Various problems with the infiniTV 4 PCIe

[mattiedread]

I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction(s) here. I've had a Ceton InfiniTV 4 PCIe for about a year now. In general it works well, however, sometimes it just crashes (and a year ago I played around with diagnostics and found 'seg faults' were the problem, don't recall much other than that).

I recently put a second extender on the system (no network tuners, but there is a box to convert the SDV signal... can't recall what it is called). In the past I'd occasionally get a message "Viewing Conflict" when there shouldn't be, I'd go to the WMC diagnostic for Ceton and check the tuners and find that 3 were tuned to the same channel, even though only one TV was consuming a signal (second TV was using Recorded TV, or, nothing at all, we always leave the extenders limbo, by pressing 'stop' and in general don't watch live TV). Now that I've added the extra extender this problem is huge. Last night I went to bed, my wife was watching Live TV on the BR extender, The LR PC was set to 'Recorded TV' and the BSMT TV also not consuming a tuner.

We switched from Live TV to recorded (on the extender), and shut down the TV at roughly 10:15/20.

This morning I see that both my shows which were to record 10-11 stopped at 10:17... at the very least I should have had 2 tuners free (assuming the PC/LR TV and the downstairs was consuming a tuner, that would leave only 2), but, in reality I should have had all 4 available.

This phenomenon has also happened when nothing has changed on the system (noboby home, recording set on 1 channel, recording stops at X:22). It also occurs when we are watching TV (probably recorded) on one tuner (living room TV) and we go to switch over to the live recording to watch it in delay, only to see that it stopped recording 10 minutes ago.

Very annoying as I've now missed episodes (or the last 43 minutes of them) of 2 series we watch and neither is rebroadcasting prior to the next showing.

Any insight as to how to fix/troubleshoot this problem is appreciated.

In general it works fine, so a walk through all my hardware is probably overkill, win 7x64 w/8GB mem and 3TB HDD not even close to full.

[kmp14]

Sorry for this obvious answer, but have you installed the latest beta Drivers/Hardware/Firmware? I recently started having problems with tuners dropping off (only 1 of 4 available, etc). Reboot sometimes fixed it, sometimes gave back 3 of 4, but the problem would randomly return. I don't know why it started happening after months of stability, but I contacted Ceton, and they started by providing me links to the latest beta Hardware/Software/Drivers which they said had improved diagnostic capability. The good news is that I never actually had to do any additional troubleshooting. Installing the Beta releases solved the problem for me, the problem has not happened again for more than a month. Definitely contact Ceton and get their latest software.

[mattiedread]

Interesting, when I choose upgrade from within the Ceton menu (Media Center) it says I'm up to date, however, I haven't upgraded the drives since April or May 2012.

Anyone else using the latest Beta?

[voltaire10]

You are going to need the latest Beta driver set from Ceton. On their Installations and Downloads page, look for the beta section and link. Then download the appropriate Ceton InfiniTV installer package. IIRC, they would have you uninstall the previous installation package prior to running this installer. With the new installer, you will get the new Diagnostic Utility. On the update tab, you will be able to see and download the latest Beta firmware and hardware updates. Hope this helps.

[voltaire10]

As a follow-up to kmp's post, I was experiencing the same issue a few months ago. I was an InfiniTV pre-order, and I had been very stable for a long time. Then, somewhere along the way, I had tuners dropping and missed recordings. I would be out of town and come back to "no tuners available" messages, yet the Ceton diagnostic would seem to show that everything was operational. A reboot would fix it. I'm optimistic that the last update fixed the problem, because, also like kmp, the problem seems to have ceased. I'm crossing my fingers!

[mattiedread]

Thanks voltaire, yes, I recall your posts when I was doing my build and that you were an 'early adopter'. I'll hit the beta this weekend, not sure when I'll update. ... but, it is a vote of confidence that both you and kmp weighed in.

erkotz still around? I haven't been Jonny Online lately - I sit in front of a 'command center', two computers, 4 screens 8-12 hours per day for work, so, when I'm done I'm not motivated to use the damn things for personal use.... I guess I should be thankful I'm not a gynecologist.

[mattiedread]

Well, I updated the drivers to the Beta over the weekend; this morning I had a 'viewing conflict, no tuners available', all 4 should have been available. Diagnostic tool (in MC/Ceton menu) couldn't find the tuner. Restart fixed the problem, however, two things which should have recorded last night did not.

I haven't delved much deeper into the Ceton diagnostics recently than those available from within MC, which appears to have changed somewhat with the Beta drivers, haven't done due diligence yet.

