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Panasonic DMR-E85H error U99
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Coyote24
Junior Member
1 product review
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19. October 2005 @ 05:51 |
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shaolin00:
Quote:
How do you find out the main download and channel lineup download? I might go ahead and try that.
It's shown on the first page of TVGOS diagnostics (messages tab, enter to show the ID, then enter 753159852). The channels are listed in hexadecimal. To convert them, Google "hexadecimal" and "conversion" for an application to do this.
Now 12 days without a U99, but as an aside to RX7Fan, my RCA Guide+ did lose all listings and ads on Monday, but the Panny was fine. I'll have to ask my friend if he had any problems with his newer Guide+ recently.
I didn't mean to spark a debate about Panasonic/Gemstar's handling of the situation. I was just playing devil's advocate. I agree that besides Cheryl, action on this issue has been deplorable, if it's even acknowledged at all. Neither company has tried to find out HOW many people this affects (ignorance is bliss) but I think they're starting to get the picture after a MONTH.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. October 2005 @ 05:53
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kossello
Junior Member
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19. October 2005 @ 06:05 |
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Well the last two days have been busy getting U99's.
When I got home Tuesday at 1:00pm and had to reset due to U99. After doing the start up as normal I thought that the unit was taking longer to turn on. The unit turned itself off after the self check and the flashing blue lines (that run left to right) at the bottom of the display were moving and the clock was showing. I hit the power button and everything came on OK so Iturned the unit off.
Got back in around 4:30 and the U99 was back. The unit did the same thing. After going through the self check the unit turned off and only the bottom row of dashes were moving along the display with the clock showing (this is normal).
" _ _ _ _ _ _ 4:40 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ "
I did not turn the unit on and left it doing whatever it was doing and it continued until I finally wanted to record a show at 7:00 pm. I just hit the power button and it started up. Not getting the full TVGOS. Some days show no listing others just show the name of the show.
Keith
Insight Cable
South Central KY Zip 42101
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TForce1
Junior Member
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19. October 2005 @ 06:11 |
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I don't want to rain on anyone's parade, and I DO hope the problem is fixed in OKC, but I almost wish I was still having the problem. That way, when they do the nation wide roll out, I'd have a better feeling that the problem has been fixed for me once and for all. As it is, I have not had a U99 in over two weeks with no action on my part (or anubody else apparently). I can't see how the listing information would changes significantly, but I CAN see how the ads would change significantly. I just hope there isn't a multiple cause problem here...
As for corporate behavior: It's all driven by the quarterly earning statements. Period. Unless you can convince a company (or a division within that company) that their quarterly earing statement will be affected, they won't budge. Rare is the company that looks beyond the current quarter. I think this is starting to change a little, but just so.
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sfstan
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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19. October 2005 @ 06:21 |
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of late i have not been resetting the machine after u99 as in the past with ch up/ch dn/power cord. i have just been powering up when i see the u99. it takes a few times of powering up while it is in constant reboot mode (just kind of sits there) but after about 2 or 3 power up button presses it comes back to normal. i have not noticed any difference in u99 occurrances between doing this or resetting. i do preserve all the listings and schedules by doing it this way. who knows?
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 06:37 |
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sfstan
Quote:
i am at a loss to figure out why people are concerned with gemstar's revenue losses when they are not getting what they paid for by buying the panasonic units. i for one do not like being a guinea pig and paying for it to boot. gemstar does not have to test or not provide service to an entire country in order to find their problem. i realize that it is not just a flip of the switch to revert back to their old software but i think they owe us that much to do it. for all those who like playing these games all day long, so be it. to the rest of us who want to be treated like the "good" consumers that we are, i suggest nothing changes unless you speak up.
See my post way back on pg 17 at "11. October 2005 @ 18:21". Didn't get much reaction from the board. Absolutely agree with you.
beckman
Not sure what you mean by the "format tactic", but I have not received a U99 in San Antonio since I disabled the TVGuide download using the "Auto Channel Scan" operation over a month ago. So, as long as you've upgraded the E85H firmware to the Jan 2005 release and follow VideoBob's warnings about leaving a DVD in the unit, I can state with at least 99% certainty that you will not encounter a U99. And you'll be able to successfully record programs manually to your heart's content without worrying about losing anything (presuming you've got battery backup).
Some posters have reported problems with the "Auto Channel Scan" menu item being "grayed out" (i.e. disabled) if they have responded to the unit that it is hooked up to a cable box.
