Season Passes before/after CableCard

rictus · 01-05-2007, 12:59 PM

Hi,

I just got my Series3 yesterday, and plugged my cable into it in advance of my CableCard install. I set up some Season Passes for shows I can get off the basic analog channels. After the CableCards are installed, will the TiVo correctly switch the Season Passes to record off the digital channels coming in over the CableCards, or will I need to delete and recreate them?

Thanks,

nj

hookbill · 01-05-2007, 01:17 PM

Well, you can't set up SP's on HD until the cable cards are installed. All you would be able to set up is analog stations. So if you set up an SP for let's say "Bones" it will stay on the analog station, it won't move to HD.

You should probably read the FAQ's there is a great deal to learn about setting up SP's, specially Wish List and such.

TexasAg · 01-05-2007, 01:20 PM

Cable companies often broadcast some HD channels (like the local HD channels) without encryption. I know Verizon Fios does. If any of your season passes are on local channels (ABC, NBC, etc.), I'd check to see if you already get the HD versions of those channels.

AbMagFab · 01-05-2007, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hookbill

Well, you can't set up SP's on HD until the cable cards are installed. All you would be able to set up is analog stations. So if you set up an SP for let's say "Bones" it will stay on the analog station, it won't move to HD.

You should probably read the FAQ's there is a great deal to learn about setting up SP's, specially Wish List and such.

Totally untrue.

Or more specifically, it depends on how your cable company does the digital mapping.

Comcast in my area maps the sub-100 channels to the digital equivalent. So when you tune to 76 HGTV, it's actually the digital channel.

And they made this change after I had my CC's installed.

All of the season passes I had on the analog channels still work, but they are now recording digital channels. I did nothing, it just works.

So do what you want, and see what happens. If the channel number change, then you might want to redo the season passes on the new digital channels. If the channel numbers don't change, you're set and they'll record digital instead of analog.

crowfan · 01-05-2007, 02:01 PM

One thing I did notice was that when I set up the SPs on the analog channels before the CCs were installed, I was getting the "Recording Quality" option (i.e., it was recording analog). When the CCs were installed, any new SPs did not have the RQ option, because it was directly recording the digital stream.

However, SPs that I created before the CC install still had the RQ option on them, even after the CCs were installed. I deleted those SPs and recreated them, and then the RQ option was gone. I'm not sure how it would have recorded if I had left it. Would it have attempted to compress it?

AbMagFab · 01-05-2007, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crowfan

One thing I did notice was that when I set up the SPs on the analog channels before the CCs were installed, I was getting the "Recording Quality" option (i.e., it was recording analog). When the CCs were installed, any new SPs did not have the RQ option, because it was directly recording the digital stream.

However, SPs that I created before the CC install still had the RQ option on them, even after the CCs were installed. I deleted those SPs and recreated them, and then the RQ option was gone. I'm not sure how it would have recorded if I had left it. Would it have attempted to compress it?

Right. I intentionally didn't mention this because it doesn't matter, but...

It records the digital stream, and ignores the recording quality setting.

Because it annoyed me to see the recording quality setting at all, I actually deleted and recreated my season passes after a couple weeks just for s&g, but it was unnecessary, and it was clear all the programs recorded in that time were digital (the picture quality change was very noticable).

I realized Comcast made the change when I was no longer seeing the herring-bone pattern on the analog stations (since they were all digital). I got a call a week later saying they converted to all digital.

hookbill · 01-05-2007, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AbMagFab

Totally untrue.

Or more specifically, it depends on how your cable company does the digital mapping.

Comcast in my area maps the sub-100 channels to the digital equivalent. So when you tune to 76 HGTV, it's actually the digital channel.

And they made this change after I had my CC's installed.

All of the season passes I had on the analog channels still work, but they are now recording digital channels. I did nothing, it just works.

So do what you want, and see what happens. If the channel number change, then you might want to redo the season passes on the new digital channels. If the channel numbers don't change, you're set and they'll record digital instead of analog.

What I stated was totally true. It's what I experienced in my area. I don't appreciate you quoteing me and saying "totally untrue." Then you go on to explain with "depending on your area."

What I said was not totally untrue. I'll accept your apology at anytime.

Jerry_K · 01-05-2007, 02:40 PM

I have many season passes set up for HD and I have no cable or cable cards. OTA has HD too.

eelton · 01-05-2007, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hookbill

Well, you can't set up SP's on HD until the cable cards are installed.

It's also possible to set up SPs on HD if you use OTA--as I do. After the CableCard is installed, the SPs are still there, and I see no reason to change them to record via cable.