[erkotz]

I would recommend upgrading to the latest beta firmware. Beyond that, try uninstalling any antivirus/internet security software you have installed.

[Dkeyguy1]

Well, I updated the drivers to the Beta over the weekend; this morning I had a 'viewing conflict, no tuners available', all 4 should have been available. Diagnostic tool (in MC/Ceton menu) couldn't find the tuner. Restart fixed the problem, however, two things which should have recorded last night did not.

I haven't delved much deeper into the Ceton diagnostics recently than those available from within MC, which appears to have changed somewhat with the Beta drivers, haven't done due diligence yet.

I had similar issues early on in my infinitv4 experiences. I eventually went through an entire process that solved my issues (with the tuner, that is)
I started by rebooting, don't open MC, open Ceton diagnostic, clear tuner configuration, uninstall Ceton drivers, uninstall tuner salad if installed, reboot.
I used Ccleaner registry cleaner, then Free Registry Defrag, and after reboot, install latest Ceton drivers, discover tuners, go through tuner setup in MC.
After that mess I had no more problems. (with the tuners, that is)

[mattiedread]

I would recommend upgrading to the latest beta firmware. Beyond that, try uninstalling any antivirus/internet security software you have installed.

I have no antivirus/security installed other than that which is inherent to the OS.

Upgrading the Hardware Software to version 62... and Firmware to latest stable Beta.

Hopefully this will help. Haven't had the problem, or at least that I've noticed, other than that one time... if not the rec. above seems a little more comprehensive and may be my next move.

Thanks everyone.

[mattiedread]

I would recommend upgrading to the latest beta firmware. Beyond that, try uninstalling any antivirus/internet security software you have installed.

I have no antivirus/security installed other than that which is inherent to the OS.

Upgrading the Hardware Software to version 62... and Firmware to latest stable Beta.

Hopefully this will help. Haven't had the problem, or at least that I've noticed, other than that one time... if not the rec. above seems a little more comprehensive and may be my next move.

Thanks everyone.

Well the firmware failed to save to the device, so I opened a ticket, provided the data dump. Got a response that my unit has suffered damage and needs to be replaced. However, I purchased it in Feb 2012 (Feb 18th(, don't have the original receipt or anything like that, nor do I feel like going through the hassle (and, I doubt I'm still under warranty - Just read the warranty and it looks like I'm about 3 weeks over due... makes we wish I had tried the day I posted while I was still under warranty!!!!). I guess I'll keep using it as is until it becomes unbearable and then I'll need to make a decision on what to do. Probably Cable Co. Hardware. I just don't want the hassles anymore. Too bad, I liked this rig.

Perhaps I should uninstall and reinstall drivers/firmware? I installed the Beta updater March 2 w/o a problem, and, installed one of updates this morning, first try failed but second went through... Seems odd that suddenly I have a hardware problem when nothing dramatic has happened, we are very surge protected (redundant on that circuit).

I'm very bummed as all 3 of our TV's run off of this. Switching to Cable Co. hardware is cheaper in the short run and I guess more reliable, but, in the not so long run adds up and the MC interface is something everyone has grown used to. My wife and kids are going to be bummed... I'm hoping someone can give me some pointers before I throw in the towel.

[voltaire10]

mattie,

Maybe you should contact Ceton and explain the situation and your warranty status. Who knows...maybe they will work with you? Also, heat isn't an issue in your case, is it?

[mattiedread]

I did contact Ceton they offered a refurb for $119. When I pushed to please explain what was wrong with the card they said my NAND memory had gone bad. I surfed through the NewEgg and Amazon reviews and found that there were a fair amount of returns due to this issue; I was pissed and sent a nastygram.... I literally received the card on March 4th (although purchased on Feb 20th according to AMZN). Anyway, failed memory is an issue they are familiar with, could be cheap memory, could be thermal stress.

I don't believe heat is an issue in my Silverstone GD 4 case 3 case fans, they rarely run audibly - no video card... Stock i5 cooling. When I can hear the fans I'll check the card diagnostics and occasionally the ASRock specs, temps are in the mid 50's C... I haven't seen a 60 C temp on the card yet and I thought the card was good up to 65... although enough thermal stress could result in failure. That may be why Ceton 1) has refurbs ready to ship today! 2) They don't psuedo extend the warranty for those failures as they could likely be 'ID Ten T' errors, I know many people build put these cards in itx builds (I specifically chose ATX due to heat concerns).

We'll see, card still 'works' but the failures are more common and not being able to update the drivers is a bummer, given that I've manually downloaded drivers twice (still in download dir) and I've updated them from within their diagnostic app at least once (and attempted to a second time). That is a fair amount of driver updates in a year... so, I think kinks are still being worked out.