Sparc21
It may be that Gemstar paid Panasonic and not the other way around. It is probably Gemstar who reaps (or has planned to reap) ad revenue.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. October 2005 @ 06:46
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TForce1
Junior Member
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19. October 2005 @ 06:46 |
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VulcanUSA-> Who are you connected to? I'm in San Antonio, w. Time Warner Cable, no cable box. I haven't had a U99 in 17 days, get channel listings o.k. too AND I usually have a DVD-ROM in the player.
When I was getting them, it was for two days every week Fri-Sat.
It's just wierd how the problem comes and goes in different areas of the country.
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 06:52 |
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TForce1,
Same config as you (i.e. Time Warner, no cable box).
Until VideoBob's warning, I too usually left a DVD-RAM in the unit and never received a U99. VB seems to be pretty knowledgeable on the subject, so I'll follow his advice since it's essentially painless. I also think not having the TV Guide is pretty painless, but I might change my mind if I had over a hundred channels from which to choose.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. October 2005 @ 07:02
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sparc21
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 07:03 |
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sparc21
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 07:04 |
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 07:48 |
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sparc21,
Alllll-righttttyyyy then....
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beckmen
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 12:09 |
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Another U99 today. OK, so how to I disable the TVGuide? I tinkered for a minute trying to, but to no avail.
As for leaving a DVD in the unit...yeah, I noticed that myself and make sure not to leave anything in there overnight.
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BudinMA
Junior Member
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19. October 2005 @ 12:17 |
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I got an email from Cheryl who said that I should start getting listings, however I needed to do a factory reset instead of the chup/down thing. What is a factory reset? supposedly it is supposed to clear out the memory.
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sfstan
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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19. October 2005 @ 12:19 |
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and the factory reset is? it will not clear out what is on the hard drive? right? is that a nationwide roll-out she was saying would happen?
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 12:28 |
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beckman,
See post "22. September 2005 @ 10:41" on page 7 regarding how to disable the TV Guide download.
Also check out post "29. September 2005 @ 16:56" on page 8.
And post "2. October 2005 @ 16:45" on page 9.
I believe the instructions for performing the Auto Channel Scan are around pg. 43 or pg 46 in the manual.
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 12:31 |
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sfstan,
See pg 3 of this thread, post from VideoBob:
15. May 2005 @ 11:16
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beckmen
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 14:11 |
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I followed the instructions on pages 7, 8 and 9, but the buttons are greyed out and when I click them nothing happens. I unplugged the unit but that didn't work. Should I reformat the HDD? I'd have to back up my saved programs first, so it would be a pain. Any other ideas?
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vulcanusa
Member
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19. October 2005 @ 14:14 |
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beckman,
If you don't have a cable box, then I know from prior experience over a month ago when I was playing around with the TV Guide download that you can re-enable the Auto Channel Scan by entering and then exiting "service mode". To find out how to enter and exit "service mode", see:
http://www.dxcc.com/dmr-e85h.htm
You may also get the Auto Channel Scan menu item to enable by a factory reset, but I don't believe I tried that.
A couple of posters, e.g. BudinMA, have a cable box and have not been able to enable the Auto Channel Scan menu item. Those people are always susceptible to the U99 causing their DVR to fail to record a program. Yikes!
I made a private suggestion to BudinMA that he may or may not have implemented depending upon how he uses his cable box. The suggestion depends upon whether all channels entering the cable box input pass through to the output. I expect the non-premium channels to pass through fine. The premium channels will be garbage. Right? You decode a premium channel by tuning the cable box to that channel. The box decodes the channel and outputs it to channel 2 or 3, right? If you tune the box to a non-premium channel, yep, it'll be output to channel 2 or 3 as well, but it should also pass through the box on its normal channel.
Now, if you have a cable box, I presume you only have it because you actually watch premium channels. How many of them? If you primarily watch a particular premium channel, or more importantly, if you only primarily record from non-premium channels and, say, 1 premium channel, then you may initialize your DVR by telling it you have cable, but NOT a cable box. Remove the IR blaster. Now the Auto Channel Scan menu item should be enabled. You won't be able to set up several different premium channels to record. However, if you leave the cable box set to the premium channel you typically record from when you're not watching TV, you'll be able to set up manual timer recordings for a set of non-premium channels and that one premium channel. Of course, you'll have to tell your DVR when you set up a manual timer recording event for the premium channel that you want to record channel 2 or 3 in order to capture the decoded signal from the cable box (i.e. not the actual premium channel number).
If I'm wrong, I'm sure another forum member will correct me.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 19. October 2005 @ 14:54
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sparc21
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 14:15 |
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FYI:
This is from Cheryl @ TVGUIDE
Quote:
I understand the U99 errors are very frustrating and render the device useless. We are still not clear on what really caused the problem and we would like to discover why before making any widespread changes.
