Pixelation...only when more than 1 tuner being used

[richard1980]

Well that sucks. Hopefully they'll get this sorted out soon.

[fiteclub]

Well, here is the final answer from Ceton. I am skeptical that the problem is really on my end but thought I would let other chime in.

We have gone over the newest diagnostic capture and Wireshark information that you have provided. We only detected a couple or errors in the Wireshark capture and the diagnostic also did not report many errors. We were able to rebuild the video clip and watch it without a problem. We believe there may be something on your system causing the pixilation. We have gone through the diagnostic capture and came up with a list of potential conflicts.

0281 DisplayName = HDHomeRun
0731 DisplayName = BitTorrent
0790 DisplayName = AVerMedia Applications
0823 DisplayName = Malwarebytes Anti-Malware version 1.70.0.1100
1122 DisplayName = InfiniTVStatus
1378 DisplayName = PlayOn
1403 DisplayName = myRemote
1476 DisplayName = Win7codecs
1685 DisplayName = AVerMedia Applications
1845 DisplayName = Windows Media Center Add-in for Flash

Since the infiniTV is recognized as a network device, anything that affects network communication could affect the video quality. We would suggest removing Malwarebytes first to see if it is interfering with the network traffic. Also, codec packs such as Win7codecs can cause issues as well.

If you have any questions or concerns please let us know.

Thank you,
Ceton Support

[foxwood]

Well, here is the final answer from Ceton. I am skeptical that the problem is really on my end but thought I would let other chime in.
....

That would be the same MalwareBytes mentioned in this thread: http://www.thegreenbutton.tv/forums/vie ... tes#p48877

[fiteclub]

Well, here is the final answer from Ceton. I am skeptical that the problem is really on my end but thought I would let other chime in.
....

That would be the same MalwareBytes mentioned in this thread: http://www.thegreenbutton.tv/forums/vie ... tes#p48877

Well, I am not running the Malwarebytes in the background. I only run it manually every month or so. I don't see how this could affect things if it is not running.

[foxwood]

Well, I am not running the Malwarebytes in the background. I only run it manually every month or so. I don't see how this could affect things if it is not running.

It was running when you generated the Wirehark report you sent to Ceton.

[foxwood]

Well, I am not running the Malwarebytes in the background. I only run it manually every month or so. I don't see how this could affect things if it is not running.

It was running when you generated the Wirehark report you sent to Ceton.

Scratch that - I misinterpreted the reply from Ceton that you posted above.

[Teddyboy16]

I've been fighting pixelation for sometime, but recently it has become much much worse. I was having an issue with the tuners not able to detect a TV signal. The tuners where present at all times. The InfiniTV never disappeared from the device list and Media Center never complained about tuners not being available. A reboot would bring back the signal. This started to happen with the latest beta firmware. For me the last two betas where a big regression.

I put in a ticket for the no TV signal issue. After several emails with Ceton, trying a few things they ended up putting me on 1.2.2.6, but I'm still on HW 6829. It usually takes anywhere from 4 - 8 hours for the no TV signal issue to occur forcing a reboot to bring it back. So far the firmware seems to be working, but I'll feel more comfortable with it if it continues to record into the night and morning. If it does then I think that problem is solved.

The pixelation is much less with this firmware but still annoying, and pixelation seems to appear when more than one tuner is recording as has been discussed in this thread. Some channels where worse than others. I would usually see pixelation within 1 or 2 minutes of watching a live or recorded show. today after replacing the firmware I tried watching live TV on a channel that was notorious for pixelation with just that tuner active. I watched the channel for about 10 - 15 minutes and I could see no pixelation. I tried another channel that would have pixelation with the same result. With more than one tuner active I would start to see pixelation. I did capture a wireshark session when all tuners where active. I sem to be able to reproduce the issue.

[MikeM]

Been struggling with the Infinitv since it first came out. Through Infini-driver updates and firmware Betas. Finally got it down to the "macroblocking when more than 1 tuner in use" problem -- and, after endless Diagnostic Captures and Wireshark traces, they've thrown their hands up and surrendered.

They've offered me a "refurbished" replacement card for $119, or $50 off the Ethernet model. LOL.

I just ordered an HDHomerun Prime off Newegg.com for $139 - let's see if I have better luck with that.

[Teddyboy16]

Welcome to my world! Overall the tuner has been good, but this last annoying problem of pixelation looks almost impossible to solve. They've pointed to everything else but the card. I haven't updated the ticket In a while because I've just moved. It works great when only one tuner is working! I don't know what to do now. I have the cable guy out this afternoon to check the lines before I get things restablished. I want to make sure I have straight cable runs with to the outlets which is only three in the house. Maybe something magical will happen .

[richard1980]

For everyone that is still experiencing this issue, have you tried rolling back the HW? That is what ended up fixing the problem for me.

[Teddyboy16]

I haven't yet. I think that I actually requested that I wanted to be rolled back to the previous HW revision. I just moved to San Diego and had cable Internet set up through cox (actually I just had it transferred to my new address). The tech said that I have a really strong signal. Channel changes are very quick now, and the TA resolves channels really quickly (I had the TA finally replaced because it kept resetting constantly). The tech had never seen a WMC system before and he was fascinated by it. I'm going to let it record shows and see how it does with multiple recordings happening at the same time. I used to get the no signal issue pop up occasionaly when multiple recordings would occur. What HW revision did you roll back to? Right now I'm just enjoying listening to my music .

[MikeM]

Just to follow up on my earlier post, the HDHomerun Prime is installed and it does NOT seem to suffer from the same problem.

I started 2 shows recording, watched a 3rd with absolutely NO macroblocking. No other changes to my hardware, software, wiring, etc.
Only had it a week, but so far, so good. For $139, I'm happy to have finally squashed the problem (fingers crossed!).

Looks like the Ceton Infinitv4 was the culprit.

Time will tell whether I miss the 4th tuner. Sigh.

[ja216]

image 1182 seems to work the best for me .. I tried the new one twice at ceton's request and it was worse each time. I also strongly suggest that you replace the cable card. That made my problems go away long after the cable company had spent untold time & money replacing everything from my house to the pole and even the tap at the pole.

[Steves70]

Are there any updates here? I am having major problems, sometimes the shows are almost unwatchable. Live TV is perfect, and the pixelation problem seems directly related to the number of shows I am recording i.e. recording one show not too bad, 3 shows terrible. I am using one of the original PCI devices.

[JackLuminous]

I started having the exact same problem starting a week or 2 ago. As far as codecs go I only have LAV and VSFilter. I don't have any other firewall or malware software except for MS' stuff. I haven't checked yet if it's due to simultaneous recordings or what yet. I have not seen this horrible pixilation during live tv but I have seen it from recorded tv.

[mldenison]

I had the same problem with the PCIe Infinitv4 card. After several attemps with support to troubleshoot it, they thought the card was bad. Since it was out of warranty, they offered me a refurbished card for $119. I opted to buy an ETH and the problem disappeared.

[Steves70]

Same thing here, out of warranty but no offer to buy refurbished (PCI was 4 years old!) ETH seems fine with no macroblocking, but having problems with Subscription Required errors that I am working through with Ceton. Swapped out the cablecard for another and I am testing now. BTW when I try to remove the PCI card from the PC, Windows/Media Center becomes unstable, and I get the dreaded BSOD...never happens any other time, and the machine otherwise is completely stable. Any recommendations?

[mldenison]

I also get the occasional Subscription Required on recorded shows. It's usually 30 - 60 seconds and I can skip through it. I wish I knew what causes it.