Shaw DCT6412 Information / Questions / Problems

[Jetranger]

I would recommend the Motorola over the Pace.

[Joe Dwarf]

Having trouble finding this information - if I follow the reset instructions found here for my 6416 iii, will it mark bad sectors and that sort of thing? I'm getting a lot of glitch recordings lately where the DVR won't replay past a certain point, or sometimes it will get through a bad point on fast forward but not on play. I'm assuming there are some damaged sectors on the disk as when I don't delete a few bad recordings future ones are mostly OK.

[loracweb]

No. All those do is reset the or reformat the HDD. If you're unit is under warranty you should contact Shaw. If not, then you have a variety of options...

[Joe Dwarf]

Thanks for the quick reply. My options as far as I understand it:

- buy an external HD, leave all the recordings currently on the DVR there and it should put anything new to the new drive
- buy the external drive and after formatting it transfer it to be the internal drive. Unclear if I can do this with a 1 TB drive
- buy a new unit but it seems like the newer stuff is even glitchier than the Motorola

Anything I'm missing or wrong about?

[squbbles]

Hi,
I have a DCT6416 III that has a fan that sounds like it has a split personality. One minute is spinning and then the next it is hyper speed! Even at regular speed it is quite loud.

1. Is there a way to quiet the fan down?

2. Why does it fluctuate so much?

3. Is it worth replacing the fan?

I bought this second hand and don't know if it is under warranty (I'm am very doubtful that it is)

4. Also, is there any benefit to "registering" this unit with Shaw?? (not sure I can be bothered to sit on hold)

Hooked it up and it was up and running no worries.

Cheers

[Satviewer2000]

Either the fan is very dirty with dust, in which case you can try to open up the unit and clean the fan, but you have to be very careful during cleaning because if the fan is "spun" too fast it can cause damage to the fan. The other possibility is that the fan is already damaged, in which case replacement is the only option.

I am not sure what you mean by "registering" the unit with Shaw ... do you mean for them to "activate" it? Because from what I know, the only way for the unit to become functional in your house is to have Shaw "activate" it, otherwise you cannot watch what you have subscribed to, and in many cases you cannot even use the PVR functions of the unit unless they activate it. If it works without calling Shaw, then you are probably using the previous owner's account ... once Shaw realizes this (usually within a week) they will deactivate the unit.

[Newb777]

I am not sure if it was addressed in this thread. But if you disconnect your PVR and take it to your cabiny, can you watch your pre-recorded shows?

[Newb777]

Originally Posted by Shaw Guru

Service calls are always included at no additional charge for Shaw customers.

With regards to the warranty. Shaw offers a full 3 year warranty from the date of purchase. Should a tech determine the unit is faulty and under warranty he will replace it with a refurbished model and the orignal warranty will transfer over.

For Shaw customers who subscribe to cable, phone & internet Shaw offers an Extended warranty which covers equipment for swap purposes so long as you are a triple play customer. As ytou mention you only have cable and internet so this would not apply but if you did also have phone with Shaw then it would be covered.

If you at any time terminate any of your triple play services, for example disconnect your internet and go with someone else and you end up resubscribing to triple lay at a later date, is your PVR warrantable again?

[GamerGuy]

But if you disconnect your PVR and take it to your cabiny, can you watch your pre-recorded shows?

Nope. You must have a connection to Shaw service or the PVR is a paper weight.

When I moved, I was stuck waiting over a long weekend to get my service hooked up. I could not use my PVR at all. Let me tell you, I was pissed off!

Thank goodness I had a PS3/360 and I borrowed a bunch of movies from friends to tide me over. (I like the back ground noise even if I am not watching. I don't feel so alone. *violins*)

[ssbtech]

Will we ever see a firmware update pushed to the DCT6412III box for MPEG4 support or is it a hardware limitation?

I'd rather not have to toss away a $700 cable box, and frankly the oddly sized new boxes look out of place on my equipment rack.

[loracweb]

Hardware. The old dct units can not do mpeg4.

[magnet]

Your Analog box has been orphaned.
MPEG4 is a hardware limitation.
You don't have toss the box... you just have to watch the new channels in Standard def.

[ssbtech]

SD, eh? That sort of defeats the purpose

Well if Shaw wants to sell me new channels they'll have to offer me a trade for the box as well. I know it's 7 years old and technology evolves but it's still a little frustrating.

[tux]

^^ Good luck on that.

I've been trying forever for Shaw to offer me a trade-in or trade-up on my DCT3080 or DCT3416. The closest I've got was last year, when I had the opportunity to trade either of them for an additional portal, if I purchased a gateway and portal at full price. And that offer is no longer offered. If I wanted to purchase an MPEG4 box from Shaw now, I'd have to pay full price.

[buckycat]

I see Shaw still sells these boxes on their site. Seems strange that they would be selling outdated practically obsolete boxes. And it costs more than a DCX3400.

http://www.shaw.ca/television/equipment/hd-pvr-160gb/