Humax DVD "Saving Failed" [Text View]

ramey

12-30-2004, 09:48 AM

I just bought the toshiba version, and saved 1 show to disc and then it seems to have quit working.
Am I doing something wrong?

1) The first show I saved and recorded worked perfectly.

2) The next three shows I saved and tried to record didn’t work. In one case, it got about 30-40% through and quit. In both the other cases, it got almost completely done a then crapped out. All three times I got a message that said that the save failed because of an internal error. That’s not exactly helpful, since that seem to me that it could cover a multitude of sins.

- - Things I checked: a) the first movie was recorded in high quality, but I switched the quality to best for the next three. Should I only save with high and not use best?

b) only one of the three would have had to have been recorded over more than one disc, but it didn’t make any difference whether I tried to record the first part first or the second part first. It still crapped out.

c) I looked to see what the DVD record speed was, which, interestingly, I can’t find ANYWHERE, even on Toshiba’s own website. I am using 8x DVD-R discs… I do know that the disc type (DVD-R) is correct, but I am using the wrong speed?

d) Toshiba’s website says that some DVD-R/DVD-RW discs may be incompatible… any idea which ones, or, at least, which ones are likely to work? I don’t remember what brand I’m using… I got them at Circuit City in a 25-pack and they might be sort of generic. I seem to recall they had a white label, but as far as I know they weren’t one of the major brands. Just seemed odd that one – the first one – worked great and nothing since.

Thanks for any ideas before I pack it up and take it back to Best Buy.

generalpatton71

12-31-2004, 03:56 AM

Same here ramey. My first burn went fine and then had a problem. First thing they will tell you is try a diffrent brand of disk, The speed shouldn't matter at all in terms of the unit messing up. I received the same error message you did and everything. I would recommend exchanging the unit right away. I tried a crap load of things tring to fix it. I cleared and deleted everything and did the entire setup again and it didn't matter. I think there must some defective DVD drives out there causing this or something.

sirrob1

12-31-2004, 09:07 AM

I justed burned a 3hr15min single tv movie and it worked. I wonder if the number of programs and fullness of the dvd make a difference. I attempt to cram/fill 100% sometimes putting eight 30min shows on one dvd.

Anyone else experience this failure?

rhirwin1

01-03-2005, 02:05 AM

I have a Humax DVD unit with the same failure mode.

I find it interesting that the DVD unit had burned 30-40 DVD's without a problem and then after a message that the DVD was inoperable until a new revision of SW was uploaded the problems began.

Intially I recorded 4 30 minute programs which consumed 99% of the DVD and the record time was ~60 minutes. After the SW revision the same 4 programs took only ~28 minutes. All of the failed recordings indicate a record time of ~ 38 minutes. I've now made a rather large set of matching useless coasters.

BTW my last experiment was to ensure that the DVD unit was not recording any other show and to limit the DVD to 74% of capacity (i.e recording only 3 shows vs the normal 4) but it still crapped out!!!

What gives? Any clues or ideas of what to try would be greatly appreciated. I suspect some type of faulty SW code.

rhirwin@cox.net

sirrob1

01-03-2005, 07:20 AM

I have tried the same stuff to see what might be triggering the intermittent saving failure to no avail. Last night I successfully burned (with same dvd-r media and even same shows) a 87% full disc and a 99% disc. The only different variable was that the tivo unit hard drive was half or less full.

I know that the near fullness of my 82hr unit is what drove me to burn some dvd-r's before and made no difference prior to the software update. This relative emptyness however is the only thing I know of that is different.

Anyone see anthing from official tivo sources about the lattest dvd software upgrade issue?

Kaokulk

01-03-2005, 08:54 AM

My first Humax did this too. Right after the upgrade, it started making coasters.

Fortunately, it was in the first week after purchase, I simply took it back and got another one.

Of course, THAT one had a bad hard drive. But so far, the third one works great...

rhirwin1

01-04-2005, 12:01 AM

I contacted Humax Customer Support by phone (they are open 24 hr x 7 days) explained the problem and they immediately said "Your unit is defective and needs to be replaced with a new one" I tried pointing out that the hardware seemed to work quite well up to some time after the point that new SW revisions "upgraded" the DVD portion of the unit.

Bottom line was that they took all the information along with a VISA charge of $499 to secure the return of the old unit and they are sending a new unit out via mail. The return postage of the old unit will be borne by them.
I think they would be amenable to returning the old unit first and then sending the new unit without the security deposit, but this way I have at least the use of the DVR portion of the exisiting unit until the new one arrives.

From a customer service perspective they were cordial, decisive and the resolution of the problem is relatively painless to me. As an engineer, I would rather see a root cause solution- I find the insight that how "full" the DVR might be a causative factor intriguing. My daughters are home for the holidays and have really loaded up the hard drive.

dkyrus

01-04-2005, 01:54 AM

I am having a very frustrating time with my relatively new Humax DRT800 unit! I've had it just over a month and have happily Tivo'd and burned a ton of discs, but all of a sudden yesterday I started getting the error message "saving failed due to an internal error" when I tried to burn any discs. I tried everything from large (99% of capacity) to small (25%) and using different DVD-R discs, but nothing's working. Humax tells me that if I let them charge $500 on my credit card I can get the unit repaired or replaced within a couple of weeks--otherwise, it'll be more like a month. I bought this unit directly from Tivo.com on 12/1/04--anybody know whether they will offer something a bit more customer-friendly? I would really appreciate any response or suggestions as to how to deal with these folks. Thanks!

geo9234

01-04-2005, 11:57 AM

My Humax just stopped burning after many successful try's. I called tech support (if u want to call it that) and he said to send Humax the unit. He wanted credit card info to secure the exchange but I told him I'm taking it back to Sam's Club where I bought it. He said fine. Also, I asked about any s/w changes and he said there were none. He didn't volunteer this info so I figured he didn't know anything anyway.

So...I'm off to SC to exchange.

(The only upside is with Multi Room viewing, I can transfer my recorded programs and not lose anything)

Cheers,

G

rkester

01-10-2005, 06:48 PM

Having a similar problem with mine. When I first got it about 2 weeks ago, it burned no problem on any media I gave it, DVD-R and RW. Then, I got some new DVD-R (Fujifilm) media and burned 2 discs. IN a few days, tried to burn something else to the same discs and it failed. Made 2 coasters that way. So, I put in a RW disc, and it successfully burned. Did some checking around on the net and it seems that the brand of media is a variable in this equation. Any of you tried other media, like Memorex or CompUSA brand to see if they work instead of the brand that did?

update... rebooted the unit for kicks. later i tried the fujifilm media that had worked before then failed next time. this time it worked again. wierd.

RickStrobel

01-12-2005, 01:40 AM

Someone else posted that after the update to 1.15 they had to delete EVERY recording on the unit. After that, any new recordings would burn just fine.

lordrichter

01-12-2005, 06:23 AM

Originally posted by RickStrobel
Someone else posted that after the update to 1.15 they had to delete EVERY recording on the unit. After that, any new recordings would burn just fine.

That doesn't sound quite right, but I suppose it could be possible.

However, reading through this I did not see, but may have overlooked, if anyone unplugged and rebooted their units to see if the DVD writing was better after that. Maybe the DVD drive needs to be reset or something.

dkyrus

01-12-2005, 03:59 PM

I should have re-posted with a followup to my problem before now, but better late than never. After very frustrating phone calls to both Humax and TiVo tech support, I finally read something in one of these threads that suggested restarting the TiVo box--something that neither the TiVo nor Humax tech support even mentioned). I did so, and right afterwards was able to successfully burn DVDs again with no problems.

This happened to me again a couple of days ago. I restarted again, and again, it resolved the problem. I'm not thrilled with having to restart all the time, but it does seem to take care of the problem and I don't lose any settings or saved programs, so it's not too much of a hassle.

I called both the TiVo and Humax tech support people back and told them how I had resolved the problem, including by what means I was able to get the information to do so (i.e., not from them!). In both cases they seemed interested in what I was telling them and said they would document it for future reference. Probably not much real hope, but maybe.

Anyway, I'm very glad this community exists!!

rkester

01-12-2005, 04:28 PM

Hopefully it will be something they now know to fix. Rebooting the machien is a PITA imho. But, if it fixes the problem at least it's a fix and not an unresolved item.

gawise

01-14-2005, 01:43 PM

I'm having the same exact problem with one of my units. I burned almost 100 DVDs with no problem, then all of a sudden...

The first thing I did was reboot it and it started recording again...then crapped out AGAIN. Repeat the cycle...

It is a pain and I hope they get it fixed soon!!

Greg in York, PA

MisterDNA

01-19-2005, 03:46 PM

Hopefully my Humax DVD experiences will help others.

1) Humax support told me they have lots of problems with Memorex DVDs operating correctly with the Humax TiVo (don't you wish they mentioned this incompatibility in the instruction booklet, before you buy a 100-pack of Memorex DVDs???). Not sure if any updates could have solved that problem.

2) I find that after one DVD burns incorrectly, often subsequent DVDs will also fail to burn until you reset the system (BTW, does anyone know what just reseting the DVD does?)

3) I've also found that, once in awhile, a particular recorded show will seem to cause DVDs to fail to burn. The system burns every other show fine, but that one "problem" show just won't burn to DVD correctly. Obviously, if I kept trying to burn that "problem" show over and over, I never would have had a successful burn!

Hope this helps someone!

-Rob

bodonnell

01-28-2005, 01:35 AM

I don't have a solution but I thought I'd add my name to the list of people having trouble with their new Humax DTR800 DVR. I have noticed problems with all media except one, Verbatim; I have not had a problem with this yet but then I have switching media and have not had much opportunity to burn many Verbatim DVDs. My unit is on version 1.15 of the DVD-drive firmware (I wish I wrote down what the version was when I setup the box).

Being that some people noticed they started with version 1.08 of the DVD-drive firmware and are now at 1.15, and add to that the information that most people have burned dozens of DVD without incident and then only recently started having problems, it sounds like a bad patch was downloaded to everybody's Humax (IMHO).

Kaokulk

02-02-2005, 07:43 PM

Originally posted by bodonnell
Being that some people noticed they started with version 1.08 of the DVD-drive firmware and are now at 1.15, and add to that the information that most people have burned dozens of DVD without incident and then only recently started having problems, it sounds like a bad patch was downloaded to everybody's Humax (IMHO).

