Time Warner Cable Navigator - Page 592

The "fly in the ointment" with that statement is that there are not many devices (TV sets, etc.) that use CableCards. At the moment, most of the 2-99 channels are still analog. For those digital encrypted channels that are in that range either a CableCard or, more commonly, a Digital Terminal Adaptor (DTA) will be required. This will be changing somewhat as TW eliminates these analog channels. What this means for most folks is a DTA or a regular digital Cable Box will be needed to be needed
A Tuning Adapter has NOTING to do with "Clear Transmission". ("Clear Transmission" means not encrypted.) What is needed is a device on the consumer end to send a signal upstream to tell the node to send out a specific channel. TWC provided cable boxes do that, so do Tuning Adapters. CableCards do not. Tuning adapters were developed as a "band aid" to enable the use of TiVos on cable systems. The software to provide VOD, Start-Over, etc needed to reside in the device (TiVo) that the Tuning Adapter is connected to wasn't there - so no VOD services with Tuning Adapters.
Correct
I suspect so. I believe that those packages are strictly a matter of encryption (function of the CableCard), and, perhaps, SDV (Tuning Adapter).

BTW: In most cases above you keep referring to "TWC DVRs": Navigator is not exclusive to DVRs, it also applies to non-DVR cable boxes as well! I assume that you mean that the POS aspects of Crapigator apply to the DVR functions.

$50??? For what?

Very helpful to everyone! Thank you!

Jack

Thanks Ben!

Oh yea. The PPV events for sports are completely out of line. $60 for most boxing matches now, $50 for Wrestling. The movies at least by comparison in going to the theater are still $1.00 to $5.99, depending on if the release is new or in HD. Half-price offers and double features are available quite often from TWC here. They do a good job with VOD, but even after you burn POS TWC Navigator, you should still be able to order and watch VOD through other streaming options. I even like free Hulu even though you have to contend with commercials.

Oh yea, and Direct TV on special events charges $10 MORE just for HD! So it is possible to pay $70 for a PPV. Robber barons!. TWC tried that when HD first came out, but it was received so poorly, that they charge the same price for special events PPV's whether in SD or HD..

Ben in your case, the use of Windows Media Center sure sounds like the way to go! Pumping that in to all the TV's. And yea, I heard that Caller ID on TV can still be accessed with special software.

Jack

Last nights UFC fight was $55.

It will really depends on how many extenders and what you want the system to support. If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me. You don't need a ton of horsepower if its a dedicated HTPC.



Used to be a big fan of WWE and ordered most all of the PPVs, then pulled back to just the majors when they went to $39. Now they are $50 and Wrestlemania is $60, so we don't bother. I have given up on most sports because of it. I can do without. I just wish I could drop all the sports channels and have the $30 a month back that its adding to my bill!

Even if the cable co's or satellite providers could offer an sans sport viewing package, they's just jack the crap out of the other packages and/or equipment rental charges (eg. the new TWC modem fee) to get the prices right back up to what we're paying now.

I still think we may see a sports free package at some point by some provider.

i'd like to see an ala carte sports option, pick the sport you want and thats the channels you get, that way i could get hockey and not have to deal with foolsball or any of the other ones

Some interesting comments way into this "On The Media" podcast

And how exactly would you filter that out, besides the league sports channels? ESPN carries the NASCAR, NFL, NBA and MLB. NBC Sports Network carries the NHL and MLS. CBS Sports Network carries various NCAA events and the NLL. PAC 12 and Big Ten Networks carry football and basketball for their respective conferences. The RSNs feature multiple sports. The MSG Networks have NY NHL, NBA and MLS action, YES has MLB and NBA. The ESPNs, CBS Sports Network, NBC Sports Network (and the future Fox Sports 1) all carry highlight and specialty shows dedicated to just about all of the major sports.

As a huge sports fan majoring in the NFL, NHL, MLB and NASCAR, minoring in the NBA, NLL and UFC, I say leave everything as is. We need more sports coverage. I’d like to see more box lacrosse coverage, more AHL and a dedicated channel focused on the MMA, although IMO, Fox is doing an excellent job with that on Fuel and FX, a dedicated network would be even better.

