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#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
This thread is for owners of the Rogers 8642 HD PVR to provide us with their feedback on the set top box and discuss its use with other owners.

See the following post for a list of known issues:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=122118&page=49


To discuss the new firmware/IPG, please use the following thread:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=150889


We also have a separate Whole Home PVR thread.

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=150244


Please Note:

This thread is NOT for non-owners to ask questions about the 8642. If you would like ask questions then please post in the New 8642 PVR from Rogers discussion thread.

Non-owners posting in this thread will have their posts removed.


Check out the following thread for differences between the 8300HD and 8642HD (this is now mostly obsolete as the new firmware/IPG has become available for the 8642).

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?p=1121780#post1121780



Edit by 57: Does the PVR not report % space properly? Many people have reported the % space doesn't seem correct (internal and/or external), especially if there is not a lot of space used. Record at least 10 hours of HD and then see the percentages - they should then be fine.
 
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#3 ·
I having been running the 8642 for 2.5 hours

So far I don’t see network settings, no streaming media. Don’t know if Rogers has this enabled yet.

Guide is the same as the old one, menu for settings is the same as the old.

eSATA port does function.

Would I recommend this NO not yet.
 
#4 ·
My first impressions are as follows:

- There's no Quick Start Guide. That alone makes it worth it. :D

- It is faster at loading Rogers On Demand versus the HD box that we had.

Other than that, it seems like every other Rogers box. I haven't tried any of the ports at the back yet. I'll report back when I get a chance to do so.
 
#5 ·
I have a few preliminary observations to make while I wait to record enough stuff to put the TB drive through it's paces.

Plus side:
- Law & Order: SVU is on at 9:00p and 10:00p tonight. I set it to record at 9:00p and selected all episodes at any time. Both the 9 o'clock and 10 o'clock shows highlighted red. Doing this on my 8300 would have turned 9 o'clock red but I would have had to scroll over to 10 o'clock to see that it too was going to record.

- The FF/REW status bar displays the time offset, in minutes, from the start of the program. It is also divided visually into 4 sections, apparently 15 minutes per section for a 1 hour program.

- No Quick Start guide. Guide button works as it did on the 8300 prior to the recent upgrade.

- The menus are generally more pleasing to look at. IMO better graphics... less blocky.


Minus side:
- While watching a live or prerecorded program press the Guide button and then press the Info button. The Info text looks really bad (poorly rendered). Pressing the Info button directly from the program itself (either live or recorded) or from the List menu and the Info text looks quite nice.

- The front panel display is really bright. I may need to put a neutral density filter over it.

- No new options in Settings or List Preferences.

- The PIP windows is still annoyingly placed to accommodate a SD frame.

- The on screen menus are not HD.
 
#9 · (Edited by Moderator)
New features found in the 8642...

I have discovered a couple new features with the 8642 that are not in the 8300 STB.

- Much to my surprise and my pleasure I have found that this box remembers where I left off in viewing previously recorded programs. I have partially viewed several programs and when I go back it remembers my current location in each one. The location memory has survived several power button cycles but I have not tried to see if it persists through a hard power cycle.

- I often delay the start of a live program to build up enough buffer that I can skip the commercials. The status bar has always given a graphical idea of how close you are to being caught up to real time but the 8642 goes one step further. When you FF/REV/PAUSE from the buffer (or from a scheduled recording that is still being recorded) it displays the time of day you are currently at. In the example below you can see that I paused at 8:51. If it was really 9:00 I'd know I was 9 minutes delayed from real time.

http://i893.photobucket.com/albums/ac133/LTJ_photos/Time_of_Day.jpg
 
#10 ·
Jim, you beat me to the punch... I noticed that feature last night as well and was extremely pleased to see it remember the location of multiple programs, as I flipped between shows during my own testing. That has been a really desired feature for many of us for a long time. I too have not yet checked if the memory of each show's left off location will survive once the power to the unit is pulled, but I will find out soon when I move the box to a permanent location.
 
#14 ·
Bookmarks after Power Cycle!

I can report that the 8642 does in fact remember bookmarks for different recordings, even after the power to the unit is switched fully off (box is unplugged). This means the flag for where you left off each recording is very likely stored on the hard drive and not just in flash memory on the 8642 mainboard.
 
#16 ·
True, it could be EPROM memory and therefore retain its setting after power is removed. I suspect though that the flags are stored on the hard drive, as is the directory of recordings. Either way, the important thing is that the spot you leave off in each program is remembered.
 
#17 ·
Other Observations

The IR sensor on this new unit is not as "strong" as the 8300HD was. Now that I've got the 8642 positioned in the same spot I had the 8300HD in I realize that this new box is not picking up the IR signal when bounced off a side wall (my equipment sits at a 90 degree angle to my sitting position). If you aim the remote directly at the 8642 it gets the signal fine, but again I'm used to bouncing the signal off a wall opposite the equpment rack. This could be a little problematic so I might finally need to buy something to receive and repeat the IR signal.

