Opening a DVB-C Stream

[b-frame]

Hi!
I just bought a new DVB-C adapter card which i built into a free PCI slot (TechniSat CableStar HD2). Now I want VLC simply to play a video stream received from the card. I experimented a lot with the GUI settings but i didn't have success. I did the same with the command line. The error message i get is:

VLC can't open the MRL 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000'. View the error log for further details.

(Translated from german) By the way, i didn't find the errror log, as well.

With "DVBViewer TE", which is the program supplied by TechniSat, it works fine. So I took a channel which worked with "DVBViewer TE" and read the channel info. Here it is:

Channel Properties
===================
Name: ProSieben
Category: ProSiebenSat.1
Video PID: 511
Audio PID: 512
Teletext PID: 33
PMT PID: 97
Video Type: MPEG2
Audio Type: MPEG
PCR PID: 511
Service ID: 898

Transponder Properties
=======================
Frequency(kHz): 618000
Symbolrate: 6900
Stream ID: 1107
Modulation: QAM 256

DVB Network Properties
=======================
Root: Scan 01.06.2011
Tuner Type: Cable
Network ID: 1

Now the question is, how do i get those parameters into a command line for VLC?

I also used Google and Bing to solve my problem, but i couldn't find anything helpful. Also in the VLC Play Howto the DVB-x playing seems to be missing.

My VLC version is 1.1.9 and it runs on Windows XP Professional.

Thanks in advance.

[Rémi Denis-Courmont]

You need to specify the symbol rate and the modulation, 6900000 and 256-QAM in this case. Otherwise, VLC cannot configure the digital demodulator.

[b-frame]

Thank you for replying. But still it doesn't work. This is my command line:

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"I:\Programme\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" dvb-c://frequency=618000000 :dvb-srate=6900000 :dvb-modulation=256

Some mistake in there?

[VLC_help]

If you open Tools -> Messages (set Verbosity to 2), then press Play again, what does the log complain?

[b-frame]

Ah, good one! Finally there's a debug output:

main debug: processing request item dvb-c://frequency=618000000 node Wiedergabeliste skip 0
main debug: resyncing on dvb-c://frequency=618000000
main debug: dvb-c://frequency=618000000 is at 0
main debug: starting new item
main debug: creating new input thread
main debug: Creating an input for 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000'
main debug: thread (input) created at priority 1 (../.././src/input/input.c:220)
main debug: thread started
main debug: using timeshift granularity of 50 MiB
main debug: using timeshift path 'I:\DOKUME~1\ADMINI~1\LOKALE~1\Temp'
main debug: `dvb-c://frequency=618000000' gives access `dvb-c' demux `' path `frequency=618000000'
main debug: creating demux: access='dvb-c' demux='' path='frequency=618000000'
main debug: looking for access_demux module: 0 candidates
main debug: no access_demux module matched "dvb-c"
main debug: TIMER module_need() : 0.000 ms - Total 0.000 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 0.000 ms)
main debug: creating access 'dvb-c' path='frequency=618000000'
main debug: looking for access module: 1 candidate
qt4 debug: IM: Setting an input
bda warning: CreateTuneRequest: Cannot find a suitable System Tuning Space: hr=0x80004005
bda warning: SubmitDVBCTuneRequest: Cannot create Tune Request: hr=0x80004005
bda warning: DVB_Open: Unsupported Network dvb-c
main debug: no access module matching "dvb-c" could be loaded
main debug: TIMER module_need() : 11.000 ms - Total 11.000 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 11.000 ms)
main error: open of `dvb-c://frequency=618000000' failed: (null)
main debug: finished input
main debug: thread ended
main debug: dead input
main debug: thread times: real 0m0.015625s, kernel 0m0.015625s, user 0m0.000000s
main debug: changing item without a request (current 0/1)
main debug: nothing to play
qt4 debug: IM: Deleting the input
main debug: Destroying the input for 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000'
main debug: TIMER input launching for 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000' : 26.000 ms - Total 26.000 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 26.000 ms)

If it's important: "Wiedergabeliste" is german and means "Playlist".

[b-frame]

Now I found this thread:
viewtopic.php?p=207474

What I understood is that I need to create a tuner space first. But it still isn't quite clear for me how the dvb-network-name and dvb-create-name parameters work and whether I really need them or maybe some others.

[b-frame]

After some searching with regedit.exe I found out, that there seems to be a global tuning space in the registry:Uploaded with imageshack.us

Also I found a key named "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AtscDvbNetProvider\DVBC" but with no values in it.

So, I thought why not editing the cmd-line like this:

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"I:\Programme\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" dvb-c://frequency=618000000 :dvb-srate=6900000 :dvb-modulation=256 :dvb-network-name="Cable"

Still, the error log is the same, even after lots of time experimenting.

Edit: Stupid me, I couldn't read. Of course this is obviously NOT a DVB-C tuning space, otherwise the description would not be "Local *Analog* Cable". So does anybody know, how to create a DVB-C tuning space for Win XP?

Thank you in advance!

