Mailing List Archive

PVR-500 Problems
I'm having problems getting my PVR-500 to work properly. The images are
terrible. I've tried testing it using MythTV as well as using "cat
/dev/video0 > /tmp/card0.mpg" and "cat /dev/video1 > /tmp/card1.mpg" and
they both look horrible either way. I know for a fact I have the version
with the Samsung tuner, so part of the problem could be that. The output
videos can be found here:

http://www.psuae.org/card0.mpg
http://www.psuae.org/card1.mpg

The sound seems to work alright, and I can hear what is being said, but
it is also a little fuzzy. I'm not very familiar with Linux
troubleshooting, but I'm willing to get my hands dirty and would
definitely appreciate some ideas as to where to start looking to solve this.

Just for reference, I'm running Ubuntu Edgy (2.6.17 kernel) with MythTV
0.20 and IVTV drivers from the repositories (0.7). My CPU is an x86 AMD
3200+, and I have an old ATI Rage card in there with ATI's proprietary
drivers. Any tips on where I might look for error messages, and what
specifically I might look for, would be greatly appreciated.

Here is the output from DMESG for the IVTV section:
http://psuae.org/dmesg.txt

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
Hey,

Have you tried taking off the caps and putting isolation in them?
(For example:
http://blogs.homelinux.org/2007/01/28/fixing-the-pvr-500-with-samsung-chipset/)

It doesn't help solve all the problems, but it helps just a bit.
Picture quality is far less satisfying than that of the original PVR-500
before the Samsung models.

Tim.

J. David Maino wrote:
> I'm having problems getting my PVR-500 to work properly. The images are
> terrible. I've tried testing it using MythTV as well as using "cat
> /dev/video0 > /tmp/card0.mpg" and "cat /dev/video1 > /tmp/card1.mpg" and
> they both look horrible either way. I know for a fact I have the version
> with the Samsung tuner, so part of the problem could be that. The output
> videos can be found here:
>
> http://www.psuae.org/card0.mpg
> http://www.psuae.org/card1.mpg
>
> The sound seems to work alright, and I can hear what is being said, but
> it is also a little fuzzy. I'm not very familiar with Linux
> troubleshooting, but I'm willing to get my hands dirty and would
> definitely appreciate some ideas as to where to start looking to solve this.
>
> Just for reference, I'm running Ubuntu Edgy (2.6.17 kernel) with MythTV
> 0.20 and IVTV drivers from the repositories (0.7). My CPU is an x86 AMD
> 3200+, and I have an old ATI Rage card in there with ATI's proprietary
> drivers. Any tips on where I might look for error messages, and what
> specifically I might look for, would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Here is the output from DMESG for the IVTV section:
> http://psuae.org/dmesg.txt
>
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>
>


_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
> Just for reference, I'm running Ubuntu Edgy (2.6.17 kernel) with MythTV
> 0.20 and IVTV drivers from the repositories (0.7).


I also have a PVR500 w/ Samsung tuners. The card really wasn't usable until I used the 2.6.18 kernel and 0.8.2 ivtv





____________________________________________________________________________________
Need a quick answer? Get one in minutes from people who know.
Ask your question on www.Answers.yahoo.com
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 2/14/07, Timothy Parez <timothy@saneprojects.be> wrote:
> Hey,
>
> Have you tried taking off the caps and putting isolation in them?
> (For example:
> http://blogs.homelinux.org/2007/01/28/fixing-the-pvr-500-with-samsung-chipset/)
>
> It doesn't help solve all the problems, but it helps just a bit.
> Picture quality is far less satisfying than that of the original PVR-500
> before the Samsung models.
>
I tried that on my board and there is no difference with or without
the caps. For me it is much better to attenuate the signal.

John

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
I've been digging around trying to figure this out and I noticed this on the
IVTV how-to:

"The PVR-150/PVR500 needs the following modules

- Conexant CX2584x audio/video decoders *(CONFIG_VIDEO_CX25840)*
- Wolfson Microelectronics WM8775 *(CONFIG_VIDEO_WM8775)*
- BT848 Video For Linux *(CONFIG_VIDEO_BT848)"*

I have the first 2 modules loaded but I cannot find the BT848 module when I
lsmod. When I try using modprobe, it says it can't find the module. Could
this be causing some of my problems?

Also, I'd like to try upgrading my kernel (from 2.6.17 to 2.6.17) and driver
version (from .7 to whatever I need... I think the how-to says .10, but
others have said .8.2) as was suggested. Does anyone know of a good tutorial
for this? I'm using Ubuntu, so I don't know if there's maybe one out there
specifically for this distro that a not-to-technically-inclined user like
myself might be able to use.

Thanks,
Dave

On 2/13/07, J. David Maino <david.maino@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I'm having problems getting my PVR-500 to work properly. The images are
> terrible. I've tried testing it using MythTV as well as using "cat
> /dev/video0 > /tmp/card0.mpg" and "cat /dev/video1 > /tmp/card1.mpg" and
> they both look horrible either way. I know for a fact I have the version
> with the Samsung tuner, so part of the problem could be that. The output
> videos can be found here:
>
> http://www.psuae.org/card0.mpg
> http://www.psuae.org/card1.mpg
>
> The sound seems to work alright, and I can hear what is being said, but
> it is also a little fuzzy. I'm not very familiar with Linux
> troubleshooting, but I'm willing to get my hands dirty and would
> definitely appreciate some ideas as to where to start looking to solve
> this.
>
> Just for reference, I'm running Ubuntu Edgy (2.6.17 kernel) with MythTV
> 0.20 and IVTV drivers from the repositories (0.7). My CPU is an x86 AMD
> 3200+, and I have an old ATI Rage card in there with ATI's proprietary
> drivers. Any tips on where I might look for error messages, and what
> specifically I might look for, would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Here is the output from DMESG for the IVTV section:
> http://psuae.org/dmesg.txt
>
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On Saturday 17 February 2007 16:50, David Maino wrote:
> I've been digging around trying to figure this out and I noticed this
> on the IVTV how-to:
>
> "The PVR-150/PVR500 needs the following modules
>
> - Conexant CX2584x audio/video decoders *(CONFIG_VIDEO_CX25840)*
> - Wolfson Microelectronics WM8775 *(CONFIG_VIDEO_WM8775)*
> - BT848 Video For Linux *(CONFIG_VIDEO_BT848)"*
>
> I have the first 2 modules loaded but I cannot find the BT848 module
> when I lsmod. When I try using modprobe, it says it can't find the
> module. Could this be causing some of my problems?

No. That just enables some low-level modules like videodev that are
required for ivtv.

You need to upgrade to 2.6.18 or up. The Samsung tuner on your card is
poorly supported in older kernels and this is fixed in 2.6.18.

> Also, I'd like to try upgrading my kernel (from 2.6.17 to 2.6.17) and
> driver version (from .7 to whatever I need... I think the how-to says
> .10, but others have said .8.2) as was suggested. Does anyone know of
> a good tutorial for this? I'm using Ubuntu, so I don't know if
> there's maybe one out there specifically for this distro that a
> not-to-technically-inclined user like myself might be able to use.

I've just released ivtv-0.10.0 which superceeds ivtv-0.8.2. That's
probably why you see different version numbers.

