IR blaster code needed for Cox DVR

[DAtherton]

I have recently "upgraded" my Cox Cable in San Diego to their Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8000 DVR. With their regular digital box AND with their HD box (non-DVR) I was easily able to enter the IR blaster code after choosing Scientific Atlanta from the Replay menus. But after upgrading I find that none of the Replay-supplied IR blaster codes work with the new Cox 8000 DVR box, Subsequently, although I can still watch already recorded shows on the Replay, I cannot record or watch anything new.

Does anyone have the IR code for the latest SA Cox DVR box, please?

Incidentally the 8000 DVR is a poorly executed box, not really ready for prime time. I'll only use it to record HD programs and not at all if I find I can't use the Replay with it.

Any help woud be much appreciated. Thanks.

[st63z]

Hi were you able to find the right ReplayTV IR Blaster code for the SA8000 DVR?

I don't know anything about the SA models but I read (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=432948) that there's an SA8000HD (or 8010?) specifically for HDTV, which is separate than the regular SA8000. Do these two use completely different IR codes?

I use Time Warner Cable and am thinking about swapping our old digital cable boxes (Motorola DCT2224 according to the label) for either their SA 8000 DVR or their HD DVR (which I assume is this SA 8000HD/8010), but I'm concerned either one might not be supported in the RTV 45xx IR Blaster?

[DAtherton]

Since posting this I've persuaded Cox to let me have their latest DVR box, the 8300HD. It is far superior to the 8000HD and includes an HDMI connection. Also, this new box allows me to use my ReplayTV 4500 series, all six of them, via composite. I've just ordered a VGA to Component adaptor as I believe I'll be able to use this converter to connect with the 8300 via component which should improve the quality a great deal. Unfortunately the difference in quality between composite and component on a large screen HDTV is to disconcerting. I find I'm using my Cox DVR most of the time and my Replays sit here gathering dust, veen though I'm able to share recordings between six machines and rooms.

I hope this helps.

[st63z]

Thanks much DAtherton. So I assume you were able to find an IR Blaster code in the RTV that can control the 8300HD to change channels? Thanks for the info about the 8300HD, I will ask my TWC which models they offer.

I have four RTV 4500's myself and at this point I don't think we can get by without the convenience of network playback from different rooms :) But anyways I'm thinking about swapping both of our Motorola digital tuner boxes for two SA DVR boxes -- it's too bad the SA can't do network playback also (or... can they??).

Also the thread I'd linked to above said the SA DVRs are impractical to continue to be used with the RTV, do you find this is the case? So if I swap all my Motorola boxes to the SA boxes, I can forget about continuing to use the RTVs to record the digital/premium channels from cabletv (like TechTV)?

[DAtherton]

The IR-Blaster code for the 8300HD is 0477. This also worked with their regular 3100 digital box, but not with the 8000HD box.

Also, your comment about not being able to use the 8000HD box with Replays is accurate, but I've found the 8300HD to be more compatible. I have the Cox SA DVR 8300HD AND a Replay 4532 hooked together in two different rooms. Because the Cox cable box is needed to select the channels, it is not possible to record different programs on Cox and Replay simultaneously. However the Cox box has two tuners so you can record two programs on the Cox box whilst watching something on the Replay. I'd hoped that two tuners would mean being able to record on both Cox and Replay simultaneously, but this doesn't seem possible. The Cox SA DVR can't be networked; it has no Ethernet port.

I basically use my two SA DVRs to record HD broadcasts, and my six Replays to record and share regular digital broadcasts. The ratio of hard drive space is the wrong way round; ideally I'd have much more HD space, but I don't want to give up the Commercial Advance feature, hence buying up additional 4500 series models.

The SA software is quite awful, and Cox try to nobble as many features as possible such as being able to set up recordings of PPV events IN ADVANCE of the broadcast. I have to get up at 6.50am at the weekend to switch on the record function of the SA DVR to be able to record my EPL PPV soccer games. Quite ludicrous. Also the Cox box has a default setting to go into power saving mode each night between 1am and 6am. Unless you set a regular wake-up in the preferences for 6.01am, it doesn't wake up to make any Replay recordings you've set; however, it will record from the Cox DVR in the middle of the night.

I hope this helps.

[st63z]

You've been a big help, thanks again! As fortuitous timing goes, apparently my TWC is just starting to get the 8300HD units in. I called their tech support who said they carry both 8000(HD) and 8300(HD) and that it would depend on your needs as they have slightly different connectors.

But my nearest local center just has the 8000HD although they do know about the 8300HD too. Turns out another local center will get it tomorrow, while they themselves expect it in 2 days.

