# HR21-700 Technical Discussion



## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Now that the HR21-700 HD DVR First Look has been published, this is a thread has been started to discuss technical questions people may have regarding this exciting new unit.

Please note that while not *all *technical questions can be answered at this time for various reasons, this will be a great place to share information as it relates to the "techy" side of the HR21-700.


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

Looks so cool! 

One feature I LOVE about my recently installed HR-20 is the LED indicators of the signal going to my TV. 420,740i,740p and 1080i.

Very cool knowing what signal is going to to my HDTV. Question is though, does the HR-21 support 1080p?

I'm not too technical but from reading on C-Net and other places 1080p is supposed to be better than 1080i. My Toshiba is 1080p so I'm curious to know if the HR-21 will send a 1080p signal.

GREAT First Look!

Kinda  though, I would have waited a few more weeks to get an HR-21.....


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## LarryFlowers (Sep 22, 2006)

Great Job...

2 Questions:

1. How long did you get to test the unit...

2. When will it be made available?


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## Carl Spock (Sep 3, 2004)

3. How can I order the faceplate and buttons through parts?


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

NinerK said:


> Question is though, does the HR-21 support 1080p?


no, just 1080i



LarryFlowers said:


> 2. When will it be made available?


They're on pre-order now at solidsignal.com. Best guess is around the end of the month.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

NinerK said:


> Very cool knowing what signal is going to to my HDTV. Question is though, does the HR-21 support 1080p?
> 
> I'm not too technical but from reading on C-Net and other places 1080p is supposed to be better than 1080i. My Toshiba is 1080p so I'm curious to know if the HR-21 will send a 1080p signal.
> 
> ...


Great questions.

1) No, 1080p is not supported by any DVR at this time, since no boradcast source in the U.S. supports it either. All HD today is broadcast in either 720p or 1080i.

2) There have been countless articles done on the whole 1080p vs 1080i comparisons, including by some respoected publications such as Home theater Magazine. The majority conclusion is that 99.9% of the American public could not detect any difference. Both are great. 720p is 98% just as good, and in the case of frequent action (sports), its actually better, which is why ABC and ESPN use it.

3) HR21-700's are not quite generally available...but soon.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

LarryFlowers said:


> Great Job...
> 
> 2 Questions:
> 
> ...


A group of testers was selected for the HR21 over enough time that we got to see it inside and out, as well as in action.

I'm not aware of it being generally available as of today, but "soon".

I've seen them taking pre-orders on the SolidSignal.com site.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

ggergm said:


> 3. How can I order the faceplate and buttons through parts?


You can't.

If you were thinking of retro fitting another unit, you may want to re-read the First Look, as it clearly stated the dimensions of the HR21 are not the same as the HR20, not to mention some of the layout of the front panel - so it wouldn't work anyway.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

LarryFlowers said:


> How long did you get to test the unit...


Long enough.  And it's still in testing, for a little while longer. Which is why there are some questions that we're not allowed to answer.


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## HolmesCo (Dec 4, 2006)

May I suggest that you edit your OP with a link to this 'first look' so those of us who have no idea, can read it. Thanks.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

HolmesCo said:


> May I suggest that you edit your OP with a link to this 'first look' so those of us who have no idea, can read it. Thanks.


It's not like it's hard to find, being stuck at the top of this forum. But here's a link: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=105066


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

say-what said:


> It's not like it's hard to find


Some people make it a point to skip over all stickies.


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## HolmesCo (Dec 4, 2006)

Pardon me for looking there and simply not noticing it. I will try to be perfect from now on.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

HolmesCo said:


> Pardon me for looking there and simply not noticing it. I will try to be perfect from now on.


I was just pointing out where it was, no offense or criticism was intended by my post. Sorry if it came across the wrong way.


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

say-what said:


> no, just 1080i


SAY WHAT?!


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## MikeR (Oct 6, 2006)

NinerK said:


> Very cool knowing what signal is going to to my HDTV. Question is though, does the HR-21 support 1080p?





hdtvfan0001 said:


> Great questions.
> 
> 1) No, 1080p is not supported by any DVR at this time, since no boradcast source in the U.S. supports it either. All HD today is broadcast in either 720p or 1080i.