Regards,

Hans

>
> Thanks,
> Dave
>
> On 2/13/07, J. David Maino <david.maino@gmail.com> wrote:
> > I'm having problems getting my PVR-500 to work properly. The images
> > are terrible. I've tried testing it using MythTV as well as using
> > "cat /dev/video0 > /tmp/card0.mpg" and "cat /dev/video1 >
> > /tmp/card1.mpg" and they both look horrible either way. I know for
> > a fact I have the version with the Samsung tuner, so part of the
> > problem could be that. The output videos can be found here:
> >
> > http://www.psuae.org/card0.mpg
> > http://www.psuae.org/card1.mpg
> >
> > The sound seems to work alright, and I can hear what is being said,
> > but it is also a little fuzzy. I'm not very familiar with Linux
> > troubleshooting, but I'm willing to get my hands dirty and would
> > definitely appreciate some ideas as to where to start looking to
> > solve this.
> >
> > Just for reference, I'm running Ubuntu Edgy (2.6.17 kernel) with
> > MythTV 0.20 and IVTV drivers from the repositories (0.7). My CPU is
> > an x86 AMD 3200+, and I have an old ATI Rage card in there with
> > ATI's proprietary drivers. Any tips on where I might look for error
> > messages, and what specifically I might look for, would be greatly
> > appreciated.
> >
> > Here is the output from DMESG for the IVTV section:
> > http://psuae.org/dmesg.txt

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
Thanks for the info about the module and the newest driver version. I
successfully updated my Kernel to 2.6.18-6, but now am having trouble with
the ivtv modules. sudo modprobe ivtv gives the following error:

FATAL: Error inserting ivtv
(/lib/modules/2.6.18.6-070217/kernel/drivers/media/video/ivtv/ivtv.ko):
Unknown symbol in module, or unknown parameter (see dmesg)

And the output of dmesg | grep ivtv gives this:

[ 3645.769017] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ext_ctrls
[ 3645.769173] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_query
[ 3645.769407] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_update
[ 3645.769513] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_get_menu
[ 3645.769610] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_log_status
[ 3645.769658] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_fill_defaults
[ 3645.769780] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_mpeg_ctrls
[ 3981.280443] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ext_ctrls
[ 3981.280574] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_query
[ 3981.280804] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_update
[ 3981.280907] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_get_menu
[ 3981.281107] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_log_status
[ 3981.281155] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_fill_defaults
[ 3981.281275] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_mpeg_ctrls

I appologize for my lack of knowledge about this stuff. Any help you could
offer would be greatly appreciated! I also appreciate all the ideas and help
thus far. I wouldn't have even got this far without it.
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On Saturday 17 February 2007 21:12, David Maino wrote:
> Thanks for the info about the module and the newest driver version. I
> successfully updated my Kernel to 2.6.18-6, but now am having trouble
> with the ivtv modules. sudo modprobe ivtv gives the following error:

I've updated the ivtv-0.10.x README with the following:

NOTE: When you build your own kernel, make sure you have enabled all the
correct modules. For 2.6.18: make sure you have enabled all modules in
Device Drivers, Multimedia devices, Video Capture Adapters, Encoders
and Decoders. Especially the new 'Conexant CX2341x MPEG encoders'
entry.

For 2.6.19/20: In Device Drivers, Multimedia devices, Video Capture
Adapters disable the 'Autoselect pertinent encoders/decoders and other
helper chips' option, then go to the 'Encoders/decoders and other
helper chips' entry that appeared. It is probably easiest to just
select all modules here, unless you know exactly which chips your card
has. One exception: I recommend that you do not enable the Philips
SAA7114 video encoder, use 'Philips SAA7113/4/5 video decoders'
instead.

This should help.

Regards,

Hans

> FATAL: Error inserting ivtv
> (/lib/modules/2.6.18.6-070217/kernel/drivers/media/video/ivtv/ivtv.ko
>): Unknown symbol in module, or unknown parameter (see dmesg)
>
> And the output of dmesg | grep ivtv gives this:
>
> [ 3645.769017] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ext_ctrls
> [ 3645.769173] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_query
> [ 3645.769407] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_update
> [ 3645.769513] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_get_menu
> [ 3645.769610] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_log_status
> [ 3645.769658] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_fill_defaults
> [ 3645.769780] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_mpeg_ctrls
> [ 3981.280443] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ext_ctrls
> [ 3981.280574] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_query
> [ 3981.280804] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_update
> [ 3981.280907] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_ctrl_get_menu
> [ 3981.281107] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_log_status
> [ 3981.281155] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_fill_defaults
> [ 3981.281275] ivtv: Unknown symbol cx2341x_mpeg_ctrls
>
> I appologize for my lack of knowledge about this stuff. Any help you
> could offer would be greatly appreciated! I also appreciate all the
> ideas and help thus far. I wouldn't have even got this far without
> it.

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 09/24/2012 10:59 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>
>> On 09/24/2012 09:58 AM, Ken wrote:
>>> On 9/17/12 3:52 AM, Paul Onley wrote:
>>>> I'm having this same problem with my PVR-500 cards. I have tried all three of my cards and see the same symptoms on each. Once the card is recording it will do so forever without any problem but changing channels or starting a new recording I will frequently see the
>>>>
>>>> ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>
>>>> error message. Sometimes the firmware will successfully reload but most often even if the driver think that the reload was successful the recording is blank or corrupt.
>>>>
>>>> I do not pretend to understand how the ivtv driver works or what causes this error message but is there any thing I can do to try to track down what is causing this?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:01 Asthmatic kernel: [172462.936380] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940049] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940058] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940060] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940066] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_ENCODER_CMD error -5
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946782] ivtv0: info: Start encoder stream encoder MPG
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946787] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_DMA_BLOCK_SIZE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946789] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048525] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048530] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152046] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152054] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256250] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256255] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360213] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360218] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464012] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PLACEHOLDER
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_NUM_VSYNC_LINES
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464020] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.470866] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500123] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI API header 0x0000bd03 pkts 1 buffs 4 ln 24 sz 1456
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500126] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504011] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504017] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI start 0x00000004 frames 1 fpi 48387
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:50 Asthmatic kernel: [172511.720056] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724038] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724047] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832007] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832013] ivtv0: info: PGM Index at 0x00000007 with 400 elements
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832015] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_OUTPUT_PORT
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_RATE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_SIZE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832026] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_STREAM_TYPE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832027] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_BIT_RATE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832030] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_AUDIO_PROPERTIES
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832032] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:52 Asthmatic kernel: [172513.840008] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:53 Asthmatic kernel: [172514.144029] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.148039] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.151925] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156036] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156042] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156044] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156052] ivtv0: info: Could not start capture for encoder MPG (-5)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156346] ivtv0: file: open encoder MPG
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156348] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260259] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260265] ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260268] ivtv0: Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed - Reloading
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260270] ivtv0: info: Preparing for firmware halt.
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260272] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.364014] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376011] ivtv0: info: Stopping VDM
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376013] ivtv0: info: Stopping AO
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376015] ivtv0: info: pinging (?) APU
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376016] ivtv0: info: Stopping VPU
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376017] ivtv0: info: Resetting Hw Blocks
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376018] ivtv0: info: Stopping SPU
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388013] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM pre-charge
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388015] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM refresh to 1us
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388017] ivtv0: info: Sleeping for 600ms
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.988030] ivtv0: info: Loading encoder image
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.005545] ivtv0: Loaded v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw firmware (376836 bytes)
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.208025] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210424] ivtv0: Firmware restart okay
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210426] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210495] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211340] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCAP driver=ivtv, card=WinTV PVR 500 (unit #1), bus=PCI:0000:06:08.0, version=0x00030217, capabilities=0x01070051
>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211348] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL id=0x980001, type=6, name=User Controls, min/max=0/0, step=0, default=0, flags=0x00000044
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>> I'm seeing the same problem. It started when I switched to MythTV 0.25. I had a PVR-250 and a PVR-500. I originally thought the problem was failing hardware and replaced the 500. The problem just jumped to the 250. I have since put the 500 back and am now using a PVR-500 and a HVR-2250. I just watch the logs for those messages and reboot soon after they appear.
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>
>> Thanks Ken,
>>
>> I have seen numerous posts about problems that include this error on the PVR-250,350 and 500 cards and many seem to agree that the problem is failing hardware. I have 3 PVR-500s and have tried all three and get the same error on all of them. I can also remove and reload the ivtv module and fix the problem in 30 seconds and get a perfect recording. In fact I have written a script that watches the syslog for the Encoder died message and reloads the ivtv module. My recordings are now all perfect although some are missing about 30 seconds from the beginning. I do not believe this is a hardware failure but do not know how to proceed with trouble shooting.
>>
>> I can say from looking at the logs that when the ivtv driver sees a problem with the firmware it tries to reload it. My script kills the backend, reloads the ivtv module and restarts the backend so I end up with a part A and B of the recording allowing me to see whether the reload was really necessary. While the ivtv module usually reports successfully reloading the firmware in reality more than half the time the A part of the recording which is started after ivtv reloads the firmware is corrupt and the B part after my script reloads the ivtv module is always fine.
>>
>> Paul
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
> Paul,
>
> Is the a way for you to post your script here or in a blog that you can point us to?
>
> -Peter
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>
Hi Peter,

