Need help - 2 x PVR 150 + 2 x DCTs = IR Hell

[Greek Wizard]

My setup is kind of simple:

Latest GBPVR
2 x PVR-150 retail
1 Motorola DCT 2224
1 Motorola DCT 2500
2 x wired IR blasters that come with the PVR-150s

The issue I am having is when I setup the Channel Changer option to HaupBlast.exe on both, only one works.

I have since discovered that this is a bug, or something, that Hauppauge does not allow the PVR-150s the use both wired IR blasters

I am hoping someone will help me out soon regarding this, as I did not know there was an issue until after I bought my second DCT.

What would be the easiest (I live in Canada, not USA btw) that i can get the second box to work properly?

Ok I read this post: http://forums.nextpvr.com/showthread.php?t=6639 but really does not affect me since I don't have DirecTV

I do know that the DCT 2500 does have an IR port in the back and it IS activated in the system menu. Not sure about the Serial port.

Here is a pic of my config screen:



I has doing Ok with just one digital box and one straight cable, but once I updated GBPVR, the straight cable channels got very fuzzy and would not be in tune anymore. i tried changing the channels to the mhz number, but I never got some channels to work still.

Can anyone help me here please?

TIA

[sub]

Unfortunately, I'm fairly sure you can only use the IR Blaster on one PVR150.

[Greek Wizard]

Unfortunately, I'm fairly sure you can only use the IR Blaster on one PVR150.

So is there no other way i can hook up a different way of controlling the second box?

I mean that just does not make sense IMO.

I mean even 3rd party.. i have heard of USB-UIRT and Girder but have no idea what either does.

I like to think I am a techo geek, but those theo have elluded me I guess.

Is my only option to see one PVR-150 and get a 250 or something similar?

[bungle]

Blame Hauppauge, as it seems to be an issue with their drivers (from what I've read on these forums). Write them and tell them you think it is a stupid limitation. Perhaps they'll listen.

I think the MCE remote has a two-device IR blaster. Also, I believe it is USB, not dependent on a card. However, I have no idea if GB-PVR supports it natively. Some boxes allow control via a serial port, but I don't know if anything supports that other than MythTV.

USB-UIRT (http://www.usbuirt.com/) is an IR receiver and transmitter. Girder (http://www.promixis.com/) or HIP (http://byremote.com.au/HIP/) is just software that takes remote control codes from the IR device and controls the PC. These solutions would operate on the computer as a whole, not just on GB-PVR, so they should work fine. You could also use them to allow control of other apps if you wanted. (From what I know, anyway. I've used neither.)

[sub]

Its just a limitation of the PVR150 IR Blaster software. You can always add additional other types of blaster like the USB-UIRT.

[zehd]

I am guessing you're with Shaw. (Might be wrong though - Canada's pretty big.) I happen to know first hand that you will not be able to enable the IR port or Serial port on any of the Shaw DCTs they have activated on their cable network. It's suppose to be a security risk if they enable the serial port because it can do much more than change channels. (I don't know how much more.)

I know because I'm on the inside, and have tried everything that is not even available to customers. Just won't happen...

The IR port is there so that the Motorola controller COULD control another device, but there has been no need to have this work on a simple DCT 2224 or 2500. It would not be applicable in our situation anyway.

So there just leaves using a IR blaster setup.

I should say that I have only experimented controlling two DCTs and thus far have had no success. Mostly I have been experimenting using two IR blasters and trying to isolate firing only one at a time.

Here's what I found so far. Using a Microsoft MCE remote's Beanbag and two ir blasters, I need to use HIP anyway, to get all the buttons to work with GB-PVR.

In the HIP program itself IT CAN control which IR blaster fires. But the rub comes with how GB-PVR accesses the codes in HIP to send to the DCTs. It uses Hipsend, which to date cannot command which IR blaster to use.

I thought it would be something simple like adding a switch like:

"c:\program files\hip\hipsend.exe" 35 1000 port2 or something...

(35 is the channel, 1000 is the milliseconds between codes, port2 is an imagined switch to select the port in the MCE beanbag that an IR blaster plugs into...)