True to a degree. Previously mentioned in the other thread, the 7401 does support 1080p 24/30 output formats.

Wouldn't it be interesting to download some 1080p VOD???


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## HolmesCo (Dec 4, 2006)

say-what said:


> I was just pointing out where it was, no offense or criticism was intended by my post. Sorry if you took it that way.


Not at all, I appreciate your help. I was responding to the assumption *that I made a point of skipping the stickies* that I did not look there. I did, just didn't notice it. Sometimes the brain just doesn't register what the eyes are seeing. Thank you for pointing it out.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

MikeR said:


> the 7401 does support 1080p 24/30 output formats.


The 7401 supports a lot of things that we'll never see in the HR21.


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Great questions.
> 
> 1) No, 1080p is not supported by any DVR at this time, since no boradcast source in the U.S. supports it either. All HD today is broadcast in either 720p or 1080i.
> 
> ...


Thank you hdtvfan!

1) Interesting, I didn't know that all broadcasts are 1080i or 720p....good knowledge!

2) I don't know if I can detect it, but that's why I like the LED indicators; it let's me try to detect a difference. As for Sports, I did notice that some are in 720p and some 1080i (I think FOX is 1080i). Anyway, why is it better? Less "pixellation" during action sequences? I've noticed this happening on both but will look to see whether it's worse on 720 or 1080.

3)HR21-7-- not available yet but soon; does this mean the HR20 will now die?

The last thing I want is to be greedy because I did get the HR20 3 weeks ago for $19 shipping from DTV; but sheesh, I seriously would have waited for the new model. Oh, well, haven't had any major issues with the HR20.....

Thanks again for the info re: 720p & 1080I!


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## MikeR (Oct 6, 2006)

Jeremy W said:


> The 7401 supports a lot of things that we'll never see in the HR21.


"The data transport module can be configured to support eight record channels for PVR functionality......"


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

NinerK said:


> I think FOX is 1080i


Fox is 720p.


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

Jeremy W said:


> The 7401 supports a lot of things that we'll never see in the HR21.


7401=Dish Network? What's this 7401 you speak of? (seriously, not sarcastic)

And does it matter if there are no 1080p broadcasts?


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

Jeremy W said:


> Fox is 720p.


Ok, I know I have watched a football game in 1080i this year. Maybe it was that tragic and horrifying Cal game on Versus last week.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

NinerK said:


> 7401=Dish Network? What's this 7401 you speak of? (seriously, not sarcastic)


It's the main processor for the HR21.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

NinerK said:


> Ok, I know I have watched a football game in 1080i this year. Maybe it was that tragic and horrifying Cal game on Versus last week.


CBS and NBC are both 1080i as well.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

NinerK said:


> Ok, I know I have watched a football game in 1080i this year. Maybe it was that tragic and horrifying Cal game on Versus last week.


CBS is usually 1080i. 720p is supposed to provide a smoother picture for sports because of the motion involved, 1080p would do the same. 1080i is said to be "choppier" - not sure if that's the right word, but close enough.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

Functionally, the biggest difference for me has been the color (it matches the rest of my system - yay!) and the ethernet switch, which allows connecting another networked device to LAN very easily if you don't have another ethernet jack handy. That network switch is probably the only difference you can really tell from a usability standpoint. Other things like the slightly larger drive and faster MPEG decoder are "nice to have" features, but other the physical appearance and different back panel layout, you'd never know you weren't using an HR20.


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## NinerK (Jan 4, 2006)

say-what said:


> CBS is usually 1080i. 720p is supposed to provide a smoother picture for sports because of the motion involved, 1080p would do the same. 1080i is said to be "choppier" - not sure if that's the right word, but close enough.


I see, thanks for the insight. I hope we get 1080p soon; until then I guess it's 1080p dvd!


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## azarby (Dec 15, 2006)

LameLefty said:


> Functionally, the biggest difference for me has been the color (it matches the rest of my system - yay!) and the ethernet switch, which allows connecting another networked device to LAN very easily if you don't have another ethernet jack handy. That network switch is probably the only difference you can really tell from a usability standpoint. Other things like the slightly larger drive and faster MPEG decoder are "nice to have" features, but other the physical appearance and different back panel layout, you'd never know you weren't using an HR20.


