[jaymac10]

I had a shaw repair guy come to the house today to try and figure out why my aspect ratio was switching automatically from 16x9 to 4x3 after going into shaw in demand....

Anyways long story short, the rep said that tomorrow (Oct 16th) shaw will officially be re-calling the Pace PVR boxes with something else. He didn't know if it was going to be another Pace Box or another brand.

I should hear from him tomorrow as to whether he has the new box for me or not....

I didn't search if this has already been discusses (doing this on my iPhone) but I thought I would post it up anyways!

Cheers,

Jay

 

[lgplasma]

This is the first I have heard of it. Sounds like an expensive proposition for Shaw, so I doubt it but I would not be adverse to trading my Paces in for new DCX3400s.

 

[SnowGoose]

If they do...

...the replacement unit better have either a 500 GB HDD or an eSATA port!

I haven't seen any information from Shaw to suggest that any recall is happening.

 

[TechGuy8]

Jay,
What Pace model do you have?

 

[ATC7]

First post, this is a great forum.

I owned the old motorola 6200 HD-PVR which crapped out a few months ago and shaw replaced it with a Pace unit which has worked ok till today when it too died. But last week I had received a letter from Shaw that they are indeed replacing select Pace receivers (Models TDC770D - which apparently I have) due to some fault.

When I called into the number provided, they looked at my account and confirmed that I will be receiving the new ("just released" the guy said) Motorola HD-PVR which has a 250GB HD (mine had 160) and can be expanded. Not sure which model I'm getting but I'll be receiving it later this week.

This is the letter I received, it sure sounds like a recall on at least some of the Pace units:

 

[Deaftube]

I got my letter on Monday and they are coming on Thursday to swap. Timing couldn't be better, the Whistler has worked fine for six months but started acting up in the last two weeks. The rep did not know the model number of the replacement, just that it was a 250GB Motorola that "had been sourced for this issue." That's why you can't go down to Shaw and swap; the replacement is not carried normally by the retail locations. If anyone finds out the replacement model let us know, I'm very curious! I'm on the free for a year deal and was going to give the thing back; if it's a motorola with a bigger drive I'd be much more inclined to buy it at the end of the year.....

 

[Jetranger]

Definitely a recall

From the shaw.ca/replacement page referenced in the letter:

6. How long do I have to return my current HDPVR?
As this unit is under manufacturer’s recall, please return your HDPVR to Shaw by November 30, 2010. Please ship to back to Shaw using the prepaid Purolator shipping label that is packaged with your new HDPVR.

So, it is a recall and there is a time limit on it. They do also suggest you 'take time to watch all your recordings' so they might end up extending this depending on how many people return these units right away.

NOTE: This is only for the TDC770D model. There is a picture on the Shaw site noted above if you are unsure of what you have.

 

[TechGuy8]

Anyone has any idea what make and model of the replacement HDPVR. It will be nice to get the new Motorola one.

 

[ATC7]

I just received the replacement PVR and it is indeed a Motorola (model DCX3400-M) and it has a sticker saying 250B HD on it. It was new with the seals still on it but there was nothing in the box apart from the receiver itself, a power cable as well as a Purolator return waybill.

I just activated it online (it was instant) and it's downloading all the guide and other stuff as we speak. One thing I've already noticed, this thing is silent and quite small (much smaller than my previous two PVRs I've had - Moto 6200 and the Pace that's being recalled). The old remote, and if you have a universal remote already programmed for the old box(es), will work fine as is. Also, channel changes are noticeably quicker and Auto-tune is ON by default, unlike previous boxes where you had to manually turn it on in settings.

 

[TechGuy8]

Ok... It is the change for better - extra 90GB storage and faster/quieter machine.

 

[ATC7]

Yeah so far it seems to be a nice (free) upgrade. I just hope this unit is more reliable than my last two PVRs.

 

[lgplasma]

Oh poo! I guess there is no hoping this will be extended to Aspen and Summit boxes too?

 

[mike10]

I wish that I had kept my pace box instead of doing that nfl deal

 

[goplasmago]

I have the aspen as well and its been nothing but problems, I have a tech coming out saturday to look at it, hopefully I can get some sort of replacement

 

[Jetranger]

I just received the replacement PVR and it is indeed a Motorola (model DCX3400-M) and it has a sticker saying 250B HD on it. It was new with the seals still on it but there was nothing in the box apart from the receiver itself, a power cable as well as a Purolator return waybill. ...

Interesting. The DCX3400-M units we picked up in the NFLST swap are all 500gig Hard Drive equipped. The box was boldly printed with '500 Gig' on it. There was also a 3 foot HDMI cable as well. It sounds like Shaw has ordered a 'cheapo' version to send out as replacements and that's why they are available only through delivery. The Moto website info shows only a 250gig drive so Shaw must have ordered the first ones, or 'mainstream' ones, with the 500gig drive.

Oh well, at least they are doing the right thing in swapping out defective equipment. Despite the smaller drive, there are still some positives to the 3400, most notably the '-M' which is for MoCA. Eventually, and presumably, Shaw will be offering this additional service and you will need the equipment that supports it to take advantage of it so this is a good thing for sure.

 

[Shaw Guru]

A hardware problem was identified with some of the Pace Whistler models currently in use which promted a manufactorer recall. As such only specific Pace Whistlers units are subject to the recall. The owners/renters of the affected units are being notified my Shaw to advise of the recall and Shaw is upgrading to a 250GB hard drive motorola PVR as an exchange.

Please note the recall only applies to pace Whistler models and I can't recall but i believe it is only some of those and not all. not sure though.

 

[ATC7]

I think you're right Jetranger. On Shaw's website under PVR hardware, there are only the 500GB unit (DCX-3400) and another that's the 1TB unit which includes an expander (Link).

So these 250GB 3400s may have been a special order to handle this recall. I'm still very glad they replaced the Pace which I had nothing but problems with. Even though I didn't get an HDMI cable (I have more HDMI cables at home that inputs on our TVs thanks to a group buy from monoprice) I'm happy with the 90GB increase in capacity. I just hope this thing proves solid reliability-wise. So far so good.

 

[Deaftube]

I've had the motorola replacement for a week or two now, so far so good with one minor quibble. When changing channels using the "last" button, the channel sort of fades out, then there's a blank screen for about four seconds until the last channel comes on. The Whistler didn't do that, and I've got a couple of 3080's that don't. Anybody else notice this or have I got a bit of a flaw in the unit I got?

 

[antonk]

Do you have the resolution set to Native and so your TV is changing resolutions between channels? Just change it to 1080i or 720p (they look about the same), and that pause between changing channels should go away.

If you don't know how to change the resolution, turn off the 3400, and shortly thereafter press the Settings/Menu button, and you'll see the rest.