[mythtv-users] Occasional zero length file from a scheduled recording?

[Tom Dexter]

On Fri, Mar 7, 2008 at 8:18 AM,  <backuppc at sundquist.imapmail.org> wrote:
> On Thu, Jan 10, 2008 at 7:37 PM, Tom Dexter
>
> <digitalaudiorock[at]gmail.com> wrote:
>  > Today I had something occur that's only happened one other time since
>  > I built my mythtv system:
>  >
>  > A scheduled recording for some reason created a zero length recording,
>  > and everything in the backend log looks fine:
>  >
>  > 2008-01-10 16:00:02.922 TVRec(1): Changing from None to RecordingOnly
>  > 2008-01-10 16:00:02.931 TVRec(1): HW Tuner: 1->1
>  > 2008-01-10 16:00:02.935 DVBChan(0) Warning: Symbol Rate setting (0) is
>  > out of range (min/max:5056941/10762000)
>  > 2008-01-10 16:00:02.975 Started recording: Oprah Winfrey: channel 1071
>  > on cardid 1, sourceid 1
>  > 2008-01-10 17:00:00.377 TVRec(1): Changing from RecordingOnly to None
>  > 2008-01-10 17:00:00.812 Finished recording Oprah Winfrey: channel 1071
>  > 2008-01-10 17:00:00.825 Reschedule requested for id 0.
>  > 2008-01-10 17:00:00.921 Scheduled 23 items in 0.1 = 0.01 match + 0.09 place
>  >
>  > ...It appears to have recorded one hour like it should have, but the
>  > file was zero bytes. I just deleted it via mythweb.
>
>  Happened to me yesterday, too (0.20.2 stock version with mythbuntu 7.10)
>
>  I chalked it up to poor reception.  In the evening, I checked via live
>  TV and was getting poor reception on that particular tuner.  Earlier in
>  the week I was able to record from all three tuners simultaneaously just
>  fine.
>
>  I am still at a loss as to why OTA tuner performance goes up and down so
>  much, as it doesn't seem to be correlated with weather like I had
>  previously thought (earlier thread:
>  http://www.gossamer-threads.com/lists/mythtv/users/318012#318012)
>
>  Update from that previous thread:  I have just one antenna now, working
>  as good as when I had two directionals, and found a 3-way splitter going
>  to a pcHDTV 5500 and an HDHR.  I got the HDHR since I thought the pcHDTV
>  was supposed to get poor reception according to the wiki (well, it's
>  just a wiki, I suppose), but last night, the pcHDTV was only tuner
>  reliably pulling in good signals.
>
>  I'll be moving the antenna to the roof after the weather starts to warm
>  up again.
>
>  Jon S.
>
>  P.S. I had just changed my backend to put the HDHR tuner priorities to
>  "1" so that the system would preferentially record from them, just to
>  see if I got overall better reception with the HDHR (question was
>  answered, but in opposite way from what I expected).  I don't think that
>  configuration change in and of itself should have caused the lack of
>  recording.  Please correct me if I am wrong.
>
>
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>

Thanks for the reply.  At least it's good to know I'm not the only one
getting this.  I have HD-5500 cards as well.  Except occasionally in
really bad weather, they work great.  I've been wondering what that
stuff on the wiki is all about...it seems to be based on one or two
people on the pcHDTV forum.

As my first post indicated, I initially suspected possible bad
reception as well, but last night my reception on that channel was
near perfect...clean and near 90%.  It tuned in instantly.  I'm almost
certain it wasn't that.

One of these days I'll try moving my rotor so a station can't possibly
come in and see what the backend does in that situation.  I'll be
interested to see if it logs any errors.  If it does that would tend
to rule that out.  I just can't imagine the backend failing to get a
lock and just quietly acting as though it's recording.

Tom