But the switch won't work, of course, because it was not written into the hipsend program. (if something like this HAS been written, please, someone shoot me and put me out of my misery.)

So I think that the possibilities are:

• Use Girder instead... don't know if that will work
  
  
• Beg the writers of HIP to add that switch to the hipsend program
  
  
• Copy hipsend to hipsend2, and see if a DIIFERENT program filename, will access DIFFERENT data from the HIP ini or registry entries...
  

Scratch that last thing. If I was on the right track, I wouldn't know. Another person might have better success. I tried it, and it didn't work... Maybe I should have crossed my fingers.

Maybe use hipsend with one IR blaster and sub's haupblast with the other... have no idea if that would work..

Of course, what was said before is similar to begging HIP to add the switch and that is to beg Hauppauge to add support for two IR Blasters...

Anyway, I've been busy enough I haven't been able to dig in as deeply as I'd like. Just thought I'd throw out some ideas, and pass on what I've learned so far.

If you want to keep brainstorming that would be great. I wanna do this too...

[ricklous]

erm.....

dont get your hopes up, as i havnt done this....

but i think i know how to make this work....

Take a look at this thread by HK Phoey about how he controls his STBs with the MCE remote blasters.

rather than going via hip, he points the exe channel changer at a batch file which calls the blasters directly from there using the program 'mceirplay.exe' which was written by the guy that wrote the replacement driver for the MCE remote. Download the file 'mceir.zip.doc' in post 13, that has his batch file in it.

The advantage of using the mceirplay program, is that you can select which blaster you want to send the commands to via a command line parameter.

which means, if my brains working right, that you could write TWO batch files, one which sends the commands to blaster 1, one that sends the commands to blaster 2. and then, you just point your tuners at the relevant batchfile. So:

tuner 1 exe channel changer > batch file 1 > blaster 1> stb 1

tuner 2 exe channel changer > batch file 2 > blaster 2 > stb 2

Im convinced with a bit of jiggery-pokery, you could make it work using that system.

as for:

Beg the writers of HIP to add that switch to the hipsend program

When i was writing the HIP guide for the wiki, I asked the developer if it was feasible as i wanted to include this in the guide if it was possible but hadnt figured it out at that time, and he said it would be quite simple to add to HIPSend, so if enough people need it i imagine he would, hes as helpful as Sub is. Must be something in the water in the southern hemisphere

[zehd]

When i was writing the HIP guide for the wiki, I asked the developer if it was feasible as i wanted to include this in the guide if it was possible but hadnt figured it out at that time, and he said it would be quite simple to add to HIPSend, so if enough people need it i imagine he would, hes as helpful as Sub is. Must be something in the water in the southern hemisphere

I think so,

I signed on to the DVB Owners Forum that Hip's writer works out of and posted a request. Perhaps, others could sign up and add to the request...

http://forums.dvbowners.com/index.php?showforum=44

[zehd]

HK Phoey about how he controls his STBs with the MCE remote blasters.

tuner 1 exe channel changer > batch file 1 > blaster 1> stb 1

tuner 2 exe channel changer > batch file 2 > blaster 2 > stb 2

Im convinced with a bit of jiggery-pokery, you could make it work using that system.

Jiggery-Pokery? heh heh.

All right, I'll sleep on it. I've looked at it, and if I understand it correctly, it will work just like you said, but it might need all the numbers re-recorded...

I think the batch files might need adjustment...

Greek Wizard, if you get to this before I do, y'all come back and tell us how you did it?

Catch you later

[Greek Wizard]

Jiggery-Pokery? heh heh.

All right, I'll sleep on it. I've looked at it, and if I understand it correctly, it will work just like you said, but it might need all the numbers re-recorded...

I think the batch files might need adjustment...

Greek Wizard, if you get to this before I do, y'all come back and tell us how you did it?

Catch you later

Thanks for all the answers guys.

Yes, I am on Shaw, and the box I bought is from an "insider" as well.

I really don't have the time or patience to figure this out, but will try.

I have two system, so maybe I will just put one in the other computer until this seasons shows are over and try something in the summer.

I gotta say, I am pretty disappointed