Problem is sports programming has gotten completely out of control.

http://stopthecap.com/2012/12/27/analyst-declares-cable-customers-will-pay-50month-of-their-cable-bill-for-sports-in-2013/

Something has to be done at some point. I'm all for putting all dedicated sports into a Tier. People that want to foot the bill for it can gladly do so. Let the market determine channel package pricing. Networks would quickly readjust once people started dumping channels the execs priced them out of. I'm sick of the Ala Carte won't work crowd. Yes it will, because conglomerates own the bulk of the channels. They would consolidate networks. Less duplicate programming. The popular shows on those "niche" channels would find a home. With all digital being the norm soon, there is no reason a well regulated system couldn't be put in place.

Of course, this is a debate for another thread. Lets continue discussing option to rid ourselves of Navigator!

HTPC's are not that expensive. You do not need a high end PC to do HTPC work. A Core i3 or AMD APU will work just fine. If you want to play games on it, then yes you will need a better CPU and a dedicated graphics card, but integrated graphics is quite good for the job. I am using my desktop as an HTPC even though I still have 2 DVR's and a STB that run Navigator. Assassin has a good guide that is $25 but is worth that as his guides show a bunch of cool things that you can do. You can also check out the HTPC thread as well. Best part is that you can customize your lineup to have only the channels you want to see or subscribe to.

Agreed. Mine cost about $600 with the Ceton card, and rebuilding one now it actually still about the same.

Here is what I would build now:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=16680731

My cable services are: Cable, Phone, Internet, HBO. For TWC signature home this would be $210 per month. I am paying $140 a month so, adding in the Echo, it payed for itself in a year.

xnappo
Edited by xnappo - 12/31/12 at 7:22am

wont let us view your wish list lol

Try this plz:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=16680731

Where is the LEGAL copy of Windows with media center?

True you need that too. Actually I added a lot of stuff to that list that I don't need as I have a bunch of leftovers from previous builds.

xnappo

no tuning adapters?

The average person isn't going to have stuff aound the house to use. Of course the average person wouldn't attempt to build a system.

You rent cable cards and tuning adaptors from TWC. You only need a cable card if you want to watch/record encrypted channels (the card decrypts the channels you are paying for). You only need a tuning adaptor if you want access to SDV channels.

Of course. I was just responding to the insinuation I was a pirate because I posted a hypothetical build list that was not 100% complete.

Thanks for your contribution to the conversation!
xnappo

And it seems that if you want pass packages like the following:

• TWC Sports Pass
• TWC Movie Pass
• Digital Variety Package

You still have to subscribe to TWC Digital Cable to get them. What box you get depends on your own division, knowledge if your system, capability in building a system and so forth.

Even to put it in the sense of Navigator, we all see it as mediocre or worse, but within those divisions several subs have had better experiences than others:

Ben's-Has been the worst of any division, especially since the Black Guide Update with nothing improving. (Syracuse New York area)

My division- Hasn't been too bad since ODN 5.2.09 was pushed out. ODN 5.2.07 sucked though. We got that service pack in October, and following one cold reboot, I have not had that 30-45 day freeze up and no where near the problems that Ben's division has had. (Milwaukee, WI)

JC- (Chaolette, North Carolina)-Probably the best Navigator experience with no major problems or conflicts. JC if I remember, you noticed some general compression of HD channels, but that shouldn't have anything to do with Navigator. Oh yea, JC did have the 45-60 day slow down. Has that been fixed?

After all the years, can't figure out what they are doing or not doing in Ben's area to cause all these problems. Kudos that Ben has the years of knowledge and expertise to build and modify his own system. If this succeeds, and I am very confident it will! Ben's gonna pass this information to other customers. I hope you can make a video to show the improved success you will potentially have, showing that Navigator the culprit of your problems Ben, when removed from the system will improve everything!

However, this doesn't address why other regions are nowhere near as bad as Ben's for cable TV reliability and the Navigator Guide!

I have been out of the loop for a bit. Who's got ODN 6.0? You don't have to go through a bunch of tech menus to find out. Just hit Guide twice, and if you have 6.0 you can filter the Time Grid by Subscribed Channels Only. There is also an option in Settings to change the display back to what sort of reflects the way the GUI looked before the update.

