FreeSat UK - ITV HD

[Whitters]

Hi

Just installed a TechniSat SkyStar HD2 and i can get most of the channels sorted but am having real difficulties getting ITV HD working. I've checked various threads on the forum and none of the solutions offered there have worked. I can see ITV HD shown in the list of channels after i've done a scan, but i can't enable the channel.

If i enable it and then save the screen, the next time i go back into the same screen the channel isn't enabled.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Pob]

To try and stop non-Freesat box users from watching ITV HD, a scan does not work properley because the channel reports incorrect PID information. So you will always have to add it manually to your scan.cache (in the BDA folder). I have attached my scan cache so you can copy the ITV HD line.
Once you have edited your scan.cache, you will be able to map it to one of your EPG channels (Birtle's xmltvgui does have an ITV HD channel available to download). However it is important that you choose the correct version form the drop-down box, as GBPVR remembers all the versions found during previous scans - using the preview window helps as you can see where it is in the list and mimic that in the drop-down list - don't just choose the first ITV HD entry you find, there may be another one!

[Whitters]

i added the itv hd line to the cache file and saved the document (also removed spaces in the line). i then went into the gbpvr config utility and chose capture sources, selected my capture source and then selected 'edit'. on that screen i scrolled down in the channels box and found a line for ITV HD but the tuning request for that entry was blank. i ticked to box to enable the channel but again the selection did not stick. no other entries were listed for ITV HD in the channel list. Do i need to remap channels or something - i guess i'm missing something here.

when you say "However it is important that you choose the correct version form the drop-down box", where/what is the drop down box you refer to?

[Graham]

When you click Edit in Capture Sources, you see a channel list with three columns. The left column is the list of channels from your EPG source. The right column allows you to select a channel found during a scan and match that channel to a channel in the left column.

GBPVR attempts to automate this process. When GBPVR finds channel information during the scan that matches a channel in the left list it adds that channel to the right list. For example, the EPG might contain BBC1 and the the channel scan will find BBC1 and make an automatic match. But, the EPG might contain a regional channel, BBC1 West while the channel scan finds only BBC1. We have have to do a manual channel match when the auto match fails.

Click Map Digital Channels ... this will display the the three column list. Click an entry in the right column and an arrow will appear to indicate a drop down list. The list may include channels found during the most recent scan and previous scans. In your case, there may be two entries for ITV ... one from a previous scan that contains bollox and one from your edit of the scan cache file.

Apologies if I am giving you more info than you need.

Good Luck

[Pob]

i added the itv hd line to the cache file and saved the document (also removed spaces in the line). i then went into the gbpvr config utility and chose capture sources, selected my capture source and then selected 'edit'. on that screen i scrolled down in the channels box and found a line for ITV HD but the tuning request for that entry was blank. i ticked to box to enable the channel but again the selection did not stick. no other entries were listed for ITV HD in the channel list. Do i need to remap channels or something - i guess i'm missing something here.

when you say "However it is important that you choose the correct version form the drop-down box", where/what is the drop down box you refer to?

Yes you need to 'map digital channels to EPG channels', as per the post by Graham.

[Whitters]

Thanks Graham and Pob for the extra info. I'll have a go tomorrow using the details you posted. I'll let you know how i get on.

[Whitters]

I've just run thro your instructions and i've managed to get things sorted. Huge thanks for your help.

[martint123]

Just for info I spotted this earlier

ITV1 HD will be launched as a full standalone channel by the end of the year. They was reported testing with upscaled content this afternoon showing Granada region programming.

At the moment launch is only confirmed for Freesat but no doubt they will turn up on the Sky platform at some point as well.

Hmmm - will it be dvb-s or s2 ????

[sub]

Just for info I spotted this earlier

ITV1 HD will be launched as a full standalone channel by the end of the year. They was reported testing with upscaled content this afternoon showing Granada region programming.
At the moment launch is only confirmed for Freesat but no doubt they will turn up on the Sky platform at some point as well.

Hmmm - will it be dvb-s or s2 ????

From what I read a month ago or so, this launch in the Granada region was going to be DVB-T2.

[Pob]

ITV HD has been hard to take seriously up to now, showing only one or two things a week, and even then not managing to list shows correctly.
Tonight is a good example - Matrix Reloaded is showing in HD, but was not advertised as HD in any of the TV guides, nor on the official Freesat 'What's on' guide;
http://www.freesat.co.uk/index.php?page=...HDschedule
I had a hunch it might be in HD so GBPVR is recording it for me
The problem is ITV being split into the many regions, each sellling it's own advertising space. Hence the adverts during HD transmissions are all Granada, featuring local Granada shops etc. Some regions to this day refuse to 'allow' ITV HD because they only want people to see their version of the adverts, so when a Scot buys a Freesat box and enters his correct postcode, ITV HD is not available. Some box owners enter incorrect postcodes so they can see ITV HD, but then they don't get the correct regional news...
Where the BBC can simulcast programmes on any of their channels in HD, ITV have restricted themselves to only ITV1 in HD, so impossible to fill a full time channel, so I can see why they are interested in upscaling SD content.
So I can't see it ever going full-time on satellite because of these issues - but DVB-T2 would be ideal for ITV as they could maintain the regional adverts.
A much better solution for viewers would be totally separate HD channel from ITV, like BBC HD. Free of constraints of local advertising it could sell it's own national advert slots, and feature programmes from all the ITV channels. But the squabbling regions would never reach any kind of agreement. I was horrified to read that the BBC may loose some of the TV licence money so it can go to help the loss-making regional programming on ITV, which nobody want's to watch anyway!