I know of at least one person who has disabled the guide by entering 00000 for the ZIP allowing him to make manual recordings and not see any U99's. We are currently working with Panasonic engineers to find a real solution to the problem.
Thanks,
Cheryl
sparc21
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sfstan
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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19. October 2005 @ 16:00 |
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and that will be when, cheryl?
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dgs7
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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19. October 2005 @ 16:49 |
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I just got back from several days away and still no U99 here in OKC. Whatever they did, it seems to have worked here. I'm just curious why they picked OKC to roll out the fix. Not that I'm complaining... I'm very grateful to have this machine working again. I'm sure the rest of you would be too.
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psujmatt
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 17:50 |
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beckmen
I've posted this somewhere in the nearly 30 pages, but for me, I need to do the following after a ch up/down reset to disable TVGOS and still be able to manual program a recording:
1. auto channel setup
2. setup the TVGOS
3. auto channel setup again
If I skip (1), I get all buttons greyed out.
Following this, the auto channel setup button is NOT grey, but the others still are.
Editted to say: I do NOT have a cable box
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. October 2005 @ 19:17
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shaolin00
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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19. October 2005 @ 18:11 |
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Panasonic Update:
Got a message from Cheree at Panasonic and she thinks the issue should be resolved in a couple days. TVGOS and Panasonic are collaborating on the issue and I got the impression they were close to a solution.
Lets hope she is right.
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beckmen
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 19:27 |
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OK, I did the factory reset and am now operating on manual mode. Hopefully they will fix the TVGuide thing at some point and I will be able to go back to using the TVGOS System. It does rule. Now I only need to be sure and check back in every couple of weeks to check on progress...
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xclratn
Newbie
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19. October 2005 @ 19:40 |
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Not sure if you have anyone from TN or not yet, but I am in Brentwood, TN. Using Pany E85H. Comcast Cable. Never seen a U99. I have my cable split from one to two. One of these goes into the E85H via coax.
Now that I have posted, I will likely start getting them.
Robert
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Bonus2
Suspended due to non-functional email address
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20. October 2005 @ 01:40 |
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Amazing, my E85H is now back in a stable mode. I am getting 11 ads ( 24, American Express, Bowflex, Breeders Cup, Cheers & Jeers, Davidson?s Assoc., ITV Subscription, TV Guide Subscription, Timeshares) and fully populated for 3 days of Ch 2-99, CH 201-279, Plus Ch 301 -382 (these include 4 HBO channels, 5 Showtime Etc) and even the 8 HD channels have full listings for 3 days.
It is a very simple fix for E85H. I had done this fix Oct 8th and was stable with no U99s for 9 straight days with complete ads and 7 days listings for all the channels I just listed above.
All you need to do is Ch ? up CH ? down and then 30 seconds with plug out of wall. You will then have a flashing time and when you turn on the E85H you will be in set up and then add line L3 for cable box connection, zip code, Motorola (or other box) for the channel switcher and then power off to put E85H in standby. I did all this on 10-19-05 at 5 am. Today 10-20-05, at 5 am I now have the complete ads and listings completely populated for 3 days. So it does not take so long to get your E85H stable again with no U99s. After about 12-14 hrs when I turned the E85H on it gave a choice of 4 line ups and I picked the 1st. Then I powered it down to standby. Now everything is working flawlessly. I was in this state for 9 days Oct 8 ? Oct 17 until Cheryl asked me to go into the service mode to find my Host Version number which is 0970DL. After coming out of service mode I had TV listings but no ads. Also when in standby it would channel surf to download TV Guide data but went to many channels to do this. It would go to CBS, ABC, three different PBS and stay 2 ? 4 minutes on each channel. I watched it go to WENH a NH PBS and after 2 minutes there my first U99. I Powered on to get rid of U99 and went to standby and left it in this state for 2 days to see if it would fix itself. I had about 4 U99s but everything else worked such as record and burn to DVD. I did record 3 shows but a 4th show failed to record because a U99 came before the show could record.
Now after the fix in standby mode it only searches 2 channels for data CBS (Ch 4 Comcast Boston) and MSNBC (Ch 53 Boston). Entering into the service mode erased the ads but also erased the information that told the E85H what Ch to go to for the downloads based on my Zip code. Trying to get TV Guide data from my over 200 channels overwhelms the E85H and causes the U99s.
Sorry for the long post but I am confident you all can fix your E85H U99 issues by the Ch ? up Ch ? down and then 30 seconds unplugged.
Bonus2
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