Cjay Posted January 1, 2012 Posted January 1, 2012 First of all a Happy New Year to all! I have an intriguing DiSEqC problem on which I hope somebody can tell me if I am doing something wrong. I have 2 antennas, one fixed on 28.2E for UK FreeSat and one motorised. Each antenna has its own USB tuner connected to a single 'server' (old laptop) running the recording service. This server is not used for viewing, it is purely running the RS (plus some other telephony stuff). So the config is: 1) Antenna [fixed 28.2E] --> TechnoTrend S2-3600 --> USB --> Server/RS [Channel Group A] 2) Antenna [motorised] --> QBox TBS5922 --> USB --> Server/RS [Channel Group B] In the DVBViewer clients I have channel lists (produced by transedit) in which UK Freesat channels from Astra 28.2E are defined as Group A and channel scans from all other satellites are defined as Group B. This way the channels that need motorised antenna (angular/USALS) get routed via the right hardware whereas Freesat channels use the fixed antenna. So everything works fine as I have shown. I can view channels from the 2 tuners at the same time as expected, the motorised antenna moving each time a client requests a group B channel from a non 28.2E satellite. But here is the problem/question: In addition to what I have described above, I would sometimes like the ability to be able to record one FreeSat channel from 28.2E (assume the fixed antenna) and to watch another channel off the same 28.2E satellite but via the motorised chain. So in my mind it just seemed a question of redefining the channels groups in the RS that each hardware chain could receive, so: 1) Antenna [fixed 28.2E] --> TechnoTrend S2-3600 --> USB --> Server/RS [Channel Group A] 2) Antenna [motorised] --> QBox TBS5922 --> USB --> Server/RS [Channel Group A + B] (and with Group A channels modified to have appropriate DiSEqC angular settings to enable antenna movement) I was expecting this would result in the motorised antenna being able to move to any of the satellites I want to receive, but instead it seems to completely stop any antenna movement. Setting the hardware in RS to receive channel groups A and B seems to inhibit the DiSEqC commands being sent. It's fine with just B, it's A+B that causes the problem. Is my understanding of the purpose of the channel groups correct and/or has anyone else got a similar config working? Many thanks! Chris support.zip
Griga Posted January 1, 2012 Posted January 1, 2012 Your proceeding and your channel list / channel group settings are correct, as far as I can see. Setting the hardware in RS to receive channel groups A and B seems to inhibit the DiSEqC commands being sent. The channel group setting by itself can't inhibit DiSEqC. In your svcdebug.log I see lots of "DeviceSendDiSEqCCommand bvTurbosight" entries, so that's not the point. However, something resulting from this setting may disable or disturb DiSEqC, maybe on the driver/hardware level. I also see several "Sending retune to TBS 5922" entries in your svcdebug.log, indicating no data arriving resp. tuning failure. Maybe using two DVB-S devices at the same time (or two devices sending DiSEqC commands) causes unhealthy interferences. So in order to pinpoint the problem, configure the QBox for channel group A + B and set the TT 3600 status to "Do not use". Does the channel group setting still stop any motor movement? I have a similar setup here: - SkyStar S2, configured for group A, connected to a single LNB (Astra 19°E, group A). - Hauppauge Nova S2 HD, configured for group A + B, connected to a special LNB that requires DiSEqC Pos/Opt commands for receiving 4 satellite positions: Astra 19°E (group A), Astra 23°/28°E and Hotbird 13°E (group B ). I don't use the RS, but it works flawlessly with DVBViewer Pro resp. the same hardware management.
