Scientific Atlanta 8300HD Receiver

tbng · 10-25-2005, 08:41 PM

My cable company recently purchased the SA 8300HD which is supposed to contain a 160Gb hard drive and provide about 20 hours of high-def recording. I have had four different units in my system. They're all slow, at times downright lethargic, and do not provide 20 hours of recording. Last night, for example, the unit told me it did not have enough disk space to record a one-hour show when the hard drive only contained 7.5 hours high-def recordings and no standard def programming on the hard drive. Is anyone else familiar with this receiver?

amf1932 · 10-25-2005, 09:04 PM

Quote:

They're all slow, at times downright lethargic

I don't understand what you mean by this statement??
I have been using the same DVR supplied by Cablevision for about 8 months and have never had any problems such as you've had. I would try to contact Scientific Atlanta and ask them why you're having this situation.

Alan

StereodB · 10-26-2005, 12:39 AM

Why not have your cable company supply you with a new STB? That is one of the reasons to have cable, they own it, and replace it. Oh and I too had that unit several months ago, it always worked well for me, especially in compared to the DCT6412 that I have now, It sucks

Johnny Cakes · 10-26-2005, 09:48 AM

I have that unit and love it.

If by lethargic, you mean that it is slow to change channels, that problem was in the initial software and corrected by a firmware update. If you do a google search, you will find many discussions about that. Sounds like maybe your cable company hasn't done the firmware update yet.

tbng · 10-26-2005, 01:55 PM

By "lethargic" I mean pressing a button to cause an action and waiting five seconds or more for that action to take place. It does not happen every time, but it happens often enough to be a pain. Instintively, you re-press the button, and, of course, it stacks the commands and executes them sequentially, putting you where you don't want to go.

Those of you expressing astonishment at my problems with the 8300HD must note that I have had the same issues with four different boxes. The inadequate recording time is the most frustrating issue as I have missed some much desired programs because of it.

Johnny Cakes · 10-26-2005, 08:48 PM

Sounds exactly like the problems encountered with the initial software. I'd suggest to your cable company that they give you a STB with the updated firmware or send the update to your current box.

amf1932 · 10-27-2005, 12:01 AM

I guess my SA8300HD box has the latest firmware since the fast forward and fast rewind has 1, 2, 3, 4 arrows, where previously it only had 3. When the 4th arrow is displayed it really whips through the programs. In fact it's sometimes too fast to tell when to stop.

These updates are automatically sent to my box by Cablevision.

Alan

doggie · 10-27-2005, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbng

By "lethargic" I mean pressing a button to cause an action and waiting five seconds or more for that action to take place. It does not happen every time, but it happens often enough to be a pain.

I have this box with Time Warner Cable. There is a setting on the remote under Advanced Settings where you can make the menus pop up faster or slower. Otherwise, I'd suggest rebooting the box or replacing it.

Mike Wolf · 10-27-2005, 04:25 PM

i have the box, install the box, work with the box. i never had any problems with them. might be issues with the headend on cablevisions side. after switching from a 8000hd model to the 8300hd model, i notice that it is alot faster in the IPG and data access, as well as over all system performance.

tbng · 10-27-2005, 05:32 PM

The cable tech just left and said there is nothing wrong. Baloney! His thinking was this: I have 23 total hours of programming scheduled on the 8300HD and that is why, at 7 or 8 hours existing recording time, the operating system refuses to permit another recording. My reaction was "??????!" I argued that I could schedule a recording of every show on the guide, and it would be irrelevant to hard drive consumption (in that section dedicated to recording). It should be the first recording subsequent to the one that filled the hard drive that says, "Sorry, but you ain't got no space left." The OS should not look n number of recordings down the line and assume that I will not delete anything in the meantime.

doggie · 10-28-2005, 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbng

The cable tech just left and said there is nothing wrong. Baloney! His thinking was this: I have 23 total hours of programming scheduled on the 8300HD and that is why, at 7 or 8 hours existing recording time, the operating system refuses to permit another recording. My reaction was "??????!" I argued that I could schedule a recording of every show on the guide, and it would be irrelevant to hard drive consumption (in that section dedicated to recording). It should be the first recording subsequent to the one that filled the hard drive that says, "Sorry, but you ain't got no space left." The OS should not look n number of recordings down the line and assume that I will not delete anything in the meantime.

