Magnavox 537, 535, 533, 515, 513, 2160A, 2160, 2080 & Philips 3576, 3575 - Page 473

OK. Before I added CH4 I went through all the digital channels. I turned it off and waited 5 or so min. Turned everything back on and checked the digital channels. All is working. But to record something other than in the clear QAM channels I need to go through this mini box. There are no problems with the digital side as I can see just the analog.

3. Find an old VCR with an analog tuner and composite or S-Video outputs. Connect the VCR and program it to receive the cable signal from the box on channel 4. Connect the video output from the VCR to the 515 L1 input.

Thanks for all the help. This site has a lot of good info. It helped me decide on these Magnavox devices. As I indicated I also have a 2160. I may switch places to see if it has the same trouble.

Followup to this post:

Yesterday I noticed that all my Dish channels being fed in to my 3576 were a bit fuzzy (in the other room, they were fine), and I was worried that I had a bad coax connection or cable going bad from the DishDVR to the 2nd room. As a check, I removed the OTA Antenna from the "combiner", and my Dish channels all returned to normal. There must have been some kind of signal interference happening. So I guess using a two-way splitter as a combiner is not all it's cracked up to be.

EDIT: I also edited my original post with this update, since that is the post that is linked.

I'm currently using my original 2160 (of August 2008 manufacture) and one of my Panasonic DMR-EH50 models (of 2005 manufacture) with a split RF feed from a Comcast Pace DC50X DTA. That RF splitter also directly feeds the RF signal to two TVs. I've had no problems recording from the DTA RF output to the Magnavox and/or the Panasonic RF inputs with this arrangement. The DMR-EH50 has only an analog tuner. There is a composite only switch box (a GE clone from Big Lots) feeding the Magnavox and Panasonic composite outputs to a 13" RCA CRT TV with mono audio. Sorry, the photo isn't up to my usual standard.

This 515 replaced a combo VCR/DVD unit. I had no problem with that unit. The combo unit did not have a digital tuner in it just analog. As I have indicated it seems to only effect the analog tuner part of the 515 as the digital portion does not drop in and out. I may hook the combo back up as Ken.F has suggested. I would have to set the timer on the combo as well as the 515 to record from the mini box. Or just turn on the combo and leave it on during the recording that is being done on the 515.

As a sidebar the 2160 I have is hooked up to a better cable box that has composite jacks. My cable bill is $70.00 per month.(that's just for basic) To get another box like the one I have would be another $8.00 per month. We are all trying to do this dance as frugally as possible.

This 515 replaced a combo VCR/DVD unit. I had no problem with that unit. The combo unit did not have a digital tuner in it just analog. As I have indicated it seems to only effect the analog tuner part of the 515 as the digital portion does not drop in and out. I may hook the combo back up as Ken.F has suggested. I would have to set the timer on the combo as well as the 515 to record from the mini box. Or just turn on the combo and leave it on during the recording that is being done on the 515.

As a sidebar the 2160 I have is hooked up to a better cable box that has composite jacks. My cable bill is $70.00 per month.(that's just for basic) To get another box like the one I have would be another $8.00 per month. We are all trying to do this dance as frugally as possible.

My Magnavox 2080 HDD/DVD recorder (of 2007 manufacture) is connected to the raw Comcast coax cable feed. I tune and record from Comcast's analog and clear QAM sub-channels without a problem.

No analog on this cable system now. The raw feed is all digital. You have to have a box or a ATSC/QAM tuner in your device if you want to use the raw signal. If you use the ATSC/QAM tuner there only about 30 or 40 channels. Mostly local and a bunch of stuff you do not want to record. And a lot of duplicates of the clear channels.

CitiBear, And besides cable going all digital there is always the scare of doing away with OTA tv. The cable companies and dish networks have way too much pull in congress.

In regards to the destabling of recording signal from the cable mini boxes - would those devices that clean up VCR signals for backing up to DVD's work?

Wajo, That is a bummer.

My life is certainly a lot less complicated, with OTA only.

Mine too.

One thing is certain: change. It won't be long before the mouse ears wants more money, and then more OTA content gets cable-ized. Remember Monday Night Football? It's a destiny we can only prepare for, not avoid. I say this with reservations, since there seems to be more OTA content every year. Strange stuff.

This should help since it bypasses the minibox/515 tuner issue, if so it would be worth leaving the combo on all the time depending on your electricity rates. You could also try a compact second-hand VCR: perhaps less of a power draw than the combo?

That gives you some breathing room: as long as you have one "normal" box it keeps your recording options open. The 2160 can be dedicated to the encrypted channels while the 515 nabs the "clear" channels thru its tuner and others thru the minibox/VCR/line workaround. I hear ya about the monthly bill: you don't wanna know what mine is (heck, I don't wanna know what mine is, either).

No analog cable is possible I guess. So it's the output of your DTA (free/cheaper) box that gives the 515H a problem. Your channels, from the Insight websight, are all now QAM not NTSC. Web site is behind as is my cable company's. My first 25 plus 98 & 99 are still NTSC. My QAM start at 26.1 and goes up to 125.3 (I have an NTSC ch 135 - different story).

You need to use the NTSC (TV) on the 515H, since you can only receive stations in your "classic" cable tier that are worth recording and those are scrambled by Insight.

"Duplicates of clear channels." I don't understand that. I get WYOU on NTSC 3, QAM256 ch 72.6 (480i) and QAM256 85.1 (1080i). Only premier and some imports are scrambled.

