Mailing List Archive

trouble with CSPAN channels
I have Comcast, using an HD Homerun Prime with 3-tuner cable card to
receive channels via MythTV. I do not have any Comcast equipment other than
the cable card. I am using the XMLTV grabber via Schedules Direct to get
channel information.

The problem is that my wife cannot watch CSPAN2 or CSPAN3. The main SD
CSPAN channel works, but CSPAN-HD, CSPAN2 and CSPAN3 do not. Attempts to
watch them from the Program Guide result in backend log messages like these:

2021-03-06 08:28:00.048687 I [475758/531952] ProcessRequest
mainserver.cpp:1770 (HandleAnnounce) - MainServer: adding:
dodo.gregandeva.net(169ff10) as a client (events: 0)
2021-03-06 08:28:00.054366 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent tv_rec.cpp:1057
(HandleStateChange) - TVRec[14]: Changing from None to WatchingLiveTV
2021-03-06 08:28:00.055100 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent tv_rec.cpp:3662
(TuningFrequency) - TVRec[14]: TuningFrequency
2021-03-06 08:28:00.071572 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:385 (Connect) - HDHRSH[14](13233503): Added
3 devices from 13233503
2021-03-06 08:28:00.088035 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:402 (Connect) - HDHRSH[14](13233503):
Connected to device(13233503-0)
2021-03-06 08:28:00.098080 E [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:484 (TunerSet) - HDHRSH[14](13233503):
DeviceSet(vchannel 1129): ERROR: invalid virtual channel
2021-03-06 08:28:00.098085 E [475758/475811] TVRecEvent tv_rec.cpp:3735
(TuningFrequency) - TVRec[14]: Failed to set channel to 1129. Reverting to
kState_None
2021-03-06 08:28:00.098092 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent tv_rec.cpp:1057
(HandleStateChange) - TVRec[14]: Changing from WatchingLiveTV to None
2021-03-06 08:28:00.099325 I [475758/531960] MythSocketThread(72)
mainserver.cpp:7858 (connectionClosed) - Playback sock(169ff10) '
dodo.gregandeva.net' disconnected

I have no idea how to troubleshoot this, or whether the problem is likely
with Comcast, my equipment, MythTV Software, or Schedules Direct. As far as
I know, the CSPAN channels are the only ones I should be able to get
(according to the published channel listings in my area) that I can't.

Thanks for any advice,
--Greg
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On 3/6/21 10:35 AM, Greg Woods wrote:
> I have Comcast, using an HD Homerun Prime with 3-tuner cable card to
> receive channels via MythTV. I do not have any Comcast equipment other
> than the cable card. I am using the XMLTV grabber via Schedules Direct
> to get channel information.
>
> The problem is that my wife cannot watch CSPAN2 or CSPAN3. The main SD
> CSPAN channel works, but CSPAN-HD, CSPAN2 and CSPAN3 do not. Attempts
> to watch them from the Program Guide result in backend log messages
> like these:
>
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.048687 I [475758/531952] ProcessRequest
> mainserver.cpp:1770 (HandleAnnounce) - MainServer: adding:
> dodo.gregandeva.net <http://dodo.gregandeva.net>(169ff10) as a client
> (events: 0)
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.054366 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> tv_rec.cpp:1057 (HandleStateChange) - TVRec[14]: Changing from None to
> WatchingLiveTV
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.055100 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> tv_rec.cpp:3662 (TuningFrequency) - TVRec[14]: TuningFrequency
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.071572 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:385 (Connect) - HDHRSH[14](13233503):
> Added 3 devices from 13233503
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.088035 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:402 (Connect) - HDHRSH[14](13233503):
> Connected to device(13233503-0)
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.098080 E [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> recorders/hdhrstreamhandler.cpp:484 (TunerSet) - HDHRSH[14](13233503):
> DeviceSet(vchannel 1129): ERROR: invalid virtual channel
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.098085 E [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> tv_rec.cpp:3735 (TuningFrequency) - TVRec[14]: Failed to set channel
> to 1129. Reverting to kState_None
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.098092 I [475758/475811] TVRecEvent
> tv_rec.cpp:1057 (HandleStateChange) - TVRec[14]: Changing from
> WatchingLiveTV to None
> 2021-03-06 08:28:00.099325 I [475758/531960] MythSocketThread(72)
> mainserver.cpp:7858 (connectionClosed) - Playback sock(169ff10)
> 'dodo.gregandeva.net <http://dodo.gregandeva.net>' disconnected
>
> I have no idea how to troubleshoot this, or whether the problem is
> likely with Comcast, my equipment, MythTV Software, or Schedules
> Direct. As far as I know, the CSPAN channels are the only ones I
> should be able to get (according to the published channel listings in
> my area) that I can't.
>
> Thanks for any advice,
> --Greg
>
> cannot record
The channels may be set to copy-once or copy-never, which means mythtv
canot record the channels. There should be a way of checking it with hd
homerun prime. Good luck with getting Comcast to fix it. When I had an
issue with a wrong channel set to copy-once it took around 3 months with
Comcast to get it sorted out. That process included multiple unnecessary
visits including one time when they replaced my perfectly good cable
card with one that was not working, and left me with a broken system.
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 3:38 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:

