New setup, have STB-control question

[matt91]

I'm setting up a Sage system for my folks - 1 tuner, 1 MVP. Certainly nothing fancy.

The only issue is the the STB. I don't use them as I only have analog cable, so I'm unfamiliar with the channel changing issues. They have a Time Warner Moto DCT 2224. A fair amount of searching on the www, and a call to the Time Warner Customer Service suggests that the serial port is disabled, and they can't/won't turn it on. (The Rep did say that it'd be a free replacement to the 6214 or better, which don't have the port disabled. A quick google search shows that the 6214 doesn't even *have* an RS232 port, so I don't put a lot of stock in what he said.)

Regardless, before buying the PVR-150 we're going to use, I'd like to have some idea of how I'm going to change the channel on the STB. I know I can get a $50 USB UIRT, but I wonder if there are any cheaper alternatives? What about the IR Receiver/Emitter that comes on some of the 150's? (Newegg.com sells some with, some without; not sure if there are other differences on them.) Are those reliable?

Are my choices serial, PVR-150 IR emitter, or USB UIRT? Are there other options for changing channels in a single tuner/STB situation?

Thanks
Matt

[Tiki]

I have Comcast Cable with a Motorola DCT2224 STB. I have a PVR-150MCE and two PVR-150's. The PVR-150's are the ones that came with the silver Hauppauge remote and IR Blaster (not the MCE remote and blaster). I use one of the PVR-150's with the STB and the RCA Composite connectors. The other two cards are connected directly to the analog cable via coax. I have had no problems using the Hauppauge blaster to change channels on the STB.

If you go this route, you must use the Hauppauge utility to set-up the blaster to work with your STB first.

Also, If you have multiple PVR-150's only one can be used to control the cable box. Sage doesn't control the blaster directly, it just sends the commands to the Hauppauge utility. The Hauppauge utility apparently has no way to specify which card to use, so it will send the commands to whichever card was installed last. You should install the cards one at a time and use the last one you install with the blaster. If you need to control more than one STB, you are stuck with the USB-UIRT (or similar) or the serial cable options.

This probably won't apply to you since you said you only had one PVR-150 card, but I thought it was worth mentioning just in case.

[matt91]

Thanks. Good to hear that the PVR150's blaster could work with this.

Still unsure if I should spend the extra $20 and get a regular 150 with IR blaster, or save $20 and go with a "white box" 150MCE from newegg (without IR blaster functionality) and apply that $20 towards the UIRT.

The UIRT would be more reliable, I guess, and allow for future additions - for only $30 net more.

Hmmm...ok, maybe I'll go that route unless someone tells me otherwise :-)

Matt

PS Tiki - did you try the serial connection? Or just go right for the blaster?

[Chroner]

I used to use IR blasters to control my DCT 2224 but was unhappy with the occasional missed recordings due to bad IR signals. I switched out my box for a 6200 series and have been using firewire control since. I have been very happy with the change over. No more missed recordings and it seems to change channels a bit faster as well.

If your cable provider will let you switch out the box for free, I would definately go ahead and do it. There is a nice guide in the downloads section on how to setup firewire control using the ExeMultiTuner pluggin. If you already have firewire capability on your PC then all you'll need is a 6pin to 6pin cable.

[Tiki]

Originally Posted by matt91

PS Tiki - did you try the serial connection? Or just go right for the blaster?

I never tried the serial connection. I find the tech support at Comcast very poor - most of the people I've talked to are completely clueless, so I wouldn't trust what they told me, and I just never took the time to build a serial cable and give it a try.

The Hauppauge blaster has worked out well for me so far, but I may have to explore the serial cable or USB-UIRT real soon, since I just got a letter from Comcast this week that they are "upgrading" to almost all digital and will soon require a converter box for everything above channel 20. I'm going to be forced to add more converter boxes or switch to DISH.

[Protoman]

Originally Posted by matt91

They have a Time Warner Moto DCT 2224. A fair amount of searching on the www, and a call to the Time Warner Customer Service suggests that the serial port is disabled, and they can't/won't turn it on.

I have Comcast and have the exact same box, the DCT2224. I have been able to get it to change channels via serial cable. I have a USB-to-Serial cable for this. So it should be possible, the only problem is you are going to have to try it out yourself.

Good story and laugh:
I also called Comcast about the serial port, and the rep stated "that plugging in unsupported devices could cause the device to explode." I asked to talk with her manager (playing dumb ) and explained to him the situation and then exclaimed my newly inclined fears of this device exploding and killing my family. It was a good laugh.

This is the thread I used to set up the STB to work via serial:
http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...ght=stb+serial

Good Luck,
Protoman