I have a STB that feeds my TV via HDMI for HD and some scrambled channels. I use the STB composite RWY to feed the 515H sometimes. I seldom watch "live" TV. I timeshift almost everything.

I'm making this post since your have me confused to the point where I can't figure out why you get no clear QAM channels in the "classic" service unless Insight has been nasty and skipped all the xxx.1 subchannels. Any friends with a digital TV that can check that?

I guess you don't have a digital tuner in your TV. If you do, all "classic" channels are dead without your DTA? I hope you understand my confusion and desire to help. Channel 4 is NTSC, channel 4.1 is QAM or ATSC or DTV 4.1 with the 515H.

Lets see if I can break this down Joe.

It seems I am only having trouble with the analog tuner side of the 515. The digital tuner does not drop out video. When I turn on the 515 and switch to the digital tuner there are no drop outs. Picture or sound. I can go from channel 12.3 up to 116.3. Now there are gaps. I do not get every channel from 12.3 to 116.3. It skips around the band. Like it goes from 12.3 to 20.3 then to 72.1. I had a combo DVD/VHS hooked up to this mini box. Recording from the mini box on CH4 worked with no problems. When I swapped the combo out for the 515 that is when I started having problems.

The 515 is in my bedroom with LCD/HD TV and the mini box. I have a set up in the main TV room. It has the Big cable box with composite outs hooked to a 2160 and a LCD/HD TV with digital tuner.

Duplicates.. I have the same example as you. The weather channel is on 73.2(1080i) then it shows back up on 81.1 at 480i. That's what I mean by duplicates.

I get this info from the TV in the main room hooked up to the straight feed from the wall no STB or anything else. I do not have any movie channels in my package. But since the change to all digital you have to have a box of some kind for anything.

Channels in the classic tier that I get on the digital tuners are these. 20.3 WGN(720p), 72.1 CBS(720p), 116.1 NBC(1080i), 112.1 ABC(720p). This is just a sample. They toss in a buch of self promoting channels and religous channels that I am guessing just come in the basic package. If you want basic you have to have classic or vise versa. I forget how they word it.

The bottom line is the 515 only has trouble with analog CH4. Other wise it works fine. At some point I am going to take the 2160 out of the main room and put it in the other room to see if it has trouble with CH4. I have had the 2160 hooked up to the composite outs since a got it about a year ago. To my recollection when the cableco had analog channels the tuner of the 2160 picked them all up. Now of course it just gets the digital or QAM channels. But I thought that I would try putting in the bedroom and see if it has trouble with CH4 from the mini box. If it works and does not have the same problem as the 515 the 515 may go back to the store for replacement.

And much less expensive.

I can't live without the Dish Regional Sports package, NFL Network, NHL Network, daughter can't live without Cartoon Network, Disney Channel, or Boomerang...we pay too much for the 250-channel package, but whatayagonnado?

I'm thinking of buying a Magnavox 515. I have one question though. I know it comes with one tuner but is it possible to add more tuners to the box or would that mess it up?

I have not read previous posts since there are so many so if someone asked this question, I apologize.

Thanks for any help.

No, you can't, other than hooking it up to record the output of another box (tuner, cable or satellite box etc.).

I'm really new so if you could explain that to me, I would appreciate it.

In other words, you can not actually add a tuner to the DVDR, but you can have it record from external sources as well as its internal tuner.

Thanks for the clarification. The duplication of stations is a by-product of clear QAM. With a box they control what you get. Without a box you get the real signal. It's "raw" and not "cooked" by the box or a CableCARD. I think of it as "pure" as opposed to "mapped or virtual".

My feed also requires the purchase of the lower NTSC channels before you can upgrade. Even my cable modem service requires what mine calls "local" service. Your "classic" is my "basic". Put your location in your UserCP tab and you may find someone near you. Only three states are serviced by your feed.

I've had a 2160A for a while. I bought the 515H mainly so I could speak about it from first hand experience. The two were fed the same data from an active splitter. I only record on the 515H now. When both were connected I never had any problems that were unique to one or the other. That said, once I stopped recording with the 2160A it also stopped switching to 24 hour clock. The 515H, recording several times a week, has never switched to a 24 hour clock. Different issue.

Anyhow, I have (on both units) used NTSC channels to find a clock. Both units get a bad clock from my PBS channel and never any clock (or PSIP data) from my QAM digital channels (138 of them - 60+ clear). The gaps in your channel numbers are probably the scrambled QAM stations, or are waiting to be filled by your cable feed. The 515H does not have a "no signal" message. It does have a "scramble channel" message. You can force it to any channel even if it fails to find it with a scan. All of my old basic NTSC cable channels, like TNT, USA, etc., are now gone, but available in HD with my box, or SD digital with a free DTA or in clear QAM with the 515H. There is no relationship between clear QAM channel numbers and anything else in the universe. Plus: they move without notice.

I have never had an analog problem. From what you and others have described you get it on power up. No waiting needed. I tried to dup the problem, but failed. I hope you guys find a solution. My STB has composite output and rf ch 3. I could use the ch 3 output, but it really sucks. Maybe later.

If the QAM/ATSC tuner has S-Video or composite outputs you could use it. I don't know why you would do that, but you could. DTBH260F and DTV5000 are two that come to mind. I have both. I would use them to feed my Toshiba RX-50 since it only has an analog tuner.