Below is the script I use, as it is unloading and reload the ivtv module
it must be run as root so use it with care( I call it from roots crontab
every minute ). The script is admittedly a rather crude and heavy handed
way to handle this problem and is certainly not to be considered a
solution. It is more convenient than rebooting though. I am using a
Debian system so you may need to adjust some of the commands such as
restarting the syslog daemon and mythbackend depending on your distro.

Paul


##########################################################
#!/bin/bash
#This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is
rather heavy handed but due to
#issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording
issues on my PVR-500 it was
#my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must
be run as root in order to
#be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege
and should be used very
#carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot
guarantee it will work as
#intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.



#Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
#for the problem to occur and be logged
sleep 15

#If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then

#Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv
module

pkill mythfrontend
pkill mythbackend

#The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are
stopped so
#rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try
to unload
#repeatedly until we succeed

while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do

#Wait for a second

sleep 1
i=$(($i+1))

#See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a
real problem

if [ $i -gt 15 ];then

#In which case return an exit value of 1

exit 1
fi
#Otherwise try again

done

#Relax for a second

sleep 1

#And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone
tells
#me what to look for my logs should have everything


/sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127


#We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate
the failures with
#Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n
exists

i=0
while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do

#and if so iterate until we find a good name

i=$(($i+1))
done

#Save the syslog file

mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i

#start a blank syslog

touch /var/log/syslog

#restart the syslog daemon

/etc/init.d/rsyslog restart

sleep 5

#Restart the backend

/etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart

fi

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
> On 09/24/2012 10:59 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>
>>> On 09/24/2012 09:58 AM, Ken wrote:
>>>> On 9/17/12 3:52 AM, Paul Onley wrote:
>>>>> I'm having this same problem with my PVR-500 cards. I have tried all three of my cards and see the same symptoms on each. Once the card is recording it will do so forever without any problem but changing channels or starting a new recording I will frequently see the
>>>>>
>>>>> ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>
>>>>> error message. Sometimes the firmware will successfully reload but most often even if the driver think that the reload was successful the recording is blank or corrupt.
>>>>>
>>>>> I do not pretend to understand how the ivtv driver works or what causes this error message but is there any thing I can do to try to track down what is causing this?
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:01 Asthmatic kernel: [172462.936380] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940049] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940058] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940060] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940066] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_ENCODER_CMD error -5
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946782] ivtv0: info: Start encoder stream encoder MPG
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946787] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_DMA_BLOCK_SIZE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946789] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048525] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048530] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152046] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152054] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256250] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256255] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360213] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360218] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464012] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PLACEHOLDER
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_NUM_VSYNC_LINES
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464020] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.470866] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500123] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI API header 0x0000bd03 pkts 1 buffs 4 ln 24 sz 1456
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500126] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504011] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504017] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI start 0x00000004 frames 1 fpi 48387
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:50 Asthmatic kernel: [172511.720056] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724038] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724047] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832007] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832013] ivtv0: info: PGM Index at 0x00000007 with 400 elements
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832015] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_OUTPUT_PORT
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_RATE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_SIZE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832026] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_STREAM_TYPE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832027] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_BIT_RATE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832030] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_AUDIO_PROPERTIES
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832032] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:52 Asthmatic kernel: [172513.840008] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:53 Asthmatic kernel: [172514.144029] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.148039] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.151925] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156036] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156042] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156044] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156052] ivtv0: info: Could not start capture for encoder MPG (-5)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156346] ivtv0: file: open encoder MPG
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156348] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260259] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260265] ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260268] ivtv0: Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed - Reloading
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260270] ivtv0: info: Preparing for firmware halt.
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260272] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.364014] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376011] ivtv0: info: Stopping VDM
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376013] ivtv0: info: Stopping AO
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376015] ivtv0: info: pinging (?) APU
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376016] ivtv0: info: Stopping VPU
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376017] ivtv0: info: Resetting Hw Blocks
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376018] ivtv0: info: Stopping SPU
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388013] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM pre-charge
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388015] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM refresh to 1us
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388017] ivtv0: info: Sleeping for 600ms
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.988030] ivtv0: info: Loading encoder image
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.005545] ivtv0: Loaded v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw firmware (376836 bytes)
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.208025] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210424] ivtv0: Firmware restart okay
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210426] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210495] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211340] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCAP driver=ivtv, card=WinTV PVR 500 (unit #1), bus=PCI:0000:06:08.0, version=0x00030217, capabilities=0x01070051
>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211348] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL id=0x980001, type=6, name=User Controls, min/max=0/0, step=0, default=0, flags=0x00000044
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>> I'm seeing the same problem. It started when I switched to MythTV 0.25. I had a PVR-250 and a PVR-500. I originally thought the problem was failing hardware and replaced the 500. The problem just jumped to the 250. I have since put the 500 back and am now using a PVR-500 and a HVR-2250. I just watch the logs for those messages and reboot soon after they appear.
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>
>>> Thanks Ken,
>>>
>>> I have seen numerous posts about problems that include this error on the PVR-250,350 and 500 cards and many seem to agree that the problem is failing hardware. I have 3 PVR-500s and have tried all three and get the same error on all of them. I can also remove and reload the ivtv module and fix the problem in 30 seconds and get a perfect recording. In fact I have written a script that watches the syslog for the Encoder died message and reloads the ivtv module. My recordings are now all perfect although some are missing about 30 seconds from the beginning. I do not believe this is a hardware failure but do not know how to proceed with trouble shooting.
>>>
>>> I can say from looking at the logs that when the ivtv driver sees a problem with the firmware it tries to reload it. My script kills the backend, reloads the ivtv module and restarts the backend so I end up with a part A and B of the recording allowing me to see whether the reload was really necessary. While the ivtv module usually reports successfully reloading the firmware in reality more than half the time the A part of the recording which is started after ivtv reloads the firmware is corrupt and the B part after my script reloads the ivtv module is always fine.
>>>
>>> Paul
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>> Paul,
>>
>> Is the a way for you to post your script here or in a blog that you can point us to?
>>
>> -Peter
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>
> Hi Peter,
>
> Below is the script I use, as it is unloading and reload the ivtv module it must be run as root so use it with care( I call it from roots crontab every minute ). The script is admittedly a rather crude and heavy handed way to handle this problem and is certainly not to be considered a solution. It is more convenient than rebooting though. I am using a Debian system so you may need to adjust some of the commands such as restarting the syslog daemon and mythbackend depending on your distro.
>
> Paul
>
>
> ##########################################################
> #!/bin/bash
> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is rather heavy handed but due to
> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must be run as root in order to
> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege and should be used very
> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot guarantee it will work as
> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>
>
>
> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
> #for the problem to occur and be logged
> sleep 15
>
> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then
>
> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv module
>
> pkill mythfrontend
> pkill mythbackend
>
> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are stopped so
> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try to unload
> #repeatedly until we succeed
>
> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>
> #Wait for a second
>
> sleep 1
> i=$(($i+1))
>
> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a real problem
>
> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>
> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>
> exit 1
> fi
> #Otherwise try again
>
> done
>
> #Relax for a second
>
> sleep 1
>
> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone tells
> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>
>
> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>
>
> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists
>
> i=0
> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>
> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>
> i=$(($i+1))
> done
>
> #Save the syslog file
>
> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>
> #start a blank syslog
>
> touch /var/log/syslog
>
> #restart the syslog daemon
>
> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>
> sleep 5
>
> #Restart the backend
>
> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>
> fi
>
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users

