ReplayTV is analog, Comcast is digital?

The DTA *is* such a converter box, but specifically for cable. (The "coupon-enabled converter boxes" [CECB], as the cheapo web community was so abuzz about for so long, are NOT for cable TV--they are specifically for over-the-air TV. They weren't specific to the FCC; they were just plain old converter boxes, but the FCC decided to send out coupons so people could have one if needed. You can still buy them, if you're receiving TV via antenna and trying to play it back on an analog set.)

So if your TV can see what's playing on the DTA, your Replay can as well. You need to tell your Replay to pay attention to the input the DTA is hooked into.

Then, for maximum usefulness, you need to tell the Replay to control that DTA and change its channels for you when the Replay wants to record. If you don't do that, you end up with a manual record only Replay that requires you to tune the DTA manually when it's time for the show you want to record. Plus, the DTA provides only one signal at a time; therefore, your ability to watch something else while the Replay is recording will be limited to watching whatever has already been recorded by the Replay.

This is all such a pain in the butt, you'll end up not doing it.

So you were caught completely by surprise by your local Comcast switch away from analog? You didn't receive any emails, or anything in your bill? I sincerely doubt that.

Your Replay is now, for all intents and purposes, a very nicely crafted brick.

You can rent Comcast boxes that will give you your channels back, but they're probably expensive and their software no doubt sucks.

You could build your own DVR system; remember when Replay cost a bunch of money? Yeah. You could spend some money up front and build a nice Windows Media Center-based (or Linux-based) DVR that uses a cableCARD from Comcast to enable your channels. Once finished it's quite appliance-like and can record multiple channels at once, but getting there can be a rough road for those who don't like to fiddle with PCs (and I assume anyone who uses Replay doesn't want to fiddle and appreciates a true appliance that just works).

Or you could wait for Ceton Corp. to bring out their Q/Echo system, which truly brings an appliance-level Replay-like setup to the digital cable world. Due out this year. cetoncorp.com

When my cableco went digital last year, they kept a handful of channels--the locals, a couple superstations, and a couple shopping and religious channels--in analog. Maybe Comcast has done that for you, and you could at least record the locals the old fashioned way?

Oh--you could also buy a Tivo to replace your Replay. The important thing to make sure of is that you get a model that takes a multi-stream cableCARD that Comcast provides. Modern Tivo units can record two things at once.

What sucks is that you'll end up spending significant money every month to Tivo. It is, though, a much better user experience than the Comcast crap.

The Windows 7 based solutions don't require any sort of monthly outlay outside of the couple bucks a month rental for the cableCARD.

I've been using a Replay 5040 with comcast and DTA's for some time now. I really didn't find it that difficult. In our area, you can get 2 DTA's for free and additional ones are $2/month. Basically you need cable running into the DTA, and from the DTA to your Replay. You will probably need to add the IR code to your Replay (there's lots of info on this both here and on Planetreplay). Once that's done, you can hook up an IR blaster wire from the Replay to the DTA so it can change the channel on your DTA.

It is kind of a pain to get things started, but it's much cheaper and in my opinion much better than having to pay for Comcast's DVR service.

If you decide to go through with it and need any help just let me know...

ANYTHING's better than paying for the cable company's crap DVR/converter boxes.

Oh--and be aware, the DTA specifically gives only analog-replacement service. While Comcast offers HD service, the DTA does not delivery HD signals--even if you hook it up to an HDTV.

DTA is all you need to get a picture on an NTSC TV receiver (which is what ReplayTV is).

If you want to go HDTV for any reason, you'll have to step out of the DTA world and into cableco HDTV converter boxes/DVRs or third party replacements, like Tivo and the Ceton setups.

I agree...you have to decide if you want ReplayTV functionality, or HD picture quality. For me, I don't mind not having HD recording...I'd much rather have my Replay!

And thanks for the link on Ceton...looks promising!

I agree. Had my cableco not axed the analog stuff a year ago, I would still happily be watching only the lower 90 channels and only SD, because I watch *only* the DVR, and that meant Replay. I would be blissful in my ignorance, if you will.