I'm glad that you told me about it (and that I'd visited Sci-Atl's website last night to look up the DVR models (http://www.sciatl.com/consumers_new/index.htm) as well as the user guides/diagrams after registering in their Explorer eClub (http://www.scientificatlanta.com/explorerclub/) section). Actually I'd tried to drop by yesterday too but arrived 2 minutes past the closing time and their door was already locked from the outside. I would've just gotten the 8000 then, but now I know to get the 8300 :D


Originally posted by DAtherton
Also, this new box allows me to use my ReplayTV 4500 series, all six of them, via composite. I've just ordered a VGA to Component adaptor as I believe I'll be able to use this converter to connect with the 8300 via component which should improve the quality a great deal.Do you mean that the "OUT2 (VCR)" second composite-out on the 8300 does work? The online docs for the 8000 series say this 2nd output might not actually be active until some future software update.

As for the component-out you'd have to set it to SDTV mode to work with the RTV (via the VGA-Component adaptor) right? But wouldn't that limit the HDMI to SDTV resolution too?

Speaking of which though, if I recall correctly the 8300 docs say another improvement over the 8000 is that the S-Video, composite, and coax-out ports are always active (and always at SDTV resolution) even if the 8300 unit is set to HDTV mode. Whereas on the 8000 these ports are supposedly deactivated when in HDTV mode...


Because the Cox cable box is needed to select the channels, it is not possible to record different programs on Cox and Replay simultaneously. However the Cox box has two tuners so you can record two programs on the Cox box whilst watching something on the Replay. I'd hoped that two tuners would mean being able to record on both Cox and Replay simultaneously, but this doesn't seem possible.Heh that would've been great indeed.


I basically use my two SA DVRs to record HD broadcasts, and my six Replays to record and share regular digital broadcasts. The ratio of hard drive space is the wrong way round; ideally I'd have much more HD space, but I don't want to give up the Commercial Advance feature, hence buying up additional 4500 series models.I wonder if our 8300 will have a working SATA port on the back, so I can just add an external HDD for extra storage (I'm reluctant to open it as it's not actually mine to own)...


I have to get up at 6.50am at the weekend to switch on the record function of the SA DVR to be able to record my EPL PPV soccer games. Quite ludicrous. Also the Cox box has a default setting to go into power saving mode each night between 1am and 6am. Unless you set a regular wake-up in the preferences for 6.01am, it doesn't wake up to make any Replay recordings you've setI also read (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=477911) that there might be a future software update to wake up the 8000 (and presumably the 8300 too) if it receives an IR signal, and if not you'd have to set up short manual recordings every 2hrs between 1-6am to prevent the SA from shutting down at all (if you actually need the RTV to record something in that time period, something between the bi-hourly placeholder recordings presumably). But otherwise you're saying there's a "wake-up" option in the 8300 itself to make sure it does wake up after 6am, so that's good :)


P.S. Now I just need to make more vertical clearance in my cabinets, as the photos of the 8300 make it look thicker than the 8000 (which looks yet even thicker than my existing Motorola tuner boxes) :rolleyes:

[DAtherton]

In the case of Cox Cable, they are limiting who can get the 8300HD as they don't have too many. To get my two 8000s "upgraded" to 8300s I told them I needed the HDMI connections to connect to my HDTVs. An added advantage was that I could use my Replays again.

I'm not sure about using the OUT to VCR. I haven't tried it to a VCR, and it was no help connecting my Replays. However, I haven't spent any time on this. If you have any success in this area, I'd appreciate hearing from you.

I'm currently using the Replays' OUT2 ports to connect to my HDTVs - composite, and therefore not too great. I'm hoping that the VGA to Component will do exactly the same thing, but with a higher quality. I'll let you know when I've tried it.

The 8300 isn't very large, though it's wider than a regular digital cable box.

As you say, on the 8300 the outs are always active. On the 8000 they weren't, the reason I couldn't use the Replays with them.

I've also ordered an ADS HD Upconverter to try experimenting with all the Replay OUTs. Cwos.com have a special deal at present - only $199 after rebate. As I'm using only 4500 series boxes I'm keen to improve the quality somehow. Again I'll let you know, though I'll be out of the country from next weekend for six weeks so it might have to take a while.

The extra ports on the 8300 don't seem to be active, but SA say this is up to the cable provider. Maybe TW will be better than Cox in this regard, though having had TW in our previous house in San Diego, I doubt it.

The "wake-up" option doesn't stipulate a non-working period of 1-6am; I just gleaned this from the Cox engineers and manuals. Since setting it to 6.01am I've had no problems of it not being awake to record programs, but I haven't tried recording anything before 6am since my last, missed attempt. I think you're probably right: setting short manual recordings every 119 minutes between 1 and 6am should stop it going to sleep, but what a hassle - and totally avoidable if SA would stop bowing to the cable companies who are so fearful of Hollywood reprisals over copy protection.

Let me know how it all pans out.