Agreed. That's when my Humax started screwing up.

I have a different (and interesting) problem now. I can't go into my Messages, it locks up the UI. I have to reboot. Recording and burning will continue though.

tom_da

02-10-2005, 11:06 PM

I'd been turning out coasters :eek: too on my Humax. It seemed to be related to using Basic recordings and the software not correctly determining the size that would fit on a DVD. I think it was using the filesize as its queue, not taking into account that Basic recordings are smaller but longer running than the same filesize for a Best or High quality recordings. I think they think we'll all use Best for our recordings, but I still want to cram as much as I can on both the drive and DVD!

I'd get coasters when I would select a lot of Basic recordings, up to 93-100%. It'd say it was fine, but would die with the couple of messages mentioned above. :mad:

So I cut back to 73% and got consistent recordings. But lots of stuff (the Super Bowl, go Pats!) won't fit at 73%!

But I went and did the Restart and tried the SuperBowl again. I was able to go right to 100%! Not only the Super Bowl, but the NFL Films shows on the Pats 2 other Super Bowl wins! (Dynasty ;) )

I think we have to remember that TiVos run on Linux. I noticed wheree I work on software with Linux versions, that Linux is NOT faultless. In fact, we had more memory troubles with the Linux software than we did with the Windows versions! I think either memory is being lost in fragments or swap space on the drive was running out for similar reasons. You need contiguous space for good recordings and we never saw linux take care of this kind of thing well.

But I loooove the TiVo interface! Best Linux I ever used! :D

Another thing that bothers me though about the Humax, is it can't do incremental recordings! I don't want to make a weekly TV disc, with all my shows on it. I want to make an Enterprise disc, a SG1 disc, a Teen Titans disc. So I want to add a new show to each disc each week. Unless I use up my HD space for months for these few shows, to collect all the episodes for a disc, I can't do this! Every other DVD recorder allows this. But not the TiVo recorders! :down: :down: :down:

Thanks for the info guys!

Tom D'A
http://missing-pieces.com

sirrob1

02-11-2005, 06:29 AM

Nice post. As above, I have had similar experiences with the Tivo DVD burning. I have found something that has worked every time for burning now.

Keep the burning screen Prep/Burn/Finialize up at all times til the disc is completed.

My last dozen sucessful discs burnt without incident as long as I did this. Everytime I did not ended in a coaster!

It is not such a pain. Just start burning as usual and stop back in 5 or ten minutes and scroll between cancel and return to tivo at the bottom of the screen. It is like moving your mouse and keeping a screen saver from starting but in this case keeps the burning screen 'saver' up for the entire burning session. Odd bug. Are you listening TiVo?

ashu

02-11-2005, 10:38 AM

Odd bug. Are you listening TiVo?

NOT a bug. Its as designed. A few minutes (15?) of inaction in ANY menu, and you WILL return to Live TV. Live TV is being buffered all the time anyway, os its not like that part of your Humax is idle!

I've burnt all my (admittedly few) DVDs on the Humax while doin other stuff more often than not - a scheduled recording, viewing a recording, trick-playing live TV etc.

tivochiguy

02-12-2005, 10:27 AM

I am also having a problem with saving DVDs and receive the message "could not be saved because of an internal error". It fails at about midpoint of saving three shows. I've rebooted the workstation and tried multiple DVDs. I'm using Verbatim that have all worked fine with burning other shows.

I called Humax and talked with a Cust Serv Rep in New York and they said they had never heard of the problem. How can that be? Are all of you having the problem not calling in???

This sucks!

sirrob1

02-13-2005, 04:26 PM

NOT a bug. Its as designed. A few minutes (15?) of inaction in ANY menu, and you WILL return to Live TV. Live TV is being buffered all the time anyway, os its not like that part of your Humax is idle!

I've burnt all my (admittedly few) DVDs on the Humax while doin other stuff more often than not - a scheduled recording, viewing a recording, trick-playing live TV etc.

The bug is that the burning does not complete without the burning screen being maintained.

You misunderstood the bug being the burning screen defaulting to live TV in 15 minutes. That is ok and was never the issue I stated above. Mis-burning is the issue and keeping the burning screen on is the solution. This silly necessity is the bug!

whitmans77

02-23-2005, 08:59 AM

has anyone eles had this problem recently??

I have burned about 50-60 discs all with no problems then all of a sudden i cant burn a thing. I called humax and after asking some very dumb questions like "are you using dvd-r's " they just said that they would be willing to swap it out.

do you guys think it is a hardware or software problem??

bodonnell

02-23-2005, 10:20 AM

I had the same failure. Called Humax level-1 support and they suggested a replacement unit so I swapped it out. But I've since learned that TiVo "pushes" a DVD firmware patch (possible supplied by Humax) from 1.08 to 1.15 and that patch is the culprit. That patch is suppose to make the DVD burn at a higher spin rate. After talking with level-2 Humax support they heard of the problem and said "the unit is working as designed", meaning, the DVD drive manufacturer specs say the drive is capable of a faster burn rate. So now I have Humax DTR800 #2 and so-far-so-good, but TiVo hasn't pushed the patch onto the box yet!

whitmans77

02-23-2005, 11:40 AM

is there any way we can keep our boxes from getting that patch.....is ther any way to revert back to the old version??

Quantum Panda

02-23-2005, 09:22 PM

3) I've also found that, once in awhile, a particular recorded show will seem to cause DVDs to fail to burn. The system burns every other show fine, but that one "problem" show just won't burn to DVD correctly. Obviously, if I kept trying to burn that "problem" show over and over, I never would have had a successful burn!

This is the exact problem I'm having. Anyone have any idea what causes this? At first, I thought it might be the broadcast flag, but if the broadcast flag is preventing the burn, it ought to refuse to try to burn it, rather than starting and then returning an error.

I have found a sort-of workaround for this, if it's important to you to burn one of these "problem" shows to DVD. Record it out to tape at highest quality, then record it back on to the hard drive (easy to do on the Humax recorders). Whatever the problem with the show is, it doesn't seem to carry over through this process. You lose some quality, but you do get to burn the show.

+QP+

whitmans77

02-23-2005, 09:34 PM

i have tried to burn all types of shows with no luck--i even tried the restart and the whole unplugging bit with no avail....they way humax acted on the phone i believe they know its a problem .....

sirrob1

02-24-2005, 06:30 AM

Did you try to do this?

Keep the burning screen Prep/Burn/Finialize up at all times til the disc is completed.

Which is the problem show?

whitmans77

02-24-2005, 08:16 AM

I have tried all types of shows---even those that i have burned before, those offof th hostory channel that I know would not have been flagged. I also have trid leaving the screen up and watching live tv during and all other combos of tivo operation and i still get the error.

adventurelarry

02-24-2005, 05:54 PM

I have spoke to Humax again, and I am about to receive my third unit in three months.

The first unit, after a week, would hang at the Now Playing page.
The second unit stopped burning DVDs. (now I will not be able to burn the Super Bowl dagnabit) They said it was the Sony DVD-R so I have bought two additional brands, same problem. Internal Error.

Lets see what happens with unit 3.

At least I have plenty of blank dvds. ( I wonder if I transfer the Superbowl to my other Tivo, can I send it to my PC for Tivo To Go? I also wonder if I will ever get my rebate, and I also wonder if man will ever walk on Mars....)

whitmans77

02-24-2005, 07:45 PM

heres my question...i know i cant transfer from my s2 to the humax to burn BUT can i transfer from old humax to the new humax and burn then??

jimmymac

03-12-2005, 05:17 PM

I am also having a problem with saving DVDs and receive the message "could not be saved because of an internal error". It fails at about midpoint of saving three shows.

I just started having this problem today. So far I've wasted 4 DVDs before I decided to log on here and see if others were having the issue. I've recorded a few DVDs before with no problem and only just decided to start saving more programs.

Has anybody gotten anybody to acknowledge this is a problem?

I've just rebooted the machine and going to try again to see if that helps. Any other suggestions?

sirrob1

03-19-2005, 08:42 PM

Guys, I have burnt about 20 dvd-r's with the burning screen up during the whole process and have not had a single failure! Maybe it corrected itself or ? I will try to burn a few dvd's without keeping the 'burning screen' up and see if it fails.

dsc

03-21-2005, 07:17 PM

I've had this problem only with recordings that I've imported from my DV cam. In these cases, I noticed that some white noise from an unused portion of the tape was recorded by my TiVo or some other random element was introduced (ie fast fowarding the tape) into the recording.

My theory is the MPEG encoder cannot properly encode this random noise, and the burn fails. When I first had this problem, I tried rebooting and using other brands of DVD-R/RWs, and the problem remained. To solve my problem, I delete the recording causing the problem, and re-record it, this time making sure no static/white noise is recorded. Each time, the succeeding burn has been successful.

So..I think some of the problems people have had depend solely on the recording they're trying to burn.

Pete90291

03-28-2005, 09:33 PM

I had a similar problem, then noticed that when I mix quality types on the DVD Burn it didn't work. So, using the same DVD's (HP 8x DVD-R, 50pack @ $25 Staples). I burned again matching Quality Types. That seemed to work GREAT...

illuminations25

03-31-2005, 11:03 PM

I've had problems where the shows will burn fine, but then afterward I will play them and fast forward through with the 5 minute tick marks, leave the show play for 3 seconds and then fast forward all the way through to make sure I have a clean burn. It will usually burn all the shows fine except one show that will cause the player to hang and the picture will freeze and then it can be a problem getting the disk out of the player because it locks up. Usually if I start a burn and then switch to live TV and do not touch a single button the burn will be okay, but even that's not starting to be a guarantee anymore. I'm using Sony DVD-R's btw.

scottk52

04-11-2005, 01:21 AM

first burn ever with the disk included with the unit.........FAILED!
hmmmmmmmmm..
I'll post more later...

Frannie

04-12-2005, 03:48 PM

SAME STORY HERE: I've burned 40+ DVDs in the last 4 months, then a couple days ago it stopped working. The error message was "your program(s) could not be saved because of an internal error." I called TiVo customer service and they had me re-boot, which did not help. Then they had me try burning more dvds, since "you can expect a certain number of dvds to fail." At that point I had already had 7 dvds fail (approved brands, plus the one that came with the machine.)