> Thanks for any advice,

You are almost certainly experiencing the Comcast
IPTV migration.

In a number (I think most at this point) of franchises
the CSPAN channels (specifically the HD variants)
were converted to IPTV (only). The SD version is still
available in linear QAM (which your CableCARD can
still tune) due to the need to be able to support the
(original) DTAs still in customer locations(***). So in
order to access CSPAN (the SD version) you will
need to look at your local channel lineup, and change
to using that. Same for CSPAN2 and CSPAN3.

As background, Comcast has a plan to migrate to
IPTV from linear QAM to free up bandwidth for
HSI. Newly added channels are typically added
only in IPTV(*). Existing HD channels with low(er)
viewership are also being selected to be moved
to IPTV only. This has been ongoing for well
over a year now, and is shown on your bill(**).
In order to access those new channels, or to
continue to access the channels migrated, one
needs to use one of their boxes (or use their
streaming app).

If you go to your local Comcast store you can get
a channel lineup card which includes (in with some
small asterisk) which channels are IPTV. The
online channel lineup (available at
https://www.xfinity.com/support/local-channel-lineup )
does not (or did not) have that information.

Unfortunately, this migration has broken the
implied intent of the MCLU channels (1129
in your case) where a MCLU channel would get
the "best available" (whether that is HD or SD)
version of the channel. For those channels
migrated to IPTV the linear QAM channel
map for CableCARDs does not fall back to
the SD version (the "best available") it just
does not work at all (of course if you are
using the X1 box it works as expected).

And for planning purposes, while Comcast has
not shared their schedules, it is clear that over
the long term CableCARDs will be able to receive
fewer and fewer channels, and you will need to
plan to either move to one of Comcast's X1 boxes
(if you want Comcast TV), migrate to another
TV provider, or just drop TV content.

As one would expect, the TiVo crowd (the largest
number of CableCARD users (which is not saying
much, the FCC numbers suggest OCUR/UDCP
users are a very small number total)) have been
up in arms over this, but most of the rational
ones have moved to the final stage of acceptance,
and either have moved on, or will continue using
their TiVo until such time a channel they care
about is migrated.

Good luck.




(*) Note, this being Comcast, there are
exceptions to every plan, and in particular
newly added channels that have an extremely
high local demand may be placed into linear
QAM in that location only to preserve the
available bandwidth (the last example was
the Marquee network which is in linear QAM
in the local Chicago area, but a previous
example is the Pac-12 network which is
IPTV in many markets, but linear QAM in
the markets where the member teams are
located).

(**) If you read the small small print on your
bill (the part you likely never read, but you
perhaps should) it will talk about a channel
being added or migrated often using terms
such as "compatible equipment required"
(which means X1 or streaming app), or, in
some more recent bills, calling out HD IP or
IPTV explicitly. In the case of CSPAN you
might need to go back to your historical
bills for quite a ways back.

