[mythtv-users] PVR350 problems with Myth 0.25.2

Paul Onley onley at att.net
Sun Sep 23 19:02:52 UTC 2012


On 09/23/2012 09:48 AM, Dave Pearson wrote:
>
>     -----Original message-----
>     *From:* Paul Onley <onley at att.net>
>     *Sent:* Sun 23-09-2012 14:51
>     *Subject:* Re: [mythtv-users] PVR350 problems with Myth 0.25.2
>     *Attachment:* inline.txt
>     *To:* Discussion about MythTV <mythtv-users at mythtv.org>;
>     On 09/23/2012 08:24 AM, Dave Pearson wrote:
>>
>>         -----Original message-----
>>         *From:* George Mari <george_mythusers at mari1938.org>
>>         <mailto:george_mythusers at mari1938.org>
>>         *Sent:* Sat 22-09-2012 19:57
>>         *Subject:* Re: [mythtv-users] PVR350 problems with Myth 0.25.2
>>         *To:* Discussion about MythTV <mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
>>         <mailto:mythtv-users at mythtv.org>;
>>         On 09/21/2012 08:23 AM, Ken Mink wrote:
>>         > On 9/12/12 9:59 AM, Tim Scholl wrote:
>>         >>
>>         >>
>>         >> On Wed, Sep 12, 2012 at 9:39 AM, Neil Bird
>>         <neil at fnxweb.com <mailto:neil at fnxweb.com>
>>         >> <mailto:neil at fnxweb.com>> wrote:
>>         >>
>>         >>     Around about 12/09/12 09:56, Dave Pearson typed ...
>>         >>
>>         >>         This won't be any help to you, but I am
>>         experiencing similar
>>         >>         problems with
>>         >>         my PVR250's (I've got one in my MBE and one in my
>>         SBE). I
>>         >>         sometimes get a
>>         >>         flashing stripe about 20% of the height of the
>>         screen at the top
>>         >>         - it's as
>>         >>         if it's being torn from the image (if that makes
>>         any sense).
>>         >>
>>         >>
>>         >>        OK, time for an AOL moment:  me too.
>>         >>
>>         >>        Except, I have 0.24.x still (with my PVR-350), and
>>         I only ever
>>         >>     use it (the card) for s-video in:  it's not configured
>>         for TV (and
>>         >>     wouldn't work now, anyway, as all our analogue
>>         channels have been
>>         >>     turned off).
>>         >>
>>         >>        Maybe once a month I get a stuffed recording like
>>         that (my
>>         >>     flashing strip *seems* to be a distorted checker board
>>         pattern), and
>>         >>     the problem lasts for the whole recording.  I've never
>>         noticed it
>>         >>     run into another (back-to-back) recording, but that
>>         situation may
>>         >>     not have ever occurred.
>>         >>
>>         >>        I had initially thought it was my satellite box,
>>         but I've come to
>>         >>     believe it's my card (or, at least, PVR-based), and
>>         had just thought
>>         >>     it was starting to go (so I'm going to get a new
>>         s-video card for
>>         >>     the new box I'm building up).
>>         >>
>>         >>        It hasn't always done it, but I couldn't say it
>>         started after a
>>         >>     Myth update though.
>>         >>
>>         >>
>>         >> I'd save your money and hold off on buying a new card.
>>          The symptoms I
>>         >> is see is either the flashing bar, or the same "(flashing
>>         strip that
>>         >> *seems* to be a distorted checker board pattern)" that
>>         your seeing.
>>         >>
>>         >>
>>         >> --
>>         >> Tim Scholl
>>         >>
>>         >>
>>         >> _______________________________________________
>>         >> mythtv-users mailing list
>>         >> mythtv-users at mythtv.org <mailto:mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
>>         >> http://www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users
>>         >>
>>         >
>>         > I am seeing the same problems with my PVR-500. I also have
>>         a HVR-2250 in
>>         > the same box. It uses the ivtv driver and does not have the
>>         problem. The
>>         > issues started with the upgrade to 0.25. I'm currently running
>>         >
>>         > MythTV Version : v0.25.2-21-g099533d
>>         > MythTV Branch : fixes/0.25
>>         > Network Protocol : 72
>>         > Library API : 0.25.20120506-1
>>         > QT Version : 4.7.2
>>         > Options compiled in:
>>         >   linux release use_hidesyms using_alsa using_jack
>>         using_oss using_pulse
>>         > using_pulseoutput using_backend using_bindings_perl
>>         > using_bindings_python using_bindings_php using_crystalhd
>>         using_dvb
>>         > using_firewire using_frontend using_hdhomerun using_ceton
>>         using_hdpvr
>>         > using_iptv using_ivtv using_joystick_menu using_libcrypto
>>         > using_libdns_sd using_libfftw3 using_libxml2 using_lirc