I think the 8300HD does look down the line at your scheduled recordings because I've noticed that despite having only half my hard drive filled, when I select a bunch of shows to be recorded (i.e., a series recording of VH1C Two-for-Tuesday = 20 shows in 1 day), I will see the hour-glass next to already recorded programs on my hard drive meaning the drive is near full and programs will have to be deleted. And if you select the option where shows can only be deleted manually by you and not automatically when space is needed, I can see where you might have problems. Also, just like your PC hard drive, it needs an empty-space buffer of 10%-15% of the drive to work well. Maybe more since it is always recording live programs. My 8300HD does get sluggish when it is near full, which is why I try to archive the shows as quickly as possible to DVD+RWs so I can watch later and/or erase if I want.

VISIONCC · 12-08-2005, 09:21 PM

The SA8300 boxs add the previous recorded hours plus it adds scheduled recordings to the total hours on the DVR hard drive.

tbng · 02-27-2006, 06:02 PM

The 8300HD with Pioneer firmware does indeed, as I have learned to my chagrin, look down the road when calculating available recording time. As a result, I have been denied recordings with as little as three hours recorded on the hard drive. Why is this necessary? Why does the unit not wait until that last recording is to be made and then determine that there is inadqueate space remaining? The standard def 8300 does that - or appears to do so. I've yet to get an explanation from the cable company as to why this must be. If you use the system to schedule many programs, it effectively reduces available recording by as much as 1/5 of that advertised.

pedrohead · 02-28-2006, 08:28 PM

At least yours still functions....

... my 8300HD had a message on the screen when I woke up Saturday morning saying "this box is not authorized for use, please call cable company" and after WOW! came out to look at the box, is offically in "brick mode", which apparently means it died somehow and needs to be replaced.

So now I have no DVR, no HD, no digital cable while they wait for more HD DVR boxes to come in so they can replace it, which will hopefully be this weekend.

...So it could always be worse

goober22 · 03-01-2006, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pedrohead

At least yours still functions....

... my 8300HD had a message on the screen when I woke up Saturday morning saying "this box is not authorized for use, please call cable company" and after WOW! came out to look at the box, is offically in "brick mode", which apparently means it died somehow and needs to be replaced.

I had the same thing happen before. I had 2 8300HDs and one of them went into "brick mode" and they could not get it back. They hit it repeatedly, removed and reinstalled it back on the account, forced a firmware & OS reinstall - nothing. They had others on the truck & just swapped it out finally.

10-25-2005, 08:41 PM	#1
tbng How can anyone watch standard def? Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 28	Scientific Atlanta 8300HD Receiver My cable company recently purchased the SA 8300HD which is supposed to contain a 160Gb hard drive and provide about 20 hours of high-def recording. I have had four different units in my system. They're all slow, at times downright lethargic, and do not provide 20 hours of recording. Last night, for example, the unit told me it did not have enough disk space to record a one-hour show when the hard drive only contained 7.5 hours high-def recordings and no standard def programming on the hard drive. Is anyone else familiar with this receiver?

10-26-2005, 12:39 AM	#3
StereodB HDTV + DLP = :) Join Date: May 2005 Location: Concord, CA Age: 31 Posts: 104	Get a new one? Why not have your cable company supply you with a new STB? That is one of the reasons to have cable, they own it, and replace it. Oh and I too had that unit several months ago, it always worked well for me, especially in compared to the DCT6412 that I have now, It sucks __________________ SAM HL-P4674W, Denon AVR-3805, Panasonic XP-30 DVD, Polk: RT55, CS400, LS f/x(SBL/SBR), RT5(SL/SR), NHT Sub ONE, BlueJeans HDMI ->DVI , X-Box(HD Pak) HD Source: Comcast Moto 6412 HD DVR Presented in Stunning High Definition.... Macho Business, Donkey Wrestler...