The ethernet switch was extremely helpful. It allowed me to return the external switch and save $40.

Bob


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

NinerK said:


> I see, thanks for the insight. I hope we get 1080p soon; until then I guess it's 1080p dvd!


I suspect you have years of waiting ahead of you, as every HD national broadcast content provider spent millions and millions on 720p and 1080i equipment over just the past couple of years, and there has been virtually no mandate to even think about 1080p for several years.

Add in the fact that 1080p sets make up less than 5% of the 30 million HD sets in the field today, and you only hear a yawn on 1080p right now.


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## webcrawlr (Sep 1, 2007)

How's the HD noise compared to the HR20?


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

webcrawlr said:


> How's the HD noise compared to the HR20?


Well, my HR20 is inaudible from my living room couch and so is my HR21.

How's that for an answer?


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## webcrawlr (Sep 1, 2007)

LameLefty said:


> Well, my HR20 is inaudible from my living room couch and so is my HR21.
> 
> How's that for an answer?


Lucky. I can hear a subtle high pitch whine from mine when the volume is low. Gets on my nerves and the HR10-250 never did it. Love the black face of the HR21 though!


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## Koz (Sep 16, 2006)

My HR21 is definitely quieter than the R15 it replaced. I'm not really sure how loud my HR20 is because of its location, so that's a tough comparison for me.

I would also add to LameLefty's sentiments that there really is no noticable performance improvement from the HR21 vs the HR20. If there is, I can't tell. It truly is an HR20 minus the OTA, along with the visual differences such as the piano black color and diffused blue ring.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

I don't know how you would really be able to tell, but I don't think the difference in drive capacity really amounts to much.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

webcrawlr said:


> Lucky. I can hear a subtle high pitch whine from mine when the volume is low. Gets on my nerves and the HR10-250 never did it. Love the black face of the HR21 though!


Unfortunately, this is likely a slight defect in your drive. Probably falls within the tolerance specifications and some are going to be better than others. Having worked with a number of different devices over the years both at home and at work, I find the HR20 to be very quiet .. I cannot comment specifically on the HR21 as I do not have one. However, I suspect that the performance is even better than the best that I have seen because of the even quieter drives.


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## flipptyfloppity (Aug 20, 2007)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> I suspect you have years of waiting ahead of you, as every HD national broadcast content provider spent millions and millions on 720p and 1080i equipment over just the past couple of years, and there has been virtually no mandate to even think about 1080p for several years.
> 
> Add in the fact that 1080p sets make up less than 5% of the 30 million HD sets in the field today, and you only hear a yawn on 1080p right now.


The rate of growth of 1080p sets is very rapid. It easily triple in the next year (to 15% or greater).

But as to 1080p OTA, it's difficult to see how that's going to happen when it currently isn't possible to squeeze a 1080p(/60) channel into a single ATSC channel slot. It's just too much data for MPEG2 to hammer into 6MHz (26Mbit).

So even if channels could produce it (and I am told many shows are shot in 1080p right now), and networks could route it through their systems, it couldn't be broadcast.

I think that some day the ATSC group will meet and talk about how to employ H.264 in ATSC channels in the future. At that time, they'll also define 1080p/60 as an ATSC standard (employing H.264). Then, maybe we'll see OTA 1080p. It'll be years.

Until then the only uses for 1080p are:
HD disc formats.
Downloaded content.
Directly connecting your computer to your HDTV via DVI->HDMI.
Games on Xbox 360 and PS3.
And as a great format for display of both 720p and 1080i signals without any loss of resolution.

Which, honestly, is quite a lot. I can't see how buying a new non-1080P (/60) HDTV right now makes much sense at all (unless it is below 42"). I'll go even farther. Make sure it accepts 1080p/24 too (even if it isn't full 1080 resolution), if you're at all a fan of movies.


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## gully_foyle (Jan 18, 2007)

flipptyfloppity said:


> I think that some day the ATSC group will meet and talk about how to employ H.264 in ATSC channels in the future. At that time, they'll also define 1080p/60 as an ATSC standard (employing H.264). Then, maybe we'll see OTA 1080p. It'll be years.