>>         using_mheg
>>         > using_opengl_video using_qtwebkit using_qtscript
>>         using_qtdbus using_v4l2
>>         > using_v4l1 using_x11 using_xrandr using_xv using_bindings_perl
>>         > using_bindings_python using_bindings_php using_mythtranscode
>>         > using_opengl using_vaapi using_vdpau using_ffmpeg_threads
>>         using_live
>>         > using_mheg using_libass using_libxml2
>>         > _______________________________________________
>>         > mythtv-users mailing list
>>         > mythtv-users at mythtv.org <mailto:mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
>>         > http://www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users
>>         >
>>         I just saw the same thing this morning on my PVR-350.  I'm
>>         running
>>         Fedora 17, kernel 3.5.3-1, MythTV 25.2-1 from RPMFusion.
>>
>>         I somewhat suspect it's a leaky/bulging capacitor I found on
>>         my PVR-350
>>         today, however.  The card is 7 years old, after all.
>>
>>         On the other hand, other flaky behavior with the ivtv driver
>>         re-loading
>>         itself and causing the myth backend to no longer use that
>>         tuner do
>>         coincide with my upgrade at the beginning of the month for
>>         Fedora 17.
>>         _______________________________________________
>>         mythtv-users mailing list
>>         mythtv-users at mythtv.org <mailto:mythtv-users at mythtv.org>
>>         http://www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users
>>
>>     I don't think it's a hardware fault as I have this problem on 2
>>     PVR250's in 2 separate systems. I suspect it's an IVTV driver
>>     problem as I finally got around to trying the card outside of
>>     mythtv (using mplayer /dev/video0 -) this morning and the same
>>     thing was happening, I quit out of mplayer and ran the command
>>     again and the picture was OK. I'm not a member of the IVTV
>>     mailing list, but it might be worth taking a look there to see if
>>     it's been reported.
>>
>>     Regards,
>>
>>     Dave
>>
>>
>>
>>     _______________________________________________ mythtv-users mailing listmythtv-users at mythtv.org  <mailto:mythtv-users at mythtv.org>  http://www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users  
>     I am having issues with the PVR-500 (3 of them with identical
>     symptoms actually) that include a distorted picture and the "Error
>     opening jump program file buffer" problem. Could all of those in
>     this thread please check to see if there is a coinciding entry in
>     their syslog like
>
>     ivtv0: Encoder has died : ivtv_serialized_open
>     ivtv0: Detected in ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed -
>     Reloading
>
>
> Yes, I've got that in my syslog:
>
> Sep 23 15:45:53 nslin01 kernel: [194952.355339] ivtv0: Encoder has 
> died : ivtv_serialized_open
>
> Sep 23 15:45:53 nslin01 kernel: [194952.355344] ivtv0: Detected in 
> ivtv_serialized_open that firmware had failed - Reloading
>
> Sep 23 15:45:54 nslin01 kernel: [194953.404361] ivtv0: Loaded 
> v4l-cx2341x-enc.fw firmware (376836 bytes)
>
> Sep 23 15:45:54 nslin01 kernel: [194953.470965] ivtv0: Loaded 
> v4l-cx2341x-dec.fw firmware (262144 bytes)
>
> Although it coincides with a quick mplayer test that I did which 
> didn't show the picture distortion.
>
> Regards,
>
> Dave.
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> mythtv-users mailing list
> mythtv-users at mythtv.org
> http://www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users

The last two lines indicate that the ivtv driver reloaded the firmware 
successfully so ideally you should have had a good picture. I have been 
watching the log file and  when I see the Encoder has died message about 
half the time the recording will have a corrupt picture. The ivtv driver 
claimed to have successfully reloaded the firmware but the picture say 
otherwise.

I have written a script to kill the backend, remove and reload the ivtv 
module and restart the backend whenever I see the Encoder has died 
message and this results in good recordings (albeit with about 30 
seconds missing at the begining) 100% of the time. I have 3 pvr-500 
cards and they all 'developed'  this problem when I upgraded my backend 
box to Debian Wheezy and Myth 0.25. I suspect the ivtv driver is the 
problem but do not know how to proceed from here. I have posted this 
issue to the ivtv users list but there has been no response. If everyone 
here in this thread is seeing the same error then how about posting in 
my PVR-500 Problem thread so that ivtv knows there is a reproducible 
problem and can maybe help us track it down.

Paul

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