WinTV-HVR-1600 Troubleshooting notes

What Operating Systems are supported by the WinTV-HVR-1600?

Microsoft® Windows® XP, XP Pro or Windows XP Media Center Edition, with Service Pack 2, and Windows Vista (any version).

There is a beta Linux driver and application from LinuxTV.org. See below for details.

System Requirements

2.2 GHz P4 or 1.8 GHz Centrino or equivalent (minimum).

Graphics display adapter with 64MB of memory (minimum).

Available PCI slot.

Sound Card

CD-ROM drive (for Software installation).

DVD or CD burner for burning (optional).

Can I use the WinTV-HVR-1600 with Media Center?

The WinTV WinTV-HVR-1600 can be made to work within the Windows Media Center application provided you have the latest updates (roll-up 2) for MCE installed. This update provides support for digital (ATSC) tuning and will allow MCE to recognize the WinTV-HVR-1600 as a tuner in its configuration. Without the latest updates MCE will give the error message “No tuner hardware found”.

Under Vista, there would not be any additional updates required for the WinTV HVR -1600 to operate in Media Center.

Can I use the WinTV-HVR-1600 with Linux?

There is a new beta from LinuxTV.org with a Conexant cx23418 driver which supports the Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-1600 card.

The driver is available here:

http://www.linuxtv.org/hg/~hverkuil/cx18

The easiest way to build it is to get the tar.bz2 archive:

http://www.linuxtv.org/hg/~hverkuil/cx18/archive/tip.tar.bz2

Unpack, 'make', 'make install' (as root), 'make unload' (as root) and run 'modprobe cx18'.

There is still a lot of work to be done, in particular there is nosupport for the ATSC stream. What is working is basic MPEG capturing, raw YUV capture and raw PCM capture. Also pretty much all of the controls that were also in ivtv are working with cx18.

The firmware needs to be extracted from the Windows Hauppauge HVR-1600 driver, available here:

http://hauppauge.lightpath.net/software/install_cd/hauppauge_cd_3.4d1.zip

Unzip, then copy the following files to the firmware directory and rename them as follows:

Drivers/Driver18/hcw18apu.rom -> v4l-cx23418-apu.fw Drivers/Driver18/hcw18enc.rom -> v4l-cx23418-cpu.fw Drivers/Driver18/hcw18mlC.rom -> v4l-cx23418-dig.fw

Note that if you get the message "Could not start the CPU" then edit cx18-firmware.c, go to line 350 and change the '#if 0' to '#if 1' and see if that helps. It is not clear to me whether that is needed or not, I get conflicting results.

What type of channels will I receive with the WinTV-HVR-1600?

NTSC Analog CableTV. You can use your Cable from the wall to connect to the HVR1600 and receive all of your basic Cable TV channels.

ATSC over-the-air digital TV receiver built-in. Supports all ATSC formats, up to the high definition 1080i format!

Clear QAM channels will be digital broadcasts available from the cable TV broadcaster, and can be from standard definition up to high definition.

NOTE:
A rooftop/outdoor antenna is recommended for optimal results/signal strength for ATSC.

NOTE:

To save your WinTV channel list, you may save the file HcwChanDB_4.mdb (which is located in the C:\Program Files\WinTV directory) into a temporary folder, and copy this file back into the WinTV directory after any re-installation to preserve your channel list.

Can I get high definition digital TV with the WinTV-HVR-1600 through my Cable or Satellite box?

The answer is 'maybe' for digital cable TV but currently 'no' for satellite TV.

If you are using digital cable TV which broadcast "clear QAM", or if your local cable operator re-broadcasts the local ATSC channels, you can receive these digital TV channels with the new WinTV v6 application. Clear QAM is only supported on WinTV-HVR-1600 product codes 74021 and 74041 (found on the tuner label).

For instructions in scanning for clear QAM digital TV channels, please see the section entitled "Scanning for QAM channels" in the WinTV-HVR-1600 Support page: www.hauppauge.com/pages/support/support_hvr1600.html

Note: currently Windows Media Center cannot be used to watch clear QAM digital TV channels.

Note: if you have a WinTV-HVR-1600 poduct code 74021 or 74041, click here for the latest software which supports QAM.

What type of recordings can I make with the WinTV-HVR-1600?

With the WinTV-HVR-1600, you can record from an analog cable TV source (or through the S-Video or composite video inputs) in an MPEG2 format using the built on hardware encoder.