Nothing they suggested has worked. I mentioned this community chat thread and their response was that it was people using the wrong brands of dvds. They want me to mail back my unit and they will send me a refurbished one.

I just hope I can download my shows from the old machine to the new one.

Does it seem odd that for 3 out of 4 of my calls to customer service, the same individual answered the phone? It makes me think their customer service dept. is rather small, and so far, unhelpful.

Greenwing

04-19-2005, 10:15 AM

I've had mine since around Dec. 2004...Haven't had any problems other than picture quality and lack of info for PPV movies...

My unit was not plugged into the phone line for some time, but has been now for a month or so...I'll try the powering off thing to see if that helps...I have already tried 2 different brands of DVDs that worked previously...

This machine sucks in my opinion...The TiVo interface is OK, but coasters don't play well...:-)

ashu

04-19-2005, 11:19 AM

Hmm - mine has been burning crappy LiquidVideo disks at 2X (they're so bad, the outer tracks skip in the best players! Even when burnt in a PC drive!), average (and 1-year-old) Memorex discs at 4X and new Fuji's (Taiyo Yuden - MIJ's!) at 8X-ish quite flawlessly so far. Fingers crossed.

Frannie

04-20-2005, 01:10 AM

Update on downloading error: I isolated the problem down to one TV show, and one particular episode. No idea why it this episode produces the TiVo error message. Looking back on this 'saving failure' thread - it appears other people had similiar problems with certain TV shows/episodes. Now it's working just fine, glad I did not do an exchange! Wonder why the TiVo customer service people aren't aware of this problem. I'll call an update them.

Greenwing

04-20-2005, 11:09 AM

[QUOTE=Greenwing]I'll try the powering off thing to see if that helps...QUOTE]

A reboot seems to have fixed the problem so far...I burned a 4 hour movie onto 2 memorex DVDs and they seem to play OK...Maybe it was that simple, but they need to fix whatever the problem is that makes you have to reboot to burn a DVD...

domlot

12-05-2005, 01:57 PM

I'm in the same boat. I wish I would have read these posts before I bought this unit. Either a defect in the Hardware or Firmware. My guess - Firmware.

Kaokulk

12-05-2005, 06:13 PM

An update... my Humax works fine. I finally (what was it... 4th unit?) has worked flawlessly since I got it.

I'm just worried that we'll get another firmware update...

dipas

12-06-2005, 02:10 AM

I have a TiVo RS-TX20 and recently it has started rebooting the whole system when it is almost 98% done with the DVD recording. I can still record DVDs sometimes -- about every 4th DVD recording is successful. I have still not been able to identify the source of the problem. Has anyone else experienced this?

I discovered that if you delete some programs from the harddrive, you seem to have more successes with DVD recording. As soon as your HD fills up the problem starts again. This is still strange because it is hard to guess the point at which you need to start erasing programs just to make your DVD work! This does not happen with my friend's TiVo even though she has more programs recorded than I do. I am guessing it is because she does not mark them as "Keep until I delete" and lets TiVo delete them when the need arises.

I called TiVo but they did not believe that it could be a software problem.

toreth

12-30-2005, 05:31 PM

I can so relate to this. I've had my Humax DTR 800 since Jan 05. When I first tried it I had the same problem. I found that if I use certain dvd's I had no problem until that latest firmware update. Now it doesn't matter what I use, I still have problems. Even rebooting doesn't always help. The only thing that seems to work more often is TDK DVD-RW or be sure to only save a program that is less than 50% of the disc. The thing that really burns me is that no one (Tivo or Humax) cares. The only response I've received from either is to reboot or use TDK discs. How do we get them to address the problem?

kemajor

12-31-2005, 09:25 AM

Almost all of the experiences in this thread are exactly the same kind I've had. I suppose I have no choice but to go ahead and switch the unit out (what a pain).

It sure would be nice to hear from someone at Humax or Tivo just acknowledging that there have been several reports of similar issues and they are being looked into. I know this is extremely unlikely, but it would still be nice :)

Fortunately, Humax is honoring the warranty regardless of the purchase date, perhaps this suggests they do know there is a problem with early units?

- Kelly

ronholl

01-09-2006, 08:25 PM

So, after having few problems burning DVD's since getting my refurbished unit around 2 months ago, I now have this problem. Most DVD's I burn now don't complete due to the "internal error". I tried the RW DVD that came with the unit and that too failed. Tried shows that aren't mixed in quality. Had a success and then had trouble even burning a single show. Perhaps a lens cleaner would help. I expect to get a replacement box but am unsure if that will help.

ronholl

01-09-2006, 10:04 PM

Might be the final word from me on this subject. I have around 23 shows on my Humax ranging from being recorded on 12/6 through 1/9. There were 4 shows recorded last Thursday (1/5). These 4 shows result in the "internal error" message. I found by experimenting with the RW disk that came with it that all combinations that excluded these shows worked and any of these individually or with other shows.

I have no idea what could be wrong with these 4 shows. They all look very good. Really strange. Knowing this though, I believe it is isolated and I called support back and told them to cancel the replacement machine they were going to send to me.

Hopefully this won't happen again but if it does I will work it with the RW before I waste 15 disks! Good luck to you all.

Ron

HIHZia

01-09-2006, 11:08 PM

Since it hasn't been made clear I thought I'd add that maybe a hard reset will solve some of these problems. The procedure recommended to me was to unplug the phone line and the power for at least five minutes and then let it reboot. It seems this solves some problems better than a menu reboot or a shot unplug time.

Just a thought.

theandrews

01-18-2006, 10:38 PM

My Humax DRT 800 Tivo 80 hour was burning 16X DVD-R discs just fine, that is until today. I have in just over a year burnt close to 300 DVDs. I bought a spindle of Memorex 100 DVD-R discs from Best Buy a few weeks ago and have burnt about 20 of them without issue. The last 10 discs have not worked failing everytime at approx 11% complete creating COASTERS. I bought this unit brand new just over 1 year ago. I now get, when trying to burn programs to DVD the following error, "Your program could not be saved because of an internal error". I have turned off the unit, waited 1 minute and plugged back in and get the same result. I have tried a manual update and still get the same thing. The units software version - 7.2.1-elm-01-2-595, Tivo Service Level - C:021406, DVD Drive Firmware Version - DVD-RW DVR-108RZ 1.15. Any help would be GREATLy appreciated.

b5ver

01-19-2006, 10:22 AM

^...what he said.

Yes, please any help?

Or is there an alternative box out there that is comparable to the Humaxtivo?

ronholl

01-19-2006, 11:57 AM

I posted above. I had 4 programs all recorded the same day which caused this condition. Once I realized this, I removed them from the DVD's I was trying to burn. Had around 11 bad DVD's burned with like 1 good one in the middle (didn't include the bad guys). Seems that something in the video or the tivo file is causing this. Probably a fairly generic message that may mean quite a few things. Would be nice to know the conditions that cause it and what is wrong with the shows I recorded to make it crap out like this.

I finally used the DVD-RW that came with it to burn different shows to help identify the problem.

Good luck!

Tek34

01-21-2006, 03:33 PM

I'm on my second Humax DRT800 and I have burned 300+ DVD-R successfully, and likely 30-40 or more unsuccessfully. My experiences so far:

1.) Once you get one unsuccessful burn due to an internal error, your chances of getting subsequent failures, without rebooting your system, are high. I now perform a hard reset, unplugging my machine for two minutes, after every burn failure. Rebooting seems to solve most burning issues not related to a specific, 'bad' recording.

2.) A specific program recording that caused a burn failure can often continue to be a problem and not be successfully burned (despite rebooting). ( The majority of my burn failures fall into point #1 or #2. My overall successful burn percentage after rebooting and per unique recording is much more acceptable than the initial numbers may seem to indicate. )

(Possible remedies for #2:)
2a.) Failures to burn specific recordings to sometimes work on DVD-RWs when they won't work on DVD-Rs. Perhaps a different brand of media will help these 'problem' recordings as well.

2b.) Deleting the recording and retaping a repeat airing of the same program had a near 100% success rate for me, lending evidence towards the specific problematic recording theory mentioned above.

2c.) Sometimes the combination of recordings selected to be burned together can alter its success. Two recordings that failed multiple times to be burned together (2x, 1:00 high quality recordings.), burned fine when combined individually with alternate 1:00 high quality recordings. This is a good test too to determine which recording may be problematic for burning.

2d.) Attempting to burn the same recordings that previously failed, seem more likely to fail again when tried in succession, than if you successfully burn different recordings and then go back and retry the same combination of recordings that failed. I'm not sure if this could be due something being refreshed in the burning process or if by altering the space or the storage of the unit (I usually delete recordings after a successful DVD-R burn), that the change can positively effect a previously problematic burn.

2e.) If two burn attempts using the same recordings fail at around the same completion percentage it likely indicates a problem with that specific recording, and subsequent burn attempts will fail at the same point in time as well. Another way to determine if this may be the case, if you don't want to sit there and watch for a failure, is to compare your two newly manufactured 'coasters'. If the treads (portion of the disk burned) look the same then they failed at the same point in the burning process.

3.) I have yet to be able to draw any tangible conculsions of failures due to space used or unused on the recorder, activity performed on the recorder during burning, or any software upgrade. While some of these aspects may cause an initial burn failure, most repeat failures seem to be the result of the lack of rebooting, or a specific problematic recording or recordings.

orr

01-22-2006, 03:25 AM

All -
Look around this thread/forum. So many people with essentially the same problem. Units (usually) burn some DVD's OK, then stops, and burning becomes erratic or stops. Some of the "workarounds" (that work *sometimes*) are to only use the HD partly, or the DVD partly - in essence suggesting not getting full use of the unit.
I admit I am biased (have a problem unit also - same symptoms) but it sounds like a classic case of a defective product (SW, HW or both). What's more, it sounds like Tivo/Humax know this.

Someone (" toreth") here said: "The thing that really burns me is that no one (Tivo or Humax) cares. The only response I've received from either is to reboot or use TDK discs. How do we get them to address the problem?"