(***) In addition to the DTAs, there is some
other existing equipment in the field, but
Comcast already has equivalent equipment
(at a very low BoM cost) that they can
easily deploy whenever they choose to
pull the trigger to do a wholesale replacement.
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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 9:00 AM Peter Bennett <pb.mythtv@gmail.com> wrote:

>
> On 3/6/21 10:35 AM, Greg Woods wrote:
>
>
>
> I have no idea how to troubleshoot this, or whether the problem is likely
> with Comcast, my equipment, MythTV Software, or Schedules Direct. As far as
> I know, the CSPAN channels are the only ones I should be able to get
> (according to the published channel listings in my area) that I can't.
>
>
> cannot record
>
> The channels may be set to copy-once or copy-never, which means mythtv
> canot record the channels. There should be a way of checking it with hd
> homerun prime.
>

If that's what's happening, of course I'm screwed. It will be easier and
cheaper to just give in and rent one of their boxes. If I can't get it
THEN, it will clearly be their fault. I don't really need to record the
CSPAN channels, just live TV access is required.

I haven't seen any way to check it using hdhomerun_config_gui . The channel
numbers do not correspond to Comcast channel numbers in the lineup; they
stop at channel 158, and they're called "physical channel numbers" and I
don't know any way to figure out where a given cable channel would be found.

--Greg
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 10:41 AM Gary Buhrmaster <gary.buhrmaster@gmail.com>
wrote:

> On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 3:38 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:
>
> Existing HD channels with low(er)
> viewership are also being selected to be moved
> to IPTV only. This has been ongoing for well
> over a year now, and is shown on your bill(**).
> In order to access those new channels, or to
> continue to access the channels migrated, one
> needs to use one of their boxes (or use their
> streaming app).
>

In that case, it would appear that my days of using MythTV are numbered. I
do not know of any way to access the channels we watch that can be used by
MythTV once the cable card stops working. The newer boxes don't have
firewire any more so there's no way I know of the change the channel from
MythTV on an X1 box, even if I invested in HD-PVR devices to capture the
recordings. Heck, the X1 boxes don't even have component outputs either so
there's not even any way to do that. From what I understand, the situation
isn't any better with satellite services. Streaming services exist but
their DVR's suck; you can't watch an in-progress recording until it's
finished, which is unacceptable for my normal use case. All very
discouraging.

--Greg

>
>
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
> On Mar 6, 2021, at 1:09 PM, Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:
>
>
>
> In that case, it would appear that my days of using MythTV are numbered. I do not know of any way to access the channels we watch that can be used by MythTV once the cable card stops working. The newer boxes don't have firewire any more so there's no way I know of the change the channel from MythTV on an X1 box, even if I invested in HD-PVR devices to capture the recordings. Heck, the X1 boxes don't even have component outputs either so there's not even any way to do that. From what I understand, the situation isn't any better with satellite services. Streaming services exist but their DVR's suck; you can't watch an in-progress recording until it's finished, which is unacceptable for my normal use case. All very discouraging.
>
> —Greg


TL:DR: Put up an antenna and use OTA broadcast, and save a $100 a month.. :-)

This is probably a dead horse, but if you have decent antenna coverage in your area( I do have good coverage where I am located), Mythtv is great for over the air broadcasts.

The caveat for this is the big 5 or 6 networks are covered as well as several secondary channels available.

My channel lineup here in southeast NC are as follows:

ABC
CBS
NBC
Fox
CW
PBS

Secondary channels: These channels do series reruns from older to new series depending on network and are typically not broadcast in HD, though if the content was widescreen, they do broadcast in widescreen.

MeTV
StartTV
GetTV
Justice
CourtTV
H&I
Bounce
Laff
Grit
Dabl
ION
Cozi
Various PBS secondary

Your mileage may vary, but this is enough for me….
NOTE that if you are wanting the sports channels…. Then. You are stuck in the cable world though at the first 4 major networks above do broadcast some sports.

I use a $30 4 bay antenna to pick up stations from broadcast antennae that are around 40 miles away, and use a pair of HDHR4 tuners for 4 tuners total and have been using this setup for over 10 years.

Regards!




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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 6:10 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:

> In that case, it would appear that my days of using MythTV are numbered.

Depending on what channels you watch
(and whether you require them in HD(*))
that could be today, a month from now,
or a decade(**) from now (just like the
previously mentioned TiVo-ites who
intend to continue using their solution
until something they really care about
stops working).

Based on some other recent changes it
would appear that should you live in the
Comcast central division you are more
likely to see any wholesale migration
first (they got S&E and the IPTV only
boxes rolled out to new TV customers
first). If you do not live in the central
division, watch what they do for hints
as to what is coming.

