Update: I recently started using Windows 7 Media Center instead of MythTV. You can read about my likes and dislikes here.
Goal
My goal is simple: I have an old computer I want to turn into a TIVO and control my Dish Network receiver.
Background
I signed up for Dish Network to escape the high fees that come with Comcast, and a few months later I realized I really missed On-Demand. But the prices for Dish are unbeatable, so switching was not really an option. And the prices they charge for the DVR are too expensive ($199). Plus, one day when I change providers I would like to keep my DVR and use it with the new one. So building my own was the best option, but it was not as straightforward as I would have liked. So I put this together to share the information I learned.
Hardware
Price was important for me, so I wanted to keep hardware costs to a minimum. My hardware is as follows:
- Hauppauge WinTV PVR 150 ($20 through eBay)
- Nvidia Geforce2 with S-VIDEO out ($20 through eBay)
- Media Center Remote Control and IR Blaster ($24.99 through Xoxide)
- Dell Dimension 4550 (Old machine I had running around)
- 1GB RAM
- 350 GB HD
- 2.2 Ghz Pentium 4
- 533 FSB
- Dish Network DUO VIP 222K dual-tv receiver
Configuration
I set up the system usingMythBuntu. The configuration was mostly straightforward, but there were a few things that were less than straightforward. These were mostly related to the Dish Network DUO VIP222k receiver and the IR-Blaster. There was no lirc configuration file for the VIP222k receiver, so I had to create one using irrecord. irrecord can be used to generate config files for any receiver, but if you are using the VIP222k you can just download and use the file I created:
Once I had the correct configuration file, the problems were not over. The Dish receiver does some strange things that I could not find a channel change script that did. First, the receiver has 4-digit channels. So I had to change the script to account for that. Next, the receiver occasionally ends up in a state where there is no picture and asks to either press OK or press channel up or channel down. So, I have the script first press these buttons before changing the channel. With this script I have never run into a problem where the receiver is stuck in a weird state. So, I am posting that script up here for those of you that need it.
Summary
MythBuntu was a breeze to setup, and I only had to change two files: change-channel-lirc.pl and the lirc configuration file. I also built the system for $60 with hardware from Ebay. The downside is that I can record only analog signals, as I connect to the receiver using standard RCA cables, and output to the TV through S-Video, but the hardware for recording and playing back digital signals was too expensive. I have been using the MythBuntu box for a few months now and it works beautifully ! I hope this helps!
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Hmmm my primary remote address setting on the receiver is being reported as “2″ (Sys Info) so therein may lie the problem… That is the way the Dishnetwork folks set it up for me, not sure if the address that the receiver is listening to or the remote address is user changeable…
Marc..
Marc – v2 refers to the version of the configuration file. I had a made a previous one -v1 that did not work out well for me. A few things you may want to consider: My primary remote address setting on the receiver is “3″ which is the default. Also, I had to play around with the exact position of the IR blaster on the IR receiver. In certain positions it would work and in others it didn’t. It took a few tries to find the sweet spot.
What does the -v2 refer to in your vip222k-v2 config file? Was there a version 2 of this receiver? I have a vip222k (no -v2 version is indicated) and just set up an IRBlaster to control it. Unfortunately, using your config file, I am not getting any responses so just wondering if there might be a difference betwen your vip and mine….
Marc..
Janik – I never changed the remote codes from the default. Josh – I’m glad this was helpful.
Thanks soooo much. This is an awesome writeup. This would have taken me hours, as i am switching from comcast to DISH. And my VIP 222k is way too new for even mythbuntu’s excellent control center scripts…
Quick question – with the VIP222K you can reprogram your remote to use different codes (to avoid conflicts, I believe). To view it, push System Info on the front panel of the VIP222k. Do you know which code your remote used? I would like to be able to use your configuration file for mine.
Thanks!
Christopher -
I assume your setup is that your set top box is hooked up through a coaxial line into your tuner card. Since your set top box only outputs to channel 3 or 4, that will be the only channel mythtv will be able to discover. When you set up the IR blaster, you will have to use a channel change script such as the one I have posted above to get the receiver to change channels – the tuner card itself will not change channels. There is a setting in mythtv where you select the script you will use.
As far as how it will ‘see’ the channels, I accomplished this by setting up my channel lineup on http://www.schedulesdirect.org. After MythTv grabbed all the listings (this took a few minutes) all the channels I have were visible. Now when I change channels, the script runs and that is what tells the set top box to change channels.
Let me know if this was helpful or if you need more specifics.
Ray
Hi, I have a question:
I am building a mythbuntu device. It can play back the channel that I set the box to. My ir blaster and receiver will be showing up in the mail shortly. When I look at the part to manually schedule a recording, it gives me the choice of channels 3 or 4.
The problem:
Only two channels are listed.
My question is:
How do I sync up my blaster with mythbuntu so I can tell it to record channel “107″ at a certain time and then have it do so?
I think I can figure out how to make the blaster and receiver work, but how do I make mythbuntu able to record from its interface when there are only two channels (of which only channel 3 is used)?