Thanks Paul,

I am running MythBuntu. I look forward to seeing what I can do with it. This may resolve a few issues that have been plaguing me.

-Peter
_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 09/24/2012 01:18 PM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>
>> On 09/24/2012 10:59 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>>> On 09/24/2012 09:58 AM, Ken wrote:
>>>>> On 9/17/12 3:52 AM, Paul Onley wrote:
>>>>>> I'm having this same problem with my PVR-500 cards. I have tried all three of my cards and see the same symptoms on each. Once the card is recording it will do so forever without any problem but changing channels or starting a new recording I will frequently see the
>>>>>>
>>>>>> ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>>
>>>>>> error message. Sometimes the firmware will successfully reload but most often even if the driver think that the reload was successful the recording is blank or corrupt.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I do not pretend to understand how the ivtv driver works or what causes this error message but is there any thing I can do to try to track down what is causing this?
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:01 Asthmatic kernel: [172462.936380] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940049] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940058] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940060] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940066] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_ENCODER_CMD error -5
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946782] ivtv0: info: Start encoder stream encoder MPG
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946787] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_DMA_BLOCK_SIZE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946789] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048525] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048530] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152046] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152054] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256250] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256255] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360213] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360218] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464012] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PLACEHOLDER
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_NUM_VSYNC_LINES
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464020] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.470866] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500123] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI API header 0x0000bd03 pkts 1 buffs 4 ln 24 sz 1456
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500126] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504011] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504017] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI start 0x00000004 frames 1 fpi 48387
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:50 Asthmatic kernel: [172511.720056] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724038] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724047] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832007] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832013] ivtv0: info: PGM Index at 0x00000007 with 400 elements
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832015] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_OUTPUT_PORT
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_RATE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_SIZE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832026] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_STREAM_TYPE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832027] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_BIT_RATE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832030] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_AUDIO_PROPERTIES
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832032] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:52 Asthmatic kernel: [172513.840008] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:53 Asthmatic kernel: [172514.144029] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.148039] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.151925] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156036] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156042] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156044] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156052] ivtv0: info: Could not start capture for encoder MPG (-5)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156346] ivtv0: file: open encoder MPG
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156348] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260259] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260265] ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260268] ivtv0: Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed - Reloading
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260270] ivtv0: info: Preparing for firmware halt.
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260272] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.364014] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376011] ivtv0: info: Stopping VDM
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376013] ivtv0: info: Stopping AO
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376015] ivtv0: info: pinging (?) APU
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376016] ivtv0: info: Stopping VPU
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376017] ivtv0: info: Resetting Hw Blocks
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376018] ivtv0: info: Stopping SPU
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388013] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM pre-charge
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388015] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM refresh to 1us
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388017] ivtv0: info: Sleeping for 600ms
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.988030] ivtv0: info: Loading encoder image
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.005545] ivtv0: Loaded v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw firmware (376836 bytes)
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.208025] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210424] ivtv0: Firmware restart okay
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210426] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210495] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211340] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCAP driver=ivtv, card=WinTV PVR 500 (unit #1), bus=PCI:0000:06:08.0, version=0x00030217, capabilities=0x01070051
>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211348] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL id=0x980001, type=6, name=User Controls, min/max=0/0, step=0, default=0, flags=0x00000044
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>> I'm seeing the same problem. It started when I switched to MythTV 0.25. I had a PVR-250 and a PVR-500. I originally thought the problem was failing hardware and replaced the 500. The problem just jumped to the 250. I have since put the 500 back and am now using a PVR-500 and a HVR-2250. I just watch the logs for those messages and reboot soon after they appear.
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>
>>>> Thanks Ken,
>>>>
>>>> I have seen numerous posts about problems that include this error on the PVR-250,350 and 500 cards and many seem to agree that the problem is failing hardware. I have 3 PVR-500s and have tried all three and get the same error on all of them. I can also remove and reload the ivtv module and fix the problem in 30 seconds and get a perfect recording. In fact I have written a script that watches the syslog for the Encoder died message and reloads the ivtv module. My recordings are now all perfect although some are missing about 30 seconds from the beginning. I do not believe this is a hardware failure but do not know how to proceed with trouble shooting.
>>>>
>>>> I can say from looking at the logs that when the ivtv driver sees a problem with the firmware it tries to reload it. My script kills the backend, reloads the ivtv module and restarts the backend so I end up with a part A and B of the recording allowing me to see whether the reload was really necessary. While the ivtv module usually reports successfully reloading the firmware in reality more than half the time the A part of the recording which is started after ivtv reloads the firmware is corrupt and the B part after my script reloads the ivtv module is always fine.
>>>>
>>>> Paul
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>> Paul,
>>>
>>> Is the a way for you to post your script here or in a blog that you can point us to?
>>>
>>> -Peter
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>
>> Hi Peter,
>>
>> Below is the script I use, as it is unloading and reload the ivtv module it must be run as root so use it with care( I call it from roots crontab every minute ). The script is admittedly a rather crude and heavy handed way to handle this problem and is certainly not to be considered a solution. It is more convenient than rebooting though. I am using a Debian system so you may need to adjust some of the commands such as restarting the syslog daemon and mythbackend depending on your distro.
>>
>> Paul
>>
>>
>> ##########################################################
>> #!/bin/bash
>> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is rather heavy handed but due to
>> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
>> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must be run as root in order to
>> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege and should be used very
>> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot guarantee it will work as
>> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>>
>>
>>
>> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
>> #for the problem to occur and be logged
>> sleep 15
>>
>> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
>> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then
>>
>> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv module
>>
>> pkill mythfrontend
>> pkill mythbackend
>>
>> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are stopped so
>> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try to unload
>> #repeatedly until we succeed
>>
>> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>>
>> #Wait for a second
>>
>> sleep 1
>> i=$(($i+1))
>>
>> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a real problem
>>
>> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>>
>> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>>
>> exit 1
>> fi
>> #Otherwise try again
>>
>> done
>>
>> #Relax for a second
>>
>> sleep 1
>>
>> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone tells
>> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>>
>>
>> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>>
>>
>> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
>> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists
>>
>> i=0
>> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>>
>> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>>
>> i=$(($i+1))
>> done
>>
>> #Save the syslog file
>>
>> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>>
>> #start a blank syslog
>>
>> touch /var/log/syslog
>>
>> #restart the syslog daemon
>>
>> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>>
>> sleep 5
>>
>> #Restart the backend
>>
>> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>>
>> fi
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
> Thanks Paul,
>
> I am running MythBuntu. I look forward to seeing what I can do with it. This may resolve a few issues that have been plaguing me.
>
> -Peter
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>
I have another mythbox running under Debian Squeeze and it does not have
this problem using the PVR-500 card. It is using kernel 2.6.32-5-686 and
ivtv version 1.4.1. The box with this problem is running Debian Wheezy,
kernel 3.2.0-3-amd64 and ivtv version 1.4.3. As I understand it ivtv is
part of the kernel, so is it possible to build 1.4.1 against my
3.2.0-3-amd64 kernel and if so how would on go about removing 1.4.3 and
using 1.4.1 instead?

