Comcast DRM weirdness?

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Comcast DRM weirdness?

Someone submitted this anonymously yesterday but I hadn't heard anyone else report the problem. GadgetMadness posted it though -- it seems someone is claiming their copy of 24 in HD format could not be paused or fast forwarded. That sounds far-fetched and something that would garner lots of press if it were true, but I don't have a new motorola dual tuner to test this out. Anyone else find this happen to them? It sounds dubious and I would have expected to hear complaints about it immediately and from many sources if it were really happening.

by Matt Haughey February 1, 2005 in News

Comments

This is also being reported here:

http://www.ehomeupgrade.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=575

Posted by: Chris Pederick at Feb 1, 2005 11:11:57 AM

Not true. Was watching it last night at a friend's on the newly added Comcast FOX-HD in the San Francisco area. We were able to pause it with the dual-tuner HD Comcast DVR....

Posted by: Lorenzo Thione at Feb 1, 2005 11:14:57 AM

No problem pausing or fast-forwarding in the Philly, PA area with the Comcast 2-HD tuner DVR.

Posted by: Andrew at Feb 1, 2005 11:29:48 AM

I have the same box, and I also could not ff 24. I posted about this before. Called the cable company this morning and they said they needed to send a signal to my box. I'll see if it works when I get home.

Really, watching 24 w/o ff last night drove me insane. I think it's a box issue, not something special with that episode of 24 (though, this is the second time I've had that problem with 24).

Posted by: Amb34 at Feb 1, 2005 11:30:50 AM

I have been running into some problems with the Comcast DVR: Freezing, Partially unresponsive when recording/playing HDTV (Seems not to show Guide, switch... and artificially terminates programs), but does pause and FF. etc.

There is an article in yesterday's SJM, "Bigger glitch with Comcast's DVR service"

. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/columnists/10777517.htm

that does discuss some of the problems that were reported to Mike Langberg Note: I have been running with the Configuration info indicating: SW = 71.44-1203, I assume this will change after the upgrade.

The discussion groups that I have found relative to this hardware are listed on my page:

. http://www.wematter.com/comcast-dvr (Except in Washington we have the Iguide system)

Posted by: Mike Liveright at Feb 1, 2005 11:44:23 AM

I have this problem from time to time too, on various shows. I don't think it's DRM, just buggy software.
It also freezes, slows down, won't show the menus,...

Posted by: Julien Couvreur at Feb 1, 2005 12:44:04 PM

Maybe the original poster should replace the batteries in their remote.

Posted by: Kon at Feb 1, 2005 12:45:31 PM

There are definitely issues with the two-tuner box. I am now on my second one, as the first worked perfectly except that it didn't display VOD at all. When the replacement box was brought out, the tech said that there was a "bad batch" of boxes. Every once in a while, mine will do something weird. I had no problems with 24 last night.

Posted by: Geoff Brown at Feb 1, 2005 1:38:33 PM

No problem pausing or fast forwarding 24 last night on my 6412 here in the southern New Hampshire area.

It will occasionally not respond to IR commands, but it usually recovers within a few seconds.

Posted by: Paul at Feb 1, 2005 1:59:25 PM

Im also in SF Bay area with a DCT 6412 Dual Tuner PVR. No problems whatsover with 24. I played the program half hour after the recording started, FF commercials etc. Its just a rumor.

As for box freezes, it was significant at first prolly hourly, but they seemed to happen less frequently maybe weekly after a "break in" period of 3-4 days. According to AVS Forum posts, posters refer to it as rebooting after random # of key presses. Some attribute to always leaving the box ON (which I always do). In any case I have good ole TiVo S2 as backup. Overall Im very happy with the DCT 6412 and overlook bugs, strange UI for the fantastic HD picture quality.

AlexC

Posted by: AlexC at Feb 1, 2005 2:24:39 PM

my 6412 also is buggy as hell. freezes, responds slowly, ignores commands, I hate it. plus it's loud. why on earth did they have to give it such a cheap hdd and a noisy fan when tivo manages to be silent?

