Hdmi & Sa 8300 Dvr

[Cavediver]

Has anyone in Houston, TX been able to get HDMI to work from a Time Warner Scientific Atlanta 8300 DVR through a receiver? I've been through two DVR's now and still get the copy protection error message. I was told by a Time Warner phone support person that the first box had old firmware, so I went and picked up a new one and still get the same error message. Time Warner obviously doesn't have a clue because the second phone support person said it must be a problem with the TV. I know that the DVI input is working on the TV because I have everything coming out of the receiver to the TV via a HDMI-DVI cable. But, I can only get the DVR to work with component cables to the receiver. When I hook up the DVR with HDMI I get the copy protection error message. The receiver is a Pioneer Elite 74TXVi and the TV is a Sony KF50XBR800.

 

[Audioholics]

It won't work until they update the firmware. Please contact your cable company and tell them this:

I am having difficulties with the 8300HD box's HDMI output when used in conjunction with an HDMI-switching/upconverting receiver (two different models so far exhibit the same problem). When pursuing the topic with Yamaha Electronics' product engineers, they reported that this is a known issue and is on the Cable box end. Denon's engineers also concurred:

This Problem lays with the Cable box. It is not an HDCP issue. It has to do with HDMI 1.0 compliance. Neither Scientific Atlanta or Motorola boxes were originally designed to recognize a "REPEATER". A repeater is a switching device in the HDMI format. Among other things it is able to pick off the audio bitstream from the HDMI signal. Much more than just a switch!

Conversations with S/A revealed that they have an upgrade algorithm that is available to local cable companies. However, the typical cable company takes 60 to 90 days to issue a firmware update blasts to their customers.

They are continually sending updates to their boxes but only after rigorous compatibilty testing with all other software being used in their systems.

According to S/A we should start to see boxes being updated by late Nov. 2005 But again they stress that it's totally up to the local cable companies to decide how urgently to attack this issue.

Note: This is not a Yamaha issue, all other HDMI switching receivers will produce the same results. (The only exception is certain products that act as a simple switch, not following the HDMI protocol).

Are you aware of this and when can we expect to see the existing fix implemented? I would be happy to expand on this or demonstrate the problem to whoever. As prices drop on HDMI-enabled receivers and more and more models are released this, is sure to be a bigger issue.

Let me know how soon this firmware fix will be remedied and if you require any additional information.

 

[Cavediver]

Thank you Clint. That is what I suspected and the first Time Warner support person indicated that they have updated boxes that will work with a receiver. She seemed to understand the problem unlike the second person I spoke to. The first support person said I would need to get the counter person to check the firmware so make sure it had "ieee" at the end of the firmware version. However, the counter person at the TW store said he could not check the firmware version from the store; that only the phone support people could do that from their computers.