It'll be the twelfth of Never. To broadcast in a new format you'd have to be willing to ignore the installed base and somehow interest everyone in moving to new TVs. Look how hard THIS jump has been. Maybe in 30 years, and to 6400x2700 or some such. Media, computers and networks may have their own evolution of course, and "TV" may well be obsolete by them. Certainly satellite TV will be, given fiber.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

flipptyfloppity said:


> The rate of growth of 1080p sets is very rapid. It easily triple in the next year (to 15% or greater).


The TV manufacturers would like us to believe that, but even they can't forecast future buying habits. Some manufacturers are reporting sales lagging behind projections just in the past quarter alone.

The adoption rate of HDTV in general is already behind "expert forecasts" from just 3 years ago, so there is no reason to believe much beyond 3-6 months in the future. It's kinda like the weather....you have a 50% chance of being right most days.

With the 2009 deadline approaching, things will pick up because of that, not the 1080p standard. Many people with HDTV's today still don't even watch HDTV, they watch analog stations on their HDTV (as sad as that is).

For all those reasons, there's no urgency in the market to migrate to 1080p broadcasts for 4, 5 or more years down the road.


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## jayerndl (Aug 4, 2007)

azarby said:


> The ethernet switch was extremely helpful. It allowed me to return the external switch and save $40.
> 
> Bob


Is this any different than HR20-100? I have the -700 but thought I read that the HR21's ethernet is just like the HR20-100. Thanks.

Jay


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## MikeR (Oct 6, 2006)

jayerndl said:


> Is this any different than HR20-100? I have the -700 but thought I read that the HR21's ethernet is just like the HR20-100. Thanks.
> 
> Jay


There are 2 ethernet ports on the HR20, although the 2nd port is not active. There is a new chip in the HR21...the BCM5325, that is not in the HR20 series.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

MikeR said:


> There are 2 ethernet ports on the HR20, although the 2nd port is not active. There is a new chip in the HR21...the BCM5325, that is not in the HR20 series.


...and both ports are active in the HR21-700....


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## Tony Chick (Aug 24, 2006)

Is the software in the HR21 essentially the same as the HR20?. What rev. is it on at the moment?. I'd like to think its just a build difference so it benefits from all the work on the HR20.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

Tony Chick said:


> Is the software in the HR21 essentially the same as the HR20?.


More or less.



> What rev. is it on at the moment?. I'd like to think its just a build difference so it benefits from all the work on the HR20.


We're not allowed to comment about that, sorry.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

Tony Chick said:


> Is the software in the HR21 essentially the same as the HR20?. What rev. is it on at the moment?. I'd like to think its just a build difference so it benefits from all the work on the HR20.


We're still on a pre-release and it's different than the current national release for the HR20 but functionally equivallent. Once there is a final national release of the HR21 software, we can give a comparison.


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## RecRoomFan (Jan 13, 2007)

Will the new HR21-700 have the dual buffer feature some of us miss from the HR10-250?


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

RecRoomFan said:


> Will the new HR21-700 have the dual buffer feature some of us miss from the HR10-250?


Nope, it's basically an HR20 minus OTA capability for those that don't require it. Nothing more and nothing less.


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

RecRoomFan said:


> Will the new HR21-700 have the dual buffer feature some of us miss from the HR10-250?


No. It is the same receiver as the HR20-700 and -100 minus the OTA tuner.


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## rstokas (Oct 21, 2005)

and the hr21 has 1080 p. thats a difference. but i need ota


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

rstokas said:


> and the hr21 has 1080 p.


No it doesn't. Only goes to 1080i.


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## rstokas (Oct 21, 2005)

REALLY! Wow I thought it had 1080p! So the only difference is that it is black and not silver! HR 20-700 is the best in my opinion


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## rstokas (Oct 21, 2005)

but if 1080 p becomes available will the hr21 be able to work with it. Meaning is there a resolution on the hr21 for 1080p?


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## Vinny (Sep 2, 2006)

rstokas said:


> REALLY! Wow I thought it had 1080p! So the only difference is that it is black and not silver! HR 20-700 is the best in my opinion


....and no OTA.

In General.....HR20=HR21 w/o OTA


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

rstokas said:


> but if 1080 p becomes available will the hr21 be able to work with it. Meaning is there a resolution on the hr21 for 1080p?