I heard from a source that the next build after ODN 6.0 is going to have new features.

Still on ODN 5.2.09 in Wisconsin, and pretty stable.

Happy New Year!

Jack

Actually, Navigator has been significantly better recently. Still have audio loss and occasional glitches, but it has been more stable. That said, I never see them improving beyond where it is at. They will not add features to their Whole Home or get the overall guide to where it should be. This is why I'm throwing in the towel. I've given them almost two years with Sig Home only to see mediocre update after mediocre update. The features added are half assed like the Guide Filter and Auto HD. I've decided that what I lose/give up by ditching Navigator (VOD, PPV, Start Over, Look Back) I will gain in usability and features under Media Center. I will gain a "true" Whole Home DVR and numerous features to boot. I should be able to consolidate numerous devices into one box by eliminating the need for a separate BD Player and Roku Player. I'll eliminate tuner conflicts by having 4 + 2 (OTA) tuners with the ability to add more if need be should I add more extenders. I'm looking forward to piecing my system together over the next month and chronicling the process.

hey ben, what are you using for extenders?
i can't believe that MS hasn't put in a mode to windows that allows any computer to act as an extender....

The kids will have their Xbox 360 and I'm putting a Ceton Echo in my bedroom. All the extra outlets will stay on analog cable for now and possibly end up with DTA's from Time Warner down the road. The beauty thing is that I can add Echo's and more tuners as I go should i want or need to. Plus I believe by default I get one digital set top with my cable subsription, although I'd rather turn it in and have the CableCard fee waived.

I don't want to use dedicated PCs as extenders. It'd get too costly and there is also the noise factor. Even the current 8742 in my bedroom is loud with its constant spin up/spin down. The Echo will be silent and use less power. The Echo is having some growing pains, but Ceton is really backing it. I'm following it closely in a dedicated thread.

My biggest issue is going to be hardwiring and getting my OTA on the roof because of winter weather. That may wait until spring and I'll just get the build out done for now. My first components arrive tomorrow.

Just curious - why are you doing OTA rather than clear QAM? The HDHomerun non-primes will work with ATSC or clear QAM, so you could set them up with clear QAM for now and move to antennae later if clear QAM goes the way of the dodo (which it very well might).

xnappo

I'm in a dual market and TWC doesn't carry my locals in HD. We get out locals from Syracuse by DMA rules. Utica stations tend to cover our area. I get the Syracuse channels via ClearQAM so I will set Media Center to prioritize my tuners with OTA first, then QAM. TWC carries Utica in analog, but I plan on customizing the guide to avoid having people record in SD. The other reason is less compression via OTA and when the inevitable fee fight results in loss of local channels (again), I'm covered. Hope that clears up any confusion.

ah ok, yeah i dont do xbox, have a ps3, and unfortunately that doesn't really work as an extender
so if i did it i'd have to put the htpc in the living room on main display, but all teh other rooms have computers in them already (old laptop in bedroom hooked up to tv as a media server/playback) and a desktop in the office so i wouldn't need additional computers personally if microsuck let you use them as extenders that would be handy, otherwise i'd have to get a few of those ceton's...

Right. As it stands I wouldn't want PCs as extenders, but certainly understand why one might. The Ceton and build on my end have to be done in a way to keep the WAF high. My wife is not going to want to screw around with the extras, so the main HTPC will be set to default into WMC and the Harmony 900 will be setup so its familiar to standard features. The Echo will function as an Extender only so there isn't much she can get away from. That said, I'm debating cutting back the HTPC build to a barebones and leaving it on its own with Echo's as the "cable boxes" everywhere else. The cost would be the same by trimming out custom components. However, I like the idea of having a fully functional HTPC on my primary set. I'll probably stop by the Rome TWC office tomorrow to grab a CableCard and TA... That should be an adventure!

At least, I'll be ready for the transition so I can just return my other junk when ready and drop Sig Home. I'm interested to see what rate they offer for retention once I drop down my cable to standard digital, Internet to 30/5 and possibly cancel phone.