The ExpressVu 6141 is being introduced tomorrow by Bell.
For details about it, see the dedicated thread.
In this thread, I wanted to highlight that the ExpressVu 6141 will have USB 2.0 capability so you can add a hard drive and it becomes an HD PVR. Expected time frame for this capability is this year
The $299 unit comes with a PVR remote and has a nine day electronic program guide.
My reciever is still at 164....Not sure what else I can do right now. I held the button down, then i tried unplugging, powering off with remote....nothing.
I had to call Bell twice but now it is working fine. The first person I talked to did not know much about the upgrade. When you get a request to format the drive, you are 10 minutes away from success. I have 100 hours of HD recording with a LaCie 750Gb.
Talk about frustration. I just wasted amost 2 hours of my time arguing with tech support at BTV.
I installed an external hard drive to my 6141 (WD 640GB installed in a USB Hub type enclosure). Receiver recognized hard drive and then told me to call BTV to active the PVR feature. That is where the fun began.
The first tech told me that you could not add a EHD to a 6141 receiver. I told him that there was updated software as of today that allowed you to do this. Once we got past this hurdle, he then wanted to know what type of hard drive I had. I told him and he said he would not activate it because it was not a Lacie HD. I told him that I was using the exact same hard drive on my 9242. That didn't matter. He said that he would not activate the receiver if I didn't have the Lacie HD. I told him that the BTV website suggests the Lacie, but it is not necessary. He still would not activate it as he said I could damage my receiver with any other HD. I told him I would call back and try to get someone who knew something about this feature.
My second call was just as good. This rep insisted that this feature was not available on the 6141, I would have to have the 6131 to get this feature. We argued about the 6141 having this feature for quite some time. I told him the message on my receiver about calling to activate the PVR function. At this point, I lost it and told him I would be calling tomorrow to cancel my account. I also told him that I was sorry for taking it out on him, but BTV obviously did not train their people on this functionality.
After I insisted on talking to a level III tech, he put me on hold to talk to them. He had me disconnect the satellite input, remove power and the EHD and re-start the receiver. He then send an authorization (I believe a re-hit) to my receiver and within two minutes ... success!!!
I read post 195 about the syncronizing of the receivers, but I had done this a few days ago for the HBO problem. You can only do this yourself once a month (why, I don't know).
Anyway, everything seems to be working fine with the PVR functions.
Did anybody know why the harddrive needs to be 750GB or smaller ? Plan to buy an external harddisk, but if 1TB works, no point to get a 750GB... Please advice...
Connected a WD 500GB in a "slightly" modified Acomdata enclosure (un-hybrid-ed), self-serve hit via the Bell site, reformatted the drive, and instant PVR!
My picture goes green after about 40mins (happened twice) is anyone getting this or is it the possiblilty if a bad connector in my External HDD exclosure?
My picture goes green after about 40mins (happened twice) is anyone getting this or is it the possiblilty if a bad connector in my External HDD exclosure?
pic goes green for me too after 40 min. but im testing the pvr with an external harddrive without an external power source, maybe this is the problem. what kind of external hard drive are you using (with or without power source?). tried to connect hdd to pc but pc no longer recognizes it because of the reformat by the receiver...
Glad to see everyone so excited about the new DVR feature on the 6141.
If you do not have the new firmware simply turn off you STB via remote (You do not have to hold down the FP power button, that simply resets the receiver). Your STB will also automatically accept downloads via update feature found in the menu options. By default this is set to 3:00am (this looks for new updates and downloads a fresh guide)
As Drewsat mentioned in his post (#195)
----------------------------------------------------
" You may need a representative to send an authorization "Hit" to the account if you plan to try the feature out in the next few days. You could also send yourself a "Hit" or re-synchronization on bell.ca or the phone systems self-care systems.
After next week, this step won't be needed for anybody connecting a drive
• Support is up to 1T. Most drives will work but as always with hard drive there are so many flavors out there, you may get poor performance out of cheap ones
Note (I am using the Lacie 750GB and WD 1T with a NexStar 3 enclosures with no issues to date)
• STB will reset when removing and adding the EHD. This allows the STB to go from standard mode to DVR mode
• Adding the EHD you also get additional functionality
- Name based recording and VuPass
- 9 Day EPG (Electronic program guide)
• You can share EHD's with multiple 6141 in your home/account (security measure prevent passing it to other home/accounts so don't try it and stop being so greedy)
- All DVR timers set attached to the EHD drive, so if the drive is not connected or powered on, will not see those timers in your menu
Additional things to note:
No USB hubs are not supported (You could use a powered USB hub but the STB will only read the first one powered on
notebook drives (2.5") are not supported (yes I know they somewhat work on the 9242 but very poor performance do to power ect... (trust me I've tried)
I'm sure there will be lots of questions but as usual I will not be replying. So have fun exploring this great new feature and enjoy it.
Has anyone yet tried to plug this drive into a Linux system to see if you can play the files off of the ext3 partition?
I have searched around this board and other forums but have seen no clear-cut info on if the media on the 6141 external hard drive is encrypted or not like it is if you archive shows on the 9242.
If no one else has tried I will be trying this this weekend after I pick up my drive and will report back on any success.
I noticed on the Dish Network site they say drives up to 750mb permitted. I wonder if the 750mb is to satisfy a legal requirement of some sort in the US and not an actual restriction of the PVR. If it is a requirement in the US it might not be a requirement in Canada and from reports the PVR does work with up to 1tb drives at least.
Chat InformationThank you for your patience.
Chat InformationYou are now chatting with Khai.
Chris Moric: Hello Khai.
Khai: Hello, thank you for visiting bell.ca. How may I help you today?
Chris Moric: I have been reading that the 6141 has been upgraded to allow an external Hard drive for PVR functionallity. Is this correct?
Khai: That's correct. The USB port is now functional. The external drives however can only include those that have not been previously formatted which rules out personal computers.
Khai: Were there anymore questions for me today?
Chris Moric: Great. Are there any models that Bell recommends? Also, does it matter if it is USB or externally powered?
Chris Moric: Also, max size.
Khai: The drives must have their own power source versus a USB power source. We recommend Lacie, but any brand would do. The min size would be 40 Gigs but you can go up to any size.
Khai: Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
Chris Moric: Fantastic, I'll be ordering my HD today!
Chris Moric: Thanks for your info.
Khai: That's great! It's been a pleasure helping you out today! Thank you for choosing Bell and for using bell.ca for your self-serve solutions. Have a great day!
This is incorrect, the min size is 50 GB. It says so right on your reciever screen if you try to plug in any small drue. Try plugging in a thumb stick and see for yourself.
Hmmm, i'm wondering to call BTV and ask them to do the "hit" because i dont plan on buying EHD anytime soon, hopefully when 1TB comes around 150 ball park...can anyone confirm if we can ask them to activate the feature without actually putting in the EHD?
haha i'm sooo excited right now and my extra PC that i was planning to use as HTPC will be a total waste..oh well will use it for something else
Just so everyone is clear - if you turn off your reciever every night so that it recieves its updates you won't need to call and ask for a hit. The update will arrive by itself eventually. Mine arrived last night.
I got it working, recorded a movie from the free movie channel previews that BEV has on right now. Working great... i can't believe this was a free upgrade!
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums
1.7M posts
114.9K members
Since 2001
A forum community dedicated to Canadian TV, computing and home theatre owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about home audio/video, displays, troubleshooting, styles, projects, DIY’s, product reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!