Pace Box - Macrovision issue

[jaymer]

hi all,
i can't think there a tremendous need for this info, but a few people have been affected.
this is a known bug inside BHN - don't call anyone there because they ain't gonna know anything about it.
just take it on my word that it is on the list to be fixed.

[millerman101]

Jaymer, yes that bug is known, now I dont know if you know, I heard there is a work around by putting the box in pass mode and trying it that way. Let me know if that works..

[tnc9999]

Hey Guys exactly what IS this Macrovision Bug in the PACE Box???

Please explain

Tom

[jaymer]

tom,
i can't find the messages here on the site, but there seems to have been some people questioning the BHN Pace Box, and how they could not tape something onto a VCR because of the Macrovision stuff.

I just did a search on this site, and could not find anything... perhaps it was over a month ago and its out on the AVS site - where I don't really visit anymore.

Whatever is was, it turns out to be a bug in the Pace box - but I cannot remember exactly what the problem was OR if its related to your issue. Hopefully, MILLERMAN will be answering your question soon anyway.

someone else will have to give you a MV definition, or just search the web on that term.

[tnc9999]

Thanks Jaymer,

I can tell you this much, if the PACE box IS outputting Macrovision protection, the E80H DVDR will definately NOT allow recording...this may be what my problem is.

Talk to you soon,

Tom

[millerman101]

There is a bug with taping out of the pace box, from what I have heard though if you put the box in pass mode in the menu, it goes away. Thats the only work around right now that I have heard of, I heard they let PACE know of the problem.

[MarkMSM]

Here's the story...

The Pace box is enabling Macrovision on the composite outputs whenever the box is outputting a non-480i signal.

You can record any progrom that is non-high def., but as soon as you tune a channel that is 720p or 1080i, the Macrovision goes on. I've tried bypass, and I've tried forcing the HD channels to 480i using the "#" key, but neither works.

Pace is aware of the issue and is releasing a software update to correct the issue. Until then, we will be unable to record the programming on the HD channels.

[patters000]

This doesn't seem to affect Tivo PVR's (possibly others as well) -- Tivo records the signals just fine, and they certainly look better than analog and most digital channels (the Pace must have a good downscaler chip). Personally, I have the Tivo tape certain HDTV shows and hopefully I'm at the TV at the time so I can switch to DVI to watch them live -- or just watch them later on Tivo over S-Video (after switching the S-Video aspect from Panorama to Wide, of course).

[jaymer]

1) what input do you use on the tivo to record from the Pace box
2) what "s-video aspect" setting are you talking about - on what device
3) when you watch Tivo, what cables are going where?

jaymer...

[CANDY76MAN]

This doesn't seem to affect Tivo PVR's (possibly others as well) -- Tivo records the signals just fine, and they certainly look better than analog and most digital channels (the Pace must have a good downscaler chip). Personally, I have the Tivo tape certain HDTV shows and hopefully I'm at the TV at the time so I can switch to DVI to watch them live -- or just watch them later on Tivo over S-Video (after switching the S-Video aspect from Panorama to Wide, of course).

yes, but when your reording an hd channel via the svideo or composite outputs your not recording a 1080i signal your recording a 1080i signal thats been downconverted to 480i...the pace box only adds macrovision on true 720p and 1080i signals appearantly which can't pass through svideo or composite outputs anyway.

[patters000]

Jaymer:

1 - Using both Pace's S-Video out, Component out and DVI outputs to my Samsung DLP. Pace's Stereo RCA jacks to Tivo's Stereo in; Pace's optical out to my receiver's optical in (for live tv).
2 - The Samsung has Aspect settings for how to view a signal. For normal SD programming through the Tivo, we have it set to Panorama (a smooth combination of Normal and Wide - no flattened heads). When recording anything in HD, the Pace still outputs 480i, but fills the signal with all the widescreen content (much like when telling a DVD player you have a widescreen set, and then output through S-Video -- on a normal set it would look 'squeezed). So when watching taped HD programming on the Tivo (downconverted to a very high quality SD signal), we swich from Panorama (which would cause several distortions on Wide content) to Wide.
3 - Pace S-Video out to Tivo S-Video in, Tivo S-Video out to DLP S-Video in. When watching 24 or Football or whatever, we can start watching late in the show (viewing HD converted to SD at that point), skip over commercials, and when we've caught up with live tv, switch over to DVI.

Candy76man:

Exactly -- when watching Pace's S-Video HD feed, it's SD (but it looks pretty good -- pretty much DVD quality) -- but we get no Macrovision effects here on the S-Video outputs when watching SD nor HD content. I thought the issue was Macrovision on composite outputs, when tuned to HD content (i.e. MarkMSM's post). Is it that there's Macrovision on the component outputs then? The Pace does a great job at converting 720p/1080i to 480i for PVR's, when you need it.

[bdraw]

I record with my ReplayTV via s-video from my pace box all the time. But it is known that the Replay ignores macrovision.

These recordings do look better than SD, Fox Widescreen looks identical to the original feed.
HD sourced material looks a bit better but not much.

It is widescreen, Patters is correct about the widescreen situation. You send it out the s-video squashed, and I use the standard stretch to stretch it back to normal 16x9.

This works good till Replay makes a HD unit. I won't buy a Tivo till they allow updates over a broadband connection.

[patters000]

bdraw,

I guess TiVo ignores Macrovision too. I haven't tested this configuration with a VCR, so there might indeed be Macrovision on the S-Video output.

There have been talks about a TiVo HD unit for some time (a DirecTV unit is coming soon with 4 tuners!) -- a cable model shouldn't be far behind now that the cable box plug-and-play model was put into law. Also re: Broadband updates -- a TiVo Series2 with an Ethernet adapter and the "Home Media Option" (and extra $99) will allow for guide updates over a network connection.