HomeRun problems scanning channels

[mvallevand]

Going by the silicondust website it looks like you should be using physical channels 21-132 but the first scan was a much smaller

Martin

[snagglewest]

I found the XML from the HDHR that shows the channels located on it's scan. I also attached the NPVR log after I ran several different scans on different settings such as the default channels, HRC and all countries. I can see in the log several times were NPVR located the channels, but they don't show up.

(starts at line 9800 in the log)
<discovered key='10293:33507' name='WTKR-DT'/>
<discovered key='10424:33557' name='WAVY'/>
<discovered key='10424:33558' name='WVBT'/>
<discovered key='10425:33560' name='WVEC-HD'/>
<discovered key='10425:33707' name='WGNT'/>
<discovered key='10430:33107' name='WORLD'/>
<discovered key='10430:33508' name='WHRO-HD'/>
<discovered key='10430:33541' name='KIDS'/>
<discovered key='10430:33702' name='WTVZ-MY'/>
<discovered key='10430:49034' name='WTVZ-CO'/>
<discovered key='10430:5' name='WTVZ-TC'/>
<discovered key='10431:33523' name='VTC'/>
<discovered key='10431:33559' name='CREATE'/>
<discovered key='10431:33704' name='WSKY-TV'/>

Is there a way to force a specific channel frequency to display in Live TV??? If I could figure out if NPVR can display the channel, then I might be a bit closer to figuring it out.

Thanks for everyone's help!

[johnsonx42]

This very much reminds me of a previous thread from the early days of NPVR where a user inexplicably couldn't scan the majority of his clearQAM channels. He'd get plenty of encrypted channels, but would find nothing on the frequencies where the clear channels were supposed to be. To my knowledge no resolution was ever found. I observed at the time as I do now that the channels in question have 5-digit sub-channel numbers, but sub said that was definitely not the problem. Then as now, the only channels NPVR could find were the couple that had much smaller virtual channel/sub-channel numbers (104.2 and 114.11 in this case).

For example, channels 44 and 45 are supposed to have 3 HD channels, sid's 33557, 33558 and 33560, but NPVR finds nothing:

Code:

2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    About GetTuningString() : 44
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    transponderInfo: 44,0,0
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StartStream(c:\nowhere\null.ts)
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    Switching BDA graph to tune:
<tuning>
  <type>QAM</type>
  <locator>
    <physical_channel>44</physical_channel>
  </locator>
</tuning>

2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    Frequency has changed, so stopping recording from previous frequency. (Handle 268)
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [INFO][1]    Setting locator to BDA_MOD_256QAM

2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [INFO][1]    Tuning to frequency 44
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    About to try setting tuner modulation
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    Got tuner output pin
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    Unable to get IKsPropertySet interface
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    Resetting metadata
2011-07-22 08:51:41.781    [DEBUG][1]    About to submit tuning request
2011-07-22 08:51:42.109    [DEBUG][1]    Resetting metadata
2011-07-22 08:51:42.109    [DEBUG][1]    Calling LockChannel()
2011-07-22 08:51:42.609    [DEBUG][1]    locked=1, present=1, strength=87, quality=100   (took 500ms to check)
2011-07-22 08:51:42.609    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StartStream() allocated handle: 0x10D
2011-07-22 08:51:42.609    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StopStream() handle: 10C
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    About GetTuningString() : 45
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    transponderInfo: 45,0,0
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StartStream(c:\nowhere\null.ts)
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    Switching BDA graph to tune:
<tuning>
  <type>QAM</type>
  <locator>
    <physical_channel>45</physical_channel>
  </locator>
</tuning>

2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    Frequency has changed, so stopping recording from previous frequency. (Handle 269)
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [INFO][1]    Setting locator to BDA_MOD_256QAM

2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [INFO][1]    Tuning to frequency 45
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    About to try setting tuner modulation
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    Got tuner output pin
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    Unable to get IKsPropertySet interface
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    Resetting metadata
2011-07-22 08:51:47.687    [DEBUG][1]    About to submit tuning request
2011-07-22 08:51:48.015    [DEBUG][1]    Resetting metadata
2011-07-22 08:51:48.015    [DEBUG][1]    Calling LockChannel()
2011-07-22 08:51:48.515    [DEBUG][1]    locked=1, present=1, strength=87, quality=100   (took 500ms to check)
2011-07-22 08:51:48.515    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StartStream() allocated handle: 0x10E
2011-07-22 08:51:48.515    [INFO][1]    DigitalRecorder.StopStream() handle: 10D
2011-07-22 08:51:53.593    [DEBUG][1]    About GetTuningString() : 46

[johnsonx42]

I found the previous thread about this: http://forums.nextpvr.com/showthread.php...w-channels

it looks like the work-around in that thread was to add the channels to the database by hand. not pleasant. same scenario though - NPVR couldn't scan any channels with 5-digit SID's. yet when sub ran a sample full-ts recording of one of the same channels in his debug setup, it scanned fine for him. weird.

