blast zero before channel number?

[Torque]

I thought I remembered an option to transmit a zero before the channel number and other IR blaster options, but I can't seem to find them. I'm having trouble with a lot of missed recordings because my Dish box misses the 1st number in the channel if the channel is more than 2 digits. For example, if it's supposed to record channel 172, the Dish box misses the 1 and ultimately records channel 72. I checked the recording service log and verified it blasted 172. I'm using the USB-UIRT executable and nothing has changed with the Dishreceiver.dat file. I haven't upgraded to the lastest version yet. This issue started when I upgraded quite a few months ago to the version from April(?) of this year. Changing the channel number in the channel setup to 0172 doesn't work. What is weird is it never happens when switching channels while watching live tv.

Are there still options to tweak the blaster?

Thanks

[sub]

NextPVR doesn't do the blasting itself, so this is really something you need to manage in whatever blaster software you're using. All NextPVR does is run the executable of your choosing, passing in the channel number.

You can of course have NextPVR run a batch file, and run whatever commands you want in there.

[smajor]

I had this problem with my Time Warner Set Top Boxes. Time Warner did a firmware update that would put them in a sleep/low power mode after about 5 hours of being idle. The result was the first digit was missed on a channel change because the "any button on the remote" would be the wake up signal for the box.

I created a batch file that NextPVR would call that would issue the channel change TWICE with a couple seconds pause in between the two blasts. It is harmless if the box is already awake, but stops the channel misfire when the box is sleeping. Sounds like you could probably do the same.

[johnsonx42]

http://forums.nextpvr.com/showthread.php...post400910

[Torque]

Thanks Johnson. I tried the zero padding and found that it didn't behave the same way as from the remote. Punching 0172 on the remote resulted in channel 172, but when blasted, the Dish receiver showed it received the 017 and dropped them, tuning to channel 2.

I must be up against what smajor is describing. Quite a few years ago i set a manual channel change on the Dish box itself every day at like 2am to keep that sleep/screensaver thing from coming up but as I don't watch much TV anymore I probably missed where the Dish receiver updated it's firmware and is behaving differently now. My daughters keep the PVR busy, but they're losing faith in it recording their Mickey Mouse and such. And you're right, those missed recordings are usually first thing in the morning or mid afternoon. Smajor, you wouldn't happen to have the batch file you could post, would you? Thanks.

[johnsonx42]

it'd just be something like:

Code:

uirtsend %1
timeout /t 2
uirtsend %1

(I'm just guessing at what the usb-uirt blast command is... obviously use the real command)
call that blasttwice.bat and use it as your blaster command.

[smajor]

Pretty much what johnson42 said. I keep my .bat right off my C drive along with my Firewire channel changer "SageChanger.exe", so mine looks like:

Code:

C:\SageChanger.exe -n 6c10806b1e00 -f 3 -c %1 -p
timeout 5
C:\SageChanger.exe -n 6c10806b1e00 -f 3 -c %1 -p

The important part is %1 will be string passed from NextPVR. For me, that's JUST the channel number - {channel} in NextPVR - nothing else. Then have NextPVR use C:\channelchange.bat (or whatever you name it) as the Executable.

You'd have to make your bat file open your blaster.exe (whatever it is named) and use any flags necessary to send the blasting info.

[Torque]

Thanks alot guys. I created the batch file called c:\tools\blast.bat

Code:

C:\tools\usbuirtsend.exe c:\tools\dishrec.dat %1
Timeout /t 4
C:\tools\usbuirtsend.exe c:\tools\dishrec.dat %1

I replaced the executable in the npvr channel changer setttings to the blast.bat file
For the arguments, just {channel}

It's working well changing the channel but the real test will be tomorrow recording The Octonauts!

[Torque]

Looks like that fixed the issue. Recording seems to be solid again. Thanks.