Posted by: c at Feb 1, 2005 3:23:24 PM

I had this prob with comcast chicago as well. It doesn't seem like a hardware problem. when you press any of the dvr functions on your remote you got an O with a / through it (ie: feature not available).

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 1, 2005 4:05:44 PM

i am sorry to ask this here, but i am not sure where else to look:

is it possible to record multiple programs at a time with a pvr? if so, which ones?

Posted by: creamy at Feb 1, 2005 5:26:04 PM

I had another weird problem recording 24: For two weeks in a row - the only two weeks in which I have had the 6412 installed - the recording cut out around the 36 minute mark. It just stopped, without completing the recording. About the same spot, two weeks in a row. I haven't seen that happen with any other shows so far. Weird. And incredibly irritating. (I'm in Palo Alto, BTW.)

Posted by: Eric at Feb 1, 2005 5:59:38 PM

Yes, Creamy - you can record 2 shows at once and watch a third already recorded show as two are recording. Which ones? Any of them. Even 2 HD shows.

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 1, 2005 6:41:31 PM

I'm getting the same issue in Chicago too. I can't pause, fast forward or rewind on my Comcast dual tuner HD box for last night's episode of 24. This is very aggravating and I will be giving Comcast a call first thing tomorrow.

Posted by: Andy at Feb 1, 2005 8:07:00 PM

As embarassing as it is to admit, I recorded American Idol tonight from Fox HD in the Chicago area and was unable to ff, rew, pause.

I also recorded House from Fox HD and the recording did not come in in widescreen, but I was able to rew, ff, pause.

I don't get it! I hope someone that actually gets a good answer from Comcast follows-up with a post. I have found the reps clueless - not that I really blame them.

Posted by: Bill at Feb 1, 2005 8:48:22 PM

Redwood City, CA - Crashed at around 9:30, 3 weeks in a row. Last night was my final test, to make sure I wasn't crazy. Calling Comcast now.

Posted by: JT at Feb 1, 2005 11:32:46 PM

Addendum/Clarification:

9:30pm on Monday, 3 weeks in a row. Must be freezing when the tvguide data is being sent? I usually record 24 and Las Vegas in those slots. Last night, Las Vegas was a repeat, so I was only taping 24. Still crashed.

Posted by: JT at Feb 1, 2005 11:35:00 PM

thanks for the off-topic answer, eric.

Posted by: creamy at Feb 2, 2005 5:15:58 AM

I live in chicago and too have the 6412 and had no dvr control over American Idol and House was wide screen for about 2 minutes. I also have the issues with the dvr not responding to the remote control until after a few seconds delay.

Posted by: Brian Pelecky at Feb 2, 2005 5:18:31 AM

Brian, have you contacted comcast? I'd be interested to know what they say. I'm guessing since multiple people have this problem it's not hardware related?

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 2, 2005 5:33:33 AM

My local cable company said basically, "We have no idea what's wrong." She asked, is it that show, 24? I said yes. She said they have had numerous reports of problems, and even one of the big shots at the local company (Buckeye Cable in Toledo, Ohio) complained, so tech is working hard on figuring out.

Then she says, "Maybe Fox is doing something".

Great, so either the box sucks or Fox is screwing with us. Damn I want a TiVo HD box!

Posted by: amb34 at Feb 2, 2005 6:34:38 AM

That can't be true as it seems to be working fine for my friend. It must be the person and not the product which is so often the case. Good post though!

Posted by: Vikash Patel at Feb 2, 2005 8:06:03 AM

It is not the person. I got the same line from comcast. They first asked if I was pushing the right buttons than they tried to say it was the remote. The bad remote worked fine on all the other show! They are going to call me back so they say with a better answer today. I will post there responce.

Posted by: Brian Pelecky at Feb 2, 2005 8:45:55 AM

No problems with 24 here in NH, though we FF'd while watching. We've been abusing the box fairly well and I'd like to find a beta test or bug report forum from Motorolla or Comcast or whomever handles the software. I don't think they tested this too rigorously.