Also, is ivtv 1.4.1 missing anything in 1.4.3 that will break myth 0.25.2?

_______________________________________________
ivtv-users mailing list
ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 2012-10-03, at 11:15 PM, Paul Onley <onley@att.net> wrote:

> On 09/24/2012 01:18 PM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>
>>> On 09/24/2012 10:59 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>>>> On 09/24/2012 09:58 AM, Ken wrote:
>>>>>> On 9/17/12 3:52 AM, Paul Onley wrote:
>>>>>>> I'm having this same problem with my PVR-500 cards. I have tried all three of my cards and see the same symptoms on each. Once the card is recording it will do so forever without any problem but changing channels or starting a new recording I will frequently see the
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> error message. Sometimes the firmware will successfully reload but most often even if the driver think that the reload was successful the recording is blank or corrupt.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I do not pretend to understand how the ivtv driver works or what causes this error message but is there any thing I can do to try to track down what is causing this?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:01 Asthmatic kernel: [172462.936380] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940049] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940058] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940060] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940066] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_ENCODER_CMD error -5
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946782] ivtv0: info: Start encoder stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946787] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_DMA_BLOCK_SIZE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946789] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048525] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048530] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152046] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152054] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256250] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256255] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360213] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360218] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464012] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PLACEHOLDER
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_NUM_VSYNC_LINES
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464020] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.470866] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500123] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI API header 0x0000bd03 pkts 1 buffs 4 ln 24 sz 1456
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500126] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504011] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504017] ivtv0: info: Setup VBI start 0x00000004 frames 1 fpi 48387
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:50 Asthmatic kernel: [172511.720056] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724038] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724047] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832007] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832013] ivtv0: info: PGM Index at 0x00000007 with 400 elements
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832015] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_OUTPUT_PORT
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832017] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_RATE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832019] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_SIZE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832026] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_STREAM_TYPE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832027] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_BIT_RATE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832030] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_AUDIO_PROPERTIES
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832032] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:52 Asthmatic kernel: [172513.840008] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:53 Asthmatic kernel: [172514.144029] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.148039] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.151925] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156036] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156042] ivtv0: warn: Error starting capture!
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156044] ivtv0: warn: Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156052] ivtv0: info: Could not start capture for encoder MPG (-5)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156346] ivtv0: file: open encoder MPG
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156348] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260259] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260265] ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260268] ivtv0: Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed - Reloading
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260270] ivtv0: info: Preparing for firmware halt.
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260272] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.364014] ivtv0: warn: Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376011] ivtv0: info: Stopping VDM
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376013] ivtv0: info: Stopping AO
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376015] ivtv0: info: pinging (?) APU
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376016] ivtv0: info: Stopping VPU
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376017] ivtv0: info: Resetting Hw Blocks
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376018] ivtv0: info: Stopping SPU
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388013] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM pre-charge
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388015] ivtv0: info: init Encoder SDRAM refresh to 1us
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388017] ivtv0: info: Sleeping for 600ms
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.988030] ivtv0: info: Loading encoder image
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.005545] ivtv0: Loaded v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw firmware (376836 bytes)
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.208025] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210424] ivtv0: Firmware restart okay
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210426] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210495] ivtv0: mb: MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211340] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCAP driver=ivtv, card=WinTV PVR 500 (unit #1), bus=PCI:0000:06:08.0, version=0x00030217, capabilities=0x01070051
>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211348] ivtv0 encoder MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL id=0x980001, type=6, name=User Controls, min/max=0/0, step=0, default=0, flags=0x00000044
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>> I'm seeing the same problem. It started when I switched to MythTV 0.25. I had a PVR-250 and a PVR-500. I originally thought the problem was failing hardware and replaced the 500. The problem just jumped to the 250. I have since put the 500 back and am now using a PVR-500 and a HVR-2250. I just watch the logs for those messages and reboot soon after they appear.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks Ken,
>>>>>
>>>>> I have seen numerous posts about problems that include this error on the PVR-250,350 and 500 cards and many seem to agree that the problem is failing hardware. I have 3 PVR-500s and have tried all three and get the same error on all of them. I can also remove and reload the ivtv module and fix the problem in 30 seconds and get a perfect recording. In fact I have written a script that watches the syslog for the Encoder died message and reloads the ivtv module. My recordings are now all perfect although some are missing about 30 seconds from the beginning. I do not believe this is a hardware failure but do not know how to proceed with trouble shooting.
>>>>>
>>>>> I can say from looking at the logs that when the ivtv driver sees a problem with the firmware it tries to reload it. My script kills the backend, reloads the ivtv module and restarts the backend so I end up with a part A and B of the recording allowing me to see whether the reload was really necessary. While the ivtv module usually reports successfully reloading the firmware in reality more than half the time the A part of the recording which is started after ivtv reloads the firmware is corrupt and the B part after my script reloads the ivtv module is always fine.
>>>>>
>>>>> Paul
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>> Paul,
>>>>
>>>> Is the a way for you to post your script here or in a blog that you can point us to?
>>>>
>>>> -Peter
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>
>>> Hi Peter,
>>>
>>> Below is the script I use, as it is unloading and reload the ivtv module it must be run as root so use it with care( I call it from roots crontab every minute ). The script is admittedly a rather crude and heavy handed way to handle this problem and is certainly not to be considered a solution. It is more convenient than rebooting though. I am using a Debian system so you may need to adjust some of the commands such as restarting the syslog daemon and mythbackend depending on your distro.
>>>
>>> Paul
>>>
>>>
>>> ##########################################################
>>> #!/bin/bash
>>> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is rather heavy handed but due to
>>> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
>>> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must be run as root in order to
>>> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege and should be used very
>>> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot guarantee it will work as
>>> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
>>> #for the problem to occur and be logged
>>> sleep 15
>>>
>>> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
>>> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then
>>>
>>> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv module
>>>
>>> pkill mythfrontend
>>> pkill mythbackend
>>>
>>> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are stopped so
>>> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try to unload
>>> #repeatedly until we succeed
>>>
>>> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>>>
>>> #Wait for a second
>>>
>>> sleep 1
>>> i=$(($i+1))
>>>
>>> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a real problem
>>>
>>> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>>>
>>> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>>>
>>> exit 1
>>> fi
>>> #Otherwise try again
>>>
>>> done
>>>
>>> #Relax for a second
>>>
>>> sleep 1
>>>
>>> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone tells
>>> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>>>
>>>
>>> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>>>
>>>
>>> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
>>> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists
>>>
>>> i=0
>>> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>>>
>>> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>>>
>>> i=$(($i+1))
>>> done
>>>
>>> #Save the syslog file
>>>
>>> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>>>
>>> #start a blank syslog
>>>
>>> touch /var/log/syslog
>>>
>>> #restart the syslog daemon
>>>
>>> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>>>
>>> sleep 5
>>>
>>> #Restart the backend
>>>
>>> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>>>
>>> fi
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>> Thanks Paul,
>>
>> I am running MythBuntu. I look forward to seeing what I can do with it. This may resolve a few issues that have been plaguing me.
>>
>> -Peter
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>
> I have another mythbox running under Debian Squeeze and it does not have this problem using the PVR-500 card. It is using kernel 2.6.32-5-686 and ivtv version 1.4.1. The box with this problem is running Debian Wheezy, kernel 3.2.0-3-amd64 and ivtv version 1.4.3. As I understand it ivtv is part of the kernel, so is it possible to build 1.4.1 against my 3.2.0-3-amd64 kernel and if so how would on go about removing 1.4.3 and using 1.4.1 instead?
>
> Also, is ivtv 1.4.1 missing anything in 1.4.3 that will break myth 0.25.2?
>
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users