There is no 1080p setting anywhere in the unit. While the chipset appears to be capable of processing 1080p, we have no way of knowing whether that capability can be added via a software update. So the answer to your question is that the HR21 does not support 1080p.


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## rstokas (Oct 21, 2005)

i know there is no 1080 p now, but is there a light on the box and a resolution setting for a future 1080p? Meaning that this box would work in the future with 1080p? 

so its ota vs a black receiver then


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## Vinny (Sep 2, 2006)

rstokas said:


> i know there is no 1080 p now, but is there a light on the box and a resolution setting for a future 1080p? Meaning that this box would work in the future with 1080p?
> 
> so its ota vs a black receiver then


No 1080P LED on the black box that does not have OTA......


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

rstokas said:


> but is there a light on the box and a resolution setting for a future 1080p?


NO, NO, NO, NO, there is no setting on the box or in the software for 1080p.


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## rstokas (Oct 21, 2005)

got ya, no 1080 p


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

rstokas said:


> got ya, no 1080 p


Nope...just like there isn't one on any other sat or cable box at this time (for good reason - no 1080p broadcasts exist).


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

The fan in the HR21-700 is mounted just inside one of the side vents, whereas on the HR20-100 it's under the hard drive. If the fan becomes noisy (mine haven't yet), this could make a minor difference in sound. Otherwise, I have not detected any sound difference between the HR21-700, HR20-100 and HR10-250 I have, all stacked together.

The internal board design is VERY different and much more integrated than the HR20. No riser cards, the only cables off the board are for the S-Video jack and a ribbon to the front panel. Very clean.

As noted earlier, tolerance differences in hard drives will be the primary causes of noise level differences.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

sbl said:


> The fan in the HR21-700 is mounted just inside one of the side vents, whereas on the HR20-100 it's under the hard drive. If the fan becomes noisy (mine haven't yet), this could make a minor difference in sound. Otherwise, I have not detected any sound difference between the HR21-700, HR20-100 and HR10-250 I have, all stacked together.
> 
> The internal board design is VERY different and much more integrated than the HR20. No riser cards, the only cables off the board are for the S-Video jack and a ribbon to the front panel. Very clean.
> 
> As noted earlier, tolerance differences in hard drives will be the primary causes of noise level differences.


All excellent points!


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

sbl said:


> The fan in the HR21-700 is mounted just inside one of the side vents, whereas on the HR20-100 it's under the hard drive. If the fan becomes noisy (mine haven't yet), this could make a minor difference in sound. Otherwise, I have not detected any sound difference between the HR21-700, HR20-100 and HR10-250 I have, all stacked together.
> 
> The internal board design is VERY different and much more integrated than the HR20. No riser cards, the only cables off the board are for the S-Video jack and a ribbon to the front panel. Very clean.


It is indeed very clean (having looked inside mine of course  ). There is also the SATA cable that runs from the drive to the controller on the board too, but it's a short, flat cable, only just long enough to reach, and effectively insignificant in terms of internal airflow.


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## conchshell (Jun 8, 2007)

Does it have 30-second-skip instead of 30-second-slip or is it the same? TIA


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## Koz (Sep 16, 2006)

Slip, same as HR20.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

LameLefty said:


> It is indeed very clean (having looked inside mine of course  ).


I don't think any of us could resist cracking it open and taking a look around.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Jeremy W said:


> I don't think any of us could resist cracking it open and taking a look around.


Plus....we were asked to open the unit for a specific reason, and got a good "free peek".


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> Plus....we were asked to open the unit for a specific reason, and got a good "free peek".


I was actually trying to avoid mentioning that little tidbit, since we can't talk about it...


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Jeremy W said:


> I was actually trying to avoid mentioning that little tidbit, since we can't talk about it...


Talk about what, I didn't hear anything.....  :lol:

OK. I confess... there was a free coupon inside for a 20 oz bottle of Dr. Pepper.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> OK. I confess... there was a free coupon inside for a 20 oz bottle of Dr. Pepper.


Just wait until Earl sees this. You are in SOOOOOO much trouble! The first thing on the list of things that we couldn't talk about was the free soft drinks we were provided. What's next, telling them about the coupon for the free 2 liter of Pepsi that came with the gold-plated remotes we received as [strike]bribes[/strike] gifts?