I am guessing a class-action suit for lost time, lost Media, and maybe even lost content is sure to get their attention, and fast.

Michael Orr
:mad:

kemajor

01-22-2006, 11:41 AM

Tek34,

Your experiences all mirror mine exactly. Until recently that is, when my burner failed completely. I've just received a replacement unit and I was hoping that these problems were going to be resolved. After reading this thread and your message, I'm not holding out much hope.

At least the replacement unit will burn some of the time...

Thanks for your detailed post, perhaps it will get the attention of someone at Tivo/Humax and they will do something about these issues.

- Kelly

PS: Sadly, now that I have the replacement unit and can burn DVD's again I now have the double click issue which I never had before. Grrrrrrr. :(

Tek34

01-23-2006, 12:57 PM

I'm currently happy to report that I have had success burning even my problematic program recordings, mentioned in point 2a. in my previous post, by changing media types. Two of my problem recordings that produced multiple 'coasters', both burned successfully on their first tries using TDK 8x DVD-Rs ($17 on sale for 50 pk at Circuit City). Perhaps by keeping a varieity of DVD brands on hand, and rebooting when needed we can prolong the useful life of this model. I've heard TDK, Sony, and Verbatim were reccommeded for this recorder.

TiVoEvan74

01-29-2006, 09:18 AM

A class action suit probably wouldn't get very far as the DVDs being used don't fit the specs outlined in the manual! We're all using faster DVDs and/or ones are non certified.

I still think DVD-RWs are the way to go... any failures then don't matter at all.

Plus, frankly, who has time to wade through and watch 300+ recorded DVDs? We now have several dozen and realize that we're back in the same ridiculous place we used to be with stacks of VCR tapes!

cdeckert219

02-09-2006, 06:54 AM

I've run into intermittent problems burning DVDs, too. In the hopes that it might trigger a further thought for troubleshooting, here's my "story":

I have a DRT400 (6 weeks old). A week after setting it up, I installed a 300gb Seagate. I used Hinsdale guide with exact commands suggested:
mfsbackup -Tao - /dev/hdc | mfsrestore -s 127 -xzpi - /dev/hda
Everything went smoothly...burned about 75 DVD-Rs with the only problems occurring with Fry's GQ brand (Sony and Memorex were great).

About a week ago, my drive finally filled up (love the old classics on TCM!). At the same time, I began to have burn failures (for example, Fort Apache). I tried burning different files. No luck. I tried different brands of media. No luck. When I tried multiple times with the same file (Fort Apache again), it would get to different percentages complete, but still fail at some point. I bought some DVD-RWs to continue experimenting. No luck. BTW, I don't have any problems whatsoever watching the stuff in my "Now Playing" list. No freezing or pauses or anything like that. No problem transferring to my PC using TTG and burning to DVD there. So it seems that the file itself is okay?

Next, I put the original drive back in. Had to get it updated with the latest guide, etc. Tried burning a DVD-RW. Worked like a charm! Tried a DVD-R. Worked like a charm!

So... I think that rules out hardware (except for the new drive), operating system, the movie file itself, and DVD firmware (Pioneer DVR-109RZ 1.25).

Put the new drive back in. Deleted about 1/3 of the programs from the "Now Playing" list. Went back to burn the file that I originally started with (Fort Apache) and it worked like a charm with DVD-RW. Next, burned a couple DVD-Rs. Fine. Third DVD-R...coaster. Back to DVD-RW. Saving Failed. Retried with same DVD-RW, successful!

So... I'm thinking I'm going to do a "clear and delete." I'm thinking that the burn process needs temp file space (or maybe contiguous temp file space?)...or something with the storage of files on the new hard drive is the problem.

Any other thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!

petew

02-09-2006, 11:49 AM

dfreybur

02-10-2006, 09:45 AM

I've noticed that my DRT-800 is slower when the drive is full. Overall system reposnse time could cause burn failures. 10 years ago it was a known problem with UNIX, but I'm not sure why that should be an issue today. Especially since most Tivo's with suggestions turned on will be continually full.

You may also want to consider trying the -s 150 option on mfsrestore followed by use of tpip to create a larger (150Mb) swap device. Consensus is 1Mb per 2Gb of disk space and Hinsdale was written before large drives (>137Gb) were supported.

Thanks for the advice on a full disk. Next time I try burning a DVD I'll delete a handfull of suggestions first and see how it goes. Yesterday it worked on the second attempt.

I checked the versions. I have Humax DVR400, 7.20.1 (I think, whatever the latest is) and the writer says firmware version 1.25.

TeeVohFan

02-11-2006, 08:14 AM

Wow, glad I read this thread. I have a Pioneer 810 (really like it) and I was thinking of getting another TiVo but I wanted the built-in DVD burner so the Humax was looking good. But after reading this thread... I'm having second thoughts.

This is for the 810 so it may not apply, but 810's get that "internal error" and bad burns when they are fed media they don't like. I used to get that error occasionally with Sony DVD-R's, but I can't remember getting any with TDK DVD-R's.

--

cdeckert219

02-11-2006, 11:58 PM

Hey TeeVohFan, don't get me wrong... I REALLY like the Humax and have had no problems whatsoever, until I did the hard drive upgrade. I think that PeteW is probably right on target with the swap file size. Ever since I deleted a few programs, the burns have all been successful. I'm going to re-do the hard drive with the 150 meg swap file and will report on the results.

Hope that helps!

nmangat

02-15-2006, 09:01 PM

I have had the same problem as many other. My Humax 800 burned about 90 DVDs with only one or two mishaps. Then all of a sudden, I made about 4 coasters. I tried recording 2x one hour and a two hour and both failed. I was using the same (100) stack of TDK 8X DVD all along. I rebooted the unit and the next few recordings went fine. I then made two coasters. gave it one more go and it worked. Sometimes I leave the recording screen o, other times I watch TV, mostly I just go to bed with the TV switched off.

brothbellam

02-16-2006, 05:33 PM

have had same problem for about 3 months. read all of the unhappy campers stories and decided to call tivo. the unhelpful technician and her supervisor both said that they were unaware of such a problem. i was told it is not there problem and that they only sell the box, the problem is humax.

humax at least said that they have heard of the problem and suggested that i turn the unit and phone off for 15 minutes, use only 8x or 4x media and never make back to back recordings.

they offered to replace the unit with a refurbished unit if i put up $499.

'Saving Failed'

AFTER my revision to 1.15, dvd burning with my Humax DVD began making expensive wasted dvd coasters!

When I first received my Humax Tivo/dvd with the 1.08 software life was grand. Since the upgrade, I now get the 'Saving Failed' and an internal error in my machine has occured- listings. I use the same dvd-r media (8x)and burn the same tv shows as when it worked. I have restarted my unit a couple of times and reset settings as well.

Anyone with similar problems after the revision? Any suggestions?

sweetspirit

02-20-2006, 04:07 AM

QUOTE=TeeVohFan].

This is for the 810 so it may not apply, but 810's get that "internal error" and bad burns when they are fed media they don't like. I used to get that error occasionally with Sony DVD-R's, but I can't remember getting any with TDK DVD-R's.

--[/QUOTE]

I've had my Pioneer for almost 11 months. I had severe problems several months ago - right after the software update. They appeared to resolve, but are back again. It seems if I record more than one show, I have internal error failure. I can try 8 - 10 times, and finally - I'll have a successful burn - same shows. I now have 100 (!) coasters out of 300 - all the brand that was shipped with the unit - FUJI

I've tried restarting, without success. I'M SICK OF IT! I think someone was right - we need a Class Action Suit. The problem exists with more units than just the Humax. There are a number of threads that certify this statement.

TiVoEvan74

02-20-2006, 07:35 AM

Only one short-term answer to coasters... DVD-RWs. Then, it's simply a matter of re-burning.

If you're still under warranty, get a replacement. If out of warranty, demand a replacement. Send a certified, formal letter to the higher ups at Pioneer.

Yeah, it's pretty bad if the DVDs it shipped with are having such failure... were your 300 the same speed? The Humax and Tosh DVD burning Tivos have very specific requirements stated in the manual for certified DVDs... and most of us aren't using those or following them... which means we really wouldn't have much of a leg to stand on in a suit.

But, hey, this is the land of the free and the lawsuit, so go hire a lawyer and see what happens. (Warranty replacement and DVD-RWs would still be a much cheaper and less frustrating alternative!)

sweetspirit

02-20-2006, 10:58 AM

Yes, they were the EXACT same speed. I've kept almost all the coasters, as well, as "proof".

Fuji has discontinued the DVD that came with the Pioneer, replacing it with 1x-16x. I'm still under warranty for just about a month, however I have a problem. While the Pioneer can be delivered to Long Beach, just half an hour from me in Orange, CA, I'm disabled - have no family - and need someone to accompany me to do the carrying, as well as detaching the cables. Then, I'll need help for the return trip.

While this sounds like a LOT of trouble, I can't box it up to take it to the Post Office either, so I might as well go in person and save the postage. . ..

Is ANYONE near me in Orange, CA who might consider helping me???

Even using the DVD-RW's, I get burn failures - and am sick to DEATH of entering the Title for the DVD using that remote 5 - 10 - or more times till I finally get a burn (on the same DVD-RW that it tells me to replace with another!

GRRRRRRRR! I'm frustrated and STUCK! H - E - L - P . . . . ANYONE?

wmshax

02-20-2006, 10:23 PM

Add me to the list of folks with the "internal error" message. I've had the HUMAX DRT800 less than a month, have burned many DVDs with it so far without a problem, and tonight it's started to make nothing but coasters. I've tried rebooting, to no avail. I'm not sure the theory of a too full hard disk is correct, since I was clearing out the HDD when this started happening, and there's very little left on the HDD. I've also through the programs in fast forward, and there's nothing wrong with them.

Any ideas before I call HUMAX? I must say that TIVO certainly doesn't make it easy on its customers--malfunctioning hardware, difficult to find network adapters, "not our problem" customer service.

pktrekgirl

02-24-2006, 01:13 PM

Well, add me to the list of TiVo subscribers who have had major problems with the Humax DVD recorder.

I am now on my fourth unit, and I think that now, each successive one is getting worse rather than better.