Vibrations... the shell of this unit, again installed in the exact same place the 8300HD was previously, vibrates MUCH more than my 8300HD did. I added inexpensive rubber stick-on feet onto the feet of the 8642 and it's improved this issue a fair bit. Note that the 8642 has false front feet... the box actually sits on four smaller rubber feet, not the wide ones you see when you look at the unit face on. Overall I'm not sure the build quality is as "good" as the 8300HD, but the case is black and there ARE a couple improvements so please don't take that as me saying it's a worse model.
 
#19 ·
Jim,
The irony for my setup is that the same thing that is causing me issue in my last post is what is assisting me with the display brightness. As it turns out, the tinted glass door on my electronics tower is both dimming the brightness that you're not pleased with, and also causing issue with the IR signal from the remote being aimed in any direction other than directly at the unit.

With more testing after my last post I found out I could still get the 8642 to pickup the IR signal bounced off walls if my cabinet's glass door was open, but not with it closed in front of the IR sensor. This was not the case with the 8300HD, as the 8300HD was able to receive bounced IR signals through the same glass. Strange.

Also, I don't notice the brightness thing as much as you because my equipment is sideways to where I usually sit. I think your solution is an excellent one... I don't like bright displays in my viewing room either - I usually set all my gear up to have their displays off if the equipment supports that. So we've both dimmed our 8642 displays - you with a filter and me with tinted glass. LOL
 
#26 ·
you can get a IR prism from most any AV dealer, they are made by audioplex and distributed by a number of companies such as provo ..

they allow IR to be received from the sides (more off axis - even 90deg.) , about 1/4" in diam. and stick on over the "eye" (position is important) ..

if you cant find them - msg me and i'll mail you one at no cost.


I find the brightness of the display to be a major distraction - I think I am going to open one up and 'dull' down the window from inside to maintain a clean look ....
 
#20 ·
I picked one up today and this is my first experience with an HDPVR.

I have gone through the HD setup wizard and enabled 1080i and the nP settings. The PVR is connected to the tv with an hdmi cable.

I find that some of the HD channels are not shown in full screen. If I toggle through the HD Zoom settings it reads Normal 1080i but appears to be like a 4:3 ratio. e.g. standard City TV and HD City TV. The tv itself is set for 16:9

When on these channels the onscreen guide also shows in a reduced ratio.

Anyone else experience this behaviour? Is it normal for this unit?
 
#21 ·
Dave, please see the following FAQ on HD programming, Black Bars:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=76068 What's on in True HD

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=76089 Black Bars


And the following post, useful for those new to the forum and HD - FAQs, Search Tips, Optimization:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=57741

The IPG is 4:3. If it fills your screen on SD signals, it's because you've set the TV to stretch SD. What's the make/model of your HDTV? If it's an LCD, there's no reason to stretch 4:3 - watch it as 4:3 for better picture quality and no distortion.
 
#22 ·
sometimes the show being broadcast is not an HD show, its taped (or i should refraise that, hard drived) in SD, just because its an HD channel, does not make it automatically show hd aspect ratios, lots of city tv shows are in SD, like rachael ray, tyra, judge judy, and some of those vh1 shows. you will see black bars on the side.. if you go to an sd channel, you will see GREY bars, thats how you tell the difference.
 
#23 ·
Thanks for the feedback guys. Much more helpful than the Rogers staffer I spoke to earlier.

That'll teach me to make better use of the search. I thought the issue was unique to this PVR but it looks like it is HD in general.

I guess I've just hit on upconverted 4:3 channels which also explains why I was seeing black bars even though I had set the PVR to grey.

I had set the tv (LG 32LH30) to 16:9 (stretch) mode previously to avoid burn in from the bars on 4:3 shows which is why I never noticed a discrepancy with the IPG.

I'll make sure I do better research before the next post
 
#25 ·
I have noticed that if I play a program in FF (1 press of the >> button) the status bar comes on screen and can not always be cleared by pressing the Exit key. Actually, it goes away for an instant then reappears.

On the 8300 the status bar appears when you start FF, will stay on screen until you press Exit then will always clear it for the duration of the FF.

I have been able to clear the 8642 status bar sometimes but haven't quite figured out if there is a pattern as to when you can and when you can't.
 
#27 ·
I bought the 8300 320 GB last autumn, and was generously "grandfathered" to the 500 GB 8642, due to some issues. I run a simple set-up, HDMI to my Samsung 1080P, Insignia BDP on the side. TV for the most part, and multiple interests/recordings are always in play.

I agree that the interface/management system is much improved. No way of knowing that of the box, the remote is a fraternal twin to the old one, and comes with some fairly generic instructions.

So what can it do right now besides being quicker, and handier?
 
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