Having been forced into the digital world, and having had HD for a year, I must say I like it--but really, what I'm watching TV for is the story, not the details of the picture. While I like HD, I can easily get along with analog or SD if that's the way the wind blows.

So anyway, the cableco went digital and forced me to go to Plan B. I already knew about the Ceton stuff, and it was really my only choice when the chips fell. So I went with it. Am I happy? Well, there's no doubt I loved my Replays. And there's no doubt there are a few things that Windows Media Center doesn't do that Replay did. But on the other hand, there are LOTS of things that Media Center does do that Replay never got around to.

The best of all worlds would have been Replay continuing to develop their technology and coming out with a new version that handles all the new signals, but is still Replay under the hood. Given that that was never going to happen, I'm very happy with Media Center and everything I can do with it, and how closely it gives me the "modern day ReplayTV" experience.

I just last week gave away my four Replays, to a buddy of mine who still has analog cable (T-W). He knows it'll go away, but for now he's digging Replay. When analog goes away, I'll outfit him with Ceton or else T-W will have a suitable whole-house system.

(Around here, WOW cable has rolled out their Ultra TV, a superb whole-house system that I would have bought into a year ago had they offered it then. It's based on the Moxi system that until recently was a standalone product, but which sometime in the last year was bought by Arris, a cable systems integrator and equipment supplier.)

I'll share my approach. My Mom has comcast, so I upgraded her showstopper and bought a gray's cable so that her showstopper does a great job of controlling comcast's settop box.

For me, I have a few Replaytv's as I get standard cable. I built a low cost media center for the in-the-clear HDTV cable channels. At some point, I might upgrade my media center with the "technology-de-jour" that gives decent enhanced services, but my cable companies pricing for cable-card and extra HDTV kinda feels like rape on a sandy beach. And (at least for me) Windows7-mediacenter/cheapo Visiontek 650 HDTV pci card is pretty buggy. When there's an HDTV show I really care about, I record a backup on one of the replaytvs.

But I shouldn't complain, for about 200 bucks I have a new plaything, and when HDTV record works it looks much better that SDTV.

If you want to play with Media Center, and with Ceton, head to:

h**p://thegreenbutton.tv/forums/

It's *the* source for information.

A couple of months ago I tried the Ceton/Media Center setup to be ready for when Time Warner drops analog cable.

The Ceton worked perfectly. (too perfectly)

Time Warner required a USB connected tuning adapter in order to request the head end to place the signal on the wire (or report what frequency it is on). This caused a delay of *UP TO 30 SECONDS* for each channel change!!!

Time Warner set the "Copy Once" flag for every non-broadcast station. (even CSPAN). With that flag set, the video could only be played on the Windows Media Center it was recorded on. You couldn't re-encode for a mobile device or even watch it from another Windows 7 PC in the house. In addition, it is difficult to back up these keys, so in the event of a disk crash you'll lose all your recordings, even if you have backups.

I returned the Ceton, filed a FCC complaint, and am not looking forward to the analog shutdown (probably in 2013).

Robert

For the record, that's what Media Center Extenders are for. THAT'S how you watch your Media Center stuff elsewhere in the house.

But yeah, it sure looks like your T-W sucks rocks.

If I used TVs at other viewing locations Media Center Extenders (xbox) would help.

Unfortunately, there are no Windows software extenders (and an offline Android version is even less likely!)

Comcast was probably running both analog and digital down the pipe until they had all the DTAs employed to all users in all areas. Then they pulled the switch....

It was a matter of time once they stated you'd need one of their converters...

Cheers!
-Doug

Run Remote Potato on your Media Center box, and watch it from anywhere in the world--not only via web browsers, but also including Apple and Android mobile devices.

I got the notice a month or so ago that they're pulling the switch here in mid-April. Luckily, a few months ago I was having power supply problems with my ReplayTV, and took it to Mikeyboy for a replacement. While he was at it, he loaded in the IR code for the DTA.

