Problems with Dr Who.

Started by Ragdoll, May 05, 2013, 08:29:22 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Ragdoll

For at least the past two weeks, I have been unable to record the full program. I have the recording set on Ice TV to record the series, but for the past two weeks it only seems to be recording about half the show. This is not an acceptable situation for a whovian! Help! What is going on?

Paul55

Where are you? Does your time zone match the channels you are receiving? What are your padding settings? What model do you have? Have you accidentally been wandering into the TARDIS?
A bit more information may help.

Ragdoll

I am in Sydney. I made sure that my time setting is GMT +10 & Daylight Saving is set to off (at this time of year). I also have the recording padding set to 1 min at the start & 20 at the end (you just can't trust some stations to be on time). Timer recording is currently set at 10 mins (I don't understand this one at all). Isn't the recording tie actually set by what program you are recording? I have a 2400 with 1Tb HDD. I currently have more than 500GB free, so that doesn't explain what is happening & why only on certain programs. Hawaii Five-0 & Mr & Mrs Murder are both recording without problem.

I tried to record Dr Who again this evening on ABC 2. Even though the result in the recirded program list says that the length of the reording is 1hour 6 mins ( which would be about right because Who was 8:30 - 9:15pm), it -still- didn't actually record to the end of the program! Plus, it didn't reord the entire episode of 4 Corners or the Biggest Loser either on the same night.

This problem seems to be a bit random. Most things I have set to record (as series) work perfectly fine. I've done a random check on some things & fast forwarded through them & the entire shows are there. But the problem seems to have happened with Dr Who in the past two weeks, Biggest Loser -about the same time, & Four Corners this week. It's very puzzling. I don't know what else I should do.

Paul55

Do the bad recordings actually play for the full amount of time? e.g. Does the Dr Who episode actually run for 1hr 6min? It could be signal drop out on ABC and SBS.
Carefully check your IceTV account settings on the IceTV website.

Ragdoll

No. The reordings actually stop before you get to the end of the program. & as you know, the ABC is pretty good at ontime running compared to other free to air channels.  The other channels are the reason why I have the 20 min padding at the end of the show.

prl

#5
So, what is in the recording of Dr Who? How much of the previous program (ABC News) did it record on ABC1? How much of the previous program (Weird Creatures) did it record on ABC2? Can you check the recording start times of the Dr Who recordings? What do they say?

Is your PVR's clock set correctly?
Peter
Beyonwiz T4 in-use
Beyonwiz T2, T3, T4, U4 & V2 for testing

Ragdoll

I'm only getting about 1 minute if the previous program or promos.  I have set the padding at the start of 1 min. Certainly not enough to chew up the 20 mins at the other end. I've just checked the clock, and the time agrees with my watch & my iPhone, so I am comfortable with the clock being right.
I am recording Biggest Loser on 10 & Who Do You Think You Are in SBS at the moment. I just checked the recorded programs list (these are still reording at this stage). Loser was showing that it had recorded 23 mins at 7:52, out of a planned 1 hr, 26 mins.  Which with the 1 min front adding would be exactly correct. At the moment they are both still recording. But as I said before, this problem can be random in the past two weeks. The recordings for some programs doesn't go the planned distance, & others are just fine. Sometimes on the same night. Loser on 10 failed on Sunday night, but Hawaii Five -0 the same night on 10 was find. No rhyme or reason that I can see.

Ragdoll

Update: at 8:21pm the Topfield suddenly went into 'loading' mode & all recordings shut down. It did it again at 8:36pm, although it wasn't recording at the time. Maybe that's what has been happening to the other recordings? I just happened to be watching Loser through the Topfield at the same time as it was recording, so that's how I saw what it was doing. I was still watching 10 through the Topfield when it did it the scond time 15 mins or so later. I definitely was not touching the remote at all, so I didn't accidentally turn it off or anything like that.
Why is it doing this? I want it to stop! It clearly has only been doing this in the past two weeks. It wasn't happening before that point.

Paul55

Do you have PowerDVD running on your PC? This program is known to cause reboots of networked Toppies.

Dave at IceTV

Kirsty (Ragdoll),

There can be any number of causes for a Topfield to randomly reboot.

- Having duplicate channel number (LCNs) enabled in your IceTV account can cause it - but the LCNs in your account are correct.
- PowerDVD (app or service) running on a networked computer can cause the Topfield to reboot.
- Misbehaving TAP(s) can cause rebooting.
- Firmware bugs can cause rebooting.
- Failing hardware can cause rebooting (Hard drive and power supply).
cheers

Dave
Customer Service

Ragdoll

The Topfield is in the Lounge and the computer (and the internet access point) are on the verandah at the back of the house.  I have turned my cable internet into WiFi with an Apple Airport Express, and the Topfield has the dongle. 

I don't have anything in the DVD drive on the computer. The topfield is only about 6 months old.  I do have an intermittant problem with the computer 'freezing', requiring me to do a cold reboot, but I checked last night and it was fine.  It hadn't frozen at all.

After the second 'Loading' message last night, I did a whole factory reset on it.  Including checking if there was a firmware upgrade (which there was not).  I have a couple of things set to record this evening, and I tried to record Four Corners on ABC2 late last night which I haven't checked on yet.

BTW... What are TAPs?

Whatever this is, is intermittant and has only started happening in the past two weeks.  Prior to that time, everything recorded fine.

I will have to watch this week's Dr Who via iView before it goes off.  Allonsey!!!

Paul55

Quote from: Ragdoll on May 08, 2013, 01:32:55 PM
I don't have anything in the DVD drive on the computer.

If this is in response to the suggestion about PowerDVD, there doesn't need to be anything in the DVD drive for a problem to occur. PowerDVD is a program that often comes with a computer or aftermarket DVD/BluRay drive. It sets itself up to run automatically on startup. It is known to cause re-boots to equipment connected to home networks.

Ragdoll

Update: since the forced update two nights ago, the Topfield has successfully recorded every program I had planned. I won't be totally secure that it's working until Sunday night & we see what happens with Dr Who & Biggest Loser. Fingers crossed.


Ragdoll

'PowerDVD is a program that often comes with a computer or aftermarket DVD/BluRay drive.'

How do I find out if my computer has this? Is there a way to stop it have an effect on my Topfield, if it is there? My DVD drive is notafter market. It'sthe one that came with the machine.

Paul55

Quote from: Ragdoll on May 09, 2013, 07:32:35 PM
How do I find out if my computer has this? Is there a way to stop it have an effect on my Topfield, if it is there?

Go to the Windows Start Button and look under 'All Programs'.
Also press Ctl-Alt-Del then Task Manager and look in Applications or Processes.