diskus
join:2002-12-27
Los Gatos, CA | Cable Card experience thread
Im wondering if we can start listing peoples experiences with comcast and cable cards, including ordering, install, operation and features that differ from cable box service?
personally I havent tried it yet but am considering it |
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AMERICAL
join:2005-01-31
Saint Charles, IL
| Cable Card has been installed in my Panasonic 42pd25u for about two weeks. I had some digital freeze when first installed. Comcast ran brand new lines from OS box & the picture quality on all my TV's is much improved.
So far the cable card has performed flawlessly. |
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tender
join:2000-11-01
Rockville, MD
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I am having a new Sony 55 inch HDTV delivered this weekend. I called Comcast to order DVR and the CableCard. At first I was told they dont have the CableCard. I completed the order and called back. The next rep I spoke with said they do have the CableCard. But, after being put on hold, she told I did not need the CableCard. I told her yes I did. She said that I only need the DVR box. I then told her I know the reasons why I want the CableCard, and she then put it on the order. I called back to verify and the DVR, CableCard (and internet) are all on the order for the new house next week.
The new TV has a CableCard slot plus 2 HDMI inputs. I want to have both the CableCard and DVR so I can use the internal HD tuner and the DVR for PIP. Plus, I have done some reading at AVSforums that says SD looks better using the CableCard when compared to the DVR box.
thats it...I will post more next week after I get the CableCard and DVR installed. Cant wait 
-steve |
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FrankNBrew
join:2005-02-16
Royal Oak, MI
| reply to diskus
I'm brand new here. Just stopped in to look for advise on my system. Here's my Comcast Cable Card story:
Bought a new Sony KDF-50WE655 a couple weeks back. Decided HD channels were a must, so I called Comcast and ordered it up. Installer came out and spent 3 hours trying to get the thing working.
A big problem here in Royal Oak, Michigan, is that Comcast sends our cable out over 2 cables. If you want all of the channels, you need a set top box. The box takes the signal from the appropriate cable as you switch channels. The cable card will only accept the signal from the coax plugged into the "cable" jack on the back of the TV. There's another coax input on the back of the TV set labeled "VHF/UHF". I tried plugging the other coax for the non-digital/HD channels into that jack, but I only get channels up to 13.
So here's what I have hooked up now. The digital/HD coax goes directly into the CABLE input. I can scroll through all of the channels, but over 50% of the channels are black, no picture or sound. The cable card is programmed to tell the TV these channels are there, but the signal is not there because it's on the 2nd cable. The 2nd cable runs through the VCR, and then into the VHF/UHF jack. To watch those channels I need to select the antenna input on the TV, switch the TV to channel 3, turn on the VCR, and select the channels through the VCR. Yeah, the picture sucks.
I'm not done yet. Intermittently, when watching HD channels, I get slight freeze up/pixelization(is that a word?)of the picture, like the cable signal gets slightly scrambled, and an error message pops up on the screen, with error code 161-4. It also advises to call the cable company. So I did.
The advisor told me to remove the cable card for 20 minutes, reinstall, and my problem will be solved. Yeah, right. Well I did it, and it didn't fix it. It happens about once an hour, and requires one button press on the remote to clear. It's no big deal, but it's annoying. So I called back, and they made an appointment to come out. I scheduled it for 4:30 today, to make sure I'm here. They showed up at 1:30, because they saw my wife was home, and knocked on the door. My wife explained the situation. They looked at the TV and said "You're lucky the cable card works at all. We can only get about 10% to work." And they left.
Sorry to be so long winded, and, if you made it all the way through, thanks for your time. Anyone have suggestions/comments, please feel free to share. And ifI figure anything out, I'll be sure to post. Thanks! |
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CableTool
Poorly Representing MYSELF.
Premium
join:2004-11-12
| I just left an escalation this afternoon where we installed 2 cable cards in December in two sweet plasmas.
She saw about 4-5 techs. One put an Amp on causing overdrive, one put a 3 way splitter ( only rated for 600mz )
After I took care of those I found out the account was in the wrong hub/headend in our system. After that was switched and a hit sent, BAM crystal clear, all channels.
The biggest problem with cable cards and areas is the warehouse. If you are in a DAC system as opposed to NAS there is a good chance that card isnt in the controller which means the controller cant see it to activate it.
Then you get a dummy card that gives you standard service, Music and maybe your highdefs, no digital programming though..
This might all sound greek if your not familiar with the system but if you are I hope it helps. |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
 ·AT&T Southeast
 ·Comcast Formerly ..
| reply to diskus
I have had Comcast come out twice to get my Toshiba 57HX94 working with CableCARD. It's been a confusing experience. The techs have unfortunately not been trained at all in this technology. They are nice people, they just have not been taught how all this stuff works.
After calling Toshiba I found out that there was a firmware upgrade available. They sent it and I received it a week later. I reinserted the CableCARD and called Comcast to ask them to send the card another hit.
The TV continued to exhibit its old problem. It displays "CableCard connected -- Acquiring channel information."