Unit #1 they sent when I bought the unit new back in September. I paid full price and expected a NEW unit, but the unit I got was so bumped and scratched that it *had* to be a refurb. So I sent it back.

Unit #2 worked fine for a couple of months. And then a couple of months ago (beginning of January), it started making coasters. I didn't change media or anything like that - it just started makin' coasters for no good reason.

I called Humax and they sent me unit #3 (with a reserve on my credit card until #2 was returned). Unit #3 (which was marked as a refurb) had the same coaster-making issues, PLUS a new problem - my remote would barely work with it. Tried new batteries. Tried a new TiVo remote. Tried standing right in front of the friggin' unit. Nothing worked. It was so bad that it took major amounts of time to scroll thru menus. And to add even a single item to my wishlist took several minutes of button mashing.

I called Humax and they sent me unit #4. Also a refurb. Same problems as unit #3. Lots of coaster making, major problems with the remote.

That is where things stand right now. And frankly, I'm really disgusted. These problems couldn't be because the HD is almost full, because these days, I've not KEPT a unit long enough to get it even half-full (I have an 80 hour unit).

And at this point, I really don't know what to do.

I bought lifetime TiVo service on this thing for like $300 back in September...but somehow, I didn't expect 'lifetime' to mean 'four months'. :rolleyes:

I am afraid I basically lost $600, at this point. And no one will really help me.

I guess I could call up and get unit #5 sent out...but it is WAY un-fun to spend every Sunday afternoon setting up a new TiVo.

I think what they are trying to do is just wear us down. If they keep sending us junk, they figure maybe we'll get tired of setting up TiVo's and just live with a machine that barely works.

gamefreak1972

02-25-2006, 12:48 PM

Ok, I'll try to make a long story short, and hopefully someone here will have an idea on how to fix this... :(

My roommate has Tivo trouble, a lot like whats been described here already: "internal error" and refusal to burn dvds. Now, I used to troubleshoot PCs (and between that and the fact I normally dont mind fooling around with cabling and whatnot was how I got suckered into this mess in the first place. My roommate seems to think that since I daisy-chained my game consoles together on a switchbox I must be an expert...heh), so I already tried changing factors, different brands and types of discs, different programs that took up different amounts of space, using a lens cleaner, all that sort of thing. None of it worked for us, so we talked Tivo into sending us a replacement unit. So, at the moment we actually have two Tivo units. We wanted to try to save the data on the original, faulty unit and eventually burn those programs to dvd, so after about a weeks worth of tinkering and downloading updates, buying ethernet adapters and a crossover cable (the hardware alone for this little venture was like another $100!) - we FINALLY got the 2 tivos to recognize each other, and we began transferring files from the old Tivo to the new Tivo.

That should be the end of the story....but it isnt. Now the new tivo refuses to burn the transferred programs because its a different type of file?!?!?!? The Tivos are the SAME make and model, have the SAME drivers loaded, same software, same media key, same EVERYTHING as near as I can tell....so why the heck are we getting THIS message now and how can I fix it? honestly - if this were my tivo and my issue - I would have dumped the thing. I swear, even when I used to troubleshoot PCs for people who couldnt figure out how to turn the silly things on I have never hit a wall of frustration like this...I promised my roommate I'd try everything to get this fixed, but I am completely at my wits end and am completely out of ideas. :( Suggestions, please....? :confused:

megazone

02-25-2006, 05:31 PM

You should've checked first, sorry to say - you *cannot* burn transferred files, period. The transfer does not copy over the metadata needed for the unit to do a burn, they will only burn content recorded *on the box*. There is no solution, it will not work.

The only options would be to use TiVoToGo to move content from the original box to a PC and burn them to DVD there, or to connect the A/V out on the original unit to the A/V in (camera input is best) on the new box and re-record the content.

gamefreak1972

02-25-2006, 06:04 PM

...........cannot burn transferred files....? Are you SERIOUS???? Oh, my, freakin, God....

I spoke with like a zillion (ok, maybe more like 6) different tech support people at different times over the past week, and explained each time what was wrong, what had happened, what we were trying to do and what should I do next (like I said, I used to work in computer tech support - even when they had a case number I still made it a point to discuss the issue so everyone would be on the same page). NONE of them ever mentioned that what I was trying to do was impossible!!! :eek:

Thank you for your help Megazone - oh, if only Tivo employed people who know as much as you do!!

Now, I guess I get to go dig out my A/V cables and see if I can get the output/input/camera thing to work..though re-recording like 70-80 hrs worth of stuff does not sound like a good time.....I guess I'll be trotting on down to BestBuy for a Hub...

Thanks again

jhatru

02-27-2006, 11:11 AM

Wow after reading all these threads on people having problems with their HUMAX dvd burners maybe i should reconsdier buying the drt 400???? and just get a tivo box with just a 80gb hd.e any thoughts?

bird-mom

03-09-2006, 09:55 PM

[COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Arial]I have had just a few problems with my Humax unit and have decided that it was because the designated program to save was too close to max capacity for the DVD.

My question to all of you is about any unit that allows a combination of files for a program that overlaps a DVD (say 12 or 25%) to use the remaining space on the 2nd disk. I really hate to waste disks this way.

f123456

03-21-2006, 02:57 PM

So besides the failing that we've all been encountering, mine also just plain won't acknowledge certain discs. TDKs and Verbatims, my usual standbys, now bring up a message: "invalid or unsupported disc inserted" .

I have some ancient off-brand media that at least does get detected in the drive, but those usually fail during finalizing.

Any suggestions? Anybody know if I can change the internal drive to a different make burner & might that work? I have a spare Lite-On drive that I could put into the Tivo; just wondering if anybody has tried something like that yet.

rkr1958

03-21-2006, 03:20 PM

Great thread. I've been getting the "internal error" message when trying to burn a particual episode to disc. I only use DVD-RWs so failed burns don't bother me. I've probably made 150+ successful burns over the last 18-months or so with my Humax DTR-800. I've probably had 20 or so failed burns. Anyway, until now the failed burns haven't bothered me ... they bother me now because I keep getting this error on one particual episode that I want to get to DVD-RW.

I've never thought to power off the unit and / or leave the burning screen up. I can't wait to try those to see if they work. I do have three types of DVD-RW media that I rotate out.

Also, one thing that I've discovered is that I get failed burns with DVD-RW media that I've never used before. I've had success in those cases if I write to that media in my PC and then use that in my DRT-800.

whitmans77

04-12-2006, 12:45 PM

I called tivo to let them know that I was getting errors again burning disks. Well the 1st time they told me to try and used a dvd cleaner on it so I did, even restarted it and had no luck--still saying "saving failed" and "internal error".

So i called back and this time the CSR gave me a code to put in. he said that it was quite possible that part of teh hard drive had bad material on it and that he the tivo needed to run a disc scan. He had me put in a code as the tivo was rebooting. It consisted of holding the pause button then hitting 5 and 7 at a certain time.

The tivo then kept going thru its normal startup. Then all of a sudden a green comes up with a statement that a serious internal error had been found and teh tivo needed to fix it. It said it may take up to 3 hours to fix. At this point I thought that I was going to lose everything on the Tivo. But lo and behold about 10 minutes later the Tivo rebooted and started .

I wwas not expecting anything to change but I tried to burn a disc and IT WORKED--I was able to burn 2 more discs with sucess last night . I was really suprised but as for now the code that he gave me worked and is worth a try to anyone having issuses. If you want to know the exact code and teh exact timing for teh code just let meknow--its really weird.

TiVoEvan74

04-12-2006, 06:07 PM

Yes, let us know the details in case anyone else wants (or is in desperate need of) trying this!

whitmans77

04-12-2006, 08:43 PM

ok here we go---now it may take a few times for you to get it right---timing is key , but heres what worked for me

1--unplug your tivo for at least 5 minutes
2--reconnect your tivo to power and watch the lights above the HDD and DVD signs on teh front of the tivo
3--when the DVD light is on by itself and is red , hold the pause button
4--when the DVD and HDD lights come back on orange release the pause button and press the number 5 and then the number 7
5--wait a while and the tivo will continue to cycle through some starting up stuff, (hopefully) eventually the screen will turn green with the message that it is checking stuff

if your tivo starts up w/o the green screen , the timing is off and you need to try again

hopefully this will work for you, it did for me--let me know if there are more questions

OldTownTreadles

04-15-2006, 08:09 PM

So... I'm thinking I'm going to do a "clear and delete." I'm thinking that the burn process needs temp file space (or maybe contiguous temp file space?)...or something with the storage of files on the new hard drive is the problem.

Any other thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!

You might have something there. I know for sure that when I burn DVDs on my computer, they take up temporary space, and working space, and the leftover stuff from doing it is scattered all over the hard drive. So it is likely it is the same for these units.

Also I know when I was talking to a Humax tech support gal today (really nice, very helpful) one of the symptoms that I described had her suggest that fix.

OldTownTreadles

04-15-2006, 08:12 PM

ok here we go---now it may take a few times for you to get it right---timing is key , but heres what worked for me

1--
hopefully this will work for you, it did for me--let me know if there are more questions

It's a keeper! I took the context, your first post, and your detailed list there and ported it over to a pdf file. It'll stay there, and if any more codes come up, if someone will tug my braid and point me to them, I'll make a pdf of them too.

Thanks, that's beautiful, and bravo to you for going to the trouble for the rest of us even after you got your problem resolved.

stenson

05-02-2006, 09:06 PM

2a.) Failures to burn specific recordings to sometimes work on DVD-RWs when they won't work on DVD-Rs. Perhaps a different brand of media will help these 'problem' recordings as well.

I noticed that I haven't had a problem so far when using FujiFilm DVD-RW. I have had more failures then success when using Verbatim DVD-R.

gulbane

07-19-2006, 02:40 PM

Hey all

Well, I just found this thread after getting the "saving failed" error randomly over the past 3 months.

I have also tried everything to fix the issue - but I think I may have resolved it.

The Tivo Hard Drive needs plenty of room when it burns a DVD. Apparently, it needs to temporarily put the recorded program on the Hard Drive again, in a different spot, and THEN burn it to a DVD. I have noticed that when I have alot of programs on the HD I will repeatedly get the saving failed errors. When I delete some of the programs and try again, with the same exact disk and program, it will work.

