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New moto 6412 with HDMI and SATA - Page 5

post #121 of 1929
9/1/05 at 11:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by thedvdguy View Post

I wish I could just buy the box instead of renting it, like I did with my TiVos. Once the 90 day warranty was up...it was open season. ;-)

I didn't even wait 90 days. As soon as I knew the unit wasn't a lemon, that baby was upgraded.

Quote:


I was calculating my weekly HD recording and its going to be tight with only 15 hours of time.

First off, I get about 20 hours of HD on my 6412. Secondly, I had the same problem with weekly shows. What I ended up doing was keeping my tivo for all non-HD programming, as well as shows that, although available in HD, don't lose much by being in SD (like sitcoms). I just chose the "beautiful" shows (Lost, Alias, etc) and kept up with watching them so I wouldn't max out the drive.

Regarding the external port, look at the silver lining. By the time someone determines that it can be done and perfects the procedure, huge hard drives will be that much cheaper.
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post #122 of 1929
9/1/05 at 2:15pm
I been waiting for someone else to try by it looks like I'll have to do it before the new series start. I bought a 500gb hard drive external sata case and a Esata
cable. It should be here tue. , i'll let you know how this pans out
cross your fingers
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post #123 of 1929
9/1/05 at 3:14pm
They're crossed, both hands and feet...
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post #124 of 1929
9/2/05 at 9:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dukeeee View Post

I been waiting for someone else to try by it looks like I'll have to do it before the new series start. I bought a 500gb hard drive external sata case and a Esata cable. It should be here tue. , i'll let you know how this pans out
cross your fingers

If you get it to work, you will be the hero of this thread (and a few others, too).

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post #125 of 1929
9/2/05 at 10:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by scooterboy View Post

First off, I get about 20 hours of HD on my 6412.

Which is to be expected sometimes, as Motorola claims 12-20 hours of HD capacity.
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post #126 of 1929
9/3/05 at 9:51pm
I just ordered Comcast digital cable and I will have two 6412 boxes installed later this week. I will throw in a 200GB SATA HDD that I have to test it out.
I don't know why so many here are so paranoid about doing this. Just power the 6412 down, take the cover off neatly, unplug the old SATA drive (make sure you have discharged any static or wear a static strap), plug in the new HDD, power it up and see what the 6412 says for hdd space. Remember that it will likely format your drive when the device powers up.
Some of you act as if Comcast is going to come to your house at 3AM with a SWAT team, break down your doors and repel through the skylights to arrest you for taking the cover off of the DVR box and testing another hard drive with it.
Just try it for yourself, if it works post it here, if not put the cover back on and enjoy your 15hrs of HD recordings and hopefully there will be a way to add a HDD externally soon. Oh and post it here too if it doesn't work.
I don't mean to upset/offend anyone but c'mon. If you are too afraid because you lack competence with swapping the HDD, that is fine, I can understand that. If you feel it unethical because you did not purchase the 6412 outright, then why are you even reading this forum in the first place and tempting yourself :-)? It seems that likely everyone here wants and is willing to try this but no one wants to be the first one.
If no one has tried this by later this week I will be happy to try it and I will post the results as soon as I get the box installed.
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post #127 of 1929
9/3/05 at 10:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Altimeter88 View Post

I just ordered Comcast digital cable and I will have two 6412 boxes installed later this week. I will throw in a 200GB SATA HDD that I have to test it out.
I don't know why so many here are so paranoid about doing this. Just power the 6412 down, take the cover off neatly, unplug the old SATA drive (make sure you have discharged any static or wear a static strap), plug in the new HDD, power it up and see what the 6412 says for hdd space. Remember that it will likely format your drive when the device powers up.
Some of you act as if Comcast is going to come to your house at 3AM with a SWAT team, break down your doors and repel through the skylights to arrest you for taking the cover off of the DVR box and testing another hard drive with it.
Just try it for yourself, if it works post it here, if not put the cover back on and enjoy your 15hrs of HD recordings and hopefully there will be a way to add a HDD externally soon. Oh and post it here too if it doesn't work.
I don't mean to upset/offend anyone but c'mon. If you are too afraid because you lack competence with swapping the HDD, that is fine, I can understand that. If you feel it unethical because you did not purchase the 6412 outright, then why are you even reading this forum in the first place and tempting yourself :-)? It seems that likely everyone here wants and is willing to try this but no one wants to be the first one.
If no one has tried this by later this week I will be happy to try it and I will post the results as soon as I get the box installed.

