[mythtv-users] Alternative to HDPVR

[Stephen Worthington]

On Mon, 25 Dec 2017 13:57:35 -0600, you wrote:

>On 12/23/2017 09:49 PM, Stephen Worthington wrote:
>> I presume the problem with USB 3 is that the NUC does not have any USB
>> 2 ports.  So do you have a USB 2 hub you could plug into one of the
>> USB 3 ports - that might help.
>Is HDPVR incompatibility with USB3 a known problem?
>
>My HDPVR freezes while recording the show. It is connected to a USB3
>port. A second HDPVR connected to another USB3 port works fine. The
>manual of the Supermicro X11SAT-F board
>(https://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Xeon/C236_C232/X11SAT-F.cfm)
>says that both USB2 and USB3 ports are available. However, lspci shows
>only a usb3 controller
>
> 00:14.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation Sunrise Point-H USB 3.0 xHCI
>Controller (rev 31)
>
>I tried disabling the xhci module in the kernel. However USB stopped
>working altogether (EHCI didnt work). I tried to put in a USB 2 hub
>between HDPVR and the onboard port, but still one of the HDPVR freezes.
>Here is how the usb tree looks like,
>
># lsusb -t
>/:  Bus 04.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 5000M
>/:  Bus 03.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/4p, 480M
>/:  Bus 02.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/10p, 5000M
>/:  Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=xhci_hcd/16p, 480M
>    |__ Port 7: Dev 9, If 0, Class=Mass Storage, Driver=usb-storage, 480M
>    |__ Port 8: Dev 2, If 1, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M
>    |__ Port 8: Dev 2, If 2, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
>    |__ Port 8: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M
>    |__ Port 8: Dev 2, If 3, Class=Audio, Driver=snd-usb-audio, 480M
>    |__ Port 10: Dev 3, If 0, Class=Hub, Driver=hub/4p, 480M
>        |__ Port 3: Dev 6, If 0, Class=Vendor Specific Class,
>Driver=hdpvr, 480M
>        |__ Port 1: Dev 5, If 0, Class=Vendor Specific Class,
>Driver=hdpvr, 480M
>    |__ Port 11: Dev 4, If 0, Class=Vendor Specific Class,
>Driver=mceusb, 12M
>    |__ Port 14: Dev 7, If 0, Class=Hub, Driver=hub/4p, 480M
>        |__ Port 1: Dev 8, If 0, Class=Human Interface Device,
>Driver=usbhid, 1.5M
>        |__ Port 1: Dev 8, If 1, Class=Human Interface Device,
>Driver=usbhid, 1.5M
>
>Will this USB2 controller be useful,
>https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0026I4DZ2 ?
>
>Thanks

The first thing I would try would be having the HDPVR on a USB port
that does not have any other devices on its motherboard controller. If
there are driver problems, they usually show up when there are
multiple different devices on the same controller and happen due to
interactions between how the devices work.

The other normal cause of USB problems is the cable.  Some cables fit
in the sockets with a close fit that does not allow them to move
around in a way that interrupts the signals.  But some are fit less
closely and can move sufficiently to cause problems.  The slight bumps
from someone walking by, or movement from temperature changes, or the
cat doing it when no-one was looking can cause the cable to stop
working properly, either for just a moment, or for a longer period. So
it is always good to try a different cable.  Or failing that, to twist
the cable around so that the tension on each end pulls it a different
way.

I had one USB DVB-T tuner I was using that used to regularly stop
working.  After I tried three different tuners on the same cable, with
all of them doing the same thing, I finally swapped the cable for one
that fitted better and the problem went away.