[snagglewest]

I'm not sure I understand were the "database" is, is that the qam.ini file in the tuners folder? I played around with it, but to be honest, I have zero knowledge about channels, frequencies ect.

I want to just test it and try and get it to scan a known channel. For example, the below listed channels, 3.1 & 13.1 are from the HRHD setup scan so I know they're good and "should" show up. (bellow)

Here's the first section of my qam.ini. I figured out that the 0=139 is the end of file, got that. Now, what numbers do I put were???

Thanks for everyone sticking with me and the stupid questions. I'm learning
----------------------------------
[CABTYPE]
1=All Countries
2=All Frequencies

[DVB]
0=139
1=1,0,0
2=2,0,0
3=3,0,0
---------------------------

(From HomeRun setup scan)
<Program>
<Name>13.1 WVEC-ABC</Name>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>351000000</Frequency>
<TransportStreamID>10425</TransportStreamID>
<ProgramNumber>33560</ProgramNumber>
<GuideNumber>13.1</GuideNumber>
</Program>


<Program>
<Name>3.1 WTKR-CBS</Name>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>165000000</Frequency>
<TransportStreamID>10293</TransportStreamID>
<ProgramNumber>33507</ProgramNumber>
<GuideNumber>3.1</GuideNumber>
</Program>

[johnsonx42]

no, the qam.ini file won't help you here. you'd have to open the npvr.db3 file with an sqlite browser (SQLiteSpy I think), then find the table that stores the channels, manually add rows with tuning strings in the proper .xml format. I've never been in there, so I can't help you further with how it's done.

I was thinking sub would be along by now with one of his famous 5-minute patches, but he must be busy today - it's after 8am his time and he's still not been on. I guess just because it's saturday he thinks he should be able to sleep in and/or spend time with his wife and kids. think again sub, think again!

[snagglewest]

Messed around in the npvr.bd3 a bit and found the channel table.

So, I started with this info from the HDHR tuner file
<Program>
<Name>3.1 WTKR-CBS</Name>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<Modulation>qam256</Modulation>
<Frequency>165000000</Frequency>
<TransportStreamID>10293</TransportStreamID>
<ProgramNumber>33507</ProgramNumber>
<GuideNumber>3.1</GuideNumber>
</Program>

Then went into the NPVR.db3 channel mapping table and copied this channel, which is one of the 2 QAM channels working
<tuning>
<type>QAM</type>
<locator>
<physical_channel>104</physical_channel>
</locator>
<service_id>2</service_id>
<tsid>3062</tsid>
<service_type>1</service_type>
</tuning>


I added another line and copied the line exactly as above then changed the "tuning" field to this. The only thing I changed was the channel number (to 106) and the <tsid>10293</tsid> which I got from the HDHR file.
<tuning>
<type>QAM</type>
<locator>
<physical_channel>106</physical_channel>
</locator>
<service_id>1</service_id>
<tsid>10293</tsid>
<service_type>1</service_type>
</tuning>


No joy. It doesn't show up in the channel line up.

Can't knock sub Family time is much more important than some program!

[sub]

I'm sure it's nothing to do with the length of the SID.

We need to focus on one particular frequency. Pick one that NPVR doesnt show any channels, then let us know exactly what channels it should find on that channel. I'd run the "HDHomeRun Config (GUI)" utility at the same time as the scan, and to check the siginal strength/quality and network rate at the time NPVR is trying to scan that frequency. If that doesnt give us any useful clues then we might need to look at capturing a full transport stream from the problem frequency so that I can reproduce it here.

[johnsonx42]

I'm sure it's nothing to do with the length of the SID.

Admittedly that does seem a simple enough issue that you'd know it if were. Bad form to argue with the programmer about this sort of thing, but you have to admit something fishy is going on here: this is the second user who can find every channel on his cable except the ones with 5-digit SID's; of those he finds absolutely none. Note from his silicon dust channel lineup (http://www.silicondust.com/hdhomerun/lin...up_6461574) that he has two channels with 'simple' channel designations: 104.2 and 114.11 (ignoring the temporary channels listed with no screenshots). NPVR finds those two just fine. It also finds plenty of encrypted channels, but also absolutely none with 5-digit SID's.

I also observe that the app initially reports the SID in hex, so perhaps it's not the number of decimal digits per se, but rather that the missing SID's in question are above 0x7FFF? Like it's overrunning a signed INT?

@snagglewest: don't let my discussion with sub dissuade you though - do as he directed.

[snagglewest]

Ok, so I rescanned the QAM channels on the HDHR, same result, just 2 viewable channels 104.2 & 114.11. As before, the HDHR found 25 channels.

For comparison, here's a screen shot of the channel line up from Silicon Dust and the HDHR setup program showing the channels it found.
[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]

WTKR is one of the channels that doesn't show up in NPVR. Here's a screen shot of the "HDHomeRun Config (GUI)" utility on channel 21 which should be WTKR (3.1)
[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]

Here's screenshots of both 104.2 & 114.11 which are the only channels NPVR picks up.
[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND][ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]

Continued on next post...