[st63z]

Just wanted to say thanks again DAtherton. Finally got two SA 8300HD DVR's from TWC for myself as well. It must've been fate, I came in to the local center one day right when the truck carrying a huge load of 8300HDs just arrived and the delivery guy was just starting to unload them. But the customer service rep was adamant that the HD boxes cannot work with a non-HDTV. I had my suspicions (as in perhaps she was referring to the 8000HD?) but ended up taking home one 8300 and one 8300HD. Had to come back the next day (after testing) to swap for the second 8300HD.

Originally posted by DAtherton
The IR-Blaster code for the 8300HD is 0477.Thanks for that, saved me time from testing all the SA codes! I guess if multiple different codes seem to work, you should generally stick with the first (smallest code number) match? I'd also tried 0477A, 0877, etc, and they also seem to work...

Because the [SA 8300HD] cable box is needed to select the channels, it is not possible to record different programs on [SA] and Replay simultaneously. However the [SA] box has two tuners so you can record two programs on the [SA] box whilst watching something on the Replay. I'd hoped that two tuners would mean being able to record on both [SA] and Replay simultaneously, but this doesn't seem possible.Hmm that's strange, it seems to work fine for me?? If the SA box is in the middle of recording something and the Replay changes the channel (via IR Blaster) to record something else for itself, the 2nd tuner on the SA box seems to be automatically used for the Replay so that there's no interference. Similarly, if the Replay is in the middle of recording a digital channel (from SA), and the SA box itself needs to start recording another channel, the SA recording seems to happen in the background via the 2nd tuner, without actually changing the foreground channel that's being recorded by the Replay.

Am I wrong, or perhaps your SA box doesn't work the same way?

Originally posted by DAtherton
I'm currently using the Replays' OUT2 ports to connect to my HDTVs - composite, and therefore not too great. I'm hoping that the VGA to Component will do exactly the same thing, but with a higher quality.

I've also ordered an ADS HD Upconverter to try experimenting with all the Replay OUTs.I'd also bought VGA-to-component adapters online for my Replays a long time ago, but for some reason never ended up using them :) I wish you luck with your upconverter test.

[DAtherton]

quote: "Am I wrong, or perhaps your SA box doesn't work the same way?"

I must have it set up differently. Could you kindly let me know your set up - inputs, HDMI/component/composite, etc. Whenever I set up a Replay recording, it automatically switches the channel. I haven't checked it when SA has a scheduled recording or already has one in motion, but, if I'm WATCHING a program live on SA, the Replay cuts in, switches the channel and takes over.

Maybe you were only talking about recordings. Can you watch a program on SA whilst recording on Replay, and vice versa?

[st63z]

Oh sorry, I see what you mean. You're right, a Replay recording would cut in and change the foreground channel for me too, which would interrupt if I'm in the middle of watching something else. Similarly if the Replay is already recording something on the SA box then I can't watch anything else on SA at the same time. Obviously the problem is that both the live viewer (me) and the Replay can only "see" and use what's displayed in the foreground.

But hasn't this always been the case, even with previous non-DVR cable boxes (such as my previous Motorola)? I'm not sure how the SA DVR box is worse in this regard than any other cable box...

The good thing is that an automatic scheduled recording on the SA DVR seems to occur in the background via the 2nd tuner without disrupting whatever is being displayed in the foreground. So I'm thinking as long as we make sure not to schedule any two recordings on the SA with simultaneous or overlapping timeslots, then we can still use the Replay to record from the SA box without interfering with any simultaneous SA recording (but it will interfere with live viewing as you said) :)

And I realize this only works for recordings on the SA box that we've scheduled ahead of time (not on the cuff recordings that we want to set up while the Replay is already in the middle of recording something else)...

P.S. Others have also mentioned this problem (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=432948#post4921508)

[DAtherton]

Another problem I've run into is HDCP. I have two identical setups with the exception that the TV is different. In the lounge a JVC HD-ILA 61"; in the bedroom a Pioneer Elite HD Plasma. To each is attached a Replay 4532. With exactly the same settings on the SA box, and using HDMI to connect the HD TV, the JVC works perfectly with the Replay. However, on the Pioneer I continually get the SA message DVI Alert which tells me I must use a component connection to avoid HDCP. Since I can only use composite out on the Replay (I couldn't get the VGA out to work with a VGA/component adaptor), I am stumped. It works fine if, on powering off the TV, I NEVER leave the TV on the input connected to the Replay, but if I forget, I get this wrtetched DVI Alert warning instead of a recorded program. It says that my TV is incompatible with HDCP which is clearly incorrect as it's the latest model and it works fine with the Replay once the TV is switched on and I switch inputs.

Any ideas?

[st63z]

Sorry for the late reply, for some reason I don't think I got an email notification about a new post to this thread.

Whew that sounds like a pickle of an HDCP problem... Unfortunately I haven't had to deal with HDMI, so I have no idea myself, sorry :( Guess I'll have to watch out for that myself too, later -- thanks for sharing.