You can also record from either ATSC digital TV or clear QAM (on some models) in MPEG-2, but these recordings are typically high definition MPEG-2 recordings, but may also be standard definition depending on the broadcaster.

Note: Recordings made from high definition ATSC are not compliant for DVD burning. DVD burning can currently only be used from standard definition recordings.

Can I record one show while watching another with the WinTV-HVR-1600?

Yes, as long as one channel is digital and the other is analog, you may record one while viewing the other, or even record both simultaneously. The initial recording must be done using the WinTV Scheduler for this to work properly (in order to utilize the TV services background recording). The WinTV TV services can be installed from the PVR folder on your WinTV CD ROM.

Note: The channel that a recording is started on first will not display in the WinTV application window since it is recording in the background. The second channel that you wish to record or view will be the channel that is displayed in the WinTV application window.

How do I add an S-Video or Composite video source in the WinTV application?

In the WinTV application, click on the Menu button, then click Suite Manager. Choose Sources, and click on Composite source (or S-Video source). In the Channel Name box, type in a name for your video source and click the Save button.

This will create a composite video channel (or S-Video channel) in your channel suite manager.

WinTV is displaying garbled video with a shifted image on an ATSC channel on a system with an NVidia graphics card?

Try setting the primary application (start/programs/Hauppauge WinTV/Primary) to "VMR 7" or "Allow Overlay" to correct the problem.

WinTV or Media Center is displaying a green screen instead of video?

This is generally related to the graphics drivers or settings for the graphics card. Try updating the VGA drivers to correct the problem.

For WinTV, you can also try the different modes available in the Primary program (Start/Programs/Hauppauge WinTV/Primary).

Note: If you are running Vista 64 bit and have 4GB of memory or higher installed in the system, you will need to reduce the memory in the system to remedy this problem. This is a known OS issue that is currently being looked into.

Will my remote control work with Windows Media Center?

No, the Hauppauge remote control that is included with the HVR -1600 only supports the WinTV application. For Media Center, you will need to use the Microsoft ehome infrared receiver. This optional remote is available through the Hauppauge webstore.

Error: 'WinTV Initialization error! Missing HcwTVWnd.dll missing... A required component (hcwTVWnd.dll) is missing' when attempting to run WinTV?

This error message indicates that the WinTV middleware/channel manager is missing. Reinstall the HcwChanDB.exe (located in the PVR folder) from your WinTV CD ROM.

Error: 'Hcwutl32.dll' is missing when attempting to run WinTV?

This error is indicating that the WinTV drivers have not been succesfully installed. Reinstall the WinTV drivers to correct this problem.

Error: 'Hcwpnp32.dll' is not found error during installation of Hauppauge decoders?

This error may occur during the Hauppauge decoder installation if the WinTV's middleware has not been properly installed. Reinstall the WinTV's middleware (HcwchanDB.exe, which is located in the PVR folder on your WinTV CD ROM) and then you will be able to properly install the decoders.

Error: 'Compatible Hardware not found" during driver installation?

This error may occur if you are attempting to install the incorrect drivers for the product in question, or attempting to install a non-Hauppauge product with the Hauppauge drivers.

If you are installing the correct drivers for your Hauppauge product, try reseating the WinTV board into a different PCI slot. If the problem persists, please contact Hauppauge Technical Support.

When I scan for channels, the scan ends very quickly and indicates 0 channels found for analog, and 0 services found for digital?

Be sure that you have installed the latest software available by following the procedure in the WinTV-HVR-1600 software updates section.

www.hauppauge.com/pages/support/support_hvr1600.html

Be sure that the Hauppauge decoders are properly installed.

To check for the decoder installation, look in the C:\Windows\System32\Hauppauge folder and there should be a folder name SMD07 in it. If htere is not, you will need to reinstall the decoders.

To reinstall the decoders, install the HCWSMD07.EXE from your WinTV CD ROM.

if you have Sigmatel audio hardware in your system, be sure to have the very latest available audio drivers installed for it, as this issue may also result due to older audio drivers. The latest Sigmatel audio drivers available for most Dell Dimension systems may be found here. To search the main Dell downloads page for drivers for your particular model, please look here.

If you experience a crash on the WinTV application when running on a Dell Vostro computer, check to make sure the speakers are plugged in. If speakers are not plugged in, the Dell Vostro disables the internal sound card. The WinTV application requires a sound card to be enabled to operate correctly.