CrispyCritter · 01-05-2007, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hookbill

What I stated was totally true. It's what I experienced in my area. I don't appreciate you quoteing me and saying "totally untrue." Then you go on to explain with "depending on your area."

What I said was not totally untrue. I'll accept your apology at anytime.

Hookbill, you're mostly reasonable, but you're way off base here. You made a nonsensical statement that didn't address the OP at all. The OP was asking about digital channels; you responded about HD channels. The two are very different, and AbMagFab addressed the original poster's issues because you hadn't. You told the original poster he couldn't make SPs; you were wrong to do so because your area doesn't mean anything about his area.

In addition, as others have pointed out, your statement was false even just about HD.

hookbill · 01-05-2007, 04:21 PM

OK. I'm totally wrong. Sorry for my post.

NOT!

The OP asked about cable card install. He didn't say anything about OTA. I pointed out that the channels for HD when DIGITAL CABLE CARDS are installed change. They did in my area. They were on there OTA spots on my cable without cable cards. With install they went to their regular spots.

Maybe I didn't address his question properly in regards to setting up digital SP's that I'll agree but I am still not totally incorrect in my original post.

AbFab, no apology necessary of course. Crispy, no hard feelings.

Now quit picking on me or I'll take my ball and go home.

rictus · 01-05-2007, 07:44 PM

AbMagFab was correct--my question was about non-HD channels that are broadcast in both analog and digital over cable. Sorry that that wasn't clear.

I believe the Comcast channel numbers for the analog and digital versions are the same, so it sounds like it should just work. But I don't have that many SPs anyway, so I may just recreate them just to be sure.

Thanks.

danitaz · 01-05-2007, 08:19 PM

FWIW, I had some interesting experiences with this. I had an SP set for the 9pm news here in HD, which was broadcasting on Denver 9-1. When I plugged in the cable cards and reconfigured to say I was getting cable only, this switched to Comcast channel 653 (which is Comcast's location for Denver's Channel 9 HD) without me doing anything at all. Not only did it convert the SP, but they were totally different channel numbers.

I gave my daughter my Tivo2. We were using Dish Network, and now are on Comcast, so NOTHING is the same of course. Every one of my SPs converted to the Comcast channel that was the same. If they were USA on DishNetwork, they remapped automagically to USA on Comcast, etc.

Danita

hookbill · 01-05-2007, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rictus

AbMagFab was correct--my question was about non-HD channels that are broadcast in both analog and digital over cable. Sorry that that wasn't clear.

I believe the Comcast channel numbers for the analog and digital versions are the same, so it sounds like it should just work. But I don't have that many SPs anyway, so I may just recreate them just to be sure.

Thanks.

Sorry I didn't give the right answer.

rictus · 01-07-2007, 09:30 PM

I had my CableCards installed today, and everything seems to be mostly working. I went ahead and recreated the SPs that had been pointing to the analog channels (<100), just to make sure that they would now point properly to the digital versions of those channels. However, new SPs on those channels still show a Quality option. (SPs I create pointing to non-basic channels >100 don't show the Quality option.) Is it possible that the S3 is still pulling the analog signal for these channels even though they're available digitally with the same numbers? I haven't stared at the channels long enough to tell whether I think they look digital or analog now.

(I'm pretty sure the basic cable channels are available digitally--on my old Motorola PVR, they showed QAM info.)

This is Comcast in Oakland, CA, btw.

Roderigo · 01-08-2007, 02:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rictus

I had my CableCards installed today, and everything seems to be mostly working. I went ahead and recreated the SPs that had been pointing to the analog channels (<100), just to make sure that they would now point properly to the digital versions of those channels. However, new SPs on those channels still show a Quality option.

That means you're still getting the analog version. This isn't an S3 problem, as it has to use the mapping provided by the cablecard. Call up comcast, and try to convince them to switch you over to the ADS lineup. As soon as they switch you over, all your season passes should continue to work on the remapped channels.

rictus · 01-08-2007, 02:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roderigo

That means you're still getting the analog version. This isn't an S3 problem, as it has to use the mapping provided by the cablecard. Call up comcast, and try to convince them to switch you over to the ADS lineup. As soon as they switch you over, all your season passes should continue to work on the remapped channels.

OK, thanks. By the way, what does "ADS" stand for?

Roderigo · 01-08-2007, 03:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rictus

OK, thanks. By the way, what does "ADS" stand for?

I think it's "All Digital Simulcast"