> Heck, the X1 boxes don't even have component outputs either

Well, some of the (earlier gen) X1 boxes
(the Pace XG1v1) do have component
out. And using an IR blaster for channel
changes has a long history of (mostly)
working, although I have never personally
used the PX001ANM (the Pace XG1v1)
to know if it actually works as advertised.

That said, I think most would agree that
using a HD-PVR2 solution is not optimal,
although as with all else, sometimes you
do what you have to do, and it might
be an acceptable step for some.

Gary

(*) While I only rarely watch CSPAN,
I am not sure I really care about
seeing talking heads mostly saying
and doing nothing of substance in
HD vs SD, But I do understand the
principal of wanting what access to
what you are paying for.

(**) Well, few really expect that TV is
going to still be delivered exactly the
same a decade from now for everyone.
No one really expects TV itself to be
exactly the same in a decade(***).
Three to five years is more the time frame
some expect such delivery transitions
to take, but that is just a guess by
people who do not actually have any
insider knowledge.

(***) What many people want is to
consume the content they want, where
they want, when they want, and on the
device they want (and while one is
at it, make it all free, and don't require
learning 20 different UIs from each
of 20 different content owners, all
of which believe their approach is
the one and only). All of those goals
may not be seen in a decade, but
one can dream.
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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On 07/03/2021 23:50, Gary Buhrmaster wrote:
> On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 6:10 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:
>
>> In that case, it would appear that my days of using MythTV are numbered.
>
> Depending on what channels you watch
> (and whether you require them in HD(*))
> that could be today, a month from now,
> or a decade(**) from now (just like the
> previously mentioned TiVo-ites who
> intend to continue using their solution
> until something they really care about
> stops working).
>
> Based on some other recent changes it
> would appear that should you live in the
> Comcast central division you are more
> likely to see any wholesale migration
> first (they got S&E and the IPTV only
> boxes rolled out to new TV customers
> first). If you do not live in the central
> division, watch what they do for hints
> as to what is coming.
>
>> Heck, the X1 boxes don't even have component outputs either
>
> Well, some of the (earlier gen) X1 boxes
> (the Pace XG1v1) do have component
> out. And using an IR blaster for channel
> changes has a long history of (mostly)
> working, although I have never personally
> used the PX001ANM (the Pace XG1v1)
> to know if it actually works as advertised.
>
> That said, I think most would agree that
> using a HD-PVR2 solution is not optimal,
> although as with all else, sometimes you
> do what you have to do, and it might
> be an acceptable step for some.
>
> Gary
>
> (*) While I only rarely watch CSPAN,
> I am not sure I really care about
> seeing talking heads mostly saying
> and doing nothing of substance in
> HD vs SD, But I do understand the
> principal of wanting what access to
> what you are paying for.
>
> (**) Well, few really expect that TV is
> going to still be delivered exactly the
> same a decade from now for everyone.
> No one really expects TV itself to be
> exactly the same in a decade(***).
> Three to five years is more the time frame
> some expect such delivery transitions
> to take, but that is just a guess by
> people who do not actually have any
> insider knowledge.
>
> (***) What many people want is to
> consume the content they want, where
> they want, when they want, and on the
> device they want (and while one is
> at it, make it all free, and don't require
> learning 20 different UIs from each
> of 20 different content owners, all
> of which believe their approach is
> the one and only). All of those goals
> may not be seen in a decade, but
> one can dream.
>
Meanwhile, those of us living in the rest of the world can only shake our heads at the bizarre
workings of US TV/media.

--

Mike Perkins

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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Mon, 8 Mar 2021 09:57:07 +0000, you wrote:

>Meanwhile, those of us living in the rest of the world can only shake our heads at the bizarre
>workings of US TV/media.

This seems to be a consequence of letting mega corporations have so
much influence over who gets elected. Only in America!