Paul,

I modified your script a little to accommodate another error that has plagued our home. The Jump error appears to be tied to ivtv as well but is reported in the MythTV backend log so I added another IF statement to test for it.

##########################################################
#!/bin/bash
#This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is rather heavy handed but due to
#issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
#my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must be run as root in order to
#be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege and should be used very
#carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot guarantee it will work as
#intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.



#Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
#for the problem to occur and be logged
sleep 15

#If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then

#Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv module

pkill mythfrontend
pkill mythbackend

#The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are stopped so
#rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try to unload
#repeatedly until we succeed

while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do

#Wait for a second

sleep 1
i=$(($i+1))

#See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a real problem

if [ $i -gt 15 ];then

#In which case return an exit value of 1

exit 1
fi
#Otherwise try again

done

#Relax for a second

sleep 1

#And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone tells
#me what to look for my logs should have everything


/sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127


#We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
#Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists

i=0
while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do

#and if so iterate until we find a good name

i=$(($i+1))
done

#Save the syslog file

mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i

#start a blank syslog

touch /var/log/syslog

#restart the syslog daemon

/etc/init.d/rsyslog restart

sleep 5

#Restart the backend

/etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart

echo "ivtv reset Successful: $(date)" >> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log

else
#If we find an indication in the mythbackend that the ivtv driver has failed realted to "Jump"
if grep "E DeviceReadBuffer DeviceReadBuffer.cpp:513" /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log ; then

/sbin/modprobe -r ivtv
sleep 5

#And reload the ivtv module with debug level

/sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127


#We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
#Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists

i=0
while [ -e /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i ];do

#and if so iterate until we find a good name

i=$(($i+1))
done

#Save the syslog file

mv /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i

#start a blank syslog

touch /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log

echo "ivtv reset on Jump failure Successful: $(date)" >> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log
fi
fi

