at 6:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by signcarver View Post

The whole system is not the same thing just the cable card part of it is (for instance your DVR does not use Windows Media Center as its software, or playready as its drm manager). The "copy flags" are/exist the same on both but the cable company's dvr does not need to go through cable labs certification (or at least not as thoroughly) and can ignore other forms of protection. Local stations are often not given a CCI value on cable systems. I used to see none/unknown on a few of my channels but now all the clear qam report CCI 0x00 which would explain why I haven't seen this error for a while... I used to always see it if I recorded something after M*A*S*H which used cgms-a. As a result, the cable company's dvr can record and play it since they can ignore CGMS but third party, cable labs certified equipment, must obey other copy restrictions when cci isn't present that are in the original signal such as CGMS, Macrovision, etc. and as a result WMC behaves this way (CCI is supposed to override the others). If you record it through clear qam and/or OTA, you might not have this problem but media center can still get picky about it.

Thanks @signcarver. I'd never heard of CGMS before today, but what you say makes a lot of sense.

Wish that I could record that show OTA as a test!
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post #2729 of 4509
4/23/12 at 8:10am
I'm trying to network one of my tuners to a second HTPC. I install the ceton network stuff and ran tv set-up. It get to the point and tell me my PC on not cable ready.

I wanted to run the cable adviser but my whole extras menu is gone. I tried media center studio to see if I could bring the strip back but no luck. It just appears to be gone. I did some web search but didnt find much. I have no way to know why the pc is not cable ready.

Anyone know why this strip would disappear?
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post #2730 of 4509
4/23/12 at 9:16am
Eric, out of curiosity, can you comment in any vague way about the installed user base and how it has changed since the price drop?

xnappo
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