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Jeremy W said:


> Just wait until Earl sees this. You are in SOOOOOO much trouble!


You mean you didin't get one??? lol: !rolling)


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> You mean you didin't get one??? lol: !rolling)


Of course I did, but I didn't go blabbing about it to the world!


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## Koz (Sep 16, 2006)

Mine just had sign that said "No, there really is no OTA tuner in here!"


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

Koz said:


> Mine just had sign that said "No, there really is no OTA tuner in here!"


:rolling:


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Koz said:



> Mine just had sign that said "No, there really is no OTA tuner in here!"


*That's a keeper. * :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

You guys got a free Dr. Pepper. I'm bummed.  

All I got was a disc labled: Super Sekret TiVo Software for +DVRs. !Devil_lol


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

RobertE said:


> You guys got a free Dr. Pepper. I'm bummed.
> 
> All I got was a disc labled: Super Sekret TiVo Software for +DVRs. !Devil_lol


OK...You win.


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## azarby (Dec 15, 2006)

RobertE said:


> You guys got a free Dr. Pepper. I'm bummed.
> 
> All I got was a disc labled: Super Sekret TiVo Software for +DVRs. !Devil_lol


I'm bummed too. I just got a caffeine free coke.

bob


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

Mine had a piece of paper that said, "Not a winner. Please play again soon!" :lol:


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Now that the secret of the coupon is cleared up...  

:backtotop


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## clemery (Nov 9, 2007)

I have been perusing this forum for several hours now - I am truly impressed with your community - what a great resource!

Now for my (I'm sure) really dumb question: I recently got an HR21 and am completely new to the possibility of networking DVR units and don't know anything about it (I didn't know you could until I stumbled across you all today). Can you simply use an ethernet cable directly from a PC to the HR21? I have a laptop that resides with my entertainment system, and that would be the easiest thing for me to do.

Thanks for putting up with us non-techies :sure:


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

clemery said:


> Can you simply use an ethernet cable directly from a PC to the HR21? I have a laptop that resides with my entertainment system, and that would be the easiest thing for me to do.


No, you need to get a router, or if you have one, connect the HR21 to it.


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## allenn (Nov 19, 2005)

Jeremy W said:


> No, you need to get a router, or if you have one, connect the HR21 to it.


Can you attach the HR21 to a wireless adapter that will talk to a wireless router?


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

allenn said:


> Can you attach the HR21 to a wireless adapter that will talk to a wireless router?


If it's an Ethernet adapter, yes. You can't use USB.


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## shendley (Nov 28, 2005)

I had a technician out today to look into a long standing problem I've had with intermittent loss of mpeg2 stations on one tuner and after he changed out my multiswitch and lnbs (for the second time!), he said the next thing they'd probably want to do is to replace my HR20 with an HR21 (apparentaly all they've got now) even though this is the third HR20 that's had this problem (so I don't think it's the box). As fate would have it my problem resurfaced only a couple of hours after he left so I'm weighing the costs and benefits of taking them up on the offer of an HR21. Are there any features that are activated in the 20 that aren't in the 21 (aside from the missing OTA tuner)? I use media share quite a bit so I'd be bummed if I couldn't do that with the 21. 

And, by the way: since those of you who have a 21 have now been able to sit with it for awhile, are you seeing any improvements over the 20 like, for instance, fewer problems with 771 messages of picture break up on mpeg4 broadcasts (the two main problems I'm dealing with now with my 20)?


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

shendley said:


> Are there any features that are activated in the 20 that aren't in the 21 (aside from the missing OTA tuner)? I use media share quite a bit so I'd be bummed if I couldn't do that with the 21.


Media Share is there. The only major feature it's missing right now is VOD. Other than that, there is some smaller stuff like hiding SD duplicates.


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## shendley (Nov 28, 2005)

Thanks! I don't use VOD that much and I now virtually always use an HD only channels guide so perhaps I'll consider their offer to trade in the 20 for the 21.



Jeremy W said:


> Media Share is there. The only major feature it's missing right now is VOD. Other than that, there is some smaller stuff like hiding SD duplicates.


