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Shaw Direct HDDSR 605 Owners Discussion Thread

194K views 349 replies 109 participants last post by  tvmaster 
#1 ·
This discussion thread is for owners to discuss the new Shaw Direct HDDSR 605 when it becomes available on November 1st.

Please post your thoughts and your feedback on this unit once you have it up and running.

For non-owners, you can ask questions about the unit in our DSR 605 now available thread.

Please note posts from NON-owners will be deleted and the poster will receive an infraction.
 
#32 ·
605 handshake problem ?

hi i just bought a Sony xe4 46'' hdtv set connected to a 605 trough HDMI
it seems to me that the 605 have an handshake problem with the tv set
as i must disconnect and reconnect the HDMI cable on the back of the receiver to get the image pass trough everytime i power on the tv
anyone else having this problem
 
#34 · (Edited)
505 vs. 605

I bought the 605 before I found out that it does not have the auto tune set-up feature like my old 505. I am taking it back and getting the 630 instead even though it is more money. It has the PVR and the auto tune feature.
Why go from the 505 to 605 if you do not need a PVR and why did Motorola even build this unit, that is using such outdated technology? That is the question.
 
#35 ·
Hi retiredretired,

The 605 offers the following with respect to auto-tunes and reminders:
1) Set a reminder for new episodes
2) Set a reminder for all episodes
3) Set a reminder for this episode
4) Automatically tune to this airing.

Both #1 and #2 will set a recurring, program-based reminder. This means that when you're watching TV, each time an episode airs you will see the "!" sign appear in the top right-hand corner of the screen. Pressing ENTER will display the upcoming programs you've set reminders for and you can pick which channel you want to tune to. #3 does the same, but only once for the specified episode. Because it's now program-based (instead of time-based), you'll always get correct reminders. If the episode changes time, you'll be reminded at the new time. Or if it isn't new a particular week, you won't get any reminder at all. The 505 can't do this and is strictly time-based.

#4 will actually tune you to the program when it starts, which is useful for when you're recording it with an external device.

Because the system is now program-based (instead of time-based), recurring auto-tunes no longer make sense. A recurring auto-tune expects that you're using a VCR type device to record at a specific time (let's say 9:00pm on Tuesdays). However, the 605 is program-based meaning that rather than setting an auto-tune for 9:00pm on Tuesdays, you set an auto-tune for new episodes of "NCIS" (as an example). You've now got the 605 which is smart enough to know that NCIS sometimes gets bumped to a later time, or starts at 8:59pm, or isn't new at all some weeks. However, your VCR is still recording every Tuesday from 9-10pm. You end up with missed shows, incorrect recordings, etc.

By setting the auto-tune every two weeks, you always know when the show is airing and can adjust the VCR timers accordingly, ensuring you can record exactly what you want.

Other differences on the 505 versus 605 include smaller size, HDMI output, up to 14 days of Guide data (instead of 2.5), expanded programming information (NEW tags, etc), the ability to hide the titles of adult programs from your Guide, title search, and expanded Interests search. If your 505 is still meeting your needs, these features may not make much of a difference to you. As you mentioned, many of these mean a lot more when going from the 530 to the 630. :)
 
#38 ·
DSR605 and HMDI Switching Recivers

Can anyone tell me if the 605 works well through an HDMI switching receiver?

The older 505 (through a DVI to HDMI cable and into the HDMI Reciver) has trouble - HDCP errors etc... It worked fine if you connected it directly to the HDMI input on a TV, but it would not work if it first went into an HDMI input on a receiver (and then from the receiver to the TV).

Does the new 605 work well through receivers?
 
#39 ·
I have had no problem with my 605 and 630- through a Yamaha receiver and Sony HTB.

I think most hdmi issues have been resolved. "?" Fingers crossed!
 
#40 ·
Just hooked up a new 605 last night. I couldn't get quite a few channels (400, 528, 544, 341, any HD), so I was forwarded onto tech support.

They had me unplug the receiver (power and coax from dish), wait a minute, and plug the power in. Once it had rebooted, they had me connect the coax and all the channels were coming in fine. The TSR said to leave the receiver on a single channel for 4 hours, and to not touch any buttons on the remote so all of the guide data could download properly the first time. I did a brief check on the receiver this morning and everything seems to be working.

Some on the info the TSR had seemed a bit out of date. I mentioned that I had an older dual-stacked dish using a 2x4 multiswitch, and asked if that would cause missing channels. She looked up the manual for the 2x4 multiswitch and said that it only support receiver models 301 and 401 (2 receivers that we have never owned).

Just for future reference (in case I buy another new receiver), does Shaw Direct need to change some type of mode on new receivers so that they will work with the older dual-stacked LNB? If I had mentioned it when I first called to activate my DSR605, do you think things would have gone a bit smoother? I assumed this info would have been on my account.
 
#41 ·
Just for future reference (in case I buy another new receiver), does Shaw Direct need to change some type of mode on new receivers so that they will work with the older dual-stacked LNB? If I had mentioned it when I first called to activate my DSR605, do you think things would have gone a bit smoother? I assumed this info would have been on my account.
Yes, tell them to chaage the v-code. It probably would have been a lot easier if you had said this from the start.
 
#44 ·
V-code is a code which defines what channel map you get, as well as the transponder RF map.

If you have an established account with that dish, the proper V-code should automatically be set to the receiver whem it was activated on that account.
If the dish is different than the dish on the accountn, then it may need a different V-code sent to it.
 