As a developer I appreciate how hard things can be to debug, but the machine has some serious issues, probably exacerbated by the fact we keep it about 80% full. It's the constant hitches in moving around the menus or when trying to delete things that kill me. That and the fact you can't turn it on if it's recording: it's muted at the box level and the only way to unmute it is to cycle the power, thus ending your recording. We also went through a strech where there was no picture at power up: you had to go into the DVR (menus still worked), start a show and then exit and everything's fine.

Overall I love the thing, but it's definitely rev 0.9 of something.

Posted by: Tom Clancy at Feb 2, 2005 1:57:51 PM

I've had a 6412 for about 3 months. Never experienced any major problems. None at all.

Also haven't had any issues on ff for American Idol or 24.

p.s. Brian- There is a mute button on some remotes and if yours doesn't have it, just program it in. Lots of instructions on how to do that on AVS forums. No need to turn it on or off.

Posted by: Nick at Feb 2, 2005 2:39:05 PM

It is not the user! When I try to FF, REW, Pause I get the time bar on the screen and an O with a / through it! The box is responsive to the fact that I'm hitting FF, REW, or PAUSE and it won't let me do it!

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 2, 2005 3:29:47 PM

Here in Oswego, IL I had the same problem with this weeks 24. I could not FF Rew., or pause. I get the O with a / through it also. FF, Rev., and pause works for all other reconded shows.

Posted by: Phil at Feb 2, 2005 3:52:55 PM

I have a 6412 in san francisco and keep getting weird glitches with freezing, no menus, terminated recordings. I figure it was my box, but are people thinking it could be the software? and i second the person who commented that the thing is waaay noisy!

Posted by: geoff at Feb 2, 2005 5:43:36 PM

The below info was posted on another site:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=5111797#post5111797

What do you guys think? Interesting that this "bug" happened to occur on FOX's 2 largest revenue generators.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>I posted about my DVR problem with "24" in another thread, but I thought I would take a moment to add to the collective knowledge here.

Just a quick refresh: I recorded "24" on Monday and when I watched it and attempted to FF, was presented with a circle-with-a-line-through-it icon telling me, "You can't do that."

I called Comcast yesterday and had my concerns escalated from the initial ("There was something wrong with the signal") phone-center person to a ("I'll look into it and call you back") supervisor.

Today, I received a call from a different guy who was very knowledgeable about the technical issues faced with the DVR's and their recordings. In short, he admitted to me that this was a bug in the TV-Guide software which incorrectly marked this episode of "24" to disallow certain functionality. (The same thing apparently happened with "American Idol" last night, but I was not aware of that until he told me about it.) He told me that it would be fixed in an upcoming version of the software and, based on the large number of bugs that have been discovered, this summer's scheduled release of the next version may get changed.

Bottom line: Yes, the DVR features can be selectively disabled as a feature of the IGuide. No, this was not intentional by any party involved in the presentation of "24" on Monday.

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 2, 2005 6:45:16 PM

I had something similar happen, but it was sporadic. When I was playing back 24, sometimes I'd get the slashed-circle "can't do that" on a 30-sec skip or a reverse skip, but most of the time it did what it was supposed to. ONLY on 24, though -- other recordings made that day didn't have the issue.

It happened about 10% of the time, so I just chalked it up as a bug and ignored it, until seeing the similar reports today.

Posted by: Dennis at Feb 3, 2005 8:32:47 AM

Geoff,

Thanks for that update. One word: Bastards.

You know that if they realize they can do this, the networks will do this.

And to the fool above, the "It must be the user..."

Please give the kind of people that read and comment on a Blog like this some credit. We are not a room of someone's grandmothers, for crying out loud.

I think that if you actually got yourself the new comcast box, found a PVR Blog, and figured out how to comment on it, you are quite able to do some basic troubleshooting to the point that a problem on your DVR is not user error.

The sum? No, my clock is not blinking on my VCR, cause I got rid of the damn thing two years ago when I bought my first TiVo.

Anyway, let's hope TiVo keeps on kicking so we don't have to depend on cable to do this. Now, as soon as my mac mini gets here in a few weeks, we will see if I can tinker around and dvr HD onto it.

Assuming I can turn it on, right?

