[l2ridehd]

With the new comcast cable box, the 3 inch square one they made us all install, seems you can no longer record programing without a service. By service I mean getting the comcast $16.95 a month DVR or the TIVO $19.99 a month plan. The regular DVD recorders no longer work.

Anyone else having this issue? Anyone solved this problem? Or is this just another way comcast has stuck it to us?

[getdul981]

I haven't tried to record, but it would seem that you should be able to run the output from the little box from Comcast to the DVR/VCR and then through to the TV. You wouldn't be able to watch something else while recording and you would have to put the recorder on channel 3 or 4, whichever one the box is set for. Still it's a possibility that Comcast has found a way to require their DVR service.

[Bonny]

You cannot record like you did. We had them come out & rewire so I could record. After that my hubby finally decided to get the DVR.

[starflyte1]

We have the DVR and love it. Easy to use and stores up to 100 hours of programs.

[cappyjon431]

Originally Posted by starflyte1

We have the DVR and love it. Easy to use and stores up to 100 hours of programs.

I agree...it is well worth the price.

[KathieI]

Another vote for DVR service. I couldn't live without it, well worth the price. I'm never home so I can see all the shows that I missed. BTW, I could never handle a VCR, I was all thumbs...

[Carla B]

A friend gave us an older TIVO with a lifetime free subscription. It worked fine with Comcast until we had to get the little box. We were able to connect it but there is a great lag time when we try to change channels and we can't do the "on demand feature." I don't think Comcast likes TIVO.

[skyguy79]

I agree, a DVR's a must! We have two and could record up to four programs at a time while watching a fifth that's already recorded at the same time... even a sixth if need be! I don't even need to miss a single episode of Spongebob Squarepants!

[pooh]

Another vote for DVR service. I have three recorders and believe me, they are used.....LOTS!

Well worth the expense, at least for our household.

[EdV]

Here’s what the problem is:

Prior to the Comcast change, your DVD recorder was connected directly to the Comcast cable coming into the room. Your DVD recorder had a built in tuner that could select any channel between 02 an 99 when it wanted to record a program.

With the change over, the Comcast cable coming into the room has encoded those channels digitally and your DVD recorder doesn’t understand that format. Instead the little converter box is placed between cable coming in and your DVD recorder and converts the digital back to a signal that the DVD understands. But it always outputs that signal on channel 3 or 4 only.

Although it is possible to have a DVD player send an infrared remote control signal to the Comcast box to get it to switch to the appropriate channel when it wants to record, I doubt that your recorder has that capability.

Of course if you do spring for the Comcast DVR, you can connect it to your DVD recorder and selectively burn programs to DVDs for archival when you want to.

Additional Note: Comcast may still be passing channels 2-24 (broadcast network channels) in the old analog format, so you may still be able to record them using a T connector.

[zcaveman]

It is fairly simple. You run the cable from the DTA (the little box) into the VCR and run the output from the VCR to your TV. You put the VCR on channel 3. You can then set the timer in the VCR to record the program you want (date and time) but on channel 3. They you set the DTA to the channel your want to record and the program will record at the proper time. Unfortunately, you cannot watch another channel at the same time on the TV as you need to leave the box on the channel you want to record. And you cannot record multiple programs on different channels unless you can remember to switch the DTA to the other channel between recordings.

For example, I record several programs on one TV. On Monday, I record Hawaii 5-0 - channel 6. I set up the VCR to record channel 3 from 10 - 11 PM. At about 9:30, I switch the DTA to channel 6 and turn off the TV and go into the other room and watch the other TV.

It is not the most desired thing to do, but it works. Fortunately, I only record about 4 or 5 shows this way.

In the documentation that came with the DTA box, there is a diagram that shows this configuration.

Hope this helps.

Z

[mrdills]

The best thing to a DVR is the HD quality plus the seasonal shows, somehow the DVR remembers and they come on again without you setting a recording. Its the best thing since slice bread.............

[JeffAVEWS]

EdviMass,
Nicely put, you seem very knowledgeable on this, perhaps you can answer a question. The Radio act of 1938 makes the airways public and requires all signal's that "Fall" on your back yard be free, and Comcast (or Dish, Direct...) gets their feed from a satellite via the public airways, how can they charge us to decode it?

[Snowbirdtobe]

We have a series 3 TIVO with a cablecard and record 2 Comcast channels at a time with no cable box. The cablecard decodes the signal and can be picked up at the Comcast office.

[EdV]

Originally Posted by JeffAVEWS

EdviMass,
Nicely put, you seem very knowledgeable on this, perhaps you can answer a question. The Radio act of 1938 makes the airways public and requires all signal's that "Fall" on your back yard be free, and Comcast (or Dish, Direct...) gets their feed from a satellite via the public airways, how can they charge us to decode it?

That’s a Canadian Law. Perhaps you are referring to the Radio Act of 1927, Communications Act of 1934, and the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that collectively define American telecommunication law.