did you even read this thread?? Were talking **External** SATA drives..... you cant just put a bigger drive inside of a 6412....the Firmware will only see 120GBs
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post #128 of 1929
9/3/05 at 10:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by WiFi-Spy View Post

did you even read this thread?? Were talking **External** SATA drives..... you cant just put a bigger drive inside of a 6412....the Firmware will only see 120GBs


I did read the whole thread (while watching a tv program the whole time :-)) so I guess that I missed the main point with the external drive. I just saw several threads referring to the fact they they would not be the first to test this out. Now that you say it is external I really don't know what people are worried about.
I will look over the thread again.
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post #129 of 1929
9/3/05 at 11:32pm
I looked over the threads again and was confused with the posts about pulling open the cover etc.

OK cool, I will try with SATA port as soon as I get it, assuming I get the new version of the 6412.

Quote:
Originally Posted by DonCornelius View Post

Just received a DCT-6412 in Laurel, MD from Comcast today. Didn't quite realize what I had until after reading the forums! The only thing special that has been tested here is the firewire port for recording, which works like a charm. Hope to give the SATA port a spin soon.

I am assuming you used the process outlined in the thread below to get the Firewire port working for recording with a PC? I skimmed over that thread and found a lot of people with problems when trying to get it to work. If you know of better way of getting it to work than outlined in that thread please post it on the tread below.

HowTO record via 1394/Firewire to WindowsXP
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post #130 of 1929
9/4/05 at 9:14am
I just got one of the phase III's, and the problem I'm having is hard drive noise. This thing chirps so much, I keep looking for birds.

This is the first moto box I've had, so I can't compare it to anything. I do have ReplayTV I upgraded with a 300GB Seagate drive; I never hear it. It seems like they forgot to turn on the acoustic management on the moto box. I see it also uses a Seagate drive.

Can anyone comment on the noise these typically make?
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post #131 of 1929
9/4/05 at 11:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by WiFi-Spy View Post

.... you cant just put a bigger drive inside of a 6412....the Firmware will only see 120GBs

Is this known for sure on the Phase 2? I've never actually seen a posting reported to have tried it. Actually, I haven't even seen a posting from anyone that opened a phase 2. On my phase2 the firmware reports the drive as a "st3120025ace" which is actually an ATA-100 drive.
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post #132 of 1929
9/4/05 at 12:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by chain777 View Post

Can anyone comment on the noise these typically make?

Yes, my older box has a Seagate drive and is pretty loud. As soon as the newer boxes are available here I'll trade it in. YMMV- I guess some are just louder than others. Just keep trading it in until you find one that's acceptable.
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post #133 of 1929
9/4/05 at 9:53pm
Well, I sent in my SATA question to Motorola tech support - question and response follow. Their answer is: Currently not supported, maybe Q1/Q2 next year.

Of course, this could be the "official" answer, so still waiting back to hear dukeeee's experiemetn and hoping it works....especially since the response looks like the typical outsourced to India support BS...

Question (I had to send a followup when they didn't answer after a coupe days):

I have a DCT6412 Phase III with the HDMI and SATA outputs provided by Comcast, Willoughby, OH. This is a relatively new box and the tech support folks at Comcast are not familiar with it.

My question: Is the SATA port on the back enabled? If so, is it SATA or SATA II and are there any specific requirements for using it (specific hard drive manufacturer/model, max harddrive size, etc)?

Also, are the USB or FireWire ports enabled for external hard drives?