#45 ·
purchased the 605 from best buy
on sale with tv purchase

read the specs and it mentions that you do have the option to record
with an external hard drive with an esatta connection

tried this with no luck

called up shaw
clueless wonders there went on and on that the 605 was not capable
of any recordings

finally had someone look into what I was reading
turns out that the software for the pvr option on the 605 is still in the works
goes on to tell me not sure if and when

can anyone shed some light here on this software?
 
#48 ·
In post 35, SD 630 Support wrote in part:

Both #1 and #2 will set a recurring, program-based reminder. This means that when you're watching TV, each time an episode airs you will see the "!" sign appear in the top right-hand corner of the screen.

Because the system is now program-based (instead of time-based), recurring auto-tunes no longer make sense. A recurring auto-tune expects that you're using a VCR type device to record at a specific time


These are based on assumptions about viewer practice that are not correct.

For example, we want to watch Jeopardy every day on the Halifax channel. But we may not be sitting in front of the TV to see the 'reminder'. Suddenly we 'remember' that Jeopardy has not started, and we have now missed part of the program. Did not have this problem with the auto switch on our 505.

And it is not correct to assume that we want to use the timer to record on a VCR. We use the reminders to set up our viewing schedule.

To us , auto switch makes perfect sense. Some evenings there are several weekly recurring programs that we want to watch but they overlap. So we use time shifting to watch the programs in a specific order. Again, on the 505 this was easy. Now it is gone, and we have to do far more daily manual intervention.

Yes, some features of the 605 are nice, but in some ways it is a giant step backward.

John
 
#49 ·
found a bug in the 605 code

I have found a bug in the 605 that causes it to crash. Has anyone else found this one?

We have a custom favorites list called 'OURS'. It is quite large.

If I select the FAV to OURS, and hit GUIDE, I see our list.

Now I select FAV and set it to ALL Channels, hit Go Back (to save this setting), and now hit GUIDE again, the guide display contains overlapped characters and the 605 locks up and goes into auto reboot.

It looks like a memory management/memory overlap issue. I will call it in to tech support.

John
 
#51 ·
I have found a bug in the 605 that causes it to crash. Has anyone else found this one?

We have a custom favorites list called 'OURS'. It is quite large.

If I select the FAV to OURS, and hit GUIDE, I see our list.

Now I select FAV and set it to ALL Channels, hit Go Back (to save this setting), and now hit GUIDE again, the guide display contains overlapped characters and the 605 locks up and goes into auto reboot.

It looks like a memory management/memory overlap issue. I will call it in to tech support.

John
Yes, it happens all the time on my 630s.

It is just bad code that is not handling the guide data properly, the problem is who knows when it will be fixed...

The one good think is that it is easily repeatable so the coders have no reason not to be able to see it and resolve it.
 
#50 · (Edited)
Yes, I've seen this problem (on a 630). You will notice that the bad display and reboot only occurs on the ALL channels list, not on the FAV. The scrambled display usually occurs when you scroll through the ALL list. Also, I have defined four or five (depends on whether NFL Sunday Ticket is on) active Favorites lists, and NEVER have had a problem switching between them - only when going back to the ALL list.

By the way, you can switch between lists while in the Guide by pushing the Options button, selecting the new list, and pushing the Return button. The Guide is repopulated (3 to 4 seconds delay) and displays the new list.
 
#52 ·
Guide problem on HDDSR 605

The guide on the receiver seems to have frozen. I can see all of the program data up until 7:00 PM on 24 Jan. 2011, but after that, it just shows NO DATA. Today is 16 Jan. and the guide is supposed to show to at least 29 Jan. I have done a front panel reset, and it didn't fix it. I disconnected the power and coax for 2 minutes and it didn't fix it. I called Shaw and the tech had me go into the diagnostics and reset the guide information, and this didn't fix it either. It took me some time to convince the tech that this was actually happening. Has anyone else noticed this problem? Since Shaw doesn't seem to be able to help me, does anyone have a fix? I first noticed this problem on 11 Jan. and it has been stuck on 24 Jan. since then.
 
#55 ·
Correction ...

Re post # 50:

I have an error in the post I made in # 50. Yesterday, I noticed that the guide got corrupted after switching from one custom favorites list to another custom favorites list and scrolling through the entries. So, I was wrong to state that it only happens when switching back to the ALL channels list! Sorry.
 
#57 ·
Hi dns2,

If power is frequently being cut to the receiver, you may notice the following anomalies:
  • New Guide data is downloaded and processed each morning. If the unit is not connected, this will not occur until it is reconnected. Slower performance may be noticed while this is occurring.
  • Given the dependencies and logic built into the Guide backup, if the unit is frequently unplugged it will eventually stop backing up the Guide altogether. You will be reloading Guide from scratch each time the unit is plugged in.
  • As a result of the above, you'll have lots of missing program details. You'll be able to watch TV with 1 minute and access the Guide within ~6 minutes, but will probably have mostly "No Data" blocks until the Guide reloads.
  • The unit may lose authorization every few weeks, requiring a Refresh Signal to be sent to restore programming (this is because the receiver was not connected when updated keys were sent out)
 
#61 ·
You need an RF Modulator, like this one:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103095

they can be found in lots of places, ebay, radio shack, Craiglist, sometimes your cable company will give you one for free (mine did).

If you need to split the composite outputs for multiple use, then you'll also need a distribution amp:

http://www.thesource.ca/estore/prod...ory=VideoAmplifiers&catalog=Online&tab=3#more

A vcr would also work, but if you're lookng for more flexibility and space concerns, then this is also an option
 
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