So, for me, thats it. 10 minutes ago, I was unable to burn 4 episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse onto a Sony DVD-R disk. I deleted about 3 hours worth of programs, kept the same dvd in the drive, and tried again. Worked 1st try.

Luck?

TiVoEvan74

07-19-2006, 03:05 PM

Wait! How can this be true? A DVD-R recording failed and then you tried again and it worked?! That would suggest the failure is within the software and in the TiVo. Otherwise, I've never heard of a DVD-R recording failing and then the disc being usable a second time.

Also, the filled drive idea has been debunked in the past, as TiVo Suggestions, when on, fills up the hard drive in any case! Many people have reported success even when their drives are filled. And conversely, others found (e.g., moi) that lining up a full disc's worth of shows could create failures, whereas backing up and only lining up say 11 rather than 12 half hour shows at Basic would work.

But I'm an empiricist at heart and your finding could be an important clue in the puzzle... and it could well be that others did not systematically remove a bunch of shows and then try recording. And that is a contributing factor.

In any event, the solution I've found is to use DVD-RW discs, no problem if there's a failure. I also am recording mostly on my Toshiba, but our Human has worked fine in the past, too.

megazone

07-19-2006, 11:13 PM

If the burn failed during the preparing stage then the DVD-R was never touched, so it'd still be usable.

gothicbabe

07-20-2006, 05:34 PM

ok here we go---now it may take a few times for you to get it right---timing is key , but heres what worked for me

1--unplug your tivo for at least 5 minutes
2--reconnect your tivo.......

Okay, after visiting for over a year, I finally had to resister and post. I, of course, have all the same problems everyone does. I can live with the delayed/double clicking. It gets better or worse with each over the air upgrade. But I CANNOT live w/o my DVD recording.

And yes, I too have had a DVD start, tivo reboots on it's own, and if the process was still at "preparing", I can use the DVD again. And it's not a RW.

I tried the rebooting, the clearing the saved shows, and everything else. I couldn't burn even one DVD. I saw no point in returing the unit after reading the posts.

When I first saw whitmans77 post I thought it was a joke. Like "stand on a star, spin around 3 times and click your heels". But IT WORKED! It only took about 15 minutes and I have recorded about 5 DVDs now. It is definitely recording at a slower speed, but who cares!

I have no doubt that the problem will be back. But hopefully this "trick" will work again.

talk2troy

07-22-2006, 03:29 PM

I have tried the reboot & PERMANTLEY delete all the old deleted shows to free up HD space and could not get a successful DVD burn. I tried other media too.

I also thought whit's button dance of "press pause, then 5, then 7" was BS, but after several tries, I got the green screen! "The DVR has detected a serious error..." It said it may take 3 hours, so I turned it off and went out for lunch.

30 min. later I was back and it was playing normal TV, so I tried to burn a DVD-RW disk (this media always worked in the past) and it failed. I was burning all the same show (cartoons) & filled the disk to 100%.

I un-pluged /re-pluged TIVO, did "button dance", got green screen again, waited thru it and after 15 minutes it went to the welcome screen. I loaded a DVD-R and the same shows, 100% and - IT WORKED! Oh, :) day!

I am going to try the same JVC 2-4x DVD-RW to see if it was really just a "re-boot" required after the first green screen "fix" completed. A lot of shows are stacked up, so I'll let ya' know!

EDIT - My - Humax DRT800 / Firmware V. DVD-RW DVR-108RZ 1.15 / Software V. 7.2.2-oth.01-2-595 - no longer seems to like -RW media, and after the -RW, it failed on DVD-R's (Ritek Ri-DATA 4x from Meritline.com) that I JUST used sucessfully! I am gonna' "button dance" again and just use the DVD-R's to see if it is the -RW's screwing things up.

gulbane

07-23-2006, 10:21 AM

gothicbabe

07-25-2006, 05:43 PM

I did the "pause", "5", "7" thing last week and everything was fine. I didn't burn any DVDs over the weekend and when I tried yesterday, "saving failed" again! This so sucks. I heard maybe heat is an issue with the burning so I put a fan inside the component cabinet. Hopefully it helps or I'm back to 5, 7ing again. I honestly think its the updates. I never have a problem until one update will just wreck havoc. I got the double/delayed clicking in an update and it went away once another update happened. Now its back too.
Is there a TIVO with a DVD recorder out there that works?

mollyblack

08-19-2006, 03:20 PM

I have a DRT-400, and since getting the latest software update I can no longer save to DVD.

I go through the wizard and start the burn. Once the burn starts, there is a very long pause and then I get a "save failed" message and something about an "Internal Error".

I'm using media that I know works (I've used the media before).

All I know is we've tried all the tricks people have recommended and the DVDs are definitely mostly written ... they show up as "broken" disc images when I put them in again.

This is only about a month after the warranty wore out and they want to charge us to fix what is obviously a software bug. They have lost my business as soon as the year is up and I will build my own box. I've got a pile of reflective coasters and Humax will not do anything to fix this issue.

And to make it worse I was on the phone waiting to talk to Tivo for 15 minutes and as soon as 10pm CST hit their phone system hung up on me. Between them and Humax I can't wait to get rid of their service.

theandrews

08-19-2006, 06:06 PM

We have different unit, (Humax DRT-800) but you might want to try the following anyway. We had the same problem found a fix that worked for us.

1) Don't burn a DVD while the unit is recording another program. Our unit won't muti task any longer but does burn DVDs when the machine is doing nothing else.

2) Try using a DVD-RW instead of DVD-R. Awhile back we had the same problem with one show that would create coasters with DVD-Rs but would burn to a DVD-RW.

3) Try burning a different show instead of the one creating coasters. After Failing to burn the same show on a DVD-R but working on a DVD-RW we tried a totally different show onto a DVD-R with success. It ended up being just that one show and not the DVDs or Tivo.

Good Luck

goosmn

09-13-2006, 04:41 PM

So, is it safe to say that this issue seems to be software related and not hardware? I am having the same problem. I was also thinking of getting a new hard drive from the weaknees website. What do you think?

TiVoEvan74

09-14-2006, 08:24 AM

My sense is that it's an interaction between software and hardware--and the specific shows, demands, and nature of the DVD burning being tried.

The other thing that we're discovering (we haven't had more than 1 or 2 problems with DVD burning and that was some time ago) is that accumulating a stack of DVDs is just a big a nuisance as a stack of videotapes (well, it is a smaller stack, but as big a nuisance). Sure one can rummage through the DVDs and it does mean unlimited storage, but, in an ideal world, I'd rather have a massive hard drive on which all this stuff could go, and be able to access it via the regular TiVo menu, than having to search through the DVD pile! Of course, in an ideal world, I'd also like to have the ability to hook up a hard drive to the TiVo and back up that massive hard drive, too!

iTiv anyone? (so long as it can stream elgato's recorded shows)

Chester_Lampwick

09-19-2006, 12:54 AM

1) Don't burn a DVD while the unit is recording another program. Our unit won't muti task any longer but does burn DVDs when the machine is doing nothing else.

Hate to rain on your parade, but the TiVo is always recording, it's called the live tv buffer.

To add some useful information, Ive noticed:

When archiving a TV series to DVD every 8th disc or so fails. I put 4 half hour high quality show per disc. If you can watch the display and note when it fails, then you know which episode is the culprit. 0 - 25% episode 1 for instance. You can then usually copy the remaining episodes to disc with no problems. I then use TiVo Desktop to transfer the proble show to my PC. I use directshow dump to convert the .tivo file toa .mpeg file. I've noticed that I can't convert the file to .vob with tytool because it says it's a dolby audio source. I can however use Nero Vision to make that .mpeg into a DVD along with the .vob file I've ripped from the DVD the TiVo made.

It's a royal PITA when this happens, but it's only been with this one series for me, and it's never kept me from archiving an episode. I'd say it's about 2% of my total discs that fail.

Hope this helps,
Roger

TiVoEvan74

09-19-2006, 08:07 AM

Sorry, a correction. The TiVo is NOT always recording. For those of you who don't like the sound or want it lessened over night, the trick of putting TiVo on a channel that you don't receive stops the recording!

Still, it's of limited relevance to this issue, unless having an actual recording going on (as opposed to live buffer) invokes a different part of the software code-- or that a difference in quality being set changes things some how.

WhiskeyTango

09-22-2006, 03:34 PM

I have a DRT-800 and had the 'Save Failed' problem a few months ago. I noticed the problem seemed to happen when I went back to Live TV while burning to the disk. I tried keeping the Tivo menu on-screen while recording and the problem stopped. It was a bit of a hassle if the recording took longer than the 15 minutes or whatever time the menu stays on before reverting back to Live TV. I don't know how or why but the fails have seemed to have stopped whether the menu is up or not now. I'm not sure if this 'solution' is actually the reason the failures stopped but it may be worth trying if your other option is a useless DVD burner.

amgqmp1

10-25-2006, 11:26 AM

amgqmp1

10-25-2006, 09:50 PM

How many of you that are experiencing this have upgraded the hard drive in your Humax?

I just received my Humax DRT-400 last week from TiVo...and, I coastered five discs last night before getting out the DVD-RW it shipped with. It's never been able to burn that properly either. I upgraded the hard drive before I even first powered the unit on (it came pre-activated). Just wondering if this is something to do with large drives...or swap partition size being too small...or, possibly these units are just junk...? :)

FWIW, I put my stock drive in (which was running v5 of the TiVo OS) and it just made me a new coaster. I'm doing the "5-6" trick (instead of the "5-7" trick) per the direction of Humax Support. If that doesn't fix it...then, it appears I got a junk box and they'll replace it. Oh well, you win some you lose some... :rolleyes:

tiv0pete

10-26-2006, 01:57 AM

I don't know if this helps, but I bought an 80-hour Humax box w/TiVo a couple of years ago, and the DVD burner fizzled out after a few months, with the "internal drive error" message. My 4-year service agreement with Best Buy allowed me to exchange it. Well, I had to go through this process three more times, because each time they gave me a new Humax box the DVD burner failed, usually after a few weeks. One actually failed after just a few days.

