SageTV and WHS still not working for me... :(

[vvulture]

Recently, i decided to give Sage another go using WHS with PP1 as my server.
I am using WindowsXP SP3 as my clients.

My problems include :
- Some TV channels have no sound
- Some TV channels are choppy ( like really slow motion ). If i change channel it may or may not fix this ( random ).
- Random freezing with spinning circle

Up until now, i have been using Media Portal which is very stable and reliable for me. The only issues have been the occasional corrupt recording.

Why am i having such a hard time with Sage ?? I have none of these with Media Portal.

Before you ask, i am persisting with Sage in hope that it will become more stable for me. I would love to take advantage of it's features that MP lacks.

Hardware:

Server :
- WHS with PP1 and all updates
- Latest Sage WHS addin
- Latest Java installation
- AMD 790FX board
- AMD LE-1600 2.2Ghz AM2 CPU
- 1 Gig DDR2 800 Ram
- 2 x Hauppauge Nova-T500-MCE dual DVB-T tuners
- Separate HDD for recording which is not part of drive pool

Clients :
- WinXP SP3 with all updates
- Latest version of Sage client
- ATI HD3450 PCIe video with Cat 8.6
- 1 Gig DDR400 ram
- AMD A64 3200+
- Latest Java installation ( same as server )
- PowerDVD 8 for MPEG2
- CoreAVC for h264
- AC3Filter for audio decoding
- Default Directsound audio renderer

Any ideas ???

[taylormadearmy]

Originally Posted by vvulture

- Latest Sage WHS addin
- Latest Java installation

It helps if you say which version - is this the latest release or latest beta version? The latest betas (I'm currently on 6.4.6) helped me with lack of audio on some channels (specifically the channel 4 channels in the UK).

Details of other work arounds for this issue available here if it is the same as yours issue:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26229

Originally Posted by vvulture

- 2 x Hauppauge Nova-T500-MCE dual DVB-T tuners

Some people inlcuding myself have has issues getthing these to work with WHS. Some have managed to get them to work - I gave up for now and am using Nova-T USB sticks. Here is a post with some suggestions as to how to get the Nova-T 500 to work:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...&highlight=whs

If you still have trouble it may be worth trying an alternative tuner just in case it is the tuner causing the issue.

Good luck and keep us posted!
T

[vvulture]

Originally Posted by taylormadearmy

It helps if you say which version - is this the latest release or latest beta version? The latest betas (I'm currently on 6.4.6) helped me with lack of audio on some channels (specifically the channel 4 channels in the UK).

Details of other work arounds for this issue available here if it is the same as yours issue:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26229

Sorry about that.
I am using Sage 6.3.10 with SageMC 6.3.7a

Originally Posted by taylormadearmy

Some people inlcuding myself have has issues getthing these to work with WHS. Some have managed to get them to work - I gave up for now and am using Nova-T USB sticks. Here is a post with some suggestions as to how to get the Nova-T 500 to work:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...&highlight=whs

If you still have trouble it may be worth trying an alternative tuner just in case it is the tuner causing the issue.

Good luck and keep us posted!
T

I don't think it's a tuner issue. As mentioned in my first post, they work fine in Media Portal. The only time they struggle is during very bad weather in which case it is still very minimal.

Having read the link you provided regarding the Nova-T500 tuners, i did have problems at first with random blue screens but i fixed that by replacing " usbehci.sys " in windows ---> system32 ---> drivers with another version.
If you want to try it, let me know and i can send you the file. solved all my tuner issues.


cheers.

[taylormadearmy]

Originally Posted by vvulture

Sorry about that.
I am using Sage 6.3.10 with SageMC 6.3.7a

Definitely worth giving 6.4.6 a go then - quite a few issues have been fixed. Also may be worth looking at your Java heap size as per here - this helped me too:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23681

Originally Posted by vvulture

I don't think it's a tuner issue. As mentioned in my first post, they work fine in Media Portal. The only time they struggle is during very bad weather in which case it is still very minimal.

Fair enough - though I had the 500 working fine too with VMC. May still be worth a try if you did have another tuner lying around.

Otherwise it is defintely worth droping a message to support with your logs - they are great at responding to issues.

Thanks for the update for the 500 drivers - will give it a go when you have it working 100%

Cheers
T

[DOS64K]

Recommend you remove SageMC until you get your tuner issue resolved. Agree also with trying another tuner. I've seen odd driver behavior with WHS as it is a custom version of Server 2003.

Best of luck.

[vvulture]

Originally Posted by DOS64K

Recommend you remove SageMC until you get your tuner issue resolved. Agree also with trying another tuner. I've seen odd driver behavior with WHS as it is a custom version of Server 2003.