Cjay Posted January 2, 2012 Author Posted January 2, 2012 Thanks for your comments & suggestions. I tried lots of things, but I still can't absolutely confirm where the problem lies. In fact the more I play around the stranger the results - eventually I tried putting the QBox hardware onto another machine running just DVBV (so not via RS). Even this started giving troubles with antenna lockups and DVBV freezes (that not even task manager could end), so I begin to suspect a driver problem. I tried updating the hardware database using v5, but doesn't seem to make any difference. The only thing that works 100% of the time is transedit. Not one single glitch at all with this - antenna moving, scanning, preview etc is absolutely fine. What might be different with DiSEqC on transedit (using the positioner console) vs. the full blown DVBViewer? Going slightly off the original RS topic here, but appreciate any insights you can give me! Regards, Chris
QBox User Posted January 3, 2012 Posted January 3, 2012 (edited) I also see several "Sending retune to TBS 5922" entries in your svcdebug.log, indicating no data arriving resp. tuning failure. Maybe using two DVB-S devices at the same time (or two devices sending DiSEqC commands) causes unhealthy interferences. Multiple re-tunes may be the norm for motorised systems, especially if interval is left at 5 seconds. It can take much longer for the motor to complete re-positioning. Despite that, my QBoxII locks up the system for just under 30 seconds if it fails to find a signal at first attempt. CJay's DVB-Pro hardware settings have only a single Unicast device. There would normally be one for each tuner defined in RS hardware. Try creating a second. The Unicast device has a parameter "DiSEqCCount" set to "0" - try that at "1". I think it controls the number of times the command can be repeated, and the first might not be seen by the motor, especially if the tuner doesn't apply LNB power long enough before sending it. A better way of repeating commands is to use the Extended option, but it's a bit tiresome to set up for every satellite. Edited January 3, 2012 by QBox User
Griga Posted January 3, 2012 Posted January 3, 2012 parameter "DiSEqCCount" DiSEqCCount = 0 means no DiSEqC at all, regardless of the channellist settings. In CJay's setup it would be appropriate for the TT 3600, in order to prevent it from sending useless DiSEqC commands. DiSEqCCount = 1 lets DVBViewer / TransEdit / the RS send the command one time, DiSEqCCount = 2 two times etc. However, I would prefer to define repeats in the DiSEqC Editor (DiSEqC = Extended) that allows to insert different delays in between.
QBox User Posted January 3, 2012 Posted January 3, 2012 Both tuners have DiSEqCCount set to "1" in the RS hardware file. The "0" setting is in the DVBViewer Pro hardware setting for the Unicast device. I'm assuming this is the source of tuning data sent to Recording Service. If there's no DiSEqC data sent, then the motor won't move. Maybe my assumption is wrong. The log file seems to show the right data. An interesting test would be to see if a RS timer can move the dish. If CJay sets a Tune-only timer, the tuning request would come from the Service, whose hardware is configured to send DiSEqC commands. I wonder if the TechnoTrend would care if it received DiSEqC commands. It might not be possible to stop them if they originate in DVB-Pro, or would the RS settings override them? The log file includes "DeviceSendDiSEqCCommand bvTechnoTrend". Although I wrote above that there's normally one Unicast device in DVB-Pro for each RS tuner (as recommended in the RS instructions), it may be that the client device only needs one of each type (satellite, terrestrial, etc), if it's only used for viewing. PIP function might need the two devices, though.
Cjay Posted January 3, 2012 Author Posted January 3, 2012 I really appreciate all the assistance. Going back to first principles to debug the issues, I find that without RS the Qbox drives the antenna just fine if I use the DiSEqC editor (so: angular command, 2 second delay, angular command). However still no luck if I attempt the same via RS. Anyway debugging is so much easier when in sight of the antenna but time out of the house is limited by cold & darkness. QBox user: Just out of interest, which type of Qbox are you using and with what driver version? Thanks both, Chris
QBox User Posted January 3, 2012 Posted January 3, 2012 QBox II (there's no number). It was the S2 version of the original QBox. Qbox III came later, then I think the 5922. Driver is latest V2.0.4.6. Did you try tuning direct from RS, using a timer?
Cjay Posted January 3, 2012 Author Posted January 3, 2012 Did you try tuning direct from RS, using a timer? Not yet, channels defined on the RS machine are only Freesat since these are the only ones I want presented on the browser EPG/timeline interface. I will add one extra sat/channel to see what happens. I guess watching a channel via UPnP would be the same as setting a timer.
QBox User Posted January 4, 2012 Posted January 4, 2012 (edited) Both tuners have DiSEqCCount set to "1" in the RS hardware file. The "0" setting is in the DVBViewer Pro hardware setting for the Unicast device. I'm assuming this is the source of tuning data sent to Recording Service. If there's no DiSEqC data sent, then the motor won't move. Maybe my assumption is wrong. The log file seems to show the right data. After checking my own hardware.xml file today, I find that DiSEqCCount is also set to "0", so that theory doesn't hold up. I notice that my Vendor ID is 18, while yours is 13. Griga might comment on whether that is significant. Sometimes my motor refuses to turn to a new position, especially when the program is first started. I find this is often fixed by tuning a channel on the satellite the dish is pointing to (no move required), then changing to another satellite. It's as if the system won't send the "Goto" until it's sure the command is needed. I can't see how that would relate to your problem, though. Edited January 4, 2012 by QBox User
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