I can push ok and that goes away; however, I am then unable to change channels.
Two techs came out again today. One had never installed a CableCARD before. The other had installed two so far, and was unable to get either to work. I asked if they could come back tomorrow with two or three CableCARDs to see if we can finally get this working.
The techs told me that the digital boxes and CableCARDs have a habit of going on the fritz after receiving a bunch of hits. I also read somewhere that if you are unable to get one card to work, sometimes you can install another one. If that one does not work, then you can put the first one back in and it might work. That sounds a bit far fetched to me.
I have a feeling that my CableCARD is registered with the wrong headend, but the tech checked and said that it was fine. I'm not one to argue. They really are doing their best to get this working. They seem just as frustrated as I am.
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My Blog |
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kdog41
join:2002-02-20
Trenton, MI
| said by morph3ous  :After calling Toshiba I found out that there was a firmware upgrade available. They sent it and I received it a week later. I reinserted the CableCARD and called Comcast to ask them to send the card another hit. The TV continued to exhibit its old problem. It displays "CableCard connected -- Acquiring channel information." I can push ok and that goes away; however, I am then unable to change channels. I've had the same experience with my Toshiba 62HMX94. I am waiting on the firmware to see if it resolves my problem. FYI, I get the same pop-up and the channels never load. The conditional access menu indicates the state is "CA Disabled" as opposed to "subscribed".
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"Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza!"-Dave Barry |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
| said by kdog41 :I've had the same experience with my Toshiba 62HMX94. I am waiting on the firmware to see if it resolves my problem. FYI, I get the same pop-up and the channels never load. The conditional access menu indicates the state is "CA Disabled" as opposed to "subscribed". My conditional access menu also says CA disabled. The techs should be here again anywhere from a couple minutes from now to 2:00. I'll let you know what happens.
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My Blog |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
| reply to diskus
Update: More confusion
The installers could not get a new CableCARD working. When they called dispatch, dispatch told them that I was paying for nothing. They said that in order for the card to work, I would have to have digital cable. I told them that that is simply not true.
The website says that as long as you have Basic 1 and 2 you should receive Discovery HD, InHD 1 and 2, ESPN HD and your locals. They told me I was wrong.
They left me with a DVR box even though I do not want to pay extra for the DVR service. That is at least working until the issue can be straightened out.
Lucky for me I know the direct line to the installer's supervisor. I was able to get through to him, but only after the installers left. He told me that I was right about the channels; however, he is going to check to make sure. He will also call me tomorrow morning and schedule a visit where he will personally get this issue resolved.
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My Blog |
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stephenju
Premium
join:2002-05-17
Bedford, MA
| said by morph3ous :The website says that as long as you have Basic 1 and 2 you should receive Discovery HD, InHD 1 and 2, ESPN HD and your locals. morph3ous,
Can you please post the link to that page? I am trying to figure out what exactly do I need to have those channels. Without paying extra, that is.
Thanks. |
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djrobx
join:2000-05-31
Valencia, CA
 ·PHONE POWER
 ·AT&T U-Verse
·AT&T CallVantage
·Time Warner VOIP
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to diskus
If I were you, I'd try to get the cablecard working with Digital Cable first. Then work on lowering your bill. They had a hard enough time configuring my cable box to receive just HDTV locals, I imagine CableCARD will be even more trouble.
Here, with a cable box, you cannot receive INHD, Discovery or ESPN-HD without digital cable. You can only get the HDTV locals.
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\\ROB - a part of the SCB local network |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
2 edits | reply to diskus
Here is the link. I hope it works.
»www.comcast.com/Support/ChannelGuide.ashx
»www.comcast.com/Buyflow/default.···rintable
From hxxp://www.comcast.com/Benefits/CableDetails/Slot4PageOne.asp:
(LINK DOES NOT WORK UNLESS YOU COPY AND PASTE **Change hxxp to http)
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*HD programming from ABC, NBC, CBS and PBS is available in selected areas. Comparative claims based upon areas where HDTV from Comcast is available. To receive HD features and benefits an HD television (not provided), HD box and remote control is required. Advertised channels/stations generally provide a mix of HD and non-HD programming. HD programming is limited to the programming provided to Comcast in HDTV format by the programming provider. Programming and charges subject to change. Basic service subscription is required to receive HDTV and premium HDTV channel requires subscription to underlying premium channel. Call Comcast for details and restrictions.
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I would obviously not get the premiums. I already get 2 of the four local HD stations without the CableCARD.
I want the HDTV package in order to make the large expenditure on an HDTV worthwhile. The box they set me up with currently gets all the channels (until it gets setup correctly). I can honestly say that there is still almost nothing worthwhile on TV. I am unwilling to pay for channels I will never watch in order to get HDTV. Comcast needs to set their system up correctly and train their techs.
I am hoping that the supervisor can set matters straight. This has been a frustrating and confusing ordeal and has already taken too much of my time. |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
| reply to diskus
The supervisor and one of the top techs were here today. They almost have it working. It turns out that there are multiple issues. Hits from the dispatcher's computer are actually not going out onto the wire, so they have to call someone else who is at the headend and have her do it. The card was also coded for the wrong area.