I am trying to expand my storage and would appreciate any information you have on the topic. All the information on your website appears to pertain to the Phase II box.

Thanks.

Answer:

I apologize for the inconvenience you are having with this product, and the delay in the response. SATA I, not enabled yet. We are trying to get it in for Q1/Q2 next year, but this depends on MSO's deploying the firmware. It also depends on when applications support the additional HDD.
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post #134 of 1929
9/5/05 at 11:25am
Been reading this thread / forum this Labor Day weekend.
Have a 6412 phase I or II but just SD TV. Now in market for HDTV so reading about experiences in forum - thanks for all the info....
Comment/question: Like everyone in this thread, anxiously waiting for confirmation on external SATA support. Noted the comments that supposedly the internal & external drives will reformat when the external drive is connected. OK. But assuming someone gets this going (dukeee sounds well on his way - fingers crossed here), can you (dukeee or someone) also test scenarios when the external drive gets disconnected or loses power? I periodically have to unplug my 6412 (either to hard reboot or just cause the rats nest of wires needs redo-ing). I am concerned that if the 6412 phase III reboots and doesnt see the external drive it saw before, and hence total disk space is less, it will reformat the internal drive with no warning. Reasonable fear? Better to power up the external drive first before the 6412 if you need to unplug / reboot? What about if your house loses power for a brief period? What if the Sata connection comes loose? would have to have 15 hrs of HD or 80-100 hrs of sd on the internal drive and have it reformat when a connection to SATA drives comes loose or loses power or is rebooted in the wrong order. Paranoid? Pointless conjecture without one to try? I would try to swap my 6412 for a phase III but I have many many hours of SD programming on drive that I still have to archive to DVD - still have to work on getting the firewire playback to work. but thats a different thread.........
Any comments on my fears of reformat when the SATA is disconnected somehow?
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post #135 of 1929
9/5/05 at 2:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by nofile View Post

Been reading this thread / forum this Labor Day weekend.
Have a 6412 phase I or II but just SD TV. Now in market for HDTV so reading about experiences in forum - thanks for all the info....
Comment/question: Like everyone in this thread, anxiously waiting for confirmation on external SATA support. Noted the comments that supposedly the internal & external drives will reformat when the external drive is connected. OK. But assuming someone gets this going (dukeee sounds well on his way - fingers crossed here), can you (dukeee or someone) also test scenarios when the external drive gets disconnected or loses power? I periodically have to unplug my 6412 (either to hard reboot or just cause the rats nest of wires needs redo-ing). I am concerned that if the 6412 phase III reboots and doesnt see the external drive it saw before, and hence total disk space is less, it will reformat the internal drive with no warning. Reasonable fear? Better to power up the external drive first before the 6412 if you need to unplug / reboot? What about if your house loses power for a brief period? What if the Sata connection comes loose? would have to have 15 hrs of HD or 80-100 hrs of sd on the internal drive and have it reformat when a connection to SATA drives comes loose or loses power or is rebooted in the wrong order. Paranoid? Pointless conjecture without one to try? I would try to swap my 6412 for a phase III but I have many many hours of SD programming on drive that I still have to archive to DVD - still have to work on getting the firewire playback to work. but thats a different thread.........
Any comments on my fears of reformat when the SATA is disconnected somehow?

First of all, your cable Head end must have the External Drive Option enabled on the cable system for it to work. The current Comcast Firmware of 09.19 & the testing 09.21 does not currently have it in the firmware.

Once you have the drive formated, you can remove the cable & HD all you want, you would have to do the HD CLR key presses to reformat the HD. The system will only format a HD that is not formated to the style used by the STB.

You can have a max of 9 Drives total connected to the STB, 8 external + 1 Internal.

The test of the phase 3 6412 was done at a Local Head-end Test Shop, where they also have testing the newer mode 10.xx firmware for the 6400 series of STB.
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post #136 of 1929
9/6/05 at 11:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by scanpa View Post

The system will only format a HD that is not formated to the style used by the STB.