So I brought the fifth one back and got a store credit, with which I bought a nice Toshiba DVD recorder w/80GB hard drive (but no TiVo). This one has now burned more than 800 DVDs without any problems whatsoever. The guy at Best Buy told me that, in his opinion, Humax (made in South Korea) was using either cheap parts or poor engineering. I also notice that my local Best Buy has not carried the Humax brand for some time now. I guess I know why! IMHO Humax is a lousy brand, as far as I can tell.

In addition to the Toshiba, I also have a cheap Radio Shack DVD recorder w/hard drive which I simply hook up between my regular 80-hour TiVo (not Humax!) and my TV. Then I simply either copy saved programs from the TiVo to the Radio Shack to burn to DVDs, or else just set the Radio Shack to record from the AV1 input jack, where the TiVo is connected. That way, I schedule programs to record using the TiVo. And for any of them that I know ahead of time I will also want to burn to DVD, I just program the Radio Shack to record the program as the signal is passed to it from the TiVo box. (The Radio Shack box doesn't have the capability to change the channels on the Comcast digital cable box, so I use the TiVo to change the channel and pass the signal through.)

So I can now record digital cable stuff on the Toshiba and burn it to DVD, and can record analog cable (basic cable) directly on the Radio Shack box or else digital cable via a passthrough from the TiVo box (that is connected to a second digital cable box).

FYI, the Radio Shack box does not respond to the Macrovision copy protection signal, so it will record anything to DVD. So I simply record non-copy-protected channels (e.g., Turner Classic Movies channel) on the Toshiba, and copy-protected stuff on the TiVo/Radio Shack combo system.

BTW, in case anyone is wondering, the fair use law allows a private individual to archive one copy of any cable TV programming (except Pay-Per-View/Video On Demand) to a videotape or DVD-R disk, as long as they don't make multiple copies for sale or distribution. It is NOT illegal to bypass the Macrovision copy protection signal, even though Macrovision would like you to think so. (Note: all five of the Humax boxes I owned, described previously, completely ignored the Macrovision signal, so they also could record anything at all and burn it to a DVD.)

However, Congress recently passed legislation, which Bush just signed into law, making it illegal to sell Macrovision signal "neutralizers" (electronic boxes that neutralize the copy protection signal) after Oct. 25 (yesterday). I'm glad I bought one on 10/23 which I'll probably hook up to my Toshiba DVD recorder so that it will now operate just like the Radio Shack box. (The govt. and Macrovision may try to intimidate us, but if we're within our Constitutional rights, there is little they can do if we manage to stay one step ahead.)

amgqmp1

10-27-2006, 02:18 AM

tiv0pete

10-27-2006, 10:46 AM

Pioneer optical drives usually aren't considered "cheap" parts. They're not my personal favorite, but, they should work fine (what do you think is in every Mac with a burner that's been sold for the past few years?).

Update on my story...talked with Humax support...they're sending me a replacement box. Mine must have just been a bad apple.

When five out of five of my Humax DVD burners fail within months, weeks or even days, I figure there's probably a problem. And, in fact, I finally got one honest tech support person to admit that they were having a problem with DVD burners. (When I was dealing with them a couple of years ago, they tended not to want to admit any weakness in their product, and they usually first tried to blame TiVo's software, which was never actually the real problem.)

I don't know whether the problem was with the drive itself or their implementation of it in the Humax box; and I don't know whether they've since improved. But I guess you'll find out after they send you another one. Good luck.

amgqmp1

11-01-2006, 03:56 PM

Update on my story...talked with Humax support...they're sending me a replacement box. Mine must have just been a bad apple.

Received the replacement and it seems to work fine with the stock drive. If I try to upgrade the unit to a 250GB drive...the TiVo functionality works fine, but, burning breaks like it did before. While I'm hesitant to screw with this...if anyone has any clues on why the bigger drive wouldn't work...(something with the mfsbackup/mfsrestore process from Weakness web site?)...then please clue me in. :)

ashu

11-01-2006, 04:20 PM

Received the replacement and it seems to work fine with the stock drive. If I try to upgrade the unit to a 250GB drive...the TiVo functionality works fine, but, burning breaks like it did before. While I'm hesitant to screw with this...if anyone has any clues on why the bigger drive wouldn't work...(something with the mfsbackup/mfsrestore process from Weakness web site?)...then please clue me in. :)

How soon after upgrading are you trying a burn?

Perhaps it is forced to make a connection, and is busy (CPU) processing guide cache data in the background, leading to CPU/bus overload?

Or perhaps, now that there is more space, it is almost always recording Suggestions (although I imagine you would have noticed if it started DURING a burn you babysit!) Try turning Suggestions off.

My 300GB Humax DRT800 still burns discs flawlessly.

amgqmp1

11-01-2006, 05:48 PM

How soon after upgrading are you trying a burn?

Perhaps it is forced to make a connection, and is busy (CPU) processing guide cache data in the background, leading to CPU/bus overload?

Or perhaps, now that there is more space, it is almost always recording Suggestions (although I imagine you would have noticed if it started DURING a burn you babysit!) Try turning Suggestions off.

My 300GB Humax DRT800 still burns discs flawlessly.

My burn attempts were immediately after rebooting with the upgraded drive attached.

The upgraded drive is a WD 250GB 7200RPM/8MB cache. It's a much faster drive than the stock 40GB Seagate (2MB cache) that shipped with the unit.

I get the concern of system resource overload, however, all of my testing was performed when the box was as idle as possible. It wasn't recording on any channels, no hard drive activity was occurring (other than the live TV buffer that's always running). The "System Information" screen did not indicate any type of data processing that was occurring (or pending).

I theorized that it may have something to do with the swap partition size...so, I repeated my testing with three different swap partition sizes (768MB, 512MB, 127MB). Didn't have a single bit of impact.

Whatever the malfunction...with the upgraded drive...burns fail at "0% saving" (as my old unit did consistently). Instinct tells me it's something to do with the mfsbackup/mfsrestore operation I was using...however, I place a decent amount of trust in the weakness instructions (generated by their web-based wizard).

Not the first TiVo I've "hacked"...just the first one that didn't work right with an upgraded drive. Very odd...

ashu

11-01-2006, 05:58 PM

At 0%? Sounds like an IDE controller/cable occasional malfunction (seeing as it works later with the old drive connected, which I conjecture is purely coincidental, and eliminates a faulty DVDRW drive)

I DO tend to conjecture excessively. YMMV.

When I swapped my drive, I replaced BOTH 40pin IDE connectors (HD and burner) with one mini (from weaknees) and one large (but 'folded' subcables for ventilation - know which ones I mean?) 80pin connector.

One of these dohickeys. (http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10227&cs_id=1022703&p_id=1261&seq=1&format=2&style=)

Oh, and monoprice and bluejeanscable are cool ... they might make a few 3-4inch connectors if we all, en masse, start requesting them for our DVRs to generate demand. Unlikely, though, seeing as only the DVD burner units use two short cables ... other S2 units need a long single connector cable.

amgqmp1

11-02-2006, 09:48 PM

Thanks for the advice. It did cross my mind when I had the case open...that 40-conductor IDE cables of any length sure seem out of place in this day and age. It felt a tad awkward hooking a 250GB HD up to one. ;)

I'll check my "modding stash" and see if I've got some airflow friendly 80-conductor cables...can't hurt to try. :)

I'll report back what I get...probably be a few days...I just got a new version of the OS...kinda like to see how that works for a bit. ;)

At 0%? Sounds like an IDE controller/cable occasional malfunction (seeing as it works later with the old drive connected, which I conjecture is purely coincidental, and eliminates a faulty DVDRW drive)

I DO tend to conjecture excessively. YMMV.

When I swapped my drive, I replaced BOTH 40pin IDE connectors (HD and burner) with one mini (from weaknees) and one large (but 'folded' subcables for ventilation - know which ones I mean?) 80pin connector.

One of these dohickeys. (http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10227&cs_id=1022703&p_id=1261&seq=1&format=2&style=)

Oh, and monoprice and bluejeanscable are cool ... they might make a few 3-4inch connectors if we all, en masse, start requesting them for our DVRs to generate demand. Unlikely, though, seeing as only the DVD burner units use two short cables ... other S2 units need a long single connector cable.

tiv0pete

11-04-2006, 12:07 AM

However, Congress recently passed legislation, which Bush just signed into law, making it illegal to sell Macrovision signal "neutralizers" (electronic boxes that neutralize the copy protection signal) after Oct. 25 (yesterday). I'm glad I bought one on 10/23 which I'll probably hook up to my Toshiba DVD recorder so that it will now operate just like the Radio Shack box. (The govt. and Macrovision may try to intimidate us, but if we're within our Constitutional rights, there is little they can do if we manage to stay one step ahead.)

Apparently my earlier comment, quoted above, was incorrect. Macrovision neutralizers/clarifiers are still available in the U.S. I guess the manufacturers won a recent court ruling. Anyway, I believe the best ones are manufactured by Sima Products Company but are also sold on the Web under different names. E.g., Sima's best product is called Sima DP-2000; but it is sold by others also under different names. E.g., Facet Video sells it as the Clarifier SX. (That's the one I bought recently, and it works perfectly.)

I don't know if these will work with HD, but you can always ask the merchant. Mine has S-video and RCA/composite video jacks; but maybe they make HD-compatible stuff, too. If you're curious, you can Google on the phrase "Sima DP-2000" or "Clarifier SX" or you can just go to sites such as Facet Video at: facetvideo.com.

Anymountain

11-10-2006, 06:00 PM

tiv0pete

11-11-2006, 01:43 AM

My Humax DVD burner just started failing after a year of working succesefully. It Burns DVD's and then fails to close them. It is obviously not a hardware issue.

If it can burn 95% of a DVD, at 25% full or 99% full then it isn't a drivespace issue. It has to be a software issue.

When I hear that somebody has three machines fail, after a week. There is only one thing changing in that week, Tivo Update.

Tivo should just tell us which Burners they are making work, I'm sure everyone would rather spend $50 on a new burner, and have the issue done with. It took me longer to write this e-mail then it would to replace an optical drive.

Regarding the portion of your comment that I've boldfaced, above: I don't know whether you're perhaps referring to my earlier post, which I'll quote here:

"Well, I had to go through this process three more times, because each time they gave me a new Humax box the DVD burner failed, usually after a few weeks. One actually failed after just a few days."