Posted by: amb34 at Feb 4, 2005 6:22:29 AM

I thought I was having a problem pausing a show and thought about this post. Then I noticed that the TV light on the remote was blinking when I was pressing the button. I press the cable button and everything was fine.

I'm not sure how the remote keys are programmed and I got pretty far (selected the show) with the remote set to TV.

Posted by: Eric at Feb 4, 2005 6:32:21 AM

Software glitch my ass. The only glitch is that this feature acted up prematurely...
If TiVo needs a seem to win back the masses, this is a definite possibility.
When (not if), the cable providers light this limited functionality (ff, rw, etc) candle, and start locking things down like crazy via broadcast flag, TiVo has got to step up and fight the fight with whoever it needs to go to court with.
Its one thing to enable illegal file sharing, and another thing to enable fair use.

Posted by: New York at Feb 4, 2005 1:32:03 PM

Yes, New York, but when it starts happening at the Cable Operator/Network level, TiVo will be blocked as well.

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 4, 2005 3:32:45 PM

I agree - theyll be blocked initially as well, but technologically theres always a loophole. Im just arguing that they should use that as an opportunity to fight technologically / legally on behalf of the consumer's right to fair use.

Posted by: New York at Feb 4, 2005 4:44:14 PM

Just a comment about the 6214 mute problem. There are two solutions: 1. Just don't turn the DVR off. As long as it does not have to turn itself on to record a program, there is no box mute problem. 2. Program your remote to unmute the box volume. I am going to assume that you have the silver "On Demand" remote. The following steps will unlock the volume control from TV only to allow volume control on the cable box. Be warned though, if you are in cable mode it will control the box volume and not the TV. You will have to press the TV button to put it in TV mode. Here is the procedure: 1. Press CABLE. 2. Press and hold SETUP until the CABLE key blinks twice. 3. Enter 9-9-3 and then press VOL-. The CABLE key will blink four times confirming volume unlock.

This information is in the user guide for the remote which can be picked up at your local customer service center.
I am an installer for Comcast in the Seacoast NH area. We aren't all idiots :)

Posted by: Erin at Feb 4, 2005 7:52:12 PM

Erin - It's really too bad that there aren't more installers as educated about the products as you are. Comcast really needs to train its reps and installers more on newer tech. so that they are at least as knowledgable as the techies using the product.

Posted by: Bryan at Feb 4, 2005 8:41:21 PM

Just to add to this thread.
This also happen in Chicago when watching the bulls game from the Comcast Sports Network in HD on the INHD channel.
There is a workaround (you heard it first here :)). Just record the show before and pad it by the number of hours you need for the next show.
That's a nasty one but it works :)
I suspect higher ups at Comcast are well aware of the feature. Let's not forgte that News Corp owns TVGuide. News Cord owns FOX and news corp owns DirectTV ... Conflict of interest anybody.
Also tomorrow is superbowl Sunday on fox. If they screw up with this, they are going to have the worst PR nightmare ever (worse than the virtual untold bandwidth cap of a year ago)...

Posted by: Joseph at Feb 5, 2005 6:10:28 AM

even more weirdness....

last night after the superbowl, I was trying to record the new simpsons and american dad, and the DVR kept freezing, then turning off in the middle of recordings, and then rebooting, and the starting the recording again.. anyone else have this issue? lasst night? ever?

Posted by: geoff at Feb 7, 2005 12:30:59 PM

I had this problem with the superbowl - no FF or REW and I couldn't record the program (via the red button or from the guide) but pause and instant replay (e.g. jump back 15 seconds) worked. I have Comcast in central NJ with the Moto dual tuner HD box. Waited for an ad then powered off and on and full functionality was restored.

This is my 2nd box, had lots of trouble with no video/no sound conditions, failed recordings, etc. Need to get it swapped out.

Posted by: Russbag at Feb 11, 2005 1:21:51 PM

Hello,

I live in Central Valley, Fresno and my box mutes when recording. Specifically it puts the word MUTe at the top of the screen and mutes all channels. The customer service people are useless... anyone else have this issue and resolved it?