Unfortunately, the US (ie their corporations) seem to also want to
export how they work to the rest of the world. Fortunately, where I
live in New Zealand, our legislators have so far ignored the pressures
to conform. We even have explicit permission in our Copyright Act to
make copies of audio CDs for format shifting.
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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Sun, Mar 7, 2021 at 4:51 PM Gary Buhrmaster <gary.buhrmaster@gmail.com>
wrote:

> On Sat, Mar 6, 2021 at 6:10 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:
>
> > In that case, it would appear that my days of using MythTV are numbered.
>
> Depending on what channels you watch
>

Yes, there's the rub. I do have an OTA antenna and an old-style HD Homerun.
It works well, but many of the channels we watch (including CSPAN2 and
CSPAN3 that started this thread) are not OTA channels. Also I do watch
sports, which greatly limits my options. The NFL is the only major US sport
that is mostly available OTA. All the others require sports cable/satellite
channels. So for now I am stuck with Comcast or satellite. There are
streaming services (Hulu, Sling) that offer channels, but their DVR's will
not let you watch a recording until it is completed. That's fine for things
like weekly network prime-time shows, but unacceptable for sports. All I
want to do with sports programs is time shift and fast forward/skip through
ads.

For now I'll just rent the cheapest non-DVR box I can get from Comcast so
my wife can watch CSPAN 2&3. There are some other channels she watches such
as Hallmark for example that are still available via Cable Card, but what I
have read here says that more and more of them will only be available to me
via streaming services or Comcast. If some of her channels go to IPTV,
that's no problem for us because she always watches her shows live (except
for shows that we both watch, of course, which I record via MythTV). When
the sports channels go, I will probably just have to give that up and punt
Comcast completely; I will not be forced into renting a lot of their lousy
overpriced equipment; I just got away from all that. But the landscape may
have changed a lot by then. Already we watch more and more of our TV from
various streaming services (Netflix, BritBox, and Great Courses Plus are
our three at present). But in the end it's always being a sports fan that
trips me up.

So that's a lot of detail about my own personal situation, but it
illustrates the point that one person's recommendations are not likely to
be useful for someone with very different viewing requirements.

For my own case, the thread was useful because this is the first I heard of
this "IPTV migration", and like most technological "advancements" touted by
government-mandated monopolies like Comcast, it sucks for us and is more in
their interest than ours despite how it is likely to be marketed. Another
way to use their monopoly power, hand-in-hand with the government, to force
us to watch the content the way they want us to rather than the way we want
to.


(and whether you require them in HD(*))
>

In the case of CSPAN*, HD is not a requirement, but even the SD channels do
not work here via cable card (except for original CSPAN, but not CSPAN 2&3).


> that could be today, a month from now,
> or a decade(**) from now (just like the
> previously mentioned TiVo-ites who
> intend to continue using their solution
> until something they really care about
> stops working).
>

And that's what I am going to do with MythTV.


>
> Based on some other recent changes it
> would appear that should you live in the
> Comcast central division you are more
> likely to see any wholesale migration
>

I don't know if the Denver area qualifies as "central" or "west" here.


>
> > Heck, the X1 boxes don't even have component outputs either
>
> Well, some of the (earlier gen) X1 boxes
> (the Pace XG1v1) do have component
> out.


Yes, but you can't go into a Comcast store and request a particular type of
box and meet with much success. I have tried similar things in the past.


>
>
> That said, I think most would agree that
> using a HD-PVR2 solution is not optimal,
> although as with all else, sometimes you
> do what you have to do, and it might
> be an acceptable step for some.
>

For now that option remains on the table, but it too requires renting
another box from Comcast as well as purchasing a new device. And it may not
be possible to use it anyway, as the HDMI ports do not work with
HDCP-protected channels (which most of them are going to be now) unless you
can get them to give you a component-capable box (see above for your
chances of that; GFL).

--Greg
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Mon, Mar 8, 2021 at 2:47 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:

> Also I do watch sports, which greatly limits my options.

The sports industrial complex is actually
a strong contributing factor of many of the
price increases by the content providers
(and by localities that tax one to pay for
their stadiums and other supporting
facilities). But the need to offer breads
and circuses to the masses in order to
remain in power tends to continue the
redirection of funding (the Romans knew
all of this, of course).

That, too, is likely to change, as more
and more people do not want to pay
for others' sports viewing. When almost
every bill has a (forced) $8/mo ESPN
tax (just the one channel!) people are
starting to want things to change, and
that percentage of people is going up.
And that does not include the other
required sports fees by many providers
(and the OTA retransmission fees that are
increased due the ability of the content
owners to hold those channels hostage
if a provider does not agree to pay the
sports taxes).