They fixed the first two problems. The card actually registered the hit. I still have the same problem, but the supervisor thinks that my account is also coded incorrectly and is going to look into it.
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My Blog |
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kdog41
join:2002-02-20
Trenton, MI
2 edits | Keep us posted. I have digital service and also the DVR which I plan to keep. I still want to get the card working so I can watch any program while recording two simulataneously and for the improved PQ on analog channels. Right now I can get the HD locals (with the exception of ABC for some reason) but not any of the digital HD channels or premium channels like HBO which the card should provide. I don't know if your lineup is different but what channels are you getting the local HD on?
I get:
NBC 1-1
FOX 2-1
CBS 76-1
ESPN 114-1
This with the cable connected directly to the set and without the cable card.
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"Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza!"-Dave Barry |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
| reply to diskus
I am getting (without the CableCARD):
NBC 3-1
CBS 87-2
PBS (Only broadcasts sometimes) 5-1
Music Choice 105-5 -- 105-50ish
I am not able to get my FOX or ABC stations, or ESPN.
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My Blog |
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kdog41
join:2002-02-20
Trenton, MI
| said by morph3ous :I am getting (without the CableCARD): NBC 3-1 CBS 87-2 PBS (Only broadcasts sometimes) 5-1 Music Choice 105-5 -- 105-50ish I am not able to get my FOX or ABC stations, or ESPN. I was getting the second PBS station (PBSD2) on 3-1 but today it's not working. Also, the PBSD1 seems to be the only one that broadcasts HD. I also get the music channels but they are 93-4 through 93-51. It's too bad Comcast doesn't publish what the channels should be. I assume you did the same thing I did and use the up channel to find out what the display picked up. This is very time consuming and I'm still trying to figure out why I can't get ABC.
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"Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza!"-Dave Barry |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
1 edit | said by kdog41 :... I assume you did the same thing I did and use the up channel to find out what the display picked up. ... That's exactly what I did. It takes forever.
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My Blog |
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kdog41
join:2002-02-20
Trenton, MI | I got the updated firmware from Toshiba so tomorrow night I plan on seeing if it helps with my cable card problems. I will update everyone once I have a chance to check it out. |
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kdog41
join:2002-02-20
Trenton, MI | Well I installed the firmware and no change on the cable card. I have Comcast scheduled to return tomorrow to see if we can make any progress. |
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morph3ous
Premium
join:2002-05-16
Miami, FL
·AT&T Southeast
·Comcast Formerly ..
2 edits | reply to diskus
The tech did not call the other day when he said he would, so I left a polite message asking him to please call. He did not. The next day I left another nice message asking him to call and did not. I am a bit fed up with this whole thing.
Here is my theory as to why this is happening everywhere that Comcast operates. (It seems to be much less of a problem for other cable providers.) Comcast obviously does not want subscribers using CableCARDs. They want to add many different pay services to their boxes. Since the CableCARDs are only one-way, they figure that they will be losing this potential source of revenue.
The FCC requires Comcast and other cable providers to allow their subscribers to use CableCARDs. Comcast figures that if they improperly implement the frontend computer systems, it will be hard for the FCC to prove their wrongdoing, and so frustrating for customers that they'll give up and get the box.
The motive behind all this is just theory. The part about the front-end systems working incorrectly is absolutely true, at least in the Miami / Coral Gables area. There were multiple failings in my case:
1) Card was coded for different headend despite the techs asking for a Coral Gables CableCARD. The only way we found out was by calling the DAC. The tech only had the number to the DAC because one of his wife's friends works there. In fact he says that he had never heard of the DAC before he met his wife's friend.
2) Hits from dispatch and from 1-800-COMCAST were not even being sent out on the wire. The DAC checked and said the hits were not even reaching it. This means that the front-end systems were not sending out the hits, but were reporting that they had.
3) The account is likely coded incorrectly.
4) The techs have not been trained in the least about CableCARD operation. The supervisor / top-ranking tech in my area (the one who is not returning calls) said he had only gotten 1 working so far.
I don't blame the techs for hating these things. I blame Comcast corporate. These practices need to be investigated by the FCC. Putting up these barriers is against the spirit and idea of the FCC mandate.
I will be drafting a couple of letters, and would like to know who to send them to. One will be my city franchise authority and the city council members. I am not sure who at the FCC should receive the letter. Are there any other relevant agencies to send this letter to?
It is unfair to the customer and the Comcast techs to set up your infrastructure incorrectly. Most customers probably get upset at the techs, and yell at them causing undue stress for both parties. I do not blame the techs. I would be pretty frustrated if time and time again I could not get these cards working. I would be especially upset if the problems were all caused by issues with their computer front-end systems that could easily be reprogrammed and solve a lot of grief. While making these changes they should also establish alternate procedures to get these cards working and send it out as a memo to all of the techs and dispatchers.
Comcast needs to get their act together, I would like to help nudge them in the right direction by alerting the proper authorities.
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My Blog |
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