Best of luck.

My tuners work fine. They work without issue 99.99999% of the time in Media Portal.

[vvulture]

**** UPDATE ****

Ok. Using the latest RC 6.4.6 now..
Still having issues. Channels seem to work better ( no chopping etc.. ) but there is still sound missing on 5 channels.

Also, playing back MKV files is a headache. Some play OK whilst others have no video ( black screen ) but audio is ok.

I'm going to start another thread about my gripes with Sage.

thanks for the help to the ones that bothered trying. cheers

[vvulture]

I bought Sage well over 12 months ago due to the great features it offers, but back then i had nothing but problems and ditched it in favour of Media Portal which is free and worked better....

12 months on and nothing has changed except for my hardware which has all been updated over time. Sage still has serious issues..

I have been using Media Portal since my initial effort with Sage, but i figured that now ( 12 months later ) Sage surely must be getting better.. yeah right..

My issues with Sage are :
- Several channels have no sound ( work fine with MP )
- HD channels not smooth and are choppy ( work fine with MP )
- Some .mkv files work whilst others don't ( all work fine in MP )
- Subtitles in .mkv files do not work. (works in MP and can be toggled on and off)
- Setting up of decoders and so on should not be as hard as it is. One should not be expected to constantly delv into the properties file to get things working. Should all be done from within Sage UI. For example, PowerDVD 8 is a pain to setup as per this thread : http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...light=powerdvd . With MP, you justt select it from within MP UI. No properties file to edit.. what a joke.
- Grap edit this and graph edit that... what a drag..

...bottom line, too hard and tedious to setup unless you have a good knowledge of these properties files. Some of you may have a shitload of time on your hands, but for the rest of us with jobs and families it is not an option.

On the other hand, Sage offers some great features that MP does not have which is why i paid for Sage, but what good is it if Sage is close to useless ??

I feel that i have the right to have a bitch session simply because my money has gone to waste, whilst MP which is open source and FREE has been much more reliable, easier to setup and much more flexible..

Again, i must stress that all my hardware works flawlessly in MP so please do not blame my hardware and or drivers... i KNOW they are working ok.

In a nutshell, i am pissed off that something that is FREE has been more reliable and stable than a costly solution called Sage...

* merged *

[MeInMaui]

You know, Sage is in a beta cycle right now.

Did you submit bug reports for these issues? Now is the perfect time to get them fixed, if they are indeed bugs. You would be helping yourself as well as helping to make SageTV a better product.

Just a thought.

Aloha,
Mike

[vvulture]

Originally Posted by MeInMaui

You know, Sage is in a beta cycle right now.

Where on this page is it mentioned ? http://store.sagetv.com/Merchant2/me...tegory_Code=SS
If thats the case, it's been in Beta FAR too long... MP development is moving much faster and costs nothing ! Let's be real here...

Originally Posted by MeInMaui

Did you submit bug reports for these issues? Now is the perfect time to get them fixed, if they are indeed bugs. You would be helping yourself as well as helping to make SageTV a better product.

Just a thought.

Aloha,
Mike

Like i said in my post which has been merged for some reason, not all of us have lots of time to debug this, or submit logs etc.. It's ridiculous !!
Sage is so friggin hard and confusing to setup, not to mention extremely time consuming... you need to quit your job in order to set it up properly with all the debugging and figuring out that is required...


BTW.. Mike, i remember you from my last experience with Sage and you were extremely helpful. Thank you for trying to help.

[matt91]

Originally Posted by vvulture

Where on this page is it mentioned ? http://store.sagetv.com/Merchant2/me...tegory_Code=SS
If thats the case, it's been in Beta FAR too long... MP development is moving much faster and costs nothing ! Let's be real here...

What I think Mike is trying to say is that Sage is rolling out new versions, so you should try them to see if they address any of your problems. The only way for Sage to know that you aren't satisfied is if you report it. It doesn't take hours to report either -- usually just a minute or two.

[autoboy]

- HD channels not smooth and are choppy ( work fine with MP )

Make sure you have full screen exclusive mode enabled. It requires a restart of sage to work properly. Do not use the windows expand window button, use the full screen command in SageTV to expand it to full screen exclusive.

[vvulture]

Originally Posted by autoboy

Make sure you have full screen exclusive mode enabled. It requires a restart of sage to work properly. Do not use the windows expand window button, use the full screen command in SageTV to expand it to full screen exclusive.

Thanks Autoboy,
I have tried with and without exclusive mode but i will admit that i did not restart Sage after changing. I will try and see.