Posted by: NV at Feb 16, 2005 5:16:32 PM

Here in Philadelphia I started having a problem with the FF function a month ago with my single tuner Comcast DVR-on certain shows, if I hit FF it would go forward for a bit and then display the "save or delete this recording" as if it was at the end but only into a few minutes of the show. If I didn't use the FF it would play out normally. I called Comcast and they gave me a new dual tuner DVR and at first it was fine now it's doing it as well. Comcast support here in philly says they have no idea why this is happening (I have a friend here with the same problem.) so I thought I would throw this out there. Another issue it's having now is sometimes it will record only the first 8 or 9 minutes of a scheduled show. This is totally aggravating! Has anyone else had this issue and has Comcast been able to resolve it?

Posted by: Deninphilly at Feb 19, 2005 8:42:46 AM

I'd like to thank "New York" for explaining how to resolve the mute button issue. It was very helpful. I will paste what he had said:

"Just a comment about the 6214 mute problem. There are two solutions: 1. Just don't turn the DVR off. As long as it does not have to turn itself on to record a program, there is no box mute problem. 2. Program your remote to unmute the box volume. I am going to assume that you have the silver "On Demand" remote. The following steps will unlock the volume control from TV only to allow volume control on the cable box. Be warned though, if you are in cable mode it will control the box volume and not the TV. You will have to press the TV button to put it in TV mode. Here is the procedure: 1. Press CABLE. 2. Press and hold SETUP until the CABLE key blinks twice. 3. Enter 9-9-3 and then press VOL-. The CABLE key will blink four times confirming volume unlock."

Posted by: Jon at Feb 23, 2005 4:05:31 PM

Oops, it was Erin who explained it - not New York.

Posted by: Jon at Feb 23, 2005 4:06:51 PM

I'm in Dallas, GA and am having the freezing problem as well. Customer service, using all of its wisdom, told me that it is a memory problem that I need to make sure I delete programs when I am done with them. I have had it for 5 days. It is at 20%. Anyone else in the Atlanta area having the freezing prob?

Also, I am consistantly having 1 out of 4 programs record 49 mins instead of 60. It says it is going to record the entire program and when I look it up later on my DVR it says 1:00. Anyone have any suggestions?

Last but not least-- the noise is annoying!!!

Posted by: Nik at Feb 26, 2005 10:52:39 AM

I was unable to get 3/7 episode of 24. Can I get someone to burn me a copy? I'll gladly pay for the service. Thanks.

Posted by: David Hollond at Mar 8, 2005 9:02:47 PM

Does anyone know how to programm the vol +- buttons on the silter on-demand remote to something other than the dvr or the tv set? Like a lot of people, I've got the dvr box feeding audio directly into the HT amp and am getting a bit tired of grabbing two remotes every time I want to watch the cable.......

Posted by: syko at Mar 18, 2005 6:57:57 PM

I got a DCT6412 last week as an alternative to shelling out $1000 for the DirecTV HDTV DVR. It has been quite buggy, with sound dropping out, live picture refusing to come up until I play something recorded on the DVR, the "mute" problem, the box spontaneously turning off and losing all its listings, etc. The last straw was this Monday (March 28th) when 10 minutes of the latest eppisode of Fox's 24 just disappeared. The recording just jumps from minute 42 to minute 52. I was so mad. The lesson I have learned is that a DVR is not a TIVO. I'm going back to my DirecTV TIVO. I'll miss the HDTV, but the frustration of missing part of a show and having the sound drop out periodically is just not worth it. Thank goodness that the installer didn't have the paperwork to take my TIVO box. The deal Comcast offered was to reduce my bills by about $400 for a year if I gave up my DirecTV box. Taking away people's equipment must be the only way to get people to stick with the buggy software Comcast is currently deploying. No wonder Comcast signed the deal with TIVO to develop software for the DCT6412! Too bad it won't come out for another year.

Posted by: Geno at Mar 30, 2005 8:23:40 AM

For anyone interested... to return the volume buttons back to their normal state (where when you are in Cable mode the volume controls control the TV, and not the box)...