[b-frame]

I achieved a small success, I guess. First, I updated VLC to version 1.1.10. Second, I found this page with a list of entries that I probably need in my registry. So I added those entries:

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[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Tuning Spaces\51] @="{C6B14B32-76AA-4A86-A7AC-5C79AAF58DA7}" "Name"="DVB-C Tuning Space" "Description"="bla" "Network Type"="{DC0C0FE7-0485-4266-B93F-68FBF80ED834}" "Frequency Mapping"=hex:2d,00,31,00 "System Type"=dword:00000000 "Network ID"=dword:ffffffff "Spectral Inversion"=dword:00000003 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Tuning Spaces\51\Default Locator] @="{C531D9FD-9685-4028-8B68-6E1232079F1E}" "Frequency"=dword:00060310 "InnerFECMethod"=dword:ffffffff "InnerFECRate"=dword:ffffffff "OuterFECMethod"=dword:ffffffff "OuterFECRate"=dword:ffffffff "ModulationType"=dword:00000003 "SymbolRate"=dword:00001af4

Now I don't get any longer an error message by VLC when I type:

Code: Select all

"I:\Programme\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" dvb-c://frequency=618000000 :dvb-srate=6900000 :dvb-modulation=256 :dvb-network-name="DVB-C Tuning Space"

But unfortunately I still don't get a video (or audio) either. This is my new debug output after pressing play:

main debug: processing request item dvb-c://frequency=618000000 node Wiedergabeliste skip 0
main debug: resyncing on dvb-c://frequency=618000000
main debug: dvb-c://frequency=618000000 is at 0
main debug: starting new item
main debug: creating new input thread
main debug: Creating an input for 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000'
main debug: thread (input) created at priority 1 (../.././src/input/input.c:220)
main debug: thread started
main debug: using timeshift granularity of 50 MiB
main debug: using timeshift path 'I:\DOKUME~1\ADMINI~1\LOKALE~1\Temp'
main debug: `dvb-c://frequency=618000000' gives access `dvb-c' demux `' path `frequency=618000000'
main debug: creating demux: access='dvb-c' demux='' path='frequency=618000000'
main debug: looking for access_demux module: 0 candidates
main debug: no access_demux module matched "dvb-c"
main debug: TIMER module_need() : 1.000 ms - Total 1.000 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 1.000 ms)
main debug: creating access 'dvb-c' path='frequency=618000000'
main debug: looking for access module: 1 candidate
bda debug: CreateTuneRequest: Find Tuning Space: DVB-C Tuning Space
qt4 debug: IM: Setting an input
bda debug: CreateTuneRequest: Using Tuning Space: DVB-C Tuning Space
bda debug: Build: Using Tuning Space ID 51
bda debug: FindFilter: Connected TechniSat Mantis DVBC BDA Receiver
bda debug: BDAGraph: Using adapter 0
bda debug: FindFilter: Connected TechniSat Mantis DVBC Capture BDA Receiver
bda debug: Build: Trying connecting with subtype MEDIASUBTYPE_MPEG2_TRANSPORT
bda warning: Build: Cannot connect Sample Grabber to Capture device: hr=0x80004005 (try 1/2)
bda debug: Build: Trying connecting with subtype KSDATAFORMAT_SUBTYPE_BDA_MPEG2_TRANSPORT
bda debug: FindFilter: Connected BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter
bda debug: Graph started hr=0x0
main debug: using access module "bda"
main debug: TIMER module_need() : 3522.000 ms - Total 3522.000 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 3522.000 ms)
main debug: Using AStream*Block
main debug: pre buffering

Interesting, that I get an error, when I stop it:

main debug: incoming request - stopping current input
main debug: dying input
main debug: prebuffering done 0 bytes in 214s - 0 KiB/s
main error: cannot pre fill buffer
main warning: cannot create a stream_t from access
main debug: removing module "bda"
main debug: dying input
main debug: dead input
main debug: thread ended
main debug: thread times: real 3m38.390625s, kernel 0m0.078125s, user 0m0.015625s
qt4 debug: IM: Deleting the input
main debug: TIMER input launching for 'dvb-c://frequency=618000000' : 218396.010 ms - Total 218396.010 ms / 1 intvls (Avg 218396.000 ms)

It would be super, if someone could write an answer. I almost feel like a self-entertainer after writing the 4th post without an answer in this thread...

[VLC_help]

The tuner is used and stream is opened, but nothing sane is received so frequency or something else is wrong.

[b-frame]

Thank you a lot!!! It works, I get a picture! (No sound yet, but I think I can manage that on my own, if not, I will ask here again). What did I do wrong?

Code: Select all

:dvb-srate=6900000

There are easily three zeros too much

So the correct command line is:

Code: Select all

"I:\Programme\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" dvb-c://frequency=618000000 :dvb-srate=6900 :dvb-modulation=256 :dvb-network-name="DVB-C Tuning Space"

Thank you a lot, all of you!!!

[paralichko]

Hi,
did You succees with sound ? And how ? Did You try to stream whole transponder ?

BR
Gabriel

[b-frame]

I didn't success with sound because I didn't try it. The only task of the computer, which I configured here, is to multicast the video- and audio-data to the local network (using --sout).

Did You try to stream whole transponder?

Well, I tried it, but always failed. I'll try again with vlc 2.x when i have enough free time.