SageDCT install problems

[ckewinjones]

I have a brand new Ceton InfiniTV4 tuner card and I am trying to install SageDCT so that I can use it with SageTV. So far without success.

The Comcast tech was here yesterday morning to install and provision the CableCard, and everything went smoothly. He installed an amplifier, reconfigured the network topology a bit, and provisioned the card. Then we fired up Windows Media Center, configured it for the InfiniTV4, and verified that we could tune and view a couple of cable channels. Everything looked good.

Here is what I did to install SageDCT:

• Download and run the SageDCT installer.
• Run the SageDCTConfig utility
• Run Scan on the Discover tab (all four tuners show up)
• Run Generate Encoder on the Discover tab
• Copy generated text into the Sage.properties file
• Restart the system

After all of this, SageTV appears to have no knowledge of the InfiniTV tuners. They don't show up on the "Add New Source" list in the configuration wizard, and I don't know how else to look for them.

Here is my system information:

• OS: Windows 7 v6.1
• SageTV: v7.0.23.246
• InfiniTV4 Hardware Version: 4884
• InfiniTV4 Driver Version: 1.0.2.0
• InfiniTV4 Firmware Version: 1.0.3.2

Is there something missing in the procedure I followed to install SageDCT?

Thanks,

Chris Jones

[ckewinjones]

Update to the above:

Using the commands on the Test tab of SageDCTConfig I was able to record a short segment of video from the InfiniTV4, which I was then able to import into SageTV and view. This confirms to me that the Ceton card itself is working fine (and SageDCT is able to control it). I just don't know how to inform SageTV that the tuners are available.

[gplasky]

Check to make sure you Ceton tuner doesn't show up in this line in the Sage.properties file.

mmc/ignore_encoders=

If they do then stop the sage service, remove the Ceton from that line, save the file and then start up sage again and check.

Gerry

[zoso]

Just to make sure, you did stop SageTV/SageTV Service before adding the lines to the properties file?

When I added the lines and started SageTV the tuners were there (no need to even add new source, just configure the tuners that were already showing.)

[ckewinjones]

Chalk this one up to "user error." I thought I had properly updated the sage.properties file, but I must have saved the updated properties file in the wrong directory, over-written it with a backup file, or something; but in any case the sage.properties file did NOT have the Ceton-related lines in it.

Once I corrected this error, the four tuners show up in the source setup list, and I have been able to use the Ceton card succesfully.

Thanks for the suggestions, but in this case the answer is, be careful and make sure you're really doing what you think you are doing.

[aweber1nj]

Can you share any results (I know it's early), but my "cable guy" gets here tomorrow, and I'm wondering whether to go Sage or WMC.

I think I like the feature-set of Sage better, and have no problem installing the extra s/w and settings, but I'm looking for the most foolproof setup possible for optimal "Wife Acceptance Value".

I think this service basically pipes the Ceton as a loopback network device, and that's fine, as long as its performance is good.

Can you comment on any issues you've had since getting it working? Channel change speed? Pic quality? Etc?

Anything would help!

BTW: Did you do anything to "unconfigure" WMC after testing with the cable guy? (I will probably be following exactly in your footsteps and appreciate the info!)

Thanks in advance,
AJ

[ckewinjones]

I don't think I can help you much with respect to SageTV versus Windows Media Center. I'm a Sage guy all the way (though still a beginner), and when I fired up WMC during the CableCard install, it was almost the only time I had ever run WMC.

I haven't really stressed the Ceton card so far. I've done a couple of test recordings, and used the Ceton to watch live TV while my HD-PVR was recording something else off of the set-top box. So far everything is working as advertised. Channel changes are very snappy -- noticeably faster than the HD-PVR blaster. Picture quality is great.

I don't know what makes for Wife Acceptance Value in your household, but my wife is absolutely thrilled with SageTV (we've been running it since Christmas). She's a classic movie fan, and with Sage she has been able to amass over a terabyte of classic films. (I actually don't care much about watching movies and TV; it's the tinkering with the gadgets that I like.)

No, I didn't "un-configure" WMC after the install -- I just shut it down because I have no need of it. SageTV / SageDCT handles everything.

Good luck with your CableCard install

[aweber1nj]

Thanks very much for your reply.

Appreciate it.

Continued good luck!

[aweber1nj]

FWIW: Got this working with identical steps with 7.1.5 beta.

Looks great!

[cmwm]

I have followed all of the instructions as listed to install my ceton card with sagedct. When I transferred the encoder files to sagetv.properties the tuners showed up correctly and I configured them for my cable company and channels. I tried to tune in the channels that I should get and it says I have no tuner cards that can tune that channel.

I wanted to make sure my cablecard was working and I was able to set up wmc and get all of my channels so it is working.

I tried a channel scan but it scanned really quickly and did not find any of the channels.

Anyone know what I might have missed?

John

System is an AMD phenom II x6
16G RAM
5 - 2 Terabyte WD Black 6g/s HD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit

[cmwm]

the channel scan, when redone, disables all of the known channels and creates a list of channels marked ok, ok1, ok2, etc.

Please help.

Thanks,
John

[aweber1nj]

Then go back to the configure video sources where it lists all 4 of your tuners, select the first one and click on the EPG line so you can configure/reconfigure your cable co information for the first tuner. Make sure you go all the way through that "wizard" and select the proper channel lineup.

Then go to each of the remaining 3 tuners and do the same thing, but you will be allowed to "copy an existing", so you don't have to go through the entire wizard again, just select the one you configured.

Then go into the first (or any, I think) tuner and re-run your channel scan.

See if that helps. According to your first post, it sounds like you had already done it, but that's what I found with the "OK" channels helped me. Worth a try.

HTH,
-AJ