Live TV with Mythtv and Hauppauge HDPVR

I have a MythTV 0.24.2 backend (from mythbuntu - 2:0.24.2+fixes.20120314.7b992ca-0ubuntu0mythbuntu4) installed and working perfectly with both a local and remote mythfrontend. This includes live TV, scheduling recordings, playing back recordings, etc.

I have installed XBMC (2:11.0~git20120321.14feb09-0ubuntu1~ppa1~maverick) and can play back previous recordings, view the program guide, etc. This is true using both the builtin myth:// protocol and the mythbox add-on. The problem arises when I try to watch live TV.

When I attempt to watch live TV, XBMC sends over the change channel command and the channel is changed correctly on my cable box (via an IR blaster attached to the HD PVR). However, this channel change takes about 10 seconds or so to fully complete, and the HD PVR never lights up to indicate it's recording. Most of the time, the XBMC interface starts showing "working", but just stops with no indication of the failure. Sometimes I will get a playback failed indication window after the "working" disappears.

I've convinced myself that this is 100% attributed to the amount of time it takes for the channel change to complete. If I do either of the following, Live TV works fantastic in XBMC:

- Change the change channel routine within mythsetup to just /bin/true. Obviously, the selected channel doesn't work, but the current channel on the box is played back perfectly.
- Change my channel script to just change to a single digit hard-coded channel. This brings the change channel time way down, but is obviously less than useful.

Is there some way to increase the timeout that XBMC will wait for a myth video source? I've tried trimming my change channel script down, but I can't seem to get it fast enough to make live TV work. I've tried messing with LIRC gap times, etc, but I can't seem to get it short enough.

Thanks for any assistance.

http://trac.xbmc.org/attachment/ticket/11082 sounds like it might be related to this.

If you can post a full debug log I'll see if that patch can be adjusted to use the mythbackend events received from the backend rather than polling the database to determine when the tuning has actually happened.

Please see http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=131011 for testing information.

Thanks for your responses and sorry I have been delayed in getting back to you. I hope to find some time this week to post a debug log and try out your patches.

(2012-04-28 13:58)dteirney Wrote:  http://trac.xbmc.org/attachment/ticket/11082 sounds like it might be related to this.

If you can post a full debug log I'll see if that patch can be adjusted to use the mythbackend events received from the backend rather than polling the database to determine when the tuning has actually happened.

Here's my debug log from attempting to watch live TV (channel 848) using the myth protocol. I can generate the same log using the mythbox addon, but the behavior is the same between the two.

Live TV Debug Log

@droeders, I've put together another patch that should hopefully work for HDPVR. Instructions on what to do to test it is in http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=131011

Another user with an HDPVR has apparently had success with that.