Tragically, I had an almost simultaneous hard drive failure in another machine (my original HTPC Dell XPS 420). I ended up popping in a new drive and doing a clean install of Vista 32 (yeah, I know, but after 3 scotches it seemed like a good idea). Anyway, that computer is in the basement for the kids so I'm considering a Silicon Dust 3 tuner... that way if the Ceton drops the SD will hopefully pick it up... and it could be used by the kids on the downstairs machine.

Honestly I'm not sure what I'm going to do... it is only a matter of time before a recording of something not available on Hulu drops and WAF drops accordingly. I definitely don't want to put a second Ceton in that box, too hot, would need to add fans as the second PCI slot on that board would put the second card very close to the CPU.

Maybe I'll gut the XPS and build from scratch... even so, I'd rather wait until these OCUR tuners get some of the kinks worked out if I can... I also haven't looked into getting content off of the Cable Provider or internet (however the idea of watching commercials urks me).

Thanks for the response. I'm bummed.

[TeddyR]

@mattiedread: I had the same issue with the USB model. Also warranty issue (not purchased from an authorized retailer though it was brand new and within the 1 yr std warranty)... Of the 13 units I had helped configure around here (from various sources), there was a 30-40% failure rate for the USB model for the same issue... I already reported my findings to Ceton so hopefully they figured out how to fix it...

in my case I was thankful that I had also gotten the SquareTrade additional warranty (they have a 2yr one) which ended up covering the device,

[mattiedread]

I may have lucked out also, got an email from Ceton last night saying they may replace my unit. Keeping my fingers crossed, will update.

[mattiedread]

Ceton graciously sent me this email a week ago:

Matt, often when someone can't provide a proof of purchase it means they either bought the product from an unauthorized seller, bought a used product, or some other situation that would result in the device not being covered by warranty. In those cases our only option is to offer a refurbished model. After some digging with Amazon, we believe we've found your order from last February. Even though your InfiniTV is outside the warranty window by a few weeks, we’ll be happy to offer you a replacement device in the spirit of maintaining a happy customer if we can verify that it is your order. Can you please confirm the shipping address that was used with Amazon?

Thanks,
Ceton

I did a screen cap of my AMZN purchase and long story short after several very pleasant/customer oriented email exchanges I dropped the PCIe card in the mail yesterday, with a copy of the email string and a physical mailing address (only PO boxes here, no home delivery).

I put a Silicon Dust in place for the meantime. It changes channels quickly, I did have a set-up problem (router setting described in great detail in another post from yesterday, 3/30/13).

It looks like this is going to be a happy ending, thank you Ceton. Now I just need to figure out how to use both simultaneously, where on the Network the SD is going to call home and what to do with that Vista 32 box (with a Q660 and bogus video card)... put a few bucks into with a new OS and $30 video card and get geeky over it...

I'm looking forward to having the Ceton card back - I've grown comfortable with it - I like the fact that is simple to get data (Signal Strength/f/SNR etc.). When I pop it back in I'm probably going to either put a more robust CPU cooler in (not a fan of messing around with anything near the CPU socket - once its in, its in)... or add another case fan/tweak fan settings in an attempt to keep the card a little cooler... I wish there was a PCI fan you could buy for 10 bucks and point is directly at the card... Might remove the 500GB HD also... I have a week or two to figure it all out.

[Dkeyguy1]

I wish there was a PCI fan you could buy for 10 bucks and point is directly at the card... Might remove the 500GB HD also... I have a week or two to figure it all out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835119097

[Paw Paw]

I wish there was a PCI fan you could buy for 10 bucks and point is directly at the card... Might remove the 500GB HD also... I have a week or two to figure it all out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835119097

I mounted a small 40mm fan in the empty drive bays that were is front of my Ceton card and pointed it to blow across the ceton card toward the back of the case. That lowered my temps by 10 degrees C.

[mattiedread]

Thanks for the fan info, right after I posted that I thought "I bet they do make such fans, gamers aren't good for nothin'"

Got my Ceton back - haven't put it in yet, according to one of their emails I do not need to update anything on the card, pop in a cable card, pop it in the machine and re-set it up.

10C is substantial, so when I pop the box open I may just check the feasibility/molex availability.

[rbmorse]

My solution to the cooling problem:



That's a standard 120mm, 1500RPM, 12V case fan held in place with double sided foam tape on the bottom. Keeps the Ceton tuners at 39.3c almost all the time (it reported between 58c and 62c before I mounted the fan). Total cost was $12 (the tape was left over from some previous home repair).