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## Dr. Booda (Jun 18, 2007)

shendley said:


> And, by the way: since those of you who have a 21 have now been able to sit with it for awhile, are you seeing any improvements over the 20 like, for instance, fewer problems with 771 messages of picture break up on mpeg4 broadcasts (the two main problems I'm dealing with now with my 20)?


I've had the HR21 for three weeks now without any issues. I had to return three HR20 boxes for the exact issues you are describing (serious tuner problems), so I'd recommend the HR21 over the HR20 if you don't need OTA. It appears to be a better engineered box, although the software has a few minor quirks that need ironing out (nothing catastrophic).


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## clemery (Nov 9, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> No, you need to get a router, or if you have one, connect the HR21 to it.


Thanks for the answer, Jeremy! I got home and actually looked at my box, and it turns out to be an HR20-100S - I'm a bit bummed not to have the latest and greatest thing, but on the other hand, since I am completely new at this, it is probably better for me to have the model where more "tried and true" advice is available in this forum.


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## clemery (Nov 9, 2007)

Oh, yeah, one more question: On my HR20-100S I can't get the "My Channels" favorites to work - when I choose the option that I want to only see the channels I receive, almost all channels stay listed, way more than what I get. I called customer service and was told that feature just "doesn't work yet" and will work in the future. Is this true?


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

clemery said:


> I called customer service and was told that feature just "doesn't work yet" and will work in the future. Is this true?


Surprisingly, yes. You actually got some factual information from a CSR. Consider yourself very lucky.


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## clemery (Nov 9, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> Surprisingly, yes. You actually got some factual information from a CSR. Consider yourself very lucky.


Wow, batting 1000 here - good info from a CSR, and found this forum! I am glad to know that I didn't waste the huge amount of time it took for me to manually make a favorites list of the channels I receive! :grin:


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## shendley (Nov 28, 2005)

This makes me really tempted to give Bruisters (our local DTV techs) a call to bring me out a 21. But I was just reading about a few people having problems getting the 21 to work with the Seagate FAP esata drive. I would definitely miss the extra recording space. Anyone with a 21 and an esata drive, I would love to hear from you!



Dr. Booda said:


> I've had the HR21 for three weeks now without any issues. I had to return three HR20 boxes for the exact issues you are describing (serious tuner problems), so I'd recommend the HR21 over the HR20 if you don't need OTA. It appears to be a better engineered box, although the software has a few minor quirks that need ironing out (nothing catastrophic).


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## Gatorfan11 (Nov 15, 2007)

RecRoomFan said:


> Will the new HR21-700 have the dual buffer feature some of us miss from the HR10-250?


Simple question that I just never seem to find an answer to anywhere...when will Direct have DLBs? Any ideas? And if nothing on the roadmap (and I'm tired of hearing the "Tivo has a patent" excuse) then what are some workarounds?

I would like to go to HD now that they are offering the additional channels but DLBs are the one feature of Tivo that we must have...the rest I really don't seem to use or notice.

Thanks for the info.


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

Gatorfan11 said:


> Simple question that I just never seem to find an answer to anywhere...when will Direct have DLBs? Any ideas?


It's not coming anytime soon, if ever.



> And if nothing on the roadmap (and I'm tired of hearing the "Tivo has a patent" excuse) then what are some workarounds?


You simply record one or both of the programs you want to jump in and out of, then go to the Playlist and start the recordings. You can then use the previous button to jump back and forth.


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## Gatorfan11 (Nov 15, 2007)

say-what said:


> You simply record one or both of the programs you want to jump in and out of, then go to the Playlist and start the recordings. You can then use the previous button to jump back and forth.


Remember that this have to work for my wife. Not saying she is a simpleton but I hate fielding tech support calls while on the road for work. How does this workaround go over with the little ladies?

And at the end of the day would you recommend this new model?


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

Gatorfan11 said:


> Remember that this have to work for my wife. Not saying she is a simpleton but I hate fielding tech support calls while on the road for work. How does this workaround go over with the little ladies?


Beats me - I didn't use DLB on TIVO and I don't use the workaround. But it did work the one time I tested it out of curiosity.



> And at the end of the day would you recommend this new model?


I have 2 HR20's and 1 HR21. I have no problem recommending the HR21.


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