Freeview HD

[PerryM]

Successfully using DVBViewer and Recording Service for Freesat, including HD. I don't currently use Freeview on this box because I have a Humax, but this is SD only of course. Are there likely to be any snags to adding Freeview to the DVBViewer system to get the HD when they start transmitting later this year.

I have a Pinnacle dual DBS/DBT tuner (although I have never used the DBT side).

 

If I do add it, does Freeview on DVBViewer support Series Link?

[uglyned]

It would be great if, in time, DVBViewer could support UK Freeview HD which I think starts transmitting in the North West tomorrow.

 

However...

 

Nobody can receive Freeview HD yet because there is no DVB-T2 hardware available.

 

When there is DVB-T2 hardware available we will have to record some Freeview HD and ask the nice DVBViewer developers if they will look at adapting DVBViewer to receive it as I believe the BBC will be using unusual PIDs so that only licensed hardware can receive it.

Edited December 1, 2009 by uglyned

[PerryM]

Aha - that's a bit of a bummer! Back to the drawing board then! I wonder if the HD services on Freeview will also get onto Freesat? I assume BBC HD will be the same so I'm thinking of the 'other' side.

[Griga]

Let's have a look at the BBC HD PMT on Astra 28° East. This is the information about PID 3842 from the TransEdit Analyzer:

 

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
 <Astra_Eurobird_28.2_E_10847_V>
<ES PID="3842" Name="Private Sections">
  <StreamType HValue="0x05" Name="Private Sections (ITU-T Rec. H.222.0 | ISO/IEC 13818-1)"/>
  <Descriptor HValue="0x52" Name="Stream Identifier">
	<ComponentTag Value="83"/>
  </Descriptor>
  <Descriptor HValue="0x5F" Name="Private Data Specifier">
	<PrivateDataSpecifier HValue="0x46534154" Name="FSAT"/>
  </Descriptor>
  <Descriptor HValue="0xD1" Name="User defined">
	<DescriptorLength Value="1"/>
	<Data Dump="01"/>
  </Descriptor>
</ES>
 </Astra_Eurobird_28.2_E_10847_V>

 

It's a "Private Section" stream (stream type 0x05) containing service information tables. The Private Data Specifier Descriptor indicates that the following user defined descriptor (tag 0xD1) contains freesat specific data, in this case the type of service information. The value 01 means freesat EPG data (EIT tables).

 

This altogether allows auto-detection of the EPG stream by reading the PMT, without having to enter the transponder and PID manually. It will be supported by the next DVBViewer GE version as proof of concept - dunno if Lars will adopt the code for DVBViewer Pro, but he already got it.

 

If they use the same scheme in the DVB-T2 PMT, it will work without additional measures (provided DVBViewer works with the DVB-T2 device resp. its BDA driver). If not, we will have to hack it again...

[PerryM]

Well after some more research, as uglyned implied, there is a distinct shortage of tuner cards! I guess it is chicken and egg because UK is first to commit to DVB-T2 in Europe (World?) and other interested European broadcasters are still a long way from actually adopting it. Hardly much incentive for Hauppage et al to get their fingers out!

It will be interesting to see the brown stuff hit the fan when all the UK viewers that have bought 'HD Ready' TVs with built-in Freeview tuners find out that they cannot receive HD!