10-26-2005, 01:55 PM	#5
tbng How can anyone watch standard def? Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 28	Defining "lethargic" By "lethargic" I mean pressing a button to cause an action and waiting five seconds or more for that action to take place. It does not happen every time, but it happens often enough to be a pain. Instintively, you re-press the button, and, of course, it stacks the commands and executes them sequentially, putting you where you don't want to go. Those of you expressing astonishment at my problems with the 8300HD must note that I have had the same issues with four different boxes. The inadequate recording time is the most frustrating issue as I have missed some much desired programs because of it. Last edited by tbng; 10-26-2005 at 02:11 PM.

10-27-2005, 04:25 PM	#9
Mike Wolf Associate Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Toms River, New Jersey Posts: 309	i have the box, install the box, work with the box. i never had any problems with them. might be issues with the headend on cablevisions side. after switching from a 8000hd model to the 8300hd model, i notice that it is alot faster in the IPG and data access, as well as over all system performance. __________________ Panasonic CT-27HL15 Direct view Tau HDTV Monitor Kenwood VR-715 A/V Surround Receiver Kenwood SW-07HT Subwoofer Kenwood KS- 207HT Speaker System Panasonic DMR-E30S DVD Video Recorder Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD DVR via Comcast Opinions expressed are my own and do not necessarily represent those of my employer or its associate companies.

10-27-2005, 05:32 PM	#10
tbng How can anyone watch standard def? Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 28	8300hd The cable tech just left and said there is nothing wrong. Baloney! His thinking was this: I have 23 total hours of programming scheduled on the 8300HD and that is why, at 7 or 8 hours existing recording time, the operating system refuses to permit another recording. My reaction was "??????!" I argued that I could schedule a recording of every show on the guide, and it would be irrelevant to hard drive consumption (in that section dedicated to recording). It should be the first recording subsequent to the one that filled the hard drive that says, "Sorry, but you ain't got no space left." The OS should not look n number of recordings down the line and assume that I will not delete anything in the meantime.

10-26-2005, 09:48 AM	#4
Johnny Cakes I'll watch anything in HD Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 72	I have that unit and love it. If by lethargic, you mean that it is slow to change channels, that problem was in the initial software and corrected by a firmware update. If you do a google search, you will find many discussions about that. Sounds like maybe your cable company hasn't done the firmware update yet.

10-26-2005, 08:48 PM	#6
Johnny Cakes I'll watch anything in HD Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 72	Sounds exactly like the problems encountered with the initial software. I'd suggest to your cable company that they give you a STB with the updated firmware or send the update to your current box.

10-27-2005, 12:01 AM	#7
amf1932 Sony 52" XBR4 Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 546	I guess my SA8300HD box has the latest firmware since the fast forward and fast rewind has 1, 2, 3, 4 arrows, where previously it only had 3. When the 4th arrow is displayed it really whips through the programs. In fact it's sometimes too fast to tell when to stop. These updates are automatically sent to my box by Cablevision. Alan

12-08-2005, 09:21 PM	#12
VISIONCC My plasma is High Def. Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 5	The SA8300 boxs add the previous recorded hours plus it adds scheduled recordings to the total hours on the DVR hard drive.

02-27-2006, 06:02 PM	#13
tbng How can anyone watch standard def? Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 28	Inadequate recording time The 8300HD with Pioneer firmware does indeed, as I have learned to my chagrin, look down the road when calculating available recording time. As a result, I have been denied recordings with as little as three hours recorded on the hard drive. Why is this necessary? Why does the unit not wait until that last recording is to be made and then determine that there is inadqueate space remaining? The standard def 8300 does that - or appears to do so. I've yet to get an explanation from the cable company as to why this must be. If you use the system to schedule many programs, it effectively reduces available recording by as much as 1/5 of that advertised.

02-28-2006, 08:28 PM	#14
pedrohead High Definition is the definition of life. Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 109	At least yours still functions.... ... my 8300HD had a message on the screen when I woke up Saturday morning saying "this box is not authorized for use, please call cable company" and after WOW! came out to look at the box, is offically in "brick mode", which apparently means it died somehow and needs to be replaced. So now I have no DVR, no HD, no digital cable while they wait for more HD DVR boxes to come in so they can replace it, which will hopefully be this weekend. ...So it could always be worse

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