So I just ordered the DTA today, and put in a bid for an IR Blaster on eBay.

Tried it... doesn't work on copy protected content.

Preventing this sort of the thing is the whole point of cable card. However, it's only supposed to protect premium content. Time Warner is using it on all non-broadcast stations (even CSPAN!) , not just those where the network has requested it.

That's true, not on copy-once shows.

Everything I get is copy freely, so...

I have seen several references in this thread and others that it is possible to load codes to control the Comcast DTAs with the IR blaster, however, I am having difficulty in finding details on how to do this.

I have 4 4508's connected thru WiRNS3 and now independent of DNNA. I have never used IR blasters before, but Comcast has told us that by 4/10 there will be NO analog channels available (they already took away everything but the OTA channels). So I am on a deadline (that I expect not to meet).


Can someone point me in the right direction to find the how-to on this?

Do the research, sure, but I'm betting Comcast is bluffing. I'm betting that come 4/10, *nothing* will be different and the OTA stuff will remain on analog.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...ustom+ir+codes

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...ustom+ir+codes

http://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8436

It's not that difficult, especially since you already have WiRNS running and serving your replays.

Cheers!
-Doug

Did you check the FAQ STICKY'd at the top of the page?

I've seen Usenet posts from people in other areas where their analog went dark. I don't see why we should be any different.

Cablevision on Long Island has dumped analog completely. (My contact informed me the reason for doing so, even with Broadcast Basic, was to reclaim bandwidth for other services.)

Cablevision in NYC ENCRYPTS everything (including Broadcast Basic -- yes, they have a FCC Waiver to do so.)

So, be careful. One day, it will go to snow....

Cheers!
-Doug

Sorry to be late to the party on this one (I haven't visited the Forums in over a month), but here's my $.02.

As everyone was preparing for the over-the-air DTV transition, which was originally supposed to happen in February 2009 but was postponed until June 2009, the FCC required that cable companies continue to make at least programming from local broadcast and "Pulblic Access, Edication, and Government" local channels available to subscribers with analog-only TV sets for a period of three years--even if that programming was broadcast over-the-air only in digital form. The FCC gave the cable companies two choices of how to do that: 1) maintain the analog channels for 3 years, or 2) go all-digital on the cable but supply analog-TV subscribers with free converter boxes / digital adapters.

Some operators (like my cable company, RCN) went digital almost immediately and made converter boxes available (they're doing great with my ReplayTV's). Comcast made a big deal of the fact that they would stick with analog transmission for the full 3 years. And in most areas they did.

Now it's 3 years past February 2009, and Comcast is going all-digital across the parts of their system that they hadn't already converted. I don't believe they are required to offer free digital terminal adapters at this point, but I believe they are continuing to do so as a good will gesture.

When I online-chatted with Comcast to report a problem using my new DTA, the tech mistakenly referred to this as the "government-mandated digital conversion", continuing the confusion with the OTA conversion in 2009. Converting cable services to digital is totally voluntary on the part of the cableco -- it would be better termed "government-permitted digital conversion".

Well, Comcast did go digital in my area as promised; the analog channels just show an announcement that it's over.

But TV reception in QAM Is fine, and my RTV still records perfectly through my STB using the composite input. So much for the claim that the digital transition would render the RTV unusable.

how much to rent that STB?

Thanks to all the good folks who contribute to this forum, I have successfully gotten my 4 Replays to control Comcast DTAs with the IR Blaster. I bought the Replays in 2003 and have never used the IR Blasters before, so the first miracle was that I was able to find all 4 blasters, still in their original bags, on a shelf in my closet. I was then put off by everyone's talking about the various brands of Comcast boxes they had, all different from mine. I later found that it appears that all current Comcast boxes use the same IR codes (at least for numbers anyway). C2009fi.rid is the file that worked for my Concast DTA-30 boxes.

Because I have not found this file bundled in a zip file with all the other requried files, I am uploading such a zip package now.

 

shellcmds_comcast.zip 3.984375k . file

Did you check LINK #45 in the STICKY'd FAQ?