> The NFL is the only major US sport that is mostly available OTA. All the others require sports cable/satellite channels. So for now I am stuck with Comcast or satellite. There are streaming services (Hulu, Sling) that offer channels, but their DVR's will not let you watch a recording until it is completed. That's fine for things like weekly network prime-time shows, but unacceptable for sports. All I want to do with sports programs is time shift and fast forward/skip through ads.

No personal experience, but there are
claims YTTV allows you to watch a
recording in progress (it uses a slightly
unusual access, you have to go to
Library, Scheduled, Recording Now,
and then you can select it to play
and then FF and skip ads).

https://www.techhive.com/article/3509582/how-to-make-the-most-of-youtube-tv.html#toc-7

> For now I'll just rent the cheapest non-DVR box I can get from Comcast so my wife can watch CSPAN 2&3. There are some other channels she watches such as Hallmark for example that are still available via Cable Card, but what I have read here says that more and more of them will only be available to me via streaming services or Comcast. If some of her channels go to IPTV, that's no problem for us because she always watches her shows live (except for shows that we both watch, of course, which I record via MythTV).

If you are in the Denver market, check
to see if channels 169 and 170 tune
on your Prime (those are SD versions
of CSPAN2/3) in addition to channel
98 (CSPAN). You might need to
run another HDHR channel detect to
update the CableCARD map(s) which
would show the info if they are
accessible (you may want to include
a "?show=all" to the tuner http
lineup display to see some additional
info, although personally I prefer
getting the data in the json version).

If not, the cheapest box will be a
HD-DTA (called a "TV Box" in the
rate cards). However, since you
currently have CableCARDs, and
are not in a S&E pricing market,
the costs may be higher than one
wants after all the adjustments
get made to get you that box
(S&E pricing make all CableCARDs
"free" without the dreaded "service
to additional TV" fee, but other
markets will vary).

If you have a streaming device that
has the Xfinity Stream app (not all
devices have the app) you may be
able to watch CSPAN (and 2/3) on
that for "free" with your Comcast
subscription.

> When the sports channels go

Depending on market, some of the game
specific sports channels with the advanced
sports packages have already moved
(the extra innings, league pass, etc.)

Previously Comcast offered a limited number
of games in HD, and the rest were in SD
(they assigned the few HD channels to the
games that had the most local interest).
They have reorganized many of the offerings
such that all the games are HD, and in
addition every team has their own channel.
So there is a channel for the Boston Red
Sox, and a channel for the NY Yankees,
and they show those teams games, and if
they play each other the channels both
show that game (same for NBA, NHL,
NFL teams).

If the channel numbers (in your lineup) are
now in the 3000's for the sports you want
to see in your advanced sports package,
they have moved to HD IPTV (and require
either an X1 box, or one of the streaming
devices/apps). Note that not all IP channels
are in the 3000's. Again, you have to go
pick up a physical lineup to see which
are which.

> I don't know if the Denver area qualifies as "central" or "west" here.

Denver would be in the Western division
(As I recall the Western division HQ is
even in the greater Denver area).

> Yes, but you can't go into a Comcast store and request a particular type of box and meet with much success. I have tried similar things in the past.

I have never had a problem (although YMWV)
back when I had Comcast STB's, but in
the case of a component out box they likely
have, or can get, one, because there are still
a fair number of customers who still have
(component only) projectors (typically in "home
theaters").

> For now that option remains on the table, but it too requires renting another box from Comcast as well as purchasing a new device. And it may not be possible to use it anyway, as the HDMI ports do not work with HDCP-protected channels (which most of them are going to be now) unless you can get them to give you a component-capable box (see above for your chances of that; GFL).

That is the point of component (not HDMI)
output, as it uses the analogue "hole" in the
regulations which is 100% allowed.
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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Mon, Mar 8, 2021 at 11:41 AM Gary Buhrmaster <gary.buhrmaster@gmail.com>
wrote:

>
> That, too, is likely to change, as more
> and more people do not want to pay
> for others' sports viewing.


I'm fine with that. I voted against the taxpayer-funded stadiums even
though I am a fan (I am opposed to all forms of corporate welfare), and I
agree that people should not be forced to subsidize other people's
recreation choices (so I oppose things like taxpayer-funded rec centers,
and particularly the municipal golf course where everybody subsidizes the
recreation choice of mostly rich white guys; that makes no sense at all).