FYI, the first Humax failed after about eight months. I immediately replaced it with a second Humax, which worked fine for about three months. The third Humax, which I bought as soon as the second one failed, worked fine for a few weeks. The fourth one worked fine for about a week. There were no TiVo software updates during that period of time that would have caused the problem.

Doesn't sound like a software problem to me. Nor did it to Best Buy's tech/repair staff, who confirmed the hardware failures each time. (Which Humax also finally confirmed after I did some arm-twisting of an honest/guilty-feeling Humax tech support person.) Humax's next suggestion? They rather lamely said, just send it to us and we'll send you another box. My response? "Well, no thanks, folks . . . ."

That's why I'm not surprised that one probably would have a hard time finding Humax machines anymore at Best Buy, etc. That's why I'm also skeptical about the "refurbished" Humax boxes that TiVo has been dumping as "special deals" on its Web site. I wasn't able to get a definitive answer from either TiVo or Humax about exactly what burners are in these "free" boxes, except that Humax implied they were "original equipment" rather than something different/better.

amgqmp1

11-11-2006, 11:01 PM

Definitely not an IDE cable issue. My Humax is running a GSOD repair as I type this...with my upgrade drive connected via an 80-pin cable.

With my stock hard drive, burns are fine on this replacement for my original that always fsiled.

With my upgraded drive (followed Weakness instructions/used mfstools 2.0), new drive is a WD 250GB 8MB 7200RPM, it will fail within five seconds of starting "Saving...0%". The failure is always the generic "internal error".

Fingers crossed that the GSOD does the trick...I loathe the idea of using the box with it's stock drive. To get quality worth watching it's an 11 hour box...

amgqmp1

11-12-2006, 02:04 PM

GSOD did not help with my problem at all. Neither did a "5-6", though, I'm not confident that part worked. Either way, my solution was finally found with my upgrade drive and my second DRT-400....perform a "Clear & Delete Everything". The box is now booted...just did another test burn to a DVD-RW...and all is well. Hopefully my trials and tribulations help someone along the way...

Now if I could only figure out why it won't boot properly when all the screws are in for the case lid. (yes, seriously)

Maybe some other company will come out with a bit better DVD burning TiVo in the future...though, I'm not utterly convinced the headaches many of us have had aren't TiVo OS deficiencies...and/or poor communication between TiVo and partner orgs (e.g. Humax).

tiv0pete

11-17-2006, 02:29 PM

I just recorded the mindbending film "Memento" off the Bravo channel last night on my Toshiba DVD/HDD recorder. Because Bravo isn't commercial-free, I first removed all the commercials. Next I burned a copy of the movie as originally released onto a blank DVD. Then I went back to the hard drive and reshuffled all the scenes into their actual chronological order (first 22 scenes in B&W, last 23 scenes in color, and reversing the order of the color scenes vs. the orginal release. The re-edited version in actual chronological order is wonderful to watch, especially right after watching the original release version.

amgqmp1

11-21-2006, 12:34 PM

I hate to be "that guy", but, you're a bit OT my friend... ;)

I just recorded the mindbending film "Memento" off the Bravo channel last night on my Toshiba DVD/HDD recorder. Because Bravo isn't commercial-free, I first removed all the commercials. Next I burned a copy of the movie as originally released onto a blank DVD. Then I went back to the hard drive and reshuffled all the scenes into their actual chronological order (first 22 scenes in B&W, last 23 scenes in color, and reversing the order of the color scenes vs. the orginal release. The re-edited version in actual chronological order is wonderful to watch, especially right after watching the original release version.

ashu

11-21-2006, 01:01 PM

I hate to be "that guy", but, you're a bit OT my friend... ;)

Wait for it ... he's going to tell you to Get a Life. At least that's what he did when I pointed out (less diplomaticaly) that he was straying off-topic. Again. :rolleyes:

amgqmp1

11-21-2006, 01:10 PM

I don't want to turn this into a users complaining about other users thread...but, the off-topic post is cross-posted too.

Tiv0pete -- from one user of these forums to another -- please keep posts remotely on-topic, and, please don't straffe the message boards with the same posting in different threads (i.e. cross-posting).

mmmelpomene

01-07-2007, 12:45 PM

I'm no techie, but I thought I might add my two cents and explain exactly what my machine's issue has been, the steps I have taken and the problems which have resulted, in case it might help clear up things for anyone else:

I have the 800, I've stuck with it, double-clicking remote and all, and now... my burns fail all the time. Constantly. When it first happened I used a CD lens cleaner to brighten things up, thinking to myself that I'd never used one before and should see if it were dirty. Fixed me up right for a few discs, then right back to "saving failed", after which point it started flunking out after every successful recording and eventually failed immediately and near-permanently for every burn, without making it past 2% that I can see and usually failing in the "Preparing" stage, after hanging there for at least 2 minutes.

I've tried saving a single show in case it were objecting to the new shows listing at 50% and not 49% (I usually have 2 on a disc), changing which show I save, changing discs, same response... "saving failed". The DVD-RW is a new type I've not used before, but I've had "saving failed" on discs of this ilk that I am then able to turn right around and re-record over the identical disks with different programs, so the discs themselves aren't bum. I used to have the problem only with a particular drama series, then turned around and tried to do a week's worth of the same exact television show (this time I chose a talk show), to put paid to this nonsense about "bad" recordings. I've gotten the same results:

IF anything burnt, 2 episodes burnt to one disc and then, even after immediately removing the disk from the drive and deleting the successfully burnt episodes, the next pair of episodes would fail to burn. I tried nos. 1 and 2 in record order, 1 and 3, 2 and 4, 2 and 3, and 3 and 4 - no rhyme or reason to the fails, once it starts failing it would fail until I ran the lens cleaning disc through or reset the machine. Today I have deleted a batch of junk and am currently at almost 100% free space. I also today had a problem with the disc drive refusing to recognize first that the drive door was actually closed, then that it actually contained a disc at all - this is not a new problem for me, but mainly in the past it happened when I accidentally left the disc tray open for a while and then I thought it might be understandable because I'd confused the machine - not so this time.

I've been through two system resets (though not a hard reset yet nor the button dance, I'm waiting until I have enough time to babysit) and 2 "reset DVD"'s from the menu. I have no other components sitting on top or below the player within six inches, with the exception of a side by side stereo receiver (they still don't touch), so there would be no external reason for the machine getting hot. The only guesses I had were wondering if maybe the shows that are giving me issues have recently switched to HD and that makes a difference, or that my off-brand -RWs are junk. I would easily and happily blame the -RWs for all the flaws and switch back to my Memorex, which always worked great, but then I came here and saw that there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the brand of discs which were giving others problems.

Chester_Lampwick

01-07-2007, 09:41 PM

My luck with Memorex is not good. The DVD-RWs didn't work at all. I had a 100 spindle of DVD-Rs and had 6 or 7 coasters. They sound like a truck idling when burning. Same with Fujifilm and TDK DVD-Rs. Maxells are great though.

DrKaraoke

01-08-2007, 07:31 PM

Now if I could only figure out why it won't boot properly when all the screws are in for the case lid. (yes, seriously)

Because it would be easy to figure out if the lid were open. :D

DrKaraoke

01-13-2007, 04:50 PM

I've been conducting several burns looking for a common point on these burn problems which I have not seen posted here (I've gotten around the 1.15 firmware issue). I have set my TX20 on the "medium" setting for quality (next to lowest). I can successfully record anything by itself or in combination with another show as long as the disk usage does not reach 50% (approximately 2 hours on this 4 hour setting). The same shows record by themselves or in combinations that do not reach 50%. This has been a common (and the only common) situation with all of my burns, even at other levels of quality. That is to say that I believe if you reach 50% of DVD disc capacity at any level, the burn will end in an error. This involves only DVD-R's, the RW's do not seem affected by this. Someone with more programming knowledge than i will have to figure out why.

This makes me think that this is a software issue, I assume with TiVo. I'm going to contact them with this information. I'd be interested in your results if you try this.

Follow up:

OK, I've tried several Value Disc DVD-R's and they are burning 100% in two different units so far. One has 1.15 firmware. Seems like it might be a media problem. Got these "Value Discs" from a friend since i was out of DVD-R's (previous were Memorex). Hope I can find more if this holds true. :rolleyes:

charmster

03-30-2007, 01:00 AM

another failure report ---

i have a Series 2 Tivo, a Toshiba RS-TX60. a couple of weeks ago i started having the same problem of saving to DVD failing.

in my case the problem is associated with the program i'm trying to save. a particular program causes the problem if it's included in the "mix", or even if i try to save it by itself. saving of other programs works fine. several episodes of Battlestar Galactica are unsaveable, as is one episode of Inuyasha. the episodes all seem to play fine.

i'm using the same type of media i was before, which is FujiFilm 8X DVD-R. the system is shown at Software Version 8.1-01-2-565 and the DVD Firmware as DVD-RW DVR-108RZ 1.15.

i guess i'll go buy some TDK media and see if that fixes the problem. you'd think if the Tivo was that particular that the DVD save screens would remind you that TDK is the only supported media.

bleah.

jjmg

06-13-2007, 02:46 PM

Hm. I was hoping to try the pause - 5 - 7 dance but the instructions don't seem to match the way my Humax works. They say specifically to press pause when the Humax first comes on and the DVD light is red. and then to let go of pause when the two lights come on orange.

Unfortunately for me both lights come on orange from the first moment the Humax comes on. There is no time (during startup) when just one light is red.

bird-mom

07-04-2007, 05:08 PM

I'm not such a techie as some of you younger people, but I've generally had good luck with my Humax Series 2 TiVo- for over 3 years now. I was just doing a search because I tried a save to DVD-D of 2 French films recently on IFC and TCM -failed 3 times although each was 43% at medium (fine for my 32"TV). It occurred to me that one of those channels may have added blocking software recently. Any comments?

I also saw that Tivopete has eliminated the commercials before copying- would like to know his wiring setup- back in the start of pre-cable days (ON-TV etc) I gave guys instructions and diagrams to block stuff for their kids. I'll be 70 this year and still love all kinds of stuff-hard for my 2 TiVos to figure out.