1. Press TV once. Then, press and hold Setup until the TV key blinks twice, then release Setup.

2. Enter 9-9-3 and then press TV once. The mode key will blink twice confirming global lock.

3. Now, when you press VOL+, VOL-, or Mute, the volume of the TV will be controlled regardless of the mode you have selected.

Posted by: neanro at Apr 5, 2005 6:51:13 PM

I have the 6412 and am in the Chicago suburbs. I have not had any problems with FF for 24, but have another problem. When I first got the box, on 2 occaisions it only recorded part of the shows I'd selected - 2 shows being recorded at the same time, both stopped at exactly the same point. On one occasion at 1 minute, on the other at 36 minutes. It has not happened again since, BUT, the 2 times I've tried to record Veronica Mars (UPN), it shows it as all 60 minutes recorded, but when you try to play it, it goes right to the "delete/don't delete this recording pop-up window". It happened with Will and Grace once too - all were first run episodes.

I have given up calling Comcast for any help. Only once did I get someone on the phone who knew anything (she told me how to reprogram the remote so that I could "unmute" during recording). Every other time I've called, the only suggestion they have is to replace the box, which means losing everything I've already recorded. And, I cannot figure out how to move anything from the DVR to a VHS tape as there is not cable out port (although) Comcast's instruction booklet says there is ...

Has anyone else seen the problem I've described with Veronica Mars with either that show or any other?

Posted by: Marianne M at Apr 6, 2005 2:21:28 AM

Does anybody have a loud buzzing noise when they change channels using either digital audio out. No problems with reciever inputs.

Posted by: bill allison at Apr 7, 2005 10:24:28 PM

Had my dual tunter DVR about 4 weeks. Half the time it recorded only 35 minutes or so of a show. The tech said to use manual recording. Tonight I tried recording from the guide to tape Andromeda at 7 and Enterprose at 8 on sci-fi and upn respectivly. Got Enterprise but no Andromeda.
It does not matter if it is a cool box. It is unusable, as it does not do what you expect. Also many mornings, I will find my screen frozen until I change the channels. Also sometimes the screen will freeze while I am watching it and it never unfreezes until I change the channel adn then go back to the original channel.

Posted by: Craig Kaufman at Apr 8, 2005 8:37:46 PM

I appreciate the assistance from the Comcast Tech in Seacoast NH r/e muting. This solved out weird issue of oddly certain show/times (Sunday 9 PM - Desperate Housewives every time) coming in muted. Everything was muted - all channels. When at other times all was fine. Now that I have done the fix, the volume command when set to CABLE is now the volume on the cable box.. so I want to reverse it so that CABLE and TV point to the same volume control (the TV). Any thoughts?

Posted by: Rothnh at Apr 11, 2005 12:27:35 PM

I have problems with my Comcast DVR freezing and not responding to remote commands. I also had a problem recording 24. Since that's one of the few shows I watch, it was probably the box and not the show.

Posted by: Curt at Apr 12, 2005 9:45:17 PM

Hi,
I just got my DVR (Motorola 6412) from Comcast and the problem I have is when I watch a recording that I scheduled, there is no sound and I cannot fast forward, rewind, or pause. I do not have this problem if I just press record while I'm watching something. Any ideas? Thanks,

Posted by: Joe at Jul 5, 2005 3:27:57 PM

I read how to change the remote to control the tv volume no matter what mode your in but I want to know how to change the remote so that I can control the volume of my dvr when in the cable mode and control the tv volume when in the tv mode. Anybody have that solution? Thanks

Posted by: Scott at Jul 28, 2005 10:02:57 PM

I found the info reguarding changing the volume lock in the user guide. When all else fails read the directions.