> the ability of the content
> owners to hold those channels hostage
> if a provider does not agree to pay the
> sports taxes).
>

We're experiencing something like this now, where Altitude TV and Comcast
are having a dispute where each side accuses the other of being overly
greedy and acting in bad faith, but the end result is that Comcast is no
longer carrying Altitude. This, combined with the blackout rules of the NHL
and NBA, make it impossible for us to see any Colorado Avalanche or Denver
Nuggets games (other than a few where a national network such as NBCSN has
negotiated rights).


>
>
> No personal experience, but there are
> claims YTTV allows you to watch a
> recording in progress


I am going to sign up for a free trial and check that out. They might even
have CSPAN-2.


>
> If you are in the Denver market, check
> to see if channels 169 and 170 tune
> on your Prime


They do not even appear in my lineup. I double checked and verified that I
have enabled them in Schedules Direct. To be sure, I just ran
"mythfilldatabase --only-update-channels", but they still are not there.
Since the switchover to XMLTV, I no longer know anything about how
mythfilldatabase works, so I have no idea what could be wrong or how to
troubleshoot this.

You might need to
> run another HDHR channel detect to
> update the CableCARD map(s)


I poked around and figured out how to use the little web server on the
Prime (I never knew that was there). If I run a channel scan, channels 169
and 170 are found, but they are not in my database. Any ideas on how to fix
this?



>
>
> If you have a streaming device that
> has the Xfinity Stream app (not all
> devices have the app) you may be
> able to watch CSPAN (and 2/3) on
> that for "free" with your Comcast
> subscription.
>

I'll see if my Roku has that; it would be a cheap fix and would be
acceptable for the WAF.

--Greg


>
Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
On Wed, Mar 10, 2021 at 4:52 PM Greg Woods <greg@gregandeva.net> wrote:

> I am going to sign up for a free trial and check that out. They might even have CSPAN-2.

Last I checked they did not (YTTV apparently does not
want to pay for those channels due to the perceived
low interest), but things do change, so look at the
channel list for your location.

> If I run a channel scan, channels 169 and 170 are found, but they are not in my database. Any ideas on how to fix this?

I use a 3rd party script for managing my channels,
so I have not added channels via mythfilldatabase
for a long time but as I recall for mythfilldatabase
you had to use the --do-channel-updates flag
(perhaps others will have better advice here).
However, I would recommend running it interactively
(--manual) to make sure it is doing what you want
and prevent it from doing something you do not
(unfortunately, for a cable lineup, that can be a lot
of questions to answer). Alternatively create a new
videosource and let it generate your new channel
lineup and if it looks good change the capture
card to the new videosource.

As always, be sure you have a good current DB
backup in case things do not go as you like.
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Re: trouble with CSPAN channels [ In reply to ]
Sorry it's taken me so long to get back to this; got busy with other
projects.

On Wed, Mar 10, 2021 at 11:05 AM Gary Buhrmaster <gary.buhrmaster@gmail.com>
wrote:

>
> I use a 3rd party script for managing my channels,
> so I have not added channels via mythfilldatabase
> for a long time but as I recall for mythfilldatabase
> you had to use the --do-channel-updates flag
>

There are a few other flags now, such as "--only-update-channels" and
"--only-update-guide" . The latter is what I usually use for my daily runs,
but I had tried "--only-update-channels" without success. I didn't even
realize that "--do-channel-updates" still existed, but I tried it and it
didn't help; I still do not see channels 169 and 170 in my guide and I
cannot tune to them in LiveTV.

For now I have given up on this, as it is taking way more effort than it is
worth. Also, I was successful using one of your other suggestions. It turns
out our Roku devices do have the Xfinity streaming app, and it works, so my
wife is happy to access the CSPAN channels that way (and any other cable
channels as well), so I can go back to using MythTV just for recordings (as
long as my cable card continues to work, anyway). I guess trying to resist
the corporate masters is pretty much useless any more. Sooner or later I
won't be able to use MythTV for anything but OTA, and I will be forced to
pay for Comcast DVR or a streaming service with channels. Kind of like at
work where I fought for years to keep them from using Microsoft services
for authentication, but that battle too was eventually lost as Active
Directory was implemented and used for company services a couple of years
before I retired. One reason I was glad to go (but that is another
story....)

Thanks for all the help,
--Greg