[mythtv-users] ME6000, PVR350, Myth(TV)ology, /dev/video0 I/O error

bishop bishop at platypus.bc.ca
Tue Mar 30 05:03:33 EST 2004 

Jarod, Rudy, Ryan and Thomas,

Thanks for your response.  I'm somewhat encouraged, and I don't hate 
everything nearly as much.  This gorgeous travla c-137 and enclosed 
ME6000 has not yet been reduced to tiny bits.

Thomas, if you see this and have the opportunity, please do CC me on 
your traffic about this difference in packages that may promote the 
/dev/video0 unreadability.

I've inserted responses in the body of the letter.

Jarod Wilson wrote:

> On Mar 29, 2004, at 20:02, Ryan Brancheau (US) wrote:
> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From:  bishop
>>
>> I'm at my wits' end, almost.  I've followed every word of Jarod's
>> instructions to the letter, and I just don't have enough knowledge about
>> the situation to have any freakin' clue in the matter.
>>
>> Jarod says:
>>
>>> # cat /dev/video0 > /tmp/test_capture.mpg (ctrl-c to stop capture)
>>
>>
>> and my machine says:
>>
>>> [root at otnemem root]# cat /dev/video0 > /tmp/test_capture.mpg
>>> cat: /dev/video0: Input/output error
>>
>>
>> No problem, Jarod says:
>>
>>> If you get the following error:
>>> cat: /dev/video0: Input/output error
>>>
>>> Run the following commands to reload the driver (this won't work for
>>
>> PVR-350 users if the ivtv-fb module is loaded -- see above):
>>
>>> # /sbin/rmmod ivtv
>>> # /sbin/modprobe ivtv
>>>
>>> Now try the capture again.
>>
>>
>> Yet, my machine says:
>>
>>> [root at otnemem root]# /sbin/rmmod ivtv
>>> [root at otnemem root]# /sbin/modprobe ivtv [root at otnemem root]# cat
>>> /dev/video0 > /tmp/test_capture.mpg
>>> cat: /dev/video0: Input/output error
> 
> 
> Definitely double-check /var/log/messages and /var/log/dmesg to see what 
> device ivtv is assigning to your 350. Like Ryan said, it might be 
> getting a different device number.

/var/log/messages seems to suggest I'm on /dev/video0:
 > Mar 29 17:58:53 otnemem kernel: ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 0

Is that the line we like?  /var/log/dmesg is devoid of strings 'ivtv' 
and '350', and I'm thinking that it'll be no use.


> The VIA boards are a slightly different story, and I doubt 100% 
> adherence will work with them. I've actually got an ME6000 sitting on 
> the shelf next to me, and a 350 doing nothing right now, but no time... 
> (May change shortly!!! I find out Thursday)...

Hopefully you're not getting The Ax, are you?

>> I think I need some encouragement to even continue to try, actually, as
>> I'm nearly in a state of mind that would result in my shiny new ME6000
>> unit being reduced into a pile of very small bits and lit on fire,
>> around which I'll be dancing like a navajo.  Judging by the traffic on
>> this list, there must be a million people on it.  There's gotta be one
>> guy who's successfully set up FC1 Myth on an ME6000 and a PVR350, one
>> guy who knows maybe what the hell I'm doing wrong.
> 
> I'm not sure about FC1, but I know Torsten runs a 350 on his ME6000, 
> though under Debian. Reading over his doc (can't recall the link, search 
> the archive) might help lend some insight.

I'll grovel for enlightenment, then.  Thanks for that.

>> Anyone spare a clue?  Whaddaya wanna know first?  Please CC any replies
>> to me as well.  Hell, call me collect if you want.  I don't want to miss
>> my salvation in this flood, and I'm thinking the apparent FAQness of my
>> question will only induce the square root of one reply.
> 
> 
> Heh...
> 
>> Just a few initial thoughts:
>>
>> If I'm not mistaken the ME6000 has an integrated video-out, you might be
>> at video1 for ivtv.
> 
> Or even video3, if you're loading the full-out VIA drivers.

I'm not setting up the official via drivers for its TVout, hoping to 
bypass that and just use the 350 (realistic?  advised?).  My stock 
AxelThimm kernel, that I installed as part of the Myth(tv)ology Guide, 
doesn't *seem* to have any Via vid drivers, although the sound ones load 
well.  I remember reading that the VESA drivers would be used for the 
VIA vid chip, and the logs I saw only supported that.

/var/log/messages says, among other things:
> Mar 29 18:00:53 otnemem kernel: ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 0

I only barely suspect that was the line you wanted to see, but I can 
make the entire thing available via http if that's not the right line 
and you want to see it all.

>> Check to make sure that /dev/video0 or video1 even exist (did you run
>> the mknod commands?)
> 
> Both of those (and video[2,3]) are created automatically at system 
> install time.

I *did* run the mknod commands, and they created a whack of devices, but 
those devices are being recreated at boot (with root.root chown;  how do 
I chg that to chown myth.root when they're auto-created?) .

>> Check lspci -v to make sure the card is even recognized
> 
> Yes.

agreed:  lspci likes us:
> 00:14.0 Multimedia video controller: Internext Compression Inc iTVC15 MPEG-2 Encoder (rev 01)
>         Subsystem: Hauppauge computer works Inc. WinTV PVR-350
>         Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 32, IRQ 11
>         Memory at dc000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=64M]
>         Capabilities: [44] Power Management version 2

>> Check dmesg |grep ivtv to see if ivtv is actually loading.

> And what device its loading to.

This one suggests to me it's on at video0:
> ivtv: version 0.1.9 (0.1.10pre1) loading
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #0
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #1
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #2
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #3
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #4
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #5
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #6
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #7
> ivtv: Autodetecting cardtype for card #8
> ivtv: SGarray_size = 420, DSGarray_size = 56
> ivtv: Found an iTVC15 based chip
> saa7127: Configuring encoder...<6>saa7114.c: starting probe for adapter ivtv i2c driver #0 (0x10005)
> ivtv: Encoder revision: 0x02040011
> ivtv: Decoder revision: 0x02020023
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 0
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 32
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 224
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 24
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 16
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 240
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 64
> ivtv: Registered v4l2 device, minor 48
> ivtv: loaded
> ivtv: Timeout waiting for data!

>> Worth a shot anyway...

> One day, I may just get my 350 onto this ME6000 (still need to find an 
> optimal case for it)... Until then, we'll try to help you through the 
> pain and suffering. In the immortal words of Rob Schneider's character 
> in The Water Boy, "You can do it!". ;-p

Thanks for the encouragement.

My Travla c137 is a great case.  I tossed in a Zalman RC56 connector
(http://www.silentpcreview.com/files/images/fan_controller/rc56.jpg) to
dull out the 60mm fan, but that was the only thing it needed.  It has a 
random hole near the middle-top of the case, which may even be abused 
with a UIRT inside there - no mounts tho.
http://www.casetronic.com/Product/PCcase/C137/Images/c137-front-600.jpg

http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=100319&Category_Code=Mini-ITX

If/when this thing's all going, and hopefully after it's net-booting 
too, I'll report on the heat and noise level.

Thanks for your questions so far.

Is there any point in skipping that test in the Myth(tv)ology procedure 
and moving on ?  I'd like to wander ahead, if I can, but I'm thinking 
it's pointless because of the read failure.

  - bish

-- 
	WAP is the sound a clunky Internet-enabled cellphone makes
	when you throw it at a brick wall in frustration.
				 -- 'Frozen North'
	http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2003/11/14/173126/56

More information about the mythtv-users mailing list