-Peter
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 10/08/2012 11:18 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
> On 2012-10-03, at 11:15 PM, Paul Onley <onley@att.net
> <mailto:onley@att.net>> wrote:
>
>> On 09/24/2012 01:18 PM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 09/24/2012 10:59 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>>>>> On 09/24/2012 09:58 AM, Ken wrote:
>>>>>>> On 9/17/12 3:52 AM, Paul Onley wrote:
>>>>>>>> I'm having this same problem with my PVR-500 cards. I have
>>>>>>>> tried all three of my cards and see the same symptoms on each.
>>>>>>>> Once the card is recording it will do so forever without any
>>>>>>>> problem but changing channels or starting a new recording I
>>>>>>>> will frequently see the
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> error message. Sometimes the firmware will successfully reload
>>>>>>>> but most often even if the driver think that the reload was
>>>>>>>> successful the recording is blank or corrupt.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I do not pretend to understand how the ivtv driver works or
>>>>>>>> what causes this error message but is there any thing I can do
>>>>>>>> to try to track down what is causing this?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:01 Asthmatic kernel: [172462.936380] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940049] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940058] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Error starting capture!
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940060] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.940066] ivtv0 encoder
>>>>>>>> MPG: VIDIOC_ENCODER_CMD error -5
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946782] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Start encoder stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946787] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_DMA_BLOCK_SIZE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:02 Asthmatic kernel: [172463.946789] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048525] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VERT_CROP_LINE)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.048530] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152046] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.152054] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256250] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.256255] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360213] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.360218] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464012] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MISC)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464017] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PLACEHOLDER
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464019] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_NUM_VSYNC_LINES
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:03 Asthmatic kernel: [172464.464020] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.470866] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500123] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Setup VBI API header 0x0000bd03 pkts 1 buffs 4 ln 24 sz 1456
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:04 Asthmatic kernel: [172465.500126] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504011] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_CONFIG)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:05 Asthmatic kernel: [172466.504017] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Setup VBI start 0x00000004 frames 1 fpi 48387
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:50 Asthmatic kernel: [172511.720056] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724038] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_VBI_LINE)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.724047] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832007] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_SET_PGM_INDEX_INFO)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832013] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> PGM Index at 0x00000007 with 400 elements
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832015] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_OUTPUT_PORT
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832017] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_RATE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832019] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_FRAME_SIZE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832026] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_STREAM_TYPE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832027] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_BIT_RATE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832030] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_SET_AUDIO_PROPERTIES
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:51 Asthmatic kernel: [172512.832032] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:52 Asthmatic kernel: [172513.840008] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_MUTE_AUDIO)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:53 Asthmatic kernel: [172514.144029] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.148039] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_INITIALIZE_INPUT)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:54 Asthmatic kernel: [172515.151925] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156036] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_START_CAPTURE)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156042] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Error starting capture!
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156044] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Failed to start capturing for stream encoder MPG
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156052] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Could not start capture for encoder MPG (-5)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156346] ivtv0: file:
>>>>>>>> open encoder MPG
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.156348] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260259] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260265] ivtv0:
>>>>>>>> Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260268] ivtv0:
>>>>>>>> Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed -
>>>>>>>> Reloading
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260270] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Preparing for firmware halt.
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.260272] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.364014] ivtv0: warn:
>>>>>>>> Could not get result (CX2341X_ENC_HALT_FW)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376011] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Stopping VDM
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376013] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Stopping AO
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376015] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> pinging (?) APU
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376016] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Stopping VPU
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376017] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Resetting Hw Blocks
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.376018] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Stopping SPU
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388013] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> init Encoder SDRAM pre-charge
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388015] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> init Encoder SDRAM refresh to 1us
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.388017] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Sleeping for 600ms
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172516.988030] ivtv0: info:
>>>>>>>> Loading encoder image
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:55 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.005545] ivtv0: Loaded
>>>>>>>> v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw <http://v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw> firmware (376836
>>>>>>>> bytes)
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.208025] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210424] ivtv0:
>>>>>>>> Firmware restart okay
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210426] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_PING_FW
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.210495] ivtv0: mb:
>>>>>>>> MB Call: CX2341X_ENC_MISC
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211340] ivtv0 encoder
>>>>>>>> MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCAP driver=ivtv, card=WinTV PVR 500 (unit #1),
>>>>>>>> bus=PCI:0000:06:08.0, version=0x00030217, capabilities=0x01070051
>>>>>>>> Sep 17 02:03:56 Asthmatic kernel: [172517.211348] ivtv0 encoder
>>>>>>>> MPG: VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL id=0x980001, type=6, name=User Controls,
>>>>>>>> min/max=0/0, step=0, default=0, flags=0x00000044
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>>> I'm seeing the same problem. It started when I switched to
>>>>>>> MythTV 0.25. I had a PVR-250 and a PVR-500. I originally thought
>>>>>>> the problem was failing hardware and replaced the 500. The
>>>>>>> problem just jumped to the 250. I have since put the 500 back
>>>>>>> and am now using a PVR-500 and a HVR-2250. I just watch the logs
>>>>>>> for those messages and reboot soon after they appear.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks Ken,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I have seen numerous posts about problems that include this error
>>>>>> on the PVR-250,350 and 500 cards and many seem to agree that the
>>>>>> problem is failing hardware. I have 3 PVR-500s and have tried all
>>>>>> three and get the same error on all of them. I can also remove
>>>>>> and reload the ivtv module and fix the problem in 30 seconds and
>>>>>> get a perfect recording. In fact I have written a script that
>>>>>> watches the syslog for the Encoder died message and reloads the
>>>>>> ivtv module. My recordings are now all perfect although some are
>>>>>> missing about 30 seconds from the beginning. I do not believe
>>>>>> this is a hardware failure but do not know how to proceed with
>>>>>> trouble shooting.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I can say from looking at the logs that when the ivtv driver sees
>>>>>> a problem with the firmware it tries to reload it. My script
>>>>>> kills the backend, reloads the ivtv module and restarts the
>>>>>> backend so I end up with a part A and B of the recording allowing
>>>>>> me to see whether the reload was really necessary. While the ivtv
>>>>>> module usually reports successfully reloading the firmware in
>>>>>> reality more than half the time the A part of the recording which
>>>>>> is started after ivtv reloads the firmware is corrupt and the B
>>>>>> part after my script reloads the ivtv module is always fine.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Paul
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>> Paul,
>>>>>
>>>>> Is the a way for you to post your script here or in a blog that
>>>>> you can point us to?
>>>>>
>>>>> -Peter
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>>>
>>>> Hi Peter,
>>>>
>>>> Below is the script I use, as it is unloading and reload the ivtv
>>>> module it must be run as root so use it with care( I call it from
>>>> roots crontab every minute ). The script is admittedly a rather
>>>> crude and heavy handed way to handle this problem and is certainly
>>>> not to be considered a solution. It is more convenient than
>>>> rebooting though. I am using a Debian system so you may need to
>>>> adjust some of the commands such as restarting the syslog daemon
>>>> and mythbackend depending on your distro.
>>>>
>>>> Paul
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ##########################################################
>>>> #!/bin/bash
>>>> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is
>>>> rather heavy handed but due to
>>>> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording
>>>> issues on my PVR-500 it was
>>>> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script
>>>> must be run as root in order to
>>>> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root
>>>> privilege and should be used very
>>>> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot
>>>> guarantee it will work as
>>>> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15
>>>> seconds
>>>> #for the problem to occur and be logged
>>>> sleep 15
>>>>
>>>> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
>>>> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog
>>>> ; then
>>>>
>>>> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the
>>>> ivtv module
>>>>
>>>> pkill mythfrontend
>>>> pkill mythbackend
>>>>
>>>> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend
>>>> are stopped so
>>>> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just
>>>> try to unload
>>>> #repeatedly until we succeed
>>>>
>>>> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>>>>
>>>> #Wait for a second
>>>>
>>>> sleep 1
>>>> i=$(($i+1))
>>>>
>>>> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is
>>>> a real problem
>>>>
>>>> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>>>>
>>>> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>>>>
>>>> exit 1
>>>> fi
>>>> #Otherwise try again
>>>>
>>>> done
>>>>
>>>> #Relax for a second
>>>>
>>>> sleep 1
>>>>
>>>> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when
>>>> someone tells
>>>> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can
>>>> corelate the failures with
>>>> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if
>>>> n exists
>>>>
>>>> i=0
>>>> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>>>>
>>>> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>>>>
>>>> i=$(($i+1))
>>>> done
>>>>
>>>> #Save the syslog file
>>>>
>>>> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>>>>
>>>> #start a blank syslog
>>>>
>>>> touch /var/log/syslog
>>>>
>>>> #restart the syslog daemon
>>>>
>>>> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>>>>
>>>> sleep 5
>>>>
>>>> #Restart the backend
>>>>
>>>> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>>>>
>>>> fi
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>> Thanks Paul,
>>>
>>> I am running MythBuntu. I look forward to seeing what I can do with
>>> it. This may resolve a few issues that have been plaguing me.
>>>
>>> -Peter
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> ivtv-users mailing list
>>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>>>
>> I have another mythbox running under Debian Squeeze and it does not
>> have this problem using the PVR-500 card. It is using kernel
>> 2.6.32-5-686 and ivtv version 1.4.1. The box with this problem is
>> running Debian Wheezy, kernel 3.2.0-3-amd64 and ivtv version 1.4.3.
>> As I understand it ivtv is part of the kernel, so is it possible to
>> build 1.4.1 against my 3.2.0-3-amd64 kernel and if so how would on go
>> about removing 1.4.3 and using 1.4.1 instead?
>>
>> Also, is ivtv 1.4.1 missing anything in 1.4.3 that will break myth
>> 0.25.2?
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org <mailto:ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org>
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
>
>
> Paul,
>
> I modified your script a little to accommodate another error that has
> plagued our home. The Jump error appears to be tied to ivtv as well
> but is reported in the MythTV backend log so I added another IF
> statement to test for it.
>
> ##########################################################
> #!/bin/bash
> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It
> is rather heavy handed but due to
> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing
> recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this
> script must be run as root in order to
> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root
> privilege and should be used very
> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I
> cannot guarantee it will work as
> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>
>
>
> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait
> 15 seconds
> #for the problem to occur and be logged
> sleep 15
>
> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has
> failed
> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog
> ; then
>
> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the
> ivtv module
>
> pkill mythfrontend
> pkill mythbackend
>
> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend
> are stopped so
> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just
> try to unload
> #repeatedly until we succeed
>
> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>
> #Wait for a second
>
> sleep 1
> i=$(($i+1))
>
> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there
> is a real problem
>
> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>
> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>
> exit 1
> fi
> #Otherwise try again
>
> done
>
> #Relax for a second
>
> sleep 1
>
> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when
> someone tells
> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>
>
> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>
>
> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can
> corelate the failures with
> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if
> n exists
>
> i=0
> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>
> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>
> i=$(($i+1))
> done
>
> #Save the syslog file
>
> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>
> #start a blank syslog
>
> touch /var/log/syslog
>
> #restart the syslog daemon
>
> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>
> sleep 5
>
> #Restart the backend
>
> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>
> echo "ivtv reset Successful: $(date)" >>
> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log
>
> *else*
> * #If we find an indication in the mythbackend that the ivtv
> driver has failed realted to "Jump"*
> * if grep "E DeviceReadBuffer DeviceReadBuffer.cpp:513"
> /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log ; then*
> *
> *
> * /sbin/modprobe -r ivtv *
> * sleep 5 *
> *
> *
> * #And reload the ivtv module with debug level *
> *
> *
> * /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127*
> *
> *
> *
> *
> * #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can
> corelate the failures with*
> * #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to
> see if n exists*
> *
> *
> * i=0*
> * while [ -e /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i ];do*
> *
> *
> * #and if so iterate until we find a good name*
> *
> *
> * i=$(($i+1))*
> * done*
> *
> *
> * #Save the syslog file*
> *
> *
> * mv /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log
> /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i*
> *
> *
> * #start a blank syslog*
> *
> *
> * touch /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log*
> *
> *
> * echo "ivtv reset on Jump failure Successful: $(date)" >>
> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log*
> * fi*
> fi
>
>
> -Peter
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
I'm not sure about MythBuntu but on my debian system you cannot remove
the ivtv module while the backend or frontend is running and your
modification does not stop and restart the backend or frontend before
modprobing the ivtv module. You could grep for both conditions in the
original if at the top and use my reset code loop for either condition
and save the result of the grep to echo to /var/log/ivtv_reset.log for
identification of what caused the reset.