Which file system does the STB use? Is it PC-compatible?
(I did search.)
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post #137 of 1929
9/6/05 at 1:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lsarver View Post

Which file system does the STB use? Is it PC-compatible?
(I did search.)

It is not pc compatible using any of the current windows FAT or NTFS formats.

Has anyone tried it with any type of server OS HD Format ect?
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post #138 of 1929
9/6/05 at 2:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dukeeee View Post

I been waiting for someone else to try by it looks like I'll have to do it before the new series start. I bought a 500gb hard drive external sata case and a Esata
cable. It should be here tue. , i'll let you know how this pans out
cross your fingers


Chances are 0 that this will work :>

You may want to pull the internal drive and use a piece of hardware to copy the entire drive and it's proprietary format. This will probably be your only shot.
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post #139 of 1929
9/6/05 at 3:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by scanpa View Post

It is not pc compatible using any of the current windows FAT or NTFS formats.

Has anyone tried it with any type of server OS HD Format ect?

I think it's a Unix/Linux type file system.
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post #140 of 1929
9/6/05 at 3:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by keenan View Post

I think it's a Unix/Linux type file system.

someone should call Motorola and ask them, it is there box after all!
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post #141 of 1929
9/6/05 at 5:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by scanpa View Post

someone should call Motorola and ask them, it is there box after all!

I looked around at the Motorola site and their DACs and other cable related equipment runs on SCO Unix so I'll bet the DCT series runs on it as well. I used wo know my way around SCO's stuff(net admin for a trucking company) and it's pretty secure stuff. Very unlikely a home user would be able to hack anything if it's being used.
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post #142 of 1929
9/6/05 at 7:53pm
Thread Starter 
there is no partition table on the disk......
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post #143 of 1929
9/7/05 at 3:51am
Good news and bad news !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good news
I recieved the ups package yesterday with the hdd and the sata case
bad news
They sent me the WRONG cable they sent a sata type 1 to type 1 not a type 1 to type type 2 cable that I needed.
they sent out the new one and I should have it by 4:30 0n thurs.
so we all have to wait one more day to see if this works or we are shiat out of luck
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post #144 of 1929
9/7/05 at 6:19am
What type of SATA connector is on the back of P3 ? "I", "L", type I, type II ?
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post #145 of 1929
9/7/05 at 7:36am
bump
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post #146 of 1929
9/7/05 at 7:39am
sorry I tried to bump to get 5 post so I could post a url but couldn't.......
but to answer your question type 2 sata
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post #147 of 1929
9/7/05 at 7:43am
the sata connection on the back of a sata hdd is a type 1
they make type 2 extrnal cases but cost ALOT more than the type 1
so i went with type1 and a type 1 to type 2 to cable
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post #148 of 1929
9/7/05 at 7:44am
hey got the 5 post mark and now here is a picture of the cables

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...LG:en%26sa%3DN

this shows the difference betwen sata and esata cable
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post #149 of 1929
9/7/05 at 8:48am
Responding to my question about the compatibility of the 6412 Phase III with the Maxtor Quick View Expander 300G, Customer Service at Maxtor had the following response:
Currently I am not seeing why the Comcast 6412 and the Maxtor QuickView Expander 300GB would not work since both of them have External Serial ATA (ESATA) connectors. If you have any additional questions, please let me know.
http://www.maxstore.com/product.asp?sku=2663284
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post #150 of 1929
9/7/05 at 3:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Walter Lambert View Post

Responding to my question about the compatibility of the 6412 Phase III with the Maxtor Quick View Expander 300G, Customer Service at Maxtor had the following response:
Currently I am not seeing why the Comcast 6412 and the Maxtor QuickView Expander 300GB would not work since both of them have External Serial ATA (ESATA) connectors. If you have any additional questions, please let me know.
http://www.maxstore.com/product.asp?sku=2663284

Yeah, sure, it will work, but it's not up to Maxtor to enable that feature in the box- it's your cable co's.
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