Posted by: scott at Jul 28, 2005 10:40:00 PM

Hello
I have a MOTOROLA 6412, and I was able to install the CAPDVHS software and driver working OK. But I am unable to to have any software recognize my device. My goal is to connect my computer to the DVR with firewire and backup some shows to DVD...
Is anyone aware of any solutions to my problem? Thanks so much
Raff

Posted by: raff at Aug 14, 2005 2:27:49 PM

Hello
I have a MOTOROLA 6412, and I was able to install the CAPDVHS software and driver working OK. But I am unable to have any software recognize my device. My goal is to connect my computer to the DVR with firewire and backup some shows to DVD...
Is anyone aware of any solutions to my problem? Thanks so much
Raff

Posted by: raff at Aug 14, 2005 2:28:41 PM

Is it possible to retrieve a recording after deleting it? I was fighting the FF issue on my 2nd 6412 and accidentially deleted a program I hadn't watched.

Posted by: LD in Indy at Oct 27, 2005 9:08:16 AM

The installer from New York....

YOU FRIGGIN ROCK DUDE! (I've been ready to throw this thing out the window numerous times for the mute issue on the remote! It was my only complaint with the box!

THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: Bryan at Jan 6, 2006 4:35:28 PM

I just got a new comcast dvr and mine dosn't work. half the time it wont respond to any commands from the remote then it will start working again. one thing it has never done is work for the dvr part you can not pause ff rw or record you can not go to the my dvr menu. so far i hate this box

Posted by: Scot Moore at Jan 15, 2006 1:19:33 PM

ive had the DVR box since mid summer and no problems till now. Went to watch a show and it had delete come up and you press it and this error comes up service prom has been dect. call customer service at(a number that has been disconnected) code NH
It wont let me delete it and since then half my shows are not being recorded! Its just a stuck screen and the delete? like it should be at the end Has this happened to anyone else?

Posted by: molly at Jan 27, 2006 1:25:33 PM

I have read through this blog, and not found resolution to the original post. Some have indicated that a red circle with a slash in it comes up. That's not what I am seeing, so perhaps there is more than one way to lose FF and RW. My problem is that FF and RW work, but so chopily and slowly that it is faster to just watch the commercials than to FF through them. I have a DCT6412 III from Comcast. I did install the capDVHS software to capture via firewire, and have had problems with FF and RW ever since. Has anyone else found this to be a cause / effect relationship, and if so, is there a fix to the problem? The DVR worked fine before this (but I've only had it for 2 months...) I can FF and RW any On Demand shows, just not shows that I record to the DVR.

Posted by: computerguy at Feb 12, 2006 12:01:08 AM

Using Cablevision, Panasonic DVR with TV Guide Feature, I set AI to record both shows this week (2/14 and 2/15), using TV guide single button record feature. Set additional 1 minute beginning and end, both days. Neither recorded AI, but did record the additional minute at the end. Tested other shows (Olympics on MSNBC, Food Channel) same way and they recorded with no problem.

The second time I recorded, the properties of the minute or so that was recorded showed the recording date as 2/16 when it was in fact recorded on 2/15–which is what DVR had as the date. I didn’t notice the first time.

Posted by: Joe at Feb 17, 2006 11:53:47 AM

as i just reported on "HD Beat", i have recoreded "american idol" three times in the past week or so and EVERY TIME i have been unable to ff, rew, pause, or resume where i left off....it is NOT user error as i have absolutely no problems with any other recordings....i have insight digital cable and there are no other problems with my reception, picture, recorder, etc.....ther IS something fishy going on here that this problem only shows up with two of the biggest shows on television at the moment.....i am outraged at the possibility that the network/specific shows/cable company could interfere with what we pay for.....

Posted by: jeff grill at Mar 2, 2006 7:23:52 PM

in response to molly...i'm having the exact same problem with the exact same equipment from comcast. the only difference is that i'm capturing using a mac. the problem is only occuring with HD programming on FOX network. it's happened with prison break, 24, american idol. i'm starting to think that FOX is flagging these programs--and i don't like it. somebody who knows the real deal needs to let us in on the secret.....

Posted by: Nic at Mar 22, 2006 3:18:53 PM

This problem is listed under "Phase III box firewire issues" here: http://replayguide.sourceforge.net/dct6412/DCT6412_Passport.html#Known_Problems_and_Workarounds

Still looking for a solution myself. We'll probably have to wait for a new version of the firmware and just hope it's not still broken at that point.