Of interest is that the encoder has stopped dying on my system,
unfortunately I cannot duplicate what fixed it. I had installed a couple
packages which caused my usb network adapter to stop loading so I had to
change some udev rules to fix that and the encoder died messages stopped
at the same time. The root of this problem may be in the loading of the
module and udev rules but I do not know how to diagnose what my changes
did to fix the problem.

Paul
Re: PVR-500 Problems [ In reply to ]
On 2012-10-14, at 11:22 AM, Paul Onley <onley@att.net> wrote:

> On 10/08/2012 11:18 AM, Peter Schneider wrote:
>>
>> On 2012-10-03, at 11:15 PM, Paul Onley <onley@att.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Paul,
>>
>> I modified your script a little to accommodate another error that has plagued our home. The Jump error appears to be tied to ivtv as well but is reported in the MythTV backend log so I added another IF statement to test for it.
>>
>> ##########################################################
>> #!/bin/bash
>> #This script will automate the reloading of the ivtv modules. It is rather heavy handed but due to
>> #issues with firmware failures in the ivtv module causing recording issues on my PVR-500 it was
>> #my last resort to prevent failed recordings. Note that this script must be run as root in order to
>> #be able to reload the ivtv module. As such it has full root privilege and should be used very
>> #carefully. While it works as intended on my debian system I cannot guarantee it will work as
>> #intended on your system. Please check all commands before using.
>>
>>
>>
>> #Cron jobs start on the minute and so do myth recordings so wait 15 seconds
>> #for the problem to occur and be logged
>> sleep 15
>>
>> #If we find an indication in the syslog that the ivtv driver has failed
>> if grep "Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open" /var/log/syslog ; then
>>
>> #Kill both frontend and backend so that we can unload the ivtv module
>>
>> pkill mythfrontend
>> pkill mythbackend
>>
>> #The ivtv module will not unload until the frontend and backend are stopped so
>> #rather than sleep for some arbitrary ammount of time lets just try to unload
>> #repeatedly until we succeed
>>
>> while ! /sbin/modprobe -vr ivtv ; do
>>
>> #Wait for a second
>>
>> sleep 1
>> i=$(($i+1))
>>
>> #See if we have tried more than 15 times indicating there is a real problem
>>
>> if [ $i -gt 15 ];then
>>
>> #In which case return an exit value of 1
>>
>> exit 1
>> fi
>> #Otherwise try again
>>
>> done
>>
>> #Relax for a second
>>
>> sleep 1
>>
>> #And reload the ivtv module the debug level is so that when someone tells
>> #me what to look for my logs should have everything
>>
>>
>> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>>
>>
>> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
>> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists
>>
>> i=0
>> while [ -e /var/log/syslog.restart.$i ];do
>>
>> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>>
>> i=$(($i+1))
>> done
>>
>> #Save the syslog file
>>
>> mv /var/log/syslog /var/log/syslog.restart.$i
>>
>> #start a blank syslog
>>
>> touch /var/log/syslog
>>
>> #restart the syslog daemon
>>
>> /etc/init.d/rsyslog restart
>>
>> sleep 5
>>
>> #Restart the backend
>>
>> /etc/init.d/mythtv-backend restart
>>
>> echo "ivtv reset Successful: $(date)" >> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log
>>
>> else
>> #If we find an indication in the mythbackend that the ivtv driver has failed realted to "Jump"
>> if grep "E DeviceReadBuffer DeviceReadBuffer.cpp:513" /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log ; then
>>
>> /sbin/modprobe -r ivtv
>> sleep 5
>>
>> #And reload the ivtv module with debug level
>>
>> /sbin/modprobe -v ivtv debug=127
>>
>>
>> #We are moving the logfile to another file so that we can corelate the failures with
>> #Logs. the new file name is syslog.restart.n so check to see if n exists
>>
>> i=0
>> while [ -e /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i ];do
>>
>> #and if so iterate until we find a good name
>>
>> i=$(($i+1))
>> done
>>
>> #Save the syslog file
>>
>> mv /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.restart.$i
>>
>> #start a blank syslog
>>
>> touch /var/log/mythtv/mythbackend.log
>>
>> echo "ivtv reset on Jump failure Successful: $(date)" >> /var/log/ivtv_reset.log
>> fi
>> fi
>>
>> -Peter
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> ivtv-users mailing list
>> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
>> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users
> I'm not sure about MythBuntu but on my debian system you cannot remove the ivtv module while the backend or frontend is running and your modification does not stop and restart the backend or frontend before modprobing the ivtv module. You could grep for both conditions in the original if at the top and use my reset code loop for either condition and save the result of the grep to echo to /var/log/ivtv_reset.log for identification of what caused the reset.
>
> Of interest is that the encoder has stopped dying on my system, unfortunately I cannot duplicate what fixed it. I had installed a couple packages which caused my usb network adapter to stop loading so I had to change some udev rules to fix that and the encoder died messages stopped at the same time. The root of this problem may be in the loading of the module and udev rules but I do not know how to diagnose what my changes did to fix the problem.
>
> Paul
> _______________________________________________
> ivtv-users mailing list
> ivtv-users@ivtvdriver.org
> http://ivtvdriver.org/mailman/listinfo/ivtv-users

Hi Paul,

Interestingly enough, after doing the last patch (which for me was a significant one as I don't like to do updates when things are working) I have not seen the encoder dying via the original error either.

I had the same thought on the need to restart mythbackend but decided to test if first without. The process must do something that forces the right resets or perhaps Ubuntu 12.04 is able to do the reset. When it runs after the Jump error, the system comes back and you can watch live TV again.

-Peter