Hauppauge DCR-2650 - Day 1 - Moderately Successful

[roy]

Thanks for the tip, but I don't know if that's the case. Mine is a Scientific Atlanta (Cisco) card, not Motorola. The address for mine is http://192.168.50.17, and I see this in the logs:

Code:

20110905-23:14:04 CableCARD: M-CARD inserted
20110905-23:14:05 CableCARD: invalid session 0xDEAD (cchost_session:267)
20110905-23:14:10 CableCARD: Cisco card (0103:0001)
20110905-23:14:14 CableCARD: authentication status: authentication in progress
20110905-23:14:32 CableCARD: authentication status: authentication success, activation needed
20110905-23:14:42 CableCARD: message: /get_cc_url?CableCARD///apps/PhoneHome.html

I have not seen any firmware updates, and the ID numbers have not changed. So we'll see what happens.

Thanks

[roy]

He gave me a ticket number, said it has been escalated, and that someone would call me back within 24 - 72 hours. Any bets on how long it will be?

Comcast did call this morning, after I was off to work, said he was able to do more and it should be activated, and gave his direct number for any problem, between 7-3. When I got home to check, the status screen does now show card activation success, but I still can not view any more channels. I'll call back in the morning to try to resolve this. I've read it can be an issue of correctly setting my account to enable all my subscribed channels.

[pcostanza]

Just doing a re-init isn't enough even if you show it as paired. For me, since I also have a digital cable box on one line with a separate drop for my home office (where my cable cards and digital tuners are located) they didn't have my 'order' correct. I don't recall if it was because the digital converter box was listed first and my cablecards second or the other way around. I just know they kept saying it was a 'headend' problem. When I asked what it meant, they told me the headend order was simply not correct and if I hadn't upped to second tier service, it would have taken longer.

[roy]

I spoke with the tech at comcast today, who was very helpful (and I now have his direct phone extension), and he sounded frustrated that things don't get done right the first time. He did a refresh, or something like that, and my channels are now visible, or most of them it seems. I mentioned that this was the new hauppauge tuner and he said he's heard good things about it.

Now, with WMC I can tune all the channels I should be getting. However, with nPVR some channels still show as encrypted content. This is surfing through live tv. Many channels seem to flash 'encrypted content' but then tune. Some seem to tune for an instant then 'encrypted content'. I think I recall this happening to someone else previously, so I'll search. Maybe I need to rescan?

But it looks like I'm just about there, ready to start test recordings. I did also see the glitch with A&E so I'll grab that patch too.

[sub]

Many channels seem to flash 'encrypted content' but then tune.

This is normal. It takes a short time for the device to start delivering decrypted packets, so initially it receives some encrypted.

Some seem to tune for an instant then 'encrypted content'.

Are these copy-freely channels, or copy-once/never channels? It shouldnt happen with copy freely. Its possibly it does happen this way with copy-once/never channels. In my tests I did see brief flashes of valid video with copy-once/never channels before the packets would become encrypted. I thought this was particularly odd, and rubs in your nose just how easily the device could let you have these channels too if it wanted.

I'm pretty sure you can check which of these CCI flags is set in the device web pages.

[sub]

Alternatively you can also run "hdhomerun_config FFFFFFFF get /tuner0/vstatus" to see if it's copy-once/never/freely.

[roy]

I think they are all copy-freely, as I can tune them with WMC, but I will look into it. I've been reading that comcast actually has a good policy for all channels to be copy-freely, other than the pay channels, like HBO, SHO etc.

[BrettB]

I think they are all copy-freely, as I can tune them with WMC, but I will look into it. I've been reading that comcast actually has a good policy for all channels to be copy-freely, other than the pay channels, like HBO, SHO etc.

WMC has digital rights managment (DRM) support that allows you to record and play copy-once channels. (Which for me with Comcast=the pay channels) So, just because you can play it in WMC doesn't mean that it is copy-freely.

[roy]

Are these copy-freely channels, or copy-once/never channels?

Yes, that's it. Looking at the tuner status, CCI Protection shows 'unrestricted' for most channels, but those that I can't view with nPVR show 'protected-copyonce'. Bastards! :mad:

In my tests I did see brief flashes of valid video with copy-once/never channels before the packets would become encrypted. I thought this was particularly odd, and rubs in your nose just how easily the device could let you have these channels too if it wanted.

But that's the whole point of digital cable and cablecard right? to give them control over my media. I think I might call my new tech friend at comcast, and point out these channels flagged with "copy once". Maybe they should not be. I did read that bringing it to their attention may get it fixed. I thought I read it in this old blog post about CCI but I guess it was somewhere else. Been reading and learning a lot about all this lately.

[sub]

Yeah, I thought that would be the case.