Posted by: UncleShaggy at Mar 23, 2006 5:00:13 PM

Hi Guys. I have a question regarding the Motorola DCT6412 which I currently have had for over a year. When I go to watch a recorded show, the menu shows 2 or 3 "shows" with no name at the bottom. The time of recorded programming is 0 and the date is 1989. When I try towatch it, it just sits there. Cant delete it either. Anyone have this issue?

Posted by: Jimmy at Apr 2, 2006 10:44:28 AM

I am having similar problems with dual tuner motorola dvr and comcast. Every month or so the picture gets all weird and several channels won't even come on. Exchanged one box already and am having same problems with the second. Have also had the 0 and 1989 issues that Jimmy posted. About to throw in the towel on DVR.

Posted by: luvpars at May 31, 2006 12:12:56 PM

It is a reply to jeff gril. It is not only FOX any more. I yesterday had exactly the same problem with TNT NBA playoff show.

No Fast Forward or anything else on the Comcast DVR. I do not yet know if it is only for HD channels. There is no doubt in my mind that it is done on purpose and we are going to see more of these in the near future.

Posted by: FastForward at Jun 4, 2006 8:47:03 AM

my 6412 will not allow me to use the number key pad to go to a channel. Example: I am on ch 10 and want to go to ch 50. If I punch in 5-0, the 50 shows up on my TV and the display of the 6412. But it just stays on the current channel.

Any suggestions? Thanks

Posted by: Chad A at Jul 3, 2006 8:46:13 PM

I have the phase III DCT6412 from Comcast and I cannot believe someone in QA got paid to qualify this thing as being ready for release.

The only thing that's better is that standard digital video is better, but everything else about this makes me think it's a Yugo disguised as a DVR.

Loud fan that never stops working. Lagging menus. Unresponsive remote.

Posted by: patrick at Jul 9, 2006 10:17:40 AM

"I did install the capDVHS software to capture via firewire, and have had problems with FF and RW ever since. Has anyone else found this to be a cause / effect relationship, and if so, is there a fix to the problem?"

Yes with Comcast this happens every time. I dont know if they did that intentionally or what, but as soon as you plug in the firewire, it disables your FF and REW. There's no way to prevent it, but unplugging the box long enough to reset it will put it back to normal.

Posted by: Bryan at Jul 13, 2006 5:11:26 PM

Not sure if anyone still reads this thread but-

My first dvr had the blank programs at the bottom with a date of 12/31/1989--I searched other forums--many believe it's a virus somehow downloaded (perhaps from an update). The only way to get rid of them is to delete the hard drive. Ended up getting 3 such programs--and a new dvr.

Now, with this box it flickers green until the program guide is just about filled in then it reboots--starting the process over again. Could this be bacause of the dvr software updates (needing a re-boot) and the program guide downloading to the box at the same time?

As for changing channels--the default for my dvr is entering 3 numbers for a channel ex: 050 for channel 50. This can be changed to 2 numbers by going to setup-> guide setup-> channel entry behavior to auto tune.

Posted by: Jeremy at Sep 28, 2006 5:12:32 PM

The issue with Comcast dvr and response time is NOTICABLE when watching a Live Program and pausing it for a minute or longer (football game for example) then start watching it again.

While the dvr is still recording and compressing and buffering and everything else a digital signal has to to to be viewed, and you're using the pause button or the rewind button or whatever function button you need, HERE'S WHERE THE PROBLEM STARTS> The box can't process all these command at the same time without causing issues.......for example: You're watching a field goal to see if it was good or not, so you rewind the dvr (or you try) then hit play (5 seconds later) you wait for the exact "pause" monent.....you hit Pause.................aaaannnndddd it pauses the picture about 3 - 5 seconds )again if you're luckey) Don't even try to rewind beacuse the fricken memory cache will bring you back to the almost exact place where you originally started. Call Comcast and Tell the "Direct T.V" about 10 times during your conversation and you'll get a big ass discount on your bill. espically if you really do have the ability to moveto direct t.v.....I don't!

Posted by: Danny Parps at Nov 12, 2007 5:50:44 PM

Comcast DRM weirdness?

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